Standing against a boulder, the camera can be about 22 cm from the rock while the pickaxe’s head reaches up to 149 cm away mid-swing. So the tool was drawn inside the rock, which is one of the quickest ways for a first-person game to feel fake.
The fix pulls a held item’s depth toward the camera whenever a surface is in front of it, every frame. Because the item is pulled straight along the line of sight, it keeps the same size and position on screen; it simply stops being drawn behind the rock. When the player steps back, it relaxes to normal.
In an offline test of every pose, visible clipping went from up to 129 cm to none across 257,849 cases. Those numbers come from simulation rather than engine captures, and grass or leaves can still cover the item. The rule applies to any held item, not only the pickaxe.
