tutorial: starting to rig a tf2 character in MAX

[LulzAreGud]

For those who say the import doesnt work on 2012, scroll down. You're supposed to download the Importer AND the Exporter. Two separate things

[GTR141Foxer]

How do i open up the wireframe?

[thebrad1984]

max has a pretty decent align tool (alt-a or Tools > align) that will save some time in getting the rig to match up with the bones

[Foxtrek64]

I have Max 2010 but I cant find the CAT plugin.  Any ideas?

[Atgood5]

Where can i find the CAT plugin?

[Tinak00777]

for to say you needed a smd importer

[lekiz93]

What do you use for software?

[TheSauceIsWeak]

LOL 6:56 A fucking pain in the ass ! :P

[jotainon]

I'm using 3ds max 2012 and since i can't use wunderboys importer i must use CannonFodders importer, which doesn't use Angle option, so the model is in wrong angle. Help please?

[Sticky0h]

to drag and drop .smd files you first need to install the Smd file importer (wich is easy to find in google) and CAT seems to be vanished from the net, lol.

[XNinjaCrumpetX]

I cant find CAT :c

[ervinasroblox3]

HELP!

I cant drag my model!

i use Scout (hes cool)

[TacosRInsane]

Is this free if so, can i use it on a mac?

[LulzAreGud]

@TacosRInsane Autodesk.com

[aln447]

Hello i have a problem with aligning the cat bones the the bones in the model. When i make the leg the gizmo on the parts of the leg appears in the center of each box.

How can I change/fix it?

I have 2012.

[Megallean]

Hey, I have the 2012 version of 3ds Max and it won't let me import the models.

[colt45joe]

@Megallean did you download SMD Importer for 3ds max 2012, and put it in the plugins folder?

[DarkSwift2204]

@colt45joe where do i get the smd importer for 2012?

[NorwayDouche]

i have TF2, but cant download source sdk :(

help please

[AndreasHassing]

Hey jazz, I made a video reply with a problem I have. Rigging is a bitch as long as this occurs, please return to me when you have time :) Thanks for these great videos! Much appreciated.

[brad0war]

.....SOOO MANY LINESSSS ahhhhh

[Blackmagav]

ive got a problem, ive installed scoursdk but when i try to drag/open the smd file it wont open the file in 3ds max saying its improper file format

[aznsorawarrior]

isnt the bone system just ik? so if u moved the leg, the foot would move as well... so wouldn't it just be ezier to use that then just to use a cat rig?

[Br0k3nL1m1ts]

:'D You are awesome!

[graveeking]

I'm going to be doing a short animation for college soon, involving 2 characters from tf2, without sounding too lazy - what would you say are the 2 easiest characters to start rigging and animating - and least likely to bug out etc

Or would you say there's not much real difference?

[thejazzman9475]

@graveeking they are al about the same, so i woudl choose based on who has the most interesting body mechanics, which in my opinion, is the Heavy and the pyro.

[graveeking]

@thejazzman9475

Hmm I like the idea of doing the heavy, but I was planning to use the spy for the other.... well thankies anyways - the fact I'm doing this as my project is all inspired by your awesome videos!

[mikejahn2791]

when i drag the smd file into 3ds max nothing happend?

[ChaoKeeperDerek]

when i got at 00:32 there were no player models it just sead saxton hale but no tf2 models

[TheEnergylord]

Ugh, someone help, when i rotate around the model and stuff its not in realtime, i have to let got for it to change!

[TheEnergylord]

@thejazzman9475 i have 3ds max 2011 and when i drag the smd file in nothing happens!

[t0r4g0wn4g3]

CAT seems to only be available to Autodesk subscribers. Shame, since I have 3dsMax 9 and can't afford a new license. Oh well.

[tambiday4me]

so i set up the pelvis and a leg already with the scout model im using. problem is when i rotate/move the CAT boxes, the model doesnt move at all. i aligned the pelvis and legs with the correct bones on the mesh. using max10 with the cat plugin

[thejazzman9475]

@tambiday4me You gotta parent as well as align the bones :)

[brownmasterv]

Can someone PM me a link to the CAT plugin?

[TF1Akrata]

I'm actually kinda excited by how much this stuff looks like and seems to operate like CAD. But i have a question.. Do you design any of your own characters? i mean, what you do with valve characters is pretty awesome and it takes skill.. and god knows, i plan on trying it myself. But what about making your own designs? Do you? don't suppose you could put a tutorial on that. I'd be interested in seeing it. thanks

[vicente321]

i cant line up his foot correctly. the leg always keeps me from line the foot up properly and shows me a blue line

[sttate]

I began learning a little 3ds Max, then heard Maya's superior so started learning how to use that instead, but had a weird feeling I was making a mistake, now I've see this and you're work I'm even less sure. If I try and animate these models and Maya and don't find it that appealing, I may well go back to learning Max. Thanks for changing my mind xD

Just wondering, what sort of system specs do you have? Mine aren't bad, but certainly not industry standard, I'll be investing in my comp soon.

[thejazzman9475]

@sttate I used to rock a broken piece of shit, most of Dance Fortress was made on it. Now I have a good pc, i5, gtx460, 4gb ddr. dont need a fast computer, but it makes some stuff easer. Animate in whatever you like, I prefer max for CAT, animation is mostly the same in any program, jsut use what you can get the best rig for.

[clockhavoc]

Thank you so much for these tutorials! I have one tiny problem that I hope you could help me with. I, unlike you, am using Maya, and while I had no problem so far I have to ask. Is the Cat Rig downloadable to Maya, and if not, do you know of an alternative for Maya? Thanks in advance.

[Beaverman20]

lol @ sgaring your eamil with the world :P also thank machinima for giving you a lot of views today :P, any way, you deserve it because you are actually very skilled. I learned more from this, than i learned over the last year :D

[sickmansam]

i have a working CAT address if you want it PM me =)

[sickmansam]

does any one know where to get CAT?

[drifta321]

for all the people who want the CAT plugin message me and il send link it took me for eva to find xD

[TeamFortressgineer]

I can't find the CAT plugin anywhere :(

[zabiss1]

umm im having problem actually opening the rig im triyng to do the scout and when i click and drag the file (i quadruple checked that its the correct file or at least the one featured in the video) it doesnt do anything and the rig doesnt appear.

[thejazzman9475]

@zabiss1 the smd file? do you have the smd import plu-in, adn the correct version? i.e. 32/64 bit?

[spores4us]

@zabiss1 I have the same problem, did you find a fix yet ?

[zabiss1]

umm im having problem actually opening the rig im triyng to do the scout and when i click and drag the file (i quadruple checked that its the correct file or at least the one featured in the video) it doesnt do anything and the rig doesnt appear.

[zabiss1]

i somehow seem not to be able to open the rig, im triyng to do the scout and when i click and drag him into 3d max it doesnt do anything whatsoever. I also tried opening it through open in file all then it said was that failed to open file. help plz

[qewobob]

when you are moving/rotating/scaling you have yellow lines and a box to move your stuff with a visual representation of where the middle is when i move objects i just move them without these helpful xyz angle helpers do you have any idea of how to enable them?

[thejazzman9475]

@qewobob press X to toggle the gizmo :)

[qewobob]

@thejazzman9475 Awesome thanks i can now work easily and well :)

[WRHerbert]

Amazing tutorial btw, just a quick question, where im having some trouble:

Instead of doing the pyro i decided to rig the scout and all has gone well, but as when it came to linking the valve bones to our cat bones on the 'extra' items such as dogtags and backpack, some of them didn't work. the cat bone moves valve bone, but not the model. I created separate bones for each one, maybe i need to create a spine for them to be connected?

Thanks for the help.

[thejazzman9475]

@WRHerbert Some of the bones don't actually control any part of the body (e.g. the nubs at the end of fingers). Hope that helps?

[minimajs33]

What program is it?

[Nahzalos]

@minimajs33 3ds max 2011

[drifta321]

zed means z (z key)

everyone thumb up so the americans can see this xD

[Ar7ific1al]

@drifta321 Yes, everyone thumbs up this. I was watching, trying to figure out "wtf is zed!?" Lol The common sense in me said it was Z, but I wasn't sure. What exactly is zed? Is it in another language, or what? EVERYONE THUMBS UP THE COMMENT BY DRIFTA321!!! It will be quite helpful.

[TheEnergylord]

@Ar7ific1al Silly Americans

[Ar7ific1al]

@TheEnergylord Silly ignorant fuckers. trollface.jpg You should be careful. Americans invented the internet, racist. You're welcome.

[TheEnergylord]

@Ar7ific1al No one "Invented The Internet"

[Ar7ific1al]

@TheEnergylord Correction: the internet was ultimately brought into existence as a basic communication protocol for the US military and government, by the US military and government. Also, we're not stupid just because we don't know what "zed" is. Americans aren't the only ones. Stop being an ignorant racist bastard.

[ChineseEngineer]

@TheEnergylord Then how the bloody hell do we have internet today? Someone had to have invented it you bigoted douche bag.

[LulzAreGud]

@drifta321 You know, we're not stupid

[timmymonsta]

When you are going through the navigation, you seem to say something like "zed", what do you mean?

[drifta321]

@timmymonsta z ..... how many people are this retarded?

z key

[JoeAlcorn]

The legs are harder for other classes because of the different lengths, had me confused for a while

[JA15XD]

i have maya, should i learn to use that? is it better or worse for making animations like what u do?

[JA15XD]

i cant find any SMD importers which support 3DS Max 2011 :/

[triforceman12]

@JA15XD You can use Wunderboy 2010. He says it in the video.

[TheEnergylord]

@JA15XD The 2010 one works with 2011

[triforceman12]

what is the "zet" key?!?! you say it at 1:37 I probably heard it wrong, but I want to know which key it is.

[drifta321]

@triforceman12 ZED........ z

[triforceman12]

@drifta321 Damn... I'm stupid :D

[TheHystericalDude]

hmmm could you make a download link for your already rigged pyro? mine is fucked up

[JoeAlcorn]

I got it to align properly, I didn't have align world xyz ticked, but if you could it'd be great to update this tut for the align tool because I'm getting confused so easily, especially because I'm new to max

[JoeAlcorn]

When I try to align the pelvis with the pelvis bone using the alt A method, it doesn't align properly. Anyone know why?

[MrSirBobTheGreat]

Problem here.. I'm trying this for the second time now, and as soon as get to the part where you re-align the foot, things start going wrong. Last time I did it, all of my bones suddenly became huge, (And this was un-reversible) And this time, after trying to shorten the foot bone, I noticed that I couldn't move the pivot point around any more.. If I try to move the foot bone up on the front view to match it up with the valve bone, for example, I end up rotating the front of my foot upwards. :/

[thejazzman9475]

@MrSirBobTheGreat I'd really have to see what was happening, can't quite tell what is going wrong from your description. Send you .max file to my email address

[TheLokiFace]

how do i get cat , i can't seem to find it?

[iwkya1]

Nice tuts man keep it up. Btw, you can align pivot points too :)

[triforceman12]

One more problem. It doesn't let me import any models. When I drag a .smd file into Max, absolutely nothing happens. Would you possibly know why?

Thanks.

[thejazzman9475]

@triforceman12 assuming you have the wunderboy plugin, try go file/import and choose smd from the drop down menu and browse to the file

[triforceman12]

@thejazzman9475 I don't even know what wunderboy is. No .smd file in the import menu is there. And I still can't get CAT, because I don't have one of the subscription codes. I ordered without subscription, because it was cheaper.

[thejazzman9475]

@triforceman12 it sounds like you need to watch the 1st tutorial that deals with importing :) As for CAT, all I can say is that if thers no way of you getting hold of the plugin somehow, you can use a different rig in the exact same way, im just using cat as an easy example.

[triforceman12]

@thejazzman9475 One other infuriating (for you) question.  What other rig could I use that is already in 2010.

[thejazzman9475]

@triforceman12 Brad Noble's skeleton rig is good, you could use biped which comes with the program. Those are the best 2 I've used other than CAT

[triforceman12]

@thejazzman9475 Okay, thanks. unfortunately, my computer with MAX has a virus now, so I'll be out of it for the next few days.

[MrSirBobTheGreat]

@thejazzman9475 This message is only here so you'll notice the little problem I'm having.. Just in-case you don't check your comments on this video any longer. :P

[killergame1]

Good Tutorial.

[triforceman12]

thejazzman9475, I have 3dsmax 2010. I can NOT find a place to download CAT. Can I have a link to a place where I can? Thanks.

[jameszespy001]

Whats going in the kitchen in the backround

[MrSirBobTheGreat]

I'm not quite sure what just happened.. I was working rigging the foot for the second time, trying to shorten the bone a bit when of a sudden, all of bones aside from the pelvis pretty much tripped in size. When I tried to undo it, it would only undo the other changes that had been made to the bones... Not their size. Anyway.. I hit undo a couple of times, and all of a sudden, the leg reset itself to it's default position and my undo/redo history was erased. Time to start over. :(

[ucantw1n10]

Man, this will take a lot of effort to make something easy.

[InSaneTK]

Instead of zooming in infinitely much to align stuff. Just press ALT + A and it will align pivot to pivot. Much easier and 100% accurate.

[TheBramptonMan]

@thejazzman9475 Love your videos, but I was wondering, how did you change the rotation, movement and resize controls to the older style? My edition of MAX 11 is stuck with a terrible 2-D interface for the controls.

[CommanderPT]

Uploaded my animation that I made using the CAT rig. Works pretty well for a first try. I can't post it in the comments so you'll have to go to my profile to see it.

[naipsak]

HOW THE **** ARE YOU DOING THIS IN BLENDER!?, I cant do like "CatObjects"

[CommanderPT]

@naipsak It's not Blender.. it's 3ds max.

[naipsak]

@CommanderPT I know, but i wanna find out how to do this in blender, cause i dont want to pirate or buy max......

[Apocol0id]

@naipsak He says MAX in the movie title. How did you...not...notice.

[naipsak]

@Apocol0id @CommanderPT I DID notice, i just wanna do it in blender cause i dont wanna pirate Max or buy it.

[CommanderPT]

@naipsak Then don't pirate it. Actually, I recently found out that you can apply for free and legal software from Autodesk themselves. If you are a student you can get a three year license for free! I've already sent them an application.

Remember though, you need a valid .edu email that you got from your school.

[naipsak]

@CommanderPT I dont like Max so much, and i dont want a trial or something and i'm 12 years old and lives in sweden so i dont have a school email :P

[CommanderPT]

I can't get the CAT rig to animate. WHenever I move something in auto key/set key mode a I can't add keys which makes the rig useless.

[thejazzman9475]

@CommanderPT You're in rigging mode. go to the motion tab, add a layer, and switch it to animation mode (theres a button that looks like a stop/play button depending on how its toggled)

[drifta321]

@thejazzman9475 I CANT FIND CAT :SSSSSSSSSSSSS (plugin) Please help :((((((

[CommanderPT]

I'm really enjoying these tutorials. Thank you a lot for these. Looking forward to the animation tutorials. Going to get rigging right now.

[thejazzman9475]

@CommanderPTI believe adding a layer will apply to every part of the rig, shouldnt matter what part you have highlighted at the time

[CommanderPT]

@thejazzman9475 Ah, alright. It works well by adding it to the pelvis either way. I made a small test animation with the rig that I made. Rendering it at the moment.

[redsoxliam2k]

what screen recorder do you use?

[SuPeRiSoNiC]

@redsoxliam2k

He uses "Camtasia Studio"

[sharki9876]

dude how often do you play tf2?

or do you only have it for maniplulating models and animations?

[levansfilms]

hey what were those extra tail-looking bones at the bottom of the model?

[therealzein]

Hey, I am just wondering what screen recording software you are using. The quality is VERY! nice.

[XXXEnthusiast]

Wow, 3DS Max's layout looks easy to use.

But it's not, is it?

[thejazzman9475]

@XXXEnthusiast It's as easy as I showed in that vid :) All you need is a few shortcuts for basic navigation and the ability to read or watch tutorials

[blaze7570]

You are brilliant mate keep up the epic work

[OSKALT1]

Really glad you went on to do some tuts, im sure its gonna be helpful to many people including myself :)

[MaxOfS2D]

I thought you would be using the Align tool to align stuff easily

Oh well

[lok687]

i have a question,what kind of lighting do you use in your scene's?

[thejazzman9475]

@lok687 currently I use 1 omni light for shadows, 1 sky light, and lighttracer scanline render with image motion blur. It's pretty much the most basic thing you can use but I'm not some big render geek so its good enough for me :) (plus, I dont have the time to render 1000 frames in mental ray, would much rather spend that time animating)

[Chryslerer1]

You might want to cencore your email on Steam off from the video to avoid spamming and friend requests...

[ThunderEwokB]

Do 3DSmax supports Ghoul2 Models and Animation files? You know, *.GLA and *.GLM? I only know one program that co do that and its Dragon from Wudan site :P I want to do animations for Jedi Knight: Jedi Academy.

Great vids btw. Keep it up :)

[daazproductions]

Good video.

Unfortunateally,all link for the cat thingie is down.

[CCNezin1]

Quick question, out of all the programs you've used, which do you think is best for actually creating the models? Honestly, I kind of hate Max but it seems to be used more in game production, which is kind of what I'm going for...

[thejazzman9475]

@CCNezin1 I'm no modeller, but largely things are pretty similar, every studio is going to use either xsi, max or maya most likely, and theyre all owned by autodesk and have very similar features. Just pick one and stick to it really

[Vheanom]

Is there some special reason I can't find "player"?

/c:\program files\steam\steamapps\username­\sourcesdk_content\tf -> there is mapsrc and particles, nothing els. I have both source sdk and teamfortress 2.

I've used them both so there shouldn't be any problem. :S

[BULLDOZERUFO]

thats pretty cool!!!!!!!!

[sharki9876]

@BULLDOZERUFO

did you actually learn anything?

[DarkAslox]

That Pyro's a cactus!

[p3nor07]

what do you use to record?

[Funnycat00lexus04]

Or, you know, you could just share the rigs.

[thejazzman9475]

@Funnycat00lexus04 Haha, yes I can do that too ofc. Although the point of this is so you can do stuff yourselves, teach a man to fish etc.

[zeejenkins]

Just use ALT + A to align stuff :P

[thejazzman9475]

@zeejenkins haha neat I'll give that a go

[RobbySockz]

LIKE WHATS GOING ON

[AceDauntless]

Oh my god you have the patience of a god to do all that stuff.

[CCNezin1]

Not sure about this, but can't you just use snaps to match the pivot points?

[thejazzman9475]

@CCNezin1 Yeah maybe *shrug* I'm just showing what I do, there's probably a better way to do some of it

[zeejenkins]

@thejazzman9475 U can always just use align lol

[GordonFrohman456]

Will you get to making a tutorial that covers at least basic facial animation in max? Just wondering. great tutorial and keep up the good work.

[thejazzman9475]

@GordonFrohman456 Possibly yeah, I'll do a tutorial on everything I know how to do, so everyone can make their own short film, or game, if they want

[eji313]

@thejazzman9475 Yes, a facial animation tutorial would be greatly appreciated.

[Fryzuji]

I probably wont try it out, but its interesting to watch. I'd be glad to watch more of those 'work in progress' :P keep it up xD

[papermarioTTYD12345]

you literal english people and pronouncing z as zet :D

[drifta321]

@papermarioTTYD12345 zed not zet fucking tard....

[papermarioTTYD12345]

@drifta321

well im not british so i wouldnt know

just because i dont know the name of a letter in a different country doesnt make me retarded, just uninformed

we pronounce it "zee" in america

[drifta321]

@papermarioTTYD12345 Americans are retarded^

[papermarioTTYD12345]

@drifta321

if youre tryin to rationalize all americans on a 14 year old boy, it really says a lot about you

[drifta321]

@papermarioTTYD12345 All Americans are retarded....

and fat^

[papermarioTTYD12345]

@drifta321

that is a steriotype

the obesity is mostly in the large cities, which for the most part are in the northeastern corner. people try to rationalize all americans of being obese when its really only one small corner of the country

[iwkya1]

@drifta321 kinda not nice man, but a little funny :)

[drifta321]

@iwkya1 (:

[blackice64]

This is quite a lot of information, great tutorials! Did you learn this yourself or did you take classes for this?

[MultiChickenLover]

lol halo reach

[twitcher64]

The Pelvis bone is connected to the, leg bone! The leg bone's connected to the, foot bone! The foot bone is connected to the...wait. Where the hell's our toe?

[TacoBoyManThing]

do u work for valve yet?

[joeybuddy96]

Thanks for putting these three videos together, James. I look forward to your future tutorials. You are very good at making tutorials--they are clear, they go step by step through things, and you take your time to explain exactly what it is that you're doing and why you're doing it that way.

[EnoJenkins]

Could you put a link to the CAT plugin in the description?

Would be useful as I don't want to download the wrong thing :)

[PrehistoricLoathing]

thanks for this

[Gonamez]

man thanks for these tuts!