DayTrippers vs Rifts
Compare DayTrippers and Rifts side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| DayTrippers | Rifts | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Scifi | Post-Apocalyptic, Scifi, Fantasy, Horror, Superhero |
| Tags | Rules-Light, Skill-Based, Exploration, Weird, Collaborative, Ship-Based, Character-Driven, CC-Licensed Rules | Character Building, Combat-Heavy, Crunchy, Fear & Stress Mechanics, Gonzo, High-Power, Mana Points, Mecha, Superpowers, Tactical |
| Core Mechanic | Roll a number of d6s equal to the relevant Stat score (1–6), keep the highest, and add any Skill and Item bonuses. Compare to a Difficulty Level (1–10) or an opposed roll. Results are interpreted narratively on a five-tier table: miss by more than 1 (No, And), miss by 1 (No, But), hit exactly (Yes, But), exceed by 1 (Yes), exceed by more than 1 (Yes, And). Progressive Character Generation lets players spend character points during play rather than all at creation. | 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 | d6 | d20, d100 |
| Complexity | Low | Very High |
| Accessibility | Very High | Medium |
| Runnability | Very High | Very High |
| License | CC BY-NC 3.0 | 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 | Free | $$ |
| Publisher | As If Productions | Palladium Books Inc. |
| Year | 2015 | 2005 |
| Best For | Groups who want episodic surreal sci-fi adventures exploring dream worlds, alternate Earths, and pocket universes, with a fiction-first resolution system that rewards creative narration. | 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 | Five slip types (Cartesian, Paraterran, Temporal, Subjective, Compound) create wildly different mission structures from space travel to dream worlds. Progressive Character Generation reveals character details through play rather than front-loading backstory. LifeShaping system ties character motivations (beliefs, goals, relationships) directly into mechanical bonuses. SlipShip construction rules let players design their own interdimensional vehicles. | 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 | 44-page core rulebook covers the essentials but leaves significant rulings to GM interpretation. Combat system is lightweight with limited tactical options. Surreal tone assumes GM comfort with improvising bizarre interdimensional encounters on the fly. GameMasters Guide sold separately for expanded tools and adventure generation. | 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. |