How do I make Photoshop remember to use the Pencil Tool when selecting a generic brush?

In Photoshop, the Pencil Tool and Brush Tool are separate tools, even though they share similar settings. If you want Photoshop to remember to use the Pencil Tool when you select a generic brush, you can follow these steps:

1. **Customize the Tool Preset:**
- Select the **Pencil Tool** from the toolbar.
- Choose the brush settings you prefer for the Pencil Tool (e.g., size, hardness).
- Go to the **Tool Presets** panel (Window > Tool Presets).
- Click the **Create New Tool Preset** button at the bottom of the Tool Presets panel.
- In the dialog that appears, give your preset a name (e.g., "Pencil Tool Preset") and make sure "Include Tool Settings" is checked.
- Click **OK**.

2. **Use the Tool Preset:**
- Now, whenever you want to use the Pencil Tool with your custom settings, you can simply select this preset from the Tool Presets panel.

3. **Switch Between Tools:**
- If you want to quickly switch between the Brush Tool and the Pencil Tool, you can use keyboard shortcuts. The default shortcuts are **B** for the Brush Tool and **Shift+B** to toggle between the Brush Tool and the Pencil Tool.
- You can also set a custom keyboard shortcut to directly select your Pencil Tool preset.

This approach ensures that when you select the Pencil Tool, it will use the settings you've defined, even if you switch to other tools and then back to the Pencil Tool.

1. Go to Edit > Toolbar and pull the Pencil out of the Brush Tool group to give it its own spot in the toolbar.

2. Go to Edit > Keyboard shortcuts and give the Pencil tool its own shortcut separate from the Brush tool.

With some non-painting Tool selected when you select a Brush that has been saved without Tool Settings the Brush Tool is it. 

So I think you may want to saye a couple of Pencil-Brushes if you need to use the Tool frequently.