Unstable & Special Blade Modes

What Are Blade Modes?

Every pixel blade on the Crystal Focus X runs a blade mode. This is the visual algorithm that decides how the blade looks while it is ignited.

By default, the blade runs in Mode 0, which means there is no special blade mode active and you just see the normal blade color with your chosen flicker behavior. But once you switch to modes 1 through 18, the blade can turn into fire, unstable lightning, waveforms, rainbow sweeps, scanner effects, GraFX playback, and more.

Choosing a Mode

Set the blade mode in your blade profile in config.txt:

unstable=N

Mode Categories at a Glance

Not all blade modes behave the same way. Some are heat-style fire simulations, some are waveform or pattern generators, some use their own standalone logic, and some rely on GraFX artwork. This overview makes it immediately clear which family each mode belongs to.

Quick shortcut: If it looks flame-like or energy-like, it is usually Fire-Based. If it looks geometric, scrolling, repeating, or pulse-shaped, it is usually Signal / Pattern.

The FX Color

Most blade modes blend in a second color called the FX color. This is set in colors.txt with ecolor inside the active [color=N] section:

[color=1]
color=0,0,1023
ecolor=1023,320,0

In this example, the blade is blue and the FX color is warm orange. When a mode like Fire, Unstable, Wave, or Pulse is active, the orange is blended in according to the mode behavior and its parameters.

Core Parameters

These settings belong in your blade profile in config.txt. They are the main tuning controls used by most blade modes.

hcool=N — Cooling High

Default: 70

In fire-based modes, higher values make heat fade faster, so the effect looks cooler and shorter. In some special or signal-based modes, this can act more like a range, hue, or speed control depending on the mode.

lcool=N — Cooling Low

Default: 20

In fire-based modes, this sets the lower cooling behavior. In many signal or waveform-based modes, this also selects the waveform shape:

sparkf=N — Sparking Force

Default: 120

In fire-like modes, this controls how aggressively new energy or sparks are injected. In waveform and pattern modes, it often affects frequency, repetition, or animation speed.

sparkd=N — Spark Density

Default: 10

In fire-based modes, this controls how much of the blade can act as a spark source. In pattern modes, it often affects size, spread, or speed depending on the mode.

drift=N — Drift Mode

Values: 0 or 1
Default: 0

mapping_unstable=N — Dynamic Control Source

Default: 1

Color & Brightness Tuning

mapc=N — Color Mix Amount

Range: 0–255
Default: 50

This controls how strongly the FX color takes over compared to the main blade color.

mapb=N — Brightness Modulation

Range: 0–255
Default: 50

This controls how bright and visually strong the effect appears.

mapping_color=N — Color Interpolation Method

Values: 0 or 1
Default: 0

Mode Details

Fire-Based Modes (1, 2, 3, 6, 13, 15)

These are the heat-style modes. They use some form of heat simulation, cooling, spark injection, or drifting energy.

Mode 1: Unstable

Random electrical energy appears across the blade instead of being concentrated near the emitter. With drift=1, the energy can spread and move, which makes the blade feel even more chaotic.

Mode 2: Flame

A classic flame effect. Sparks usually originate near the emitter, then the heat moves along the blade and cools as it travels.

Mode 3: Rain / Sizzle

An inverted kind of fire effect. The blade stays bright while random darker dents or sizzling marks appear through it.

Mode 6: Unstable TFU

A slower, more organic heat buildup and release. This works well for ember, lava, volcanic, or molten looks.

Mode 13: Jedi Fallen Order

A more continuous flame jet or energy flow rising from the hilt, less random than the standard Fire mode.

Mode 15: Generative Unstable Fire

A layered mix of smooth directional fire and chaotic unstable activity on top of it. This is one of the wildest and most dramatic fire-style modes.

Signal / Pattern Modes (4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 16)

These are the waveform and repeating-pattern modes. They rely more on shapes, pulses, and scrolling patterns than on heat simulation.

Mode 4: Chainsaw

A fast repeating tooth-like or comb-like pattern moving along the blade.

Mode 5: Starkiller

Wider glowing ridges or compressed energy bands traveling through the blade.

Mode 7: Gradient

A static or slowly morphing color blend pattern between blade color and FX color.

Mode 8: Wave~

A waveform pulse that travels along the blade like an energy ripple.

Mode 10: Theater Chase

Alternating bright and dark sections, like a marquee or chase effect.

Mode 16: Bicolor Pulse Fx

The entire blade pulses globally between the blade color and FX color, without localized traveling features.

Special Modes (9, 11, 12, 14)

These are the standalone modes. They use unique logic rather than fitting neatly into the fire-based or signal-based families.

Mode 9: Rainbow

A full-spectrum hue effect. It can be a static rainbow spread along the blade or a moving rainbow rotation depending on the settings.

Mode 11: Sauron

A dark eye-like center with fire erupting outward in both directions.

Mode 12: Sauron II

A smoother, more fluid version of the Sauron concept, with less harsh spark behavior.

Mode 14: Knight Rider / Energy Beam

A moving spotlight or scanner that sweeps back and forth, leaving a fading trail behind it.

Bitmap / GraFX Modes (17, 18)

These are the artwork-driven modes. They use the GraFX bitmap system instead of the procedural effect engines.

Mode 17: GraFx Powered Blade

Displays custom GraFX bitmap artwork on the blade.

Mode 18: Vision Fx

Uses GraFX artwork with motion-driven playback speed, so swing behavior affects how the animation plays.

Putting It All Together

Where Settings Go

Mapping Range Keys

Two additional settings let you tune sensitivity ranges for mappings:

• mapping_move=low,high sets the motion range that maps to effect intensity.
• mapping_audio=low,high sets the audio level range that maps to effect intensity.

Example Configurations

Classic Unstable Red

In config.txt under [profile=1]:

unstable=1
mapping_unstable=1
hcool=80
lcool=30
sparkf=150
sparkd=40
drift=1
mapb=60
mapc=100
mapping_color=1

In colors.txt under [color=1]:

color=1023,0,0
ecolor=1023,1023,1023

Realistic Fire Blade

In config.txt under [profile=1]:

unstable=2
mapping_unstable=1
hcool=55
lcool=15
sparkf=130
sparkd=15
drift=0
mapb=70
mapc=120
mapping_color=1

In colors.txt under [color=1]:

color=320,0,0
ecolor=1023,400,0

Rain Sizzle

In config.txt under [profile=1]:

unstable=3
mapping_unstable=1
hcool=60
lcool=20
sparkf=100
sparkd=20
mapb=50
mapc=80

In colors.txt under [color=1]:

color=0,0,1023
ecolor=800,800,1023

Smooth Bicolor Pulse Fx

In config.txt under [profile=1]:

unstable=16
lcool=81
sparkd=15
sparkf=100
mapb=80
mapc=180

In colors.txt under [color=1]:

color=0,1023,0
ecolor=0,800,1023

Traveling Rainbow

In config.txt under [profile=1]:

unstable=9
sparkf=40
lcool=0
hcool=360
sparkd=20
mapb=200
mapc=200

Knight Rider Scanner

In config.txt under [profile=1]:

unstable=14
lcool=180
hcool=8
sparkd=30
sparkf=200
drift=1
mapb=200
mapc=200

In colors.txt under [color=1]:

color=80,0,0
ecolor=1023,0,0

Quick Reference

Crystal Focus X firmware guide · Unstable & Special Blade Modes