LOD Architect

 Professional LOD generation for Blender - built for game pipelines.

Batch-generate engine-ready LOD chains with smart decimation, normal transfer, UV preservation, and one-click export for Unreal Engine, Unity, and Godot.

v1.0.1 - Panel Order Fix

• Added bl_order to ensure panels appear in the correct order in the N-panel
• Fixed handler persistence to survive scene reloads and undo operations

Installation

1. Download `lod_architect.zip` from Superhive

2. In Blender: `Edit > Preferences > Add-ons > Install`

3. Select the `.zip` - do not extract it

4. Enable **LOD Architect** in the addon list

5. Find the panel in the 3D Viewport > Sidebar (N) > LOD Arch

Requirements

| Blender | 3.6 - 5.1 |

| OS | Windows / macOS / Linux |

| Python | 3.10+ (bundled with Blender) |

| Engines | Unreal Engine 5 / Unity / Godot |

| Tested | 3.6 LTS / 4.2 LTS / 4.4 / 4.5 LTS / 5.1 |

 Features

 LOD Generation

Select one or more meshes and generate a full LOD chain in one click. Each LOD is decimated progressively from the source mesh.

- Up to LOD4

- Per-LOD ratio control or vertex count target

- Merge-by - distance pre-pass for clean input geometry

- Batch process multiple meshes simultaneously

- Non-destructive - source mesh always preserved

- Live modifiers - tweak ratios directly on the modifier after generation

- Option to keep LOD0 at full resolution or decimate it

Presets

Built-in industry profiles: 

| Preset         | Use case |

| Custom       | Manual configuration |

| Prop            | Small/medium props |

| Hero Asset  | Detailed hero meshes |

| Large Prop  | Large environment pieces |

| Architecture | Buildings and structures |

Mesh Cleanup

Toggle before LOD generation to ensure clean input geometry.

 - Merge Vertices - removes duplicate/overlapping verts at configurable distance

- Apply Scale & Rotation - auto-applies transforms to prevent broken meshes on export

 Pivot Alignment

Set origin point for all generated LODs automatically.

 - `Original` - keeps existing pivot

- `Center` - centers to bounding box

- `Bottom` - snaps to bottom of bounding box (recommended for props)

Normals Control

Three shading modes across the LOD chain.

 - `None` - Blender default smoothing

- `Weighted Normals` - curvature-aware smoothing, better silhouette on reduced LODs

- `Transfer Normals` - transfers normals from source or external high-poly mesh

UV Preservation

Prevents texture distortion on decimated LODs using vertex weighting to lock UV seam edges.

 - UV Protection slider (0.0 - 1.0)

- Higher values = less distortion, slightly less decimation freedom

Planar Post-Pass

Secondary decimation pass targeting flat surfaces, leaving curved areas intact.

 - Planar Decimate - basic flat-face collapse

- Advanced Planar - independent angle control per LOD level

- Best combined with standard collapse for maximum savings without silhouette loss

LOD Inspector

Real-time per-LOD statistics inside the panel.

 - Triangle count per LOD

- Wireframe overlay

- Real-time LOD switching

Automated Hierarchy

Outliner stays clean and engine-ready automatically.

 - Source meshes preserved in a `source` collection

- LODs parented under named empties per asset

- Auto-naming: `SM_AssetName_LOD0`, `SM_AssetName_LOD1`, etc.

Batch Exporter

Export all LOD groups in one operation.

 - Engine presets: Unreal (FBX), Unity (FBX), Godot (GLB)

- Formats: FBX, OBJ, GLB

- Optional auto-folder creation per LOD group

- Export selected groups or entire LOD collection

 
Known Limitations

- LOD Collection require - LOD groups must be inside the LOD collection for the Inspector and Exporter to function correctly

- Transfer Normals requires clean high-poly - overlapping geometry or flipped normals on the source will produce incorrect results

- UV Preservation reduces decimation freedom - at high protection values, heavy UV seams may prevent expected tri reduction. Lower the slider if counts are higher than expected

- Planar post-pass is most effective on hard-surface meshes - organic meshes have few flat regions, gains will be minimal

- FBX & GLB export requires Blender's built-in FBX & GLB exporter - ensure it is enabled in preferences if export fails

- Large batches - 10+ meshes may cause slowdowns depending on poly count and machine specs. Process in smaller groups if needed

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Changelog

v1.0.1 - Panel Order Fix

• Added bl_order to ensure panels appear in the correct order in the N-panel
• Fixed handler persistence to survive scene reloads and undo operations

 v1.0.0 - Initial Release

- Full LOD generation pipeline

- Presets

- Normals Control (Weighted + Transfer)

- UV Preservation with seam weighting

- Planar post-pass with per-LOD angle control

- Pivot Alignment

- LOD Inspector with real-time stats

- Batch Exporter with engine presets

- Non-destructive workflow

- Engine-ready auto-naming and Outliner hierarchy

- GPL v3

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License

 LOD Architect is licensed under GPL 3 

Support

Email - [email protected]

Github issues -Open an issue on our Documentation Repository

made by colosyn