10,000 Swords Against Heaven vs Call of Cthulhu
Compare 10,000 Swords Against Heaven and Call of Cthulhu side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| 10,000 Swords Against Heaven | Call of Cthulhu | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy, Scifi, Horror, Post-Apocalyptic, Cyberpunk | Horror, Modern |
| Tags | Martial Arts, Tactical, Character Building, Classless, Fiction-First, Survival, Resource Management, Sandbox, Dark Fantasy, Weird | Investigation, Fear & Stress Mechanics, Mystery, Deadly, Corruption, Skill-Based, Atmospheric, One-Shot Friendly, Character-Driven, Narrative |
| Core Mechanic | Roll a pool of d6s equal to the relevant Cultivation rating, adjusted for the circumstances. Each die showing 4–6 counts as a Strike. Meet or exceed the action's Demand to succeed; opposed checks compare Strike totals. | Roll d100 equal to or below a skill or characteristic. Hard and Extreme tests use half and one-fifth of that rating. Bonus and penalty dice select a better or worse tens digit. Eligible failed skill rolls can be pushed by taking further action, risking a harsher consequence. |
| Dice | d6 dice pool | d100 |
| Complexity | High | Medium |
| Accessibility | Very High | High |
| Runnability | Low | Very High |
| License | Third Party License | Chaosium Fan Material Policy |
| Third-Party Publishing | Commercial publishing allowed — Core rulebook Third Party License | Commercial publishing allowed — Community content program |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Cost | Free | $$ |
| Publisher | JK Saavedra | Chaosium |
| Year | 2026 | 2014 |
| Languages | English | English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Spanish, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Swedish, Chinese |
| Best For | Groups seeking cultivation campaigns with reactive tactical combat and open-ended exploration. The setting centers communist revolution against divine and capitalist rule. | Groups who want clue-driven horror with ordinary investigators and lasting consequences. Suits focused mysteries and campaigns where survival matters more than defeating every threat. |
| Highlights | Two-stage Interrupt cascades let combatants spend Actions to respond before an opponent's declared action resolves. Licenses from fifteen Sects combine with limited Meridian slots to support changeable martial and magical loadouts. Magnetite is both currency and a source of XP, making cultivation compete with equipment purchases. | Pushing a failed roll offers another chance at the goal with a more serious consequence if it fails. Learning Mythos lore reduces maximum Sanity, tying useful knowledge to lasting vulnerability. An Idea roll gets a stalled investigation moving again, with failure putting investigators into danger. |
| Considerations | Characters start fragile by design; the book expects many to die at Stage 0 before cultivation takes hold. Casting Magick prevents Defense Checks, making positioning and allied protection important. The premise centers communist revolution, and the book warns of sexual violence and body horror. | A major wound can leave an investigator dying, making direct confrontation dangerous. Bouts of madness temporarily place investigator actions under Keeper control. Foot and vehicle chases track relative speed and movement actions, adding a separate procedure to pursuit scenes. |