How to change a object’s material color at runtime?

** I am using the “PhysicsStressTest.lua” script to test how things work **

Let’s say I have multiple instances of a Box.mdl model and I have set them all to use the stoneSmall.xml material…

“Multiple as in anywhere from a couple hundred on up through as much as 5,000 individual models ( Boxes in this case )”

I figured out that I can use:

to change the XML parameters of a object’s material. But this applies to ALL instances of that particular material accross ALL objects in the scene.

Now let’s say that I want to change their colors to be a different color on every box… How to do that?

Also… if i end up having to use a different material XML file for every color then what would the performance hit be to having say 5,000 materials versus only 1 shared material ?

Just a thought. How about changing the color in a custom shader instead? Just use the shader parameter to “seed” the randomness.

You can Clone() a material:
urho3d.github.io/documentation/1 … 017bc5e274

I saw a extremely simular idea to what you are saying with the 31_AnimatedMaterials.lua Lua script example ( that was also where I found out about how to go about setting the shader parameter )

The problem was that when I changed that same shader parameter at runtime for each instance of the small box that I created; the entire cached material .XML was changed and thus changed all instances of that material in use. If I had 50 small boxes then changed the color of the 51st box’s material then all 50 existing small boxes would also change to that color.

Is there a setting somewhere for using a unique instance of geometry’s material? ( or do i “have” to specify a “different” material .XML file for each object instance? )

@hd_ Thanks! I didn’t notice the Clone( ) function before; I tried using it but I don’t think I know how to use it right as nothing I tried did anything… is there an example ?

Here’s an example snippet from something I’m working on:

Material@ mat = cache.GetResource("Material", "Materials/Mr0.xml"); //for (int y = 0; y < 1; y++) int y = 0; { for (int z = 0; z < 11; z++) { for (int x = 0; x < 11; x++) { Node@ tp = Node(); tp.scale = Vector3(0.5f, 0.5f, 0.5f); scene_.AddChild(tp); tp.position = Vector3(x, 1, z); StaticModel@ model = tp.CreateComponent("StaticModel"); model.castShadows = true; model.model = cache.GetResource("Model", "Models/Sphere2.mdl"); Material@ m = mat.Clone(); model.material = m; float diff = z / 10.0f; float gloss = x / 10.0f;// 1.0f; float spec = 1;// z / 10.0f;// 1.0f; m.shaderParameters["MatDiffColor"] = Variant(Vector4(diff, diff, diff, 1.0f)); m.shaderParameters["MatSpecColor"] = Variant(Vector4(spec, spec, spec, gloss)); } } }

Loads a ‘template’ material, clones material for each StaticModel and varies some shader parameters for each.

[quote=“hd_”]Here’s an example snippet from something I’m working on:

... ... Material@ mat = cache.GetResource("Material", "Materials/Mr0.xml"); Material@ m = mat.Clone(); model.material = m; ... ...

Loads a ‘template’ material, clones material for each StaticModel and varies some shader parameters for each.[/quote]

Awesome! I think we got it

Those 3 lines of your code made complete sence to me but in Lua I don’t know how ( or if we can, can we? ) to create a “local” variable of a specific class ( C++ you do ClassName variableName )

I tinkered around for a while with the Lua script and I ended up with:

[code]-- NOTE: This first line is required in order to “load in” the material – otherwise you get a Nil reference error on the following lines
boxObject:SetMaterial(0,cache:GetResource(“Material”, “Materials/myMat.xml”))

-- NOTE: If you remove thes following indented 2 lines then "ALL" of the objects with "Materials/myMat.xml" set to them will change their SetShaderParameter settings
local mat = boxObject:GetMaterial(0):Clone(cache:GetResource("Material", "Materials/myMat.xml"))
boxObject:SetMaterial(0,mat)

boxObject:GetMaterial(0):SetShaderParameter(“MatDiffColor”, Variant(Vector4((math.random(100).01),(math.random(100).01),(math.random(100)*.01),1)))[/code]

Many Thanks for your help there!!!