Cocoa Poly Tools – Documentation
Version: 1.0 (2026)
Author: Edu Altamirano | cocoalopez.com

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OVERVIEW
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Cocoa Poly Tools is a compact floating toolbar for Autodesk 3ds Max designed
to speed up polygon modeling tasks. It consolidates essential modifiers,
advanced loop tools, and organic shaping brushes into a single interface.

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INSTALLATION
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1. Drag and drop the “CocoaPolyTools.ms” file into the 3ds Max viewport.
2. Go to “Customize > Customize User Interface > Toolbars”.
3. Under “Category”, select “MyCustomScripts”.
4. Drag “Cocoa Poly Tools” to a toolbar.
5. Assign a hotkey (optional) to toggle the menu on/off.

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TOOL GROUPS
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1. MAIN MODELING
Standard polygon operations placed side-by-side for speed.
– Extrude / Bevel / Chamfer: Interactive viewport tools.
– Connect: Connects selected edges or vertices.
– Bridge: Creates polygons between selected edges or borders.
– Weld: Welds selected vertices based on the threshold.
– [Set]: Small buttons next to each tool open the settings dialog.

2. LOOP TOOLS
Iterative tools designed to “massage” topology rather than snap it instantly.
– Circle: Turns selected edges or polygon borders into a perfect circle.
– Space: Iteratively evens out the distance between vertices (33% per click).
– Line: Straightens vertices between the start and end points.
– Regress: “Best Fit” straighten. Calculates the average line direction, ignoring outliers.
– Flow: “Set Flow” alternative. Aligns selection to the curvature of neighbor loops.

3. TOPOLOGY
Tools for fixing N-gons, poles, and edge flow.
– Remove: Clean remove (equivalent to Ctrl+Backspace).
– Split: Disconnects selected edges or vertices.
– Spin: Rotates the internal edge of a quad/tri.
– Zenith: Topological solver. Splits an edge and connects the new point
to the *furthest* vertex on the face. Useful for fixing quads/triangulating.
– Crease: Creates a “Diamond” termination (Kite quad) to stop a loop cleanly.
– Collapse: Merges selection to a single point.
– Relax: Smooths vertex positions to reduce tension.

4. UTILS
– Planar X/Y/Z: Flattens the selection along the respective axis.
– Grow / Shrink: Expands or contracts the current sub-object selection.

5. CONFORM TO SURFACE (Shrink Wrap)
Projects your selection onto another object (e.g., clothing on a body).
– Pick Target Surface: Select the object you want to snap to.
– Offset: Distance to float above the surface.
– Nrm (Normal): Projects geometry “Inward” (Reverse Normal direction).
– Cam (Camera): Projects geometry along your current Camera View.

*NOTE:* If you select Elements (Polygons), they move rigidly (keeping their shape).
If you select Vertices/Edges, they deform to the surface shape.

6. INTERACTIVE PULL
“Virtual Sliders” for organic tweaking. Click and drag the spinners up/down.
– Camera: Pulls selected components towards your eye view. Great for silhouette fixes.
– Normal: Inflates or Deflates selection along average normals.
– Logic: Supports Undo (Ctrl+Z). Dragging updates the mesh in real-time.

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COPYRIGHT
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Copyright (c) 2026 Edu Altamirano. All rights reserved.
www.cocoalopez.com