Let's Go to Magic School vs Shadowrun
Compare Let's Go to Magic School and Shadowrun side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Let's Go to Magic School | Shadowrun | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Cyberpunk, Fantasy |
| Play Style | Collaborative, Worldbuilding, Playbook-Driven, Fiction-First, Character-Driven, Freeform Magic, Drama, Magic School | Crunchy, Tactical, Heist, Character Building, Faction Play, Lore-Heavy, Skill-Based, Mission-Based, Urban Fantasy |
| Core Mechanic | Roll 2d6 + stat. On a 10+, full hit. On a 7-9, partial hit with complications or limited choices. On a 6-, miss: the GM makes a Reaction. Five stats: Virtue, Ambition, Learning, Heart, and Worldliness. Inspiration is gained on missed rolls; five Inspiration unlocks an advancement from the playbook. | 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 | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | Low | Very High |
| Accessibility | Very High | High |
| Runnability | Low | Very High |
| License | All Rights Reserved | No open license |
| Cost | Free | $$$ |
| Publisher | Holothuroid | Catalyst Game Labs |
| Year | 2025 | 2019 |
| Best For | Groups who want to collaboratively build a magic school setting and play out the social drama of student life (friendships, rivalries, classes, and mastering spells) in a flexible, setting-agnostic fantasy framework. | Groups who want cyberpunk-fantasy heists with deep mechanical subsystems for hacking, magic, and combat. |
| Highlights | Collaborative worldbuilding during setup defines the school, its magic system, principles, limits, and laws. 17 magic subjects organized into five tiers (Basic, Elective, Advanced, Forbidden, Lost) shape the school's curriculum. Spells are defined collaboratively during play rather than from a fixed list. Scrutiny system tracks institutional consequences for rule-breaking students. | 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 | Requires investment in collaborative worldbuilding during setup; sample settings are provided but no full pre-built setting. | 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. |