NGMaterials: Procedural Smart Materials (Preset Window)

What is NGMaterials?

NGMaterials (Node Graph Materials) is a window containing full procedural materials created in the node editor. It is an analog of the standard 3DCoat Smart Materials, but instead of a classic layer system with raster textures, they are entirely based on mathematical calculations and nodes.

Such materials generate the final PBR channels: Albedo (Color), Gloss/Roughness, Metalness, and Displacement (Depth).

How it works

1. Application: Open the NGMaterials window. Click on any material to make it the active drawing tool, or drag and drop it onto a model or layer.
2. Editing in Node Editor: Right-click on the material and select edit, or simply open the Node Editor after applying the material. You will see the entire graph that makes up the material.

Preset Examples

The library (in the UserPrefs\NodeGraphs\NGMaterials folder) already has powerful examples:

• JamaClay / JamaClay2: Procedural clay. This material demonstrates how to simulate sculpting and surface imperfections using only nodes.
• Metal: Universal procedural metal.
• Tile: Tile material created using pattern generation nodes (e.g., SimpleTile).
• Wood: Procedural wood (based on the SimpleWood node).
• cheese: Procedural cheese material (demonstrates working with volumetric noise and cavities).

Creating your own NGMaterial

1. In the Node Editor, create your material graph. Use the SimpleMaterial node or individual output nodes (outAlbedoColor, outGloss, outMetalness).
2. Adjust all parameters, output the necessary sliders to the Inspector using NGL properties.
3. In the Node Editor menu, choose to save as a material preset.
4. The material (the .ng file and icons) will be saved in UserPrefs\NodeGraphs\NGMaterials, and it will immediately appear in the NGMaterials window for further use.