Relationships are not prose
The editor uses connections between nodes to decide who appears in an act, who holds an item, and where a clue comes from. Writing “the letter belongs to Lin Zhou” in the text does not create a relationship; only the matching connection on the canvas does. Confirm the connections before writing the prose. There are two kinds of connection: an exclusive relationship can have only one target at a time, and changing it replaces the old connection; an additive relationship can connect several targets at once. Do not swap directions just to pass a check—if your intent does not match the table below, change the story structure instead.Connection table
Changing an exclusive relationship
Item ownership, clue source, intelligence reveal act, status binding, and the main-route exits of the entry and each act are all exclusive. When ownership changes, replace the old connection with the new one; do not keep both, and do not simulate a replacement by disconnecting and reconnecting. A character appearing in several acts, a location serving several acts, multiple branch exits, and clues, intelligence, and items each pointing at the same act are additive—they do not replace one another.Common connection mistakes
- The Script Entry connects to several acts, or to none;
- An act has no main-route exit, so a route stops halfway;
- A route never reaches an ending;
- Intelligence has no reveal act, or a status component has no bound character;
- An item is both held by a character and placed in an act, or a clue comes from two sources;
- The prose already puts a character on stage or transfers an item, but the canvas has no matching connection.