70 lines
3.3 KiB
Markdown
70 lines
3.3 KiB
Markdown
# ADR-0017: Quaternius NPC base
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- **Status:** Accepted
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- **Date:** 2026-11-05
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- **Supersedes:** ADR-0015 (generator-first character sourcing)
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## Context
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The current NPC library is built by the project-owned procedural generator. It
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keeps the contract and ships, but the body, neck, hands and shoes need a
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bespoke part pipeline to read as human. The MakeHuman head and MPFB body
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prototypes improved detail but added a second authoring path, a 19,747-triangle
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prototype and unresolved neck/shoulder seams.
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The CC0 **Quaternius Ultimate Modular Characters** pack already provides a
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coherent low-poly human silhouette, 21 modular outfits and 24 animation clips.
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The researched GLBs (`Casual`, `Casual_Hoodie`, `Worker`) measure 4 meshes, 62
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joints and 24 clips each. The owner directed that Quaternius become the NPC
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base. The full evaluation is in [`docs/npc-model-sourcing.md`](../npc-model-sourcing.md).
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## Decision
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1. **Quaternius is the primary NPC mesh and animation source.** Keep the
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licence and SHA-256 provenance for the three researched GLBs.
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2. **Stage 1 keeps the runtime contract.** Bake a canonical Quaternius base onto
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the existing 13-core contract, five tint slots, 24,000/24,000 budget,
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grounded −Y front and one `npc_base` skinned mesh. Retarget Idle and Walk;
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discard the combat/gun/sword clips. `NpcAvatar`, gear attach points and the
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pose composition remain the runtime interface.
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3. **The 62-joint rig is an authoring source, not a runtime dependency.** It is
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not shipped and Quaternius is not loaded by CI, build or runtime.
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4. **Stage 2 needs its own ADR.** If the proportion warp fails the silhouette,
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deformation or gear gate, stop and decide whether to adopt the 62-joint rig
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at runtime. Do not ship a hybrid rig or a second gear offset system.
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5. **Close the MakeHuman/MPFB body work.** The accepted MakeHuman head and the
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procedural `npc_base` stay as tested fallbacks until the Quaternius rollout
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ships. No new MPFB development.
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6. **Commit baked assets only.** The release consumes committed GLBs, maps and
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the manifest; Quaternius and Blender remain development tools.
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## Consequences
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### Positive
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- A human base, modular outfits and a coherent animation set are already
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authored and CC0.
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- The bespoke neck, hand and shoe pipelines are no longer on the critical path.
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- The runtime contract and gear stay stable during the mesh migration.
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### Negative
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- A 62-joint T-pose does not share the arm-down 13-core rest pose or
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proportions; the proportion warp is the main risk.
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- Quaternius' animation quality is only available after retargeting, unless
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Stage 2 is accepted.
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- The migration touches all 12 variants, their AO maps, manifest entries and
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baseline captures at once.
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## Alternatives
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- **Keep the procedural generator as the primary path.** Rejected by the owner:
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the human silhouette remains the weak point and the bespoke part pipeline is
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larger than the Quaternius bake.
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- **Adopt the 62-joint rig immediately.** Deferred to Stage 2 because it changes
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`NpcAvatar`, pose composition and gear offsets at the same time as the mesh.
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- **Continue the MPFB body.** Rejected: it needs a separate head/neck/hand
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pipeline and still has unresolved surface seams.
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- **Use a service character generator (Mixamo, Ready Player Me).** Rejected:
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redistribution and runtime terms are not a CC0 basis.
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