Warning!

Violence and the Supernatural

The fictional worlds of Palladium Books® 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.

file
ple
m
Sa

The Rifter® Number 80

Your Guide to the Palladium Megaverse®!
1
 Dedication – To Julius Rosenstein – Palladium staffer, Game Master guru, writer and friend. Without Julius
there might not have been a Palladium Books. Thank you, my friend, for your many years of dedication to Pal-
ladium and for introducing me, and many others to the magic of role-playing. We all owe you a tremendous debt
of gratitude.
– Kevin Siembieda, 2018

file
First Printing – July, 2018

Copyright 2018 Palladium Books® Inc.

ple

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,
m

institutions, governments and people are fictional and any similarity, without satiric intent, of characters or persons living or dead, is
strictly coincidental.
Sa

Palladium Books®, Rifts®, The Rifter®, Chaos Earth®, Coalition Wars®, After the Bomb®, Dead Reign®, The Mechanoids®,
The Mechanoid Invasion®, Megaverse®, Nightbane®, Palladium Fantasy Role-Playing Game®, Phase World®, Powers Unlimited®,
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 Bizantium
and the Northern Islands, Armageddon Unlimited, Aliens Unlimited, Arzno, Atorian Empire, ARCHIE-3, Beyond Arcanum, Beyond
the Supernatural, BTS-2, Brodkil, Biomancy, Biomancer, Bio-Wizardry, ‘Burbs, ‘Borg, ‘Bot, Dimensional Outbreak, Dinosaur Swamp,
Dyval, Elf-Dwarf War, Heroes Unlimited, I.S.P., Land of the Damned, Lazlo, Victor Lazlo, Lazlo Agency, Lazlo Society, Palladium
of Desires, Chi-Town, CS, Coalition States, Cosmo-Knight, Crazy, Cyber-Knight, D-Bee, Dark Day, Dead Boy, Desert Judge, Desert
Rose, Doctor Feral, 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, House of Red Sands,
Juicer, Ley Line Walker, M.D.C., Mechanoid Space, Mega-Damage, Mega-Hero, Megaversal, MercTown, Minion War, Molok, Mor-
phus, Mutant Underground, Mysteries of Magic, Merc Ops, Naruni, Naruni Enterprises, NEMA, Ninjas & Superspies, NGR, Northern
Gun, Nova Hawk, The Nursery, P.P.E., Psi-Stalker, Psyscape, SAMAS, S.D.C., Shifter, Siege on Tolkeen, Skelebot, Skraypers, Sovi-
etski, Splugorth, Splynncryth, Splynn, Techno-Wizard, Temporal Magic, Temporal Wizard, Wayfarers, The Disavowed, Three Galax-
ies, Tome Grotesque, Triax, Vampire Kingdoms, Warpath: Urban Jungle, Void Runners, Wilk’s, Whispering Field, 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.

Palladium Online www.palladiumbooks.com

Also visit us at facebook.com/PalladiumBooks

The Rifter® #80 is part of an RPG sourcebook series 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:

#80
Sourcebook and Guide to the Palladium Megaverse®

Coordinator & Editor in Chief: Wayne Smith

Editors: Alex Marciniszyn
Kevin Siembieda
Charles Walton II
Contributing Writers:
Daniel Frederick
file
Julius Rosenstein
Kevin Siembieda
Megan Timperley
ple

Kris Tipping
Charles Walton II
m

Proofreader: Julius Rosenstein

Sa

Cover Illustration: Amy L. Ashbaugh

Interior Artists:
Amy L. Ashbaugh
Mark Dudley
Michael Mumah
Benjamin Rodriguez
Cover Logo Design: Steve Edwards
Credits Page Logo: Niklas Brandt
Typesetting & Layout: Wayne Smith
Art Direction: Kevin Siembieda
Based on the RPG rules, characters,
concepts and Megaverse® created by Kevin Siembieda.

Special Thanks to Amy, Ben, Mike and Mark for their artistry, to writers Julius, Kris, Dan, Megan, Chuck,
and all our contributors for their bold imaginings brought to life in words and pictures, and to the hardworking
Palladium staff. Our apologies to anybody who may have gotten accidentally left out or their name misspelled.
– Kevin Siembieda, July 2018
3
 Contents – The Rifter® #80 – 2018
Page 6 – From the Desk of Kevin Siembieda Page 23 – The Caravan Master
Page 24 – The Council of Elders
Our subscribers probably think we dropped off the face of the
Page 25 – The Swapper’s Code
Earth. Sorry about that. The good news is we will be trying to
Page 26 – Language: Wayspeak
make up for that with more pages and epic adventure source ma-
Page 26 – Adoption and Family Status
terial in The Rifter® starting with this issue. Publisher Kevin
Page 27 – Caravan Disputes
Siembieda explains what happened, what you can expect in the
Page 27 – Battle of Champions
future and what’s coming down the pipeline with books. You are
Page 27 – Vendetta & Blood Feud
going to like the goodness we have in store for you.
Page 28 – Foreign Relations
Page 29 – Old Kingdom
Page 7 – Palladium News
Page 30 – Wayfarers’ Stance on Magic
A lot has happened since the last issue of The Rifter®. Pub- Page 31 – Wayfarer O.C.C.s
lisher Kevin Siembieda offers up the latest goings-on and high- Page 31 – Wayfarer Enforcer
lights of events over the last several months at Palladium Books. Page 33 – Wayfarer Healer
That includes the 2018 Palladium Open House Report (the Page 35 – Wayfarer Peasant/Vagabond
POH was a very fun time for us as well as those who attended), Page 36 – Wayfarer Seer
the announcement of the 2021 Palladium Open House (how is Page 38 – Wayfarer Teamster
that for advance notice), Matt is back, Scott is gone (only sort of), Page 39 – Wayfarer Thief
books coming, and fun at Anime North. Page 41 – Wayfarer Wizard Thief
Artwork by Michael Mumah.
Page 10 – Coming Attractions
Books like Rifts® Sovietski™, Nightbane® Dark De- filePage 44 – House of the Red Sands™
signs™ and Splicers® I Am Legion™ have been released, and – “Official” Setting & Source Material for Splicers®
a lot more books are coming your way, starting with Rifts® Kris Tipping, Charles Walton and Kevin Siembieda join forces
Bestiary of North America, Vol. One and Two and issues of to deliver you the first Splicers® Great House in a desert environ-
The Rifter® in rapid succession! Dead Reign® sourcebook: In
ple

ment. It is a new, mysterious, Splicers House and their unique,

the Face of Death, Rifts® The Disavowed, CS Arsenal and new Host Armors, War Mounts, Desert Rose, bio-engineered
other fun books to follow. Read all about them all in the coming ants, other creations and adventure ideas.
m

attractions. Page 45 – Words to follow

Page 46 – Geography and Climate
Sa

Page 18 – Wayfarers™ Page 46 – Noteworthy Weather Conditions

– Official O.C.C.s & source material Page 47 – Travel
for Palladium Fantasy RPG® Page 48 – Government & Relationships
Julius Rosenstein and Kevin Siembieda have whipped up a Page 48 – How the House Got its Name
brilliant batch of memorable and fun characters, and ideas for the Page 49 – Population Breakdown
Palladium Fantasy RPG® setting. For players, the Wayfarer™ Page 50 – Dreadguard Template
characters/O.C.C.s and history are a blast to play. For Game Page 50 – Dune Viper Host Armor
Masters, the Wayfarers are roguish heroes or thieving bad guys Page 51 – Thorny Devil Host Armor
who can be encountered just about anywhere in the Palladium Page 53 – Red Sands War Mounts
World to help or cause a little mayhem. Talk about versatile role- Page 53 – Desert Judge War Mount
playing game source material. You will never think of thieves the Page 58 – Molok War Mount
same way after you read the Swapper’s Code (Julius’ idea) and Page 60 – Hydrant Ant
the Wayfarer Thief and Wizard-Thief O.C.C.s. Page 62 – Nova Hawk War Mount
Wayfarers are rogues who travel the world in caravans, rob- Page 65 – War Ant
bing, beguiling and trading with everyone, from the monster rac- Page 66 – Eraser Ant
es to humans. They arrive with entertainers, Seers, Psi-Healers, Page 68 – Scarabick Soldier Ant
exotic trade goods, rumors, and news. They also bring thieves, Page 72 – Desert Rose Mega-War Mount
con artists and vagabonds, all happy to gamble, cheat and rob Page 78 – Template Biotic
people blind. Page 78 – Xeric Guard
Page 19 – G.M.s using Wayfarer NPCs Page 81 – New Weapons & Enhancements
Page 20 – Wayfarers – A nomadic life Page 82 – New Enhancements start
Page 20 – Things everyone knows about Wayfarers Page 82 – Dry Muscles
Page 20 – Most Wayfarers are Human Page 83 – Sand Feet
Page 21 – Wayfarer Society Page 84 – Quick Stats
Page 21 – Wayfarer Wagons Page 84 – Notes on The Red Sands Librarians
Page 22 – Wayfarer Confederation Art by Mark Dudley and Amy L. Ashbaugh.
4
Page 85 – Masters Unlimited™ Become a Writer for The Rifter®
– Optional source material for Heroes Unlimited™ We need new writers and artists to fill the next few decades
Paul Herbert presents an insidious, new villainous organiza- of The Rifter®. You do not need to be a professional writer to
tion, a cadre of notable super-villains within the organization, and contribute to The Rifter®. This publication is like a “fanzine,”
adventure ideas galore. written by fans for fans. A forum in which gamers just like you
Page 86 – Potential Masters can submit articles, G.M. advice, player tips, house rules, adven-
Page 86 – Masters (Current Master) tures, new magic, new psionics, new super abilities, monsters,
Page 87 – Battleship villains, high-tech weapons, vehicles, power armor, short works
Page 88 – Merlock of fiction and more. So think about writing up something short
Page 88 – Major Powell (even something as small as 4-6 pages). Newcomers and regular
Page 89 – Verdict contributors are always welcome.
Page 90 – Minions The Rifter® needs new material, especially when it comes to
Page 93 – Associated Heroes adventures and source material, for all of our game lines, particu-
Page 94 – Hook, Line and Sinker Adventures larly Rifts®, Chaos Earth®, Palladium Fantasy RPG®, Heroes
Unlimited™, Ninjas and Superspies™, Beyond the Supernatu-
Page 95 – Chaos Earth® Nebraska, Part One ral™, Dead Reign®, Splicers® and Nightbane®.
– Official source material for Chaos Earth® Pay is lousy, fame is dubious, but you see your work in print,
get to share your ideas and adventures with fellow gamers, and
Dan Frederick, Megan Timperley and Kevin Siembieda pres- get four free copies to show to your friends and family.
ent the new setting of Nebraska. The chaos of the Great Cata-
clysm is different everywhere. This source material examines the The Cover
events and survivors of Nebraska, and a few of the weird mon-
sters survivors must deal with. Part One of two. The cover is by Amy L. Ashbaugh and depicts the Thorny
Page 95 – Shadows Over Omaha Devil Host Armor from the House of the Red Sands for Splic-
Page 99 – State of Affairs in Nebraska, 2099 fileers®.
Page 99 – NEMA
Page 100 – Nebraska
Optional and Unofficial Rules & Source Material
Page 100 – Offut Air Base Most of the material for this issue is “official” source mate-
Page 100 – Omaha rial. As for optional source material, settings and adventures, if
ple

Page 101 – Lincoln they sound cool or fun, use them. If they sound funky, too high-
Page 103 – “Reaper” Power Armor powered or inappropriate for your game, modify them or ignore
m

Page 106 – Nebraska Police Gear them completely. We hope all of it ignites your imagination and
Page 107 – Monsters of Nebraska inspires you to create your own wonders.
Sa

Page 107 – Ash Worm

Page 109 – Demon Hopper www.palladiumbooks.com – Palladium Online
Page 110 – Undead Fossils
Page 111 – Whispering Field
Artwork by Benjamin Rodriguez. The Rifter® #81
! Rifts® source material.
The Theme for this Issue ! Game Master tips by Greg Diaczyk.
The theme for The Rifter® #80 is new settings for adven- ! Heroes Unlimited™ source material.
ture and the unique people you find there. That includes new ! Rifts® Chaos Earth® Nebraska, Part Two.
O.C.C.s for warriors, healers, thieves, mages, heroes, villains and ! Palladium Fantasy RPG® – Gnomes by Hendrik Härt-
monsters. All fuel to fire up your imaginations and carry you to erich.
new realms of adventure. With a new release for Splicers® and ! Palladium Fantasy RPG® adventure by Kevin Siembieda.
upcoming books for Chaos Earth® and Fantasy, we thought it ! News, coming attractions, product descriptions and more.
would be fun to present material to support all three settings. En- ! 112 pages – $14.99 retail – Cat. No. 181. July/August re-
joy. lease.

One game system, infinite possibilities limited only by your imagination™

The battle between good and evil rages

5
Coming Attractions line only). For customers without such access, use the following
“mail order” process.
1. Send the cost of the books or items being ordered.
2. In the USA: Add $6 for orders totaling $1-$50 to cover
Palladium’s 2018 Release Checklist shipping and handling. Add $12 for orders totaling $51-$95. Add
Available Now $18 for orders totaling $96-$200. Note: For non-book products,
including T-shirts, add an extra $6 per $50 worth of product, on
- New! Splicers® I Am Legion™ sourcebook – 256 pages.
top of the shipping amounts listed above. This is because non-
- New! Rifts® Sovietski™ World Book – 224 pages.
book products cannot ship via Media Mail, and must use a more
- New! Nightbane® Dark Designs™ sourcebook – 160 pages.
expensive method of shipping. Outside the USA: Double the
- Rifts® Secrets of the Atlanteans™ – 224 pages, epic.
shipping amount for orders going to Canada, and quadruple it for
- Rifts® Secrets of the Atlanteans™ Gold Hardcover – 224 pages.
overseas orders. Any and all additional costs incurred as a result
- New! The Rifter® #80 – 112 pages.
of customs fees and taxes are the responsibility of the foreign
- The Rifter® #79 – 96 pages.
customer, NOT Palladium Books.
- New! Raw Preview Edition: Rifts® Antarctica™
3. Make checks or money orders payable to Palladium Books.
- New! Raw Preview Edition: Rifts® Surviving Chaos Earth®
4. Please make sure to send us your complete and correct ad-
Note: The Raw Previews are limited editions available only
dress, including apartment number. Note: These costs are for the
from Palladium Books. They are not available in stores.
least expensive and slowest method of shipping only. Allow 2-4
weeks for delivery. Order online or call the office for a superior
Coming Soon
but more costly shipping method.
- The Rifter® #81 – 112 pages – July/August, in production.
- The Rifter® #82 – 96 pages – August/September, in production.
- Rifts® Bestiary™ of North America, Vol. 1 – Summer, in
production.
- Rifts® Bestiary™ of North America, Vol. 2 – Summer/Fall
New & Coming Soon
- Dead Reign® Sourcebook: In the Face of Death™ – Fall
file
- Rifts® Chaos Earth® First Responders™ – Fall/Winter
- Chaos Earth® Psychic Scream™ – Fall/Winter
- Rifts® Antarctica – Fall/Winter
ple

Also on the drawing board for 2018

m

- Rifts® The Disavowed™ Sourcebook by Kevin Siembieda

and Matthew Clements.
Sa

- Rifts® Heroes of Humanity™ CS Arsenal

- Garden of the Gods™, Palladium Fantasy RPG® Source-
book by Siembieda
- Lopan™, a Palladium Fantasy RPG® Adventure Source-
book
- Lopanic Games™, a Palladium Fantasy RPG® Sourcebook
- Hardware Unlimited™, a Heroes Unlimited™ Sourcebook
- Heroes Unlimited™ Sourcebooks
- Splicers® Sourcebooks
- Nightbane® Sourcebook
- Beyond the Supernatural™ Sourcebooks
- And more. Other titles are in the pipeline and being written. Thus
additional and other titles may be slotted into the release schedule.

Palladium RPGs are available in many hobby and game

stores around the world. We encourage people to support their
local stores. Going to a store enables you to see the product be-
fore purchasing it, and many stores are happy to place special or-
ders for you, provided you pay in advance, enabling you to avoid
the cost of shipping and possible damage in the mail.
Ordering from Palladium Books: You can also order direct-
ly from Palladium Books, but you will pay extra for shipping. For NEW! Splicers®:
customers with access to a computer, we highly recommend or-
dering online. This provides you with information about the most I Am Legion™ Adventure Sourcebook
recent releases and Palladium’s entire product catalog. It also Splicers® is a dark world of the future where a nano-plague
provides you the most accurate shipping costs and more shipping has made touching metal deadly and humans are forced to use ge-
options. You can also order by telephone; 734-721-2903 (order netically engineered, living weapons and organic war machines
10