Age of Adventure RPG vs Dungeons & Dragons
Compare Age of Adventure RPG and Dungeons & Dragons side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Age of Adventure RPG | Dungeons & Dragons | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Play Style | Rules-Light, Classic Fantasy, Heroic, Player-Only Rolls, Roll to Cast, Low-Prep, Random Tables, Open Source | Tactical, Heroic, Character Building, High-Fantasy, Classic Fantasy, Vancian Casting, Ascending AC |
| Core Mechanic | Each Hero picks a single Proficiency number from 2 to 5. MIGHT actions (physical, martial) count d6 results equal to or under that number as Successes; MIND actions (mental, complex) count results equal to or over it. Roll 1d6 by default and add bonus dice for being Skilled, Prepared, Helped, or carrying the right Item. Rolling the Proficiency number exactly on a successful check earns a Hero Point, spendable for extra dice, rerolls, +1 damage, or a true in-world answer from the GM. Only players ever roll: enemy attacks resolve as automatic player Reaction Checks against the same Proficiency, with Block (1 less damage) or Dodge (no damage) chosen by the defender. | Make a D20 Test by rolling d20, adding relevant modifiers, and comparing the total to a target number. Ability checks, saving throws, and attack rolls use this procedure. Advantage and disadvantage use two d20s and keep the higher or lower result. |
| Dice | d6 dice pool | d20 |
| Complexity | Low | Medium |
| Accessibility | High | Very High |
| Runnability | Medium | Very High |
| License | CC BY 4.0 | CC BY 4.0 (SRD); core books proprietary |
| Cost | Free / $ | Free |
| Publisher | Adrian Young Games | Wizards of the Coast |
| Year | 2025 | 2024 |
| Best For | Groups who want a complete heroic fantasy game they can start playing the same night: everything from character creation to campaign play fits in a twelve-page zine, with classic fantasy races and class archetypes already built in. | Groups who want heroic fantasy with configurable tactical combat, broad character options, and campaigns that span multiple levels. |
| Highlights | A single Proficiency number from 2 to 5 defines a character's physical-versus-mental lean in one decision, so building a Hero is a thirty-second commitment rather than a stat-by-stat exercise: high favors MIGHT (roll under), low favors MIND (roll over). Only players roll dice, even on defense: every enemy attack triggers an automatic Reaction Check from the targeted Hero, so the GM is free to narrate threats while every die at the table belongs to a player. Encounter Levels are calculated as Size × Actions × Challenge plus armor and shield bonuses, then summed across the party, giving the GM an at-a-glance balance number to scale opposition without writing statblocks. | Advantage and disadvantage resolve common situational effects by selecting the higher or lower of two d20 rolls. Backgrounds, classes, subclasses, and feats distribute character choices across creation and advancement. Weapon Mastery gives qualifying weapon users distinct tactical effects without replacing the action economy. |
| Considerations | Magic is limited to six Arcane and six Holy spells that Wizards and Clerics know in full from creation, with no spell progression, new spells, or list customization across a campaign. Damage caps at 2 points per hit and Stamina maxes at the Proficiency number plus armor, so combats resolve in a few rounds without granular HP attrition or extended tactical play. Character advancement between adventures is limited to gold rewards and a +1 starting Hero Points carryover: there are no levels, experience tracks, or stat increases that meaningfully change a Hero over the course of a campaign. | Spell preparation, spell slots, class features, and conditions create several interacting resources for players to track. High-level characters combine many spells and features, increasing adjudication work for the DM. Bastions add a separate downtime procedure for campaigns that use the stronghold rules. |