Ironsworn vs Ironsworn: Starforged
Compare Ironsworn and Ironsworn: Starforged side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Ironsworn | Ironsworn: Starforged | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Sci-Fi |
| Tags | Narrative, Solo-Friendly, Fiction-First, Character-Driven, Sandbox, Low-Fantasy, Exploration, Theater of the Mind, CC-Licensed Rules, Random Tables | Narrative, Solo-Friendly, Sandbox, Exploration, Fiction-First, Theater of the Mind, Worldbuilding, Character-Driven, CC-Licensed Rules, Random Tables |
| Core Mechanic | Roll an action die (d6) plus a stat and any adds, then compare the total to two d10 challenge dice. Beat both for a strong hit, beat one for a weak hit, and beat neither for a miss; ties go to the challenge dice. Positive momentum can be burned to cancel challenge dice below its value. Long-term challenges use a progress roll, which compares filled progress boxes to the challenge dice without an action die. | Roll 1d6 (action die) + stat vs. two d10 challenge dice. Beat both = strong hit, beat one = weak hit, beat neither = miss. Momentum meter (-6 to +10) can be burned to replace your action score. Moves resolve fiction; progress tracks measure quests, expeditions, and combat. Oracle tables generate story prompts for solo and co-op play. |
| Dice | d6 + 2d10 | d6 + 2d10 |
| Complexity | Low | Low |
| Availability | Free core rules | Free core rules |
| Runnability | 5 of 5 book tools | 5 of 5 book tools |
| License | CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 | CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 |
| Third-Party Publishing | Commercial publishing allowed — Ironsworn System Reference Document under CC BY 4.0 | Not yet researched |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Publisher | Shawn Tomkin | Tomkin Press / Modiphius Entertainment |
| Year | 2018 | 2022 |
| Languages | English, French, German, Spanish | English |
| Best For | Groups who want dark fantasy questing for one to four players, with fiction-first moves, oracle tables, and little or no GM preparation. | Solo or small-group sci-fi campaigns driven by sworn vows, with rich oracle tables, starship exploration, and collaborative worldbuilding: no GM required. |
| Highlights | Vows tie advancement to the story: fulfilling a sworn quest earns the experience that buys new assets. Momentum gives every action roll a second layer: a strong position can cancel an unlucky challenge die, while a negative track can remove the action die entirely. The oracle tables turn open questions into prompts, giving solo and co-op groups enough procedural input to play without a GM. | Strong solo RPG design, 'Choose Your Truths' worldbuilding tailors the setting, large oracle chapter for emergent story, momentum system creates dramatic tension, three flexible play modes (solo/co-op/guided) |
| Considerations | Progress tracks convert ticks and boxes at five ranks into a progress score, which takes a few rolls to internalize. Oracle results are prompts rather than answers, so a solo player must interpret them and can stall when a result seems contradictory. Combat and movement use no grid or positioning rules, so groups that want tactical placement must supply it themselves. | Dense 400-page rulebook despite narrative focus, large move count to internalize, setting is human-centric by default, oracle-driven play can produce disjointed narratives without careful interpretation |