Failed breaks without rewriting the whole map

A short framework for keeping levels after a false probe — and when to finally retire them.

A failed break is information, not a reason to wipe every line. We keep the original zone, mark the probe high or low as a minor reference, and wait for a second accepted close beyond the zone before we flip roles.

Students often delete levels out of frustration after a stop-out. In critique we ask: did the map fail, or did the trade plan use the level incorrectly? Those are different problems. Mapping craft answers the first; risk rules answer the second — and we stay on the first in this studio.

If you are mid-series, bring one failed break example to your next mentor call in the Mentored Mapping Series.