First Procedural Modeling: the Table

Prerequisites

Before you start, you should be comfortable with:

• Navigating the interface (Viewport, Network Editor, Parameters)
• Creating a node (TAB)
• Framing the view (H)
• Understanding and using the Display/Template flags.

Course goal

Today, we will create a procedural table. More importantly, you will understand why each step is done this way, and how Houdini lets us link parameters so everything stays consistent when we change a value.

By the end, you will be able to:

• Build a complete table (tabletop + legs) from primitives.
• Automate its dimensions and proportions.
• Set up a control interface to modify the table quickly and easily.

Setup & Concepts

In Houdini, the Scene Level (or OBJ Level) is like an overview of your scene. This is where your main objects live: geometry, cameras, lights… Each object is like a “container” and has its own internal network. When you double-click it, you enter the SOP Level, the space where you create and edit your geometry. (SideFX calls these levels the Object (Scene) level and the Geometry/SOP level.)

💡 Visual tip: Imagine the Scene Level is the universe where all your objects live (characters, key props, etc.), and each Geometry object is its own galaxy. When you enter that galaxy, you arrive at the SOP Level, and each node inside is a solar system or planet (you can sometimes enter certain nodes) that builds your geometry.

→ Scene Level = universe, Geometry Network (SOP) = galaxy, nodes = solar system or planet

For this project, we will create a new Geometry object, rename it table_geo, and dive inside to work.