Candela Obscura
Core RulebookCore Mechanic
Roll a pool of d6s equal to your action rating (0–3), take the highest result. A 6 is a full success, 4–5 is a mixed success, 1–3 is a miss. Spend Drive points (Nerve, Cunning, or Intuition) to add dice. Gilded actions replace one die with a special gilded die — choosing its result recovers 1 Drive. The GM sets stakes (low, standard, or high) and expectations before each roll.
Best For
Groups who want atmospheric horror investigation with narrative-first mechanics, where supernatural corruption slowly erodes characters across a series of assignments.
Highlights
Gilded dice create meaningful risk-reward tension on every roll, Drive system elegantly ties character resources to narrative themes, assignment structure gives the GM a clear framework for pacing, marks and scars make supernatural exposure feel consequential
Considerations
No free core rules — only a free quickstart guide is available, setting is tightly bound to the Fairelands world, limited character customization compared to Blades in the Dark, combat is intentionally de-emphasized in favor of investigation and social play