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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.
The Rifter® Number 42
Your guide to the Palladium Megaverse®!
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First Printing – April 2008
Copyright 2008 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 Robotech® The Shadow Chronicles® are Registered Trademarks of Harmony Gold USA, Inc.
Palladium Books®, Rifts®, The Rifter®, Coalition Wars®, After the Bomb®, RECON®, Nightbane®, Splicers®, Palladium Fan-
tasy Role-Playing Game®, The Mechanoids®, The Mechanoid Invasion®, Phase World®, and Megaverse® are registered trademarks
owned and licensed by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc.
The slogan “A Megaverse of adventure – limited only by your imagination,” and titles and names such as Dead Reign, Wormwood,
Minion War, S.C.R.E.T., Hammer of the Forge, Rifts®: Promise of Power, Beyond the Supernatural, BTS-2, HU2, Splicers, Chaos
Earth, NEMA, MercTown, Merc Ops, Tome Grotesque, Beyond Arcanum, Naruni, Mechanoid Space, Dinosaur Swamp, Arzno,
Lazlo, Victor Lazlo, Lazlo Agency, Lazlo Society, Heroes Unlimited, Powers Unlimited, Ninjas & Superspies, Aliens Unlimited, Mu-
tant Underground, Mysteries of Magic, The Nursery, Hammer of the Forge, Hardware Unlimited, Gadgets Unlimited, Three Galaxies,
Void Runners, Gramercy Island, Skraypers, Atorian Empire, Wormwood, Land of the Damned, The Citadel, The Palladium of De-
sires, Wolfen Wars, Wolfen, Wulfen, Cosmo-Knight, Cyber-Knight, Gargoyle Empire, Free Quebec, Xiticix, Xiticix Invasion,
Fadetown, Hammer of the Forge, Siege on Tolkeen, Psyscape, Dweomer, ARCHIE-3, Northern Gun, Coalition States, Erin Tarn, Em-
peror Prosek, Splugorth, Splynncryth, Mega-Damage, Mega-Hero, Skelebot, SAMAS, Glitter Boy, Dog Boy, Dog Pack,
Techno-Wizard, Ley Line Walker, Shifter, Bio-Wizardry, Psi-Stalker, Brodkil, Juicer, Crazy, ‘Burbs, ‘Borg, ‘Bot, D-Bee, Chi-Town,
Triax, NGR, and other names, titles, slogans, and the likenesses of characters are trademarks owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palla-
dium Books Inc.
Palladium Online www.palladiumbooks.com
The Rifter® #42 RPG sourcebook series is published by Palladium Books Inc., 39074 Webb Court, Westland, MI 48185. Printed
in the USA.
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Palladium Books® Presents:
#42
Sourcebook and Guide to the Palladium Megaverse®
Coordinator & Editor in Chief: Wayne Smith
Editor: Alex Marciniszyn
Contributing Writers:
Braden Campbell
James M.G. Cannon
Aaron Corley
Glen Evans
Dale W. Glaser
Joseph Larsen
Matt Olfson
Kevin Siembieda
Proofreader: Julius Rosenstein
Cover Illustration: Kevin Long & Apollo Okamura
Interior Artists:
Nick Bradshaw
Kent Burles
Mark Dudley
Allen Manning
Brian Manning
Mike Mumah
Apollo Okamura
Charles Walton
Cover Logo Design: Steve Edwards
Credits Page Logo: Niklas Brandt
Typesetting: Wayne Smith
Keylining: Kevin Siembieda
Based on the RPG rules, characters,
concepts and Megaverse® created by Kevin Siembieda.
Special Thanks to all our contributors, writers and artists – and a special welcome on board to the artists and
writers making their debut in this issue. Our apologies to anybody who got accidentally left out or their name
misspelled.
– Kevin Siembieda, 2008
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Contents – The Rifter® #42 – April, 2008
Page 6 – From the Desk of Kevin Siembieda
Publisher, Kevin Siembieda wrote this editorial piece about a
week before Palladium Books’ move from Taylor, Michigan, to
its new home in Westland, Michigan, roughly 25 miles from the
old office. This got him thinking about change and transition.
About the new Palladium Headquarters, about upcoming books
and about the promise of the future. It also got him thinking
about his lifelong friendship with ailing friend and game de-
signer, Erick Wujcik.
Page 8 – News & Coming Attractions
Palladium has moved. The Robotech® RPG is a smash hit.
Palladium has a lot of big plans this year, including three new
role-playing games. You heard right, THREE new RPGs:
Robotech® The Shadow Chronicles®, Dead Reign™
(post-apocalyptic zombies!), and the long awaited Warpath:
Urban Jungle™ (a modern, gritty game of modern combat).
Not to mention sourcebooks for Rifts®, Palladium Fantasy®,
Heroes Unlimited™, Nightbane®, Robotech® and other
game lines.
Page 12 – S.C.R.E.T. Around the World
Optional Source Material for Heroes Unlimited™
Glen Evans offers his ideas about S.C.R.E.T. – the
Superbeing Control, Retrieval and Elimination Team, and how
S.C.R.E.T. agencies around the world operate to keep
super-villains and rogue heroes under control.
Canada S.C.R.E.T. – page 13.
Canada S.C.R.E.T. Vehicles – page 15.
Cyberworks Network – page 15.
United Kingdom S.C.R.E.T. – page 21.
U.K. S.C.R.E.T. Vehicles – page 23.
Russian S.C.R.E.T. – page 27.
Russian S.C.R.E.T. Vehicles – page 31.
The Black Steel Guard – page 36.
The Others 37.
Artwork by Brian and Allen Manning.
Page 38 – The Wormwood Addenda
Optional Source Material for
Rifts® Dimension Book One: Wormwood™
Braden Campbell presents a fascinating look at the world and
history of the hellish dimensional realm known as Wormwood.
Part One: The Sundering of the Realm – page 39.
Part Two: The Faith Divided – page 41.
Map – page 41.
Part Three: The Golden Age Ends – page 42.
Part Four: The Tribulation Begins – page 44.
Artwork by Kent Burles.
Page 45 – The Coalition Edge
Optional Source Material for Rifts®
Matt Olfson takes a look at the advantages held by the Coali-
tion States over other nations and organizations.
The Coalition’s solution to a world without satellites – page
47.
The Digital Battlefield – page 51.
Electronic Aided Artillery – page 55.
IAR-2C “Abolisher” – page 58.
The Soldier’s Edge – page 61.
RFE Digital Dog Tags – page 63.
FASSRR-100 Skelebot RECON Rat – page 65.
Artwork by Charles Walton and Mark Dudley.
Page 67 - The Torque of Amemait
Optional Adventure Source Material
Suitable for the Entire Palladium Megaverse®
Aaron Corley reveals the tale of chaos god, Amemait, also
known as “the Devourer,” and how the ancient relic of this dark
god affects any who try to use it.
Artwork by Kent Burles.
Page 74 – Warlords of Boston
Optional Background and NPCs
for the Nightbane® RPG
Dale W. Glaser presents information on a notable Nightbane
gang operating in Boston. He offers stats of key individuals as
well as their motives and aspirations. Ideal as NPCs and source
material to enrich your campaign. Visiting Boston anytime
soon?
Adventure ideas are found on page 82.
New Morphus Tables are found on page 83.
Artwork by Mike Mumah.
Page 84 – Under the Skin
Optional Rules and Ideas
for the Palladium Fantasy RPG® and Rifts®
Joseph Larsen takes a fascinating look at the disgusting and
strange craft of using the hides of demons and other creatures to
create enchanted leather armor and items.
Plus a look at Bio-Alchemy and the mysterious and mystical
human(?) beings known as the Kezel.
Artwork by Nick Bradshaw.
Page 93 – The Hammer of the Forge™
Chapter 42: Yet Another Movie. The latest chapter in this on-
going series written by James M.G. Cannon. Read and enjoy.
Artwork by Apollo Okamura.
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The Theme for Issue 41
The theme for this issue is transition, transformation, change,
and secrets. Lots of secrets and hidden truths.
Another fun-filled issue designed to provoke your imagina-
tion, and inspire and motivate players and Game Masters alike
to try new ideas and expand their gaming Megaverse®.
When are YOU going to submit an article, adventure, place
or characters to The Rifter®?
We are always looking for material for Rifts®, Heroes Un-
limited™, Palladium Fantasy RPG®, Nightbane®, BTS-2,
Chaos Earth™, Ninjas & Superspies™, Splicers™ and others.
The Cover
The cover is something different. We took an old, Kevin
Long, black and white illustration of the Masters of Speed, and
had Apollo Okamura apply digital colors to it. The end result is
a cover by two different generations of fan favorites. Cool, eh?
Optional and Unofficial Rules & Source Material
Please note that most of the material presented in The
Rifter® is “unofficial” or “optional” rules and source material.
They are alternative ideas, homespun adventures and material
mostly created by fellow gamers and fans like you, the reader.
Things one can elect to include in one’s own campaign or sim-
ply enjoy reading about. They are not “official” to the main
games or world settings.
As for optional tables and adventures, if they sound cool or
fun, use them. If they sound funky, too high-powered or inap-
propriate for your game, modify them or ignore them com-
pletely.
All the material in The Rifter® has been included for two
reasons: One, because we thought it was imaginative and fun,
and two, we thought it would stimulate your imagination with
fun ideas and concepts that you can use (if you want to), or
which might inspire you to create your own wonders.
www.palladiumbooks.com – Palladium Online
The Rifter® #43
It’s time for Palladium’s third annual Swimsuit Is-
sue. Like last year, we intend to present femme
fatales – female heroes and villains – for Palladium’s
many game settings and RPG lines; Heroes Unlim-
ited™, Ninjas and Superspies™, Nightbane®, Rifts®,
Palladium Fantasy RPG® and others.
� Dangerous and deadly women from across the
Megaverse®.
� Complete stats for each femme fatale, making
them ready to use NPCs and villains.
� The next, epic chapter of The Hammer of the
Forge™.
� Source material for the entire Palladium
Megaverse®.
� The latest news and coming attractions. And
maybe a big announcement.
� New contributors and fun. Please join us.
Palladium Books® role-playing
games . . . infinite possibilities,
limited only by your imagination™
One game system, a Megaverse® of Adventure
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From the Desk of Kevin Siembieda
TransitionA great many changes are going on in Palladium’s corner of
the Megaverse®. Most of them are good, some of them very
good, and some are sad. Overall, excitement at Palladium is
high.
A new place to
weave our magicPalladium Books is moving. Taylor has been Palladium’s
home for 16 years. Those of you who have come to either of the
Palladium Open House gaming events know what a fun place it
was. Big and spacious too. We loved it here and hate to leave,
but the simple fact is we can save a lot of money moving to a
new, somewhat smaller building.
Consequently, the move is a good transition. We save
money, and it gives us a chance to reorganize, consolidate and
upgrade. We’ve added pallet racks and a forklift to our ware-
house operation, the building is newer, and it is more centrally
located for most everyone who works at Palladium Books.
Although the move is lots and lots of work, we’re all looking
forward to a new beginning at our new home.
It was also another opportunity for members of the Palladium
family to gather and work together. What am I talking about?
The 30-40 fans (Palladium Muscle) who will have helped us
make the “Big Move.” Your time, help and muscle were greatly
appreciated. I want to make a special nod to Todd, Lucas, and
Eric, who all worked like mules for a period of several days
over a week or two period, to Carmen for driving the semi-truck
and trailer (and saving Palladium several hundred dollars), and
the Palladium crew who put up with my stress, yelling and ex-
hausted blithering.
New Address and Telephone
Number as of April 2, 2008:
Palladium Books® Inc.
39074 Webb Court
Westland, MI 48185
(734) 721-2903 (help & order line)
www.palladiumbooks.com
New Books, New Games,
Bold New AdventuresWe feel like Palladium is embarking on a new era of creativ-
ity and ideas. That our move to new offices and warehouse
marks a new beginning that will rock your imaginations and the
gaming world.
While many game companies are running away from role-
playing games, Palladium intends to introduce their magic to
new generations of gamers. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it
again, role-playing games are NOT dead or dying. RPGs may be
changing (take a look at our manga-sized Robotech® RPG, for
example), but fading away? I think not. At least not at Palladium
Books.
We are seeing more and more new faces joining the Palla-
dium RPG community every day, as well as many long-time
gamers getting back into gaming. Here at Palladium Books, we
have zillions of ideas swirling around our heads for countless
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