CLI reference

The parlance command ships with the host package. Every subcommand resolves the project root the same way: explicit path argument → PARLANCE_ROOT env var → current directory (details).

Running parlance with no subcommand starts the editor host itself; if the target directory isn't a Parlance project, it says so and suggests parlance init rather than scaffolding on its own.

parlance init

parlance init [dir]

Scaffolds a new project: the standard directory tree, ready for the editor. Guarded by the project marker — it won't scaffold over a directory that already is a project, and the editor won't silently seed a random folder.

parlance ci-check

parlance ci-check [project-dir]            # exit 1 on errors
parlance ci-check [project-dir] --strict   # exit 1 on errors OR warnings

Runs the full validator — the same code path as the editor's on-save validation, honoring parlance.config.json, lore files, and rules — and prints a project summary (dialogue / node / choice / word counts) plus issues grouped by check family.

The CI tutorial shows the GitHub Actions wiring.

parlance route

parlance route [project-dir] [route-id]    # one fixture
parlance route [project-dir] --all         # every fixture
parlance route ... --strict

Replays route fixtures — scripted playthroughs with assertions from tests/routes/rt_*.json — and exits non-zero when a walk diverges or an assertion fails. Deterministic play is what makes the replay exact; see the fixture format and workflow.

The Python reference validator

An independent reimplementation of the same validation rules in Python — no Node toolchain required — published in the MIT spec repository alongside the schemas and conformance vectors:

python3 validate.py --root /path/to/project --strict

It reads the project's parlance.config.json for data/schema overrides and falls back to the bundled schemas when the project vendors none.

Use it when your pipeline is Python-shaped, or as a second opinion: a parity test in the main suite asserts it reports the same issue set as the TypeScript validator, so the two can't drift silently. (Why two implementations.)

Environment