Terrain and Water

Choose a playable size

Create a BeamNG.drive project with a playable square of 2,048, 4,096, 8,192 or 16,384 meters. Export sizes are 512, 1,024, 2,048, 4,096, 8,192 and 16,384 meters; the selected size must fit inside your project’s playable area. A smaller export crops the center without shrinking roads or objects.

Exports through 8,192 meters use terrain samples one meter apart. The 16,384-meter export uses samples two meters apart, so small terrain details and painted ground or foliage boundaries are coarser. Roads and placed objects retain their real-world dimensions. Choose a smaller area when fine terrain detail matters.

The project presets include 2,048 meters of surrounding scenery on each side. This background is visible in the game but cannot be driven on. Larger areas need more detailed source data and more time to prepare.

Import terrain, imagery and vectors

After processing finishes, open the project in the Editor. In the import prompt, import Terrain, Imagery and OSM. Choose the BeamNG.drive vector mapping collection for OSM.

The default mapping shows major roads in amber and water outlines in blue.

Check a recognizable junction, building or river bend from above. Then lower the camera to inspect slopes. If you replace source data on the project page, use the Editor’s import or reimport controls to bring it into the map. See Importing and Reimporting Layers.

Prepare the terrain

Use Sculpt for local corrections. Apply Blur conservatively where the terrain looks stepped, and inspect the result before continuing. Preserve useful ridges, drainage channels and banks.

Use Grade on building polygons before assigning buildings. Apply Roadbed to buffered ground-level road lines before building road surfaces. Prepare bridge approaches without filling the space under the bridge.

Terrain edits affect the map you export. Save a project version before broad changes so you can return to an earlier result.

Choose ground surfaces

Select a polygon or category in Objects, then use Collections to assign a ground texture. Buffer line features before using them as strips of ground surface.

The playable terrain uses the assigned BeamNG.drive ground textures; satellite imagery is used on the distant background. To add visible grass blades or flowers, use the separate Foliage workflow. Collection previews show representative surface colors, including green grass. The game’s lighting can change the final appearance.

Create lakes and rivers

Review imported water features or draw missing ones. Shape the basin or channel with Depth, set a persistent Height Offset for the surface, and assign the Water collection.

Imported lake outlines do not create water surfaces until you assign Water. Check the playable boundary: lakes in the surrounding scenery are outside the playable export.

Inspect the water from the bank and below the surface. Keep islands above the water and check that river segments meet at sensible elevations. Exported water extends slightly beneath the banks to hide edge gaps. Negative Height Offset values are limited where they would bury a river or lake below its bed. Adding water does not excavate the terrain.

Different water features can have different elevations. You do not need to put every lake at one global sea level.

For water reflections of nearby scenery, set Shader Quality to High in BeamNG.drive. Lower shader settings use a sky reflection instead.

Review the map edge

Use the boundary overlays to distinguish the playable terrain from the background. Check that your route stays inside the area you plan to export.

The background uses the surrounding terrain and imagery. Keep enough coverage around the playable area, and inspect the transition after installation. Low-resolution imagery or terrain remains low-resolution when exported.