{"schemaVersion":1,"record":{"key":"mechanic/rpg-grind--trade-routes","type":"mechanic","id":"rpg-grind--trade-routes","lang":"en","title":"Trade routes","summary":"The player links resource sources and trading locations into a repeatable route. Returns depend on goods, travel costs and buyers’ needs.","updatedAt":"2026-10-21","status":"active","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/knowledge/mechanic/rpg-grind--trade-routes/","jsonUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/api/v1/knowledge/en/mechanic/rpg-grind--trade-routes.json","markdownUrl":"https://gamemechanics.pro/content/knowledge/en/mechanic/rpg-grind--trade-routes.md","aliases":[],"tags":["RPG grinding","Trade and economy"],"sourceIds":["source-df9ed2d1b2e7ac06"],"sources":[{"id":"source-df9ed2d1b2e7ac06","title":"Spiritfarer","url":"https://thunderlotusgames.com/press-kits/spiritfarer-press-kit/","verifiedAt":null}],"sections":[{"id":"principle","title":"How it works","body":"Goods are bought or produced in one place and transported to a more valuable destination."},{"id":"variants","title":"Variants","body":"### Variants\n\n<a id=\"trade-routes-options\"></a>\n\n- Transport goods between regions. <a id=\"trade-routes-option-1\"></a>\n- Build a circuit without an empty return leg. <a id=\"trade-routes-option-2\"></a>\n- Protect cargo to preserve profit. <a id=\"trade-routes-option-3\"></a>"},{"id":"example","title":"Design example","body":"A caravan carries salt to a mountain town, choosing a toll road or dangerous pass."},{"id":"context","title":"Context and limits","body":"A systematic RPG grind reference: 110 mechanics and 330 variants in 18 sections. Four layers answer different questions: what the player repeats, what develops, how rewards arrive and what constrains the loop. It covers single-player RPGs, ARPGs, MMORPGs and adjacent management and accumulation systems. Every mechanic has an explanation, variants and a hypothetical example; coverage, combinations and verified game observations follow the catalog."}],"relations":[],"placements":[{"catalogId":"rpg-grind","id":"trade-routes","title":"RPG grinding","url":"https://gamemechanics.pro/en/mechanics/rpg-grind/#trade-routes","categoryIds":["economy-loops"]}],"supersededBy":[],"attributes":{"preview":{"updatedAt":"2026-10-21","title":"Trade routes","description":"The player links resource sources and trading locations into a repeatable route. Returns depend on goods, travel costs and buyers’ needs.","image":{"src":"images/mechanics/spiritfarer-trader.webp","width":1440,"height":810,"game":"Spiritfarer","sourceUrl":"https://thunderlotusgames.com/press-kits/spiritfarer-press-kit/","originalUrl":"https://thunderlotusgames.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Spiritfarer-SCREENSHOTS-07.jpg","credit":"Thunder Lotus","rights":"© Thunder Lotus. All rights reserved.","caption":"An island merchant","alt":"Spiritfarer: Stella stands at an island merchant’s stall, with a Buy interaction prompt below it.","markers":[{"x":55,"y":85,"label":"Purchase interaction"}]},"tips":["Show which goods are available at the destination.","Make trading gains comparable to travel costs."],"examples":[{"title":"Spiritfarer","url":"https://thunderlotusgames.com/press-kits/spiritfarer-press-kit/"}]}},"endsAt":null,"provenance":"Original editorial RPG grind taxonomy authored for gamemechanics.pro on 2026-10-20 and expanded to cover activities, progression goals, reward rules and constraints. All original thirty family/branch/variant identities are preserved. Official developer and publisher sources support only the specifically described released-game observations; design variants and scenarios are hypothetical.","license":"CC-BY-4.0","codeLicense":"MIT","attribution":"gamemechanics.pro contributors","catalogKey":"catalog/rpg-grind"}}