Unreal Engine 5 - 3D Volumes From Textures Niagara Tutorial

Topic: Texture To 3D Volumes | Niagara 3D Volumes From Textures
In this video we use Niagara Fluids to create a volume and control its density with Texture Maps. We also go over how you can use the new Unreal 5.2 Feature "Heterogenous Volumes" to add interactive shading to this volume that works with all Lights in Deferred Rendering.
If your interested in other new features in Unreal 5.2 check out:
Nanite Displacement - • Unreal Engine 5.2 - Di...
Intro To Substrate Shading - • Unreal Engine 5.2 - In...
If your interested in creating Volumes in HLSL with Raymarching check out:
• UE5 Tutorial - HLSL - ...
Troubleshooting Section / Answers
-- Can't Find "Grid 3D Unit Coord*" --
Make sure you have "Library Only" checkbox in the top right of when your searching for nodes. Sometimes that will filter out nodes you may need to use/find.
-- Unreal 5.1 Differences --
You will only see the Sample Texture show up if you have created a Sample Texture, at (4:33) I create a Sample Texture and this is what we are referencing when we attach these Sampled values to our Density instead of the default value of 1. Now with 5.1 I think it only auto shows in the search if variable types are matching so there's two things you can try.
1. Look for your Sample Texture Color Parameter from your Parameters Tab and Drag and Drop It into Density.
2. Click on the Down Arrow On The Density and select "Make Float From Linear Color". Then on the Linear Color where you see RGBA all having 1 values click on that Down arrow and Search Sample and you should find your Sample Texture.
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Tags:
Unreal Volumes, Volume Textures, Volumetric, Volume Shading, Niagara Fluids Volumes, Niagara Fluids Tutorial, Heterogenous Volumes, Game Development, Unreal Engine Tutorial, Unreal 5.2 New Features, 3D Textures, Custom Clouds

[@lordkelvin1]

Just found your channel. Super useful stuff for a TA like me! :) Keep it up

[@ChrisChoiThird]

Thank you for this great tutorial.

[@wewantmoreparty]

Awesome

[@res0lve]

Could you expand more on how to create a good smoke for a smoke grenade from this technique? Could I just use any smoke texture on the Niagara mesh for that?

[@jamesonvparker]

Hi @renderBucket. This seems to be so close to how to make a volumetric tornado. Could you please do a tutorial that focuses on that too? This is the closet to understanding volumetric textures that I've been yet.

[@hermannmuller5313]

Hello! Thanks so much for tutorial. I create cloud from this explain and add curl noise for inner velocity. It looks nice and i want to use velocity. But i have some problem with scattering: my cloud scattering too fast and disappear or in this time filling all volume. Do you have some thinks about it? Can i loop it somehow? Thanks for answer!

[@omidhs2000]

Hey, thank u for the super nice tutorials!!! I tried to project from 3 Axes but i dont get the feedback...the 3rd texture muss set to x=y any=x???? not sure...i dont get the same cloud puffy box like u

[@jackkim1018]

Hi, first very thank you for nice tut but I got a problem.. The material very weird glow. MI_HeterigeneousVolume_basic. My UE version 5.3,, I really want to finish this tut so help me

[@justinederuyck2016]

Ditto mine looks like a glowing orb

[@spectrecular9721]

Yep, same here in 5.3

[@importon]

Very cool. Could this be combined with flipbooks for each axis to make a poor man's VDB or sorts?

[@jeffreyvadala7028]

interested in this too! It looks like you could at very least render each page of the flipbook as a 1 unit deep slice, then line up slices...

[@AntrygJones]

Could you sample a material that uses a flipbook?

[@eyezlee1142]

Nice tutorial! Have you tried to sample 3D textures instead of 2D textures for 3D volume? For example render target volumes.

[@renderbucket]

Totally possible, but would be a little bit more complex to setup. Depending on what you are using this for, Sparse Volume Textures might also be a possible solution.

[@eyezlee1142]

thanks for the reply! I'm sampling 3D texture as a velocity field to my fluids. I took a look at SVT, iirc it can only be used in material instead of Niagara, and UE team told me SVT is not intended to be updated in real time, it will be very slow.@@renderbucket

[@ChengwuWang-zh1zm]

@@eyezlee1142 Have you made it? I don't know how to sample a pesudo volume texture in niagara either. The settings are complex.🤔

[@eyezlee1142]

@@ChengwuWang-zh1zm yesss I made it! Using Render Target Volume :)

[@ChengwuWang-zh1zm]

@@eyezlee1142 Cool!😆

[@spectrecular9721]

Any chance we can get a 5.3 or 5.4 update to this? Can't seem to get homogeneous texture to work in 5.3+

[@stereosteyn]

how would one get the volume to cast a shadow on the ground?

[@Elkkkkkk]

has anyone else in 5.3 been running into a weird light strobing thing when following along with the tut?

[@jackkim1018]

same...

[@johnfredcee]

I, also have this problem. Raymarching material works fine, the Heterogenous one does not, have carefully checked for modifications. I guess, it's still a beta.

[@user-ic3xf3lz8v]

Does systematic UE teaching exist?

[@SanjeevKumar-be4dd]

Everything things is changed now in unreal 5.3 please update the video.....i'm unable to do nothing in new version

[@ericdrob]

They got rid of the ability to break the uv channels in 5.4

[@mindped]

what version of unreal? Are you using. 5.1.1 i get stuck on 13:50 or so.... there are no options when i type sample for the SIM GRID DEnsity In fact around 9:40 Grid3D Unit Coorde doesnt exist either... I know u just uploaded this vid 3 days ago... but i think u should take it back down lol.... its not relevant and doesnt work. Or at least mention wich version of ue5 u used.

[@renderbucket]

This was done in 5.2 but should be compatible with any previous versions with Niagara Fluids. You will only see the Sample Texture show up if you have created a Sample Texture, at (4:33) I create a Sample Texture and this is what we are referencing when we attach these Sampled values to our Density instead of the default value of 1. Now with 5.1 I think it only auto shows in the search if variable types are matching so there's two things you can try. 1. Look for your Sample Texture Color Parameter from your Parameters Tab and Drag and Drop It into Density. 2. Click on the Down Arrow On The Density and select "Make Float From Linear Color". Then on the Linear Color where you see RGBA all having 1 values click on that Down arrow and Search Sample and you should find your Sample Texture.

[@renderbucket]

If you don't see Grid 3D Unit Coord, make sure you have "Library Only" option off when searching for the nodes in the Source Filtering. Otherwise it may hide nodes your trying to find.

[@alexandredag]

@@renderbucket better put this in highlit, on the desrition. I had the same problem too