Rig and skin weights

The Rig stage builds a skeleton and skin weights so your character can be posed and animated.

Rig the character

1. Open the Rig stage.
2. Choose the settings below if the default is not right.
3. Press Rig. If the character is not fitted yet, Fit runs first.
4. After the run, the stage shows facts: bones, skinned vertices, blend shapes and weighted vertices.
5. Press Test it to pose the character and see how the skin moves.

To run it again, press Rig again. The app asks you to confirm: “Rig again replaces the skeleton and weights.”

Settings

Setting	Options
Skeleton source	Automatic, Anchors, Body fit
Arms	Automatic, As imported, To angle
Armpit blend	Slider. Blends skin weights at the armpit
Chest stiffness	Slider. Keeps the chest from deforming too much
Adjust joints	Switch. Move joint handles in the viewport

Skin weights are calculated through the inside of the body, so weights do not leak across gaps such as the armpit.

Refine skin

Refine skin is a weight brush. Its modes:

Mode	Use it to
Stiffen	Make an area follow its bone more rigidly
Smooth	Even out weights where the skin pinches
Remove	Take weight off a bone

A surface detail preview is available while you work.

Rig only

If your file already has a skeleton, the default job is Rig only. The app uses the skeleton you imported. If the file is not rigged, Anchors run first.

Later edits

Select the character and open the Rig tab in Modify. To pose the character, see Pose and clips.