Ironsworn vs Tiny Cyberpunk
Compare Ironsworn and Tiny Cyberpunk side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, and more.
| Ironsworn | Tiny Cyberpunk | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Cyberpunk, Sci-Fi |
| Tags | Narrative, Solo-Friendly, Fiction-First, Character-Driven, Sandbox, Low-Fantasy, Exploration, Theater of the Mind, CC-Licensed Rules, Random Tables | Rules-Light, One-Shot Friendly, Low-Prep, Fast-Paced, Theater of the Mind, Classless, Solo-Friendly, 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 2d6 for a Test; any 5 or 6 succeeds. Advantage raises the pool to 3d6, while Disadvantage lowers it to 1d6 and normally takes precedence. |
| Dice | d6 + 2d10 | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | Low | Medium |
| Availability | Free core rules | Paid |
| Runnability | 5 of 5 book tools | 3 of 5 book tools |
| License | CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 | All Rights Reserved |
| 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 | Gallant Knight Games |
| Year | 2018 | 2024 |
| 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. | Groups seeking quick cyberpunk missions where street-level jobs provoke escalating corporate retaliation. The included oracles also support solo campaigns. |
| 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. | Hacking uses Firewall difficulty and failure-triggered Kickbacks, giving digital intrusion distinct risks while reusing the core Test. Heat turns mission fallout into escalating corporate actions after rests, carrying consequences between jobs. A complete solo loop pairs scene procedures with oracles, supporting one-player campaigns without a Director. |
| 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. | Most Tests resolve as binary success or failure, leaving unlisted consequences to the Director. Long campaigns require more Director worldbuilding than one-off missions. The Corporate Edition includes portions of Neodinium that the publisher identified as generative-AI text; an announced Hacker Edition will replace that material. |