Physical Strength Categories

(Version 1.00 - Last Modified: 03/19/2003)
Heavily borrows from from Extraordinary P.S. and Superhuman P.S. by Stephen Dragoo.


Introduction

Described in so many places and in so many ways, the rules surrounding the physical strength (PS) attribute could be much better, but I will attempt to address that issue in this document. The most basic rules involving the PS attribute is that it controls how much weight a character can carry, lift, and throw, and how allows a character to inflict additional damage with melee attacks if the character has a high enough attribute. Unfortunately, there are five different types of strength and each has a different way at looking at the PS attribute to determine a character's abilities. One problem is there are some inconsistencies with how strength is described and these are addressed in this document. For example, on page 25 of the Rifts Game Master Guide, there is an image with three different characters each representing a different level of strength. According to the Rifts Game Master Guide, a character with supernatural strength can only carry 50 times their PS attribute and lift 100 times their PS attribute. This means that the creature on the bottom of the image would require a supernatural PS of 150 to just life the Coalition Mark IX Exploratory Personnel Carrier depicted in the image (which weights 7.5 tons fully loaded and can be seen on page 153 of Rifts World Book 11: Coalition War Campaign) not to mention all of the rather solid looking dirt that the creature is lifting. This is assuming that the creature is lifting the vehicle, if he was carrying it he would require a supernatural PS of 300! In fact, the borg character, which has only Extraordinary Strength is lifting the vehicle and his multiplier for lifting is less then for supernatural strength! This is one important area that will be addressed by this document.

The five categories of strength are Normal, Strong, Extraordinary, Superhuman, and Supernatural. Normal PS is the default strength of all creatures unless otherwise mentioned or unless they qualify for the Strong PS category, at this level, creature's use their base damage as listed under their racial description. Strong PS is also very basic and is possessed by all creatures that have Normal PS and an attribute of 16 or higher. At this level of strength, the creature can carry, lift, and throw more then they could with Normal PS, but they still inflict the same damage as they would with Normal PS, with the exception that they would may possess a damage bonus for having a PS attribute of 17 or higher. Extraordinary PS is also called Augmented PS and can be acquired through several methods, the most simple of which is to possess the minor super power Extraordinary Physical Strength, but there are also technological ways of achieving this level of strength. Characters who possess an increased PS attribute because of genetic mutation, chemical augmentation (such as a Juicer), brain implants (such as a Crazy), bionics (partial or full conversion cyborgs), or exoskeletons (such as light power armor, mechanically enhanced body armor, androids, or very light robotic vehicles) all are considered to have Extraordinary PS, which increases the damage they inflict with their attacks and their ability to lift, carry, and throw. Robotic PS is also known as Superhuman PS and is possessed by robotic vehicles and heavy power armor, but creatures with the Superhuman Strength minor super power also have this level of strength. Supernatural PS is the highest level of strength and is possessed by almost all supernatural creatures and creatures of magic such as dragons, elementals, and demons.

With the exception of Normal and Strong PS, all of the strength categories inflict a different amount of base damage depending on what their strength is. For example, a creature with a human with a supernatural PS of 20 inflicts 1D6 M.D. on a regular punch, but no matter what the base damage for an attack is, a creature's damage bonus for having a high PS attribute still applies. So using the example above, that human would actually inflict 1D6+5 M.D. with each punch. Unless otherwise mentioned, all creatures get to apply their damage bonus to all of their attacks. But not all creatures have to use the damage listed in the tables below. These tables only list the most basic attacks, such as kick, punch, restrained punch, and power punch, but a creature with an especially strong punch or with sharp claws could inflict more damage then what is listed below, just like a creature with exceptionally weak legs could inflict less kicking damage then what is listed below. Aside from the attacks already listed below there are some general rules that apply to attacks that are not listed below. Generally speaking, a power strike inflicts twice as much damage as the regular attack, but it always requires two attacks and usually only punches and kicks can be used as power attacks. Tail and Tentacle attacks generally inflict only half of the damage of a regular punch, although regular damage bonuses apply, and a bite or head butt generally only inflict half of the damage of a regular punch, but no damage bonuses apply. It is important to note that the damage tables below will not be exactly the same as those presented in the books and to check to see where I made my differences, use the 1D4 column, as most tables in the books are listed for punch attacks from a Human-type creature, which is a 1D4 on a Human.

Throwing objects is a special part of strength and different strength categories affect a creature's throwing ability differently. With the exception of objects specifically designed for throwing, such as javelins and Throwing Axes, a creature's ability to throw a miscellaneous object is divided into the distance they can throw an object that weighs 1 lb (0.45 kg) or less, their ability to throw an object between that weight and 10 lbs (4.5 kg), their ability to thrown objects between 10 lbs (4.5 kg) and 100 lbs (45.4 kg), their ability to throw objects at 100 lbs (45.5 kg) increments (such as 200 lbs, 300 lbs, etc.), and their ability to thrown an object at the weight they can carry. Of course, a creature cannot throw a weight if it is heavier then the weight they can carry, no matter how far the chart says that may be able to throw it. A creature with the W.P. Targeting skill, such as from the W.P. Archery and Targeting skill from Rifts or W.P. Targeting / Missile Weapons from Palladium Fantasy, has the range that the character can throw an object designed for throwing, such as a Javelin, dart, or knife, doubled the listed value in the table.

The one factor that is common across all strength types is the bonuses that apply to characters with a high PS attribute. Starting with a PS of 17, a character receives a damage bonus to melee attacks and this bonus increases no matter how high the character's strength becomes. At 17 the damage bonus is +2 and it increases by +1 for each additional point of PS that the creature possesses. For example a being with a PS of 18 had a bonus of +3, while a creature with a PS of 36 has a bonus of 21. An easy way to calculate this bonus is to simply subtract that the creature's PS attribute by 15, ignoring any result below 2 (which would occur with 16 - 15 = 1). Also, for every five points in the PS attribute above 30 (at 35, 40, 45, etc.) the creature can lift / carry +25% more then their attribute would otherwise indicate and they can throw the weight they can carry +30' (9.1 m) without losing accuracy. For example, a creature with a PS of 50 could carry and lift twice as much as their attribute would indicate (+100% bonus) and could the weight it could carry an additional +150' (45.7 m) without losing any accuracy.


Normal Strength

Normal strength is possessed by everything that does not belong to one of the special strength and does not have a PS attribute that is higher then 15. At this level, a creature has a strength that is reachable by an average Human with physical training and all of the creatures's base attacks will be the same for a creature of this type, so a Human would inflict the normal damage for a Human. There is no damage bonus except for any bonus gained through hand-to-hand combat training and the character does not have any exceptional ability to lift and carry huge weights. The damage inflicted by a creature with Normal Strength is the same as the base damage listed in the Hand-to-Hand Strikes document.


Strong Strength

Strong is very similar to Normal Strength except that a creature with Strong Strength can carry and lift more then a character with Normal Strength. Any creature with Normal Strength that has a PS attribute that is 16 or higher possesses Strong Strength. The damage inflicted by a creature with Strong Strength is the same as with Normal Strength, except that most creatures with Strong Strength, except those with a PS attribute of 16, have a damage bonus that applies to all of their attacks except to bites and head butts, unless the creature is designed for those sorts of attacks. A character's throwing distance with Strong Strength is the same as with Normal Strength. Also, in any entry that specifies that a character must have either a normal PS attribute of a certain number of a supernatural PS of a lower number and there is no mention of Strong strength, a creature with this type of strength qualifies only for the normal PS number.


Extraordinary (Augmented) Strength

Extraordinary PS is also called Augmented PS and can be acquired through several methods, the most simple of which is to possess the minor super power Extraordinary Physical Strength, but there are also technological ways of achieving this level of strength. Characters who possess an increased PS attribute because of genetic mutation, chemical augmentation (such as a Juicer), brain implants (such as a Crazy), bionics (partial or full conversion cyborgs), or exoskeletons (such as light power armor, mechanically enhanced body armor, androids, or very light robotic vehicles) all are considered to have Extraordinary PS, which increases the damage they inflict with their attacks and their ability to lift, carry, and throw. The damage chart listed below is quite different from the one above because at this level of strength, a character inflicts more damage per attack dependent on their strength, which is is addition to any damage bonus from having a high PS attribute. The damage table lists the base damage dice and how much that dice will inflict with different levels of Extraordinary Strength. If an attack inflicts more damage then a base damage dice, such as 2D4 points of damage with a Kick Attack, refer to the correct damage column, find the row with the creature's, and then increase the damage to match the base attack. For example, a Kick Attack inflicts 2D4 or twice as much damage as what is listed in the 1D4 column. For power strikes, the charts lists two damages, the first is for S.D.C. worlds such as Heroes Unlimited and the Palladium Fantasy World, while the M.D. damage is for M.D.C. worlds such as Rifts and Robotech. Please remember that an S.D.C. creature that inflicts any mega-damage in an attack takes the same amount of damage in S.D.C. as their attack inflicted unless the character has Supernatural Physical Endurance. Also, in any entry that specifies that a character must have either a normal PS attribute of a certain number of a supernatural PS of a lower number and there is no mention of Extraordinary strength, a creature with this type of strength qualifies for the supernatural PS number, but his PS is lowered by five points. For example, if wielding a powerful artifact required a normal PS of 35 or a supernatural PS of 20, a creature that had an Extraordinary PS of 25 could wield the artifact.


Robotic (Superhuman) Strength

Robot vehicles, often large and powerful, possess incredible strength and can inflict a large amount of damage with every attack. The level of strength is possessed by heavy power armor, by robot vehicles, and by creatures with the Superhuman Strength minor super power. The damage chart below is similar to the one listed for Extraordinary Strength, and it lists damage for an attack that has a base damage of 1D4, 1D6, and 1D8 at various levels of strength. If an attack inflicts more then a single die of damage, such as a Kick Attack that inflicts 2D4, double the damage from the appropriate cell in the table. For strikes where two damages are listed, one S.D.C. and one M.D., use the S.D.C. damage in S.D.C. worlds such as Heroes Unlimited and use the M.D. damage in M.D.C. worlds such as Rifts Earth and Robotech. Please remember that an S.D.C. creature that inflicts any mega-damage in an attack takes the same amount of damage in S.D.C. as their attack inflicted unless the character has Supernatural Physical Endurance. Also, in any entry that specifies that a character must have either a normal PS attribute of a certain number of a supernatural PS of a lower number and there is no mention of Robotic or Superhuman strength, a creature with this type of strength qualifies for the supernatural PS number.


Supernatural Strength

The absolute highest level of strength, Supernatural Strength is possessed by almost all supernatural creatures, creatures of magic, select aliens, and those with the Supernatural Strength major super power. The damage chart below is similar to the one listed for Extraordinary Strength, and it lists damage for an attack that has a base damage of 1D4, 1D6, and 1D8 at various levels of strength. If an attack inflicts more then a single die of damage, such as a Kick Attack that inflicts 2D4, double the damage from the appropriate cell in the table. For strikes where two damages are listed, one S.D.C. and one M.D., use the S.D.C. damage in S.D.C. worlds such as Heroes Unlimited and use the M.D. damage in M.D.C. worlds such as Rifts Earth and Robotech. Please remember that an S.D.C. creature that inflicts any mega-damage in an attack takes the same amount of damage in S.D.C. as their attack inflicted unless the character has Supernatural Physical Endurance.