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Creating a Rocket Swarm with Procedural Volume Copying in Houdini

In this Houdini tutorial, we will learn how to use procedural volume copying to create a rocket swarm that is both efficient and flexible. Software required: Houdini 13.0.447.

Sam Rickles - Pluralsight course - Creating a Rocket Swarm with Procedural Volume Copying in Houdini
by Sam Rickles

What you'll learn

In this Houdini tutorial, we will learn how to use procedural volume copying to create a rocket swarm that is both efficient and flexible. It will allow us to make modifications to timing, positioning, and scale without having to recreate or resim the effect from scratch. To achieve this effect, we will setup several basic pyro simulations. We will then create a particle simulation with custom attributes to use as our copy points. Then, we'll use the Copy SOP and copy stamping to position our pyro simulations correctly. We will use VBD cloud modeling tools in conjunction with our particle simulation to make rocket trails. Finally, we will bring all these elements together, shade them, and render in Mantra. Software required: Houdini 13.0.447.

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About the author

Sam Rickles - Pluralsight course - Creating a Rocket Swarm with Procedural Volume Copying in Houdini
Sam Rickles

Sam Rickles is a Lead FX Technical Director with Sony Pictures Imageworks. A six year veteran in the VFX industry, Sam works primarily with Houdini to achieve his effects. His work can be seen in seven feature films, including Hotel Transylvania 2, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, and Edge of Tomorrow.

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