Creating steps for the hind legs essentially repeats the work you did for the forelegs.

Set up the scene:

• Continue from the previous lesson.

Start with the Down frames:

1. Go to frame 1. Use (Move) and (Rotate) to pose the hind legs in the Down pose, using the reference sketch as a guide.

   

2. Set a sliding key for each foot.
3. Double-click the right thigh to select the whole hind leg, then click (Copy Posture).
4. Go to frame 25, then click (Paste Posture).
5. Go to frame 13, then click (Paste Posture Opposite).
6. Repeat steps 3 to 5 for the left leg.

Add the intermediate poses:

1. Use (Move) and (Rotate) to pose the legs at the intermediate frames, as follows:
   • Frame 4, Passing

     

   • Frame 7, Up

     

   • Frame 10, Contact

     

     NoteFor now, don’t worry if the front and hind feet overlap in space at the hind legs’ crossing pose. You will fix this later.
2. Set sliding keys for the feet.

Copy poses to the second half of the walk cycle:

1. For each hind leg, copy the intermediate poses and paste them to the opposite hind leg in the second half of the walk cycle, as follows:
   • Frame 4 to frame 16
   • Frame 7 to frame 19
   • Frame 10 to frame 22

Preview your work:

1. Click Play to see the animation.

   Now all the legs move in a plausible walk cycle. The effect is still a bit stiff and mechanical: you will correct that in the following lesson.

   TipIf the animation looks too jerky at points, you can stop playback, adjust poses (Auto Key should still be on), and scrub the time slider to see how it appears. The goal is a smooth-looking walk, but it doesn’t have to be perfect.
2. Click Stop.

Save your work:

• Save the file as my_quadruped_alllegs.max.