Gradient
Updated: 9 Sep 2025
Apply gradient shading to a material.
Gradient
Method #
This node generates a simple one dimensional gradient for a shading system, using a min and max distance from the nodes position, along a defined axis.
The output of this node is a shader, which can either be combined with other Shading nodes for more complex designs, or applied to Materials to directly control one of the material channels. They can also be applied to Fields, where they can be used on the various channels on the Field Emitters to control how the smoke is generated, and Field Materials to control how the field is rendered.
Parameters
These properties control the core behaviours of the node.
Parameter Details Mapping Type
How the generated shader is applied to the surface.
Min Position
Offset the position for the minimum value of the gradient, on the axis specfiied.
Max Position
Offset the position for the maximum value of the gradient, on the axis specfiied.
Power
Change the gradient of the falloff curve for the gradient between the minimum and maximum points.
Axis
Control which axis the gradient is applied along.
Preview In Viewport
Preview the effects of the shading node on the channel it’s applied, without other nodes further in the chain being used.
These properties control the 3D transforms of the node. Transforms will generally be inherited by child nodes, although they can be ignored through the Inherit Transform Channels attributes.
Parameter Details Position X
The shader’s position along the local x-axis.
Position Y
The shader’s position along the local y-axis.
Position Z
The shader’s position along the local z-axis.
Rotation Heading
The shader’s rotation around the local y-axis.
Rotation Pitch
The shader’s rotation around the local x-axis.
Rotation Bank
The shader’s rotation around the local z-axis.
Scale X
The shader’s scale along the local x-axis.
Scale Y
The shader’s scale along the local y-axis.
Scale Z
The shader’s scale along the local z-axis.
Control the inheritance of the transforms from the parent.
Parameter Details Position
Toggle inheritance of the Position from the parent.
Rotation
Toggle inheritance of the Rotation from the parent.
Scale
Toggle inheritance of the Scale from the parent.
World Position Only
Inherit the world position from the parent only, rotation and scale will be ignored. Overrides above properties.
Inherit Time
Toggle inheritance of time from the parent.
Inputs
These properties control the core behaviours of the node.
| Parameter | Details |
|---|---|
| Mapping Type | How the generated shader is applied to the surface. |
| Min Position | Offset the position for the minimum value of the gradient, on the axis specfiied. |
| Max Position | Offset the position for the maximum value of the gradient, on the axis specfiied. |
| Power | Change the gradient of the falloff curve for the gradient between the minimum and maximum points. |
| Axis | Control which axis the gradient is applied along. |
| Preview In Viewport | Preview the effects of the shading node on the channel it’s applied, without other nodes further in the chain being used. |
These properties control the 3D transforms of the node. Transforms will generally be inherited by child nodes, although they can be ignored through the Inherit Transform Channels attributes.
| Parameter | Details |
|---|---|
| Position X | The shader’s position along the local x-axis. |
| Position Y | The shader’s position along the local y-axis. |
| Position Z | The shader’s position along the local z-axis. |
| Rotation Heading | The shader’s rotation around the local y-axis. |
| Rotation Pitch | The shader’s rotation around the local x-axis. |
| Rotation Bank | The shader’s rotation around the local z-axis. |
| Scale X | The shader’s scale along the local x-axis. |
| Scale Y | The shader’s scale along the local y-axis. |
| Scale Z | The shader’s scale along the local z-axis. |
Control the inheritance of the transforms from the parent.
| Parameter | Details |
|---|---|
| Position | Toggle inheritance of the Position from the parent. |
| Rotation | Toggle inheritance of the Rotation from the parent. |
| Scale | Toggle inheritance of the Scale from the parent. |
| World Position Only | Inherit the world position from the parent only, rotation and scale will be ignored. Overrides above properties. |
| Inherit Time | Toggle inheritance of time from the parent. |
| Name | Description | Typical Input |
|---|---|---|
| Transform Modifiers | Apply the transforms of another node to this node. | Null |
| Target Node | Modifiy the rotations of the node to always direct the z axis towards the input. | Null |
| Local Transform Override | Apply the transforms of another node to this node, relative to its parent. | Null |