Expert advanced shader patterns

Deferred fog volume

shader_type fog;
uniform float base_density : hint_range(0.0, 10.0) = 1.0;
uniform vec3 edge_color : source_color = vec3(0.1, 0.5, 0.8);

void fog() {
    float distance_factor = clamp(-SDF, 0.0, 1.0);
    float edge_fade = pow(distance_factor, 2.0);
    DENSITY = base_density * edge_fade;
    ALBEDO = edge_color;
}

Compute particle sim (RenderingDevice overview)

See Official Docs: Compute shaders. Pattern: local RenderingDevice, storage buffer, compute_pipeline_create, dispatch workgroups — for boids/fluids beyond fragment shaders.

Shader debug visualizer

Depth / normal / UV modes on a full-screen spatial quad using hint_depth_texture and hint_normal_roughness_texture. Production depth work: depth_world_reconstruction.gdshader.

VisualShaderNodeCustom

Extend VisualShaderNodeCustom in GDScript to expose reusable math nodes in the visual editor (_get_code returns GLSL snippet).

Shader precompilation warmup

During loading: instantiate heavy scenes in front of camera, await RenderingServer.frame_post_draw, then queue_free() children — forces pipeline cache before gameplay.

/godot-shaders-basics

referencesexpert-advanced-patterns.md