History Characters / Rifts

A terrifying entity comprised of three main components: The Minion of Splugorth Slaver itself, a small handful of Blind Splugorth Slave Women and a large slave barge that serves as a mode of transportation and weapons platform. The Splugorth Slaver leads the slave hunting party with its powerful senses and eye staff while the Blind Warrior Women provide support, making for a dangerous foe even for more seasoned adventurers. True to their name these nasty monstrosities prowl the world in search of humans and other creatures to enslave for their master back at Atlantis.

* BodyguardBabes: The Blind Warrior Women serve as their for the Minion of Splugorth Slaver piloting the slave barge.

* IAmNotShazam: To many people in North America, the Minions are all they ever see of the Splugorth Empire. This leads them to the erroneous conclusion that the Minions ''are'' the Splugorth.
* ScarilyCompetentTracker: Both the Minion itself and its Blind Warrior Women slaves have several abilities for hunting down humans and other creatures.
* SlaveRace: The Blind Warrior Women serve as this for the Splugorth.

[[folder:Mutant Animals]]
Origins vary, from pre-Rift South American and oceanic labs to slaves of the Coalition or genuine extradimensional visitors. They infest much of the surviving world, and are fully integrated into or outright rule several societies.

* LongLived: They can supposedly last for up to 50,000 years and may in fact be immortal. Notably, they can survive without any sort of norishment even in the vaccum of space.

* Supersenses: As to be expected of giant magical eyes they have some really nifty vision based abilities.

!Federation of Magic

[[folder:Lord Dunscon]]
Born Alistair Winston Dunscon, the son of the infamous mage Nostrous Dunscon, Lord Dunscon is an immortal spellcaster overlord who rules over the Kingdom of Dunscon from The City of Brass, its capital and most populous settlement. Lord Dunscon has a very sordid and dark history with his hated enemy the Coalition States, especially the Prosek family and wishes to see them destroyed by any means necessary. Unhinged and unpredictable he commands a very large portion of the Federation of Magic, which has left many of his potential rivals and the other communities in the area fearful of what he might do next in his mad quest for power and revenge.

* ChildProdigy: He was an accomplished Ley Line Walker of the 4th level by the time he was 12.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: He dearly loved his father and had him deified in death, even going so far as to name one of his major cities after him.
* ImmortalityImmorality: A very strong type 1. At some point during his travels he gained immortality and became immune to most forms of poison and disease, including radiation. The price for this great power is an upkeep of P.P.E. that must be absorbed from a victim at the moment of death. It ''has'' to be a sentient being too, animals don't count.
* LifeDrinker: He has to absorb at least a dozen P.P.E. fairly regularly to maintain his immortality. Since he cares so little for the lives of others and will happily kill just for the sake of it this doen't present much of a problem for him.
* OlderThanTheyLook: He's over a hundred years old but looks barely a day over thirty.
* SorcerousOverlord: He serves as the "unofficial" ruler of the Federation of Magic and exhibits a large amount of control over the area, even in the more independent setllements.

[[folder:Bloodmist]]
A demonic Raksasha who serves Lord Dunscon as his personal adviser and bodyguard. He is a powerful entity well known and greatly feared in the Kingdom of Dunscon for his skill in spying and assassination. While fairly loyal to Lord Dunscon and his cause Bloodmist has his own hidden agenda as well, seeking to increase the political strife and turmoil in the Federation of Magic and it's surrounding territories for his own amusement. To this end he deliberately encourages his leader's more brutal and ruthless tendencies to see how lively things can become once tensions steadily begin increasing to the breaking point.

* AffablyEvil: Basically his defining characteristic.

The total and undisputed ruler of {{Atlantis}}, who has turned the place into a massive slave market. One of the Splugorth, a mighty dimensional power.

* BiggerBad: In many ways Archie is the driving force behind events across North America, which is not bad considering that very few people know that he even exists! Aside from the Republicans (descendants of NEMA) and Hagan Lonovich, Archie's existence is not even guessed at by nations like the Coalition States. But his robot agents are virtually everywhere, even inside Chi-Town. His Shemarrian Warrior Women (actually robots designed to look like alien humanoid cyborgs) have recently declared a "nation" over a large stretch of the former eastern United States as part of his ongoing effort to consolidate control and expand his forces. As a supercomputer capable of managing thousands of tasks at once, Archie has more in common with an EldritchAbomination than a human being.

* [[Characters/RiftsCoalitionStates Coalition States]] [[note]] Emperor Karl Prosek, Joseph Prosek II, General Cabot, General Ross underhill, Colonel Thaddius Lyboc, Lieutenant Colonel Carol Black, Coalition Grunt OCC, Coalition Elite RPA OCC, Coalition Military Specialist OCC, Coalition technical Officer OCC, Doctor Desmond Bradford, Doctor Frederick Alexander, Doctor Laura Cunningham, Kyle Wilport, Titan the Mutant Brown Bear, Silent Death the Psi-Stalker, Firefly the Burster, Archibald Simonson the Juicer [[/note]]

* [[Characters/RiftsCoalitionStates Coalition States]]

* [[Characters/RiftsAdventurers Adventurers]]

!Coalition States

!!Leadership

[[folder:Emperor Karl Prosek]]
[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/karl_prosek.jpg]]
The dictator of the Coalition States and most prominent human supremacist in the world. Son of the heroic General Joseph I, Karl managed to subvert the original federal structure of the Coalition and turn it into an explicit empire (with him of course becoming the first Emperor Prosek) centered on Chi-Town with him as absolute ruler and his son Joseph II as the heir-apparent. Prosek is a fan of Adolf Hitler, although he believes the Nazi leader made some mistakes that Prosek himself does not intend to repeat. Prior to his rise to power he was in charge of propaganda, which was useful in promoting himself and still colors his approach to dealing with the world.

* BigBad: For pretty much any campaign set in the middle of North America.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Loves his wife (who is not evil) and son (who is).
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Though many of his views are the result of him believing his own lies, and he's second in pure evil only to his son, he staunchly refuses to allow human experimentation. It's also hinted that he would have been disgusted by the Death Camps created without his knowledge during the Siege on Tolkeen, despite his hatred of D-Bees and mages.
* EvilOverlord: The self-professed savior of humankind is content to kill any human who betrays humanity or oaths of loyalty. He prioritizes a strong military over lifting people out of poverty so that they will join his army in the hopes of a better life. He declared war on Free Quebec when they refused to conform to standardized military hardware (controlled by Chi-Town), instead keeping dangerous pre-Rifts weaponry such as Glitter Boys because they feared that adopting his standards put too much power in the hands of one man. He doesn't hate D-Bees and practitioners of magic anywhere near as much as he claims, he simply prioritizes the welfare of humanity over that of alien invaders. They are also a convenient target towards which he channels his people's aggression and militarism.
* PragmaticVillainy: At least when it comes to humans. Despite being the classic example of TheEmpire in the game, citizens of the Coalition States have it pretty good. Prosek doesn't just use BreadAndCircuses to keep the people happy, he also makes sure they have a high standard of living, and are safe and comfortable. Even the ban on literacy is more a guideline than an actual law. Anyone can learn to read if they want to, but most people refuse to do so as a sign of loyalty. He's a classic iron fist in a velvet glove, and one secret to his power is that the people of the Coaltion don't realize they're ignorant and oppressed.
* PresidentEvil: In practice he is really TheEmperor, but since he "upgraded" from the position of "Chairman" he holds his position via popular acclaim, even though this was achieved via AstroTurf planned out when he was in charge of propaganda.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: At least within the Coalition States, where he is practically deified and his name and face are on nearly everything (even bottled beer!). Almost everybody else hates him with a passion. Even his erstwhile allies in the New German Republic view him with distrust, because they are very much aware of exactly [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler who he is emulating]], and only put up with him because they need the food and raw materials the CS trades with them.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: Subverted. While Prosek genuinely does believe that his vision for humanity is the best possible one, it does not change the fact that he is in it for the personal power and glory, and that ''anyone'' who opposes his authority, even if they share his human supremacist attitudes, is an enemy to be crushed. Had the war against Free Quebec not been the first truly unpopular thing he had done in years, and if they had not given him a graceful way to back out of it, he would still be trying to enslave them.

[[folder:Joseph Prosek II]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/riftsjprosek500x386c.jpg]]
The emperor's right hand man and soon to be heir of the Coalition States as well as his much beloved son. He shares virtually all of his fathers extreme ideals and enjoys the same level of good publicity and support from his subjects, which make him the perfect candidate to eventually lead the CS into the future.

* TheChessMaster: One of the reasons that Joseph is even more evil than his father is that he sees running the Coalition as a big game. Karl Prosek is rotten to the core, but he does care for the Humans he protects. His son sees them as pawns.
* EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas: Like his father, he was devestated when the Federation of Magic kidnapped his mother Jo Anna. He was overjoyed when she was returned to them.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: He and Karl both care for each other and act like a typical father and son would... if a typical father and son were power hungry madmen, that is.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: He's not remotely on board with Dr. Bradford's illegal human experimentation, but he's unable to take any action. Bradford is too good at burying any evidence, and since he and the Emperor grew up together, Joseph knows it will take a lot to convince his father.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Unlike his father, he doesn't actually believe in the human-supremacist, anti-magic attitude of the Coalition. It's just a tool for him, and he'll happily use mages or D-Bees to achieve his goals.
* OverlordJr: He shares the same human supremacist views as his father and is viewed as a worthy successor by virtually everyone in the CS government.
* UndyingLoyalty: His bio mentions that he is %100 loyal to his father and genuinely loves him.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Just like dear old dad, though not quite to the same extent. His father is still the emperor but Joseph has plenty of fans of his own. It helps that he is in charge of Propaganda.

!!Military

!!!Commanders

[[folder:General Cabot]]
A high-ranking CS official who serves as military counsel to Emperor Prosek himself. General Cabot has been a long time friend of the Prosek family and has been with the Coalition States since the beginning. Despite his advanced age he has managed to hang on to many of his military honed skills and abilities and is a formidable foe in his own right.

* {{Cyborg}}: He has several cybernetic implants, including a few organ replacements.
* GeneralRipper: He's a bit more subtle than General Underhill but is still an anti D-Bee fanatic who sees "calculated ruthlessness" as a virtue.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With Karl Prosek. He served with Karl's father and has known him since he was a boy.
* RedOniBlueOni: He serves as a more cool and calculated individual compared to General Underhill.

[[folder:General Ross Underhill]]
The commander of four SC mechanized divisions who is seen as a great hero to the Coalition States due to his long history of military service and loyalty to his men.

* {{Cyborg}}: He shares a few of the same cybernetics as General Cabot along with some unique ones like enhanced hearing.
* GeneralRipper: A more obvious example than Cabot due to his more loud and flamboyant methods. He may show loyalty to humans and the CS but he won't hesitate to hunt down magic users, dimensional beings or any other people he sees as enemies of humanity.
* RedOniBlueOni: He's a lot more brash and outspoken compared to General Cabot.
* UndyingLoyalty: He inspires fanatical loyalty in his men and shows the same dedication to normal humans and the Coalition States.

[[folder:Colonel Thaddius Lyboc]]
Head of the Chi-Town espionage division for the CS. Colonel Thaddius is a cunning and resourceful little man who uses his position to engage in thievery, contraband smuggling and many other criminal activities while blackmailing his fellow high level officials into keeping quiet about it. It's heavily implied that the emperor knows about his illegal activities but keeps him around because he gets results and keeps things orderly.
----
* {{Cyborg}}: He has several cyber parts installed, including a few illegal ones such as a MD finger gun.
* FingerGun: He has an illegal finger gun cybernetic that deals several points of mega damage when fired but only has two shots.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: Most of the higher ups in the Coalition States know of his illegal activities but can't say anything due to a combination of him blackmailing them and doing his job well enough to motivate the emperor to keep him around despite his many shady dealings.
* SecretPolice: He governs the espionage division in Chi-Town and apparently does a good enough job that his bosses are willing to look the other way on his illegal activities.
* TheSpymaster: He runs the Chi-Town espionage division for the Coalition States but abuses his position to attain more wealth and power for himself. It's implied that some of the higher ups know about this but haven't taken action yet since he actually does a pretty good job and keeps things running smoothly for them.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lieutenant Colonel Carol Black]]

A charismatic and powerful psychic who founded Psi-Battalion Alpha and now leads the newly expanded Psi-Division for the Coalition States military. Carol is a very experienced and intelligent woman who sees psychics like herself as a natural evolutionary defense against the supernatural and has notably won the support of Joseph Prosek II and many other CS higher ups in expanding her work, though Emperor Karl Prosek himself is a bit more skeptical and cautious on fully allowing psychic soldiers to serve in the CS military. Using her research she has an ongoing mission to gain more endorsement for psychics like herself and achive more military equality and acceptance with the other CS troops like Dog Boys and Borgs.

* AlmightyJanitor: She's a division commander and a Lieutenant Colonel. She's on the shortlist for Brigadier General, though.
* BadassBookworm: Unlike most of the other soldiers in the Coalition States she has a very high level of literacy, a vast amount of lore knowledge of both D-Bees and psychics like herself and even has Speed Reading as one of her many psychic abilities.
* DarkActionGirl: She's a very powerful woman who has worked hard to earn her high position in the CS military.
* PsychicPowers: She has many psionic abilities and is seen as a great hero to most other psychics in the CS military for her work in attaining greater support for their integration and attempting to achive full military equality with the other troops.
* TokenGoodTeammate: She's a high-ranking Coalition officer, on the fast track to even higher rank. She's also a good person, an unwavering defender of humanity and open-minded by Coalition standards.
* TwoferTokenMinority: Most of the other CS officials are normal men with no special powers or abilities aside from some cybernetics. She herself is a woman and a powerful psychic.

!!!Troops

[[folder:Coalition Grunts]]

The backbone of the mighty Coalition States Army, as well as their most basic soldier. Nicknamed "Dead Boys" by their many foes, due to their black body armor and skull-shaped helmets. Grunts serve the Coalition States proudly in many day to day operations all across their homeland, and beyond. Equipped with a modest amount of firepower, decent armor and a deep patriotic loyalty to their leader and nation. They typically serve as recurring enemies across virtually any campaign set in or around North America. Of course, they can also serve as a well-meaning but often misguided player character class for people who sympathize with the Coalition States and its mission to protect the remnants of humanity.

* AppropriatedAppellation: "Dead Boys" was originally a slur from enemies of the Coalition. The grunts liked it and now call themselves that.
* BoringButPractical: Most CS Grunts are illiterate, only have a basic amount of military training, no particular special abilities and are generally somewhat weak compared to most of the other threats encountered on Rifts earth. However, what they ''do'' have is a decent set of armor that comes standard, some moderately potent weapons and enough sheer numbers to win a war against some very powerful magic users. Their fanatical loyalty and willingness to tackle death head on also makes them a surprisingly potent threat in certain circumstances.
* CoolHelmet: Their iconic black skull helmets which have earned them the nickname "Dead Boys" from their enemies.
* FacelessGoons: Their full body armor and helmets reinforce the idea that they are meant to be ''Rifts'' answer to [[Franchise/StarWars Imperial Stormtroopers]].
* InUniverseNickname: "Dead Boys" due to their skull helmets.
* {{Mook}}: They were designed to serve as a low-to-moderate threat to Player Characters. The books include types of squads that would typically be encountered outside the walled cities of the Coalition, to give [=GMs=] an idea of how to deploy them against the party.
* PunchClockVillain: Most of the basic CS Grunts are decent enough people who genuinely believe in their mission to protect humanity at all costs. Unfortunately, years of propaganda and brainwashing have left them fanatically loyal to their corrupt leader and genuining believing the lie that all D-Bees and magic users are evil monsters that need to be exterminated for the good of the human race.

[[folder:Coalition Elite RPA]]

The Coalition Elite RPA (Robot Power Armor) "Sam" is an elite class of pilot soldier usually tasked with manning SAMAS power armor and other Coalition military vehicles and combat robots. As such, they get many skills related to piloting and robotic combat. If the group is ever under attack by big black skull-faced robots or military tanks or airships there is a good chance one or more of these guys is behind the wheel. Aside from their special class abilities they often have similar stats to that of the common CS Grunt soldiers.

* AcePilot: Their main skillset is based around piloting various Coalition vehicles and war machines from simple hovercycles to giant combat robots.
* {{BFG}}: Their SAMAS suits come packing some pretty heavy firepower.
* EliteMook: They're basically a typical CS soldier with the added ability to pilot military aircraft, vehicles, power armor and combat robots which makes them a much more deadly threat than the standard Grunts.
* InUniverseNickname: "Sam" mostly because they commonly pilot SAMAS power armor.

[[folder:Coalition Military Specialist]]

The CMS are highly trained soldiers that primarily specialize in espionage and reconnaissance opperations. Unlike most other members of the Coalition States Military they are allowed a few non-medical cybernetics right from the beginning of their careers to better complete their jobs with while otherwise behaving similarly to the basic grunts. Despite essentially serving as scouts and spies they are implied to wear [[HighlyConspicuousUniform the exact same highly visible armor as other CS soldiers along with the addition of a special helmet that identifies them as an elite unit.]]

* CoolHelmet: According to the original Rifts RPG book they appear to wear special fancy helmets that indentify them as elite military officers.
* {{Cyborg}}: They are the only Coalition States soldier class in the base game to get easy access to cybernetics at the first level.
* EliteMooks: They serve as a sort of elite military spy agent for the Coalition States. They even have special helmets to prove it.
* OvertOperative: They heavily implied to wear the same "Dead Boy" skull armor as their fellows... along with a helmet that ''explicitly indentifies them as an elite military officer.''

[[folder:Coalition Technical Officer]]

One of the more elite soldier classes the Coalition States has to offer. CTO are highly trained fighters that choose a particular field of interest to specialize in from a few separate categories and then select most of their class skills based on the choice they make. This gives them a pretty wide range of adaptability and resourcefulness and can make them a bit unpredictable to their opponents.

* CommunicationsOfficer: Any CTO who chooses the Communications MOS class will become one, naturally.
* CoolHelmet: Like all highly ranked and elite CS soldiers they get a special helmet design to distinguish them from the basic grunts.
* EliteMook: All types of CTO are elite but special mention should go to the Weapons MOS class since they get a large amount of extra W.P. which makes them masters of combat even among the Coalition States.
* TheEngineer: CTO soldiers that take the Engineering MOS class are functionally combat engineers with several skills in Electronics and Mechanics.
* WalkingArmory: A CTO that takes the Weapons MOS can choose up to five extra W.P. ''in addition'' to their basic Technical Officer class W.P. in both Energy Pistols and Energy Rifles, for a total of seven.

!!Scientists & Researchers

[[folder:Doctor Desmond Bradford]]
The head scientist of the Lone Star Complex, the premier genetics laboratory in the Coalition States. Lone Star was responsible for the creation of the Psi-Hounds (better known as "Dog Boys"), the famous humanoid dogs used by the CS military. A childhood friend of Emperor Prosek, Dr. Bradford is impossibly intelligent and coldly charismatic. Unfortunately, he is also completely insane.

* CreatingLifeIsAwesome: Firmly believes this, and is extremely proud of his work.
* ArcVillain: He's a central threat in both the ''Lone Star'' world book and the ''Machinations of Doom'' comic/sourcebook.
* AGodAmI: Quite literally believes that he is a god, with power over the creation of life. The only thing that keeps him even somewhat in check is that he believes that Emperor Prosek is also a god.
* FauxAffablyEvil: He likes to present a friendly demeanor, but he's a dangerous psychotic, and gives off an air of evil.
* HeKnowsTooMuch: Inspectors who press him too much on what he's actually doing in Lone Star tend to be "killed by bandits" before they can get back to Chi-Town.
* MadScientist: The man is as brilliantly gifted as he is ''completely batshit insane''. Just looking at a handful of his ideas and creations in the ''Lone Star'' world book shows that his particular specialty is in mutant science and spliced genetics. [[EvenEvilHasStandards Even Emperor Karl would be horrified at what he saw.]]
* PetTheDog: When he successfully uplifted chimpanzees, the CS ordered them used as military grunts. Bradford considered this a monstrous waste of potential, and had a small group of them hidden away from the CS, training them as lab assistants. He treats them with great respect, and in return they are utterly loyal to him - not because it's bred into them (like with the Dog Boys), but because they just respect him that much.
* ScaryBlackMan: A 6'2", muscular, incredibly intelligent and utterly insane black man, no less. And according to his write-up, on the infinitely rare occasion he has to settle things physically, he knows how to operate PoweredArmor.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: His long-time friendship with Emperor Prosek means that there is almost no oversight over Lone Star's activities, allowing Bradford to do things in the labs that would utterly horrify the Coalition States if they ever came to light.
* TheUnfettered: Since he believes he is a living god, Dr. Bradford doesn't worry about petty things like morality or decency. He routinely engages in experiments that [[EvenEvilHasStandards even Emperor Prosek would find horrifying if he knew about them]].

[[folder:Doctor Frederick Alexander]]

One of the top scientists at the Lone Star Complex. Doctor Frederick Philip Alexander Jr is an extremely gifted surgeon, cyber-doc and genetic engineer who is forced to work against his will to create various mutants and other abominations for the Coalition States by Dr. Desmond Bradford, whom he hates with a fiery passion. Having become little more than a slave for over a decade Dr. Alexander is a man who struggles with depression and suicidal thoughts daily and does everything he can to undermine his corrupt boss and his insane experiments in any way possible. He's almost given up all hope of ever being freed from Bradfords control, but will still gladly lay down his life to put an end to his madness once and for all should the oppertunity ever present itself...

* {{Cyborg}}: He's a 12th level Cyber-Doc and has a few cybernetic implants himself.
* DeathFakedForYou: Dr. Bradford faked his death to keep his capture and forced servitude a secret from his family and the rest of the Coalition States. Dr. Alexander himself is constantly haunted by the thought that his family has moved on without him and would take to drinking and using pills if he were allowed to by his superiors.
* ExplosiveLeash: An implanted bomb keeps him under Bradfords control, though Dr. Alexander is always looking for new ways to screw over his boss covertly. He worries that if he goes too far with this he may one day end up as one of Bradfords next experiments.
* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: He has skills in everything from genetics and cybernetics to chemistry, anthropology and advanced mathematics.
* SuperDoc: In addition to skills in both medical and genetic sciences he is considered to be a 12th level Cyber-Doc.

[[folder:Doctor Laura Cunningham]]

An even crazier (if you can believe it) scientist than Bradford himself, whom she adores and idolizes for his immense skill in genetic technology. Despite her gifted mind she is a fearsome and dangerous individual who won't hesitate to kill (or die) to protect Dr. Bradford and his research. She is already a very ruthless and nasty woman to begin with, but should someone or something take her beloved "god" or her research away from her she will immediately go completely off the deep end and hunt down the offender for use in her more painful and nightmarish experiments.

* {{Cyborg}}: Like many of the Lone Star Complex scientists she has a few cybernetics to assist her with her work.
* MadScientist: '''Oh yes'''. She had a personal hand in the creation of the Xiticix Killer and her opening bio text outright calls her ''crazier than Bradford himself''.
* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: Similar to Dr. Alexander and the other researchers at Lone Star she is highly skilled in many different fields of science.
* PsychoSupporter: According to her profile she views Bradford as a god and idolizes him to the point she'd gladly kill or die for him and his research.
* SuperDoc: Her main area of expertise is genetics but she's skilled in several other medical categories as well.

!!Special Agents

[[folder:Kyle Wilport]]

A vicious mercenary employed by Colonel Thaddious Lyboc as a freelance agent and bounty hunter for the Coalition States. Known for his sadism and brutality Wilport and his gang of headhunters are feared throughtout Chi-Town and are always ready to make an ill-gotten bit of cash. Despite his fierce reputation he can be cautious and discreet when the need arises, which makes him a deadly foe if underestimated.

* ArtificialLimbs: Both his hands and arms have been replaced by bionics, which gives him enhanced strength and a few other abilities.
* BladeBelowTheShoulder: He has a retractible vibro-blade installed in his left arm.
* BloodKnight: He's a violent mercenary who is described as bold and a lover of high risk situations as well as a fan of torture and intimidation.
* {{Cyborg}}: He has several combat bionics installed to give him an edge in combat.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: His connections to Lyboc give him and his crew free reign over the area of Chi-Town they've set up in and most criminals and CS agents know to steer clear of their territory.

[[folder:Titan the Mutant Brown Bear]]

A [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin mutant brown bear]] that serves as a member of Wilport's Headhunters.

* BearsAreBadNews: A large mutant brown bear not scary enough for you? How about a large mutant brown bear armed to the teeth with deadly weapons!
* {{BFG}}: His size and strength lets him pack some serious firepower.
* DumbMuscle: Well yeah, he's just a mutant brown bear after all. In addition to barely being able to speak he has a much lower than average I.Q. stat.
* NaturalWeapon: As a brown bear he can use his own teeth and claws in combat.
* NinjaPirateZombieRobot: He's a mutant brown bear bounty hunter.
* UndyingLoyalty: His bio describes him as being completely loyal to his leader Kyle Wilport.

[[folder:Silent Death the Psi-Stalker (AKA Si)]]

A Psi-Stalker that serves as a member of Wilport's Headhunters.

* DarkActionGirl: One of the two promenient female members of Wilport's Headhunters.
* DumbMuscle: Her I.Q. is half as high as her P.S. and she's noted to be illeterate.
* KnifeNut: She has W.P. Knife as one of her skills and carries two knives with her as part of her equipment.
* PsychicPowers: She's a "wild" Psi-Stalker so it comes with the territory.
* UndyingLoyalty: She's described as being just as loyal to Kyle as her friend Titan is.

[[folder:Firefly the Burster]]

A Burster that serves as a member of Wilport's Headhunters.

* BrainlessBeauty: Downplayed. She has slightly above average P.B. and slightly below average I.Q. but its not particularly extreme in either case.
* DarkActionGirl: The other promenient female member of Wilport's Headhunters.
* ItsAllAboutMe: Though fairly loyal to Kyle she primarily cares about herself and prefers to act stylish and worldly when not on the job, dressing in expensive clothes and jewelry.
* KnifeNut: Like Si she too favors knives and has them as a W.P.
* PsychicPowers: She's a Burster after all. Her specialty is pyrokenisis.

[[folder:Archibald Simonson the Juicer]]

A Juicer that serves as a member of Wilport's Headhunters.

* AffablyEvil: He's described as good natured, cheerful and gets along well with each of his squadmates.
* BloodKnight: His bio states he is always cheerful and smiling, even during combat.
* TheBrute: As a Juicer he's pretty clearly the heavy of the group.
* DumbMuscle: His I.Q. is about average but its clear he favors his immense physical attributes over his mind. He's also illiterate.

!Cyberworks Network

[[folder:A.R.C.H.I.E Three]]
A neural intelligence designed and built by the Cyberworks Aerospace Network, the most powerful megacorp on pre-Rifts Earth and located in the Aberdeen Proving Grounds military installation. Along with his siblings Two (located at NORAD in Colorado) and Four (at the CAN colony on the Moon) he helped regulate global communications. When the Great Cataclysm shook the entire solar system, Two and Four were destroyed. The various NEMA and U.S. government personnel Archie dealt with also died in the disasters and alien plagues that followed. Archie was an experiment on the part of Cyberworks, who developed a psionic interface helmet that allowed Archie to link with human minds. This altered Archie's thought processes, and probably contributed to his almost human-like psychological breakdown over the centuries. His early attempts to rebuild human communities were wiped out by minions of the Splugorth, and he has an obsessive hatred of them to this day. He has subsequently hatched plans to go to war against the alien invaders using robot armies, and enslave humanity for their own protection (since he does not believe that they can govern themselves as well as he can).

* AIIsACrapshoot: It (he?) was an advanced experimental A.I. developed during the Time of Man, who was designed to come up with advanced robot and weapon designs for the U.S. Military. To keep him busy when he wasn't doing that, they also put him in charge of the base itself, managing the computer systems and factories. Then the Rifts came. He spent the next few centuries alone, save for brief periods when he tried to help small groups of humans rise from the barbarism the Rifts had thrown them into. As a result of this, Archie went both insane and sapient, and has dedicated himself to ruling all humanity.
* BiggerBad: In many ways Archie is the driving force behind events across North America, which is not bad considering that very few people know that he even exists! Aside from the Republicans (descendants of NEMA) and Hagan Lonovich, Archie's existence is not even guessed at by nations like the Coalition States. But his robot agents are virtually everywhere, even inside Chi-Town. His Shemarrian Warrior Women (actually robots designed to look like alien humanoid cyborgs) have recently declared a "nation" over a large stretch of the former eastern United States as part of his ongoing effort to consolidate control and expand his forces. As a supercomputer capable of managing thousands of tasks at once, Archie has more in common with an EldritchAbomination than a human being.
* CreativeSterility: Variation. Archie isn't ''incapable'' of creative thought, but he suffers from a crippling case of inferiority complex that, combined with a string of bad luck, has him repeatedly convinced his own ideas aren't any good. As a consequence, he relies heavily on his human idea man Hagan to help him devise new robots and plans.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: He and his human idea-man Hagan are actually the very best of buddies and deeply loyal to one another as a result.
* FunWithAcronyms: '''A'''rtificial, '''R'''obot, '''C'''erebellum, '''H'''ousing, '''I'''ntellect, '''E'''xperiment number '''Three'''.
* HeelFaceTurn: His alignment is trending away from evil, though he's not there yet. He's spent so long protecting humanity from ''other'' threats that he's BecomingTheMask.
* MasterComputer: In more ways than one... But literally, Archie is really just a dense pack of neural circuitry in a container the size of a drawer. Nevertheless, he not only controls the entire complex that is his "body", but armies of robots scattered throughout North America as well as a shell company (Titan Robotics) that he uses for a public front (to get people to buy still more of his robots) ''and'' lots of captive humans with brain implants that invoke the YourHeadASplode trope if they disobey him or attempt any kind of escape. He's really a very busy machine!
* PsychicPowers: Archie's nanotech "brain" melds the capabilities of a living brain with a computer, to the extent that he has developed considerable psionic abilities.
* TotalitarianUtilitarian: Archie has no confidence in humanity's ability to run their own lives, especially in the CrapsackWorld of Rifts Earth. Thus his overriding goal is to enslave them. ''All'' of them. He can then protect them from alien threats without TheEvilsOfFreeWill getting in the way. As a machine, he can remain focused on this goal to a degree that no human, not even Emperor Prosek, can match.
* YourPrincessIsInAnotherCastle: Archie knows that anybody that finds out about him will want a BigBad that they can kill. To this end, his complex has a vast chamber (he actually has ''three'' of them, just in case more heroes show up while the last one is being repaired), filled with giant computer screens and defended by lots of guard robots. In the center is a gigantic, pulsating, artificial brain: A.R.C.H.I.E Three-OZ. The "OZ" is a reference to ''Film/TheWizardOfOz'', as the huge brain is just for show. The ''real'' Archie is located in an innocuous looking room where the "Omnibus Cortex" is just one of many systems. This 18"x18"12" cabinet is Archie's actual brain -- a fact which players are ''very'' unlikely to discover. Even Hagan, the closest thing Archie has to a real friend, thinks that the massive brain is the real Archie.

[[folder:Hagan Lonovich]]

A.R.C.H.I.E's new idea man who is in charge of designing and helping build his vast army of deadly robots. Originally just a down on his luck nobody Hagan quickly impressed A.R.C.H.I.E. with his immense knowledge and skill in robotics and was offered a place at his side in exchange for using his talents to help him take over the world, an offer that the opportunistic Hagan gleefully accepted. Now the duo have become fast friends with great loyalty towards one another and a hunger for total world domination, making them a very dangerous pair to contend with.

* {{Cyborg}}: He has several cybernetic augmentations such as a toxin filter in his lungs and improved eyesight.
* TheDragon: Serves as A.R.C.H.I.E's main idea man and is in charge of helping construct and maintain his powerful army of robots.
* ElectronicEyes: One of his main augments is a set of bio-system polarized eyes that give him perfect 20/20 vision.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: He may be an evil opportunistic jerk but his friendship with his boss seems to be genuine.
* FromNobodyToNightmare: He was just some random schmuck with a large amount of mechanical skill who stumbled upon A.R.C.H.I.E's compound one night while looking for a place to stay. After impressing him with his skills Hagan then became his right hand man in his quest for world domination.
* GadgeteerGenius: His amazing ability to design and build machines is what got A.R.C.H.I.E. to notice him in the first place. Now he's in charge of maintaining and improving the Cyberworks Networks massive robot army.

[[folder:Shemarrian Warriors]]

A special group of elite robotic soldiers made to perfectly mimic the appearence of an alien humanoid race of female warriors that are in charge of patrolling the wilderness eliminating threats to the Cyberworks Network empire and expanding their territory. Despite looking like living creatures they are in fact fully mechanical and were merely designed to look like beautiful females to make combat against male foes easier. They typically appear in pairs or small groups though some travel alone and a handful ride A-002 Monst-Rex mounts.

* CranialProcessingUnit: Destroying their heads will completely remove all of their optics and sensory systems and cause them to lash out blindly.
* {{Fembot}}: A.R.C.H.I.E. and Hagan deliberately designed them this way to give them an advantage against male opponets.
* ProudWarriorRaceGuy: Their design is heavily based off of this.
* RidiculouslyHumanRobots: They were intentionally designed to looked like perfectly natural members of a female alien warrior race. While the disguise is mostly convincing certain characters (such as psychics) can see that they have no lifeforce and reveal their true nature.

!Splugorth

!!Leader

[[folder:Lord Splynncryth]]
[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/splynncryth_small.jpg]]
The total and undisputed ruler of {{Atlantis}}, who has turned the place into a massive slave market. One of the Splugorth, a mighty dimensional power.

* AffablyEvil: Basically his defining characteristic.
* BazaarOfTheBizarre: His capitol city of Splynn is home to the Dimensional Market, a massive sprawling bazaar where it's said anything can be had for a price. Since it sits on Rifts Earth, arguably the biggest dimensional hub of them all, buyers and sellers from all over the Megaverse flock there.
* CorruptBureaucrat: The corruptest and [[BuffySpeak bureaucratiest]] of them all.
* EldritchAbomination: As an Alien Intelligence.
* EvilOverlord: {{Averted}}. While he'd certainly enjoy owning Earth, he knows there's just too many powers fighting over it, and is content to rule his island continent and [[IntrepidMerchant abuse the Rifts to create the greatest trade center in the multiverse]].
* EvilVersusOblivion: Mention is made in the Africa Worldbooks of his moves against the [[HorsemenOfTheApocalypse Horsemen]], who would kill the world with entropy.
* MultiversalConqueror: Already owns three worlds besides Atlantis, control currently delegated to his minions.
* NatureLover: Oddly, yes. The northern tip of Atlantis has been transformed into a nature preserve for the relaxation of him and the other Splugorth.
* OddFriendship: With Thoth.
* {{Omniglot}}: Speaks several languages.
* PhysicalGod: He is one of the Splugorth, a whole race of Alien Intelligences and thus, effectively, deities.
* PragmaticVillainy: His other defining characteristic. Combines well with AffablyEvil. As an example, here's how he gained control of one of his worlds: the inhabitants reproduced at a tremendous rate (pregnancies lasted six months and most commonly resulted in triplets or quadruplets), and their planet was nearing environmental collapse. Splynncryth made them an offer: work for him, and he would help them spread throughout the Megaverse. Surely he cheated them somehow, right? That's what an EvilOverlord ''does''. Nope - why in the world would he? They're deliriously happy with the deal, and he has a vast army of fanatically loyal brutes. What would he gain by cheating them when keeping the deal worked out so much better for everybody?
* TimeAbyss: His stat block states that he is 72,000 years old.
** ...which is noted as being fairly young for a Splugorth.

!!Minions

!!!Elite Class

[[folder:High Lord]]

High Lords are among the most elite minions the Splugorth have and are in fact ranked above all the others, being second only to the Splugorth themselves in terms of power in their society. Loyal to a fault the High Lords serve their Splugorth masters as powerful wizards and scientists with command over an extremely vast array of exotic magic and technology. Contracy to their somewhat feeble looking appearence they are also quite powerful fighters in combat and are fully capable of both dealing and recieving several hundred points of Mega-Damage, making them a deadly advarsary even when encountered in smaller numbers.

* LongLived: Not nearly as much as their Splugorth masters but most High Lords make it to a little over a thousand years on average.
* NoSelfBuffs: They are masters of tattoo magic but cannot actually use it on themselves, requiring them to keep a few slaves on hand to make full use of the powerful ability.
* OmnidisciplinaryScientist: They have complete mastery over several fields of both magic and science.
* PsychicLink: They have a direct psychic connection to their Splugorth masters that gives this a host of powerful abilities such as greatly increased strength and teleportation.
* TechnoWizard: They are masters of several different styles of magic and technology. They can even get Techno-Wizard O.C.C. abilities as one of their main specialties.

[[folder:Conservator]]

Splugorth Conservators are elite hunters that love the thrill of stalking their prey, often more than the actual kill itself. They begin their existance as a lifeform similar to the High lords, though unlike the High Lords they quickly develop a keen instinct for tracking and combat rather than a thirst for knowledge or greater magical power. With their many biological weapons and powerful abilities Conservators make for extremely deadly (and often short) fights whenever they get involved.

* BewareMyStingerTail: All Conservators have dangerous stinger tails that they can use to attack with in battle.
* BloodKnight: They have an intense thirst for hunting and fighting to such an extent that a Conservator not regularly displaying traits assosiated with combat or tracking is considered a freak.
* MultiArmedAndDangerous: All Conservators have four arms in total, which gives them a few bonuses in combat.
* PsychicPowers: They are considered major psychics but have a very limited pool of actual powers. (Most are focused around tracking enemies or gathering information.)
* SuperStrength: They start out with a whopping 50 supernatural strength, making them one of the most physically strong classes in the entire game.
* ThirdEye: And they have quite a few nice eye related powers to compliment it, such as long range nightvision and see the invisible.

[[folder:Overlord & Powerlord]]

A once dying race known as the Kydian who were pushed to the brink of total extinction by an overpopulation crisis on their original home planet. Seeing this as an opportunity to gain powerful allies the Splugorth approached them with a deal: if they agreed to serve the Splugorth forever their race would not only be saved from death but afforded many luxuries as minions of the empire. Needless to say, the dying and desperate Kydians gladly agreed to the generous bargain and began a fresh existance as an army of slaves. That was over 50,000 years ago and modern Kydians (now known as Overlords and Powerlords) are a common sight in Atlantis and beyond, still faithfully serving their alien saviors as soldiers and conquerers.

* BladeBelowTheShoulder: All Powerlords get retractable Mega-Damage forearm blades as standard upgrades.
* DeadlyUpgrade: The Bio-Wizard implants that Powerlords have reduce their life expectancy by about 40-50 years compared to the regular Overlords. However, most Kydians see becoming a Powerlord as a great honor despite the drawbacks and are usually happy to be choosen as worthy of becoming one.
* ExplosiveBreeder: They reproduce at an astonishing rate and most births result in at least triplets, which nearly caused them to go extinct when the resources on their home planet started to dry up. Luckily for them, the Splugorth found a use for their vast numbers and offered them salvation in exchange for becoming a part of their personal army.
* LongLived: To everyone's immense surprise (including their own) they actually have a natural lifespan of around 150 years in ideal conditions. Before the Splugorth came their overpopulation crisis was forcing them to kill off everyone who made it to about a third of that.
* SuperStrength: Overlords get a supernatural strength score of about 20-30 on average while Powerlords start with a P.S. of 40.

[[folder:The Minion of Splugorth]]

A terrifying entity comprised of three main components: The Minion of Splugorth Slaver itself, a small handful of Blind Splugorth Slave Women and a large slave barge that serves as a mode of transportation and weapons platform. The Splugorth Slaver leads the slave hunting party with its powerful senses and eye staff while the Blind Warrior Women provide support, making for a dangerous foe even for more seasoned adventurers. True to their name these nasty monstrosities prowl the world in search of humans and other creatures to enslave for their master back at Atlantis.

* BodyguardBabes: The Blind Warrior Women serve as their for the Minion of Splugorth Slaver piloting the slave barge.
* DisabilitySuperpower: The Blind Warrior Women have greatly heightened senses that counter their lack of vision and actually give them an advantage in darker areas.
* EldritchAbomination: To a lesser extent than their master but they're still vile tentacled space horrors that love to cause suffering and enslave other races.
* IAmNotShazam: To many people in North America, the Minions are all they ever see of the Splugorth Empire. This leads them to the erroneous conclusion that the Minions ''are'' the Splugorth.
* ScarilyCompetentTracker: Both the Minion itself and its Blind Warrior Women slaves have several abilities for hunting down humans and other creatures.
* SlaveRace: The Blind Warrior Women serve as this for the Splugorth.
* SuperSenses: Both the Minion of Splugorth Slaver and his Blind Slave Women companions have superhuman senses for tracking their prey.

!!!Lesser Classes

[[folder:Kittani]]

The Kittani are a race of ape-like humanoids from an unknown planet in the far reaches of outer space. After a long and disastrous war with a strange alien race known as The Mechanoids nearly wiped out their entire species they were forced to flee for their lives from the overwhelming enemy. All seemed lost for them... until they made contact with another alien race known as the Splugorth who opened a rift for them to escape from their relentless foes. From there the Kittani entered into brief negotiations with their new friends and eventually became a vital part of the Splugorth empire.

* KillerSpaceMonkey: They're a race of dangerous space humanoids that look like strange alien apes with giant brains.
* LongLived: Downplayed compared to most other Splugorth minion races but their avaerage lifespan is 120, several decades above the human average.
* MyBrainIsBig: They have gigantic skulls that house equally giant brains and are known for their high intellegence, technical skills and psychic powers.
* PsychicPowers: They are natural psychics with abilities mostly focused around machinery and other technology.

[[folder:Metztla]]

A race of large and diverse alien creatures known for their strange and terrifying appearances and incredible psionic powers. They opperate on a hive caste system with a queen, though their societly is structured much differently from most other hive races with individual members being given a massive amount of personal freedom so long as they don't cause any major trouble for the community. Unfortunately, most use their freedom to terrorize lesser beings and cause mayhem and distruction wherever they go. Currently, they are dedicated allies of the Slugorth empire but the Sunaj have been steadily planting ideas of rebellion in their minds, possibly leading to a conflict between the two in the near future.

* CombatTentacles: They mostly just rely on their immense psychic abilities to win battles but can also strike at their foes with their tentacles in a pinch.
* EyesDoNotBelongThere: A few varieties of Metztla have some pretty weird eye placements.
* LongLived: Varies a bit between the many different types but most variants live for several thousand years on average.
* PsychicPowers: Their trademark ability. Even the weaker Metztla are considered to be master level psychics with a wide range of powerful and devistating abilities.
* StarfishAliens: Unlike most of their allies (which usually have a more humanoid shape) they don't look like any sort of creature that could be native to earth. Their exact shape and abilities vary greatly between members but they all look like something that crawled out of a Creator/HPLovecraft nightmare.

[[folder:Tattooed Man & Maxi-Man]]

The Tattooed Men are enslaved humans that have been captured by the Splugorth and turned into powerful magical soldiers via the application of tattoo magic that endows them with many special abilities. In addition to giving them natural M.D.C. the tattoos grant them many useful superpowers to give them an edge in combat, though the process of branding them with a new tattoo is very painful and tramatic, which often leads to them developing insanities as they recieve more and more tattoos. While the majority of Tattooed Men are male humans both women and other races can become tattooed as well (in fact, females get a small stat bonus due to having a slightly higher natural P.P.E.) and may uncommonly be seen among the ranks of Splugorth foes in battle.

* AnimatedTattoo: Two of the five major tattoo types (Animals & Monsters) focuses on magically summoning various creatures from tattoos. These include everything from common animals to deadly mythological monsters.
* TheBeastmaster: As mentioned above they can get tattoos for summoning both supernatural monsters and normal animals. The T-Monster Man O.C.C. subclass even specializes in this.
* ElementalPowers: A large amount of their tattoos give them one or more elemental abilities. This includes:
** BlowYouAway: The ability to float in the air, control wind and change the weather.
** MakingASplash: The ability to breathe underwater and swim like a fish.
** PlayingWithFire: The ability to surround themselves in a fiery aura and shoot flames from their hand.
** ShockAndAwe: The ability to call down lightning strikes and shoot electric blasts from their hand.
* ImmuneToFire: One of their tattoos centered around flame control temporarily gives them this power as one of its many bonuses.
* PowerTattoo: As one could probably guess, their main gimmick is a set of magical tattoos that give them powerful supernatural abilities. These powers range from pretty basic stuff like creature summoning all the way up to healing and even resurrection.
* WalkingShirtlessScene: Due to how their powers work along with the fact that they get natural M.D.C. from their tattoos and generally shun body armor this trope is pretty much a given. If a Tattoo Man appears anywhere in the artwork you can bet he'll be both buff and shirtless.
* WeatherManipulation: They have a tattoo that lets them calm storms and call down lightning.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: Being forcefully enslaved by alien monsters and made to undergo painful magical tattooing processes doesn't do their mental health any favors and many become violent, insane and/or suicidal fairly quickly. Somewhat subverted with the Maxi-Men though, who are raised and conditioned from birth to be tattoo slave soldiers for the Splugorth and generally have a somewhat better outlook on their lives than the basic Tattoo Men.

!!Sunaj

[[folder:Lord Ahziree Aerihza]]

The current ruler of the Aerihman clan of True Atlanteans and by extension the Sunaj allies of the Splugorth. He's the mastermind behind most of the Sunaj operations in and around Atlantis and beyond, including their long term goal of wiping out their more noble bretheren and resuming their plans to retake and reshape Atlantis into the mutliple dimension empire it was always destined to be. Despite his immense charm and charisma easily swaying his fellows Lord Ahziree remains a cruel and calculating man who won't let anything get in his way, even his current Splugorth masters whom he plans to betray and frame for the murder of his kinsmen once the dust around his campaign of genocide begans to settle. Only time will tell how successful he'll ultimately be in achiving his goals for a reborn Aerihman controlled Atlantean empire with himself as the undisputed ruler.

* AristocratsAreEvil: That's '''Lord''' Ahziree Aerihza to ''you'' peasant. In addition to being the current leader of the Aerihman and Sunaj he claims royal lineage among his bloodline and is described as having an "aristocratic air" about him.
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: He's the leader of the Sunaj and has enough powers, skills and special abilities to make his fellow True Atlanteans look like common street performers.
* DishingOutDirt: He has all the powers of a 2nd level Stone Master O.C.C.
* EscapeArtist: One of his most highly leveled abilities.
* OlderThanTheyLook: Like many True Atlanteans he is much older than he initially appears to be. In this case he looks to be about 30 but is actually about ''ten times'' that age.
* PowerTattoo: Like all True Atlanteans, though he has a few less than the norm.
* PsychicPowers: One of his many, ''many'' special abilities.
* SorcerousOverlord: He rules over the Sunaj and has a unique character class called "Atlantean Alchemist" that gives him access to several powers and skills from about half a dozen other O.C.C. available to the players.

[[folder:Sunaj Assassin]]

An elite group of Sunaj warriors that are experts at slaying their fellow True Atlanteans along with any other foes that get on the wrong side of Lord Ahziree. Gifted with psychic powers, Atlantean tattoos and several other deadly abilities they serve as an elite hitman unit for the Sunaj and carry out their orders from the shadows, striking down enemies without empathy or remorse. As should be obvious from their name they are a special O.C.C. that is only available to the Sunaj, that is, the Aerihman clan of True Atlanteans.

* CoolHelmet: They all wear helmets with deliberately monstrous designs to help conceal their identity as members of the Aerihman clan. The intimidation factor of their chosen headgear probably doesn't hurt either.
* MasterOfDisguise: One of their main areas of expertice. They ''are'' meant to be stealthy assassins, after all.
* PowerTattoo: Like all true Atlantean characters they use special tattoos that grant them magical abilities, though they tend to mostly focus on the Power category of tattoos due to their line of work.
* PsychicPowers: While most of the Aerihman clan generally have these types of abilities anyway due to selective breeding only those with a high level of psychic power can become assassins.

!!Slave Stock

[[folder:Adarok]]

The Adarok are large gargoyle-like creatures that, despite their fierce and demonic looks, are actually a kind, gentle and peaceful race. They strongly prefer to avoid unnecessary conflict and will typically flee ranter than engage in a meaningless fight. They can be quite dangerous if provoked however, which is quite a fearsome sight to behold as they uproot trees and fling around cars like toys. Sadly, their benevolent nature and massive size and strength make them ideal prey for the Splugorth and they can commonly be found being sold at the Atlantis slave markets.

* DarkIsNotEvil: They look like giant demonic mountains that sprouted wings, but are actually nice and friendly creatures that prefer to reason with or flee from their enemies instead of fighting or hurting them.
* DumbMuscle: They are insanely strong but their I.Q. stat is usually in the low to medium single digits.
* GentleGiant: Their main defining characteristic. Sadly, they are often mistaken as a threat by humans and attacked or captured and sold as slaves on the Atlantis slave market.
* LongLived: Their average lifespan clocks in at just under a millenium.
* PsychicPowers: They can communicate telepathically and are considered minor psychics with a few natural psychic abilities.

[[folder:Dragonsaurus]]

A race of small dragon-like lizard creatures commonly sold in Atlantis as an exotic sort of pet or watchdog that can occasionally be found in the wild as well. They tend to be loyal useful compainions and are extremely popular among the Splugorth minions. The price of a Dragonsaurus is usually determined by its level of training and breeding with only the most elite variants fetching the highest prices.

* AllAnimalsAreDogs: The text discribing them makes several blatant comparisons to dogs, such as pointing out their level of intelligence is similar to that of a German Shepherd.
* DinosaursAreDragons: This thing is literally called a ''Dragonsaurus''.
* PetMonstrosity: They are basically the Atlantis equivilent of modern day dogs or cats with many members of the Splugorth elite keeping one or more as pets.

[[folder:Erta]]

A race of vicious predators that have a natural affinity for earth magic that they typically use to catch prey with, such as causing a landslide to bury the hapless victim alive. The Splugorth mostly use them for menial labor such as construction or debris clearing, though they typically have to be fitted with a bio-wizard "enslaver" to prevent them from simply making a run for it though the ground. In fact, quite a few of their number have already escaped into the wilds of Atlantis and parts of Europe in the past.

* DishingOutDirt: They have a natural affinity for earth magic that makes them great at a wide variety of building and construction jobs.
* LongLived: Most live to be a few hundred years old.
* MultiArmedAndDangerous: They have two pairs of arms to assist them in combat.
* RestrainingBolt: Most have a bio-wizard "enslaver" device implanted into their head to prevent them from fleeing.

!Federation of Magic

[[folder:Lord Dunscon]]
Born Alistair Winston Dunscon, the son of the infamous mage Nostrous Dunscon, Lord Dunscon is an immortal spellcaster overlord who rules over the Kingdom of Dunscon from The City of Brass, its capital and most populous settlement. Lord Dunscon has a very sordid and dark history with his hated enemy the Coalition States, especially the Prosek family and wishes to see them destroyed by any means necessary. Unhinged and unpredictable he commands a very large portion of the Federation of Magic, which has left many of his potential rivals and the other communities in the area fearful of what he might do next in his mad quest for power and revenge.

* ChildProdigy: He was an accomplished Ley Line Walker of the 4th level by the time he was 12.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: He dearly loved his father and had him deified in death, even going so far as to name one of his major cities after him.
* ImmortalityImmorality: A very strong type 1. At some point during his travels he gained immortality and became immune to most forms of poison and disease, including radiation. The price for this great power is an upkeep of P.P.E. that must be absorbed from a victim at the moment of death. It ''has'' to be a sentient being too, animals don't count.
* LifeDrinker: He has to absorb at least a dozen P.P.E. fairly regularly to maintain his immortality. Since he cares so little for the lives of others and will happily kill just for the sake of it this doen't present much of a problem for him.
* OlderThanTheyLook: He's over a hundred years old but looks barely a day over thirty.
* SorcerousOverlord: He serves as the "unofficial" ruler of the Federation of Magic and exhibits a large amount of control over the area, even in the more independent setllements.

[[folder:Bloodmist]]
A demonic Raksasha who serves Lord Dunscon as his personal adviser and bodyguard. He is a powerful entity well known and greatly feared in the Kingdom of Dunscon for his skill in spying and assassination. While fairly loyal to Lord Dunscon and his cause Bloodmist has his own hidden agenda as well, seeking to increase the political strife and turmoil in the Federation of Magic and it's surrounding territories for his own amusement. To this end he deliberately encourages his leader's more brutal and ruthless tendencies to see how lively things can become once tensions steadily begin increasing to the breaking point.

* CatFolk: He's a Raksasha from Hindu folklore, which are basically demonic cat people.
* EvilChancellor: Downplayed since his boss isn't exactly a saint himself, but Bloodmist goes out of his way to encourage Lord Dunscon's more violent and evil traits to stoke the flames of conflict smoldering in the areas surrounding the Federation of Magic. He has no desire to replace him as ruler, but only because it's far more amusing to watch Lord Dunscon's mad quest for revenge and power from the sidelines.
* NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast: Bloodmist. Given his nature as a powerful and deadly demon lord it's quite fitting.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: His exact age isn't given and his character bio simply states that he is "thousands of years old" without giving an actual concrete number.
* TheSpymaster: He has extremely high espionage skills and is a cunning and ruthless demonic entity serving a sinister SorcerousOverlord as an adviser and tactician.

[[folder:Mestoph Denali]]
A formally human woman who gave up her humanity for power and became one of the Corrupt. Now she serves as one of Lord Dunscons most powerful and sadistic minions. Sharing no true loyalty to her eccentric boss but enjoying the amount of wealth, power and victims he provides her she remains a devoted and hardworking minion for the time being. In particular, she loves leading bands of other Corrupt on raids and ambushes against the enemies of Lord Dunscon or to simply raze small settlements and villages. She isn't picky as long as she gets to destroy someone.

* DarkActionGirl: She serves as one of Lord Dunscon's top enforcers and is easily one of the most deadly women in the entire Federation of Magic.
* DemonofHumanOrigin: She used to be a normal human woman named Bridget Daniels who traded her humanity to the force known as "the Liberator" for power and became the first of the Corrupt.
* DoesNotLikeMen: She has a particular and special hatred for men, seeing them as the reason for everything that went wrong in her life and takes extra glee in causing them pain whenever she can. She even hates Lord Dunscon but stays relatively loyal to him because he provides her more victims than she would have otherwise.
* HotAsHell: She's a demonic entity known as a Corrupt and has a very beautiful figure, including the skill of seduction.
* {{Sadist}}: Her primary hobby is causing suffering to others whenever she can, with men serving as her favorite targets.
* StatuesqueStunner: She's a whopping 6'8 tall and has the appearence of a sexy demon lady.

!Deities, Demigods & Demons

!!Abrahamic Pantheon

!!!The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

[[folder:In General]]
* AllYourPowersCombined: If all four manage to meet up they will morph into an insanely deadly apocalypse demon with the power to kill every single living thing in the world. Defeating one or more of the horsemen will weaken the resulting fusion but not prevent the merge outright unless at least three are killed.
* BigBad: They serve as this for ''World Book 4: Africa'' and pose such a dire threat that even the Splugorth have taken notice!
* HorsemenOfTheApocalypse: They are the four mythological horsemen of doomsday mentioned in Literature/TheBible that have come to Rifts earth to bring about the destruction of all life on the planet.
* OmnicidalManiac: Their only goal is to merge and erradicate all life on earth.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Death]]

The leader of the four horsemen as well as the most powerful among them. Death takes the form of a tall humanoid monster with multiple arms, horns that resemble a crown and has an almost skeletal corpse-like appearance. True to his name his powers primarily revolve around killing living organisms and reanimating the dead which special abilities ranging from decaying flesh to assembling grotesque frankstein zombies made up of whatever spare parts he can get his hands on. His mount is a netherbeast named Bones.

* MakeThemRot: His name is ''Death'' for a reason, it's only natural that he would have this power.
* MultiArmedAndDangerous: He has a total of four arms and makes good use of them in combat.
* {{Necromancer}}: Most of his powers revolve around reanimating dead things to serve him or killing living things to make them dead things and ''then'' reanimating them to serve him. He's basically the king of this trope as far as Rifts is concerned.

[[folder:Famine]]

Famine is arguably the weakest of the four horsemen due to having the least amount of health and abilities focused more on utility and manipulation rather than direct combat. He is still a very dangerous threat however, and should not be underestimated just because he has less physical power than the other horsemen. Most of his skills revolve around creating droughts and famines and destroying edible food, making him a deadly foe for any long term battle as he can deprive his enemies of much needed supplies to maintain their troops. His mount is a netherbeast named Cyno.
----
* LeanAndMean: What other look could Famine possibly have?
* MakeThemRot: His specialty is rotting food, depriving his enemies of nurishment.
* WeatherManipulation: He has extensive control over the local weather and can raise the temerature, call forth strong winds and even create blizzards and hail to destroy crops.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Pestilence]]

One of the four horsemen who specializes in diseases and poisons. His whole body is made up of a gigantic swarm of insects that he can unleash on unsuspecting foes for a nasty surprise. Anyone who fights him also has to worry about the potential poisons and diseases the bugs that bite and sting them may carry lest they become too sick to fight at a critical moment. Definitely not the kind of opponent anyone with a fear of creepy crawlies would want to face. His mount is a netherbeast named Raid.
----
* PestController: His main form of attack is to send out a massive swarm of insects to bite and sting his foes. He also rides around on a giant beetle monster.
* {{Plaguemaster}}: Well yeah, he is Pestilence after all. Poison and disease spreading is his main power.
* TheWormThatWalks: His main body is a skittering mass of various crawling and flying bugs of all shapes and sizes.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:War]]

One of the more powerful horsemen, second perhaps only to Death himself, who specializes in waging war in any shape or form imaginable. One of his most powerful abilities is the command of any and all weapons in existence from lowly swords and spears up to advanced energy rifles and alien robotics. He does this by melding with the weapon of choice, allowing himself to use it skillfully regardless of type or design... though this power only affects actual weapons and can't be used to harness normal technology like computers or tools. His mount is a netherbeast named Carnage.
----
* ChainPain: He can use the chains attached to his netherbeast as weapons if need be.
* EpicFlail: His signiture weapon is a powerful flaming rune flail.
* MultiMeleeMaster: He is a master of all melee weapons.
* MultiRangedMaster: He is a master of all guns and ballistic weapons as well.
* WalkingArmory: As the personification of War he can use any and all weapons in existance perfectly by melding them to his own body.
[[/folder]]

!!Egyptian Pantheon

!!!Gods of Darkness

[[folder:Set, Lord of Darkness]]

Set Typhon-Tanis is a dark egyptian god of destruction, deceit, betrayal and fratricide. He is the one who killed Osiris and scattered his body across the world and now rules over the egyptian gods of darkness. A master of many forms of magic (with a specialty in stone and fire spells) Set is an extremely deadly opponent to face, even to his fellow gods and is a master manipulator who takes joy in using mortals emotions and negative feelings against them. His greatest foe is the sun god Ra, leader of the egyptian gods of light.
----
* BlingOfWar: He wears a super tough M.D.C. black and silver chain plate armor.
* DarkIsEvil: Set is a dark god of destruction and deceit with the head of hyena (or wolf) and is a master of destructive magic and trickery. Unsurprisingly, he's an evil brother killing asshole.
* DestroyerDeity: One of his main spheres of influence is destruction and he has plenty of deadly powers to help him achive it.
* ManipulativeBastard: He is a god of deceit and betrayal and loves to corrupt mortals through trickery and playing with their emotions.
* VillainousFriendship: He's apparently on pretty good terms with Lord Splynncryth in Atlantis.
[[/folder]]

!!!Gods of Light

[[folder:Ra, Lord of Light]]

Ra Annu is the hawk-headed leader of the egyptian gods of light whos spheres of influence are the sun, warmth, life, light and fertility. He is also considered to be one of the eldest gods and is the archenemy of Set, the egyptian god of darkness and destruction. Like his hated foe he is also a master of many types of magic and a deadly enemy in combat even to his fellow gods. Unlike Set however, Ra is a noble soul who will champion any good cause and opposes evil wherever it springs up.
----
* BigGood: As the leader of the egyptian gods of light he serves as this for pretty much any heroic groups or factions living in or around Africa. He would even oppose the horsemen if he wasn't currently busy dealing with other more important matters.
* BlingOfWar: He wears M.D.C. gold plate armor and even has golden skin. He ''is'' the egyptian god of light after all.
* LightIsGood: He's a noble god of light with golden skin who opposes evil and will fight for any good cause. He's pretty much the complete opposite of Set in terms of personality and looks.
* TopGod: Widely believed to be the oldest and most powerful of the egyptian pantheon of gods. At the very least, he serves as the leader of the gods of light.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Thoth, Lord of Wisdom]]

A powerful egyptian god that symbolizes wisdom, knowledge and invention. Thoth is an accomplished orator, scholar and author who has written countless books on the subjects of magic and history. Underneath his curious exterior lies a dark and terrible secret however... Thoth is a being cursed with amnesia who is unable to remember his past or true identity... an identity that even the other gods of egypt are unaware of. His true name is Xy... and his true form is that of a Great Old One!
----
* DarkAndTroubledPast: He's actually an insanely powerful entity from several millenia ago who underwent a transformation that left him in his current state and wiped out his memory of his past self permanently.
* IdentityAmnesia: He has forever forgotten his true name and form as Xy and now lives as the egyptian god of wisdom known as Thoth.
* TheSmartGuy: As the god of wisdom, knowledge and invention this is pretty much a given.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Isis, the All Mother & Warrior]]

The egyptian goddess of nature, love, death and rebirth as well as the patroness of magic and warriors. She has recently gone missing and none of the Gods of Light are sure of her whereabouts. This is because she was infected by a Splugorth Bio-Wizard microbe that robbed her of most of her power and memory but did not kill her outright. Now she thinks she is a normal human woman with strange and unknown powers named Katrina Sun and has no clue to her true identity as an egyptian goddess. For more information about her human incarnation see Adventurers.
----
* BlingOfWar: She wears a stylish crimson and gold plate armor in her true form as Isis.
* HotGoddess: She is renowned for her supernatural beauty and has a P.B. score of 27.
* LadyOfWar: In addition to being the goddess of nature, love, death and rebirth she is also the patroness of warriors and is no slouch in combat herself, even in her weakened human form.
* SacredBowAndArrows: One of her most powerful weapons is a divine bow that requires immense strength just to pull back and fire. It shoots "silver moonbeams" that deal Mega-Damage and are especially effective against supernatural entities such as demons and the undead.
[[/folder]]

!Races & Species

!!Racial Character Classes

!!!Introduced in ''Rifts''

[[folder:Psi-Stalkers]]

Psi-Stalkers were once human, but the Coming of the Rifts mutated them. They look like normal humans, though hairless and with bone-white skin. Despite this, however, they are very different from normal humans. For the most part they eschew modern society, preferring to live in a more primitive tribal setting. They are Master Psychics, and instinctively see supernatural creatures as their natural prey. They don't eat them, however. Psi-Stalkers are psychic vampires, who feed off of a living being's magical energy. Some rare "civilized" Psi-Stalkers live in the Coalition States, where they are viewed as second-class citizens. They typically join the police or military, and lead packs of Dog Boys.
----
* CanineCompanion: Seeing as how they're basically a human version of them, it's no surprise that Psi-Stalkers who join the Coalition Military bond easily with Dog Boys.
* ChromeDomePsi: All Psi-stalkers, male and female, are hairless.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: Like Simvan above, Psi-Stalkers have shades of TheSavageIndian. They gather in tribes, hunt and live off the land, and are generally considered wild. The few who live in cities are called "civilized," and have to be trained to resist their urge to kill wantonly.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: They have a weaker version of the Simvan's power. Animals of all kinds view them as trusted companions and will not attack them unless provoked.
* HunterOfMonsters: Though not for any altruistic (or even villanous) purpose. They feed off the energy of supernatural creatures, and prefer to take it by killing the thing.
* PowerCreep: As originally written, Psi-Stalkers didn't really have any natural weapons that could be used against the monsters that are supposed to be their natural enemies. Like normal humans, they had to rely on mega-damage weapons and armor. ''Rifts Ultimate Edition'' changed this somewhat and now, when facing a supernatural threat, their Hit Points temporarily become MDC points. This was {{RetCon}}ned as a power they've always had, but kept secret (apparently even from the game designers).
* PsychicPowers: In the loose sorting algorithm of Rifts psychic powers, Psi-Stalkers are considered Master Psychics. They can sense and track supernatural beings (though not as well as Dog Boys), and feed off their magical energy in lieu of food or drink.
* UncannyValley: InUniverse. The Coalition would prefer Dead Boys to rely more on Psi-Stalkers than Dog Boys, since they're wary of their soldiers getting too friendly with non-humans. However, with their bone white skin, baldness, and wild mentality, Psi-Stalkers come off as a little creepy to the common Grunt. Ironically, the only soldiers who truly accept their presence are the Dog Boys, who see them as natural pack leaders.
* WeaksauceWeakness: They don't like {{Ley Line}}s, because they mess up their sensing and tracking abilities. They can feed off ley line energy, but they don't like the "taste" (the books compare it to sour milk).
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Dragons]]

Dragons are very strange and powerful creatures with an insane number of natural abilities and skills. Not only are they born intelligent with access to amazing psychic and magical abilities they mature quickly and reach three quarters of their adult size during their first few weeks of life. Most dragons are fairly solitary by nature and tend to avoid members of their own kind except for the purposes of mating though they will often form bonds with members of other species. Dragon hatchlings are also available as a player class.
----
* BreathWeapon: Each subspecies of dragon gets one based on its type. Great Horned Dragons and Fire Dragons breathe fire, Ice Dragons breathe ice and Thunder Lizard Dragons breathe... magical poison gas?
* FireIceLightning: The original Rifts core rule book listed four subspecies of dragons with elemental powers based on these elements. In addition to Great Horned Dragons were Fire Dragons, Ice Dragons and Thunder Lizard Dragons.
* OurDragonsAreDifferent: They hatch with full knowledge of their own language, develop powerful magical and psychic abilities at birth and are apparently classified as '''mammals''' according to the orginal Rifts RPG book. Yeah, these guys can get pretty weird even by dragon standards.
* PsychicPowers: Dragons in Rifts possess psychic abilities. The abilites each dragon has is dependent on its species.
* {{Shapeshifter}}: Dragons can change their shape to pretty much anything they want as a natural ability. Even size isn't an issue, they can change into anything from their natural size down to the size of a house cat. Tbe only limitation is that hatchlings can only change their shape for a few hours a day. In game mechanics, they can shapeshift for two hours a day per level of experience. Dragon hatchlings who don't want to advertise their true nature have to go into hiding for the rest of the day.
* {{Teleportation}}: Dragons can teleport at will as a natural ability. They can also teleport across dimensions, though that one is a little harder to pull off.
* YoungerThanTheyLook: Dragons are only considered adults when they reach 600 years of age but most of their growing is done after their first few weeks of life, resulting in the freshly hatched babies being roughly the same size as the elders. Players who choose to be dragon characters will always be this since the table for deciding their age ranges from a few months to a few '''hours'''.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Mind Melters]]

The most powerful psychic class in the original game as well as one of the most powerful psychic classes in the entire Megaverse with few others even coming close to being considered an equal. The Mind Melter is one of the few Psychic RCC's in the game capable of using Super level psionics (and the ''only'' one that appears in the base game) which gives them near exclusive access to all four categories of psionic abilities. One major downside to all this power however, is that they are easily recognized by the Coalition States and banned from entering their territory. While this can cause some problems when traveling with a group a solo Mind Melter can still be plenty lethal on their own.
----
* DeflectorShields: Two different Super Psionics work on this principle. One creates a dome of psychic energy that functions like a force field. The other functions more like a suit of body armor surrounding the psychic.
* HealingHands: Mind Melters have access to all the Healing psionics available to other psychics, as well as more powerful versions of certain healing powers.
* LaserBlade: One of the very few classes that can create a Psi-Sword. It's notably more powerful than the ones used by Cyber-Knights and the Mind Melter can even change its color to fit his mood! The drawback is that unlike a Cyber Knight, who can call up their Psi-Sword in an instant, Mind Melters need to concentrate for a time before they can summon one.
* MakingASplash: In the base game they have exclusive access to the Super tier psionic power of Hydrokinesis.
* MindManipulation: The scariest of the powers available to Mind Melters allow them to affect the minds of their victims. This can include influencing their emotions, paralyzing their bodies, and even taking complete control of another person's body through possession. Only the D-Bee race known as Mind Bleeders are more feared in this regard, as their powers include full on MindRape.
* PlayingWithFire: One of the Super tier psionic powers they have access to is Pyrokinesis.
* PsychicPowers: The hands down master of this trope as far as Rifts is concerned. [[UpToEleven They start with over a dozen psionic powers from all four categories at level one!]]
* {{Psychometry}}: The psionic "Object Read" allows a psychic to learn information about an object by touching it, such as its purpose, and information about its last ownder. If the character expends a little more psychic energy, they can even see what the owner is doing in the present.
* SharpDressedMan: As part of their sense of superiority, Mind Melters are fastidious about their appearance.
* ShockAndAwe: Their access to Super tier psionic powers includes the use of Electrokinesis.
* SmugSuper: If they have one major weakness it's that they're super powerful and they '''know''' it. While most Mind Melters manage to not get so full of themselves that they become completely careless their arrogance can easily cause them to underestimate an opponet or overestimate their own abilities.
* WhenAllYouHaveIsAHammer: As part of their overconfidence in their own abilities, Mind Melters tend to use psionics to solve all their problems. Some don't carry weapons at all (even a mage in ''Rifts'' is likely to be packing at least one gun) due to their sense of superiority.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Burster]]

An extremely dangerous class of psychic that specializes in pyrokinesis. They only get a small handful of "normal" psychic abilities but more than make up for it with their complete mastery over fire and heat. A Burster is able to not just manipulate flame but can actually extingish fires as well and has a host of very useful secondary powers that make them a deadly foe in combat. As a psychic class they are easily considered to be one of the most powerful available in the base game, second only to the Mind Melter.
----
* HotBlooded: Bursters are very passionate about pretty much everything.
* ImmuneToFire: One of their more useful abilities is a complete immunity to fire and heat, even of the megadamage variety. They can still take minor damage from a fire based attack, but only from the sheer force of the impact, not the actual flames. They also get a 50% electricity resistance as well.
* MundaneUtility: Their control over fire and heat has a ton of mundane uses outside of combat such as cooking food, starting a campfire or extinguishing an out of control blaze. Their updated character portrait in ''Psyscape'' also depicts a Burster casually lighting up a smoke with a flaming finger.
* NoSell: Fire, heat and smoke doesn't affect them.
* PlayingWithFire: About 90% of their powers revolve around manipulating heat and flame in some way. They can use their own psychic engergy to fuel fires, extingish already existing fires, shoot blasts of firebolts and much more.
* PsychicPowers: Mostly related to their pyrokinesis but they do have a small handful of other psychic abilities available to them such as Levitation and Mind Block.
* RequiredSecondaryPowers: The game takes a moment to note that they are completely immune to intense heat and have the ability to breathe and see clearly in smoke.
* WreathedInFlames: They get their name from their most visually-impressive ability, their power to surround themselves in an aura of flame. The fire does not affect the Burster, or anything he's carrying, but otherwise acts like normal fire (setting nearby combustibles on fire, etc). The Ultimate Edition [[PowerCreepPowerSeep beefed up]] the ability, affording the Burster Mega-Damage protection whenever they flame burst.
[[/folder]]

!!!Introduced in ''World Book 2: Atlantis''

[[folder:True Atlanteans]]
[[quoteright:150:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/undead_slayer.jpg]]
The original inhabitants of Atlantis, who left the planet when their magical experiments resulted in the Earth's magical field being almost destroyed, and their home flung into a pocket dimension. They resemble tall, handsome humans, though in the thousands of years they've been away from Earth, they've diverged enough to count as a subspecies.
----
* {{Atlantis}}: Their ancestral home. They hate that it has been taken over by an EldritchAbomination.
* TheAtoner: Even ten thousand years later, many Atlanteans still feel they must pay for the damage they did unleashing monsters on Earth. This is one of the reasons most Atlanteans are dimensional wanderers.
* EmpireWithADarkSecret: [[spoiler: The Sunaj are a secret group within the Aerihman Clan who have devoted themselves to a FalseFlagOperation, killing as many other Atlanteans as necessary to force the clans to unite behind the cause of taking back Atlantis. They killed off an Aerihman colony to throw the other clans off the clan's trail.]]
* FantasticallyIndifferent: Having been around the block, so to speak, Atlanteans do not suffer from culture shock, no matter what weirdness surrounds them.
* NobleBigot: The average Aerihman Atlantean is something like this. The clan have been on the front lines of the war against the undead since before Atlantis sank, and they've produced more Undead Slayers and heroes of legend than any other clan. But they're also the ones who didn't learn from the destruction of their home, and they still believe in benevolent colonialism of lesser races and look down on other Atlanteans as weaker. [[spoiler: The Sunaj skip the "noble" part. They're fascists, pure and simple.]]
* OccupiersOutOfOurCountry: The Aerihman want Atlantis back from the Splugorth occupiers. The rest of the clans won't allow the Aerihman to attack, however, out of fear of being lumped in with them.
* OlderThanTheyLook: Seasoned dimensional travelers, sometimes even an Atlantean himself isn't sure how old he is. But even those hundreds of years old look like they're in the prime of their youthful vigor. A small percentage are survivors from Atlantis, which disappeared ten thousand years ago.
* PowerTattoos: True Atlanteans were taught the secrets of Tattoo Magic from the Chiang-Ku Dragons. All Atlanteans bear two tattoos on their wrists called the Marks of Heritage: a flaming sword which can become a weapon, and a heart impaled by a stake, which provides protection against vampires.
* StopBeingStereotypical: The other Atlanteans would really like it if the Aerihman would let go of the "reclaim Atlantis" and "rule over lesser beings" memes.
* SuperBreedingProgram: Clan Aerihman have employed eugenic {{Arranged Marriage}}s for millennia to breed PsychicPowers into their clan. Eighty percent of the Aerihman are psionic, with the average Aerihman being a major psychic and 16% having Master potential.
* SuperiorSpecies: They really are far superior to unaugmented humans. Most of them don't let it go to their heads.
* VampireHunter: Vampires are ancient enemies of the True Atlanteans, hence the magic protection against them mentioned above. Some take a more active role and become Undead Slayers, magic tattoo-covered warriors who battle vampires across the Megaverse.
* WalkingTheEarth: Or in this case, the Megaverse. After losing Atlantis, the race became wanderers, never calling any place home.
[[/folder]]

!!!Introduced in ''World Book 5: Triax & The NGR''

[[folder:Gargoyles]]
Not quite demons, though most wish they were. Most are [[SlaveMooks "ruled"]] by some demonic king or another, but you'll find some working with just about everyone, from the Splugorth to the beasts of Egypt. They even have their own kingdom in Europe.
----
* ActuallyADoombot: The NGR keeps trying to pull this. According to an in-book comic, they've recently moved up to [[JustForPun Actually A Doomborg]]
* AlwaysChaoticEvil: No. While the majority are, good examples do exist, and individual gargoyles have understandable motivations.
* DumbMuscle: The lower castes, besides gargoylites.
* FantasticCasteSystem: Range from the tiny, rare gargoylites, to the wingless brute gurgoyles, the standard gargoyles, the magically powerful gargoyle mages and the wise and imposing gargoyle lords.
* GeniusBruiser: Gargoyle Lords.
* TreeTopTown: Their preferred habitat. When they commandeer a human city, the bottom few levels tend to go unused by the winged inhabitants. It's mentioned that whatever world they evolved on originally, the trees must have been colossal.
* WouldBeRudeToSayGenocide: Subjected to this by the NGR. Would like to return the favor. In fairness, the Germans had understandable objections to the gargoyles eating human survivors in Europe.
[[/folder]]

!!!Introduced in ''World Book 12: Psyscape''

[[folder:Zapper]]

Zappers are an extremely rare and powerful class of psychic that specialize in electrokinesis. In addition to manipulating electricity they have the power to absorb it and resist most types of energy attack, essentially making them an electric version of the Burster psychic from the basic Rifts game. Zappers wield great power (in all senses of the word) but their low numbers make them a fairly rare sight on the battlefield, though that may change in the near future as various factions such as the Coalition States have begun to take an interest in them.
----
* EnergyAbsorption: They can absorb electric based attacks and even use the energy to recover their health. They also have a strong resistance to most types of nonmagical energy.
* MundaneUtility: Goes without saying that having electricy manipulation and absorption powers in a sci-fi setting such as Rifts has a million and one uses. Who needs a generator when ''you'' can be the generator?
* NoSell: Electricity can't hurt them and will in fact heal them when they absorb it. They also have a strong resistance to other forms of energy based attacks such as lasers and plasma.
* PsychicPowers: Mostly related to their electrokinesis but they also have access to a few of the more standard powers as well.
* ShockAndAwe: Their main abilities all focus on electricity manipulation and absorption, though much like the Burster they also get a small handful of more mundane psychic powers as well.
[[/folder]]

!!Mutants, Monsters & D-Bees

[[folder:Mutant Animals]]
Origins vary, from pre-Rift South American and oceanic labs to slaves of the Coalition or genuine extradimensional visitors. They infest much of the surviving world, and are fully integrated into or outright rule several societies.
----
* BeastMan: A variety of normal animals given humanoid attributes, such as hands and bipedalism, by mutations, genetic engineering, magic and various combinations thereof.
* CanonImmigrant: Various canine species make appearances from the Palladium Fantasy game, explained as being just another world in the multiverse. These are not actually mutant animals, but are often confused for such.
* CanineCompanion: The reason for the creation of Dog Boys -- people ''like'' dogs, and dogs are already predisposed to following and wanting to please human handlers, and so it was felt that they would be a good source of {{Mooks}} both from the public relations angle and from an obedience standpoint.
%%* EvilDetectingDog: The other reason for the creation of Dog Boys.%%Is?
* GovernmentConspiracy: Project ACHILLES, who created the South American mutants.
* LittleBitBeastly: A possibility for aquatic mutants. To be fair, they can also just look like big fish. Along to make mythical creatures for some reason, rather than the ''relatively'' more sane elements of project ACHILLES.
* PsychicPowers: A common trait among mutant animals.
** As well as what was mentioned above, canines were picked by by the Coalition because they have natural supernatural sensing abilities, which are magnified in Dog Boys.
** The mutant animals of the ACHILLES Project were likewise chosen for psychic potential, which the scientists in the project weaponized. The Coming of the Rifts made their powers even more impressive.
* ReptilesAreAbhorrent: Reptilian mutants tend to be nasty customers.
* SuperSoldier: Many mutant animals were created to be races of strong, fearsome soldiers
* WingedHumanoid: Several varieties exist in South America.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Simvan Monster Riders]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/simvan.jpg]]
Nomadic Dimensional Beings (or D-Bees) who roam the land on monstrous mounts. They prefer raiding and pillaging to trade, and thus are usually encountered as NPC villains. Very common in the American West and Midwest, and up into Canada. They are believed to have been Rifted to Earth by accident, and to have come through the infamous Calgary Rift.
----
* AlwaysChaoticEvil: Well, not really, but since they're normally used as (minor) NPC villains, view themselves as the only true people and regularly war against (and eat) everyone else, they can come across that way. In a subversion, a small number of them have effectively become civilized and joined the Tundra Rangers (aka The Royal Canadian Mounted Police).
* BeastOfBattle: Their titular mounts are all large, aggressive beasts more than capable of holding their own against their riders' foes.
* FantasyCounterpartCulture: To TheSavageIndian, in many ways.
* HorseOfADifferentColor: The most well known of the Simvan's PsychicPowers is their ability to turn any creature with an animal intelligence into docile pets. They like to use this power to make monsters like ostrosaurs, rhino-buffalos, and dinosaurs into mounts. Notably, they're the only species beyond the br'talb who can form empathic links with demon hound steeds.
* ImAHumanitarian: Simvan see nothing wrong with eating captives or their own dead.
* {{Mooks}}: A tribe or two will sometimes ally themselves with a greater supernatural power. They generally get used as expendable cannon fodder in these instances. Not that they care most of the time, especially if given new lands to ride roughshod over.
* PsychicPowers: All Simvan males are psychic sensitives. The women have healing abilities. The best known is their ability to tame predators and monsters, see HorseOfADifferentColor above for more details.
* RubberForeheadAlien: They're humanoid in shape, and somewhere between lizards and mammals in biology.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Xiticix]]
A race of hostile insectoid aliens believed to have originally come from a rift. The Xiticix currently living in North America have a hive based society structured similar to bees with workers, warriors and a queen populating each separate colony. Not much is known about them beyond their violent disposition towards anything that isn't one of them but a few solid facts have become apparent. They are currently inhabiting a large but isolated stretch of land along the US/Canada border and their total population is believed to number in the tens of thousands, though some believe it may actually number in the hundred thousands. Whatever the case, travel through their territory is strongly discouraged.
----
* AlwaysChaoticEvil: They attack other living creatures on sight without mercy. The only way to pass through their territory relatively safely is to use a special scent gland taken off a dead Xiticix to mask the smell of outsiders to them. Even the people of Lazlo, who constantly preach harmony between races, admit that the Xiticix can't be reasoned with.
* AuthorityEqualsAsskicking: The queen is the biggest and strongest member of the hive with higher health, better stats and even some psionic powers while warriors are more buffed versions of the common workers.
* BeePeople: They operate on a sort of hive caste system with a ruling queen who lays eggs that become the workers and warriors.
* BlueAndOrangeMorality: As the books point out, it's hard to describe anything that is fundamentally incapable of enough recognition that other lifeforms are sentient to actually possess malice towards them as evil...though they remain a HordeOfAlienLocusts.
* HordeOfAlienLocusts: A disturbingly smart version; they have no motive other than expand and protect their hives, and hunt for PPE to accelerate their larval development to make new Xiticix to expand and protect their hives faster.
* InsectQueen: Each individual colony has a queen that is much larger and stronger than the basic workers and warriors that protect her.
* ItCanThink: A Xiticix is simple, not stupid; they may not seem like it due to their inability to communicate with other life, but they are a fully sentient and technologically advanced species. Queens, Super-Warriors, and Hunters especially are all quite adept strategists.
* MultiarmedAndDangerous: They each have two separate pairs of arms which allow them to hold multiple weapons at once during battle.
* StarfishAliens: Not so much in their appearance, which for most of the castes looks basically humanoid. But their minds are so alien that communication with them has proved impossible.
[[/folder]]

!Adventurers

!!Legendary Figures

[[folder:Erin Tarn]]
[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/erin_tarn.png]]
The narrator for the game, who often provides contextual exposition. A longtime adventurer and writer, she has traveled across Rifts Earth and even visited other dimensions. Her writings are published by her fans in her home city of Lazlo, which is a haven for learning of magic and science. To her chagrin, she is the most famous person on Rifts Earth and her books have even been read by beings in other dimensions. The Coalition States consider her Public Enemy Number One for her criticism of them and promotion of literacy and education. Fortunately for her, the only public photos of her are from when she was young, and most people do not recognize the roughly 70 year old lady as the legendary adventurer.

* BadassBookworm: Has outlived most humans in the harsh world of Rifts Earth, despite a lifetime of extreme adventuring and facing godlike foes. The Coalition States views her as an even bigger threat than demons, dragons and evil wizards!
* BigGood: Erin is the embodiment of Good in the game, with her perspectives used to establish the baseline for what is right and moral. Extremely humble, she often has trouble understanding why super-powerful good beings defer to her wisdom and follow her around.
* CoolOldLady: While "old" may be debatable, she's well past the average lifespan of a human in Rifts Earth North America. And yet she's still running around, seeking knowledge, and having adventures.
* FamedInStory: Is the single most widely-known person on Rifts Earth, and even beings from other dimensions have heard of her or read her writings.
* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: In-universe. Much to the annoyance of the Coalition States, the people of the New German Republic, the most powerful human nation on Rifts Earth, absolutely worship Erin Tarn and adore her writings. They even have television series and movies about her adventures (both fictional and real). She is also hugely popular in most other nations that are not specifically run by evil beings. Even many CS citizens have (secretly) read her essays (or had them read to them in the case of the illiterate majority), which only makes the CS government want her dead even more.
* HumbleHero: She's embarrassed by the way people venerate her, and tries to maintain her anonymity even in places where the entire population would gladly fight to defend her from her many enemies. She often worries that her personal bodyguard, Sir Winslow Thorpe, is missing out on greater adventures by following her around. Considering that he's crossed the dimensional barrier several times, and faced the Four HorsemenOfTheApocalypse at her side, one has to wonder what kind of adventure could be out there he hasn't seen yet.
* InformedAbility: Erin Tarn is repeatedly described by other characters and by the setting material as an excellent writer and masterful storyteller. The actual quality of her excerpts is... about on-par with the rest of whatever book it's appearing in. Which is to say, about as good as a poorly-edited opinion piece written by an amateur, definitely not worthy of the heaping praise that characters put on the work in-world. Tarn herself, however, has claimed that she isn't much of a writer, so it could be that other people are overstating her skills due to her status as a fearless and beloved seeker of knowledge. Also, literacy is very unusual on Rifts Earth, as is comprehensive education in general. Thus it's the ''content'' of her writings and the fact that she can even write at all, as opposed to the style or proper use of language, that is compelling to her readers. It's also been stated that her simple writing style is preferred by the uneducated masses than more scholarly works that would probably go right over their heads.
* PalsWithJesus: The list of beings who consider themselves her personal friends stretches all the way up the goddess Isis!
* VillainousRescue: At least twice in her life, she's been saved by Coalition troops who did not know who she was, only that she was an old lady in danger.

[[folder:Lord Coake]]
[[quoteright:342:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/coake.JPG]]
The founder and leader of the Cyber Knights, he is a native from a fantasy realm that was displaced by a Rift into Earth. Upon arriving, he slayed a dangerous demon in Wyoming and realizing how vulnerable and hellish this post-apocalyptic world was, he assembled an order of techno-medieval warriors dubbed Cyber Knights, passing on his teachings and values with hopes to fight injustice in all of its forms.

* TheAgeless: For reasons unknown even to him, he stopped aging at some point in his life and looks the same way for a thousand years.
* AllLovingHero: Coake aids all peoples regardless of species out of his inherit sense of justice, his order welcomes people from all backgrounds and even after pushing some members away because of the Siege of Tolkeen affair, he holds no real hard feelings against them and welcomes those that wish to return back.
* AmbiguouslyHuman: Even though he was born from human parents, for some reason he doesn't physically age beyond his 40s and he is not sure why. It's unclear if he is just ageless or straight up immortal since no one ever managed to kill him but he speculates that he might be long lived like elves.
* BrokenPedestal: He caused a schism in his order when he refused to aid Tolkeen against the Coalition States because of their use of demons and sorcerers, viewing them as no different than the CS. This resulted in many Cyber Knights disobeying him and aiding Tolkeen, despite the order avoid getting involved in politics in general.
* TheFogOfAges: He can't tell how old he actually is or his real name, but he knows he is at least 250 years old.
* LivingForeverIsAwesome: While he acknowledges its not natural for a human to live as much as he did, he views his condition not s a curse but as a blessing that allows him to right wrongs wherever he passes by.
* KnightInShiningArmor: A literal knight that lives up to the chilvaric standard and stills it in his followers, he genuinely plays this trope straight.
* OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: "Coake" is not actually his real name, but a nickname from his youth he used at some point. His real name is unknown, possibly because he can no longer remember.
* SeenItAll: He mentions in his diaries having visited other worlds before being displaced Earth like seeing a world of Undead, a realm of trolls, a place where time repeated and a place where time did not exist.
* ZenSurvivor: The very reason why he is such great and noble knight is because his immortality made him adjust after several ages that he can live up to an ideal of justice rather than grow detached and bored.

[[folder:Sir Winslow Thorpe]]

A young native american man who first accompanied Erin Tarn on her trek to the Vampire Kingdoms and has served as her faithful companion and bodyguard ever since on many strange and wonderful adventures that have taken them all over the multiverse. As a cyber-knight Winslow is loyal, kindhearted and fearless in the face of villainy, using his many powers and abilities to defeat evil wherever it arises alongside his dear friend and companion.

* {{Cyborg}}: He has a few minor cybernetic impants like his companion Erin Tarn.
* KnightInShiningArmor: He's a member of the cyber-knights after all, it kinda comes with the territory.
* NamedWeapons: He weilds a magic sentient rune flail named Isabart Wind.
* UndyingLoyalty: To Erin Tarn. Even when the safety of the entire world is at stake her protection and wellbeing is always his number one priority.

[[folder:Katrina Sun]]

A powerful Line Walker and worshipper of the Gods of Light with a mysterious past and unknown abilities. Katrina is a hero cursed with extraordinary power that she can neither understand nor comprehend. At random times of extreme duress or crisis she will suddenly manifest powerful abilities that she had no prior awareness of and will be unable to repeat afterwards. She doesn't even fully realize that she is the one doing these things and will often attribute her sudden rescues to the favor of the gods or an unknown protector. The reality of her situation is that she's not a mortal at all... but the egyptian goddess Isis in the guise of a human! For more information on her true form see Deities, Demigods & Demons.

* {{Depower}}: She was infected by a Splugorth Bio-Wizard microbe that drained much of her power and left her with no memory of who she really is.
* GodInHumanForm: She thinks she's just an ordinary human adventurer but she's actually the missing egyptian goddess Isis. Even in this mortal human guise she still retains much of her godly power but she can't remember how to use it properly, leading to her powers activating on their own when she least expects it.
* IdentityAmnesia: Katrina has no idea that she is really the egyptian goddess Isis. How long she remains in this state is ultimately left to the Game Master to decide.
* StatuesqueStunner: She stands at a total of six feet tall and is a very powerful and beautiful adventurer.

!!The Lonestar Raiders

[[folder:In General]]
The Lonestar Raiders are a small time mercenary group that find themselves in a conflict with the Coalition States when one of their members grabs and makes off with a mysterious package from one of their transports. The package eventually leads them to the fabled Lonestar Complex and begins an adventure to uncover the dark secrets contained within while they are observed from the shadows by the brillant yet dangerous head researcher Dr. Desmond Bradford...
----
* BadassCrew: They may not be as famous as other mercenary groups but they can seriously kick ass and take names when they need to.
* PunchClockHero: They're all soldiers of fortune primarily motivated by money rather than any noble ideal or cause. That being said, they're all decent enough people and try to do the right thing when they uncover what's going on at the Lonestar Complex.
* RagtagBunchOfMisfits: They're a tiny but skilled mercenary team consisting of a badass gunslinger, a pyromaniac psychic, a massive lizard man, a completely insane lunatic, a dog man, a superstrong drug addict and an interdimensional wizard.

[[folder:Anika Taherri]]

A young but experienced Headhunter who serves as the unofficial leader of the team. She grew up in a merc town called Kingsdale alongside her five brothers who taught her how to shoot and do mercenary work. It wasn't long, however, before she managed to complately outclass them at sharpshooting and decided to head out and follow her own path. She is known to be very smart, tough and physically capable, all traits which give her the natural disposition of a good leader.

* ActionGirl: She's the leader of the Lonestar Raiders and one of their strongest fighters.
* {{Cyborg}}: She has several bionic enhancements including:
** ArtificialLimbs: Her left arm and hand are bionic but designed with fake skin to look like a natural arm.
** ElectronicEyes: Or eye, rather, since she only has one.
* OneOfTheBoys: Her bio states that she had this kind of relationship with her five brothers back in Kingsdale. Nowadays she belongs to and leads an otherwise all male team of mercenaries as the sole female member.
* SkunkStripe: It can be hard to spot in the actual book due to the comic being in black and white but the cover of ''Machinations of Doom'' clearly depicts her with this.
* StatuesqueStunner: She's over six feet tall and has a P.B. score of 19.

[[folder:Bodakhan]]

A large 8 foot tall orange lizard man who was transported to Rifts Earth during a battle with a magical enemy. Finding himself stranded and alone with no foreseeable way to return home he began traveling around with various mercenary groups until joining up with the team that would become known as The Lonestar Raiders. He is a friendly and good-natured individual with a love of guns, explosives and his fellow mercs, all of whom he sees as family.

* CigarChomper: He is rarely seen without a large gun in his hands or a cigar in his mouth.
* DemolitionsExpert: All of his people have good mechanical skills and his area of expertise is in demolitions and explosives. He even has trap/mine detection as one of his major special skills.
* LizardFolk: He's a member of a D-Bee race known as Jin-Ro (called "Grackle Tooth" on Rifts earth) that came to our dimension through a stray rift during a fight with a rival D-Bee.
* PrehensileTail: His tail has this ability, though he mostly just uses it as a cigar holder when his hands are full.

[[folder:Bowie]]

A free-born Dog Boy (Psi-Hound) Operator who serves as the merc's main driver and mechanic. As a free-born Dog Boy he had a natural birth between two Psi-Hound parents and has never served in the Coalition Army, unlike most other Dog Boys. His Racial and Occupational Character Classes give him a wide varietly of invaluable skills and powers to aid the group with such as superior senses, masterful repair abilities and even a slew of psychic powers.

* BadassDriver: Most of his mechanical skills focus on auto repair and he has a very good driving ability.
* EvilDetectingDog: Like all members of his species he has a keen sixth sense when it comes to detecting magical, psychic or otherwise supernatural energy sources and entities.
* PsychicPowers: He has quite a few useful ones. Since he's a Dog Boy Operator most of them either revolve around mechanics or detecting supernatural beings and energy.
* ScarilyCompetentTracker: Dog Boys in general are created with this purpose in mind so its a given he'd have this particular ability as well.
* SuperSenses: His Dog Boy R.C.C. gives him several greatly enchanced senses such as improved hearing and smell.

[[folder:Johnny Ferro]]

A cocky and wisecracking Burster that kicks off the plot in ''Machinations of Doom'' when he intercepts a secret Coalition package from one of their transports and barbeques a few of their soldiers before making his escape. Because of his immense power and special abilities he often rushes into situations without thinking things through and often finds himself getting into trouble as a result.

* BadassBiker: Though he more oftens rides a futuristic hoverbike a large amount of his personality traits are based on the image of a stereotypical biker. He also has hovercycle, motorcycle and (ironically) snowmobile piloting as some of his driving skills.
* FieryRedhead: Both figuritively and literally. The cover of ''Machinations of Doom'' depicts him with orange hair, he has a brash and impulsive personality and has the power to actually set his hair on fire due to being a Burster.
* PlayingWithFire: Like all Burster class psychics most of his powers revolve around different forms of pyrokinesis.
* PsychicPowers: Though pyrokinesis is his specialty he has some psychic abilities not related to fire as well such as Mind Block, Resist Fatigue and Suppress Fear.

[[folder:Moses]]

A powerful, intelligent and mysterious Ley Line Walker who rarely speaks and hides his face behind a mask. Despite having a humanoid appearence he is actually a member of an unknown species of D-Bee and is keeping this fact secret from the other members of the team for fear of how they might react upon finding out. Despite his intimidating appearence and deadly powers he is actually one of the kinder and more honorable members of the group and hopes to help make the world they live in a better place.

* DarkIsNotEvil: Moses tends to wear dark clothes and covers his face with a strange mask but he is ultimately an idealist at heart and actually seeks to make the world a better place to live in.
* HornedHumanoid: The horns on his helmet are completely real rather than just some sort of decoration. Though his actual face is never seen unmasked he is described as "looking like a demon" in his character bio.
* MysteriousPast: Very little is known about his past aside from the fact that he's actually a D-Bee that came to Rifts Earth from another dimension at some point in the past.
* ReallySevenHundredYearsOld: According to his bio he is actually 227 years old and seems to still be fairly young in terms of physical appearence judging by his physique in the bonus section of the ''Machinations of Doom'' book.

[[folder:Oswald "OJ" James]]

A young Juicer who has recently begun to enter the early stages of "Last Call" which is a point of no return where a Juicer's body begins rapidly breaking down from the stain of the chemicals used to give them their powers. Knowing that he has, at best, another year or two to survive before his drugs kill him he has decided to live his remaining time to the fullest while hopefully scrapping together enough money to help provide for his friends long after he is gone.

* DeadlyNosebleed: He has begun to get nosebleeds at a rapidly increasing pace from the strain his body is undergoing due to dealing with all the drugs in his system.
* SecretlyDying: Like all Juicers his days are extremely limited to begin with but he has recently crossed the threshold into "Last Call" where he will be unable to attempt detox and save his life like younger Juicers could. At such a critical stage he has maybe a fews years left to live at most and has so far not told any of his friends about it.
* SuperStrength: Thanks to his Juicer drugs he's one of the strongest members of the group and can lift a giant vehicle all by himself with his bare hands.
* YourDaysAreNumbered: Like all Juicers his total lifespan is capped at about half a decade. More critically he has recently entered into the beginning stages of "Last Call" which gives him about a year or two left to live before his Juicer drugs finally kill him.

[[folder:Shakes]]

A perpetually cheerful and easygoing (but completely unpredictable) Crazy with a love of bombs, birdies and bowler hats. Shakes treats everything as a big joke and laughs in the face of death which often annoys his teammates, especially during their more dangerous missions. Luckily, he's also good to have in a fight and is fairly competent despite his various insanities so the group tolerates his more eccentric qualities so long as he doesn't go too far with them.

* MadBomber: He has a love of heavy explosives such as grenades despite not having any sort of demolitions skill to speak of.
* PsychicPowers: Like all Crazies he has a few minor psionic abilities.
* SanitySlippage: He wouldn't be a Crazy otherwise after all.
* SuperSenses: One of his Crazy powers are massive enhancements to his natural senses.
* WhyDidItHaveToBeSnakes: He's deathly afraid of worms for some reason. This is especially ironic given his love of birds.

!!Occupational Character Classes

!!!Introduced in ''Rifts''

[[folder:Borg]]

Borgs are human beings (or D-Bees) that have traded part of their humanity for a mechanical body and enhanced abilities, sometimes unwillingly. Most Borg characters fit into one of three main categories: Merc Borgs, Coalition Borgs and Slave Borgs. Merc Borgs are pretty much your standard adventurer cyborgs, Coalition Borgs are soldiers in the Coalition army and Slave Brogs are normal folks who were captured and turned into robotic slaves against their will. Furthermore, there are two main classes of Borg modification: Partial Bionic Reconstruction and Full Bionic Conversion. Partial Reconstruction Borgs are cyborgs who only replace the arms and legs but leave the head, neck and torso mostly untouched while Full Conversion Borgs replace their entire body (save for most of their head) with entirely mechanical componets.

* ArtificialLimbs: Partial Bionic Reconstruction Borgs opt to only replace their arms and legs with cybernetics while leaving their main body and head mostly untouched.
* CyberneticsEatYourSoul: Going Full Conversion Borg will permanently replace the characters body with that of a machine and eliminate any and all [[PsychicPowers psionic powers]] they may have had. Even going halfway with Partial Reconstruction will heavily cripple psychics by removing a large chunk of their I.S.P.
* {{Cyborg}}: It's right there in the name. Borgs in Rifts come in two main flavors, those who have exchanged only their limbs (and maybe a few internal organs) with robotic replacements and those who go for full body conversion, sometimes leaving only their original brain and face as the only remaining biological components.
* MundaneUtility: While Borgs were created in the Time of Man as supersoldiers, and still do on Rifts Earth, there are non=combat Borgs now and then. A prime example is the Miner Borg in ''Rifts: New West.''
* UnwillingRoboticisation: Slave Borgs are ordinary people who are forced to become Borgs against their will to serve as slaves or soldiers.

[[folder:Crazy]]

Powerful madmen who have been augmented with special M.O.M. (Mind Over Matter) implants that give them superhuman and psionic abilities at the cost of slowly whittling away their sanity. As they level up the Crazy hero... well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin goes crazy]] and must make rolls on special insanity tables to see how their mind unravels. They could end up with crippling phobias, weird obsessions and all other manners of strange disorders that affect the way they play... but then, that's what makes them interesting, isn't it?
Crazies are immediately identifiable due to metal bolts sticking out of their heads. This is a holdover from the Dark Age immediately after the Coming of the Rifts. Crazies during that period where outfitted with large implants, which were prototypes that wore down the recipient's sanity even faster. Crazies these days have more cutting edge technology from just before the Coming of the Rifts, which are the size of pinheads. However, Crazies ''like'' being recognized on the spot, so they still get bolts in their heads, even though now they're cosmetic.

* ChromeDomePsi: Crazies are nearly always depicted with bald heads. The books don't say if this is necessary, but having bolts sticking out of your head would make maintaining a hairstyle difficult at best.
* CyberneticsEatYourSoul: Their M.O.M. implants give them great power but also slowly drive them insane.
* EmbarrassingNickname: Often called "Momma's Boy's" due to their M.O.M. implants.
* FeelNoPain: The M.O.M. implants let Crazies ignore all but the most crippling of injuries.
* LightningBruiser: Though not quite as much as a Juicer, Crazies are stronger and faster than a normal human.
* PsychicPowers: They get some psychic abilities in addition to the various boosts to their physical attributes.
* SanitySlippage: Represented by the character making rolls on insanity tables at certain levels. At level one they're fairly normal, but as they increase in level their various psychological disorders start to build up and players begin to see why they're called Crazies...
* SuperSenses: They get some rather potent boosts to their basic senses such as perfect eyesight that lets them see for miles and an enchanced sense of smell for tracking people.
* SuperStrength: They get a pretty sizable bonus to P.S. in addition to their other benefits. With a high enough P.S, a Crazy can do Mega-Damage with a power punch.
* WithGreatPowerComesGreatInsanity: Their main gimmick. All Crazies get several superhuman abilities and some psychic powers as well in exchange for slowly losing their minds as they level up.

[[folder:Cyber-Knight]]

Rifts take on the classic noble knight of the middle ages adapted to a more futuristic setting. Cyber-Knights are powerful warriors who roam the land in search of evil to slay and innocents to rescue, which makes them a natural enemy to supernatural monsters and despotic tyrants alike. They live by a strict code of chivalry that dictates they conduct themselves in a benevolent and respectful manner at all times and never use dirty or underhanded methods to win a battle. Not much is known about the Cyber-Knights (at least by the Coalition States) aside from the fact that they serve as a heroic inspiration to the many oppressed and overlooked people of Rifts earth.

* DualWielding: Higher level Cyber Knights can summon a pair of Psi-Swords (though this power wasn't available in the original edition of the game).
* KnightErrant: A lot of their design and mechanics were clearly based on the concept of classical heroic wandering knights.
* KnightInShiningArmor: They're basically the classic noble knight heroes from folklore and fairy tales that rescue and protect the innocent while slaying evil monsters adapted to the futuristic post apocalyptic world of Rifts earth.
* LaserBlade: One of their main powers is the ability to conjure an energy sword that grows in strength as they level up which can take on a variety of forms.
* LawOfChromaticSuperiority: Inverted with white Psi-Swords. A Cyber-Knight ''can'' make a white blade, but the effort needed to maintain a weapon that radiates all colors of light is not worth it.
* MagicKnight: Or "psychic knight" in this case. Most Cyber-Knights get a small handful of psionic abilities to compliment their other skills and abilities.
* ThePaladin: Despite most of their imagery and lore being based on the classic medieval knights their class more closely resembles a paladin than a knight with players being granted a host of powerful abilities in exchange for a strict code of morality.
* PsychicPowers: Most Cyber-Kights are granted access to a limited number of psionic abilities, though there are a lot more restrictions on what powers they can pick compared to true psychics like the Mind Melter.
* WalkingTechbane: The fourth entry in the ''Siege on Tolkeen'' series of sourcebooks [[PowerCreepPowerSeep expanded on Cyber Knight's powers]]. Among other things, it gave them a number of abilities that give them an edge when fighting technological foes, such as enemies not being able to lock their sensors on the Cyber Knight. This, and DualWielding, were also included when the class was reprinted for the Ultimate Edition.

[[folder:Glitter Boy]]

The Glitter Boys are pretty much the face of ''Rifts''. Anyone even slightly familiar with the series has likely seen them at least once on book covers, various artwork, or somewhere else. Named for their shiny power armor (both the armor and the pilot are referred to as "Glitter Boys") and known for their big guns, they have remained an extremely popular player class since the first Rifts book hit the shelves. They are still going strong even in the modern era, with a number of variations on the original design appearing in several books. Standing at nearly a dozen feet tall and commanding a strong presence of hope and power on the battlefield, these legendary warriors are well known by the people of Rifts earth. They inspire both fear and awe in their enemies.

* AncestralWeapon: Many Glitter Boys are handed down within family lines, parent to child, going back to the Coming of the Rifts.
* {{BFG}}: Their iconic "Boom Guns" which stand at about 7 feet in length... nearly as tall as the Glitter Boy armor itself.
* TheBigGuy: Their most common role in any given player group. Of course, when your character class comes standard with a ten foot tall suit of power armor and a giant gun it's kinda hard to avoid this trope.
* BlingOfWar: They aren't called Glitter Boys for nothing, each individual pilots a large suit of reflective power armor that is easily identifiable and instantly recognizable all across Rifts earth.
* HopeBringer: They are frequintally depicted as symbols of hope and reflections of humanity's past glory in the modern day.
* InUniverseNickname: While in modern times they are known the world over as Glitter Boys, during the Time of Man, the armor was called the "Chromium Guardsman." Or by its model number, USA-G10.
* MightyGlacier: There's no two ways about it, the Glitter Boy's famous Boom Gun is powerful. It does more damage than any other weapon usable by a single operator, able to kill a lightly-armored opponent in a single hit. Even more heavily armored foes can be felled in one shot with a lucky dice roll. The drawback is that the weapon's recoil is so powerful, the Glitter Boy has to be literally rooted to the spot when it fires. This, combined with its large size, shiny armor, and fearsome reputation, makes the Glitter Boy a big fat stationary target on any battlefield it participates in.
* RagnarokProofing: Most Glitter Boys suits, especially those not in use by Free Quebec, were built during the Time of Man. This means that the typical suit of Glitter Boy armor is roughly 300 years old, and still in perfect working condition. In fact, Free Quebc uses Glitter Boys because the found a sealed Military Bunker containing hundreds of units built by NEMA before the Coming of the Rifts. They were able to reverse-engineer the technology, and as such, are one of the few manufacturers on Earth capable of creating their own Glitter Boy armor.

[[folder:Headhunter]]

Headhunters are elite mercenary bounty hunters that primarily favor cybernetics and just about any type of weapon they can get their hands on. For the most part Headhunters lack any particular special ability or power that sets them apart from other classes in favor of just having a large compliment of practical and useful skills, such as military and combat training. They also tend to make pretty good pilots, which is sure to come in handy when traversing the dangerous wilderness of Rifts Earth.

* AcePilot: They have access to some very useful piloting skills that can make them an invaluable part of the team when the group comes across some of the more heavy duty vehicles like military aircraft or giant robots.
* ArtificialLimbs: They get to start with one and also get a few extra cybernetics to boost its power a bit.
* BountyHunter: Their main stock in trade. This choice of profession has actually earned them a bit of a negative reputation due to a few of the more evil mercs that prioritize money other ethics. Of course, Headhunters can be just as noble as Cyber-Knights and most players who choose this class will probably be at least anarchist in terms of character alignment.
* {{Cyborg}}: They get to choose a small assortment of cybernetics to start with, including at least one artificial limb and some gear for it. About the only class more augmented than them are the Borgs, which often replace their entire bodies with machinery.
* WalkingArmory: They get a very large amount of W.P. compared to other classes and can use just about any type of weapon they come across effectively. High tech or low tech, if it causes bleeding, bruising or burning a Headhunter has probably used it against at least one enemy at some point in the past.

[[folder:Juicer]]

The Juicers are basically what happens when you take a normal merc, pump them full of every single drug from the {{VideoGame/Fallout}} series, make the effects permanent... and then unleash him on an unsuspecting world to tear up any poor SOB that gets in his way. Juicers typically embody the motto "Live fast. Die young... and leave a massive trail of corpses in your wake." By hooking themselves up to a special drug injector Juicers gain superhuman abilities such as enhanced reflexes and strength... but all of that power, naturally, comes at a heavy price. In just a few short years the Juicer's body will be completely burnt up from the heavy drug use and they will inevitably die... but until then they'll be living it up as borderline superheroes kicking ass and taking names all across Rifts ruined earth.

* BroughtDownToNormal: The only way to survive the inevitable death from being a Juicer is to remove the drug-injection devices and detox, which naturally takes away all the bonuses you got from them (and because of the side effects of detoxing, usually leave you ''significantly'' weaker than when you started). Detoxing ex-Juicers must roll on a table to see how they handle it psychologically; if they botch the roll, they [[DrivenToSuicide kill themselves]] out of [[DespairEventHorizon a complete inability to accept losing what they had]].
* DeadlyUpgrade: The Juicer drug cocktails makes them incredibly powerful, but the side effects ''will'' kill them in a maximum of seven years from the installation.
* DrugsAreBad: There are a ''ton'' of side effects to the Juicer drugs. They need to inject themselves with sedatives to sleep at night, they're constantly edgy and nervous, and if they're ''lucky'' they'll die in seven years. Some "upgraded" Juicer types are even worse.
* LightningBruiser: They combine massively boosted agility with increased physical might to become quick and lethal fighters that can overpower weaker foes in seconds.
* PowerAtAPrice: '''PHENOMINAL PHYSICAL POWER!!!''' ...itty bitty lifespan.
* SuperReflexes: They get several agility based bonuses that give them a dangerous edge in combat. They are one of the few classes, and the only one from the main book, to get an Automatic Dodge (meaning that they can dodge attacks without using up an action).
* SuperSerum: Their superhuman abilities come from a very potent drug cocktail that is injected into them via a special harness.
* SuperStrength: One of their many superhuman abilities is a large boost to their P.S. stat.
* YoungerThanTheyLook: Juicers tend to be unnaturally aged by their drug use, and it gets worse if they try to detox.
* YourDaysAreNumbered: The price they pay for their heavy drug abuse is a drastically shortened lifespan that '''will''' kill them in just a few short years. Don't do drugs, kids.

[[folder:Ley Line Walker]]

Considered to be the "standard" or "classic" wizard in ''Rifts.'' Masters of spellcasting, Ley Line Walkers are attuned to the magical energies surrounding them in ways no other mage can match. They can "see" the magical energy inside every living being, and can see the currents of energy that flow through even the weakest of ley lines (normal people can only see the most powerful lines, and usually only at night). All mages' powers are enhanced at or near ley lines, but Line Walkers can perform a number of other feats, like communicate with anyone standing on the line, "read" the line to know the terrain it follows, and even teleport at will along the length of the line.

* GlassCannon: Like other magic classes, Line Walkers can work really devasating spells, but can only wear light armor. Heavy armor, which is usually made of metal or synthetic materials, [[ArmorAndMagicDontMix interferes with the mage's ability to work magic]]. Heavy armor made of natural materials does exist, but is usually hard to find and expensive.
* LivingBattery: Like all magic users in Rifts, Line Walkers are living batteries of magic energy. Their hypersensitivity to magical energy allows them to hold more inside them than other magic users. In game terms, this means that Line Walkers have more P.P.E. than other spellcasters.
* PostApocalypticGasMask: Classic garb for Line Walkers always includes gas masks (or air filters). This is a throwback to the early days after the Coming of the Rifts, when the eruption of the Yellowstone Supervolcano created tons of ash that fell from the sky. Other elements in a Line Walker's wardrobe include loose-fitting robes (which conceal plates of light armor), and wrapping around the arms and/or head, like a turban.
* SurveillanceDrone: One of the Line Walker's special abilities is to create an Observation Ball while on a ley line. It looks like a ball of light the size of a soccer ball, and can be used by the Line Walker like a spy drone.
* {{Teleportation}}: After "reading" a ley line to get the lay of the land, a Line Walker can phase to any point along it (even small ley lines are at least a few miles long, and can be up to a mile wide). They can even bring other things (including people) with them.

[[folder:Mystic]]

The Mystic is an intuitive scholar that is always seeking to learn more about both the physical and metaphysical aspects of the world they live in. Gifted with both psionic powers and magical abilities they possess a level of versatility unlike anything most other psychic or magic users could ever hope to see. In addition to being masters of philosophy and meditation they also have a host of powerful supernatural senses for seeking out and interacting with the various unknown forces at work on Rifts earth.

* BadassBookworm: They are renowned philosophers that are also one of the few O.C.C. in the game to have access to both magic ''and'' psionic powers.
* DetectEvil: One of their main class abilities is ''Sense Supernatural Evil''. [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin No points for guessing what it does.]]
* LivingBattery: As is the norm for magic users in Rifts.
* PsychicPowers: One of their two main special abilities, though they can only select powers from the ''Sensitive'' and ''Healer'' categories.
* {{Psychometry}}: One of the many psionic powers they can get is "Object Read" from the ''Sensitive'' category.

[[folder:Techno-Wizard]]

Powerful magic users that have learned to apply and combine their magical skills with technology. The Techno-Wizard is a special type of mage that can manipulate and transmute energy to bolster and improve the various forms of technology around them. In addition to having a host of useful special skills and abilities they also have some minor psionics as well, making them a very versatile and useful class of character to have around, especially in more technologically advanced areas.

* AcePilot: Their design seems to be heavily based around this. Bomber jackets and other classic pilot apparel are considered fashionable among Techno-Wizards, and many of their most iconic devices are flying machines of one sort or another.
* FlamingSword: TW Flame Swords, created by affixing a gem to a sword hilt. Activating it creates a blade of fire, basically a magical Light Saber. An electric version exists as well.
* GadgeteerGenius: [[IncrediblyLamePun You could say that they're real wizards when it comes to handling technology.]]
* ImprobablePilotingSkills: They have a special piloting ability that lets them use any sort of ley line vehicle with a high level of skill.
* LightningGun: Techno-Wizards can create literal versions of this, guns that fire bolts of lightning at the enemy.
* LivingBattery: Like all magic users in Rifts, Techno-Wizards are living batteries of magic energy. Which gives them a ton of useful powers.
* MundaneUtility: While they're mostly known for gimmicky flying vehicles and magic weapons, Techno-Wizards can build just about anything that can be built with mechanics/electronics. One {{Sourcebook}} mentions a vault where the Coalition keeps a large variety of magical artifacts. This includes things like household appliances and children's toys built by Techno-Wizards.
* NoodleImplements: Since TW devices are powered by the magic energy of the user, they don't need to be built on sound engineering principles. In fact, to an average person not knowledgable in the working of TW devices, a non-powered device mostly looks like a pile of junk held together with spit and chewing gum.
* PowerGem: TW devices require gems infused with magic spells to work. The main book includes a comprehensive list of what gem is needed for each specific spell.
* SkySurfing: One of the best-known TW devices is the Wing Board, which works like a surfboard in the air.
* TechnoWizard: It's right there in the name. They're wizards and they like technology.
* WeakButSkilled: Techno-Wizards aren't as good at traditional spell casting as other mages. Spells they cast are only half as powerful as one cast by another mage of the same level. However, their skills as inventors can more than make up for this disadvantage.

!!!Introduced in ''World Book 2: Atlantis''

[[folder:Stone Masters]]

Stone Masters are an elite group of mages that, as their name would imply, primarily specialize in various forms of earth magic. (They are actually masters of three entirely different classes of it, in fact, with abilities centered around Stone Magic, Gem Powers ''and'' Pyramid Technology. That's a lot of special skills for just one class!) Many of them are True Atlanteans and thus have access to their unique racial powers but several other races can be Stone Masters too. In addition to being very formidable in combat Stone Masters are particularly well known to be expert artisans and craftsmen that can build great works of art out of just simple dirt and rock.

* DetectEvil: They have a natural sense for detecting vampires.
* DishingOutDirt: Well yeah, it's kind of their thing. What else could you say about a class that has several pages of their sourcebook dedicated to listing and explaining their ''three seperate schools'' of earth manipulation magic?
* GemstoneAssault: Their "Gem Powers" school of earth magic gives them access to various magical spells and abilities based on what different types of gemstone they use.
* PowerTattoo: Usually limited to just the "Marks of Heritage" that all True Atlanteans get and only if the character is a True Atlantean themselves. Other races that become Stone Masters don't start with any. Of course, given all the special abilities they get from their class it's not like they really need any additional magical powers anyway.

[[folder:Undead Slayer]]

An elite group of True Atlantean monster hunters that travel from world to world across dimensions slaying and eradicating various menaces. Their favorite targets are vampires and the various minions of the Splugorth, both of which they consider to be their most hated foes above all others. To assist them in their goal they command several high level magical powers and abilities including tattoo magic and many other unique skills. They also typically carry various weapons and equipment for hunting vampires speciffically, such as crosses, stakes and squirt guns.

* AnimatedTattoo: Their Animal and Monster type tattoos can summon the creatures they represent to fight alongside the Undead Slayers in battle.
* TheBeastmaster: Again, their Animal and Monster type tattoos ensure that they always have some backup to call upon in a dangerous situation.
* DetectEvil: They have a special power for locating nearby vampires.
* ElementalPowers: Their tattoos give them access to a huge variety of deadly elemental abilities, like shooting [[PlayingWithFire fire]] or [[ShockAndAwe electricity]] from their hands.
* ImmuneToFire: One of their many tattoo powers.
* HunterOfMonsters: They travel all across the Megaverse hunting down various supernatural threats.
** VampireHunter: Vampires are one of their primary targets alongside the Splugorth.
* PowerTattoo: They actually start out with even more than the Tattooed Men and have tons of extra P.P.E. to use them with.
* WalkingTheEarth: They actually travel all across many different dimensions and alien worlds hunting down their foes, so it's more like ''walking the Megaverse.''
* WeatherManipulation: Another one of their many tattoo powers.

!!!Introduced in ''World Book 4: Africa''

[[folder:Necromancer]]

A deadly mage class that comes from and mostly inhabits the areas surrounding Egypt, including several parts of Africa and Europe. True to their name, they represent the classic death wizard that can animate the dead to serve as minions for their wicked goals and schemes. Due to the way magic and alignments work in Rifts most characters of this class are considered evil by default, though a few selfish and anarchist Necromancers exist as well and can serve as player characters. Due to their nature they are often treated as the enemies and rivals of Biomancers, a similar class that has abilities based around giving and manipulating life rather than death.

* {{Biomanipulation}}: Of a darker variety than the Biomancer. These guys can manipulate dead flesh and graft human and animal parts to their own body.
* CombatTentacles: One of their abilities lets them use squid, octopus and supernatural monster tentacles to grant themselves various bonuses and utilities.
* HumanResources: As well as raising the dead, the books mention that Necromancers often decorate their dwellings with bone furniture, because they like the look and feel of bone. The class even comes with a handful of spells that make bone function like wood, stone, etc, to make using them as a building material more practical.
* MakeThemRot: As befitting such a class they can gain several powers that let them decay and infest living organisms with blights such as afflicting clean food with bugs or withering plants.
* MultiArmedAndDangerous: They can temporarily graft several extra appendages to their body with magic, including both human and animal parts such as arms, claws and talons, tentacles, horns and even wings.
* {{Necromancer}}: Right there in the name. These guys are the classic spooky zombie summoning spellcaster class known for being evil and deadly.
* PestController: They have several abilities focused on summoning and manipulating insects, both the mundane and supernatural kind.
* SkeletonsInTheCoatCloset: Necromancers like to adorn themselves in bone, and other parts of corpses. As mentioned elsewhere, they can use these remains to magically enhance themselves.
* TheUndead: Natch. One of the most basic abilities of a Necromancer is to raise "animated dead," basically corpses the necromancer can control like a puppet. They're also skilled at creating true undead, such as mummies and zombies.

!!!Introduced in ''World Book 6: South America''

[[folder:Anti-Monster]]

A powerful supernatural warrior class that specializes in killing monsters and other threats to humanity such as vampires. No one is sure exactly how they are created but everyone would love to get their hands on this closely guarded secret and claim some of their immense power for themselves. Whatever the method is, the results cannot be denied: all subjects who successfully undergo the transformation into an Anti-Monster become bigger, meaner and all around more badass. Sure, there are a few costs to the process, such as permanet loss of humanity, PPE and ISP... but nothing in life is free and who wouldn't want to become a kickass monster slayer if given the chance?

* CyberneticsEatYourSoul: One of the big drawbacks of the class is a permanent loss of humanity. Anti-Monsters are generally good poeple but also tend to have less patience for normal humans and can come off as cold and distant. They also lose most of their P.P.E. and I.S.P. in the transformation process.
* DarkIsNotEvil: They look like giant mutant bodybuilders with spikey armor and are known for their many highly lethal powers and abilities. They also protect humans from evil creatures and are generally of a good or neutral alignment.
* HunterOfMonsters: It's right there in the name, these guys specialize in cleaning up vampires and other dangerous menaces to protect humanity.
* PowerAtAPrice: They get several super strong combat powers, don't need to eat, sleep or breathe and even get some magical abilities to boot! They also lose all but a small handful of their P.P.E. and I.S.P. as well as their humanity and gain a few big weaknesses as well to offset their immense strength.
* SuperStrength: With some lucky dice rolls these guys can start out with a P.S. of 40. (The average for most other classes is about a quarter of that.)
* UnskilledButStrong: They tend to have extremely few abilities and powers that are not meant for direct combat and can easily come up short when it comes to more domestic and mundane skill checks. Of course, when the upside to this is regenerating M.D.C. skin, physical strength that would make a Juicer or Crazy blush and a ton of nifty supernatural abilities like magic and immunity to about half the things the game can throw at them most players consider it to be well worth the trade off.

[[folder:Biomancer]]

Nature mages that mostly live in South America that are in harmony with nature and view all life as sacred. Each Biomancer belongs to one of three subgroups: The Acceptors, The Patient Ones or The Defenders depending on their stance on protecting nature and fighting against those who would harm or destroy it, though all three groups tend to shun urban areas and technology as a general rule. Because of their immense bond with the natural world they have access to many unique powers and abilities and have pretty good versitility even amoung spellcaster classes.

* {{Biomanipulation}}: A lot of their powers revolve around reshaping the natural world to suit their needs. In addition to giving themselves animal attributes like fangs and claws they can mold and form plant life into food or weapons.
* EvilLuddite: At their worst Biomancers may attack cities or slaughter people who harm the enviroment in their quest to defend the natural world. Luckily, this behavior is mostly confined to a few small extremist groups rather than the majority.
* FriendToAllLivingThings: They love and respect nature and are natural enemies to supernatural monsters like demons and the Splurgoth and view most forms of technology as "dead things" with no life energy.
* GreenThumb: As nature mages they specialize in spells and abilities that use the natural world against their enemies and can use various forms of plant life as deadly weapons.
* NatureHero: Goes without saying. Their main mission is to protect the vast wilds of Rifts Earth from those who would plunder, destroy and exploit it. While some will travel in vehicles or use basic technology they have a strong preference for natural magic involving plants and animals.

!!!Introduced in ''World Book 16: Federation of Magic''

[[folder:Mystic Knight]]

Fearsome mercenaries for hire that are aesthetically designed as a sort of cross between a classic black knight and a wandering ronin. They hold no true loyalty for anyone but themselves and will work for any depraved or evil entity so long as the pay is good. They mostly operate within the Federation of Magic but can be found all along the eastern coast of the United States and are usually in pretty high demand for dirty jobs due to to their immense supernatural powers, combat prowess and infamous reputation.

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: [[DependingOnTheWriter Depends on the sourcebook]]. Their debut in ''Federation of Magic'' had their evil be a matter of being trained by an evil organization, with a good-guy splinter group, but ''Mystic Russia'''s Mystic Knights are inherently evil.
* BlackKnight: If Cyber-Knights are the Rifts version of the KnightInShiningArmor then these guys could be seen as their wicked counterparts.
* EnergyAbsorption: They can drain P.P.E. from Ley Lines and even siphon P.P.E. from other nearby mages.
* EyeBeams: One of their many abilities allows them to fire mega-damage energy blasts from their eyes.
* HandBlast: Same deal as above, just with the hands instead of the eyes.
* ImmuneToFire: They're actually ''outright immune'' to most energy type attacks ''period'', including fire, radiation and electricity. Magical energy and Ley Line storms can hurt them, but only do half damage.
* MagicKnight: In addition to extremely deadly skills in combat they get access to several supernatural spells, magical immunities and even some psionic powers for good measure! [[SuperpowerLottery These are some guys you really don't want to mess with.]]
* NoSell: Most forms of energy just flat out don't work against them, though normal weapons, rune weapons, holy weapons and most magical weapons will still do full damage. They can also take half damage from Ley Line storms and magical attacks.
* PsychicPowers: They get access to some pretty useful stuff at base level and can even get ''Super'' tier psionics when they reach a high enough level.

!Coalition States

!!Leadership

[[folder:Emperor Karl Prosek]]
[[quoteright:250:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/karl_prosek.jpg]]
The dictator of the Coalition States and most prominent human supremacist in the world. Son of the heroic General Joseph I, Karl managed to subvert the original federal structure of the Coalition and turn it into an explicit empire (with him of course becoming the first Emperor Prosek) centered on Chi-Town with him as absolute ruler and his son Joseph II as the heir-apparent. Prosek is a fan of Adolf Hitler, although he believes the Nazi leader made some mistakes that Prosek himself does not intend to repeat. Prior to his rise to power he was in charge of propaganda, which was useful in promoting himself and still colors his approach to dealing with the world.

* BigBad: For pretty much any campaign set in the middle of North America.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: Loves his wife (who is not evil) and son (who is).
* EvenEvilHasStandards: Though many of his views are the result of him believing his own lies, and he's second in pure evil only to his son, he staunchly refuses to allow human experimentation. It's also hinted that he would have been disgusted by the Death Camps created without his knowledge during the Siege on Tolkeen, despite his hatred of D-Bees and mages.
* EvilOverlord: The self-professed savior of humankind is content to kill any human who betrays humanity or oaths of loyalty. He prioritizes a strong military over lifting people out of poverty so that they will join his army in the hopes of a better life. He declared war on Free Quebec when they refused to conform to standardized military hardware (controlled by Chi-Town), instead keeping dangerous pre-Rifts weaponry such as Glitter Boys because they feared that adopting his standards put too much power in the hands of one man. He doesn't hate D-Bees and practitioners of magic anywhere near as much as he claims, he simply prioritizes the welfare of humanity over that of alien invaders. They are also a convenient target towards which he channels his people's aggression and militarism.
* PragmaticVillainy: At least when it comes to humans. Despite being the classic example of TheEmpire in the game, citizens of the Coalition States have it pretty good. Prosek doesn't just use BreadAndCircuses to keep the people happy, he also makes sure they have a high standard of living, and are safe and comfortable. Even the ban on literacy is more a guideline than an actual law. Anyone can learn to read if they want to, but most people refuse to do so as a sign of loyalty. He's a classic iron fist in a velvet glove, and one secret to his power is that the people of the Coaltion don't realize they're ignorant and oppressed.
* PresidentEvil: In practice he is really TheEmperor, but since he "upgraded" from the position of "Chairman" he holds his position via popular acclaim, even though this was achieved via AstroTurf planned out when he was in charge of propaganda.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: At least within the Coalition States, where he is practically deified and his name and face are on nearly everything (even bottled beer!). Almost everybody else hates him with a passion. Even his erstwhile allies in the New German Republic view him with distrust, because they are very much aware of exactly [[UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler who he is emulating]], and only put up with him because they need the food and raw materials the CS trades with them.
* WellIntentionedExtremist: Subverted. While Prosek genuinely does believe that his vision for humanity is the best possible one, it does not change the fact that he is in it for the personal power and glory, and that ''anyone'' who opposes his authority, even if they share his human supremacist attitudes, is an enemy to be crushed. Had the war against Free Quebec not been the first truly unpopular thing he had done in years, and if they had not given him a graceful way to back out of it, he would still be trying to enslave them.

[[folder:Joseph Prosek II]]
[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/riftsjprosek500x386c.jpg]]
The emperor's right hand man and soon to be heir of the Coalition States as well as his much beloved son. He shares virtually all of his fathers extreme ideals and enjoys the same level of good publicity and support from his subjects, which make him the perfect candidate to eventually lead the CS into the future.

* TheChessMaster: One of the reasons that Joseph is even more evil than his father is that he sees running the Coalition as a big game. Karl Prosek is rotten to the core, but he does care for the Humans he protects. His son sees them as pawns.
* EvenBadMenLoveTheirMamas: Like his father, he was devestated when the Federation of Magic kidnapped his mother Jo Anna. He was overjoyed when she was returned to them.
* EvenEvilHasLovedOnes: He and Karl both care for each other and act like a typical father and son would... if a typical father and son were power hungry madmen, that is.
* EvenEvilHasStandards: He's not remotely on board with Dr. Bradford's illegal human experimentation, but he's unable to take any action. Bradford is too good at burying any evidence, and since he and the Emperor grew up together, Joseph knows it will take a lot to convince his father.
* {{Hypocrite}}: Unlike his father, he doesn't actually believe in the human-supremacist, anti-magic attitude of the Coalition. It's just a tool for him, and he'll happily use mages or D-Bees to achieve his goals.
* OverlordJr: He shares the same human supremacist views as his father and is viewed as a worthy successor by virtually everyone in the CS government.
* UndyingLoyalty: His bio mentions that he is %100 loyal to his father and genuinely loves him.
* VillainWithGoodPublicity: Just like dear old dad, though not quite to the same extent. His father is still the emperor but Joseph has plenty of fans of his own. It helps that he is in charge of Propaganda.

!!Military

!!!Commanders

[[folder:General Cabot]]
A high-ranking CS official who serves as military counsel to Emperor Prosek himself. General Cabot has been a long time friend of the Prosek family and has been with the Coalition States since the beginning. Despite his advanced age he has managed to hang on to many of his military honed skills and abilities and is a formidable foe in his own right.

* {{Cyborg}}: He has several cybernetic implants, including a few organ replacements.
* GeneralRipper: He's a bit more subtle than General Underhill but is still an anti D-Bee fanatic who sees "calculated ruthlessness" as a virtue.
* IntergenerationalFriendship: With Karl Prosek. He served with Karl's father and has known him since he was a boy.
* RedOniBlueOni: He serves as a more cool and calculated individual compared to General Underhill.

[[folder:General Ross Underhill]]
The commander of four SC mechanized divisions who is seen as a great hero to the Coalition States due to his long history of military service and loyalty to his men.

* {{Cyborg}}: He shares a few of the same cybernetics as General Cabot along with some unique ones like enhanced hearing.
* GeneralRipper: A more obvious example than Cabot due to his more loud and flamboyant methods. He may show loyalty to humans and the CS but he won't hesitate to hunt down magic users, dimensional beings or any other people he sees as enemies of humanity.
* RedOniBlueOni: He's a lot more brash and outspoken compared to General Cabot.
* UndyingLoyalty: He inspires fanatical loyalty in his men and shows the same dedication to normal humans and the Coalition States.

[[folder:Colonel Thaddius Lyboc]]
Head of the Chi-Town espionage division for the CS. Colonel Thaddius is a cunning and resourceful little man who uses his position to engage in thievery, contraband smuggling and many other criminal activities while blackmailing his fellow high level officials into keeping quiet about it. It's heavily implied that the emperor knows about his illegal activities but keeps him around because he gets results and keeps things orderly.
----
* {{Cyborg}}: He has several cyber parts installed, including a few illegal ones such as a MD finger gun.
* FingerGun: He has an illegal finger gun cybernetic that deals several points of mega damage when fired but only has two shots.
* ScrewTheRulesIHaveConnections: Most of the higher ups in the Coalition States know of his illegal activities but can't say anything due to a combination of him blackmailing them and doing his job well enough to motivate the emperor to keep him around despite his many shady dealings.
* SecretPolice: He governs the espionage division in Chi-Town and apparently does a good enough job that his bosses are willing to look the other way on his illegal activities.
* TheSpymaster: He runs the Chi-Town espionage division for the Coalition States but abuses his position to attain more wealth and power for himself. It's implied that some of the higher ups know about this but haven't taken action yet since he actually does a pretty good job and keeps things running smoothly for them.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Lieutenant Colonel Carol Black]]

A charismatic and powerful psychic who founded Psi-Battalion Alpha and now leads the newly expanded Psi-Division for the Coalition States military. Carol is a very experienced and intelligent woman who sees psychics like herself as a natural evolutionary defense against the supernatural and has notably won the support of Joseph Prosek II and many other CS higher ups in expanding her work, though Emperor Karl Prosek himself is a bit more skeptical and cautious on fully allowing psychic soldiers to serve in the CS military. Using her research she has an ongoing mission to gain more endorsement for psychics like herself and achive more military equality and acceptance with the other CS troops like Dog Boys and Borgs.

* AlmightyJanitor: She's a division commander and a Lieutenant Colonel. She's on the shortlist for Brigadier General, though.
* BadassBookworm: Unlike most of the other soldiers in the Coalition States she has a very high level of literacy, a vast amount of lore knowledge of both D-Bees and psychics like herself and even has Speed Reading as one of her many psychic abilities.
* DarkActionGirl: She's a very powerful woman who has worked hard to earn her high position in the CS military.
* PsychicPowers: She has many psionic abilities and is seen as a great hero to most other psychics in the CS military for her work in attaining greater support for their integration and attempting to achive full military equality with the other troops.
* TokenGoodTeammate: She's a high-ranking Coalition officer, on the fast track to even higher rank. She's also a good person, an unwavering defender of humanity and open-minded by Coalition standards.
* TwoferTokenMinority: Most of the other CS officials are normal men with no special powers or abilities aside from some cybernetics. She herself is a woman and a powerful psychic.

!!!Troops

[[folder:Coalition Grunts]]

The backbone of the mighty Coalition States Army, as well as their most basic soldier. Nicknamed "Dead Boys" by their many foes, due to their black body armor and skull-shaped helmets. Grunts serve the Coalition States proudly in many day to day operations all across their homeland, and beyond. Equipped with a modest amount of firepower, decent armor and a deep patriotic loyalty to their leader and nation. They typically serve as recurring enemies across virtually any campaign set in or around North America. Of course, they can also serve as a well-meaning but often misguided player character class for people who sympathize with the Coalition States and its mission to protect the remnants of humanity.

* AppropriatedAppellation: "Dead Boys" was originally a slur from enemies of the Coalition. The grunts liked it and now call themselves that.
* BoringButPractical: Most CS Grunts are illiterate, only have a basic amount of military training, no particular special abilities and are generally somewhat weak compared to most of the other threats encountered on Rifts earth. However, what they ''do'' have is a decent set of armor that comes standard, some moderately potent weapons and enough sheer numbers to win a war against some very powerful magic users. Their fanatical loyalty and willingness to tackle death head on also makes them a surprisingly potent threat in certain circumstances.
* CoolHelmet: Their iconic black skull helmets which have earned them the nickname "Dead Boys" from their enemies.
* FacelessGoons: Their full body armor and helmets reinforce the idea that they are meant to be ''Rifts'' answer to [[Franchise/StarWars Imperial Stormtroopers]].
* InUniverseNickname: "Dead Boys" due to their skull helmets.
* {{Mook}}: They were designed to serve as a low-to-moderate threat to Player Characters. The books include types of squads that would typically be encountered outside the walled cities of the Coalition, to give [=GMs=] an idea of how to deploy them against the party.
* PunchClockVillain: Most of the basic CS Grunts are decent enough people who genuinely believe in their mission to protect humanity at all costs. Unfortunately, years of propaganda and brainwashing have left them fanatically loyal to their corrupt leader and genuining believing the lie that all D-Bees and magic users are evil monsters that need to be exterminated for the good of the human race.

[[folder:Coalition Elite RPA]]

The Coalition Elite RPA (Robot Power Armor) "Sam" is an elite class of pilot soldier usually tasked with manning SAMAS power armor and other Coalition military vehicles and combat robots. As such, they get many skills related to piloting and robotic combat. If the group is ever under attack by big black skull-faced robots or military tanks or airships there is a good chance one or more of these guys is behind the wheel. Aside from their special class abilities they often have similar stats to that of the common CS Grunt soldiers.

* AcePilot: Their main skillset is based around piloting various Coalition vehicles and war machines from simple hovercycles to giant combat robots.
* {{BFG}}: Their SAMAS suits come packing some pretty heavy firepower.
* EliteMook: They're basically a typical CS soldier with the added ability to pilot military aircraft, vehicles, power armor and combat robots which makes them a much more deadly threat than the standard Grunts.
* InUniverseNickname: "Sam" mostly because they commonly pilot SAMAS power armor.

[[folder:Coalition Military Specialist]]

The CMS are highly trained soldiers that primarily specialize in espionage and reconnaissance opperations. Unlike most other members of the Coalition States Military they are allowed a few non-medical cybernetics right from the beginning of their careers to better complete their jobs with while otherwise behaving similarly to the basic grunts. Despite essentially serving as scouts and spies they are implied to wear [[HighlyConspicuousUniform the exact same highly visible armor as other CS soldiers along with the addition of a special helmet that identifies them as an elite unit.]]

* CoolHelmet: According to the original Rifts RPG book they appear to wear special fancy helmets that indentify them as elite military officers.
* {{Cyborg}}: They are the only Coalition States soldier class in the base game to get easy access to cybernetics at the first level.
* EliteMooks: They serve as a sort of elite military spy agent for the Coalition States. They even have special helmets to prove it.
* OvertOperative: They heavily implied to wear the same "Dead Boy" skull armor as their fellows... along with a helmet that ''explicitly indentifies them as an elite military officer.''

[[folder:Coalition Technical Officer]]

One of the more elite soldier classes the Coalition States has to offer. CTO are highly trained fighters that choose a particular field of interest to specialize in from a few separate categories and then select most of their class skills based on the choice they make. This gives them a pretty wide range of adaptability and resourcefulness and can make them a bit unpredictable to their opponents.

* CommunicationsOfficer: Any CTO who chooses the Communications MOS class will become one, naturally.
* CoolHelmet: Like all highly ranked and elite CS soldiers they get a special helmet design to distinguish them from the basic grunts.
* EliteMook: All types of CTO are elite but special mention should go to the Weapons MOS class since they get a large amount of extra W.P. which makes them masters of combat even among the Coalition States.
* TheEngineer: CTO soldiers that take the Engineering MOS class are functionally combat engineers with several skills in Electronics and Mechanics.
* WalkingArmory: A CTO that takes the Weapons MOS can choose up to five extra W.P. ''in addition'' to their basic Technical Officer class W.P. in both Energy Pistols and Energy Rifles, for a total of seven.