Installation

1. Download the GrainForge ZIP archive.

2. Open Blender and navigate to Edit → Preferences → Add-ons.

3. Click Install from Disk and select the downloaded ZIP archive.

4. Enable GrainForge in the add-ons list.

No additional dependencies or manual setup are required.

Opening GrainForge

1. Select one or more mesh objects in the 3D Viewport.

2. Press N to open the Sidebar.

3. Navigate to the Wood Generator tab.

Generating Materials

1. Select the objects you want to process.

2. Choose your preferred wood style.

3. Adjust the material parameters as desired.

4. Enable or disable individual randomization checkboxes to control which parameters should vary.

5. Click Generate Material.

GrainForge will create and assign a unique material to every selected mesh object. Existing materials are replaced automatically, while objects without materials receive a new one.

Non-mesh objects are ignored.

Understanding the Parameters

Seed: Controls the randomization seed, allowing you to reproduce material variations.

Style: Select one of the seven available wood styles.

Random Color: Introduces subtle color variations within the selected wood style.

Scale: Controls the overall texture scale.

Location X / Y: Adjusts the texture position.

Rotation: Controls texture orientation.

Ring Density: Adjusts the density of the wood growth rings.

Ring Irregularity: Controls variations in the ring patterns.

Grain Strength: Adjusts the visibility and intensity of the wood grain.

Grain Distortion: Controls distortions in the grain pattern.

Knots Scale: Adjusts the size of the wood knots.

Knots Darkness: Controls the darkness of the knots.

Roughness: Adjusts the surface roughness of the material.

Each parameter has an individual checkbox. When enabled, its value can be randomized during generation. Disable the checkbox to preserve its current value.

Additional Settings

Texture Coordinate: Choose the coordinate source used by the procedural material.

Use Normals: Enables or disables the normal connection used by the material's shader.

Bump Factor: Controls the bump intensity.

Click Apply Settings to apply changes made in this section.

Note: Changes to generation parameters are not reflected in existing materials automatically. Click Generate Material to create or replace materials using the current settings.