Documentation
Start here
Three steps to a working editor with a real project open — under five minutes:
- Launch Parlance and point it at a project folder. (Install & run)
- Open the demo project. The Mistfall Inn is a complete, tiny mystery with every feature in play. (Your first project walks through it.)
- Play a scene. Open the
dlg_examine_bodydialogue and hit ▶ Play — seeded dice, a rewindable transcript, and a live state inspector.
Then: the first project tutorial for the guided tour, and how it all fits together for the big picture.
How do I…
Fast answers, deep-linked into the manuals and tutorials.
| I want to… | Go to |
|---|---|
| Jump to any entity from anywhere | Command palette Cmd/Ctrl+K |
| Create my first dialogue | Tutorial: branching dialogue |
| Add a skill check with success/failure branches | Tutorial: branching dialogue · node inspector |
| Make a character's dialogue change with game state | Tutorial: dialogue ladders |
| Write a scene as text instead of nodes | Graph vs. Text |
| Add a beat with no choices (narration, overheard line) | next — choiceless advance |
| Let the player name their character | set_text + placeholders |
| Playtest a scene from the middle | Starting state editor — Start at |
| Test both branches of a check without changing stats | force ✓ / force ✗ |
| Share a scene with a writer who has nothing installed | Share build · tutorial |
| See everywhere a flag is read and written | Reference index · Flow panel |
| Create a flag without leaving the form I'm in | Creating a flag inline |
| Understand a validation message | Validation checks reference |
| Fail the CI build on story errors | Tutorial: validate in CI · CLI |
| Give a quest journal objectives in the player's voice | Journal objectives |
| See which quests gate which | Quest dependency graph |
| Map my locations and their gated exits | Location map |
| Review a colleague's story branch | Review |
| Hand off strings for translation or VO | Localization & VO |
| Undo a bad save / get back to where I was | Undo/redo & navigation history |
| Install the app and open a project | Install & run |
| Reset my panel layout / view preferences | View preferences |
| Change where data/schema/lore live | Configuration reference |
| Wire my engine to read Parlance data | Engine integrations |
| Let an LLM agent create entities safely | MCP server |
| Fix "Parlance is damaged and can't be opened" | Troubleshooting |
| Learn the keyboard shortcuts | Shortcuts & small features |
Feature index
Every capability, one line each — so nothing stays undiscovered. Small affordances get the same billing as headline features; most rows link into the editor guide, which documents them fully.
Editor chrome — command palette · breadcrumb navigation · text size 90–150% · collapsible entity panel · resizable side panels · undo/redo · back/forward history · persisted view preferences · shortcuts cheat sheet
Entities & forms — 12 entity types · search & group-by · schema-driven forms · JSON/Edit toggle · inline lore viewer · inline flag creation · variable Flow panel · stale-load conflict detection
Dialogue —
node graph canvas ·
script (text) view with lossless round-trip ·
flow map of all dialogues ·
node density Compact/Card/Script ·
auto-layout & minimap ·
choiceless next beats ·
speaker inheritance & overrides ·
author notes ·
skill checks with probability bar ·
condition & effect builders ·
effects reference ·
pacing analysis ·
dialogue ladders ·
share builds
Quests, locations, world — quest stage canvas · journal objectives vs. descriptions · quest dependency graph · location map with gated exits · endings · codex · items · portraits · cutscene manifests
Playtest — in-canvas play sessions · starting-state editor · seeded determinism · rewind & reroll · forced check outcomes · edit-while-playing · cross-scene continuation · state inspector
Validation & reports — live validation bar · 18 check families · Reports & coverage · reference index (find usages) · CI gating · independent Python validator
Collaboration — git-native review · narrative diffs · comments, suggestions, verdicts · localization & VO pipeline
Automation & AI —
parlance init / ci-check / route ·
MCP server for LLM agents ·
AI drafting
Reading paths
You write the story → first project → branching dialogue → dialogue ladders → playtest & share → the editor guide end to end.
You integrate the engine → the engine contract → engine integrations → the open spec → configuration reference.
You run the tooling → install & run → configuration → CLI → validate in CI.