Bunnies & Burrows vs Mage: The Ascension
Compare Bunnies & Burrows and Mage: The Ascension side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Bunnies & Burrows | Mage: The Ascension | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Fantasy, Modern, Horror |
| Tags | Career-Based, Deadly, Exploration, Grid-Based, Gritty, Hexcrawl, Random Character Creation, Resource Management, Survival | Freeform Magic, Character Building, Crunchy, High-Power, Roll to Cast, Skill-Based, Lore-Heavy, Fear & Stress Mechanics |
| Core Mechanic | Roll 1d6 + Trait Rating against a Difficulty Value (DV) for skill checks. Eight traits (Strength, Speed, Intelligence, Agility, Constitution, Mysticism, Smell, Charisma) each have a genetic base value set at character creation via 3d6, plus a Level that increases through Advancement Points. Combat uses hex-based battleboards with Attack and Defend dice, comparing Attack Score (attack die plus modifiers) to Defense Score (SPD Rating plus defend die), with tactical choices selected secretly each round via Combat Tactics Cards. | Build a d10 pool from an Attribute plus an Ability and count each die that meets or exceeds the difficulty, usually 6. Each rolled 1 cancels a success, and a roll with no successes and at least one 1 botches. Magick uses Arete instead: the highest Sphere plus coincidence or vulgarity and witnesses establishes the base difficulty, with situational modifiers applied afterward. Successes determine the Effect, and vulgar casting risks Paradox. |
| Dice | d6 | d10 dice pool |
| Complexity | Medium | Very High |
| Accessibility | Medium | High |
| Runnability | High | Very High |
| License | Proprietary (licensed from Steve Jackson Games) | All Rights Reserved |
| Third-Party Publishing | Not yet researched | Commercial publishing allowed — Storytellers Vault |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Cost | $$ | $$ |
| Publisher | Frog God Games | Onyx Path Publishing |
| Year | 2019 | 2015 |
| Languages | English | English, French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish |
| Best For | Groups who want a survival-focused campaign from a non-human perspective, solving problems as small prey animals in a realistically dangerous ecosystem. | Groups who want long-form modern occult campaigns about reality-shaping power, ideological conflict, and the consequences of imposing belief on the world. |
| Highlights | Fully realized herbalism system serves as the game's analog to magic, with herb searching, recognition, preparation, and remodeling mechanics. Pursuit phase models predator chases as a distinct tactical minigame before combat begins. Extensive bestiary details real-world predators and prey with ecologically grounded behavior. Nine playable species (rabbit plus eight others) each with a unique profession and trait distribution. | Nine Spheres combine to build open-ended Effects, allowing the same capability to emerge through different paradigms, practices, and instruments. Coincidental and vulgar classifications make subtlety a tactical choice because conspicuous magick raises difficulty and accumulates Paradox. Focus ties belief to procedure, so a mage's worldview determines the tools and rituals used to alter reality. |
| Considerations | No free quickstart or SRD: the $1 B&B Light folio is the cheapest entry point. Battleboard combat with tokens and tactics cards requires physical components or digital substitutes. Rules are spread across multiple subsystems (pursuit, combat, herbalism, diseases, pests) that take time to internalize. | Improvised Effects place frequent adjudication on the Storyteller, who must apply Sphere permissions, focus, required successes, and consequences consistently. Vulgar magick generates Paradox even on success, so overt power can punish a mage through injury or metaphysical breakdown. Faction choices can make a cabal internally hostile, so character concepts need shared motives before play. |