Modding:CompositeTexture

CompositeTexture is the type of the json object stored in the textures property of blocks, items, and entities. Here is an example from a block with the surrounding textures dictionary. Note that the composite texture is only the part that contains the "base" field.

textures: {
    all: { base: "block/glass/{type}" },
}

Properties

Property	Type	Default	Usage	Reference
CompositeTexture
base	string	required	The asset location of the main texture.	Any block
overlays	deprecated: array of strings	empty	Asset locations for overlays. Use blendedoverlays instead.	-
blendedoverlays	array of overlays	empty	Combines the overlay textures with the base texture.	door
	Each entry of the array is a simplified texture, with the fields base and blendmode. The asset location of the overlay is given through the base field. The optional blendmode field describes how to combine the overlay. Example: { base: "block/wood/debarked/{wood}", blendedOverlays: [{ base: "block/wood/door/overlay-wide", blendMode: "Overlay" }] } The available blend modes are: Normal (default) The overlay is like a translucent piece of glass placed in front of the base. If the overlay is completely opaque, then it replaces the base texture. If it's completely transparent, then the base texture shows through. Alpha values in the middle cause the overlay to partially replace the base texture. Darken Lighten Multiply Screen ColorDodge ColorBurn Overlay
alternates	array of composite textures	empty	If alternates are present, every time a block is placed in the world, either the base texture or one of the alternates is randomly chosen. Alternates can also be chosen through a base wildcard.	rock
	The top level rotation and overlay properties do not apply to alternates, but those property can be set directly on each alternate. Example that directly specifies the alternatives: { base: "block/clay/hardened/{type}1", alternates: [{ base: "block/clay/hardened/{type}2"}, { base: "block/clay/hardened/{type}3" }], } Example that uses the base wildcard to specify alternates. Every file matching the wildcard is registered as an alternative. { base: "block/stone/rock/{rock}*" }
tiles	array of composite textures	empty	Similar to alternates, this is a list of different textures to use. The difference is that these alternate textures are used in a repeating grid pattern.	tilingcobblestonetest
	tiles is the array of textures from traverzing the grid in a left to right, top to bottom order. The width of the grid must be specified with tilesWidth. Instead of directly specifying every tile texture, they can also be specified with a single entry that uses a wildcard. Example: { base: "block/stone/cobblestone/tiling/1", tiles: [ { base: "block/stone/cobblestone/tiling/*" } ], tilesWidth: 4 }
tilesWidth	integer	0	The width of the tile grid. Every this many textures from tiles forms a new tile row. This property only has an effect if tiles non-empty.	tilingcobblestonetest
rotation	integer	0	Amount to rotate the texture counter-clockwise. The number must be a multiple of 90.	planks
alpha	integer	255	255 keeps the input alpha channel without altering it. Other values are a percentage to adjust the texture alpha channel. For example, 200 doubles the alpha channel in the input image.	-
	For example, 50 would half the alpha values in the texture (make it more transparent), and 200 would double the alpha values in the texture (make it more opaque).

Video Memory Cost

All of the properties that alter a single image, such as , are convenient for remixing the textures.

Composite textures are processed into BakedBitmaps. All of the properties that modify a single texture are baked into the bitmap, including rotation, blendedoverlays, and alpha. The baked bitmaps are loaded into the video card memory through the texture atlas. If two different blocks use the same composite texture (including the same rotation, etc..), then those blocks share the same entry in the texture atlas. However, if the rotation property is different, then those composite textures are stored as different baked bitmaps in the texture atlas.

The planks block has oriented variants. The variants use the "cube" drawtype. They share the same base textures but rotate them using the rotation property of the composite textures. This cases every 90 degree rotation to be separately loaded into the texture atlas.

{
    code: "planks",
    // The "cube" drawtype is inefficient for oriented blocks
    drawtype: "cube",
    texturesByType: {
        "*-ud": {
            all: { base: "block/wood/planks/{wood}*", rotation: 90  }
        },
        "*-we": {
            all: { base: "block/wood/planks/{wood}*", rotation: 0  }
        },
        "*-ns": {
            all: { base: "block/wood/planks/{wood}*" },
            verticals: { base: "block/wood/planks/{wood}*", rotation: 90 }
        },
    },
}

The altar block also has orient variants. However, it accomplishes the rotations through the rotateY field of the shape block property instead of the textures property. Even though the shapes are rotated, they use the same textures. Internally the rotation is accomplished by changing the uv coordinates of the triangles. So it is more efficient to create oriented variants by rotating the shape rather than rotating the textures.

{
    code: "altar",
    // drawtype: "json" is the default when shape is defined.
    shapeByType: {
        "*-north": { base: "block/basic/cube", rotateY:0 },
        "*-east": { base: "block/basic/cube", rotateY:90 },
        "*-south": { base: "block/basic/cube", rotateY:180 },
        "*-west": { base: "block/basic/cube", rotateY:270 },
    },
    textures: {
        up: { base: "block/stone/altar/top" },
        down: { base: "block/stone/altar/bottom" },
        south: { base: "block/stone/altar/front" },
        north: { base: "block/stone/altar/back" },
        west: { base: "block/stone/altar/left" },
        east: { base: "block/stone/altar/right" },
    },
}

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