| name | design-level |
| description | Use when designing a single level — layout, pacing, encounters, secrets, reward gating. Outputs a level design doc and a concrete node-tree skeleton for `summer_create_scene`. Trigger on "design a level", "design level 1", "tutorial level", "boss arena", "design the encounter", "make a level layout". |
| license | MIT |
| compatibility | ["Cursor","Claude Code","Windsurf","Codex"] |
| category | level-design |
| user-invocable | true |
| allowed-tools | Read Grep Glob Write Edit summer_get_scene_tree summer_create_scene summer_open_scene summer_add_node summer_set_prop summer_save_scene summer_get_script_errors |
| paths | ["**/*.tscn","**/*.gd",".summer/**","levels/**"] |
/design-level — Design One Level
Overview
A level is a controlled sequence of player experiences in physical space. Layout, pacing, encounters, secrets, and reward gating must work together — a "fun layout" with a flat pacing curve still feels boring. This skill walks the six design beats of a single level and drops a node-tree skeleton ready for summer_create_scene.
Core principle: A level has a pacing curve and a teaching arc. If you can't draw the tension graph and name what the player learned by the end, the level isn't designed yet.
Steps
1. Pin the level type
Ask exactly one question:
What kind of level? Pick one: tutorial / hub / combat encounter / boss / exploration / puzzle / stealth / platforming-challenge / mixed.
Each type has different beats. Don't blend types in v1 — a "boss room with stealth and puzzles" is three levels poorly squeezed into one.
2. Read context
If .summer/GameSoul.md exists, read it. The level must serve the brief's core loop and the three mechanics.
Read .summer/GameSoul.md
If .summer/mechanics/ exists, list the mechanics. Quote them back:
Brief says mechanics are: dash, parry, double-jump. This level should exercise at least one and ideally combine two.
3. Define the teaching / experience goal
Ask plain:
What does the player know by the end of this level that they didn't at the start?
Tutorial-level answer: "How to dash." Combat-encounter answer: "That parrying converts damage to mana, and that big enemies need parry, not dodge." Exploration answer: "That this region's secrets are hidden behind double-jumpable gaps."
If the user can't answer, the level has no purpose. Say it:
If there's no answer to that question, the level is filler. Either give it a teaching goal, give it a failure-state goal (the player must die here to progress), or merge it into the next level.
4. Sketch the pacing curve
Draw it as text. Five beats, intensity 0-10:
Intro Build Peak Release Hook
2 → 5 → 8 → 3 → 6
For a 5-minute encounter level:
| Beat | Duration | Intensity | Player feels | Designer plants |
|---|
| Intro | 30s | 2 | Calm, oriented | Visual landmark for the goal direction |
| Build | 90s | 5 | Tension rising, small pressure | First weak enemy / first puzzle clue |
| Peak | 60s | 8 | Stakes high, mistakes hurt | Main encounter / hardest fight |
| Release | 60s | 3 | Catharsis, loot | Reward + breath room |
| Hook | 30s | 6 | Curiosity for next | Visible-but-locked secret or path |
Show the curve. Ask:
Pacing above. Does the peak land where you want, or does the level need a second wave?
5. List encounters and secrets
Encounters = explicit player tests (combat, puzzle, platforming). Secrets = optional rewards that respect the pacing curve.
State them flat. For a combat encounter level:
Encounters (in player-traversal order):
1. E1 — Tutorial enemy (1 weak grunt) at 0:30, in the open atrium. Teaches the basic attack.
2. E2 — Forced parry (mid-tier enemy with telegraphed wind-up) at 1:30, in a corridor with no dodge room. Teaches parry.
3. E3 — Mixed wave (2 grunts + 1 parry-required) at 3:00, in the peak arena. Tests both.
4. E4 — Mini-boss at 4:00 in the chamber. Combines.
Secrets (3 total — one per beat after intro):
- S1 (build beat): Behind a breakable wall in the corridor, holds 50 currency. Teaches "walls can break".
- S2 (peak beat): Visible from the arena, accessible only via parrying off an enemy. Rewards mastery.
- S3 (hook beat): Locked door, key in a future level. Plants curiosity for next level.
6. Define reward gating
What's behind which gate? Levels feel cheap when they hand out rewards without respecting the difficulty curve.
| Reward | Gate | Why |
|---|
| Heal pickup | After E2 | Player just learned parry; reward + safety net before the peak |
| New ability unlock | After mini-boss | Mastery-pinned; player demonstrates parry before getting upgrade |
| Currency cache | Behind S1 (breakable wall) | Optional; rewards observation |
| Story note | At the calm intro | Free; orients the player to the level's narrative |
Ask:
Reward gating above. Anything missing or mis-placed?
7. Define the layout primitives
Every level is built from a small vocabulary of spaces. Name them. Most levels need 4-6 distinct spaces, no more.
For a combat-encounter level:
Spaces (node-tree skeleton):
World (Node3D)
├── Geometry (Node3D)
│ ├── IntroAtrium (Node3D) # open, calm, well-lit
│ ├── Corridor (Node3D) # tight, forces parry
│ ├── PeakArena (Node3D) # large, multiple cover, exit visible
│ └── BossChamber (Node3D) # contained, single exit, dramatic lighting
├── Spawns (Node3D)
│ ├── PlayerSpawn (Node3D) # marker
│ ├── E1_Spawn (Node3D)
│ ├── E2_Spawn (Node3D)
│ ├── E3_Wave_Spawns (Node3D)
│ └── MiniBoss_Spawn (Node3D)
├── Triggers (Node3D)
│ ├── E2_GateTrigger (Area3D) # locks door behind player on entry
│ ├── PeakWaveTrigger (Area3D)
│ └── BossDoorTrigger (Area3D)
├── Pickups (Node3D)
│ ├── HealAfterE2 (Node3D)
│ └── CurrencyS1 (Node3D)
├── Secrets (Node3D)
│ ├── S1_BreakableWall (StaticBody3D)
│ ├── S2_ParryLedge (StaticBody3D)
│ └── S3_LockedDoor (StaticBody3D)
└── Lighting (Node3D) # WorldEnvironment + DirectionalLight3D
Show the skeleton. Ask:
Tree above. May I create the level scene levels/<level-name>.tscn with this skeleton?
8. Scaffold via MCP
Preferred (Summer MCP):
summer_create_scene(path="res://levels/level_01.tscn", root_type="Node3D", root_name="World")
summer_add_node(parent="./World", type="Node3D", name="Geometry")
summer_add_node(parent="./World/Geometry", type="Node3D", name="IntroAtrium")
summer_add_node(parent="./World/Geometry", type="Node3D", name="Corridor")
summer_add_node(parent="./World/Geometry", type="Node3D", name="PeakArena")
summer_add_node(parent="./World/Geometry", type="Node3D", name="BossChamber")
summer_add_node(parent="./World", type="Node3D", name="Spawns")
summer_add_node(parent="./World/Spawns", type="Node3D", name="PlayerSpawn")
summer_add_node(parent="./World/Spawns", type="Node3D", name="E1_Spawn")
# ... and so on
summer_add_node(parent="./World", type="Node3D", name="Triggers")
summer_add_node(parent="./World/Triggers", type="Area3D", name="E2_GateTrigger")
# ... etc.
summer_add_node(parent="./World", type="Node3D", name="Lighting")
summer_add_node(parent="./World/Lighting", type="WorldEnvironment", name="WorldEnvironment")
summer_add_node(parent="./World/Lighting", type="DirectionalLight3D", name="Sun")
summer_save_scene
This is a skeleton, not playable geometry. Markers and Area3Ds, no meshes, no enemy scripts. Implementation in subsequent sessions / templates.
Fallback (no MCP): Print the .tscn file contents for the user to save manually.
9. Save the level design doc
Always write the design doc — it's the artifact that drives implementation. Path: .summer/levels/<level-name>.md.
# Level: <Name>
**Type:** combat encounter
**Duration target:** 5 min
**Teaching goal:** Player learns parry and that parrying mid-tier enemies is required, not optional.
**Pacing curve:** 2 → 5 → 8 → 3 → 6
**Beats:** Intro (30s) | Build (90s) | Peak (60s) | Release (60s) | Hook (30s)
## Encounters
- E1 — Tutorial grunt @ 0:30 (IntroAtrium)
- E2 — Forced parry @ 1:30 (Corridor)
- E3 — Mixed wave @ 3:00 (PeakArena)
- E4 — Mini-boss @ 4:00 (BossChamber)
## Secrets
- S1 — Breakable wall (Corridor) → 50 currency
- S2 — Parry-ledge (PeakArena) → cosmetic
- S3 — Locked door (BossChamber) → next level
## Reward Gating
- Heal pickup after E2
- Ability unlock after mini-boss
## Spaces
1. IntroAtrium — open, calm
2. Corridor — tight, forces parry
3. PeakArena — large with cover
4. BossChamber — contained, dramatic
## Open questions
<list anything the user couldn't answer>
Ask:
May I create .summer/levels/<level-name>.md with this design doc?
10. Route to the next step
End with:
Skeleton + design doc saved. Next:
/summer:design-mechanic to design any mechanics this level requires that aren't designed yet./summer:design-npc to design the enemies (E1-E4) in detail./summer:art-direction if the visual style isn't pinned yet.- Or open
levels/<level-name>.tscn and start blocking out geometry.
Common mistakes
| Mistake | Fix |
|---|
| No teaching goal | Every level teaches something or fails. State it explicitly. |
| Flat pacing curve | If intensity stays at 5 the whole time, you have a hallway, not a level. |
| Too many spaces | 4-6 distinct spaces max. More fragments the player's mental map. |
| Encounters not tied to mechanics | E2 should require parry, not just allow it. Forced use teaches; optional use doesn't. |
| Secrets ignore the pacing curve | Don't put a major secret in the calm intro — players aren't curious yet. |
| Reward gating too generous | Free heals before the peak deflate the peak. Gate them after the test. |
| Blending level types | Stealth + puzzle + boss in one level = three half-baked levels. Pick one. |
| Building geometry before the skeleton | Skeleton-first lets you iterate on layout cheaply. Geometry comes after the design is locked. |
| Calling SetResourceProperty on inline sub_resources | Silent fail. See references/mcp-tools-reference.md § Trap. |
Collaborative protocol
This skill creates a new scene file (.tscn) and a design doc (.md). Group writes per phase. Always ask before summer_create_scene. See references/collaborative-protocol.md.
Want a working starter?
This is a workflow that produces a skeleton scene. For runnable level examples, see:
The skeleton this skill produces is meant to be filled in via /summer:design-mechanic, gridmap blockout, or a template merge.
See also
references/collaborative-protocol.mdreferences/mcp-tools-reference.mdreferences/godot-version.md — Godot 4.5 API notesscene-and-project/brainstorm-game/SKILL.md — produces .summer/GameSoul.mdgameplay-mechanics/design-mechanic/SKILL.md — designs the verbs the level exercisesai-and-npcs/design-npc/SKILL.md — designs the enemies the encounters referencerendering-and-lighting/3d-lighting/SKILL.md — sets the lighting in WorldEnvironment + lightsrendering-and-lighting/art-direction/SKILL.md — defines the visual style the level expresses
