Mythras vs Shadowrun
Compare Mythras and Shadowrun side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Mythras | Shadowrun | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy, Universal | Cyberpunk, Fantasy |
| Play Style | Crunchy, Tactical, Simulation, Character Building, Deadly, Sandbox | Crunchy, Tactical, Heist, Character Building, Faction Play, Lore-Heavy, Skill-Based, Mission-Based, Urban Fantasy |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d100 under your skill percentage. In combat, degree of success vs. opponent determines Special Effects: tactical maneuvers like Disarm, Trip, Bypass Armor, and Bleed. Action Points govern actions per round, damage applies to hit locations. | 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 | d100 | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | High | Very High |
| Accessibility | High | High |
| Runnability | Very High | Very High |
| License | ORC | No open license |
| Cost | $$ | $$$ |
| Publisher | The Design Mechanism | Catalyst Game Labs |
| Year | 2016 | 2019 |
| Best For | Groups who want gritty, tactical, and realistic combat in a skill-based percentile system, particularly for historical, mythic, or low-fantasy settings. | Groups who want cyberpunk-fantasy heists with deep mechanical subsystems for hacking, magic, and combat. |
| Highlights | Tactical Special Effects combat system, classless skill-based progression, five distinct magic systems, adaptable to many genres, free intro version (Mythras Imperative) | 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 | Steep learning curve for combat, analysis paralysis when choosing effects, large combats become unwieldy, lengthy character creation | 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. |