swapping bodyparts from model to model

**Moooul** · 07-28-2005, 10:17

hi folks,

i want to create a new spartian hoplite model for training purpose. i want to change the head/helmet and the shield. helmet should be that one macedonian officers use and the shield just needs to be enlarged. how do i do such things in 3d studio maxx? do i need to change the texture files and if, in which way?

thx a lot

**Epistolary Richard** · 07-28-2005, 10:24

You really should consider having a look around the Scriptorium, there's lots of useful information there. Such as this:

Tutorial: Head Swapping Tutorial (3D units)
How to Model New 3D Units
3DSMax and tool tutorials

**Bwian** · 07-28-2005, 10:39

There is also a clearly marked tutorial that tells you EXACTLY how to do this....

**Moooul** · 08-07-2005, 14:08

well well i read them too but im not sure weather i did everything allright or not. game still crashes loading. i get some message when i try to export my new model. says i needed to have the skin mod on top of the stack... does that mean theres something wrong with the model? or is that just normal?

**Moooul** · 08-07-2005, 14:34

as soon as i try to load a custom battle with my new .cas file i get an error message:
'material index on rigid
primary weapon
is greater than number of materials'

what have i done wrong?

**hoggy** · 08-07-2005, 15:13

you shouldn't get an error on exporting
- check you are only using 1 material/texture on the model
- check your weapons are linked to the right bones. All objects should be skinned to the skeleton or linked to the skeleton.

**Moooul** · 08-10-2005, 18:10

well i corrected it. used new texture only on body -> more than one materials.

now i'm able to export my model properly as long as i have all vertices weighted to bone_abs and in the diagram-view linked body to some bone (in the scene root element).

as soon as i change anything ( weighten head vertices to bone_head or sth. like that) i still can export but i'm only shown weapon and shield (in some mad places) i think my diagram isn't correct, but i'm not getting the point.
what must the array be to work all right? could you maybe post an image showing a correct diagram?

thanks for your patience with me

**Myrddraal** · 08-11-2005, 01:17

Mooul, it sounds like your using more than one weight per bone, Cas can't handle this.

Make sure that any weights you add are attached to only one bone and have a weight of 1.00

Also if you make all the verticies 'rigid' then this forces them to only have one weight per bone. Is that right hoggy?

**Moooul** · 08-11-2005, 10:36

hm well,

i use 'rigid' and 'normalize' so the vertices only can have a total weight of 1.0. so if i select some vertex and change its weight to another bone it can't be weighted to more than one, can it?

is it alright then to have the body element liked to bone_abs in the diagram-view?

**Moooul** · 08-11-2005, 14:04

for better understanding my point here's an image of my diagram/envelope modifier[IMG]

[/IMG]

**Bwian** · 08-11-2005, 15:07

From that diagram, it looks like you havre attached ALL the body parts to the abs bone. This will actually work in game....but the character won't bend!

You need to now go to each bone in turn, and assign the right bit of the body mesh to the bone.

SO...for example...select the left foot bone....then select JUST the vertices of the model that should move when the left foot moves....now enter 1.0 into Abs.Effekt. This should assign those vertices to that bone.

Repeat the process for all the other bones.

The abs bone is there to act as a reference point for all the other bones really. If you wanted to make the character jump in the ai an animation, you want to be able to move the whole model with all teh linked bones. This lets you do that. Otherwise, you would have to move each bone in turn to get the desired position.