OpenVDB Support in LuxCore: Current Status and Workflow?
Posted: Sun Mar 22, 2026 5:29 pm
I’ve been exploring LuxCoreRender’s superior light transport, and I’m looking to bring some of my VDB-based effects over from Cycles.
As shown in the attached GIF (rendered in Cycles), I’m currently using OpenVDB files for smoke/volumetric effects. In Cycles, I simply use the Principled Volume node assigned to a domain. However, I’m struggling to find the equivalent workflow or node setup in LuxCore.
A few specific questions:
* Does LuxCore currently support the direct import of .vdb files (via Blender’s Volume object or otherwise)?
* If so, what does the node setup look like to map the VDB "density" or "temperature" grids to a LuxCore Volume?
* Should I be using the Heterogeneous volume type, and how do I "feed" the external VDB data into it?
I’ve downloaded some sample VDBs, like the ones from the OpenVDB repository, (https://jangafx.com/software/embergen/d ... animations), and while they work fine in Cycles, they appear empty or as solid boxes when I switch to LuxCore.
I'm using Blender 4.5.8 LTS with the BlendLuxCore-2.10.2 addon.
Any guidance or example node trees would be greatly appreciated!