Two topics on characters that pick up objects I'd like feedback on. I use 3DSMax4 and DirectX 8.0. I've primarily worked with exporting one 3DS file for each frame and handling animation in 3DS (rather than using skinned meshes and animating in DX code). I'm able to follow the tutorial on linking objects to simulate a character picking up an object effectively in 3DS. Let's say we link a sword to the BIPs right hand and he waves it around. The character will never drop the sword for this example, so we're going to link them in 3DS, animate, and export the two meshes together as 3DS files. First area I need help with is that the sword never ends up in the characters hand after I export . I end up manually tweaking the swords relative center (via its pivot point) and reexporting until it looks right in DX. This can't be standard practice. Where did I go wrong? Second area I'd like help with is how people are handling characters that may dynamically pick up and drop a variety of mesh objects. My idea was to export the mesh with a link to a dummy object. I could render that object transparently, and if something was picked up in the game, I could "link" that object programmatically by transforming it as the dummy. I think there are some problems with this approach as long as I'm sticking to a static mesh export, but I'm not sure. Thanks for reading the long post! [edited by - hundel on March 10, 2003 10:51:44 AM]

First off you only animate the motion of picking up items, and it has to be generic so that it will work with any object (Think Splinter Cell or Resident Evil).

2nd, you don''t attatch objects to your character unless it''s a part of the character. Weapons don''t go on the mesh itself, rather, you place them there in the editor you are using.

In whatever app you are using, you can use a dummy to tell where the left and right hands are and have items attatch at the proper moment.

And since you are using 3DS format, then I don''t think the dummy is accounted for in the file, you will have to use the mesh. I would go with another format if I were you.

Lamont G.
CG Artist
San Diego CA