STC8 Pro (Advanced Shader for Unity SpeedTree 8)

This is an extended version of the STC8 shader.
The STC8 Pro shader support Instanced Indirect from Vegetation Studio Pro.
If you intend to use STC8 Pro with Vegetation Studio Pro, read carefully - Installation on Vegetation Studio Pro.
Do not buy this asset, if you do not know why you need it, use the version of STC8 (free).



This is a shader for SpeedTree version 8.x for Unity. The shader has advanced settings compared to the standard Unity shader for SpeedTree. The shader fully functions in Forward Rendering and Deferred Rendering (including Subsurface Emission). Shaders have great scalability. The shader allows you to increase performance, but to the detriment of appearance, or to get a better image, but to the detriment of performance.
Using this shader, you can adjust the wind (speed, amplitude, swaying branches, etc.). The wind settings in the shader, allow you to fix incorrectly configured wind settings in SpeedTree, as well as synchronize and adjust the wind for all vegetation separately. You can adjust the wind parameters for each vegetation individually.

Features:

- Full wind setting.
- Advanced settings for visualization of vegetation.
- Support for all functions in Forward Rendering and Deferred Rendering.
- Works with Vegetation Studio Pro.
- Good performance.

Only Built-in Render Pipeline.
For Unity version of at least 2019.1.8 (64-bit)
Current version 3.2.1

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Information

Attention! This shader does not work with SRP (HDRP, URP)!
Attention! The speed of shader compilation when importing into a project depends on the power of your CPU in your PC. Initial compilation can take a lot of time, so wait for compilation, the shader is large and complex.
On the processor level i3-8100, i5-6600, AMD Ryzen 5 1400, compilation time will take more than 2 minutes.
Attention! STC 8 Pro VS shader compiles much longer than STC8 Pro.
I recommend importing this asset into a new project. Study the operation of the asset and copy the components you need to your project.

Shaders Settings (/ STC8 Pro)

Geometry

• Billboard - billboard geometry type
• Backface Culling - culling is an optimization that does not render polygons facing away from the viewer. All polygons have a front and a back side. Back - Don’t render polygons that are facing away from the viewer i.e. back-facing polygons are culled. Front - Don’t render polygons that are facing towards the viewer. Used for turning objects inside-out. Off - Disables culling - all faces are drawn. Used for special effects.
• Alpha Cutoff - determine the cutoff point for the which areas will be shown. For "Billboard" and frond, leaf.
Texture and Color Settings

• Main Texture (Transparency) - main texture, depending on the type of geometry, with or without transparency.
• DetailMask (Alpha) - the detail mask texture allows you to mask off certain areas of your model to have the detail texture applied. This means you can show the detail texture in certain areas, and hide it in others.
• Detail Texture (RGB) - the second Albedo color map.
• Hue Variation - enable hue variation, the hue depends on the set hue color, and the intensity of the hue depends on the position of the object in world space. In this way you can get many shades for the forest with one material.
• Hue Color - color of the hue, HDR. Alpha channel also affects the intensity of the hue.
• Main Color - main color, HDR. Final color hue depends on "Hue Color" and "Color and Light Tuning".

• Extra Maps (Smoothness, Metallic, AO) - enable Extra Maps, disabled by default. You can use Extra Maps exported from SpeedTree 8, or create your own textures and pack them in Extra Maps using the Extra Maps Creator.
• Smoothness (R), Metallic (G), AO (B) - extra maps texture, green channel. R channel - Smoothness, G channel - Metallic, B channel - Ambient Occlusion.
• Smoothness Strength - strength of the smoothness texture (Extra Maps R channel), according to the principle of contrast. HDR.
• Smoothness Intensity - is a multiplier for smoothness texture (Extra Maps R channel). HDR.
• Metallic Strength - strength of the metallic texture (Extra Maps G channel), according to the principle of contrast. HDR.
• Occlusion Strength - strength of the occlusion texture (Extra Maps B channel), according to the principle of contrast. HDR.

• Smoothness - by default, without a Extra texture map assigned, the smoothness of the material is controlled by a slider. This slider allows you to control the “microsurface detail” or smoothness across a surface.
• Metallic - the metallic parameter of a material determines how “metal-like” the surface is. When a surface is more metallic, it reflects the environment more and its albedo colour becomes less visible.

• Subsurface (Emissive) - enable emission, disabled by default. For the effect of subsurface emission (fake for deferred rendering path).
• Subsurface (RGB) - subsurface texture, all channels.
• Subsurface Color - subsurface emission color, HDR.
• Subsurface Indirect - it is a combination of diffuse coefficient and indirect illumination.
• Subsurface Rough - rough subsurface emission.

• Rim Color - color rim lighting. Emissive light based on the angle between surface normal and view direction.
• Rim Power - intensity of the rim lighting.

• Normal Map - enable normal map, disabled by default.
• Normal Map Texture - normal map texture.
• Strength Normal - intensity of the normal map texture.
• Detail Normal Map Texture - second normal map
• Strength Detail Normal - intensity of the detail normal map texture.
Color and Light Tuning

• Enable Tuning - enable color and light tuning, disabled by default.
• Brightness - final color brightness, HDR.
• Saturation - final color saturation, HDR.
• Contrast - final color contrast, HDR.
Wind Settings

• Wind Quality. None - disabled Wind. Fastest - highest performance, only basic parameters. Fast - high performance, basic parameters and leaf ripple. Better - quality and performance, basic parameters, leaf and branch ripple, branch twitch. Best - high quality, basic parameters, leaf and branch ripple, leaf tumble, branch twitch. Palm - high quality, basic parameters and palm settings.

• Wind Speed - general wind speed.
• Wind Amplitude - general amplitude of wind.
• Wind Degree Slope - general amount of slope due to wind power.
• Wind Constant Tilt - constant slope due to wind power.
• Leaf Ripple - effect of leaf ripples using offset.
• Leaf Ripple Speed - speed of leaf ripples.
• Leaf Tumble - tumbling effect of the leaves, relative to the attachment point.
• Leaf Tumble Speed - leaf tumbling speed.
• Leaf Twitch - leaf Twitch.
• Leaf Twitch Speed - leaf Twitch Speed.
• Branch Ripple - effect of branch ripples using offset.
• Branch Ripple Speed - speed of branch ripples.
• Branch Twitch - twitch branches.

• Branch Ripple - effect of branch ripples using offset.
• Branch Ripple Speed - speed of branch ripples.
• Branch Twitch - twitch branches.
• Elasticity - elasticity of branches and leaves.
• Turbulences - degree of turbulence effect.
• Frond Ripple - frond (palm) ripple.
• Frond Ripple Speed - speed of frond (palm) ripples.
• Branch Force Wind - wind force acting on branches (along the X axis).
• Branch Heaviness - wind force acting on branches from top to bottom (along the Y axis).

Deferred and Forward rendering path

The STC8 shader supports Deferred and Forward rendering paths. But due to the difference in rendering in the rendering paths of Deferred and Forward, the shader (material) settings for different rendering paths will be different.

Installation on Vegetation Studio Pro

STC8 Pro support Vegetation Studio Pro, but to work, you will need to prepare the Vegetation Studio Pro itself in your project.
Instructions for installing and configuring Vegetation Studio Pro can be found on the official website of Vegetation Studio.
Attention! STC8 Pro only works with Vegetation Studio Pro. Vegetation Studio without Pro is not supported.

Installation
• Open the file:
Speedtree8ShaderController.cs
located in the directory:
Assets\AwesomeTechnologies\VegetationStudioPro\Runtime\ShaderSystem\Speedtree
• Find the code (located at the top):
public bool MatchShader(string shaderName) { return (shaderName == "Nature/SpeedTree8"); } • Replace "Nature/SpeedTree8" with "#NVJOB/STC8 Pro VS":
public bool MatchShader(string shaderName) { return (shaderName == "#NVJOB/STC8 Pro VS"); } • Import the STC8 Pro VS shaders (the entire STC8 Pro asset, or only the STC8 Pro VS shaders).

Setting up Materials
To see visual changes in material settings in real time, create a tree prefab in the scene. After a restart, you will see a change on all the trees that were instantiate Vegetation Studio.

Screenshots