DCC Character Variant and Deformation Guide

1. Define the compatibility envelope

For each Character Model or Creature Model, record skeleton version, bind pose, body proportions, topology revision, UV sets, material slots, garment set, animation library, and target platform. A Body Variant must declare which of these remain compatible. Separate silhouette changes from topology changes. If vertex order differs, shape-key and corrective reuse may fail even when the model appears similar. Keep a representative animation and wardrobe test set beside the specification.

2. Build variants from controlled deltas

Create named deltas from an approved neutral body rather than editing disconnected copies. Set limits for height, limb length, mass distribution, facial proportion, and creature anatomy. Check joint centers after proportion changes; scaling mesh around an unchanged skeleton causes sliding and volume loss. Decide whether variants share skin weights, require transferred weights, or need dedicated rigs. Preserve neutral topology where interchangeable clothing and blend shapes depend on correspondence.

3. Use bevels for shading and silhouette

Apply a Bevel Modifier only where edge radius contributes at target distance. Control width in real units, segments by platform, angle or weight selection, clamp overlap, and hardened-normal behavior. Place modifier order relative to mirror, subdivision, booleans, and skin deformation deliberately. Tiny bevels can explode vertex count without improving pixels. On deforming armor or accessories, test posed intersections and export triangulation rather than approving only the bind pose.

4. Establish parenting without hidden offsets

Parent props, garments, controls, and helper meshes through a documented hierarchy. Verify parent inverse, local transforms, scale inheritance, and reparent behavior. A weapon should attach to an explicit socket or bone, not a scene object with an unexplained offset. Avoid cyclic constraints. Test world-space preservation and clean reset. Parenting controls transform inheritance; it does not replace skinning for surfaces that must bend across multiple joints.

5. Represent fabric thickness intentionally

Choose whether Fabric Thickness is physical geometry, a solidify operation, shell shader, collision thickness, or a combination. Use real dimensions appropriate to garment type and camera distance. Keep inner and outer normals consistent, close visible hems, and avoid self-intersections around folds. Simulation collision thickness may exceed render thickness, so document both. Test layered garments and extreme poses; thickness that works in neutral stance can trap sleeves or penetrate the torso.

6. Author pose-space correctives from evidence

Pose Space Deformation drives corrective shapes from joint orientation or a pose vector. Identify failures in approved animation: shoulder collapse, elbow candy wrapping, hip crease, jaw bulge, or creature membrane compression. Sculpt the minimum corrective on the production topology, define driver axes and falloff, then test neighboring poses. Avoid corrections that encode one camera view or fight skin weights. Mirror only when anatomy and rig orientation are truly symmetric.

7. Work a body-variant wardrobe decision

A broad-shouldered Body Variant shares the base Character Model topology and skeleton but exceeds shirt clearance. Transfer the approved base shape delta, recalculate shoulder joint fit, and create garment deltas with physical Fabric Thickness preserved at hems. Shoulder Pose Space Deformation is retuned for the variant, while a Bevel Modifier on rigid buckles remains unchanged. Parenting uses the same hand and accessory sockets, so animations and props remain compatible.

8. Diagnose deformation and hierarchy symptoms

Volume collapse in one pose points to skinning or missing corrective, while a bulge across nearby poses indicates a driver with broad falloff. Props drifting after reparenting indicate parent-inverse or scale inheritance mistakes. Flickering garment surfaces suggest zero thickness or coincident shells. Bevel width varying after rigging reveals unapplied or non-uniform scale. Clothing fitting one Body Variant but exploding on another often exposes lost vertex correspondence, mismatched bind state, or untested anatomy limits.

9. Approve with a deformation evidence reel

Deliver neutral and posed meshes, skeleton and topology hashes, variant deltas, joint-center notes, modifier order, local transform report, garment thickness values, corrective driver definitions, and export settings. Include turntables for extreme poses, motion transitions, layered clothing, accessory sockets, normals, and silhouette at target LODs. Acceptance requires stable correspondence where promised, no visible collapse or penetration beyond tolerance, bounded corrective activation, predictable parenting, and platform-appropriate geometry cost.

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