Introduction

Draw Mode is the mode in Grease Pencil that allows you to draw in the 3D Viewport. This mode is actually the only one in which new strokes can be created.

Already made strokes can not be selected in Draw Mode, for editing strokes you must use the Edit Mode or Sculpt Mode.

Draw Mode

3D Viewport Mode selector: Draw Mode.

Draw Mode is selected with the Mode menu in the 3D Viewport header. Once Draw Mode is activated, the Toolbar of the 3D Viewport will change to Draw Mode specific panels. Also a circle with the same color as the active material will appear and follow the location of the cursor in the 3D Viewport.

To create new strokes you have to select one of the drawing tools in the Toolbar. The most common one is the Draw tool for free-hand drawings but there are many other tools for drawing, filling areas and erasing strokes. There are also some tools to create primitives shapes like lines, arcs, curves, boxes and circles.

See Toolbar for more details.

Strokes Location and Orientation Controls

Drawing in a 3D space is not the same as drawing on a flat canvas. When drawing with Grease Pencil you have to define the location and orientation of the new strokes in the 3D space.

3D Viewport header Controls for strokes.

Stroke Placement

The Stroke Placement selector defines the new strokes location in 3D space.

See Stroke Placement for more information.

Drawing Planes

The Drawing Planes selector defines the plane (orientation) to which the new strokes will be restricted.

See Drawing Planes for more information.

Guides

Different Guides types can be activated to assist you when drawing new strokes.

See Guides for more information.

Drawing Options

General drawing options.

Draw on Back

When enabled, new strokes are drawn below of all strokes in the layer. For example when you want to paint with a fill material below line strokes on a character and they are on the same layer.

Add Weight Data

When enabled, weight data is added to new strokes according to the current vertex group and weight. If there is no vertex group selected, no weight data is added.

Useful for example in cut-out animation for adding new drawing on the same vertex group without the need to creating it afterwards.

See Weight Paint Mode for more information.

Additive Drawing

When creating new frames adding strokes with drawing tools, the strokes from the previous/active frame are include as a basis for the new one. When erasing existing strokes using Additive Drawing a new keyframe will be added.

AutoMerge

Joins new strokes with the beginning or end of previously drawn strokes in the active layer.

Multiframe

Allows to draw on several frames at the same time.

See Multiframe for more information.