Hi there, I’m trying to figure out how to attach a skinned mesh (a backpack) to a character control rig in the sequencer.
The backpack is a skinned mesh but it has a physics asset which is referenced by the backpack’s animation BP via a RigidBody node.
Now I know I can use a Set Leader Pose node on a “normal” character BP to attach the backpack skinned mesh component to the main (character) mesh component. But I’m talking about animation mode (i.e. animating control rigs in the sequencer), not gameplay.
I’ve dragged and dropped my character controller rig in the sequencer and I can animate it, no problem. But the backpack item remains a separate skinned mesh. And if I add the backpack to the sequencer it remains completely separate from the character control rig, without any obvious way to attach one to the other…
So my question is: How can I attach the backpack skinned mesh to the character control rig in the sequencer?
And a second question: Once the backpack is attached to the control rig in the sequencer, will the physics of the backpack update properly as I play the animation in the sequencer?
If you use the Copy Pose From Mesh node in the backpack ABP and set Use Attached Parent to True, the backpack mesh will follow the skeleton of whatever mesh it’s attached to. You can include the Rigid Body node after that and it’ll still work.
If the parent mesh - in this case, Cloth 01SK -, has a Control Rig assigned, you’ll be able to control the backpack with that same Control Rig, and the physics will work. I created this sequence as an example, I hope it clarifies your doubt. Please let me know if it works for you!
Thanks a lot for taking the time to reply, @brs-ianferrari, it’s very much appreciated !
So I followed your instructions but I still have a problem when it comes to attaching the prop.
After clicking the + on the backpack sequencer track and choosing Attach, and then choosing the character/rig I then see a new popup window asking me where in the character hierarchy to attach the prop. I tried the root node, None, or any other bone, etc. the result is always the same: The prop gets attached but behaves like a rigid mesh.
In other words if I attach the prop to the root bone then it behaves as if entirely parented to the root bone.
There’s no matching between the character’s skeleton and the prop’s skeleton.
Also I don’t see any physics secondary animation when manually moving the backpack in the scene. Yet I do when I click Simulate in the backpack’s physics asset. Is that normal?
Sorry, @SeithCG, I forgot to mention that… You can select the parent as the root bone, since you want the animation data to drive the whole mesh.
About it not following the skeleton, have you set the correct Animation Blueprint in the Anim Class field for the backpack? You can select it in Sequencer, then go to the Details tab and set it there. Or are you using it as a Post Process ABP?
Now another question: Does the skeleton of the prop have to be exactly the same as the character’s? In my case (for the prop skeleton) only the hierarchy that is actually common to both the character mesh and the prop is present.
So the backpack has all similar bones from the root to the shoulders but it doesn’t have all the arms, fingers, head, etc. But that shouldn’t be a problem, right?
Edit: I feel a bit silly about this but hitting CTRL+R causes the character and the backpack to disappear from the viewport and to become grayed out in the sequencer. The only thing I could do was to close and relaunch the whole editor. Is there a way to recover from that state without having to restart the editor? (Pressing CTRL+R again didn’t)
You should be able to go back by clicking on Realtime Off on the top left of the viewport, or expanding the three lines menu on the left and turning it on/off.
About the skeleton, you’re right, the backpack doesn’t need all the bones, just the ones in the hierarchy before the backpack root bone (so, probably, root, pelvis, spines).
Could you share a video or screenshots of your current set up for the ABP and sequencer? It might be easier to check if there’s anything missing. Thank you!
