Places, Routes, Quests, and Trade

Locations describe places that matter to play. Separate lasting identity—what a place is, why it matters, its atmosphere—from current local conditions, services, and pending changes. A current condition should say whether it is temporary, seasonal, or recurring where useful. A pending change should name its trigger or timing and remain pending until it occurs or is prevented. When the party returns, resolve those changes from established causes and elapsed time, then update the location and its relevant Session Log entry.

Connect places with routes

Create a Travel Route when a journey between places has enough continuity to revisit. Reference the origin and destination rather than relying on names in prose. Record distance and its unit, the ordinary one-way duration in in-world minutes, travel modes, conditions that can change the journey, and meaningful road events. Estimates should be useful but not falsely precise. A route duration is a baseline under ordinary conditions, not a guarantee that every party takes exactly that long.

A road event is a prompt for a possible choice, not a mandatory encounter. Describe its trigger, consequence, and status. Resolve it when its timing and circumstances fit; do not duplicate a World Event as a road event merely to put it in two lists. If a route's endpoint changes, update the route reference and review any location that links to it. Travel should advance the Campaign Clock by the actual journey time, and on arrival the Campaign State should reflect the party's new location.

Make quests actionable

A Quest record should distinguish the objective, what the party knows, what remains uncertain, and what can happen if time passes or the party declines to act. Use deadlines and failure conditions only when they are meaningful and grounded in an established cause. Link relevant NPCs, factions, locations, and other records instead of copying their descriptions into the quest. Mark leads as leads rather than confirmed facts. Update objectives and outcomes as play changes them; preserve important resolutions in the Session Log.

Ground resources and trade

Equipment records describe reusable item definitions and their stated price/value; a character inventory represents actual ownership. Do not treat every item definition as stock in every shop. Merchant availability, local wages, scarcity, debts, and price changes need an established explanation. Zenit balances belong to their owners; party funds should be separately identified rather than assumed to be shared. Record transactions and their arithmetic in the authoritative character or campaign record, with a Session Log entry for consequential changes.

The current project has no dedicated economy ledger or full regional market model. If trade becomes central, first identify which facts require durable tracking—such as stock, prices, debts, and ownership—and propose a focused type or ledger rather than scattering copies across locations, quests, and NPC descriptions. Until then, keep economic developments in the existing authoritative record that best fits them and note important changes chronologically.