# type tool in maya Creating type as three-dimensional objects in Maya is actually quite easy to do. Once you create your objects, spend some time [[deforming text in maya]]. ## creating type To create a new type object, use the menu pulldowns for **Create > Type**. A new type object will appear that says “3D Type”. In your Attribute Editor there will be a new tab called **type** that has a menu of different options. You can change the content, font, and typographic settings like Font Size, Tracking, Kerning, etc. Note that more complex font faces can cause strange things to happen to your mesh. Simpler sans-serif fonts will be more useful than complicated script fonts. ![[Pasted image 20220920164819.png]] At the bottom of this section is the **Type Manipulator**. It allows you to scale and move individual characters, words, or lines with a gizmo. **Ctrl-Shift-Right Click** allows you to adjust selection options and reset manipulations. ![[Pasted image 20220920165556.png]] ## tweaking the type In the Attribute Editor, under the box where you enter the text content, is a row of tabs for different menus to tweak your type. Some of these are beyond our needs but some are rather cool. Under the **Geometry** tab are sub-categories that let us control the size and shape of the Extrusion or add Bevels to the edges of the letters. Under the **Texturing** tab, you can change the shader material. Pressing the little colored cube adds separate materials for the type itself, the bevels, and the extrudes for more nuanced styling. ## separating the characters One of the limitations of the Type Manipulator is that it doesn’t allow for rotating the objects. Here’s a workaround. 1. Switch back to your **Select Tool** (Q) and change to **Face** to choose only faces. 2. Move your view so your chosen letter is floating alone without other letters floating behind it. 3. Draw a selection box around the letter to pick all the faces. Remember, the box will select faces in back even if you can’t see them. 4. Use the pull-down menus for **Mesh > Separate**. Your letter is now its own object. You can select multiple letters and separate them in one step instead of doing each independently. ## combining the characters Once you have separated the letters into individual objects, you can also combine groups of them back together by drawing a selection box and using the pull-down menus for **Mesh > Combine**. ## arrange your type Now that your type is separated and combined into different objects, you can use the basic manipulation tools to move, scale, rotate just like any other object. Learn more: - [type tool from maya support and learning](https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/maya/learn-explore/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2023/ENU/Maya-Modeling/files/GUID-92112B70-161B-4D89-A1E5-BC3D58274EFB-htm.html) - [videos on type tool from maya support and learning](https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/maya/learn-explore/caas/CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2023/ENU/Maya-Modeling/files/GUID-5715F385-F27A-49E0-A624-CB376B669EDC-htm.html) - [create 3d text in maya from academic phoenix plus on youtube](https://youtu.be/36MoVzT2AQY) --- tags: #3d #maya #resources home: [[! 3d modeling- maya]]