When importing custom morphs, specifically custom facial morphs, on characters with geografts and clothing, what objects in the scene need to be set to active when importing the morphs?

[Aaron J. Olson]

Hello, I have a model with geografts and clothing (also has hair and eyelashes, but I do not think that is strictly relevant). When I merged the rigs, I merged to geograft rigs with the main body rig and I left the clothing with it’s own individual rigs. I also left the hair with its own rig. Not entirely sure any of this is relevant but here is where I got confused. Using the imports with their own dedicated buttons (import units, expressions facs, jcms, etc) all work fine regardless on what object I have select as my active object in the outliner or viewport, if any. My problems seem to arise when I try to start importing custom expressions from 3rd party sources. I have to use the import custom morphs button. When I start using that button then what I have selected in the scene matters. If I am importing expressions, what objects do I need selected? Only the body mesh object? Only the main rig object? The body mesh, the body geograft meshes, and the merged / main rig? Everything?

Thank you in advance for your help on this

[Alessandro Padovani]

You select the body mesh for custom morphs. If the expressions are poses then you need to import the pose.

[engetudouiti]

basically you can select rig then import custom morphs which deform character body mesh.

(pose control which may drive pose bone, or shape morphs which only change character body mesh or mix type)

add on usually auto detect it unttill you merge graft meshes. (after merged, mesh change so we need to transfer morphs from default meshes)

So most of case select rig, (merged) then import custom morphs.

Only case you may need to select mesh is, if you have merged those rig as main it is morph for clothing, hair,, or graft items, you may select those mesh, then import as custom morphs. (with options, eg you may hope to generate driver, etc)

[engetudouiti]

If you have merged mesh (graft items), I suppose you can only import custom morphs which only drive pose bones. (though I never test it)

eg,, I have now 3 mesh, 1 is graft item, 2 is character default body, 3 is merged mesh.

all 3 mesh are already attached with merged rig. (I always keep def mesh, and graft mesh, then merged mesh (for final render or pose) as library.

Then now I select the rig,(which merged already), >> import custom morphs, (shape key morphs)

it should generate new morph slider for rig, and the shape key generated for default mesh, but of course it not work for merged mesh. = you need to transfer morph from base mesh to merged mesh.

Then if I import graft items morphs (vendor usually offered many pose controller etc), I select graft items then import custom morphs. (not rig)

[engetudouiti]

And I understand you may sometimes plan to keep clothing or hair rig as separated,

when those clothing or hair have individual bones (eg dress pose bone, or pony tail bones)

but it may only need, you will change clothing or hair often.

about hair I actually do not merge rigs, but keep rig and hair. then use constrain = can easy exchange hair) but to make it work, you may need to clean up some unnecessary bones, at same time, sometimes you need to adjust weigth map.

So as basic usage, you may evertime merge rigs first.

I suppose there will be case, if you merge 2 or 3 hair rigs, they happend to have same name hair bone, and they conflict when you import hair pose,, (blender may auto change 2nd same name bone) but if you do not plan to swap hair or clothing often, I recommend, simply merge all rigs first. then add on work stable for the character.

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