Jetpack Space Scene in Roblox Studio

Jetpacks are sick, being able to defy gravity and float in the air. I decided to incorporate the marvelous machine in a humorous scene of a noob flying a bit too high. This tutorial requires a basic understanding of Roblox Studio, but I will still try to be as thorough as possible while keeping things simple. Most importantly, have fun!

You will need a computer with the latest version of Roblox Studio installed. In Roblox studio you will need the following plugins:

1. Moon Animator (optional, but helpful)
2. MirrorParts

First, create a rig in Workspace. Then, insert a block part and resize to the dimensions of a torso (2,1,2). Finally, align the block with the Torso so the part shares the exact same space as the torso. The positions of both parts should match. Rename this part to TorsoPart; this will serve as the root part for the jetpack later on.

In this step, use the rig as a base for modeling a jetpack. I used Roblox Studio's own method of modeling with baseparts and the MirrorParts plugin, but feel free to import a model or use your own modeling software. This tutorial's purpose isn't for modeling, so just do your best. I (clearly) am not an artist at all, but I still think I made something half-decent. Just make sure you incorporate some thrusters, that's important for our effects. Be creative, and do your best!

Now for the best part: Awesome jet particles.

Looking at the image, you can see a small yellow block of dimensions (0.1,0.1,0.1) placed in the direction of the thrusters. This block will have particles emitted from it, so it's placement and orientation will decide the direction of the jets. Replicate this block, and name it JetPart.

1. If you are importing a mesh or model, feel free to try to position it after a jet is already flowing; it will be easier.
2. If you are using Roblox, use the orientation properties of the thrusters and the align tool to perfectly align the block to the thrusters. You can move the block closer or away from the thruster later after it's flowing.

Now, we will make a particle emitter object in JetPart. I will now give you tips on relevant properties of the emitter so you make the best jet possible.

1. Emission Direction: Play around with this until the particle emits in the most logical/closest direction.
2. Lifetime: Very short (like 0.2 to start); using a small range of 25% to 50% adds some nuance
3. Rate: Faster it is, the finer jet and more realistic. Experiment with 25 to 1000. Go as low as possible.
4. Speed: 1-10, slower is better for performance (needs less rate for realism), but also too slow looks unrealistic. Speed ∝ Rate ∝ Realism
5. Light emission: At least 1, can increase as pleased
6. Texture: I just searched gradient circle in toolbox, make your own or use: rbxassetid://284205403
7. Transparency: Should definitely start at 0, but I couldn't find a difference when increasing it at time t=1; ignore or experiment
8. Size: This is important. The initial value depends on the texture size, so reduce/increase it until it is as big as the jet you want. The final value decides how angled inward the jet is, but it should not be 0. Start with a ~66% decrease from the initial to ending value for the angle shown above.

These are just tips I picked up from experimentation. Key word: EXPERIMENT! Keep trying different combinations of these settings until you get what you like. Once you have the flowing jet, feel free to adjust the JetPart placement to your liking. Next step, we are gonna make the particles even better.

We are gonna add one more particle emitter in the JetPart that will enhance our jet effect. This is a secondary, smaller jet which will accentuate our main jet . This smaller jet shows in our blue jet as a brighter white core. I made an example red jet to highlight the inner jet (orange). To do this, simply duplicate the current jet, then reduce it's size and play with the other settings accordingly. You may want to decrease light emission significantly if you want a more precise color on the inner jet. Once you are happy, make your final adjustments to JetPart's position, then use the MirrorParts plugin and copy JetPart to the other side. You can now tack on a left or right to the end of JetPart's name if you please. Finally, make both JetParts transparent, and make sure all jets are active.

To prepare the model for posing, put all jetpack parts in a folder and title accordingly. Set TorsoPart to transparent. Now, make WeldConstraints for all parts under TorsoPart. In properties, have Part0 set to TorsoPart, and Part1 set to the corresponding part. Make sure the hierarchy matches up, but the names aren't important.

Now we are gonna design our unfortunate character. You can start by creating a rig and coloring it. I used the Roblox noob colors, which are 245, 205, 48 (yellow); 164, 189, 71 (green); and 13, 105, 172 (blue). Next, you can give him a new face by deleting the decal on the head and drag-and-dropping a new one from the toolbox. Finally, we need to give him the jetpack. Drag the jetpack folder into the rig, move the jetpack so it aligns with the torso, then use a weld constraint with the torso and TorsoPart to lock them into place. You can use the same method to attach any other props to your rig.

This part is easy, but adds an essential ton to our scene. First start by deleting the baseplate part so the character is suspended in space. Next, get a space skybox from the toolbox and drag it into the sky. This gives a beautiful space scenery around our noob. Finally, get an Earth from the toolbox, size it very large, and place it under him. Try to find an Earth with an atmosphere as it looks much better. That's it for the space ambience. We are almost there!

This is the step where Moon Animator can come in handy, but only if you are experienced with it. If not, I recommend you use Roblox's own animator. To begin posing, make sure our character is flying toward the sun. This gives him a great lighting, and allows us to get eclipse shots with him (not to mention illustrating his cartoonish doom). You want to make sure the head is tilted up and staring at the sun. Also, in this scene the arms are the most expressive parts of the character, so you will want to incorporate both rotation and movement when posing them.

Next, you want to move around the Earth until it looks like he is actually exiting from the planet. This may take a few tries, but keep at it. Make sure you don't close the animation software while during this though. Finally, we want to capture his pose. However, if we close the animator, it returns to it's boring, stiff self. The solution: right click on the rig, and click group as folder. This bugs the rig into permanently staying in the pose we animated, which is exactly what we want. With that, your misfortune mate needs some glory shots.

Try taking shots in the formats I've shown here, and try taking some on your own. Get different angles and combinations of bodies, but don't forget an eclipse shot or the sweet thrusters. This concludes the tutorial, have fun building!