Dungeon Crawl Classics vs Pathfinder
Compare Dungeon Crawl Classics and Pathfinder side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Dungeon Crawl Classics | Pathfinder | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Play Style | Deadly, Exploration, Gonzo, Dungeon Crawl, One-Shot Friendly, Theater of the Mind, Fast-Paced, Ascending AC, Roll to Cast, Random Tables | Tactical, Crunchy, Combat-Heavy, Character Building, Dungeon Crawl, High-Fantasy, Grid-Based, Heroic, Ascending AC, Exploration, Classic Fantasy, Lore-Heavy |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d20 + modifiers. Unique dice chain shifts die size up/down. Mercurial magic tables. | Roll d20 + modifier against a DC. Four degrees of success: critical success (beat DC by 10+), success, failure, and critical failure (miss by 10+). Each turn grants three actions to spend freely on strikes, movement, spellcasting, or other activities. Multi-attack penalty (-5/-10) discourages repeated strikes and encourages tactical variety. |
| Dice | d3–d30 | d20 |
| Complexity | Medium | High |
| Accessibility | Medium | Very High |
| Runnability | High | Very High |
| License | 3rd Party License | ORC |
| Cost | $$ | Free (ORC) |
| Publisher | Goodman Games | Paizo |
| Year | 2012 | 2023 |
| Best For | Old-school dungeon crawls with unpredictable magic, character funnels, and a sense of wonder. | Groups who want deep character customization, tactical grid combat with meaningful turn-by-turn decisions, and a richly detailed fantasy setting with free rules. |
| Highlights | Character funnels are distinctive, unpredictable magic system, Appendix N aesthetic | Complete rules available free on Archives of Nethys. Three-action economy gives every turn meaningful tactical decisions. Character customization through ancestry feats, class feats, skill feats, and general feats at every level. Four degrees of success on every roll add granularity to outcomes. |
| Considerations | Requires unusual dice (d3, d5, d7, d14, d16, d24, d30), spell result tables slow play at higher levels, funnel adventures require many disposable characters | New players must learn the trait system, conditions, and four degrees of success before combat runs smoothly. Multi-attack penalty and numerous combat actions can slow turns for indecisive players. Character creation requires selecting feats from multiple categories at every level, which can overwhelm new players. |