8

770 Chapter 8: Modifiers
Original objects compared to relaxed objec ts
Pat ches
As of version 4, a patch object coming up the
modifier stack is not converted to a mesh by
this mo difier. A patch object input to the Relax
modifier retains its patch definition. If a fi le
created by a previous version of 3ds Max contains
a patch object applied with the Relax modifier, it
will be converted to a mesh to maintain backward
compatibility.
Inter face
Relax Value—Controls how far a vertex moves for
each iteration. The value specifies a percentage
of the distance from the original location of a
vertex to the average location of its neighbors.
Range=-1.0 to 1.0. Default=0.5.
• Positive Relax values move each vertex in closer
to its neighbors. The object becomes smoother
and sma ller.
•WhentheRelaxvalue=0.0,verticesdonot
move and Relax has no affect on the object.
• Negative Relax values move each ver tex aw ay
from its neighbors. The object becomes more
irregular and larger.
Relax Values=1.0, 0.0, -1.0
Iterations=1 (default)
Iterations—Sets how many times to repeat the
Relax process. For each iteration, average locations
arerecalculatedandtheRelaxValueisreappliedto
every vertex. Default=1.
• For 0 iterations, no relaxation is applied.
• IncreasingiterationsforpositiveRelaxValue
settings smooths a nd shrinks an object. With
very large iteration values, the object shrinks
to a point.
• Increasing iterations for negative Relax Value
settings exaggerates and expands an object.
With relatively few iterations, the object
becomes jumbled and almost unusable.
Iterations=0, 10, 50
Relax Value=0.5 (defau lt)