Shadows Settings

enable shadows

Type	Range	Default	Location
boolean	true, false	false	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Enable or disable shadow rendering using shadow mapping. More realistic but may reduce performance.

number of shadow maps

Type	Range	Default	Location
int	1 to 8	3	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Number of shadow maps used. More maps improve shadow quality but may reduce performance or cause texture conflicts.

maximum shadow map distance

Type	Range	Default	Location
float32	full 32-bit float range	8192	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Maximum distance shadows cover from the camera. Set ≤ 0 to disable distance limit.

shadow fade start

Type	Range	Default	Location
float32	[0, 1]	0.9	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Fraction of maximum shadow distance at which shadows start fading. No effect if distance limit disabled.

enable debug hud

Type	Range	Default	Location
boolean	true, false	false	user settings.cfg

Show debug HUD visualizing shadow map contents. Recommended for developers or advanced users.

enable debug overlay

Type	Range	Default	Location
boolean	true, false	false	user settings.cfg

Show debug overlay showing shadow map coverage areas. Recommended for advanced debugging.

compute scene bounds

Type	Range	Default	Location
string	primitives | bounds | none	bounds	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Method to compute shadow map coverage: - primitives: better shadows, higher CPU cost - bounds: better performance, lower quality - none: disables computation

shadow map resolution

Type	Range	Default	Location
int	dependent on GPU/driver	1024	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Size of shadow maps. Higher values improve quality but increase GPU load. Powers of two may perform better on some hardware.

actor shadows

Type	Range	Default	Location
boolean	true, false	false	user settings.cfg

Enable shadows cast by NPCs and creatures. May reduce performance.

player shadows

Type	Range	Default	Location
boolean	true, false	false	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Enable shadows cast by the player character. May reduce performance.

terrain shadows

Type	Range	Default	Location
boolean	true, false	false	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Enable shadows cast by terrain. May reduce performance.

object shadows

Type	Range	Default	Location
boolean	true, false	false	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Enable shadows cast by static objects. May reduce performance.

enable indoor shadows

Type	Range	Default	Location
boolean	true, false	false	Launcher > Settings > Visuals > Shadows

Enable shadows indoors. Only actors cast shadows indoors without full ceiling shadows. Can cause shadows appearing through objects.

polygon offset factor

Type	Range	Default	Location
float32	full 32-bit float range, sensibly >1.0	1.1	user settings.cfg

Polygon offset factor for shadow map rendering. Reduces shadow flicker but may increase Peter Panning.

polygon offset units

Type	Range	Default	Location
float32	full 32-bit float range, sensibly 1 to 10	4.0	user settings.cfg

Polygon offset units for shadow map rendering. Works with offset factor to reduce artifacts.

normal offset distance

Type	Range	Default	Location
float32	full 32-bit float range, sensibly 0 to 2	1.0	user settings.cfg

Distance along surface normal to project shadow coordinates. Reduces flicker with less Peter Panning than polygon offset.

use front face culling

Type	Range	Default	Location
boolean	true, false	false	user settings.cfg

Exclude front faces from shadow maps for performance. May increase Peter Panning artifacts.

split point uniform logarithmic ratio

Type	Range	Default	Location
float32	[0, 1]	0.5	user settings.cfg

Controls balance between logarithmic and uniform split points for shadow splits. Adjust when using large view distances or distant terrain.

split point bias

Type	Range	Default	Location
float32	full C++ float range	0.0	user settings.cfg

Bias parameter used in shadow split computation. Non-zero values can cause unusual behavior.

minimum lispsm near far ratio

Type	Range	Default	Location
float32	> 0	0.25	user settings.cfg

Minimum near/far ratio for Light Space Perspective Shadow Map. Controls distribution of shadow detail near and far from the camera.