How do Contracts work in Assassin’s Creed Mirage?

Assassin’s Creed Mirage certainly represents a more pared down, streamlined experience compared to the bloated excesses of Valhalla, but there’s still quite of a bit of side content to discover in ninth-century Baghdad, like Contracts.

Assassin Contracts make up the vast majority of the game’s more structured side content, and despite being glossed over in their introduction, they represent a robust and surprisingly layered mission system.

If you’re lost in the midst of the color coding and the optional objectives, this guide will break down every part of the Contracts system—and why you shouldn’t just let them stay on that board forever.

What are Contracts in Assassin’s Creed Mirage?

Where to find Contracts

Contracts are, in essence, jobs of lesser importance that the other factions of Baghdad are looking to hire the Hidden Ones for. They’re posted up on Contract boards located conveniently in every Bureau, often right next to the door so you can grab one on your way back out into the city.

Every Bureau shares the same pool of Contract missions, meaning that you won’t be missing out on any opportunities no matter which board you’re looking at. They’re also tracked in their own submenu, meaning they won’t be cluttering up your Investigation menu.

Starfield players, don’t despair—Mirage‘s Contracts are all handcrafted, bespoke side missions, not radiant tasks you can simply ignore without missing out on anything. There’s quite a bit of variety, from assassination jobs to rescues to burglary and even more, letting you sharpen your skills without the risk of screwing up a main storyline mission.

Contracts and Factions

Every Contract is put out by one of the three factions—Scholars, Merchants and Soldiers—and will give you rewards corresponding to that faction. The faction of a Contract is denoted by its color and symbol (blue for Scholars, green for Merchants, red for Soldiers).

Completing a Contract is the most reliable way to earn Favor Tokens for the faction it’s associated with, which you can later cash in for powerful favors from the people of Baghdad. It’s definitely worth having a few of all three types on hand for any given situation, as these tokens can be exchanged for discounts, assistance in combat, clearing notoriety, distractions, and even opening up brand new avenues to your assassination targets. You never want to be caught lacking one when you need a little help from your friends.

Contractor Requests

Additional Favor Tokens, and often hefty cash payouts, can be achieved by completing the Contractor Requests tied to each Contract as well. These work just like the Full Synchronization objectives in the earlier Assassin’s Creed games, functioning as additional constraints that you can fulfill… or not.

For instance, I’ve been tasked with escorting a poet across dangerous territory without taking any damage or retrieving an item of contraband without killing even a single person. While they’re by no means required, and you’ll still get the important rewards even without them, the extra bonuses and the interesting challenges they provide make them worth the attempt all the same.

What rewards do you get for completing Contracts in Assassin’s Creed Mirage?

Currency and crafting materials aren’t the only thing you stand to gain from Contracts. Every so often, a Contract with a special, desirable reward will appear—I’ve personally seen the offerings range from Skill Points to weapons to upgrade schematics and even whole new outfits.

These are the Contracts you want to go after as soon as possible, as their rewards will help you take on even more Contracts, which give you better rewards, creating a surprisingly addicting feedback loop. Fitting in these bite-sized missions between your more high-profile assassinations is the best way to make sure you’re properly armed and armored for what lies ahead.

The Rostam Outfit in particular is one to keep an eye out for, as it has what is quite possibly the best effect in the game: when fully upgraded, Basim’s movement will be completely silent, making stealthy assassinations a piece of daheen for even the clumsiest Assassins.

Contracts are definitely a step up from the somewhat-lacking side missions of the last few entries, breathing more life into the city of Baghdad without overwhelming the player with map icons. Just don’t get so swept up in helping people cross the street that you start to neglect the main missions—the Order of the Ancients is still out there!