Split by Curve - DIGITAL PRODUCTION https://digitalproduction.com Magazine for Digital Media Production Wed, 03 Dec 2025 22:33:00 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://i0.wp.com/digitalproduction.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/cropped-dp-logo-kurz-weiss-auf-schwarz.png?fit=32%2C32&quality=72&ssl=1 Split by Curve - DIGITAL PRODUCTION https://digitalproduction.com 32 32 236729828 Lofted Surfaces and Retopo in 3DCoat 2025.15 https://digitalproduction.com/2025/12/05/lofted-surfaces-and-retopo-in-3dcoat-2025-15/ Fri, 05 Dec 2025 06:00:00 +0000 https://digitalproduction.com/?p=234437 A detailed 3D model of a soldier in a tactical outfit, showcasing a helmet and body armor, set against a dark background. Text overlay states

3DCoat 2025.15 expands plane controls, improves Smart Retopo, updates Blender Applink to 5.0, and fixes sculpting bugs.

The post Lofted Surfaces and Retopo in 3DCoat 2025.15 first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.

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3DCoat 2025.15 introduces a new Lofted Surface option within its Plane tool. The feature expands on-plane brush control, allowing for more detailed adjustments when sculpting or aligning geometry on surfaces. The update also refines plane picking mechanics: users can now hold the right mouse button to move the plane’s central point across a surface while maintaining its normal direction, or hold Ctrl to shift the plane along that normal.

The Blender Applink now officially supports versions 4.3 through 5.0, broadening compatibility with recent Blender releases. 3DCoat’s scripting system adds support for Python 3.11.9, improving script execution and language stability. AppLink integration now allows the execution of a Python script during import: placing an import.py next to import.txt triggers automatic script execution. The update also removes obsolete .py files in custom rooms to prevent interface errors after rolling back to earlier builds.

Split, Snap, and Offset

A new Split by Curve option enables complex surface cuts, improving precision in hard-surface workflows. The Smart Retopo tool in the Retopo and Modeling workspaces now snaps to sculpted surfaces only when creating new meshes, reducing unwanted interactions with existing geometry. The Smart Hybrid function gains a new Offset option and refined Quad Mesh generation for both patch and triangle-based surfaces.

Workflow and performance fixes

Multiple long-standing issues have been addressed. Under macOS, the Text Tool no longer crashes, supports Unicode, and correctly displays the text cursor. Random filled cubes appearing during airbrush sculpting are resolved, as are conflicts between navigation gizmos and tweak tools. The Transform palette now preserves visual object size during resampling, preventing scale discrepancies. A fix in the Retopo workspace ensures that pressing Esc clears path selections as expected.

Quality-of-life improvements

Users can now copy complete colour data, not just single channels, via Copy Channels. Fullscreen mode hides the tool parameters panel to declutter the interface. 3DCoat adds Lychee Slicer as an external 3D-printing option and introduces an internal check before creating low-poly meshes if the target Retopo group is invisible.

Stability first

According to the changelog, this release includes “multiple other fixes and performance improvements,” including corrections for Live Boolean artefacts. As always, artists should test the update in production before deployment, especially when integrating custom scripts or AppLink workflows.

The post Lofted Surfaces and Retopo in 3DCoat 2025.15 first appeared on DIGITAL PRODUCTION and was written by Bela Beier.

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