D&D 4E 4e . . . the RIFTSization of D&D!!!

[Elephant]

I don't quite know the story, but I understand there was some extreme nastiness in the past over a D20 conversion. Threats of litigation and such.

Perhaps someone else can link to a thread or article.

Due to threats of litigation and such, those threads and articles have been taken down

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

Unfortunately, that just may be true. *sigh*

I wouldn't at least take any bets against it. :\

 

[Lurks-no-More]

OK, now you're exaggerating. If it is moving toward or away from Rifts, and those are the only two options, it's moving toward it.

As long as WotC pays even a smidgen of a hint of respect towards the idea of game balance, D&D will stay lightyears away from Rifts.

 

[Green Knight]

OK, now you're exaggerating. If it is moving toward or away from Rifts, and those are the only two options, it's moving toward it.

He's right in numerous ways. Starting with PC balance. WOTC's working hard on balancing the classes. They may not succeed, but at least they're trying. That's a far cry from Rifts, where the same book that included Dragon Hatchlings and Glitter Boys also included City Rats and Rogue Scholars. The Points of Light thing seems pretty post-apocalypticish, but that's just fluff for the core setting.

 

[Amphimir Míriel]

Player 1-I'm a Rogue Scholar! I have a laser pistol and a suit of Megadamage armor! I can read! I like to teach others to read!

Player 2-Hey! I'm a Glitterboy. I have a walking tank that can level entire buildings in a shot. I don't care if I can read.

Player 1- Wanna learn how to read so I can go home?

I actually played a rogue scholar with a beat up minivan full of book in my second Rifts campaign (was it 15 years ago!? OMG I'm old!).

We had a gritty campaign where all characters were running from coalition squads and dog-boys... It was kinda fun, but once we all got killed (after the 4th session, I believe), I rolled up an Atlantean CyberKnight with psychic tattoos or something...

Now, the Robotech: The Sentinels RPG was great... but Rifts had serious balance issues that even us (as 15 year old pimply kids) could see.

 

[Amphimir Míriel]

To be fair to Palladium (did I just type that?) homosexuality was considered a mental disorder for most of the twentieth century and was listed as such on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Illness, from which Palladium based their original rulebook info.

According to Wikipedia, in 1973, the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from the Sexual Deviancy section of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the DSM-II.

This is 17 years before the first edition of Rifts... so, next excuse?

 

[Mustrum_Ridcully]

According to Wikipedia, in 1973, the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from the Sexual Deviancy section of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, the DSM-II.

This is 17 years before the first edition of Rifts... so, next excuse?

(Disclaimer: I don't know anything about Rifts, its setting or the rule mechanics)

The Rifts setting timeline diverges from our timeline at least 17 years before its publication date, and due to the differences in timeline this advancement in psychology never happened in Rifts. (Or maybe it's "Lost Tech" á la Battletech, another setting I don't know that much about)

It's a drawback, right? Do you get extra points for that? Homosexual players probably loved this rule because they could make their character closer to themselves and get bonus points for it!

The creators of Rifts used an older psychology book, because it was available cheaply at a local flea market.

Okay, enough with that. (at least for my side)


All that said, I think it's more likelythat D&D 4 is "Iron Heroized", not "Riftized".

 

[neceros]

OK, now you're exaggerating. If it is moving toward or away from Rifts, and those are the only two options, it's moving toward it.

Nope! I'm talking about the mechanics of RIFTS. They kept adding source books and source books until core was no longer acceptable with anything else.

That's what 3.5 turned into. 4E is fixing that so it's all core now, and balanced.