I would like to know, how multiple animators cooperate together? I mean how they use each other animations with their characters?
Im asking because i created my human 3d model, rigged it with Epic Skeleton, however, if i use skeleton from blender to unreal in import, its total mess and if i retarget, there is some mismatch…
Lets say first modeler modeling character in “T” pose, second modeler uses “A” pose, then both want to use Epic animations or animations from other animators. Whats the best way to merge animations and characters: import and retarget or import and use default UE skeleton?
Also, is important to model characters in “A” pose like UE skeleton for easier rigging with the smallest possible mistakes in positioning bones to new characters?
Im lost in this… for example tekken 7 has nice animations and i bet, there worked many animators and characters artists, however some shared animations are well done without mistakes… Whats their workflow?
If your using epic skeleton .Export as fbx and align your player exactly to the skeleton as close as you can. I delete ik bones, and gun root bones etc.If you need to move joints then the retarget pose will be different. I then click on the ue4 skin and delete. So the epic skeleton hasnt moved at all. When you bind your mesh to its skeleton that becomes the bind pose.
When you import your character there is an option to assign skeleton in the right click menu. I import all of my characters with same named skeleton, and hierarchy, and as tpose as default. My main characters dont have root bones though.
ue4 mannequin is retargeted, and saved. So any animation i bring in can be applied to every character. I can apply a horse animation to my character, and he will walk around on all 4. Though the bone locations dont match i would have to move them, but none the less it works great with most humans. The problem is some characters require unique animations for themselves. If you have a very large fat character with big hands and fingers he isnt going to hold a pistol in very good aim pose thats for a normal sized person. So i wouldnt share those types of animations with him. When i import a new animation i can choose my skeleton so long as the hierarchy is the same.
For the animations part we use MotionBuilder and target all animations to MB’s auto character rig and then catalogue.
A-Pose T-Pose using MB does not matter as you have to set the base pose in the t-pose position to set the MB character rig. Technically speaking it’s much easier to bind pose the character in the A-Pose than in the T-Pose that prevents bunching up in the shoulder and armpit area.