GRASS_FX! (CSP 245 and above)
Here's a quick explanation on how to apply procedural grass to your track:
1) Make sure this system is
enabled, check CM settings and the Grass_fx.ini file in the extension folder.
I would disable... CAST_SHADOWS=0, GROUND_COVERING_GRASS=0, EXTRA_DENSE=0
Shadows can be a bit weird, ground covering grass helps with blending, but looks horrible at the moment, and hides your grass detail maps, you might not want that... and extra dense, only if you really have the hardware for it!
You'll be able to see it in action in a few tracks: Brands Hatch, Spa, Highlands, Nurburgring...
2) If your track has a configuration ini file already, great, if not, will need to create one!
The best method to do this now is to create a new folder inside your track/project, and name that folder
extension . Inside that folder, create a text file and name it
ext_config.ini . This is a good way to create configurations files since its prioritized over any other folder, and from a few patch versions ago, you can edit it in realtime as well.
3) Inside that configuration ini, you need to add the following:
[GRASS_FX]
GRASS_MATERIALS =
the name of the material(s) you want procedural grass on top of
OR
GRASS_MESHES =
the name of the mesh(s) you want procedural grass on top of
You may also need to insert the following tags, to trim, tweak, etc.
OCCLUDING_MESHES =
any mesh name entered here will serve as a boundary "zone" to not have grass on.. (ie, kerbs, if they overlap a grass area)
OCCLUDING_MATERIALS =
same as above, but with a material instead
OCCLUDING_MATERIALS_ALPHA =
if an overlaying mesh has an alpha channel, say a gravel edge for example, you can enter the material name of that edge, and this tag will use the white part of the alpha for boundaries!
ORIGINAL_GRASS_MATERIALS=
enter here name of the existing 3D grass material if it exists, it will hide it automatically when grass_fx is enabled
AND
This system relies on grass color to generate procedural grass objects, it mostly sees green, but... there are cases when the track or project doesnt really feature a green grass surface for whatever reason... Kyalami, Sebring, a patchy dead/dry area for example...
COLOR_FACTOR =
numbers higher than 1 will allow grass to spawn on not so green surfaces, im assuming less than 1 will require more green?
TWEAKS
HEIGHT_MULT = t
his is the grass height parameters, i think default is 0.5?
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There are more tags that can be used, and ways to clean things up/optimize... I'll show examples later on, but this should help get you a preview of grass_fx! There are also a few examples in inis for other tracks that can be used for reference:
https://github.com/ac-custom-shaders-patch/acc-extension-config/tree/master/config/tracks
Its an early system with lots of bugs... Ilja even mentioned he might replace certain things, but its safe to say its the future of AC "vegetation" modding.
Kyalami - Conventional grass scattering method:
View attachment 3970
Procedural grass:
[GRASS_FX]
GRASS_MATERIALS = Base_Grass_Edge, Base_Grass_Tile, Embank_Tile, Embank_Grassy_Tile
OCCLUDING_MESHES = edge??, Cars??, Canopy??
OCCLUDING_MATERIALS_ALPHA = Gravel_Edge
HEIGHT_MULT = 0.3
COLOR_FACTOR = 1.06
View attachment 3971
Hope this helps.
