Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere universe has delighted readers ever since his first book, Elantris, released more than two decades ago. Now, it spans over 20 books with more in the works and even a new movie and television series looming based on the immensely popular Mistborn and Stormlight Archive books, respectively. Over the years, the tales of Vin, Kaladin, and the Shards of Adonalsium have made the jump from page to the tabletop as well, with a number of board games and tabletop roleplaying games having been released for players to enjoy.
This list showcases all of the tabletop games that you can currently experience, along with the ones that we know about!
The Brotherwise Games
Brotherwise Games, publishers of games like Boss Monster, Night of the Ninja, and Call to Adventure, this studio is the official partner for Sanderson’s Cosmere when it comes to the board game space. So far they have released a solid mix of titles with something for nearly all ages of Cosmere fans, with some of their biggest stuff still on the way.
Call to Adventure: The Stormlight Archive
Built on Brotherwises’ “Call to Adventure” board game system, Call to Adventure: The Stormlight Archive asks players to create the most epic and interesting character they can. A bit of an engine builder, you will be drafting cards to build out your character's history, motivation, and destiny while balancing their morality, all culminating at the end in your own personal hero’s journey and scoring points. Complete quests by rolling nifty rune slabs, balance on the thin line between hero and anti-hero through three rounds with the winner being whoever has the most dragic/awesome character backstory (aka has the most points). Not only can CtA: The Stormlight Archive is not only a solid game, but also a great character-building exercise which is perfect for the next game…
Cosmere RPG
For the tabletop roleplaying fans, the Cosmere RPG gives you the tools and systems to live out your dreams in the world of Roshar. Whether you want to walk down the path of becoming a knight radiant, take on the form of a singer, or perhaps just a simple soldier trying to survive, the Cosmere RPG gives you the tools to do all that and more. Your character’s motivation and the story you and your friends create in the Cosmere are the driving force behind this system and Brotherwise is just getting started with the world of Scadrail and its Allomancers coming soon as well. A host of products are available, from the Stormlight Handbook with all you need to run a campaign on Roshar, the Stonewalkers Adventure for a constructed story, and even a welcoming Starter Set if you just want to get a taste.
Read our review for the Cosmere RPG.
Mistborn: The Deck Building Game
Showcasing events and characters from the first book of the Mistborn series, The Final Empire, the Mistborn: The Deckbuilding Game puts 1-4 players in the roles of beloved characters including Vin and Kelsier. Players will build out their decks from an available pull of cards while also learning and improving their ability to burn metals as allomancers - the signature magic of the world of Scadriel. All the while, working to become strong enough to complete missions and take out the other players, or the Lord Ruler himself in an optional cooperative game mode. With gorgeous artwork and solid deckbuilding at its core, this game is a great buy for fans of Mistborn, and it will be getting an expansion soon as well, that adds new characters, powers, and highlight moments from the second book, the Well of Ascension!
Read our review for Mistborn: The Deckbuilding game.
Shards of Creation
The lightest of the main three Cosmere games from Brotherwise, Shards of Creation is a ticktaking card game where depending on which of the Shards of Adonalsium get picked can greatly change how you play. Each of the Shards included in the base game: Autonomy, Cultivation, Devotion, Dominion, Honor, Odium, Preservation and Ruin feature unique powers that can both help or hurt you as you form sets of suits for end game scoring. Featuring canonical depictions of the vessels of the Shards (up to a point, anyway), some of which first appearing in Shards of Creation, make this a great option for both fans of the Cosmere but also folks who just enjoy a good trick-taking game to bust out when they have a little time on their hands.
Read our review for Shards of Creation.
The Older Ones
Prior to Brotherwise securing their partnership with Sanderson, another group, publisher Crafty Games, had a go adapting the author’s popular Mistborn series for the tabletop.
Mistborn: House War
Set during the first book, House War is a resource management game where as opposed to taking up the Mistcloak of a specific character, each player assumes the role of one of the factions around the city. The aim is to keep down the unrest by solving issues around the Empire, competing to earn the most favor. This game is less about burning metals and pushing through the mists and more about making deals, but House War has the twist where its possible the player with either the lowest or highest score could potentially win. There are also rules that allow shorter games to play out in 60-90 minutes or longer games between two and three hours long, give you and your group flexibility to slot this in either as a bit of a filler game or be the main game of the night. An expansion, “The Siege of Luthadel” expands the game and sets the game during the second novel and attempts to hold everything together.
Mistborn Adventure Game
The first TTRPG set in the world of the Cosmere, released first back in summer of 2012, this tabletop adventure system lets players build Nobels, Skaa, Terrismen and even Kandra in the world of Scadrial to live out their stories during the first era of the Mistborn saga. Developed by Crafty Games, this d6 based system is far more narrative-driven where factors like Destiny and Tragedy factor into character creation. There are a host of expansions and additional books that were released for MDA including Terris: Wrought of Copper that focuses on the Terris people and Feruchemists, Alloy of Law, Skaa: Tin & Ash, Alloy of Law: Masks of the past, and Nobels: The Golden Mandate.
Coming Soon
If you are still hungry for more, Brotherwise Games should have you covered to get your Cosmere tabletop kick for some time yet, with a number of games and expansions on the horizon. The Mistborn deck builder has its first expansion, “The Well of Ascension,” featuring a new cooperative mode where players need to work together to defend the city of Luthadel from a horde of Koloss, and more pulled from the second book of era 2 Mistborn.
Staying on the Allomancer train, the Cosmere RPG will also soon be getting its Mistborn books, letting players create their own mistborns and allomancers while taking part in adventures set in both the first and second eras of the series!
Lastly, later this fall, Brotherwise will be bringing the Stormlight Archive to Kickstarter with their War for Roshar board game. Previously covered here on IGN with an exclusive preview, this is a heavy area control / euro title that will see up to four players facing off against either on the side of Honor or of Odium, struggling to capture Oathgates and turn the tide of the war in their favor.
Scott White is a freelance contributor to IGN, assisting with tabletop games and guide coverage. Follow him on X/Twitter or Bluesky.
