BLACK SEVEN vs Night's Black Agents
Compare BLACK SEVEN and Night's Black Agents side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| BLACK SEVEN | Night's Black Agents | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Modern | Horror, Modern |
| Play Style | Espionage, Mission-Based, Rules-Light, Theater of the Mind, Fast-Paced, One-Shot Friendly, Beginner-Friendly, Cinematic | Investigation, Espionage, Character-Driven, Gritty |
| Core Mechanic | Roll 2d6 + Trait, 11+ succeeds. Characters have 12 Traits organized into three categories, each with four Traits linked to Body, Speed, Mind, or Communication: Infiltrate (stealth and access), Force (open combat), and Mob (silent takedowns). An abstract positioning system tracks agent status through Exposed and Noticed states rather than using maps. Threat escalates from 3 to 5 as agents are detected, with guards only returning fire at Threat 5. | GUMSHOE engine. Investigative abilities auto-succeed: if you have the skill and there's a clue, you find it. General abilities (combat, athletics) roll 1d6 + spent points vs. difficulty 4. Point pools refresh between sessions, creating resource-management tension. Four play modes (Burn, Dust, Mirror, Stakes) tune mechanics to your preferred espionage tone. |
| Dice | 2d6 | d6 |
| Complexity | Very Low | Medium |
| Accessibility | Medium | Medium |
| Runnability | Low | High |
| License | CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 | GUMSHOE SRD (CC BY 3.0 / OGL) |
| Cost | $ | $$ |
| Publisher | Zero Point Information | Pelgrane Press |
| Year | 2011 | 2012 |
| Best For | Groups who want fast, low-prep espionage one-shots inspired by stealth video games like Deus Ex and Splinter Cell, with abstract facility infiltration and no maps required. | Groups who want spy-thriller action fused with supernatural horror: burned agents unraveling a vampire conspiracy through investigation, chases, and tradecraft. |
| Highlights | Abstract facility infiltration system replaces maps with positioning actions and escalating Threat levels. Three tactical approaches to every encounter: sneak past, ambush silently, or go loud. Character creation fits on an index card and takes minutes. Optional cybernetics and psionics modules expand the near-future setting. | Investigation never stalls: clues flow automatically, Conspyramid campaign structure is a well-designed GM tool, four tonal modes let you dial in the spy genre you want, highly modular vampire creation system, works stripped of vampires for pure espionage |
| Considerations | 47-page rulebook with limited content beyond the core loop of facility infiltration. No advancement or campaign mechanics: designed for one-shots and short arcs. No bestiary or NPC variety beyond guards and researchers. Sample adventure is the only published scenario. | NPC combat math can feel unbalanced against PCs, multiple point pools to track can bottleneck play, narrow genre focus limits reuse, requires significant GM prep for conspiracy networks |