New Modifier to generate Mesh Primitives (cube, sphere etc)
This is a simple idea. Make a new modifier that replaces the object's current mesh with a new, procedurally generated mesh primitive, using code identical to Add Mesh options. With this modifier, you could replace a mesh's shape with a plane, cube, cylinder, cone, UV sphere or icosphere, etc.
Advantages:
- relatively easy to implement (it implements existing functionality as a modifier)
- adds in an official "edit objects after they've been created" system (apply modifier to make it editable)
- allows for more complex procedural generation systems
- modifier parameters can be animated, so it makes it possible to animate primitive complexity (e.g. for procedural generation systems)
With default options, the modifier replaces current mesh with the new primitive shape. However, there could be a toggle that adds a primitive to the current mesh, instead of replacing the current mesh.
7 Comments
This idea sounds cool. Also, possibly a simple way to block out a scene using primitives to be replaced by more complex models. You'd be able to turn them on and off to keep viewport performance good and still see their relative 'retainer' positions.
***@Billy *** Ooh, that is a nice idea. As long as the modifier isn't enabled for rendering, it'd automatically render the full scene, but display the replacement mesh in the viewport.
For uses like that, perhaps the modifier should also have a "Custom mesh" object, which lets you replace the current mesh's shape with any mesh data from the scene. That way, you could have custom "placeholder" objects.
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Also you can generate cylinder/prism/cube/spirals/rings/landscapes with current modifier set Cube/Cylinder = Screw modifier solo. Learn more about blender before making proposals.
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* @ Vyacheslav *
One of the advantages I listed in my post was that this feature would add an official "edit objects after they've been created" system. With official, I meant a built-in solution that doesn't require installing add-ons.
I know you can create many basic shapes procedurally - that's what inspired this post. This would allow us to more easily create complex procedural generation systems, because it's a single modifier controlling the basic object, which makes it easy to adjust the complexity of the starting mesh by just adjusting a single modifier. I had to use Weld, Screw, Displacement, and Screw again just to turn a cube into a torus, and I might be missing a few steps there. If that was done with a single modifier, I could have quickly tested out my procedural stack's effects on different primitives as well.
I like this idea. To this day i have issues with the "last operator" feature that only allows you to change primitive parameters until you do another click, and this would be a very "blender like" solution for that
* @Thane5 * use W_mesh