I created a figure, and I have made some bones for him. I have been working though things like bone placement, and tweaking joint parameters o.k. I want to make him crouch though, and I'm not sure about how to do that. Is it time to set up IK chains? Bonus question! Also, how do the two joint parameters work for twistx? I've been able to do what I want (for the most part), but I really don't understand what I'm setting. Thanks all. (BTW, I just noticed that his thumbs got whacked out when I twisted his hands. :)

To crouch (without IK), bend the thighs upward, shins down, then lower the figure by selecting the hip and translating it downward along the Y axis until the feet contact the floor.

Is it time to set up IK chains? Yes, I'd say so. IK chains are created within Poser's Hierarchy Editor. Scroll down to the bottom of the hierarchy list and select the element that says "IK Chains"; the "Create IK Chain" button will now become active, and you can click it to create a new chain. Give the chain a logical name like "Left Leg". Once you've created a new chain in the hierarchy list, you can drag-and-drop body-parts onto it. Start with the top of the chain (thigh or buttock) and gradually work your way down to the end of the chain (the foot).

The area between the small red line and the small green line in twist is the area that will twist, so in the picture the shoulder of the figure twists and it also affects the collar a small amount too, to make the twisting more natural. The thumbs problem could be caused by the settings for twist in the forearm to be wrong and extending out to the hands, so when you twist the forearm it twists the hands, too.