Watch the creator’s explanation
just7 · Eclipse — Official Tutorial · Animation layers at 4:58. This is the creator’s video, accompanying our independent written guide.
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What is confirmed about Eclipse Animator animation layers
The original Eclipse Animator Creator Store listing lists Animation Layers. The creator’s official tutorial at 4:58 is the primary reference for the demonstrated layer workflow. Those sources establish that layers are a creator-described feature; they do not provide a complete compatibility or blending specification.
This guide therefore separates the documented feature from our suggested practice. We have not verified exact layer modes, weight ranges, masks, merge behavior or every export path in the current plugin. Do not assume an option exists because another animation editor uses it. Use the video for Eclipse’s visible controls and the exercise below to evaluate the result on a copied project.
If you need the original asset, start with Get Plugin and the installation guide. If recording poses is still new, complete the first-animation tutorial before adding another organizational layer to the same task.
Plan a base motion and one small contribution
For this exercise, use base motion to mean the movement you want to keep, and gesture to mean one additional contribution you want to investigate separately. These are useful project labels, not claims about named Eclipse layer types or a particular composition formula.
Choose a simple standing character and a modest arm gesture. Begin with an existing saved motion that you can already preview correctly. Keep a baseline copy and avoid changing camera movement, IK configuration and frame rate while you investigate layers. Otherwise an unexpected result may come from more than one new feature.
Write down the scope of each contribution before editing:
| Contribution | Intended job | First check |
|---|---|---|
| Base | Preserve the existing pose or short movement | Looks the same as the saved baseline before the gesture is introduced |
| Gesture | Add one intentional arm change | Affects the expected time range and body parts |
| Combined result | Present the intended final movement | Remains readable and does not introduce unexplained joint changes |
Keep this table as your goal, not a prediction that Eclipse will automatically separate or mask those parts. The track selection and controls in your project determine what is actually recorded.
Follow the creator’s animation-layers chapter
Watch the 4:58 layer chapter and identify the action the creator uses to introduce or select a layer. Compare the demonstrated selection, timeline and visible layer state with your installed version. Follow that current source workflow rather than a guessed right-click menu or shortcut.
Before adding the gesture, confirm which layer or contribution you are editing. Choose a short interval and record a small change through the documented keyframe workflow. The creator introduces keyframe insertion at 0:29; our controls reference links the relevant actions in context.
Immediately inspect the beginning, middle and end of the chosen range. Check the intended arm and an unrelated part, such as the torso, separately. If both changed unexpectedly, investigate what was selected and recorded before continuing. A plausible overall pose can hide an unintended contribution that becomes obvious later in the shot.
Compare the base, gesture and combined result
If the current demonstrated interface offers a way to isolate or disable a contribution, use that documented operation to compare the states. Do not infer that an eye icon, checkbox or weight value has a particular meaning without checking it. If you cannot establish a supported isolation workflow, compare separate saved project copies rather than deleting work to simulate one.
Make three observations: what the base does, what the gesture is intended to add, and what appears when both are included. Use the same viewing angle and timeline position. Record the result in plain language, such as “the arm rises during the middle half-second while the torso keeps its earlier movement.”
For a repeatable timing exercise, put the gesture inside a two-second practice range. At 30 FPS, that range spans 60 frame intervals. Another project rate requires a different frame count. Use the timing calculator with your actual FPS; this example does not establish a plugin default or a limit on layer duration.
Inspect overlapping changes before relying on them
The most informative test is often an overlap: two contributions affect the same joint or property during the same time range. Preserve your non-overlapping baseline, then make a separate experiment with a small, recognizable change on that shared part.
Observe what the current setup does rather than assuming the result must be additive, overridden by order, weighted by a percentage or resolved through a mask. These are different possible composition models. Our available Eclipse sources do not establish all their rules, so a tutorial about another editor cannot fill that gap.
Check the pose just before the overlap, within it and just after it. Then inspect playback. If the pose jumps, identify the first changed state and the contribution involved. Reversing an unexplained change in a copy is more useful than adjusting several unrelated curves until one frame looks correct.
Editor layers and runtime animation priority are different checks
Roblox separately documents runtime animation tracks and their AnimationTrack API. That API includes priority and weight controls for playback. It is useful background when testing an exported animation in an experience, but it does not document Eclipse’s editing-layer implementation.
Do not assume a plugin layer becomes a separately playable Roblox track, keeps its editing label after export or carries a particular runtime priority. Those are output-specific questions. A layered scene may look correct in an editor and still require separate destination checks, just as a single-layer animation does.
Keep a saved editable project before exporting. Use the creator’s save chapter at 2:53 and the export lesson for the next workflow. Compare important poses and timing in the exported result instead of judging success solely by the file or asset being created.
Animation-layer troubleshooting checklist
- My edit appears in the wrong place: identify the active contribution, selected object and time position before recording another key.
- The base motion changed: compare against the saved baseline and isolate the earliest difference.
- A gesture has no visible effect: check its time range and the properties recorded; do not assume an invisible result means the feature is broken.
- Two motions conflict: reduce the test to the overlapping joint and interval, then inspect the demonstrated layer controls.
- Export differs: verify the saved editor project first, then the chosen output and runtime playback separately.
These are diagnostic questions, not a list of confirmed Eclipse defects. For help, record the installed version, rig type, intended contribution, overlap interval and smallest reproduction. Do not publish a private production scene just to explain a layer problem.
Continue with the graph editor lesson if the combined motion has the right poses but needs a clearer transition. Use the tutorial directory to choose the next task, and keep a simple working project you can return to before combining more features.