View source for Terragen Tips and Tricks

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=== [http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=6442.0 Render settings recommendations]===
Some tips on how to optimize your render times and quality thanks to Oshyan.

=== [http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=6358.0 Ideas on how to make caves]===
Few ideas in this post of how to do caves.  dandelO found using a plane object with a crater shader rotated, and Seth uses canyons converging

=== Waterfalls ===
[http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=9961.msg103924#msg103924 From water] - A method of creating a  waterfall effect via displacement shaders, with a shared demonstration .tgd, located on the Planetside forums.
<br>
[http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=6454.msg68227#msg68227 From clouds] - a method of creating waterfalls from cloud objects with a painted shader.

=== Redirect and Warp Shaders ===
Details about how they work with displacement. http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=7035.0

===Converting xFrog Trees and Plants in TG2 to TGO===
When the xFrog plant or tree is not in the TG2 native format of TGO, then this will help you transform that object for use in Terragen 2.


1.  Take the LWO xFrog tree and all associated files into PoseRay. <br/>
2.  The branches are all adjusted by setting the UV for each to Cylindrical and x=0, y=0, z=1.  Weld UV Coordinates is checked.<br/>
3.  Hit update under UV for each branch changed in #2.<br/>
4.  Go to each Material in Basic Texture Properties and make sure that the TIF files are used as the Bump Maps for all.<br/>
5.  Go to each leaf Material in Basic Texture Properties and make sure that the TIF files are used Transparency Maps; invert mapping is unchecked.<br/>
6.  Make sure under Material / Finish that the Metallic check-box is unchecked.<br/>
7.  Hit update under Basic Texture Properties for all changes in #4, #5 and #6.<br/>
8.  Export object as an object file.<br/>
9.  Bring into TG2 and adjust any changes that didn't go through, like displacement maps or Alpha maps.<br/>
10.  Under the Opacity tab, make sure that for each texture associated with that leaf, that it has its Opacity set for 1, that it has the appropriate TIF file and that it has Use Alpha Channel checked.<br/>
11.  Once everything is completed in TG2 for the object, save this new object as a TGO.<br/>

=== dandelO's Terragen 2 Pages ===
Some demonstration pages and TG2 help files. Also contains an ever growing collection of free Terragen 2 presets, in the 'dandelO's Public Library' section. Updated periodically. http://sites.google.com/site/d4nd310/

=== Multicoloured Single Populations ===
Some ideas for per-instance colour variation(over the entire scale of any population) inside a single object population. 
2 methods; One image map based version from Dune... http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=7686.0
One internal, TG2 only based version, from dandelO... http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=7736.0

=== Power Fractal Lessons ===
Probably the ''best'' introduction and description that you are likely to find anywhere online regarding the very important power fractal shader. Lesson by Volker Harun. http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=2287.msg22357#msg22357

=== Global Illumination Examples page ===
This is a page based on a number of various different Terragen 2's global illumination(GI) quality settings. Some basic objects, in a basic, TG2-built, illumination room. 
It includes all the rendered output images of each setting that it describes, with a rough guide on the ascending render time for each setting, in relation to the previous setting's time. This page can only give a very rough, relative guide to time differences between settings; ''e.g. 'Setting A' = this long. 'Setting B' = 3x as long as 'A''', and so on, it would be impossible to estimate on specific render times when using any of the settings in a particular Terragen 2 scene you have made. Hopefully, though, this page will let you be the judge of that and help you pick a good balance of time/quality for your scene's GI settings. 
Also, for direct comparison purposes, a short video rolls the rendered images on top of each other, with ascending GI quality. You can see the differences in GI output very clearly with the images and video of this illumination room. http://sites.google.com/site/d4nd310/tg2gi