Halfway Station 3.0

28 Months Later: Season 2 Retrospective

“Tinkering remains irresistable. But the fallout is that some folks resist change. And those you will lose.” – The Michlin Guide

…aaannd that’s a wrap for season 2. What have we learned?

The Rules

• The casualty rate felt higher this time around than in previous campaigns, and the most dangerous thing out there seems to be gangers.
• It’s no longer a good idea to hole up in a rural area and only come out when you need supplies, because of the Decreasing Rep Dice for followers – and you need at least one follower so that you can’t be outnumbered 3:1, which has several disadvantages.
• There seem to be fewer zombies around than in earlier versions. Maybe that’s because I avoided cities this time. All the same, I play All Things Zombie for the zombies, so next time around I’ll want to do something to jack up the zeds.
• Sessions are definitely shorter, both to play and in narrative terms. Also, while in earlier editions there was the occasional session where nothing really happened, that seems much more common in End of Days. That’s probably something I’m doing wrong, but I’m not sure how I can change it without going full-on Ganger.
• Having tried both the battleboard version and the tabletop version of the game, I think I prefer the tabletop one, which is weird because I prefer the battleboards for 5150; and now I’ve realised I can play it on VTT, there’s no reason not to use a tabletop. Plus, it generates more eye candy for blog posts.
• The focus of the game is different than in previous editions. Now, it’s two years since the apocalypse, and you’re a drifter looking for work in the surviving settlements. That works just fine for me in 5150 and Warrior Heroes, but it doesn’t feel right to me for All Things Zombie; I’m not sure why. If and when I come back to ATZ, I’ll have to do something about that, too.

The Campaign

• Setting the game in Trumptonshire wasn’t as much fun as I expected; maybe I should’ve leaned into the iconic characters more, but it doesn’t feel quite right having zombie hordes and vampires surging across it; the clash with my earlier memories is too great. I won’t do that again.
• Recycling old Stars didn’t work out too well either, apart from Arion, who for some reason is much more enjoyable to play than any of the others. I won’t do that again either, except maybe for Arion.
• The intended benefit of using SWADE as well as ATZ – avoiding skills fade on SWADE’s detailed combat rules – didn’t pan out, not least because that’s no longer one of my goals. So, next time I’ll stick to ATZ.
• Finally, although I love the idea of multiple Stars with narrative threads crossing over each other, in practice it slows the game down too much. Something else for the won’t do that again pile; it has worked in the past, but only when allowed to emerge organically in play.

Coda

However you slice it, I’m all zombie’d out for the moment. In fact, I’m burned out on gaming altogether. Let’s take a break from it for a while.

28 Months Later: Z+90

“Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” – Genesis 3:19

Stars and Extras

We began the game with 23 effectives including 7 Stars. Now, 41 sessions of actual play later, there are 5 effectives left, including 3 Stars.

Recruited: 2. Removed from play: 6 shot by gangers, 1 shot by Star, 4 cut loose, 3 left band, 6 escaped offworld in a passing starship.

Nobody has starved, which is how I expected most of them to go, and nobody has been eaten by zombies, which are less common than in previous editions; the commonest cause of actual character death is being shot by gangers, which seems realistic enough. Like I always say, in the zombie apocalypse, it’s not the zombies you need to worry about.

Arion: Alone again. Escapes offworld with Flack and Savage on Z+80.

Blackman: Band still intact; Mike, Jenny and James. Last seen in Chigley, next encounter Z+106.

Drew: No followers left. Last seen in Trumpton, next encounter Z+107.

Flack: Still has the two Pughs, though both are badly wounded. Escapes offworld with Arion and Savage on Z+80. Dr Grant, now revealed to be a Stage Two vampire, flees into the night on Z+79. Her present whereabouts are unknown.

Reed: No followers left. Lost Annie and Connie in consecutive encounters, both bleeding out after being shot by gangers Z+50 and Z+81. Last seen in Chigley, next encounter is a voluntary one on Z+109.

Savage: Still has Bex; escapes offworld with Arion and Flack on Z+80.

Stoner: Bitten by zombie Z+82, then he and Barber were both shot by gangers who noticed that.

Locations

City: Wellchester.

Town: Trumpton.

Settlements: Camberwick Green (including Colley’s Mill and Pippin Fort); Chigley (including Cresswell’s Biscuit Factory and Winkstead Hall).

Coda

I think of Drew, Reed and Blackman as the unlucky Stars, but they’re the only ones left by the end of month three.

I’m all zombie’d out for the moment, so I think it’s time to draw season two to a close. Next time, a retrospective, and then let’s try something different for a while.

28 Months Later: Stoner, Z+82

“They’re all going to end up like that. Bio-mechanical weapons driven by meat batteries. Never have to be fed or recharged. They just keep going…” – Return of the Living Dead 3

Camberwick Green, Z+82: Chillin’

Let’s try looking for work again, maybe a different Star will have better luck…. Services building by day again, so 4 PEFs.

Stoner and Barber are looking either to trade luxury items for food, and since the the luxury items they have are whiskey, the pub seems like a good place to try. Who knows, they might even find work.

Approaching their destination, they see a brace of zombies in their way. Wanting to save ammo, and also avoid drawing more with the noise, they draw their melee weapons, and let the zeds come to them. By the time they”ve put down the zeds, Stoner has been bitten. They pause to apply a unit of meds to him, then press on, grimly.

Inside, a lone Sheeple – the barman – and four gangers are talking. Stoner makes his offer to the barman: Two bottles of whiskey for some food. The barman points out that if the gangers shoot him, they can just take the whiskey. (Failed further interaction, which is why I started with him – the gangers would have attacked.)

Stoner turns to the gangers and enquires whether that is their plan. (Failed interaction, gangers draw on him.) They respond by unshipping their weaponry and opening fire; they are faster than either of our protagonists and gun them both down; neither is dead, but both are out of the fight. The gunfire draws a lone zed, which the gangers easily polish off.

The gangers approach our fallen heroes, debating what to do with them.

“Hey,” says one. “This guy’s been bitten.”

Bookkeeping

Stoner rolls a 4 to survive the zombie bite, which means he won’t, even if the gangers let him live. I’ve no real interest in playing through the sessions where he gradually succumbs to the virus, so we’ll fade to black on Stoner at this point, although the dice say he would have lasted another 16 sessions before eventually turning. Where was that luck when he needed it, eh? Anyway, I figure the gangers will steal their whiskey and kill them both to avoid any possible risk of them turning.

• Stoner: Rep 4 Star, Loner. People 3, Savvy 4. Crack Shot. A-3. Lifetime Rep 0. Bitten by zombies Z+82.
• Julie Barber: Rep 4 Loner. People 3, Savvy 4. A-3.
• Stash: 0x Food, 4x Luxury, 1x Meds.

GM Notes

Let’s try Chillin’ again, I thought. How hard can it be, I thought. The thing is that to barter, you have to try Further Interaction, and if you try to interact with gangers at all and fail, they will attack.

By this stage, I really ought to be avoiding gangers like the plague, it never ends well.

28 Months Later: Reed, Z+81

“Let’s go to the Winchester, have a nice cold pint, and wait for this all to blow over.” – Shaun of the Dead

Chigley, Z+81: Chillin’

Moping at home isn’t helping anyone, and sooner or later the food will run out, so Reed and Connie head to the village pub, reasoning that any other survivors will go there too, sooner or later. If only to loot the beer.

(This will give us 4 PEFs to resolve; one on approach, two inside the Services building, and one on leaving. The ones inside must be human, but the others need not be.)

Approaching the pub, Reed and Connie stop to talk with an unarmed male Sheeple, who is keen to join them, but they don’t know him, and something about him seems a bit off, so they don’t accept. (+2 IRD to Reed for successful Further Interaction.)

Inside, the pair see a group of three Sheeple, watched over by three Gangers.

The lead ganger’s offer of gambling or companionship is interrupted by a girl ganger: “Hey! They’re the ones who killed Keith!”

In that case, this is the gang responsible for Annie’s death, and so by mutual consent, the two groups join in deadly combat. The gangers beat our survivors to the draw and open up, forcing Reed to duck back around the door as Connie takes a round and falls, Out Of the Fight. A zombie shambles up to the firefight, drawn by the noise.

Two of the Sheeple and one Ganger leave the pub through a side door, leaving two Gangers and a Sheeple in control of the battlefield. Not wanting to risk losing her, Reed drags Connie out of the doorway and makes good their escape while the remaining Gangers are focused on the new zed.

Outside, a Loner with a B-2 is watching the situation. Not someone Reed knows, but they can’t all be wrong ‘uns, can they?

“Help me! Please!” Reed calls to him.

“No,” says the man, considering. “I don’t think I will.”

Letting Connie slide to the ground, Reed swings up his rifle, but before he can pull the trigger, the Loner has fired twice, taking Reed Out Of the Fight.

When Reed recovers consciousness, he is inside a nearby building. Connie is slumped against the door, her body holding it closed. Reconstructing events, he realises that the Loner must have taken their possessions and left them to die, then Connie must have come round long enough to drag him inside, away from the zombie, and closed the door before bleeding out, the last thing she could do for him.

Bookkeeping

I begin by deducting one Food per person and giving Reed one DRD for his follower. He gets 2 IRD for successful Interactions, 1 DRD for a failed interaction, and 2 DRD for leaving a fight. However, since he resorted to Cheating Death, all of those are dropped and he loses one Rep.

• Reed: Rep 3 Loner. Peo 3, Sav 2. Rage, Resilient. A-3. Lifetime Rep 9.
• Connie: Bled out after being shot by gangers Z+81.
• Stash: Food x4.

GM Notes

Here, I’m starting to play the game as I believe is intended, which means using the Voluntary encounter to go Chillin’. The gangers inside rolled up as known hostiles, so I figured one of them is the girl who got away on Z+50, then everything went south.

As Reed was OOF, he couldn’t recover Connie, and so when she passed 1d6 on her Recovery roll, she failed. Reed then had to Cheat Death to avoid being eaten by the zombie, which I decided was Connie’s last gift to him – pulling him inside a building to save him.

Disappointingly, Reed’s family aren’t lasting any better this time around.

28 Months Later: Savage, Arion, and Flack, Z+80

“Would you like an adventure now, or would you like to have your tea first?” – JM Barrie, Peter Pan

Camberwick Green, Z+80

Savage is woken by a low humming noise. When he sits up, he sees Bex at the window of Colley’s Mill, looking out and hugging herself.

“Good morning,” he says. “What’s up?” She doesn’t turn around, but he can tell from the set of her shoulders that something’s going on.

“Don,” she says, slowly. “There’s a spaceship outside.” And indeed there is.

A platform lowers from the ship’s underside, with no visible means of support, and a group of three soldiers fan out, securing a perimeter. Savage moves to the window and looks out.

“Well, they look human enough,” he says, noticing that they are carrying current-issue British Army weapons and equipment. The platform rises, then lowers itself to the ground again; as it does so, a fourth figure gradually becomes visible, from the feet up. Once the face comes into view, the pair recognise him: It’s Arion.

“Told you he wasn’t from round here,” Savage says.

Arion saunters up to the Mill and knocks on the door. Unsure what else to do, they open it.

“Hello,” says Arion. “I was just on my way home, when I thought: It’d be rude to go without saying goodbye. Would you like a lift?”

“Where are you going?” Bex wants to know. Arion grins, and points straight up.

“Second star to the right, and straight on til morning,” he says. Normally this would be hard to believe, but he is, after all, driving a spaceship. “Place called New Hope. It’s warm, it’s dry, lots of people, no zombies. No tea either, I’m afraid, but we do have this stuff called Green that I think you might like.”

(Time for some reaction rolls I think. Arion is not going to try to sway them, he’s just offering them a ride. Neither Don nor Bex have any Hindrances that would make them lean one way or the other, so it’s a straight roll. Don rolls a 9, mildly positive; Bex rolls an 8, neutral.)

“Bex?” Savage asks, looking at her. She shrugs; her family all died in the outbreak, most of her friends too, she thinks; she hasn’t seen any of them in months.

“Whither thou goest, I will go,” she quotes, quietly.

“Would you like some time to talk it over?” Arion asks. Savage thinks back to his training, and hears his instructor’s voice drift down to him over the years.

“To make the right decision is commendable; to make the wrong decision is regrettable. To make no decision is unforgiveable.”

Things will have to be quite bad, he decides, before they’re worse than squatting in an abandoned windmill, hiding from zombies. He wants a better life for himself and Rebecca than that. He sighs, hoping he is making the right call.

“We’ll go with you,” he says. “Give us a little while to pack.”

GM Notes

Savage’s purpose in this campaign was to avoid skills fade on the detailed combat rules in SWADE, but I decided a couple of months ago not to worry about that. So, my first thought was to convert him to ATZ: EOD, but then I thought: Arion is Heroic (never says no to a person in need) and Impulsive (leaps before he looks), we know from earlier episodes that he gets on well with Savage, and he has a couple of berths left on the scoutship; so would he not offer them a ride? I rather think he would, though I don’t think he would try to sway them either way.

While neither Don nor Bex is more than mildly in favour of this plan, they are just far enough into the positive that they will agree to go; that writes them out of the campaign too, which will make it somewhat more manageable. They, too, will be on New Hope if and when we cycle back to 5150.

28 Months Later: Arion and Flack, Z+79

For there’s blood on the field and blood on the foam
And blood on the body when Man goes home.
And a voice valedictory . . . Who is for Victory?
Who is for Liberty? Who goes home?
– G.K. Chesterton, Who Goes Home

Winkstead Hall, Z+79

(1P Mythic: Does the Razor show up for this episode? 50/50; 43, yes.)

Arion, Flack and Dr Grant are in conference underground late one night when Pugh’s voice crackles over the radio.

“Skipper? We’ve got company. Doesn’t look… normal, but it’s not a zed.”

“On my way,” Flack acknowledges, and the other two go with him.

(1P Mythic: Does Arion recognise Dr Grant for what she has become? Very unlikely; 16, yes he does. Scout service training is obviously thorough; what Grant is now is not unique to Earth, as they show up in 5150 as well.)

Arion casts a look over Pugh, who is still not healing and seems to suffer from blood loss whatever they try. Arion has some suspicions about why that might be.

At the top, Flack flips down his night vision goggles and looks over at the treeline as Pugh directs.

“Good lord. What’s that?” he asks. Arion dials up light intensification in his AR-visor-disguised-as-spectacles and checks it out. “That,” he says, “Is a Razor. It’s her I’m looking for. I’ll go out and talk to her. Get ready to move, however this goes we’ll be leaving soon.” He turns to Flack. “If this goes south, your best bet is to blow her to hell. Don’t worry if I’m in the way, you’ll be doing me a favour.”

He emerges, hands raised, and walks over to the Razor.

“Hello,” he says. “Arion Metaxas, Hegemony Scout Service. I think we can cut a deal. And you are?”

“Arvjuh,” the Razor replies. “That will do for now. Tell me, why should I not kill you and take your ship?”

“For one thing, it’s not here, and for another, I’m the only one it will take orders from. Can we negotiate?”

“I’m listening,” Arvjuh hisses.

“I want to know what your people are doing here. I’m guessing you want a way offworld. Maybe we can help each other.” Arvjuh considers this for almost a minute. Once she is aboard the ship, many opportunities may arise. If all else fails, in Hegemony space she will not be treated as a monster, nor will she have to survive by consuming small woodland animals of unpleasant taste while evading the undead. Even the Lycaon tasted better than that, after she’d used her psychic blast on him. And after all, what can she tell him? That she was sent to find out what the Lycaons were doing here? That hardly seems like a secret worth protecting.

“That is acceptable,” she decides.

“Come with me back to our camp, then,” he says, and leads her back. On the way, he calls the Dolphin.

“Dolphin; come get me. We’re leaving.”

“On my way, captain.”

“Captain Flack,” he calls. “Doctor Grant. This is Arvjuh. She and I will be leaving soon. You can come too, if you want, or not if you don’t. My ride will be here soon.” He is not looking at Arvjuh, so he does not see the look of feral hatred that crosses her face when he mentions Grant’s name. He does mention one thing though, in a voice too low for the others to hear.

“Full disclosure, Arvjuh, so you don’t think it’s a trap; there are three soldiers, one wounded, and a civilian. I’m pretty sure the civilian is a Stage Two vampire. I don’t think the others know.”

“Where are you going?” Flack asks. Arion gestures up at the night sky.

“You can’t see it from here. It’s called New Hope. The closest thing to it on this planet is Arizona.”

“What do you mean, on this planet?”

Arvjuh is close enough now to recognise Dr Grant.

“Hello, Doctor,” she says.

“So… you can speak our language,” Grant chokes out.

“I always could. I’ve waited a long time for this.”

(SWADE initiative draw; Arion 8C, Arvjuh 5C, Flack 10H, Grant AS. Reaction check for Grant; 6, neutral – she’s not sure what to do.)

Flack raises his SA-80 to cover Arvjuh. He’s been feeling very protective of Grant of late, and is not entirely sure why. Arion makes a calming gesture with both hands, palms down.

“Easy, easy. Look, Arvjuh, Doctor Grant, I don’t know what history you two have, but can we settle it after we leave? Preferably without using a psychic blast,” he adds to Arvjuh.

Unfortunately, Arvjuh decides to blast the group and try to talk the Dolphin into taking her offworld; with any luck, Arion will be unconscious and unable to argue against her.

(Now I need to stat everyone up, but that’s easy in SWADE. Arion we have a statblock for, Dr Grant is now a Vampire – although I drop the Invulnerability as 5150 vampires don’t seem to have it – the soldiers are Experienced Soldiers with Flack being a Wild Card, and Arvjuh is an Experienced Wild Card with Gifted and the blast Power. Job done. Let’s see what happens…)

(Grant goes first and moves behind Flack. Flack fires a short burst at Arvjuh – in game terms, a Three Round Burst – and hits with a raise, doing 2d8+1d6 damage; 16. That beats Arvjuh’s Toughness of 6 – no armour – by 10, success and two raises so two Wounds. Arvjuh spends a Benny to Soak those and gets 5; a reroll doesn’t help; so she Soaks one Wound and is Shaken and Wounded. Arvjuh now acts, successfully rolls Spirit to unshake, and unleashes a blast which by the narrative rules on p. 97 hits three people.)

Flack doesn’t really know what it is about Arvjuh’s behaviour that triggers him, but whatever it is, he beats her to the punch and fires a short, controlled burst into her torso at point-blank range. She shakes that off and a pulse of… something emanates from her, hitting Grant, Flack, and Pugh.

(Arvjuh spends the extra 2 Power for more damage and rolls a 10, so gets 4d6 in total. Grant is only Shaken, but Pugh is Shaken and Wounded and Flack suffers worst of all, taking three Wounds. Makes sense as Grant is behind him, and she is Arvjuh’s prime target. Pugh can’t Soak, but Flack does, Soaking one Wound.)

Grant is merely staggered, but Flack is shielding her from the blast and is badly wounded. Pugh goes down, out of the fight. Arion fires his 9mm at Arvjuh and Wounds her again.

(Second combat round. Initiative: Arion 3H, Arvjuh 4H, Flack 4D, Grant 10S. Grant acts first and attacks in melee. Rolls really well, lots of aces, 39 damage – 8 raises! Arvjuh’s last Benny Soaks one of those but she’s down, incapacitated.)

Flack watches incredulously as Grant steps forward, slashing at Arvjuh with her… claws? When did she get claws? With a look of alien surprise on her face, Arvjuh collapses.

“Thought so,” says Arion, turning his gun on Doctor Grant. “Can we be civilised about this please?”

At this point, the Dolphin decloaks above them, rolling inverted so that its laser cannon is covering the area. Flack and Grant are stunned into silence.

“I’m leaving,” says Arion. “Any of you can come with me if you want. I’m taking Arvjuh with me for interrogation. I have a medical bay, it can heal you. Doctor Grant, if you come, I’ll have to put you in cryosleep, I don’t have enough blood to keep you awake without you snacking on the passengers and I can’t have that. You need to decide now.”

(Reaction tests for this. Flack: 10, Grant: 5, Pugh A: would be a 9 but he’s unconscious, Pugh B: also 9, he’s downstairs.)

Doctor Grant makes her decision known by leaping away into the darkness. Arion calls up to the ship, loud enough for Grant to hear: “Dolphin, if that one comes back, zap her.”

Pugh has recovered consciousness but is in no state to do anything other than gaze up and gasp in wonder: “Spaceship!”

Arion turns to Flack: “You want to get the other Pugh? I’ll get this one and Arvjuh into the ship. Arvjuh goes into cryosleep, we’ll see what the med bay can do for the others. After that, well, I can put you back down anywhere on this planet or you can come with me. New Hope always has work for somebody who’s good with a gun. Whaddya say?”

Flack considers. It’s hard to imagine New Hope being worse than here; wall-to-wall zombies, gangers, and now vampires. What the Hell, Arion got here, he can always talk someone else into bringing him back. He looks back at Pugh, who is grinning up through the pain: “Spaceship!”

“We’ll come with,” he says. “Let me get Pugh, then I’ll help you with the others.”

GM Notes

This is the 38th episode of actual play for this game, which means that on average encounter rolls, if I’d only been following one Star, he would’ve completed month 28 at this point and achieved my goal for the campaign.

I really enjoyed this session, despite – or perhaps because of – it veering off in an unexpected direction.

Bookkeeping is no longer necessary for these guys, as Arion, Flack, and both Pughs now escape offworld in the Dolphin. I did not see that coming. I roll for Arvjuh to see if she bleeds out, but thanks to her last Benny, she does not. An all-expenses paid trip to a Hegemony interrogation centre awaits her. Pugh A also recovers (despite having no Bennies, the dice like him), and now that Pugh B is no longer a vampire snack, he will be fine too. Flack and the Pughs will be on New Hope if and when I play 5150 again. Who knows where Arion will end up, but he has now completed his mission, in that he has a prisoner for interrogation. (She doesn’t know anything useful, but he doesn’t know that.)

By the standards of All Things Zombie, a happy ending for Flack and Arion.

28 Months Later: Drew, Z+78

“At least with zombies I know my enemy and I know what to do: Aim and shoot. It’s not so easy with people.” – Donna Lynn Hope.

Wellchester, Z+78: Escort

They’d found Emma Brond wandering around the city centre, looking alone and harmless, so they’d stopped to talk. She needed to get to Trumpton; maybe they could take her? She knew better than to travel alone these days, and she could pay them…

And if she doesn’t, Drew thought, we can always kill her and take her stuff. He didn’t say that aloud. He no longer wondered what had happened to the veneer of civilisation he used to have, or when he’d lost it.

It wasn’t like they had anything better to do.

The road to Trumpton was quiet. They passed a group of sheeple; neither side was in the mood for conversation or unnecessary combat, so they edged past each other on opposite sides of the road.

Arriving in Trumpton, they bumped into a trio of zeds with no time or distance to do anything but defend themselves in melee. Drew and Brond easily despatched their opponents, and Kate managed hers eventually, although it was close.

The town hall looked in good shape, although the famous clock had run down some time ago, and the people squatting inside had more important things to do than wind it up. The sheeple inside were too busy greeting Brond to take any notice of Drew or Kate, but Brond paid up as agreed.

Kate and Drew found more zombies on the way out, and again managed to take them down, although Kate struggled with hers.

As they stood, panting with exertion, over the fallen, Kate pursed her lips as if working up to something, then said:

“Listen, Malcolm… those people have got a good thing going back there. I’m staying.”

“Kate, if this is about Larry… You know I had to do that. It was better for him that way.” Kate dodges the question.

“Goodbye, Malcolm. Good luck.” She turns and walks back towards the town hall, leaving him in the street.

Bookkeeping

Drew had 5 DRD from last time and picks up another 1 DRD for his follower. He gets 5 IRD from the patron (who must be a sheeple as they’re the only ones who offer Escort missions). He rolls a 1 and loses another point of Rep! As Kate now has a higher Rep than he does, she leaves him, hence the final exchange.

• Drew: Rep 2 Star, Loner. People 4, Savvy 3. Rage, Resilient. A-3, Food x1, Lifetime Rep 7.
• Kate: Leaves band Z+78.

GM Notes

Strictly, you can only get an Escort mission if you go Chillin’ first and get a Job Offer, but I decided to cut to the chase.

Back to weekly posts now. Temperatures in Sicily have been in the high 30s and low 40s Celsius, at least where we’re staying – it’s hotter at the other end of the island – and it turns out my motivation has a low melting point.

28 Months Later: Blackman, Z+77

“The only easy day was yesterday.”

Chigley, Z+77: Confrontation

Another day, another supply run, and the Blackmans are out scouring Chigley for food when they turn a corner to find three gangers lying in wait for them, guns drawn.

(Gangers table 4 on page 34, leader is #3, 2x A3 and 1x B2, and they have Advantage.)

Mike sees the gangers outgun his family and risks everything on a charge into melee, where his Rage may turn the tide in his favour. Two of the gangers miss, put off by the charge, but the leader sprays his fire across the family, dropping both Jenny and James Out Of the Fight. Mike would go OOF too, but resorts to Star Power to keep going, and crashes into the enemy.

Mike rolls 334 (passing 3d6) and the gangers roll 13, 36, and 23 respectively. Comparing those results, Mike has beaten two of them by 1d6, so they are Out Of the Fight, and the third by 2d6, so that one is Obviously Dead. Damn, that boy’s fierce when his blood’s up; the fight was over in a matter of seconds.

He drags his family into the nearest safe building and checks them over before looting the gangers’ bodies.

With all the family except him incapacitated by wounds, and all of them weakened by hunger, Mike can’t take any more chances and kills the unconscious gangers before they can recover. On the bodies, he finds two A-3s, a B-2, 5 Food, 1 Meds, and 3 Luxury Items.

They can’t carry all of it, so he uses the Meds on his wounded, abandons the P-1 and all the Luxury Items, and settles on taking the three bigger guns and 4 food units. He stashes what he can under the floorboards of the building in case they manage to come back this way later.

Bookkeeping

Mike gets 2 DRD for followers, 3 IRD for downing opponents, and 3 DRD for using Star Power. He rolls snake eyes and loses another point of Rep.

• Mike Blackman: Rep 3 Sheeple Star. Peo 3, Sav 2. Bad Shot, Rage. A-3. Food x2. Lifetime Rep 1.
• Jenny Blackman: Rep 2 Sheeple. Peo 3, Sav 2. A-3. Food x1. Lifetime Rep 0.
• James Blackman: Rep 2 Sheeple. Peo 3, Sav 2. B-2. Food x1. Lifetime Rep 0.

Jenny and James will both survive, but only passed 1d6 on the Recovery table, so each has lost a point of Rep.

GM Notes

I realised I’ve drifted into making every voluntary encounter a Find encounter, searching for food, and it’s getting boring. So to spice things up a bit I’ve started rolling randomly for the voluntary encounters as well. Conveniently, there are six of them.

Only being able to carry one item per point of Rep is going to force some tough choices if Rep keeps going down.

Mike has been really unlucky in every campaign I’ve played him in, and it looks like this one is no exception.

28 Months Later: Arion and Flack, Z+76

“Wait a second. Before we attack each other and tear ourselves to shreds like a pack of maniacs, let’s just open the sack first and see what’s actually in it. It might not even be worth the trouble.” – Isle of Dogs

Winkstead Hall, Z+76: Find

Arion is looking for clues at Winkstead Hall, with Lauren in tow. His long-term goal is to find out what the Razors are up to on Earth, and then get the Hell out of Dodge aboard his scoutship before the zombies eat him.

(SWADE: Notice roll on d6w to see there is someone living here. 4 +2 for Alertness = 6, success.)

“Hold up,” Arion says. “Look at the entrance. Someone’s been going in and out. I think there’s someone living here; wait here with the packs, I’ll go in alone. If I’m not back in a couple of hours, you’re on your own, OK?”

Lauren nods, keeping her expression grim, but inside she is calculating her next move. Arion drops his pack and moves up to the building entrance in the open, hands in the air.

“Hello?” he calls as he approaches. “Anyone there? I just want to talk.”

(SWADE reaction roll for the Pugh on watch; a 9, cooperative.)

“Stop where you are and keep your hands up,” Pugh calls. More softly, into his radio: “Skipper? We’ve got a visitor. Doesn’t look dangerous.”

After a few moments Flack emerges, with Dr Grant in tow. The other Pugh is stubbornly refusing to recover, and Flack is concerned about him, but that is for another time.

“How many of you are there?” Flack asks.

“Two, My partner is in the tree line over there somewhere. If she’s got any sense she won’t be where I left her.”

“What do you want?”

“I’m looking for someone, and I think she was here when all this happened.” Arion gestures to indicate “all this”. Flack takes that at face value, and Arion ploughs on.

“You’d remember her if you’d seen her. Greyish skin, bald, fingernails like claws, ugly-looking.” Grant puts her hand on Flack’s arm and says: “I’ve got this, Captain.” She makes to step out into the light and thinks better of it, sticking to the shadows.

“Are you from the same place she was?” Grant asks, her choice of words betraying that she has met the Razor.

(SWADE Persuasion roll from Arion to get more Clues from her; I’ll give him one clue per success and raise. Roll 4, success; Benny to reroll, 3; second Benny to reroll again, 3. Bah. I’ll hoard the last Benny.)

“Somewhere near there,” Arion hedges. “Do you know where she is?”

“No,” Grant admits. “She left us three, maybe four years ago now. Hasn’t been back since that I know of; I don’t know where she went.”

(1P Mythic: Did the Razor kill the Lycaon? See Z-1096 for details. 50/50, roll 02; ohhhh yes, she did. Does the Razor know Arion is here? Nearly Impossible, roll 06, yes she does. Whut?)

“We need to talk,” Grant decides. “Come inside.” Aside, to Flack: “It’s OK, Captain, I think I know what’s going on.”

“Let me call my partner over,” Arion requests, and at Flack’s nod, he does so. There’s no reply.

“Huh. I guess I’d better go get her, then.”

Flack gestures to Pugh: Go with him. Pugh follows Arion back to the treeline, but Lauren is gone. And so are both packs, and all the food.

Bookkeeping

Session 8 for Arion, so no Advance for him. He does gain a Clue though, so I roll to see if he has enough to find the Razor: a 1 on the die (less than the number of clues) says he does. I was not expecting that so soon, but judging by Mythic, it’s more a case of she found him.

If you remember, Lauren’s personality trait was Treacherous, so when she got a chance to betray Arion at no risk to herself, she did so. She’s off into the sunset with all the food she can carry and a gun.

• Arion: P-1, Clues 2.
• Lauren: Ran off with all the supplies Z+76.

GM Notes

This session was a mashup of SWADE, ATZ:EOD and One-Page Mythic.

Checking back through my notes, I see Arion picked up a Clue on his first visit to Winkstead Hall on Z+2. I decided before starting the session that as soon as he finds the Razor, assuming she’s still out there, he’ll offer her passage offworld in exchange for information and exit the campaign. I don’t want to risk him being left behind in the zombie apocalypse if the campaign folds!