Dungeon World vs Impulse Drive
Compare Dungeon World and Impulse Drive side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Dungeon World | Impulse Drive | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Sci-Fi |
| Tags | Fiction-First, Playbook-Driven, Classic Fantasy, Character-Driven, Collaborative, Exploration, Low-Prep, Improvisation, Strong GM Support, CC-Licensed Rules | Space Opera, Ship-Based, Playbook-Driven, Fiction-First, Character-Driven, Mission-Based, Strong GM Support, Improvisation, Hackable, CC-Licensed Rules |
| Core Mechanic | Moves trigger from events in the fiction. When a move calls for a roll, use 2d6 plus the specified modifier. Moves that call for rolls give outcomes for 10+ and 7–9, with the latter usually introducing a cost or compromise. On 6 or less, mark XP and the GM describes the consequences. | When a Move tells you to roll, roll 2d6 and add the modifier it names, usually one of five Approaches (Volatile, Calculating, Slick, Stalwart, Alien) rated from -3 to +3. A 10+ is a full success, a 7–9 is usually a success with a cost or fewer choices, and a 6 or lower marks XP while the Space Master makes a Call. Advantage means rolling 3d6 and keeping the two highest dice, and Disadvantage keeps the two lowest. The two cancel each other out and never stack. |
| Dice | 2d6 | 2d6 |
| Complexity | Low | Medium |
| Availability | Free core rules | Free core rules |
| Runnability | 4 of 5 book tools | 3 of 5 book tools |
| License | Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported (CC BY 3.0) | Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International |
| Third-Party Publishing | Commercial publishing allowed — Open license | Commercial publishing allowed — Open license |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Publisher | Burning Wheel | Adrian Thoen |
| Year | 2012 | 2019 |
| Languages | English, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Russian, Korean | English |
| Best For | Groups who want dungeon expeditions and fantasy campaigns shaped by their characters’ relationships and decisions. The table builds the world together and resolves danger through a continuous conversation. | Groups who want an episodic, TV-style space opera about a broke crew taking contracts aboard a ship they build together, where each character's flaws drive both trouble and advancement. |
| Highlights | Bonds and alignment award experience for developing relationships and acting on personal convictions. Threat fronts track what dangers will do without intervention, giving the GM an evolving campaign without a scripted plot. Questions during character creation establish shared setting details that become material for adventures. | Applying a Hook when it complicates a scene gives Disadvantage, so playing to a character's flaws drives advancement. Money is never tracked literally: completing a Contract triggers the ship's Payment Move, and a standard result lets the crew pick only two spends such as maintenance or an upgrade. Harm can always be converted into Stress, and a full Stress track forces a permanent Calamity that changes the character for good. |
| Considerations | Combat has no initiative order or fixed action allotment, so the table manages the spotlight through conversation. Base damage comes from the character’s class rather than weapon type, although weapon tags still change how attacks work. Advancement beyond tenth level requires retirement, an apprentice, or changing classes. | There is no setting chapter, so the galaxy and its factions are invented by the group during character creation, ship creation and the first session. Money is abstracted and the crew is deliberately kept broke, so groups who enjoy tracking prices and trade margins get tiered gear lists and cargo categories instead. There is no separate ship-combat resolution engine: crews apply the personal Universal Moves through the ship at ship-scale ranges, dealing Damage instead of Harm. |