For those who don't know, skin wrap is basically a way to have multiple objects in 3ds max animate a single merged object. The models I am trying to bring over are generally made out of 3-5 separate objects. Unfortunately, when I merge the objects via converting them to editable polys and attaching them, they lose their animation. However, if I clone the objects, then merge them and apply a "skin wrap" modifier, the merged object's vertexes follow the separate objects animations. However, I am unsure how to bring this into PA. Does the FBX export bring in the animation of the skin wrapped object somehow? I know that to bring an animation into PA, we bring the bones in basically, but i'm worried that those bones will not "stick" to the merged object I am currently using (PA only supports the .papa being a single unified object) as the model .papa. Any thoughts from those with a bit more experience? (I literally started using 3ds max a week and a half ago) *Edit: Basically i'm using a point cache to animate the mesh instead of the bones.... any ideas how I can use the bones on a merged object??
Answering my own question: Instead of producing a point cache, you can use the "convert to skin" option. This will automatically assign bones to the merged object and you can delete the old multi-object mesh. Congrats, now you have a single object, with the animation, to export out to FBX for PA. **One thing though.. right now my problem is that one piece of the model (the sword) does not use any of the bones... it doesn't have a "skin" modifier at all. So what happens is that if I merge it's mesh with the skinned mesh.. it then starts to use the bones' weight and the sword "warps" to follow some of the bones. Any idea how I can merge the sword into the other object without it warping during animation? **Edit: Add a "weapon" bone that simply follows the main skeleton, add a "skin" modifier to the sword and then skin wrap a fully merged object from that
