Creating a Fire or Flame

The information in this article applies to:

QUESTION

Chief Architect contains several fire materials, however, they are just images. How can I make these look more realistic?


 

ANSWER

Creating a 3D flame in Chief Architect is very simple. The first thing you need is a shape with only a few surfaces for the flame material to be applied to.

In this example we will create the curling flame shown above by applying a fire texture to a hollow cylinder.

Creating the cylinder

1. In a new plan, select Build> Primitive> Cylinder , then click and drag in floor plan to create a simple cylinder shape.
   
   
2. Once the cylinder has been created, go to  3D> Create Perspective View> Perspective Full Overview .
   
   
   
   
3. Next, use the Delete Surface  tool hide the two end surfaces of the cylinder.
   
   
   
   
4. Click Tools> Symbol> Convert to Symbol , choose Geometric Shapes as the Symbol Category, and click OK.
   
   
   
5. Now place your new shape into a plan and resize it as needed.
   
   
   

6. Apply a fire material, found in the library under Chief Architect Core Catalogs> Materials> Fire.
   
   

   

    

   Using this method, you can use different shapes to make your flame look however you'd like for your camera views.