Is there a way to have, for example one track set to 512 lines while another at 256 apart of the same pattern sequence?
Basically what I’d like is for the longer pattern to continue while the shorter ones loop.
Apologies ahead of time if I just need to RTFM diligently
phrases are what you want to be looking into 
you can have phrases of various lengths, and even different lpb values, cycling together in one pattern, and across patterns
there are some limitations, but phrases are super powerful, and in my opinion everyone using renoise should be taking advantage of them …if they want to 
definitely read up on them 
Thanks again man you’ve really helped on my journey to learning this program. Especially comíng from more traditional DAWs
Edit: So I messed about with phrases and I see how it can be used as sort of a pattern matrix for each track.
Also I just set my default pattern length to 512 and and any tracks within the Pattern Sequence that I want shorter than that I just set a loop point to to 256 or whatever I like.
Is there anything Renoise can’t do?
Another thing you could try is to render your different length sequences to samples, and then loop those samples. You’d only have to trigger each of the sequences in the first pattern, then just leave the following patterns blank and the samples will loop through them.
That’s how I’d do what you’re describing, even though using phrases is probably the right answer. Personally I just hate phrases!
You can just as well copy and paste instead. 
Copy the 256 lines and paste twice into the 512 line long pattern.
This way no loop is required and there’s still the option of changing the composition if desired.
I would, but I really don’t know what for. Actually a phrase is nothing else than a loop.
Right, that specific example the OP gave isn’t really an issue. I’m guessing they intend to do weird polyrhythm stuff with 100 line patterns playing against 222 line patterns or something.
Patterns are dope for polymeter, polyrhythm, just having tons of rhythmic and melodic content ready to go… Arpeggios, chords, exponential decay, generative melodies and rhythms, world rhythms, the list goes on…
A simple use is having a melodic line that you want to transpose around the key. Write the melody to the phrase, turn on scale lock, then you can transpose the melody through the scale by playing/recording different notes in the pattern editor.
You can also use Bxx to reverse phrases and Sxx to offset phrase start by lines. One phrase can easily generate a lot of musical content
And they work with VSTs, too
But only if you want
Yeah, personally I can imagine using phrases to generate arpeggios. It could also be useful for polymeter stuff for those who are creating a specific kind of music. But if you ask me it’s not the right choice for loops just like the example above. In this case I would simply copy and paste for several reasons.
Actually my intentions were to do something much simpler like have a 512 line melody and 256 line drum patterns.
Lol I totally realized that my brain overcomplicated something that really wasn’t an issue. There are just multiple ways of doing things in Renoise and I’ve been brainwashed by the likes FL and Live for the longest 
Yeah if that’s the case, I’d just do it in the pattern editor and sequencer arranger. @TNT is right. In this case it’s easy enough to just copy and paste
My brain takes things and immediately jumps to extreme use case scenarios, lol
I just love the power of phrases and am always trying to spread the word
Actually i miss this feature. Jeskola Buzz had a sequencer with length-independent patterns per intrument.
And yes, phrases can do this in a more “non-destructive” way than sample loops, but i use phrases very seldom because i like to handle things in the pattern editor directly.
Anyways, one could also use longer patterns like 256 or 128 lines and nudge / cycle track contents up an down against each other (via tool / key shortcut).
Alternativly delay devices can be used to “dry-delay” tracks for experimentation.
Another advantage of using longer patterns is that automation lanes are then more comfotable to work with.
it’s really not about weird polyrhythms at all, the way I see it. it’s about using Renoise similar to how Ableton’s session view works: you can have a whole bunch of clips of totally different lengths looping endlessly while you record in new parts of arbitrary length.
a good example is: I have rhythm section clips where a drum Clip and a bass Clip just loop at say 8 bars, over and over. while they do this, I can hit record in my ‘lead’ track and play for as long as I want – 32 bars of solo’ing with my lead. While I do this, the Rhythm clips, 8 bars each, just loop endlessly, providing my backing rhythm section while I solo for 32 bars. This is a core appeal of the ‘session / matrix’ view – length of clips becomes free and arbitrary. The ‘scene’ will loop at the longest clip inside it (the solo) and all shorter clips will automatically loop within that length.
Renoise, otoh, locks you into a fixed pattern length for all tracks, so you can’t do the above at all. you have to start getting real clever with Phrases, as mentioned (long overall Pattern length, phrases looping within it – works, yes, but there’s nothing ‘arbitrary’ here, you still have to plan out your total length in advance) or there is a Tool, “Auto Clone Patterns”, which allows very similar behavior, by cloning existing patterns while you record in a new part.
Yep, I need this tool, I’ve been spending a lot of time “rough drafting” beats while simultaneously trying new tools and keybinds.
Just looking for that consistent workflow 