Lancer vs Rifts
Compare Lancer and Rifts side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Lancer | Rifts | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Scifi | Post-Apocalyptic, Scifi, Fantasy, Horror, Superhero |
| Tags | Tactical, Mecha, Character Building, Heroic, Crunchy | Character Building, Combat-Heavy, Crunchy, Fear & Stress Mechanics, Gonzo, High-Power, Mana Points, Mecha, Superpowers, Tactical |
| Core Mechanic | Narrative scenes use d20 roll-over (10+ succeeds), with backgrounds granting advantage and triggers adding flat bonuses. Mech combat is grid-based and tactical: no initiative, players and NPCs alternate turns. Pilots progress through License Levels (LL0–LL12), unlocking new chassis, weapons, and systems across five manufacturers with 30+ mech frames. | 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 + d6 | d20, d100 |
| Complexity | High | Very High |
| Accessibility | High | Medium |
| Runnability | Very High | Very High |
| License | Lancer Third Party License | 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 | Massif Press | Palladium Books Inc. |
| Year | 2019 | 2005 |
| Best For | Groups who want deep tactical mech combat with meaningful customization layered on top of accessible narrative play: giant robot enthusiasts seeking a modern alternative to BattleTech. | 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 | Free core PDF, extensive mech customization with 30+ frames, clean split between rules-light narrative and crunchy tactical combat, alternating activations remove initiative so both sides stay engaged | 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 | Mech combat dominates: narrative half feels thin by comparison, steep learning curve from sheer volume of mech options, genre-locked to sci-fi mech fiction, requires grid/VTT for combat | 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. |