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Hi-Res ZBrush to Low-Res Max Methods?

ZBrush Usage Questions
#1

Hi there,

I have been working to export a high-poly (7 mil) to 3DS max for a week now so I can rig it. I was wondering what might be the best method, I can reduce the poly-count through decimation master or by retopology. The problem I have is getting the detail back.

One workflow I have been playing with is…

  • Creating a displacement map at a high subdivision level.

  • Decimating to low-poly then attempting to apply the displacement map to this, although I have had geometry issues with this after the decimation.

The second method has been to do the same but using retopology instead of decimation. My main problem is inserting the displacement map onto the low-poly model. Do both versions of the model need to be unwrapped or is the unwrap maintained somehow through decimation. Can I simply use copy and paste UVs in UV master to do this?

Is thier another method to this that I may be missing?

#2

I asked this same question of a professional game designer, who told me it may not be possible to get a Zbrush model low enough poly without losing the details. Instead, he recommends starting with the low poly model, from 3DsMax or Maya, then doing all the details with bump maps in Zbrush, which only fake the textures, leaving the models really flat.

I’m doing everything backwards, of course.

~Traveler in Thyme, stuck in thymewarp

#3

I will definatly be doing the uvs in max before exporting to zbrush for future models… I have found a pretty good method of getting to the lower sub-divisions using projection in Zbrush… I retopologized the model and then projected the details at each subdivision level until i reached a similar point count. I’m not sure if this is the normal or best way of doing things but it is working for me so far.

Thanks for the reply, I looked a lot into the use of maps. The lesson is to keep the lowest subdivision I guess.

I’m curious what the reasons might be to delete lower subdivisions though, is it a way to free-up memory, to tidy up on a completed model, or something else?