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Free Texture Sources Guide

Document status (2026-05-17): historical release/reference record; keep for versioned context, not current implementation instructions.

All sources are CC0 (public domain) - no attribution required.

Primary Sources

Source Style Best For URL
3DTextures.me Stylized/Hand-painted Buildings, Props https://3dtextures.me/category/stylized-textures/
Poly Haven Photorealistic Terrain (modify for stylized) https://polyhaven.com/textures
ambientCG Photorealistic PBR Ground, Rocks https://ambientcg.com/
CGBookcase Photorealistic Stone, Brick https://www.cgbookcase.com/textures
FreeStylized Stylized Buildings, Environment https://freestylized.com/all-textures/

Buildings (Full PBR)

Download from 3DTextures.me - already stylized with all maps included.

Wood Planks

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2022/02/23/stylized-wood-wall-001/

Download -> Rename files:
  Stylized_Wood_Wall_001_basecolor.jpg  -> albedo.png
  Stylized_Wood_Wall_001_normal.jpg     -> normal.png
  Stylized_Wood_Wall_001_roughness.jpg  -> roughness.png
  Stylized_Wood_Wall_001_ambientOcclusion.jpg -> ao.png

Place in:
  assets/pbr/buildings/wood_plank/
  ├── albedo.png
  ├── normal.png
  ├── roughness.png
  └── ao.png

Stone Brick

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2021/08/20/stylized-stone-wall-001/

Place in:
  assets/pbr/buildings/stone_brick/
  ├── albedo.png
  ├── normal.png
  ├── roughness.png
  └── ao.png

Metal Plates

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2022/06/15/stylized-metal-plates-001/

Place in:
  assets/pbr/buildings/metal_plate/
  ├── albedo.png
  ├── normal.png
  ├── roughness.png
  ├── metallic.png    # This one has metallic map
  └── ao.png

Thatch/Straw Roof

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2021/11/03/stylized-straw-roof-001/

Place in:
  assets/pbr/buildings/thatch/
  ├── albedo.png
  ├── normal.png
  ├── roughness.png
  └── ao.png

Wood Shingles (Roof)

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2021/11/10/stylized-wood-shingles-001/

Place in:
  assets/pbr/buildings/wood_shingles/
  ├── albedo.png
  ├── normal.png
  ├── roughness.png
  └── ao.png

Terrain (Albedo + Normal Only)

For Valheim style, download photorealistic then reduce saturation/add painterly filter in GIMP/Photoshop.

Grass

Source: https://ambientcg.com/view?id=Grass001 (download 1K)

Download 1K-JPG:
  Grass001_1K-JPG_Color.jpg    -> albedo.png
  Grass001_1K-JPG_NormalGL.jpg -> normal.png
  (Ignore other maps - using uniform roughness)

Place in:
  assets/pbr/terrain/grass/
  ├── albedo.png
  └── normal.png

Dirt

Source: https://ambientcg.com/view?id=Ground037 (download 1K)

Place in:
  assets/pbr/terrain/dirt/
  ├── albedo.png
  └── normal.png

Rock

Source: https://ambientcg.com/view?id=Rock030 (download 1K)

Place in:
  assets/pbr/terrain/rock/
  ├── albedo.png
  └── normal.png

Sand

Source: https://ambientcg.com/view?id=Ground054 (download 1K)

Place in:
  assets/pbr/terrain/sand/
  ├── albedo.png
  └── normal.png

Tilled Soil

Source: https://ambientcg.com/view?id=Ground048 (download 1K)

Place in:
  assets/pbr/terrain/tilled_soil/
  ├── albedo.png
  └── normal.png

Alternative: Stylized Terrain

For already-stylized terrain textures:

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2020/08/13/stylized-grass-001/

Place in:
  assets/pbr/terrain/grass/
  ├── albedo.png
  └── normal.png

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2020/10/15/stylized-dirt-001/

Place in:
  assets/pbr/terrain/dirt/
  ├── albedo.png
  └── normal.png

Props/Rocks (Medium Detail)

Large Rocks

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2022/01/12/stylized-cliff-001/

Place in:
  assets/pbr/props/rocks/rock_large/
  ├── albedo.png
  ├── normal.png
  ├── roughness.png
  └── ao.png

Cobblestone (for paths)

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2024/09/04/cobblestone-irregular-floor-001/

Place in:
  assets/pbr/props/cobblestone/
  ├── albedo.png
  ├── normal.png
  ├── roughness.png
  └── ao.png

Wood Crate

Source: https://3dtextures.me/2021/09/29/stylized-crate-001/

Place in:
  assets/pbr/props/containers/crate/
  ├── albedo.png
  └── normal.png

Crops (Minimal - Use Model Textures)

Crops use GLTF models with baked textures from Quaternius. No separate texture downloads needed.

Models Source: https://poly.pizza/bundle/Ultimate-Crops-Pack-8rnVIzNDye

The GLTF files already include vertex colors and simple textures.

Water (Shader-Driven)

Water uses procedural normals, but you can add a flow/normal map:

Source: https://ambientcg.com/view?id=Water002 (download 1K)

Only need normal map:
  Water002_1K-JPG_NormalGL.jpg -> flow_normal.png

Place in:
  assets/pbr/water/
  └── flow_normal.png

Complete Folder Structure

assets/
|-- pbr/
|   |-- buildings/
|   |   |-- wood_plank/
|   |   |   |-- albedo.png
|   |   |   |-- normal.png
|   |   |   |-- roughness.png
|   |   |   `-- ao.png
|   |   |-- stone_brick/
|   |   |   `-- (same structure)
|   |   |-- metal_plate/
|   |   |   |-- albedo.png
|   |   |   |-- normal.png
|   |   |   |-- roughness.png
|   |   |   |-- metallic.png
|   |   |   `-- ao.png
|   |   |-- thatch/
|   |   |   `-- (same as wood_plank)
|   |   `-- wood_shingles/
|   |       `-- (same as wood_plank)
|   |
|   |-- terrain/
|   |   |-- grass/
|   |   |   |-- albedo.png
|   |   |   `-- normal.png
|   |   |-- dirt/
|   |   |   `-- (same structure)
|   |   |-- rock/
|   |   |   `-- (same structure)
|   |   |-- sand/
|   |   |   `-- (same structure)
|   |   `-- tilled_soil/
|   |       `-- (same structure)
|   |
|   |-- props/
|   |   |-- rocks/
|   |   |   `-- rock_large/
|   |   |       |-- albedo.png
|   |   |       |-- normal.png
|   |   |       |-- roughness.png
|   |   |       `-- ao.png
|   |   |-- cobblestone/
|   |   |   `-- (same structure)
|   |   `-- containers/
|   |       |-- crate/
|   |       |   |-- albedo.png
|   |       |   `-- normal.png
|   |       `-- barrel/
|   |           `-- (same structure)
|   |
|   `-- water/
|       `-- flow_normal.png
|
`-- models/
    `-- crops/
        |-- wheat/
        |   |-- stage_1.glb
        |   |-- stage_2.glb
        |   |-- stage_3.glb
        |   |-- stage_4.glb
        |   `-- stage_5.glb
        |-- carrot/
        |   `-- (same structure)
        `-- corn/
            `-- (same structure)

Quick Download Script (PowerShell)

# Create folder structure
$folders = @(
    "assets/pbr/buildings/wood_plank",
    "assets/pbr/buildings/stone_brick",
    "assets/pbr/buildings/metal_plate",
    "assets/pbr/buildings/thatch",
    "assets/pbr/buildings/wood_shingles",
    "assets/pbr/terrain/grass",
    "assets/pbr/terrain/dirt",
    "assets/pbr/terrain/rock",
    "assets/pbr/terrain/sand",
    "assets/pbr/terrain/tilled_soil",
    "assets/pbr/props/rocks/rock_large",
    "assets/pbr/props/cobblestone",
    "assets/pbr/props/containers/crate",
    "assets/pbr/props/containers/barrel",
    "assets/pbr/water",
    "assets/models/crops/wheat",
    "assets/models/crops/carrot",
    "assets/models/crops/corn"
)

foreach ($folder in $folders) {
    New-Item -ItemType Directory -Force -Path $folder
    Write-Host "Created: $folder"
}

Write-Host "`nFolder structure created. Download textures manually from:"
Write-Host "  Buildings: https://3dtextures.me/category/stylized-textures/"
Write-Host "  Terrain:   https://ambientcg.com/"
Write-Host "  Crops:     https://poly.pizza/bundle/Ultimate-Crops-Pack-8rnVIzNDye"

File Naming Convention

When downloading, rename to this standard:

Downloaded Name Rename To
*_basecolor.* or *_Color.* or *_diffuse.* albedo.png
*_normal.* or *_NormalGL.* normal.png
*_roughness.* roughness.png
*_metallic.* or *_Metalness.* metallic.png
*_ambientOcclusion.* or *_AO.* ao.png

Note: Convert JPG to PNG if needed for consistency. Most engines handle both, but PNG avoids compression artifacts on normal maps.

Stylization Tips

If using photorealistic textures (Poly Haven, ambientCG) for Valheim style:

  1. Reduce saturation by 20-30%
  2. Increase contrast slightly
  3. Apply slight blur (0.5-1px Gaussian)
  4. Reduce resolution to 512x512 (intentional low-res look)
  5. Optional: Add subtle hand-painted overlay

GIMP Filter chain:

Colors -> Hue-Saturation -> Saturation: -25
Colors -> Curves -> S-curve for contrast
Filters -> Blur -> Gaussian Blur -> 0.8px
Image -> Scale Image -> 512x512