Shiv Rig by Noah Li

Shiv Rig for Maya: Game-Ready Deadlock Character Rig

Shiv by Noah Li is the kind of game character rig I want to see more of on the marketplace. He’s based on Shiv from Deadlock by Valve, and the rig has been built with proper care, the kind you’d actually use on a production shot. Three outfit versions, a full face rig, HIK retargeting, rig isolation, and spring dynamics on the hair, coat, and reliquary, all set up and ready to animate.

I get asked all the time where animators can find good game character rigs to practise with, and Shiv is exactly the kind of answer I want to give. The character translates beautifully into Maya, the controls behave the way you expect, and the whole setup is geared towards how animators actually work in a game animation pipeline.

What’s great about the Shiv rig

Shiv comes with everything you’d want in a modern game character rig. Three outfit versions (Default, Neon Prime, and Proxy), so you can swap looks depending on the shot. A full face rig for proper performance work. HIK setup so you can retarget motion onto him quickly. Rig controls isolation when you need it. And spring dynamics on the hair, coat, and reliquary so secondary motion takes care of itself instead of you having to keyframe every overlap.

Because he ships as a Game Ready FBX as well, the path from animation to engine is straightforward. Whether you’re putting together a gameplay reel, doing a body mechanics test, or building a personal project, Shiv gives you a production-quality character to work with.

Shiv is great for

• Gameplay-style animation and combat tests
• Acting shots with proper facial performance
• Motion capture retargeting via HIK
• Body mechanics, weight, and combat timing studies
• Showreel work with a recognisable, characterful protagonist

Key features

• Three versions: Default, Neon Prime, Proxy
• Full face rig with expression and performance range
• HIK setup for motion retargeting and mocap import
• Rig controls isolation for clean animator workflow
• Spring dynamics for hair, coat, and reliquary secondary motion
• Game Ready FBX included
• Pose library of facial expressions

Requirements

• Maya 2022 or later
• mGear 4 or later (free, from the mGear releases page)

Shiv is based on the Deadlock character by Valve Corp and is shared by Noah Li for animation practice and study. Please don’t redistribute the files outside of Animworks.

Shiv rig by Noah Li.