In this video, Ashif Ali demonstrates how to create a weapon effect with a glowing outline using Unreal Engine’s particle system. The tutorial shows how to set up particles behind a weapon mesh, create a simple outline material, and adjust particle behaviors to achieve a dynamic and visually appealing effect.
Key Points:
Creating a Static Mesh:
Import the Infinity Blade weapon (or any mesh) from the Epic content and convert it to a static mesh.
Organize the content into folders for better project management.
Setting Up Particle Effects:
Create a new particle system folder (e.g., “FX”) and add an emitter for the weapon’s particles.
Choose a mesh renderer for the particle system and apply the appropriate texture to it.
Duplicate the emitter to create two particle systems: one for the weapon’s normal mesh and one for the outline.
Creating an Outline Material:
For the outline, create a simple unlit material that is two-sided to allow the outline to be visible from all angles.
Use the vertex normal to increase the size of the outline, ensuring it’s slightly bigger than the original mesh.
Add a dynamic parameter to control the outline’s appearance, including its color and size.
Applying the Outline Material:
Apply the outline material to the second emitter, ensuring the mesh is rendered with the outline effect.
The outline effect can be adjusted by changing the alpha and size parameters to get the desired look.
Emitting Particles from the Weapon:
Set up a second emitter that uses the weapon’s static mesh location as the spawn point for particles.
Disable velocity and gravity for the particles initially and use a point velocity to control the direction and movement of the particles.
Ensure the particles spawn behind the weapon mesh by using the camera offset with a negative value.
Adjusting Particle Appearance:
Use an additive material for brighter particles or a transparent material to make darker particles.
Introduce curl noise for a more random and natural particle movement.
Control particle size and spawn rate to achieve the desired effect.
Tweaking Particle Behavior:
Set the color curve and scale color for the edge particles, making them more dynamic and visually striking.
Fine-tune the particle system by adjusting the brightness, size, and other visual properties.
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Additional Notes:
Two-sided materials are essential for outlining the weapon mesh, as they allow visibility from all angles.
Using additive materials creates bright effects, while transparent materials are better for darker effects, like the red outline in this tutorial.
The velocity of the particles can be fine-tuned using curl noise for subtle, random movements to make the effect feel more organic.
I am Ashif Ali, Real-Time VFX Artist, I make Unreal Engine Niagara Tutorial on this channel. I've made it my mission to share my knowledge and expertise with the world through my YouTube channel. So why not join me on this exciting adventure? Follow me on my social links, subscribe to my channel, and support my growth as a creator. Together, we can create amazing things and take our skills to new heights. And who knows, you might even get access to some of my exclusive files for free!