{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/role-playing-systems--t058","type":"mechanic","id":"role-playing-systems--t058","lang":"en","title":"Quests, contracts and consequences","summary":"A quest defines a commitment and completion conditions, while consequences preserve differences between solutions.","updatedAt":"2026-10-22","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/role-playing-systems--t058/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/role-playing-systems--t058.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/role-playing-systems--t058.md","aliases":[],"tags":["Role-playing systems","Mechanics and variants"],"sourceIds":["source-3817d420df0baa92","source-b36b38ceb4ac23e1"],"sources":[{"id":"source-3817d420df0baa92","title":"Robert Nystrom: State","url":"https://github.com/munificent/game-programming-patterns/blob/master/book/state.markdown","verifiedAt":null},{"id":"source-b36b38ceb4ac23e1","title":"Borderlands 2","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/manual/49520/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"A quest defines a commitment and completion conditions, while consequences preserve differences between solutions."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Mechanic variants\n\n<a id=\"t058-variants\"></a>\n\n- Alternatives allow completing an objective without combat. <a id=\"t058-v1\"></a>\n- A deadline changes the situation after a delay. <a id=\"t058-v2\"></a>\n- Conflicting jobs force a commitment choice. <a id=\"t058-v3\"></a>\n- Consequences change the world after payment. <a id=\"t058-v4\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"Medicine can reach the paying client or be given to a sick village encountered on the route.\n\nPrototype check: Test quest completion after an important NPC dies and when the required item is obtained before acceptance."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"Role-playing systems connect character identity, party composition, equipment and consequential choices. Each overview separates player actions, state changes and alternative rules. Examples are hypothetical design scenarios, not claims about a named game. A prototype check states an observable question for the next iteration. Existing detailed references remain separately linked from the direction map."}],"relations":[{"type":"uses","direction":"outgoing","label":"Sources in the selection","key":"resource/state-pattern","title":"State: Game Programming Patterns","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/resources/#resource-state-pattern","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/resource/state-pattern.md"}],"placements":[{"catalogId":"role-playing-systems","id":"t058","title":"Role-playing systems","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/role-playing-systems/#t058","categoryIds":["mechanics"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-22","title":"Quests, contracts and consequences","description":"A quest defines a commitment and completion conditions, while consequences preserve differences between solutions.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/borderlands2-mission-log-manual.webp","width":499,"height":281,"game":"Borderlands 2","sourceUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/manual/49520/","originalUrl":"https://store.steampowered.com/manual/49520/#page=11","credit":"Gearbox Software / 2K; screenshot extracted from official PC manual, PDF page 11","rights":"Game imagery © its respective rights holders. Screenshot supplied in the official guide; all rights reserved. Excluded from MIT and CC BY 4.0.","caption":"The log shows a mission objective and reward","alt":"The log shows a mission objective and reward","markers":[{"x":31,"y":34,"label":"Mission completion condition"},{"x":31,"y":80,"label":"Reward for completion"}]},"tips":["Distinguish meeting objectives, turning in a quest and claiming rewards."],"examples":[{"title":"Borderlands 2","url":"https://store.steampowered.com/manual/49520/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original bilingual editorial overviews authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and reviewed on 2026-10-21. Scenarios are hypothetical design examples; prototype checks describe work to perform, not completed playtests. Primary sources support the stated techniques and implementation context, not every proposed variant.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/role-playing-systems"}}