Polysphere Population

[WAS]

What's the intention here? I don't understand what this is for?

You can't displace the sphere with a mesh displacer, and you can't force displacement either as it explodes into almost a particle like effect, with high sides, or seams don't align with low (and shadow remains like a circle despite mesh a completely different shape, some times the shadow starting before the object).

I can't really think of a use beyond spheres or light spheres.

[Matt]

The mesh displacer feature will be added to the Poly Sphere. Even without that feature the Poly Sphere could be useful anywhere you need a sphere without displacement. The non-displaceables render faster.

[WAS]

I was just trying to think why I needed a sphere pop in a scene. I guess as light sources. As is it's not very useful beyond being awesome in the polyside part (like for rocks).

[Matt]

I was just trying to think why I needed a sphere pop in a scene.

Its use in a scene is not mandatory. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[WAS]

Its use in a scene is not mandatory. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Though like everything else, there is an obvious discernible use to a feature pertaining to a landscape generation software... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ In general this was kinda just slapped in without any real transparent reason. If random spheres are a priority for a TG feature, I can name dozens of others that maybe should have been priority that peoples have been asking for. No reason to be passive aggressive, you know you'll only get it 10 fold back. I was just asking what it could be for in it's current form.

[WAS]

I'd also say the rendering time saved is negligible, especially considering the result. Upping polygons for a identical smooth sphere yields almost 18 seconds, so no real savings. I had to use a stopwatch though. It'd be cool if TG had millisecond timer.