Drop Shadow Material 16 Sample Softness
- Exposure: public
- UE Version: 5.2
This material works by taking multiple copies of the image texture alpha and slightly shifting them in different directions to create a smooth, soft shadow effect. Each sample is taken at an offset position around the original UV coordinates in a circular pattern, ensuring even distribution. To make the shadow fade naturally, the distance of each sample from the center is calculated, and a smooth transition is applied using a Smoothstep function, which gradually reduces the opacity of samples farther from the center. After applying this fading effect, all 16 samples are averaged together, blending them into a seamless, blurred shadow. This method mimics a Gaussian blur by ensuring the shadow spreads evenly in a semi circular pattern.
I'm not sure how much 16 texture samples plus the actual image, plus the center piece will affect performance, but this seems to be the only option.
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