Linking a character in a new scene

Before we jump into interacting with Rain’s armature and sticking her in different poses, we must first explore some even more exciting topics: linked libraries and file dependencies. What fun!

Unlike previous chapters, where we opened a downloaded .blend file and immediately began working inside it, we won’t be working directly on Rain’s .blend file. If we did, we’d have to make a full copy of Rain – or her .blend file – for each animation she was used in. As we’ll learn, this is bad practice for such a complex and valuable asset like Rain.

Instead, we’ll create a new file that will reference the file containing Rain. This will make rain_v2_6_packt.blend a linked library.

Linked libraries

In Blender, the term linked library means a .blend file that contains data referenced by another .blend file, through the use of File | Link. The use of linked libraries is a technical process that...