Rig Character to UE4 skeleton in Blender - Tutorial

[@sagar2753]

2:37 He say -Y axis but he select just Y axis . please every one should notice that.

[@andrewprahst2529]

I thought the same thing

[@armeddreams9141]

I have found the SOLUTION to FAILED TO MERGE BONES. The problem is that Blender imports the skeleton with "SK_Mannequin", which is an empty, and has a child of "root". Unreal Engine thinks that the SK_Mannequin is the ROOT, but it isn't. The solution is to click on "root", and with your mouse in the 3D viewport in blender, press ALT+P, and select Clear and Keep transformation. Then delete the SK_Mannequin empty. Now when you export, the top level export is "root" and not an empty like SK_Mannequin.

[@JuanBaconGamer]

Thank you very much, you have saved my day.

[@itsnotbloodborne1237]

this is so helpful- i cant believe you cracked the code and then put it up! thank you!

[@pa-ikollo1851]

That's a cool character, a perfect example of why less is more!. Good tutorial too.

[@qbix4627]

For people who get no results from parenting their mesh to the rig with automatic weights: auto-weights algorithm doesn't seem to work if you have double vertices on your mesh. Make sure to do something about it (like merge by distance) before you do that

[@MelvilleG]

Thanks for putting together that rig. I've been fighting to make a correct rig in Blender, but all things I thought to be my spontaneous discoveries - are already in your rig. Thanks for sharing it - it is really helpful.

[@cyberspace7668]

for people with issue on stretching arms and foot, got move bones so you can see stretch and find out which one is linked by color to place of issue, then add some paint over there or places around to find a spot, then apply weight paint... make sure all bones have same auto map.. solved points on both arms, shoulder and the broken foot messed when i jump.. i cannot use any paints on foot, the are is bugged if i touch with any paint or color, it uses max strength...

[@hatorek-gramyigadamy1316]

Seems like a cool workflow to try out. Way faster than creating a new armature and then retargeting bone by bone in UE. I'm a Godot guy but I'm not a tad bit closer to giving UE a try:)

[@PiterTraceurFA]

classic youtube tutorial, volume so low only bats can understand what the guy is saying

[@dukesoft7211]

Thanks for the tutorial! But, it doesn't seem to work. Using UE4.25 and Blender 2.82.7. Imported with the same settings (-X and Y, not -X and -Y as you said but I assume that was a mistake), selected mesh + armature, exported to FBX, same settings but with "Add leaf bones" disabled, and when importing it to unreal its stating "FAILED TO MERGE BONES: Would you like to regenerate the Skeleton from this mesh?" If i do that, the shoulders of the rig end up much lower than they are supposed to.. Any ideas?

[@sufianahmed2007]

Did you find any solution for that error I getting this error now and my project is paused because of this error can you help me

[@ShaneDotz]

This is awesome! Looks like the only glitch is that u forgot to remove the root bone from effecting the mesh

[@AlessGab]

you helped me a lot, thanks

[@Marius_Gamedev]

Doesnt work with UE4.25 & Blender 2.8 anymore. Failed to merge Bones. Pls Update :)

[@Amitabaincarnate]

This was happening to me for a little while however when exporting if I selected the MESH then the ARMATURE and at export ticked the box that says selected objects only it was gone but my mesh is a bit messed up

[@robertoferreira3189]

Man I really appreciate this 👍 love from Portugal

[@elisacatarinaclementedasil3581]

Lindo

[@robertoferreira3189]

@@elisacatarinaclementedasil3581 linda

[@Vondora]

Lindos

[@DeathClonic]

Very good tutorial. Also his foot is auto weighted to either the root or another unnecessary bone so just remove that like the other IK bones.

[@jimsawires7465]

Could you tell me which is the unnecessary bones

[@jimsawires7465]

For me the 1 shoulder and 1 ankle is stuffed up

[@boitahaki]

5:31 Damn the skeleton looks like a total mess... I can't believe this actually works.

[@brandthedon3]

Great tutorial, great stuff.

[@therealb3yond]

finaly a method wich worked for me ! thanks

[@observationbasin5417]

when I tried this an error popped up about hierarchal changes or something, and messed up all my animations

[@LouSimonsen]

You have to uncheck "Add Leaf Bones" when exporting from blender. Double check the export from blender section.

[@InnerspaceX]

Hi, im trying this with blender 2.83 and UE4.25 but when import to unreal engine, i got this error: "Failed to merge bones". Im not modify anything, just exported to blender, and then imported from blender.

[@giuliomatteini1347]

Great video! I've done everything as you showed but I have 2 problems: when I use my mesh in Unreal, the right foot is fucked up like yours and the right hand has a black shape attached (similar to the long gun bone it has attached to it). What could be the problem and how can I fix that?

[@thomasemminger1873]

Messed up weights

[@jac8941]

My savior!

[@ElitUtik]

Hello . I couldn't connect the bones and my character. It doesn't work when I do with automatic weights.

[@incenseman6650]

I followed your video step by step and some of the joints on the skeletal mesh in UE were terribly out of place.

[@ReloxPlays]

Thank you!!!

[@Darkfredor]

Nice,merci beaucoup

[@techno2776]

Hello, I don't understand this. I am a beginner. Up to 5:20 it worked well. Then I imported a character from SketchFab instead of creating one. Then I clicked both things. But when I press "with automatic weights" the character is getting big and after import to UE5 my animations from the sk_mannequinn are not working. What am I doing wrong? And for what purpose is the download "UE4_Mannequinn_AnimationBase"? If I open the file it looks very nice. But I don't know what this has to do with the tutorial. //I thought this tutorial is for using any character easily with the UE4_skeleton without retargeting and merge bones and something like this.

[@zapatosinpie54]

I think its the Blender version I have but i dont see the remove button in the Ik vertex step

[@placebo_yue]

i tried this with a metahuman's face and i lose all my blendshapes/morphs. Any ideas?

[@beelson5169]

i have removed the ik bones but i still see a bit of a spike coming from the right hand and foot. how can i fix this?

[@blanketparty5259]

how can i weight paint the bones if they're so jacked up?

[@suzukito]

hey so i followed every step but my character just moves in T pose and doesn’t have animation

[@beelson5169]

i had that problem, turns out in blender before you export it, make sure you have both the mesh AND the armature selected before you export, then in unreal when you import it make sure you have selected the ue4 skeleton to go in it

[@johncraft9464]

this ends up with serious mesh issues every time

[@CrumbleMemes]

when i download the link i have 5 collections in blender what do i do

[@remcomoedt9850]

Thank you for the tutorial! When I export the Mannequin from 4.22.3 and import it in 2.80.75 with your settings, the skeleton isn't right. For example, the right thigh is between the pelvis and the shoulder, where the left one is in the correct place. Any idea what I've done wrong?

[@LouSimonsen]

Did you remember to set the axis on both import and export? I'm certain this is the issue. Import at 2:26 and export at 3:54.

[@remcomoedt9850]

@@LouSimonsen Thank you for your quick reply, much appreciated! It's wrong after importing the FBX in Blender. I've the same export settings in UE4 you used, and also used the same import settings, including _X, Y, in Blender. This is the result I get in Blender: www.trickylogic.com/blenderrigue4.jpg Edit: I now noticed you've the same in Blender! I guess that explains the weight painting issues. Sadly that means I can't use this method. :(

[@LouSimonsen]

@@remcomoedt9850 I should've been more clear in the video as these 'inverted' bones are unavoidable. If you look my skeleton looks the same. The skeleton is not made for the axis setup is not made for blender. Other 3D software like Maya will be able to account for this, but this is the downside of using something like blender. However, a new set of tools have just been release for UE4-Blender compatibility from the unreal guys. I suggest you watch it :) I might make a video on these tools but i ultimately suggest using your own rig (I will have a video out soon).

[@remcomoedt9850]

@@LouSimonsen Thanks, Lou! I've learned a lot from your video. Sometimes understanding why something doesn't work is more valuable than following a step by step tutorial. The recommended videos are on my watch list! Again, thanks!

[@kinghados]

The Skeleton swat_Skeleton, is missing bones that SkeletalMesh ExportSwatSkeleton needs. They will be added now. Please save the Skeleton! All my Bones were the same on both models. Also the export skeleton was trying to import animations despite me telling it not to. I guessing it was copying my existing animations for the new model?

[@LouSimonsen]

8:03 Here I mention that you should turn off "Add Leaf Bones" since this will mess with the bone heirachy. Pretty sure that is your issue :)

[@jimsawires7465]

@Lou's Creations hey could you do the same tutorial on 4.24 but with weight painting on a male base mesh would appreciate it. there is such a lack of tutorial on this process.

[@tiefsignal2407]

The Editor crashes when I try to import my own character. I followed your tutorial accurately and when I imported the first Mesh (The same Mannequin from Ue4) it worked fine. Its the same Project and same Export Settings in Blender so I have no Idea what's the problem... Maybe the mesh? Thank you for the nice tutorial anyway Edit: In UE4 4.23 it works fine! It only crashes in 4.24

[@LouSimonsen]

I see you solved the problem. However, it is worth mentioning that there are some issues with importing skeletons which are named 'Armature' specifically. So name your armatures something else.

[@jimsawires7465]

@@LouSimonsen hey could you do the same tutorial on 4.24 but with weight painting on a male base mesh would appreciate it. there is such a lack of tutorial on this process.

[@LouSimonsen]

@@jimsawires7465 Yeah, the weightpainting is hard. I will try to figure out a good solution since i do have extra time on my hands at the moment. Stay tuned and i will share a more thorough tutorial for 4.24 when I got it :)

[@bar7381]

I'm pretty sure ive followed this step by step and i keep getting the failed to merge bones error Edit: I don't what i did but it works now, wouldn't mind if you would still provide a fix since it could happen again

[@brandthedon3]

So you may notice when he imported them he didn't have to merge any bones. Make sure you are clicking both the capture and the mesh and make sure there both selected before you export. When you export make sure All Selected objects is checked along with the other settings! Let me know where your stuck! Brandon

[@dkstunes894]

why is his foot sticking and stretching from the ground?

[@thomasemminger1873]

Because the weights are messed up

[@shiloh8137]

When I press remove for the IK bones in the vertex groups it doesn't do anything. Any tips?

[@kabba4575]

Could you tell me How you made it so that you only have to model one side of your character and the other side is mirrored I've been looking up so many videos on how to do it and everyone just mirrors objects or separate objects that are not joined.

[@LouSimonsen]

You add a mirror modifier and in the modifier you turn on 'clipping'. When this is turned on overlapping verticies on the mirror axis will be merged into one :)

[@kabba4575]

@@LouSimonsen thank you

[@catpusok]

Please to do simular video with makehuman

[@tomjue5128]

So what if your character has a different proportion

[@LouSimonsen]

Tom Jue Then i recommend that you use your own rig :) I have a tut on rigging if you are interested

[@LouSimonsen]

Instead of making your own rig you could also try to scale the bones, since that doesn't change the heirachy it should still work :)

[@joburns1350]

I can barely hear what you are saying . :(

[@joburns1350]

but it works! thanks!

[@dkfox9737]

Does this process also work with firearms?

[@McHornet7]

Did you observe your character's root rotation if it is 0.0.0?

[@CrumbleMemes]

Thank you Elon Musk for this tutorial

[@vegitoblue2187]

what if i got my character from fuse in t pose

[@LouSimonsen]

VEGITO BLUE assuming your character is symmetric you can just delete the arm and leg on one side

[@vegitoblue2187]

@@LouSimonsen but wont there be retargeting issues on import?

[@LouSimonsen]

VEGITO BLUE oh sry, thought it was a different video. What is ‘fuse in t pose’?

[@vegitoblue2187]

@@LouSimonsen abobe fuse /mixamo characters i fi want to rig them as mannequin compatible characters

[@brandthedon3]

Sure I had this Same problem. So at 3:05, he clicks the overall large mesh and holds 'shift' to click the root (triangle thing) on his arm too. Once both are clicked, both will illuminate orange and THEN export. It took em awhile o figure it out. And I would export one or the other to no avail but if you export BOTH by clickling BOTH while holding the 'Shift' key you should be good. :)

[@vegitoblue2187]

so extra child bones will not be a problem right?

[@LouSimonsen]

Correct! As long as you don't break the heirachy, such as adding a extra spine bone between 2 existing.

[@vegitoblue2187]

@@LouSimonsen im trying to make a dismemebrment system like doom where i can slice the character vertically. so i though i could rig it that way. is it a good idea?

[@LouSimonsen]

VEGITO BLUE I would consider making your own rig for this as it Will give you much more freedom to do something like that :) Im not so keen on that topic though

[@vegitoblue2187]

@@LouSimonsen how would you rig a character that could be torn in half though?thats what is confusing me. even prince of persia warrior within pulled it off and that eas almost a decade ago

[@LouSimonsen]

@@vegitoblue2187 There are a couple of ways to do it, but you will have to go find most of the info in articles, not on youtube. The first way is simple to model your characters with "Dismeberment" point, such as the arm being seperate from the body. This is both for the mesh and the skeleton. I saw another way, but i can't find the article now with an automatic system in UE4 which seperates meshes based on the vertex weight. If you figure something out pls let me know.

[@amaniac5218]

100 subscriber

[@Ciprian-Amarandei]

This guy sounds like Elon Musk

[@jonathanparlane1]

Brilliant. Clean, fast, and to the point. Thanks! What would be perfect is to show the same, but with an imported character from, say, mixamo or daz. There is one tut out there kzbin.info/www/bejne/jXibZICPi6Z6nMk that shows this, but it is from an older Blender. I'm trying to combine info from this and that tutorial to get it all to work in UE4.

[@LouSimonsen]

The tutorial you have linked uses retargeting, where the point of this method is to avoid retargeting. When using custom characters retargeting is useful, especially if the bone heirachy is similiar but has slight deviations or transformation issues. I do recommend using your own rigs, i have a tutorial on how to make your own rigs which can share skeletons here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/d6DMe2Sugpagb9E. I am however a little uncertain of what your are trying to achieve, is it: A. Rigging any humanoid character to the UE4 skeleton for easy import? B. Sharing animations with different rigs?

[@jonathanparlane1]

@@LouSimonsen Thanks for the reply. I'm trying to find the best workflow to take a decently realistic humanoid character (Mixamo, DAZ, Fuse), give them basic clothing (robes/tunics), and have them do basic animation (walk/idle) in UE4 as background characters/crowds for short films with real people in the foreground (green screen). I suppose that if I can rig a mixamo or DAZ character once to match UE4 I'll be set. I've tried for a few days but still have glitches. I will try to follow the tutorial you linked.

[@LouSimonsen]

Ok, i get it. You should properly just use Mixamo for the whole deal :) Here's a way: 1. Take an unrigged basemesh blender w. skin materials. 2. Model your clothing, 2-4 sets should do. (All on the same basemesh!) 3. Export each clothed set as .fbx with a material for the skin and a material for the clothing. 4. Upload one of the .fbx to Mixamo for fast rigging and find the animations you would like, then download the rig along with the animations. 5. Import it into Unreal along with the animations. 6. The other 1-3 clothed model from Blender will now be uploaded to mixamo with the same setting as the first one and then redownloaded as rigged models. 7. You can now import these rigs so they share their skeleton with the first model you imported. They can therefore also use its animations as well. I do this towards the end of the linked tutorial. 8. Use material instancing to quickly make variation of the clothing and skin color. 9. Use cloth simulation to make the robes/tunics look more believable. Additional remarks: If this is for a rendered product don't think about poly count too hard. The robes should contain enough polys to make convincing cloth simulation. If you have any questions feel free to ask. I have nothing to do during these times :D

[@crabjuice47]

Please speak up mate.

[@rostislavtelitsin828]

It’s better to open your mouth)) when speak

[@McHornet7]

this is ridiculous

[@LouSimonsen]

Seems taunting... Do you have any questions?

[@itsnotbloodborne1237]

-ly awesome

[@MrJustin2105]

Open your mouth when you talk...