Basic Fantasy RPG vs Dungeons & Dragons
Compare Basic Fantasy RPG and Dungeons & Dragons side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Basic Fantasy RPG | Dungeons & Dragons | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Play Style | Classic Fantasy, Beginner-Friendly, Rules-Light, Ascending AC, Open Source, Hackable, Modular, Dungeon Crawl | Tactical, Heroic, Dungeon Crawl, Character Building, High-Fantasy, Beginner-Friendly, Classic Fantasy, Lore-Heavy, Ascending AC |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d20 + attack bonus against the target's ascending Armor Class. Saving throws use a d20 roll-over against category-specific target numbers. Ability checks are d20 roll-under. Character advancement uses class-based XP tables and hit dice. | Roll d20 + modifier against a target DC (for ability checks and saving throws) or AC (for attacks). Meeting or exceeding the target succeeds. Advantage rolls 2d20 and takes the higher; disadvantage takes the lower, replacing most situational modifiers. |
| Dice | d20 | d20 |
| Complexity | Low | Medium |
| Accessibility | Very High | Very High |
| Runnability | Very High | High |
| License | Creative Commons CC BY-SA 4.0 | CC BY 4.0 (SRD); core books proprietary |
| Cost | Free | $$$ |
| Publisher | Basic Fantasy Project | Wizards of the Coast |
| Year | 2023 | 2024 |
| Best For | Groups who want a free, simple B/X-style game that modernizes classic D&D with ascending AC and separate race and class while remaining compatible with decades of OSR adventures. | Groups who want heroic fantasy combining tactical grid combat with deep character-build options, scaling from one-shots up through long multi-tier campaigns. |
| Highlights | Completely free PDF with at-cost print copies through Lulu, race and class are separate unlike B/X source material, highly compatible with classic B/X and OSR modules | Advantage and disadvantage collapse most situational modifiers into one mechanic: roll a second d20 and keep the higher or lower, so play rarely stops to total small bonuses. Each of the 12 classes offers four subclasses in the 2024 Player's Handbook, letting players reshape a class's role without multiclassing. Bounded accuracy keeps proficiency bonuses small, so low-level threats stay relevant in numbers and DCs read consistently across all tiers. |
| Considerations | Four core classes only (Cleric, Fighter, Magic-User, Thief) without supplements, racial class restrictions limit some combinations, no built-in setting or campaign framework | High-level play (tier 3–4) introduces significant spell interaction complexity and encounter balancing challenges for GMs. No official rules for non-fantasy genres. Three core books at $50 each represent a significant investment for the full rules. |