Cyberpunk RED vs RuneQuest
Compare Cyberpunk RED and RuneQuest side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Cyberpunk RED | RuneQuest | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Cyberpunk | Fantasy |
| Tags | Combat-Heavy, Skill-Based, Tactical, Gritty, Deadly, Corruption, Mission-Based, Heist, Crunchy, Lore-Heavy | Crunchy, Tactical, Lore-Heavy, Deadly, Character-Driven |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d10 + the relevant Stat + Skill and exceed a Difficulty Value or an opponent’s total. Ties favor the defender. | Roll d100 under your skill percentage. Criticals at 1/20th of skill, specials at 1/5th, fumbles at 95+. Seven characteristics (STR, CON, SIZ, DEX, INT, POW, CHA). Combat uses hit locations (d20) with per-location HP and armor. Strike ranks determine action order. Runes are percentile-rated cosmic affinities that fuel magic and shape personality. Passions (Love, Hate, Honor, Loyalty) augment skills when invoked. |
| Dice | d10 | d100 |
| Complexity | High | High |
| Availability | Free quickstart | Free quickstart |
| Runnability | 5 of 5 book tools | Book tools not listed |
| License | All Rights Reserved | All Rights Reserved |
| Third-Party Publishing | Noncommercial only — Official fan-content policy | Not yet researched |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Publisher | R. Talsorian Games | Chaosium Inc. |
| Year | 2020 | 2018 |
| Languages | English, French, Italian, Spanish, Polish, German, Japanese, Portuguese | English, French, German, Spanish |
| Best For | Groups who want mercenary capers in a troubled city, with tactical firefights and distinct professional specialties. Campaigns follow a crew balancing dangerous jobs against the cost of staying alive. | Groups who want deep mythic fantasy where characters are embedded in cults, clans, and cosmic forces: with tactical hit-location combat and a world steeped in decades of lore. |
| Highlights | Ten Roles provide specialized abilities that grow independently of ordinary skills. Netrunners hack nearby networks on the same initiative clock as the crew’s firefights. Lifepath tables supply personal connections that the GM can turn into job complications. | Glorantha is one of the most detailed settings in RPG history, Rune and Passion mechanics tie characters to the mythic world, hit-location combat adds tactical detail, skill-based advancement through use, three distinct magic systems |
| Considerations | Armor ablation and critical injuries require tracking throughout a firefight. Most cyberware reduces Humanity and can eventually put a character under GM control. Buying expensive equipment usually requires a Fixer or access to a Night Market. | Very steep learning curve, tightly coupled to Glorantha setting, combat bookkeeping is heavy, expensive to collect all sourcebooks, dense lore for new players |