ESCARGOT Visualwares3D Polygon Modeller
MarbleCLAY v0.2.16 beta5.2|


Window Menus

File
Edit
Mesh Modeling
Mirror/Curve
Parts/Bone
UV/Image
View
Option
Window
Help






File

New(Ctrl+N)
Open...(Ctrl+O)
Save...(Ctrl+S)
Save As...
Import...
Export...
eXit(Alt+F4)



New (Ctrl+N)

Create a new document.


Open... (Ctrl+O)

Open a document file.


Save... (Ctrl+S)

Overwrites and saves the document file being worked on.


Save As...

Save the current document file with a different file name.


Import...

Import objects from 3D format files and add them to your document.


Export...

Export selected objects to files in various types of 3D formats.


eXit (Alt+F4)

Exit MarbleCLAY.






Edit

Undo(Ctrl+Z)
Redo
Mode cancel(Esc)
Cut(Ctrl+X)
Copy(Ctrl+C)
Paste(Ctrl+V)
Delete(Del)
Special-delete(BkSp)
Delete obj
Tool
Select tool
WorkPlane
Select all(Ctrl+A)
Un Select
Select inverse
Select single edges
Select overlap edges
Select common edge between two triangles
Select terminating edge
Select continuous faces with same material
Select faces with current material
Select to Temporary
Temporary to Select



Undo (Ctrl+Z)

Undo the previous operation.


Redo

Re-does the undone action.


Mode cancel (Esc)

Returns the currently selected tool to its previous state.
For example, in
face/UV weld(3) mode, if you hit Mode cancel(Esc) while drawing a line for the polygon, it will stop drawing points and lines for the current polygon allowing you to continue to create new polygons.
Hitting the Mode cancel(Esc) key a two times, will always return back to the select/Move(1).


Cut (Ctrl+X)

Deletes the selected element after copying it to the clipboard.


Copy (Ctrl+C)

Copies the selected element to the clipboard.


Paste (Ctrl+V)

Pastes data from the clipboard into the active object.


Delete (Del)

The selected element is deleted.

(+) When a face is selected, only that face is deleted.

(+) When an edge is selected, the edge and also all the faces connected with that edge are also deleted.

(+) When a vertex is selected, all edges and faces connected to it are deleted.



Special-delete (BkSp)

Special delete the selected element, this preserves the existing face when removing lines, a normal delete will remove the whole face.

(+) If you special delete a vertex with 1 or 2 edges, it will combine the two edges into one merged edge.
It is used when you want to delete vertices on the same edge.

(+) If an edge is selected, and Special Deleted, it will be a semi-definite edge, it will appear as dotted line instead of the normal solid line.

(+) When a semi-definite edge is selected, if the two faces composed of that edge are both the same polygon shape, then the two faces are merged into one polygon.
Used when you want to convert two triangles polygons into one quadrilateral or join two neighbouring quads into a single quad

(+) If many faces, vertices or edges are Special Deleted at the same time, the edges and vertices that are apart of faces that were not selected faces will not be deleted.

If the above conditions are not met, it will do nothing.

This option is also available in the right click, context menu.


Delete obj

Deletes the selected object in
Object window.


Tool

See
Edit Tools.


Select tool

See
Selection Tools.


WorkPlane

In perspective view, a workplane is always used to define 3D world movements, as explained in detail in: Reference -> Layout ->
WorkPlanes 3D Perspective View).

Note: Grid snapping, adjacent (along the offset) and axis object movements (Alt & Shift while holding the left mouse button) requires a selected workplane based on XY, YZ, XZ or automatically selecting between them. These do not work in the other workplane types, ie 3D (Gyakkou) perspective, screen or selected polygon parallel perspective workplanes. TODO: This maybe a bug?



Set XY plane as WorkPlane

Uses XY plane as
WorkPlanes 3D Perspective View).
This limits movements to X and Y planes respectively.


Set YZ plane as WorkPlane

Uses YZ plane as
WorkPlanes 3D Perspective View).
This limits movements to Y and Z planes respectively.


Set XZ plane as WorkPlane

Uses XZ plane as
WorkPlanes 3D Perspective View).
This limits movements to X and Z planes respectively.


Set screen as WorkPlane

Set your current view angle as the flat plane for the WorkPlane.
Sets the workplane parallel to the current display view on your screen. See
WorkPlanes 3D Perspective View).


Set WorkPlane to selected polygons

Uses the selected polygon's face as the plane parallel to work on, see
WorkPlanes 3D Perspective View).
This option is helpful for quickly replicating similar facing polygons.


Set XY,YZ or XZ WorkPlane automaticaly

Depending on your view angle, the WorkPlane is automaticaly changed to XY,YZ or XZ.
Set
WorkPlanes 3D Perspective View) to the most suitable plane from your point of view.
You will see the grid changing orientation accordingly.
Due to a bug it may not set the correct workplane, but then a slight shift in perspective help.


Set WorkPlane to Perspected Depth Mode

Vertex movement with position correction.
Uses the GYAKKOU algorithm to calculate the WorkPlane using 3D perspective depth.
Use the past viewpoint to move vertices, displaying a dotted (parallel to view) line as a guide.
In this mode, by moving vertices while changing the viewpoint, it is possible to move vertices to the vicinity of the target position in fewer steps than before (minimum of 2 times).

This view is better suited to editing ("fine adjustment mode") models instead of creating new points, lines or faces.
If creating new objects, it's best to start on correct parallel view, looking down, Y, X, or Z, hit F, D or E key respectively.
For more information on this function see the
Gyakkou algorithm (Japanese) page.)


Select all (Ctrl+A)

All current objects can be selected.


Un Select

Deselect.
Click empty space with no tool activated, will also unselect all.

Select inverse

Invert the selection.


Select single edges

Selects unused verts and edges that are not used to complete a face, this will also select guide lines and vertices.
This is helpful when cleaning the model for final export,
Select single edges and then Delete(Del) to remove unused vertices and edges.

Select overlap edges

If there are multiple edges with the same set of vertices, select one edge.
When outputting to a file format that does not allow multiple edges, such as RDS output.
After selecting the multiple edges with this command, do an
Delete(Del) to remove the multiple edges.
In many cases, the shape changes slightly, so manual correction is required.
This will help keep your model clean and ready for exporting..


Select common edge between two triangles

Selects edges that share two triangular faces. However, only the edges that when formed together become a square are selected.
After running this command, using
Special-delete(BkSp) twice, will delete these edges and merge them into quadrilaterals.
However, since it uses a simple algorithm, it is not possible to select an object that looks like a square surface, and only works on triangles.


Select terminating edge

Selects outside edges of a model, edges that are not inbetween faces. Useful for selecting edges on the mirror (X,Z) plane.


Select continuous faces with same material

Selects faces that have the same color attributes as the currently selected face and are contiguous (same mesh that's not seperated by a different material).


Select faces with current material

Selects all faces that have the same material as the currently selected face.


Select to Temporary

Puts the selected element into a state called temporary selection.
The tentative selection state is used in the
ArrayDuplicate... function, etc.
TODO ?? ArrayDuplicate functions doesn't seem to use this, just the normal selected faces??

Temporary to Select

Restores the temporarily selected elements back to the selected state adding to currently selected objects. The temporary selection data is also cleared.





Mesh Modeling

Make primitive object ->
Collision ->
Effects ->
Divide ->
Fill all polygons
Fill selected polygons
Align vertices...
Make all surfaces face the same direction

Reverse selected surface direction(Z)
Duplicate...(Ctrl+D)
ArrayDuplicate...
Weld...(Ctrl+W)
Move selected vertices to current WorkPlane
Flatten polygon
Hide selected parts(Ctrl+H)
Hide unselected parts
Show hidden parts
New Named Faces(Alt+N)
Change selected polygons color
Pick material from selected face






Make primitive object

Sphere...
Cube...
Cylinder...
Cone...
Torus...
Plane...
Lathe...



Sphere...

Set the number of divisions and create a sphere.


Cube...

Create a cube by setting the number of divisions and sharpening the vertices and edges.


Cylinder...

Set the number of divisions and create a cylinder.


Cone...

Set the number of divisions and create a cone.


Torus...

Set the number of divisions and create a torus (donut).


Plane...

Set the number of divisions and create a plane.


Lathe...

Generates a body of revolution with an arbitrary linear outline.

Using the Z axis as the center of the rotation, draw an outline with
face/UV weld(3)
Polyline(5)
Freehand polyline, etc.
Next, select the line (double left clicking on a segment), and run Mesh Modeling->Lathe..., enter the number of divisions.
A body of revolution with a linear outline is generated.

The original vertices and edges remain in the model and can be removed by Select single edges.
Developer notes: Originally, the shape of the rotating body is interactively deformed when the outline is changed later I was thinking about something like this, but I put it off for the time being and implemented it in this way.
Therefore, the user interface may change in the future.





Collision

Sense vertex Collision-Transform
Sense vertex Collision-Move
Effects



Sense vertex Collision-Transform

Collision detection is performed for each vertex. As a result of this operation, the selected object will be deformed as if it was truncated (ie height reduced) where it intersects with other vertices.


Sense vertex Collision-Move

Collision detection is performed for each vertex, the vertex with the smallest movement distance from the intersection is used to reposition the whole selected object.
Use this when you want objects to fit together or sit objects on a surface, etc.


Effects

Smooth/Relax filter1(Ctrl+R)
Smooth/Relax filter2(Ctrl+E)
Bumpy filter



Smooth/Relax filter1 (Ctrl+R)

Averages the positions of the selected vertices.
If the surface of the object has unwanted irregularities, select the irregular objects and apply Smooth/Relax filter1(Ctrl+R).
Running it smooths it out sharp vertices and sharp edges. Do it several times until the desired smoothness is achieved.
Settings for are now reflected. (beta 4.6)


Smooth/Relax filter2 (Ctrl+E)

Same as above but with a flattering effect instead of a smoothing average effect.


Bumpy filter

Distorts the positions of selected vertices.
Developer notes: To do, When executed on magnet-selected vertices, the degree of disturbance changes according to the strength of the selection.





Divide

Detach Polygons(V)
Separate By Edges
Triangulate Polygon
Subdivide(Ctrl+G)
Bevel Edge
Extrude



Detach Polygons (V)

Separates the selected face or island of faces from the poly mesh.


Separate By Edges

Separates all faces from the selected polymesh.


Triangulate Polygon

Devides selected quads into triangles.


Subdivide (Ctrl+G)

Subdivides the selected faces into smaller quadrilateral adjusted to vertices average. A triangle face will be subdivided by turning it into 3 quadrilateral faces.
Subdivide creates extra polygonal detail and smoothed out, see image below.


Since the algorithm is not very good, the shape becomes wavy when it is subdivided into smaller pieces.

*Algorithm improved in Beta4.6. I think it's gotten a little better
Sharp vertex and sharp edge settings are now reflected/mirrored. (Beta4.6)


Bevel Edge

With a line segment selected (double click a line), Edge Bevel will ask you for the size of the width of the bevel split. The new bevel section will be selected to be moved or resized etc.


Extrude

Extrude Selected Faces
Parallel Extrude extrudes perpendicular to the normal vector of the face.
Extrude according to vertex normal extrudes each vertex in the direction of its normal vector.
Other extrusion methods have not yet been implemented.

TODO: Extrude window details:
Extrude Parallel
Extrude Keep backside
Extrude with Bevel
Extrude Move
Extrude Snap


Fill all polygons

For the current object, fill all polygons as much as possible for all edges.


Fill selected polygons

Fill polygons only the areas enclosed by the selected edges.


Make all surfaces face the same direction

Make all surfaces face the same direction.
Align the orientation and position of all faces connected to the last selected polygon.
Used to flattern and angle groups of faces.


Align vertices...

Align vertices.
Align the orientation and position of all faces connected to the last selected polygon.
Used to flattern and angle groups of faces.



Find the line of intersection between the two meshes and cut the mesh there.
See
cut
Note/TODO: Not implimented?


Reverse selected surface direction (Z)

Inverts the selected polygons.


Duplicate... (Ctrl+D)

Duplicate the selected element.
When duplicating symmetrically with respect to a specified plane, if you check Weld, the joint will be Weld. (currently unstable)
TODO: Document and test?


ArrayDuplicate...

Duplicates the selected element continuously.
In Beta5.1, only the function to duplicate the selection element along the temporary selection line is implemented.

TODO: Dialog box with 3 options, no translation is provided.
1) Simple translation with X,Y,Z values
2) Complex translation and offset
3) Lathe
Duplicate number: 5 (default)


Weld... (Ctrl+W)

Weld selected vertices.
UV vertices can now be welded when running in UV view beta5.3

Vertices that are closer than the distance set in Vertex Distance to Weld will be welded.
If you check Weld all selected vertices, the selected vertices will be merged into one point regardless of their distance.


Move selected vertices to current WorkPlane

This tool will move and flattern all selected vertices (typically edge loops) to the center point of the current WorkPlane (XY/YZ/XZ).
When working symmetrical parts using
Duplicate...(Ctrl+D)
Weld...(Ctrl+W) or SimpleMirror(F3), it is a necessity to make sure the outer edge loop is completely flat.


Flatten polygon

Flatten the selected faces.
It's still incomplete.
Note/TODO: Not implemented?


Hide selected parts (Ctrl+H)

Hide the selected element (hide)


Hide unselected parts

Hide elements other than the selected part (hide)


Show hidden parts

Show the parts hidden by
Hide selected parts(Ctrl+H) or Hide unselected parts.


New Named Faces (Alt+N)

Naming is similar to a subgroup, or a soft group and can be converted to a group, by right clicking the named item in the
Object window.
Enter the new name for the selected element or select an existing one to add selected elements.


Change selected polygons color

Replaces the material of selected faces with the currently selected material.


Pick material from selected face

Changes the selected material to the material used in the selected face.






Mirror/Curve

SimpleMirror(F3)
Make symmetric shape of selected parts(F2)
Release symmetric shape of selected elements(Alt+F2)
Weak fix symmetric shape of selected elements(Ctrl+Alt+F2)
Release symmetry
Fix symmetric parts(Ctrl+F3)

Curves


Note: All Mirror operations only work on the XZ plane and the reflected plane (the -Y side) can not be edited, unless released with Fix symmetric parts(Ctrl+F3).


SimpleMirror (F3)

Puts the current object into simple mirror mode.
This mode makes all elements in the object symmetric. Use this feature to generate simple symmetric figures.

A symmetrical figure is generated by duplicating all elements of current root object and mirrored along the XZ plane.
Mirroring is applied to all named parts within the object and you will not be able to separate any parts of the model from the mirrored plane.

When symmetric is applied, only the +Y mirrored plane is editable and new operations will automatically edit in symmetrically mode.
If you want to generate a shape with mixed symmetrical and asymmetrical parts, remove
SimpleMirror(F3) and use Make symmetric shape of selected parts(F2).

See Symmetry Edit

Make symmetric shape of selected parts (F2)

Edit the selected face symmetrically to the XZ plane.
Once a symmetrical figure is generated, the surfaces generated by connecting to that surface will be automatically symmetrically edited.
The vertices that existed on the XZ plane when the symmetrical figure was generated are shared between the original plane and the reflected symmetrical plane, and you will not be able to separate it.

At this time, it is an incomplete feature, so it is possible to move, rotate, scale other than the original surface, editing removes symmetrical entities.
In this case, you can re-select the face and
Make symmetric shape of selected parts(F2) to recreate the symmetric geometry.
If you regenerate a symmetrical figure, it may not be the correct symmetrical figure, but in that case execute Release symmetry once to cancel target editing, and then execute Make symmetric shape of selected parts(F2) again.

See Symmetry Edit

Release symmetric shape of selected elements (Alt+F2)

Removes symmetry if the selection has symmetrical entities.


Weak fix symmetric shape of selected elements (Ctrl+Alt+F2)

If the selection has symmetrical geometry, fixes (instantiates) the symmetry.
Shapes with fixed symmetry can be edited separately, but if you run
Make symmetric shape of selected parts(F2) again, returns to symmetric editing state.


Release symmetry

Release symmetrical editing.

If
SimpleMirror(F3), the mode is cleared.


Fix symmetric parts (Ctrl+F3)

Freeze (instantiates) symmetrical entities and release symmetrical editing.
Once fixed, target figures can be selected and edited in the same way as normal surfaces.

A new symmetrical object is created.

If
SimpleMirror(F3), the mode is cleared.






Curves


SplineMesh1(F4)
SplineMesh2
Convert SplineMesh to Polygon(Ctrl+F4)
Sharpen edge(S)
Smooth edge(Shift+S)
Sharpen vertex(Maximize weight)(Alt+S)
Smooth vertex(Reset weight)(Shift+Alt+S)
Weight up
Weight down



SplineMesh1 (F4)

Bezier patch surface for objects composed of triangles or quadrilateral polygons.
When executed on an already curved object, the curved surface is removed.

The continuity of the curved surface is not guaranteed because the patches are connected using a somewhat brute force method.

In the beta version, curved surfaces may be generated abnormally in rare cases. in that case again Try
SplineMesh1(F4) to remove the surface and then surface again.


Surface generated by SplineMesh1(F4) on the left. Surface generated by SplineMesh2 on the right.

See surface

SplineMesh2

Unlike traditional
SplineMesh1(F4), a surface is generated through the control points.

See surface

Convert SplineMesh to Polygon (Ctrl+F4)

By polygonizing the Bezier patch curved object with the specified number of divisions, it can be transferred to rendering software (RDS, etc.) Prepare to bring. If you bring a curved object into the rendering software without converting it into polygons, It will be rendered with the shape before curved.

However, some formats, such as MegaPOV and Redqueen format, automatically divide into polygons, so this operation may not be necessary. (The number of divisions can be set in the Preferences dialog)

Sharpen edge (S)

You can get a curved surface that bends at the part that straddles this edge.
When outputting in RayDreamStudio format, it is equivalent to using the edge sharpening function of the mesh modeler You can get the effect.

Vertex weights have been supported since beta 4.7, but this feature gives different results than weights to vertices
Please use properly according to the situation



Smooth edge (Shift+S)

It does the opposite of
Sharpen edge(S).

Sharpen vertex(Maximize weight) (Alt+S)

Specifies the vertices to sharpen during surfacing.
Since beta 4.7 supports vertex weights, the behavior of this feature has changed.
Executing this command in beta 4.7 or later has the same effect as maximizing the weight


Sharp vertices are not moved by
Smooth/Relax filter1(Ctrl+R)
Subdivide(Ctrl+G).


Smooth vertex(Reset weight) (Shift+Alt+S)

It does the opposite of
Sharpen vertex(Maximize weight)(Alt+S).

Running this command in beta 4.7 or later has the same effect as setting the weight to 0


From left to right: a normal curved object, an object with two sharpened edges on the top surface, and an object with two sharpened vertices on the top surface.



Beta 4.7
Weight up

Moves the generated surface closer to the vertices.

Weight down

Push the generated surface away from the vertices.
If you lower the weight too much, the shape will be a little distorted.


In addition to the menu operation, you can also change the weight by mouse operation.
Use
Move(1) to select the part you want to change the weight of, right-drag that part to the right to increase the weight, Right-drag to the left to decrease the weight.
This operation method is in the testing stage and may be changed to another operation method in the future



From the top left, normal surface object, less weight for each vertex object
From the bottom left, an object with increased weight on each vertex and an object with maximum weight on multiple vertices.







Parts/Bone


Note: Bones support is still buggy and you will see errors, but these typically aren't critical errors. Re-select items and try the operation again. This section only effects bones and objects attached to bones.


Freeze 'Parts'/'Deform'
Move Parts/Bone to Workplane
Make mirror Parts/Bone
Attach and Activate bone (Simple)
Detach and Deactivate bone (Simple)
Reset Parts/Bone positon

Bone tips
Bone Example

Not available:
Attach vertices to bone
Activate bone
Deactivate bone
Import .mcl file as 'Parts'




Freeze 'Parts'/'Deform'


To freeze means to create a new model based on the current object as a polygon mesh.
This option will freeze the current object attached to bones to a new model.
This new mesh object can be further manipulated, exported or rendered etc.
This feature only works in Attach and Activate bone (Simple) mode and freezes the complete model object.


Move Parts/Bone to Workplane


Bone and model must be
Attach and Activate bone (Simple) first
. Moves the selected bone and it's lower attached hierarchy of bones to the currently selected workplane.
It's recommended to only use this with the root (top most bone), as it will also apply the move to the rest of the hierarchy.
This is useful to center the bone hierarchy to the front and right planes.
Currently, the individual bone part must be selected from the view port, not the object tree.



Make mirror Parts/Bone


This is not a mirror feature, it uses the currently used workplane as a mirror plane.
It duplicates the selected bone hierarchy using the mirror plane, to a new bone hierarchy.
The mirror can be a root bone node or a sub bone node, if it's a root node a new root will be created, if it's a sub node a new sub node will be created.
Currently, the individual bone part must be selected from the view port, not the object tree.
Note: As of this version (v1 beta 6.4), it will only traverse down a single hierarchy tree of bone nodes, so it will not do a full mirror if you have bones in multiple branching bones.



Attach and Activate bone (Simple)


First select the model's root object and then holding down shift key, select the bone's object(s).
If your bone hierarchy has multiple root bones, you will have to hold shift and select all root bone node hierarchies or the missing bones will not be available for posing.
Both the model's root object and the model's root bone(s) hierarchy must be selected and highlighted.
It's recommended to keep a single bone hierarchy. Then apply Attach and Activate bone (Simple).
Note: If the model's root model object and bone's root hierarchy are not both selected, it will not do anything.

Setting Attach and Activate bone (Simple) will apply the bone and position last applied, and allows you to position bones to pose the model.
You can accidentally edit the model while in this mode, it's best to use the
Move(1) with vertices, lines and faces selecting disabled, only bone manipulation will work.
or the bones in this mode, all modification will only effect the position of the model for a pose.

This mode has a special Move(1) bone widget with all the manipulators in one (tip: disable the normal maniputlator with M Key), if you only need to rotate bones for posing, changing to the rotate tool is a lot easier. Note, currently the scale tool does not work on bones.
To edit the bones size (skinning), location etc, you must be in normal modelling editing mode and exit with Detach and Deactivate bone (Simple).

You can confirm you are in Attach and Activate bone (Simple) mode by clicking a bone and seeing all options available in the Parts/Bone menu.



Detach and Deactivate bone (Simple)


This turns off Attach and Activate bone (Simple) and reverts back to normal modeling mode.
You have to have either the Model, Bone or both selected first.

You will alternate between the two modes regularly to adjust the model if the pose doesn't look correct, not enough geometry etc. Note: You can not delete bones if they are in Attach and Activate bone (Simple) a warning will display "You can't delete active bones, use Parts/Bone -> Detach and Deactivate bone (Simple) and try again!" reminding you to exit first with Detach and Deactivate bone (Simple).



Reset Parts/Bone positon


The current pose will be discarded and cleared with positioning information in bones.
The bones will be reset to the same information as the bones in the modeling mode.
Must be in Attach and Activate bone (Simple) mode with the bone hierarchy selected.
The bone hierarchy can be a root bone or a sub bone, which will only clear and reset the current bone hierarchy, and not he other bones.



Bone tips


The bone node icon in the object viewer panel means:
Diagnal line of two bones yellow bones - Not attached to model.
Bent knee looking bones - Attached to model.

While using the
Bone Creation Tool when you click on another bone it will only select it, to continue the hierarchy. To create a new bone, click on empty space and drag, a new bone root node will be created. To move bone nodes up or down the hierarchy, click the icon with the two bones.
Always use centered views in the main single screen:
F key = Front (when using mirror mode, this is the side view)
E key = Top
D key = Right (when using mirror mode, this is the front view)
Or use the traditional 4 way split view.

The Object viewer panel Object window in Panel tray can get very big with bone hierarchies. You can move it out to it's own panel by dragging the floating icon next to the collapse icon, at the top right.
The new window will default to pinned mode, which will always stay on top, if you click the pin icon, it will be unpinned and it will disappear.
To get it back, click Menu -> Windows -> Show windows -> Show object window.
Or you can add the Object panel and other panels to the floating tray (Menu -> Windows -> Show windows -> Open floating tray..) which can be positioned anywhere and will always be visible. Unfortunately, MarbleClay can only have one instance of a panel.


Multiple bone hierarchies.



If you need multiple poses, it's recommended to only have a single pose in a file. MarbleClay can load multiple instances to compare each pose.
Multiple bone hierarchies in a single file, is experimental!

Currently, there is no way to copy a complete bone hierarchy, and working with them is more buggy, but it can be done and managed.
Simply save a copy of your MarbleClay project with only the bone hierarchy finalized, save it something like Tee-Pose.
The object viewer panel has an import feature (folder icon at the bottom left of the panel) and import your saved file.
Delete the imported model and rename the imported bone hierarchy, save it out with a new name. Repeat to add more bone hierarchies or to add single ones just import the original model-single-frame one again.
This method works, always save your work incrementally and always test every imported bone hierarchy by Attach and Activate bone (Simple) each bone hierarchies with the model to test the new frame.

Warnings:
When working with multiple bone hierarchies, only have a single, active bone visible and do not click other bone hierarchies, just in case!
Sometimes while setting up multiple bone hierarchies, the bone icons can get confused as to which bone hierarchies is attached to a model, it can be ignored and it will work as expected. Also you will see the bone boundaries not aligning correctly with the mesh, again this doesn't matter so much, because it will apply the correct transformations.


Bone Example


Start by setting the correct workplane, typically (YZ workplane) and hitting D key (right view).
If you are not in the correct workplane you might not see the bone!
You want to pick the correct bone type for each part, the short (square) bone type for smaller parts and the long (rectangle) type for longer parts.

The more bones you use, the more control you will have over the auto skinning and posing, it's advised to completely skin your model with all of the mesh allocated to bones and no vertices unallocated.

Bones should be structured in a hierarchy based on limbs, ie bone root nodes should be center nodes, like:
Head start with: Neck, Head.
Left arm start with: left shoulder, left bicep, left forearm, left hand.
Left leg start with: left upper leg, left lower leg, left foot.

It's a good idea to set each bone's dimensions as you go, that way you can see where the next bone will start. The first root bone might require
Move Parts/Bone to Workplane to move it to the center first.
Before moving on from the first bone hierarchy, test it first that the bones don't grab vertices which it should etc.
Next, we change the workplane to XZ, select the left shoulder root bone and click Make mirror Parts/Bone.
This will create a new root bone hierarchy, rename parts appropriately and the same for the right leg.


See: #5 MarbleClay Using Bones and Multiple Poses



Attach vertices to bone


Not available.


Activate bone


Not available.


Deactivate bone


Not available.


Import .mcl file as 'Parts'


Not available.
Load another saved .mcl file into your document as a part.
This is in the
Object window.





UV/Image


Video tutorial: #01 MarbleClay 3D modeller - Texturing tutorial


Selected Mesh Unwrap / UV mapping...
Bake UV texture map
Send image to clipboard
Change texture's size and positon...
Light color
Load Image
Image planes / UV Texture



Selected Mesh Unwrap / UV mapping...

Assign UV values to selected faces.


Bake UV texture map

Create a UV template and bake a UV mesh. It is used as a template when drawing textures with external paint software.


Send image to clipboard

Copy the image selected in
Object window to the clipboard


Get image from clipboard

Paste an image from the clipboard into the template selected in
Object window


Change texture's size and positon...

of the template selected in
Object window A dialog will appear to change the position and size.

Light color

Decrease the contrast of the template image selected in
Object window. Use it when the template color is too dark and it is difficult to see the object.

Load Image

You can load a template image by selecting the template and executing Image->Load Image.


Image planes / UV Texture




actImageXY




actImageYZ




actImageZX




Attach UV to object









View


Refresh window (F5)

In the current version, garbage remains on the screen as you operate. At some point, do a
Refresh window(F5) to refresh the screen.

Grid option...


snap

Limits cursor movement to grid units when the workplane is set to XY, YZ, or XZ.





Option






Window






Help


Next,
Mouse right click menu

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Copyright(C)1998-2003 TakeshiMaeda / ESCARGOT Visualwares