Stuck on what to do next: Mesh Optimization
Hi guys,
I have decided I need to set some goals, and focus on creating some finished pieces for my portfolio. So I have been working on the following sculpt. I am still pretty new to character modeling and am working on overcoming the technical challenges of creating game ready characters.
I am currently stuck on what to do next. I have made quite a bit of progress but I don’t know what to do in the areas where the mesh overlaps or is double sided and you really cannot see the faces on the back side. If this character were to go in game there would be quite a bit of overlapping geometry and I’m pretty sure this is not a good thing. I know meshes need to be optimized if they were to go in game but I really don’t know how to go about this. Do I retopo the whole character and subtools into one solid mesh? If so how do I do this? I understand the retopo tools in ZBrush and Topogun but I don’t know how to retopo multiple obejects/subtools and project them onto one single mesh. If someone could please explain the next steps I need to take or send me a link to a tutorial that does. I’d really appreciate it.
I am working on sculpting this concept by Jaime Jones:
Bush Toad Variant B from Guild Wars: Eyes of the North
This is the schedule I am trying to stick to: It will probably take me longer but as long as I finish this character in a pretty reasonable amount of time I will be happy.
I then sent the mesh back to ZBrush and began refining the form and detailing the character.
This is where I am stuck:
I have decided I need to set some goals, and focus on creating some finished pieces for my portfolio. So I have been working on the following sculpt. I am still pretty new to character modeling and am working on overcoming the technical challenges of creating game ready characters.
I am currently stuck on what to do next. I have made quite a bit of progress but I don’t know what to do in the areas where the mesh overlaps or is double sided and you really cannot see the faces on the back side. If this character were to go in game there would be quite a bit of overlapping geometry and I’m pretty sure this is not a good thing. I know meshes need to be optimized if they were to go in game but I really don’t know how to go about this. Do I retopo the whole character and subtools into one solid mesh? If so how do I do this? I understand the retopo tools in ZBrush and Topogun but I don’t know how to retopo multiple obejects/subtools and project them onto one single mesh. If someone could please explain the next steps I need to take or send me a link to a tutorial that does. I’d really appreciate it.
I am working on sculpting this concept by Jaime Jones:
Bush Toad Variant B from Guild Wars: Eyes of the North
This is the schedule I am trying to stick to: It will probably take me longer but as long as I finish this character in a pretty reasonable amount of time I will be happy.
I then sent the mesh back to ZBrush and began refining the form and detailing the character.
This is where I am stuck:
Replies
Here is what the sculpt looks like now. I have started to add some color using poly paint. I am still working on the loin cloth and armor bits and have not made much progress on them yet so they are hidden in this screen shot.
The next attempt turned out better but there is still a significant amount of clean-up work that needed to be done. I worked my way through each subdivision level smoothing/polishing out the spikey ugly bits but I think it was faster just to sculpt the straps into the skin so I am really confused at this point. I do not feel this is the most efficient way of creating this character so I am guessing I am doing something wrong.
I really am confused on how to handle these straps? Right now I am going from the strap subtools + the main body down to one low poly mesh. Should this low poly mesh be broken down into multiple objects as well? So the straps are their own objects and the body is made of one object. Then project the straps and the body separately? I have not tried this yet. I only thought of it now. Thus far I have tried merging the body and straps subtools and then projecting that onto the lowpoly mesh….the results were not very good. I also tried projecting the body detail first and then the straps and projecting at each subdivision level again the results were not very good.
This Is what the low poly character looks like with the UVs: