Coriolis: The Third Horizon vs Vaesen
Compare Coriolis: The Third Horizon and Vaesen side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Coriolis: The Third Horizon | Vaesen | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Sci-Fi | Horror |
| Tags | Exploration, Atmospheric, Character-Driven, Faction Play, Ship-Based, Investigation, Cinematic | Investigation, Narrative, Atmospheric, Mystery, Character-Driven, Gritty, Deadly |
| Core Mechanic | Roll a d6 dice pool (attribute + skill + gear). Each 6 is a success. Pray to the Icons to reroll all non-successes, but doing so gives the GM a Darkness Point to spend on complications, NPC boosts, or cosmic threats. | Roll a d6 dice pool (attribute + skill). Each 6 is a success. Push your roll to reroll failures but take a Condition (Exhausted, Wounded, Frightened, Hopeless). Mysteries follow a structured investigation format. Between mysteries, upgrade your shared headquarters. |
| Dice | d6 dice pool | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | Medium | Low |
| Availability | Free quickstart | Free quickstart |
| Runnability | 4 of 5 book tools | 5 of 5 book tools |
| License | Year Zero Engine OGL | Year Zero Engine OGL |
| Third-Party Publishing | Not yet researched | Not yet researched |
| Publisher | Free League Publishing | Free League Publishing |
| Year | 2017 | 2025 |
| Languages | English, Swedish, French, German, Italian | English, Swedish, German, Italian, Spanish, French |
| Best For | Groups who want sci-fi exploration with a Middle Eastern-inspired setting, ship-based campaigns, and a mix of trade, intrigue, and cosmic mystery. | Investigation-focused Nordic horror campaigns where players uncover folklore mysteries, confront tragic mythological creatures, and build up a shared headquarters between cases. |
| Highlights | Setting blends sci-fi with Middle Eastern mythology and Icon worship, Darkness Points create a GM resource that escalates over the session, detailed ship customization with five crew roles in space combat, ten factions provide a political backdrop for intrigue campaigns | Strong atmosphere and thematic design, structured mystery format keeps investigations focused, push mechanic creates tension, headquarters upgrades add campaign investment |
| Considerations | Space combat uses a separate five-phase subsystem with added complexity, praying to the Icons is the only reroll mechanic and it always costs a Darkness Point, mystical powers chapter is brief compared to the setting and combat chapters, setting is tightly coupled: 36 star systems with specific lore | Investigation success is heavily GM-dependent, narrow 19th century Nordic horror focus, dice system can feel too simple for complex mysteries, information layout can be hard to navigate |