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VDM Brush Baker

by robin.hohni·Modeling

Images © robin.hohni. Used for product review; image policy.

Why we like it

VDM Brush Baker sits at rank 86 in the Blender Extensions library and was part of Blender 4.1's bundled add-ons.

What is VDM Brush Baker?

VDM Brush Baker is a small Blender add-on for creating vector displacement map (VDM) brushes. It bakes a VDM and creates a brush in one click. The add-on is located in the 3D Viewport sidebar under the Tool tab.

The Create Sculpting Plane button provides a starting setup for sculpting a VDM brush, and the Render and Create VDM Brush button bakes the plane's displacement into a new brush. The brush is added with all relevant options, and the vector displacement map is saved near the blender file as an OpenEXR file, or in a tmp folder if the file hasn't been saved. New brushes appear as Draw brushes in sculpt mode.

Sculpting results improve when the plane borders are masked using Auto-Masking Mesh Boundary, and the Displacement Eraser brush moves vertices back to their original grid position. The baking material depends on a 2 by 2 meter grid, and a VDM resolution of 512 px or lower is usually enough. The add-on was part of Blender 4.1's bundled add-ons.

Who is VDM Brush Baker best for?

VDM Brush Baker is best for blender artists who want to bake their own vector displacement map brushes from a sculpted plane.

How much does VDM Brush Baker cost?

VDM Brush Baker is completely free to download and use.

Key features

  • One-click baking: the Render and Create VDM Brush button bakes a plane's displacement into a new brush
  • Create Sculpting Plane button for a starting setup when sculpting a VDM brush
  • Located in the 3D Viewport sidebar under the Tool tab
  • Saves the vector displacement map as an OpenEXR file near the blender file, or in a tmp folder if the file isn't saved
  • New brushes appear as Draw brushes in sculpt mode
  • Displacement Eraser brush moves vertices back to their original grid position
  • Does not create preview images for the brushes

Tags

#VDM#vector displacement#sculpting#brush#Blender#bake#sculpt mode

Frequently asked questions

Does VDM Brush Baker work with Blender 4.2?

VDM Brush Baker is compatible with Blender 4.2 LTS and newer. Version 1.0.6 also fixed brush activation for Blender 4.4 and up. The add-on was originally part of Blender 4.1's bundled add-ons before being offered through the extensions platform, so it has a history across recent Blender releases. For the most current compatibility details, check the developer's page on the Blender Extensions site.

Where is VDM Brush Baker located in Blender?

VDM Brush Baker is found in the 3D Viewport under Sidebar, then the Tool tab. From there you can use the Create Sculpting Plane button for a starting setup and the Render and Create VDM Brush button to bake the plane's displacement into a new brush. Once baked, new brushes appear as Draw brushes in sculpt mode, listed as the first tool to select in that mode.

Where does VDM Brush Baker save the displacement maps?

VDM Brush Baker saves the vector displacement map as an Open EXR file near the blender file. If the blender file hasn't been saved yet, the map is written to a tmp folder instead. The add-on requests permission to save textures to disk for this reason. A VDM resolution of 512 px or lower is usually enough unless you're working with extremely detailed sculpts.

Is VDM Brush Baker free to use?

VDM Brush Baker is listed as free here and is distributed under the GNU General Public License v3.0 or later. It is a small add-on for creating vector displacement map brushes in Blender. You can add it by dragging and dropping the download into Blender, or by downloading it and installing from disk. For current licensing and download details, refer to the developer's page on the Blender Extensions site.

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