TWIGGEN - FRACTAL TREE GENERATOR FOR ADOBE ILLUSTRATOR

Twiggen is a dockable panel extension for Adobe Illustrator that lets you generate customizable fractal binary trees with ease. Designed for both experimentation and precision, Twiggen gives you a robust set of parameters to control the structure, shape, and visual style of generative trees. From sparse, spindly branches to dense, symmetrical canopies, Twiggen makes it easy to explore a wide variety of branching patterns and visual styles.

Whether you’re creating organic illustrations or data-like visual patterns, Twiggen makes it simple to iterate and explore complex tree-like forms.

KEY FEATURES

Fully customizable parameters - Adjust angles, lengths, randomness, iteration depth, and more.
Organic styling options - Add natural waviness to branches or preserve perfect geometric forms.
Loop-safe generation - Built-in safeguards prevent runaway complexity and performance issues.
Easy to edit - Generated trees are editable Illustrator path items with strokes only.
Repeatable randomness - Use seeded pseudo-random generators to reproduce results consistently.
Panel-based UI - Clean interface that docks like any other Illustrator panel.

COMPATIBILITY

Illustrator CC 2021 and later on Mac OS and Windows

INSTALLATION

The .zip package contains the README.txt, the LICENSE.txt and a .zxp file. The easiest way to install the .zxp is with the a free tool such as Anastasiy's Extension Manager (Recommended by Adobe) or aescripts ZXP/UXP Installer . These tools will install the program files in the correct folder for Illustrator to be able to load the extension.

Note: If Illustrator is open you will need to quit and relaunch it after installation.

In Illustrator you can access the panel from Window Extensions Twiggen.

SLIDER SETTINGS EXPLAINED

Random Seed: Changes the random seed to generate a different random tree shape. When you find a seed you like, you can leave the slider at that value in order to reproduce specific tree shapes reliably, even while experimenting with other settings.

Initial Branch Length: Controls the length of the first (trunk) branch of the tree, which will also affect subsequent branch lengths. Longer values = taller trees.

Branch Length Falloff: Determines how much shorter each branch is compared to the one it grew from. Higher values = more falloff = less branching.

Initial Branch Angle: Sets base angle at which branches split from their parent. Wider angles = more spread-out trees.

Branch Angle Falloff: Controls how the branch angle changes as the tree grows deeper. A value of 1.0 keeps the angle constant. Values below 1 widen the angle per level, making branches spread out. Values above 1 tighten the angle, making a more compact tree.

Initial Stroke Width: Sets how thick the trunk is when the tree begins. Thicker strokes = bolder, more graphic trees.

Minimum Branch Length: Defines the shortest branch that will be drawn. Smaller values = finer details and more branches.

Branch Length Randomness: Adds variation to branch lengths. Higher values = more organic, unpredictable trees. Set both Branch Length Randomness and Branch Angle Randomness to 0 for symmetry.

Branch Angle Randomness: Adds variation to the branch angles. Higher values = more irregular, natural shapes. Set both Branch Length Randomness and Branch Angle Randomness to 0 for symmetry.

Wavy Branches: Adds a natural, flowing feel to your tree by introducing gentle curves into each branch. Choose from four levels.

Maximum Iterations: Limits how many branching steps the recursion will take. Higher values = deeper, bushier trees. In Advanced Mode, this cap is raised, and playing around with the higher values, in combination with Maximum Paths can produce some unusual asymmetric trees.

Maximum Paths: Caps the total number of paths drawn. Useful for performance control. In Advanced Mode, this cap is raised, and playing around with the higher values, in combination with Maximum Iterations can produce some unusual asymmetric trees.

Advanced Mode: When checked, unlocks higher limits for both maximum iterations and path count. This allows for more unusual, asymmetrical trees but may increase rendering time slightly longer.

Make Group: When enabled, all generated branches are placed in a single Illustrator group, making it easy to move or style the tree as one object.

NOTES

Advanced Mode lifts the maximum recursion depth and maximum number of paths. At these higher values you can generate asymmetric trees because the script uses depth-first recursion: It draws the entire right subtree (right → RR → RRR…). If it hits the path limit while still on the right side then the left side might never be drawn at all.
In most cases, branch end caps are neatly hidden by the connection with the next level of branching. However, under certain conditions - such as thick stroke widths, high waviness, extreme initial angles or extreme angle falloff, some caps may become visible. This is typically limited to the trunk and/or a few of the lower branches. You can correct this manually by slightly adjusting the endpoints of the affected branches. Visible caps may also occur when generating asymmetric trees in Advanced Mode.
The tree will be drawn from the centre of the bottom edge of the artboard.

LICENSE SUMMARY

This script is licensed for individual use on up to 3 personal or company-owned computers. Redistribution, resale, reverse engineering, or sharing of the script is not permitted. For full terms, see the included LICENSE.txt.

SUPPORT

For questions or support, contact: synthetickvideo@gmail.com