Adventurer Conqueror King System vs Rifts
Compare Adventurer Conqueror King System and Rifts side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Adventurer Conqueror King System | Rifts | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Fantasy | Post-Apocalyptic, Scifi, Fantasy, Horror, Superhero |
| Tags | Crunchy, Sandbox, Domain Management, Character Building, Simulation, Dungeon Crawl, Ascending AC | Character Building, Combat-Heavy, Crunchy, Fear & Stress Mechanics, Gonzo, High-Power, Mana Points, Mecha, Superpowers, Tactical |
| Core Mechanic | Roll d20 + modifiers vs. a target value for attack throws, saving throws, and proficiency throws. 18 classes across core (Fighter, Explorer, Thief, Mage, Crusader, Venturer), campaign (Assassin, Barbarian, Bard, Bladedancer, Paladin, Priestess, Shaman, Warlock, Witch), and demi-human archetypes. 110 proficiencies and 378 spells. Characters progress from adventurers to domain rulers with integrated systems for strongholds, realms, mercantile ventures, criminal syndicates, armies, pitched battles, and sieges. | Combat and saving throws use a d20 plus bonuses, with high results overcoming a target number or opposing roll. Skills use d100 and succeed when the result is at or below the character's percentage. |
| Dice | d20 | d20, d100 |
| Complexity | High | Very High |
| Accessibility | Low | Medium |
| Runnability | High | Very High |
| License | All Rights Reserved | All Rights Reserved |
| Third-Party Publishing | Not yet researched | Noncommercial only — Palladium Books Internet Policy limited license |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Cost | $$$ | $$ |
| Publisher | Autarch LLC | Palladium Books Inc. |
| Year | 2024 | 2005 |
| Languages | English | English |
| Best For | Groups who want a B/X-rooted OSR game that seamlessly scales from dungeon crawling to ruling kingdoms, with deeply integrated economics, domain management, and mass combat. | Groups who want long-form science-fantasy campaigns that move from a ruined Earth to other dimensions. The game suits tables whose GM will decide which parts of the broad setting a campaign uses. |
| Highlights | Detailed domain and kingdom management rules, economics and mercantile systems are integrated throughout, mass combat scales from skirmishes to wars, 18 classes with quick-start templates, builds on B/X foundations | Occupational and racial class packages assign distinct abilities and advancement tracks, giving each archetype a different role in the party. Mega-Damage places many supernatural creatures and war machines on a separate durability scale beyond the reach of ordinary Structural Damage Capacity attacks. Rifts and ley lines make dimensional travel a standing feature of the setting, letting campaigns move between devastated Earth and other worlds. |
| Considerations | 540+ page rulebook is intimidating, tightly coupled subsystems, fantasy-only with narrow genre support, very high GM prep for domain-level play | Character creation combines rolled attributes with extensive skill selection, making first-time preparation lengthy. Combat asks each player to track an action economy, active defenses, and which damage scale applies. Magic and psionics use separate point pools and power procedures, adding class-specific rules to the shared system. |