Burning Wheel vs Shadowrun
Compare Burning Wheel and Shadowrun side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Burning Wheel | Shadowrun | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Cyberpunk, Fantasy |
| Play Style | Crunchy, Roleplay-Heavy, Character Building, Drama, Low-Fantasy | Crunchy, Tactical, Combat-Heavy, Heist, Character Building, Faction Play, Lore-Heavy, Skill-Based, Mission-Based, Urban Fantasy |
| Core Mechanic | Roll a pool of d6s (ability exponent = number of dice). 4+ counts as a success. Meet or exceed the obstacle number. Beliefs, Instincts, and Traits earn artha rewards. | 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 | d6 dice pool | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | High | Very High |
| Accessibility | Low | Medium |
| Community | Low | High |
| License | Proprietary | No open license |
| Cost | $$ | $$$ |
| Publisher | BWHQ | Catalyst Game Labs |
| Year | 2011 | 2019 |
| Best For | Groups who want character beliefs and drama to mechanically drive play, with deep subsystems that reward mastery. | Groups who want cyberpunk-fantasy heists with deep mechanical subsystems for hacking, magic, and combat. |
| Highlights | Beliefs mechanically drive play, skills advance through use, Duel of Wits and Fight subsystems offer detailed resolution | 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 | Steep learning curve, meant to be played as written (not hackable), print availability limited | 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. |