Level Editor/Tools/Displacement

Displacement
Where	Toolbar, painting and surfaces
Shortcut	1-4 sculpt modes, 5-8 paint layers, 9 / 0 cut / fill hole, T sculpt or paint, [ ] radius, Shift+[ ] strength
Works on	Sculpts and paints displacement faces
Settings	Tool Properties and the Displacement tab

A displacement is a brush face turned into a fine grid of points you can push up and down: rolling ground, mounds, rocky floors, a sagging roof, the sides of a riverbed. The Displacement tool sculpts the shape; the Displacement tab paints up to four materials across it.

Making a displacement

Either:

• Draw a Plane with Create as Displacement ticked, or
• Select one or more four-sided faces with Edit Face and choose Edit > Convert Face to Displacement.

The tool's own help says: Usage: 1. Use Plane tool to create surface 2. Convert face to displacement 3. Select and sculpt with mouse!

Edit > Remove Face Displacement turns a displacement back into a flat face. Edit > Sew Displacement Edges stitches neighboring displacements so their shared edges meet without a seam; select the brushes whose displacement faces touch first.

Sculpting

1. Pick Displacement and select a displacement face.
2. Choose a Brush Mode (or press its key) and drag over the surface. Each stroke is one undo step.

Mode	Key	What it does
Raise	1	Pushes the surface out.
Lower	2	Pushes it in.
Smooth	3	Evens out bumps.
Flatten	4	Levels it.
Cut Hole	9	Removes part of the surface.
Fill Hole	0	Puts it back.

5 to 8 switch to painting layers 0 to 3, and T switches between sculpting and painting. Esc lets go of the face.

Settings

Setting	Type	Default	What it does
Auto Resolution	Check box	On	Creation Settings. A new displacement picks its grid from the face's size (about half a meter per cell). Off, every new one uses Resolution.
Resolution	9 to 129, steps of 8	33	Creation Settings. Grid points along each side of a new displacement, when Auto Resolution is off.
Auto Smooth	Check box	On	Creation Settings. Smooth a new displacement once it is created.
Min Height / Max Height	Meters	-100 / 100	Height Limits. How far sculpting may push the surface in and out.
Brush Mode	List	Raise	Brush Settings. Raise (1), Lower (2), Smooth (3), Flatten (4), Cut Hole (9), Fill Hole (0).
Radius [ / ]	Meters	5.0	Brush Settings. The brush radius.
Strength Shift+[ / ]	0.001 to 200	5.0	Brush Settings. How strongly each stroke works.
Selected Face Resolution	5 to 129, steps of 4	9	Shows the selected face's grid (Current: 9 x 9). Choose a value and click Set to change it.
Show Wireframe	Toggle	Off	Options. Draw the displacement's grid.
Lock Edge Vertices	Toggle	Off	Options. Keep the edge points where they are, so neighboring displacements stay joined.

Warning: Set on Selected Face Resolution resets the sculpting on that face.

Painting

Pick materials for the four layers and paint them in the Displacement tab, or let Auto-Texture paint by slope.

Tips

• A Loop Cut cannot cut through a displacement face. Shape the brush first, then convert.
• For large open ground, a Terrain is often better.

Related pages

• Displacement tab
• Plane
• Terrain