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Complete user workflow reference

Sculpt Mesh Help

Sculpt Mesh combines sculpting, texture painting, masks, SculptGroups, layers, mirroring, profiles, surface snapshots, multires workflows, remeshing and retopology, mesh-library booleans, projection, texture displacement and map baking around the Sculpt Mesh workflow in 3ds Max.

3Ds Max Sculpt Plugin Online Activation Contact: ml.tools@outlook.com

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Overview

The floating Sculpt Mesh UI is split into a left mode toolbar, a bottom palette and a stack of right-side rollouts. Object-level topology, deformation, displacement and baking operations live in the standard Modify panel.

Sculpt

Choose from 24 sculpt brushes for form building, polishing, cutting, cloth, pose, tube creation, displacement, smoothing and mesh-density work.

Paint

Paint through six Paint tools, layered blending, image import, adjustments, stencils, alphas and stroke modes.

Mask & SculptGroups

Paint, select, blur, grow, shrink, invert and clear masks, then turn masked regions into SculptGroups or use group visibility gestures.

Mesh workflows

Remesh or retopologize, run one-shot deformers and repair tools, place Mesh Library assets, project detail, apply displacement maps and bake Multires maps.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Installation

Install the plugin

C:\Program Files\Autodesk\3ds Max <release>\Plugins\ └─ <matching Sculpt Mesh .dlm>

Close 3ds Max.
Copy the matching Sculpt Mesh .dlm into the 3ds Max Plugins folder.
Start 3ds Max.

Create a Sculpt Mesh object

Select the polygon object you want to sculpt, then convert it to a Sculpt Mesh object using the supplied command or MacroScript.

convertToSculpt $

macroScript Convert_To_Sculpt_Mesh category:"MLtools" tooltip:"Convert to Sculpt Mesh" buttontext:"Convert to Sculpt Mesh" ( for o in selection do ( convertToSculpt o) max create mode max modify mode forceCompleteRedraw() )

Important: For a better experience, sculpting and painting are designed to run on a Sculpt Mesh object and not as modifier.
Set the viewport to run on Standard and not on High Quality mode.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

License

The License rollout contains the current license status, Email and Key fields, online actions and offline import tools.

Control	Purpose
Status	Shows the current activation state.
Email / Key	Enter the credentials supplied for the license.
Activate	Activates using the entered credentials while online.
Deactivate	Releases the activation so it can be used on another computer.
Copy Computer ID	Copies the current computer identifier for an offline request.
Import	Imports an offline `.lic` file.
Request License	Opens the license request page.

Moving to another computer: deactivate on the current computer first, then activate on the new one with the same credentials.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Quick Start

quick-start documentation layout.

1. Convert

Select a polygon object and convert it to Sculpt Mesh.

2. Open the UI

Use Open Sculpt Mesh Menus from Multires if the floating UI is closed.

3. Pick Sculpt or Paint

Use the Sculpt/Paint flyout on the left toolbar.

4. Choose a palette item

Pick a sculpt brush, Paint tool, alpha or a Mesh Library asset from the bottom palette.

5. Work in the viewport

Use the brush, gestures and shortcuts described below. Hold Space for the Quick Menu.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Interface Map

The current UI uses the following rollout order and palette structure.

interface overview in the new dark documentation style.

Area	Current contents
Right-side floating rollouts	Brush Settings, Material / Paint, Mask, Mirror, Profile, Surface Snapshot, Layers. Brush Settings and Layers open expanded.
Modify panel rollouts	Multires, Remesh, Deformers / Tools, Displace, Bake Maps, License.
Bottom palette tabs	Sculpting, Paint, Alphas, Meshes.
Left mode toolbar	Select; Sculpt/Paint flyout; Mask flyout; Stroke Mode flyout; active alpha preview.

Palette behavior: Sculpting and Paint items can be reordered by drag-and-drop. The mouse wheel scrolls the palette horizontally. Keys 1–5 always follow the first five visible slots of the active Sculpting or Paint palette.

Sculpt Mesh full interface overview — Main Sculpt Mesh workspace with left toolbar, bottom tool strip, right-side rollouts and Modify panel.

Second Sculpt Mesh workspace overview — Alternative UI overview showing the tool strip, paint panel and command-panel integration.

Libraries: the Alphas and Meshes pages each have their own folder/category controls and Favorites list. Their library state is remembered between sessions.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Toolbar & Palettes

sculpt workspace and tool palette.

Left toolbar

Slot	Contents
1 — Select	Returns to object selection.
2 — Sculpt / Paint	Switches the persistent working mode between Sculpt and Paint.
3 — Mask	Choose Paint Mask, Rectangle or Lasso.
4 — Stroke Mode	Choose Draw, Stamp, Drag, Color Mix or Scatter. Color Mix is Paint-only; selecting it switches to Paint.
5 — Alpha preview	Shows the active alpha. If none is selected, the preview reports that no alpha texture is selected.

Sculpting palette

Sculpt, Clay, Clay Buildup, Carve, Knife, Contrast, Scrape, Density, Revert, Face groups, Clip, Cutter, Slice, Snake Hook, Cloth, Pose, Curve Tube, Move, Polish, Pinch, Inflate, Displace, Smooth, Smooth SG Border.

Paint palette

Paint, Smudge, Fill, Blur, Erase, Gradient.

Alphas palette

Starts with No Alpha and the four built-in alphas, then adds a custom library with categories and Favorites. Right-click a custom alpha to use it as an Alpha, Stencil or Displacement map.

Meshes palette

The Meshes page is the Mesh Library: choose a library folder, browse sub-folder categories or Favorites, save selected scene objects as reusable assets and arm an asset for surface placement.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Brush Settings

The rollout changes with the active brush, Paint tool, Stroke Mode and alpha. Only controls that apply to the current context are shown.

brush settings workspace.

Context	Controls
Sculpt direction	Add and Sub define the base direction for supported signed sculpt brushes. `Alt` temporarily flips that direction. For `Ctrl`+`Alt` straight-line strokes, the selected Add/Sub state is used because Alt belongs to the straight-line chord.
Common	Brush Size, Stroke Spacing, Use Falloff, Follow Path, Lazy Mouse and its amount, plus Backface Cull.
Backface Cull	Is remembered per brush. Move starts with it off so geometry inside the brush radius can be grabbed even when the brush center is beside the visible surface.
Sculpt	Brush Strength plus any brush-specific controls listed below.
Paint	Opacity and Hardness. Brush Strength is not shown in Paint. Blur Strength appears while the Blur Paint tool is active.
Active alpha	Alpha Mid and Alpha Fade appear when an alpha is active where supported.
Clay	Border controls the Clay brush border profile.
Polish	Polish Hardness.
Move	AccuCurve.
Sculpt / Displace brush	Layer Mode. When enabled, a stroke settles toward one height so overlapping parts of the same stroke do not keep building. When disabled, repeated passes in the same stroke continue to accumulate.
Scrape	Use Original Plane and Use Original Normal.
Cloth	Cloth Iterations, Cloth Damping, Cloth Plasticity, Cloth Bendiness, Fold Size, Fold Strength, Bend Stiffness, Simulation Area, Move Strength, Gravity, Pressure and Pin Boundary.
Pose	Deformation, Rotation Origins, Pose Origin Offset, Smooth Iterations, Pose IK Segments, Keep Anchor Point and Connected Only.
Curve Tube	Tube Sides, Point Spacing, Surface Offset and Pick Section Shape. A picked closed spline becomes the cross-section; edits to that shape update the live tube. Tube Sides is ignored while a section shape is in use.
Scatter Stroke Mode	Scatter Density, Scatter Radius, Size Jitter and Amount Jitter. In Paint, Color Jitter A/B is also available. Amount Jitter varies strength in Sculpt and opacity in Paint.
Displace brush	Height Mid sets the neutral stencil height and Displace Fade controls the radial transition. `Alt` reverses the displacement.

Curve Tube section picking: click Pick Section Shape, then pick a closed spline. Click the pick button again, use RMB, or press Esc to cancel the picker. The clear button beside it removes the selected shape.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Material / Paint

This rollout controls material preview, paint texture source, colors, saving and stencil use.

Control	What it does
Use Sculpt Material Preview	Toggles the sculpt material preview.
Paint Source	Choose Generated Texture or Existing Diffuse Texture. Generated Texture exposes a resolution selector.
Color A / Color B	Primary and secondary paint colors. Color B is used by Gradient, Color Mix and Paint Scatter color variation.
Swap	Swaps Color A and Color B.
Save	Saves the current paint texture to its existing path.
Save As	Saves to a new image file.
Replace Texture	Loads another texture into the paint workflow.
Restore Material	Restores the original material setup.
Load Stencil	Loads an image for stencil-based painting or displacement.
Stencil opacity	Adjusts stencil visibility from 5% to 100%.
Stencil reset / refresh	Restores the stencil transform.
Delete stencil	Removes the active stencil.

Stencil images accept common image formats including PNG, JPG, TIFF, BMP, PSD and EXR.

Stencil transform: hold S. While held, LMB rotates, RMB scales and MMB moves the stencil.

Stencil loaded over surface — Stencil positioned over the sculpt surface.

Animated flower stencil example — Stencil transform workflow example.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Mask

The Mask rollout combines automatic mask generation, cleanup commands, overlay controls and SculptGroup generation. Backface Cull is now in Brush Settings because it affects sculpt, paint and mask brushes.

mask workflow.

Control	Purpose
Mask by Cavity + Coverage	Builds a mask from cavities and adjusts how broadly the effect spreads.
Mask by AO + Coverage	Builds a mask from occluded areas and adjusts its coverage.
Blur Mask	Softens mask transitions.
Sharpen Mask	Hardens mask transitions.
Grow Mask	Expands the masked area.
Shrink Mask	Contracts the masked area.
Clear Mask	Removes the mask.
Invert Mask	Swaps masked and unmasked areas.
Show Mask	Shows or hides the mask overlay.
Show SculptGroups	Shows or hides SculptGroup coloring.
Auto Groups mode	Choose Curvature, Angle, Smooth Groups, UV Islands, Material IDs or Elements.
Auto Groups	Builds SculptGroups using the selected mode.

Direct Paint Mask double-click: with Paint Mask selected directly, double-click the mesh to blur the mask locally. Two quick clicks at nearly the same point are treated the same way.

Animated mask painting example — Mask painting and gesture example.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Mirror

Mirror can repeat supported sculpt and paint actions across object axes and around a radial arrangement.

Control	Purpose
Mirror Axis X / Y / Z	Enable one or more axis mirrors.
Radial Mirror	Enables radial repetition.
Radial count	Sets the number of radial copies from 2 to 32.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Profile

Profile supplies a custom falloff curve for Curve Tube or the active SculptGroup.

Profile rollout with editable curve, target and mapping controls.

Control	Purpose
Use Profile	Enables profile shaping.
Apply to	Choose Curve Tube or Active Sculpt Group.
Mapping	Curve Length, Local X, Local Y or Local Z. Curve Tube naturally selects Curve Length; Active Sculpt Group naturally selects Local Z.
Reset Profile	Restores the default curve.

Profile editor controls

Input	Action
`LMB` on empty graph	Add a point.
`LMB` drag point or tangent	Move the point or its Bezier handle.
`Alt` + `LMB` point	Delete an interior point.
`RMB` point	Choose Bezier, Bezier Corner, Smooth or Linear.
`RMB` empty graph	Open Reset View / Reset Profile.
Mouse wheel	Zoom. Hold `Ctrl` or `Shift` to constrain the zoom to one axis.
`MMB` drag	Pan the graph.
`MMB` double-click	Reset the graph view.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Surface Snapshot

Capture a reference surface for the Revert brush.

Control	Purpose
Capture Surface	Stores the current surface at the active Multires level.
Clear	Removes the captured reference.
Status	Shows whether a surface is captured and, when available, the captured level and vertex count.

Revert brush: moves the brushed area toward the captured Surface Snapshot at the current Multires level.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Layers

The Layers rollout has separate Sculpt and Paint stacks. Clicking either tab also routes Sculpt Mesh into that working mode.

sculpt layers workflow.

Sculpt Layers panel — Sculpt Layers view.

Paint Layers panel — Paint Layers view with blend mode selection and paint-layer adjustment controls.

Layer actions

New Layer · Delete Layer · Clear Layer · Clear All Layers · Move Layer Up · Move Layer Down · Bake All

Stack	Available controls
Sculpt	Name, Layer Enabled and Strength. The midpoint of Strength is normal 1× intensity; the right half boosts the layer progressively up to 5×.
Paint	Name, Layer Enabled, Opacity and Blend mode: Normal, Multiply, Screen, Overlay, Add or Subtract.

Paint layer adjustments

Paint layers add three live-preview adjustment dialogs with OK and Cancel:

Hue / Saturation / Luminosity — Hue from −180 to 180; Saturation and Luminosity from −100 to 100.
Brightness / Contrast — both from −100 to 100.
Levels — Input Black, Gamma, Input White, Output Black and Output White.

Import Texture: right-click a Paint layer and choose Import Texture… to replace that layer’s pixels while keeping its opacity and blend mode. Supported choices include PNG, JPG, TIFF, BMP, TGA, PSD, EXR and HDR.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Multires

Control	Purpose
Open Sculpt Mesh Menus / Close Sculpt Mesh Menus	Opens or closes the floating Sculpt Mesh UI.
Reverse Subdivision	Reconstructs one lower quad level per click.
Del Lower	Deletes levels below the current one and makes the current level the new base.
Del Higher	Deletes all levels above the current one.
Level	Moves between the available Multires levels.
Subdivide Level	Adds a higher subdivision level. The Multires stack supports levels up to level 6.
Use Materials ID	Uses material-ID boundaries when generating a new level where applicable.
Use Smoothing Groups	Uses smoothing-group boundaries when generating a new level where applicable.
Autosmooth + angle	When enabled, applies Auto Smooth to the evaluated mesh using the angle at the right. When disabled, smoothing groups are removed for a faceted result. The same angle is also used by automatic smoothing after Cutter, Slice and Mesh Library operations.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Remesh

The Remesh rollout contains two topology-rebuild paths: voxel remeshing and quad retopology. Both are geometry-changing operations and replace the working topology.

remeshing workflow.

Control	Purpose
Voxelize Mesh	Rebuilds the current sculpt as a voxelized mesh.
Voxel resolution	Sets Voxelize resolution from 64 to 1024.
Retopology	Quad-remeshes the current sculpt with the 3ds Max Retopology engine (ReForm) on a hidden temporary copy. The resulting topology replaces the current one; sculpt layers and masks are reset.
Ctrl + Retopology	Runs Retopology using the Instant Meshes engine instead of ReForm.
Target face count	Sets the quad target from 100 to 1,000,000 faces. The slider is logarithmic; the value box accepts an exact target.
Progress	Shared progress indicator for Voxelize and Retopology.

Voxelize availability: Voxelize Mesh requires 3ds Max 2024 or newer. When that support is not available, the Voxelize button is disabled; Retopology remains a separate operation.

Animated Voxelize example — Voxelize workflow example.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Deformers / Tools

This rollout combines stroke replay, repair/topology tools, mask-based separation, one-shot deformations, bevel and projection.

Modifiers rollout with Repeat Last Stroke, Smooth Surface, Gravity and FOV.

Control	What it does
Repeat Last Stroke + count	Repeats the deformation from the most recent compatible sculpt stroke on the current Multires level. The soft mask is respected. The count applies the stroke 1–100 times per click and groups the repeats into one undo step.
Close Holes	Repairs the current-level mesh by welding coincident vertices, removing degenerate/non-manifold faces, loose debris and isolated vertices, then filling open borders and remeshing the new patches toward the surrounding density. The result becomes Level 0. One undo step.
Extract	Copies masked faces to a new, separate Sculpt Mesh while leaving the source unchanged.
Attach	Pick another object in a viewport. It is merged into the sculpt with Boolean Union; non-touching geometry is simply combined. The picked object is deleted and the result becomes Level 0. `RMB` cancels the pick.
Detach	Moves masked faces to a new, separate Sculpt Mesh. The source keeps the rest; its sculpt layers, mask and groups are reset after the topology change.
Smooth Surface	One-shot whole-surface Relax from 0 to 10. The current soft mask is respected; after processing the control returns to 0.
Thickness	One-shot Shell from −50% to +50% of object size. It closes open borders; positive values grow behind the surface and negative values grow in front. The control returns to 0.
Gravity	ZBrush-style global gravity deformation. Positive values pull progressively toward world −Z; negative values reverse the direction. The soft mask protects geometry.
FOV	Perspective-foreshortening deformation aligned to the active viewport. Positive and negative values reverse the taper direction. The soft mask protects geometry.
Bevel + Round / Chamfer	One-shot bevel of hard edges (faces meeting at more than 30°). Width is 0–5% of object size on each face. Round makes a fillet; Chamfer makes a flat profile. It moves existing vertices rather than adding topology, and the soft mask protects geometry.
Projection — Pick Mesh	Pick a source mesh and project its detail into the sculpt level by level, from Level 0 to the highest Multires level. Masked areas are protected. `RMB` cancels the pick.
Projection distance	Search distance along the normals, from 0.01% to 100% of sculpt size. Larger values reach farther shapes; smaller values reduce jumps to nearby surfaces.

Geometry-changing tools: Close Holes, Attach and Detach rebuild or replace topology. Finish important layer/mask decisions before using them.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Displace

The Displace rollout applies an image as non-destructive displacement stored in its own Displace sculpt layer. It is separate from the Displace sculpt brush.

Control	Purpose
Map / …	Loads a displacement image. You can also right-click a custom alpha in the Alphas library and choose Use as Displacement.
Mapping	UV Channel 1 or Triplanar.
Strength	Displacement height in object units. Negative values push inward.
Water Level	Offsets the neutral map value around mid gray: the map value that stays on the surface is `0.5 + Water Level`.
Blur (px)	Blurs the source map in map pixels before displacement.
Contrast	Contrast around mid gray; 1 leaves contrast unchanged.
Tile U / Tile V	Repeats the map along U and V.
Offset U / Offset V	Shifts the map along U and V.
Live Update	After the first Apply has created the Displace layer, changing a setting automatically recomputes it after a short debounce.
Apply	Writes displacement into the Displace layer on the highest Multires level. Re-applying replaces that layer result; it does not accumulate repeated displacement.
Remove	Deletes the Displace layer.

Detail tip: subdivide before applying a high-frequency displacement map. The rollout writes its result on the highest Multires level, so more vertices allow finer detail.

Supported map choices include PNG, JPG/JPEG, TIF/TIFF, BMP, TGA, EXR and PSD.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Bake Maps

Bake Maps treats Level 0 as the low-poly mesh and the highest Multires level as the high-poly source. Baking uses UV channel 1.

bake maps workflow.

Control	Purpose
Auto Unwrap	Creates UV channel 1 on Level 0 without adding an Unwrap UVW modifier. It uses hard-edge/smoothing boundaries as seams, adds cuts where shells cannot flatten cleanly, and packs the resulting islands into 0–1. The Multires stack and baker use these UVs. One undo step.
Output (base name)	Base file name for all baked maps. The typed extension is ignored; maps are written next to it with map-type suffixes.
Size	512, 1024, 2048, 4096 or 8192 pixels.
Format	PNG, TGA, JPG or BMP for Normal, Curvature and AO. These are 8-bit RGB outputs. Displacement is always 32-bit float EXR.
Tangent basis	Level 0 targets the low-poly mesh as-is. Subdivided targets Level 0 when it will be subdivided at render time.
Normal Map	Tangent-space normal map using green −Y, matching DirectX / 3ds Max convention.
Displacement (EXR 32-bit)	Scalar displacement in object units relative to Level 0 subdivided to the highest level. The neutral mid level is 0.
Curvature + Contrast	Bakes curvature; Contrast 1 is the default response.
Ambient Occlusion	Bakes AO. Distance % limits the search as a percentage of object size; Rays sets samples per high-level vertex from 4 to 512.
Padding (px)	Expands pixels around UV-island edges from 0 to 128 px.
Bake Maps	Runs the selected maps and shows progress. The result dialog includes Open Folder.

Output names: the selected base name is written as <name>_normal, <name>_curvature and <name>_ao in the selected image format, plus <name>_displacement.exr when displacement is enabled.

UV requirement: if channel 1 does not cover the 0–1 texture space, baking can produce no result. Use Auto Unwrap or provide valid Level 0 UVs before baking.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Sculpt Brushes

The Sculpting palette contains the brushes below. Alt commonly reverses the main effect where listed. Shift is temporary Smooth for ordinary sculpt brushes, but some specialized tools use Shift for their own gesture.

sculpt brush workflow.

Brush	Use and special interaction
Sculpt	General-purpose height and volume sculpting. `Alt` reverses the direction. Supports Layer Mode.
Clay	Builds broad clay-like volume against a local working plane. `Alt` reverses the build direction.
Clay Buildup	Builds stronger, more defined clay strokes. `Alt` reverses the effect.
Carve	Cuts a groove into the surface; `Alt` raises instead.
Knife	Sharp fracture/chip brush for hard cuts. Normal strokes cut inward; `Alt` raises outward.
Contrast	Pushes local surface contrast and detail; `Alt` reverses the operation.
Scrape	Shaves high points toward a plane. `Alt` fills lower areas. Brush Settings adds Original Plane and Original Normal options.
Density	Adds local mesh density while sculpting; `Alt` reduces it. The mesh structure updates when the stroke ends, so treat this as a geometry-changing operation.
Revert	Moves the brushed area toward the captured Surface Snapshot at the current Multires level.
Face groups	Normal stroke creates a new SculptGroup. `Shift` reuses/extends the group under the first dab. `Alt` returns faces to SculptGroup 0.
Clip	Screen-space clip/flatten gesture. Drag for a line; `Alt`+drag for a free curve; `Ctrl`+drag for a rectangle; `Shift`+drag for a circle. With rectangle/circle, add `Alt` to invert the affected side. Hold `Space` during the gesture to pan the preview.
Cutter	Removes geometry using a screen-space cut region. Drag for a line; `Ctrl`+drag for a rectangle; `Shift`+drag for a circle; `Alt` reverses the removed side. Hold `Space` to pan the preview.
Slice	Cuts through the surface along a straight screen-space line and separates the result into two parts. Hold `Space` to pan the preview before release.
Snake Hook	Pulls a region outward along the drag path for long hook-like forms.
Cloth	Deforms the surface with cloth behavior driven by the Cloth settings. `Alt` applies the shrink-style secondary action; `Shift` temporarily Smooths.
Pose	First drag defines pivot A and handle B. Later drags rotate around A while B follows the new handle position. `RMB` clears the hinge guides. Pose behavior is further controlled by the Pose settings.
Curve Tube	`LMB` creates or edits a live tube. `Ctrl`+`LMB` starts on a camera-facing plane through the first surface hit. `Shift`+`LMB` relaxes control points. `Ctrl`+`Alt`+`LMB` drag near a tube end tapers that end. `RMB` commits; `Esc` cancels the live preview.
Move	Grabs and moves a surface region. The drag can continue away from the surface, and Move can also start with the brush center beside the mesh as long as geometry falls inside the brush radius. AccuCurve is available in Brush Settings.
Polish	Polishes toward a cleaner plane. `Alt` fills low areas. Polish Hardness is available in Brush Settings.
Pinch	Pulls points toward the brush center. `Alt` spreads them away.
Inflate	Expands the surface along its normal direction. `Alt` dents inward.
Displace	Uses the active Stencil as height over existing surface detail. Height Mid sets neutral height; Displace Fade controls the edge transition; `Alt` reverses. Supports Layer Mode.
Smooth	Relaxes and smooths the brushed surface.
Smooth SG Border	Smooths only borders between SculptGroups.

Animated cloth brush example — Cloth brush example.

Second animated cloth brush example — Second cloth brush example.

Animated pose brush example — Pose brush example.

Animated Density Brush example — **Density Brush** example.

Animated Reduce Brush example — **Reduce** — the reverse of Density; reduces local topology density.

Animated Clipper Brush example — **Clipper Brush** example.

Animated Cutter Brush example — **Cutter Brush** example.

Second animated Cutter Brush example — **Cutter Brush** — second example.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Paint Tools

Paint tools are the six items in the Paint palette. They are separate from Stroke Modes.

Tool	Behavior
Paint	Paints Color A into the active Paint layer. `Alt` temporarily erases where supported.
Smudge	Smears existing color along the stroke direction.
Fill	Fills the active Paint layer with the current Color A.
Blur	Blurs the active Paint layer under the brush. Brush Settings exposes Blur Strength.
Erase	Erases the active Paint layer toward transparency.
Gradient	Drag across the surface to create a Color A → Color B gradient.

Temporary Blur: while using ordinary Paint tools, hold Shift to use Blur temporarily.

Animated paint draw example — Paint workflow example.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Stroke Modes

Stroke Modes change how the current Sculpt brush or Paint tool places its effect. They are selected from the fourth slot of the left toolbar.

Mode	Behavior
Draw	Standard freehand stroke.
Stamp	Places one dab per click at the cursor.
Drag	Click-drag to place and size the brush/alpha in screen space before applying it.
Color Mix	Paint-only mode that mixes between Color A and Color B. Selecting it switches to Paint.
Scatter	Places scattered dabs around the stroke. Works in Sculpt and Paint and reveals Scatter controls in Brush Settings.

Animated stamp mode example — Stamp mode example.

Animated drag mode example — Drag mode example.

Animated color mix example — Color Mix example.

Animated scatter mode example — Scatter example.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Alphas

Use the Alphas page to switch between no alpha, built-in shapes and a categorized custom alpha library.

No Alpha removes the active alpha.
Built-in Alpha 1–4 are available immediately.
Browse Library selects a root folder. Its sub-folders become categories; images in the root appear as their own root category.
The category menu includes Built-in, Favorites and library sub-folders.
Up to 400 images are displayed per category in sorted order.
Click a custom alpha to use it as the current Alpha.
Right-click a custom alpha for Use as Alpha, Use as Stencil, Use as Displacement, Add/Remove Favorite and Show in Explorer.

Custom alpha images accept PNG, JPG/JPEG, TIF/TIFF, BMP, TGA, PSD and EXR.

Use as Displacement sends the image to the Modify-panel Displace rollout and applies it immediately. The number keys 1–5 still apply only to the Sculpting and Paint palettes.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Mesh Library

The Meshes palette page is a kitbash library for reusable surface-stamped assets. Assets can be stored as MAX, FBX or OBJ files and are shown with a same-name JPG thumbnail when available.

Control / input	Behavior
Library Folder	Chooses the Mesh Library root. Its sub-folders become categories.
Category / Favorites	Browses one sub-folder or the Favorites list.
Add Selected	Saves the selected scene object(s) into the active category as `.max` assets plus generated `.jpg` thumbnails. If the selected object is the Sculpt Mesh, the current sculpted mesh is saved. When Favorites is active, the asset is saved in the library root and added to Favorites.
Click asset thumbnail	Arms that asset for viewport placement. A temporary x-ray preview follows the sculpt surface and aligns its local Z axis to the surface normal.
`LMB` drag, release	Places the asset on the surface and performs Subtract.
`Alt` on release	Performs Union instead of Subtract.
`Ctrl` on release	Skips the Boolean and inserts the posed asset as a separate Sculpt Mesh object.
Hold `Shift` and move	Locks position; left/right rotates around the surface normal and up/down scales the asset.
`RMB`	Cancels placement and switches to the Select tool.
`Esc`	Cancels placement while leaving sculpt mode active.
Right-click asset	Add/Remove Favorite, Generate/Regenerate Thumbnail, Show in Explorer, or Delete. Delete moves the asset and its companion files to the Windows Recycle Bin.

Repeated stamping: after a successful release the asset stays armed, so you can place it again without returning to the palette.

Mirroring: Mesh Library Boolean placement follows the active Sculpt Mesh mirror instances. Auto Smooth after Mesh Library operations uses the angle from Multires.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Mask Tools & Gestures

The Mask flyout contains Paint Mask, Rectangle and Lasso. While Sculpt or Paint remains selected, hold Ctrl to temporarily use the last selected Mask tool.

Input	Action
Paint Mask + `LMB` drag	Paint mask directly.
Paint Mask + `Alt` + `LMB`	Erase / unmask.
Paint Mask + `LMB` double-click on mesh	Blur the mask locally.
Sculpt/Paint + `Ctrl` + `LMB` stationary click on mesh	One local Blur Mask pass using temporary Paint Mask.
Sculpt/Paint + `Ctrl` + `LMB` drag on mesh	Paint the last selected Mask tool temporarily.
Sculpt/Paint + `Ctrl` + `Alt` + `LMB`	Erase / unmask with the temporary Mask tool.
Rectangle / Lasso	Screen-space mask selection. Drag a shape over the mesh; `Alt` erases instead of adding.

Visible-mask gestures from empty viewport space

Context	Input	Action
Paint Mask selected directly	`LMB` click empty space	Toggle mask on visible geometry: if a visible mask exists it is cleared; otherwise all visible geometry is masked.
Paint Mask selected directly	`Alt` + `LMB` click empty space	Clear mask from visible geometry.
Paint Mask selected directly	`LMB` drag in empty space	Invert the mask on visible geometry.
Sculpt/Paint persistent	`Ctrl` + `LMB` click empty space	Same visible-mask toggle.
Sculpt/Paint persistent	`Ctrl` + `Alt` + `LMB` click empty space	Clear visible mask.
Sculpt/Paint persistent	`Ctrl` + `LMB` drag in empty space	Invert visible mask.

Rectangle or Lasso started in empty space behave normally if the finished shape crosses the mesh. If the shape touches nothing, the matching visible-mask shortcut is used.

SculptGroup visibility gesture

Input	Action
`Ctrl` + `Shift` + `Alt` + `LMB` click a group	Cycles the clicked group through isolate/hide visibility behavior.
Same chord + click empty space	Show all groups.
Same chord + drag in empty space	Invert visible and hidden groups.
`Ctrl` + `W`	Create a SculptGroup from the current mask.

Animated Paint Mask example — Paint Mask gesture example.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Quick Menu

The Quick Menu opens near the cursor for fast brush and paint changes.

It contains a paint color palette, Color A, Swap A/B, Color B, Brush Size, Brush Strength, Use Alpha Texture, Use Falloff, Follow Path and Backface Cull.

Input	Behavior
Hold `Space`	Opens the Quick Menu while the key is physically held. Releasing `Space` closes it.
`RMB` in an idle viewport	Also opens the Quick Menu when no active tool is using right-click for a context action.

Context exceptions: Clip/Cutter/Slice use held Space to pan their live preview, so the Quick Menu is suppressed during that gesture. Pose uses RMB to clear hinge guides. Curve Tube uses RMB to commit a pending tube.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Shortcuts

This table combines global, temporary and context-sensitive inputs. Specialized brushes and Mesh Library placement can override a general modifier when their row below says so.

Shortcut / gesture	Action
`1` – `5`	Select the first five visible slots of the active Sculpting or Paint palette. Reordering the palette immediately changes what these keys select.
`Ctrl` + `Shift` + `LMB` horizontal drag	Adjust Brush Size. Drag right to increase, left to decrease.
`Ctrl` + `Alt` + click	Straight-line continuation in eligible Sculpt brushes, normal Paint color strokes and direct Paint Mask. The end of the previous compatible stroke becomes point A; the click draws a projected A→B stroke and B becomes the next anchor. With no compatible anchor, the click establishes the first one.
`Shift` while Sculpting	Temporary Smooth for ordinary sculpt brushes. Face groups and Curve Tube use Shift for their own actions.
`Shift` while Painting	Temporary Blur.
`Ctrl` while Sculpt/Paint	Temporarily invokes the last selected Mask tool, except while specialized geometry gestures own the input.
`Ctrl` + `Alt` while temporary masking	Erase / unmask when the straight-line gesture is not active in that context.
`Alt` while Paint	Temporary erase for ordinary paint strokes.
`Alt` while Sculpt	Temporarily flips Add/Sub for signed brushes, or invokes the brush-specific secondary action where that brush owns Alt.
`W`	Move. With a usable mask, transforms the unmasked region with the mask acting as soft protection/falloff; otherwise behaves as the normal transform command.
`E`	Rotate with the same mask-aware behavior.
`R`	Uniform Scale with the same mask-aware behavior.
`Ctrl` + `W`	Create a SculptGroup from the current mask.
Hold `Space`	Quick Menu in the normal Sculpt Mesh viewport state; pan preview during Clip/Cutter/Slice gestures.
`RMB` idle viewport	Open Quick Menu. Active tools can reserve RMB for their own context action.
Hold `S` + `LMB`	Rotate Stencil.
Hold `S` + `RMB`	Scale Stencil.
Hold `S` + `MMB`	Move Stencil.
Paint Mask: `LMB` double-click mesh	Blur mask locally.
Profile: `MMB` double-click	Reset Profile graph view.
`Ctrl` + `Shift` + `Alt` + `LMB`	SculptGroup visibility gesture: click group to isolate/hide, click empty space to show all, drag empty space to invert visibility.
Curve Tube: `RMB`	Commit the pending tube.
Curve Tube: `Esc`	Cancel the live tube preview or cancel section-shape picking.
Pose: `RMB`	Clear Pose hinge guides.
Mesh Library: `LMB` release	Subtract the posed asset from the sculpt.
Mesh Library: `Alt` on release	Union the posed asset with the sculpt.
Mesh Library: `Ctrl` on release	Insert the posed asset as a separate Sculpt Mesh object without a Boolean.
Mesh Library: hold `Shift` + move	Rotate with horizontal movement and scale with vertical movement while placement position stays locked.
Mesh Library: `RMB` / `Esc`	Cancel placement. RMB also switches to Select; Esc keeps sculpt mode.
`Ctrl` + `Z`	Normal scene Undo for committed edits.

Keyboard focus: Sculpt Mesh deliberately avoids taking plain-key shortcuts while you are typing in text, list or combo fields. If palette keys or W/E/R do not respond after using another 3ds Max control, click the viewport or Sculpt Mesh UI once and try again. Or go to the modifiers stack and select the sublevel 1 (Transform). Tip: Use place working pivot.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

MaxScript

The following commands are useful for creating a Sculpt Mesh and controlling optional stroke history from scripts.

Command	Purpose
`convertToSculpt $`	Converts the current selection to Sculpt Mesh.
`SculptMesh.History = true`	Enable stroke history recording.
`SculptMesh.History = false`	Disable stroke history recording.
`SculptMesh.HistoryClear()`	Clear recorded history.
`SculptMesh.HistoryCreateAnimation()`	Create animation from the recorded sculpt history.
`SculptMesh.HistoryCount`	Return the number of recorded history entries.
`SculptMesh.HistoryMemory`	Report the memory used by the current history.

Long history sessions can use substantial memory and file space, especially around geometry-changing work. Clear history when it is no longer needed.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Workflow Notes

Reorder for hotkeys

Drag your five most-used Sculpt or Paint items into the first five visible palette slots so 1–5 match your workflow.

Use masks as soft protection

Besides brush protection, masks can drive Move, Rotate and Uniform Scale and protect Smooth, Gravity, FOV, Bevel and Projection.

Capture before Revert

The Revert brush needs a Surface Snapshot at the level you want to restore toward.

Plan topology replacements

Remesh/Retopology, Close Holes, Attach, Detach, Cutter, Slice and Mesh Library booleans can replace or restructure topology. Finish important layer/mask decisions before them.

Subdivide before displacement

The Modify-panel Displace rollout writes to the highest Multires level. Add enough subdivision first if the map contains fine detail.

Prepare Level 0 for baking

Bake Maps uses Level 0 as low poly, the highest level as high poly and UV channel 1. Use Auto Unwrap when Level 0 does not already have suitable 0–1 UVs.

Build reusable Mesh categories

Use Mesh Library sub-folders as categories, keep common assets in Favorites and generate thumbnails from the asset context menu when needed.

Sculpt Mesh Documentation

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Check
Brushes do not start	Confirm the selected object is a Sculpt Mesh, the floating menus are open and a Sculpt or Paint item is active.
`1`–`5` or `W`/`E`/`R` do nothing	Finish text entry, then click the viewport or Sculpt Mesh UI so keyboard focus returns to the plugin.
Revert does not have a target	Capture a Surface Snapshot at the current Multires level.
Curve Tube section cannot be picked	Use a closed spline. Cancel the picker with `RMB` or `Esc` and try again if needed.
Quick Menu does not open with `Space`	Check whether Clip, Cutter or Slice currently owns Space for preview panning. Also make sure Sculpt Mesh is the active viewport workflow.
`RMB` does not open Quick Menu	Some active tools reserve right-click: Pose clears hinge guides, Curve Tube commits a pending tube, and Mesh Library placement uses RMB to cancel.
Mask click does something unexpected in empty space	Empty-space mask gestures operate on visible geometry: click toggles, Alt+click clears and drag inverts. In persistent Sculpt/Paint, hold Ctrl for the same operations.
Paint layer image import is unavailable	Right-click a Paint layer, not a Sculpt layer.
Voxelize Mesh is disabled in Remesh	Voxelize requires 3ds Max 2024 or newer. Retopology is a separate path in the same rollout.
Retopology does not produce a result	Make sure the 3ds Max Retopology component is available, then retry with a reasonable target face count. `Ctrl`+click Retopology requests the Instant Meshes engine.
Detach / Extract reports no masked faces	Paint a mask on the region first. Detach also cannot remove the entire source surface; use Extract when the whole surface is masked.
Attach is waiting for input	Click another mesh in a viewport to merge it, or use `RMB` to cancel the pick.
Displace is too soft or blocky	Subdivide first. The Displace rollout writes its result to the highest Multires level, so fine maps need enough vertices.
Bake Maps writes nothing / reports invalid UV coverage	Level 0 needs valid UV channel 1 covering the 0–1 texture space. Run Auto Unwrap or supply suitable UVs, then bake again.
Mesh Library asset has no preview	Right-click it and choose Generate Thumbnail or Regenerate Thumbnail.