To get the most out of this book

You will need an internet connection to download the latest version of Blender and the source files for this project (an internet connection is not required after downloading the software and the files).

Blender can be downloaded from https://www.blender.org/download and requires about 400 MB of storage space to install. The project files in this book are approximately 2.65 GB all together (you do not need to download them all at once). There are some projects that require additional software for digital painting / image editing such as Krita, GIMP, Affinity Photo, or Photoshop. We recommend Krita because it's free and open source, just like Blender! It can be downloaded from https://krita.org/en/download/krita-desktop/. The download for Krita is approximately 100 MB. It's a good idea to have at least 4 GB of additional free storage so that you can create your own 3D sculptures and texture files for the projects. In total, about 7 GB of space will be enough for everything covered in this book.

The version of Blender used in this book requires a computer that supports OpenGL 3.3. You can find the official hardware requirements on the Blender website here: https://www.blender.org/download/requirements/ This book has been tested for the Blender 2.8 series of releases. The upcoming 2.9 and 3.0 series of releases may have different hardware requirements.

Blender works best on a computer that has a numpad because the camera navigation hotkeys are bound the numpad keys. This book uses an alternative method to teach these controls since many laptops do not have a numpad, so it is not absolutely required.

A drawing tablet with pressure sensitivity is highly recommended for the Grease Pencil projects as well as the sculpting and texturing chapters in the Baby Dragon project. There are affordable options available from http://www.huion.com/, premium options on offer from https://www.wacom.com/, or if you have a computer with a built-in stylus such as a Microsoft Surface that will work nicely as well. It is possible to complete these chapters using a mouse, but it is not recommended.

Blender and Krita are open source and receive updates several times a year. There may be new versions available if you're picking up this book even a few months after it's published, but don't worry. The projects in this book should still be compatible.