Chronicles of Darkness vs We Can Be Heroes
Compare Chronicles of Darkness and We Can Be Heroes side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Chronicles of Darkness | We Can Be Heroes | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Horror, Modern | Superhero, Modern |
| Tags | Atmospheric, Character Building, Character-Driven, Classless, Corruption, Drama, Fear & Stress Mechanics, Improvisation, Investigation, Strong GM Support | Heroic, Superpowers, Combat-Heavy, Cinematic, Character Building, Faction Play |
| Core Mechanic | Build a d10 pool from an Attribute plus a Skill and count each 8, 9, or 10 as a success. Tens reroll, five successes are exceptional, and a pool reduced below one die becomes a chance die that succeeds only on a 10. | Roll d20 + Talent Modifier vs. GM-set threshold for Talent Checks. Superpowers use Target Die (d12 at levels 1–9, d20 at levels 10–20) + Superpower Die + Moxie. Superpower Attacks always hit: damage is the variable. Hero's Favor points fuel superpowers and creative power use. Action Points govern turns with Primary (3 AP) and Secondary (2 AP) actions. Public Merit tracks faction reputation for favors, intel, and gear upgrades. Hero's Moment rewards critical failures with one-per-level power-ups. |
| Dice | d10 dice pool | d4–d20 |
| Complexity | Medium | Medium |
| Accessibility | Medium | Medium |
| Runnability | Very High | Low |
| License | All Rights Reserved | Proprietary |
| Third-Party Publishing | Commercial publishing allowed — Storytellers Vault | Not yet researched |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Cost | $ | $$ |
| Publisher | Onyx Path Publishing | BudStuff Games |
| Year | 2015 | 2024 |
| Languages | English | English |
| Best For | Groups who want modern supernatural horror built around investigating mysteries, navigating personal consequences, and confronting threats before they overwhelm an ordinary life. | Groups who want crunchy superhero campaigns with detailed character builds, tiered superpowers, and a reputation system that ties heroism to community relationships. |
| Highlights | The investigation system can reveal an Incomplete clue on a failed roll, preventing a mystery from stopping at one check. Conditions, Aspirations, and Beats link consequences and personal goals to character advancement. Horror Anchors create investigative inroads for supernatural threats. | Public Merit system ties heroism to community impact through faction reputation, six superpower archetypes with five-tier progression and Auxiliary Powers for build variety, Hero's Moment turns critical failures into one-per-level power-ups, Hero's Favor points enable out-of-combat power use (freezing locks, creating barriers, boosting checks) |
| Considerations | The core contains detailed procedures for combat, chases, investigation, social maneuvering, and supernatural threats, so groups need to decide which rules to emphasize in a campaign. Damage, Integrity breaking points, and Persistent Conditions create lasting consequences. Social Maneuvering includes sexual goals and hard leverage, so players should back away from uncomfortable concepts. | Character creation requires multiple derived calculations (Moxie, DT, HP, Vigilance, Initiative), 20-level progression has many repetitive incremental steps, combat-heavy with limited non-combat mechanical support |