Create an animation of characters riding dragonfly！

[Aether825]

 

 

Here I will demonstrate how to use the DST Mod Tool to create an animation of a character riding a dragonfly.

You can download the tools you need here: https://msisunny.github.io/dst-mod-tool-publisher/

First, we need the following official animations as shown in the image below:

Additionally, a character build is required—you can choose your preferred one.

Drag them directly into the tool, and you can preview the dragonfly and the character riding the beefalo animations.

 

Let me briefly explain the workflow: we create the animation by stitching together existing animations. First, we extract the character part from `wilsonbeefalo` and separate it into front and back layers. Then, we combine these two parts onto the dragonfly.

Here, we will create an `atk_downside` animation.
First, locate the `atk_downside` and `atk_pre_downside` animations. We need to merge them.
Copy the `atk_downside` animation and append it to the end of `atk_pre_downside`.

After merging, the maximum frame of the animation should be 22.

Next, we need to apply an inverse transformation relative to the `beefalo_headbase` symbol. This step might be hard to understand, but it is done to extract the character's motion trend relative to the beefalo while eliminating the beefalo's own movement.

After completing this step, try playing the animation. You will notice that the `beefalo_headbase` is fixed at the origin, while all other elements move relative to it.

Then, we extract the character separately. Use the regular expression search function to delete all beefalo-related parts.

After this, the animation should look like this:

To facilitate subsequent operations, duplicate `atk_pre_downside` and paste two copies into a new bank, naming them `front` and `back` respectively.

First, process the `front` animation. We need to extract the front layer of the character.
Use the regular expression search function:
- In the first row, first column, enter: `^(headbase|SWAP_FACE|headbase_hat|face|hairfront|HAIR_HAT|hair|BEARD|hand)$`
- Select "Keep matching items."

Then, use regular expression search and replace:
- In the first row, first column, enter: `hand`
- In the first row, second column, enter: `^(?:(?!18|19).)*$`
- Select "Delete matching items."

After completing the above two steps, the `front` animation should only retain the two hands and the character's head.

Next, process the `back` animation. Similarly, this time enter:
`^(headbase|SWAP_FACE|headbase_hat|face|hairfront|HAIR_HAT|hair|BEARD)$`
- Select "Delete matching items."

Perform another regular expression search:
- Enter: `hand` and `18|19`
- Select "Delete matching items."

After completing the above two steps, the `back` animation should only retain the character's body and `hairpigtails`.

Then, duplicate the `front` animation. It will be stitched as a sub-animation onto the dragonfly's `atk_downside` animation.

Configure as shown in the image below:

We specify it to follow the `dragonfly_head` symbol and apply an appropriate local coordinate offset. Here, `scale_x` is set to `-1` because the `dragonfly_head` symbol is mirrored left-to-right. `z-offset` is set to `-1` to display it in front of the `dragonfly_head` symbol.

After this step, the effect is as follows:

Then, duplicate the `back` animation.
Similarly, set it to follow the symbol, but only change the `z-offset` to `0` to display it behind the `dragonfly_head` symbol.

After this step, the effect is as follows:

At this point, we have completed an animation of the character attacking while riding the dragonfly.

Let’s summarize the entire process:
1. Apply an inverse transformation to the beefalo-riding animation relative to `beefalo_headbase` to extract the character’s motion trend relative to `beefalo_headbase`.
2. Delete all beefalo-related parts from the animation.
3. Use regular expression search and replace to split the obtained animation into front and back layers.
4. Use the "follow symbol" function to stitch the character onto the dragonfly.

In fact, this toolchain can be used to create many other things—feel free to explore and experiment.

 

 

 

 

Edited September 19, 2025 by Aether825

[Windfine_Guto]

"Let me introduce my talented Don't Starve modder friend from China!

Together with another programmer, they've researched and developed a powerful Don't Starve animation tool. they've created the DST Mod Tool after extensive research into DST's animation system.

The tool can export animations in Spine-compatible JSON format – which is far more user-friendly than Spriter! This means you can:

Remix existing animations into completely new creations
Fine-tune animations with Spine's advanced editing capabilities
We've independently developed a complete animation pipeline for Don't Starve modding – some might say it's even more practical than Klei's original Adobe Flash workflow!
Salute to your work.