Can someone compare/contrast these games? Are they roughly the same type of game with the same complexity or are am I comparing apples and oranges?

I suppose that depends on your point of view. They are definitely games of the same genre - that being fantasy adventure, but they have very different play styles. I own both games and I don't think it's a waste of money or anything like that.

Talisman has more of a "traditional board game" feeling to it, since the board spaces are laid out in rings not unlike Monopoly or such. There's more opportunity for player interaction since there are generally less options for movement. Also, pretty much everything in the game is dependent on dice. There are some things you get choose, but a lot of the time you're either rolling for combat or for random results off a chart printed on a card or a board space. This isn't a bad thing, mind you, just an observation. It's easier to laugh at one another's misfortunes (and your own) when you know it's all random anyway.

Runebound, on the other hand, gives you a little more control (just a little.) There are still random draws and dice of course, but market items are face up in towns, so you can think about where you want to go or what to save your money for. Challenges (ie: monsters) are drawn randomly, but undefeated challenges stay on the board so you can tackle them when you're ready. Also since the entire map is a hex grid, you can fairly easily avoid other players if you don't want them getting in your way. In my experience, Runebound tends more toward a friendly game where everyone does their own thing, while Talisman tends to be more "Hey guys! Take out Frank, he's about to win!" Neither of these are bad, it's just a question of what you're looking for.

Also, Runebound has a very large number of expansions and additions to keep the game fresh and exciting (if you're willing to invest more money in the game.) Talisman has historically had a number of expansions, and FFG has never been shy about publishing expansions, so I'm sure Talisman will get it's fair share of those as well. However, as of right now there are only two expansions out for the most recent edition of Talisman. Just something to be aware of.

Edit: You can also read the rulebooks for both games in the Catalog section of the website, so you can see first hand how each game works and decide which one sounds better to you.

I also have both Talisman and Runebound. They are definately different enough and I'm happy to have both in my collection of Board Games.

I do like Runebound more but variety is the spice of life. Talisman is a bit simpler both in rules and the amount of thinking that is required and that is often why my group will chose to play it. Sometimes you want something a little more laid back and relaxed.

The mechanics of these two games are VERY different from each other. The fantasy theme is really the only thing they have in common.

Yep, they've both got their points.

Talisman has Places and Strangers which stay on the board when they're drawn. That means the board changes a lot as you play, and you need to adjust your decisions based on which locations have shown up, and which have disappeared. My main dislike: You roll a six sided die for movement, which means it takes an average of six turns (and sometimes much longer than that) to move to a specific space right next to you. (Suggested improvement: use a d3 or d4 for movement, instead of a d6.)

Runebound's fights are much more tactically interesting than Talisman's, and there are lots of items and allies which affect combat in interesting ways. Movement also works in a much nicer way than in Talisman, and you don't have the odd round track. Unfortunately, there's much less reason to move around in Runebound, since aside from towns, there aren't any locations on the board. You're just going from fight to fight.

My quick take on how to choose between them: If you're hoping for interesting combat tactics with lots of special items, play Runebound. If you'd like to see a changing world with lots of non-combat encounters as well as fights, go with Talisman.

Hi,

I also have both Talisman and Runebound, in fact I started with Talisman long time ago and recently I was looking for a more modern adventure game and so I went to Terrinoth. I am very fond of the Polish version of Talisman which I used to play in the hard communistic times. Now I play Talisman by FFG and Runbound with my son (12). I think when you play Talisman it depends more on the dice, pure chance and Runebound is more startegic - you have to think when to attack or defend, calculate wich direction your moving dice let you go... It is more modern in the way that the adventure cards and pictures are bigger. Levelling is a little bit more complex... Both games make fun in their own way. Howgh.

Talisman offers variety within the individual spaces on the board; there are specific and unique instructions on each different space. However, the movement mechanic is less involved than Runebound. In Talisman you roll a 6-sided die and move in one direction a number of spaces equal to the result.

Runebound is more grand. You feel like you're travelling greater distances, visiting numerous towns, etc. But the individual spaces are less defined one from another (a woods space is like any other woods space, a river is always a river, etc.) which differs from Talisman in the sense that each space is unique.