This book is a comprehensive guide to using Blender to create character rigs for games, breaking down the technicalities of rigging tools and techniques into easily digestible chunks. It provides all the tools needed to go from a static character model to an animation-ready, high quality, and fast performing game rig.
Written to be accessible and easy to follow, the book covers character rigging theory that is supported by industry standard examples of how to apply that theory to character rigs for video games. It demonstrates the reasoning behind rigging decisions followed by instructions and examples on how to apply that knowledge to rig creation. It includes chapters that focus on the character deformation techniques that raise the visual quality of the model and subsequently of the animation and game it will be used in.
This book will be vital reading to those studying games animation as well as early-career rigging artists, character animators, modeling artists, technical animators, and technical artists.
Author(s): Armin Halac
Edition: 1
Publisher: CRC Press
Year: 2023
Language: English
Pages: 296
Tags: blender, rigging
Cover
Half Title
Title Page
Copyright Page
Dedication
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
1. Introduction
What Is Rigging?
Additional Resources
2. The Big Picture
Character Design and Modeling
Rigging
Standardize
Define Specifications
Character Animation
Export
Game Engines
3. What Is a Game Rig
Definition
Export Limitations
Base Skeleton
Bone Scaling Animation
Max Number of Influences
4. Blender Tools and Concepts
Prerequisites
About Blender
Blender Version
Initial Settings
Load Previous Version Settings
Context Sensitivity
Selection
Select All
Select Linked
Parent, Child, Siblings
Select Under Cursor
Draw Selection
Transformation
Transform Orientation
Transformation Pivot
Options
Transforming without Gizmos
Reset Transforms
Hide and Unhide
Data Objects
Users
Auto Cleanup
Fake User
Remove Unused
Default Scene
3D Viewport Regions
Object Origin
Apply Transforms
Snapping
Snap During Transform
Snap
3D Cursor
Symmetry
Outliner
Collections
Properties
Modifiers
Modifier Stack
Units
Import, Link, Append
Import
Link
Append
Animation
Actions
Dope Sheet
Timeline
Graph Editor
Drivers
Nonlinear Animation
Quick Favorites
Preferences
Operators
Blender Python API
Add-ons
5. 3D World and Transformation
World Space
Vectors and Translation
Euler Rotation
Rotation Order
Gimbal Lock
Quaternion Rotation
Scale
Parenting, Local and Pose Space
Order of Execution
6. Armatures
Fundamentals
Modes
Object
Edit
Pose
Rest Pose
Pose Apply
Armature Properties
Skeleton
Bone Groups
Viewport Display
Selection Sets
7. Bones
Structure
Edit vs Pose Mode
Bone Properties
Transform
Bendy Bones
Relations
Inverse Kinematics
Deform
Viewport Display
Custom Properties
Item Panel
Creation
Add
Extrude
Duplicate
Subdivide
Ctrl + Click
Fill
Editing
Move
Rotate
Scale
Using Pivots
Snap to Cursor
Snap to Bone
Snap to Geometry
X Symmetry
Roll
Switch Direction
Align Bones
Delete and Dissolve
Separate and Join
Symmetrize
Parenting
Parent
Clear Parent
8. Mesh Topology and Deformation
Introduction
Mesh Elements
Vertex
Edge
Face
Normals
UV Maps
High Poly vs Low Poly
Grid Division vs Form Describing
Edge Flow
Triangles
Joint Topology
Outer Side
Inner Side
Conclusion
Twist Support Edges
Mesh LODs
Overlapping Geometry
Uniform Meshes
Base Mesh
Bind Pose
Proportions
Legs
Arms
Hands and Fingers
Shape Keys (Blendshapes)
Non-Manifold Geometry
Gravity
9. Scene and Model Preparation
Workspace
Collections
Model Preparation
Import/Append
Position, Size, Rotation
Mesh Cleanup
10. Naming
Foundation
Naming Tools and Shortcuts
Naming Convention
Prefixes
Side Identifiers
11. Rig Creation Approach
Rig Layers
Deformation Skeleton
Intermediate Skeleton
Rig Mechanics Bones
Control Bones
Symmetrization
Cleanup
12. Root Bone
Definition
Make the Armature
Armature Transform Workaround
13. Body Deformation Skeleton
Introduction
Torso
Leg
Upper Leg
Knee
Ankle
Toes
Angle Check
Shoulder and Arm
Shoulder
Upper Arm
Elbow
Wrist
Fingers
Thumb
Neck and Head
Twist Bones
Summary
14. Bone Orientations
Fundamentals
Bone Orientation Convention
Setting the Roll
The Roll Value Is Irrelevant
Recalculate Roll
Local Tangent
Global Axis
Active Bone
View Axis
Cursor
15. Body Skeleton Orientations
Introduction
Root and Prop Bones
Torso, Neck, and Head
Shoulder
Arm
Hand
Fingers
Thumb
Leg
Twist Bones
16. Weights
Introduction
Linear Blend Skinning
Vertex Groups
Armature Modifier
Binding
Fixing the Heat Map Failed Error
Normalize Weights
Smooth Weights
Mirror Weights
Limit Total
Weight Paint Mode
Bone Manipulation
Vertex and Mesh Selection
Display Settings
Influence Lock
Assign Automatic From Bones
Set Weights
Weight Paint Tools
Brush Presets
Brush Settings
Draw
Blur
Average
Smear
Gradient
Falloff
Symmetry
Options
Useful Shortcuts
17. Weight Painting Method
The Method
Lock
Mesh Preparation
Workspace Preparation
Presets
Viewport Settings
Quick Favorites
Auto Normalize and Symmetry
Demonstration
Branch Bone, Lock
Branch Bone, Section
Branch Bone, Transition
Top Bone, Lock
Top Bone, Section
Top Bone, Transition
18. Weighting the Body
Torso
Leg
Neck and Head
Shoulder
Arm
Thumb and Fingers
Twist Bones
Mirror
19. Weight Transferring Techniques
Introduction
Data Transfer Modifier
Separate, Join, and Merge Geometry
Layered Geometry
Shells
Selective Inue fl nce
Rigid Pieces
Mirror Modifier Technique
Intermediate Mesh Technique
20. Bone Constraints
The Constraint Stack
Header
Target and Owner
Spaces
World
Custom
Pose
Local with Parent
Local
Local (Owner Orientation)
Creating and Removing Constraints
Add
Add (With Targets)
Delete and Clear All
Copy and Copy Constraints to Selected Bones
Duplicate
Dependency Cycle
21. Essential Constraints
Copy Location
Copy Rotation
Mix Modes
Copy Scale
Copy Transforms
Mix Modes
Damped Track
Stretch To
Locked Track
Transformation
Rotation Mode
Action Constraint
Inverse Kinematics
Properties
Common Issues
22. Dealing with Clutter
The Problem
Different Bone Lengths
B-Bone Thickness
Bone Layers
Hide Bones
Clip Regions
Material Preview + X-Ray
23. B-Bone Rigging
Introduction
Base Setup
Twist Distributor
B-Bone Chain
Layered B-Bones
Attaching Bones to B-Bones
Common Issues
B-Bone Twists
B-Bone Curves
24. Drivers
Introduction
Creating and Removing Drivers
Create Driver
Copy/Paste
Copy as New Driver
Delete
Driver Editor
Driver Types
Driver Variables
Single Property
Transform Channel
Rotational Difference
Distance
Expressions
Variables
Literals
Globals
Constants
Arithmetic Operators
Comparison Operators
Logical Operators
“If” and “else”
Standard Functions
Blender Provided Functions
25. Rig Building Blocks
Control Bone
Custom Meshes
Forward Kinematics Chain (FK)
Rotation Isolation
Rotation Switch
Inverse Kinematics Chain (IK)
Pole Target Placement
Blending
Tweak Chain
26. Body Rig
Rules
We are Rigging the “INT” Bones
Parent to “INT-” Bone
Parent IK to World Control
Disable Deform on Non-Deform Bones
Duplicate
Name Your Bones
The Deformation Skeleton
The Intermediate Skeleton
World
Root Control
Body Control
Movable Pivot
Torso
Pelvis
Chest
Abdomen
Head and Neck
Control Bones
Neck Setup
Rotation Isolation
Shoulder
Arm and Hand
FK Arm
IK Arm
Arm IK/FK Blend
Twist and Bend Setup
Arm Rig Summary
Hand
Metacarpals
Fingers and Thumb
Leg
FK Leg
IK Leg
Leg IK/FK Blend
Twist and Bend Setup
Inverse Foot
Adding the Bones
Twist
Bank
Roll
Symmetrize
27. Correctives
Introduction
Angle Reader
Elbow and Knee Correctives
Elbow Bones
Corrective Bone Weights
Bringing it Together
Shoulder and Hip Correctives
28. Facial Rigs
Introduction
Types of Facial Rigs
FACS
Freeform
Standard ARKit Shapes
Shape Creation Using Audio2Face
Shape Key Transfer
Connecting Shapes to Bones
Direct Connection
Inverted Connection
Adjusted Motion Range
Shape Combo
Eye Rotation
29. Cloth and Hair
Introduction
Bone Distribution
Example Setup
30. Space Switches
Introduction
Space Switch Setup
Custom Property
Armature Constraint
Drivers
Copy Global Transform Add-On
31. Props
Introduction
Prop Bones
How to Animate Props
32. Rig Finalizing
Selection Sets
Rotation Order
How Modes Affect Animation
Channel Lock and Limit
Visibility Layers
Colors
Scene Cleanup
Pose Library
33. Animation
Linking and Library Overrides
Relative Versus Absolute Paths
Forcing a Linked Object to Update
Framerate
Keyframes and Keying Sets
Actions
In-Between Tools
NLA
Discontinuity (Euler) Filter
Preview Rendering
Rotation Order and Mode
34. Export
Skeleton and Mesh
Animation
All Actions
Single Action
Selection of Actions
Conclusion
Index