I have to admit, when I first saw it I wasn't a big fan of the Coalition's new look. Still, it's grown on me.
There are CS things I'm not putting up yet, power armor like the Mauler, Terror Trooper, Hellraiser, Glitter Boy Killer, and Juicer Killer. Stats for the new APCs or tanks whose pictures I posted up thread. Like I said, I'm starting with the "Ultimate Edition" source book, and I don't have all that information at hand. If anyone would like to contribute, great. For now, I think that's enough of a broad view of the Coalition's military capabilities. I, alas, am overdue for an explanation of magic and the spellcasting classes/groups.
Any closing thoughts on the Coalition? Obvious oversights, want to discuss something?
Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Moderator: NecronLord
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Ahriman238
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
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Scottish Ninja
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
One thing that I was always sad that I couldn't find any information on is what goes on inside the fortress cities. There was one book I remember that went into great detail about all the 'burbs around Chi-town, but there's relatively limited information about what they're like inside, aside from higher levels = higher class, generally.
I've got the GM Guide that lists every bit of armor, weapons, and vehicles up through World Book 23. That's a bit of fun, especially the part where Kevin Siembieda points out that all of the South American shit is completely OP.
I've got the GM Guide that lists every bit of armor, weapons, and vehicles up through World Book 23. That's a bit of fun, especially the part where Kevin Siembieda points out that all of the South American shit is completely OP.
"If the capsule explodes, heroes of the Zenobian Onion will still rain upon us. Literally!" - Shroom
Cosmonaut Ivan Ivanovich Ivanov (deceased, rain), Cosmonaut Petr Petrovich Petrov, Unnamed MASA Engineer, and Unnamed Zenobian Engineerski in Let's play: BARIS
Captain, MFS Robber Baron, PRFYNAFBTFC - "Absolute Corruption Powers Absolutely"
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CaptainChewbacca
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
I liked that the SAMAS was actually a pre-RIFTS design from the US Military, and that Bandito Arms in Area 51 had a production facility to make their own, but the coalition thought they'd stolen the design.
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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RazeByFire
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
No, they Coalition SAYS they think Bandito stole the design. They KNOW differently.CaptainChewbacca wrote:I liked that the SAMAS was actually a pre-RIFTS design from the US Military, and that Bandito Arms in Area 51 had a production facility to make their own, but the coalition thought they'd stolen the design.
I like Triax/NGR and the New Navy personally. Both with much more flexible outlooks concerning psionics, DB's and magic. DB's CAN, after some deeds of valor, become citizens of the NGR. The CS is showing some discomfort due to this.
I am disappointed that there is no real Technowizard based empire. I'm sure someone could point out the Federation of Magic probably has something like it, but I want steampunk darn it! The closest you get is a ley line riding locomotive.
That the CS shoots up at every opportunity.
Some of the recent books have the NGR and the New Navy doing a co-belligerence thing against the Gargoyle Empire and thrashing them pretty severely. To the point that the Empire fractures. And one part is considering doing a deal with a Supernatural entity.
And I am constantly outraged that the Space Powers like CAN or Freedom Station could do a few simple things to help the humans stuck on Earth. They could provide Sat recon and communications. Even beyond the Counter Orbit defenses a simple laser link system to bounce communications off of would be a lifesaver. But they've instead adopted a Kill Everything that comes up from the surface strategy that boggles the mind.
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Ahriman238
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Lazlo and Queenston depend on TW a lot, but they don't really have a "steampunk" aesthetic. But a lot of Tolkeen war engines did.
Ok, let's make with the magic.
Magic energy, mana in any other world, is here called PPE or potential psychic energy because in the world of RIFTS magic energy was named by pretentious 'paranormal experts.' Everyone has a set store of PPE (in the game you roll for it) which regenerates itself slowly whenever you aren't casting or physically exerting yourself. You can be sleeping, reading a book, cooking dinner, just so long as it isn't strenuous. You can double this rate by meditating.
It is rare for even a powerful mage to be able to cast all spells from his own PPE store, even mighty supernatural creatures like dragons can have a hard time of it. But there are a number of external sources.
Some magic artifacts, like Wands or Orbs of Eylor have their own regenerating pool of PPE that can be borrowed.
PPE can also be shared, or taken, from living things. A mage can absorb PPE from a willing donor with 70% efficiency, which is the point of most magical rituals, or forcibly strip a victim of PPE with 1% efficiency. A magic-user cannot have their PPE forcibly taken, they are too aware and in control of their energies. You may have noticed that forcible draining is not terribly effective, though consent under duress is apparently good enough to count for the higher efficiency.
But the real forte of the Evil Mage is a blood sacrifice. At the moment of death, a creature releases all it's PPE in one burst, twice as much as it had at any given point in life, and without another mind to control or redirect the energy, it can be taken and used with 100% efficiency. No creature smaller than a house cat has enough PPE to be worth the effort of killing. For some reason, children have twice as much PPE as adults, leading some wiseasses to give spell costs in dead orphans instead of PPE. Good mages never do this, except to save the world or for similarly lofty and immediate goals. You may notice the connection, huge burst of PPE on death + largest death toll in human history = craploads of free-floating magical energy and the Coming of the Rifts. In fact, Earth is now one of the most magical planets in the universe.
Which brings us to the Ley Lines.
They were always there, but now they are disputably here. During the day, a ley line is perhaps faintly visible as a blue haze in the distance, if you squint. At night, it's more like a river of blue fire, PPE in its most visible state.
Some ley lines span the globe, most of the ones encountered in the game range from 2 to 100 miles (3-160 km) long and 0.5 to 3 miles (0.8-5 km) wide/tall.
Most mages can harvest PPE from a line at a rate of 10 per melee (5 seconds) or 300 per hour, compare to the 10 an hour from meditation. At a nexus (meeting point of two or more lines) this rate is doubled to 600 an hour. But it gets better, the rate doubles for 1-4 minutes at dawn, noon, and midnight (600 PPE/hour line, 1200 nexus) albeit, the effect doesn't last a full hour. Triple collection on the Equinoxes (900 line, 1800 nexus) for all night/day respectively. Ten times as much (3000 line, 6000 nexus) during the Solstices or a minor (3-4 planets) planetary alignment. Twelve times as much (4500 line, 9000 nexus) during a lunar eclipse. Thirty times as much during a major alignment (5 planets or more) or a solar eclipse, making a whopping 9000 line, 18000 nexus.
The highest level spell I can think of costs 2,000 PPE. Needless to say, a good calender is a necessity to a practicing magic user.
There's also a class, the Ley Line Walker, which has as a primary feature the ability to derive twice as much PPE from a line/nexus at any given time. A Psi-Stalker can, in an emergency, take the energy they need to survive from a line but they complain it tastes of spoiled milk.
Of course ley lines and nexus points are also where the Rifts form, so there's always a chance of a portal to hell opening up on you while you're walking along one. Then again, sometimes a Rift disgorges tiny people who declare you their king, or lead into your enemies stronghold. Sometimes.
Other times, there are ley line storms that run along the lines, fueled by PPE. Their main function in any story is to make your casters miserable, especially the aforementioned Ley Line Walkers. Storms fuck with magical communication or sensing (psychic too, giving sensitives blinding headaches) and teleports, particularly those that involve the line. They can super-charge, nullify, halve the effect of, or randomize the magical powers of anyone caught within. You can't derive energy from the line, because it's all going to fuel the storm. There are magical lightning bolts that flash often, and are especially attracted to powerful casters. And sometimes they just do Weird Shit, like making everything levitate, raining slugs, drenching everyone with a wall of water moving horizontally or teleporting you all to limbo (sometimes it teleports you back, which is nice.)
Another fun phenomena connected to lines is D-Shifting. You'll be walking along through the grasslands when suddenly the scenery is replaced with an alien jungle with man-eating plants and 10 foot blue alien tribesmen demanding to know who the hell you are and where you came from. You haven't gone anywhere, the scenery on Earth just likes to freshen up every now and then, and bring in new D-Bees to be terrible confused. In short, they have come to you. It makes traveling interesting, since you can walk the same road a dozen times and never know when it'll be replaced with desert or tundra. Interestingly enough, this never seems to happen inside cities. May just be the law of averages.
The people of Atlantis used to build magic pyramids over lines and especially nexus points. This allowed for the far more effective collection and use of PPE, and allowed them to close up Rifts and quell ley line storms. It was especially useful for the purpose of teleporting to other pyramids, and opening Rifts intentionally to planes or worlds they wanted to explore. People within a pyramid healed twice as fast, and their time within never counted against their allotted span (you could go to live in a pyramid at age 30, stay there 20 years and still be biologically 30 when you left, at which point you'd start aging normally.) A pyramid also allowed a master of stone magic to enter mystic stasis pretty much indefinitely. You know where this is going.
In Atlantis, towns and cities grew up around a central pyramid that served the community as government center, school, hospital, and transportation center. So it is in Atlantis today, and in parts of the Magic Zone.
In Europe and Africa (but nowhere else) magical trees sprang up a quarter to a half-mile tall. Some say the seeds were planted at the Creation, waiting only for the Coming of the Rifts to sprout. These "Millenium Trees" (after the myth they seed every thousand years) are living, sentient, and magically powerful, growing only at nexus points. The trees are the source of true magic wands and staves, while their leaves can be made into magic blankets that accelerate healing or even armor (the leaves are big enough to pole a hole for your head and wear poncho-style.) The trees can heal the good, offer a very limited form of invisiblity, and communicate through dreams and visions. It can sense evil and danger and warn the natives. The trees can quell ley line storms and control the weather for a hundred miles, where they grow the soil is fertile for 10 miles and no matter what drought, disease or pest threatens at least 75% of the crop is always collected safely.
The trees have, basically, all of the hit points. Their defenses are many-layered. First, their own toughness, and the minor fact that anyone trying to harm them or harvest their parts without the tree's consent triggers a magical explosion. Which leads to Two, the tree supports a community of good-natured beings. Hundreds of fairies flit through their branches, and up to 6,000 humanoids can live comfortably in the many acorn-huts and hollows of the tree. Three, a Millenium Tree always, always has a powerful magical protector. A dragon or a sphinx or a ridiculously high-level wizard. Four, a tree has the power to teleport any number of people or objects to any point on a ley line of it's nexus (and some sources say to other trees or pyramids) an intruder or even an army may suddenly find themselves... somewhere else. A friend can also be sped along his journey.
Put it all together and small communities of magical goodness can thrive even in the heart of evil empires. The Millenium Trees grow, as mentioned before, only in Europe and Africa, usually about 1 or 2 to a country, save England with has a dozen.
There is also a single evil Millenium Tree, the Tree of Darkness in Germany's Black Forest. It has all the same powers, and even a large community of monsters, just more evil. So it uses it's weather control to shroud the land in mist and drive you off with a tempest. It heals monsters so they can go out into the world and kill more, and provides corrupted wands and staves to it's chosen champions. While the others are basically trees, the ToD has no leaves, and is in the crude shape of a naked woman, screaming, with her arms upheld as though appealing to an uncaring god. Thirteen demonic faces leer from the ToD, each of their mouths containing a permanent portal to a different hell-dimension.
There's an awesome picture in the Mindwerks book, but I haven't found it from any source that would let me post.
Magic comes in a great many forms in Rifts. There's the traditional spell list, followed by Herb Magic, Stone Magic, Tattoo Magic, Cloud Magic, Ocean Magic, Elemental Magic, Summoning Magic, and I'm not even getting into the restricted stuff like Dolphin Magic. Have no fear, I'll get there, it just might take a bit.
Right now I'm just trying to decide if I should try to get spell lists/magic types out of the way first, or caster classes. Decisions, decisions. Any thoughts?
Ok, let's make with the magic.
Magic energy, mana in any other world, is here called PPE or potential psychic energy because in the world of RIFTS magic energy was named by pretentious 'paranormal experts.' Everyone has a set store of PPE (in the game you roll for it) which regenerates itself slowly whenever you aren't casting or physically exerting yourself. You can be sleeping, reading a book, cooking dinner, just so long as it isn't strenuous. You can double this rate by meditating.
It is rare for even a powerful mage to be able to cast all spells from his own PPE store, even mighty supernatural creatures like dragons can have a hard time of it. But there are a number of external sources.
Some magic artifacts, like Wands or Orbs of Eylor have their own regenerating pool of PPE that can be borrowed.
PPE can also be shared, or taken, from living things. A mage can absorb PPE from a willing donor with 70% efficiency, which is the point of most magical rituals, or forcibly strip a victim of PPE with 1% efficiency. A magic-user cannot have their PPE forcibly taken, they are too aware and in control of their energies. You may have noticed that forcible draining is not terribly effective, though consent under duress is apparently good enough to count for the higher efficiency.
But the real forte of the Evil Mage is a blood sacrifice. At the moment of death, a creature releases all it's PPE in one burst, twice as much as it had at any given point in life, and without another mind to control or redirect the energy, it can be taken and used with 100% efficiency. No creature smaller than a house cat has enough PPE to be worth the effort of killing. For some reason, children have twice as much PPE as adults, leading some wiseasses to give spell costs in dead orphans instead of PPE. Good mages never do this, except to save the world or for similarly lofty and immediate goals. You may notice the connection, huge burst of PPE on death + largest death toll in human history = craploads of free-floating magical energy and the Coming of the Rifts. In fact, Earth is now one of the most magical planets in the universe.
Which brings us to the Ley Lines.
They were always there, but now they are disputably here. During the day, a ley line is perhaps faintly visible as a blue haze in the distance, if you squint. At night, it's more like a river of blue fire, PPE in its most visible state.
Some ley lines span the globe, most of the ones encountered in the game range from 2 to 100 miles (3-160 km) long and 0.5 to 3 miles (0.8-5 km) wide/tall.
Most mages can harvest PPE from a line at a rate of 10 per melee (5 seconds) or 300 per hour, compare to the 10 an hour from meditation. At a nexus (meeting point of two or more lines) this rate is doubled to 600 an hour. But it gets better, the rate doubles for 1-4 minutes at dawn, noon, and midnight (600 PPE/hour line, 1200 nexus) albeit, the effect doesn't last a full hour. Triple collection on the Equinoxes (900 line, 1800 nexus) for all night/day respectively. Ten times as much (3000 line, 6000 nexus) during the Solstices or a minor (3-4 planets) planetary alignment. Twelve times as much (4500 line, 9000 nexus) during a lunar eclipse. Thirty times as much during a major alignment (5 planets or more) or a solar eclipse, making a whopping 9000 line, 18000 nexus.
The highest level spell I can think of costs 2,000 PPE. Needless to say, a good calender is a necessity to a practicing magic user.
There's also a class, the Ley Line Walker, which has as a primary feature the ability to derive twice as much PPE from a line/nexus at any given time. A Psi-Stalker can, in an emergency, take the energy they need to survive from a line but they complain it tastes of spoiled milk.
Of course ley lines and nexus points are also where the Rifts form, so there's always a chance of a portal to hell opening up on you while you're walking along one. Then again, sometimes a Rift disgorges tiny people who declare you their king, or lead into your enemies stronghold. Sometimes.
Other times, there are ley line storms that run along the lines, fueled by PPE. Their main function in any story is to make your casters miserable, especially the aforementioned Ley Line Walkers. Storms fuck with magical communication or sensing (psychic too, giving sensitives blinding headaches) and teleports, particularly those that involve the line. They can super-charge, nullify, halve the effect of, or randomize the magical powers of anyone caught within. You can't derive energy from the line, because it's all going to fuel the storm. There are magical lightning bolts that flash often, and are especially attracted to powerful casters. And sometimes they just do Weird Shit, like making everything levitate, raining slugs, drenching everyone with a wall of water moving horizontally or teleporting you all to limbo (sometimes it teleports you back, which is nice.)
Another fun phenomena connected to lines is D-Shifting. You'll be walking along through the grasslands when suddenly the scenery is replaced with an alien jungle with man-eating plants and 10 foot blue alien tribesmen demanding to know who the hell you are and where you came from. You haven't gone anywhere, the scenery on Earth just likes to freshen up every now and then, and bring in new D-Bees to be terrible confused. In short, they have come to you. It makes traveling interesting, since you can walk the same road a dozen times and never know when it'll be replaced with desert or tundra. Interestingly enough, this never seems to happen inside cities. May just be the law of averages.
The people of Atlantis used to build magic pyramids over lines and especially nexus points. This allowed for the far more effective collection and use of PPE, and allowed them to close up Rifts and quell ley line storms. It was especially useful for the purpose of teleporting to other pyramids, and opening Rifts intentionally to planes or worlds they wanted to explore. People within a pyramid healed twice as fast, and their time within never counted against their allotted span (you could go to live in a pyramid at age 30, stay there 20 years and still be biologically 30 when you left, at which point you'd start aging normally.) A pyramid also allowed a master of stone magic to enter mystic stasis pretty much indefinitely. You know where this is going.
In Atlantis, towns and cities grew up around a central pyramid that served the community as government center, school, hospital, and transportation center. So it is in Atlantis today, and in parts of the Magic Zone.
In Europe and Africa (but nowhere else) magical trees sprang up a quarter to a half-mile tall. Some say the seeds were planted at the Creation, waiting only for the Coming of the Rifts to sprout. These "Millenium Trees" (after the myth they seed every thousand years) are living, sentient, and magically powerful, growing only at nexus points. The trees are the source of true magic wands and staves, while their leaves can be made into magic blankets that accelerate healing or even armor (the leaves are big enough to pole a hole for your head and wear poncho-style.) The trees can heal the good, offer a very limited form of invisiblity, and communicate through dreams and visions. It can sense evil and danger and warn the natives. The trees can quell ley line storms and control the weather for a hundred miles, where they grow the soil is fertile for 10 miles and no matter what drought, disease or pest threatens at least 75% of the crop is always collected safely.
The trees have, basically, all of the hit points. Their defenses are many-layered. First, their own toughness, and the minor fact that anyone trying to harm them or harvest their parts without the tree's consent triggers a magical explosion. Which leads to Two, the tree supports a community of good-natured beings. Hundreds of fairies flit through their branches, and up to 6,000 humanoids can live comfortably in the many acorn-huts and hollows of the tree. Three, a Millenium Tree always, always has a powerful magical protector. A dragon or a sphinx or a ridiculously high-level wizard. Four, a tree has the power to teleport any number of people or objects to any point on a ley line of it's nexus (and some sources say to other trees or pyramids) an intruder or even an army may suddenly find themselves... somewhere else. A friend can also be sped along his journey.
Put it all together and small communities of magical goodness can thrive even in the heart of evil empires. The Millenium Trees grow, as mentioned before, only in Europe and Africa, usually about 1 or 2 to a country, save England with has a dozen.
There is also a single evil Millenium Tree, the Tree of Darkness in Germany's Black Forest. It has all the same powers, and even a large community of monsters, just more evil. So it uses it's weather control to shroud the land in mist and drive you off with a tempest. It heals monsters so they can go out into the world and kill more, and provides corrupted wands and staves to it's chosen champions. While the others are basically trees, the ToD has no leaves, and is in the crude shape of a naked woman, screaming, with her arms upheld as though appealing to an uncaring god. Thirteen demonic faces leer from the ToD, each of their mouths containing a permanent portal to a different hell-dimension.
There's an awesome picture in the Mindwerks book, but I haven't found it from any source that would let me post.
Magic comes in a great many forms in Rifts. There's the traditional spell list, followed by Herb Magic, Stone Magic, Tattoo Magic, Cloud Magic, Ocean Magic, Elemental Magic, Summoning Magic, and I'm not even getting into the restricted stuff like Dolphin Magic. Have no fear, I'll get there, it just might take a bit.
Right now I'm just trying to decide if I should try to get spell lists/magic types out of the way first, or caster classes. Decisions, decisions. Any thoughts?
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
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Terralthra
- Requiescat in Pace
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
I can provide you hosting space for any pictures you have. Send them my way, I'll send you back links.
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CaptainChewbacca
- Browncoat Wookiee
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
I liked the Atlantean control of RIFTS, and their story of how they originally fell afoul of magic as well as the new homeworld they built for themselves.
Stuart: The only problem is, I'm losing track of which universe I'm in.
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
You kinda look like Jesus. With a lightsaber.- Peregrin Toker
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weemadando
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- Contact:
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Can we get some Triax/NGR v Gargoyles stuff in?
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Highlord Laan
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Theres a couple Millennium Trees in Japan as well. New Kyoto is built around a massive one.
Never underestimate the ingenuity and cruelty of the Irish.
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Ahriman238
- Sith Marauder
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Be assured I'll get there soon, the Atlanteans are too integral to the backstory of RIFTS to be left out. Right now, I only mentioned it in the context of "things that can help control the Rifts and make life on a nexus point safer."CaptainChewbacca wrote:I liked the Atlantean control of RIFTS, and their story of how they originally fell afoul of magic as well as the new homeworld they built for themselves.
It's on my list. I don't own the Triax book, haven't found it online, never read it to be honest. Most of what I know about gargoyles and Brodkil comes from Mindwerks, though I've heard Triax is an excellent sourcebook.weemadando wrote:Can we get some Triax/NGR v Gargoyles stuff in?
This I didn't know. Thanks for sharing Highlord.Highlord Laan wrote:Theres a couple Millennium Trees in Japan as well. New Kyoto is built around a massive one.
The Standard Book of Spells 1-7
The first step in becoming a wizard is to believe in magic. No, seriously. Believe. The second step is a bit harder and why magicians are all self-selected samples. You see, few people these days really doubt the existence of magic, but self-confidence is everything in magic and if you doubt yourself you will certainly fail. Thus, a wizard is one who never questions that he is special and will one day master the mystic arts.
Now, if he has a teacher or even a few books to learn gestures and incantations from he may begin with the simplest of spells, if a core class, they'll come from this list. Unlike psionics, magic absolutely comes in levels. As before, I'll clarify only if I feel the spell name isn't explanation enough.
Level I
Death Trance- stasis, like the psychic power
Blinding Flash
Lantern Light
Cloud of Smoke
Globe of Daylight- like lantern light, until you run into vampires.
Sense Evil
Sense Magic
See Invisible
Thunderclap
See Aura
As you can see, most 1st level spells help you perceive the world around you, or prevent your enemy from doing the same. Mostly by acting as a poor man's flash-bang.
Level II
Climb
Levitation
Cleanse- removes dirt and lice
Chameleon- blend into surroundings, poor man's invisibility
Cloak of Darkness- shroud 5' area in shadow
Concealment- put TARDIS perception filler on a small inanimate object
Detect Concealment
Extinguish Fire
Befuddle
Fear
Heavy Breathing- illusory sound of, well, heavy breathing
Manipulate Object
Turn Dead- like DnD Turn Undead
2nd level spells have a touch more oomph and utility. Manipulate objects is a form of TK that can't throw things, but can fetch them from hard-to-reach places. A few speels that increase mobility and a number of stealth-oriented magics.
Level III
Armor of Ithan- magic forcefield, the go-to spell for wizards under attack.
Breath Without Air
Energy Bolt
Finger of Wind- conjures breeze strong enough to shut doors, knock over light objects and mess up papers.
Float in Air- sort of a Feather Fall, also lets you cross water and ground hazards.
Fuel Flame- double fire size
Ignite Fire
Impervious to Fire
Impervious to Poison
Magic Shield- conjure buckler to tower shield of magic energy
Mystic Fulcrum- lift heavier weight than normal
Negate Posion
Light Healing
Lesser Paralysis- paralyze a limb
Resist Flame
Simple Invisibility
Now we're talking. A mage should never be without the Armor of Ithan, Energy Bolt finally gives you a magical attack, you can add a bit of healing to your arsenal plus some more general utility spells.
Level IV
Blind
Charismatic Aura
Cure Minor Disorder
Carpet of Adhesion- an object or 200 sq ft of a surface covered in magic glue
Electric Arc- Force Lightning
Energy Field- small area forcefield
Fire Bolt
Fist of Fury- did you ever read the Iron Fist comic? It's that.
Fool's Gold- illusion makes object appear golden
Magic Net- a net. Made of magic. Magic Net.
Ley Line Transmission- send message using Ley Line as phone line
Multiple Image- illusory doubles of caster.
Repel Animals
Shadow Meld- become invisible in shadows (circumvents See Invisible and other counters for invisibility)
Swim as Fish- great speed and skill in swimming, 5 min breath holding, dive to 600 ft (180 m)
Trance- magical hypnosis
So many useful abilities, but mostly the level where you gain a lot of attack spells. Carpet of Adhesion is another must for any caster.
Level V
Armor Bizarre- like Armor of Ithan, bit tougher and made of hideous writhing tentacles.
Calling- the DnD "Sending" spell. Send a one-way audio message anywhere in the world.
Charm- convince a person/animal you are an old and trusted friend.
Circle of Flames
Distant Voice- like Calling, but less PPE and line-of-sight only
Domination
Energy Disruption- also known as 'Cast EMP' Coalition got you down? Fry their equipment!
Escape- open any lock or restraint
Eyes of Thoth- read any language. No help for the spoken form.
Featherlight
Fly
Heal Wounds
House of Glass- damage done to caster is also done to whomever hurt him. Caster appears as a man of glass
Lifeblast- bolster the living and burn the undead
Sleep- turns food/drink into magic sleep potion
Superhuman Speed/Strength/Endurace- temporary buffs
It's so hard to pick just a few. Look at some of these, really look at them. There's Fly, and House of Glass, Escape will certainly be needed at some point, ditto Eyes of Thoth. Oh, and magic mind control becomes more powerful and refined to.
Level VI
Call Lightning-
Compulsion
Cure Illness
Fireball-
Impervious to Energy- including heat, electricity, lasers. Not so much arrows, bullets and knives.
Lesser Teleport- self only, 5 mile (8 km) range
Magic Pigeon- conjure a Pigeon that will record a message and find whoever you want to get it.
Mask of Deceit- illusory disguise
Reduce Self- shrink to 6 inches (15 cm) tall
Sheltering Force- magic forcefield tent
Tounges- speak any language, doesn't help with the written form.
Words of Truth- force person to speak the truth, can be resisted.
Lot more spells that play to the adventurer's core competencies, hurting people and breaking things. Even in it's lesser form Teleport is awesome, Mask of Deceit and Tounges are pretty handy to. I'd skip Words of Truth, you'll never know if the guy made his save.
Level VII
Agony
Animate and Control Dead
Ballistic Fire- it's raining, but it ain't raining rain it's raining 7-15 fireballs.
Constrain Being- bind imps, minor demons and elementals to obey simple commands (stop. back away.)
Dispel Magic Barriers
Fly as Eagle- fly faster, higher, nimbler than Fly
Globe of Silence- because they'd be sued if it was a Cone
Heal Self
Life Drain
Lightblade- magic version of the psi-blade
Metamorphosis: Animal- turn self into animal
Purification- remove dirt, poison, bacteria
Superior Invisibility- now proof against IR, thermal, motion detectors, scent and leaving tracks.
Wind Rush- conjure 60 mph (96 kph) winds, single target or wave of your arm.
7th level, halfway there. Constrain can restrain minor supernatural creatures to a point, but they'll still attack if you come within reach, and attacking them ends the effect. Superior Invisibility is a rush, but still vulnerable to See Invisibility, making a ruckus, and closed doors. Agony and Animate/Control Dead will make others look at you askance, but all of these spells are useful in most circumstances.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
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Ahriman238
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
EDIT: Double Post.
Last edited by Ahriman238 on 2012-11-02 05:33pm, edited 1 time in total.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Ooooh, when did this happen? Last I read about the NGR vs Gargoyle war the Gargoyles were doing well enough that the Sploogorth (sp?) were considering secretly helping the NGR to keep the (highly entertaining) war going.RazeByFire wrote:Some of the recent books have the NGR and the New Navy doing a co-belligerence thing against the Gargoyle Empire and thrashing them pretty severely. To the point that the Empire fractures. And one part is considering doing a deal with a Supernatural entity.
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Ahriman238
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Splugorth, though they're routinely called Sploogs. I too have not heard of this, but as happens a lot, I'm finding I didn't know as much about this game as I thought, there's always another book somewhere.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
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gigabytelord
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Lets if I can put this down simply...
Spoiler
Spoiler
Is that enough info?
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Ahriman238
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Standard Book of Spells 8-15
Level VIII
Commune With Spirits- as psychic power, see and speak to invisible entities and astral travelers
Exorcism- liberate the possessed
Expel Demons- banish minor to mid-level demons from this plane for 1-6 hours
Eyes of the Wolf- nightvision, tracking, identify plants/poisons, see invisible
Forcebonds- magically reinforce ordinary restraints
Greater Healing
Ley Line Tendril Bolts- ball of PPE which arcs and strikes up to 4 targets
Lightning Arc- Electric Arc's big brother
Locate
Luck Curse- give bad luck
Magic Adrenal Rush- gives super strength, boosts speed, immunity to drugs, poisons, mind control, just don't ask what happens when it wears off.
Metamorphosis: Human- impersonate any human with a disguise that stands up to detection
Negate Magic- dispel
Power Weapon- weapon glows and gets a major damage increase
Shockwave- powerful shockwave kicks the crap out of everything within a wide radius
Sickness- inflict disease
Spoil- ruin food/water
Wisps of Confusion- confusion inducing mist
Eighth level. Locate is highly useful, as is Meta:H and Negate Magic. Luck Curse can be pretty situational, but nice to have when it's useful. The real exciting part is gaining the means to communicate with and/or kick the crap out of ghosts, poltergeists and minor demons.
Level IX
Desiccate Supernatural Creature
Dragon Fire- "Did I ever tell you how I got the nickname 'Dragon of the West?'" Breath fire. Lots and lots of fire.
Familiar Link- bond with a familiar
Mute
Simple Protection Circle
Speed of the Snail- drastically slow others
Wall of Defense- conjure a magical wall that has mostly the same effects as a stone one.
Water into Wine- good for impersonating Jesus?
Not a ton to say here. Familiar Link is so useful, most classes gain it at 3rd level. Desiccate is a lot less useful than it sounds, there are tons of defenses and counters, and the 'supernatural creatures family is a lot smaller than you probably think it is. Mute is a good spell for shutting down most casters, Dragon Fire is lots of fun and Wall has it's uses.
Level X
Banishment- like Expel, but keeps away for 2 weeks.
Control & Enslave Entity- bind a creature previously summoned
Deathword- Power Word Die in a new wrapper
Giant- gain 10 feet (3 m and change) and great strength, temporarily lose spellcasting (can casto n others)
Meteor- sometimes you just need an army killer spell
Mystic Portal- open a portal to go through a wall, or to any location within 1000-1500 feet (300-460 m) depending on level
Plane Skip- when forced to another plane (banishment, thrown into a Rift) travel to a random plane instead of the one you're sent to
Speed Weapon- magic weapon moves really fast, not particularly gracefully
Summon & Control Rodents- ritual lets you summon 300-450 mice and rats who will obey any command, as long as you stay within the circle
Summon Shadow Beast
Super Healing
Superior Metamorphosis- turn into any living thing, doesn't copy mystic or psionic powers
Lots of good spells here. Almost all will add significantly to your abilities.
Level XI
Anti-Magic Cloud
Create Mummy
Firequake- an earthquake with sulphur and gouts of fire exploding from the ground
Remove Curse
Re-Open Gateway- *69 for all Rifts and portals
Rift Teleportation- open portal between any 2 nexus points, large and open long enough to move a small army through
Not a ton of spells in the highest level brackets. Firequake is a classic, of course, and Anti-Magic Cloud is invaluable when fighting large numbers of magical beings. Rift Teleportation seems like the obvious winner though.
Level XII
Amulet- imbue trinket with: see invisible, detect spirits, turn dead, protection against supernatural/insanity/disease or basic protection.
Calm Storms- turn a storm to light rain, light rain to drizzle etc.
Create Zombie
Ensorcel- ensorcelled being cannot harm you, gets no save against your spells but awesome saves against all other effects.
Summon and Control Entity- summon and bind one of a wide variety of beings for a few days
Level 12, Amulet lets you produce mystic protection for your friends or to sell. Ensorcel is an awesome control spell because the victim can't resist your control spells and is protected from magics that would liberate them.
Level XIII
Superior Protection Circle- no supernatural creature can come within 20 ft of circle's edge, including Demon Lords
Sanctum- protect a room from all scrying and the undead.
That really is all there is. Superior Circle provides bonus PPE/ISP, and lesser entities cannot bear the sight of it, while even the most fearsome creatures cannot breach it. Which are the only differences from Simple Circle.
Level XIV
Close Rift- seal a Rift, requires permanent PPE sacrifice, cannot close permanent gateway
Restoration- completely heal all wounds, regenerate limbs if severed less than 48 hours ago
Resurrection- raise the dead
There are a couple classes and races that can use Close Rift without the permanent sacrifice, like the Shifter. You get three shots at Resurrection, then another caster can take three tries, after that, the person isn't coming back.
Level XV
Dimensional Portal (Rift)- open a Rift to another dimension.
Superior Teleport- teleport with 8.5 ton and 4500 mile (7240 km) limits.
In short, 15th level is officially when no one can stop you from going wherever you want to go.
Level VIII
Commune With Spirits- as psychic power, see and speak to invisible entities and astral travelers
Exorcism- liberate the possessed
Expel Demons- banish minor to mid-level demons from this plane for 1-6 hours
Eyes of the Wolf- nightvision, tracking, identify plants/poisons, see invisible
Forcebonds- magically reinforce ordinary restraints
Greater Healing
Ley Line Tendril Bolts- ball of PPE which arcs and strikes up to 4 targets
Lightning Arc- Electric Arc's big brother
Locate
Luck Curse- give bad luck
Magic Adrenal Rush- gives super strength, boosts speed, immunity to drugs, poisons, mind control, just don't ask what happens when it wears off.
Metamorphosis: Human- impersonate any human with a disguise that stands up to detection
Negate Magic- dispel
Power Weapon- weapon glows and gets a major damage increase
Shockwave- powerful shockwave kicks the crap out of everything within a wide radius
Sickness- inflict disease
Spoil- ruin food/water
Wisps of Confusion- confusion inducing mist
Eighth level. Locate is highly useful, as is Meta:H and Negate Magic. Luck Curse can be pretty situational, but nice to have when it's useful. The real exciting part is gaining the means to communicate with and/or kick the crap out of ghosts, poltergeists and minor demons.
Level IX
Desiccate Supernatural Creature
Dragon Fire- "Did I ever tell you how I got the nickname 'Dragon of the West?'" Breath fire. Lots and lots of fire.
Familiar Link- bond with a familiar
Mute
Simple Protection Circle
Speed of the Snail- drastically slow others
Wall of Defense- conjure a magical wall that has mostly the same effects as a stone one.
Water into Wine- good for impersonating Jesus?
Not a ton to say here. Familiar Link is so useful, most classes gain it at 3rd level. Desiccate is a lot less useful than it sounds, there are tons of defenses and counters, and the 'supernatural creatures family is a lot smaller than you probably think it is. Mute is a good spell for shutting down most casters, Dragon Fire is lots of fun and Wall has it's uses.
Level X
Banishment- like Expel, but keeps away for 2 weeks.
Control & Enslave Entity- bind a creature previously summoned
Deathword- Power Word Die in a new wrapper
Giant- gain 10 feet (3 m and change) and great strength, temporarily lose spellcasting (can casto n others)
Meteor- sometimes you just need an army killer spell
Mystic Portal- open a portal to go through a wall, or to any location within 1000-1500 feet (300-460 m) depending on level
Plane Skip- when forced to another plane (banishment, thrown into a Rift) travel to a random plane instead of the one you're sent to
Speed Weapon- magic weapon moves really fast, not particularly gracefully
Summon & Control Rodents- ritual lets you summon 300-450 mice and rats who will obey any command, as long as you stay within the circle
Summon Shadow Beast
Super Healing
Superior Metamorphosis- turn into any living thing, doesn't copy mystic or psionic powers
Lots of good spells here. Almost all will add significantly to your abilities.
Level XI
Anti-Magic Cloud
Create Mummy
Firequake- an earthquake with sulphur and gouts of fire exploding from the ground
Remove Curse
Re-Open Gateway- *69 for all Rifts and portals
Rift Teleportation- open portal between any 2 nexus points, large and open long enough to move a small army through
Not a ton of spells in the highest level brackets. Firequake is a classic, of course, and Anti-Magic Cloud is invaluable when fighting large numbers of magical beings. Rift Teleportation seems like the obvious winner though.
Level XII
Amulet- imbue trinket with: see invisible, detect spirits, turn dead, protection against supernatural/insanity/disease or basic protection.
Calm Storms- turn a storm to light rain, light rain to drizzle etc.
Create Zombie
Ensorcel- ensorcelled being cannot harm you, gets no save against your spells but awesome saves against all other effects.
Summon and Control Entity- summon and bind one of a wide variety of beings for a few days
Level 12, Amulet lets you produce mystic protection for your friends or to sell. Ensorcel is an awesome control spell because the victim can't resist your control spells and is protected from magics that would liberate them.
Level XIII
Superior Protection Circle- no supernatural creature can come within 20 ft of circle's edge, including Demon Lords
Sanctum- protect a room from all scrying and the undead.
That really is all there is. Superior Circle provides bonus PPE/ISP, and lesser entities cannot bear the sight of it, while even the most fearsome creatures cannot breach it. Which are the only differences from Simple Circle.
Level XIV
Close Rift- seal a Rift, requires permanent PPE sacrifice, cannot close permanent gateway
Restoration- completely heal all wounds, regenerate limbs if severed less than 48 hours ago
Resurrection- raise the dead
There are a couple classes and races that can use Close Rift without the permanent sacrifice, like the Shifter. You get three shots at Resurrection, then another caster can take three tries, after that, the person isn't coming back.
Level XV
Dimensional Portal (Rift)- open a Rift to another dimension.
Superior Teleport- teleport with 8.5 ton and 4500 mile (7240 km) limits.
In short, 15th level is officially when no one can stop you from going wherever you want to go.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Actually, it was the NGR, New Navy, and Coalition States. After the Gargoyles assassinated the NGR president, the CEO of Triax had to take over the country. She revived an attack plan that has been stalled due to delays in the design of a huge submersible troop carrier. She got that pushed through, then made some deals with the two aforementioned parties.Darmalus wrote:Ooooh, when did this happen? Last I read about the NGR vs Gargoyle war the Gargoyles were doing well enough that the Sploogorth (sp?) were considering secretly helping the NGR to keep the (highly entertaining) war going.RazeByFire wrote:Some of the recent books have the NGR and the New Navy doing a co-belligerence thing against the Gargoyle Empire and thrashing them pretty severely. To the point that the Empire fractures. And one part is considering doing a deal with a Supernatural entity.
The New Navy helped the NGR's new transport make a landing in Southeastern France, and a force of about 20,000 or so CS troops hit the Western side. The NGR and CS then tore their way across France all the way back to Germany, cutting the Gargoyle Empire in half. To make things worse, half the eastern part of the Gargoyles then left Emperor Zerstrun.
Not an armored Jigglypuff
"I salute your genetic superiority, now Get off my planet!!" -- Adam Stiener, 1st Somerset Strikers
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Ahriman238
- Sith Marauder
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- Location: Ocularis Terribus.
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Shifter
Shifters are experts in summoning and controlling monsters and demons from the Rifts. There are actually plenty of good Shifters in the world but, well, no core class (with the possible exception of the Mind Melter) rewards you so handsomely for embracing the Dark Side.
Shifters start with 20 spells; Sense Evil, Sense Magic, Turn Dead, Energy Bolt, Repel Animals, Energy Field, Tongues, Trance, Shadow Meld, Calling, Sustain, Call Lightning, Time Slip, Compulsion, Constrain Being, Exorcism, Summon & Control Canines, Summon & Control Rodents, Re-Open Gateway, and Dimensional Portal. They learn 2 new spells per level, one from a special list of summoning/control and dimension/time magic and one from the standard list of spells. They can learn other spells from other mages, but tend to be highly focused on their specialty.
On the dimension/time magic front, a Shifter can sense when a Rift forms within 50 miles (80 km) of him or on any ley line he's in contact with, what type of dimension or plane a Rift leads to, and if it will close soon. He can further sense any use of dimension/time magic nearby. He can open a dimensional portal for a reasonable PPE cost, but it's not terribly accurate (It leads to Earth... somewhere) or he can cast the spell if he wants a more specific exit point than a particular world or plane and has tons of PPE to burn. He can open pinhole Rifts just large enough to pass a message or a familiar through. A Shifter can always teleport to his home dimension, though he can't take any friends with him that way.
He can also open Rifts to any ley line nexus on Earth, without needing a nexus as a starting point and at half the cost of the spell.
He also gets the ability to bond with a familiar as a class feature. He can see through the animal's eyes etc. Insects, monsters, sentient beings and magical creatures cannot be familiars. Other than that is fair game.
A Shifter can summon and bind up to 16 demons at once, provided he's high level and they're the most minor kinds; imps, gargoyles, brodkil etc. Half that number for lesser demons, quarter it for greater ones. Shifters who are evil are better able to understand, manage, and control demons, knowing when to give them free reign, when to crack the whip and what missions to give for the best results. First rule for any Shifter, good or evil, is to never show weakness in front of your summons.
Finally, Shifters have the option, which they needn't take, of selling their soul for power. In the first edition of the game, they could make a pact only with a demon lord but the new edition has added Gods of Darkness/War/Magic to the list of entities in the buyer's market. The details vary depending on the entity and Shifter in question, and the negotiations usually takes weeks, but the end result usually involves extra HP, a lot of extra PPE and up to 8 new spells. In exchange the Shifter will act as that entity's agent, doing a number of tasks before the deal is sealed (killing a firstborn child is always popular) and maybe some after, or serving the entity forever depending on the precise terms of the pact.
Most right-thinking magical groups consider Shifting to be Dark Magic, and have banned it from their territories. Even those who permit it tend to be wary, since summon and controlling demons can be very corrupting even if you start out with the best of intentions. Still, a Shifter is an invaluable companion if you have it in your mind to hop through a Rift and wander the Megaverse for a bit, they can always gate you home. Or teleport home and leave you holding the bag. Stupid Shifters.
Witches!
Do not weigh the same as a duck.
Not a playable class, but a very common form of spellcaster and sort of related to the Shifter. Witches are, at best, half-trained mages who got greedy and stupid. At worst, country bumpkins with no idea whatsoever as to what they're doing. A Witch is someone who has sold their soul, or made a slightly different pact with an evil magical entity, like the Shifter can.
These Lovecraftian Horrors send small aspects of themselves to roam the Earth looking for patsies to spread misery and death in their name. When a likely candidate (bitter and gullible) is found the spirit will appear in a dream and offer the prospective Witch the usual incentives, power, revenge, riches. If they accept, they must do a few tasks to prove themselves (again with the firstborn children) including killing some small fuzzy thing that the spirit possesses and which becomes the Witch's familiar, giving him/her PPE and spells.
There are 3 main variations on this theme, the Gift of Power where the Witch chooses 4 from a list of 8 abilities/bonuses to receive, and the Gift of Magic where the Witch gets 14 spells. The final, the Gift of Unity, occurs only when the Witch offers their lifelong servitude and/or immortal soul, and the aspect spirit possesses the WItch directly, but continues to leave them in charge for most things.
Once the Witch accepts the deal, they are forever bound to their familiar, who can turn their powers off like a light switch. Witches exist to create suffering in a myriad of ways, and so are hunted wherever they arise as agents of dark powers. Witches also know little of magic, it's their familiar spirit that does the heavy lifting, and it's advice can compensate for the lack of real knowledge or experience... to a point.
All Witches have "the mark of the devil" a third nipple from which the familiar spirit must routinely suckle blood to keep their link, and it's body, going.
Shifters are experts in summoning and controlling monsters and demons from the Rifts. There are actually plenty of good Shifters in the world but, well, no core class (with the possible exception of the Mind Melter) rewards you so handsomely for embracing the Dark Side.
Shifters start with 20 spells; Sense Evil, Sense Magic, Turn Dead, Energy Bolt, Repel Animals, Energy Field, Tongues, Trance, Shadow Meld, Calling, Sustain, Call Lightning, Time Slip, Compulsion, Constrain Being, Exorcism, Summon & Control Canines, Summon & Control Rodents, Re-Open Gateway, and Dimensional Portal. They learn 2 new spells per level, one from a special list of summoning/control and dimension/time magic and one from the standard list of spells. They can learn other spells from other mages, but tend to be highly focused on their specialty.
On the dimension/time magic front, a Shifter can sense when a Rift forms within 50 miles (80 km) of him or on any ley line he's in contact with, what type of dimension or plane a Rift leads to, and if it will close soon. He can further sense any use of dimension/time magic nearby. He can open a dimensional portal for a reasonable PPE cost, but it's not terribly accurate (It leads to Earth... somewhere) or he can cast the spell if he wants a more specific exit point than a particular world or plane and has tons of PPE to burn. He can open pinhole Rifts just large enough to pass a message or a familiar through. A Shifter can always teleport to his home dimension, though he can't take any friends with him that way.
He can also open Rifts to any ley line nexus on Earth, without needing a nexus as a starting point and at half the cost of the spell.
He also gets the ability to bond with a familiar as a class feature. He can see through the animal's eyes etc. Insects, monsters, sentient beings and magical creatures cannot be familiars. Other than that is fair game.
A Shifter can summon and bind up to 16 demons at once, provided he's high level and they're the most minor kinds; imps, gargoyles, brodkil etc. Half that number for lesser demons, quarter it for greater ones. Shifters who are evil are better able to understand, manage, and control demons, knowing when to give them free reign, when to crack the whip and what missions to give for the best results. First rule for any Shifter, good or evil, is to never show weakness in front of your summons.
Finally, Shifters have the option, which they needn't take, of selling their soul for power. In the first edition of the game, they could make a pact only with a demon lord but the new edition has added Gods of Darkness/War/Magic to the list of entities in the buyer's market. The details vary depending on the entity and Shifter in question, and the negotiations usually takes weeks, but the end result usually involves extra HP, a lot of extra PPE and up to 8 new spells. In exchange the Shifter will act as that entity's agent, doing a number of tasks before the deal is sealed (killing a firstborn child is always popular) and maybe some after, or serving the entity forever depending on the precise terms of the pact.
Most right-thinking magical groups consider Shifting to be Dark Magic, and have banned it from their territories. Even those who permit it tend to be wary, since summon and controlling demons can be very corrupting even if you start out with the best of intentions. Still, a Shifter is an invaluable companion if you have it in your mind to hop through a Rift and wander the Megaverse for a bit, they can always gate you home. Or teleport home and leave you holding the bag. Stupid Shifters.
Witches!
Do not weigh the same as a duck.
Not a playable class, but a very common form of spellcaster and sort of related to the Shifter. Witches are, at best, half-trained mages who got greedy and stupid. At worst, country bumpkins with no idea whatsoever as to what they're doing. A Witch is someone who has sold their soul, or made a slightly different pact with an evil magical entity, like the Shifter can.
These Lovecraftian Horrors send small aspects of themselves to roam the Earth looking for patsies to spread misery and death in their name. When a likely candidate (bitter and gullible) is found the spirit will appear in a dream and offer the prospective Witch the usual incentives, power, revenge, riches. If they accept, they must do a few tasks to prove themselves (again with the firstborn children) including killing some small fuzzy thing that the spirit possesses and which becomes the Witch's familiar, giving him/her PPE and spells.
There are 3 main variations on this theme, the Gift of Power where the Witch chooses 4 from a list of 8 abilities/bonuses to receive, and the Gift of Magic where the Witch gets 14 spells. The final, the Gift of Unity, occurs only when the Witch offers their lifelong servitude and/or immortal soul, and the aspect spirit possesses the WItch directly, but continues to leave them in charge for most things.
Once the Witch accepts the deal, they are forever bound to their familiar, who can turn their powers off like a light switch. Witches exist to create suffering in a myriad of ways, and so are hunted wherever they arise as agents of dark powers. Witches also know little of magic, it's their familiar spirit that does the heavy lifting, and it's advice can compensate for the lack of real knowledge or experience... to a point.
All Witches have "the mark of the devil" a third nipple from which the familiar spirit must routinely suckle blood to keep their link, and it's body, going.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
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Ahriman238
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Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Mystic
Magic is hard work, you spend a lot of time studying at the feet of a master. What if you didn't have to? What if you grew up in the Chi-town Burbs and there wasn't exactly an old wizard around you could learn magic from? Sometimes, after spending a long time contemplating the world, magic, and the meaning of life a person can embark on a week-long spirit quest of solitary meditation, and come back with magical/psychic powers.
A mystic starts with 8 spells from levels 1 and 2. Each new level the Mystic can add any two spells from that level or lower, a 3rd level mystic can pick two spells from levels 1-3, an 8th from 1-8 etc. Mystics never seek to learn new spells the hard way, trusting in their spiritual advancement.
Mystics start with an ISP pool in addition to PPE. They get the psychic powers Sixth Sense, Clairvoyance, Commune with Spirits, Suppress Fear, and Exorcism plus 3 Sensitive and 2 Healing powers of their choice. Mystics get 2 Super powers after some advancement, but beyond that do not gain new powers after 1st level.
Mystics have 2 special class abilities. The first is Sense Supernatural Evil, which lets them sense demons, devils, sometimes the undead, and assorted nastiness. The other is Opening Oneself to the Supernatural, where they meditate to increase their sensitivity, letting them scry on powerful mystic evils, let themselves be possessed by spirits etc. During this process, they become invisible to magical, psionic and visual detection, and even if found gain great resistance to psychic and magical attack.
Personality-wise, Mystics are people who trusted their instincts once, and were rewarded with a lesser form of enlightenment and vast mystic powers. They tend to be very intuitive people, who trust their guts over experience and empirical evidence, which can be a good or bad thing. Mystics fear over-reliance on technology and education, believing it dulls one's spiritual awareness and instincts.
Magic is hard work, you spend a lot of time studying at the feet of a master. What if you didn't have to? What if you grew up in the Chi-town Burbs and there wasn't exactly an old wizard around you could learn magic from? Sometimes, after spending a long time contemplating the world, magic, and the meaning of life a person can embark on a week-long spirit quest of solitary meditation, and come back with magical/psychic powers.
A mystic starts with 8 spells from levels 1 and 2. Each new level the Mystic can add any two spells from that level or lower, a 3rd level mystic can pick two spells from levels 1-3, an 8th from 1-8 etc. Mystics never seek to learn new spells the hard way, trusting in their spiritual advancement.
Mystics start with an ISP pool in addition to PPE. They get the psychic powers Sixth Sense, Clairvoyance, Commune with Spirits, Suppress Fear, and Exorcism plus 3 Sensitive and 2 Healing powers of their choice. Mystics get 2 Super powers after some advancement, but beyond that do not gain new powers after 1st level.
Mystics have 2 special class abilities. The first is Sense Supernatural Evil, which lets them sense demons, devils, sometimes the undead, and assorted nastiness. The other is Opening Oneself to the Supernatural, where they meditate to increase their sensitivity, letting them scry on powerful mystic evils, let themselves be possessed by spirits etc. During this process, they become invisible to magical, psionic and visual detection, and even if found gain great resistance to psychic and magical attack.
Personality-wise, Mystics are people who trusted their instincts once, and were rewarded with a lesser form of enlightenment and vast mystic powers. They tend to be very intuitive people, who trust their guts over experience and empirical evidence, which can be a good or bad thing. Mystics fear over-reliance on technology and education, believing it dulls one's spiritual awareness and instincts.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
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Ahriman238
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- Location: Ocularis Terribus.
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Warlock
For everyone who enjoyed AtLA a bit too much and has to bring that to the game.
Some people just have a strange connection to the elements and, more importantly, to the Elementals. Nobody truly understands this bond, human or Elemental, but some people are just born with the ability to speak the language of that Elemental's type, to command the respect and love of Elementals, and to wield their magic.
An Air Warlock, for instance, will start with the ability to summon the least of air elementals, Finger of Wind, Thunderclap, maybe Breathe Without Air. He will grow into Gust of Wind, and eventually will conquer Summon Major Elemental (Air) Call Lightning and Calm Storm.
A high level Fire Warlock will be almost indistinguishable from a Burster, the only real differences being that he has to spend PPE to become Impervious to Fire, and can summon Fire Elementals.
I'm sorry, I don't know a ton about Warlocks. Never had them in my one and only campaign. If anyone sees any obvious holes in my knowledge or has an amusing anecdote, by all means share.
Elemental Fusionist
New class to the 'Ultimate Edition.'
Wild men in the truest sense of the word, EF's have grown up away from cities and towns and more than a couple of people, and perhaps this is what lets them become forces of nature. EF's heal twice as fast as other men when in the wilds, and in a city or town their powers need 3x the PPE to function. But of course, their raison d'etre is their ability to wield two opposing elements. Hence their are two kinds of EF's Fire/Water and Earth/Air. Ef's cast from the same elemental spell lists as the Warlock but also...
Fire/Water Fusionists can light water as though it were a flammable liquid to bring the fire rain. Or the infamous river or lake of fire. They can also light their sweat or saliva, make ice hot like a coal, and have a number of abilities to conjure or manipulate steam.
Earth/Air Fusionists can breathe just fine underground, even if buried alive. They can turn several tons of dirt into the most hard-packed of soil or the softest clay, by forcing air in or out of tiny crevasses in the earth. They can send up to 100 lbs of rock hurtling through the air at great speeds, lift tremendous weights with the help of their powers, send ripples and waves through the ground, and create powerful twisters of dust and debris.
Elemental Fusionists can speak their languages of their Elemental types, and Elementals usually recognize them as equals and fellow forces of nature. They do not, however, have the unconditional love and obedience that a Warlock gets, just a little respect.
As mentioned above, EF's are men and women of the wilderness and Do. Not. Like. Cities. They can also seem erratic as they bounce back and forth between the traits of their elements, endlessly patient water vs hot-tempered fire and so on.
For everyone who enjoyed AtLA a bit too much and has to bring that to the game.
Some people just have a strange connection to the elements and, more importantly, to the Elementals. Nobody truly understands this bond, human or Elemental, but some people are just born with the ability to speak the language of that Elemental's type, to command the respect and love of Elementals, and to wield their magic.
An Air Warlock, for instance, will start with the ability to summon the least of air elementals, Finger of Wind, Thunderclap, maybe Breathe Without Air. He will grow into Gust of Wind, and eventually will conquer Summon Major Elemental (Air) Call Lightning and Calm Storm.
A high level Fire Warlock will be almost indistinguishable from a Burster, the only real differences being that he has to spend PPE to become Impervious to Fire, and can summon Fire Elementals.
I'm sorry, I don't know a ton about Warlocks. Never had them in my one and only campaign. If anyone sees any obvious holes in my knowledge or has an amusing anecdote, by all means share.
Elemental Fusionist
New class to the 'Ultimate Edition.'
Wild men in the truest sense of the word, EF's have grown up away from cities and towns and more than a couple of people, and perhaps this is what lets them become forces of nature. EF's heal twice as fast as other men when in the wilds, and in a city or town their powers need 3x the PPE to function. But of course, their raison d'etre is their ability to wield two opposing elements. Hence their are two kinds of EF's Fire/Water and Earth/Air. Ef's cast from the same elemental spell lists as the Warlock but also...
Fire/Water Fusionists can light water as though it were a flammable liquid to bring the fire rain. Or the infamous river or lake of fire. They can also light their sweat or saliva, make ice hot like a coal, and have a number of abilities to conjure or manipulate steam.
Earth/Air Fusionists can breathe just fine underground, even if buried alive. They can turn several tons of dirt into the most hard-packed of soil or the softest clay, by forcing air in or out of tiny crevasses in the earth. They can send up to 100 lbs of rock hurtling through the air at great speeds, lift tremendous weights with the help of their powers, send ripples and waves through the ground, and create powerful twisters of dust and debris.
Elemental Fusionists can speak their languages of their Elemental types, and Elementals usually recognize them as equals and fellow forces of nature. They do not, however, have the unconditional love and obedience that a Warlock gets, just a little respect.
As mentioned above, EF's are men and women of the wilderness and Do. Not. Like. Cities. They can also seem erratic as they bounce back and forth between the traits of their elements, endlessly patient water vs hot-tempered fire and so on.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Who was talking about warfare? I was just saying a good way to kill one, not a squad. That requires a little more work.gigabytelord wrote:The problem with that is, no intelligent right minded GB commander would ever take one into combat alone, take a look at Free Quebec for instance, they literally have thousands of the damned things, and generally operate them in squads, with anti infantry/air units supporting, as well as gun crews specifically trained to reload GBs while in combat.AMT wrote:Carpet of Adhesion and walk behind the Glitter Boy FTW
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Might want to also mention how there's an underground city in China that never backslid into a second dark age, although there are shades of 'Big Trouble in Little China' in that the caverns its in are quite a bit larger then they are above ground. In fact, once you go below a certain level in the caves, no matter how far you dig upwards, you'll never come out onto the surface - just end up opening a tunnel into a new cavern.
That and they know Gun-Fu. John Woo, The Matrix, Equilibrium, Max Payne, and/or Salvador the Gunzerker would, frankly, be downright humbled by some of the wild stuff the Gun-Fu Hidden 'Enlightened' Communists can pull off. There are only two other classes of firearms users in Rifts that can even come close to the skillset the Gun-Fu users have, which are the Russian Cossacks, and the New West's Cowboys, both of which are, frankly, terrifying opponents to deal with if they have a gun in their hands. Gun-Fu tops even them by adding half a dozen or more kung-fu styles on top of that. They literally can dodge bullets. Railgun launched bullets. Top tier users can dodge particle beams.
Then there's also the 'normal' kung-fu guys that survived on the surface, which can vary from stuff as mild as a 'true' Drunken Master, to a weapons master straight out of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's multi-weapon catfight, all the way up to someone that uses the eight-fold trigram patterns to create a 8-10ft circle of power that is effectively a pocket universe, in which the creator literally is, The Creator, in the fullest biblical sense of the term, and all that that implies (and once the thing is fully active, you can't see it until you're already inside it). If you want to try to top that, there are Kung-Fu Pandas as well. No, really. Its where someone gets so in tune with nature that they physically merge with their animal totem (Tiger, Crane, Rabbit, Panda, Dog, Mantis, etc, etc) to become something akin to a Furry. A very, very, very lethally proficient HtH expert Furry.
China is literally so saturated in ISP & PPE that upon leaving the 'Mists' surrounding it's borders (created by the demonic Yama Kings) that their ISP/PPE practitioners literally lose almost half their powers. In a reversal, anyone that uses ISP or PPE from outside, that enters, gets one hell of a boost, if not quite all the subtle enhancements that a born/raised Chinese being (remember, D-Bees are there too) gets.
-=-
Although there's also Psyscape, which is just about the only group that can match some of the stuff in China, and even then only via judicious usage of Psionics to a degree that would utterly Freak, with a capital F, the Coalition, if the Coalition could actually find out enough about Psyscape's population to know what/who they occasionally run into. Especially as Psyscape is parked right next to the Coalition State of Lone Star iirc.
-=-
Also Japan kind of got skipped over.
Its by no means 'mecha, ninja, magical girls, pick two on anyday but sunday, and then pick all three'. Around Hiroshima and Nagasaki (along with one city on an island), the population there literally arrived the minute the Cataclysm happened. Nobody has a clue as to how, but most theories is that it was the combined kami of the deceased from the two atomic bombs that saved them, and punched them forwards in time. As far as the population know it, one minute it was 2099-ish, then two days of being stuck in a purple limbo, and then it's 2399 and these 'aliens' are attacking out of the blue and the rest of the islands have gone wacko. While it's not outright said, these cities, now calling themselves the Republic of Japan, are basically Palladium Book's urban setting for a mirror version of Shadowrun. Also, Glitter Boys. Lots and lots and LOTS of Glitter Boys. Only Free Quebec even comes close (or the Glitter Legion over in the Three Galaxies, but that's beyond this post's scope). Additionally, their cyborgs come perilously close to matching what has come out of the Warlords of Russia camps, if all looking very close to human, and are seen as self-sacrificing protectors to be regarded with extreme respect for what they gave up (protip: you literally can make a Bubblegum Crisis Combat Boomer via just the short list of bionics in Rifts Japan alone, prior to the psychotic smorgasbord of bionics that Rifts Warlords of Russia produced, or the gleeful insanity that was the Rifts Bionics Sourcebook).
Everywhere else, it's pretty much pre-Meiji era with an Emperor in Kyoto (along with the planet's largest, and most well guarded/protected/loved Millenium Tree nearly the size of Mt Everest) and a Shogun. This New Empire is much like the classic samurai era, if a bit romantized. One major point is that they absolutely refuse to use modern technology. Most in the New Empire firmly (if not fanatically, thankfully) believe that it was the mis-use of technology that caused the Great Cataclysm. On the good side of things, both the Republic and New Empire are very firm friends, if not allies (yet), as the New Empire sees the Republic as wayward ancestors (to be venerated!) needed to be shown the folly of their mistakes, while the Republic sees them as backward cousins who need to be helped into the shiny/techy future.
That and the New Empire is the only group on Rifts Earth, outside of the Splurgorth, that know how to make Rune Weapons - a blade/spear/shield/dagger/bow/etc that, as part of it's forging, requires the imprisonment of a soul (human or otherwise) inside the blade, which makes it effectively indestructible. Rift's staff members have stated that you could throw a true rune weapon into a black hole, and it'd be just fine (if however, completely beyond reach of anyone). Japanese swordsmiths use condemned criminals who willingly allow themselves to be beheaded and merged to the new blade to find penance (and usually, they do, and how!). The Splurgorth over at Atlantis (and everywhere else in the cosmos) on the other hand, will grab any old thing off the streets that has a pulse, and force them into becoming one (and then to top it off, generally curse the new items something fierce, simply for the Lulz). Rune Weapons are pretty much the most broken things in all of Rifts, no matter the setting. Want to make Mournbringer? It's been done. Want 'The Blade' from Krull? You can find something similar. Want Delflinger from ZnT? Yup. A Singing Sword? That too. Something that can pull off a Bleach style Zanpakuto? There are signs that someone on Palladium watched it, if you read between the lines in later sourcebooks....
*coughs* Back on topic, and back to Japan.
The reason the New Empire generally allows this, beyond mirroring pre-Commodore Perry practices, is that they have an Oni problem even worse then the Brodkil/Gargoyle problem that the NGR faced. So the New Empire needed a way for their medieval era samurai to effectively fight them, and so they took the katana (occasionally Naginata spears) forging to it's ultimate extent, combined with mystical rituals, just in order to break even. Republic at least has the outright firepower to cause a stalemate, but not quite enough to push the Oni back. Now if both sides would stop arguing (and politely proselytizing back and forth), and just ally already, they'd be able to clean out the islands in under a decade and likely become the major superpower in Asia and the Pacific (outside of two other forces).
But then there's three 'small' problems. A a breakaway rogue New Empire shogunate near the ruins of Tokyo that uses both tech samurai & mystical samurai while acting much like a mini-version of the Coalition states - but now with an inferiority complex on top of the megalomania, but are actually (insanely) willing to arm the Oni with modern weapons. Another breakaway group, this time from the Republic, that are dead set on bringing Japan into the 25th century come heaven or hellfire and hates the medieval/mystic stuff, while also viewing the Republic as too wishy-washy/weak to do 'what's needed'. And finally a 'plucky' mini-nation on Kyushu that is something of a merger of both the Republic & New Empire's better ideals but is like a rebellious 13yr old in the presence of two overprotective parents and won't slow down/moderate itself even though it's on a collision course with the Oni hordes and both of the other rogue powers.
Also, for instant awesome, just add Ninja/Mystic Ninja/Tech Ninja/Ninja Juicer/Ninja Crazy/Ninja Cyborg...
And then there's Lemuria, and the Lord of the Deep, just off it's eastern coast.....
That and they know Gun-Fu. John Woo, The Matrix, Equilibrium, Max Payne, and/or Salvador the Gunzerker would, frankly, be downright humbled by some of the wild stuff the Gun-Fu Hidden 'Enlightened' Communists can pull off. There are only two other classes of firearms users in Rifts that can even come close to the skillset the Gun-Fu users have, which are the Russian Cossacks, and the New West's Cowboys, both of which are, frankly, terrifying opponents to deal with if they have a gun in their hands. Gun-Fu tops even them by adding half a dozen or more kung-fu styles on top of that. They literally can dodge bullets. Railgun launched bullets. Top tier users can dodge particle beams.
Then there's also the 'normal' kung-fu guys that survived on the surface, which can vary from stuff as mild as a 'true' Drunken Master, to a weapons master straight out of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's multi-weapon catfight, all the way up to someone that uses the eight-fold trigram patterns to create a 8-10ft circle of power that is effectively a pocket universe, in which the creator literally is, The Creator, in the fullest biblical sense of the term, and all that that implies (and once the thing is fully active, you can't see it until you're already inside it). If you want to try to top that, there are Kung-Fu Pandas as well. No, really. Its where someone gets so in tune with nature that they physically merge with their animal totem (Tiger, Crane, Rabbit, Panda, Dog, Mantis, etc, etc) to become something akin to a Furry. A very, very, very lethally proficient HtH expert Furry.
China is literally so saturated in ISP & PPE that upon leaving the 'Mists' surrounding it's borders (created by the demonic Yama Kings) that their ISP/PPE practitioners literally lose almost half their powers. In a reversal, anyone that uses ISP or PPE from outside, that enters, gets one hell of a boost, if not quite all the subtle enhancements that a born/raised Chinese being (remember, D-Bees are there too) gets.
-=-
Although there's also Psyscape, which is just about the only group that can match some of the stuff in China, and even then only via judicious usage of Psionics to a degree that would utterly Freak, with a capital F, the Coalition, if the Coalition could actually find out enough about Psyscape's population to know what/who they occasionally run into. Especially as Psyscape is parked right next to the Coalition State of Lone Star iirc.
-=-
Also Japan kind of got skipped over.
Its by no means 'mecha, ninja, magical girls, pick two on anyday but sunday, and then pick all three'. Around Hiroshima and Nagasaki (along with one city on an island), the population there literally arrived the minute the Cataclysm happened. Nobody has a clue as to how, but most theories is that it was the combined kami of the deceased from the two atomic bombs that saved them, and punched them forwards in time. As far as the population know it, one minute it was 2099-ish, then two days of being stuck in a purple limbo, and then it's 2399 and these 'aliens' are attacking out of the blue and the rest of the islands have gone wacko. While it's not outright said, these cities, now calling themselves the Republic of Japan, are basically Palladium Book's urban setting for a mirror version of Shadowrun. Also, Glitter Boys. Lots and lots and LOTS of Glitter Boys. Only Free Quebec even comes close (or the Glitter Legion over in the Three Galaxies, but that's beyond this post's scope). Additionally, their cyborgs come perilously close to matching what has come out of the Warlords of Russia camps, if all looking very close to human, and are seen as self-sacrificing protectors to be regarded with extreme respect for what they gave up (protip: you literally can make a Bubblegum Crisis Combat Boomer via just the short list of bionics in Rifts Japan alone, prior to the psychotic smorgasbord of bionics that Rifts Warlords of Russia produced, or the gleeful insanity that was the Rifts Bionics Sourcebook).
Everywhere else, it's pretty much pre-Meiji era with an Emperor in Kyoto (along with the planet's largest, and most well guarded/protected/loved Millenium Tree nearly the size of Mt Everest) and a Shogun. This New Empire is much like the classic samurai era, if a bit romantized. One major point is that they absolutely refuse to use modern technology. Most in the New Empire firmly (if not fanatically, thankfully) believe that it was the mis-use of technology that caused the Great Cataclysm. On the good side of things, both the Republic and New Empire are very firm friends, if not allies (yet), as the New Empire sees the Republic as wayward ancestors (to be venerated!) needed to be shown the folly of their mistakes, while the Republic sees them as backward cousins who need to be helped into the shiny/techy future.
That and the New Empire is the only group on Rifts Earth, outside of the Splurgorth, that know how to make Rune Weapons - a blade/spear/shield/dagger/bow/etc that, as part of it's forging, requires the imprisonment of a soul (human or otherwise) inside the blade, which makes it effectively indestructible. Rift's staff members have stated that you could throw a true rune weapon into a black hole, and it'd be just fine (if however, completely beyond reach of anyone). Japanese swordsmiths use condemned criminals who willingly allow themselves to be beheaded and merged to the new blade to find penance (and usually, they do, and how!). The Splurgorth over at Atlantis (and everywhere else in the cosmos) on the other hand, will grab any old thing off the streets that has a pulse, and force them into becoming one (and then to top it off, generally curse the new items something fierce, simply for the Lulz). Rune Weapons are pretty much the most broken things in all of Rifts, no matter the setting. Want to make Mournbringer? It's been done. Want 'The Blade' from Krull? You can find something similar. Want Delflinger from ZnT? Yup. A Singing Sword? That too. Something that can pull off a Bleach style Zanpakuto? There are signs that someone on Palladium watched it, if you read between the lines in later sourcebooks....
*coughs* Back on topic, and back to Japan.
The reason the New Empire generally allows this, beyond mirroring pre-Commodore Perry practices, is that they have an Oni problem even worse then the Brodkil/Gargoyle problem that the NGR faced. So the New Empire needed a way for their medieval era samurai to effectively fight them, and so they took the katana (occasionally Naginata spears) forging to it's ultimate extent, combined with mystical rituals, just in order to break even. Republic at least has the outright firepower to cause a stalemate, but not quite enough to push the Oni back. Now if both sides would stop arguing (and politely proselytizing back and forth), and just ally already, they'd be able to clean out the islands in under a decade and likely become the major superpower in Asia and the Pacific (outside of two other forces).
But then there's three 'small' problems. A a breakaway rogue New Empire shogunate near the ruins of Tokyo that uses both tech samurai & mystical samurai while acting much like a mini-version of the Coalition states - but now with an inferiority complex on top of the megalomania, but are actually (insanely) willing to arm the Oni with modern weapons. Another breakaway group, this time from the Republic, that are dead set on bringing Japan into the 25th century come heaven or hellfire and hates the medieval/mystic stuff, while also viewing the Republic as too wishy-washy/weak to do 'what's needed'. And finally a 'plucky' mini-nation on Kyushu that is something of a merger of both the Republic & New Empire's better ideals but is like a rebellious 13yr old in the presence of two overprotective parents and won't slow down/moderate itself even though it's on a collision course with the Oni hordes and both of the other rogue powers.
Also, for instant awesome, just add Ninja/Mystic Ninja/Tech Ninja/Ninja Juicer/Ninja Crazy/Ninja Cyborg...
And then there's Lemuria, and the Lord of the Deep, just off it's eastern coast.....
Macross Daedalus Attack: Because nothing says "Frak You" like punching them in the face with an aircraft carrier.
Macross Frontier Version: Unless you use 2 aircraft carriers.
☟ Named after a g/f! Sheesh, stop asking. ☟
Macross Frontier Version: Unless you use 2 aircraft carriers.
☟ Named after a g/f! Sheesh, stop asking. ☟
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Ahriman238
- Sith Marauder
- Posts: 4854
- Joined: 2011-04-22 11:04pm
- Location: Ocularis Terribus.
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Ley Line Walker
Probably the first thing you thought of when I mentioned I was doing magic. Ley Line Walkers study magic extensively for years, while living on a Ley Line to improve their PPE levels. The end result is a powerful caster with a deep connection to ley lines.
The Ley Line Walker can draw twice as much PPE from a line/nexus as other mages. Look back at the description for that process, and double every number. When a LLW comes into contact with a line, he can sense how long it is, what direction it runs in, if there are any Rifts or natural disasters ongoing at any point on the line. LLW can actually see magic, recognize magical people and artifacts, and sense a Rift opening within 50 miles. They can also heal twice as fast when on a line, and once a day do a very rapid self-healing.
More, a LLW can send messages using a line (Ley Line Transmission) as a class feature with no PPE cost. They can also teleport to any point along a line, though it takes 15-60 seconds of concentration. Further, they can float through the air up to the line's height (0.5-3 miles) albeit at no faster than a brisk walk, but it costs no energy or effort whatsoever. Better, people still never look up.
Ley Line Walkers can create a Ley Line Forciefield, basically Armor of Ithan, for a small amount of PPE and it will last as long as they're in contact with a line. They can create a soccer-ball sized orb of blue light they can see through and send flying up and down a line for recon.
Ley Line Walkers have a special affinity for magic relating to the Lines and Rifts, though many never really develop it that much, they can cast a number of such spells that aren't on the standard list. LLWs are master casters and start with 12 spells, 3 from each of the first 4 levels. They get one free spell per level, and have to beg, buy or steal any further spells they want.
The silly headgear is sadly optional.
Walkers tend to be well-educated and open minded, far more so than most casters.
There's a variant on the Walker, a Ley Line Rifter, who is basically a Walker who chooses to specialize more in Rift/Line type magic. Same as above but with some rather different spell selections, and they can hitch a ride aboard any teleport/portal spell.
Techno-Wizard
Then there are those who have learned to combine magic and technology. With gemstones to hold the spells and a few runes scribed here and there any mundane machine can be made to run off PPE/ISP, instead of electricity or fossil fuels. But why stop there?
Take a car, for instance. A Techno-Wizard can easily convert it to run on magic, but then he'll add super-strength to double the horsepower, a low-powered Carpet of Adhesion on the tires gives you incredibly traction, a simple lever to turn the Carpet up to full gives you a very solid emergency brake. Then he'll buttons that activate Chameleon, Fly, or Armor of Ithan and by now even Q is saying "a bit much?" But that's how Techno-Wizards roll, zany inventors who laugh at physics and whose powers are limited only by the GM.
Since TW devices run on PPE/ISP, people who aren't mages or psychics cannot use them, with a few rare exceptions.
Techno-Wizards have a pitiful store of ISP and the following powers; Speed Reading, Total Recall, Read Object, Mind Block, Telemechanics and Machine Ghost. Techno-Wizards do not learn any new powers as they advance, but as minor psychics do get decent saves against psychic attack.
Techno-Wizards start with the following spells and rarely learn more; Armor of Ithan, Blinding Flash, Breathe Without Air, Call Lightning, Cloak of Darkness, Deflect, Electric Arc, Energy Bolt, Energy Field, Fireball, Firebolt, Fuel Flame, Fly, Forcebonds, Globe of Daylight, Ignite Fire, Impervious to Energy/Fire, Magic Net, Magic Field, Sense Magic, See Invisible, Shadow Meld, Superhuman Strength, and Telekinesis.
Techno-Wizards can't cast spells without a mechanical prop to focus their powers, like shooting a firebolt from a water pistol or creating a magic shield with an egg-timer. They can be practical devices too, and aren't damaged or altered in anyway. Mostly though, those are the spells they can place permanently on things, maybe with an on/off switch.
Every bit of Techno-Wizardry is a negotiation between player and GM as to what can and can't be done, at what cost, and with what misfires or unintended effects. But simple things like, say, a goofy pair of goggle that give one Eyes of the Wolf and Eyes of Thoth will generally always work out.
Probably the first thing you thought of when I mentioned I was doing magic. Ley Line Walkers study magic extensively for years, while living on a Ley Line to improve their PPE levels. The end result is a powerful caster with a deep connection to ley lines.
The Ley Line Walker can draw twice as much PPE from a line/nexus as other mages. Look back at the description for that process, and double every number. When a LLW comes into contact with a line, he can sense how long it is, what direction it runs in, if there are any Rifts or natural disasters ongoing at any point on the line. LLW can actually see magic, recognize magical people and artifacts, and sense a Rift opening within 50 miles. They can also heal twice as fast when on a line, and once a day do a very rapid self-healing.
More, a LLW can send messages using a line (Ley Line Transmission) as a class feature with no PPE cost. They can also teleport to any point along a line, though it takes 15-60 seconds of concentration. Further, they can float through the air up to the line's height (0.5-3 miles) albeit at no faster than a brisk walk, but it costs no energy or effort whatsoever. Better, people still never look up.
Ley Line Walkers can create a Ley Line Forciefield, basically Armor of Ithan, for a small amount of PPE and it will last as long as they're in contact with a line. They can create a soccer-ball sized orb of blue light they can see through and send flying up and down a line for recon.
Ley Line Walkers have a special affinity for magic relating to the Lines and Rifts, though many never really develop it that much, they can cast a number of such spells that aren't on the standard list. LLWs are master casters and start with 12 spells, 3 from each of the first 4 levels. They get one free spell per level, and have to beg, buy or steal any further spells they want.
The silly headgear is sadly optional.
Walkers tend to be well-educated and open minded, far more so than most casters.
There's a variant on the Walker, a Ley Line Rifter, who is basically a Walker who chooses to specialize more in Rift/Line type magic. Same as above but with some rather different spell selections, and they can hitch a ride aboard any teleport/portal spell.
Techno-Wizard
Then there are those who have learned to combine magic and technology. With gemstones to hold the spells and a few runes scribed here and there any mundane machine can be made to run off PPE/ISP, instead of electricity or fossil fuels. But why stop there?
Take a car, for instance. A Techno-Wizard can easily convert it to run on magic, but then he'll add super-strength to double the horsepower, a low-powered Carpet of Adhesion on the tires gives you incredibly traction, a simple lever to turn the Carpet up to full gives you a very solid emergency brake. Then he'll buttons that activate Chameleon, Fly, or Armor of Ithan and by now even Q is saying "a bit much?" But that's how Techno-Wizards roll, zany inventors who laugh at physics and whose powers are limited only by the GM.
Since TW devices run on PPE/ISP, people who aren't mages or psychics cannot use them, with a few rare exceptions.
Techno-Wizards have a pitiful store of ISP and the following powers; Speed Reading, Total Recall, Read Object, Mind Block, Telemechanics and Machine Ghost. Techno-Wizards do not learn any new powers as they advance, but as minor psychics do get decent saves against psychic attack.
Techno-Wizards start with the following spells and rarely learn more; Armor of Ithan, Blinding Flash, Breathe Without Air, Call Lightning, Cloak of Darkness, Deflect, Electric Arc, Energy Bolt, Energy Field, Fireball, Firebolt, Fuel Flame, Fly, Forcebonds, Globe of Daylight, Ignite Fire, Impervious to Energy/Fire, Magic Net, Magic Field, Sense Magic, See Invisible, Shadow Meld, Superhuman Strength, and Telekinesis.
Techno-Wizards can't cast spells without a mechanical prop to focus their powers, like shooting a firebolt from a water pistol or creating a magic shield with an egg-timer. They can be practical devices too, and aren't damaged or altered in anyway. Mostly though, those are the spells they can place permanently on things, maybe with an on/off switch.
Every bit of Techno-Wizardry is a negotiation between player and GM as to what can and can't be done, at what cost, and with what misfires or unintended effects. But simple things like, say, a goofy pair of goggle that give one Eyes of the Wolf and Eyes of Thoth will generally always work out.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
One thing I liked was the way Vampires are basically mindless vessels of Lovecraftian horrors, and while they aren't "strong" when compared to other supernatural beings they're still very tough. Once you're done with the classes and the other NEMA powers I'd love to see your synopsis on the Mexican Vampire Kingdoms.
Also, this is making me hunger for an over the top Rifts campaign. Any aspiring GMs here?
Also, this is making me hunger for an over the top Rifts campaign. Any aspiring GMs here?
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Ahriman238
- Sith Marauder
- Posts: 4854
- Joined: 2011-04-22 11:04pm
- Location: Ocularis Terribus.
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Well, I said we'd get to my favored racial class, and the time has arrived! Don't mess with-
Goddamn Dragons
For you are crunchy and oh so flammable.
Okay, technically you play as a dragon hatchling, no more than 8 weeks old, because an adult dragon would be too broken even for RIFTS. Plus, there's just something to playing a character with all the confidence of a teen, the naviete of a small child, and the terrifying power of a dragon.
Dragon eggs are abandoned by their parents shortly before or after hatching. Dragons are so territorial, you see, that they can hardly stand to spend time with any dragon but a mate, even their own progeny. In fact, if a young dragon ever meets his father, they will most assuredly become mortal enemies.
Anyway, as creatures of magic, dragons have a sort of genetic memory and pop out of the eggshell already fluent/literate in 2 languages (Draconic and Elvish) with high school level math skills, and an intuitive understanding of the theory and underlying principles of magic, plus two or three more skills the mother felt were important. They also don't need to eat or drink, but can do so for pleasure, and grow to 80% their adult size within the first 3 months.
All RIFTS dragons can use lesser teleport (self only, 5 mi range) at will, and Metamorphosis to appear as a human or animal (hard to be sneaky otherwise) flight and a breath weapon. Most can super-regenerate, shadow meld or invisible, and are resistant to fire/cold. Dragons have exceptional night vision always-active see invisible, and can sense ley lines and Rifts within 20 miles. All dragons are mages born with a great understanding of magic, but dragon hatchlings can't actually cast spells until 2nd level. At 3rd and 5th they gain 4-10 spells, then 3 spells per level after 5th. All dragons are psychic to a degree, whether master psychics that leave humanity in the dust or minor psychics with a few party tricks depends on the species of dragon.
Oh, yeah. There are several different species of dragon, scattered across the books. Right now I'll just get into the specifics of the ones from the Main UE sourcebook.
Cats-Eye Dragon:
A dragon with cat-like eyes, coloration, and behavior.
Breath Weapon- fire. Psychic- minor (6-10 powers.) Special- Cats-Eye Gaze, magical hypnosis.
Flame Wind Dragon:
A dragon in fiery hues that likes to burn things. Even itself.
Breath Weapon-fire. Psychic- minor (6-10 powers) Special- Flaming Scales, dragon impersonates the Human Torch.
Forest Runner Dragon
Small dragon finds it easier to glide than fly. Chameleon scales blend into forest.
Breath Weapon- poison gas. Psychic- major (10-16 powers) Special- Chameleon Scales, blends in whenever still
Royal Frilled Dragon
Most powerful dragon psychic. Varied scale colors, purple frills about the head and along the back.
Breath Weapon- paralyzing gas. Psychic- master (14-33 powers) Special- none.
Snow Lizard Dragon
White, sometimes light blue or grey. No wings, cannot fly. Loves playing in the snow.
Breath Weapon- Ice. Psychic- minor (6-10 powers) Special- Transform into Blizzard
Whip-Tailed Dragon
Aquatic dragon, Somewhere between a finned dragon and a sea serpent. No wings, flies magically.
Breath Weapon- Fire. Psychic- major (10-16 powers) Special- Born Swimmer, live underwater indefinitely (to 2 mi depth) turn invisible underwater or in rain.
And there are many other dragon types besides. Dragons reach maturity at 600 years (to discourage players from claiming that much time has passed) and become far more insanely powerful. Adult dragons can also use dimensional teleport at will to visit other worlds/planes, but will usually settle in one 50 mi (80 km) across territory for 20-80 years before moving on.
Now why would you ever play as a small fragile mammal?
Goddamn Dragons
For you are crunchy and oh so flammable.
Okay, technically you play as a dragon hatchling, no more than 8 weeks old, because an adult dragon would be too broken even for RIFTS. Plus, there's just something to playing a character with all the confidence of a teen, the naviete of a small child, and the terrifying power of a dragon.
Dragon eggs are abandoned by their parents shortly before or after hatching. Dragons are so territorial, you see, that they can hardly stand to spend time with any dragon but a mate, even their own progeny. In fact, if a young dragon ever meets his father, they will most assuredly become mortal enemies.
Anyway, as creatures of magic, dragons have a sort of genetic memory and pop out of the eggshell already fluent/literate in 2 languages (Draconic and Elvish) with high school level math skills, and an intuitive understanding of the theory and underlying principles of magic, plus two or three more skills the mother felt were important. They also don't need to eat or drink, but can do so for pleasure, and grow to 80% their adult size within the first 3 months.
All RIFTS dragons can use lesser teleport (self only, 5 mi range) at will, and Metamorphosis to appear as a human or animal (hard to be sneaky otherwise) flight and a breath weapon. Most can super-regenerate, shadow meld or invisible, and are resistant to fire/cold. Dragons have exceptional night vision always-active see invisible, and can sense ley lines and Rifts within 20 miles. All dragons are mages born with a great understanding of magic, but dragon hatchlings can't actually cast spells until 2nd level. At 3rd and 5th they gain 4-10 spells, then 3 spells per level after 5th. All dragons are psychic to a degree, whether master psychics that leave humanity in the dust or minor psychics with a few party tricks depends on the species of dragon.
Oh, yeah. There are several different species of dragon, scattered across the books. Right now I'll just get into the specifics of the ones from the Main UE sourcebook.
Cats-Eye Dragon:
A dragon with cat-like eyes, coloration, and behavior.
Breath Weapon- fire. Psychic- minor (6-10 powers.) Special- Cats-Eye Gaze, magical hypnosis.
Flame Wind Dragon:
A dragon in fiery hues that likes to burn things. Even itself.
Breath Weapon-fire. Psychic- minor (6-10 powers) Special- Flaming Scales, dragon impersonates the Human Torch.
Forest Runner Dragon
Small dragon finds it easier to glide than fly. Chameleon scales blend into forest.
Breath Weapon- poison gas. Psychic- major (10-16 powers) Special- Chameleon Scales, blends in whenever still
Royal Frilled Dragon
Most powerful dragon psychic. Varied scale colors, purple frills about the head and along the back.
Breath Weapon- paralyzing gas. Psychic- master (14-33 powers) Special- none.
Snow Lizard Dragon
White, sometimes light blue or grey. No wings, cannot fly. Loves playing in the snow.
Breath Weapon- Ice. Psychic- minor (6-10 powers) Special- Transform into Blizzard
Whip-Tailed Dragon
Aquatic dragon, Somewhere between a finned dragon and a sea serpent. No wings, flies magically.
Breath Weapon- Fire. Psychic- major (10-16 powers) Special- Born Swimmer, live underwater indefinitely (to 2 mi depth) turn invisible underwater or in rain.
And there are many other dragon types besides. Dragons reach maturity at 600 years (to discourage players from claiming that much time has passed) and become far more insanely powerful. Adult dragons can also use dimensional teleport at will to visit other worlds/planes, but will usually settle in one 50 mi (80 km) across territory for 20-80 years before moving on.
Now why would you ever play as a small fragile mammal?
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud
-
Ahriman238
- Sith Marauder
- Posts: 4854
- Joined: 2011-04-22 11:04pm
- Location: Ocularis Terribus.
Re: Bit of Analysis: Rifts
Dragon Juicer
Not a Dragon who becomes a Juicer, that process is still limited to humanoids (mostly) rather the product of a techno-wizard named Regius who experimented with dragon's blood to try and confirm or deny it's legendary powers. Well, dragon blood won't make you invulnerable, or let you speak the language of birds. Most of the time it will simply kill you.
But if you add a bit of dragon blood to a Juicer's chemical feeds, he becomes far stronger and more resilient, gaining the dragon's nightvision and see invisibility on top of normal Juicer prowess. The downside is this application of dragon blood is extremely addictive, they will die if they go a week without it, and since dragons so rarely part willingly with their blood, well, to survive they must become avid dragon-hunters.
One other, important difference. There is a way for a Dragon Juicer to extend his life for 6-30 months, with a special drug made from the blood of an ancient dragon.
The whole thing is a techno-wizardry version of Juicer conversion, so the CS won't touch it. Nor will anyone who respects and loves dragons, like the Splugorth or Lazlo. Dragons will generally attack dragon Juicers on sight, though there are persistent rumors of dragons who keep Dragon Juicers as bodyguards.
Not a Dragon who becomes a Juicer, that process is still limited to humanoids (mostly) rather the product of a techno-wizard named Regius who experimented with dragon's blood to try and confirm or deny it's legendary powers. Well, dragon blood won't make you invulnerable, or let you speak the language of birds. Most of the time it will simply kill you.
But if you add a bit of dragon blood to a Juicer's chemical feeds, he becomes far stronger and more resilient, gaining the dragon's nightvision and see invisibility on top of normal Juicer prowess. The downside is this application of dragon blood is extremely addictive, they will die if they go a week without it, and since dragons so rarely part willingly with their blood, well, to survive they must become avid dragon-hunters.
One other, important difference. There is a way for a Dragon Juicer to extend his life for 6-30 months, with a special drug made from the blood of an ancient dragon.
The whole thing is a techno-wizardry version of Juicer conversion, so the CS won't touch it. Nor will anyone who respects and loves dragons, like the Splugorth or Lazlo. Dragons will generally attack dragon Juicers on sight, though there are persistent rumors of dragons who keep Dragon Juicers as bodyguards.
"Any plan which requires the direct intervention of any deity to work can be assumed to be a very poor one."- Newbiespud