Commit
Theria
feat: cel-shade field units for a stylized toon look
modified CHANGELOG.md
@@ -44,6 +44,12 @@ protocol version.
own measured top. So the whole field reads as models rather than the heroes standing among
debug primitives. Bundled asset licenses are credited in [`CREDITS.md`](CREDITS.md).
Presentation only — the simulation and the netcode protocol are unchanged.
- Every field unit — heroes, creeps, and structures — now renders under a stylized cel shader
in place of the raw imported lighting: the key light is banded into flat tones for a low-poly
toon look, the shadow side reads as a deliberate matte tone rather than going black, and the
team colour is blended into the model's own albedo so blue and red read at a glance while each
model keeps its texture and species detail. Presentation only — the simulation and the netcode
protocol are unchanged.
- The follow-camera now eases to the hero instead of locking to it 1:1, so a sharp turn or a
respawn glides the view rather than snapping it; and while the hero is gone (dead, or not yet
spawned) the camera rests where the hero last stood instead of jumping to the arena centre.
added src/client/cel.gdshader
@@ -0,0 +1,50 @@
shader_type spatial;
render_mode specular_disabled;
// The cel / toon treatment every field unit wears (heroes, creeps, structures). It
// reproduces a model's own surface albedo — the imported texture, its base colour, and
// its vertex colours where the source used them — so a stylised model still reads as
// itself, then quantises the directional light into three flat tones for the low-poly
// look and folds in the unit's team colour. Driven per surface by HeroModelLibrary,
// which copies the source material's albedo into these uniforms.
// The source surface's albedo: a texture (white when the model carries none), a base
// colour multiplied over it, and a flag for whether the source fed vertex colours into
// its albedo (the low-poly animals do; the textured structures do not).
uniform sampler2D albedo_tex : source_color, hint_default_white;
uniform vec4 albedo : source_color = vec4(1.0);
uniform float use_vertex = 0.0;
// The team wash: the colour the albedo is mixed toward, and how far (0 keeps the model's
// own colour, 1 replaces it). A hero takes a light mix to keep its species; a prop more.
uniform vec4 team_tint : source_color = vec4(1.0);
uniform float tint_strength : hint_range(0.0, 1.0) = 0.0;
// The two light levels the matte (shadowed) tone steps up through, giving three flat
// bands in all. Eyeball-calibrated against the single key light and the ambient fill.
const float MID_TONE = 0.5;
const float LOW_CUT = 0.25;
const float HIGH_CUT = 0.6;
varying vec3 v_color;
void vertex() {
v_color = COLOR.rgb;
}
void fragment() {
vec3 base = albedo.rgb * texture(albedo_tex, UV).rgb;
base = mix(base, base * v_color, use_vertex);
ALBEDO = mix(base, team_tint.rgb, tint_strength);
ROUGHNESS = 1.0;
METALLIC = 0.0;
}
// Bands the key light into three flat tones with hard edges — the toon step. The
// shadow side is left to the environment's ambient fill (added by the engine), so it
// reads as a deliberate matte tone rather than going black.
void light() {
float ndl = max(dot(NORMAL, LIGHT), 0.0);
float tone = step(LOW_CUT, ndl) * MID_TONE + step(HIGH_CUT, ndl) * (1.0 - MID_TONE);
DIFFUSE_LIGHT += ALBEDO * LIGHT_COLOR * ATTENUATION * tone;
}
modified src/client/hero_model_library.gd
@@ -1,11 +1,12 @@
class_name HeroModelLibrary
extends RefCounted
## The placeholder 3D models the heroes wear, and the logic that drops one onto the
## field at a consistent size and team colour. Each hero kit maps to a low-poly animal
## glTF standing in for the species the shapeshifter takes. The models come from mixed
## sources at wildly different authored scales and facings, so this module normalises
## every one to a single on-field size and washes it with its team colour — the asset
## handling kept out of the match presenter, which only asks for a model by kit.
## field at a consistent size, facing, and team colour under a stylised cel shader. Each
## hero kit maps to a low-poly animal glTF standing in for the species the shapeshifter
## takes. The models come from mixed sources at wildly different authored scales and
## facings, so this module normalises every one to a single on-field size, re-skins each
## surface with the shared toon shader (`cel.gdshader` — banded light, team colour mixed
## in), and leaves the match presenter to only ask for a model by kit.
## A hero kit's placeholder model, keyed by `kit_id`. A kit with no entry (an unknown
## kit, or a hero whose `kit_id` did not survive the wire on a pure CLIENT) has no model
@@ -35,15 +36,21 @@ const PROP_MODELS := {
## capsule it replaces so the species is legible from the follow-camera.
const HERO_MODEL_SIZE := 260.0
## The opacity of the team-colour wash overlaid on a model, strong enough to read blue
## or red at a glance while the species texture still shows through underneath. Kept light
## so an already-dark mesh (the spider) is tinted, not drowned to near-black.
const TEAM_TINT_ALPHA := 0.25
## The shared cel shader every model is re-skinned with, so a stylised toon-banded look
## replaces the raw PBR import. Driven per surface in `_stylize`, which copies the source
## material's albedo into it and folds the team colour in.
const CEL_SHADER: Shader = preload("res://src/client/cel.gdshader")
## The heavier wash a structure or creep takes — a prop has no species identity of its own
## How far a hero's albedo is mixed toward its team colour (0 keeps the species colour, 1
## replaces it), strong enough to read blue or red at a glance while the species texture
## still shows through. Kept light so an already-dark mesh (the spider) is tinted, not
## drowned to near-black.
const TEAM_TINT_STRENGTH := 0.25
## The heavier mix a structure or creep takes — a prop has no species identity of its own
## to protect, so it leans harder into the team colour than a hero does, reading blue/red
## at a glance from across the lane.
const PROP_TINT_ALPHA := 0.4
const PROP_TINT_STRENGTH := 0.4
## The yaw, in radians, that turns a kit's model to face its movement direction once the
## presenter has aimed its length axis down the move vector. The land animals are all
@@ -135,30 +142,31 @@ static func has_model(kit_id: String) -> bool:
return HERO_MODELS.has(kit_id)
## Instances `kit_id`'s model under `parent`, size-normalised and washed with
## `team_tint`, and returns it. `parent` must already be in the tree so the model's mesh
## transforms resolve for the bounds measurement. Call only when `has_model(kit_id)`.
## Instances `kit_id`'s model under `parent`, size-normalised and re-skinned with the cel
## shader mixed toward `team_tint`, and returns it. `parent` must already be in the tree so
## the model's mesh transforms resolve for the bounds measurement. Call only when
## `has_model(kit_id)`.
static func add_to(parent: Node3D, kit_id: String, team_tint: Color) -> Node3D:
var packed := load(HERO_MODELS[kit_id]) as PackedScene
var model := packed.instantiate() as Node3D
parent.add_child(model)
_normalize(model, HERO_MODEL_SIZE)
_tint(model, team_tint, TEAM_TINT_ALPHA)
_stylize(model, team_tint, TEAM_TINT_STRENGTH)
return model
## Instances a field prop's model (`prop` is a `PROP_MODELS` key — `creep`/`tower`/`nexus`)
## under `parent`, normalised to that prop's size and washed with the heavier prop tint, and
## returns it. Mirrors `add_to` for the non-hero field: a creep or a structure stands on the
## ground at a consistent size instead of a debug capsule or box. `parent` must be in the
## tree for the bounds measurement.
## under `parent`, normalised to that prop's size and re-skinned with the cel shader at the
## heavier prop mix, and returns it. Mirrors `add_to` for the non-hero field: a creep or a
## structure stands on the ground at a consistent size instead of a debug capsule or box.
## `parent` must be in the tree for the bounds measurement.
static func add_prop(parent: Node3D, prop: String, team_tint: Color) -> Node3D:
var def: Dictionary = PROP_MODELS[prop]
var packed := load(def["path"]) as PackedScene
var model := packed.instantiate() as Node3D
parent.add_child(model)
_normalize(model, def["size"])
_tint(model, team_tint, PROP_TINT_ALPHA)
_stylize(model, team_tint, PROP_TINT_STRENGTH)
return model
@@ -209,18 +217,25 @@ static func _model_aabb(model: Node3D) -> AABB:
return out
## Lays a translucent `color` overlay (at opacity `alpha`) over every mesh in `model`,
## tinting it toward its team without replacing the model's own material, so the underlying
## texture stays visible. A hero takes a light wash to keep its species; a prop a heavier one.
static func _tint(model: Node3D, color: Color, alpha: float) -> void:
var wash := color
wash.a = alpha
var overlay := StandardMaterial3D.new()
overlay.albedo_color = wash
overlay.shading_mode = BaseMaterial3D.SHADING_MODE_UNSHADED
overlay.transparency = BaseMaterial3D.TRANSPARENCY_ALPHA
## Re-skins every surface of `model` with the shared cel shader, mixed `strength` toward
## the team `color`. Each surface gets its own ShaderMaterial seeded from the source
## material's albedo (texture, base colour, and vertex-colour flag) so the model still
## reads as itself — only the lighting turns toon-banded and the team colour blends in. A
## hero takes a light mix to keep its species; a prop a heavier one.
static func _stylize(model: Node3D, color: Color, strength: float) -> void:
for mi in _meshes(model):
mi.material_overlay = overlay
for surface in mi.mesh.get_surface_count():
var src := mi.get_active_material(surface) as BaseMaterial3D
var mat := ShaderMaterial.new()
mat.shader = CEL_SHADER
mat.set_shader_parameter("team_tint", color)
mat.set_shader_parameter("tint_strength", strength)
if src != null:
mat.set_shader_parameter("albedo", src.albedo_color)
mat.set_shader_parameter("use_vertex", 1.0 if src.vertex_color_use_as_albedo else 0.0)
if src.albedo_texture != null:
mat.set_shader_parameter("albedo_tex", src.albedo_texture)
mi.set_surface_override_material(surface, mat)
## Every MeshInstance3D carrying a mesh in the subtree under `node`, gathered depth-first.