Guides Tab

The Guides tab is where you create the foundation of your hair - guide curves that define where hair grows, which direction it flows, and how long it is. Think of guides as the "skeleton" of your hairstyle.

What Are Guides?

Guides are sparse curves (typically 50-500) placed on your mesh that control:

• Position: Where hair grows on the surface
• Direction: Which way hair flows
• Length: How long the hair is
• Shape: Straight, curved, or custom sculpted

Guides are NOT the final hair - they're templates. In the Primitive tab, you'll generate thousands of dense strands that follow these guides.

Why Guides Matter

Good guides = good hair. Spend time getting your guides right before moving to the Primitive stage. You can always come back and adjust guides, but starting with a solid foundation makes styling much easier.

Distribution Methods

The Distribution panel controls how guides are placed on your mesh.

Random

Guides are scattered randomly across the surface.

When to use: Quick tests, organic natural placement

Pros: Fast, natural-looking distribution

Cons: Can create uneven density, some areas might have gaps

Example Settings:

• Count: 100-200
• Good for: Initial tests, natural hair

Poisson Disk

Guides are evenly spaced with a minimum distance between them. No guides will be closer than the Min Distance value.

When to use: Professional work, even coverage needed

Pros: Guaranteed even spacing, no clumping or gaps

Cons: Slightly slower than Random

Parameters:

• Min Distance: Minimum space between guides (0.01-10.0, default 0.1)
• Larger values = fewer guides, more spacing
• Smaller values = more guides, tighter spacing

Example Settings:

• Count: 200
• Min Distance: 0.08
• Good for: Most production hair, even coverage

Grid

Guides arranged in a regular grid pattern.

When to use: Stylized hair, technical tests, debugging

Pros: Perfectly regular, predictable

Cons: Looks artificial, not natural

Example Settings:

• Count: 100 (creates 10x10 grid)
• Good for: Stylized looks, testing

Vertices

One guide per mesh vertex.

When to use: Maximum control, low-poly meshes

Pros: Precise placement, follows mesh topology

Cons: Guide count depends on mesh density, can be too many or too few

Example Settings:

• Works best with: 100-500 vertex meshes
• Good for: Precise control, eyebrows, facial hair

Face Centers

One guide at the center of each mesh face.

When to use: Similar to Vertices but different distribution

Pros: Follows mesh structure, predictable

Cons: Depends on mesh topology

Example Settings:

• Works best with: Quad-based meshes
• Good for: Controlled placement

Even

Attempts to distribute guides evenly across the surface using advanced sampling.

When to use: High-quality even distribution

Pros: Very even coverage

Cons: Slower than other methods

Example Settings:

• Count: 200-500
• Good for: Production hair, final renders

External

Used when guides are imported from another source (Alembic, hand-drawn curves, etc.). When this mode is active, the procedural generation parameters (Count, Length, Control Points, Noise, Seed) are hidden since they don't apply to imported guides.

Guide Density Map

The Density Map section lets you control where guides are placed using a painted texture.

Use Density Map

Enable texture-based guide density control.

What it does: Restricts guide placement to areas where the density map is white:

• White = guides can be placed here
• Black = no guides in this area
• Gray = reduced chance of guides

Buttons: Paint / Save / Load

Workflow:

1. Check "Use Density Map"
2. Click Paint to paint the map on your mesh
3. Paint white where you want guides, black where you don't
4. Click Save
5. Generate or regenerate guides — they'll respect the painted map

Use cases: Hairlines, bald spots, thinning areas, precise guide placement control.

Guide Properties

The Guide Properties panel controls the characteristics of each guide curve.

Density, Length and Noise can each be driven by an expression or by a Blender vertex group, as well as by their slider. They do not take texture maps or painted channels: the guides do not exist yet when these are evaluated. The Guide Density Map above is the texture that controls placement.

Length

How long guides are (in Blender units).

Range: 0.1 to 10.0 (Default: 1.0)

What it does: Sets the length of guide curves from root to tip. This determines the maximum hair length.

When to adjust:

• Short hair: 0.1-0.3
• Medium hair: 0.3-0.6
• Long hair: 0.6-2.0
• Very long hair: 2.0+

Important: You can trim hair later with the Cut modifier, but you can't make it longer than the guides. Set guides slightly longer than your target length.

Example Settings:

• Bob cut: 0.15
• Shoulder length: 0.4
• Waist length: 1.0
• Floor length: 2.5

Control Points

Number of points per guide curve.

Range: 2 to 32 (Default: 8)

What it does: More points = smoother curves, better for sculpting complex shapes. Fewer points = simpler curves, faster.

When to adjust:

• Straight hair: 4-6 points
• Wavy hair: 8-12 points
• Complex sculpted shapes: 16-32 points

Performance: More points = slightly slower, but usually not noticeable.

Example Settings:

• Simple straight: 4
• Natural hair: 8
• Sculpted styles: 16

Variation

The Variation panel adds randomness to guide placement and direction.

Noise

Random displacement applied to guide positions.

Range: 0.0 to 1.0 (Default: 0.0)

What it does: Adds random variation to guide placement. Higher values create more irregular, natural-looking distribution.

When to use:

• 0.0: Perfect placement (stylized, technical)
• 0.1-0.3: Subtle natural variation (realistic hair)
• 0.5+: Strong variation (messy, wild hair)

Visual effect: Guides shift slightly from their perfect positions, creating a more organic look.

Example Settings:

• Clean styled hair: 0.0
• Natural hair: 0.15
• Messy hair: 0.4

Seed

Random seed for all randomization.

Range: 0 to 999999 (Default: 42)

What it does: Controls the random number generator. Same seed = same result. Different seed = different random pattern.

When to use: Change the seed to try different random variations without changing other parameters.

Tip: If you like the overall look but want to try a different random pattern, just change the seed!

Create & Edit Utilities

The Create & Edit panel provides tools for manual guide creation and editing.

Create Empty Hair

Creates an empty hair system on your selected mesh with no guides.

When to use: You want to manually sculpt every guide from scratch.

Workflow:

1. Select your mesh
2. Click "Create Empty Hair"
3. Enter Blender's sculpt mode
4. Use curve sculpting tools to draw guides
5. Exit sculpt mode

Best for: Complete artistic control, unique hairstyles, facial hair

Import External Guides

Converts any Blender curves into FollicleFX guides with automatic repair and resampling.

When to use: You've created curves in Blender or imported them from another application and want to use them as guides.

What it does:

• Automatically detects and fixes non-uniform point counts (varying CVs per curve)
• Repairs invalid positions (NaN/Inf values) via interpolation
• Wraps UDIM UVs to 0-1 range
• Resamples curves to uniform point count using arc-length parameterization

Parameters:

• Auto Resample (default: enabled): Automatically resample curves with non-uniform point counts
• Resample Points (default: 8): Target point count for resampled curves (3-32)

Workflow:

1. Create or import curves in Blender (any method)
2. Select the curves
3. Click "Convert Curves to Guides"
4. System automatically detects and fixes issues:

• Non-uniform curves are resampled to uniform point count
• Invalid positions are repaired by interpolating from neighbors
• UDIM UVs are wrapped to 0-1 range

1. Curves become clean, uniform FollicleFX guides

Best for:

• Importing guides from other software
• Converting hand-drawn curves
• Fixing problematic curve data
• Precise technical control

Tip: If you're importing curves from other DCCs and experiencing "flying" strands or errors, this operator will automatically detect and fix the issues!

Edit in Sculpt Mode

Opens Blender's sculpt mode to edit existing guides.

When to use: You've generated guides but want to refine their shape.

Workflow:

1. Generate guides first
2. Click "Edit in Sculpt Mode"
3. Use Blender's curve sculpting tools
4. Exit sculpt mode

Important: FollicleFX preserves your sculpted shapes! When you adjust parameters (count, length, etc.), your sculpted shapes are maintained.

Best for: Refining generated guides, creating custom flow patterns

Selection Sets

New in 1.5.1. A selection set is a named group of guides. Use one to make a modifier act on part of a groom only: mirror just the fringe, simulate only the lengths, clump only the crown.

Create a set

1. In the Selection Sets panel of the Guides tab, click + and name the set. A new set is empty. It shows in every modifier's Attribute picker once the groom updates, so you can wire a modifier to it first and watch the effect arrive as you paint.
2. Fill it from a selection or paint it (below).
3. Double-click a set, or click Rename, to rename it. Click − to delete it.

Fill it from a selection

1. Select the guides object and enter Edit Mode or Sculpt Mode.
2. Select the guides you want: box select, lasso or click.
3. Pick the set in the list and click From Selection.

From Selection replaces the set: the selected guides are in it, every other guide is out. Use the brush to add to a set instead.

Paint it

Pick the set and click Paint, then paint on the scalp. Guides are chosen by their root, so paint where the hair grows rather than where it hangs.

Input	Action
Drag	Add to the set
Ctrl + drag	Subtract
Shift + drag	Smooth
Alt + drag	Replace
Wheel, or [ and ]	Brush size
Shift + Wheel	Strength
D	Toggle the overlay
X	Clear the set
Esc or right-click	Finish

Use it

• On any modifier's Mask, click the source chip, choose Attribute and pick the set.
• In an expression, read it as attr("ffx_sel_<name>"), for example attr("ffx_sel_Fringe").
• Sets are carried through Braid and Cornrow, so modifiers below them can still use a set.

Generation Buttons

Generate Guides

Creates new guides on your mesh using the current parameters.

When to use: First-time guide creation, or when you want to completely regenerate guides.

What it does:

• Analyzes your mesh
• Places guides according to Distribution settings
• Creates curves with specified Length and Control Points
• Applies Variation if set

Tip: After generating, you can adjust parameters and guides will auto-update (preserving any sculpted shapes).

Reset

Completely resets guides, losing any sculpted shapes.

When to use: You want to start over from scratch.

Warning: This destroys any manual sculpting you've done. Use carefully!

Interpolate Guides

Your sparse guides stay the input and the dense set is recomputed on every evaluation, so:

• The count can go back down. Raise it to 500, look at it, drop it to 80. Nothing was destroyed, so nothing has to be undone.
• Its place in the stack matters. Before a Guide Flow, the new guides inherit that flow; after it, each new guide keeps the shape its neighbours had at that point.

Target Count

How many guides you want after interpolation.

Blending

How a new guide's shape is taken from its neighbours: Linear, Smooth or RBF (the slowest, and the smoothest result).

Distribution

Where the new guides are placed: Uniform Random, Poisson Disk or Density Map. With Density Map, guides falling in low-density areas of the painted map are left out.

Mirror Guides

Mirrors guides across an axis for symmetrical hairstyles. Because it is a modifier, the mirror is recomputed rather than baked, so edits to the source side keep flowing through to the mirrored side.

Axis

Which axis to mirror across: X (across YZ), Y (across XZ) or Z (across XY).

Default: X (left/right symmetry, the most common for heads)

Direction

Which guides are mirrored: both sides, or only one side copied onto the other.

Merge Threshold

Guides whose roots are closer than this to the mirror plane are not duplicated, so a centre part does not double up.

Replace opposite side

When checked, existing guides on the target side are replaced by the mirrored ones.

Mask and selection sets

New in 1.5.1. Use the mask to choose which guides are mirrored: pick a selection set or a painted channel. Useful when one side of a groom is deliberately asymmetric.

Auto-Update Feature

Once you've generated guides, FollicleFX automatically updates them when you change parameters. This is incredibly powerful!

How it works:

1. Generate guides
2. Optionally sculpt them in Blender
3. Adjust parameters (count, length, etc.)
4. Guides update automatically, preserving your sculpted shapes!

Example Workflow:

1. Generate 100 guides
2. Sculpt them to create a specific hairstyle
3. Realize you need 200 guides for better coverage
4. Change Count to 200
5. New guides are added, but your sculpted shapes remain!

This lets you iterate quickly without losing your artistic work.

Practical Examples

Example 1: Simple Straight Hair

Distribution: Poisson Disk
Count: 150
Min Distance: 0.1
Length: 0.25
Control Points: 6
Noise: 0.0

Result: Clean, evenly distributed straight hair

Example 2: Natural Medium Hair

Distribution: Poisson Disk
Count: 250
Min Distance: 0.08
Length: 0.4
Control Points: 8
Noise: 0.15

Result: Natural-looking medium-length hair with subtle variation

Example 3: Long Flowing Hair

Distribution: Even
Count: 400
Length: 1.2
Control Points: 16
Noise: 0.1

Result: Long hair with smooth curves, ready for sculpting

Example 4: Short Textured Hair

Distribution: Random
Count: 300
Length: 0.08
Control Points: 4
Noise: 0.3

Result: Short, textured hair with lots of variation

Example 5: Eyebrows (Precise Control)

Distribution: Vertices
Length: 0.03
Control Points: 4
Noise: 0.05

Result: Precise eyebrow guides following mesh topology

Tips and Best Practices

Start with Poisson Disk: It's the best all-around distribution method for most hair.

Don't Skimp on Guides: More guides = better control. 200-400 guides is typical for head hair.

Use Enough Control Points: 8 points is a good default. Use more (16+) if you plan to sculpt complex shapes.

Sculpt After Generating: Generate guides first, then sculpt them. This is faster than manual creation.

Save Presets: Once you find good guide settings, save them as a preset for reuse.

Length Matters: Set guides slightly longer than your target hair length. You can always trim with the Cut modifier.

Noise is Subtle: A little noise (0.1-0.2) goes a long way. Too much looks messy.

Use Auto-Update: Take advantage of auto-update! Adjust parameters freely - your sculpted shapes are preserved.

Common Mistakes

Too Few Guides: Using 20-50 guides for head hair. This creates patchy, unrealistic results. Use 150-400 guides.

Wrong Distribution: Using Random when you need even coverage. Use Poisson Disk or Even for production work.

Too Short: Making guides too short, then realizing you need longer hair. Always make guides slightly longer than needed.

Ignoring Sculpting: Not sculpting guides to match the hairstyle. Generated guides are just a starting point - sculpt them!

Resetting Instead of Adjusting: Using Reset button when you just want to change parameters. Use auto-update instead!

Too Many Control Points: Using 32 points for simple straight hair. This is overkill and slower. Use 4-8 points for simple hair.

Next Steps

Once you have guides set up, move to the Primitive Tab to generate dense hair strands from your guides.

Related Topics:

• Primitive Tab — Generate strands from guides
• Guide Flow Modifier — Pin-based flow control
• Workflows and Tips — Complete hairstyle workflows

---

Guides are the foundation of great hair. Take your time, experiment with different distributions, and don't be afraid to sculpt! Once you have solid guides, the rest of the workflow becomes much easier.