Quest System and Side Events#

The content volume of Back to the Dawn is considerable for its genre: according to media figures, the game has over 100 quests, over a million words of text, and a main story of more than 20 hours per protagonist. Inside a prison deadline of only 21 days, quests are not a checklist to clear but an exercise in trade-offs — this page explains the structure of the quest system and how to pick the right things to do with limited time.

The Structure of the Quest System#

From a strategy perspective, quests divide into four categories, each with different value and different rules for accepting:

This classification is not an official label; it groups quests by what they serve. Even so, it directly guides how you spend each day’s action points (see Time Management and Schedule Planning).

Two boundary notes. First, this framework is organized around Thomas’s route; Bob (the panther cop) appears as an independent story line newly added in the full release, and the composition of his quests follows the actual in-game content, with a dedicated section at the end covering how the two protagonist routes differ in trade-offs. Second, all four categories share the same 21-day deadline and the same action-point budget, so the categories are viewpoints rather than sealed compartments. Cross-category scheduling, using favors banked from gang business to open the door to an inmate side story, is the normal way this system is played.

Main Story: A Chain That Cannot Break#

The narrative skeleton of Thomas’s route is explicit: gather evidence and break out to clear your name within 21 days, and the key physical evidence points to the Mayor’s recording. The main story chain therefore has three traits that keep it permanently in first place:

1. Irreplaceable: whether you escape first or exonerate yourself first depends on whether the main story is finished. Breaking out after skipping the main line and breaking out after completing it are two different ending worlds.
2. Periodic chokepoints: advancing the evidence chain depends on intelligence, contacts and locations all lining up, so cramming at the deadline is close to impossible.
3. Strongly coupled with side stories: many side stories are effectively invisible prerequisites for the main line; an inmate’s request often leads to the person or the information you need.

Making “main story first” concrete: confirm “what is today’s main story objective” before starting each day. Advance it when you can, and do side stories when you are temporarily stuck, but write down why you are stuck and how you plan to route around it. Do not let “postponed” turn into “forgotten”.

The end of the main chain connects to the ending fork. Per guide-site wording (single source), the trigger logic is clear: escaping before obtaining the Mayor’s recording leads to the “Hermit” ending; escaping after completing the main line takes you into the broadcast hall for a showdown against the two werewolf bosses, and victory lets you choose between the “Justice” and “Emperor” endings. In other words, whether the main story is completed is the switch between the “escape first” and “clear your name first” routes, which is the fundamental reason it always ranks first (trigger details and route consequences in All Ending Conditions and Routes).

One achievement calculation while we are here: of the tarot-themed achievements, the four confirmed ones, “Wheel of Fortune”, “The Fool”, “The High Priestess” and “The Hierophant”, are all main story completions per guide-site wording. They unlock naturally as you follow the main line, with no extra grinding. Finish the main story and the foundation of your achievement collection is laid (see Achievement System and Unlock Conditions).

Side Stories: The Art of Choosing Carefully#

More than 100 quests cannot be finished in 21 days, and there is no need to finish them. Three rulers for picking side stories:

Ruler One: What It Serves#

Ruler Two: Time Cost#

The hidden cost of a side story is days. Before accepting, assess: how many time slots does this request span? Will it collide with fixed schedule items such as roll call and yard time? Under a 21-day deadline, the choice between “great pay but eats three days” and “average pay but on the way” usually favors the latter. Time is scarcer than money.

Ruler Three: Chain Value#

Prison society is a network. One inmate’s request can pull out another person’s story, a stretch of gang history, or a door into a new area. Prioritize quests that open a next step. Making quests interlock is the core technique for raising returns per unit of time.

Worth stating: side stories are the home ground of this game’s text experience. A large share of the prison society built from over a million words is hidden in the backstories of the 47 to 48 inmates and the daily business of the various powers. Media coverage of quest design clusters in the “widely praised” tier, and the time-pressure mechanic that some players list as a flaw is precisely what the three rulers above dissolve. Handle trade-offs well and time pressure turns from an enemy into a pacing tool.

Gang Quests: Counting the Ledger Twice#

The daily business of the three major gangs is an important source of resources and intelligence, but the ledger needs counting twice:

• Upside: gang-flavored quests often pay well and come with faction protection and intelligence channels.
• Downside: gang quests carry a stance. Take work for the “Bigfoot Gang” and the “Black Claw Gang” plus the third party in the balance of power will look at you differently.

Here is a strategy consistent with Relationships and Affinity System: take few during the observation phase, take them selectively during the building phase, take no new stance quests during the execution phase. No reliable source discloses the impact of each individual gang quest choice, so this site does not invent a quest list; only the framework is offered.

To put “count it twice” into practice, borrow the three-phase frame from Time Management and Schedule Planning to control your stance exposure. Early (getting grounded and observing), take mostly neutral chores and read the balance of power among the three gangs before declaring anything. Middle (advancing and building), cultivate one faction selectively, trading gang quests for resources and protection while keeping basic courtesy with the others. Late (closing the net and choosing), accept no new stance quests at all. Making new enemies next to the escape window is the worst trade in the whole run. When a stance conflict escalates into an open incident, see Conflict Handling and Risk Control for responses.

Inmate Requests: The Other Face of Favors#

Roughly 47 to 48 inmates each have their own dedicated backstory, and their requests are the most “prison-flavored” part of the quest system. Two strategy points:

1. A request is the entry point to a relationship: favors banked by helping inmates flow back later as intelligence, supplies or cover (see the triangle conversion in Money Making and the Economy System).
2. Backstories are a rich vein of clues: Thomas is a journalist, and listening to stories is his job. Many inmates’ pasts connect directly to the corruption ecosystem of Rockfall City, so these texts are not just flavor; they are potential signposts on the exoneration route.

Two more practical suggestions. First, the volume is large (two sources give 47 and 48 inmates with dedicated backstories), so a single playthrough will only touch part of it; prioritize requests related to your current evidence chain or escape preparation and spend favors where they cut. Second, no reliable source discloses the specific reward numbers of each request, so this site does not invent a list. What can be fixed at the mechanical level is that goodwill built by helping people flows back as intelligence, supplies or cover, so check your main line’s gaps before deciding who gets this favor ticket.

Tools and Methods for Tracking Quests#

With more than 100 quests, tracking their state from memory will break. Here is a lightweight tracking method:

The tool does not matter; an in-game log or external notes both work. What matters is the discipline of “register on acceptance, clear on completion”. Reviewing shelved quests is especially critical: under a 21-day deadline, one forgotten side story may be why intelligence dries up later on.

Quest Failure and Consequence Management#

Quest paths are open and player choices shape fate, which means not every quest ends well. Three principles for managing failure:

1. Stop the loss first: when a quest is heading somewhere bad, cutting losses beats pushing on until it collapses.
2. Keep a ledger of grudges: know who you crossed and who you owe. Prison society holds grudges for a long time.
3. Never let side stories sink the main line: the worst outcome of any side story should not affect the advance of the Mayor’s recording chain.

Quick FAQ#

If I cannot finish every quest, will I miss key content? Not finishing in a single playthrough is by design, not a mistake. A complete main chain plus selectively chosen key side stories is enough to support any ending route; multiple endings and two protagonists are themselves the reason to play again.

Can gang quests lock me out of an ending? Picking a side affects the experience along the way and the social landscape, while the core ending fork sits on “when you escape” (see All Ending Conditions and Routes). Hostility from deep binding to one gang does raise the execution difficulty of both exoneration and escape, which is why the ledger needs counting twice.

Should I drop my current quest to handle a random event? Judge it by the action-point budget. If the sudden event hides a high-value opportunity (a benefactor, a crucial piece of news), it is worth detouring. If it is trivial, note the location and deal with it when you have time.

Quest Emphasis by Protagonist Route#

The trade-off framework above applies to both protagonist routes, but your taste in quests should follow the protagonist’s strengths. The differences, organized into a comparison table:

The division between the two routes is not “which is stronger” but two flavors of playthrough: Thomas’s quest network revolves around people, with favors and intelligence as hard currency; Bob’s quest network revolves around execution, with stealth and combat solutions ranked higher. If you plan multiple playthroughs, start with Thomas and follow with Bob: absorb the evidence chain and ending fork framework first, then verify the same system foundations with a different execution style (protagonist selection advice in Protagonist Breakdown).

One note: the public wording on ending trigger conditions comes mainly from documenting Thomas’s route, and the quest and ending details of Bob’s independent line follow the actual in-game content. The two routes share the system foundations, but the narrative content is separate.

Related Pages#

• Main Story Walkthrough and Key Choices — the full map of the main story chain
• Intelligence and Clue Collection — quests as carriers of intelligence
• Common Failure Causes and Survival Tips — classic wipe scenarios from bad quest trade-offs