Draw Steel vs The Last Book
Compare Draw Steel and The Last Book side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Draw Steel | The Last Book | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Play Style | Tactical, Heroic, Cinematic, Character Building, High-Fantasy, Attacks Always Hit, Lore-Heavy | Crunchy, Tactical, Simulation, Character Building, Classless, Deadly, Sword & Sorcery |
| Core Mechanic | Power Roll: roll 2d10 + characteristic and check which tier the result falls into: Tier 1 (11 or less), Tier 2 (12–16), or Tier 3 (17+). Every ability describes three outcomes by tier, so rolls always produce an effect, with no whiffed turns. Edges and banes (+2/−2, or tier shift at double) modify rolls situationally. Each class builds a unique heroic resource during combat, unlocking increasingly powerful abilities as momentum builds. Victories earned from combat and noncombat challenges accumulate across encounters and convert to XP during respites. | The Last Book uses two resolution systems. Skill and attribute checks roll d100 under a calculated success chance, and how far under the number sets the success margin. Combat is an opposed contest where each side rolls 2d6 and adds a maneuver rating, and the higher total wins the exchange. The margin of victory, called Strike Severity, is added as bonus damage. |
| Dice | 2d10 | d100, 2d6 |
| Complexity | High | High |
| Accessibility | High | Very High |
| Runnability | High | Medium |
| License | Draw Steel Creator License | All Rights Reserved |
| Cost | $$$ | Free / $ |
| Publisher | MCDM Productions | Patrick White |
| Year | 2025 | 2026 |
| Best For | Groups who want deeply tactical, cinematic combat where every ability matters and no turn is wasted. Ideal for players who love build variety and dramatic, heroic battles. | Groups who enjoy 1980s-style point-buy character building and granular, location-based tactical combat, and want that level of crunch set in a violent sword and sorcery desert world. |
| Highlights | Power Rolls resolve to one of three tiers, so every roll produces an effect and a turn is never wasted. Each of the nine classes builds a unique heroic resource during a fight, unlocking stronger abilities as momentum grows. A negotiation subsystem tracks an NPC's interest and patience, giving social scenes a structured back-and-forth like combat. | The margin by which a 2d6 attack contest beats the defense becomes Strike Severity and is added to damage, so cleanly won exchanges hit harder rather than only landing. Attackers can aim for a specific body location such as the head or vitals, trading an accuracy penalty for effects like multiplied damage or a chance to cripple a limb. Esoteric Alchemy builds potions from five reagent types that each carry their own laws and effects, letting an alchemist mix custom concoctions instead of drawing from a fixed list. |
| Considerations | Heroes start with many abilities and options even at level 1, creating a steeper initial learning curve. Each combat turn juggles heroic resources, conditions, and edges and banes at once, so play carries real tracking overhead. The system targets heroic tactical fantasy specifically, so it provides no rules for dungeon crawling, hexcrawl exploration, or survival play. | The game runs on two separate resolution engines, a d100 roll-under for skills and a 2d6 opposed contest for combat, so players learn and switch between two different systems. Resolving one attack can involve wound level, strike location, vulnerability and status, encumbrance, and lighting at the same time, which keeps combat deliberate and slow. Character death is largely permanent and crippling injuries can persist well beyond a fight, so losing a heavily built character is a real risk. |