Here is the art workflow I developed through painstaking trial and error with the help of online tutorials and lessons at the Art Institutes of Austin.

The programs I use are:

1) Autodesk 3Ds Max

2) zBrush

3) Headus UV Layout

4) xNormal

5) Quixel (dDo and 3do)

6) Marmoset toolbag

SCULPTING AND MODELING

If the project is a hard surface asset, I almost always start off with making primitives in 3Ds Max which I then apply a quick turbo-smooth modifier to get a high poly model. That is, after I've set each polygon face to the correct smoothing group before hand, otherwise turbo-smooth will make a mess.

If the project is an organic asset like for instance, a character, I start off by sculpting in zBrush first, then after I'm happy with the details, I retopologize the sculpt using zSpheres. The purpose of retopologizing is to get a low poly model, which is ultimately what will be in game.

The goal of the first part of the workflow is to achieve a "Low Poly" model and a "High Poly" model. Both models must be in the same exact spot in the "world," which is to say their location in any modeling application must be the same. I usually import both models into the same program and then export both after making sure both models are directly on top of each other, just to be safe.

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UNWRAPPING AND BAKING MAPS

The next step is unwrapping the low poly model, and Headus UV Layout is the perfect tool for the job. There are easy to understand tutorials on youtube which walks you through the hotkeys and interface of the program. With Headus, UVs will be laid out and flattened evenly very quickly and painlessly. I usually organize the UV shells in Max after I've flattened (relaxed) the UV skins.

Once the UVs are completed, its time to move onto xNormal for map baking. The end game here is to create impressive and realistic textures using Quixel Suite dDo, and dDo requires a few maps to work properly.

The maps are:

1) Material ID map (Lets dDo differentiate between separate materials)

2) Normal map

3) Object-space normal map (Tells dDo what is up and what is down on your model, for example, dDo has a snow texture that it applies on top of objects as if it has been snowing. Object-space normal maps lets dDo know where to place the snow so that it makes sense)

4) Ambient Occlusion map (Shadows in cracks and crevices)

You can bake all of these maps in xNormal, but I usually bake material ID maps straight from 3Ds Max, which I will elaborate later.

After firing up xNormal, load in your High Poly and Low Poly models in their corresponding tabs located on the right of the interface. Once loaded correctly, in the baking tab, make sure all the settings are desirable (map resolution, save location, edge buffering, etc.).

On the bottom of the baking tab, there will be a list of maps to select from. We will need 3 maps, the normal map, object-space normal map, and the ambient occlusion map.

The way you bake out the Object-space normal map is by selecting the "..." option box on the right of the normal map selection, and un-checking the tangent box. Leaving it checked will give you the regular normal map, un-checking will give you the object-space.

On occasion, xNormal will bake out incorrect or just slightly messed up maps, which sometimes means that the cage xNormal is using to project the high poly onto the low poly is just wrong. When I deem the map low quality for this reason, I make my own cage from 3Ds Max and import it into xNormal as a custom cage for xNormal to use. The process is simple, in 3Ds Max, select your low poly model and put a "push" modifier on it. Increase the numerical value on it until the low poly model fully encompasses the high poly model, that means that the cage will successfully catch the entire high poly detail which is crucial.

Moving onto the Material ID map, the way I bake mine is through 3Ds Max using Render To Texture. The hotkey for this menu is 0, and you have to make sure the model is selected. If you have multiple subtools or objects, they must all be attached into one object.

Inside the material editor, there is a material for multi-sub object material assignment, which can be linked to multiple standard materials. Attach as many standard materials to it as you desire, as many as there are different materials on your model. (one for rubber, one for metal, one for plastic, etc.). For each standard material, MAKE SURE that each one has a different diffuse color to it so that you can discern each material ID.

Assign the appropriate poly faces on the low poly to the correct material ID. Your model will look ridiculous with all the colors on it, but that is how its supposed to look. After the faces are correctly assigned, head back to the Render To Texture menu. Have the low poly model selected, scroll down, fill out the desired settings and add a diffuse map at the correct resolution. Render it out to a easy to find location and congrats, you've got your material ID easily made. It took me a while to figure this one out as I couldn't find much of a tutorial on this.

At this point, you should have all the required maps: Material ID, Normal, Object-space Normal, and Ambient Occlusion maps.

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TEXTURING

I won't go into detail on how to make an amazing looking textured asset, as I am still perfecting my own skills and techniques, however I can get you started.

To use Quixel dDo, you must have the following:

1) Low poly model (exported with the Triangulated settings on, if it is not triangulated, 3Do will display something horrendous which nobody wants to see. Experiment with it and see what I'm talking about.)

2) Material ID map

3) Normal Map

4) Object-space Normal Map

5) Ambient Occlusion Map

Once you click on the dDo icon, and loaded in the corresponding files, hit Create Base, and Quixel will get started on creating your textures. When its done, dDo will alert you, and you can click on 3Do to check out a live-render preview of your model with all the maps slapped onto it. If all went well, it should look quite spiffy.

From here, experiment with all the amazing materials Quixel has to offer. Mix all different types of materials using the dynamic masking system that is built into it to really pull out those textures.

As a future edit, I will add screenshots of my process and an end result which hopefully will support my workflow's effectiveness.