Mischief vs Shadowrun
Compare Mischief and Shadowrun side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Mischief | Shadowrun | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Cyberpunk, Fantasy |
| Tags | Rules-Light, Classless, Gonzo, Comedy, Fast-Paced, Fiction-First, Low-Prep, Improvisation, Character-Driven, Hackable | Crunchy, Tactical, Heist, Character Building, Faction Play, Lore-Heavy, Skill-Based, Mission-Based, Urban Fantasy |
| Core Mechanic | Roll a d12 and add BODY, MIND, or WILL, then read the total on a five-tier scale: 12+ is a Critical Success, 9–11 a Success, 5–8 a Mixed Success, 2–4 a Failure, and 1 or less a Critical Failure. Natural 12s and 1s are always critical. Each instance of Good or Bad Luck adds a d12 and keeps the highest or lowest result. | 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 | d12 | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | Low | Very High |
| Accessibility | Very High | High |
| Runnability | Low | Very High |
| License | Made for Mischief Third-Party License | No open license |
| Third-Party Publishing | Commercial publishing allowed — Made for Mischief Third-Party License | Not yet researched |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Cost | Free | $$$ |
| Publisher | Drimbus | Catalyst Game Labs |
| Year | 2026 | 2019 |
| Languages | English | English, German, French, Italian |
| Best For | Groups who want quick, swingy fantasy sessions with comedic magic, freeform character concepts, and advancement tied to each character's personal goals. | Groups who want cyberpunk-fantasy heists with deep mechanical subsystems for hacking, magic, and combat. |
| Highlights | Opponents use a single Power score as roll modifier, damage track, and persuasion threshold, so one number runs a creature in both combat and conversation. Characters level up by checking off items on a player-written Bucket List, tying advancement to personal goals rather than experience points. Abilities and spells share one list and are normally Exhausted by a failed roll, so magic needs no spell slots or mana. | 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 | A failed roll exhausts the Ability used until a Rest or Healing restores it, so a character starting with three Abilities can lose most of their tricks within one Conflict. Base attack damage is usually 1, or 2 on a critical, so weapons mostly differ in accuracy, critical range, and Luck conditions. Wounds add a -1 penalty and then Bad Luck on every roll, so injured characters get steadily worse at escaping danger. | 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. |