Warning! Violence and the Supernatural The fictional worlds of ® are violent, deadly and filled with supernatural monsters. Other-dimensional beings, often referred to as “demons,” torment, stalk and prey on humans. Other alien life forms, monsters, gods and demigods, as well as magic, insanity, and war are all elements in these books. Some parents may find the violence, magic and supernatural elements of the games inappropriate for young readers/players. We suggest parental discretion. Please note that none of us at Palladium Books® condone or encourage the occult, the practice of magic, the use of drugs, or violence.

Sample file ® Number 66 Your Guide to the Palladium Megaverse®!

1 PDF Edition – February 2016

First Printing – May 2014

Copyright 2014 Palladium Books® Inc.

All rights reserved, world wide, under the Universal Copyright Convention. No part of this book may be reproduced in part or whole, in any form or by any means, without permission from the publisher, except for brief quotes for use in reviews. All incidents, situations, institutions, governments and people are fictional and any similarity, without satiric intent, of characters or persons living or dead, is strictly coincidental.

Robotech® and ® The Shadow Chronicles® are Registered Trademarks of Harmony Gold USA, Inc.

Palladium Books®, Rifts®, The Rifter®, Chaos Earth®, Coalition Wars®, After the Bomb®, The Mechanoids®, The Mechanoid In- vasion®, Megaverse®, ®, Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game®, Phase World®, RECON®, and Splicers® are registered trademarks owned and licensed by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc. The slogan “A Megaverse of adventure – limited only by your imagination,” RPG Tactics, and titles and names such as Armaged- don Unlimited, Aliens Unlimited, Arzno, Atorian Empire, ARCHIE-3, Beyond Arcanum, , BTS-2, Brod- kil, Biomancy, Biomancer, Bio-Wizardry, ‘Burbs, ‘Borg, ‘Bot, , Dimensional Outbreak, Dinosaur Swamp, Dyval, Elf- Dwarf War, , I.S.P., Land of the Damned, Lazlo, Victor Lazlo, Lazlo Agency, Lazlo Society, Palladium of Desires, C.A.M.E.L.O.T., Chi-Town, CS, Coalition States, Cosmo-Knight, Crazy, Cyber-Knight, D-Bee, Dark Day, Dead Boy, Doc Reid, Dog Boy, Dog Pack, Dweomer, Emperor Prosek, Erin Tarn, Fadetown, Free Quebec, Gadgets Unlimited, Gargoyle Empire, Glitter Boy, Gramercy Island, Hardware Unlimited, Heroes of the Megaverse, Heroes Unlimited, HU2, Juicer, Ley Line Walker, M.D.C., Mecha- noid Space, Mega-Damage, Mega-Hero, Megaversal, MercTown, Minion War, Morphus, Mutant Underground, Mysteries of Magic, Merc Ops, Naruni, Naruni Enterprises, NEMA, Ninjas & Superspies, NGR, Northern Gun, The Nursery, P.P.E., Powers Unlimited, Psi- Stalker, Psyscape, SAMAS, S.D.C., Shifter, Siege on Tolkeen, Skelebot, Skraypers, Sorcerer’s Forge, Splugorth, Splynncryth, Splynn, Techno-Wizard, Temporal Magic, Temporal Wizard, Three Galaxies, Tome Grotesque, Triax, Vampire Kingdoms, Warpath: Urban Jungle, Void Runners, Wilk’s, Wolfen, Wolfen Wars, Wormwood, Wulfen, Xiticix, and other names, titles, slogans, and the likenesses of characters are trademarks owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc.

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The Rifter® #66 RPG sourcebook series is published by Palladium Books Inc., 39074 Webb Court, Westland, MI 48185. Printed in the USA by McNaughton & Gunn of Saline, Michigan.

2 Palladium Books® Presents: #66

Sourcebook and Guide to the Palladium Megaverse®

Coordinator & Editor in Chief: Wayne Smith

Editor: Alex Marciniszyn

Contributing Writers: Braden Campbell Brett Caron Glen Evans Max Kautsch Kevin Siembieda Edward Sauerland

Proofreader: Julius Rosenstein

Cover Illustration: Amy L. Ashbaugh

Interior Artists: Allen Manning Brian Manning Michael Mumah Tanya J. Ramsey Benjamin Rodriguez Charles Walton

Cover Logo Design: Steve Edwards

Credits Page Logo: Niklas Brandt

Typesetting & Layout: Wayne Smith

Art Direction: Kevin Siembieda Based on the RPG rules, characters, conceptsSample and Megaverse® created by Kevin Siembieda. file Special Thanks to all our contributors, writers and artists this issue, especially new contributors. Our apologies to anybody who may have gotten accidentally left out or their name misspelled. – Kevin Siembieda, 2014

3 Contents – The Rifter® #66 – Spring, 2014

Page 6 – From the Desk of Kevin Siembieda Page 22 – Jonah, the Sea Dragon Page 24 – Knifeskin, King of the Wasteland Publisher Kevin Siembieda talks about the challenges of cre- Page 25 – Nocturne ativity versus business, how Rifts® Northern Gun™ Two went Page 26 – Packrabbit from 160 pages to 256 pages, how he’s already fast at work on Page 27 – Stinger Moth Megaverse® in Flames (a June release), and that Robotech® Page 28 – Stonebacks RPG Tactics™ is moving ever closer to manufacturing (Summer Page 29 – Quick Roll Monsters release). He also talks about Palladium Books turning 33 years Page 32 – Behaviors Table old this year and how we could not have done it without you. Page 33 – Skill & Instincts Tables Page 7 – Palladium News Page 34 – Weapons & Defenses Tables Page 36 – Ranger O.C.C. All kinds of books are going into final production, and at least Page 38 – Vine Launcher five new titles (starting with NG-2) should be coming your way Page 39 – New Bio-Enhancement: Scent Glands before the end of summer. There is also news about Penguicon, Artwork by Charles Walton. where many fans were excited to see the prototype game pieces for Robotech® RPG Tactics™ as well as the rule book, and Page 39 – Bite of the Snake Men Kevin and the Palladium crew had an enjoyable time. In other – An adventure and villains for Heroes Unlimited™ news, the price of The Rifter® has gone up (but remains a steal), interest in Palladium Fantasy® increases, Gen Con Indy is com- Glen Evans gives us a Heroes Unlimited™ adventure with ing up fast, and you can already reserve rooms for the 2015 Pal- twists and turns, plus a new group of super-baddies with unique ladium Open House. Read all about it. powers and abilities. Page 39 – Eagle Knight Security (EKS) Page 8 – Coming Attractions Page 40 – EKS Player Characters Page 41 – Part One: The Interview New books are coming your way. You are holding the lat- Page 42 – Part Two: The Snake in a Jar est issue of The Rifter®, and by the time you see this, Rifts® Page 43 – Part Three: The Girl in the Ugly Car Northern Gun™ Two will have shipped and be hitting store Page 44 – Part Four: The Snake Hits the Fan shelves (it ships May 19), Rifts® Megaverse® in Flames™ Page 45 – Conclusion should be almost finished and heading to the printer, and Grave- Page 46 – The Snake Men yard Earth™, Chaos Earth® Sourcebook: Rise of Magic™, Page 46 – Coils Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines™ Sourcebook Page 47 – Scales One, and Robotech® RPG Tactics™ will all follow in the sum- Page 48 – Madam Venom mer months of June, July and August (plus a couple of surprises). Page 49 – Taipan We are also working hard to keep all our titles in print. Speaking Page 50 – Fangs of which, ® Trilogy is back in print Page 51 – Spit and the Special Anniversary Edition Hardcovers for Heroes Page 52 – Nagraj (the Snake Man) Unlimited™ (released in February) and The Palladium Fantasy Artwork by Tanya J. Ramsey. RPG® (released in April) are selling at a rapid pace; both have sold around half their print run, so if you want one, you had better Page 54 – Space Pirates order in the next few months before they are gone. – Optional source material Page 15 – Splicers®: The Bestiary for the Rifts® Phase World® setting – Optional Source Material for Splicers® Braden Campbell serves up a wealth of information about the Edward Sauerland has provided us with an array of 11 new space pirates of the Three Galaxies, their methods, their targets M.D.C. creatures, plus tables and rules for the random creation and even some of their spacecraft. of gene-spliced monstrosities and the Splicers® Ranger O.C.C. Page 56 – Raiding, Some Basic Considerations Page 58 – Private Navies Be prepared to up the ante of your Splicers® campaign with this fun selection of new material. Page 60 – Pirate Ships and Modifications Page 16 – Maxi Animals Page 60 – Overdrive Failure Chart Page 16 – Super Animals Page 61 – Skiff Page 17 – Giant Chickens Page 61 – Corister-Class Frigate Page 17 – Glutton Page 63 – Auntin Patrol Ship SamplePage 64 – Stonewall Cruiserfile Page 18 – Grave Robber Page 19 – Gut Ripper Page 66 – Other Weapons and Equipment Page 20 – Janus Eel Artwork by Mike Mumah.

4 Page 67 – Skipping Stones The Rifter® needs new material, especially when it comes to – A Rifts® short story adventures and source material, for all of our game lines, espe- cially Rifts®, Chaos Earth®, Palladium Fantasy RPG®, Heroes Brett Caron returns with a story of intrigue and travel, as the Unlimited™, Ninjas and Superspies™, Beyond the Supernatu- lead characters go from Lazlo to the Splynn Dimensional Mar- ral™, Dead Reign™, Splicers® and Nightbane®. ket on Atlantis. Can you smell them? The Minions of Splugorth? Pay is lousy, fame is dubious, but you get to share your ideas Enjoy. and adventures with fellow gamers and get four free copies to Artwork by Benjamin Rodriguez. show to your friends and family.

Page 80 – Rifts® Black Market Part 2: Rise to Power The Cover – Optional source material for Rifts® Every 2014 cover of The Rifter® will celebrate the 30th An- Maxwell Kautsch is back with part two of his look at the rise niversary of the Heroes Unlimited™ RPG. This cover depicts an to power within the cutthroat arena of the criminal Black Market. unlikely band of intrepid heroes off on an adventure that seems to This time, he also gives us a Black Market Town with notable be about to take an unexpected and dangerous turn. The artist is shops, places and people, plus a handful of Techno-Wizard con- the imaginative Amy L. Ashbaugh, who injected a nice touch of traband. All of it setting the stage for adventure and intrigue. humor and the exotic to this wonderful cover. Page 81 – Artesian Arms Co. (TW Weapons) Page 82 – Rogue’s Mall and Carnival Optional and Unofficial Rules & Source Material Page 82 – Notable Places Please note that most of the material presented in The Rifter® Page 83 – Wellesley Park is “unofficial” or “optional” rules and source material. Page 85 – Eel Bay Market District They are alternative ideas, homespun adventures and material Page 88 – Artesian Arms Industrial Park mostly created by fellow gamers and fans like you, the reader. Page 89 – Dockside Things one can elect to include in one’s own campaign or simply Page 91 – Gametown enjoy reading about. They are not “official” to the main games or Page 92 – St. Lawrence River world settings. Page 92 – Singer Notables As for optional tables and adventures, if they sound cool or Page 93 – Isabella Valkyrie fun, use them. If they sound funky, too high-powered or inap- Page 94 – Rembrandt propriate for your game, modify them or ignore them completely. Page 95 – Rockwell Westin All the material in The Rifter® has been included for two Page 95 – Hook, Line and Sinker™ Adventures reasons: One, because we thought it was imaginative and fun, Artwork by Allen and Brian Manning. and two, we thought it would stimulate your imagination with fun ideas and concepts that you can use (if you want to), or which The Theme for Issue 66 might inspire you to create your own wonders. The theme of The Rifter #66 is exotic people, places and the thinks they seek. In some cases, they are villains seeking wealth, www.palladiumbooks.com – Palladium Online power or revenge. In others, it is adventurers and heroes protect- ing the innocent and battling evil. We hope you enjoy following ® (or playing) their journeys. Please note that we are celebrating the The Rifter #67 30th Anniversary of Heroes Unlimited™ all year. That means The Rifter® #67 Summer issue will present a nice every 2014 issue of ® will contain something for it. The Rifter variety of new source material for Heroes Unlimited New Heroes Unlimited™ titles should be coming your way in 2014 and 2015. Fantasy, too. and other Palladium RPG settings. ! Cover by Michael Wilson. The Rifter® Needs You ! Source material for Rifts®. We need new writers and artists to fill the next few decades ! Source material for Heroes Unlimited™. of The Rifter®. You do not need to be a professional writer to ! Source material for other settings. contribute to The Rifter®. This publication is like a “fanzine,” ! News, coming attractions and much more. written by fans for fans. A forum in which gamers just like you can submit articles, G.M. advice, player tips, house rules, adven- ! And maybe YOUR submission. Send us some- tures, new magic, new psionics, new super abilities, monsters, thing and see if you get published. villains, high-tech weapons, vehicles, power armor, short works of fiction and more. So think about writing up something short Bringing you infinite possibilities, (even something as small as 4-6 pages). Newcomers and regular ™ contributorsSample are always welcome. limited only by yourfile imagination Celebrating 30 years of Heroes Unlimited™

5 From the Desk of Kevin Siembieda

Welcome to the spring issue of The Rifter®. I think you will Of course, the big release is Robotech® RPG Tactics™ continue to find a wealth of fun, new, source material to drop into Wave One and we can hardly wait until product ships. This new your games. This is another issue that is being released later than product line has not gone as quickly or smoothly as we had antici- is usual, but you won’t be disappointed. pated, but this is another product that is going to look fantastic and be a blast to play. As I write this, we have just returned from Pen- Creativity vs. Business guicon, where the prototype pieces and Robotech® RPG Tac- tics™ rule book met with rave reviews. People loved the game It can be tricky juggling the creative against the financial and pieces, applauded the quality and detail, and liked what they saw business aspects of any entertainment venture: books, games, as they skimmed through the rule book. Likewise, people who film, etc. Rifts® Northern Gun™ Two is one of those titles didn’t know about the Robotech® RPG Tactics™ game, and in where creativity overruled business. It has been super-sized – a few cases had never heard of Robotech®, were also impressed having gone from the original plan of 160 pages to a final prod- saying that they would have to look into the game after it was re- uct that is 256 pages – and is jam-packed with a lot of great art- leased. The gent at the booth right next to us told me that based on work and ideas galore. This expanding page count was entirely the traffic we saw and the number of positive comments, we had my fault. As the publisher, I have the luxury of expanding and a hit on our hands. It was all very nice to hear. Our thanks to the changing and delaying any book to make it everything it can (or Penguicon organizers for having us at their event and the people should) be. in attendance who made us feel so welcomed. Honestly, I probably should have capped it off and sent it to the printer a month or two earlier as a smaller book. However, I wanted Rifts® Northern Gun™ Two to be truly special for our Palladium Books Turns Thirty-Three Rifts® fans who had been waiting a long time already for this It doesn’t seem possible that so much time has passed, but Pal- book. One could argue that there was too much creative energy. ladium turns 33 years old this year. It has been quite a journey, You see, there were soooooo many ideas floating in my head and and we could not have done it without you. inspirational artwork being turned in by Chuck Walton, the Man- “Thank you” are two words that are not said often enough. ning brothers, and others, that I just couldn’t bring myself to stop. On behalf of all of us at Palladium Books, from the staff to our Meanwhile, there were ideas being offered by lead writer Mat- freelancers, I would like to thank you – our fellow gamers and thew Clements and freelance writers Carl Gleba and Carmen Bel- Megaversal travelers. laire, plus input from the guys at the office. All of which pushed To our long time fans, thank you for your years of support. To my already overactive imagination into overdrive. Add to that the new fans just discovering Palladium Books for the very first my desire to make Rifts® Northern Gun™ Two extra special time, thank you for your support and welcome to the Palladium precisely because it had been delayed, and I just couldn’t stop. Megaverse. That’s okay in the sense that sometimes a writer/creator needs You will all be glad to know that we have ideas for an infi- to give vent to his creative urges. Sometimes a product deserves nite number of new worlds and adventures yet to come. In fact, to be delayed and expanded and made truly epic. NG-1 and NG-2 not only are there dozens of ideas for new sourcebooks for old were two such books. And I think fans are going to love Rifts® and new settings, but ideas for exciting new games. So buckle up Northern Gun™ Two. and enjoy the ride. I think you are going to enjoy what we have On the down side, a delay of one book often delays other planned for you over the next several years. books. The delay of NG-2 does not impact Robotech® RPG I would also like to thank all of Palladium’s unsung heroes: Tactics™ because Wayne and Jeff are handling most things Ro- artists, writers, editors, proofreaders, order processors and help- botech® at this stage, and our design/manufacturing partners at ers. The people behind the scenes all help us get product out and Ninja Division are handling most aspects of mold making and keep us on our toes. manufacturing. As I said in the last issue of The Rifter®, 2014 is a year full of As you read this, I should be deep in Rifts® Megaverse® in promise and potential, fun and excitement. Not just for the Palla- Flames, maybe even close to done with it. Definitely a June re- dium staff, but for our role-playing family of gamers. A wealth of lease. Graveyard Earth™, a sourcebook for our zombie game, new products that are going to delight and surprise a lot of gamers Dead Reign™, follows it. Then the next issue of The Rifter® are coming your way. Thank you for believing in us and sharing and Robotech®: Expeditionary Force Marines Sourcebook. our dreams. With any luck, there are several more decades of fun We have a few other products and ideas rattling around, but let’s and adventure yet to come. wait to talkSample about them until they are further along. – Kevin Siembieda, file Publisher & Game Designer

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