Creating that n-pole (3-edged) at 14:18 took me over four hours to figure out. There were so many edges and verts that were not visible in your video as they were under the high poly mesh. That was what was so confusing to me. After restarting the entire topology from scratch four times I finally got the 3-pole constructed. Now I just hope I can finish this first topo tutorial video with no more hiccups. Thanks again for your detailed reply in helping me with this.
something weird on this website. When I make a comment and hit the “Comment” blue button, it takes the video back to the beginning. Just thought you should know.
There could be several reasons why the Slide Relax tool isn’t working, and I can’t pinpoint the exact issue without more information. Here are a few possible causes you can check:
1. Brush strength is set to 0; try increasing the strength.
2. Check if any options in the auto-mask settings were accidentally enabled.
3. Ensure there are no existing shape keys on the model, and the current shape key value is 0.
4. Check if the model’s normals are correct.
5. See if there are any modifiers on the model, such as a mirror modifier (you might be drawing on the mirrored half rather than the original model).
Try these steps, and if you still can’t draw, could you send your project file to our email? I can test it with you to find the issue. It’s essential to resolve this because I feel this tool is very helpful for our topology work.
There are other ways to achieve similar effects. You can adjust the brush settings in the Smooth brush to achieve a similar result. However, this will also affect the smoothing effect when holding Shift while using other brushes.
Many thanks Jerry Lee. Your replies are way beyond what I expected, and I thank you for the detail and length you went to carefully explain the possible reasons for it not working and for providing me with an alternative method with which to achieve the same result.
You totaqlly lost me at 14:38 in the video when you made the n-pole. I have spent the last half hour going back over it (the video) and it still doesn’t ring a bell as to how you did that. Frustrating! I will keep pluggin at it.
Let’s look at the wiring method from a different angle. As we’ve learned earlier, N-poles help us change the direction of edges in a model. However, before creating an N-pole, we need to know the effect we want to achieve, meaning we should have a clear idea of where we want these edges to connect.
When creating an N-pole, these three edges are crucial. Once you’ve determined their direction, the N-pole is formed.
I received the screenshot you sent. I noticed that you’ve already created an E-pole above. The difference between an E-pole and an N-pole is that an E-pole affects the direction of five edges, making it harder to control, but it offers more flexibility than an N-pole.
Here, I suggest you use the E-pole directly. The N-pole you created below is redundant, and you can delete it. In the video I sent you, I adjusted the wiring based on your current model for your reference.
However, since I can’t see the overall model, I’m not sure if this approach will affect other views of the model.
I hope this helps! I admire your eagerness to learn and am happy to assist you. If you have any questions during your studies, feel free to email us or leave a message here. I’m always glad to help. Happy learning!😊
Again I thank you for your amazingly detailed answer and for the sample video to go into depth about creating the N-poles. I will go back and rework the inner part of the upper leg to try to match what you have shown me. I also gtothe Slide Relaxe tool to work.
Creating that n-pole (3-edged) at 14:18 took me over four hours to figure out. There were so many edges and verts that were not visible in your video as they were under the high poly mesh. That was what was so confusing to me. After restarting the entire topology from scratch four times I finally got the 3-pole constructed. Now I just hope I can finish this first topo tutorial video with no more hiccups. Thanks again for your detailed reply in helping me with this.
👍👍
something weird on this website. When I make a comment and hit the “Comment” blue button, it takes the video back to the beginning. Just thought you should know.
Yes, I’ve noticed that issue too.
The slide/relax tool in sculpt mode does absolutely nothing on the retopo mesh. I’m using Blender 4.1.1
There could be several reasons why the Slide Relax tool isn’t working, and I can’t pinpoint the exact issue without more information. Here are a few possible causes you can check:
1. Brush strength is set to 0; try increasing the strength.
2. Check if any options in the auto-mask settings were accidentally enabled.
3. Ensure there are no existing shape keys on the model, and the current shape key value is 0.
4. Check if the model’s normals are correct.
5. See if there are any modifiers on the model, such as a mirror modifier (you might be drawing on the mirrored half rather than the original model).
Try these steps, and if you still can’t draw, could you send your project file to our email? I can test it with you to find the issue. It’s essential to resolve this because I feel this tool is very helpful for our topology work.
There are other ways to achieve similar effects. You can adjust the brush settings in the Smooth brush to achieve a similar result. However, this will also affect the smoothing effect when holding Shift while using other brushes.
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/avru10lfpmpr640n7yya2/20240616.png?rlkey=ho5lsq1lfpnwzu31xuoez2im1&st=yc0mi62h&dl=0
Many thanks Jerry Lee. Your replies are way beyond what I expected, and I thank you for the detail and length you went to carefully explain the possible reasons for it not working and for providing me with an alternative method with which to achieve the same result.
You totaqlly lost me at 14:38 in the video when you made the n-pole. I have spent the last half hour going back over it (the video) and it still doesn’t ring a bell as to how you did that. Frustrating! I will keep pluggin at it.
Let’s look at the wiring method from a different angle. As we’ve learned earlier, N-poles help us change the direction of edges in a model. However, before creating an N-pole, we need to know the effect we want to achieve, meaning we should have a clear idea of where we want these edges to connect.
An N-pole affects the direction of lines in three areas, and determining the direction of these three lines is key to creating an N-pole, as shown in the image below.
https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/s2chs3vmbvun0gb0y4n0m/20240616.mp4?rlkey=h919grqrqzuyddq02r02a5ph5&st=bdr6a4hk&dl=0
When creating an N-pole, these three edges are crucial. Once you’ve determined their direction, the N-pole is formed.
I received the screenshot you sent. I noticed that you’ve already created an E-pole above. The difference between an E-pole and an N-pole is that an E-pole affects the direction of five edges, making it harder to control, but it offers more flexibility than an N-pole.
Here, I suggest you use the E-pole directly. The N-pole you created below is redundant, and you can delete it. In the video I sent you, I adjusted the wiring based on your current model for your reference.
However, since I can’t see the overall model, I’m not sure if this approach will affect other views of the model.
I hope this helps! I admire your eagerness to learn and am happy to assist you. If you have any questions during your studies, feel free to email us or leave a message here. I’m always glad to help. Happy learning!😊
Again I thank you for your amazingly detailed answer and for the sample video to go into depth about creating the N-poles. I will go back and rework the inner part of the upper leg to try to match what you have shown me. I also gtothe Slide Relaxe tool to work.