The updated version of the book that started it all. Rifts Ultimate Edition brings so many genres together in a way I never possible. The adventure options available are endless within Rifts and I love it. What kind you may ask?
Whether you want to play in modern-day Earth, the post-apocalypse earth set in Rifts, a dragon, demon, superhero, mage, psychic, or gun-toting mercenary those are but a few options possible. Every setting imaginable is playable, and you can make up your own dimensions, and races with the right books. So much is possible with Rifts that it’s my favorite setting by far.
Rifts® is a multi-genre role-playing game that captures the imagination unlike any other. Elements of magic, horror, and the supernatural co-exist with science, high technology and the ordinary. The game spans countless dimensions, making anything and everything possible. Players are truly limited only by their imaginations!
Rifts® Ultimate Edition is a completely rewritten and updated version of the original game played and enjoyed by an estimated 1.5 million gamers.
Not exactly a Second Edition, because most of the rules remain unchanged, Rifts® Ultimate Edition is expanded and improved. There is more world information, tips on how to use the time-line and World Books, rewrites on O.C.C.s, and in some cases, expansions of and more details on O.C.C.s such as the Headhunter, Mercenaries, the Techno-Wizard and Shifter, as well as a few new O.C.C.s. Our goal was to make Rifts® more exciting and compelling than ever, while at the same time making the rules better organized, clearer and easier to use. The wonder and infinite possibilities of Rifts® all brought to pulse-pounding life like never before. Of course, there are a few fun changes and additions, but nothing so dramatic as to make the 40+ available sourcebooks obsolete.
Gm Material from Ultimate Edition
If you are just being introduced to Rifts and the Ultimate Edition is all you have then everything in it is just as useful for a player as it is for a GM. Knowing the different cities, organizations, Occs, magic, psionics, etc is necessary for everyone. Unlike other games, Rifts does not separate information into a player’s book and a GM book. There is a GM book but it’s a collection of information from many books, as is the book of magic.
Our recommendations of the best Rifts books for a Minion War game.
Player Material from Rifts Ultimate Edition
What will you play? What kind of character will you create? Will you be anarchist or scrupulous in alignment? Will you play a magic wielder, psychic character, or a tech-based character? My favorite part of the character creation process is step 8: rounding out the character, I’ve used it when playing in other RPGs.
Rifts Story material
For those that aren’t familiar with the Rifts story, I’ll give a short explanation. The world advanced and enjoys 100 years of peace. Most diseases have been conquered, life spans extended over 200 years and nanotechnology unlocked our genetic code. Then it’s all lost overnight.
The dropping of a bomb on a city with millions and millions of people. The death of so many people causes a release of such massive amounts of magical energy that it ignites the magical nexus the city sits on. The ignition rips through the ley lines across the planet. Magical portals (Rifts) open pouring demons and all manner of races upon the world.
These new additions and the ley lines igniting bring magical storms and natural storms that destroy and recreate the world for centuries.
Fast forward 300 years and humanity is a fraction of its previous stature. Barely coming out of the dark ages people are just starting to explore and adventure again. Finding old equipment from the past and taming the new magic and psionics that came with the Rifts is all that allowed humanity to survive.
Current world setting
With this being the main book there are a lot of topics to cover. Due to this only North America is covered. There are other World books that cover other continents. Check some of the following to learn about them.
After an overview of North America, the book goes into the state of the ruling powers of the world. The Coalition calls itself the Heroes of Humanity though they are totally against magic and aliens. Many hate and despise them as they’ve killed many just because they are inhuman looking. Other large powers include Tolkeen and The Federation of Magic.
Originatlity of Rifts
No other tabletop RPG that I’ve played has ever come close to the setting Rifts allows. There are other games that do science fiction and space travel better but have no magic or psionics. Others have magic, or psionics, but no technology. I have found nothing to compare with the combination of all three as Rifts has.
Game breaking aspects
Rifts Ultimate Edition introduces us to a vast array of OCCs that are completely different in power levels. A wilderness scout or vagabond for example stands no chance at all vs the likes of a Dragon, Robot pilot, or Combat Cyborg. At least not from a combat point of view. However, Rifts is not just about combat.
Rifts is an adventure game which means that groups with varied classes give a group far more options with skills, powers, and resources to find solutions to problems. As this is the book that first describes the setting, there are definitely some overlooked aspects, though a lot of that is just a lack of space in the book.
How good are the occs of Rifts Ultimate Edition
There are a lot of different options and many in Rifts Ultimate Edition are often my go-to OCCs. I find that these OCCs are extremely well done and the ones added in other books are often some variation of what’s already available here. When an OCC is entirely new then they usually are just as good or a well-accepted addition. If not then often players just resort back to the Ultimate Edition.
How well does it mix with the core book?
The original book was in dire need of an update and this book saw a much-needed quality of life touch on many things within.