STEP by STEP

USE THE CLOTH MODIFIER AND SPACE WARPS FOR SIMULATION

01Environment build the flag and

Drag out a Quadpatch on screen for the flag and subdivide it into something like 800 to 1,000 segments (e.g. 40 wide x 20 high) and add a texture. From the Space Warps menu choose Forces and then drag a Gravity force onto the top viewport (so that it’s pointing downwards). Additionally drag a Wind force into the scene so it is pointing in the required direction. Under the Wind Parameters raise the Strength to 100, Turbulence to 1,000 and Scale 100. As Scale increases, turbulence grows more irregular and wild. Gravity can remain at 1.

02 Cloth PROPERTIES

Under the Object section in the Cloth modifier, click on the Object Properties button. Select the flag (Quadpatch) object shown in the list and then switch on the Cloth option at the top of the dialogue.

Choose Cotton from the Presets list underneath. Close the dialogue box and now click on the Cloth Forces button under the Cloth modifier.

Select the gravity and wind force shown in the list and then click on the arrow to move them over into the Forces in Simulation list.

03 fix POINTS On the flag to a POLE

Build a simple pole object for the flag. Select the Quadpatch and then expand down the modifier list under Cloth and select Group. In the viewport, zoom in close and select a number of equally spaced clusters of vertices along the vertical edge of the flag, in places where the flag might be attached to the pole. These points will be made to remain fixed in place, as if tied back to the flagpole, during the simulation. Click on Make Group and then on Node and select the flagpole in the scene.

04 Simulate and Save

Press the Simulate Local button. Once the flag is raised and has twisted into a nice form, use the Set Initial State button to fix that form as the first frame in your simulation. If the deformation is not going as you had hoped you can stop, press Reset State, adjust the wind force and start it again. Once your flag has distorted into a form you are happy with stop the simulation, go to Tools in the top main menu and choose Snapshot. Click on Single with Mesh selected and then OK. You have now created a copy Mesh object as it currently appears in the simulation.