Pardon our dust while we move our docs here. The Godot (GDScript) docs are on this site, and the Yarn language, Unity, Godot (C#) and Unreal docs are still at docs.yarnspinner.dev.

Editor Tools

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Setting Up Your Godot Project
1 Yarn Projects 2 Importing Yarn Files 3 Editor Tools
1 Yarn Projects 2 Importing Yarn Files 3 Editor Tools

The plugin adds a Yarn Spinner tab to the Godot editor, where you can read and edit scripts, look up your Commands and Functions, and browse the samples. It adds sections to the Inspector, and two project settings.

The Yarn Spinner tab

The plugin adds a Yarn Spinner tab to the top of the editor, next to 2D, 3D and Script.

The top of the Godot editor, with the Yarn Spinner tab highlighted next to 2D, 3D, Script, Game and Asset Store
The Yarn Spinner tab, at the top of the editor with Godot's other main screens.
The Godot editor on the Yarn Spinner tab, with the Yarn Projects file list and Nodes list on the left and Simple3D.yarn open in the editor, next to the Yarn Project's Inspector
Simple3D.yarn open in the Yarn Spinner tab. Yarn Projects lists each project's scripts, Nodes lists the open script's nodes, and the script is on the right.

On the left:

  • Yarn Projects lists your .yarn files, grouped under the project that includes them. Files that no project includes are under (Unassociated). See Scripts that aren’t in a project. Type in Filter files… to narrow the list.
  • Nodes lists the nodes in the open file. Click one to jump to it. Type in Filter nodes… to narrow the list.

On the right is the script, with Yarn syntax highlighting.

The toolbar:

ButtonWhat it does
WelcomeCloses the open file and goes back to the welcome screen.
NewCreates a new .yarn file.
SaveSaves the open file (Ctrl+S). The project that includes it then recompiles.
ReloadReloads the open file from disk, for when it’s been changed in another editor.
CommandsShows or hides the Commands and Functions palette.
SamplesShows the samples browser in place of the editor.
DocsOpens the Yarn Spinner documentation in your browser.
The buttons along the top of the Yarn Spinner tab.

If you switch files or go back to the welcome screen with unsaved changes, Godot asks whether to save or discard them.

When no file is open, the tab shows a welcome screen with the addon’s version, and a button that opens help on the Yarn Spinner website.

The tab is for reading scripts and making small changes. For writing, use VS Code with the Yarn Spinner extension, or the standalone Yarn Spinner Editor. Both have autocomplete, error checking as you type, and a graph view of your nodes.

Commands and Functions palette

Click Commands in the Yarn Spinner tab’s toolbar to show a palette under the editor. It lists the Commands and Functions the plugin can find in your GDScript files: methods named _yarn_command_... or _yarn_function_....

The Yarn Spinner tab's toolbar with the Commands button highlighted, between Simple3D.yarn and Samples
The Commands button, on the right of the Yarn Spinner tab's toolbar.
The Commands and Functions palette scoped to the Basics project, listing two commands: wait with a duration parameter from dialogue_runner.gd, and shake with an intensity parameter from yarn_basics_sample.gd
The palette after clicking Refresh, scoped to one Yarn Project. It lists the addon's built-in wait command alongside the sample's own shake command.
  • Click Refresh to scan. The palette doesn’t scan on its own, so click it again after adding or changing commands.
  • The dropdown on the left chooses what to scan: All Projects scans the whole Godot project, or pick a Yarn Project to scan the same files its .ysls.json file is written from.
  • Type in Filter commands… to narrow the list.

Each entry shows its name, whether it’s a command or a function, its parameters, and the script it’s defined in. See Commands and Functions for how to write them.

Samples browser

Click Samples in the Yarn Spinner tab’s toolbar to see a card for each sample, with a short description. Each card has buttons to Play the sample, Open its scene to see how it’s built, or read its Docs.

It looks for samples in res://samples/, so it’s most useful when you have the samples project open. In any other project it says it found no samples.

The Samples browser in the Yarn Spinner tab, showing cards for Welcome, Yarn Basics, Simple 3d, Feature Tour, Commands And Functions, Instance Commands, Inline Events, Node Internals and more, each with Docs, Open and Play buttons
The Samples browser, with a card for each sample in the samples project.

In the Inspector

The plugin adds to the Inspector for a few kinds of object:

  • Dialogue Runner (YarnDialogueRunner): under Yarn Project, there’s a Select Project File… button that opens a file browser filtered to .yarnproject files. Start Node becomes a dropdown of the nodes in the selected project, so you pick a node from a list. Under YSLS Generation, Regenerate YSLS rewrites the project’s .ysls.json file immediately.
  • Yarn Projects: selecting a .yarnproject shows its compile status, errors, scripts, nodes, variables and localisation tools. See The Yarn Project Inspector.
  • Variable Storage nodes: a YarnInMemoryVariableStorage, or any other Variable Storage, gets a Yarn Variable Storage section listing the variables it currently holds, each with its value and type. Click Refresh to update it.
The Inspector for a YarnDialogueRunner, showing the Yarn Spinner header, Dialogue Setup with Yarn Project, a Select Project File... button, a Start Node dropdown, Auto Start, Presenters, Variable Storage and Line Provider, and YSLS Generation with a Regenerate YSLS button
A Dialogue Runner in the Inspector, with the Select Project File... button under Yarn Project, the Start Node dropdown, and Regenerate YSLS.
The Dialogue Runner’s other settings, such as Presenters, Variable Storage and Auto Start, are explained in Dialogue Runner.

Project settings

The plugin adds two project settings, under Yarn Spinner in ProjectProject Settings.... Turn on Advanced Settings if you don’t see them.

SettingDefaultWhat it does
yarn_spinner/compiler/ysc_pathemptyWhere to find ysc, for when the bundled compiler isn’t available.
yarn_spinner/ysls/auto_regenerateOnRewrites each project’s .ysls.json file when you save a script.
Yarn Spinner’s settings in Project Settings.
Next step Showing Dialogue The Dialogue Runner, the built-in Presenters, and getting your dialogue on screen.
Previous Importing Yarn Files