This mod was released under the name and account "KnightBros", where my brother and I will create Smash Bros mods. I'm in charge of the visual aspects of the mod, such as models, textures, UI, effects and animations, and he'll be creating the character's movement set using Rust and the technical structure of the installation files.
Renoir from Clair Obscur has been imported into Super Smash Bros. Ultimate as a mod that replaces Sephiroth.
Download the mod from GameBanana.
The base 3D model was ripped and adapted from the work of Nekopixil.
The import process into Smash was done using the Magic Exoskeleton technique.
Process
The original model included hair cards, a highly detailed beard mesh, and more than 100,000 polygons, which is too heavy for Smash. To adapt it:
- A polygon reduction via Blender’s Decimate modifier was performed.
- The beard was rebuilt from scratch in a stylized style.
- Hair was recreated with Blender curves.
- The coat was removed in this version to optimize performance.
The character contained over 370 bones, far more than recommended for Smash. A new skeleton and rig were created by importing the mesh without skeleton into AccuRig, generating a new rig, and then adapting it to fit Sephiroth’s skeleton in T-Pose.
Later, the coat was reintroduced with additional swing bones to simulate wind, mapped to Sephiroth’s original skeleton behavior.
Since Renoir wields a cane instead of a sword, idle and attack animations were modified to match the character’s combat stance.
Taking advantage of Sephiroth’s wing transformation while taking damage, Renoir’s second form was designed with emissive materials, giving a distinct visual flair.
A second variant, “Real Renoir”, was created by combining ripped assets with custom-made ones:
- Original trousers and head were preserved.
- Shirt, waist, and arms were custom modeled and textured.
- Arms were adapted from Unreal Metahuman assets.
- Shirt was UV-unwrapped and textured procedurally in Blender.
- Waist texture was reconstructed and recolored manually in Krita.
- The Curator form transformation was added using a Metahuman base, sculpted and textured with Blender.
The same Smash import process was applied as with the Mirror Renoir version.
For the Curator slot, the previous model has been used in addition to a new sword that combines a stylized paintbrush and sword.
Furthermore, his transformation wing form has all gray parts with light emitting (Dessendre's Canvas form).
Future Work
- Add facial expressions to increase character personality during fights
- Adapt Renoir’s textures to be more Smash Bros–like, with stylization closer to the game’s visual language
Trailer
The trailer was created using Kdenlive, combining cropped footage from Smash Bros., Clair Obscur, and custom gameplay captures.
Tools Used
- Blender – mesh editing, decimation, beard and hair recreation, procedural textures
- AccuRig – generating rig and skeleton
- SSBH Editor (GitHub) – exporting model and applying materials
- Switch Toolbox (GitHub) – editing effects and colors
- Audacity – extracting and modifying Renoir’s voice lines from gameplay
- Kdenlive – trailer editing and video montage
- Krita – texture editing and manual recoloring
Credits
- 3D Model Rip – Nekopixil
- Magic Exoskeleton tutorial – Cybertron231
- UI Design – based on original character sheet by Reynaud Alan
- SSBH Editor – ScanMountGoat
- Switch Toolbox – KillzXGaming
Special thanks to the Clair Obscur dev team for inspiration.