Hi Zbrush Fans,
This is my first post, although I’ve been following this forumn since July. I’ve been working with Zspheres and adaptive skins for a bit and absolutly love 'em. I got extremely excited the other day when Pixolator revealed the new displacement map feature. I’ve had an idea for a new zsphere feature floating around in my brain for a few weeks now, so I thought I’de share my idea with all of you.
This idea can best be described as a Zsphere cross section tool, or slice tool. Here is how it works:
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you build a normal zsphere model for adaptive skinning.
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you activate the “slice tool” and select a zsphere on your model.
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you display the mesh preview and zbrush will draw a cross section of the zsphere you selected along it’s X, Y, or Z axis depending on what you select.
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The cross section is drawn in orange on top of a gray circle wich represents the zsphere. white dots form the cross section verticies of the mesh you are wanting to edit.
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By arranging the shape of the cross section verticies you are transforming and deforming the mesh generated by the zsphere. You can translate, scale and rotate the vertices thus twisting, bulging or offsetting the mesh.
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you can turn on symetry for easier editing and dupicating profiles on the oposite side of the model.
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You can copy and paste slices from one zsphere to another, for example: Copying the same profile to all of a model’s fingers or down the length of a tail.
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You can save your slices for use on different models and make a library of usefull shapes.
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By incresing the mesh density, zbrush will give you more verticies (detail) to work with, but you can turn it down again so you can edit the basic form like heiarchal subdivision surfaces. You would have four levels of detail.
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You can use the verticies to draw square cross sections thus alowing inorganic forms such as guns or mechanical stuff. Any shape can be drawn and will deform the zsphere’s original circle shape into a new one.
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The link spheres will smoothly morph one cross section shape applied to a zsphere into another shape applied to a connected zsphere, thus forming smooth transitions between zspheres.
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All the slices get saved along with the zsphere mode and the model can be reposed without affecting the slices.
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The fine detail can then be done with the new displacement map painting feature (really cool).
Anyway, this is my idea. I think it might add a lot to zbrush’s revelutionary modeling tools and be a good complement to the new features just announced. I’m anxious to hear what you guys think and hope the Pixologic team notices my post. Anyway, I would like to thank the Pixologic team for one of the best modeling tools on the market, I just might get something accomplished in Maya after all 
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(Here is a picture illustrating my slice tool idea)
