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984 Chapter 14: character studio
• RubberBandmodeandscaleareusedtosize
the biped limbs to fit the biped to a mesh.
•UsetheoptionsfromtheTw ist Links g roup
(page 2–987) to transfer twisting animation in
the biped’s associated mesh.
• Use Props to represent weapons or tools
attached to your character.
•UseSelectAndLinkonthe3dsMaxtoolbarto
link non-deformable (mechanical) objects to
the biped. Do this after Physique is applied to
prevent Physique from generating extra links
(Envelopes). Superflous envelopes (lin ks) can
be tur ned off in Physique however, so t his is not
critical.
Note: Objectslikeeyeballsandweaponsshould
be lin ked to the biped after Physique is applied;
otherw ise links (Envelopes) will extend to the se
objects when Physique is applied.
• Reposition and use Ponytails on the Structure
rollout to animate a character’s jaw, ears, hat,
hair and ponytails.
•Asaved.fig filecanbereloadedifthebipedis
repositioned in Figure mode by mistake.
Move the first link on each finger to position the
fingers relative to the mesh; use local and world
coordinate s ystems for this. Scale the finger links
to position the joints. After positioning the thumb,
rotate the first thumb link around the local X-axis
until the loca l Z-axis creates a natural rotation
for the thumb (refer to the image). A User view
and toggling back and forth b etween a shaded
and wireframe display is helpful when fingers are
positioned.
Structure Rollout
Select the biped. > Mo tion panel > Biped rollout > Turn
on Figure mode > Structure rollout
Turn Figure mode on to enable parameters on the
Structure rollout. The Structure rollout pro vides
parameters for changing the biped’s skeletal
structure to match your character mesh (dinosa ur,
robot, human and so on). You can also add up to
three props to your biped, to represent tools or
weapons.
After setting parameters to suit your character, use
the Height parameter to scale the biped to the size
of the mesh representing your character. This is
the first step in fitting a biped to a mesh in Figure
mode.
Procedures
To S cale a B i ped and a P hysique M esh:
• Selectthebiped,turnonFigure
mode, and then change the biped height on the
Structure rollout.
The biped and mesh scale together.
To Sk in a B iped with Twist Link s:
This procedure takes into account the process of
skinning a character and exp ands on the concept
of using twist links to better deform a skinned
mesh.
1. Position a biped within the mesh.
2.
SelectthebipedandturnonFigure
Mode.
3. On the Structure rollout, tur n on the Tw ists
option.
This enables the input fields for all biped limbs.