Can't sync Mixamo animation with Nav Mesh Agent NPC character

Getting Started
1

Hi,
My goal is to create an NPC character that turns and walks to a specified position. I’ve downloaded the Mixamo idle and walking animations and created a simple animator controller. When I run it, the NPC walks perfectly (flat on the ground and no sliding).

Now, I want to get it to turn and walk towards a specified position. Here’s what I tried:

  • Created a NavMesh surface on my plane (there are no obstacles).
  • Added a Nav Mesh Agent to my character.
  • Disabled Apply Root Motion on the animator controller.
  • Wrote a simple script:
void MoveToTarget()
    {
        agent.SetDestination(target.position);
        agent.isStopped = false;
    }

    // Update is called once per frame
    void Update()
    {
        if (target)
        {
            MoveToTarget();
        }
    }

Now, the character floats above the nav mesh and slides along the ground as the animation walking is not in-sync with the character movement.

Questions
Why is it floating?
Is this the best approach to get what I want?
Should I even be using a nav mesh at all, or could this be done with a character controller script?

Thanks for your time.

2

I think I have it basically working. I changed it to not use nav mesh and then did the movement as follows:
var step = _speed * Time.deltaTime; // calculate distance to move
transform.position = Vector3.MoveTowards(transform.position, _target.position, step);