Rifts vs The Whispering Vault
Compare Rifts and The Whispering Vault side by side. See differences in complexity, dice, genre, cost, and more.
| Rifts | The Whispering Vault | |
|---|---|---|
| Genre | Post-Apocalyptic, Scifi, Fantasy, Horror, Superhero | Horror |
| Tags | Character Building, Combat-Heavy, Crunchy, Fear & Stress Mechanics, Gonzo, High-Power, Mana Points, Mecha, Superpowers, Tactical | Mission-Based, Mystery, Investigation, Superpowers, High-Power, Character-Driven, Atmospheric, Weird, One-Shot Friendly, Strong GM Support |
| Core Mechanic | 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. | Roll a number of d6s equal to the relevant Attribute. Take the highest single die or the largest sum of matching dice, then add the applicable Skill Bonus. Meet or exceed the GM's Difficulty to succeed. Spend one Karma to reroll any chosen dice while keeping the others. |
| Dice | d20, d100 | d6 dice pool |
| Complexity | Very High | High |
| Accessibility | Medium | Medium |
| Runnability | Very High | Low |
| License | All Rights Reserved | All Rights Reserved |
| Third-Party Publishing | Noncommercial only — Palladium Books Internet Policy limited license | No verified route found |
| Summary only, not legal advice. Check current terms before publishing. | ||
| Cost | $$ | $ |
| Publisher | Palladium Books Inc. | Philip Reed Games |
| Year | 2005 | 2003 |
| Languages | English | English |
| Best For | 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. | Groups who want supernatural horror investigations with powerful, inhuman protagonists. It suits episodic hunts across different eras or campaigns protecting one recurring location. |
| Highlights | 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. | Each Hunt gives the group a concrete objective of investigating and repairing a breach in reality. Mastered powers allow improvised effects paid for with Karma. Consistent portrayal of the Keys that preserve a Stalker's human identity earns one part of the Experience award. |
| Considerations | 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. | The Forbiddance punishes interference with unrelated mortals or major historical events. Supernatural abilities can consume the same Vitality used to withstand injury. Power interpretations and unusual combat situations depend on GM judgment rather than detailed rules for every case. |