Creating a model

Introduction

When I first saw how Minecraft animated its mobs I had no words. It was complicated and felt bloated. It also didn't offer the possibility to switch out models via texture packs (nowadays called resource packs).

Then I began working on the Mobster Hunter Frontier Craft mod - WIP^tm and the need for a rich animation API surfaced so I decided to write my own because I had no choice back then.

Preparation

This project makes heavy use of the third party program Blender during the modeling and animation phase although it is not bound to that. Blender is a "free and open source 3D animation suite" without any fees or costs. You can get the latest version of the softare here.

Depending on your use of this mod you might have to install several plugins that are part of the workflow. You can get those on from the release page - look for the blender_io_export_mhfc_*_*.zip. There are dozens of videos on how to install Blender plugins, refer to those. Make sure you activate them after installing them.

Note: this is not a tutorial about Blender, so you should already have learned the basic controls of Blender before reading on. I will sometimes use special vocabulary related to Blender (.e.g. Panel) in the tutorial, so it is expected that you know your way around Blender. If you do not, I recommend you watch some videos on that(For example the series of Blender Cookies: Interface and Navigation, Modeling and animations)

Creating a model

You have several options to create a model. Either you start from scratch, or you can import one from techne. I won't be going into details of how to create your own model from scratch.

To import a techne model, first make sure to have the plugin installed. Then you can simply import the file from File > Import > Techne Models (.tcn) and selecting the file you want to have imported. This will also import the texture of the model, but will not create an armature for you.

To import a tabula model, just import the file via File > Import > Tabula Model (.tbl). Select the file and if you want an armature to be created (default yes). No texture will be added automatically (not stored in the file), you have to add that by hand. This feature is not considered stable yet.

Creating an armature

If no armature has been created by the import process, you have to make your own.

First, make sure to be in Object mode, and your cursor is placed in the center of the scene (ShiftC), as should be your model. Now create an armature - this one and only this one will be used to animate your model.

// Soon, more to follow

// TODO: export process (signing the animations, using them in-game)