10 Geometry Nodes HACKS in Blender (+ free download)

blender geometry notes are super powerful and today we're making 10 small note groups that might save you hours of time starting off with number one which is this procedural modeling system using subdivision surface we're going to start with this icosphere and we're also going to connect a dual mesh node let's grab an extrude mesh node and set the offset skill at very low next we're going to add a scale element node and connect the top output of the extra mesh node to the selection we're going to set the skill a bit lower to about 0.65 and we're going to just add another extra mesh node and again let's connect the top output of the first extra mesh node and connect that to the selection input of the second node this time we're going to scale in the negative so the inner portion actually caves in a little bit and finally we're just going to duplicate this skill elements node connect our top input and scale that down a little bit if we now connect our subdivision service modifier and up the level you'll see the kind of shape we're getting here it kind of looks like an asteroid with creators in it but we're going to make it a little more interesting before that though let's add a set shade smooth node so it actually looks smooth we're gonna add a random value node and connect that to our first scale elements node this will regulate the size of the holes I'm setting it to 0.3 and 1 and let's get a map range node as well because I want to use the same random value to regulate the extrude mesh node the first one why do we need the map range node because we have to map the random value from 0.3 to 1 to a new value and in this case I'm going to go for 0.07 and 0.150 connect that to our offset scale and you will see that the shape changes a little bit now I can play with the seed and get different shapes but I'm actually going to get another random value node and this time I'm going to plug it into the selection of the first extrude mesh this will make it so not the entire ball is covered with craters we can just regulate how many we want and we can also increase the subdivisions for the icosphere so we get this kind of shape with smaller craters and yeah you can still play with the extrude mesh and scale elements now to get different kinds of shapes you might have used the grid node before it's a very useful note that does just what the name says it gives you a grid with a certain size and amount of vertices and for instance we could model tiles and instance them on the grid so we have a tiled surface we can do that by using the instance on points node and creating a separate mesh once you've done that you use a object info node and select your mesh that you've just made connect that to the instance and connect the grid to the points input after scaling you can see that we have a tile floor it's pretty simple but I want to make it a little more interesting I want to channel my Dutch spirit and get alternating tiles because those are somehow the only tiles we have here in the Netherlands so how do we do that well you can actually use the grid setup that we have over here if we just add a mesh to a points node and set it from vertices to edges and finally we're going to go to our grid node and change either the y or the X to be the half of the other value so in this case the value was one so I'm changing one of the values to 0.5 and you will see we have our alternating tile pattern it's a very easy and useful trick next up I actually want to lift some of these tiles up you can do this with any kind of 2D array of points or even a mesh but I'm just going to use the alternating tile pattern that we've just created only thing I'm changing here is setting the X size to 1 and the Y size 2.5 we're going to use a set position node to move our tiles and we're also going to get a position node and we're going to separate this Vector using a separate XYZ node and we're also going to add a math node we're going to plug the X input to our math node and add a float curve and then we're going to get another math node and set that one to multiply if we now connect our add node to the float curve value and the output value to our multiply node and connect the final value to a combined XYZ node plugging it into the Z input connect the vector to the offset you will see the kind of effect we have you see we have this staircase effect but if you now play with the float curve you can get different kinds of shapes if we start playing with our add node it looks kind of weird set the add node to clamp and you will see what the node actually does using keyframes you could animate this so it goes up in the local x-axis which is very cool and adding another multiply node after the separate XYZ will actually narrow the curve so it looks a little better but what we don't want to raise up the whole thing but only a section of this pavement well that's actually very easy we're just going to add another math note and set it to Absolute absolute will just change negative values to positive values oh yeah and just connect the Y output to the mass node I totally did not forget to record that let's duplicate this note set it to less than and connect it up and then we're duplicating it once more and setting that one to multiply let's connect our less than uh and our multiply value from up here and connect the output to the Z value instead playing around with the less than value will now give us a section of this pavement which is very useful for shots where there is for instance a pipe going under there I've used it for that kind of stuff before and you can also use this whole function on a mesh it doesn't have to be an instance you could also use this group to rotate things in the X Direction it's pretty useful if you're enjoying the video and you find these tips useful consider giving this video a like it helps the video out in the algorithm and more importantly it shows your appreciation for my video which makes me excited to make more of them so anyways let's get back to the next note group if you've ever scattered objects around your scene chances are you've used the distribute points on faces node now this is very useful you can instance objects like rocks or branches on those points but it will also disrupt you points on vertical faces like this which doesn't really make sense if you are scattering objects that are laying on the ground there are multiple ways to fix this but I think this method is one of the more useful ones we're going to add a normal node and separate XYZ node and we're going to take the Z value and put it into a map range node next we're going to add a float curve and plug the result of our map range into the value and finally we're going to connect the value to our density not the selection but the density now there will be a lot less points on our surface so let's just create a math node set it to multiply to get those numbers up a bit there we go but still we see points on slopes that are very vertical looking going back to our map range note we can increase the from Min value to something we like this is the absolute maximum slope that things can be generated on if it's any steeper points will not be generated this already gives us a good result the very vertical looking slopes don't have any points on them but we can use the float curve to actually make it even better basically what we can say is put a lot of points on surfaces that are flat and put just a few points on surfaces that are a little bit sloped and you can see that it works here on the flat part we have a lot more particles than on the parts that are a little bit sloped and that makes it look a little more natural Now using an instance on points now we we can instance this collection of rocks here we're going to separate and reset the children and connect the geometry to our instance and also check the pick instance option now what I did for this group was very simple I just created random value nodes and connected that to my scale and another one to my rotation to make it look a little more random and yeah there we have a good method of scattering objects if you've ever used the material editor you will know that noise textures are fantastic and you can use them in Geometry notes as well we're just going to start off with this icosphere with two subdivisions and a subdivision surface now we're going to set the level to two and let's also set shade smooth so it actually looks better and we're going to add a noise texture Now using a normal node and a vector math node set to multiply we can create some interesting shapes now plugging it in it doesn't look that good so let's duplicate the subdivision service node and put it after the set position node and you can play with the levels on this subdivision surface now to see what you like but if we want to make it more intense adding another multiply node will not really create what we want so you will see that it grows outwards like that which is not what I want so instead I'm going to pull the noise texture back and create a map range node and set it to Vector I'm not going to set the two Min value to -1 if we now use a multiply node I'm going to use this value node it looks a lot better the shape itself doesn't grow but the noise is more intense keep in mind that you can use any kind of texture for this so a vornoy or a Musgrave or even a checker texture I'm also going to get a color run to get a little more control and I'm going to set the noise texture from 3D to 4D so it can actually be animated there we go we now have this undulating blob and it looks a very alien light very cool I actually want to capture this noise texture so we can use it in our material and we do that using a store named attribute node I'm going to set it all the way at the end we will connect the color of the noise texture to the value input and let's give it a name keep in mind that you do have to use the set material nodes to select your material and we can use this attribute we stored in the material editor using the attribute node and you can see that we have the same noise but in our material which is very useful so yeah play around with this but definitely also check it out with the Musgrave texture or the voronaut texture it creates some pretty interesting results going back to the grid node we can actually create some interesting patterns using the extrude mesh scale elements trianglelet mesh and dual mesh nodes now for the extrude mesh and the skill elements notes set the scale to zero and connect the top side to the scale element node this will basically do the same as poking the faces in edit mode the only thing we have to add to make it really work is a merge by distance node next let's add a dual mesh node and see what we get here we have this interesting looking shape we can also click keep boundaries and there are more ways to create interesting patterns here we add a triangulate node this will just create triangles out of the quads and let's add a dual mesh and we see we have a hexagon pattern I'm just going to use a transform node or actually two to rotate it and scale it a bit so it looks a little better just like that we have a hexagon pattern and we can even use parts of the previous selection to make it even more interesting so let's do that let's get these three notes and put them in between here connect those up and let's see here that's also something cool and yeah if you keep connecting or disconnecting notes or rearranging them you can probably get some very interesting results now what if we wanted to have a portion of this shape only appear in this Cube over here well that's very easy we can create a object info node and select our cue and make sure to set it to relative and then get a bounding box node we're also going to get a position node and we're going to get a vector math node and set it to Absolute again this changes negative values to positive ones using another Vector math node we can subtract the max value from the bounding box from the absolute position the result we will plug in and separate x y z node and let's get a Boolean and set it to or so we can get both the X and Y values and we're going to connect that Boolean value to a delete geometry nodes set to faces so let's plug it into our selection and here we can see that it works we can use this Cube to create a section of these hexagons ever since we have the shortest path notes Roots have become very easy starting with this base mesh over here I'm going to add an extrude mesh node and set it to zero and then add a scale elements node and connect the top to the selection again we've done the operation poke faces now let's add a merge by distance node the reason I did this is because the path that can be traced across the surface can now take more angles like that which is very good for the final shape next let's add a control shape which is going to be this icosphere we're going to use this as the starting point for Our Roots uh so let's get a object info node and select it over here and set it to relative we're also going to add a geometry proximity node and connect our object to it next let's get a math note and set it to greater than and connect the distance to the threshold and set the value to .001 next note is the shortest Edge path node and let's connect our value to the end vertex might sound confusing since I set the iPhone 0 was the starting point for the roots this is still true but it's just called the end vertex next all we need is The Edge path to curve node and that's connected up here and connect the next vertex index to our input you can move the igosphere close to the surface and you can already see some results but this doesn't look that good we can make the curves look a little better by using a filet curve node we're going to click limit radius and set it to poly and let's give it a count of like five or something or four this way you have rounded corners on your curves next let's get a random value node and let's pull the minimum value down into the negative connecting it to our start vertices this will decrease the amount of starting points you so you can see there are way less lines going across the surface like this and we can use another random value node and connect it to the Edge cost to create create different kinds of shapes just play around with these values until you get something you like and now let's actually turn this curve into a mesh we do that by using the curve to mesh node and let's also add a profile which is going to be the curve Circle let's connect that up and set the radius to 0.01 and to make the branch shape let's get a set curve radius node and pull this out to the side let's also get a spline parameter and plug the factor into a new float curve using the flow curve you can create different kinds of shapes for your roots and to make it thicker you can just increase the radius of the curved Circle and you can of course join the original geometry with this system we've just created and there we go we have some Roots growing over our mesh and we can even animate them just setting a trim curve after the flay curve does the trick you can then use the start value to start growing your roots this trick I've already covered before in a tutorial but it's so useful I'm gonna cover it here as well I'll be quick if you have any shape where objects intersect each other it can create some problems first of all the mesh doesn't look that clean but more importantly you cannot use the subsurface scattering or make it transmissive in the Shader editor but if you have a powerful PC you can fix this we're gonna go all the way to the end of our note group and create a mesh to volume and volume to mesh node let's set the exterior bandwidth to zero and let's up our voxel amount a lot we're gonna set it to 1500 and you will see it's one continuous mesh but it's very blocky so let's shade it smooth with this node and let's also add a material and next I'm going to go into my modifier Tab and add a smooth node I'm going to set the factor to 2.5 and repeat it four times and there we go the mesh almost looks the same as the one we started with but now there's nothing intersecting each other and you can still use any of the other geometry notes properties that you've made before granted it will be very very difficult to calculate finally if you're still modeling fences the traditional way oh boy I feel bad for you because it's quite easy to make systems in Geometry nodes we're going to add a curve and make it straight by going into edit mode and just rotating this on the z-axis I'm going to create a new group and add a resample curve note let's set it to length and set the length to 0.35 this will make it so the points on the curve are all the same distance from each other we can see this by instancing a cube on our curve by using the instance on points node let's scale it down a little bit yeah there we go we can see even when we make it longer the points on the Curve will stay about 35 centimeters from each other now I'm quickly going to model this fence post over here it's very simple I'm going to use that instead of the cube so let's select it and connect the geometry to our instance input and because I want to make this double fence I'm just going to copy the instance on points node and connect the curve and the object just like before and let's join that geometry using this John geometry node next I will add a transform after both of the objects so I can actually move these around I'm going to move them in the y direction so they are just a bit separated from each other with a space in the middle I can also offset them on the x-axis so they are actually alternating like that I also want posts at the end so let's create another instance on point node and for this one I'm just going to use a cube let's connect our curve and we're also going to add an endpoint selection node this way the post will only generate on the endpoints and now I can use the size of the cube and another transform node to create the posts that I want and next I'm going to play around with the first two transform notes and with the resample Curve notes to actually make them line up in between the posts and I also want to delete any in-between posts that are outside of the ending posts I'm going to do that using another endpoint selection tool but this time I'm gonna subtract one from this value this way we get everything but the endpoints let's connect that to our selection input and we're going to duplicate it and connect it to the other node as well but just change up these two values it took me another minute or two to line everything up and I had to delete one more of the posts but now you can see that it's pretty much lined up like that finally I want to create some beams that go in between the posts I'm just going to grab a curve to mesh node and a quadrilateral connect that to the profile curve input and connect our original geometry to the curve input we'll have to size this down a bit but we can now Move It Up by using a transform node and we can actually create multiple of them by just duplicating the transform node plugging it in like that and then moving it up I'm gonna create three beams for this example the last thing we want to do is fix the rotation it's very easy let's get a curved tangent node and then align Euler to Vector node we're going to connect the tangent to the vector input and we connect the rotation output to all of the rotation inputs on the instance on points node and if we now start to play around with it in edit mode you can see that we can make it as long as we want and we can even make it curved and yeah there we go those are 10 small node groups that might save you a lot of time let me know in the comments which one was your favorite and also let me know if you have any suggestions for small node groups or maybe if you're interested in seeing small note Crews with a certain note you are particularly interested in that's it for now thank you so much for watching you can subscribe to stay updated on future tutorials and like the video to help me out and I'll see you all later bye

Channel: Stray Creations

Views: 38,149

Keywords: geometry node, geometry nodes, blender, blender 3.4, blender tutorial, easy nodes, geometry nodes for beginners, geometry nodes tips, geometry nodes tricks

Id: CN2p3tNN0eU

Length: 18min 20sec (1100 seconds)

Published: Mon Jan 30 2023