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Armature:-
- requires bone "root" at 0,0,0 and "COG" at 'center of gravity' (for physics).
(note: armatures can be animated and have meshes replaced, but vertices need to be reassigned using "vertex groups").
- requires all bones (starting with root) to be set to "XYZ Euler" rotation in the 'transform' section of the properties.
- root bone should be created with a top-down "top ortho" view with "cursor to center" snap.
- all extrusions should be made from the front or top views, never from the sides.
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Mesh:-
- must be 'actualised' (scaled) before parenting.
- parented to bone - (Object Mode) select mesh>armature>CTRL+P (parent by 'armature deform' with 'automatic weights').
(before parenting, select the 'bone' you want to assign vertices to in "Pose Mode", then revert to "Object Mode").
- needs to have "vertex groups" properly assigned to each bone. (remove unused bones, recheck all assignments).
- needs to have "armature modifier" and correct "object" and "group" assigned.
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Animation:-
- requires 1 "NLA track" for entire animation "all", with "action strips" for each animation underneath.
- (press 'TAB' to edit keyframes)/(right-click to select tracks, hold right-click to move tracks).
- (use 'properties' (N-key) to adjust track parameters).
- use "Dopesheet"/"Graph Editor" to select all keyframes and use "extrapolation: linear".
- always use 'frame 0' as "default pose", only begin first animation at 'frame 1'.
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Export:-
- in the NLA Editor properties panel, go to 'Animation Data' section, click the 'Dopesheet' icon and set correct action.
- select all in "object mode" and export with all unticked except "export meshes" and "armature animation".
("optimize animations"?/"independent animations?")
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Notes:-
- heirarchy: root > COG/main > spine > pelvis/etc. > thighs/etc.
- careful not to animate the object, its elements, or the armature itself - ONLY animate bones in "pose mode"!!!
- if the mesh/armature are not following each other perfectly, check for duplicates in vertex groups or delete the (extra) modifier.
- in the NLA Editor properties panel, disable "auto blend in/out" and set correct start/end keyframes.
- in the NLA Editor properties panel, set the 2 extrapolation settings to "Nothing".
- "root" and "COG" (center of gravity) bones are not animated. use "main" to move "whole character".
- initial keyframes for new animations "whole character", all other subsequents "available".
- maximum support for 255 bones per object/armature and 3 bone assignments per vertex.
- remember to add "./" (relative path) before the "skeletonlink name=" in the .mesh.xml file.
- if animations fail, try to process the skeleton.xml file separately using "-o" switch in the command-line.
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Shape-Animation:-
"You need to use the "Shape Keys" rollout in the "Object Data" tab and + a new key for each shape, and I'm sure this can be done with multiple different meshes so long as they have the same number of vertices with all the same indexes. You could do that in "Object Mode", or if it's the same mesh with different keyframes, you'll need to click the "Apply shape keys in edit mode" and add each shape key for the keyframes you want. Once that's done, you select your mesh in Object Mode and export with the Ogre3D exporter and "Shape Animation" option checked, and "Armature Animation" unchecked. That should be about the gist of it. There are example .blend files in the forum thread I linked to in my first post. For quick shape key baking, export and import again using the "Lightwave Point Cache .mdd" format."
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