Chatterbox syntax

Tsumugi saves plain Chatterbox. This page lists what it reads and writes, in short. The Chatterbox documentation explains each command in full.

A node

title: Harbour
tags: Draft
color: blue
---
// The node's lines go here.
Ayumi: The boats are back.
===

Line	Means
`title: Harbour`	The node’s name. One word, unique in the file.
`tags:`, `color:`	Tsumugi’s own labels for the map. Chatterbox ignores them.
`---`	The node’s lines start here.
`===`	The node ends here.

Lines

Line	Means
`Some words.`	Narration: no name in front.
`Ayumi: Some words.`	A character speaking. Anything before the first colon is the name.
`Ayumi_Happy: Some words.`	A character with a portrait: the part after `_` is the expression.
`// A note`	A comment. The game ignores it. Also at the end of a line.
`-> Some words`	An option. Lines indented under it belong to it.
`-> Some words <<if $x > 1>>`	An option that shows only when its check is true.

Commands

Command	Means
`<<jump Harbour>>`	Go to a node.
`<<jump ChapterTwo.yarn:Harbour>>`	Go to a node in another file.
`<<hop Shop>>`, `<<hopback>>`	Visit a node, then come back.
`<<jumpback>>`	Go back to the node the story jumped from.
`<<stop>>`	End the conversation.
`<<wait>>`	Wait for the player.
`<<set $courage to 3>>`	Change a variable. `=` works as well as `to`.
`<<declare $courage = 0>>`	Give a variable a starting value.
`<<if …>>`, `<<elseif …>>`, `<<else>>`, `<<endif>>`	Lines that happen only sometimes.
`<<random option>>`	The game picks one of the options below.
`<<addItem("Fish")>>`	One of your game’s events: any function your game gives Chatterbox.

Tsumugi also knows Chatterbox’s other built-in commands, so they need no game code.

Checks

Checks go inside <<if …>>.

Compare with ==, !=, >, <, >=, <=, or the words is, eq, neq, gt, lt, gte, lte.
Join with and, or, not (or &&, ||, !).
Built-in functions include visited("Node"), optionChosen() and once("id").
Your game’s own functions work too. The preview counts them as true.

In the text

Write	Means
`{$courage}`	Shows the variable’s value.
`[wave]words[/wave]`	A Scribble tag: colour, effect or sprite.
`[[`	A real square bracket.
`#line:12ab`	A hashtag. The player never sees it.
`\n`	A new line.

Lines that start with >

> gets Onigiri is not Chatterbox. It is how you type an event in Tsumugi. Press Enter and it becomes the Chatterbox command. A > line left in the file is shown as broken until you finish it. See Events.

Spaces

Indentation shows what belongs to an option. Tsumugi keeps one tidy style, four spaces a step, and keeps your file’s line endings (Windows or not).