Trail Effect Settings

intermediate concepts

Complete reference for all TrailEffect Inspector properties. Properties are grouped by section as they appear in the Inspector.

General Settings

Property	Description
Profile	Optional `TrailEffectProfile` asset with reusable settings. Click Create to generate a new profile from the current configuration.
Target	Override the target GameObject. If empty, trails are generated from the object this component is attached to.
Merge With Trail	Reference to a master `TrailEffect` on another part (e.g., the body). Renders this trail as part of the master trail. Useful for multi-part characters.
Execute In Edit Mode	Show trail effects in the Scene view without entering Play mode.

Triggers

Triggers control when a snapshot is captured. A snapshot records the object's position, rotation, scale, and (for skinned meshes) vertex data.

Property	Description
Active	Master toggle — when enabled, the object leaves trails.
Ignore First Frames	Skip trail generation for the specified number of frames after the component is enabled. Prevents initial burst artifacts.
Continuous	Capture a snapshot every frame, regardless of movement.
World Position Change	Capture a snapshot when the object moves a minimum distance in world space.
Screen Position Change	Capture a snapshot when the object moves a minimum number of pixels on screen.
Time Interval	Capture a snapshot at a fixed time interval (seconds).
Collisions	Capture a snapshot when the object collides with another object.

Appearance

Property	Description
Trail Effect	Visual style: `Color`, `TextureStamp`, `Clone`, `Outline`, `SpaceDistortion`, `Dash`, or `Custom`.
Color	Base trail color (used by the Color and other effects).
Color Sequence	How colors are picked: `Fixed`, `Cycle`, `PingPong`, `Random`, or `FixedRandom`.
Color Over Time	Gradient that tints the trail as it ages. Keep Color Sequence set to Fixed with white color to see the full gradient.
Fade Out	Gradually fade trail alpha over its lifetime. When disabled, the trail keeps its opacity for the full duration.
Duration	How long (in seconds) the trail remains visible.
Mask (R)	Single-channel texture (red only) that masks which parts of the object generate trails. Compared against the object texture UVs.
Max Steps Per Frame	Maximum snapshot interpolations per frame. Increase for fast-moving objects.
Steps Buffer Size	Circular buffer capacity for snapshots. Must be large enough to hold all snapshots generated during the Duration interval.
Draw Behind	Render the trail behind the character using the stencil buffer.
Cull Mode	Face culling mode for snapshot geometry rendering.
SubMesh Mask	Bitmask selecting which submeshes generate trails. For example, a value of 3 includes submeshes 1 and 2.
Position	Offset added to the snapshot position when captured.
Scale	Controls how the scale of snapshots changes along the trail.

Color Ramp

The Color Ramp sub-section is available when using the Color trail style. It maps a gradient texture along an axis defined by two anchor points — ideal for sword or blade trails.

Property	Description
Enable Color Ramp	Activate the color ramp feature.
Color Ramp Texture	Gradient texture mapped between the two anchor transforms.
Anchor 1 / Anchor 2	Transforms defining the start and end of the gradient axis (e.g., blade base and tip).

Sword trails: Create two empty child GameObjects on the sword — one at the blade base, one at the tip. Assign them as Anchor 1 and Anchor 2. Sample color ramp textures are included in the SamplePresets folder.

Skinned Mesh Settings

These settings appear when the target has a SkinnedMeshRenderer.

Property	Description
Use Last Animation	Force all snapshots in the trail to use the same vertex state (the last captured frame). Reduces GPU batches.
Max Batches	Maximum GPU batches for skinned trails. Each snapshot requires a separate batch unless Use Last Animation is enabled.
Interpolate	Interpolate vertices between snapshots in the shader for smoother results. Works best with Continuous triggering enabled.
Animation States	Comma-separated Animator state names. Supports time ranges: `Attack(0.3-0.7), Jump`. Trails only generate during matching states.
Animator	Reference to the `Animator` component driving the character.

Stencil Settings

Property	Description
Hierarchy Occluder	When using Draw Behind with multi-part characters, prevents trails from rendering over other body parts.
Clear Stencil	Reset the stencil buffer after rendering trails. Enable for correct overlapping trails from different objects; disable for fewer draw calls.

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