Dragonbane vs Nimble
Compare Dragonbane and Nimble side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Dragonbane | Nimble | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Tags | Beginner-Friendly, Tactical, Classic Fantasy, Solo-Friendly, Fast-Paced, Mana Points | Tactical, Fast-Paced, Heroic, Combat-Heavy, Grid-Based, Character Building, Classic Fantasy, Beginner-Friendly, Strong GM Support, Low-Prep |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d20 equal to or under your skill value to succeed. Boons roll 2d20 and keep the lowest; banes keep the highest. Six attributes (STR, CON, AGL, INT, WIL, CHA). Willpower Points fuel heroic abilities, class features, and spells across four magic schools. Combat uses initiative cards drawn each round for unpredictable turn order. Based on Drakar och Demoner (1982). | Skill checks and saves roll a d20 plus the relevant skill or stat against a DC. A natural 1 always fails and a natural 20 always succeeds. Attacks skip the to-hit roll: roll the attack's listed damage and deal the total. On most attacks, a 1 on the leftmost Primary Die misses and a maximum on that die explodes into a critical hit. Advantage and disadvantage add dice of the same type and drop the lowest or highest. |
| Dice | d20, d4–d12 | d20 |
| Complexity | Low | Medium |
| Availability | Free quickstart | Free quickstart |
| Runnability | 4 of 5 book tools | 4 of 5 book tools |
| License | Free League Third-Party License | Nimble 3rd Party Creator License v2.0 |
| Third-Party Publishing | Not yet researched | Commercial publishing allowed — Creator license |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Publisher | Free League Publishing | Nimble Co. |
| Year | 2023 | 2025 |
| Languages | Swedish, English, German, Polish, French, Spanish | English |
| Best For | Groups who want approachable, fast-paced fantasy with a mix of adventure and humor: great for new players and veterans of classic European RPGs alike. | Groups who want class-based heroic fantasy with tactical grid fights and no separate to-hit roll. Also a good fit for a group whose GM is running a game for the first time. |
| Highlights | Approachable roll-under system, initiative cards keep combat dynamic, Willpower Points unify magic and abilities cleanly, solo play rules included, boxed set includes maps and cards | Heroic Reactions such as Defend and Interpose normally cost one of a hero's three actions, so reacting on an enemy's turn leaves fewer actions for the hero's own turn. Assess spends an action on a skill check to ask the GM a question that must be answered honestly or to create an opening, bringing roleplay into combat turns. Legendary monsters act after each hero's turn and list HP per hero, so one boss scales to the size of the party. |
| Considerations | d20 roll-under can feel swingy at low skill values, fewer character options than comparable fantasy RPGs, initiative card system adds components to track | Movement, reach, and area effects are counted in grid spaces, so gridless play relies on one of the optional movement variants. Damage can swing widely because a single roll decides both whether an attack hits and how much it deals. Outside combat, social and exploration scenes run on skill checks and GM-built skill challenges rather than dedicated subsystems. |