Magic Thunder Strike

Breakdown – Concept, Materials, Textures, and Niagara System

• Concept Direction:
  This effect is built around a custom lore where Aurora (Paragon) channels elemental energy through her weapon to execute a controlled three-stage thunder strike. This narrative informed the pacing, timing, color transitions, and overall creative direction of the VFX.

• Textures:
  Glow, smoke, and lightning textures were sourced from Kisong Lee’s lecture materials, with material variations and workflow approaches inspired by his instruction.

• Mesh Asset:
  The pebble mesh used for debris in the impact sequence is sourced from the Paragon: Serath asset package.

• Niagara System:
  All emitter design, timing logic, sequencing, curve animation, particle behavior, color direction, and overall effect composition were independently created and assembled. The multi-layered system includes glow bursts, lightning strikes, smoke stages, and debris emitters to achieve a polished, cohesive impact effect.

Inspired by: Kisong Lee

Software: Unreal Engine, Photoshop.