Fluid
A real fluid solver — smoke, ink, flame.
The fluid layer runs a grid-based solver: velocity advects density around, pressure keeps it incompressible, and the result reads as gas or liquid rather than as many small objects.
It is genuinely a simulation, which means it accumulates state. That has consequences for scrubbing.
When to reach for it#
- Smoke, steam, ink in water, flame.
- Anything where the medium should swirl and curl on its own.
Parameters#
Grid detail. The single biggest cost. Doubling it is roughly four times the work per frame.
Resistance to flow. Low is smoke, high is honey.
How fast density fades. Zero means the frame eventually fills up.
How strongly hot density rises. This is what makes smoke behave like smoke.
Things that catch people out#
The state at frame 200 depends on all 199 before it. Jumping back means recomputing. Design at low resolution and raise it for the final render.
See also#
Something here wrong or missing? Tell us in the community.