Night's Black Agents vs Superpowered
Compare Night's Black Agents and Superpowered side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Night's Black Agents | Superpowered | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Horror, Modern | Modern, Superhero |
| Play Style | Investigation, Espionage, Character-Driven, Gritty | Rules-Light, Superhero, Beginner-Friendly, Fast-Paced, Theater of the Mind, Character-Driven |
| Core Mechanic | GUMSHOE engine. Investigative abilities auto-succeed: if you have the skill and there's a clue, you find it. General abilities (combat, athletics) roll 1d6 + spent points vs. difficulty 4. Point pools refresh between sessions, creating resource-management tension. Four play modes (Burn, Dust, Mirror, Stakes) tune mechanics to your preferred espionage tone. | Roll 2d6 + skill level vs. a difficulty number (4+ easy to 10+ formidable). Characters have 7 broad skills, Endurance (stamina), and Lifeblood (health). Superpowers are defined by a Power source (from 36 options like Fire, Cosmic, or Speed) that grants themed Abilities. Weaknesses grant bonus Abilities. D66 tables generate random powers and origins. |
| Dice | d6 | 2d6 |
| Complexity | Medium | Very Low |
| Accessibility | Medium | Medium |
| Runnability | High | High |
| License | GUMSHOE SRD (CC BY 3.0 / OGL) | OGL 1.0a |
| Cost | $$ | $ |
| Publisher | Pelgrane Press | Stellagama Publishing |
| Year | 2012 | 2020 |
| Best For | Groups who want spy-thriller action fused with supernatural horror: burned agents unraveling a vampire conspiracy through investigation, chases, and tradecraft. | Quick superhero campaigns with a simple 2d6 engine: build any hero from 36 power sources, take a weakness, and leap into four-color action without heavy rules. |
| Highlights | Investigation never stalls: clues flow automatically, Conspyramid campaign structure is a well-designed GM tool, four tonal modes let you dial in the spy genre you want, highly modular vampire creation system, works stripped of vampires for pure espionage | Simple 2d6 rules, 36 diverse power sources with unique ability lists, quick character creation, OGL-compatible with Cepheus Engine material, includes heroes, villains, and creatures ready to play |
| Considerations | NPC combat math can feel unbalanced against PCs, multiple point pools to track can bottleneck play, narrow genre focus limits reuse, requires significant GM prep for conspiracy networks | Very niche, limited advancement system, superhero genre only, lacks the depth of crunchier supers games |