Calling child phases

A parent invokes an external child questphase with questPhaseNodeDefinition. The node is both a depot-resource reference and the parent side of the child’s interface.

External child shape

Lab 4 uses this exact focused shape:

questPhaseNodeDefinition
├── id: 13
├── sockets
│   ├── CutDestination     unwired
│   ├── In1                parent enters here
│   └── Out1               child returns here
├── phaseGraph: null
├── phaseInstancePrefabs: []
├── phaseResource:
│   ├── DepotPath: mod\cqa\cqa004\phases\cqa004_boundary.questphase
│   └── Flags: Soft
├── saveLock: 0
└── unfreezingTriggerNodeRef: 0

Do not copy non-zero values for the final two fields from a large vanilla quest without isolating their activation and save semantics.

The child is archived, not independently registered

The root and child are separate CR2W files and both must appear in the packed archive:

mod\cqa\cqa004\phases\cqa004.questphase
mod\cqa\cqa004\phases\cqa004_boundary.questphase

Only the first appears under ArchiveXL quest.phases. The second is resolved when the parent phase node follows phaseResource.

This distinction prevents two different ownership models from being confused:

• root registration attaches a new composition root under base\quest\cyberpunk2077.quest;
• external resolution loads a child because an executing parent names its depot path.

If the child is missing from the archive, registration of the parent can still look correct. If the child is separately registered, the files may load while the intended one-root ownership model has already been changed.

The interface must match

The parent and child meet at names, not at graph IDs:

parent cqa004.questphase
  [13] questPhaseNodeDefinition
    In1  -> child questInputNodeDefinition.socketName "In1"
    Out1 <- child questOutputNodeDefinition.socketName "Out1"

child cqa004_boundary.questphase
  [0] Input socketName In1
    Out -> reach/leave activity -> In
  [1] Output socketName Out1, type Terminating

Matching only the file path is insufficient. The parent node, child input, and child output must agree on the interface names, and the child route must actually reach its output.

Parent and child ownership

Split at a lifecycle boundary, not an arbitrary node count. Lab 4 makes the division concrete:

The ownership table is a deliberate design, not a file-format restriction. It makes the active child interval and the parent-only continuation visible for save/reload testing.

Exact handoff sequence

parent [12] phase Active
  -> parent [13].In1
     -> child [0] socketName In1
        -> reach objective and pin
        -> IsInside reach
        -> retire pin, succeed reach, activate leave
        -> IsOutside leave
        -> succeed leave
        -> child [1] terminating socketName Out1
     -> parent [13].Out1
  -> parent [14] confirmation objective Active

The active confirmation objective is the visible proof that normal child return reached parent-only work. Thirty realtime seconds later, the parent succeeds that objective, phase, completion fact, and quest.

If the child never reaches output 1, parent node 13 never emits its normal Out1. If 13.Out1 is orphaned, the child can finish without advancing the larger quest. The diagram also keeps CutDestination visible but unwired; it is not a hidden normal-return edge.

Root-owned prefab scope can cross this boundary

Lab 4’s parent root declares #cqa004_pr_handoff. The child directly uses nested trigger NodeRefs while its own phasePrefabs and the parent node’s phaseInstancePrefabs are empty.

See Prefab dependencies for the root, child, and phase-instance declaration locations.

External before inline

CR2W supports phaseGraph and inplacePhases, but this book begins with external mod-owned child resources because they provide:

• an explicit depot path;
• an independently inspectable graph;
• a clear archive manifest entry;
• a focused parent/child diff;
• separate exact SVGs and structural fingerprints.

phaseGraph: null is therefore the documented external-child shape, not a claim that the field must always be null. Inline phase activation, dependency scope, save behavior, and interruption need their own isolated evidence.

Validation

Before runtime testing:

1. Confirm the parent phaseResource.DepotPath matches the archived child.
2. Confirm the child is absent from ArchiveXL quest.phases.
3. Confirm both roots are questQuestPhaseResource.
4. Confirm external parent node phaseGraph is null and phaseInstancePrefabs is empty.
5. Match every parent input and output name to a child interface node.
6. Confirm each intended child route reaches an output.
7. Confirm each returned parent output has a continuation.
8. Inventory root and child prefab declarations separately.
9. Confirm no ordinary edge uses CutDestination in the unwired lab.
10. Round-trip parent and child independently.

Then test entry, reload before and during the child, streaming away and back while it is active, reload after return, and completed re-entry. One normal handoff does not establish save or cut safety.

Previous: Inputs and outputs. Next: Prefab dependencies.