Lvl 4: Structural Change¶
The biggest variant — you're changing the workflow's structure. Adding scenes, removing scenes, splitting one scene into two, adding a prehook, removing a CTA, reshaping the bones of the workflow.
Same testing-phase pattern as Lvl 3, but the changes are deeper.
When you'd do this¶
- The script is good but you want to add a prehook for stronger top-of-feed performance
- A scene is too long — split it into two clips with a different pacing
- A scene isn't working — remove it entirely
- You want to insert a B-roll cutaway into a workflow that didn't have any
- The CTA structure needs reworking (different funnel mechanic)
What you do¶
You: Lvl 4 variant of XYZS1-V2. Add a prehook clip before Scene 01 —
should be a tight selfie of the avatar mid-sentence, looking
surprised. We'll record the text overlay in post. Keep everything
else.
Claude:
Lvl 4 variant scoped. Structural change being proposed.
Concrete diff:
+ Add new Scene 00 (prehook): tight selfie, surprised expression,
mid-sentence pose
+ 1 new image gen group, 1 new Veo3 node, 1 new Approve gate
+ Wire prehook upstream of Scene 01 in the timeline
All existing scenes (01-08) preserved unchanged.
This is a structural change — bumping to V3-0-1 testing phase.
Confirm the diff and proceed?
The Manager spells out the structural change as a concrete node diff before touching anything. You approve the diff. Then the Patch Mode of the PatchWork Importer applies it.
Why the explicit diff¶
Structural changes are easy to get wrong — add a node in the wrong place, leave a dangling edge, miss the wiring contract. Spelling out the diff as text before patching means you can:
- Verify the change is what you wanted
- Catch obvious bugs (e.g., "you meant to add to all 5 tabs, not just Account A")
- Document the change in your head before the patcher applies it
What changes in the .nbflow¶
Structural changes touch:
- New nodes added (Prompt, Media, NanobananaAPI, Veo3, Approve)
- Existing edges may be re-wired (e.g., the prehook now feeds upstream of Scene 01)
- Per-node IDs assigned (must stay globally unique across all tabs)
- Layout positions updated so the canvas renders cleanly
Unchanged (when you're only adding): - All existing nodes - All existing prompts - All existing references
Common Lvl 4 patterns¶
Adding a prehook¶
Adds: image gen + Veo node + Approve gate for the prehook. The prehook is a standalone clip — it doesn't structurally depend on Scene 01's outputs.
Splitting a scene¶
Original: Scene 03 (8 seconds of monologue covering 2 beats)
New: Scene 03a (4 seconds, first beat) + Scene 03b (4 seconds, second beat)
Adds: one extra image gen + Veo + Approve. Dialogue is split between the new scenes. The Veo template stays the same.
Removing a scene¶
Original: Scene 01 → Scene 02 → Scene 03 → Scene 04 → ... → Scene 08
New: Scene 01 → Scene 02 → Scene 04 → ... → Scene 08
Removes: image gen + Veo + Approve for Scene 03. Re-wires any downstream nodes that depended on Scene 03's output.
Adding a B-roll cutaway¶
Original: Scene 03 (continuous speaking)
New: Scene 03 (speaking with B-roll cutaway over voiceover)
Adds: one B-roll prompt file in Assets/{workflow}/broll/. Note: B-roll prompts don't get wired into the .nbflow — they're standalone files run via Manual B-roll Generation. The structural change here is mostly a storyboard / script edit, plus generating the new B-roll standalone.
Reworking the CTA¶
If the CTA structure changes — say from a comment-keyword DM funnel to a direct Shop button push — that's a Lvl 4 structural change because the final scene's dialogue + visuals + sales-channel mechanics all need updating.
Version naming¶
Same as Lvl 3 — V{next_major}-0-N during testing, then drops the -0-N on graduation.
When you wouldn't do this¶
Some changes that LOOK structural but aren't really:
| Looks structural | Actually... |
|---|---|
| Rewording the CTA line | Lvl 1 (dialogue only) |
| Adding "wearing reading glasses" to scene 03 | Surgical edit (one-prompt change) |
| Reordering rows within a Dynamic Prompt | Surgical edit (no node changes) |
Bumping outputCount from 4 to 6 |
Schema/config change — bump V0-N, but not a Lvl 4 |
Lvl 4 means the graph structure changed: a node was added, removed, split, or re-wired. If the node count and wiring stay the same, it's not Lvl 4.
Working with Patch Mode¶
The PatchWork Importer has a Patch Mode for structural edits. Instead of building a .nbflow from scratch, it takes an existing .nbflow plus a list of changes and applies them surgically.
When the Manager invokes Patch Mode, it:
- Reads the source
.nbflow - Applies the structural changes (add node X, remove node Y, wire A→B)
- Re-syncs per-node link refs (critical — see PatchWork Import Bugs)
- Saves to the new version path
Patch Mode is invisible to you — it's the Manager's tool for not destroying existing work when you ask for a structural change.
Example session — split + add prehook¶
You: Lvl 4 on XYZS1-V2. Two changes: (1) add a prehook before Scene 01,
(2) split Scene 04 into two scenes (it's currently too long).
Claude:
Lvl 4 variant scoped. Two structural changes proposed:
Change 1: Add prehook
+ Scene 00 (prehook): tight selfie, surprised expression
+ 1 image gen + 1 Veo3 + 1 Approve gate
Wiring: standalone (no upstream dependencies)
Change 2: Split Scene 04
- Original Scene 04: ~8 seconds, dialogue beats A and B
+ New Scene 04a: ~4 seconds, dialogue beat A only
+ New Scene 04b: ~4 seconds, dialogue beat B only
+ 1 extra image gen + 1 extra Veo3 + 1 extra Approve
Dialogue rows in the Dynamic Prompt: 1 row → 2 rows
Total: +6 nodes added across all tabs (~30 new nodes for a 5-account
workflow).
Bumping V2 → V3-0-1 testing phase.
Confirm?
After your confirmation, Patch Mode applies both changes, saves to V3-0-1, and you start the testing iteration.
When you're ready¶
→ Next: The Testing Phase — how V{N+1}-0-N iteration works in detail, when to stay in testing, when to graduate.