Numenera vs Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying Game
Compare Numenera and Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying Game side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Numenera | Old Gods of Appalachia Roleplaying Game | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Sci-Fi, Fantasy | Horror, Historical |
| Tags | Exploration, Weird, Resource Management, Character Building, Narrative, Theater of the Mind, Low-Prep, Strong GM Support, Lore-Heavy, Atmospheric | Fear & Stress Mechanics, Player-Only Rolls, Theater of the Mind, Character Building, Character-Driven, Narrative, Resource Management, Low-Prep, Weird, Licensed IP |
| Core Mechanic | Roll a d20 against a target number equal to three times the GM's task difficulty. Training, helpful assets and Effort reduce that difficulty before the roll. Effort spends points from Might, Speed or Intellect Pools, with Edge reducing the cost. Reducing difficulty to zero makes the task automatic. Players roll attacks and defenses against creature difficulty. | The GM sets a task difficulty from 0 to 10, with a target number equal to three times the difficulty. Players roll a d20 for tasks, attacks and defenses and succeed by meeting that target. Skills, assets and Effort ease the difficulty; a task reduced to 0 succeeds automatically. Effort costs points from Might, Speed or Intellect Pools, with Edge reducing the cost. |
| Dice | d20 | d20 |
| Complexity | Medium | Medium |
| Availability | Free quickstart | Paid |
| Runnability | 5 of 5 book tools | 5 of 5 book tools |
| License | Proprietary | All Rights Reserved |
| Third-Party Publishing | Noncommercial only — Fan use policy | No verified route found |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Publisher | Monte Cook Games | Monte Cook Games |
| Year | 2018 | 2023 |
| Languages | English, Italian, Portuguese | English |
| Best For | Groups who want discovery-focused science fantasy and changing tools for solving unusual problems. It suits campaigns about exploring ancient ruins and deciding how to use their technology. | Groups seeking community-centered folk horror in an alternate Appalachia of the 1920s and 1930s. It suits tables comfortable with personal goals driving advancement, spending health resources on tasks and discussing horror boundaries together. |
| Highlights | Single-use cyphers give every character temporary powers that can change their approach to an obstacle. Discoveries earn experience points, giving characters a reason to explore beyond combat. Combining a character type with a descriptor and focus supports distinct mechanical specialties. | Personal character arcs award XP for completed steps and climaxes, making chosen goals part of advancement. Single-use cyphers frequently replace spent charms and strange objects, encouraging players to use unusual tools. What Wakes Mode widens the natural-roll range for GM intrusions until a ten-hour recovery normally resets it, turning supernatural attention into escalating pressure. |
| Considerations | Effort draws from the same stat Pools that absorb damage, so increasing the chance of success can reduce a character's resilience. GM intrusions let the GM add complications to successful actions, so players need to be comfortable with negotiated setbacks. The Ninth World's unexplained technology leaves many answers for the GM to invent. | Stat Pools pay for Effort and abilities as well as absorb harm, so spending them can reduce a character’s resilience. The GM chooses task difficulties and introduces complications, making consistent adjudication a substantial responsibility. The core centers on alternate Appalachia in the 1920s and 1930s, so a different setting requires adapting its lore and character connections. |