im using the fake stones shader to make large outcrops on top of a fractal terrain. how could i make it look as though the stones are somewhat buried in the sand?, to look as though the "sand" is blown against them, so they do not look as much like they are sitting on the surface...i think i have to use the altitude and/or slope constraints but im having problems making the terrain look displaced from the stones...
Rich
in this quick and dirty example i use a rock inside the crater. with the correct parameters you might achieve the desired result. not, with the fake stones, more dificult because you cannot do pops of craters, but you can always use the rock object for the foreground with the crater trick...
Try plugging the fake stones into a surface layer. Through my experience, I have found that that will result in the stones being less high and seeming more integrated into the surface. Also make sure that you have "Only displace upwards" unchecked. This is a link to an image where I did this, except that I did check the displace upwards option. When unchecked, the stones should be farther "under" the terrain.
http://www.ashundar.com/CPG/displayimage.php?pos=-3578
You might also be able to use an inverted version of the Fake Stones shader as a blend shader on a displacement with a small positive offset. The displacement would have to happen *after* the Fake Stones to avoid a loop. You'd need to mask the effect of the displacement in order to avoid simply pushing the stones up so that's why you use the Fake Stones as a blend shader.
- Oshyan