Agon vs Shadowrun
Compare Agon and Shadowrun side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Agon | Shadowrun | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy, Historical | Cyberpunk, Fantasy |
| Play Style | Heroic, Narrative, Rules-Light, Fast Sessions, Low-Prep, Mission-Based, Fast-Paced, Cinematic, Tag-Based | Crunchy, Tactical, Combat-Heavy, Heist, Character Building, Faction Play, Lore-Heavy, Skill-Based, Mission-Based, Urban Fantasy |
| Core Mechanic | All conflicts resolve in a single contested roll. Players assemble a dice pool from relevant traits (Name die, Epithet die, Domain die, Divine Favor), each rated as a step die (d4–d12). Everyone rolls simultaneously; highest result wins. The Strife Player sets opposition with their own dice. Divine Favor grants bonus dice from the gods but is unreliable. Pathos tracks a hero's inner fire — when it runs out, the hero's tale ends. | Roll a pool of d6s equal to attribute + skill, counting 5s and 6s as hits. Meet or exceed a threshold to succeed. Situational advantages generate Edge points rather than modifying dice pools directly; Edge is spent on tactical effects like rerolling dice, adding successes, or imposing penalties on opponents. |
| Dice | d4–d12 | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | Very Low | Very High |
| Accessibility | High | Medium |
| Runnability | High | Medium |
| License | Proprietary | No open license |
| Cost | $ | $$$ |
| Publisher | Evil Hat Productions | Catalyst Game Labs |
| Year | 2020 | 2019 |
| Best For | Groups who want fast, competitive mythic Greek adventures with minimal prep — each island is a self-contained session of trials, battles, and divine interference. | Groups who want cyberpunk-fantasy heists with deep mechanical subsystems for hacking, magic, and combat. |
| Highlights | Island adventures require zero GM prep — everything needed is in the book, one-roll resolution keeps pace fast, competitive Glory system encourages heroes to outshine each other, Strife Player role rotates so everyone can play a hero | Unique cyberpunk-fantasy setting blending megacorporate intrigue with magic and metahuman races. Dedicated subsystems for Matrix hacking, magic, rigging, and astral space. Edge system replaces many situational modifiers with a spendable tactical resource. Decades of published lore spanning in-world history from 2011 to the 2080s. |
| Considerations | Narrow mythic Greek genre with limited setting flexibility, competitive Glory system can frustrate cooperative-minded players, heroes have few mechanical traits to differentiate them, campaign arc is finite — heroes eventually reach their Fate and retire | Matrix hacking runs as a parallel subsystem that can leave non-decker players waiting. Multiple supplemental rulebooks needed for full coverage of magic, Matrix, and rigging. Published books have documented editing and layout issues. |