Pathwarden vs Vagabond
Compare Pathwarden and Vagabond side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Pathwarden | Vagabond | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Tags | Tactical, Classless, Character Building, Exploration, Sandbox, Character-Driven, Mana Points, Strong GM Support | Fast-Paced, Character Building, Dungeon Crawl, Sandbox, Heroic, Pulp Action, Solo-Friendly, Player-Only Rolls, Mana Points |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d20 + the relevant Proficiency and modifiers and meet or beat a difficulty. Beating or missing it by 10 produces a critical result, while a natural 20 or 1 shifts the degree one step. Benefit and Detriment change the difficulty by 5. | Roll d20 vs. Difficulty (20 − Stat, doubled if Trained). Crit on nat 20, fail below Difficulty. All rolls player-facing. Spend Luck for Advantage (Favor) or rerolls (Fluke). Three saves: Endure (MIT×2), Reflex (DEX+AWR), Will (RSN+PRS). Defend with Block or Dodge on off-turns. Mana-based magic scales one spell from cantrip to nuke. Enemy AI action gambits run monsters for the GM. |
| Dice | d20 | d20 |
| Complexity | High | Low |
| Availability | Paid | Free quickstart |
| Runnability | 4 of 5 book tools | 1 of 5 book tools |
| License | ORC License | Open Compatibility |
| Third-Party Publishing | Not yet researched | Not yet researched |
| Publisher | Ghost Spark | Land of the Blind |
| Year | 2024 | 2024 |
| Languages | English | English |
| Best For | Groups who want classless tactical fantasy with grid combat, build experimentation, and campaigns that alternate between exploration, conflicts, and long-term projects. It suits a Lorewarden comfortable preparing a regional sandbox. | Groups wanting modern character depth married to old-school speed: 20+ ancestries, 17 classes, non-Vancian mana magic, and built-in solo/co-op/guided play. |
| Highlights | Fast and Slow Turns let players trade one action for acting before enemies, turning initiative into a round-by-round tactical choice. Three classless Paths open Boons and Feats that let characters combine martial, magical, and skill-focused abilities. Exploration and Horizon procedures connect regional travel, threat clocks, and long-term Projects to the consequences of each adventure. | Mana-based magic scales a single spell from cantrip to high-powered effect, so casters shape output on the fly instead of tracking fixed spell slots. Enemy action gambits run monsters from decision tables, removing per-turn tactical choices from the GM's workload. A spendable Luck pool buys Advantage or rerolls, turning swing into a resource players ration across a session. |
| Considerations | Grid combat asks players to track action costs, positioning, conditions, and multiple-attack penalties each round. Character advancement spreads options across Boons, Feats, Skills, and magical Disciplines, so players compare abilities drawn from several chapters. The campaign structure expects the Lorewarden to prepare an Adventure Map of regions and threats before play. | Dense class and ancestry options can overwhelm new players. Pulp-fantasy tone limits grimdark play. All rolls are player-facing, so the GM never rolls dice and every check rests on the players. |