What you'll learn

In this series of Sotfimage tutorials, we'll learn how to begin using the powerful ICE procedural modeling tools in Softimage. By harnessing the speed and flexibility of ICE, we can create some amazing effects and unleash our artistic creativity. We'll begin this tutorial by learning the new terms and nodes we have access to, such as the topology data type, modeling ICE Trees, and empty meshes. Next we'll learn about some limitations of the topology nodes by creating an ICE tree that deletes all polygons outside a Null. We'll then begin our main shatter project by creating all the objects and nodes to shatter our own object. Then we'll learn methods of controlling our shatter points and correctly setting the Chunk IDs. Finally we will break our chunks out into separate meshes with a compound we will create using the topology nodes. As a bonus, we will set-up a basic rigid-body simulation and learn how to set the center of mass using a quick custom compound. Software required: Softimage 2012 SP1.