ArchiCAD pens have different logic than in typical CAD programs. Understanding this logic can make work in ArchiCAD much easier. ArchiCAD pens are classified by objects types, not by colour or weight. For example if you are using pen number 7 for walls cut line - you can create different pen sets, where, depending of need, the pen can have various thickness and colour. Then you can have one pen set for floor plan in scale 1:50 with thickness 0.35 mm and another pen set for detail with the scale 1:10, where the same pen has thickness 0.7 mm.
After Building Materials have been introduced in ArchiCAD 17, Graphisoft added additional group of pens to represent typical Building Materials - as concrete, masonry, timber. To summarise - using fixed pen numbers for building elements and building materials and having several pen set it is possible to achieve great results in graphical representation.
Graphic overrides give better result, if it's necessary to highlight elements in specific drawing - for example change colour of fire-rated walls in fire strategy drawing.
