Cities Without Number vs Shadowrun
Compare Cities Without Number and Shadowrun side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Cities Without Number | Shadowrun | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Cyberpunk | Cyberpunk, Fantasy |
| Play Style | Sandbox, Classless, Noir, Ascending AC | Crunchy, Tactical, Heist, Character Building, Faction Play, Lore-Heavy, Skill-Based, Mission-Based, Urban Fantasy |
| Core Mechanic | 2d6 + attribute mod + skill for skill checks; d20 + modifiers vs. AC for combat. Edge and chrome (cyberware) add abilities and complications. Faction turn system runs corporate, gang, and government power struggles between sessions. Tag-based city generation creates districts and neighborhoods on the fly. | 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 | 2d6 / d20 | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | Medium | Very High |
| Accessibility | Very High | High |
| Runnability | Very High | Very High |
| License | Proprietary | No open license |
| Cost | Free | $$$ |
| Publisher | Sine Nomine Publishing | Catalyst Game Labs |
| Year | 2023 | 2019 |
| Best For | Cyberpunk sandbox campaigns with comprehensive GM worldbuilding tools, faction turns, and noir-tinged urban adventure: fully compatible with Stars Without Number and Worlds Without Number. | Groups who want cyberpunk-fantasy heists with deep mechanical subsystems for hacking, magic, and combat. |
| Highlights | Free version is very generous, comprehensive sandbox and faction tools, seamlessly compatible with SWN/WWN family, noir investigation mechanics, detailed city generation system | The setting fuses megacorporate intrigue with magic and metahuman races, so a single team mixes street samurai, mages, and deckers. Distinct subsystems model Matrix hacking, spellcasting, drone rigging, and astral space, each carrying its own rules depth. The Edge economy converts situational advantages into a spendable resource for rerolls, extra hits, or penalties on opponents. |
| Considerations | OSR combat can feel basic, cyberpunk genre may overlap with Shadowrun expectations, less support for narrative/story-arc campaigns | Matrix hacking runs on its own timescale and can leave non-decker players idle during a run. Character creation spreads across attributes, skills, magic or resonance, gear, and lifestyle, making the first build long. Dice pools grow large at high skill, so counting hits on a fistful of d6s slows resolution. |