You set the size and appearance of flames using parameters in the Characteristics area. All of these parameters are dependent on the apparatus size and are interdependent on each other. Changing one parameter affects the behavior of the other three.
Flame Size: Sets the size of individual flames inside the apparatus. The flame size is affected by the size of the apparatus. A larger apparatus requires a larger flame size. A good starting range is 15.0 to 30.0.
Large values work best for Fireballs.
Small values work best for Tendrils.
If the flame size is very small, you might need to increase Samples to see individual flames.
Effect of changing Flame Size
Value = 15.0, 30.0, 50.0
Radius of apparatus = 30.0
Flame Detail: Controls the amount of color change and edge sharpness seen within each flame. Value range is from 0.0 to 10.0. Default value = 3.0.
Low values produce smooth, fuzzy flames and render faster.
High values produce patterned, sharp flames and render slower.
Use higher detail values for large flame sizes. If the detail value is greater than 4, you might need to increase Samples to capture the detail.
Effect of changing Flame Detail
Value = 1.0, 2.0, 5.0
Density: Sets the opacity and brightness of the combustion effect. The density is affected by the size of the apparatus. A large apparatus with the same density as a small apparatus appears more opaque and brighter, because of its larger size.
Low values make the effect less opaque and use more of the outer color.
High values make the effect more opaque and brighten the effect by gradually replacing the inner color with white. The higher the value, the more white in the center of the effect.
If Explosion is checked, Density is animated from 0.0 at the start of the explosion to the set density value at the peak of the explosion.
Effect of changing Flame Density
Value = 10, 60, 120
Samples: Sets the rate at which the effect is sampled. Higher values produce more accurate results but take longer to render. Default = 15.
You might consider raising the samples value under the following conditions --
Flame Size is small.
Flame Detail is greater than 4.
Any time you see color banding in the effect. The chance of color banding increases if a flat surface intersects the combustion effect.
Note: 100% transparent objects that intersect the effect will become partially visible. To use particles with Combustion, consider using 3D particles instead of opacity-mapped particles.