4 - How to Survive
The Referee describes a situation and scenario. You describe what your survivor will do. The Referee will narrate the outcome using the rules when needed. The conversation flows with the rules regulating situations that are uncertain and interesting.
4.1 - Role Playing
You play as a survivor in a post-apocalyptic world with zombies and other terrible people. You say what they say, decide what they do and think for them. You can speak in first, second or third person (or switch between). You don’t need to act like an actor (you can if you want to), you just need to make decisions for them.4.2 - Keep This in Mind
To have improved chances of surviving and take the most out of this game, keep these in mind.Ask questions to clarify situations and acquire much needed information and make notes.
Work with the other survivors. Plan ahead. Make allies, if you can.
When you roll dice, you are risking everything. Make good plans and avoid the dice.
Play to survive, but enjoy your death if it comes.
Don’t pull back. You will need to fight dirty to survive.
Running is always an option. A pretty good one actually.
If your survivor dies, make a new one.
4.3 - Saves
When your survivor tries to do something dangerous and that the outcome of that action would be interesting on a success and a failure, the Referee will ask you to make a Save against either STR, DEX or WIL.Roll a d20, and if the result is equal to or less than the appropriate Attribute, you succeed. If you roll higher than the Attribute, your survivor fails, and suffers the consequences the Referee describes.
Depending on how the odds are stacked against you, a success can be more or less effective.
Opposed Saves
If your survivor is competing or working against another character, they both make Saves. The lowest successful result wins.Advantage & Disadvantage
If your survivor is particularly well prepared for a task, has a very useful piece of equipment, or the task is related to their Background the Referee may allow you to roll the Save with Advantage. Roll 2d20 and keep the lowest result.The Referee may ask you to roll with Disadvantage if your survivor is ill prepared, hindered or outmatched. Roll 2d20 and keep the highest result.
4.4 - Combat
Combat is best avoided, as the zombies don’t feel pain and even a small wound can kill you and turn you into one of them. Sometimes, however, it cannot be avoided (especially when other survivors come to take your stuff).Initiative
The situation will usually determine who acts first. If you attack unsuspecting foes, you and all allies aware of the plan act first. When in doubt, make a DEX Save to act before your enemies.During your time to act in a combat round, your survivor can move up to short range and perform an action. They can move up to medium range if they don’t take an action. Actions can be anything from negotiating, attacking, running away, flipping a switch, toppling a barrel or anything you can imagine.
Attacks
Attacks always hit. Roll your weapon’s die and you do that much damage to an opponent, subtracting their Defense.When someone attacks with some kind of advantage (on higher ground, after a risky gambit, or something else), the attack is enhanced and deals 1d12 points of damage.
When someone attacks with significant disadvantage (being grappled, against a target with cover, or something similar), the attack is impaired and deals 1d4 points of damage.
Hit Protection & Damage
Damage is subtracted first from an individual’s Hit Protection (HP). This represents their ability to avoid or shrug off real wounds.Once HP is reduced to 0, damage is dealt directly to STR.
Scar
However, If an attack takes you to exactly 0 HP, take a Scar. The result on the dice that reduced you to 0 HP determines the scar according to the table.
|
Damage |
Resulting Scar |
|
1 |
You acquire a visibly violent scar. Roll 1d6: (1) Forehead; (2) Nose; (3) Neck (4) Chest; (5) Legs; (6) Arms. Reroll your maximum HP with a d6, keeping the total if higher, and roll a d20 against one of your Attributes. If you roll higher than its score, it improves by one. |
|
2 |
You falter and shake your head. After you’ve calmed yourself with something (a drink, maybe?), reroll your maximum HP with d6, keeping the total if higher, and roll a d20 against one of your Attributes. If you roll higher than its score, it improves by one. |
|
3 |
You are hobbling until someone can treat you. You either move or act each round. |
|
4 |
Hit in the dead, you spit bloody teeth and look like a mess until someone can treat you. Disadvantage on WIL saves to converse with people. |
|
5 |
You got a nasty wound and need stitches. You are Deprived until you’re properly treated. Reroll your maximum HP with 2d6, keeping the total if higher, and roll a d20 against two of your Attributes. If you roll higher than its score, it improves by one. |
|
6 |
A vital organ is hit. It is bad! If you take Critical Damage before being treated, you die. If you survive, reroll your maximum HP with 2d6 keeping the total if higher, and roll a d20 against two of your Attributes. If you roll higher than its score, it improves by one. |
|
7 |
A part of you is ripped out. Roll 1d6: (1) Lips; (2) Eye; (3) Nose; (4) Thumb; (5) Toe; (6) Part of scalp. Disadvantage on WIL saves to converse with people (unless when intimidating them). |
|
8 |
One of your limbs is ripped out or needs to be amputated. Roll 1d4: (1) Right arm; (2) Left arm; (3) Right leg; (4) Left leg. |
|
9 |
You are hit hard in the head and become Deprived until you spend a few hours unloading with you Personal item. |
|
10 |
You receive a humiliating blow and are furious If you get your revenge, reroll your maximum HP with 3d6, keeping the total if higher, and roll a d20 against all your Attributes. If you roll higher than its score, it improves by one. |
|
11 |
The attack cracked your skull. You feel a little strange and different. Reroll your WIL with 2d6. |
|
12+ |
A devastating blow that should have killed you. If you suffer Critical Damage before you are treated, you die horribly. If you don’t, remove this effect and reroll your maximum HP with 3d6, keeping the result if higher, and roll a d20 against all your Attributes. If you roll higher than its score, it improves by one. |
Critical Damage
When you (or an enemy) take STR damage, you must make a STR save. If you succeed, you are still able to fight. If you fail, they take Critical Damage.*Unless stated otherwise, Zombies do not suffer Critical Damage
When someone takes Critical Damage, they receive the Injured condition, and are incapacitated until treated to by an ally and take a short rest.
If an injured person is left untreated for 6 turns, they die.
Attribute Damage
If someone suffers enough damage to have their STR reduced to 0, they are dead. If DEX is reduced to 0, they are paralyzed. If WIL is reduced to 0, they suffer a Stressful Event.If your survivor dies, create a new one. The Referee should find an opportunity to introduce them as soon as they can. Getting back into the game quickly is more important than realism.
Distance & Range
Range and distance are abstract for narrative play and are divided into 5 categories: Close, Short, Medium, Long, and Distant. They are all relative to the situation they are used.For example, when used in combat between individuals, Close range is just a few steps away and within range of most melee weapons, and Distant range is further than almost any weapon can reach. If we’re talking about a long walk to the nearest town, Close range means a few minutes walk, and Distant range means some place you will need the whole day to get to.
4.5 - Stress
You were not meant to see all this horror. Sooner or later the stress will take its toll, and no one knows what will happen. When your survivor witnesses horrible scenes, they may suffer Stress and take WIL damage if they fail a WIL save. The severity of the damage varies with how horrific it is for the character.Seeing someone unknown being devoured by zombies: 1 point of WIL.
Seeing an acquaintance being devoured or a close friend dead: 1d4 points of WIL.
Seeing a close friend being devoured or a loved one dead: 1d6 points of WIL.
Seeing a loved one being devoured: 1d8 points of WIL
Stressful Event
When your WIL is reduced to 0, you suffer a Stressful Event. The result on the dice that reduced your WIL to 0 determines what happens.
|
Damage |
Stressful Event |
|
1 |
You hold it together and get Advantage on all Saves for the next 1d6 turns. |
|
2 |
You can’t keep your focus, suffering Disadvantage on all Saves for the next 1d6 turns. |
|
3 |
You run away, as fast as you can for an entire hour, leaving everything behind. |
|
4 |
You see things that are not there for 1d4 hours, and can’t differentiate them from reality. |
|
5 |
You acquire a new phobia. It can be of spiders, if there was a spider nearby, or of elevators if it all happened in one. You suffer Disadvantage on all Saves when it's relevant. |
|
6 |
You have a hard time trusting anyone, and have to pass a WIL save every time you meet someone or suffer 1d4 points of WIL damage. |
|
7 |
You lose control for a moment and immediately attack the closest person to you for 1d6 rounds. If you are alone, you attack whatever thing it is in reach. |
|
8 |
You have a heart attack and unless you pass a STR Save, you die immediately. If you pass the Save, you pass out for 1d6 days. |
Recovering Stress
You can recover lost WIL points by resting and engaging with your Personal item. Without your Personal item, you cannot recover WIL points lost due to Stress.If you lose your Personal item, you must find it or wait 1 week to form an attachment to another item turning it into your Personal item.
4.6 - Conditions
Conditions are negative effects your survivor suffers from. You write them on your character sheet and erase them when they no longer apply (as you Rest and treat the cause of them).Deprived: When Deprived of something important (water, food), you cannot benefit from Rests.
Exhausted: After two days without a Long Rest, you become exhausted and receive Disadvantage on all Saves.
Infected: When Infected, make a STR Save every day. After 3 failures, you become a Zombie of the type that infected you (or something similar if not possible).
Injured: You are incapacitated and cannot take any actions. If an Injured person is left untreated for 6 turns, they die.
Blind: When Blinded, all Saves relying on vision suffer Disadvantage.
Deaf: When Deaf, all Saves relying on hearing suffer Disadvantage.
4.7 - Rest & Healing
To recover and heal wounds, your survivor needs a Rest.Short Rest: Takes 1 turn. A sip of water and a few minutes of rest will restore 1d6 HP.
Long Rest: Takes 1 watch. You eat, drink and get some sleep to restore all your HP. If your HP was already full, restore 1d6 to STR or DEX. To recover WIL, you need to have your Personal item with you (see 4.5).
Full Rest: Takes a week in a safe location. This fully restores all your survivor’s Attribute scores and removes most long-term conditions.
4.8 - Time
For simplicity sake, the game divides time up into three categories of expanding duration.Round: The unit of time used during combat. Each round is about 10 seconds.
Turn: The time scale used during exploration on foot. Each turn is about 10 minutes, and is enough time to explore one room and perform an action or two. A fight is always considered to have lasted 1 turn, at least.
Watch: The time scale used during overland travel. Each watch is 36 turns, or about 6 hours. Each day has 4 watches. People on foot can usually travel one hex in a watch.