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Need Your Help Reviewing Candela Obscura! (Patreon)

Published:
2023-05-26 02:40:51
Imported:
2026-06

Content

So I downloaded Critical Role's Candela Obscura and I was surprised. First, it's Dm Scotty's EzD6! I'm NOT saying they stole it, but the core mechanic of rolling a pool of  d6s and having a mechanism like Drive/Karma is the same for both games. This got be thinking about doing a video--which would be an emergency upload to air on Tuesday--about WHY d6 systems are so popular NOW? 

If you'd like to share your thoughts, please do so in the comments below. Some of them might end up in the video. BUT MORE IMPORTANTLY...

...I'm not seeing a Death Mechanic in Candela Obscura. Like--how do the characters die? It's supposed to be a a horror game and I can't find the death mechanic. Am I missing it somewhere? Here's the link so you can download the game below:

https://shop.critrole.com/products/candela-obscura-quickstart-guide

Let me know if you find it. Until then, I'll be working on a script. Expect the video to pop on Patreon by Sunday. 

--PDM

P.S. No, I am not afraid of Critters. I'm from NYC and have been robbed at gunpoint. I fear nothing. 



Comments

Bingo Mastermind

The tutorial video on the CR channel says that when you run out of new scars you can add, you are “indefinitely disposed”. The example provided is character death

Richie Walker

Yea they explain death in that video but on its face value it doesn’t seem very deadly. Sounded a bit like the enemy needed to wail on you while you’re down to finish you off or something. (No idea really just how it sounded)

Jay, Dr Fugue

I always attribute the success of d6 games to the fact that everyone has d6s

MagicMurlo

I am unfamiliar with DM Scotty's EzD6 system I liked the overall presentation of just d6. I'm having just a bit of difficulty understanding getting drive back and how many dice are available to use. But, I am a bit slow when it comes to a new system. I look forward to this Victorian Era (esk) Call of Cthulhu style of play. (I just love a steampunk type of adventure)

Andrew
>>109331765

Yes, it's where he is talking about marks and scars---4 minutes and 30 seconds into the video, so you can skip to the right point. It seems like it would take a lot to die. I think Bob Worldbuilder said something about how one of the designers had worked on another game that also used a D6 pool system in his recent video on CR's new games, which is about six and a half minutes into the video he posted yesterday. So you might ant to check that out.

Philip Mitchell

The game has design roots in the Forged in the Dark systems like Blades in the Dark. Significantly more Blades DNA than EzD6. Granted I only skimmed it - but it strikes me as a system more concerned with facilitating improv play than survival gaming - so it seems very easy to have the horrors change your character rather than kill them. The scar system gives new narrative anguish for thespians to emote over.

Bingo Mastermind
>>109331765

It does seem to have the 5e D&D syndrome of “poke the body till it dies”. I hope in execution it’s more reflective of the horror genre

Graham Kane

Yeah according to the how to play video it’s death or permanently incapacitated after you accumulate 3 “scars”. I’ll have to watch it again but it seems pretty hard to get a one shot kill.

Graham Kane
>>109332791

And the fact that you only use 1 type of die for the whole game might be less intimidating for new players.

Drago Russo

This is super narrative. The sample adventure does not give any skills or anything at all to the monster. It does not even describe the monster as they leave everything to the GM to create. Unlike Call of Cthulhu they are NOT wanting to kill characters. They want to “scar” them or have them undergo changes over multiple sessions. The mechanics are very simple and straight forward. They are using the 1-3 you fail with consequences, 4-5 you succeed but it is mixed, 6 you auto-succeed etc. This is BiG time story and IMPROV.

Michael Butcher
>>109333243

Agreed. This is mostly Forged in the Dark, so character death will be exceedingly rare, and being one-shotted really isn't a concern. This seems like a terrible choice of game mechanics for any horror system.

Elvis Ramone
>>109334032

It could be seen as what is worse, death or slowly increasing disadvantages that make you wish you were dead. That lines up with a lot of fairy tales, Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Andersen and darker folktales come to mind. I get the impression of Ichabod Crane after about 4-5 Sleepy Hollow's. Rime of the Ancient Gamer. As for the system, in it's current limited form, as a work in progress, if it were released in it's current state it would be okay for one shots, campaigns currently look a bit out of scope. With tweaks it could be EZCuthulu, we do not have a monster stat block, which could easily include abilities that one shot, tho I do not see that as realistic here. It has potential tho.

Ernesto

Is like ezd6 because it uses d6?? Because the resulution mechanic has nothing to do with it Others have state that CR "stole it" from blades in the dark

Patryk Antos

I played a lot of dice pool systems. I am currently working on my own. Candela Obscura takes its inspiration from Forged in the Dark games like Blades in the Dark. The core mechanic of rolling a small pool of dice and looking for the highest number is a typical FitD thing. It uses a different method for creating the pool. You take only one Attribute and then eventually use your Drive to add more dice. The use of gilded dice is also new. Taking a less advantageous die roll to recover Drive is an interesting mechanic. You can also reroll all the dice using the character's Resistance. The tasks are never harder to achieve. They can only have more consequences for failing. From their video, it seems that death is one of the possibilities if you get the third scar. They called it "indefinitely indisposed". Overall a very safe narrative game. Both in writing, presentation and topic. Candela Obscura doesn't use the "real world" to avoid all of the sensitive issues that would come from using a historical period of the 1920s. Instead of death, you get scars to roleplay. Scars don't impede the characters. They switch some stats. For me, it sounds too safe.

Euan Smith

As others have said, this game looks to be designed to facilitate ongoing storytelling rather than being an Old Skool meat grinder. In the source material (Lovecraftian Horror), few protagonists die; but are, instead, left battered, bruised and tottering on the brink of insanity (it is Warren who dies).

Raymond DeAncona

Hey PDM! My table has been using Tiny Dungeon for a couple of years now. I pushed it for a couple of reasons - no or very limited power creep, VERY easy combat, saves and challenges again easy to judge. It helps with the rule of cool, as no one looks up a rule, they ask me - I set a target, generally 1,2 or 3 dice roll and we move on with the story. My players stopped asking "what can I do?" and now say "I want to do this." To which the answer is roll the dice... I think rules light forces the imagination to be used more on both the player and GM side. Fast and fun!

Erwan Kergall

About the popularity of D6 systems : - as Jay Dr Fudge and Graham Kane said, everybody has six-sided dice, and using only one sort of die is less intimidating; - you don't need to go to a specialized hobby store to buy D6; - D6 are easy to read, as you only expect one of 6 possibilities; - there are studies in cognitive science that seem to show that the human brain can intuitively grasp quantities up to 5, so we are in that same ballpark; - also, on regular dice with dots instead of numbers, the dots are arranged in symetrical groups, so even the 6 becomes easy to recognize as a pattern; - cubes usually settle faster when thrown than dodecahera and icosahedra (not to mention those abolinable 100-sided dice that looked like golf bals and took forever to come to a stop - and you needed a magnifying glass to read the result); - the probabilities on 1D6 rolls are trivial (because small numbers); by extension, we feel that we intuitively understand the probabilities on rolls of multiple D6 rolls (this is cognitive bias - multiple D6 rolls and D6 pools are actually pretty tough to mathematically figure out); - little cubes : boring mundane shape - doesn't look exotic or intimidating to the novice player, doesn't distract them from the story being told; - having D6 doesn't get you labeled an "RPG geek"; - six-sided dice have been present in western culture forever, so as an object present on the table, they don't feel out of place next to other props you might have if playing a game where atmosphere is important (Gothic, horror, etc.). Could you picture Christopher Lee as Count Dracula with twelve or twenty-sided dice in his hand, telling his victims "Let's play a little game of chance, shall we ?". No, that doesn't work! but with D6 it's OK (especially fancy one shaped like skulls).

The Tabletop Engineer

One simple explanation is that they wanted to distance themselves from Call of Cthulhu which uses the d100 system. If I were crafting a horror game right now, I'd want to try and avoid similarities to CoC.

Cal Pearson

The "how to" vid from a creator / writer of the system mentions briefly, as commented on already. However, the wording he used is "permanently incapacitated -or- dead". This feels like the possibility of "retired" to the sanitarium or "institution"; Becoming a ward of the "organization" or their family. Tables (the GM and Players) could create any manner of demise for characters, transposed into the "Bleed", what have you. Death does seem a struggle to achieve - not what the designers wanted to push players around with.

Glumer Games LLC

I don’t know if I can give you an objective view but I will take a look:)

Ron F.
>>109351478

I was going to say many of the same things, but you beat me to it and then some! Great analysis.

Gavin the Mystic

Hey PDM, I’ve never thought of EZD6 as a dice pool system. To me the mechanics of the Illuminated Worlds System are more akin to WOD/Storyteller system, ala old school Vampire the Masquerade. The rules we have so far are only a quick start, but both the meta currency and death system seem a little bloated. At least when compared to EZD6. I was actually a little disappointed, I was hoping since both were D6 based, there might be bits in the Illuminated Worlds System to mine for ESD6. But, at this point only one little idea has come to mind.

Dustin Hitzing

This system seems like almost exactly a complete... not rip-off... but extremely heavily borrowing from Blades in the Dark... seems like it should be a "forged in the dark" system but it doesn't seem like they gave attribution to it. Seemed interesting but a little overly complex for my particular tastes. But I hope they have fun with it.

Glumer Games LLC

I’ve breezed through it and it looks fairly simple. Certainly not as crunchy as I prefer. It appears to be a mechanical knock off of dm Scotty’s with a version of CoC painted over it. It looks fun and I am sure they will keep a large following. In the GM section I did get the impression they were taking a shot at capitalism which I found a bit peculiar. As for a death mechanic, I think it’s the slow bleed mechanic but it wasn’t clear to me.

Chad Robb

I didn't like Powered by Apocalypse games but something about the presentation here, where each stat grants a pool for a specific move feels intuitive. In the how to play video, 5:08 he explains injuries leave scars. If your scar slots are full, you die. .

Nygfan

Everyone has OR is familiar with a D6! It’s easy for non TTRPG friends to understand. From Monopoly to Mouse Trap anyone can identify fun with a D6!

Bryan Stephens

I am a big fan of the Hero System (4th ed is my favorite). It only used d6 (sometimes a lot of them). Much preferred the 3d6 bell curve mechanic to 1d20. I have never liked Dice Pools in any game.

C. E. Housenick

So, the D6 dice pool mechanic is also used in the Alien RPG system and it intuitive, especially for new players. The better you are at something, the more dice you get to roll. All that matters on the dice in Alien is the quantity of 'Sixes' (successes) you roll. Now, the one challenge of a system like that (and what Candela Obscura seems to remedy) is that you can wind up rolling fistfulls of dice. I think you could have a character rolling 8d6 to succeed on something in Alien, and from the YouTube video they posted, their approach caps out at about 3d6 or 4d6.

Jay
>>109347624

That sounds really Cool. Glad Tiny Dungeon is working out better for your group. I'm interested in games like that and it's on my list of "To Read" stuff for sure. Fast and fun is the way to go in my opinion.

Jay
>>109351478

Outstanding list of points. D6's don't swing nearly as much as those D100 and D20's which I never really appreciated. In my opinion, the larger the die, the greater the variation in results which yields more randomness and makes expert characters seem less proficient or competent in their fields of expertise if that makes any sense.

Benjamin Marra

I haven't looked at Candela Obscura, but if it's using D6 dice pools with a "luck" system to augment rolls, it could be borrowing heavily from Luke Crane's core Burning Wheel system using D6 dice pools for attributes and using Artha (XP-gained point system) to augment rolls. Or it sounds like it could be borrowing from the Year Zero Engine from Free League. There are plenty of other great D6 pool systems like the old WEG Star Wars game, the old Ghostbusters game, the old DC Comics RPG, as well as Risus (which I also love). Also, yes, there does appear to be a D6 movement happening these days. Probably thanks to the Apocalypse Engine, but also the FKR movement rising, as well as a discovery of the classic Traveller mechanics.

Sean Grimm

Good Folk, A few thoughts on Candela Obscura... As much as it grieves me to say this, this game would have been better titled as "Call of Scooby Doolu", "5th Ed, only without the danger", or "Wokethulhu". This is horror in the same way that a box costume from Walmart is scary- the quality of the material keeps going down, the cost keeps going up, and the image on the outside of the box doesn’t match what’s in it. As someone who has worked on horror games (VtM, LotN, & MET), designed horror games (The Fall), is designing a horror game, and has spent the greater part of a 40-year gaming career running horror-esque games (Kult, Call of Cthulhu, Chill, Vaesen, Nightfall), I will gladly argue the following point- there is no horror here. I have always defined "horror" as a fear of an unclean death, either witnessed or experienced. The monster bites you in half, the glowing chemicals from the oversized needle burn in your veins, or the slow, agonizing, invasive sensation as the rusty knife slides into your kidney- those have elements of personal revulsion, disgust, and fear necessary to generate horror. It is the untimely, visceral end that no one wants to face that triggers the flight response. Kult, Call of Cthulhu, Vaesen, Dread, and Chill- In those games, the grisly end is always on the table and at almost any moment it could be your last. It is that knife edge that sends shivers down your spine. Candela Obscura bills itself as a Horror RPG, but forces the question- where is the actual horror? It is more like Scooby Doo or Disney's Haunted Mansion- it dabbles in elements of scary, but it is ultimately made for kids. Per this rules set, character death seems to be more of a case of Lightkeeper fiat rather than consequence. Furthermore, death seems to be the thing that happens to other people, not to the players, so it begs the question "What do they have to fear?". The players can be made to feel uncomfortable, for sure, but so what? All they need to do is wait out whatever spooky thing is happening, and then they get to go home. Moreover, the authors really give the game away when they must make the heavy-handed address of "We don't want to traumatize our players, just give them a safe space to explore darker elements" (Pg. 20) Bollocks to this. If the authors want to promote agency, they should in equal measure argue responsibility. There is truly little in the way of mystery here, not much in the way of actual danger, mostly jump scares and strange noises. Players step into horror games because they WANT that feeling of dread. They WANT to roll the dice with fate, and maybe even secretly, they want to get eaten by the monster because it confirms in their character's mind that there is something out there beyond their understanding. The Players willingly placed themselves in this position, they knew what they were getting into, and as CO is currently written, game masters are being asked to remove the responsibility of that choice. CO acknowledges elements of horror, but at the same time put so many guard rails in place that it goes from playing a "Dark Horror" game to a "Dimly lit RPG, with glowsticks". As to the d6 element of this, it's not surprising. d6 games are contributing to lessening of the complexity necessary to access this game. Some people call using more dice as "Gatekeeping", but I see it as the further dilution of the hobby. Meaningful complexity isn't what this game is shooting for, so I'm unsurprised. As things sit, I am disappointed in this product. The creative team had tremendous potential, but the intentional writing and direction made by this team demonstrates that a Horror setting is not their bag. The only thing close to horror that I am finding is their fear to trust their audience to make mature choices.

Graham Kane
>>109377379

I agree about the apparent lack of horror in this game so far. Like you, I want my horror to be horrible! But just to play devil's advocate for a second I can understand why they're going this direction. They will be presenting a new campaign, new setting AND a new system. This could be a culture shock for their target audience who are used to the heroic fantasy of 5E.

Displacer Beast

I’ve always felt that d6 dice pool systems are trying to capture the speed or simplicity of HeroQuest (which is a dice pool system using special d6s) and maybe thrill of rolling lots of dice (like casting a fireball or a good charge in Warhammer). The explosion of rules light systems has made them pretty trendy, but I do worry that Darrington Press’s entry into the market will chill the number of hacks.

Glumer Games LLC

I don’t mind rolling lots of dice for damage but for anything else just give me one die ( maybe two).

ViggenCA

Not sure why d6 games are so popular now, but when I look back at my gaming history, it's Traveller (various versions), WEG Star Wars (and Fantasy/Space), Champions ... all d6 games. It might just be the turning of the wheel, and the ubiquitous six-sider is getting it's day in the sun again.

David Gatt

The Good - The presentation, the character prompts, the character ideas, the mechanics. The Bad - PDM you say this rips of EZD6, I say it rips off from Blades in the Dark on the character creation side, without giving tools to the GM for building scenarios. The Ugly - Based on the quick start guide this game seems to carry on the tradition of giving plenty of guidance to the players but leaves the GM to their own devices when building missions.

David Gatt

One last thought, if Darrington Press is going to use ideas from other games to build their own that is fine (and in fact, common practice in the rpg design space). I just hope DP credits those other games as sources of inspiration and uses their market position to promote other creators.

Glumer Games LLC
>>109354938

At the beginning of the GM section. Story elements use the term exploitative capitalists. Greedy businessmen would have sufficed. You can place exploitative in front of communists, Marxists, etc. It isn’t necessary to use the negative descriptors unless you are trying to negatively portray something specific. It’s funny that Mercer and company are planning on making a killing in a capitalist system while taking an offhand shot at that system unless, perhaps, they intend to give 95% of their revenue to Cuba.

SJBehindtheScreen

If creators agree with wotc that rpgs are in a growth phase, aimed to bring in new players/revenues, then I believe that d6 games are considered to be more approachable and less complicated for new players. I've experienced several players at conventions comment that d6 pool games are kids/simpler games, rather than the classic d20 chain of d&d which can be a barrier. Not saying I agree, just something I've picked up on.

Cricket The Dragon

Don't really see much of the genetics of EZD6 on this Candela Oscura, but I have only glanced at the Quickstart Rules for the later. On the other hand, I do see Year Zero Engine, yes Alien RPG... but Vaesen (such an underrated gem of a game). About d6 games, I think it would be a good idea to differentiate between too very different systems: i) d6 dice pools (from WEG Ghostbusters to YZE and TinyD6) & amd ii) 2d6 vs TN games (from Traveller to Barbarians of Lemuria, the best Conan game...) Finally, I just bought Trail of Cthulhu, that uses the Gumshoe system and a (single) d6.

virtuadept
>>109377379

Totally agree with Mr. Sean Grimm. I read through a lot of this (Not the GM stuff) and it feels like "Horror for Pansies" (pardon folks who did actually like it). I've run horror a lot. Call of Cthulhu, Vampire The Masquerade, Flesh Must be Eaten, etc. There is so much psychobabble "lets not hurt anyone" in this quickstart it makes me wonder how they can possibly evoke actual terror in the minds of the players if the source material feels like it's holding everyone with soft, comfy mittens. It's like in Monty Python's Flying Circus when the Spanish Inquisition attempts to torture people with the "Fluffy Pillow" and "Comfy Chair". Oh, NO! NOT the COMFY CHAIR!!!!

Sean Grimm
>>109377379

@ Mr. Gunn I fear no Critter, even though I live in Seattle and according to PDM apparently drink my coffee with whipped cream. To be fair, I'm a 90's Seattleite, pre-Amazon & Big Tech, back when it was music, mosh pits, and you could still smoke in bars. Critters don't scare me, and the Sock Puppets that pass for WotC employees come across as more of online art school dropouts from Bellevue than game designers. Hmmmm that seemed a bit harsh. *Sips black coffee* That's some real 4k there though...

Jason

I see candela obscure MUCH more like blades in the dark. In fact, I was surprised it was so similar.