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Any material can be turned into a Multi-Material (Pro feature) to facilitate non-destructive material swapping, variations or color studies. The Multi-Material allows you to cycle through a variety of materials within a single “container” material.
Converting to a Multi-Material
You can convert a material into a multi material in different ways:
- When editing a material select the three-arrow Multi-Material icon
above the Material Type drop-down to convert a single material to a Multi-Material. - Right click an item, with the relevant material, in the Real-Time View and select convert to Multi-Material
- Convert a material of an item in the Real-time View to a Multi-Material by Shift+drag and drop from the library.
- Right click a material in the In Project Library and select Convert to Multi-Material
Adding Sub-materials to a Multi-Material
There are several ways to add a new material to the Multi-Material list:
- Drag-and-drop onto Multi-Material list
Simply drag-and-drop a material preset from the Materials library into the Multi-Material list. - Shift+Drag-and-drop onto part in the Real-time View
Holding Shift while dropping a material from the library onto a part in the Real-time View will add the material as a sub-material. If the material of the part is a single material it will be converted to a Multi-Material. - Add new materials via the list
New Plastic – This will add a standard Plastic material.
Duplicate Material – This will duplicate the material selected along with any texture and/or label, but keep the textures and labels unlinked.
Duplicate Material and Link Textures – This will duplicate the material selected along with any texture and/or label, but keep the textures and labels linked.
- Convert multiple materials in the In Project Library
Select multiple materials in the In Project Library, right click and select Combine selection into a Multi-Material. This will combine the selected materials into a Multi-Material and apply it to all the objects that had one of the selected materials applied.
Viewing Multi-Materials
To view or edit the different materials in your list, simply select a material to make it active in the Real-time View. You may also use the arrow keys to cycle up or down through the list.
The thumbnail of in the In-Project Library will show the active material combined with a label signifying that the material is a Multi-Material.
Saving Multi-Materials
Like regular materials you create, you can also save Multi-Materials. To save a Multi-Material, select the save icon 
and select the folder you would like to save it in.
Removing Sub-materials from a Multi-Material
To remove a material from the Multi-Material list, select the trashcan icon 
or hit Delete. Additionally, you may overwrite all materials added to the list by dragging and dropping another material onto the part or cancel Multi-Material setup by selecting the three-arrow Multi-Material icon to close the Multi-Material list.