Dungeons & Dragons 5e vs Daggerheart: which TTRPG fits your group?
Dungeons & Dragons 5e and Daggerheart side by side: dice, rules weight, prep, playstyle and what each game is about. Still split? Put both to a group vote.
| Dungeons & Dragons 5e | Daggerheart | |
|---|---|---|
| Publisher | Wizards of the Coast | Darrington Press |
| Dice | d20 + modifiers | 2d12 (Hope/Fear) |
| Players | 3–7 | 3–5 |
| Complexity | ||
| Prep | ~15 min | ~30 min |
| Foundry VTT | Official | Community |
| Free version | Yes | No |
| Playstyle | Combat Exploration Narrative Tactical | Narrative Combat Social |
| Setting | Fantasy | Fantasy |
Send both games to your players as one vote: everyone votes from their own phone, no signup.
What Dungeons & Dragons 5e is
Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition is the fifth and most popular edition of the world's first tabletop roleplaying game, released in 2014. A d20 system with the elegant advantage/disadvantage mechanic, 12 classes, 13 ancestries, hundreds of spells and monsters. The SRD is free under Creative Commons. The game that brought RPGs back into pop culture through Critical Role, Stranger Things, and Baldur's Gate 3.
- you want the default fantasy game your new players have already heard of
- your group enjoys class builds with new spells and abilities every level
- you want a huge choice of official worlds, from Forgotten Realms to Eberron
- you want short, lethal sessions with minimal bookkeeping
- your players find long spell lists and class options overwhelming
- Advantage / Disadvantage
- Bounded Accuracy
- Classes & Subclasses
- Short & Long Rest
What Daggerheart is
A narrative heroic fantasy by Darrington Press, the publishing arm of Critical Role. At its core: two d12s — a Hope die and a Fear die. The sum decides success; whichever rolled higher sets the tone — triumph or cost. A card-based class and ancestry system builds your hero like a deck, combat feels cinematic, and the GM banks Fear to twist the scene at the most dramatic moment.
- you want D&D-scale heroic fantasy with looser, spotlight-driven combat
- your players enjoy building heroes from cards laid out on the table
- you like every roll carrying a tone — success or failure with Hope or with Fear
- you want strict initiative rounds and turn-by-turn tactics
- your group wants old-school lethality where heroes die often
- Hope & Fear dice
- Card-built heroes
- Cinematic combat
- Stress & damage
Send both games to your players as one vote: everyone votes from their own phone, no signup.
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