I needed to see the blend file you imported in the package, not blend files for each step separately. I cannot understand which one is final because the latest has no vertex paint. The reason I asked was because s4s changes the data upon import( deletes vertex groups, autonormilizes weights, splits the mesh along uv island borders ). Anyway, I exported the blend from the package and it still had the old uv_1 and the skirt area is not vertex painted with 007f00. Either the changes did not happen or the file you are seeing is not being updated.
While we're at it, never use Make blank button, it removes maps from the package thus disrupting it and causing all type of issues.
Also, please study all maps of any maxis dress, both rgb and alpha channel. The shadow map is for the shadow the garment casts on the body. Its alpha channel should be white only in the areas where the shadow falls. You should import it in dds only.
Since you shared MD files, it's time I finally talk about it with someone to copy-paste it later lol.
People who are new to MD tend to focus on what the garment looks like rather than on how they make it, that backfires in the process of making it functional.
Here are a few things you should keep in mind when working in MD:
1). The more patterns the garment is made of, the more efficiently you will be able to utilize the available uv space. To fit one big uv island, you have to scale it down a lot, which will worsen the texture quality;
2). Try to model the garment with Linked Editing enabled until the end, then Remove it and add whatever asymmetrical details that you need. This way you will save yourself a lot of time;
3). If you look at the body, you will see a seam going along the sides. Along this seam the body's uvs are unwrapped. If the seam on the garment goes along it as well, you'll get cleaner uv_1 transfer results. Another thing is armpits. If they are loose, the weights will not transfer right
You can tuck them to the avatar, but if the patterns are of the right shape, you would not need to
4). If you were to enable strain map, you'd see that the chest and pelvic areas are very stretched. This may not seem like a problem until you press Simulate. The cut at the bottom disappears, the seams do not align and the armpits are loose. It will also affect retopology results in MD or how textures are displayed.
See how all dots are of different shapes?
This is an example of how blocks for dresses look like in real life. They have darts and curved sides to make the dress fit to the body nicely.
Fortunately, we do not need to learn how to sew. Here's a galaxy brain trick:
- clone an item that is the closest to yours in shape, export, open, switch to Edit mode, enable sync, select everything with A, set the background image, switch to vertex select, holding Ctrl, select one half of it ( does not have to match the image, just roughly ). Once you do, switch to Face select, press Ctrl I to invert the selection, Delete - Faces;
- the more parts you cut the garment in, the more accurate they will be, but the more of them you have, the more you will have to edit. I think splitting dresses at least in 4 parts is perfect, split the chest in two also, because it protrudes. Switch back to vertex select and select a few vertical edge loops, the breast area also, switch to edge select and deselect unnecessary edges. Then split them;
- select the dress in object mode, export with Selection only checked. Open a scene that already has the body (or you can import it before simulation ), add the dress;
- choose Flatten, click on one part of the dress, then press Enter, and you'll see a pattern appear in the 2d window!! Wig flew when I discovered this by accident. But anyway, do that to all patterns and delete the dress ( avatar). The patterns will have a lot of unnecessary points and won't have the smoothest edges, but that is easy to fix. There's 3 way I can think of:
a). select corner vertices like in the pic, hold Shift and select the rest ( so that all vertices are selected but the corner ones), RMB-click and choose Convert to curve point. This may or may not mess up the curves, depends on how the patterns are shaped;
b). if the first option won't work, you can just do that to each pattern individually, removing curve points that mess up the curve;
c). or you can simply recreate the patterns
- and after sewing, duplicating with link editing, adjusting fabric, and simulation you have yourself a perfectly fitted dress!!!
5). The point of retopology is to reduce the polycount while preserving the shape, details and shading. Remesh fails to do all of that. If anything, it makes it worse.
The key is the right edge flow. No automatic retopology will give you a really good one. I watched and read everything I could find on Zremesher only to understand that it just cannot do that. So I advice to not repeat my mistakes and just do retopology manually. It is not hard or time consuming if you approach it right:
Here are the things you need to keep in mind when retopologizing something:
- the topology around parts that will protrude the most ( stomach, breast, butt, optionally thighs ) needs to be round-ish ( orange ) and more dense ( yellow ) than the surrounding;
- places that bend the sharpest ( armpits, elbows, knees, the space between groin and the legs ) need an edge ( blue ) and to be less dense ( or you will need to edit weights );
- edges in the areas with folds should go along them ( red );
- not the best example here, but the sides of the pattern that are very curved should have a row of quads along them ( green )
This is roughly the edge flow your dress should have, once you get it looking like this you just RMB-click on the pattern, choose Add subdivision and end up with something that is better than any software can give you on its own
You do not have to do it as you are learning but just do not use Remesh, this thing is useless. Model in quads and do not go past 10k tris per outfit unless you absolutely have to
