Animation Guide and getting it to work in Skyrim (3ds Max)

[-Ayleth-]

So you need the 2012 Version of 3dsMax ? I searched for some time but all i find is "Nah thats discontinued and no longer available". What now ? Surely there must be a way to animate still. 

[SirNibbles]

1 hour ago, AkiKay said:

So you need the 2012 Version of 3dsMax ? I searched for some time but all i find is "Nah thats discontinued and no longer available". What now ? Surely there must be a way to animate still. 

Unfortunately like MadMans already said, right now it's either use Blender or "sail under the black flag".

 

Havok content tools got discontinued with releasing for the public after Microsoft bought the company so the last version that's still publicly released and working for skyrim .hkx files is the 2012 version. It's not 3ds Max which is the problem but the Havok content tools exporter.

[mccalas89]

Hello! nice to see some recent activity as i'm trying to get into animation. Currently trying to modify an existing sneak idle animation (from YY's mystic knight)

 

Here's my rig (baka factory's biped rig) in 3ds max 2012

 

Here's my problem:

 

My workflow was: 

1) convert oldrim mystic knight anim to KF using HKXCMD.exe and xpms' skeleton_female.hkx and skeleton_female.nif

2) import into 3ds max 2012 (also tried 2014 and 2018) using niftools plugin 3.8.0 (also tried 3.7.3 and 4.0.0beta2)

3) get a really messed up thing...

 

4) use xpms skeleton and import body mesh and animation. then, this doesn't happen, but things are wonky on export (3dsmax 2012 w\ havok tools 2011.3) in-game

 

5) use hctcmd and hkxcmd to convert back to file usable in skyrim

6) load up ingame, where the arms twitch out and the camera doesn't lower on sneak correctly.

7) post on forums for halp plz, sorry for the long post.

 

TL;DR what's happening to my rig when i import animation, and why doesn't my camera change ingame when i sneak?

[SirNibbles]

3 hours ago, mccalas89 said:

Hello! nice to see some recent activity as i'm trying to get into animation. Currently trying to modify an existing sneak idle animation (from YY's mystic knight)

 

Here's my rig (baka factory's biped rig) in 3ds max 2012

  Hide contents

 

 

Here's my problem:

 

  Hide contents

 

 

My workflow was: 

1) convert oldrim mystic knight anim to KF using HKXCMD.exe and xpms' skeleton_female.hkx and skeleton_female.nif

2) import into 3ds max 2012 (also tried 2014 and 2018) using niftools plugin 3.8.0 (also tried 3.7.3 and 4.0.0beta2)

3) get a really messed up thing...

 

4) use xpms skeleton and import body mesh and animation. then, this doesn't happen, but things are wonky on export (3dsmax 2012 w\ havok tools 2011.3) in-game

 

  Hide contents

 

 

5) use hctcmd and hkxcmd to convert back to file usable in skyrim

6) load up ingame, where the arms twitch out and the camera doesn't lower on sneak correctly.

7) post on forums for halp plz, sorry for the long post.

 

TL;DR what's happening to my rig when i import animation, and why doesn't my camera change ingame when i sneak?

Never really got any further with importing animations either personally.

I've also always had problems with importing and the keys that got imported were never really at the right place, eventually I just thought "fuck it".

Getting used to another one's animation and figure out where all the keys are usually takes longer then creating something from scratch anyways. So why that happens with importing your animation is a question I can't answer.

 

As for the camera problem I believe it has something to do with the camera3rd and camera control bones (the yellow and purple camera's above and under your body mesh in the last picture). Once again I've personally never done anything with it, but I do know if you delete those before exporting you will get camera problems in game when starting up an animation. Maybe you could try to move the upper camera lower? But I'm not certain if that fixes it, I believe MadmansGuns helped someone before with camera problems maybe you could try to ask him.

[MadMansGun]

user made animations never re-import correctly, (don't know why)

 

as for the camera/s try importing the original skyrim animation to see where they are (and if they are animated see how they move).

[daknin]

Is this guide applicable to Skyrim SE?

[SirNibbles]

26 minutes ago, daknin said:

Is this guide applicable to Skyrim SE?

The process of animating and SLAL should be.

But I can't confirm nor deny it working, I have no working SE installation nor do I have any interest in SE.

At least a couple of steps should be different but I have no idea what the proper steps would be for those, (I believe it should only some different steps withint Creation Kit and SLAL but yeah...)

[arsenic20]

If my goal is just to make static creature object poses (like the old ones by brainsperm, oden and shocky), is Blender sufficient or will I need something only doable in 3ds max?

  

EDIT:

 

On 2/11/2020 at 4:33 PM, MadMansGun said:

Blender will be fine, that's what bad dog is using for his statues (and everything else) in Yiffy Age of Skyrim.

 

also blender can do animations, just don't ask me how because i can't use that program to save my life.

Thanks for the response! I couldn't figure out which one I should use, since I found tutorials for both and none of them really mentioned how to turn an actor into an object. Your answer motivated me to look harder and I finally found a tutorial where Blender does indeed work fine.

 

Sorry for posting an unrelated question in the sticky. I'll just edit this post instead of making a new reply.

[MadMansGun]

2 hours ago, arsenic20 said:

If my goal is just to make static creature object poses (like the old ones by brainsperm, oden and shocky), is Blender sufficient or will I need something only doable in 3ds max?

Blender will be fine, that's what bad dog is using for his statues (and everything else) in Yiffy Age of Skyrim.

 

also blender can do animations, just don't ask me how because i can't use that program to save my life.

[lafourminoir]

any nice guide for blender ? well 3Dmax if you know wo take free i take kkkkk

[SirNibbles]

6 hours ago, lafourminoir said:

any nice guide for blender ? well 3Dmax if you know wo take free i take kkkkk

Sorry I really couldn't get used to the controls of Blender (rotating is a mess and feels really weird to me) so I never really put any effort into learning Blender.

Personally I can't help you with Blender, but there might be some more guides on here for people that do use Blender.

[Nirvhan]

Hello! This tutorial is awesome and I'm putting together all the tools and requirements. 
The reason I'm here is because I'm planning on making animation sets for Spriggans, Flame Atronachs, Wispmothers, Hagravens... you get the idea. However I can't seem to find rigs for any of them though I know there's at least one or more animations already out there for each.

Have I just not known what to search for, or maybe a rig exporter from the Creation kit?

[firepunch1]

There's no longer any official way to purchase/obtain Autodesk 3ds Max 2012, even subscribers can only access versions from up to 4 years ago, and the mirror executables seems to have been scrubbed from the internet. I can think of only one way to get this software... 

[lafourminoir]

I finally managed to have a free version of 3ds Max 2019 valid for 3 years, I haven't really tested, especially since several links in the tutorial are no longer valid

[Mark Antony]

hey when i import the horse the tail stands up straight should i leave it like that or fix it? 

[SirNibbles]

6 hours ago, rickyking01 said:

hey when i import the horse the tail stands up straight should i leave it like that or fix it? 

That's the regular "T-Pose" position of the tail, so if you'll export the animation like that the tail in game will also look like that.

So yeah, you should probably animate/fix it.

[Nier_X]

Ty for the guide I'm new here so it's really helpful ❤️

[FlufyFox]

So this is too obsolete? Cant import the stuff on the 3ds max, i see lots of people want to make their own stuff but seems to be no recent tutorials, did you have the updated resources to work with? should be nice :3

[MadMansGun]

24 minutes ago, FlufyFox said:

So this is too obsolete? Cant import the stuff on the 3ds max, i see lots of people want to make their own stuff but seems to be no recent tutorials, did you have the updated resources to work with? should be nice :3

everything here is still valid, you need max 2010 or 2012 with the matching havok tools to make skyrim animations, anything newer won't work.

(or learn to use blender instead)

 

the only change is the ABC rigs for animated penises:

https://www.loverslab.com/files/file/7539-animated-beasts-cocksabc-for-modders-3ds-max-rigs/

 

[FlufyFox]

3 hours ago, MadMansGun said:

everything here is still valid, you need max 2010 or 2012 with the matching havok tools to make skyrim animations, anything newer won't work.

(or learn to use blender instead)

 

the only change is the ABC rigs for animated penises:

https://www.loverslab.com/files/file/7539-animated-beasts-cocksabc-for-modders-3ds-max-rigs/

 

 

Yeah i will work my ass to get the program, even if i want to use blender or whataver still need to have 3ds max so i will stop trolling on the posts and get the correct stuff xD

[MadMansGun]

27 minutes ago, FlufyFox said:

Yeah i will work my ass to get the program

by work you mean "sailing under the black flag", because that's the only way anyone can get the needed version/s now.

[lafourminoir]

compatible with 3Dmax 2019 ?

[SirNibbles]

26 minutes ago, lafourminoir said:

compatible with 3Dmax 2019 ?

 

No sorry, it only works with the 2012 version.

 

 

[MadMansGun]

29 minutes ago, lafourminoir said:

compatible with 3Dmax 2019 ?

no, not for making animations at least.

10 or 12 only.

[FlufyFox]

10 hours ago, SirNibbles said:

 

No sorry, it only works with the 2012 version.

 

 

 

Hey hi :p did you plan in update your stuff here? i finally got the programs working here, was pretty hard to find but now i have things that i can work :3