Creating low poly and high poly for props workflow

florianmking

hey guys ,
I'm building my first character, with props,belts, armor and i m having problem thinking the right workflow.
In my mind right now is a total mess.
So...i've created the high poly for zbrush sculpt (2 pictures attached ) and I'm wondering how do i create the low poly for all the props.
The only way in my head is to import them again from zbrush and do a manual retopo for each part (for some parts) but there are cylinders and other shapes.
Is there a simple way to create the low poly from the highpoly prepared for zbrush?

Thanks for your help!

Alex_J

If you've already got the high poly version of the props, simplest way will be to manually retopo them. You can certainly speed up the process by inserting a primitive shape, moving it into place, and then turning on live surface and quad draw and editing from there.

Good thing to do is use minimum amount of geometry and do a test bake. See where problem spots are and if you need to add in extra edgeloop or whatever. THen test bake again. This develops your ability to judge how close low and high need to match together to get a good bake.

Don't shy away from manual retopo. With practice you can do it very quickly and have complete control over the results. In my experience, there is no automatic solution that gives optimal results. I have seen some people start by using zRemesher and then editing from that, but for me I like to start clean and stay clean rather than clean up a computer generated mess. That's just my personal preference.

Biggest thing to keep in mind is to layout your minimum amount of quads to begin with. Keep it stupid simple. You can insert more edge loops in after, or even add a smooth if necessary. But begin with minimum amount of geometry.

kanga

Yeah the workflow is a little different for everybody but the basic principle stays the same. Personally I wouldn't ever detail a posed character because it makes modeling the attributes fiddley. I model in an A pose, whack a rig in then result and then pose it in the game engine. One way to way to get what you want:

1/ GoZ the highpoly from Maya (hereafter M). Only the lowest subdivision level will be exported to zBrush (hereafter zB), and when it comes in to zB it will be the wrong scale (position) for detailing so Unify the model under the deform tab in the tools menu.
2/ Detail the mesh in zBrush.
3/ For additional clothing, armor, weapons you can either create them in zB using the topo brush when the items have to conform to the figure, or make a copy of the detailed base figure, decimate it  and GoZ it back to M to make accessories that fit. You will probably have to play with the scale and position in the zB export settings at the bottom of the zB tool palet to get your GoZeded copy into M at the right size and position.
4/ Now zB and M are in sync save the tool in zB, this will save the export settings you set. Use the decimated figure from zB in M for all future reference.
5/ Finish detailing/painting your model in zB, decimate a copy (usually as low as 1.5% or until the copy collapses or gets too rough for use in M) of each tool and GoZ it to M.
6/ Retopologize (build a low poly version on top of) your model. If you intend to pose the model later then retopo the model so it will deform well under animation and avoid long poly strips. From memory they dont bake well.
7/ UV the low poly shells.
8/ If you are baking your textures in M you may need a cage for good baking results. You can look that up here or somewhere on the web.
9/ Bake in M

Hope this helps.