I'm making another attempt at understanding why and how we get things to do the things we get them to do.

This attempt is similar to, but hopefully less complicated than, the tongue project that David tried to help me with a few weeks ago. (Thanks again, David, for trying to help) Hopefully, what I am after is a more stripped down, less complicated, basic chain. I'm after something with as few constraints and compensations as possible.


Here is a blade of grass, it has 11 bones, starting with bone #1 at the bottom, and bone #11 at the top, with 1 null at the top.

The null is a child of bone #11, which is a child of bone #10, etc.

In the PWS, I have switched "Attach to Parent" and "Lock IK" on for each bone and the null.

Now: I wish to be able to grab the null and be able drag it to animate having the rest of the blade of grass follow like a chain.

What is the simplest way to get from where I am, to where I wish to be?

Thanks, Myron

don't make the null a child of bone 11 (I predict circular constraint trouble)

make it a sibling of bone 1


then progressively AimAt constrain each bone to the null

bone 1 0% enforcement (don't even really need this one)
bone 2 10% enforcement
bone 3 20% enforcement
.
.
.
bone 11 100 % enforcement

Thanks, Rob.

I can't get the constraint dialog with a RMB so the assumption would be it is done in another window, a new action perhaps?
Or is there another trick that I know not of?

You have to be in a pose window to make constraints.

Another idea - which may or may not work for you...
You can make the null a top level bone, or as Robcat said, a sibling of bone 1.
Then add a dynamic constraint to bone 11, the last bone in the chain.
In the dynamic constraint properties, there is a property called "target" (not "targeting", that is a different thing)
For "target", choose the null.
Then the bone chain will follow the null around wherever you drag it.
For a blade of grass, I would leave the "targeting" property to "constraint" with "is rod" turned ON. You may want to play with the Stiffness (but that's probably something you should do in private)
There is a better explanation in the dynamic constraints tutorial.
http://www.hash.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=29914