Extensions

Story Synth extensions add extra functionality to existing formats. They are entirely optional and some are customizable.

To see many of the extensions in action, check out the sandbox demo (opens new window)

You can add an extension to your game by including a row in your Google Sheet with the proper instructions. The first column should say 'extension' the second should have the name of the extensions (e.g. 'diceRoller') and the third column should include any customized instructions.

Note

Some of these extensions require you to write content in JSON. These extensions may be updated in the near future to become more designer friendly.

Included extensions will appear below the the main area of play by default, though you can set individual ones to appear above by adding a row based on the extension name + 'Location' and setting it to 'upper'. For example:

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	staticBoxLocation	upper

If you're using your extensions with the Shuffled format, you can choose when they appear and disappear with the [extensionName]FirstVisible and [extensionName]LastVisible set to the card you want the extension to appear and disappear. Example:

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	playerTurnOrderFirstVisible	3
extension	playerTurnOrderLastVisible	12

Here's a list of all available extensions:

Name	Description
staticBoxContent	A simple text box that is always visable
playerTurnOrder	A way of tracking player turns
imageGallery	Players can browse images and select one to focus on
plusMinus	A state tracking system where players can increase or decrease the values of things they are tracking
editableList	A list that players can edit, adding and deleting items
multiEditableLists	A way to have multiple editable lists
diceRoller	Players can roll dice by typing commands like '2d6'
coinflip	Players can flip a coin (with custom results)
standardDeck	A way of drawing from a deck of playing cards
journalEntries	A place to log notes and journal entries
embedWebsiteMessage	Allow players to embed a webpage within their session
hexflowerAsExtension	Embed an entire Hexflower game within a different format
generatorAsExtension	Embed an entire Generator game within a different format
interrupts	A way to have a menu of cards that you can show at any point in your Shuffled game

Static Box

This extension adds a box of static text to the top of your game. It might be useful as a rules summary or for a setting description. You can use Markdown (opens new window) and HTML in the box. An alternative approach is to use a modal rather than an extension. Read more about modals under customizing your game (opens new window).

Static Box Example

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	staticBoxContent	This example text will show up in the static box. You can <em>use html</em> if you want.

Player Turn Order

This extension lets you keep track of player turns. If you're playing in a format that has a "next card" button, hitting that button will automatically advance the player turn. You can also click on a player's name to make it their turn.

You can use playerTurnOrderFirstVisible to hide the player turn order extension until after you reach a specific card.

The optional row of playerTurnOrderHeader lets you rename the header for this section and playerTurnOrderButtonLabel lets you overwrite the button text.

You can also choose to have a current player header above the main game by using the extension currentPlayerHeader and having the customization contain the text that precedes the player's name.

Player Turn Example

Note

You must put '{}' in the third column of playerTurnOrder. And you must use playerTurnOrderFirstVisible.

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	playerTurnOrder	{}
extension	playerTurnOrderFirstVisible	8
extension	playerTurnOrderHeader	Turn Turn Turn
extension	playerTurnOrderButtonLabel	Add me
extension	currentPlayerHeader	Current player:

Image Gallery

This extension lets players browse an image gallery and then select one image which remains visible for all players. You can change the name of the title of the gallery and add captions. Captions can take markdown formating and include links. The imageGallery, imageGalleryCaptions, and imageGalleryAltText options take a list of urls or captions, separated by commas; that means you can't have a comma in the caption. If you have captions but not alt text, then the captions will be used as alt text.

Please ensure that your image usage complies with all copyright laws.

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	imageGallery	http://example.com/image1.jpg,http://example.com/image2.jpg,http://example.com/image3.jpg
extension	imageGalleryCaptions	caption one,**bold caption**,a caption with a [link](http://example.com)
extension	imageGalleryAltText	text one,text two,text three
extension	imageGalleryTitle	Image Gallery

Here's a Google Sheet that can help with organzing all of your links, captions, and alt text: Image Gallery Management Sheet (opens new window)

Plus Minus

This extension lets players track simple state. You, as designer, create a list of things to be tracked and their initial values. Players can then hit 'plus' or 'minus' buttons to change the value.

You can also set a title for this extension using 'plusMinusTitle'

Note

Your intial state must be formatted as an array of JSON objects with 'name' and 'value' attributes.

Plus Minus Example

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	plusMinusTitle	Ship Resources
extension	plusMinus	[{"name": "Days of food left", "value": 3},{"name": "Crew", "value": 20},{"name":"Heat", "value":5}]

Editable List

This extension creates a list that players can edit by adding or removing items. It might be useful for tracking inventory or characters.

You can also set a title for this extension using 'editableListTitle'

You can have the editable list only appear after a certain point by using editableListFirstVisible and specifying what card it first appears on.

Note

Items on the initial list should be separated by commas. If you want to have an empty intial list, just have the third column as: EMPTY

Editable List Example

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	editableListTitle	Inventory
extension	editableList	Cursed treasure, Magical compass, Letter of marque
extension	editableListFirstVisible	5

Multiple Editable Lists

If you want to have more than one editable list (perhaps for different categories) you can use the extension 'multiEditableLists'

In this case, the data should have be an array of objects with each object having a name (name of the list) and value (initial items in the list).

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	multiEditableLists	[{"name": "Locations", "value": ["The Docks", "The Market"]},{"name": "Allies", "value": ["The Governer", "The Smuggler"]}]
extension	multiEditableListsFirstVisible	5

Coinflip

This extension lets players flip a coin. If you set 'coinflip' to 'TRUE' then the coin will be 'heads' or 'tails' – if you want to customize the results text, you can set 'coinflip' to the text of the results seperated by a comma (e.g. 'yes,no' will result in a 'yes' or 'no'). You can optionally add a title to the extension and relable the button. You can also specify when it first appears with 'coinflipFirstVisible'.

Coinflip example

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	coinflip	yes,no
extension	coinflipTitle	Coin Flipper
extension	coinflipButtonLabel	Click to flip

Dice Roller

This extension lets players roll dice and shares the results across all players. Players can roll by typing the size and number of dice they want, separated by commas and spaces.

You can also set a title for this extension using 'diceRollerTitle'

Dice Roller Example

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	diceRollerTitle	Dice Roller
extension	diceRoller	Placeholder text goes here but will be erased after the first roll

Example Player Commands

Command	Interpretation	Example Result
6	Rolls a 6-sided die	5
1000	Rolls a 1000-sided die	873
6 6	Rolls two 6-sided dice	3 6
6,6	Rolls two 6-sided dice	3 6
2d6	Rolls two 6-sided dice	3 6
2d6, 1d8	Rolls two 6-sided dice and one 8-sided die	5 1 7

Standard Deck

This extension allows players to draw from a standard deck of playing cards. Past draws remain visable until the player reshuffles the deck.

You can also set a title for this extension using 'standardDeckTitle'

Note

You can include the standard card deck by copying the example below. You can edit the Customization part to remove cards or add jokers.

Standard Deck Example

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	standardDeckTitle	Standard Deck
extension	standardDeck	{"fullDeck":["2♡","3♡","4♡","5♡","6♡","7♡","8♡","9♡","10♡","J♡","Q♡","K♡","A♡","2♢","3♢","4♢","5♢","6♢","7♢","8♢","9♢","10♢","J♢","Q♢","K♢","A♢","2♣","3♣","4♣","5♣","6♣","7♣","8♣","9♣","10♣","J♣","Q♣","K♣","A♣","2♠","3♠","4♠","5♠","6♠","7♠","8♠","9♠","10♠","J♠","Q♠","K♠","A♠"],"drawnCards":[]}

Journal Entries

Use this extension to let your players write journal entries. The default text at the top of it will say Journal Entries but you can use 'journalUpperText' to override it with any label and instructions that you want. You can add some initial entries by customizing journalEntries with an Array of entries: ["entry one", "two", "three"] or just put [] to have it start blank. You can use Markdown (opens new window) in the journal entries.

By default, journal entries are sorted from newest at the top to oldest at the bottom. You can have the oldest at the top by specifying 'journalOrder' to be oldestFirst.

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	journalEntries	[]
extension	journalUpperText	Log Files
extension	journalOrder	oldestFirst
extension	journalFirstVisible	5

Embed a Webpage

This extension lets you embed a webpage within your Story Synth game. You can specify to have a fixed webpage always embed via hardcodedWebsiteURL or you can specify instructions for players to add a page via embedWebsiteMessage. The latter is helpful if you want players to embed a Google Doc, perhaps a copy of a template doc that you've created.

Note - due to website security measures, not all webpages are capable of being embedded. Test out the page you want before finishing your game.

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	embedWebsiteMessage	Add a link to a Google Doc to take notes
extension	hardcodedWebsiteURL	https://example.com

Interrupts

This extension lets you create a set of cards that you can display at any time during your game, with the click of a button.

This extension will generate a list of buttons on the game page, or optionally, in the menu. When one of the buttons is clicked, it will display your card until that card is closed.

Note

This extension was intitially designed and tested for the Shuffled format but should work well with other formats too. If you have any issues, please reach out.

First, create your set of cards that can be displayed:

• interrupts set to TRUE tells Story Synth to look for Interrupts content
• interruptTopText allows you to add text to be displayed above the list of buttons
• interrupt-1-label sets the text of the button for your first card
• interrupt-1-text sets the content of your first card
• For each additional card, replace '1' with '2' and so on, for an unlimited number

Next, choose how you want the interrupt cards to show up in your game

• interruptsKeepOptionsVisible: If TRUE, then the list of buttons will remain visible when an interrupt card is showing. Otherwise, the buttons will be hidden until the card is closed.
• interruptsInMenu: If TRUE, then the list of buttons will also appear in the dropdown menu at the top of the page.
• interruptsReplaceMainCards: If TRUE, then interrupt cards will appear in place of regular card content in Shuffled. Otherwise, the interrupt cards will appear in their own separate zone on the page. This only applies to the Shuffled format.
• interruptsPauseNavigation: If TRUE, players will not be able to advance the regular cards in Shuffled while an interrupt card is open. This option is only meaningful if interrupts do not replace regular cards. If interrupts do replace regular cards, then navigation is always paused. This only applies to the Shuffled format.

Interrupts Example

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	interrupts	TRUE
extension	interruptTopText	Minigames, markdown-friendly
extension	interrupt-1-label	First minigame
extension	interrupt-1-text	Some text, markdown-friendly
extension	interrupt-2-label	Second minigame
extension	interrupt-2-text	More text, markdown-friendly
extension	interruptsKeepOptionsVisible	TRUE
extension	interruptsInMenu	TRUE
extension	interruptsReplaceMainCards	TRUE
extension	interruptsPauseNavigation	TRUE

Hexflower as Extension

This extension lets you embed an entire Hexflower game within a different format. Just create an additional spreadsheet for your Hexflower and paste it into the extension customization details.

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	hexflowerAsExtension	https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/19zYQMLvhgv3CtpMpNIpj5GAaY_lRsF_pF6q1UqVF4Bg/edit?usp=sharing
extension	hexflowerFirstVisible	3

Generator as Extension

This extension lets you embed an entire Generator game within a different format. Just create an additional spreadsheet for your Generator and paste it into the extension customization details.

First Column	Extension Name	Example Customization
extension	generatorAsExtension	https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/19zYQMLvhgv3CtpMpNIpj5GAaY_lRsF_pF6q1UqVF4Bg/edit?usp=sharing