> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.kai-yan.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.
# Act
> Split a long story into testable stages with clear progress and closure.
## What it controls
An act is a stage of the story. It limits which characters and locations may appear, states what changes, and explains when the stage can end.
In **Letter from Mist Harbor**, the first act is **Tide Before Midnight**. It takes the player from receiving the letter to confirming that it came from someone still in the harbor.
## Act core
| Field | What to write | Example | Player sees the result |
| -------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------- |
| Act name | A name that makes the stage easy to identify | `Tide Before Midnight` | Usually not shown as a page title |
| Main route | The previous and next connection | `Entry → Tide Before Midnight → Whether to Visit the Old Pier` | The player enters the connected stage |
| Available characters | People who may appear in this act | `Lin Zhou` | The player can meet these characters |
| Available locations | Places allowed in the act | `Tidebound Post Office` | The player can use the location |
| Progress direction | The causal change this stage must create | `Move from receiving the letter to confirming the sender is still in the harbor.` | Appears through scenes and actions |
| Closure basis | Observable facts and what the next stage inherits | `The salt mark is found; the next stage inherits the old-pier direction.` | The story moves on without inventing a jump |
Write progress as the change, the direction, and the different actions that can reach it. Write closure as normal completion, early exit, and inherited facts. “Task complete” is not enough; state what the player can actually observe.
## Foreshadowing
| Field | Example |
| ------------------ | ------------------------------------------------------ |
| Foreshadowing name | `Salt mark on the envelope` |
| Content | `Salt appears only on the edge facing the old pier.` |
| Effect | `At the old pier, the tide mark matches the envelope.` |
## Events inside an act
| Field | Example |
| ----------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| Event summary | `Lin Zhou denies seeing the letter; the player checks the register; the time of delivery is confirmed.` |
| Suggested turns | `2–5 turns` |
| People | `Lin Zhou` |
| Location | `Tidebound Post Office` |
| Narrative intent | `Show that the letter was deliberately placed.` |
| Entry situation | `The player holds the letter in the dark lobby.` |
| Required question | `Was it placed tonight?` |
| Allowed result boundary | `Confirm delivery time, but do not reveal the sender’s identity yet.` |
These are background fields. The player experiences the result through dialogue, observations, clues, and changed access—not through the field labels.
## Player-facing check
If the act allows a player-visible location, character, item, clue, intelligence, or state, open the corresponding player page in a test session and confirm when it appears. The act name alone is not enough to explain what the player sees.
Next: [Branch](/en/create/editor/branch).