[Maya] Changing the color of a templated object

Coding
1

I am looking for a way to have an object:
[ul]
[li] Be unselectable in the viewport
[/li][li] Have only it’s wireframe displayed
[/li][li] Be able to change the color of it’s wireframe
[/li][/ul]
The first two I can do by templating, but then the color is forced to a default grey. I don’t want to change the default color of a templated object because I’d liked this to be per-object. I can make an object display as wireframe and change the color of it’s wireframe using display overrides, but then it’s still selectable.

Any way to get what I’m looking for?

2

Setting the override to reference doesn’t do it for you? Reference layers ?

3

A display override reference forces the mesh into shaded mode. I want wireframe + unselectable + colored wireframe (or in other words the override set to template + change the wireframe color per-object).

It may just not be possible, my hope is running out :(.

4

You could turn on drawing overrides and uncheck shading. That way you will always have only the wireframe and you can set a custom color. Then you create a scriptjob that can remove those objects from the selection. A bit complicated but it would do the job. You can tag those objects with a custom attribute and use that as a condition in your scriptjob.

5

reference drawing overrides will render unshaded - but not colored wire :frowning:

6

isn’t there a trick where you can set the overrides on the Shape Node instead of the Transform Node?
I know you can get your Display Layers in a weird state if the transform belongs to one layer, but the shape belongs to another…

7

Doesn’t work, rgkovach :/. Drawing overrides on the shape node take complete precedence over any that are set on the transform node, so you can’t mix and match them.

That’s the only way I can think of doing it, raziel, though I’d really like to avoid scriptJobs, especially selection ones–they just feel so clunky.

8

what about reference display, shaded view, and a transparent colored surface shader? Not colored wire but tuneable

9

I played with shaders, but in the end I just implemented the scriptjob method as it produces exactly what was requested.

Then someone requested to have the wireframe be “xray-able” like joints are in the viewport, so that it draws on top of everything. I think it’s kind of a cool request, but certainly impossible given built-in methods. I may try to use this as an opportunity to learn how to write a custom shape node though.