EffectService

Getting it

local EffectService = Engine:GetService("EffectService")

Overview

An effect is a named recipe: a list of particle emitters, sounds, lights, decals, models and camera shakes that play together. You define it once with Define, then play it anywhere by name. EffectService takes care of the rest:

• Pooling: the instances for each effect are built once and reused, so playing an explosion 50 times a second does not create 50 new emitters.
• Quality scaling: effects read PerformanceService Quality and use the matching level of detail, so low-end devices get fewer particles and no shadows.
• Distance culling: effects farther from the camera than MaxDistance are skipped.
• Broadcasting: the server calls Broadcast and every relevant client plays the effect locally, sent through NetworkService in batches.

Effects are visual, so they play on the client. The server only broadcasts. Define each effect on both sides (a shared ModuleScript that both require is the easiest way), because the client needs the recipe to play it and the server needs it to know its MaxDistance when broadcasting.

local Engine = require(game:GetService("ReplicatedStorage"):WaitForChild("Engine"))
local EffectService = Engine:GetService("EffectService")

EffectService:Define("Explosion", {
	Duration = 1.5,
	MaxDistance = 400,
	PoolSize = 8,
	Particles = {
		{ Texture = "rbxassetid://123", Burst = 60, Speed = NumberRange.new(20, 40), Lifetime = NumberRange.new(0.4, 0.9) },
	},
	Sounds = {
		{ SoundId = "rbxassetid://456", Volume = 0.8, RollOffMaxDistance = 300 },
	},
	Lights = {
		{ Kind = "Point", Color = Color3.fromRGB(255, 170, 60), Brightness = 4, Range = 24, Flicker = { Speed = 20 } },
	},
	Shakes = {
		{ Magnitude = 3, Radius = 80 },
	},
	Lod = {
		{ MinQuality = 7 },                                          -- full effect on good devices
		{ MinQuality = 3, ParticleRateScale = 0.5 },                 -- half the particles
		{ MinQuality = 0, ParticleRateScale = 0.25, DisableLights = true },
	},
})

return true

On the server (on the server the Engine you require is ServerScriptService.Engine, see Server and Client):

EffectService:Broadcast("Explosion", position)

Defining effects

Define

EffectService:Define(id: string, def: EffectDef)

Registers an effect. Each id can be defined once. Invalid definitions raise an error that names the wrong field.

ParticleDef

Any of: Texture, Color, Size, Transparency, Lifetime, Rate, Burst, Speed, SpreadAngle, Acceleration, Drag, RotSpeed, Rotation, LightEmission, LightInfluence, Squash, EmissionDirection, Orientation, ZOffset. They map to the ParticleEmitter properties of the same name; numbers are accepted where Roblox wants a NumberSequence or NumberRange. With Burst, the emitter emits that many particles once instead of emitting continuously at Rate.

SoundDef

SoundId (required), Volume, PlaybackSpeed, RollOffMode, RollOffMinDistance, RollOffMaxDistance, Looped.

LightDef

Kind ("Point" or "Spot", required), Color, Brightness, Range, Angle (spot lights), Shadows, Flicker ({ Speed?, Intensity? }, a smooth random flicker).

DecalDef

Texture (required), Face, Transparency, Color3, Size (used for the carrier part when there is no host part), ResampleMode (an Enum.ResamplerMode, such as Pixelated for pixel art).

Decals = { { Texture = "rbxassetid://1234567", ResampleMode = Enum.ResamplerMode.Pixelated } }

ModelDef

Template (an Instance, required), Offset (CFrame relative to the effect), Scale.

ShakeDef

Magnitude, Roughness, FadeInTime, FadeOutTime, and Radius: the shake fades out linearly with the camera's distance from the effect and is skipped beyond Radius.

LodTier

Quality is PerformanceService.Quality + EffectService.QualityBias. Attached effects update their tier when quality changes.

Playing effects (client)

Play

EffectService:Play(id: string, at: Vector3 | CFrame | Instance, config: PlayConfig?): Effect

Plays an effect at a position, a CFrame, or on a BasePart, Attachment or Model. On a part, lights and decals go onto that part. Returns a handle; when the effect is culled by distance the handle is a stand-in that does nothing.

Attach

EffectService:Attach(id: string, instance: BasePart | Model, config: PlayConfig?): Effect

Plays an effect that follows a part or model, such as a burning torch or a speed trail.

PlayConfig

Effect handle

PreloadAsync

EffectService:PreloadAsync(ids: { string }): Promise

Preloads every texture and sound the effects use and builds PoolSize copies of each, so the first play has no delay. Call it during a loading screen.

Broadcasting (server)

Broadcast

EffectService:Broadcast(id: string, at: Vector3 | CFrame | Instance, config: PlayConfig?, filter: Filter?)

Tells clients to play an effect. Without a filter it goes to players whose character is within the effect's MaxDistance (or to everyone when the effect has none).

Inspection

Properties

Configuration

Types

export type EffectDef
export type ParticleDef
export type SoundDef
export type LightDef
export type LightFlicker = { Speed: number?, Intensity: number? }
export type DecalDef
export type ModelDef
export type ShakeDef
export type LodTier
export type PlayConfig
export type Effect
export type Filter = { Players: { Player }?, Radius: number?, Center: Vector3? }