# Preserve Limb Placement

The **Preserve Limb Placement** node captures selected three-bone limbs, executes the first output pin, then restores that placement and executes **Completed**. Use it when other nodes need to move the torso, shoulders, hips, or weapon setup, but a hand or foot still needs to come back to a handle, holster, reload point, or planted spot.

![Preserve Limb Placement node](_media/preserve-limb-placement-node.png ':size=1200')

![Preserve Limb Placement comparison](_media/preserve-limb-placement-comparison.mp4 ':include :type=video autoplay loop muted playsinline')

In the setup shown above, **Aim Chain** is free to make the character look up and down, but the reload hand can still come back to the hip instead of clipping into the body when looking down or grabbing the air when looking up.

## Usage

1. Add the **Preserve Limb Placement** node before the part of the graph that may disturb the contact you care about.
2. Fill **Limb Placement** for the limb(s) you want to presereve.
3. Connect the node or nodes that should run before the restore to the first output pin. In the screenshot, that is **Aim Chain**. These nodes are effectively "inside" the **Preserve Limb Placement** node.

> If the thing you want to keep stable is a single transform instead of a full arm or leg, use [Preserve Item Placement](preserve-item-placement.md) instead.

## Quick Setup

When you place the node, FocalRig generates any [Quick Setups](quick-setups.md) it can detect for the current hierarchy and auto-applies the first one. If another preset fits your rig better, right-click the node and choose it from the Quick Setup dropdown.

<details>
<summary>How detection works</summary>

Quick Setup offers presets for common arm and leg chains:

- **Arms**: names resembling `upperarm` / `upper_arm` / `shoulder` / `humerus` → `lowerarm` / `lower_arm` / `forearm` / `elbow` / `radius` / `ulna` → `hand` / `wrist`
- **Legs**: names resembling `thigh` / `upperleg` / `upper_leg` / `femur` → `calf` / `lowerleg` / `lower_leg` / `tibia` / `knee` / `shin` → `foot` / `ankle`

Each preset fills one limb entry in **Limb Placement** using **Keep In Place** mode as a starting point. If your rig uses different naming or a different topology, configure the node manually.

</details>

## Input Pins

| Pin | Type | Description |
|-----|------|-------------|
| Limb Placement | [Limb Adjustment Settings](limb-adjustment.md) | Which arms or legs to preserve, and how they should be restored after the first output pin runs |
| Debug | [Debug Settings](#debug-draw) | Whether to draw the saved limb, restored limb, and twist guides |
| Weight | float | How strongly to apply the restore solve after the first output pin runs (0.0 = no effect, 1.0 = full effect) |

## Limb Placement

**Limb Placement** uses the same [Limb Adjustment Settings](limb-adjustment.md) shape as other FocalRig limb-preservation features.

| Mode | Use when |
|------|----------|
| **Disabled** | This limb is unaffected. |
| **Keep In Place** | The hand or foot should stay where it was in <span class="fr-term" tabindex="0" data-tooltip-key="global-space">global space</span> when the node first ran. Use this to (e.g.,) keep feet where they are in the input animation even if the pelvis moves/rotates. |
| **Keep In Place Relative To Reference Element** | The hand or foot should stay fixed relative to a moving element such as a holster, handle, or magazine point. Use this to e.g. make a hand go to the same spot on the hip during a reload animation, regardless of the whole body moving procedurally. |
| **Pin To Reference Element** | The hand or foot should be pulled directly onto the reference element. Use this to (e.g.,) pin feet to their ik targets. |

## Debug Draw

Debug draw is identical to [Adjust Three Bone Chain](adjust-three-bone-chain.md?id=debug-draw).