Dungeon World vs Stonetop
Compare Dungeon World and Stonetop side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Dungeon World | Stonetop | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Tags | Fiction-First, Playbook-Driven, Classic Fantasy, Character-Driven, Collaborative, Exploration, Low-Prep, Improvisation, Strong GM Support, CC-Licensed Rules | CC-Licensed Rules, Playbook-Driven, Resource Management, Fiction-First, Strong GM Support, Base-Building, Journey, Character-Driven, Worldbuilding, Exploration |
| Core Mechanic | Moves trigger from events in the fiction. When a move calls for a roll, use 2d6 plus the specified modifier. Moves that call for rolls give outcomes for 10+ and 7–9, with the latter usually introducing a cost or compromise. On 6 or less, mark XP and the GM describes the consequences. | Describe what your character does; when it meets a move's trigger, roll 2d6 and add a stat from -1 to +3. A 10+ is a strong hit and a 7-9 is a weak hit: partial success or success with a cost. On a 6-, PCs normally mark XP and the GM makes a hard move unless the move says otherwise. Advantage or disadvantage normally adds a third d6 and drops the lowest or highest; damage rolls instead roll damage twice and keep the best or worst result. The GM does not generally roll during play. |
| Dice | 2d6 | 2d6 |
| Complexity | Low | High |
| Availability | Free core rules | Paid |
| Runnability | 4 of 5 book tools | 5 of 5 book tools |
| License | Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0) | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
| Third-Party Publishing | Commercial publishing allowed — Open license | Commercial publishing allowed — Open license |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Publisher | Burning Wheel | Lampblack & Brimstone |
| Year | 2012 | 2026 |
| Languages | English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Korean | English |
| Best For | Groups who want dungeon expeditions and fantasy campaigns shaped by their characters’ relationships and decisions. The table builds the world together and resolves danger through a continuous conversation. | Groups who want a long-running hearth-fantasy campaign centered on a village as much as its heroes. Play alternates dangerous expeditions into a darkening iron-age world with homefront scenes of courtship, harvest, and community projects. |
| Highlights | Bonds and alignment award experience for developing relationships and acting on personal convictions. Threat fronts track what dangers will do without intervention, giving the GM an evolving campaign without a scripted plot. Questions during character creation establish shared setting details that become material for adventures. | The steading playbook tracks the village's Fortunes and Surplus, so projects and disasters change what Stonetop can withstand. Seasons Change generates or consumes Surplus and grants seasonal gains, so the village's resources change with each passing season. Expeditions make preparation matter by weighing load and supplies against GM-presented travel challenges. |
| Considerations | Combat has no initiative order or fixed action allotment, so the table manages the spotlight through conversation. Base damage comes from the character’s class rather than weapon type, although weapon tags still change how attacks work. Advancement beyond tenth level requires retirement, an apprentice, or changing classes. | The game is built around defending one village, so rootless or wandering parties leave its homefront engine behind. Combat relies on spotlighting, abstract range tags, and fictional positioning, which may not suit groups that want a detailed tactical combat procedure. Supplies, load, provisions, and village Surplus are tracked in several places, adding steady bookkeeping to expeditions and downtime. |