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Mrrlyn's NOTE: These house rules are rules of mine and of others on the NET that I liked. I had put all my old RIFTS stuff on disks when I started playing Shadowrun. I found this document on an old disk, and I have no idea if I made it up, or if I got it from the net or anything. Anyway, I do see where I had put in some house rules that I made up however. Anyway, enough ranting, here we go!
Creating the Character
Creating a character in Rifts is a straight-forward process as described in the Rifts main book. Little has been changed regarding the creation process, except some random tables have been added for those who want to quickly get some background on their character.
Step 1: The character
Select the RCC of the character
At this point the GM must set down ground rules. The GM must decide if he/she wants the adventure to be a gory blood-shed, an intriguing covert story etc. When it comes to the more battle-oriented campaigns/adventures, I would generally allow any RCC that players may choose.
NB: When it comes to optional RCCs or RCCs of great power (demigod / godling / cosmo-knights etc.) the GM has the absolute final say.
Rolling attributes
In a measure to keep the level of the players at a reasonable level, I use a three count rule. Each player may roll three columns of attributes (three complete sets of attributes, not complete characters with HP etc.) and select one column for his/her character. Note that all results within 4 points of max for that race get 1D6 bonus.
At this point the GM may opt to disallow the player to look at the OCCs. This will in effect hinder the player to select the column that gives him/her enough points to select that OCC.
Another rule that may be of interest is to restrict the number of attributes above a set number (f. ex. not more than 3 attribs above 19 are allowed). This will ensure that the characters are more equal to the general population.
If the attributes are particularly low, penalties are adviceable.
Attribute 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Applies to
IQ -9% -8% -7% -6% -5% -4% -3% To all skills
ME -5 -4 -4 -3 -3 -2 -1 Psionics / Insanity
MA -50% -43% -36% -29% -23% -15% -9% Befriend / Intimidate
PS -9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3 To damage
PP -5 -5 -4 -4 -3 -2 -1 To strike / parry / dodge
PE -16% -14% -12% -10% -8% -6% -4% Coma / Death
-5 -5 -4 -4 -3 -2 -1 Magic / Poisons
PB 17% 15% 13% 10% 9% 7% 3% Chance of being attacked
Determine mutation/no-mutation
I've found that through the 6 years of playing Rifts, only once has the player ever used the mutation option. When considering that how a person is born (with maybe physical deformation/handicap) is outside of that persons control, a players characters "appearance" aught to be approximately the same.
Roll Effect
01 - 08 Roll twice on the random mutation table
09 - 15 Roll once on the random mutation table
16 - 00 No mutation
Step 2: Psychological
Determining Alignment
Alignments are generally formed during the characters adolescence. Determining the alignment now will simulate the kind of childhood the character has had. The character can freely select the alignment as long as it doesn't conflict with the RCC.
Step 3: Psychic
Determine Psychic potentials
Here the main book is as good as any other. Unless the RCC specifies that it cannot have psionics or that it has psionics, the player should roll on the table. If psionics is not desired, jump over this step.
Roll Effect
01 - 09 Major Psionics
10 - 25 Minor Psionics
26 - 00 No psionic powers
For a description of what the powers mean, look to page 12 in the Rifts RPG main book.
Step 4: The OCC
Selecting the OCC
The first step to consider is the RCC. Some RCCs don't have the possibility to select OCCs (dragons etc.) while others have a list of OCCs that can be selected (generally only humans can have CS education/training).
The second step is to check if the character has high enough attribute levels to be what he wants. In many cases, when the player isn't that familiar with the different OCCs, he/she may find that the character can't be what they wanted it to be. This is only another aspect that gives more background to the character.
Step 5: OCC calculation
Calculating the OCC
At this point there are a couple of things that have to be taken into account.
1) Some RCCs automatically give skills. These skills are to be noted RCC. If the same skill is given by the O.C.C. Skills then just add 10% to that level.
2) Major Psionic powers limit the characters skills in a certain way (refer to step 3). Be careful to take this into consideration during skill calculation.
3) Remember the IQ skill bonus. This bonus applies to all selected skills, not all skills (a player tried arguing that he had computer hacking at 6% because of his IQ bonus. This is not the case!)
4) The absolute skill limit is 98%.
Selecting / adding up on skills in the usual way is quite straight forwards and isn't representative of what kind of skills the character has been training on.
OCC skills
OCC skills are part of the formal training the character gets. These are obligatory subjects that must be had in order to become that OCC. This list refers to specific skills, not categories. Often a bonus in a parenthesis is added behind the skill, indicating that the characters start level in that skill is equal to the base skill level +
the number in parenthesis. So at first level, a CS grunt would have Radio: Basic (+10%) at 45% + 10% = 55%. Note the skills with OCC, since OCC skills are of a higher quality than related (Rel) and secondary (Sec) skills.
OCC related skills
OCC related skills are the next to be selected. OCC related skills represent courses that the character had to take while studying to become the OCC. Smart players will only select skills from categories in which they get bonuses, using the other and secondary skills for physical / WP skills and skills in which they don't get any bonus. The skill bonus written in the parenthesis is applied only during character creation (when the character is at level 1!) and not at every level.
OCC related skills available are denoted in categories marked with all, only or none. This limit of skill selection is present only during character generation. The number of related skills is written in the text.
Note related skills as Rel, indicating a level of knowledge generally better/higher than a self-leaned person.
NB: additional skills gained at other levels (f. ex. select 2 skills at level 3, 5 and 6....) are treated as other skills and not related skills. The reason being that related skills are tutored skills, gained through intensive study/participating in lectures etc.
Secondary skills
Secondary skills are hobbies and things learned without any formal training. Secondary skills are only available at first level and indicate hobbies the character has had in the past before finishing his/her tuition.
Secondary skills are not restricted in the same way as related skills. They are however restricted by the following table:
Category Selectable skills
Communications Radio basic, cryptography, laser, TV/Video
Domestic All
Electrical Basic Electronics
Espionage Detect ambush, detect concealment, escape artist, pick locks, pick pockets, wilderness survival
Mechanical Automotive mechanics, basic mechanics
Medical First aid, paramedic, holistic medicine
Military None
Physical HTH, athletics, body building, boxing, climbing, prowl, running, swimming, wrestling.
Pilot Skills Automobile, Boat: sail type, Boat: motor / hydrofoils, horsemanship, exotic animals, hover craft (ground), motorcycle, truck.
Pilot related Navigation, read sensory equipment
Rogue skills All
Science Mathematics: basic
Technical All + lore (* See note)
W. P. All - (except) W.P. heavy, W.P. heavy energy
Wilderness All
*Note on Lore: The character isn't likely to have as good a knowledge of mythology as one that has been studying mythology actively. Thus reduce the base skill proficiency to 1/2 of original.
Brushing up the character
Now that the most time consuming part is finished, you can start adding up the total bonuses to the physical attributes and calculating the HP, SDC or MDC.
HP and SDC calculation
1) Add all HP / SDC bonuses from mutation and/or RCC.
2) Hit Points: PE + 1D6 for each level including level 1.
3) Take note of all SDC bonuses from RCC and skills.
If the character is a men-at-arms, add 1D4 x 10 SDC.
If the character is a scholar or practitioner of magic, add 4D6 SDC.
If the character is a psychic RCC, add 3D6 SDC.
The limits of attributes
Opposite to some beliefs, the attributes have limits.
Attribute: Limit:
IQ: 70
ME: 70
MA: 70
PS: Non-supernatural creatures have a top at 50. Supernatural creatures have a top at 100.
PP: 45
PE: 100.
PB: 40
SPD: Non-supernatural creatures have a top at 150 Supernatural creatures have a top at 500
Attributes above 30
Most attributes are peaked at 30, meaning that attributes above that level have absolutely no effect counting bonuses. There is however simple attribute bonus functions / procedures to calculate the bonuses that exist above 30.
Attribute: Effect:
PS: For each damage point above 30 add 1 point damage bonus.
PP: The bonus to strike/parry/dodge stops at 30, however, for every 3 point above 30 the character gets +1 to his/her initiative (33, 36, 39, 42 etc.)
PE: The save vs magic / poison stops at 30, but the save vs coma / death gets +1% for each point above 30.
All other attribute bonuses are maxed out at level 30.
P.P.E. bases
All creatures have a P.P.E base. This is the native / inherent level of magic of that creature. Practitioners of magic add the following P.P.E base to that of their OCC.
Race Age P.P.E
Human 13 and under 6D6+6
Human 14 to 19 4D6
Human 20 + 3D6
Cyborg - 1D4
Goblins, faeries, algor - 6D6
Elf, changeling, gnome - 5D6
Wolfen, coyles, and most mutant animals - 4D6
Dwarf, ogre, troll, and most other races - 3D6
Most gigants - 1D4 x 10
Saving throws
There are several saving throws in Rifts. Some of them are effective against only one type of attack (e.g. +4 to save vs mind control of a vampire). There are however 7 major saving throws that all characters have.
Save: Save Roll:
Save vs Lethal Poison 14+
Save vs Non-lethal Poison 16+
Save vs Harmful Drugs 15+
Save vs Insanity 12+
Save vs Psionics Non-psionic 15+
Major/minor psionic 12+
Master 10+
Save vs Magic Spell 12+
Ritual 16+
Skill list
The following skill list is revised and includes several new skills including all skills from the books I have.
Category Skill % +%
Communications Cryptography 25 5
Electronic Countermeasures 30 5
Laser 30 5
Optic Systems 30 5
Performance 30 5
Radio: Basic 45 5
Radio: Scramblers 35 5
Satellite Systems 20 5
Surveillance Systems 30 5
TV/Video 25 4
Domestic Bonsai 50 4
Calligraphy 35 5
Cook 35 5
Dance 30 5
Fishing 40 5
Floral Arrangement (Ikebana) 30 3
Gardening 34 4
Go 30 5
Play musical instrument 35 5
Poetry (Haiku) 35 5
Sewing 40 5
Sing 35 5
Electrical Basic Electronics 30 5
Computer Repair 25 5
Electrical Engineer 30 5
Electricity Generation 30 5
Robot Electronics 30 5
Espionage Detect Ambush 30 5 +
Detect Concealment 25 5 +
Disguise 25 5
Escape Artist 30 5
Forgery 20 5
Imitate Voices & Impersonation 36/16 4
Intelligence 32 4
Interrogation Techniques 30 5
Pick Locks 30 5
Pick Pockets 25 5
Sniper - -
Tracking 25 5
Wilderness Survival 30 5
Mechanical Aircraft Mechanics 25 5
Automotive Mechanics 25 5
Basic Mechanics 30 5
Bioware Mechanics 30 5
Locksmith 25 5
Mechanical Engineer 25 5 +
Robot Mechanics 20 5
Spaceship Mechanics 22 5
Submersible Vehicle Mechanics 25 5
Weapons Engineer 25 5
Medical Criminal Sciences & Forensics 35 5
Entomological Medicine 40 5
Field Surgery 16 4
First Aid 45 5
Holistic Medicine 20 5
Paramedic 40 5
Medical Doctor 60/50 5
Medical Doctor Cybernetics 40/60 5
Pathology 40 5
Sea Holistic Medicine 20 5
Military Armorer 40 5
Camouflage 20 5
Demolitions 60 3
Demolitions Disposal 60 3
Find Contraband/Weapons & Cyb. 26 4
Military Etiquette 35 5
Military Fortification 30 5
Nuclear, Chemical, Biological war. 35 5
Parachuting: HAHO/HALO/LALO 40 5
Recognize Weapon Quality 25 5
Trap Construction 20 4
Trap / Mine detection 20 5
Undersea Demolitions 56 3
Undersea Demolitions Disposal 56 3
Physical HTH * Listed in Rifts main book, WB8 Japan and WB 11 CWC
Acrobatics * *
Athletics (general) * *
Body Building & Weight Lifting * *
Boxing * *
Climbing * *
Gymnastics * *
Oxygen Conservation 30 5
Prowl * *
Running * *
Swimming * *
S.C.U.B.A. * *
Wrestling * *
0-G Movement and Combat * 4
Pilot Advanced Deep Sea Diving * *
Airplane 50 4
Automobile 60 2
Boat: Sail type 60 5
Boat: Motor and Hydrofoils 55 5 +
Boat: Motor driven ships 44 4 +
Boat: Sail driven ships 45 5
Combat Pod 40 4
Contragravity Pack 42 4
EVA 40 5
Helicopter 35 5
Horsemanship 40 4
Hover Craft (ground) 50 5
Jet Aircraft 40 4
Jet Fighter 40 4
Jet Packs 42 4
Motorcycle 60 4
Robots and Power armor 56 3
Robot Combat basic * *
Robot Combat elite * *
Space Fighter 50 3
Small Spacecraft 60 3
Starship 36 4
Submercibles 40 4
Truck 40 4
Tanks and APCs 36 4
Water-skiing & Surfing 40 4
Water Scooters 50 4
Warships / Patrol boats 40 4 +
Pilot Related Interplanetary Navigations 45 5
Navigation 40 5
Navigation - Space 40 5
Parachuting: HAHO/HALO/LALO 40 5
Read Sensory Equipment 30 5
Weapon Systems 40 5
Rogue Computer Hacking 45 5
Concealment 20 4
Cyberjacking 50 3 +
Find Contraband, Weapons / Cyb. 26 4
Palming 20 5
Pick Locks 30 5
Pick Pockets 25 5
Prowl 25 5
Streetwise 20 4
Streetwise - Drugs 25 5
Science Anthropology 20 5
Archaeology 20 5
Astronomy 25 5
Astrophysics 30 5
Biology 30 5
Botany 25 5
Chemistry 30 5
Chemistry: Analytical 25 5
Marine Biology 35 / 25 5
Mathematics: Basic 45 5
Mathematics: Advanced 40 3 +
Ocean Geographic Surveying 15 5
Undersea Farming 35 5
Xenology 30 5
Technical Advanced Fishing 30 5
Art 35 5
Artificial Intelligence 30 5 +
Computer Operations 40 5
Computer Programming 30 5
Japanese Mythology 30 5
Language 50 5
Law: CCW 30 5
Literacy 30 5
Lore: D-Bee 25 5
Lore: Demons & Monsters 25 5
Lore: Faerie 25 5
Lore: Galactic / Alien 25 5
Lore: Magic * 5
Lore: Psychic 25 5
Photography 35 5
Undersea Salvage 30 5
Writing 25 5
Wilderness Boat Building 25 5
Carpentry 25 5
Hunting 35 5
Identify Plants & Fruits 25 5
Land Navigation 36 4
Preserve Food 25 5
Skin and Prepare Animal Hides 30 5
Track Animals 20 5
Trap Construction 20 4
Trap / Mine detection 20 5
Undersea and sea Survival 25 5
Underwater Navigation 30 4
Weapon Proficiency Paired Weapons * * +
Battleaxe * *
Blunt * *
Polearm / Staff * *
Forked / Trident * *
Spear * *
Chain * *
Whip * *
Knife * *
Sword * *
Small Thrown Weapons * *
Mouth Weapons * *
Bow * *
Crossbow * *
Slingshot * *
Revolver * *
Automatic Pistol * *
Harpoon Gun * *
Shotgun * *
Bolt Action Rifle * *
Automatic and S.Auto Rifles * *
Sub-Machinegun * *
Grenade Launcher * *
Heavy * *
Torpedo * *
Energy Pistol * *
Energy Rifle * *
Heavy Energy Weapons * *
Sharpshooting * *
Skill Descriptions
Detect Ambush
Training which develops an eye for spotting locations and terrains suitable for setting up ambushes and being ambushed. This skill only points out positions where ambushes can be made successfully. Base Skill: 30% + 5% per level of experience.
Detect Concealment
This skill enables the individual to spot and recognize camouflage, concealed structures/buildings and vehicles. It also enables the character to hide/camouflage small objects (>8 ft. high or 30 square feet). Base Skill: 25% + 5% per level of experience.
Mechanical Engineer
Training, understanding, and knowledge of how machinery is designed, operated, built and maintained. Characters can attempt to redesign, modify, repair, construct, or sabotage mechanical devices (includes nuclear reactor driven turbines and atomic engines). The player must first roll to see if his character can figure out how to operate/analyze/design a machine. When a successful diagnostic roll has been
made, roll again to determine if the character managed to fix/change/build the mechanism. Requires: Basic Mechanics, Advanced Mathematics, basic electronics (or electrical engineer if possible) and literacy. Base Skill: 25% + 5% per level of experience.
NOTE: The rest of the skill remains unchanged.
Boat: Motor and Hydrofoils
These include all types of small motor driven boats and yachts (>120 ft.). Base Skill: 55% + 5% per level of experience.
NOTE: This skill does not give the character the ability to pilot warships and/or patrol boats. These vessels are of a civilian nature!
Boat: Motor driven ships
Includes all civilian large motor driven ships. Base Skill: 44% + 4% per level of experience. Add a bonus of 10% to Warships/Patrol boats if this skill is taken.
Warships / Patrol boats
Special training in the use of military warships, combat hydrofoils, patrol boats and amphibious beachcraft / transports. Includes a basic idea of how to use sonar and targeting equipment, depth charges, torpedoes, and other common weapon systems, as well evasive maneuvers and piloting. Base Skill: 40% + 4% per level of experience.
REQUIRES: Boat: Motor and Hydrofoils for patrol boats and Boat: Motor driven ships for warships.
NOTE: This skill does not give the skills W.P. Torpedo, read sensory equipment and weapon systems!
Cyberjacking
Some computers allow their users to go beyond the normal interface of a keyboard, joystick, mouse, touch screen, voice command, and to communicate directly to the machine via a socket ("dataplug" or "headjack") implanted in the back of their necks. This means that the computer operator's mind effectively enters the computer, seeing its memory and processors as a kind of virtual reality. Once accessed, the cyberjacker can alter data, add data, change files and redesign the computer's programs, all with his mind. If the computer is linked to others in a network, such as the Link that connects all the computers in and around the Freedom (space) station, the user can communicate with other cyberjackers within the network. There are however several dangers to cyberjacking. Among which are that while in net-space, the user is completely immersed in the computer VR world and totally ignorous to his/her surroundings. Base Skill: 50% + 3% per level of experience
REQUIREMENTS: Need a headjack cybernetic implant and computer operation.
NOTE: This skill is needed to successfully find/reach files and to download/upload/pass/modify/delete the files.
Mathematics: Advanced
Knowledge of all advanced and basic mathematics skills. This skill is an add-on skill for the mathematics basic skill, representing only time spent on higher mathematical learning. Base Skill: 40% + 3% per level of experience
REQUIREMENTS: Mathematics: Basic, Literacy
Artificial Intelligence
There are a variety of artificial intelligences around the world. From the most simple system (the automatic clock on a microwave) to the most advanced system conceivable (the automaton with the ability to reason, think, extrapolate and make decisions based on hunches and "feelings"). The artificial intelligence skill
incorporates an understanding of the most common artificial systems as used in household systems and up to CS/Triax military robots. This skill in itself does not give the character the ability to create A.I.s, but used in conjunction with computer programming it will allow the character to design artificial intelligences based on his/her tech-level. Base Skill: 30% + 5% per level of experience.
REQUIREMENTS: Mathematics Advanced, Computer operation, Computer Programming, Literacy.
NOTE: Characters from Rifts Earth will not be able to create more advanced systems than Robot intelligences (CS / Triax). Neural intelligences can only be constructed in societies that are more advanced than most on Rifts Earth (exception: Kittani and ArmaTech*).
*ArmaTech has only just started creating neural intelligences and is decades from creating one that doesn't deteriorate it's neural paths within 1D6 hours of activation!
W.P. Paired Weapons
The Paired Weapons skill allows a character to use both arms equally in combat. There is however a little catch. The character can not have a PP lower than 10, meaning that clumsy characters will never be able to learn this skill unless they do something to improve their probess.
Magic and Psionics
This section documents the magic and psionics parts in the Rifts Main book. Most of it is rewritten and without any modifications.
Magic, Psionics and armors
One point omitted in the Rifts main book is the casting of spells and using psionics through an armor. Magic and psionics cannot be cast through E.B.A. (environmental battle armor) armors. Only magic spells and psionics that effect the caster can be used. The reason is that while in the E.B.A., the character is effectively
sealed from the rest of the world. That also means that while in a spaceship, all magic will only have effect within the spaceship as long as it is sealed (no airlocks open etc.).
NOTE: Arguing that the armor isn't completely sealed because it recirculates air from the environment isn't enough. The character has to have an opening at least a foot big (size of the head) to cast magic on his environment.
Magic
In the Rifts and Beyond the Supernatural systems, Magic powers all use P.P.E. (Potential Psychic Energy). The P.P.E in a person can be compared to a rechargeable battery. The character has a finite energy level that he can draw on to cast spells. As spells are cast, the amount the character has is reduced according to
the casting cost of the spell. After a certain amount of time, the character regains x points of P.P.E from natural processes.
Regarding the Coalition / NGR view on magic, it is important to keep in mind that all creatures have P.P.E. All humans, no matter what occupation or belief they have, have a P.P.E base, even Borgs!
Drawing P.P.E.
Most magicians rely on the use of their own P.P.E. to weave their magic, but some times their natural P.P.E. base isn't enough to do the job. In such instances the magician is forced to either abandon casting that spell, or find someone or something to draw enough P.P.E. from.
A point that I feel isn't stressed enough in the main book is that the drawing of P.P.E. is instantaneous and not subject to any time-lag.
Drawing P.P.E. from magic artifacts
Magicians have the ability to draw P.P.E. from certain magic artifacts. Such items are quite uncommon (with exceptions of Atlantis, the Phoenix Empire and other similar places) but immediately recognized by practitioners of magic and creatures of magic. Unless stated otherwise, the drawing of all the P.P.E. in such items will render the artifact useless.
Drawing P.P.E. without one's knowledge
The practitioner of magic can usually draw P.P.E. from any living being without their consent or knowledge, but the amount is only half of the targets total P.P.E. if successful.
Action: Effect:
Attempting to draw P.P.E.: The victim automatically rolls a save with 12+ as the target. If the save is successful, no P.P.E. was drawn. If the save failed, the wizard can draw up to half the P.P.E. of the victim.
Total no. of people: The wizard can draw P.P.E. from as many as 2 persons per level of experience.
Range: 10 ft. (3 m)
Drawing P.P.E. with one's knowledge and consent
Drawing P.P.E. from a willing subject is automatically a success.
Action: Effect:
P.P.E. Available: 70% of all P.P.E. from the subject(s).
Total no. of people: No limits to the number of people that can band together (join hands etc.) as long as they all give P.P.E. willingly.
Drawing P.P.E. from an unwilling subject
When a subject is aware of the drawing of his/her P.P.E. and actively resists the attempt, the attempt automatically fails. It does not matter why the subject resists (fear, hate, anger etc.), it's just that he/she resists.
NOTE: All enemies in combat are considered unwilling targets.
Drawing P.P.E. from another practitioner of magic
Without the mage's consent, it is impossible. Mages may give their P.P.E. or have it taken in blood sacrifice.
Drawing P.P.E. by blood sacrifice / murder
At the moment of death the P.P.E. energy is doubled. A mage can capture all of that energy (no save).
Using and regaining P.P.E.
Using P.P.E. generally means casting spells or rituals. The natural way to regain P.P.E. is to sleep or meditate, but P.P.E. batteries can be used to instantaneously refill the P.P.E. storage of the character with P.P.E. equalling the amount in the battery (note: The character cannot regain more P.P.E. than he/she normally has).
A character doesn't have to say the spell in order for it to be cast. The spoken word is just a medium of concentration. The character does however use double the normal time to cast the spell.
Using magic in combat situations and Spell Strength
Using magic in combat situations becomes a problem filled situation. How much time do you use to cast just that spell (main book page 165)? Can you attack with your hands / engage in physical attacks after casting your spell totals? How about parrying and dodging?
When entering combat, the player must declare if he/she is going to fight with magic or conventionally/psionically!
The reason for this is that casting magic cannot be put to a general rule (ie. casting a low-level spell costs 2 attacks etc.), since suddenly characters will start casting and channeling magic much quicker than even intelligences! Therefore the player must decide if he/she will use magic in that melee or not.
Spell level Number of spells per time
1 - 6 low level 2 per melee (15 s)
7 - 10 medium level 1 per melee (15 s)
11 - 15 high level 1 per 2 melees (30 s)
Casting low level spells happens instantly, but the character has to spend one action between each invocation. The action represents the time the character needs to gather himself. The number of actions the character can dodge equals the total number of actions the character has minus the actions used to chant/cast the spell.Casting medium and high level spells is something of another nature. Spells are cast
the first action after the required casting time. During the casting time, the character cannot dodge, parry or strike. If the character is forced to strike / parry / dodge during the casting time the spell is forfeited (automatically cancelled) without the loss of any P.P.E. This means that characters casting medium to high level spells must have someone to keep trouble away from caster.
Spell Strength
Spell strength is an equivalent of the strength of a casters spells. The spell strength modifies the saving throw of the victim. For each spell strength point, increase the saving throw of the victim with one point.
+1 to spell strength at levels 3, 7, 10 and 13.
E.x. Johny the mystic (6th level) casts the 2nd level spell
"Heavy breathing" on an antagoniser. Johny has +1 on
the spell strength, meaning that the antagonizer has to
roll a save vs. magic at 13+ (spell = 12+, Spell strength +1
gives a save at 13+).
Spell Disruption (by Splynn, modified)
Unlike the concept in the main book, being hit by a shot/punch/bullet doesn't automatically stop the spell caster from completing the spell. There are of course several special situation in which a spell fails (being hit in the kidneys or generally loosing the breath will hinder the spell caster from casting the spell), but these are up to the GMs discretion.
The greater level of experience the caster has, the greater the ability he/she has to complete the spell when hit by a shot/punch. The greater mental endurance / willpower is used in the spell, the better it will work.
The chance of disruption percentage is decreased with half the ME bonus value (the bonus to save vs. Psionics etc.).
Level of experience of spell caster Chance of disruption per point of damage
1 10% per point
2 9% per point
3 8% per point
4 7% per point
5 6% per point
6 5% per point
7 4% per point
8 3% per point
9 2% per point
10 1% per point
10+ 0.5% per point
NOTE: In the case of armor penetration, add the penetration damage to the damage points to find the multiplier (example 6).
E.x.1 Johny the mystic (5th level) is an elf (SDC creature). He is wearing
a body armor with 80 MDC and is hit for 6 MD points. That means
that his spell has a 36% chance of failure (6 x 6%).
E.x.2 Johny the mystic (5th level) is hit by 9mm bullet fire while out of his
armor. He is hit for 12 points of damage. That translates into a
disruption chance of 72% (12 x 6%).
E.x.3 Johny the mystic (5th level) is hit for 1 MD point while out of his
armor. Disruption is 100% since Johny is a smear of blood.
E.x.4 David the Titan (7th level) is an MDC being. He is hit by 9mm fire
for a total of 30 points. Disruption chance is 120% (e.g. auto fail).
David doesn't take any damage, but then again he doesn't know
if the bullets being fired are MD or SD (ramjet/explosive or
standard).
E.x.5 David the Titan (7th level) is hit for 9 MD points. This gives him a
fail chance equal to 36% (9 x 4%).
E.x.6 Johny the mystic in his 80 MDC armor is hit for 13 MD points.
Using the armor penetration rules (combat section) gives us
5 points of SDC damage penetrating the armor. This gives
Johny a fail percentage of 108% ( (13 + 5) x 6%).
E.x.7 Oliver has an ME of 26. This gives him a save bonus of +6 due to
his high ME. Thus, at level 1 he had a fail chance at (10 - 6/2)= 7
instead of 10! This also means that at level 8 he will be able to cast
spells short of being killed.
Regaining P.P.E.
There are two natural ways in which to regain P.P.E.
Method: Gain:
Rest or sleep: 5 points per hour
Meditation: 10 points per hour
NOTE: 1 hour meditation = 1 hour sleep.
Psionics
Psionics is the equivalent of mental powers. These powers stem from the brain/will/essence of the being and not from the environment. Players can identify psionic powers by them using I.S.P. (Inner Strength Points). A character doesn't automatically have psionic abilities (I.S.P.). Unlike magic, only some people can
have it.
Influence of ley-lines on psionics
Psionics are affected much in the save way as magic when it comes to ley lines. There is however an interesting note. The effect of the psionic powers become greater at longer ranges than magic, however psionics senses become scrambled when in the vicinity of ley lines and nexuses, effectively rendering them useless.
Site Range Time Effect
Ley line >2 miles any Increase range and duration of all psionic powers (not damage) with 50%.
Nexus Point >1 mile any Double range, duration and damage of all psionic powers (forcefields double their M.D.C.)
Combat with psionics
Combat with psionics is much more straight forwards than with magic. The reason is that psionics can easily be interchanged with normal HTH combat.
1 psionic attack/activation costs 1 action.
There are of course exceptions to this rule. Certain powers have a Length of Trance indicating the time the character needs to prepare him/herself for the power (ex. Exorcism takes 30 minutes + 6D6 minutes preparation with the animal/person).
Regaining I.S.P.
Method: Gain:
Sleep / total relaxation: 2 I.S.P. per hour
Meditation: 6 I.S.P. per hour
1 hour meditation = 2 hours sleep to the physical body
Combat
As many of you may have guessed, the combat section has been the most worrisome and most problematic. I have elected to divide the combat section into three areas, a personal combat part, a modern combat part and a robot combat part. First off though are some ground rules regarding all combat forms.
Actions
In the main book it is stated on page 37:
"All player characters automatically start off with two attacks/actions per 15 second melee. Additional attacks are gained through HTH skills and boxing."
This part is wrong. Forget all about it. The quote above is based on the character not having any previous combat experience. Why should a character have more actions that f. ex. a seasoned veteran that has fought more enemies than the character has ever met?
Of course the answer is that the player character is supposed to be special, not normal. The character is special. He/she starts out with more equipment than most people get through their entire life. They have more education and most probably better survival prospective than most people. So why give them so much (e.g. where's the challenge ?)
Character Combat Experience: Effect:
A player character without HTH combat: Starts out with two attacks per melee. Add one attack at levels 3 and 12.
A player character with HTH combat: Follow the HTH level description (generally starts with 2 attacks at level 1 (exception HTH Assassin)).
Please note that some RCCs start out with more attacks. In such instances (ex. rahu-men) just add the total attacks due HTH combat to the attacks the character has due to RCC.
The simultaneous strike
A simultaneous strike occurs when the defender declares a strike attack instead of a parry or dodge. Sometimes the simultaneous strike will be of a nature that will hinder the attack from coming through (e.g. I use my laser pistol to shoot off his arm). This means that the defender doesn't necessarily have to take the damage.
Step 1: Defender declares simultaneous strike and what the strike target will be.
Step 2: Attacker and Defender roll 1D20 each. The highest roll strikes and resolves damage first.
NOTE: This action still counts as 1 action.
Hand-to-hand and ancient combat
Hand-to-hand and ancient combat arts are especially fun to play. There is more latitude for funny things to happen while still keeping a serious tone.
Strike
The strike roll is made to determine if you hit the enemy, and then just how good you hit the enemy.
Method Procedure
HTH only: Add all bonuses from PP, HTH-combat (at the appropriate level).
WP prof.: Add the W.P. bonus to the HTH strike bonus and eventual PP bonus.
Needed Strike roll: At the short ranges in HTH combat, all rolls under 5 (4 3 2 1 and negative),
including bonuses, miss.
Parrying / Blocking
There are several occations where the player can parry a strike, however there are also several occations where a character cannot parry a strike roll (even an ancient strike (e.g. sword/knife) or a HTH strike) unless he/she has appropriate equipment present. Please note that the defending/parrying item must have a D.C. equal to or greater than the attacking item.
The item used for the parry takes only 1/3 the damage from the blow (round down).
If a sharp edged weapon is used (sword, axe, knife) arms/legs/soft materials take full damage!
Blocking on the other hand happens when not trying to deflect the blow, but stop it dead in it's tracks. When an attack that obviously cannot be parried/deflected is attempted parried, the result is a block. That means that both items take damage (the one used to strike and the one used to parry).
E.x.1 Erik has just provoked a dwarf into a bar brawl. The
dwarf immediately readies his axe. Erik can see that
the axe is of a normal type (not vibro/rune/magic).
The dwarf swings his axe after Eriks head. Since Eric
doesn't have any SDC item he can parry the strike with,
he opts to dodge instead of receiving serious, perhaps
debilitating wounds to his arms.
E.x.2 Erik and the dwarf are at it again. This time Erik has
brought a chair up. The dwarf swings his axe at
Eriks head. Erik uses the chair to parry/deflect the blow.
The chair will not be able to take much more damage
(received 3 points. 1/3 axe damage).
E.x.3 Erik decides to block the strike towards his head with
the chair. The chair takes 13 points of damage and is
shattered, but it did however stop the axe blow from
making Erik a foot shorter.
Special Rule:
If the blocking item isn't shattered or destroyed during the block, the two combatants can lock in one position. Only one of the combatants needs to engage in the lock, and must do so by declaring a lock.
In effect this represents the event in which two combatants try to force their weapon onto the other combattant. This kind of attack requires the attacker and the defender to roll a save vs. PS.
Use the save margin to determine if damage was dealt or not.
A lock attack uses up at least a melee where both participants can attack once on the opponent. An exception is the melee in which the lock was made. No attack or defence except dodges can be done during the remaining melee.
At the beginning of each melee the attacker may opt to disengage combat. This is done by using an alternate way to attack (e.g. punch with the free hand, a kick in the balls, psionics etc.). The defender may not parry the attack but may try to dodge it with a -6 penalty.
Once damage has been dealt, the lock is out of effect.
E.x.1 Tom is wielding a bastard sword, while Simon is wielding
a rapier. Tom strikes first with an overhead strike. Strike
roll 17. Simon decides to lock the battle and rolls a 18
(including the parry bonus). Toms bastard sword sustains
4 points of damage while Simons rapier sustains 6.
The melee goes on with the two circling around trying to gain
the upper hand. At the beginning of the next melee they
roll for initiative as usual.
Simon gains the initiative and tries to force his rapier on
Tom. Simon rolls under his PS (PS = 18. The roll was 12,
clearing with 6). Tom has to roll under his PS with 6+ in
the save (PS = 16. Roll was 11, giving a save = 5). Tom
doesn't manage his save and takes damage from the
rapier (8 points). The lock is now over.
E.x.2 Tom and Simon are fighting. The lock was applied during
the last melee, meaning that eventual damage can be dealt
from now on. Tom wins the initiative and tries to cut up
Simon. Tom manages the PS save with 4 to spear. Simon
saves with 6, so no damage was dealt now. Tom has used
up his chance to deal damage this melee.
Simon tries to deal damage and manages (5 save vs 3 save).
The lock is no longer in effect.
E.x.3 Tom and Simon have tried to kill each other for some time
now. The lock was applied two melees ago, and no damage
has been dealt yet. Tom wins the initiative and decides that
this game has become boring. He decides to kick Simon in
the kidneys. Tom rolls a standard strike roll and gets a 16.
Simon tries to dodge the strike and rolls a 13 (15 + 4 dodge
bonus - 6 dodge penalty). Tom hits Simon in the kidneys.
This means that the lock is finished and Simon is lying on the
ground gasping for air.
NOTE 1: When a successful attack is made and the lock is over, count the melee for finished and
roll initiative again to start a new melee. The looser of the lock plays at -1 action for that melee.
NOTE 2: If damage hasn't been dealt within 3 melee round, the lock is finished.
NOTE 3: If the lock is applied in a multi-battle (e.g. more than 2 combatants), and is broken during
the beginning of the next melee, count each attack under the lock as two actions (e.g. first attack happens on action no. 2, 2nd attack happens on action no.4). It does not matter that the locked combatants don't have 4 actions. This system is just meant to keep a time perspective in relation to the other fighters. The lock break doesn't cause the winner to loose any actions from the following melee (exception note 1 (2 combatants)).
Method: Procedure:
HTH only: Add all bonuses from PP, HTH-combat (at the appropriate level).
WP prof.: Add the W.P. bonus to the HTH strike bonus.
Dodge
Dodging is the act of evading the coming strike. This roll is made in stead of a parry, and generally only if the character is on the receiving end of damage. It is important to note that in the main book it is possible to dodge projectile attacks (although there are several discrepancies), however common sense dictates that it is impossible to dodge a projectile after the shot has been fired. Thus the normal dodge roll is applicable only during hand-to-hand combat and ancient combat (non-projectile).
Method: Procedure:
HTH only: Add all bonuses from PP, HTH-combat (at the appropriate level).
Special Attacks
There are several special moves in Rifts. All you have to do is be imaginative. Then you come to the problem "is that possible?". The answer lies in the physical skill selection.
Skill Special Moves
Acrobatics Backflip: Defence, Backflip: Escape, Cartwheel (Attack)
Gymnastics Cartwheel (Attack), Jump Kick
HTH-Basic None *
HTH-Expert Backward Sweep, Body Block, Leg Hook, Neck Hold, Leg Hold
HTH-Martial Arts Backward Sweep, Body Block, Jump Kick, Back Flip, Drop Kick, Leg Hook, Neck Hold, Leg Hold
HTH-Assassin Body Block, Drop Kick, Leg Hook, Neck Hold, Arm Hold, Body Flip
Wrestling All holds, Body Block, Body Flip, Tripping/Leg Hook
* HTH-Basic doesn't give any special moves since basic training is what is says. Basic. They don't practise any moves, have minimal sparring training and nearly no combat practice except theory (waving their arms in the air. Yeah, you feel good about it, but when you meet someone in a fight you suddenly don't know what to do).
Selecting the skill gives the special move. They are not automatic, take up an action or two. If the latter it will be written.
If more skills are selected that give the same move it doesn't mean that the move becomes something special.
This sub-rule may seem unnecessary to the GM, but it was the best way to combine the Rifts hand-to-hand and the Japan hand-to-hands.
If you want to see what special moves the Japanese HTH skills give, check out the World Book 8: Japan.
Attack: Damage Attack: Damage
Backhand Strike 1D6 Kick Attack 2D4
Body Flip 1D6 * Karate Kick 2D6
Punch 1D4 Jump Kick 6D6 (M)
Knife Hand 2D4 Roundhouse Kick 3D6
Karate Strike 2D4 Snap Kick 1D6
Palm Strike 2D4 Wheel Kick 2D6
Elbow/Forearm 1D6 Knee 1D6
Power Punch (x2)(2) Crescent Kick 2D4+2 (F)
Axe Kick 2D6 (M)
(x2) - Double damage
(2) - Takes 2 attacks
(M) - Must be first attack the character makes in a melee. The character cannot attack again in
the same melee.
(F) - The character can only use the kick in combination with flying / jumping or leaping.
Shields and Forcefields
There are several potential for misunderstanding/interpreting the rules regarding forcefields and shields. The difference between a shield and a forcefield is as follows:
The shield is a solid piece of matter that has been formed so it is able to deflect to some degree 1) bullets 2) sword/sharp weapons.
The forcefield is designed to counter fast moving objects, or energy. For a field to actually work, it has to extend several feet away from the body, with an increasing power of deflection the closer you get to the body. The best comparison to this is the force between two identical magnetic poles. At a distance the force pushing them apart is small, but the closer the poles get, the bigger the force is.
Using Shields
Shields generally give a parry modifier. Some of them can be used to parry energy/projectile attacks. This ability will be discussed further in the modern combat section.
Character Strenght (PS): Effect: Note:
PS < 8 -2 parry when using shields other than magical / psionic shields.
8 < PS < 14 +1 parry
PS > 13 +2 parry This is due to the strength it takes for the character to swing a shield into place in order to parry / block a strike.
Using Forcefields
Forcefields are always there as long as it is activated and has enough MDC/SDC left. Forcefields are designed to deflect fast moving objects like sword swings, bullets etc. However, forcefields aren't without problems. Since it is designed to deflect fast moving objects, it is possible to strike the character using slow movements. That means that if you can f. ex. get a gun skin-close to the wearer of the forcefield, you
can shoot him without the forcefield intervening.
As to the problematics of high velocity impacts from collisions, think of the forcefield as non-existent. A character faced with a 60 m.p.h. collision with a wall wouldn't be saved by turning the forcefield on. The forcefield exerts no force on the wearer. Do not think of a forcefield as a glorified bumper. A character will not bounce if he hits the ground with the forcefield erected.
The weapons that will inflict damage on a character in a forcefield have to be of a kind that doesn't require large amounts of movement in order to inflict damage. That generally rules out kicks and punches and most ancient weapons, except vibro weapons and neural maces etc.
Action: Effect:
To successfully strike past a forcefield: Costs 1 extra action Requires a PP check Strike at +3 Target must be still!
One advantage with forcefields is that the character can parry attacks without much fear of taking personal damage. There is no bonus to parry from the shield itself.
Modern ranged combat
Modern combat differs from close-quarter combat. It uses other dodge principles and other strike principles. Common sense will get you far when making rulings on ranged combat, while a solid understanding of physics will enable a more detailed description of the combat scene.
Shooting weapons in Rifts
In Rifts, the characters ability to hit a target doesn't have any basis in the characters Physical Probess. Having a Weapon Proficiency enables the character to shoot most weapons in that category.
Weapons that are in the category but cannot be fired by the character may be so alien in origin that the character cannot manipulate it, may be magicked or may require certain implants. The point is that even though a character has the weapon proficiency, he doesn't automatically have to be able to fire the weapon.
Unless a target area is specified, the strike hits the main body!
A note on W.P. Energy xxx: Weapon proficiency energy (pistol, rifle and heavy) is a dilemma since there may be doubt as to wether the weapon lies under the energy proficiencies or non-energy. What you then must keep in mind is that the skill also enables the character to maintain the weapon.
E.x.1 There might be arguments around wether or not the NE-300
"Stutterer" falls under the W.P. Energy Rifle or the W.P. SMG.
Since the NE-300 is an energy weapon and requires other
knowledge than "powder knowledge" to maintain, it falls under
the W.P. Energy Rifle category.
E.x.2 Railguns are stated to fall under the W.P. Heavy Energy. This
may seem strange, because it operates much like a usual heavy
machinegun. However it does require special knowledge to
maintain since the weapon is powered by electrical power rather
than chemicals / gas.
In Rifts there are four methods to shoot a weapon: Aimed, Snap, Burst and Wild. A weapon may or may not be able to fire in all the above mentioned methods.
Rate of Fire: Type:
Standard The weapon may fire in all methods
Burst only Bursts and Wild only
Aimed only Only snap, aimed and wild shots
Range: Needed Strike roll:
< 60 ft. (20 m.): Any roll (with bonuses) over 4 hits unless dodged.
> 60 ft. (20 m.): Any roll (with bonuses) over 8 hits unless dodged.
The Aimed shot
This represents the carefully laid shot. It can target any part of a target (from the pinky finger to the torso).
Time required: 2 actions
Bonus: +3 at level 1.
+1 at each 3rd consecutive level starting at level 3.
Strike roll: Must be 12 or more!
The Snap shot
Combatants often don't have time to think and react impulsively. Their shots are more an impulse than a well planed action. After some training though, the shots become more and more accurate.
Time required: 1 action
Bonus: 0 at level 1.
+1 at each 3rd consecutive level starting at level 3.
The Burst shot
A burst shots is when several shots are fired within a short time-frame. Some weapons are designed to be able to fire controlled burst of 3 shots, while others need the user to hold the trigger down (full auto).
The time spent firing per burst (full auto) depends on how much ammo is spent on the burst.
Burst type: Ammunition spent:
Short Spends 20% of the clip
Long Spends 50% of the clip
Entire Clip Spends 100% of the clip
Time spent per burst
(by Fredrik Kvamme, modified):
3 shot auto: 1 action
Other:
4 x [Number of rounds fired] x [Characters total attacks per melee]
= Actions
[Rate per minute of the weapon]
The above formula gives the amount of actions needed to fire a burst (round fractions up).
Weapon Type: Rate per minute:
Revolver 24
Pistol 38
Shotgun 400
Bolt action rifle 16
Semi-Automatic Rifle 100
Auto Rifle 650
Sub Machine Gun 700
Machinegun 800
Laser Pistols 40
Ion Pistols 30
Plasma Pistols 32
Laser Rifles 800
Ion Rifles 700
Plasma Rifles 650
Rail-Guns 1000
Heavy Energy weapons * 45
* Do 5D6 MD per single shot or more.
When it comes to how many of the fired bullets that hit, use the following method:
Step 1: Determine if the burst hits at all by standard means.
Step 2: Decompose the number of bullets fired into 2,3,4,5 or 10 shot combinations. Use always the
combination that results in the fewest number of dice rolls (no. It isn't meant only to save time, but there is a difference between two 5 shots and 1 ten shot on the table!).
E.x.1 A burst of 19 rounds = 10+5+4 rounds
E.x.2 A burst of 8 rounds = 3+5 rounds
Step 3: Roll 1D20 + Burst bonus on the appropriate round table to find how many bullets hit their mark.
Step 4: Apply damage = [1 shot] x [Number of shots that hit]
RANGES LESS THAN 60 FT. (20 M.):
#Rounds 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20+
2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3
4 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 4 4
5 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 4 4 5
10 1 1 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 6 6 7 7 8
RANGES OVER 60 FT.:
#Rounds 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20+
2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2
3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3
4 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4
5 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 5
10 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 5 5 6 6 7
E.x.1 A CS grunt fires on full auto with his C-12 on full power.
He fires a long burst that uses 10 shots of his clip. The grunt
has 3 actions. That means that he uses 1 action to fire the
burst (0.15 rounded up = 1). He then rolls to see if he hits or
not. Strike is 14 (12+2, long range so no close bonus), a
definite hit. He then rolls to see how many rounds hit.
The result of the roll is 13 (11+2 from W.P. bonus) that
says that 4 rounds hit the target.
Damage is then set to 4D6 x 4 M.D.
E.x.2 Jack the Juicer loves the sound of his NG-P7 on full auto.
Seeing a huge Gargoyle at 300' advancing towards him he
empties the clip. Jack has a +3 burst bonus and a total of
5 actions per melee. Using the formula, we calculate that
Jack uses 4 actions on the burst (3.556 rounded up).
He then rolls to see if he hits. The roll was a 17, a hit by
most standards.
He then has to determine how many of the 8 rounds that
hit. 8 = 5 + 3. The first roll (5 rounds) gives 19 (16 + 3)
translating into 4 shots hitting. The second roll (3 rounds)
results in an 11 (8 + 3) that translates to 1 shot hitting the
target. The total number of shots hitting the target is
4 + 1 = 5 shots. Damage is 1D4x10 x 5 M.D. !
NOTE 1: Energy weapons have enormous heat development curves. After firing more than 10 to 20 burst in a row (short burst. 5 to 10 long bursts or 3 to 4 full bursts) the weapon will overheat resulting in the possibility of malfunction, damage to the wieldier due to excess heat or even an explosion! See the section on weapons failure.
Spraying an area
There have been lots of good and reasonable questions concerning this. Sometimes it is mindboggling to use sprays and suppressive fire etc. since it just adds to the workload of the GM and is 'all to mind consuming'. So here we have some rules dealing with this problem. They are also devised by Fredrik Kvamme.
Spraying an area does get the benefit of the burst bonus, but also a -6 penalty
Step 1) Determine the area of the burst (see examples).
Step 2) Determine #shots fired (use the burst percentages).
Step 3) Determine Strike.
Step 4) Determine Fire Intensity.
Step 5) Target may opt to dodge.
[# of shots that hit] = [# shots on the target] - [Dodge clearing]
Fire Intensity = [# rounds] / [Area in feet]
Fire Intensity: Effect:
< 1 Multiply with 100. This becomes the percentage chance of being hit. Only as many target as #rounds fired may be hit!
=1 All targets are hit by one shot
1,1 - 2,4 Roll for 2 hits on the table.
2,5 - 3,4 Roll for 3 hits on the table.
3,5 - 4,4 Roll for 4 hits on the table.
4,5 - 5,4 Roll for 5 hits on the table.
etc.
F. I. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20+
2 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
3 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3
4 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4
5 1 1 1 1 1 1 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 4 4 5
10 2 2 2 2 2 3 3 3 3 3 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 6 6 7
20 4 4 4 4 4 5 5 5 5 5 6 6 6 6 8 8 8 10 10 12
E.x.1 Jenny is guarding a hallway. She has a +2 burst bonus. Three
persons with guns appear. She sprays them with the entire mag
from her Wilk's 447. Strike is 16 (including bonuses). The
hallway is narrow, only 5 ft. wide, which means that none of the
men are more than 5 ft. apart in width. Fire intensity is 20/5 = 4.
Rolling against the table with a F.I. = 4 we get;
1D20 [16]+ Burst bonus [2] - Area burst modifier (see bonuses and
penalties during combat) [6] = 16 + 2 - 6 = 12. That gives 2 shots hit
target one.
Repeating the process with the other two gives 1 shot hitting target 2
and 2 shots hitting target 3.
E.x.2 During the same situation, target three opts to throw himself to the
ground. He has a +4 dodge bonus and rolls a 17 (including bonuses).
The save is 17 - 16 = +1. This means that the number of shots hitting
target 3 is: 2 - 1 = 1.
E.x.3 William and his conspirators are running from a job gone wrong. He
wants to buy them some more time and sprays towards the pursuing
enemy with his MP-23A. Twenty guards / militia men are chasing him.
From the uttermost left to the uttermost right soldier there is 60 ft.
William fires 20 rounds in that area. The strike roll is 12. Fire intensity
is calculated to be 20/60 = 0,33. Since the F.I. is under 1, he multiplies
this value by 100, meaning that every soldier has a 33% chance of
being hit by a single round. He rolls to see how many are hit and gets
under 33% on a D100 4 times. 4 of the guards/soldiers were hit
(unless they dodge).
Dodging and parrying shots
One of the most challenging actions a character will most certainly try to do is to parry or dodge a shot. That is wery difficult, as the character has to mentally trace the path of the shot and have a shield or other handy item in the very position in order to avoid being hit by the shot.
The starwars effect of Luke parrying / deflecting all incoming shots is both unrealistic and immensly stupid, though very cool. :)
Parrying a shot
All weapons can be used to parry shots (rune swords, shields etc). This is however done at -10! It is only possible by pure chance / luck, and the penalty reflects that.
Every time a weapon sucessfully parries a shot, the weapon takes the shot damage.
In the description of such weapons, it is written "can parry energy attacks, -6 to parry. Very difficult". What they fail to recognize is that -6 isn't that much of a penalty. Anyone who has ever played with a PP munchkin player will notice that (ohh, I presume the strikeroll was lover than 24?).
Event: Effect:
Parrying a shot -10 to parry, takes up 1 action.
Barely making the parry If the parry was made with only 1 or 2, the shot was strong enough to wrench the weapon/shield out of the defenders hand.
Dodging a shot
This is easyer said than done. A character can take evasive action, consciously making him/herself a hard target. The other way to do this is to chance it.
Event: Effect:
Dodging a shot Dodging a shot is done at -8! It costs 1 action.
Personal weapon failures
If there is one thing you can attribute the hand gun and personal weapon of the common soldier, it is the frequency in which it doesn't work when you need it most.
This aught to be an exception and not the rule. There are those of us who cherish weapons going clank or fizz just when the characters need them dearly. If this happens often, it isn't talk about bad manufacture, but a controlling GM.
It is however important to note that the more complex a weapon gets, the more things can go wrong. The more things that can go wrong, the more do! This isn't an except from Murphys laws, but just a fact of life.
I will describe rules and subsequences for weapon failures after the type of weapon being utilized. It is up to the GM to allot weapons to the right spot.
Ballistic weapons and cock-off
Ballistic weapons most often go kchunk or boom due to dirty barrels, malfunctioning loaders or bolts and overheating causing the bullets to go off without exterior help. Mishandling a weapon of ballistic nature can cause a mechanical failure in the loading system or perhaps the breach.
Mishandling: Includes using the weapon as a club, dropping it from heights, negligence of maintenance,
exposing it to adverse environments etc.
Every time a weapon is mishandled it has 10% chance of creating a mechanical failure. This failure can be simple to repair (changing a spring) or extremely difficult (straightening / realigning the bolt).
NOTE: Makeshift repairs is repairing the weapon with minimal equipment and in the trenches. It requires a skill roll vs weapons engineer if possible, or a skill roll vs [lvl of character] x 4%.
Combat:
In combat situations (fire fights) a weapon may become so hot that rounds are cocked off as soon as the round is loaded. For ease of use, we will set a specific number of safe rounds per melee that can be fired.
For every consecutive melee of firing, reduce the value with 1 and for each melee of non-firing increase the value with 1 (up to the listed value)! When more rounds per melee are fired than safe, on every roll
of 1 to 5 on a D20 will result in a cock-off (-1 action)
Weapon Shots / melee
Pistol/Auto pistol 20
Revolver -
SMG 50
Bolt action rifle 7
Assault rifle 35
Shotgun 5
Machineguns 70
Laser weapons
Laser weapons are the type that go ch... instead of fzz. Since the weapons are silent enough as it is, it may take some time before the character realizes that the weapon is malfunctioning. Unlike the ballistic weapons, energy weapons are more prone to malfunctions. Severe malfunctions like a dent in the focuser or dirt in it may cause the weapon to say ka-boom instead of dhum. Laser weapons do not suffer from the effect of cock-off. They do however suffer from heat development that leads to the circuitry boiling and microprocessors failing. Since this is one of the most common faults, they are often developed with extensive cooling systems.
Mishandling: 20% chance of failure!
NOTE: Such damage requires proper equipment and facilities to fix. Cannot be done in the field unless the character has Weapons Engineer.
Combat:
Laser weapons have the same safe number of shots per melee. However, this value varies greatly from producer to producer.
Reduce the number by 10 per consecutive melee of firing. Increase with 10 per melee of no-fire (the values stated below are idle / maximum)
Producer: Safe shots / melee
Atlantis / Kittani / Phase World 800
Naruni Enterprises 700
Coalition States 300
Wilk's 400
Northern Gun 200
Whykin / other minor kingdoms 150
NGR / New Navy 450
Mindwerks / Japan 500
If the number of shots fired exceeds the total value, the weapon has a 10+5% chance of burning out per melee of use (needs to cool down slowly over a 3 hour period).
Ion / PP weapons
Ion weapons and particle projection weapons are among the most secure weapons to use while in the field. They do develop high levels of heat, but the nature of the weapon requires "good ventilation". However, overheating does sometimes occur. These weapons can also absorb physical damage quite good. They are prone to electronics malfunctions and little else since the weapons are made of very few parts.
Mishandling: The weapon has only 3% chance of failure, and it is almost always the same thing that goes wrong.
NOTE: Require high-tech facilities and equipment to fix. Cannot be repaired in the field!
Combat:
Ion weapons have a tendency to heat up but these weapons have better cooling systems / ventilation systems that other weapons. No matter who produces the weapon, or what type of weapon it is (pistol, rifle, SMG etc.), overheating occurs when the weapon fires more than 40 shots a melee. This value isn't modified by
continuous melee fire etc.
Each time the weapon overheats, roll on the following table:
% roll Effect
01 A malfunction in the electronics causes all energy to be diverted into the coil sequencing. It will start humming and shaking til the weapon explodes after X minutes, where X is the number of shots left in the magazine. Damage is proportional with the number of shots in the magazine, but should be SDC only!
02-34 The weapon fires a long burst every time the trigger is pressed.
35-60 The weapon will not fire for the melee.
61-90 All electronics melted. The weapon is useless.
91-00 Can only fire every other action for that melee.
Knockdown
I'll try to keep these simple. I've made simple calculations based on simple physics and common sense behind most of the absolute rulings.
100% knockdown
This occurs when the target (perhaps you?) is fired upon and hit by railguns, missiles, grenades and sufficient amount of damage.
Weapon type: Knockdown:
Railguns Railguns will automatically throw a character down because only one bullet hitting your body will have the equivalent force of a 10 kg sandbag hitting you at 640 k.p.h! If all the bullets hit you, the speed is increased to over 2000 k.p.h!!!
Missiles Except for the pure fact that explosive missiles will throw any character around like a rag doll, you still have to have something to brace yourself against. If you are within it's blast radius, you can expect that the ground you stood on is flying along with you.
Grenades These things are designed to throw people around. Comparable to the effect of a missile (except for the speed and size of the explosive).
Other If the damage amounts to 100% on the tables, you are knocked down!
Knockdown tables
The knockdown tables are found on page 13 of the conversion book 1. These tables do not include those for the vampires (Vampire kingdoms, WB 1).
This table is used for characters who don't have a PS of 30 or higher, are in powerarmor/robot, are powerful supernatural creatures (gigants, dragons, demons etc.)
Damage % knockdown chance
1 - 10 0
11 - 20 20
21 - 30 30
31 - 40 50
41 - 50 70
51 - 60 90
61 + 100 + stunned (loose all actions that melee!)
This table is for those creatures who are mentioned above.
Damage % knockdown chance
1 - 30 0
31 - 50 10
51 - 70 20
71 - 100 40
101 - 150 60
151 - 200 80
201 + 100 + stunned (loose all actions that melee!)
Bonuses and penalties during combat
There are several maneuvers and conditions which adversely effect the aim of the combatants. This list gives the conditions, situations and modifiers for reference.
The list is divided into Attacker, Defender and Environment modifications.
Attacker modifications are bonuses and penalties from the one making the attack.
Defender modifications are bonuses and penalties due to the defender of the attack.
Environment modifications are everything from high winds and lighting.
ATTACKER MODIFICATIONS
Action Bonus Description
Evasive Action - 6 Not actually targeting the enemy
Jumping / Acrobatics - 6 Wild shots only
Running - 4 Cannot fire Aimed shots
Walking - 1 Cannot fire Aimed shots
Crawling along the floor 0 Cannot fire Aimed shots
Firing from moving vehicle:
> 40 m.p.h.: - 4 Only burst/called. +2 dodge bonus
< 40 m.p.h.: - 6 Only wild shots. +3 dodge bonus
Firing over shoulder 5% hit Only wild, with special to hit roll
Firing without W.P. - 6 Wild only
Firing while in 'strange' position - 6 Wild only. Includes hanging upside down.
Firing while not braced - 6 Save vs. PP (clear with 12) or Sense of Balance -10%.
Kneeling braced position + 1 Must be on a stable surface.
Lying braced position + 2 Attackers are -2 strike* character is -3 dodge
Aim rounds +1 Maximum of 3 aim rounds
Exceeding weapon range -4 per 25 Ft. Does not get the benefit of WP bonuses.
Spraying an area - 3 No specific target
Indirect fire without LOS - 10 Coordinate fire
Indirect fire without LOS - 8 Coordinate + remote feed
Stressed - 1
Exertion - 2 per melee
Terrified / Berserk - 6 Wild only
* People / enemies attacking the character are at -2 strike unless very close, where they are +2 strike.
DEFENDER MODIFICATIONS
Action Bonus Description
Crawling along the floor Close: 0 , Long: -2 Close is < 60 ft., long range is > 60 ft.
Walking 0
Running - 2 + 1 to dodge per SPD point above 50
Jumping - 4 + 3 dodge
Dodging on moving vehicle
> 40 m.p.h. - 3 + 2 dodge
< 40 m.p.h. - 6 + 3 dodge
Evasive action - 6 + 3 dodge
Covered (50% to 90%) - 6
Covered (90% to 99%) - 6 Must make a detect roll - 5%
Invisible - 6 Must make a detect roll - 20%
Lying down Close: 0 , Long: -2 * - 3 dodge
* this dodge is different from the one mentioned above (crawling along the floor),
ENVIRONMENT MODIFIERS
Environment Penalty Description
Partial darkness - 3 Moonlight
Total darkness No light
Augmentation - 6
Not augmented 5% hit
Smoke - 5 Mini-missile version etc.
Fire - 2 Heat ripples distort aim
Underwater - 6 Wild strike only*
Vacuum - 6 Wild strike only*
Raining - 2 Both irritating and spoils sighting.
+ 30% on detect invisible enemies
Storm / Tornado - 6
Typhoon / Hurricane - 12 No one fights under such conditions!
* Characters trained to fight in these conditions don't have any penalty.
E.x.1 Thomas has just entered a poorly lit passage. He can hear
some noise in the other end. Running to investigate what the
noise is, a vapor trail zooms past his left ear. He quickly
readies his weapon. Thomas wins the initiative and he can
see a man with a laser pistol lying near the door on the other
end of the passage, some 40 feet away. Thomas fires at the
man while walking towards him.
Since Thomas is walking, he gets a - 1 strike penalty. Since the
target is lying and is in close range (<60 ft.), he gets a + 0.
Since the passage is poorly lit, he gets a - 3 penalty.
- 1 + (- 3) = - 4. Thomas fires the weapon with a - 4 penalty.
E.x.2 Thomas has dropped to a kneeling stance and snaps off
a shot. The target stood up and is running towards Thomas
in a wild fury.
Thomas receives a +1 from the kneeling position, a - 2 since the
target is running towards him and a - 3 from the poor lighting.
1 - 2 - 3 = - 4. Again Thomas receives a - 4 penalty.
E.x.3 Thomas now changes to thermographic and snaps off another
shot. Since thermographic effectively negates the partial
darkness (he is now reading/seeing the temperature), he gets only
a - 1 penalty. + 1 from the kneeling position, a - 2 since the
target is still running towards him and no environment modifier.
Forcefields and modern weapons
Forcefields in modern combat can be treated as either deflectors or stoppers. Deflectors are the standard star-wars type, while stoppers are the solid absorbing type. Both of them exist in a standard forcefield. Advanced forcefields may be purely stoppers (the nominal type of a forcefield). The effect of a forcefield depends on what tech level it is based on.
Determining the tech level of a forcefield
The easiest way to determine this is to look at the producer and the target buyer. Societies like the NGR and Republic of Japan that are on the verge of developing the forcefields to a reliable technology are at the bottom of the scale. Naruni / Phaseworld and others of that tech level come next. They have managed to develop good and reliable forcefields. The Intruders and legionnaires from SA2 who have developed forcefields to an extent where it replaces construction materials have the highest level of tech since they have managed to produce the ideal forcefield.
A producer doesn't have to produce the best possible equipment. They can produce equipment at any level lower than their own or at their current level.
Producer Level
NGR, Rep. of Japan etc. Low
Naruni, Phaseworld etc. Medium
The Intruders, Legionnaires High
Low level forcefields
Low level forcefields are barely forcefields. These forcefields are circular in form. The power used in a forcefield is divided evenly across the entire forcefield. These forcefields have some common items due to the producers inability to perfect the form fitting feature with their current tech. Such forcefields have the biggest detection zone.
Construction:
A low level forcefield is made along the onion principle. The forcefield is made up of layers with increasing intensity. These fields may extend several feet out of the object. The outermost field has nearly no stopping power. As we progress through the fields to the core field, the intensity increases. The core field has the highest degree of stopping power and is considered the stopper field, while the mid-fields are considered deflector shields.
Since the core field has the biggest reactive power to high speed movements (like punches and swats), the core field cannot be created within a certain radius from the object. This is due to the fact that without the minimal internal radius of clearance the field will act against all quick movements made by the object.
The forcefield detection zone size (in feet of thickness) is 5% of the total damage capacity. The free-space radius inside the shield is equal to the length of the longest limb.
Game Effect:
Whenever the shield is hit (a successful strike), deduct the damage from the capacity of the shield.
If the damage exceeds 10% of the maximal shield capacity, use the following formula to determine the failure percentage:
[Damage inflicted] - [10% damage capacity] = [Failure percentage]
If shot misses with 1, 2, 3 or 4 on a strike roll, the shot was close enough to be caught in the deflector shields. That means that the shot will be deflected at another angle that may hit another target (game-masters call).
Medium level forcefields
Medium level forcefields are characterized by being form fitting and having a deflector segment. The size of the onion in medium level forcefields is nearly zero, but it is present.
Construction:
A medium level forcefield has better control over the forcefield that allows it to wrap around the object and adapt to new shapes and positions as fast as the object makes the changes (e.g. running or fighting). The innermost layer, the core field is very powerful, but the extent of the detection zone is extremely short compared with a forcefield made of a lower tech.
The detection zone size (in feet of thickness) of a medium tech forcefield is 1% of the forcefields current damage capacity.
Game Effect:
If a successful shot hits the forcefield, deduct damage as usual. If the shot inflicts more than 20% of the shields maximal damage capacity, use the following formula to determine the failure chance:
[Damage done] - [20% of forcefield capacity] = [Failure percentage]
If the shot misses with 1 or 2 on a strike roll, the shot will be deflected. It is up to the game-masters if the shot hits something else.
High level forcefields
This is the ultimate use of a forcefield. It is both form-fitting and solid. It can be used to create common items like a chair or table as well as armor. This forcefield is composed only of a core-field. There is no deflection field.
Construction:
The high level forcefields have only got a core-field. The field is form-fitting and can be either transparent or semi-transparent. There is no detection zone.
Game Effect:
Treat as normal armor with a healing factor. They are beyond the point of failure percentages and can recharge the armor according to their description.
E.x.1 Aron, a human, is using an experimental personal forcefield
developed by the NGR (low level). The field has 40 MDC. That
gives the shield a detection zone (shield extension zone) 2 feet
thick and a free space zone of 4 ft. That means that the forcefield
comes into effect 4 ft from Aron and is in itself 2 ft thick.
E.x.2 Charley on the other hand bought a Naruni forcefield (medium
tech) with 80 MDC. Since all medium and high tech fields are
form-fitting, the forcefield comes into effect at once. The detection
zone thickness is 0,8 ft.
E.x.3 Aron and Charley fight it out. Aron fires at Charley, but misses with
2 (rolled 14, needed 16). Since medium fields have deflection
zones and the roll wasn't over 2 (for medium shields), the
deflection angle was a measly 1 degree.
E.x.4 Charley retaliates but misses too. He needed 18, but rolled 16 (with
bonuses). Since the deflection zone on a low-tech shield is very
big, the GM checks on the table. A miss of 2 give a 7,8o deflection,
enough for the shot to cut down two trees nearby.
E.x.5 Aron fires back, and this time he hits. The damage inflicted is 24.
The 'damage capacity' of the forcefield Charley is using is 16. The
failure percentage becomes 24 - 16 = 8%.
E.x.6 Charley hits Aron for 3 MD. Since the 'damage capacity' of Aron's
armor is 4, there is no chance of a forcefield failure.
Notes regarding specific weapons
One way to add autenticity to the game is to use "correct" descriptions of the different types of weapons.
Laser weapons
Laser weapons are enigmatic, since we do have lasers but not at the same power as those used in Rifts. This has caused a lot of speculation, and this is one of them:
How to recognize a laser blast:
A laser blast will leave a vapor trail in it's wake. This is caused by the water/moisture molecules in the air turning to vapor. The beam in itself will create the well known star-wars effect, as long as it's fired in atmosphere. The vapor trail will also be ionized.
How to recognize laser damage:
When analyzing a material shot by laser there are two descriptions available based on what the material contains.
If the material contains water, the damage will be comparable with an explosion, except that there will be minimal burn/heat marks.
If the material doesn't contain water, it will make a small explosion mark at the impact location and a furrow where there will be small droplets of melted material along the lower edge in addition to an explosion-related hole.
Recoil:
One way to explain recoil would be in the focusing system. A laser will be based on an "air focuser". It is basically a tube/cylinder revolving at great speeds. This causes the air to center itself in the middle of the cylinder, creating a better focusing system than lenses can ever make.
Since water/condense has the ability to reflect/distort light, it would be necessary to blow out the air in the focusing segment after each shot. The safest way to ensure that a weapon doesn't malfunction due to pollution in the focuser, the air would be run through a series of filters. The air inside the focuser would have to be blown out with some force to be able to ensure that none of the old air remains inside the
focusing chamber. Thus we get the recoil effect.
Sound:
The laser weapons shot is silent by itself, however the changing of air from the focusing system would create a sound, but that would be as muted as a silenced pistol. The shot itself is set to around 30 dB, while the hit will sound like thunder / explosion (around 90 dB).
Ion / Particle projection weapons
When it comes to these weapons we are on more unstable ground. There is virtually no physical ground on which to base a postulate, but for gameplay we can use common sense and logic.
How to recognize ion / particle projection blasts:
A blast from an ion weapon will look like lightning without the characteristic branches. There will not be any telltale vapor from this weapon.
A blast from a particle projection weapon, however, would look something like a disco laser through a dust/smoke field when the dust or smoke is moving in one direction, and moving very fast! This weapon will not leave any vapor marks either.
How to recognize ion / particle projection damage:
Ions and Particle projection cannons can be compared to ballistic weapons. They do not fire bullets or shells, but do fire atoms and ions with a total energy equaling or beating bullets.
An ion weapon uses a low power laser shot to ionize the air in front of the ion beam. This will ensure that the shot hits where the laser was pointing and will also ensure that most damage will be dealt at great ranges.
Water molecules and other substances aren't adversely affected by such weapons. Ion and particle beam weapons will just blow an irregular hole in the material/victim. The main point of damage from both ion and particle weapons is the heat it causes in the target. A tree hit by an ion beam will be cooked and all the bark will be gone (the results of an experiment where a somewhat low power ion weapon was used). The entry point will be relatively small, but the exit point will be several times larger. The resulting damage will have excessive burn marks all the way through, but will not be enough to cauterize the wounds.
This is caused by the ion/particles colliding with the atoms of the target. Air in itself doesn't have heavy enough atoms and molecules to adversely affect the direction of the beam, but when you come to heavier atoms and molecules, the beam will be caught in a series of elastic/non-elastic collisions. The more collisions the beam creates, the bigger does the exit hole become.
/ |
/ |
/ |
==> Entry point : = Exit point.
\ |
\ |
\ |
It is important to note that the beam itself doesn't loose much coherence! It is a chain reaction of colliding molecules/items that creates the damage.
Recoil:
Since ion/particle projection weapons do fire a mass (the mass of all the molecules and ions), there will be a recoil. For the shot to do so much damage, a truckload or more of molecules have to be fired. The sum of all these molecules will cause a recoil probably comparable to that of a high-powered rifle or shotgun.
Sound:
As far as we know, lightning is composed of particles colliding with/superheating air. The same would be applicable to ion/particle projection weapons. Those weapons are about as loud as they come.
Plasma weapons
Plasma weapons can be compared to glorified flame throwers. They spit out some substance that his hotter than napalm, and just about as squishy.
How to recognize a plasma blast:
A plasma blast will leave a shimmering heat ripple in its wake. This is caused by the residual heat from the plasma blast.
How to recognize plasma damage:
Since plasma is superheated napalm, just use your imagination. It will not have the same penetrating damage from the other weapons, but will rather have an 'area effect' damage. A blotch where the material is both a) hot, b) melted. Penetration from plasma blasts come as the plasma will have the best evaporation potential in the center of the blast. There the armor/material will be most evaporated and may be penetrated.
Unlike the damage from ion/particle projection weapons, the entry point is the largest in the damage area. There will also be the effect of the plasma liquid melting downwards instead of parallel with the blast.
A plasma blast on a substance with water will have both the effect of a laser and that of napalm. It will cause 'explosions' in and around the hit area and will melt the structure.
Recoil:
Since the weapon definitely fires a mass, there is no question as to wether or not there is any recoil.
Sound:
The sound of a plasma cannon would probably be that that we associate with laser weapons. A plasma weapon would use magnetic coils to propel the liquid. The activation of the coils in sequence could cause the sound, since water molecules are charged dipoles, they would follow the direction of the coil charges.
Armor penetration rules
(By Splynn, modified)
One of the elements lacking in Rifts is the use of armor penetration. Like AD&D and other games, if the SDC of an armor is reduced to 0, it is destroyed, however, if the armor is reduced to 1, it still takes damage before the character. Just how much would be left of an armor that had 100 SDC and was reduced to 1? And wouldn't the character take damage on himself if the armor were reduced to 1?
Armor is only capable of stopping so much damage before it passes through. The common sense that a railgun hit would probably puncture the armor instead of merely doing a little collateral damage.
For this section we are going to use some new terms not found in the Rifts RPG.
SP = Stopping Power.
= MDC of armor* / 10
*This is the MDC listed in the book. Do not do any fancy calculations of a new MDC!
PV = Amount of damage that penetrates the armor.
How to use the penetration rule:
Step 1: Determine the damage with penetration potentials.
Shot / Ammo type: Penetration potential:
Single shot 100%
3 round auto burst 1D6x10%
Burst 100%
*AP missile 50%
*duc/SABOT missile 80%
*Frag missile 25%
* Only direct hits have penetration potentials, indirect/within explosion radius doesn't have the potential to penetrate armor.
Step 2: Determine if penetration occurs.
This is the simple part. If the damage with penetration potential is greater than the SP, penetration has occurred.
Step 3: Calculate the PV.
[Damage with penetration potential] - [SP] = [PV]
Step 4: Apply PV damage.
This part may seem illogical, but it actually works out very good.
DC of creature inside armor: Effect:
SDC The PV damage is inflicted to the character in SDC / HP form
MDC 1/2 the PV damage is inflicted to the character in MDC form
Robot and Powerarmor Combat
Robots and powerarmors have to be treated slightly different from normal humans in protective clothing.
Note on skills
The piloting Robots and powerarmor skills are present for a reason. The best way to simulate a robot combat and give the powerarmors a downside is to use the following rule:
Each instance during combat when a pilot must make a skill roll:
Every time a robot/powerarmor tries to dodge an attack. Robots and powerarmors that have automatic dodging do not need to make the roll as long as the conditions required are fulfilled (e.g. auto dodge while flying).
Upon starting a new melee round. If the first skill roll was unsuccessful, the character looses one attack that melee. For each action in that melee, the character has to make a skill role until one successful roll is accomplished.
Every time the pilot tries to do something tricky. Includes special moves like jumping and rolling with falls.
Whenever a physical attack is attempted and fails. If the pilot misses on a physical attack, a roll is required to stop the robot from falling over.
Whenever the robot/powerarmor receives excessive damage. When the damage exceeds 40 MD points, roll a piloting skill roll. If the skill roll fails the robot/powerarmor falls. If successful, roll against the knockdown table for supernatural creatures (conversion book page 13).
The combat statistics (Strike, attacks etc.)
To calculate the number of attacks a pilot gets when inside the armor, you have to follow this procedure.
1) Note the bonuses the player character has (HTH combat, boxing etc., not RPA combat training.)
2) Check if the character has Robot Combat Basic, or Advanced in that robot type. If the character has advanced, go to step 3. If not, go to step 4.
3) Go to the page describing the robot / powerarmor see if there are any special notes regarding combat (especially NGR robots). If there is a listing over bonus attacks per melee and strike bonuses per level, use these values and not use the values in the main book (e.g. jump over step 4).
4) Check the RPA combat description in the main book. Take note over the attacks per melee, strike, parry and dodge bonuses. Take note that the bonuses may be tied to certain actions (like a different bonus for a robot while running and while flying).
5) Add the numbers together and you have what your character is good for.
Features in all robots and powerarmors
All robots and powerarmors have some common features. Those written in the main book are all tools, but it lists a minimal of the safety features available. Powerarmors and Robots have to have numerous safety features because there is too much that can go wrong.
[Listed from the main book page 214]
* Nuclear powered * Radar
* Combat Computer * Targeting Computer
* Laser Targeting System * Radio Communication
** External Audio Pickup ** Spotlights
** Ejector Seat ** Self-Destruct system
** Voice Actuated Locking System * Complete Environmental compartment
[Additional features]
* Hotloading weapon mechanism * Energy weapon safety shutdown
* Ammunition dumping system
* Auto ejection system
* - robots and power armors ** - robots only
Hotloading weapon mechanism
All missiles and explosive weapons are loaded to be active in the launch tube / barrel. No matter what kind of fuse is used, they are active in order to remove any minimal range. This option can be deactivated.
If the hotloading mechanism is deactivated, there is no possibility of the ammunition exploding while in the chamber. However, there is a 20% chance that the weapon will never become active and does only 10% of its damage.
Ammunition dumping system
This is a pilot activated feature. It will dump all the ammunition for the selected weapon. It is a generally good idea to stand still while dumping ammunition. All ammunition that is dumped is not active.
Energy weapon safety system
The weapons used in robots and powerarmors will inevitable develop heat at alarming rates. The heat can cause electronics to fry or an electrical feed-back. Both of which will destroy the weapon and much of the equipment around it.
So the combat computer keeps tabs over the heat development in each weapon. When the heat reaches a certain level, the computer will shut the weapon down. As soon as a cleared heat level has been achieved (usually half of maximal heat) the weapon is turned on-line again.
This feature can be deactivated at the risk of melting electronics or causing a power-failure.
Auto ejection system
All robots have an auto ejection system. It will eject the pilots compartment from the robot as soon as 95% of the main body has been destroyed. The system will give the pilot a 1,5 second Bitching Betty signal to the pilot before activating the ejection system.
The 1 second is meant to give the pilot time to prepare for the ejection and possibly reduce the damage he/she suffers from the ejection.
This feature can be disabled.
Internal ranged weapons
Most robots and powerarmors have weapons built in the main body. These weapons use another set of rules for penalties and bonuses. This is due to the fact that these weapons most often have some form of movement compensators and other finesses provided to make them more accurate in a modern combat situation.
Firing internal weapons
Internal weapons can be considered squad support weapons. But since they are tied up to a Targeting Computer that helps the pilot/gunner direct fire.
Weapons mounted on robots and powerarmors have different short/long ranges than infantry. This is due to the additional gadgets located in the armors.
Range: Effect:
Short Range (500 ft.) + 1 on all attacks (except physical!)
Long Range (>500 ft.) No bonus, see penalties for exceeding weapon ranges
As a general rule regardin what weapons can fire how often, use the following:
Weapon type: Firing speed
Missile launchers Can fire a total missiles, equalling twice the maximal volley in number, per melee. This is because the loading mechanism needs time to load and lock the missiles in place.
Energy weapons Unless a capacitor is used, these weapons can fire nearly indefinetly (see energy weapons).
Ballistic weapons These weapons can fire as long as there is any ammunition in them. However, heat buildup may cause cock-off!
E.x.1 The UAR-1s minimissile launcher can fire a volley of 4 missiles
max. The robot has a total of 40 missiles in hold, however, it can only
fire missiles totalling 8 per melee.
Ballistic internal weapons
In Rifts, there is no note of what happens if a weapon is damaged and the effects of using such a weapon on full automatic. Most players will use ballistic weapons on full automatic if they know they have resupplies nearby, which is logical. However, they fail to take into account that using a weapon at full automatic will inevitably cause internal damage.
Ballistic weapons include: Railguns, Auto-cannons, Gatling guns, Gravity cannons, missiles and all weapons that fire a solid, non-energy based projectiles.
Ammunition explosions
The ammunition used in ballistic weapons vary from weapon to weapon. Some use High Explosive weapons while others use armor piercing. Some just use SABOT or Tungsten rounds (solid non-explosive cores).
Criteria:
Missile weapons have a shielding that makes ammunition explosions due to direct hits impossible before the MDC of the weapon is reduced to 75%.
When a successful hit occurs:
Whenever a weapon that uses explosive ammunition is hit there is a 5% chance that the ammunition loaded will detonate. If the ammo in the weapon detonates, there is a 10% chance that the rest of the ammunition in the storage will detonate.
Damage inflicted:
Ammunition explosions cause the rounds to detonate doing damage equal to one round times the number of rounds that go off.
If only the ammo in the weapon goes off, consider the number of shots to be equal to a burst (if listed in the damage sector. If not, consider it to be only 1 shot). Ammunition explosions that do damage (no matter how much) will destroy that weapon. It cannot be used any more and must be replaced.
Missiles launcher detonations will cause all missiles in the volley to detonate. The other missiles in storage may still detonate (10% chance).
Ammunition explosions have a penetration potential equal to 100% of the total damage.
E.x.1 A Type-1 Brute equipped with a mini-missile launcher (40 missiles,
up to 8 missiles in a volley) is hit in the launcher for 40 MD. The
launcher has 120 MDC of which 75% is 90 MDC. The current MDC
of the launcher is 80, meaning that any shots against it has a 5%
chance of causing an ammo explosion.
The defender (the Brute) roll 1D100 and gets 42. The missiles
loaded in the pack do not explode. Since they didn't explode, the
ammunition in storage will not explode.
E.x.2 The Brute is hit for 15 MD more, reducing it to 65 MDC. The Brute
rolls and get 3! Ammunition explosion. Since the weapon can fire
a volley of up to 8 missiles (8 missiles are loaded in the launcher),
all of them go off doing 1D4x10 x 8 MD! The Brute roll again
(against internal ammo explosion). He rolls a 7! The rest of the
ammunition explodes too inflicting 1D4x10 x 32 MD! Needless to
say, the Brute went out in a ball of fire.
NOTE 1: The missiles in a launcher go active the moment they are in the launch tube. This ensures that there is no minimal range for the missiles.
NOTE 2: Standard railgun ammunition is not explosive in nature so it is not prone to ammunition explosions.
Involuntary cock-off
Using weapons on full auto will increase the heat signature of the vehicle using it. This may also cause cock-off, or in-voluntary firing. Unlike hand weapons, internally mounted weapons have superior cooling capacities than exterior weapons.
Criteria:
A general rule is that ballistic weapons (excluding missile launchers) can fire at full auto for 30 seconds (2 melees) before in-voluntary cock-off.
Missile launchers can fire up to 3 full volleys consecutively before there is a chance of involuntary cock-off.
Cock-off for rounds:
When the criteria have been met, there is a cumulative 5% + 5% per shot fired chance of a cock-off. (see example 1 and 2)
Whenever a round/burst is cocked off, there is a 15% + 5% per melee chance that the round isn't completely loaded. This will cause the round to go off (explode if explosive round) and destroy the weapon. (see example 3). If the round is explosive, treat it as an ammunition explosion and roll for internal explosion.
Cock-off for missiles:
When a missile cocks-off, the warhead explodes. It does not matter if the fuse is set on contact, height or time. The heat in the tube causes propellant fumes to explode.
There is a cumulative 3% chance of a missile cocking off per missile fired over the criteria. (see example 4)
Roll to see if the rest of the ammunition goes off.
E.x.1 During a prolonged battle, Johny B. becomes desperate he
decides that it's all or nothing. He starts using full melee bursts. Three
melees later, the weapon is overheating. He fires a burst (10 rounds).
The cock-off percentage is 10 x 5% = 50%. He rolls a 34, resulting in a
cock-off. There is a 15% chance the weapon will be destroyed by the
cock-off. He rolls an 82. No damage to the weapon.
E.x.2 Johny B. doesn't heed the warning of an automatic cock-off. He fires
another burst. This gives him 10 x (5+5) = 100%. Automatic cock-off.
He rolls again to see if the weapon is damaged. 15+5 = 20% of
damage to the weapon. He rolls a 47.
E.x.3 Johny B. has continued firing bursts for three consecutive melees
(since example 2). Each of the shots caused an automatic cock-off, but
he was able to avoid weapon damage. This time though, he has
15 + (5 x 4) = 35% damage chance. He rolls a 14. The weapon takes
damage equal to one round. He then rolls to see if the rest of the
ammo explodes. He rolls 93. No internal ammo explosion, but the
weapon is destroyed.
E.x.4 Johny B. fires off some missiles. He has been firing two full volleys for
the past three melees. Each volley consists of 10 missiles. The cock-off
chance on his next shot is 10 x 3 = 30%.
Energy internal weapons
Energy weapons don't have cock-off or ammunition explosions. They are however more prone to circuitry failure and extreme heat peaks.
Damage effects from overheating
Energy weapons create a lot of heat as a by-product. Although energy weapons have well developed cooling systems, they cannot compensate for the heat buildup.
The weapons heat production factor are:
Weapon type: Heat Factor:
Plasma 4
Ion / Particle 8
Laser 10
The heat factor is used to determine just how many melees of bursting will go til the weapon shuts down as a safety precaution. Pulse weapons are the exception.
[Maximal damage possibility of shot] x [Heat factor] [Number of melees of
= consecutive fire before
100 shutdown of the weapon]
The weapon will remain off-line for 1D4 melees.
If the safety shutdown feature isn't active and the weapon passes the shutdown time, the weapon has a cumulative 5% chance of blowing up (5% per melee of consecutive bursting) and a 10% cumulative chance of frying all electronics in the vicinity of the weapon.
If the weapon blows up, the damage inflicted equals twice the maximum damage of one shot. The weapon is then destroyed.
E.x.1 Johny B. has deactivated the energy safety. His ion cannon does
4D6 MD. This means that after [(4 x 6) x 8 / 100] = 1.92 melees (round
to 2 melees) of continual bursting the weapon aught to have shut
down. However, this is melee 3. Johny B. has exhausted his payloads
for the other weapons and must rely on his ion cannon.
Johny B. rolls to see if the weapon causes an explosion. 5% chance,
and he rolls a 75. He then rolls to see if there is any electrical damage.
10% chance, he rolls a 43.
E.x.2 Johny B. continues. At the end of melee 4 he roll again on the
explosion. This time there is a 5+5 = 10% chance of an explosion. He
avoids it again. Rolling against an electrical malfunction, 10+10 = 20%.
He rolls 8! MALFUNCTION!
Since the weapon is mounted in the belly (main torso) of the robot,
he rolls against the main body table. The roll is 93. All the weapons
mounted on the robot will go off-line in 4 (1D4) melees.
E.x.3 Using his weapons while he still can, he fires again all through melee
no 5. There is a 15% chance for the weapon blowing up and a 30%
chance for electrical malfunction. He rolls against the explosion.
A 14! The weapon does 2 x (4 x 6) = 48 MD points!
Notes on the life in a cockpit
Robo jockeys have exhausting jobs. Some may say it isn't that hard, as they are sitting most of their time. It is however extremely exhausting since the human body is meant to be standing and not sitting. Many more experienced jockeys will have had serious problems with their knees at one point along their career. Others may get serious malnutrition damages.
Physical considerations
The natural position of the human body is the standing position. A person that sits in one position for more than 6 hours in a stretch will eventually develop knee problems. Exercising regularly will halt or slow down the damage to the knees.
Unless the body is exercised regularly, the character will also loose stamina and strength. Living in the cockpit seat for more than 3 weeks in a row will cause the character to suffer. Reduce PS, PP and SPD by 1D4 until serious effort is put into exercising the body (at least a two week program).
Mental considerations - Obsession RPA
Using and relying too much on the armor in itself will cause a state of insanity very much like the super syndrome. The character feels like he is a superhuman while inside the armor. He/she identifies with the armor and will use it as often as possible.
The character operates at normal levels of proficiency when inside the armor, but at -1 to all combat bonuses and -12% to all skills while outside of the armor.
This effect is most appropriate to be used on player characters. It may occur that the characters will use the armors every day and every waking minute during a campaign. If the character uses the armor continuously for more than a week, have him/her roll a save vs. insanity.
Special rules regarding the GB
In order to make the Glitterboy more vulnerable and place it in the category it is supposed to be placed in, I have these following additional rules:
The pilot must use one action to retract the support pylons before he can move the unit.
The pylon does not automatically retract.
The armor of the Glitterboy makes it a fairly easy target to spot. People trying to spot a Glitterboy are at +15%.
Penetration effects
Penetrating a robot can cause internal damage. What would happen if the shot penetrated the armor and made toast out of the leg actuating circuits?
Each time a penetration occurs (be it single shot or burst), there is a 30% chance of it hitting something. Use the table found in the Conversion Book on page 13.