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Introduction What This Is and What This Is Not
Introduction
What this is
This is a much needed conversion. The D20 System, made by Wizards of the Coast has its problems but not as much as the Palladium system does. Ilove the Rifts setting very much, however the mechanics suck. Rifts has many fantastically done elements in it, Siembieda and his brilliant confederateshave a mastery of telling and creating a setting, though most importantly they know what to say and what to left unsaid about a hook. I am no Guruabout gaming, or a master of either system, but I think I have presented a reasonable conversion. It’s clunky, (maybe even a little more so than theoriginal system) but after the characters are done (by farthe most cumbersome of the conversion) the DM is left to FIAT, fudge and DMD her way throughthe story. Though there may be no real difference in the characters perspectives of how the game plays out, but to a storyteller, DM, GM, Keeper, Etc. thedifference is there. One of the best things about the D20 system is the fact that it is open ended (though some mechanics breakdown at upper reaches).The Rifts system is open ended as well, but the skills and a few other nuances of the game may as well be as closed as a Rolemaster game (See chart 11-B.32 subsection Q for skills and nuances vs. systems). The D20 system is clean, simple (at least superficially) and is, lets face it, sweeping the currentgaming market (with only White-Wolf seemingly safe for the moment, and maybe Godlike). Palladium is much too proud to ever convert to this ‘other’system and Wizards won’t do it unless there is a buck in it (no offense to Monte Cook, Bruce Cordell, Skip Williams and the other brilliant writers atWOTC) so someone had to do it, and break every copyright license along the way (even some I didn’t really have to). So here it is 100+ pages of D20Rifts.To the others out there that have also been doing the same, such as the D20 project and others, keep up the exceptional work, and I hope you find thisuseful in your own efforts to produce a better game.
What this is not
This is not Dungeons and Dragons with Rifts elements, this is, PPE and ISP chugging super juicer-techno-wielding cyborg-crazies Rifts. This is Rifts withelements used from the D20 system where I thought were needed. This is not the “meet in the ‘Green Griffon’ with the patriarch of the local castle Riftsgame” (though it could be), This is the random rifting, dimension hopping, Splugorth-running-from, lobbin’ fusion blocks from the escape hatch of astolen piece of Kydian power armor -- Rifts game, that people enjoy (Though I also enjoy a cup of coffee with a Invincible guardsmen to discuss scaretactics now and again). I have tried to use the D20 system to clarify, not change, as much of the Rifts rules as possible, and also to allow more codifiedgame play and running. This was not an easy task, some things (like item creation) D20 and Rifts just don’t see eye to eye on (
eh
….and the whole thingabout feats……).
Final Word
Please read carefully, I have tried to explain my decisions as best I could. I recommend (as with any other rulebook) that this book be read three timesbefore playing, some ideas are presented several times throughout the book and sometimes are elucidated more every time. Two key concepts to thisconversion, is the idea that 1
st
level characters represent what one will become many levels down the road. As a result when making a character alwaysmake them first level first and then advance them (this helps for figuring out the ten percent rule) and also that power and killing progression is slowerin these rules, but in the end these characters are pretty even (maybe even a little stronger). I have violated a few of Kevin Siembieda’s visions of whatcharacters should be able to do, but I feel they are reasonable. View the character sheet and then draw extrapolations, this book has been written withthe idea that only veteran Rifts players will be reading this, and as a result the D20 rules are more explicit and the Palladium rules left to
a priori
knowledge.Now, go game.
RPPG Unite.
Special thanks to all my playtesters who had to rewrite their characters at every session and never once got to look at the rules.No Profit was made in the publication, distribution, or creation of this book.P.S. Sorry to the Artist I ripped off for this book “NNN”, you do Palladiums best work.
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