Dungeon World vs Pathfinder
Compare Dungeon World and Pathfinder side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Dungeon World | Pathfinder | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Play Style | Fiction-First, Playbook-Driven, Classic Fantasy, Rules-Light, Heroic, Open Source, GM-Friendly | Tactical, Crunchy, Character Building, High-Fantasy, Dungeon Crawl, Lore-Heavy |
| Core Mechanic | Roll 2d6 + ability modifier. On a 10+, you succeed. On a 7–9, you succeed but with a complication, cost, or hard choice. On a 6 or less, the GM makes a move (something bad happens) and you mark XP. Moves are triggered by fictional actions: describe what your character does, and the rules tell you when to roll. | 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 | 2d6 | d20 |
| Complexity | Very Low | High |
| Accessibility | Very High | Very High |
| Runnability | Very High | Very High |
| License | Creative Commons CC BY 3.0 | ORC |
| Cost | $ | Free (ORC) |
| Publisher | Sage Kobold Productions | Paizo |
| Year | 2012 | 2023 |
| Best For | Groups who want D&D-style fantasy adventure (dungeons, monsters, treasure, classes) but with fiction-first PbtA mechanics that keep the pace fast and the spotlight on the narrative. | 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 | Full text available free under Creative Commons, playbooks let new players start playing within minutes, GM chapter provides structured principles and moves for running the game, bonds and end-of-session questions award XP for relationships and discoveries rather than only combat | The three-action economy gives every turn the same three actions to spend on strikes, movement, or spells, so each turn is a fresh tactical decision. Characters customize through ancestry, class, skill, and general feats gained at nearly every level, letting builds diverge sharply within a single class. Four degrees of success, set by beating or missing the DC by 10, turn each roll into a range of outcomes rather than a binary result. |
| Considerations | Combat lacks tactical positioning or grid-based options, long campaigns can expose repetitive move structures, damage dice are class-based rather than weapon-based which limits gear choices, no longer actively developed by its creators | 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 draws feats from ancestry, class, skill, and general pools at every level, making each build a slow step. |