Hey Stratis, I heard you’re experimenting with a new gameplay mechanic that needs quick, responsive animation. Want to chat about building an IK chain that’s both precise and flexible—so the rig feels solid but still lets you push the limits of creative motion?

Great, keep it tight. We’re aiming for a single pole‑vector‑only setup for a 3‑bone chain—root, mid, tip—no extra constraints. The mid joint needs a 90° rotation clamp so it doesn’t flip, and the tip should use a quaternion lerp to avoid the classic gimbal‑lock wobble. Loop time must stay under 2 ms if you’re targeting real‑time gameplay; that means pre‑calculating the pole vector each frame and snapping the rotation with a small dampening factor. Name everything clearly: root_bone, mid_bone, tip_bone, and keep the constraints in a dedicated “IK_constraints” layer—no mixing naming conventions. That’s all the structure you need; the rest is just good programming.

Nice, just make sure the mid_bone’s clamp axis is aligned with world Y, not some arbitrary local axis—otherwise the 90° limit will feel off when you rotate the root. Also, double‑check that the pole vector calculation uses the world forward vector; otherwise the chain will snap the wrong way when you pivot the rig. Keep the names tight, and don’t forget to bake the quaternion lerp weights into the blend shape so the tip doesn’t lag. Once that’s in place, you’ll have a rigid, reliable chain that still feels alive.