Customize a Project model

Plans: Free customizes Defaults; Plus creates Global definitions; Pro customizes a Project.

Scroll organizes card structures in three layers. Each definition appears once in a list, with a badge identifying the effective source.

Layer	Purpose	Plan access
Defaults	Factory definitions supplied with Scroll; they cannot be deleted	Free, Plus, and Pro can edit them and save a Global customization
Global	Definitions reused across Projects on this device	Plus and Pro can create and manage them
Project	Definitions that affect only the current Project	Pro can create, override, and manage them

Editing a Default does not rewrite the factory definition. Scroll saves only the fields you changed, so fields added by a later Default update still appear automatically when you did not customize them. Reset override removes the customization at the current layer and shows the upstream version again.

Card Types, templates, and card instances

These concepts have separate responsibilities:

• a Card Type defines an abstract classification and its constraints, such as which parent types a character may use and which target types it may relate to;
• a Card Template defines the properties, relationship fields, content sections, appearance, and creation-form order for a concrete kind of card; and
• a card instance stores the user's values and records both its Card Type and Card Template.

Use Card Types, Properties, and Relationships in the right-side Schema panel to maintain reusable definitions. The main template editor maintains only concrete templates. Making a property or relationship available to a Card Type does not add it to every template; it appears on a card only when the chosen template references it.

Recommended modeling order

To reduce rework:

1. List the Card Types the model needs.
2. Define shared properties and the Card Types that may use them.
3. Define relationship types, groups, and allowed source and target Card Types.
4. Create Card Templates that reference the properties and relationship slots they actually display.
5. Test the model with a small number of cards and Story views.
6. Migrate older cards only after the model is stable.

Edit and create definitions

Selecting a row only previews it. Select its Pencil button to edit; only one property or relationship row expands at a time. If you leave with unsaved changes, Scroll asks whether to save or discard them.

• Free opens a Default with its Pencil button, saves a Global customization, or resets that customization.
• Plus can also create, duplicate, and import Global definitions.
• Pro can also explicitly select Project and create a definition or override that belongs only to the current Project.

After a definition is saved, its ID and fields that would reinterpret existing data are locked. Examples include a Card Type's ID and kind, a Template's ID and Card Type, a Property's ID and value type, and a Relation Type's direction. Duplicate the definition when you need different semantics.

Custom card templates

Open Templates. The available tabs are Entity Templates, Event Templates, Relation Templates, and Writing Templates. A template can define:

• a stable ID, name, and description;
• surface and Category preset;
• icon, color, and avatar field;
• creation-form fields and order;
• property references;
• relationship slots;
• Content sections;
• whether its instances can act as Story groups; and
• event timing, required fields, and relationship groups.

Card Type parent and relationship-target constraints belong in the right-side Schema panel and are not repeated in a concrete template. A Template ID is locked after it is saved, while its display name remains editable. Resolve validation messages before saving.

Managed folders

Card Type roots, Template folders, and card destinations use the operating system's folder picker. They cannot be entered as free-form paths.

• When no Project is open, a Global definition uses a safe folder generated by Scroll.
• The first time a customized Default or Global custom definition is used in a Project, Scroll asks you to confirm a folder inside that Project when needed.
• A Project Card Type must select a root inside the Project.
• A Template folder must be a direct child of its Card Type root; Scroll displays and saves only that child folder's name.
• An existing Project binding does not move when a Global default later changes. Moving an existing folder requires Pro and starts with a migration preview.

If the selected folder already belongs to another Card Type, Scroll does not merge the types by folder name. Customize the existing Card Type, create a Template beneath it, or choose a different folder.

Custom properties

Create shared properties in Properties, specify the Card Types that may use them, and then add each property to a concrete template. Available types include short and long text, number, single and multiple choice, status, date, checkbox, link, email, phone, file, media, formula, and rollup.

For each property, define:

• a stable, readable property identifier;
• its display name, default value, and whether it is required;
• choices and colors for single- or multiple-choice fields;
• the result type for a formula; and
• the source, target field, and calculation for a rollup.

Avoid several fields with nearly the same meaning. One stable residence field is easier to use in Spreadsheets, filters, and migrations than separate home, homePlace, and residence fields.

Custom relationships

Use Relationships to manage relationship groups and types. Rows are collapsed by default and enter edit mode only after you select the Pencil button. A relationship type can define:

• a label, color, and solid, dashed, or dotted line;
• a directional, bidirectional, or non-directional meaning;
• an inverse relationship and label;
• allowed source and target Card Types;
• whether the same pair of cards can have more than one relationship; and
• whether it is available for grouping, Relationship graph, or template relationship slots.

A template relationship slot can further restrict the relationship and target choices for one field. A card shows only the relationship fields defined by its template. After saving, use Relationship graph to review direction, inverse labels, group frames, and filters.

Migrate existing cards

Adding a custom structure does not automatically add or rename fields in existing cards. To review a migration:

1. Back up the complete Project.
2. In Story, open Delivery workflow and select Metadata Migration Preview.
3. Review System, Properties, Relations, Defaults, Unknown, and No-op results.
4. Search and select only changes whose meaning you have verified.
5. Review the summary, select Apply selected patches, and then use Confirm and apply.
6. Reopen several representative cards and inspect the related Spreadsheet and Relationship graph views.

Unknown categories are preserved instead of being changed to a default without confirmation. If a suggestion is unclear, leave it unselected and inspect the original Markdown manually.

Downgrade and recovery

• After Plus is downgraded to Free, a Default's Global customization remains editable; Global definitions created with Plus become read-only.
• After Pro is downgraded, Project definitions become read-only but still participate in card creation, display, and relationship validation.
• Downgrading does not delete custom fields, relationships, templates, or managed-folder bindings.
• Every plan can continue to manage the option overlay for an existing property.

Before modeling, review Templates workspace and Plans and features.