Daggerheart vs Worlds Without Number
Compare Daggerheart and Worlds Without Number side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Daggerheart | Worlds Without Number | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Play Style | Narrative, Collaborative, Heroic, Roleplay-Heavy, Fiction-First, Theater of the Mind, Character Building, Drama, Beginner-Friendly, Character-Driven | Sandbox, Exploration, Faction Play, Worldbuilding, Tactical, Ascending AC, Vancian Casting |
| Core Mechanic | Roll 2d12 Duality Dice (Hope + Fear) and add modifiers vs. difficulty. Which die rolls higher determines whether the moment swings toward the players (Hope) or the GM gains Fear tokens to spend on complications. In combat, adversary attacks roll d20 + modifier against target's Evasion. | 2d6 + skill + attribute ≥ target for skills; d20 + modifiers vs. AC for combat. OSR-inspired with modern refinements. |
| Dice | 2d12 | 2d6 / d20 |
| Complexity | Medium | Medium |
| Accessibility | Very High | Very High |
| Runnability | Very High | High |
| License | Darrington Press Community Gaming License (DPCGL) | Proprietary |
| Cost | $$$ | Free / $$ |
| Publisher | Darrington Press | Sine Nomine Publishing |
| Year | 2025 | 2021 |
| Best For | Groups who want heroic fantasy with emotionally driven storytelling, where every roll shifts momentum between hope and fear. Great for Critical Role fans and narrative-focused tables. | Sandbox fantasy campaigns with deep worldbuilding tools, faction turns, and an OSR-flavored system from the creator of Stars Without Number. |
| Highlights | Every action roll uses 2d12 Duality Dice, and whether Hope or Fear lands higher hands momentum to the player or the GM. Combat runs fiction-first with no fixed initiative, so the spotlight passes by the action rather than a turn order. Characters equip abilities as domain cards drawn from two domains, building a loadout the player can swap between. | Free version is very generous, comprehensive sandbox and worldbuilding tools, faction system, compatible with SWN |
| Considerations | The domain-card system runs best with printed cards, though it can be played from the character sheet alone. Players and the GM use asymmetric rules, so each side has its own procedures to learn. Mechanics are tied to the game's own setting and ancestries, which takes work to reskin for another world. | OSR combat can feel basic compared to modern tactical systems, limited mechanical support for narrative or story-arc campaigns, no built-in social encounter system |