Help with attaching character head to body!

Development Character & Animation
1

Please excuse the dumb question… I have a character that has two parts. One mesh for the **body **and another for the head. Inside a character blueprint, I apply the body mesh for the character. Then I add a second skeletal mesh for the head and use the **SetMasterPoseComponent **in the Construction Script to make the head follow the body. To get an idle animation we retarget the Idle animation from the UE4 Mannequin.

When we test the character with the retargeted idle animation the head is slightly off the body. Like its 5 units to the back from where it should be.

Also, the artist just sent me the character mesh all fused into one (body+head) but when I retarget the idle animation from the UE4 Mannequin it still has it’s head slightly off from the body.

I’m guessing we should maybe adjust the pose for the skeleton asset to more closely reflect the pose on the mannequin? Please help this is causing me headaches.

3

Hey thanks for the quick reply!!

Right now if I just parent the head inside the body mesh it will just float and not move with the animation because the component itself is not moving. Did you do something in your blueprints to make the head move with the body animation?

Inside the Construction Script I use the SetMasterPoseComponent so the head follows the animation but the head is slightly offset from the body.

5

hello , i know it too late now but how do you fix it

6

I’m guessing this won’t help the person who posted this because I’m replying years later, but hopefully this helps someone. I just solved this problem in my own game and my solution is the parent of all of your body parts needs to be the head, NOT THE TORSO. I am also using the UE5 mannequin for re-targeting my character.