Castles & Crusades vs Those Who Wander
Compare Castles & Crusades and Those Who Wander side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Castles & Crusades | Those Who Wander | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Tags | Heroic, Dungeon Crawl, Character Building, High-Fantasy, Theater of the Mind, Vancian Casting | Heroic, High-Fantasy, Character Building, Classless, Tactical, Worldbuilding, Vancian Casting, Crunchy |
| Core Mechanic | SIEGE Engine: roll d20 + modifier + level vs. Challenge Class (12 for primary attributes, 18 for secondary). Primary/secondary attribute distinction replaces complex skill lists with a single unified check system. | Roll d20 + ability bonus + proficiency bonus against a Difficulty Score. Abilities use direct modifiers (−1 to +5) instead of base scores, removing a calculation step from every roll. Character progression replaces classes and levels with a 20-step path: at each step you choose between two or more diverging features, and prerequisites gate later options. |
| Dice | d20 | d20 |
| Complexity | Low | Medium |
| Availability | Free core rules | Free quickstart |
| Runnability | 4 of 5 book tools | 4 of 5 book tools |
| License | OGL 1.0a | Proprietary (free Essential Rules quickstart) |
| Third-Party Publishing | Not yet researched | Not yet researched |
| Publisher | Troll Lord Games | Gnome Made Games |
| Year | 2004 | 2022 |
| Languages | English | English |
| Best For | Groups wanting the classic AD&D feel with streamlined, unified mechanics: old-school spirit with modern ease of play. | Groups familiar with d20 fantasy who want deeper character customization, inclusive design covering any parentage pairing and accessibility for disabled characters, and long campaigns where each hero's 20-step path diverges from the rest of the party. |
| Highlights | SIEGE Engine unifies all attribute checks, easy to convert AD&D/d20 content, 13 classes with classic archetypes, fast character creation, large back-catalog of adventures | Parentage system inherits traits from any two birth parents across 15 peoples (dwarven, elven, human, halfling, avian, celestial, draconic, genie, gnoll, gnomish, goblin, kobold, infernal, orc, plus Complex Parentage) for hundreds of pairing combinations. Accessibility rules treat Blind and Deaf characters as mechanically viable heroes and integrate prosthetics and wheelchairs as part of the character. The 20-step branching progression replaces classes and levels: each step is a choice between two or more features that gate further specializations. Awakening heirlooms (weapons, armor, trinkets) gain new properties as characters take steps, growing in power and personality alongside their owner. |
| Considerations | Primary/secondary attribute split can feel arbitrary, limited non-fantasy support | 477-page rulebook with substantial mechanical innovation in character creation requires significant reading before a first session. No adventures are included in the core rules: GMs must design their own scenarios or source from d20-compatible content. The steps system departs from familiar level/class structure, so players coming from d20 fantasy must learn a new progression model. No native rolled initiative: the storyteller chooses one of four ability-based turn-order methods at the start of each combat. |