Candela Obscura vs The Whispering Vault
Compare Candela Obscura and The Whispering Vault side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Candela Obscura | The Whispering Vault | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Horror | Horror |
| Tags | Investigation, Mystery, Corruption, Mission-Based, Playbook-Driven, Fiction-First, Resource Management, Atmospheric, Character-Driven, Strong GM Support | Mission-Based, Mystery, Investigation, Superpowers, High-Power, Character-Driven, Atmospheric, Weird, One-Shot Friendly, Strong GM Support |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d6s equal to your action rating and take the highest result: 1–3 is failure, 4–5 is success at a cost, and 6 is full success. Multiple 6s give a critical success. Spend drive to add dice, up to six total. With no dice, roll two and take the lower result. Taking a gilded die’s result restores one drive point. Burn resistance to reroll only your action dice. The GM sets stakes and expectations before the roll. | Roll a number of d6s equal to the relevant Attribute. Take the highest single die or the largest sum of matching dice, then add the applicable Skill Bonus. Meet or exceed the GM's Difficulty to succeed. Spend one Karma to reroll any chosen dice while keeping the others. |
| Dice | d6 dice pool | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | Low | High |
| Availability | Free quickstart | Paid |
| Runnability | 5 of 5 book tools | 3 of 5 book tools |
| License | Darrington Press Community Gaming License 2.0 | All Rights Reserved |
| Third-Party Publishing | Commercial publishing allowed — Community gaming license | No verified route found |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Publisher | Darrington Press | Philip Reed Games |
| Year | 2023 | 2003 |
| Languages | English, German, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish | English |
| Best For | Groups who want episodic occult investigations with lasting injuries and shared recovery resources. Character-specific goals reward taking risks during assignments. | Groups who want supernatural horror investigations with powerful, inhuman protagonists. It suits episodic hunts across different eras or campaigns protecting one recurring location. |
| Highlights | Gilded dice let investigators accept a worse outcome to recover resources. Character-specific goals contribute to shared advancement after each assignment. The assignment framework identifies essential reveals that keep investigations moving. | Each Hunt gives the group a concrete objective of investigating and repairing a breach in reality. Mastered powers allow improvised effects paid for with Karma. Consistent portrayal of the Keys that preserve a Stalker's human identity earns one part of the Experience award. |
| Considerations | Recovery draws from a limited pool shared by the whole circle. Scars usually persist throughout a campaign and can force a character out of play. Combat uses narrative judgment rather than initiative or fixed enemy health. | The Forbiddance punishes interference with unrelated mortals or major historical events. Supernatural abilities can consume the same Vitality used to withstand injury. Power interpretations and unusual combat situations depend on GM judgment rather than detailed rules for every case. |