How to apply , scale alpha / bump maps to clouds?

[Ealianis]

So I'm trying scene with a spinning weather system like a hurricane. I was provided a link to these files:

http://forums.planetside.co.uk/index.php?topic=11655.msg118271#msg118271.

I am attempting to learn this program by trial and error but an running into a few issues.

Can anyone provide a link to a tutorial on how do to this properly, I can find none.


So far I have created a shader and set the height-field shader to the map of the hurricane provided. Then I create a cloud layer (/cumulus) and set the pattern to that newly created height field shader?

[Hetzen]

Double click on some of the red nodes attached to the cloud layes in the supplied .tgd. Freelancah has kindly set everyting up and re-named some of the nodes to help you understand what each are doing.

He's used image map shaders to project the supplied hurricane shapes to mask the cloud fractals.

Clouds work differently to land displacements, so you don't need to go near a Heightfield with these masks.

[Ealianis]

Well I finally got my camera set up the where I need to render some images. But now I need to animate the cloud movement and get a 10 to 20 second (15-20 fps) animation that I can loop.

But I am unable to render a sequence, I found a video tutorial on a guy rendering a sequence but mine keeps defaulting to one frame. Do the clouds automatically move , what dictates their speed , rotation and movement?

Is it normal for a 2560 x 1440 render to take near 3 years for one frame!?

[red_planet]

Possibly a daft question.. but do you have the "Deep + Animation"  edition ?

[Ealianis]

No just Deep, I guess that answers my problem!