Rigging Theory

Rigging In Maya - Fundamentals

Rigging In Maya - Basics

Rigging In Maya - Intermediate

Rigging Deep Dives

Rigging References

Rigging is the process of assigning a mesh’s vertices influence dependencies based on another type of data point (e.g., bones, dummies, curves, etc . . .). Rigging is not necessary for animation, but makes creating animation much easier. Rigging is a job specialty that impacts many aspects of games development, from organics, creatures and humanoids to vehicles and weapons.

2 Major Types of Rigs

There are two major types of rigs:

1. Deform Rig: The bones that deform the mesh, or the bones that the mesh is directly skinned to. This rig drives the mesh.
2. Control Rig: A rig for controlling the inverse kinematics, forward kinematics, and constraint controls. This rig drives the deform rig.

Rigging Breakdown Example

https://vimeo.com/278691057