Ironsworn is a role playing game supplement written and published by Shaun Tomkin. This is a rules-lite RPG system.
The supplement is available in PDF form for free from DriveThruRPG. It is also available as a softcover print on demand for $22.95 and a hardcover print on demand book for $27.95; both are available at the same price with the PDF. The print on demand book is listed as colour, but it’s actually black and white; using the colour option means a better-quality print. It is also available in print form from sites such as Amazon. The PDF is the version reviewed and it comes with multiple PDFs.
The main PDF is the rulebook. This comes in two forms, a normal one with 270 pages and a spread version with 135. The normal one is the one referred to. Two pages are the front and rear covers, two pages are the front matter, seven pages are the Contents and five pages are the Index.
Chapter 1: The Basics starts by explaining that the system supports three types of play; Guided, with preferably 1-4 players and a GM, Cooperative, with 2-4 players but no GM and Solo, which is self-explanatory.
What is needed to play – the system uses d10s for challenge and optional oracle dice and d6s for action dice – is listed and it is stated that Ironsworn is heavily dependent on fiction as well as mechanics. The default setting is the Ironlands, a pretty inhospitable region that the characters’ people were driven to.
Iron Vows are vows characters make on pieces of iron, and characters will start with a background vow. The character sheet is explained, together with a diagram of it. Moves are how actions, scenes and questions are resolved, and there are different types of activities. Action rolls involve rolling a d6 with additions against 2 d10s, and the result is a strong hit, weak hit and miss (these terms are used for all actions, whether or not they are in combat). Momentum is another stat and shows show well character(s) are doing in their quests.
Progress Tracks are used to measure pace and the outcome of a goal or challenge; for multi-person play, these are shared between characters when they are working together to resolve a challenge. Harm is damage and Stress is mental burdens and trauma. Assets give characters additional options and bonuses and can include special moves and be improved. Oracles are random tables, most used in solo and GM-less play. Bonds can be created with people and communities and it is also explained that most of the game’s mechanics are character-facing, with NPCs and creatures not having mechanical detail. Equipment is treated more in an abstract than concrete way. A flowchart shows how play runs. Finally, there is a list of steps to take to play the game.
Chapter 2: Your Character is on creating a character. It explains the stats, which are probably more minimal than in many RPGs, as well as things such as health, spirit, supply and momentum. Vows and bonds are important in the game, and characters can gain debilities from injuries. There are also different conditions and burdens.
Assets represent background, skills and traits and are available in card form for easy reference (they are not included in the core book, but in one of the subsidiary PDFs). There are four types of assets; Companions, Paths, Combat Talents and Rituals. Characters start with assets, and can gain more with experience or enhance existing ones. There are consequences of failing an asset move. Experience is gained as progression is made. Equipment doesn’t offer mechanical bonuses but can be needed to perform certain moves; performing a combat talent requires a sword cannot be done without a sword. Finally in this chapter is a step by step list for character creation.
Chapter 3: Moves is on the basic mechanics of Ironsworn, the move. Each, as mentioned earlier, can result in a strong hit, weak hit or fail. The fiction for a move is worked out first, then the move is made. Moves should only be for things that matter. There are details on group move and progress moves and how equipment can affect moves. Initiative is a combat mechanic which reflects who is in control. This is followed by an example of initiative in a 2-person cooperative game. The Move Glossary lists what the different things mean. Moves are then divided into different types; Adventure, Relationship, Combat, Suffer, Quest and Fate. Each move is described as to what happens, then text accompanies this. With Ironsworn being very narrative-driven, many of the descriptions of what to do with the outcome of a move reference how it fits the fiction. Asking the Oracle, a Fate move, is also suggested as an option to determine what happens.
Chapter 4: Your World describes the Ironlands. The Ironlands are divided into four regions. Each region’s description is a single page with its features, description and a quest starter. Following this is Your Truths. This section has various different features of the setting, each of which comes with three options (a user can create their own of course) together with a quest starter for each. These can each alter the setting. Mapping Your Journeys has suggestions for how to use the blank Ironlands map and how to keep track of the various locations.
Chapter 5: Foes and Encounters is the NPCs, whether these be people or creatures. NPCs have a single mechanic, their rank, which is how dangerous they are. The weakest NPCs may be joined together into packs, streamlining combat. The various different NPC types are Ironlanders, Firstborn, Animals, Beasts and Horrors. There are several of each and the descriptions give their rank, features, drives, tactics, some details and a quest starter.
Chapter 6: Oracles is a set of 19 random tables that can be used to help build the Ironlands. There are instructions on their use and how to find or create more oracles.
Chapter 7: Gameplay in Depth covers creating a character, the campaign world and quests, together with gameplay examples. This is followed by a section on using the mechanics and the fiction together; the fiction drives the game. Managing quests has in-depth coverage of quests and resolving these. There are then various principles of gameplay and options for running the game. Hacking Ironsworn is on playing the game in other settings and adjusting assets to fit. Finally, there is an extended example of play.
The subsidiary PDFs are as follows:
The Oracles Worksheet is a single page and has various blank oracles.
The Character Sheet is a single page and is a blank character sheet.
The Progress Track Worksheet is a single page and has blank progress tracks.
The Rules Summary is a single page and has the rules briefly covered.
The Ironlands Map is a single page and has a map of the Ironlands with only the regions marked.
Your World: Truths Workbook is seven pages and is for noting down the truths for the setting as explained in Chapter 4.
Moves Quick Reference is six pages and summarises all the move types.
The Assets Master Set comes in two versions, one with 10 pages, the other with 19. Each has the 75 different Assets included, but the longer PDF comes with backs to print off for the cards as well.
Ironsworn in Review
The PDF is fairly well bookmarked with the major and the subsections linked, although not the minor ones. The Contents is to a similar level of depth and is also hyperlinked. The Index is more thorough and is again hyperlinked. Navigation is good. The text maintains a single column black and white format and appeared to be mostly free of errors (an Errata file is available for download). There are a number of black and white stock photos, up to a full page in size, that are all thematically similar and fit together well. Presentation is good.
Ironsworn is not diceless, as dice are rolled, but it does rely heavily on the fiction and, therefore, the players’ ability to create that fiction. The various oracles provide prompts if a player gets stuck as to what comes next, but if a player has difficulty in creating fiction with or without a few dice rolls and some random words, they are probably going to struggle with the game. It heavily depends on an ability to create interesting stories using a lot of player choice; even dice rolls for moves can have a lot of possible options as a result, and the player picks one that fits the fiction best. Fiction is definitely heavily emphasized. It may be a standard in RPGs, creating fiction, but in Ironsworn it perhaps has the most emphasis outside a diceless game.
This is probably not a game for everyone – but that is true of everything. Players who like crunchier games with mechanics driving gameplay to a greater degree (there are no mechanics that make creatures harder to hurt; the player has to come up with fiction to enable this) may find Ironsworn a bit odd. It’s still definitely worth a look, especially as it’s free in PDF. Ironsworn is an interesting example of a different type of RPG and it can be downloaded for free by clicking here.
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