Mothership vs Murder Mansion
Compare Mothership and Murder Mansion side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Mothership | Murder Mansion | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Sci-Fi, Horror | Horror, Modern |
| Tags | Rules-Light, Deadly, One-Shot Friendly, Survival, Atmospheric, Low-Prep, Cinematic, Fast-Paced | Survival, Dungeon Crawl, Resource Management, Inventory Management, Gritty, Deadly, Rules-Light, One-Shot Friendly, Atmospheric, Random Tables |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d100 under stat/skill. Stress and panic mechanics escalate tension. | Roll a d20 and add Guts, Brains, or Nerve, meeting or beating a target number that is usually set by the GM, from 5 (almost trivial) to 20 (nearly impossible). There is no separate to-hit roll. A survivor's attack is the weapon's damage die plus Guts, minus the target's Protection. A turn allows up to two actions, normally only one of them an attack. |
| Dice | d100 | d20 |
| Complexity | Low | Low |
| Availability | Free quickstart | Paid |
| Runnability | 4 of 5 book tools | 2 of 5 book tools |
| License | 3rd Party License | Proprietary |
| Third-Party Publishing | Not yet researched | No verified route found |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Publisher | Tuesday Knight Games | Wall of Text Games |
| Year | 2022 | 2024 |
| Languages | English | English |
| Best For | Terrifying sci-fi horror one-shots and short campaigns. Panic table creates unforgettable moments. | Groups who want a survival-horror escape for a one-shot or short run, where rationing ammo and solving lock-and-key puzzles matter more than winning fights. |
| Highlights | Rules-light, well-regarded module library, panic system creates mechanical tension | Gear with a durability die, such as flashlights and lockpicks, is spent when that die rolls a 1, which keeps survivors scavenging for replacements. Hunter-class bosses cannot be killed by ordinary attacks and return to ambush the party, so finding a scenario-specific weakness becomes its own objective. Three ready-to-run sample adventures with keyed maps come in the core book, so a group can play before designing its own mansion. |
| Considerations | Panic table can cascade and end sessions abruptly, limited long-campaign support in core rules, stress mechanics can feel repetitive over extended play | There are no levels, experience points, or other advancement rules, so winning fights never makes survivors stronger. Healing items cannot be used during combat except through the Medic's Combat Medicine skill, so damage taken in a fight stays until it ends. The rules cover escaping a single location, with no procedures for social conflict, travel, or downtime between scenarios. |