Pathfinder vs Swords & Wizardry
Compare Pathfinder and Swords & Wizardry side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Pathfinder | Swords & Wizardry | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Tags | Tactical, Crunchy, Character Building, High-Fantasy, Dungeon Crawl, Lore-Heavy | Classic Fantasy, Dungeon Crawl, Deadly, Vancian Casting, Hexcrawl, Random Tables, Resource Management, Sandbox, Domain Management, Strong GM Support |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d20 + modifier against a DC. Four degrees of success: critical success (beat DC by 10+), success, failure, and critical failure (miss by 10+). Each turn grants three actions to spend freely on strikes, movement, spellcasting, or other activities. Multi-attack penalty (-5/-10) discourages repeated strikes and encourages tactical variety. | Roll a d20 with attack modifiers and meet the target number for the chosen Armor Class system. Ascending Armor Class allows a direct roll against AC; descending Armor Class uses attack tables. Saving throws use a single class-based d20 target number with bonuses against particular hazards. |
| Dice | d20 | d20 |
| Complexity | High | Medium |
| Accessibility | Very High | Medium |
| Runnability | Very High | High |
| License | ORC | Swords & Wizardry Compatibility-Statement License (CSL) |
| Third-Party Publishing | Commercial publishing allowed — Open and compatibility licenses | Commercial publishing allowed — Swords & Wizardry Compatibility-Statement License |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Cost | Free | $ |
| Publisher | Paizo | Mythmere Games |
| Year | 2023 | 2023 |
| Languages | English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese | English, German |
| Best For | Groups who want deep character customization, tactical grid combat with meaningful turn-by-turn decisions, and a richly detailed fantasy setting with free rules. | Groups seeking dangerous dungeon expeditions and open wilderness campaigns. Higher-level characters can establish strongholds and govern surrounding settlements. |
| Highlights | The three-action economy gives every turn the same three actions to spend on strikes, movement, or spells, so each turn is a fresh tactical decision. Characters customize through ancestry, class, skill, and general feats gained at nearly every level, letting builds diverge sharply within a single class. Four degrees of success, set by beating or missing the DC by 10, turn each roll into a range of outcomes rather than a binary result. | One class-based saving throw target replaces separate hazard categories. Treasure grants experience points, rewarding successful expeditions even when monsters are avoided. Stronghold construction and settlement taxes support campaigns that grow into territorial rule. |
| Considerations | New players must learn the trait system, conditions, and four degrees of success before combat runs smoothly. Multi-attack penalty and numerous combat actions can slow turns for indecisive players. Character creation draws feats from ancestry, class, skill, and general pools at every level, making each build a slow step. | Low starting hit points and death below zero make early combat dangerous. Damage during casting interrupts a prepared spell and expends it. Nonhuman ancestry restricts available classes and level advancement. |