straps (modelling query)

[Monsto Brukes]

using 3ds max, i'm working on clothing that will have a strap with buckle circling a leg. I wanted the strap to appear to compress the flesh, so there's an indentation... you know, like it's a little too tight.

 

I thought the best way to do this would be to create 2 new rows of vertices at the point on the leg that i wanted. then those poly's between the verts would be the strap.

 

couple questions:

1) it's a bad idea to edit the base bodymesh at the sublevel, so i figure if i clone the leg and get the orig leg out of the way, i can do what i want with the clone. how would i go about 'removing' the original leg?

 

2) if i edit the vertices in the leg, won't that wreck the texture map? is there a way to do this so that i can use the default base body texture on a replacement leg?

 

[edited to say i'm using max]

[zonzai]

I'm assuming you are using a base body underneath the main article of the outfit. You can edit that to have the indentations rather than replacing the leg parts (I suggest using the ribbon as a part of the main outfit in this case). You could also just add the full edited body to the boots and have the torso portion be independent but that's an unusual way to do it and it will cause a lot of conflicts with other mods.

 

If you want to use the leg as a separate part you will have to open up your 3d modelling program and separate the leg section out, edit the vertices and then work with it until you get a seamless transition into the leg section or wherever you are joining it at. It will create a lot of extra work and will probably not work well with all animations.

 

-EDITED FOR CLARITY - I was tired when I first wrote this so it didn't make much sense.

[canderes]

If you include the body mesh with the armor you are trying to make you don't need to worry about changing the original. If you aren't adding any polygons to the body mesh itself all you need to do is move some points around. Select the vertices you want to move inward and use the push modifier. Keep the armor and the body as separate models, don't try to combine them as elements into one mesh. Just throw a bsdismember modifier after you have them skinned to the bones and deforming correctly. Btw I don't know which version of max your running but have you used the freeform tools on the ribbon?