What you'll learn: How to use DRAW's 64-layer system, opacity and visibility, the 19 blend modes, layer groups, multi-layer selection, alignment, and the unique symbol layer system for repeated artwork.

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🎯 Goal: Work with multiple layers.

DRAW supports up to 64 layers per canvas. The Layer Panel on the right lists every layer top-to-bottom in render order — top of the list is on top of the canvas.

Action	Shortcut
New Layer	Ctrl+Shift+N
Duplicate Layer	Ctrl+Shift+D
Delete Layer	Ctrl+Shift+Delete
Move Up / Down in stack	Ctrl+PgUp / Ctrl+PgDn
Move to top / bottom	Ctrl+Shift+] / Ctrl+Shift+[
Rename	Right-click → Rename

You can also drag a layer row with the left mouse button to reorder. Right-click any layer for the full context menu (rename, duplicate, delete, group, blend mode, etc.).

🎨 Try it — multi-layer sprite

1. Layer 1: scene/background.
2. Layer 2: character outline.
3. Layer 3: character base colors (with Opacity Lock — see below).
4. Layer 4: highlights and effects.

🎯 Goal: Control transparency and protect existing pixels.

Each layer row has three persistent controls:

• Eye icon — toggle visibility. Alt+Click the eye for Solo mode: hide every other layer. Drag horizontally across multiple eye icons to sweep the visibility state.
• Opacity bar — drag, or hover and use the mouse wheel, for 0–100%.
• Lock icon — Opacity Lock. When enabled, drawing tools can only modify pixels that are already opaque. Perfect for recoloring within a finalized silhouette without bleeding outside.

🎨 Try it — opacity-locked recolor

1. Draw a character on one layer (transparent background).
2. Toggle the lock icon on that layer.
3. Take a giant brush and slosh new color over the whole canvas. Notice it only paints inside the silhouette.

🎯 Goal: Use blend modes creatively.

A layer's blend mode determines how its pixels combine with the composite below it. DRAW implements all the modes you would expect from a modern raster editor:

Family	Modes
Basic	Normal · Multiply · Screen · Overlay
Math	Add (Linear Dodge) · Subtract · Difference
Comparison	Darken · Lighten
Dodge / Burn	Color Dodge · Color Burn
Light	Hard Light · Soft Light · Vivid Light · Linear Light · Pin Light
Color / Difference variants	Exclusion · Color · Luminosity
Group only	Pass Through (Chapter 4 / EP15)

Common pairings:

• Multiply — for shadows and ambient occlusion. Multiplying any color by a darker color produces a richer darker color.
• Screen / Add — for highlights, glow, fire and lights. Screen is the gentler companion; Add can blow out very quickly.
• Overlay — for contrast and saturation boost passes.
• Color — apply hue and saturation while preserving the underlying luminosity. The classic photograph-tinting trick.
• Luminosity — the inverse: apply brightness while preserving the underlying color.

To cycle a layer's blend mode without opening the dropdown, Shift+Right-click on the layer row.

🎨 Try it — three-layer lighting study

1. Base sprite on layer 1, Normal mode.
2. Layer 2: Multiply mode, paint cool desaturated tones for shadows.
3. Layer 3: Screen (or Add) mode, paint warm highlights.

🎯 Goal: Organize complex artwork.

Action	Shortcut
Create empty group	Ctrl+G
Group selected layers	Ctrl+Shift+G
Ungroup	Ctrl+Shift+U

Groups can be nested arbitrarily and use a special Pass Through blend mode that lets each child blend naturally with what's below the group.

• Merge Down — Ctrl+Alt+E
• Merge Visible — Ctrl+Alt+Shift+E
• Merge Selected — fold a multi-selection into one layer.
• Merge Group to Single Layer — flatten a group while preserving its visual result.

Ctrl+Click toggles individual selection. Shift+Click also works like Ctrl because Mac users need that. Once multiple layers are selected, every relevant operation — clear, fill, flip, scale, rotate — runs against the whole selection. There is also Select All in Group.

DRAW provides nine alignment commands (Left/Center/Right × Top/Middle/Bottom) and two distribution commands (horizontal, vertical). Combined with multi-layer selection, this is the fastest way to lay out drawn objects in pleasing ways.

A Symbol Parent layer can have one or more Symbol Children. Drawing on the parent automatically syncs to every child — but each child can be independently scaled and repositioned. Use this for repeated elements like coins, enemies, tiles, or recurring UI components.

When you finish a child or want to have a child no longer inherit changes from it's parent:

• Rasterize — bake the child into a normal pixel layer (severs the link permanently).
• Detach — break the sync but keep the child as an independent layer.

Create them via Layer → New Symbol Layer or Layer → Convert to Symbol.

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➡️ Next: Chapter 5 — Selection & Clipboard