Muddy Ground with Footsteps in Sludge | Free PBR free download

. Formats: PNG . Free for personal & commercial use.

Preview — Muddy Ground with Footsteps in Sludge | Free PBR

IDmuddy-ground-with-footsteps-in-sludge-free-pbr
Ground surface
PNG
Size1k (1024x1024px), 2k (2048x2048px), 4k (4096x4096px), 8k (8192x8192px)
sRGB

This high-quality, seamless PBR texture features a realistic depiction of muddy ground interspersed with distinctive footsteps embedded in thick sludge. The base substrate is an organic, soil-rich composition, combining fine mineral particles and decomposed vegetation matter that create a naturally uneven and porous surface. The texture captures the complex interaction between wet earth and viscous sludge, where moisture acts as a natural binder, holding together aggregates of clay, silt, and sand. The surface finish is matte and slightly glossy in wet patches, illustrating subtle variations in moisture content and compaction. Pigments from iron oxides and organic decay lend the texture its rich, earthy brown tones with occasional dark, almost black, saturated areas in the deepest impressions of the footprints.

In the PBR texture channels, the BaseColor (Albedo) reflects the muddy, muted brown hues with localized darkening where the sludge collects and footprints compress the soil. The Normal map emphasizes the fine grain orientation and surface irregularities, including the raised edges of compressed mud and subtle ridges formed by the footprints. Roughness varies naturally, with wetter patches appearing smoother and more reflective, while drier, cracked areas yield higher roughness values. The Metallic channel remains essentially non-metallic, consistent with organic earth materials. Ambient Occlusion enhances the depth of footprint depressions and subtle crevices between soil aggregates, while the Height/Displacement map accurately reproduces the three-dimensional relief of the uneven ground and foot impressions, perfect for parallax effects or tessellation.

This texture is available at an ultra-high resolution of up to 8K, ensuring crisp detail even on close-up renders and large surfaces. It is fully optimized for use in popular 3D software such as Blender, Unreal Engine, and Unity, making it ideal for realistic outdoor scenes, game environments, or architectural visualizations where authentic ground surfaces are needed. For optimal results, it is recommended to fine-tune the UV scale to match the size of footprints relative to the scene and adjust roughness maps to balance between wet, reflective sludge and matte, dried earth, enhancing realism in varying lighting conditions.

How to Use These Seamless PBR Textures in Blender

This guide shows how to connect a full PBR texture set to Principled BSDF in Blender (Cycles or Eevee). Works with any of our seamless textures free download, including PBR PNG materials for Blender / Unreal / Unity.

What’s inside the download

  • *_albedo.png — Base Color (sRGB)
  • *_normal.png — Normal map (Non-Color)
  • *_roughness.png — Roughness (Non-Color)
  • *_metallic.png — Metallic (Non-Color)
  • *_ao.png — Ambient Occlusion (Non-Color)
  • *_height.png — Height / Displacement (Non-Color)
  • *_ORM.png — Packed map (R=AO, G=Roughness, B=Metallic, Non-Color)

Quick start (Node Wrangler, 30 seconds)

  1. Enable the addon: Edit → Preferences → Add-ons → Node Wrangler.
  2. Create a material and select the Principled BSDF node.
  3. Press Ctrl + Shift + T and select the maps albedo, normal, roughness, metallic (skip height and ORM for now) → Open. The addon wires Base Color, Normal (with a Normal Map node), Roughness, and Metallic automatically.
  4. Add AO and Height using the “Manual wiring” steps below (5 and 6).

Manual wiring (full control)

  1. Create a material (Material Properties → New) and open the Shader Editor.
  2. Add an Image Texture node for each map. Set Color Space:
    • AlbedosRGB
    • AO, Roughness, Metallic, Normal, Height, ORMNon-Color
  3. Connect to Principled BSDF:
    • albedoBase Color
    • roughnessRoughness
    • metallicMetallic (for wood this often stays near 0)
    • normalNormal Map node (Type: Tangent Space) → Normal of Principled. If details look “inverted”, enable Invert Y on the Normal Map node.
  4. Ambient Occlusion (AO):
    • Add a MixRGB (or Mix Color) node in mode Multiply.
    • Input A = albedo, Input B = ao, Factor = 1.0.
    • Output of Mix → Base Color of Principled (replaces the direct albedo connection).
  5. Height / Displacement:
    Cycles — true displacement
    1. Material Properties → SettingsDisplacement: Displacement and Bump.
    2. Add a Displacement node: connect heightHeight, set Midlevel = 0.5, Scale = 0.02–0.08 (tune to taste).
    3. Output of Displacement → Material Output → Displacement.
    4. Add geometry density (e.g., Subdivision Surface) so displacement has polygons to work with.
    Eevee (or lightweight Cycles) — bump only
    1. Add a Bump node: heightHeight.
    2. Set Strength = 0.2–0.5, Distance = 0.05–0.1, and connect Normal output to Principled’s Normal.

Using the packed ORM texture (optional)

Instead of separate AO/Roughness/Metallic maps you can use the single *_ORM.png:

  1. Add one Image Texture (Non-Color) → Separate RGB (or Separate Color).
  2. R (red) → AO (use it in the Multiply node with albedo as above).
  3. G (green) → Roughness of Principled.
  4. B (blue) → Metallic of Principled.

UVs & seamless tiling

  1. These textures are seamless. If your mesh has no UVs, go to UV EditingSmart UV Project.
  2. For scale/repeat, add Texture Coordinate (UV)Mapping and plug it into all texture nodes. Increase Mapping → Scale (e.g., 2/2/2) to tile more densely.

Recommended starter values

  • Normal Map Strength: 0.5–1.0
  • Bump Strength: ~0.3
  • Displacement Scale (Cycles): ~0.03

Common pitfalls

  • Wrong Color Space (normals/roughness/etc. must be Non-Color).
  • “Inverted” details → enable Invert Y on the Normal Map node.
  • Over-strong relief → lower Displacement Scale or Bump Strength.

Example: Download Wood Textures and instantly apply parquet or rustic planks inside Blender for architectural visualization.

To add the downloaded texture, go to Add — Texture — Image Texture.



Add a node and click the Open button.



Select the required texture on your hard drive and connect Color to Base Color.


AITEXTURED Tools

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