This seamless 3D texture captures the intricate interplay of flash smoke and fire plume generated by a sudden, intense explosion. The base material suggests a dynamic composite of volatile gaseous emissions and incandescent particulate matter suspended in turbulent air. Visually, this forms a swirling smoke ring and fiery tongues that radiate outward, resembling a transient fire cloud with embedded thermal scorch patterns. The geometric form is complex and amorphous, characterized by soft, flowing contours and layered wisps that simulate the chaotic expansion of smoke and flame. The texture’s surface finish is matte with subtle translucency, replicating the diffused light scattering through smoke particles, while the fire tongues exhibit a semi-glossy, glowing aspect that conveys incandescence and heat.*
From a materials perspective, the substrate can be interpreted as a dense mixture of fine ash particles and combustion byproducts acting as aggregates, bound by transient hot gases and plasma-like binders that rapidly evolve and dissipate. This results in a porous, semi-opaque structure with localized variations in density and opacity, reflecting the turbulent nature of explosive ignition. Colorants range from deep charred blacks and grays within the smoke ring to vivid oranges, reds, and yellows in the fiery plume and scorched areas. These pigments create a gradient effect across the texture, enhancing depth and realism. Weathering is represented by thermal scorch marks and subtle fading at the edges, simulating the cooling and dispersal phases post-explosion.*
In terms of PBR mapping, the BaseColor channel accurately conveys the varied albedo of smoke and fire, blending smoky grays with fiery hues. The Normal map provides detailed surface irregularities, emphasizing billowing smoke curls and the undulating fire tongues, adding volumetric depth without excessive geometry. Roughness is finely tuned, with higher roughness in dense smoke areas to simulate diffuse light scattering, contrasted by lower roughness values on the fire tongues, giving a semi-glossy glow effect. The Metallic channel remains minimal or zero, as fire and smoke lack metallic properties, while Ambient Occlusion accentuates shadowed folds within the smoke ring and fire cloud for enhanced realism. Height or Displacement maps subtly define volumetric height cues, enabling parallax effects to mimic the layered, three-dimensional nature of the plume.*
Rendered at a crisp 8K resolution, this texture ensures exceptional detail and clarity, suitable for high-fidelity projects in Blender, Unreal Engine, and Unity. Its seamless tiling capability allows for scalable application across large surfaces without visible repetition, ideal for dynamic environments or visual effects requiring continuous explosive phenomena. For practical usage, it is recommended to adjust the UV scale carefully to preserve the natural flow of smoke and fire forms, avoiding overly large or small repetitions that can break immersion. Additionally, blending height or parallax maps with normals can enhance the volumetric appearance, while fine-tuning roughness values helps balance the contrast between matte smoke and glossy flames, adapting the texture to different lighting scenarios effectively.
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)
- Enable the addon: Edit → Preferences → Add-ons → Node Wrangler.
- Create a material and select the Principled BSDF node.
- 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.
- Add AO and Height using the “Manual wiring” steps below (5 and 6).
Manual wiring (full control)
- Create a material (Material Properties → New) and open the Shader Editor.
- Add an Image Texture node for each map. Set Color Space:
- Albedo → sRGB
- AO, Roughness, Metallic, Normal, Height, ORM → Non-Color
- Connect to Principled BSDF:
albedo → Base Colorroughness → Roughnessmetallic → Metallic (for wood this often stays near 0)normal → Normal Map node (Type: Tangent Space) → Normal of Principled.
If details look “inverted”, enable Invert Y on the Normal Map node.
- 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).
- Height / Displacement:
Cycles — true displacement
- Material Properties → Settings → Displacement: Displacement and Bump.
- Add a Displacement node: connect
height → Height, set Midlevel = 0.5, Scale = 0.02–0.08 (tune to taste).
- Output of Displacement → Material Output → Displacement.
- Add geometry density (e.g., Subdivision Surface) so displacement has polygons to work with.
Eevee (or lightweight Cycles) — bump only
- Add a Bump node:
height → Height.
- 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:
- Add one Image Texture (Non-Color) → Separate RGB (or Separate Color).
- R (red) → AO (use it in the Multiply node with albedo as above).
- G (green) → Roughness of Principled.
- B (blue) → Metallic of Principled.
UVs & seamless tiling
- These textures are seamless. If your mesh has no UVs, go to UV Editing → Smart UV Project.
- 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.
