Shadowdark — OSR with real-time torches

"Old-school dungeon crawling in a modern wrapper."

Diced20 + стандарт

Players3–6

Prep~15 min

Foundry VTTCommunity

Complexity

What is this system

A bridge between OSR and modern RPGs. Uses familiar d20 mechanics (attributes, AC, saves) but with old-school lethality and sense of danger. The most successful RPG Kickstarter in recent years. If D&D feels bloated — Shadowdark is the cure.

Setting

A setting-agnostic system. Any fantasy world will do. But the spirit of the game is dark dungeons where the torch decides everything. Without light you're blind, and in the darkness dwell things that see perfectly.

What it looks like at the table

Torch timer on the table: 12 minutes left. You're at a fork — right leads to a chest, left to stairs going down. Dexterity check to disarm the trap on the chest — d20 + modifier, need 14 or higher. Rolled a 9, failure. The trap triggers, d6 damage. The timer ticks. The torch goes out in three minutes. You run for the stairs — into the dark.

Playstyle

Exploration Combat Survival Fantasy

Key mechanics

Real-time torch timer

The torch burns in REAL TIME. One real hour = one in-game hour. When it goes out — total darkness and panic.

Random leveling

Level up at end of session by dice roll. A random talent instead of a planned build.

D&D compatibility

d20, AC, 6 attributes. If you've played D&D — you already know 80% of the rules. Module conversion is trivial.

Easy to learn

A newcomer creates a character in 5 minutes and starts playing. No 5e build analysis paralysis.

What people say

The real-time torch timer is a gimmick that shouldn't work. But it does. The moment the timer goes off and you're in total darkness, the whole table panics. Best mechanic I've seen in years.— u/torch_watcher, r/shadowdark

Shadowdark is what happens when someone takes the best parts of 5e and OSR, cuts everything else, and makes a game that's actually fun to run AND play. I've converted my entire group.— u/dungeon_delver_99, r/rpg

Art & materials