Mistfall: Armageddon vs Symbaroum
Compare Mistfall: Armageddon and Symbaroum side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Mistfall: Armageddon | Symbaroum | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy, Modern | Fantasy, Horror |
| Tags | Urban Fantasy, Dark Fantasy, Freeform Magic, Corruption, Character-Driven, Character Building, Crunchy, Lore-Heavy, Social Combat, Narrative | Dark Fantasy, Player-Only Rolls, Corruption, Exploration, Roll to Cast, Classless, Character Building, Tactical, Gritty, Lore-Heavy |
| Core Mechanic | A check adds a characteristic and a Skill die, then subtracts a Fate die, and succeeds when the total equals or beats a Challenge Level from 1 to 30. Skill rank sets the Skill die, from d4 untrained up to d20 plus d4 at rank seven. Each hindering element in the scene adds a rank of Fate, stepping the Fate die from d4 up to d20. A total below 1 is a Bane that brings a major complication. A total of double the Challenge Level or more is a heroic triumph that earns a Boon. Players roll for their own actions and for defense against adversaries. | Roll a d20 and try to land equal to or under one of eight Attributes: Accurate, Cunning, Discreet, Persuasive, Quick, Resolute, Strong, and Vigilant. Opposed tests adjust that Attribute by 10 minus the opponent's relevant value, so a weak foe grants a bonus and a strong one imposes a penalty. Only players roll dice, so an enemy attack becomes a player Defense test and NPC stats appear as fixed modifiers on the player's roll. |
| Dice | d4–d20 | d20 |
| Complexity | High | Medium |
| Availability | Free quickstart | Free quickstart |
| Runnability | 3 of 5 book tools | 5 of 5 book tools |
| License | All Rights Reserved | Symbaroum Third-Party Tabletop Module License (version 1.0) |
| Third-Party Publishing | Noncommercial only — Fair Use Conditions printed in the rulebook | Commercial publishing allowed — Free League Free Tabletop License |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Publisher | 7th Reality Games | Free League Publishing |
| Year | 2026 | 2015 |
| Languages | English | English, Swedish, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese |
| Best For | Groups who want long urban-fantasy campaigns built around each character's personal nemesis, with deep investment in interlocking talents, traits and freeform magic. | Groups who want long-form dark fantasy expeditions into ancient ruins, where magic, cursed relics, and the darkest parts of the forest put each character's soul at risk of permanent taint. |
| Highlights | Each player designs a personal nemesis, and confronting it at the climax of a Nemesis Cycle (nine sessions is the recommended length) grants Edge win or lose and a characteristic increase on a win. Spells are assembled from manifestations and tags, with larger combinations costing more Soul on the caster's Corruption tracker. Damage to a player character lands on six status trackers tied to the six characteristics, so a social or financial attack wears down Influence or Affluence the way a blade wears down Physicality. | Corruption turns casting and cursed relics into a gamble: temporary taint that pushes total Corruption to half a character's Resolute leaves permanent Corruption and a Stigma, a step toward becoming an abomination. Witchsight reads the colored Shadow of a creature, place, or object to expose corruption and deceit, at a temporary Corruption cost per attempt that rises with the ability's tier. Only players roll dice, turning every exchange into player attack, Defense, damage, and Armor rolls against fixed NPC values. |
| Considerations | The core book contains no ready-to-play adventure, so a first session needs the free Quick Start scenario or material the Narrator builds. Character creation runs ten steps and ends with each player co-designing a nemesis, which makes it a full Session Zero activity. The mechanical content is dark: the Insanity injury table includes self-harm and suicidal ideation, and Warlock patrons can demand the blood sacrifice of an innocent. | Mystic play carries steady bookkeeping: Corruption costs for learning and casting vary by tradition and tier, and temporary and permanent totals must be tracked against the threshold. Each hit passes through several steps (Armor reduction, damage against Toughness, and a Pain Threshold effect when one hit exceeds it), which adds bookkeeping in busy fights. The core book deliberately limits its setting to the region around Davokar; the lands south of the Titans and the broader world receive only brief mention. |