Rohan Dalvi – Terrain Building in Houdini

lesson plan

• Simple Mountain Range – Using the Noise node to generate a basic mountain range and using the masking tools to control the Erode node to get more controllable erosion results
• Cliffs and Dunes – Using the Pattern node to generate dunes and learning how to mix terrains
• Craters – Building a lunar landscape by using polygonal objects to modify the heightfields.
• Canyon – Using objects to generate masks and a detailed look at the Heightfield Erode node. Understanding how the Hydro and Thermal Erosion works.
• Island – Using objects to generate a specific terrain. Using the heightfield wrangle to control flow and debris fields and finally using the heightfield scatter node to scatter points on the terrain for instancing.
• Output maps – Learning how to output maps from the heightfield for rendering or export purposes.
• Shading and rendering – Building a procedural shader in the renderer of your choice using the maps written out to disk.