Modifiers change the hair without making you redraw the source. Begin with one visible layer and a simple guide. Add one effect at a time so you can see what it contributes.
Make a wavy clump
Use a layer from the hair-layer lesson. Select its row in the Hair panel to see the Modifiers stack.
Add Clump
Click Add Modifier and choose Clump. Start with a light effect and increase it until the hairs gather into readable locks. Stop before the bundle collapses into a single thin line.
Add Wave
Add Wave after Clump. Use a low strength for a gentle bend, then adjust the wave spacing. Watch the complete bundle, not just one strand.
Keep the root steady
Expand the modifier's Intensity Curve when available. Reduce its influence near the root and let it increase toward the body and tip. This helps keep the starting area tidy while the rest of the bundle moves.
Compare with the original
Disable Wave, then Clump, to compare each change. Re-enable the effects you want to keep. Their settings remain available when they are disabled.
Select the source layer, open Add Modifier, then choose a tile. Curl is highlighted as an example choice; this is the strand modifier gallery, not the texture filter gallery.
- 1Check the selected source layer
The Main flow row remains selected behind the open gallery, so the chosen strand modifier will belong to that source layer.
- 2Choose a modifier tile
Choose Curl here for a curling effect, or select a different visible tile for the strand effect you need.
Control reference: Clump, Wave, and Intensity Curve
Expand the modifier's chevron to see its parameters. Clump uses Intensity and Clump Grid Size; Wave uses Amplitude and Frequency. Intensity Curve varies influence from root to tip. These are inspector references, not an enabled/disabled comparison or a recommended combined stack.
Clump gathers source hairs into locks. The inspector separates the main clump settings from splay, curve, tightness, and tip-preservation adjustments. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Inspect the clump parameters
Intensity, Clump Grid Size, and Noise Scale are followed by splay, curve, tightness, tip-preservation, and variation controls.
- 2Restrict the clump region
The captured Y and X effect ranges both cover the full 0.00–1.00 interval.
Wave separates Amplitude, Frequency, Phase, and Angle. Amplitude is 0.00 here, so the reference does not attribute the study layer's shape to Wave alone. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Find the Wave parameters
Amplitude is 0.00 and Frequency is 12.00. Phase, Angle, Randomness, and Seed are also visible.
- 2Read the effect ranges
Y is labeled Root/Tip and X is labeled Left/Right.
Read the expanded Intensity Curve from ROOT to TIP. This custom example rises toward the tip; it does not replace Wave's separate Amplitude control, which remains 0.00 in this reference.
- 1Identify the owning modifier
This is Wave's Intensity Curve, not a Width Profile or a texture curve.
- 2Read influence from ROOT to TIP
The complete custom graph and its direction labels are visible. The left side starts low and the right side reaches the top.
Change order and compare
The strand modifier stack runs from top to bottom. Each modifier works on the result of the ones above it. Drag an entry to change the order.
Compare the names and order in the visible stack: Clump is above Wave in this example. Use a row grip to reorder, then inspect the result on the source bundle before baking.
- 1Clump is above Wave
Clump is the upper visible entry. The small grip beside its badge is the drag handle for reordering.
- 2Wave is the next entry
Wave is below Clump in this captured arrangement. Keep the names visible when comparing a different order.
Try moving Wave above Clump. Compare whether the hairs gather before or after the wave is applied. There is no single correct order for every hairstyle; keep the order that gives you the intended silhouette.
Limit an effect
Use the group-mask control on a modifier entry when only some roots should receive the effect. First assign those roots in the Root Map, then choose that group in the modifier's mask menu.
Open the mask control on the modifier you want to limit. The blue choice is the Accent roots assignment shown in Root Map; the white choice is the base group. Choose a group instead of confusing this control with texture masking.
- 1Check which modifier you are masking
The open mask belongs to the Wave entry, not the Clump entry above it.
- 2Choose the assigned root group
The capsule exposes the group choices. The blue group is selected in this example and matches the blue assigned source roots.
If an effect appears to do nothing, check the selected layer, the modifier's enabled state, its strength, and its group mask. A group with no assigned roots has no hairs to change.
Choose a modifier
Choose by the visible change you need. Controls vary by modifier; you do not need to memorize every setting before using the stack.
Scroll horizontally to view all columns.
| Modifier | Use it for | Watch for |
|---|---|---|
| Noise | Irregular movement that breaks up a very even bundle. | Too much can hide the main flow. |
| Curl | Rounded curls and coils. | Tight curls need enough strand segments to look smooth. |
| Clump | Gathering hairs into locks. | Strong clumping can make coverage too sparse. |
| Taper | Narrowing strand ends. | Very fine tips may disappear in a small texture. |
| Frizz | Small, uneven detail around an established shape. | Judge the bundle at its intended viewing size. |
| Gravity | A downward droop. | Keep the roots and the desired overall length in view. |
| Bend | A broad directional sweep. | Check the direction before increasing the amount. |
| Braid | A braided pattern in the source hair. | This styles the texture source; Groom also has separate braid geometry choices. |
| Trim | Shortening hairs and varying the ends. | A strong trim can remove more of the bundle than intended. |
| Smooth | Softening abrupt changes in a strand's path. | Too much can remove detail you want to keep. |
| Wave | Repeated side-to-side movement. | Use broad waves before trying tightly repeated patterns. |
Control reference: Noise, Curl, Gravity, and Bend
Use the field names in the expanded inspector rather than assuming every modifier has the same strength or scale control. The captured values are examples, not before/after results.
Noise has its own Intensity and Frequency fields. Effect Range Y runs from Root to Tip; Effect Range X runs from Left to Right. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Set Noise's parameters
Intensity and Frequency are the main fields here. Randomness and Seed are separate controls; the captured values are examples.
- 2Limit the affected region
Both ranges span 0.00–1.00 in this capture. Y is labeled Root/Tip and X is labeled Left/Right.
Curl changes source strands before baking. Its Scale and Tightness controls are not the Geometry Type settings for a placed Groom braid. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Find Curl's scale and tightness
The visible parameter block includes Intensity 30.00, Scale 2.00, Scale Rand 0.00, and Tightness 0.00.
- 2Read the effect directions
Use the actual Root/Tip and Left/Right labels when limiting the source modifier's influence.
Gravity is a source-strand modifier with Intensity and Curve Power controls; this panel is not a Groom simulation inspector. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Set source Gravity
Intensity and Curve Power are followed by separate Randomness and Seed fields.
- 2Choose where Gravity applies
Read Y from Root to Tip and X from Left to Right.
Source Bend exposes Intensity and Angle. It is different from a selected Groom card's Width Bend tool and profile. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Find Intensity and Angle
The captured Angle is 0.00; Randomness and Seed are also visible.
- 2Limit the source region
Both effect ranges use the current Root/Tip and Left/Right directions.
Control reference: Taper, Frizz, Trim, and Smooth
Taper is separate from Width Profile. Trim's Length Scale is separate from the Groom Cut brush, and source Smooth is separate from Groom's Smooth brush.
This is the Taper modifier itself, not the separate Root Settings Width Profile editor. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Set Taper and its variation
Taper is 0.50; Randomness and Seed are both 0.00 in this example.
Frizz exposes frequency, amplitude, octave, roughness, and occurrence settings. Amplitude is 0.00 in the captured reference; do not read this as a demonstrated frizz result. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Inspect the frizz parameters
Intensity, Frequency, Amplitude, Octaves, Roughness, Occurrence, and Clump Awareness are separate fields, followed by Randomness and Seed.
- 2Bound the effect
The Root/Tip and Left/Right ranges are both fully open here.
Trim has a Length Scale field for source hair. The captured 1.00 is not a demonstrated shortening, and this is not the Groom Cut brush. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Set Length Scale and variation
Length Scale is 1.00; Randomness and Seed are separate fields below it.
Source Smooth uses Factor and Iterations. It is separate from the Smooth brush used to edit placed Groom cards. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Set Factor and Iterations
This example shows Factor 0.50 and Iterations 10, with Randomness and Seed below.
- 2Limit the smoothing region
The captured Y and X ranges span their full Root/Tip and Left/Right extents.
Control reference: source Braid
This inspector styles source strands before baking. It does not convert a placed Groom card into 3D braid geometry.
This Braid styles source strands before baking. It is not the Ribbon/braid Geometry Type selector for placed 3D Groom cards. This is a control reference, not an isolated-effect comparison.
- 1Set the source braid parameters
Intensity 1.00, Frequency 5.00, and Radius 0.01 are visible, followed by Randomness and Seed.
- 2Restrict its influence
Effect Range Y is Root/Tip; Effect Range X is Left/Right.
Before you bake
- Turn each modifier off and on once. Keep it only if it improves the bundle.
- Check that the tips have not crossed into a neighboring bundle.
- Restore the visibility of every layer you want in the texture.
- Save the project before making a new bake.
Continue to Bake textures and create UV cards. When source hair changes after a bake, bake again to update the textures.