Beams

A Beam is an object that renders a Texture between two Attachment objects. By setting beam properties, you can:

• Add textures with color gradients to create interesting visuals like waterfalls and force fields.
• Modify a beam's transparency so that it fades over time.
• Warp its shape by changing the width or curve of each attachment point.

Creating a Beam

Before you begin to create a beam, you must make sure you are able to view attachments:

1. In the menu bar, navigate to the Model tab, then the Constraints section.

2. If it is not currently enabled, toggle on Constraint Details.

   

It is important to be able to view attachments because they determine where a beam starts and ends. To create a beam:

1. Create two parts. One will be the start of the beam while the other will be the end of the beam.

2. Group the parts into a Model.

3. In the Explorer window, add an attachment to each part:

   1. Hover over one part and click the ⊕ button. A contextual menu displays.
   2. From the contextual menu, insert an Attachment.
   3. Repeat for the other part.

4. In the Explorer window, add a beam to the model:

   1. Hover over the part and click the ⊕ button. A contextual menu displays.
   2. From the contextual menu, insert a Beam.

5. Select the Beam.

6. In the Properties window, assign the attachments to the beam:

   1. Select the Attachment0 property. Your cursor changes.
   2. In the Explorer window, select the attachment of the part you want to be the start of your beam.
   3. Select Attachment1 property. Your cursor changes.
   4. In the Explorer window, select the other attachment of the part you want to be the end of your beam. Ensure you assign each attachment property to a different attachment.

   

   

Moving and Scaling a Beam

When you move a part, the beam moves and scales to its new position because the attachment points determine the start and end of the beam.

If you want the beam to move and face the player no matter their direction, set the FaceCamera property to true. Note that this property does not move the beam's position, only its angle.

Adding a Texture

The Texture property renders a texture across the length of the beam. You can set a beam's Texture property to any asset ID. For more information, including how to add or upload your own textures, see Textures and Decals.

Beams render their textures using two triangles drawn between segments, and the segments are laid out between the two attachment points' orientation. By default, a beam uses 10 segment pairs, but you can modify the Segments property to increase or decrease this amount. It is important to note that when you rotate attachment points in different directions, segments also rotate.

Fading a Beam

The Transparency property sets the opacity of a beam either as a consistent opacity or as a NumberSequence. A number sequence changes a beam's opacity across the length of the beam from one attachment point to another; it can range anywhere from 0 (totally opaque) to 1 (fully clear).

To set a beam to a specific opacity:

1. In the Explorer window, select the Beam.
2. In the Properties window, select the Transparency property.
3. Input a value of transparency that you want the beam to be.

To open a beam's number sequence:

1. In the Explorer window, select the Beam.

2. In the Properties window, select the Transparency property.

3. Click the … button. A number sequence pop-up displays.

   

The X axis is the position along the beam's length, and the Y axis is the transparency at that position. Each square at the start and end of the number sequence is a keypoint that determines the opacity value of the property at that point within the beam

To edit a beam's number sequence, perform any of the following actions:

• To change the opacity at a point along the beam, click on a keypoint and either drag it up or down, or enter a value in the Value field.

• To insert new keypoints, click on any point in the graph.

• To delete a keypoint, select the keypoint, then the Delete button.

• To reset the sequence, select the Reset button.

  

Creating a Color Gradient

The Color property tints the beam's texture to either a specific hue or a ColorSequence. A color sequence changes the beam's color across the length of the beam from one attachment point to another.

To set a beam to a specific hue:

1. In the Explorer window, select the Beam.

2. In the Properties window, select the Color property.

3. You can either:

   1. Click on the color square to open the Colors pop-up window and select a color.

   2. Input three numbers into the RGB color value field.

   

To open a beam's color sequence:

1. In the Explorer window, select the Beam.

2. In the Properties window, select the Color property.

3. Click the … button. A color sequence pop-up displays. By default, the color sequence is all white.

   

Each triangle on the bottom axis of the color sequence is a keypoint that determines the color value of the property at that point between the beam's attachments.

To edit a beam's color sequence:

1. Click the keypoint at the start of the color sequence, then click the small square next to Color to open the colors pop-up window and select the color you want at the start of the beam.

   

2. If you want the beam to change color near the end of the beam, click the keypoint at the end of the color sequence, then click the small square next to Color to open the colors pop-up window and select a color.

   

3. If needed, you can:

   • Add another keypoint by clicking anywhere on the graph.

   • Drag any existing keypoints to a new position. This is useful if you want a color to change sooner or later within the gradient.

   • Delete a keypoint by selecting it, then the Delete button.

   • Reset the sequence by selecting the Reset button.

   

Changing a Beam's Width

You can set the beam's width in studs at each endpoint by configuring the Width0 and Width1 properties. A higher value equates to a larger width, and a lower value equates to a smaller width. If you set either value to smaller than 0, Studio sets it back to 0.

The beam below has a Width0 value of 0.5 and a Width1 value of 3.

Curving a Beam

Beams use a cubic Bézier curve. You can modify this curve to curve up or down relative to the attachments' orientations using the CurveSize0 and CurveSize1 properties.

A CurveSize0 property with a high value causes the beam to dip low, while a low value causes the beam to start off high; conversely, a CurveSize1 property with a high value causes the beam to end high while a low value causes the beam to dip low.