Agon vs Honor + Intrigue
Compare Agon and Honor + Intrigue side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Agon | Honor + Intrigue | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy, Historical | Historical |
| Play Style | Heroic, Narrative, Rules-Light, Fast Sessions, Low-Prep, Mission-Based, Fast-Paced, Cinematic, Tag-Based | Career-Based, Cinematic, Social Intrigue, Heroic, Fast-Paced, Martial Arts, Ship-Based, Pirates, Theater of the Mind |
| Core Mechanic | All conflicts resolve in a single contested roll. Players assemble a dice pool from relevant traits (Name die, Epithet die, Domain die, Divine Favor), each rated as a step die (d4–d12). Everyone rolls simultaneously; highest result wins. The Strife Player sets opposition with their own dice. Divine Favor grants bonus dice from the gods but is unreliable. Pathos tracks a hero's inner fire — when it runs out, the hero's tale ends. | Roll 2d6 + Quality (Might, Daring, Savvy, or Flair) + Career rank vs. 9 to succeed. In combat, Combat Abilities (Brawl, Melee, Ranged, Defense) replace Careers. Bonus Dice roll 3d6 and keep the best two; Penalty Dice keep the worst two. Fortune Points let heroes escape death, add bonus dice, invoke dramatic license, or press the Advantage in duels. Advantage tracks momentum in melee — characters start at 3 and lose Advantage when hit, becoming Defeated at 0. Nine Dueling Styles (Spanish, Italian, French, and more) each grant unique maneuvers and a Final Secret at mastery. Social Combat uses the same framework, targeting Composure instead of Lifeblood. |
| Dice | d4–d12 | 2d6 |
| Complexity | Very Low | Medium |
| Accessibility | High | Low |
| Runnability | High | Medium |
| License | Proprietary | Proprietary |
| Cost | $ | $$ |
| Publisher | Evil Hat Productions | Basic Action Games |
| Year | 2020 | 2012 |
| Best For | Groups who want fast, competitive mythic Greek adventures with minimal prep — each island is a self-contained session of trials, battles, and divine interference. | Groups who want cinematic swashbuckling in the style of The Three Musketeers and Captain Blood — dashing swordplay, court intrigue, and sea battles with a fast, career-based system. |
| Highlights | Island adventures require zero GM prep — everything needed is in the book, one-roll resolution keeps pace fast, competitive Glory system encourages heroes to outshine each other, Strife Player role rotates so everyone can play a hero | Nine Dueling Styles with distinct maneuvers and masterable Final Secrets provide deep fencing differentiation. Social Combat and Repartee use the same mechanical framework as physical combat, targeting Composure. Over 30 period-specific Careers from Musketeer to Temptress replace skill lists. Includes ship-to-ship combat, battlefield rules, and a 17th-century gazetteer covering Europe, the Americas, and beyond. |
| Considerations | Narrow mythic Greek genre with limited setting flexibility, competitive Glory system can frustrate cooperative-minded players, heroes have few mechanical traits to differentiate them, campaign arc is finite — heroes eventually reach their Fate and retire | No free quickstart or SRD available. Advantage tracking adds a subsystem on top of basic BoL resolution. The gazetteer and setting material assume 17th-century Europe as the default, limiting out-of-the-box use for other periods. |