QuestWorlds has rules for three different ways of doing what it calls “long contests.” The first of these, Scored Contests, is what HQ2/HQ:G calls Extended Contests. It has various problems IMO that we’ve discussed or ran into.

So we’re going to be trying out one or both of the alternatives. The QuestWorlds SRD is online and has rules for these, but I’ll summarize the one we’re going to try first below as well. QW uses the name Extended Contest for a ruleset that was used in HQ1 and Hero Wars, based around bidding points based on the riskiness of your actions. It also has Chained Contests, which are kind of just a series of simple contests with the consequences of defeat carrying forward until somebody successfully disengages from the contest or gets taken down to a Complete Defeat.

QW-style Extended Contests

We’ll try out the QW/HQ1 style Extended Contests with the point-bidding for now, since that’s what it seemed like folks were most intrigued by.

An extended contest consists of a series of rounds, in which the participants’ actions are resolved along similar lines to simple contests, but each exchange won’t decide the whole contest, just how many Advantage Points (AP) people win or lose. In each round, each participant gets to take actions in turn until somebody runs out of advantage points and is defeated.

Here’s the basic procedure:

1. The narrator frames the contest, like with a simple contest, figuring out what’s at stake and such.
2. The player chooses an initial tactic and determines their target number based on their ability rating and any modifiers, also as with simple contests.
3. The player then gets a starting pool of AP equal to the TN (with each mastery counting for a +20). Followers can also increase the starting AP count, as described below.
4. The narrator determines the resistance opposing the PC as usual (or if two PCs are facing off, then the other PC chooses their tactic and starting ability as in steps 2 and 3 above), and the resistance gets starting APs equal to its TN.
5. One or more rounds happens, with the details of runds described below.
6. When either side reaches 0 AP or lower, their opponent has won. The loser’s final AP total determines the loser’s degree of defeat and the winner’s degree of victory.
7. Consequences happen as with simple contests.

What happens in an extended contest round

In a non-group extended contest, a round will consist of two exchanges: an action from the player character and an immediate response from the NPC or other opposition. Unlike HQ2/HQ:G extended contests, these each get their own roll, with each exchange having one side on the offensive and the other on the defensive.

The player goes first, describing their action toward the contest’s prize, what ability they’re using, and how much risk they’re taking. They can either specify their AP bid numerically or let the GM determine it based on a more qualitative description of how risky their action is. Bold, risky action means higher AP bids; careful, cautious action means low AP bids. In the first round you have to use whatever ability was used to calculate your starting AP total, but afterwards you can freely vary the ability you’re using based on what you’re trying to do.

There’s the usual opposed dice rolls, and the loser will lose APs based on the bid and how badly they lost, according to the table below. On a crit, the points are transferred to the winner as long as the loser’s ability is less than 6 points worse than the winner’s; for example, with Stabbing 20, when you win an exchange with a crit versus a resistance of 14 or lower, the opponent just loses points rather than them transferring to you. In a group extended contest, a fumble versus fumble tie may also result in both participants losing ½ the bid, to represent the fumblers’ situation worsening relative to the other contestants. Half points get rounded up.

If this didn’t reduce the opposition’s AP total to 0 or below, then they get to respond, which works the same way except the narrator describes the action and decides how many AP to bid.

Once your opponent has either won or lost APs during the contest, you can ask the narrator what their current total is to help inform your own bidding.

<th>Failure</th>    <th>Fumble</th></tr>

Followers and Advantage Points

Followers can help you in an extended contest in several ways: they can augment your abilities, they can allow you to use one of their abilities as if it were your own, or if they have a relevant ability or keyword, you can simply add their APs to your own at the beginning of the contest.

You can also have your followers help somebody else, but you might have to succeed at a contest to persuade them to do so.

Extended Contest Outcomes

At the end of the contest, the loser’s APs determine the outcome according to the table below.

<td>Marginal</td></tr>

Group Extended Contests

When there are more than two contestants, it’s a group extended contest. It works mostly similarly, but there are some differences.

The rounds are a bit more complicated. Each contestant gets one action. At the start of the round, the contestants state their intended actions and AP bids. The narrator then determines the order in which they’ll get to act, usually either from most daring to least daring action, from highest to lowest bid, or from highest to lowest AP total.

Participants take their action in order. If a participant gets taken out of the contest before their turn, then they don’t get to act. If your intended target is knocked out before your turn, then the narrator might allow you to change to a different action. You may also be allowed to change your action to respond to an attack against you. Contestants can also opt to delay their turn.

Group Extended Contest Outcomes

The side with the last undefeated contestant gains the prize. If the PCs won, the group’s overall outcome is determined by the second-best outcome the PCs achieved versus the opponents, or just the only outcome if there was only one opponent. If the PCs lost, then the overall outcome is determined by the second-worst outcome obtained by the PCs, or just the only outcome if there’s only one PC.

Individual consequences or benefits can sometimes also be assigned based on the AP of the last opponent each player engaged.

Parting Shot

After defeating an opponent in an extended contest, you can act again immediately to take a parting shot to try to make their consequences of defeat more severe. You bid AP and use an appropriate ability. If you succeed, their AP will decrease and their outcome may become more severe. They’re risky, though, since if you lose the exchange they may gain enough points from a transfer to get back into the contest.

Final Action

If your PC is defeated in a group extended contest but aren’t dying, you can attempt a final action to try to stay in the contest. To attempt a final action you must be free from attention from the opposition and spend a hero point. You then use a relevant ability in a simple contest against the number of APs your PC is below zero.

If you succeed, you rejoin the contest with a positive AP total, although you continue to suffer from any consequences from your initial defeat. If you fail, you lose additional APs, potentially worsening your defeat. The results of the final action simple contest are shown in the table below:

<td>Lose APs equal to ⅛ of your starting value.</td>

<td>Lose APs equal to your full starting value.</td>

Desperation Stake

Players can stake advantage points in excess of their current total, to a maximum of their starting AP totals. This is called a desperation stake. The narrator can only stake as many points as they have.

Unrelated Actions

You can forfeit your action in a round to do something unrelated to the contest’s prize, like opening a door, pulling a piece of equipment out of your bags, healing yourself with magic or augmenting an ability. This might require a simple contest. Either way, this is called an unrelated action.