MÖRK BORG vs Shadowdark: which TTRPG fits your group?
MÖRK BORG and Shadowdark side by side: dice, rules weight, prep, playstyle and what each game is about. Still split? Put both to a group vote.
| MÖRK BORG | Shadowdark | |
|---|---|---|
| Publisher | Free League Publishing | The Arcane Library |
| Dice | d20 + d4–d10 | d20 + modifiers |
| Players | 2–5 | 3–6 |
| Complexity | ||
| Prep | ~5 min | ~15 min |
| Foundry VTT | Official + Community | Community |
| Free version | No | No |
| Playstyle | Combat Horror Exploration | Exploration Combat Survival |
| Setting | Fantasy Weird Post-Apoc | Fantasy |
Send both games to your players as one vote: everyone votes from their own phone, no signup.
What MÖRK BORG is
An art-punk RPG about the final days of a dying world. The rules fit on a few pages, but the book is a work of art: acid colors, deranged layout, black metal atmosphere. Every session could be your last — literally, because the world ends on a schedule.
- you want a grim, metal-soaked game where characters die fast
- your group laughs off death and rolls a new character in minutes
- you like a world that literally ends on a die-rolled schedule
- your players get attached to characters and hate random deaths
- you want long-term campaigns with heroic growth
- you want pirates and ship battles in the same grim style (see Pirate Borg)
- Calendar of Miseries
- Art as gameplay
- Everything is random
- Ecosystem
What Shadowdark is
A bridge between OSR and modern RPGs. Uses familiar d20 mechanics (attributes, AC, saves) but with old-school lethality and sense of danger. Its 2023 Kickstarter raised about $1.3 million. If D&D feels bloated — Shadowdark is the cure.
- you want deadly dungeon crawls where the torch burns in real time
- your players know D&D and want old-school danger without new rules
- you want characters ready to play in five minutes
- your players love planning character builds in advance
- your group dislikes a real-world clock pressuring every decision
- Real-time torch timer
- Random talents
- D&D compatibility
- Easy to learn
Send both games to your players as one vote: everyone votes from their own phone, no signup.
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