Converting supernatural to SDC

This is a place for G.M.s and GM wannabes to share ideas and their own methods of play. It is not a locked forum so be aware your players may be watching!

Moderators: Immortals, Supreme Beings, Old Ones

RainbowDevil
Explorer
Posts: 103
Joined: Sun May 29, 2016 3:45 am

Converting supernatural to SDC

Unread post by RainbowDevil »

Hey folks,

I know that the Rifts books have very simplified rules on converting SDC things into MDC and vice versa, but just out of curiosity how do people here handle supernatural immunities? For example, some of the BtS supernatural beings are impervious to normal SDC weapons. However, most Rifts demons don't seem to have that as, due to their MDC nature, they already have that immunity. According to the plain conversion rules, a demon going to an SDC world would be affected by a gun like any other human, making them weaker than some BtS demons. However, giving them *all* an immunity to man-made weapons would be a little too much. I'm thinking something along the lines of using the straight converted stats, but opponents need to get a *natural* roll equal to their natural AR to hurt them, ie a NAR of 12, you must roll 12 before any bonuses. I figure if someone is really accurate with a gun, that won't matter if the very essence of the being is mystical - there aren't "cracks in the armour" so to speak, as there might be with a creature with purely physical armour. A very select few beings would be outright impervious, though.

What do other people find to be a fair system?

Regards,
RD
User avatar
Father Goose
Adventurer
Posts: 426
Joined: Mon Aug 06, 2018 9:07 am
Comment: If I could go back in time, I would join the cast of "The Thrilling Adventure Hour"
Location: Varies

Re: Converting supernatural to SDC

Unread post by Father Goose »

If I remember correctly, many supernatural beings in an SDC setting have thousands of SDC so, while they may be susceptible to attacks from SDC weapons, the amount of damage required to bring them down makes many of them functionally immune.
That said, I like your idea. If your goal is to scare your players and drive home the idea that these creatures are beyond mortal means of attack, while still giving them a small chance of success, that would do it.
taalismn wrote:Hey, you came up with a novel, attention-getting idea, you did the legwork, you worked it through, you made it fit the setting, even though initial thought might be 'nah, it can't work, it's too silly/stupid/lame', and you posted something that only required a little adjustment, yet can be added to, without diluting its original concept. How can we not give you due support and credit?
User avatar
Mlp7029
Dungeon Crawler
Posts: 348
Joined: Tue Oct 08, 2013 11:11 am

Re: Converting supernatural to SDC

Unread post by Mlp7029 »

RainbowDevil wrote:Hey folks,

I know that the Rifts books have very simplified rules on converting SDC things into MDC and vice versa, but just out of curiosity how do people here handle supernatural immunities? For example, some of the BtS supernatural beings are impervious to normal SDC weapons. However, most Rifts demons don't seem to have that as, due to their MDC nature, they already have that immunity. According to the plain conversion rules, a demon going to an SDC world would be affected by a gun like any other human, making them weaker than some BtS demons. However, giving them *all* an immunity to man-made weapons would be a little too much. I'm thinking something along the lines of using the straight converted stats, but opponents need to get a *natural* roll equal to their natural AR to hurt them, ie a NAR of 12, you must roll 12 before any bonuses. I figure if someone is really accurate with a gun, that won't matter if the very essence of the being is mystical - there aren't "cracks in the armour" so to speak, as there might be with a creature with purely physical armour. A very select few beings would be outright impervious, though.

What do other people find to be a fair system?

Regards,
RD

Most of the demons have an SDC write in one of the Fantasy Books. I have noted some of the really powerful beings like alien intelligences have maybe half their combined SDC plus hit points in MDC. Take into account the loss of natural AR and many supernatural being get nerfed badly in Rifts vs Palladium Fantasy.
User avatar
eliakon
Palladin
Posts: 9093
Joined: Sat Jul 14, 2007 9:40 pm
Comment: Palladium Books Canon is set solely by Kevin Siembieda, either in person, or by his approval of published material.
Contact:

Re: Converting supernatural to SDC

Unread post by eliakon »

I have noticed that a lot of demons and the like have really low SDC pools
You might have 600 MDC...
but 40 SDC and 38 HP!

In those cases I simply change it from "double damage from silver and holy" to "only vulnerable to silver, magic and holy"
Thus you get the psycho killer effect where they simply shrug off mundane weapons, normal attacks, crashing cars and what not...
...but a shotgun with improvised shells loaded with the silver dimes from grandpa's coin jar can hurt it, maybe even kill it.
The rules are not a bludgeon with which to hammer a character into a game. They are a guide to how a group of friends can get together to weave a collective story that entertains everyone involved. We forget that at our peril.

Edmund Burke wrote:The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."
Post Reply

Return to “G.M.s Forum”