SDEF in Blender

SDEF is a different kind of skinning algorithm. Blender uses BDEF (bone deformation), but in MMD, you can use SDEF (spherical deformation).

It works better when the mesh bends a lot, like joints.

If you open the model in PmxEditor and set the view to Weight Type, SDEF will turn purple.

SDEF is not supported in Blender natively, so it requires building a driver. When the driver is enabled, a new shape key (mmd_sdef_skinning) will be added.

Since the armature modifier now has SDEF mask, the model might behave strangely.

SDEF driver might occasionally break, so you may need to press SDEF button again. In my experience, Bulk mode seems to be more stable.

credit: Appearance Miku by ままま