Learn to link GIS attributes like NMLY to extrude 2D footprints into 3D models and connect them via the CityEngine Inspector panel.

Get introduced to the fundamental logic of Computer Generated Architecture (CGA) and the software environment required for GIS modeling.

Master CGA conditional case statements to automatically assign specific colors to buildings based on their KIND attribute from GIS data.

Use @annotations to define dynamic CGA attributes, enabling real-time control of floor heights and counts via interactive UI sliders.

Use the Model Hierarchy panel to analyze how CGA rules decompose building footprints into structured parts like facades, floors, and windows.

Learn the Viewshed Creation tool to simulate camera sightlines, identify urban blind spots, and evaluate visibility within a 3D scene.

Learn to organize procedural logic by mastering CGA components including attributes, constants, functions, and styles for professional coding.

Learn to use the Street Creation tool to draw roads and adjust essential sidewalk widths and lane parameters via the Inspector panel.

Learn the Graph Edit tool to manually adjust street nodes and segments, allowing for precise control over urban road network layouts.

Learn how to use the Navigator panel in Esri CityEngine to manage project resources and workspace files efficiently. This lesson explains the default project folder structure, file organization methods, search and preview functions, and how to manage multiple workspaces for large projects.

Learn how to use the Facade Wizard in Esri CityEngine to create procedural building facades from reference images. This lesson explains the basic facade-splitting workflow, horizontal and vertical repeat patterns, facade extrusion, CGA code generation, and the practical limitations of Facade Wizard for complex procedural modeling.

Learn the core Shape menu features in Esri CityEngine and understand how Shapes act as the foundation of procedural modeling. This lesson focuses on edge-related tools such as Compute First/Street Edges, Compute Edge Attributes, Set First Edge, and Set Street Edge, explaining how road relationships generate edge attributes that can later drive CGA rules, building orientation, setbacks, and facade behavior.

Learn the core Shape menu features in Esri CityEngine and understand how Shapes act as the foundation of procedural modeling. This lesson focuses on edge-related tools such as Compute First/Street Edges, Compute Edge Attributes, Set First Edge, and Set Street Edge, explaining how road relationships generate edge attributes that can later drive CGA rules, building orientation, setbacks, and facade behavior.

Rather than blindly following the CGA Reference, it is easier to learn coding by first understanding the menus and workflow in Esri CityEngine. This lesson introduces the procedural workflow from Shape creation → Extrude → Split → Comp, along with the core commands that are frequently used.

This lesson explains how to use the Convert Models to Shapes feature to transform existing models back into editable Shapes in Esri CityEngine. It also covers the Crop Image tool and perspective correction techniques for preparing building images for the Facade Wizard.

This tutorial explains how to use the report command in Esri CityEngine to generate real-time statistics from CGA procedural models, including floor counts, Gross Floor Area (GFA), and land-use metrics, while introducing how these values can support urban analysis and later be visualized through Dashboard tools.

This lesson explains how to visualize Report data using the Dashboard feature in Esri CityEngine. You will learn how to display data such as building area by usage type, gross floor area, and average floor size using bar charts, pie charts, and other visualizations for easier analysis.

Learn how to use the import statement to load multiple CGA files as reusable modules in Esri CityEngine. This lesson explains how to organize complex rules by category, manage them efficiently, and create reusable structures with practical examples.

This lesson introduces how to package CGA rules from Esri CityEngine into RPK files and use them through the SketchUp Extension. It covers the RPK creation workflow using the Share As feature, the SketchUp integration process, and practical limitations that may occur during use.

Before starting full CGA coding, this lesson outlines the overall learning structure that will follow. It introduces key commands such as Extrude, Split, and Comp, and explains how future lessons will progress through shape creation, transformation, texturing, and practical coding examples in Esri CityEngine.

Learn the basics of the CGA split command and use the asterisk (*) to repeatedly divide shape geometries into fixed architectural lengths.

Master the tilde (~) operator in CGA split to distribute remaining polygon spaces proportionally and learn approximate repeating splits.

Discover the 1/3 threshold rule for approximate splits to perfectly manage leftover geometry dimensions without creating useless polygons.

Learn the quote (') operator to split geometries by absolute percentage lengths, perfect for dynamic building facade pattern generation.

Use the split.index function to precisely target and apply different CGA rules to specific repeating segments, like odd or even floors.

Manipulate coordinate axes using alignScopeToGeometry to easily transition between horizontal and vertical facade split operations in CGA.

Practice nesting fixed, relative, and approximate splits to establish clear model hierarchies for complex procedural architectural facades.

Master the extrude command and learn to use world.up.flatTop to generate perfectly leveled 3D building volumes on sloped GIS terrain.

Learn the comp command to decompose 3D models into distinct vertices (v), edges (e), and faces (f) for detailed procedural applications.

Utilize local coordinate comp selectors like front, back, and side to apply targeted architectural rules to specific building elevations.

Apply world coordinate selectors like world.south to maintain consistent rule orientations (e.g. south-facing windows) upon model rotation.

Learn to use horizontal, vertical, aslant, and nutant comp selectors to target sloped faces and understand selector priority in CGA.

Discover how to use specialized edge selectors like eave, hip, valley, and ridge to detail procedural roof geometries in CityEngine.

Learn to target street-facing polygons using street selectors and manage streetWidth attributes for imported GIS footprints.

A hands-on exercise combining extrude, split, and comp rules while tracking local coordinate changes using the Model Hierarchy panel.

Differentiate between local and object coordinate systems to reliably target building facades using object coordinate selectors.

Learn how to find and use the comp.index value via the Inspector panel to precisely target and apply rules to individual faces.

Learn the fundamental case-else conditional statements in CGA to branch your procedural rules based on index values or shape attributes.

A simple practical coding exercise integrating extrude, split, comp, and conditional indices to generate a 5-story procedural building.

Learn the concept of scope and use the t() command to translate procedural geometries along their specific scope axes.

Master the translate() command to move 3D models precisely using absolute and relative modes across world, pivot, and scope coordinates.

Learn to use the s() command for fixed and relative scaling, and understand CGA's implicit model copying during sequential transformations.

Discover how to use the r() command to rotate procedural 3D objects accurately around either the scope origin or the scope center.

Master the rotate() command to turn 3D models using world, scope, and pivot coordinate systems while managing rule execution order.

Learn critical CGA coding habits, including using annotations, tracking the model hierarchy, troubleshooting rules, and parameter passing.

Learn the fundamental concept of scope, the invisible bounding box controlling the direction and scale of your procedural 3D operations.

Learn the alignScopeToAxes command to easily reorient your 3D bounding box to world coordinates for precise architectural manipulations.

Combine alignScopeToAxes and rotateScope to manipulate the bounding box angle, enabling complex diagonal splits on procedural surfaces.

Learn to use alignScopeToGeometry and face indices to snap your scope perfectly to sloped surfaces and complex 3D geometry edges.

A practical exercise in predicting 3D outcomes by analyzing alignScopeToAxes and alignScopeToGeometry commands using the Model Hierarchy.

Learn how alignScopeToGeometryBBox() works in CityEngine CGA for scope alignment, bounding boxes, and imported OBJ models.

Learn the basics of the CGA color command to assign hex codes or RGB float arrays to your 3D buildings and understand color inheritance.

Practice the CityEngine color() command with split.index exercises and procedural CGA color mapping techniques.

Learn the first step of procedural texturing by using setupProjection to define UV sets, mapping axes, and texture scales for 3D models.

Complete your basic texturing workflow by assigning image paths with the texture command and wrapping them using the projectUV command.

Discover how to layer multiple textures using setupProjection, material map attributes, and projectUV for advanced realistic rendering.

Master UV transformation commands like rotateUV, scaleUV, and translateUV to precisely adjust texture tiling and positioning on 3D models.

Learn to use the insert command to import external 3D assets and understand how CityEngine automatically scales them to fit the scope.

Easily correct rotation and orientation issues for imported 3D files by defining the up-axis parameter within the CGA insert command.

Learn the three insertMode options of the CityEngine CGA i() command and compare how an imported truck model is placed in each.

Import a DAE building model into CityEngine, extrude its floor plan, separate each facade with comp(f), and group similar ones.

Split a building facade into ground, middle, and roof floors in CityEngine CGA, then refactor repeated rules with parameters.

Learn the concept of recursive calls in CGA to automatically duplicate, space, and distribute 3D objects across procedural environments.