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Voxel Mode

Model a prop

You will make: a treasure chest, 16 voxels wide, painted with a proper light-to-shadow ramp. You will learn: Box and Face brushes, mirroring, typed counts, selection and move, placing a library shape, picking palette ramps. Time: 15 minutes.

1. A model and a palette

Section titled “1. A model and a palette”

  1. Voxel ▸ New Model: set Size to 32, then Add Voxel Model.

  2. Open Palette, choose Autumn Woodland in the Palette Library dropdown ①, and load it. Its first rows are eight-step ramps from shadow to highlight.

    Palette Library ①, the palette files ②, and the Material panel ③

2. The body

Section titled “2. The body”
  1. Pick a mid-brown swatch (C, click).
  2. Turn on Mirror X in the Brush panel, or with Shift + Alt + S ▸ Mirror X.
  3. Press 3 for the Box brush. Drag a 16 × 10 rectangle on the floor, centred. Tap Z without letting go, move up 8 voxels, release.

Mirror X means you only need to get one half right; the other half follows.

3. The lid

Section titled “3. The lid”
  1. Press 2 for the Face brush and press on the top of the box.
  2. Type 3. Three layers appear.
  3. Release.

4. Bands and a lock

Section titled “4. Bands and a lock”
  1. Pick a dark iron grey. Press R for Paint and 4 for Line.
  2. Drag straight lines around the box for two iron bands. Hold Shift to keep each line on one axis.
  3. Switch back to Attach (D) and the Voxel brush (1), pick a gold swatch, and add a 2 × 2 lock on the front.

5. Shade it

Section titled “5. Shade it”

A voxel model reads as solid when the top is lighter than the sides.

  1. Press Q for Select, and B-drag over the lid from above. Turn Select Through off first, so only the top surface is taken.
  2. Pick a lighter step of the same brown ramp and press Ctrl + F to fill the selection with it.

The lid selected: the selection shows orange

6. Add a library shape

Section titled “6. Add a library shape”
  1. Press Shift + A and browse to Gear ▸ Treasure. Pick the coin pile or a gem. It keeps its gold even though your palette is Autumn Woodland: its colours are added to the Shape Colours row at the bottom of the palette.
  2. It floats under the mouse. Move it onto the lid, press End to drop it until it rests, R to turn it, then click to place.

7. Save it as your own shape

Section titled “7. Save it as your own shape”
  1. Press A to select everything.
  2. Voxel Library ▸ Organise ▸ Save Selection as Shape, and name it Props/My Chest.

It is now in your library, ready for Shift + A in any model.

Next

Section titled “Next”