Spire: The City Must Fall vs Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay
Compare Spire: The City Must Fall and Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Spire: The City Must Fall | Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy |
| Play Style | Dark Fantasy, Narrative, Character-Driven, Espionage, Social Intrigue, Fiction-First, Gritty, Deadly, Mission-Based, Roleplay-Heavy | Gritty, Deadly, Career-Based, Dark Fantasy, Roleplay-Heavy, Atmospheric, Low-Fantasy, Investigation, Corruption, Lore-Heavy, Licensed Setting, Random Character Creation, Roll to Cast, Grimdark |
| Core Mechanic | Roll a pool of d10s — one base die, plus an additional die each for having the relevant skill, domain, and mastery — and take the highest result. Results run from 1 (critical failure, double stress) through 2–5 (failure), 6–7 (success at a cost), 8–9 (success), to 10 (critical success). Difficulty reduces the pool by 1–2 dice. | Roll d100 under skill or characteristic. Success Levels measure degree of success by comparing the tens digits of the target and the roll. Advantage accumulates during combat, adding +10 per point to attack tests. |
| Dice | d10 dice pool | d100 |
| Complexity | Medium | Medium |
| Accessibility | High | Medium |
| Community | Medium | Medium |
| License | All Rights Reserved | No open license |
| Cost | $$ | $$$ |
| Publisher | Rowan, Rook and Decard | Cubicle 7 |
| Year | 2018 | 2018 |
| Best For | Groups who want long-form campaigns as operatives in a revolutionary resistance movement, where faction politics and moral compromise shape each session as much as the missions themselves. | Groups who want dark, gritty fantasy where ordinary people face extraordinary dangers in a richly detailed setting. The career system creates unique character arcs from rat catcher to witch hunter. |
| Highlights | Five separate resistance tracks (Blood, Mind, Shadow, Reputation, Silver) let different types of harm accumulate independently, each with its own fallout table. Fallout mechanics convert accumulated stress into concrete narrative consequences — broken limbs, criminal records, vendetta NPCs, or being burned by the Ministry — rather than flat stat penalties. NPC Bonds maintain their own stress tracks; calling in favors puts allies at risk, and bond fallout can cost safe houses, informants, or key relationships. Character advancement is tied to changing the city itself: small changes earn Low advances, moderate changes Medium, and huge or irreversible changes High — and the change does not have to be for the better. | Detailed grimdark setting, career system creates varied character arcs, combat carries real consequences |
| Considerations | The drow revolution premise is deeply embedded in the fiction; the game is built around this specific setting and repurposing it for other campaigns requires significant adaptation. Combat has no rounds, turns, or initiative system; engagements are resolved as a narrative conversation with the GM choosing the order of action. Fallout can permanently remove or severely restrict character capabilities, including arrest, lost limbs, or exile from the Ministry. | Tightly bound to the Old World setting, Success Level math can slow play, expensive supplement line |