Super Crowd — User Manual
1. Overview
Super Crowd is a procedural audience/crowd generation tool provided by SuperStage. It generates non-overlapping randomly distributed crowds within spline-defined enclosed areas using Poisson disk sampling algorithms, and supports terrain snapping.
Core Features
- Spline boundary — Closed spline defines the crowd distribution area
- Poisson disk sampling — Bridson algorithm ensures uniform, non-overlapping character spacing
- Multiple character templates — Supports multiple character meshes + weight-based random assignment
- Terrain snapping — Ray detection automatically snaps to ground
- Density/Count dual mode — Controls crowd scale by density or target count
Use Cases
- Performance venue audience area pre-visualization
- Event venue crowd density planning
- Standing audience simulation in front of stage
- Crowding any arbitrary area
2. Usage
- Place a Super Crowd Actor in the scene
- After selecting, edit spline control points to enclose a closed area
- Adjust density/count parameters
- Crowd automatically generated within the enclosed area
Important: The spline must form a closed polygon (end-to-end connected); otherwise the area cannot be calculated.
3. Main Parameters
3.1 Distribution Parameters
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| FillMode | Fill mode: Density / TargetCount |
| Density | Density (people/m²), used in Density mode |
| TargetCount | Target number of people, used in TargetCount mode |
| MinSpacing | Minimum spacing between characters (cm) |
| RandomSeed | Random seed (same seed produces same distribution) |
3.2 Character Templates
Define available character models via the Characters array:
| Field | Description |
|---|---|
| Mesh | Character Static Mesh (StaticMesh) |
| Weight | Weight (higher = more likely to be selected) |
| MinScale / MaxScale | Random scale range |
| bRandomYaw | Random yaw rotation |
3.3 Terrain Parameters
| Parameter | Description |
|---|---|
| bSnapToGround | Snap to ground |
| TraceDistance | Ray detection distance (cm) |
| GroundOffset | Ground offset (cm) |
4. Algorithm Notes
Poisson Disk Sampling (Bridson)
- Generates uniformly distributed random points within the spline-defined area
- Ensures distance between any two points is not less than MinSpacing
- More natural than pure random distribution, no clustering
Area Determination
- Ray casting method to determine if a point is inside the polygon
- Shoelace formula for area calculation
Terrain Snapping
- Cast rays from above each sample point downward
- Local coordinates → world coordinates → ray detection → world coordinates → local coordinates
5. ISM Components
Uses ISM component pool (up to MAX_CHARACTER_ISM_COUNT components), each character mesh type occupies one ISM component.
6. Usage Tips
- Recommended density: dense standing 2~4 people/m², spacious 0.5~1 person/m²
- Character Weight controls proportions, e.g., 70% regular audience + 20% hands up + 10% taking photos
- Crowd automatically regenerates after modifying spline control points
- Large crowds (>1000) may affect editor frame rate