Character Modeling	The Spine
by Stefan Henry-Biskup Gamasutra November 13, 1998 Vol. 2, Issue 45	Introduction Case Study: Jack Nichoolas 5 What's A character sheet? Deconstructing the body Creating the Pelvis The Spine The Shoulders The Elbows The Knee As Tools Evolve, Concepts Remain Valid Figure 9: The spine. The spine is a misleading bone structure. It actually rotates around a vertical axis that runs through the little wing-like structures at the back of each vertebrae (Figure 9). This rotational axis lies just behind the spinal cord, so its farther back than might you think. An accurate representation of the spine is very important; the rib cage of your model will swing very differently if the figure's spinal bones are placed in the center of the torso mass rather than at the back as Figure 10 shows. In our model, the spine comprises three bones, which lends flexibility to the rib cage while keeping the attachment between the torso mesh and the skeleton simple. Figure 10: Spinal position seen from above.
	The Shoulders