(R1-6) Rig development devblog

So, I've begun creating a new rig using Auto-Rig Pro and... I have a really weird feeling about it. It is a sturdy system, but it feels so limiting. Can't even say if the resulting rig will be good or bad. It's just different.

I'm writing this dev blog as I'm working on the rig.

Currently placing bones in the right places and struggling with how I should approach adding new bones and constraining them. Should I add them in Meta-Rig or Generated rig? This is important as I would like to adjust holes shape using bones, not shapekeys.

Welp, looking at models made with ARP, most of them use shapekeys to deform holes. That's sad. I'm against using shapekeys as they don't provide the flexibility you can achieve with bones.

Seems like it all comes to a custom rig workflow. ARP capabilities aren't enough for me. It does contain really useful additions, but it lacks basic stuff for custom rigs. Oh. I've discovered that it can transfer custom bones and constraints from meta-rig to the generated one. This opens an opportunity to do more complex rigs. Maybe even to the level of CloudRig. Sadly it doesn't work for "limbs", bones that are created by ARP cannot be modified by the user. For example, good eyebrows controllers added in a new ARP version cannot be replicated easily in the version I use.

The next day began, and I finished basic rig. For now, all controls are made using shapekeys. I'll replace them with bone controllers later. I connected mesh to the rig and... got good results! I can say that I left more pleasured than when using CloudRig.

I adjusted weights a bit and made a simple test animation to check how it deforms. And I have good things to say:

1. Rig is a lot more performant than one made with CloudRig and especially the original NSFW model.
2. It exports 1 to 1 into Unreal. That's really good news.
3. Where it works, it works flawlessly. Where it doesn't work, it doesn't work at all. There is no middle ground.
4. No more issues caused by BendyBones.

But it can't be that good, so here are the bad things:

1. Custom bones are weird as hell here. I still don't fully understand how I should approach adding new bones.
2. Rig UI is awful. Where CloudRig shines, ARP drowns in darkness. Most likely, I will end up writing my UI as using the current one doesn't feel good.

Another day of editing her weight groups. This time MVP of weights did terrible job, so I left on my own fixing all weird deformations.

As I'm writing this paragraph, model is in quite good shape. But I feel too tired and don't know what to do with new model.

While I was struggling with weight paints, I worked on MA1 and did 1/3 of ending. MA1 ending is taking a ton of time as it require multiple fluid simulations and I having troubles with picking fitting emotions for Hoodwink.