How to Make Beautiful Terrain with Unity 2021 URP | EASY

In this How to Make Beautiful Terrain with Unity tutorial, I'll be showing how to setup and use the 3D Terrain with Unity 2021 URP. I'll go through the process of using the terrain brushes, terrain layers, and also setting up fog and post processing. ► Lowpoly Environment Nature Pack FREE https://

This longer tutorial builds a complete, good-looking 3D landscape using Unity's built-in terrain system plus the Terrain Tools package, then dresses it with textures, grass, trees, and post-processing. It's done in a URP project, which matters for how assets and effects are set up.

Gather URP-compatible assets and tools

From the Unity Asset Store grab a few free packs — a low-poly nature pack and a fantasy skybox here — and confirm each works with URP, since many include a step to upgrade their materials to URP after import. From Package Manager install Terrain Tools, which extends Unity's built-in terrain features, and download its companion Terrain Sample Asset Pack for ready-made brushes and layers.

Create and shape the terrain

Add a 3D Object > Terrain. With it selected, under Paint Terrain choose Set Height, set the value to 100, and Flatten Tile so the ground sits at a middle level you can both raise and lower. Switch to Raise or Lower Terrain and sculpt hills and valleys with the brushes. Learn the modifier keys: A adjusts brush strength, S adjusts size, D rotates the brush, and Ctrl inverts it to lower instead of raise. Drop your character onto the surface and parent the main camera to it for a play view.

Paint texture layers

Under Paint Texture, add layers from the sample textures. Start with a grass layer, and if the tiling looks too small, edit the layer's size (around 20x20 reads better). Add a sand layer for a path, and for smooth edges raise the Control Texture Resolution to 2048 via Window > Terrain > Terrain Toolbox. Add a grass-soil transition layer between path and grass, then rock for distant mountains and a snow layer with a small brush for the peaks. Indent the path slightly using Raise/Lower with Ctrl and low strength, since worn paths sit below the surrounding ground.

Add grass and trees

Use the grass (details) tab to add a grass texture with min/max size and height ranges (around 0.2 to 0.8) for variety, then paint it on, tuning brush size, opacity, and target strength — Ctrl erases strays from the path. Edit the detail to adjust the healthy grass color and add flowers as a second detail. For trees, use Paint Trees > Edit Trees to add a pine (the pink preview paints as normal art); paint by hand or use Mass Place Trees to scatter 10,000 across the terrain at once, then add or Ctrl-remove to refine. Add bushes the same way.

Light it and add post-processing

In the Lighting tab (Window > Rendering > Lighting), set the Skybox Material to one of the downloaded skyboxes. Turn on Fog and tint it to match the sky — a slight red here — adjusting density and distance (around 2) for depth. Since this is URP, post-processing is available: create a Global Volume, add overrides like a touch of Bloom, and enable Post Processing on the main camera so the effect actually renders. The result is a layered, atmospheric landscape ready to drop a game into.