a n00b needs help on avatarts

hey all, just joinede SL athe other day, so im a n00b at all this ^^;
im wanting to make my own avatar or get one made w/e but i duno were to start if i make one. im waning to make a half pure / half anthro dragon (if its possible) for me and my partner. so i need some kinda help. ither some one who is willing to make me em for a low prise or free or at tut on making em, i have basic 3dmax knowlage (duno how to do complext things like make characters tho) and i have no idea how to use the inworld build too its a lil hard to controle.
so any help on ether of thies would be grately appriciated.

btw for ref pics on wt i want u can look:
For my avi (Shiinsuh) http://ranshiin.deviantart.com/ ull see em there
For my partner (Sukas) http://zeldabob888.deviantart.com/ and also on mine http://ranshiin.deviantart.com/

and i have no idea how to script but i can make texturs and simple 3d objects

^^ thanks

Go to the marketplace on the sim named Limbo... there are few there. Some are mod, so you can make changes as you learn how.

What's an "avatart"? Is that like a regular avatar, but it rides the short bus?

Anyway, there are lots of anthro-dragon avs around. It's a little tuff to write a full how-to for making on though since it involves a lot of disciplines. To sculpt the dragon parts, you need a good working ability with SL's building tools. To make the skin, and to make the attachments match it, you need to know how to texture fairly well. If you want any special functionality like flapping wings, fire-breathing, etc., you'll need to know how to script. If you want the av to move in any special ways, you'll need to know how to animate.

I might recommend starting with projects that involve one of these skills at a time until you learn to get good at all of them. Once you've got a mastery of at least the basics, then by all means go for it. It might just be an exercise in frustration if you're brand new to all this and you try to put it together all at once.

well i have basics on scripting and animation and im fairly good at modeling (not in SL tho) and im good at texturing thats no prob its just then actual modling thats the problem

Should just be a question fo get used to SL's particulars then. Play with the building tools for a while, and you'll get it. If you've got any specific questions on how to do this or that, ask away. As I said before, "How do I make a dragon" is fairly broad, but when you've got some more pointed, more narrowly scoped questions, you'll find most people in SL to be very helpful.

how would i start basics like just getting the "skeliton" like i sed iv never realy made a character model b4 so i duno were to start.
and are u able to shape the vrtex in SL to get a custom shape?

and thanks for ur help too ^^ .

You can't edit vertices in SL. Complex shapes are constructed by sticking prims (primitives) together, kind of like building with Legos. The prims themselves are editable parametrically, using the settings on the editor window. I'd suggest visiting the Ivory Tower of Primitives for an overview of how the building tools work. After that, experiment (a lot).

After you get some practice, you'll begin to "think in prims". You'll look at an object, and you'll find yourself visualizing the basic shapes that compose it. As you gain experience, you'll begin to discover ways to cut, twist, hollow, and "torture" prims to make more advanced shapes. The goal in SL is always to make every object with as few prims as possible. I'd suggest looking around for some well built objects, and examining them closely to see how they're made.

As for the skeleton, don't worry about that. SL doesn't have heirarchy, joints, bones, rigging, or any of that stuff you might be familiar with from more traditional 3D modeling. The only rigged model is the avatar itself. When you attach your various dragon parts to your av, you'll actually be attaching them to its skeleton. You can't actually see the skeleton though; you just pick what body part you want to attach an object to from a list (right click on the object -> select "attach" from the pie menu -> select a body part). After that, you'll likely have to edit the object to put it precisely where you want it since the default position and rotation is rarely what you actually want.

ahh thats very good advice thanks a lot ill go check out them places in the morning.

thanks a bunch dude