Terracotta is AI 3D asset generation as a node graph, inside Blender -- an army of assets, fired where you work. Generate meshes with Tripo, concept images and reference views with Google Gemini, then chain retopology, texturing, segmentation, rigging, animation and export — all as nodes in a dedicated Generate workspace.
The addon is fully standalone: a factory Blender install and your own API keys are all it needs.
- Download
terracotta.zip(or build it:python3 tools/build_zip.py). - Blender → Edit → Preferences → Add-ons → Install… → pick the zip → enable Terracotta. Blender 4.0 or newer.
- Open the Generate workspace from the top bar (new files get it automatically, along with a starter example graph).
- Click the key icon in the node editor header (or use the Account node)
and enter your keys:
- Tripo — 3D generation, billed in Tripo credits. Get a key at platform.tripo3d.ai.
- Google — image generation, billed by Google on your own account. Get a key at aistudio.google.com/app/apikey (image models need billing enabled — the Free tier returns quota errors).
Keys are stored in Blender's preferences on your machine. They are never written into .blend files, so sharing a file never shares a key.
| Node | What it does |
|---|---|
| Generate Image | Text (+ reference images) → concept image, via Gemini |
| Generate Views | One subject → consistent front/left/back/right views |
| Generate 3D | Text, image, or four views → textured mesh (Tripo) |
| Import Asset | Upload your own mesh so the chain can process it (free) |
| Process | Retopology, texturing, segmentation, stylize |
| Rig | Free rigability check, then skeleton build |
| Animate | Preset animations retargeted onto a rig |
| Export | Convert and save to disk (glTF/FBX/OBJ/USDZ/STL/3MF) |
| Import | Bring the finished asset into the scene; placement, decimation and asset-library marking live here |
| Account | Key status and credit balance |
Run Graph (header) runs a whole chain in dependency order. Nodes that already have a result are skipped — re-running finished work would charge for it again; a node's own button always forces a re-run. Every button shows its cost before you click it.
The Jobs panel (sidebar) shows live progress; the Library panel lists past generations with thumbnails — anything you already paid for re-imports for free. Example graphs for the common workflows are in the Examples header menu.
Prices are quoted on every button and centralized in costs.py. Ballpark: a textured v3.1 generation is 20–30 Tripo credits; rigging 25; a Gemini image $0.03–0.24 depending on model and size. The full API reference, with every task type and price we've measured, is in TRIPO_API.md.
# Run the offline test suite (no credits, no network):
/path/to/Blender -b --python tests/test_tripo.py
# Package the addon:
python3 tools/build_zip.pyThe suite mocks the network layer and runs the real import pipeline —
generation, chaining, rigging, history, money-guards — 400+ checks.
CLAUDE.md documents the project conventions; ROADMAP.md is where this is
going.
.mcp.json is development tooling only (for the
blender-mcp bridge that lets an AI
assistant drive a live Blender session; install its addon from upstream if
you want that workflow). End users don't need it.
GPL-3.0-or-later — see LICENSE. Blender add-ons are derivative works of GPL Blender, and this is also the license the official Extensions platform requires.