Rest and Relaxation

Sunlight poured through the upstairs windows, giving the house an open feel.  Dawn carried a bucket of water up the stairs towards the master bathroom.  Passing a bedroom, she saw Tina was sitting in a comfortable chair, listening to a CD player and reading a book.  "Pay attention, we don't want someone sneaking up on us."  Dawn said as she went past.
"Enjoy your bath!"  Tina said cheerfully.  "Don't worry, it's been quiet and we are perfectly safe."
Dawn paused and stepped into the room.  "We are not perfectly safe.  We never will be perfectly safe."  Dawn set down the bucket, gesturing to her pistol.  "That's why I have this on me, and why you have your pistol."  Looking at Tina intently, she was adamant.  "Where is your pistol?"
With a sigh and eye roll, Tina picked up her pistol from the floor next to her.  "Right here.  Geeze, calm down, I'll be careful."
"Careful will keep us alive."  Dawn replied, coldly.  Picking up her bucket, Dawn continued on her way.
Dawn poured another bucket of hot water into the tub.  She felt the half full bathtub of water, and decided it was still hot enough.  It had been days since she and Tina had barricaded the house and felt safe enough to relax.  Keeping her pistol within easy reach, Dawn finally took the chance to get cleaned up.  She couldn't even remember her last bath.

Dawn and Tina are taking the time to loot the house they have taken over, as well as resting for a bit to prepare for the next leg of their trip.  One of my campaign rules is scare looting, meaning to find something useful I have to draw twice from the deck and match the items to find something.  However, as Dawn and Tina are spending more time searching they will get straight draws for each room.  I have also decided that they will each find a luxury item and there is one unit of food still in the house.  It being in a rural area, the house still has gas for the appliances, so they can cook and heat water.  There is a hand pump nearby so they can get water as there isn't any electricity to run the pumps.  Not a bad place to hold up for a bit.

Searching the house and attached garage generates plenty of loot.

Thrilling card draws!

So the final tally is 3 luxury items, 3 food units, 1 unit of fuel, 1 meds and a crossbow.  Not too bad.  At the end of their downtime, I decide they will move the SUV to the garage so they can pack the SUV and be ready to leave.  I run a short scenario - they will run to the SUV, change the wheel, drive home and kill any zombies that spawn.  Should be short and easy...

Dawn dropped her bag by the kitchen table, keeping her machete and pistol.  "Let's do this quick.  We'll change to the spare and get the SUV back here in the garage."  Dawn checked her pistol again, making sure she had the right ammo.  "It's been quiet for a few days, we'll roll out tomorrow when the truck is ready."
Tina was a bit distracted with a music player she set on the table.  "Yeah, we'll be fine."  She casually checked her pistol halfheartedly.  "I still say we should just stay here."
As they walked into the garage Dawn sighed and continued the argument they had been having for more than a week.  "I'm going to get back to my friends.  It may seem safe now, but if there is a big camp of the dead nearby, I don't want to stay."
"We don't know what we'll find going east."  Tina argued back.  "We should stay with something we know."
"Let's get the truck and we'll sort this out."  Dawn said and pulled open the garage door, rolling it up noisily in the morning light.

It's morning of day 55, this is a short scenario.  There are no PEFs, zero zombies and the ER is 1.  It is a rural area, zombies will appear on a 6 from noise.  The mission will be a success if the flat tire is changed and the SUV gets back to the garage.  All spawned zombies must be killed or farther away than 12" from the house before the scenario can end.

To change the flat tire, the pair need to get a total of 10 successes in savvy (technical) rolls.  Dawn will roll an extra die for being logical, and will roll 5d.  Tina will roll 2d (she has a better people skill than savvy).  It should take a minimum of 2 turns to get the wheel changed, and each turn of work will result in 6d of noise.

They run to the SUV with no problems.  It's a nice stroll in the country morning air...

First turn of work

On the first turn, Dawn scores one success and Tina gets one as well.  Ooof, this could be a problem.  One zombie spawns from the sound.

A lone zombie hears the noise

On the next turn, the survivors don't activate and the zombie shambles closer.

Closer...

Tina looked up from the jack Dawn was struggling to get in place.  "I think that goes in a notch under the truck."  She offered.  A scrape of gravel caught her attention and she turned just in time to see a zombie stumble onto the road.  In a panic she drew her pistol...

Tina gets a shot off as the zombie charges!

The next turn the zombies win initiative, Tina passes her brown pants test, ties the zombie in the charge test and shoots once, killing the zed.  Dawn continues to work on the flat tire, getting three successes.  No zombies appear, so both women work on the truck the next turn.  Dawn gets three more success and Tina adds two more, for a total of ten, the tire is changed.  A zombie spawns in the road towards home.

Another lone zed

"Get in and get moving towards home.  I'll follow along and handle the zombie."  Dawn said as she stood up, drawing her pistol and machete.  "Back it into the garage and we'll clear up whatever zombies come by."
Tina holstered her pistol and tossed the jack and tire iron into the back of the SUV.  "No problem, see you at home!"

Dawn shoots twice and kills the zombie

Tina gets the SUV started

One zombie spawns in the road ahead.  On the next turn, the survivors go first, and Dawn fast moves to charge the zombie as Tina drives forward.

Another lone zombie

Dawn charges the zombie as Tina moves slowly ahead

Two more zombies appear

The next turn has a special event.  Unexpected...

One of the zombies is a human survivor...

Dawn is caught off guard

"Ugggh.  Damn it all!" yelled the filthy man as he pulled his bedroll from the tree it was stuck on.  "Hey, I'm not a dead head!  You need some help?"  he asked.

Dawn was startled, she was getting ready to shoot when the 'zombie' spoke up.  "Ummm, no.  I think we're good."  She said, hesitating.

"Well, you got any place to stay?  I've been alone for awhile, I would really appreciate a place to stay."  He said, holding out his hands.  "I'm sure I smell pretty bad, but if I can get cleaned up, I can be helpful.  Name's Jack."

Dawn considered the survivor for a moment, and relaxed.  "Sure, head in with the SUV through the garage.  Once we have that parked and the dead gone, we'll talk."

Dawn passes 0d for the random event check and can't shoot.  When the meet and greet goes down, she gets three successes to Jack's two.  Dawn recruits another survivor!  He comes armed with an SMG and a unit of food.  Very unexpected for the scenario, but a welcomed addition to the group!

Dawn shoots the zombie as it approaches

The next couple of turns go by without much action.  Tina gets the SUV parked and Dawn shoots a couple of zeds.  Eventually the area is quiet again.

Shoots one

Waits for the last in melee

All Clear

Tina hopped out of the SUV, watching the stranger as he covered Dawn with his SMG.  She felt a bit uneasy having someone she knew nothing about hanging around, but he seemed friendly.  Dawn finished off the last zombie with her machete, and the group walked into the garage.

"That was impressive!"  Jack said as Dawn cleaned off her blade.  "Wherever you're heading, count me in!"

Tina waved her hand in front of her face.  "You're not going to be anywhere near me until you get a bath!"  She looked at Dawn and continued, "Plus we need to discuss where we are going."

Jack looked between the two women, and held up his hands.  "No argument from me.  If I can get a bath, show me where."  Dawn pulled the garage door shut and latched it closed.  "Say, do either of you have green eyes?  I've had some trouble with green-eyed women..."  Jack said as they entered the house.

A successful mission, plus an added survivor.  We meet Jack, Rep 4, armed with an SMG and a knife.  He has the Greedy attribute, but he did come with a unit of food.  I spent a bit of time making his figure this past weekend:

It's all in the reflexes!

I was inspired by Jack Burton, from Big Trouble in Little China.  He is a straight build from Wargames Factory Survivors: Men boxed set.  I would have liked a different head, but none of them felt perfect for me, so I just went with one.  His shirt turned out pretty well, it's just some colors and lines (I didn't try to paint the actual design) overall, I'm happy with how he turned out.

Spring Cleaning

Dawn watched the sun rise over the trees, the early morning birds announcing the coming day.  Bright sunlight streamed through the calm countryside, not giving any sign of the undead hordes that now prowled the world.  As she watched, Dawn detected motion at a window to the house to the east.  Dawn concentrated on the house, but couldn't see any signs of life or undeath.
Tina stirred from her sleep in the bed as Dawn shifted her position at the window.  "Is something wrong?"  Tina asked groggily.
"I saw something at the house next to us."  Dawn replied, looking around the area between the houses.  "It looks like we have some visitors out there as well."
Tina stretched and climbed out of bed, putting on her shoes as she stood up.  "I'm going to bet we have to go out there, huh?"
"Just enough to find out who or what is in that house."  Dawn gestured at the nearby farmhouse.  "I'd like to check on our truck as well, maybe move it to this house."
Tina finished pulling on her jacket.  "Can we stick around here after that?  I'll bet there is plenty here we can use."
"Sure.  Let's check the area, just to keep us from getting surprised.  I saw a water pump out back here.  If we can get some water, we have plenty of food for a few days at least."  Dawn stepped away from the window.  "I'd like to rest for a bit too."

It is morning of Day 42, Dawn and Tina have secured a house in a rural area, but the immediate area has not been cleared, as they ended the previous mission with an unresolved PEF in another building.  The goal for this scenario is to reveal all PEFs and have no active zombies within 12" of the house they are using as a base.  As a secondary goal, they need to spend a turn at their SUV (the orange Hummer) gathering up all of their stuff and if I feel like it, they may move the SUV closer to their new base.

As we start, there are 5 zombies and 3 PEFs on the board.  The ER is 4 and zombies will spawn on a 6 from noise.  The scenario starts with Dawn and Tina stepping out the front door of the house they are staying in.

The sun rises on the neighborhood

To get started, Dawn and Tina check out the pickup truck parked right in front of the house.  It has 2 units of fuel, and may possibly run.  I choose to loot the fuel, to add to the 2 units of fuel they have in their SUV.  Seems they are off to a good start!

The pair step outside

Tina shifted her shotgun as she hefted the fuel can she just filled from the pickup truck.  "Well, at least we can drive around a bit more."  She said to Dawn as they looked up and down the road in front of them.  "I bet this is going to be a great day!"  Tina added hopefully.
"Just be ready, we don't know what all is out here."  Dawn replied, looking around.
The sound of metal parts bouncing off the ground caught Dawn by surprise.  "What the..."
Tina swore loudly.

This takes a bad turn

The next turn starts with a random event.  Randomly rolling, I find out Tina's shotgun just broke.  Great, just great.  At least she has a pistol as a backup.  The nearest PEF moves up to contact when I finally get initiative sorted out.

PEF moves into contact

We meet Donald, a survivor!

The crunch of underbrush gave away the approach of a lone person.  Dawn and Tina had their weapons ready as a middle aged man with a sub-machine gun stepped around the corner.  He paused for a moment, holding his weapon at the ready.  "I'm just passin through.  Not lookin for trouble."

Dawn relaxed, holding up her empty hand.  "We're on our way east, we have friends there."  She started.

"Ha!"  The man laughed.  "Ain't nothin left east of here.  There's an overrun FEMA camp in Somerset.  They setup in a fairground or somethin'.  Still someone alive there yesterday, I heard gunshots as I went past, but there are hundreds of deadheads there."  He looked over the two women.  "Come with me, I hear there are places out west still holding out."

"We just barely got away from Minneapolis."  Tina said.  "There isn't anything there or west of there.  It's all gone!"

"Still, I'm gonna see fer myself."  He replied.  "Got anything to trade?"  He relaxed and held out a hand.  "Name's Donald, you are?"

The PEF resolves as a rep 5 survivor, armed with an SMG.  He rolls 4 dice (outnumbered 2:1, so looses 1d) and gets 3 successes.  Dawn rolls and gets 3 successes.  Normally, that indicates an exchange pleasantries but that's all.  I figure they can barter on equal successes, but all we do is exchange info.  Too bad, he would have been handy to have.  I decide Donald is going to check the ruins across the road from where he started before leaving that table edge.

Donald moves on, shooting at a zombie

Dawn and Tina move forward cautiously

Three zombies were attracted by the gunfire and the survivors go second the next turn.  Dawn and Tina are making their way to their SUV, Donald is checking the ruined house.

Zombies get closer

Dawn and Tina move ahead to attack

Dawn and Tina each fire twice and each manage to kill a zombie.  The road is clear for them to head for the SUV.  Donald searches the ruined house and finds nothing.  No more zombies appear from gunfire (at least something goes well!)

The road is quiet

On the next turn, the survivors activate, but the zombies don't.  Dawn and Tina make it to the SUV and add the fuel to the tank.  Donald takes a chance and tries to loot again, still finding nothing.

Dawn and Tina get to the SUV

Another turn and another random event...

Who is calling now?

An electric set of tones cut through the morning air.  Dawn and Tina froze, looking around, such a familiar sound from before all this now seemed so alien.  "What the hell is that?"  Dawn said looking around.  "It's bringing trouble!"

Shambling forms stumbled from the ruined house and crawled out of the brush and trees.  Suddenly nearly a half dozen more zombies had wandered towards the ringing phone.

"I always hated that ringtone..." Tina said as the cellphone died.

At least it's closer to Donald

Five more zombies!

Well, the added zombies make things fun.  The survivors go first when initiative is resolved.  Donald steps outside the ruins and fires at the nearest zombie.  He misses.

Yeah, it's been a day like that.

I figure Donald can handle the zombies (or not) but if nothing else, it buys time for Dawn and Tina to trigger the last PEF outside the house they have to search.  Might as well try and finish the scenario...

Dawn moves in sight of the PEF

It is a lone zombie...

Dawn takes care of it, no problem.

Dawn and Tina keep moving

One more zombie appears from each of Dawn and Donald's gunshots.  More targets for the survivors!

The next turn, the zombies go first.  The closest charges Donald, who manages to fire in reaction to being attacked.

The zombie charges Donald

He finally hits something with his SMG.

The zombies move in, one getting close to Tina, but no others getting to melee.

Donald is getting pinned in

One zombie near Tina

Tina fires at the closest zombie and takes it out.  The road is relatively clear around Dawn and Tina.

Tina shoots straight!

Donald kicked the lifeless body he had just riddled with bullets from his H&K.  Spending a moment changing magazines, he turned and walked back around the side of the house.  "Aww damn."  he muttered as he saw the group of undead crossing the road towards him.

Looking down the road, he could see the two women moving around the curve.  "I bet they can handle themselves.  Time to get out of here."  Donald turned away and ran towards the railroad bridge to the south. 

Donald decides to leave

Donald leaves the table and the zombies start to move towards Dawn and Tina.  This day just gets better and better.

One more zombie from Tina's gun shots

On the next turn, the zombies act and the survivors don't.  All Dawn and Tina can do is watch the undead slowly creep towards them.

Slowly closing in...

Dawn watched as the nearby zombie slowly shambled along the road towards her and Tina.  Checking her pistol, Dawn reached for another magazine.  Sudden fear gripped her as she found her magazine pouch empty!  "Crap, I'm almost out of ammo!"  She yelled to Tina.

"What do we do?"  Tina asked, panic rising as she looked around at the zombies closing in.

Holstering her pistol, Dawn held her machete with both hands, ready to face the zombie.  "You cover me, I'll use this!"

Another random event...ouch!

Another turn, another random event.  This time, Dawn finds out she has only one shot left for her BAP.  She holsters the weapon, switching to melee only for the remainder of the scenario.  At least she is pretty good in melee...

The zombies go first when the turn finally begins.

One zombie charges Dawn, the rest close in...

I'm using the new melee rules, and Dawn is rolling 8d6 [rep 5, protected (+1), two-handed weapon (+2)] vs the zombie's 3d6.  She also gets one automatic success.  Unsurprisingly, she wins easily.  Tina fires twice and kills the next nearest zombie and Dawn shifts position to be closest to the oncoming horde.

Dawn and Tina face the horde!

Dawn and Tina win initiative the next turn, and move forward just slightly, trying to keep the number zombies that can charge Dawn to a manageable number.

Tina runs out of ammo!

Dawn stepped up next to the SUV, watching the oncoming zombies as they stumbled along the road, reaching for her.  Tina fired her pistol twice and then a loud click echoed along the suddenly quiet road.  "Crap!  I'm out of ammo!"  She yelled.

Dawn threw a quick look at Tina.  "Change mags and get ready to shoot after I'm done!"

Tina was desperately searching her pockets for another magazine.  "I'm pretty low on ammo!  I think I have another..."

Tina rolls snake eyes, and goes out of ammo.  I am using really tight ammo rules, and will need to pass a check vs the target rating of the pistol (2) to see if she can reload on her next activation.  Dawn faces two zombies in melee, rolling 8d6 vs 4d6 (3d6 for the first zombie, plus 1d for a second zed in melee).

Dawn moves into hand to hand

Dawn has another good round of melee, and kills the two zombies in one round of combat.  Another zombie appears from Tina's gunshots, right in the middle of the road, joining the group of zeds moving towards Dawn.

The zombies continue to move towards the survivors

Dawn and Tina go first on the next turn, and looking at the way the zombies are spread out, if Dawn charges, she can only get 2 in melee.  Tina is trying to reload, so she won't get to fire this turn.  I decide to have them move back, Dawn hanging back to get a few in hand to hand.  At least that's the plan.

Dawn is charged by three zeds

Dawn fights for two rounds, killing a zombie on the first round and finishing off the last two on the second round.  Normally this would result in an infection check, but with my house rules, Dawn would only have make that check if the combat goes more rounds than her rep.

Dawn is victorious

The zombies win initiative the next turn, and the last three charge Dawn.  Tina has reloaded, but if she runs out of ammo again, she will be out of ammo for the remainder of the scenario.  (She passed 1d on her reload check.)

Tina watches Dawn fight the zombies

Dawn rolls very well, killing the zombies in a single turn.  Finally something goes well for the survivors.  The table is clear of active zombies, so I quickly move to the target house to reveal the last PEF.  It's been a long game, so instead of going room by room, I handle the PEF per the normal rules.

Dawn and Tina arrive at the farmhouse

They find three zombies inside

Dawn kicked in the front door, yelling out into the house.  Almost immediately, three zombies shambled at her in the doorway.  "Come on out!"  She yelled, brandishing her machete.

"Hopefully that's all of them!"  Tina yelled as the zombies attacked Dawn.

Dawn finishes off the zeds

Dawn wiped the bloody machete on the rags of the now dead zombie.  She kicked the door and yelled a few times into the house.  The moldy smell of death lingered inside the seemingly empty house.  "I don't think there are any more inside."  Dawn said to Tina who was standing behind her with her pistol at the ready.

"Let's head home then."  Tina suggested.  "I don't want to deal with that smell."

Dawn nodded in agreement.  "Yeah, we'll see what we have and then if we really need to we can check this out."

The scenario is success, Dawn and Tina have finished the 'secure' scenario and can now loot their 'house'.  They are going to take their time (which means they get normal looting chances for the rooms in the house instead of the scare loot rules.)  They will take a short break to get ready for the trip to the east.

Oh, on the last turn, doubles came up...

Really?  What a day!

Dawn and Tina survey the flat tire.

I gave them a chance to have the spare and tools, by passing 1d.  The roll is a success, but they elect to NOT fix the flat right now.  After all, now it looks even more like any other wrecked vehicle on the side of the road.  Hopefully that will keep it from being easily stolen.  They gather up the fuel and take it with them back to the house.

"I'm really sorry, one of those shots must have gone wild and hit the wheel."  Tina said as she and Dawn walked back into the house.

"No big deal.  we'll just have to change the tire before we leave."  Dawn replied, setting a gas can down just inside the door.  "Let's see what we can find here."