How do I organize a complex multi-component 3D model using Levels, naming conventions, and a smart assembly strategy?

When a 3D model grows beyond 5 to 10 components, organization becomes critical. Poor organization leads to combine mode conflicts, lost components, performance problems and the inability to edit parts of the model selectively. The strategy below is a set of good habits, adapted from educators and the official documentation.

Core Concept: Levels Are Your Folders

Every component lives on a Level. Levels group related components, and they have their own combine mode that determines how the entire Level interacts with everything below it.

The compositing order is bottom to top in the Component Tree:

1. The software starts from the bottom of the tree.
2. It combines the components within each Level first, using each component's own combine mode.
3. It then combines the resulting Level output with everything below it, using the Level's combine mode.

You can control the whole relationship between a group of components and the rest of the model with one Level combine mode setting.

Core Philosophy: Break It Down

Break complex designs into simple pieces. A complex carving is usually a background dome, a border, a few decorative elements and a foreground subject, each simple to understand and create. The complexity comes from the combination.

Back to Front

Build from the back of the scene to the front: background first, then texture or decoration, borders and frames, mid-ground elements, and the foreground subject last. Working front to back causes problems because later components can be hidden behind taller ones built earlier.

Recommended Level Structure for Complex Reliefs

Organize your Levels from bottom to top in this general order (a starting point, adapt it to your project):

Level 1: Background / Ground Plane (bottom of the tree, composited first)

• Zero plane or flat background shape
• Combine mode: Add

Level 2: Texture or Surface Fill

• Background texture (wood grain, stipple, leather and so on)
• Combine mode: Multiply or Add, depending on the strength you want

Level 3: Background Decorative Elements

• Border moldings, filigree and scrollwork behind the main subject
• Combine mode: Add or Merge

Level 4: Main Subject

• Primary figure, portrait, animal or central design element
• Combine mode: Merge is common for primary subjects

Level 5: Foreground Decorative Elements

• Overlays, banners and elements in front of the main subject
• Combine mode: Add or Merge

Level 6: Text / Labels (top of the tree, composited last)

• Sign text, names, dates
• Combine mode: Add

Naming Conventions

Rename every component and every Level as soon as you create it. Default names like "Component 1" become impossible to manage in complex models.

Component naming pattern: what it is, then a detail in parentheses. Examples:

• Rose (left cluster)
• Eagle (body, imported)
• Border (outer rope)
• Background (zero plane)

Level naming pattern: position, then content. Examples:

• BG texture
• MID eagle assembly
• FG banner and text

To rename a component, double-click it in the Component Tree to open Component Properties and edit the name there. For a Level, right-click it and choose Rename.

Combine Mode Strategy

Common patterns:

• Add: adds the component's height on top of everything below. Use it for elements that should stack on top (text on a textured surface, raised borders).
• Merge: keeps whichever is higher at each point. Use it for components that should blend with the background at their edges (figures, organic shapes).
• Low: keeps whichever is lower. Use it for recessing a shape into another.
• Subtract: cuts into the model below. Use it for recesses, negative relief and dish areas.
• Multiply: multiplies the model below by this component's heights. For example, a Multiply dome can make a texture fade smoothly toward the edge of a dish or circular area.

Mirror Mode on Levels

If your design is symmetrical, use Mirror Mode on a Level:

• Right-click the Level in the Component Tree and choose Mirror Mode.
• Pick Left to Right, Right to Left, Top to Bottom or Bottom to Top for one plane of symmetry, or one of the four Quadrant modes (Top Left, Top Right, Bottom Left, Bottom Right) for two planes.

Everything you model on your side is mirrored dynamically, and turning Mirror Mode off returns the Level to its single-side content. It is useful for medallions, crests, frames and architectural details.

Versioned Saves

Save versions as you go, for example:

project-v1.crv3d (initial layout complete)
project-v2.crv3d (background and border done)
project-v3-prebake.crv3d (before any baking operations)
project-v4.crv3d (after sculpting)
project-final.crv3d (toolpaths calculated, ready to cut)

This costs almost no disk space and saves a lot of rework when a bake or sculpt step cannot be reversed.

Troubleshooting with Visibility

When the composite model does not look right:

1. Hide everything except the bottom Level and check it.
2. Show the next Level up and check how it interacts.
3. Continue upward until you find the layer that causes the problem.
4. Fix the combine mode, base height or component height on that layer.

Hidden components are not part of the composite model.

Performance at Scale

As the component count grows:

• Bake completed sections to reduce tree complexity (hold Ctrl when clicking Bake to keep copies of the originals).
• Use a higher job resolution only when necessary (see the entry on Job Resolution).
• Work on sections in isolation by hiding the Levels you are not editing.
• Name baked assemblies clearly so you know what is inside them.

Common Mistakes

• Leaving all components on one default Level, which makes combine mode control nearly impossible.
• Using Add for everything. Overlapping Add components stack up and create unnatural bumps.
• Not naming components before baking, which leaves "Baked Component 1" with no record of what is inside.
• Forgetting that the order in the tree (bottom to top) sets the compositing sequence. A foreground element below a background Level is composited first and may get covered.

For the details of Level menu options, Mirror Mode and Level Clipping, see the entry on Levels. For how the Component Tree combines everything, see the entry on how the Component Tree works.