custom 3D Meshes

I'm new to the game, but learn quickly. I've been doing 3D Modeling in 3dsmax, Milkshape3D, and Poser for a good long time.

What I need help with is where I can find information on creating a custom avatar model. I realize it might have to be done via body parts, but I've not been able to find any information at all on the subject. Can anyone point me in the right direction?

I know some might say I should just buy body parts off of others, but I won't learn anything that way.

Thanks.

I have not heard of any new avatars being introduced into the SL environment. You have the basic Male/Female default that can be tweaked on the sliders. The AV maps that go with those models are downloadable from the SL web site as well as enhanced templates from this forum from Chip Midnight. The Avatar model it's self is also a download off the SL site (you can plug it into various 3D packages like some of the ones you mentioned).

When you refer to "Body Parts", maybe you mean Prim attachments, like robotic arms and the like? That is a whole different ball of wax, and most of that manipulation of primitive objects needs to take place in the SL environment. You can build a model, but you can't truely import it directly into SL and hope to keep all geometries and textures intact. You may need to talk to Jeffrey Gomez about some of the later. There are severe limits with importing 3D objects.

Hrm. Saw one fellow walking around with a life-sized duck for an avatar.

Anyway, to start simply, until I learn the nuances better, is it possible to create an object that functions as a sort of mask to cover the face? I've done this before to drastically altar facial features on Poser models before with good results.

Beyond that, I would need to change the skin tone to something else.

I'm working on making a character that looks decidedly alien in appearance. Basic humanoid structure, but a lot of differences.

You can attach any object which can be linked. That means you're limited in the number of prims you can use. You can certainly construct an alien face in-world using primitives and, assuming it's linkable, attach it to your av's face. When you've created a face out of prims that you'd like to use, simply right click on the linked face and select attach, and then choose an attachment point. For faces, the nose or skull is probably the best attachment point.

Otherwise, there is no way for you to directly edit the character mesh. SL does not support uploading custom character or object meshes. The character mesh may be altered by adjusting parameters, but otherwise everything is constructed from primitives.