Gradient Ramp Generator

Module: Tech · Category: TextureGenerators · Tool ID: GradientRampGenerator

Builds gradient ramp textures with custom color stops, per-stop interpolation (Linear or Step), and four orientations (Horizontal / Vertical / Radial / Angular). Drives toon-shading lookups, color grading ramps, time-of-day curves, and any ramp-based material effect. Exports as PNG or UTexture2D UAsset, and can also create a UCurveLinearColor asset.

Tool open with a 6-stop toon ramp visible, marker row showing draggable stops, preview at the bottom.

When to use it

• Authoring toon / cel shading ramps that drive material lookup
• Time-of-day color ramps for sky / lighting drivers
• Color-grading LUTs for stylized post-processing
• Any material that needs a parameterizable color gradient

What it isn’t for

• Don’t use this for full-LUT generation. See LUT Color Grading Baker.
• Don’t expect 3D gradients. Outputs are 2D (or 1D × height).

Opening the tool

1. Open the EQLabs Hub and search for Gradient (or browse to Tech → TextureGenerators).
2. Click the tool card.
3. Add stops, configure orientation, click Generate.

Interface tour

Section	What it does	Default
Resolution	Output texture width	256
Export Height	Texture height in pixels	4
Compression combo	Output texture compression	(default)
Orientation combo	Horizontal / Vertical / Radial / Angular	Horizontal
Preset combo	Quick-pick built-in gradients (Toon, Sunset, etc.)
Marker row	Draggable stops on a horizontal bar — click to add a stop
Stop list	Per-stop row: time, color, interpolation (Linear / Step), remove
Add Stop	Adds a new stop
Save Asset Path	Output asset path	/Game/Textures/T_Generated_GradientRamp
Generate / Update Preview	Bakes the gradient
Export PNG	Saves to disk
Save as UE Asset	Creates a UTexture2D
Create Curve Asset	Creates a UCurveLinearColor from the same stops

Per-stop interpolation

Mode	What it does
Linear	Smooth interpolation to the next stop
Step	Hard cut (no interpolation) — stays at the stop’s color until the next stop

Orientations

Orientation	What it produces
Horizontal	Gradient runs left-to-right
Vertical	Top-to-bottom
Radial	Center to edge
Angular	Clockwise rotation around center

Stops with mixed Linear/Step interpolation visible, preview showing hard cuts.

Workflow

Toon shading ramp

1. Pick Toon preset (or start from default).
2. Add stops at 0.0, 0.3, 0.7, 1.0.
3. Set the 0.3 and 0.7 stops to Step interpolation (hard cuts).
4. Pick the colors for shadow / mid / light / specular.
5. Save as UE Asset — the ramp is ready for a material to sample.

Sunset / time-of-day curve

1. Add 5 stops representing the colors over time.
2. Keep all stops on Linear interpolation.
3. Create Curve Asset — drives a Blueprint or Niagara color over time.

Settings reference

Settings persist via the standard tool framework to [Project]/Saved/EQLabs/Settings/GradientRampGenerator.json.

Output

• UTexture2D asset. Via Save as UE Asset.
• PNG file. Via Export PNG.
• UCurveLinearColor asset. Via Create Curve Asset.
• Linear / sRGB pixel encoding controlled by texture target type

Tips and gotchas

• Step interpolation is the toon-shading killer feature. UE’s default linear ramps don’t give the hard banding most cel shaders want.
• Marker row is click-to-add. Clicking on the bar inserts a stop at that position.
• Export Height of 4 is enough for most ramps; raise for visual “stripe” effects
• Curve Asset and Texture Asset can be created from the same stops. Useful when one shader path uses curves and another uses sampled textures.

Related tools

• Noise Texture Generator — for procedural noise textures (different domain)
• LUT Color Grading Baker — for 3D color-grading LUTs