What are Tokens and Context Length?

AI models do not read words the way humans do. They process information in Tokens. A token can be a single character, part of a word, or an entire word. In Questsmith, a rough rule of thumb is: 1 token equals about 4 characters (or roughly 0.75 words).

1. How Tokens Work

Think of tokens as the building blocks of language. When you send a prompt, the AI breaks it down into these building blocks, analyzes patterns, and predicts which building block should come next. This is why the AI can sometimes waver on very complex or made-up words, since it has to find the best token match.

2. What is Context Length?

Context Length is the AI's short-term memory. It determines how many tokens the model can see at once while generating a response. Once your story exceeds this limit, the AI starts forgetting the earliest parts of the adventure to make room for new actions.

Pro Tip: To keep your story coherent even at the context limit, use Story Cards and Memory. These anchored details are always sent to the AI so it retains quest goals and character names, even after the actual text from chapter 1 has already fallen out of the context window.