Skip to main content

Material Instance

Lindsey Tropf avatar
Written by Lindsey Tropf
Updated this week

These are reusable instances/variations of a material base that can be flexibly adjusted and utilized depending on the mesh it is applied to. These instances are what are applied to mesh to give them their look.

This section overviews how to create a material instance in the CAS.

Getting to and using the Material Instance Editor

Let’s go through how to access the Material Instance Editor and create material instances in the CAS.

1. From the main CAS menu, select the Material Instance link.

2. You will find yourself in the Material Instance page.

3. Scroll to the bottom of the page and select the + Create New button.

4. The Material Instance Editor will open, allowing you to create a material instance.

5. To start, choose a material base from the material baser library in the first dropdown box on the left.

6. Next, choose a mesh from the mesh library in the subsequence dropdown box. This mesh is not part of the material instance, it is purely a reference for what the material instance might look like on a mesh and thus will not be saved. If you wish to make future edits to this material instance, you may choose any mesh again for reference.

7. Once you have done that, choose a texture from the texture library in the Texture Options button.

8. You may continue to adjust the options to your liking, using whichever mesh you would like as reference. Certain materials might have multiple textures applicable to them if they are vertex colored, if the material base has been set up as such.

9. Finally, name your material instance and then select Save and Upload. Your material instance has been created and added to the Material Instance Library. You may continue to iterate the material in the Material Instance Editor as long as you save and upload using the same material instance name.

Best Practices

Here are some general guidelines for creating material instances in the Material Instance Editor:

  • As mentioned, the mesh dropbox is simply a preview of how the material instance you are creating will appear on the chosen mesh. Be sure to work on your intended mesh while working on your material instance for best results but also feel free to look at how the instance might look on other meshes.

  • We recommend naming your material bases in a way that best makes sense to you and your organisational sensibilities. Be sure to ensure that you are not overriding anyone else’s material instances as you work on them.

  • Alternatively, if you simply want to apply a material with a texture to a prop, we have some default material instances in the library that you can work off. Simply open the desired default material instance, rename and save it, then work off that new material instance as desired. Default material instances are found below:

  • default_characterMaterial - This is the material we use for our in-game characters and creatures

  • default_singleTexture - This is the material we use for assets like props with a single texture file and primarily uses a standard diffuse rendering

  • default_vertexColor_RGB - This is the material we use for assets that use vertex colors excluding the alpha channel

  • default_vertexColor_RGBA - This is the material we use for assets that use vertex colors including the alpha channel

Did this answer your question?