eagle0/docs/province-event-3d-effects.md

Province Event 3D Effects

Ideas for replacing 2D shader-based province event effects with 3D particle systems.

Current State

Event	Effect Type	Notes
Festival	3D particles	Complete
Epidemic	3D particles	Complete (rising skulls + green haze)
Blizzard	2D shader	Not visible on unowned (white) provinces
Drought	2D shader
Flood	2D shader
Beasts	None	Tricky - can be any animal or human

Proposed 3D Effects

Blizzard

• Falling snowflakes with slight blue tint (ensures visibility on white backgrounds)
• Diagonal wind-blown particles to convey harsh weather
• Swirling vortex effect near ground level
• Frosty sparkle/glitter particles for magical winter feel

Drought

• Rising dust/sand particles (tan/brown coloring)
• Small dust devils (spinning particle columns)
• Shimmering golden particles rising to suggest heat distortion
• Dried leaves/debris blowing across the province

Flood

• Rain falling (blue-tinted streaks or droplets)
• Water splashes/ripples rising from ground
• Mist/spray particles hovering low
• Floating debris particles (leaves, sticks)

Beasts

This is challenging since "beasts" can represent any dangerous creature. Universal approaches:

• Circling vultures/crows overhead - Predators attract scavengers; works for any beast type and is visually distinctive
• Dust clouds suggesting movement at province edges
• Glowing eyes appearing/disappearing in shadows
• Stylized claw/scratch mark effects
• Paw prints materializing on the ground
• Red "danger" aura pulsing from ground level

The vultures/crows approach is recommended as the most universal solution.

Implementation Status

Controllers have been created for all 4 event types:

• ProvinceBlizzardController.cs - ready, needs prefab
• ProvinceDroughtController.cs - ready, needs prefab
• ProvinceFloodController.cs - ready, needs prefab
• ProvinceBeastsController.cs - ready, needs prefab

Prefabs Needed

Create these prefabs in Assets/Eagle/Effects/:

1. BlizzardEffect.prefab

   • Particle System with falling snowflakes
   • Blue-tinted particles for visibility on white
   • Diagonal velocity for wind effect
   • RectTransform for UI positioning

2. DroughtEffect.prefab

   • Particle System with rising dust particles
   • Tan/brown coloring
   • Upward velocity
   • Optional spinning sub-emitters for dust devils

3. FloodEffect.prefab

   • Particle System with falling rain streaks
   • Blue tint
   • Fast downward velocity
   • Optional splash sub-emitter

4. BeastsEffect.prefab

   • Particle System with bird silhouettes
   • Circular orbit motion around center
   • Black/dark particles
   • Could use a crow/vulture sprite texture

Scene Setup

Wire up in Assets/Scenes/Eagle.unity:

1. Add controller components to the Map GameObject
2. Assign mapContainer, centroidsJson (shared with other controllers)
3. Assign the effect prefab for each controller