Dragonbane vs Vagabond
Compare Dragonbane and Vagabond side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Dragonbane | Vagabond | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Tags | Beginner-Friendly, Tactical, Classic Fantasy, Solo-Friendly, Fast-Paced, Mana Points | Fast-Paced, Character Building, Dungeon Crawl, Sandbox, Heroic, Pulp Action, Solo-Friendly, Player-Only Rolls, Mana Points |
| 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). | Roll d20 vs. Difficulty (20 − Stat, doubled if Trained). Crit on nat 20, fail below Difficulty. All rolls player-facing. Spend Luck for Advantage (Favor) or rerolls (Fluke). Three saves: Endure (MIT×2), Reflex (DEX+AWR), Will (RSN+PRS). Defend with Block or Dodge on off-turns. Mana-based magic scales one spell from cantrip to nuke. Enemy AI action gambits run monsters for the GM. |
| Dice | d20, d4–d12 | d20 |
| Complexity | Low | Low |
| Accessibility | High | High |
| Runnability | High | Very Low |
| License | Free League Third-Party License | Open Compatibility |
| Third-Party Publishing | Not yet researched | Not yet researched |
| Cost | $$ | $$ |
| Publisher | Free League Publishing | Land of the Blind |
| Year | 2023 | 2024 |
| 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 wanting modern character depth married to old-school speed: 20+ ancestries, 17 classes, non-Vancian mana magic, and built-in solo/co-op/guided play. |
| 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 | Mana-based magic scales a single spell from cantrip to high-powered effect, so casters shape output on the fly instead of tracking fixed spell slots. Enemy action gambits run monsters from decision tables, removing per-turn tactical choices from the GM's workload. A spendable Luck pool buys Advantage or rerolls, turning swing into a resource players ration across a session. |
| 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 | Dense class and ancestry options can overwhelm new players. Pulp-fantasy tone limits grimdark play. All rolls are player-facing, so the GM never rolls dice and every check rests on the players. |