In this chapter, you have learned how to create custom materials, and use them to make geometries look more spiffy. You're on your way to become a 3D graphics expert! Now that you know essential concepts such as shaders and multimapping, it will be easier for you to use a search engine to find good textures, or to ask the right questions on forums.
Specifically, we covered how to work with opaque and transparent materials, how to make parts of geometries invisible, how to use multimapped textures to make materials reflect light in a more natural way, and how to "deep-freeze" materials that you use repeatedly.
With the 3D graphic skills that you have learned by now, your scenes will look pretty awesome already! Your walls are made up of the bumpiest bricks, you can render differently tinged wood types, and your rubber duckies have just the right amount of specularity. But do they also act their part? Read on to make the brick wall solid, to push around your wooden boxes, and to teach...