HOLIDAY OF THE LIVING DEAD

Holiday Mayhem for the “Night of the Dead” Deadworld

All Flesh Must Be Eaten RPG

(And a tribute to some favorite movies, novels and short stories)

No copyright infringement is intended – think of this as free advertising for your fine products.

WARNING: Some language and ideas herein may be offensive to some. Exercise personal responsibility and read at your own risk.

THE BEGINNING

“…ERGENCY RADIO NETWORK. NORMAL BROADCAST FACILTIES HAVE BEEN TEMPORARILY DISCONTINUED. STAY TUNED TO THIS NETWORK FOR EMERGENCY INFORMATION. YOUR LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES URGE YOU TO REMAIN IN YOUR HOMES. KEEP ALL DOORS AND WINDOWS LOCKED OR BOARDED SHUT. USE ALL FOOD, WATER, AND MEDICAL SUPPLIES SPARINGLY. CIVIL DEFENSE FORCES ARE ATTEMPTING TO GAIN CONTROL OF THE SITUATION. STAY NEAR YOUR RADIO, AND REMAIN TUNED TO THIS FREQUENCY. DO NOT USE YOUR AUTOMOBILE. REMAIN IN YOUR HOMES. KEEP ALL DOORS AND WINDOWS LOCKED…”

Night of the Living Dead, John Russo, 1974, Pocket Books

‘Twas the day before Christmas, and things had gone to hell in a hat basket. It’s not bad enough that the dead had decided to start getting up and walking around to attack and eat the living. Now it’s Christmas, and the Cast Members are all relatives who have been “invited” (i.e. commanded) to visit their Aunt Mary and Uncle Fred for Christmas. This is non-negotiable, as is refusing to accede to Mary’s various requests.

The Horror of Visiting Family

Failure to undertake Aunt Mary’s requests results in the loss of 1D6 Essence points per half hour of the harping of Aunt Mary and various other relatives. When the Cast Member’s Essence reaches 0, they have no choice – they must either perform Mary’s quests or perish from desperation.

Key Words

The key words for this Deadworld Scenario are: Anger, confusion, chaos, resentment, mayhem and chaos. Chaos is good. The more chaos the better.

Archetypes

"Clark, stop it! I don't want to spend the holidays dead."

Ellen, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

Most non-combat-oriented Archetypes are acceptable for use in this scenario. Anyone with military or law enforcement experience has been drafted, so no commandos or SWAT officers are allowed. Inspired Cast Members are not recommended. The spiritually-inclined know enough to steer clear of dysfunctional family during holidays.

Suggested Archetypes (Highly suggested Archetypes are in italics)

Some tweaking may be required – for example, the Lost Child could just be a family member. The Girl Next Door doesn’t have to search for her family, because they’re already there.

AFMBE Core Rulebook and Website

Athlete (Survivor)

Cheerleader (Survivor)

Beautician (Norm)

Hacker (Norm)

Video Store Clerk (Norm)

AFMBE Book of Archetypes

Bitten Housewife (Norm)

Crazed Teen (Norm)

Distinguished Gentleman (Norm)

Ex-Goth Gal (Norm)

Fatalistic Corp Executive (Norm)

Good Ol’ Boy (Norm)

Industrialite (Survivor)

Obnoxious Lady (Norm)

Paramilitary Geek (Norm)

Tormented Grade School Student (Norm)

AFMBE Book of Archetypes 2

Administrative Assistant (Survivor)

Club DJ (Norm)

Librarian (Norm)

Lost Child (Norm)

TexasZombie’s AFMBE Website

Undergrad College Student (Norm)

Barfly/Lounge Lizard (Norm)

Drifter/Handyman (Norm)

Girl Next Door (Norm)

Mean Little Kid (Norm)

Party Girl (Norm)

Regular Joe/Jane (Norm)

Redneck (Norm)

Soccer Mom (Norm)

B-Movie Teenager (Norm)

Weirdo/Loser (Norm)

TexasZombie’s Massacre at Muleton Archetypes (also on this website)

Muleton Cityslicker (Norm)

Muleton Hick (Norm)

Muleton Hillbilly (Norm)

Muleton Manual Laborer (Norm)

Teenagers, any (Norm)

Gravedigger (Norm)

Country Club Member (Norm)

Historical Reenactors, Renaissance (Norm)

Flat Earther (Norm)

Any other “everyday” Archetypes are probably okay too, even the weird ones. Focus on those that resemble family members you know and despise.

Remember, everyone in this scenario is related. BLAH!

"Get off me, you little fungus."

Audrey, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

Pairing up incompatible Archetypes is also recommended. For example, the Obnoxious Lady and any Archetype with a Short Fuse, or Mean Little Kid and a Girl Next Door. The more annoying and incompatible, the better. Think of the most annoying relatives you have around on holidays and use those as a model.

Trust me – it’ll be cathartic. And that’s a good thing.

Goals

The Cast Members have a set of goals (Set Encounters) that must be accomplished before a truly happy family Christmas can be had.

These are more adventure seeds than dungeon crawls. You’ll need to either improvise or work out the details in advance.

“Where do you think you're going? Nobody's leaving. Nobody's walking out on this fun old fashioned family Christmas. No, no. We're all in this together.”

Clark, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

These goals should be accomplished prior to Christmas morning, but as we all know, sometimes things just don’t work out that way.

Set Encounters

Set Encounters are predetermined, but should be freely customized depending on the makeup of the Cast. Some of these involve the Cast Members’ goals, while others are presented either for plot enhancement or because they’re just fun.

Visiting Uncle Fred and Aunt Mary

"Well, I don't know what to say except, it's Christmas and, we're all in misery."

Ellen, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

The Cast Members arrive to find that the spirit of the seasons is missing entirely at Uncle Fred’s place – he died. Then he reanimated. Aunt Mary locked him in the basement and he’s down there waiting in the darkness…

In the meanwhile, the remaining Cast Members and Extras arrive. A semi-bountiful Christmas feast has been prepared using rations provided by the last National Guard patrol to roll through on a Clear and Sweep, but the centerpiece is the roasted turkey. Well, it ~looks~ like a turkey, anyway. Sort of. It’s actually a lost albatross that Uncle Fred shot last week (he was bitten while hunting). Anyone eating said albatross without the Quality: Strong Stomach will become ill for 2D12 hours and suffer -2 on all rolls while being sick. Oh, and since eating an albatross is considered bad luck (at least in this Deadworld), anyone who partakes (even just a tiny bite) is afflicted by the Supernatural Drawback Bad Luck at level 1-3 depending on how much they ate.

There are several immediate problems.

· Dead Uncle Fred is starting to smell a bit gamey and the stench is drifting up through the furnace vents and becoming quite disturbing.

· Uncle Harry, Aunt Helen, and their brat Sarah haven’t arrived yet and haven’t called in to let anyone know they’re okay. A search party is demanded by Aunt Mary.

· Grandpa Rickets can’t chew cranberries without loosing his false teeth and possibly choking on the berries, so it is IMPERATIVE that the Cast Members locate a can of jellied cranberry sauce before Aunt Mary will give them a break. And no, they can’t ignore her. Christmas is about being with people you can’t stand and doing things for them whether you like it or not.

· Aunt Mary’s grandson, Little Willy, age 4, dragged her bedraggled Christmas tree outside yesterday and set it on fire with a blowtorch. She needs another one VERY badly. And, yeah, you guessed it, there are none within sight or knowing at the start of the game.

· Grandpa and Grandma Willis are trapped in their house by “some of those crazy people” and have telephoned requesting a ride, which is just as well, as only Grandma Willis can drive, and poorly at that (Skill: Drive - Car -4, yep, that’s a MINUS 4, not a level 4).

· Oh, and if that wasn’t enough, Little Willy’s mom, Peregrina, is about to go completely berserk if the Santa Claus impersonator she hired doesn’t show up soon. Problem is that Santa is dead. In fact, he’s heading for Aunt Mary’s place at a slow but steady pace, leading a horde of zombies through the woods. The Cast Members need to either 1) find a new Santa Claus, or 2) find a costume and impersonate the ol’ fellow their own selves. Note to ZM: Little Willy bites HARD…harder than a zombie, and while he’s currently whining nonstop about the absent of Jolly Old Saint Nick, he’ll completely and totally panic when faced with the Giant Bearded Dude in the Red Suit. Then he’ll pi$$ himself, and Santa too. Not much effect in terms of game mechanics, but it does help set the mood.

People at Aunt Mary’s House:

· Aunt Mary (Uncle Fred too, but he’s dead so he doesn’t count)

· Grandpa and Grandma Rickets

· Peregrina and Willy Mimosa

· Cousins Oliver, Abby and Franklin

· Parents of at least two Cast Members

· Siblings of at least one Cast Member

· Six random cousins

· Five random aunts and uncles

· The Cast Members

Useful items at Aunt Mary’s House:

· A hunting bow and 6 arrows.

· A .22 caliber single-action pistol (the hammer must be cocked after each shot, slowing down the rate of fire and allowing single shots only. The cylinder will hold 8 shots, each of which is loaded through the Loading Gate, again, making speed shooting difficult. Remember the pistol Flyboy was using to try to kill Mechanic Zombie in the original Dawn of the Dead? That’s the pistol in question.

· Plenty of old coats and stuff that could function as padded/quilted cloth armor (AV 2, EV 4/4, Cost: Free, AV: all you need). The extra EV is due to the improvised nature of the armor.

· Blow torch (Range 0, Damage D10(5) X 2, fuel for 30 continuous minutes of use, EV 1/1)

Dead Uncle Fred

Uncle Frederick Cooper was bitten by a zombie last week, expiring and subsequently reanimating two days ago. At the time, only Aunt Mary was at home, and she managed to knock Fred down the basement steps and lock the door. He’s still down there banging around, his moans echoing through the heating vents throughout the house.

The basement is very dark (as Fred smashed the light bulbs yesterday morning), and extremely cluttered. There are a myriad of boxes, crates, tables, clothes hangers, 49-year old National Geographic stacks, etc. in the basement, resulting in narrow aisles between various piles of crap and neat stacks of stuff.

Uncle Fred reanimated as a standard Bushwhacker (see below), with the additional Attribute of Strength (Iron Grip). He’s also fairly clever for a zombie and may well be hiding beneath a pile of old newspapers or inside the broken freezer unit, just waiting to lunge out.

Because everyone knew Uncle Fred when he was alive and he could be so f**king scary when he’d been drinking, Dead Uncle Fred always wins initiative on his first (and only first) attack, and all Fear Checks are made at a -2 penalty.

Useful Items in the Basement with Dead Uncle Fred

· A side-by-side double-barreled 12-gauge shotgun holding two rounds of buckshot. A Difficult Perception + Notice check will uncover a box of 20 Number 6 quail loads and 5 more buckshot shells.

· A motorcycle helmet.

· A WWII steel pot combat helmet (AV16, EV 8/4)

· A WWII leather bomber jacket (AV 5, EV10/5) that is badly mildewed and generously gives a -2 to all Stealth rolls and a +2 to all rolls to Notice anyone wearing it.

· 2 woodcutting axes (Damage D8(4) X Str**&, EV1/1), although one is VERY dull and will have to be sharpened before allowing effective use (Damage D6(3) X Str**& in the meanwhile). The axe can be sharpened with a metal file on a nearby stand, but will take 1D6 X 10 minutes.

On the Road Again

"Burn some dust here. Eat my Rubber!...Eat my road grit liver lips!"

Clark, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

At some point, probably after dispatching Uncle Fred, the Cast Members will have to leave Aunt Mary’s house to search for cranberry sauce, Uncle Harry and family, a Christmas tree, and Santa Claus.

The only vehicle available in a 1973 Grand Torino Station Wagon. Why? I don’t care! FIND A REASON! No heater. No air conditioning. Power steering is going, and the breaks are shot. The transmission is worn down, preventing significant acceleration.

Clunker Station Wagon

Weight: 3000

Speed: 45/30 (clunker belching blue smoke)

Acceleration: 10

Range: 200 (that clunker thing)

Toughness: 6 (they don’t make ‘em like they used to)

Handling: 4

DC: 65

AV: 4

Accuracy/Armament: N/A

Cost: Free, and that’s still too much

Availability: Here’re the keys!

The most efficient route, and the one that won’t result in having to walk home after the car runs out of gas is as follows:

1. Pass the highway and see Uncle Harry’s car.

2. Christmas Tree lot near the highway.

3. Grandpa and Grandma Willis’s house.

4. Stop at Stocky’s Stock-Up for cranberry sauce.

5. Find Santa Claus…

Find Uncle Harry, Aunt Helen, and Cousin Sarah.

Uncle Harry, Aunt Helen, and their evilspawn daughter are long overdue and haven’t even bothered to call to explain! Eventually one might be able to find their overturned car on a nearby highway, with 3D6 zombies of mixed types in the immediate area. Cast Members might be able to follow their trail to a nearby rural farmhouse that is completely empty and which has been largely gutted by a recent fire. A pile of charred bones and ashes is heaped up in the front yard.

Every 10 minutes that the Cast Members spend in the vicinity of the house will bring 1D10 curious Bushwhacker and Genius zombies and 2D12 Biter zombies, almost as if some mysterious force draws them to devour anyone on the premises.

For the record, the fuel pump out back appears to have exploded, destroying not only the truck parked beside it, but also the barn.

Useful Items for this Set Encounter

· 4-way lug wrench (Harry’s car)

· ¾ full bottle of Jackie Danielle’s Black Dog Whiskey (Harry’s car)

· Roll of barbed wire (the farm)

Get a Christmas tree.

"I didn't go berserk. I simply solved a problem. We needed a coffin... I mean a tree. There are no lots open on Christmas eve. Lewis burned down my tree. So, I replaced it as best I could. Viola!"

Clark, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

"Well, where are you going to find a tree at this hour on Christmas eve?”

Todd, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

Little Willy burned down the other one yesterday in the front yard with a blow torch while throwing one hell of a temper tantrum. Problem is that there aren’t any others around.

The only Christmas tree within 30 miles is a single roadside stand near the farm where Uncle Harry and family disappeared. And yes, there are a couple of good trees. Unfortunately, it’s less than ¼ mile from an abandoned and overrun Rescue Station. Literally thousands of zombies see the vehicle and activity and start making their way toward the Cast Members.

It will take at least 3D6 minutes to load one tree on top of the station wagon and get it strapped down. This time can be cut in half by taking some shortcuts, but the tree has a cumulative 20% chance per hour to fall off the car. And it will take at least six hours to get home.

Oh, the howling and moaning zombies begin arriving in 4D6 minutes at a rate of 4D6 zombies per minute.

Feel free to be mean at this point. For example, unless someone thought to bring along some string or rope, the Cast Members might well have to find some

Useful Items at this Set Encounter:

1. 2 saws

2. A tattered and blood-stained Santa hat (that does NOT count as a Santa suit)

3. A fully-charged cell phone.

4. A small cargo trailer that will carry about 300 pounds of stuff.

Drive over to pick up Grandma and Grandpa Willis

"Don't throw me down, Clark."

"I'll try not to, Aunt Bethany"

"Is this the airport, Clark?...Oh, that was fun; I love riding in cars. When did you move to Florida?"

Clark and Aunt Bethany, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

This should be the easiest part of the game. But that wouldn’t be any fun, now, would it? The nice old folks are ready to go, but there are currently 24 mixed zombies in their yard, and 50 more in a four block area, all of whom will be attracted to loud noises like gunfire. Add to this that both Willis’s have Speed 1 and Dex 0 due to age and infirmity. But they’re VERY nice old folks. And Grandpa has a rifle in the living room that he’ll loan out.

Good stuff at Grandpa and Grandma Willis’s House

· .30-06 bolt-action hunting rifle and 15 rounds of ammunition (described in core Rulebook)

· Extensive automobile repair tools

· 2 wood cutting axes (see above for details)

Cranberries

"Take a look around you, Ellen. We're at the threshold of hell!"

Clark, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

The forth convenience store the Cast Members search does have a single dented can of cranberry sauce. The wrapper has been partially chewed away but it is still safe to eat as it hasn’t been punctured.

Downside? Twelve zombies inside the store and up to thirty more within a three block area. The surrounding zombies will arrive at a rate of 1D6 every ten minutes if any loud noises (Iike gunfire or screaming) erupts from the store.

And the worst part? After 1D6 rounds, a group of potentially hostile passersby (4 Norms, Combat Skills Club 2, Shotgun 1, 25 Life Points, 1 armed with a pump action 12-gauge shotgun, 2 with hammers, 1 with a steel pipe) will arrive searching for food. Jellied cranberry sauce is sort of like food, so that’ll be close enough. They’ll also be interested in any other items the Cast Members have, and they’re willing to fight to the death to get anything and everything they can.

On the plus side, since this group doesn’t have winter coats, they’ll freeze to death in a couple of days in the right conditions.

Finding Santa Claus

"If I woke up tomorrow with my sewn to the carpet, I wouldn't be more surprised than I am right now."

Clark, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

Here’s the kicker…there aren’t any Santa Claus costumes or impersonators to be found. Period. None. Nada. Nyet. Zilch. The Santa Claus cap at the Christmas tree lot is as close as it gets.

BUT, on the plus side, when the Cast Members finally have to head home, they’ll find Santa Claus waiting in the yard for them. A group of 45 mixed Zombies lead by a Genius Zombie in a Santa Clause suit have arrived while they were gone and are currently battering at the barricades hastily nailed up over the doors and windows of Aunt Mary’s place.

Everyone else is still inside the house, but Little Willy is doing his darnedest to get out to see “Santa” in person. And this time Willy is armed with a butcher knife and will try to gig anyone who gets in his way. 3D6 rounds after the Cast Members arrive, Little Willy will succeed in hacking through the barricade over the doggy door on the back porch and will run out into the yard.

While people in a normal state of mind might think it best to let nature take its course, the Cast Members don’t have that option. Combat is the only way to save Little Willy, who will be about as thankful as a porcupine being used as a boat anchor.

And finally, its Christmas Eve…and the $hit hits the fan.

Ho Ho Hooooly $hit!

"This is a full-blown, four-alarm holiday emergency here. We're going to press on, and we're going to have the hap-hap-happiest Christmas since Bing Crosby tap-danced with Danny F**king Kaye. And when Santa squeezes his fat white a$$ down that chimney tonight, he's going to find the jolliest bunch of a$$holes this side of the nut house!"

Clark, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

Sometime during the night, while everyone else is asleep, Grandpa Rickets manages to choke to death on his false teeth (he was too drunk to remove them). He reanimates and kills his wife, the morbidly obese Grandma Rickets. The two zombies manage to quietly leave their room and manage to surprise and kill Aunt Mary. Grandpa and Grandma Willis follow shortly thereafter.

So, as a final bit of holiday cheer, the Cast Members are rudely awakened by the screaming of Peregrina and Little Willy. They are trying to hold the door to their room shut against the combined efforts of the Rickets and the Willis folks. Aunt Mary, on the other hand, is leaning over a random Cast Member when the group awakens…

All of the new Zombies are Biters except for Grandpa Rickets who is a Bushwhacker and Aunt Mary, who is a Genius. There’s nothing for it but an evening of internecine nocturnal combat.

Epilogue

There’s really not one. Either one or more Cast Members will survive, or they won’t. If a ZM is feeling nice, they might let dead Cast Members make it home to join in the attack. Cast Members will reanimate as Genius Zombies (a la Flyboy in the original Dawn of the Dead). Might be satisfying to be on the giving end of the zombie mayhem for once.

Hallelujah! Holy $hit! Where's the Tylenol?"

Clark, National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

ZOMBIES

Note: A full description of these zombies can be found in the “Night of the Dead” Deadworld elsewhere on this website.

There are three basic types of zombies in this Very Traditional Deadworld, and these are more fully described in the “Night of the Dead” Deadworld elsewhere on this website.

Biters make up the vast majority of the undead; slow, clumsy, and capable of very little noticeable mental activity.

Bushwhackers are those rarer dead folks that just seem to lunge out of nowhere and either grab or try to smack their victim with a rock or other simple weapon.

Genius zombies are those truly gifted dead folks who can remember more than just how to swing a club.

Zombie Classes and Cinematic Suspense

In terms of simple demographics, at least 90% of all zombies encountered would be Biters. But that’s pretty boring.

In a straight-up fight with a mob of zombies, at least 1 in 10 will be Bushwhackers and/or Geniuses. But that’s pretty boring too.

Any time a Cast Member is alone or otherwise relatively isolated, an encounter with a single zombie will always be with a Bushwhacker. Any time Cast Members encounter a former member of their group who has been reanimated, that zombie will be a Genius. Unfair? Maybe. No, definitely. But a single zombie that just walks up to be set ablaze or whacked on the head is boring. And boring is bad.

Variable Characteristics

Since zombies already exhibit a degree of variability, it stands to reason that more variability is possible. The most obvious cinematic variable would be Strength and various Special Powers.

Therefore, whenever the Zombie Master deems it necessary, at least one zombie in a group can (or perhaps should) have one or more of the following additional abilities: Strength (Strong Like Bull), Strength (Iron Grip), Diseased Corpse, Noxious Odor, Blindness, Emotional Instability, Fear, Horrific Appearance, and/or Rage.

BITER

Power	Description
Weight	Life-like (0)
Weak Spot	Brain, Fire
Getting Around	Slow and Steady
Strength	Ninety-Pound Weakling
Senses	Like the Dead
Sustenance	Who Needs Food?, All Flesh Must Be Eaten
Intelligence	Teamwork
Spreading the Love	Only the Dead; One Bite and You're Hooked
Special Powers	Dr. Doolittle
Power	19
Attributes Dead Points 15 Str 1 Int -2 Dex 1 Per 1 Con 2 Wil 2 Spd 2 Essence 5 Skills: Brawling 2 Attack: Bite Damage D4X2 (4)

Bushwhacker

Power	Description
Weight	Life-like (0)
Weak Spot	Brain, Fire
Getting Around	Life-Like, The Lunge
Strength	Dead Joe Average
Senses	Like the Dead
Sustenance	Who Needs Food?, All Flesh Must Be Eaten
Intelligence	Tool Use level 1, Animal Cunning, level 1, Teamwork, Long Term Memory
Spreading the Love	Only the Dead; One Bite and You're Hooked
Special Powers	Dr. Doolittle, Stealthy
Power	40
Attributes Dead Points 15 Str 2 Int -2/2 Dex 2 Per 1 Con 2 Wil 2 Spd 4 Essence 9 Skills: Brawling 2, Hand Weapon (Club) 2 Attack: Bite Damage D4X2 (4) or by club/rock

Genius

Power	Description
Weight	Life-like (0)
Weak Spot	Brain, Fire
Getting Around	Life-Like, The Lunge
Strength	Dead Joe Average
Senses	Like the Dead
Sustenance	Who Needs Food?, All Flesh Must Be Eaten
Intelligence	Tool Use level 2, Animal Cunning, level 1, Teamwork, Long Term Memory
Spreading the Love	Only the Dead; One Bite and You're Hooked
Special Powers	Dr. Doolittle, Stealthy
Power	43
Attributes Dead Points 15 Str 2 Int -2/2 Dex 2 Per 1 Con 2 Wil 2 Spd 4 Essence 9 Skills: Brawling 2, Hand Weapon (Club) 2, other physical skills possible, including Gun (type) 1 and other Hand Weapon (type) skills Attack: Bite Damage D4X2 (4) or by club/rock

Zombie Behavior

In general, zombie attacks follow a consistent pattern:

1. Attack.

2. Bite.

3. Eat.

4. Find new victim.

5. Goto 1.

The most important part of zombie behavior (i.e. eating or trying to eat) is the predator-prey stimulus as described below:

· Seeing living people doing living things gets zombies revved up.

· Seeing living people moving quickly really gets them excited too. It might be possible for a living person moving slowly and quietly to be ignored. This is entirely up to the Zombie Master.

· Seeing living people and not being able to bite them seems to drive zombies into a frenzy of activity, including trying to chew through brick walls and smash themselves through Plexiglas windows.

· Seeing other zombies with food also sets zombies off and causes squabbles.

· Zombies will throw “tantrums” if they can't get to obvious food, moaning loudly, striking out at nearby objects and other zombies, etc.

Exceptions can occur when zombies are faced with long periods without living victims. In these instances, zombies have been known to eat pretty much anything, organic or inorganic, including “dead” zombies and other non-living, non-moving corpses, human or otherwise. Items that resemble parts of living things may also be “attacked” and “eaten” by zombies, such as store mannequins, garden hoses, and leather clothing.

Random Encounters

More extensive Random Encounter tables can be found elsewhere on this website (…afrandom.html). These tables are specialized for this scenario.

I. Basic Encounters: Roll 2d6. Subtract 2 if encounter is in rural area; add 2 if encounter is in urban area.

Roll - Encounter

0-3 Animals (Go to II)

4-6 People (Go to III)

7 Zombies (Go to IV)

8 None

9-10 Zombies (Go to IV)

11-13 People (Go to III)

14 Animals (Go to II)

II - Animals: Roll 2d6. Subtract 2 if encounter is in rural area; add 2 if encounter is in urban area.

2-7 Domestic (harmless) - example: sheep, cows, horses, chickens, tame pigs

8 Domestic (dangerous) - example: dogs, feral pigs

9-11 Feral (harmless) - example: reindeer, rabbits, quail, wild turkey, ducks

12 Feral (dangerous) - example: rattlesnakes, coyotes, bears, alligator, wild dogs

13 Exotic (harmless) - example: escaped zoo antelope, llamas, emus

14 Exotic (dangerous) - example: escaped zoo animals: lion pride, tiger, hyena mob, rhinoceros

III - People: Roll 2d6. Subtract 2 if encounter is in rural area; add 2 if encounter is in urban area. Go to Table V after determining type of encounter if a determination of motivation and aggressiveness/peacefulness is needed.

0-5 Civilians
Roll d6 - on a 1-4, the group is local; on a 5-6, the group is from somewhere else; Make a second 1D6 roll. On a roll of 5-6 the group is stranded in deep snow. They may or may not be under attack by zombies or other desperate shoppers. They may or may not have one of the items needed by the Cast Members, but might or might not be willing to part with it.

6-7 Police
Roll d6 - on a 1-4, the unit is under command, also, a 1 indicates the unit is under direct military command as conscripts/draftees/levies; on a 5-6, the unit has deserted or is out of communication with higher command. Most deserters are completely drunk and wearing Santa caps. Some may be dressed in bright green festive Elf costumes, complete with badges and guns.

8-9 Civilian Militia
Roll d6 - on a 1-5, the militia consists of civilians with better arms and equipment who are acting in accordance with emergency instructions, usually conducting rescue missions to isolated homes or sweeping an area to destroy zombies; on a 6 the militia is searching for one or more items for which the Cast Members are searching. If this is the case, cooperation may be possible, but conflict would be more fun.

10 Military
Roll d6 - on a 1-5, the unit is under command; on a 6, the unit has deserted. Since it’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year, even deserters won’t be inclined to kill Cast Members if it can be avoided, but they may still rob them blind and take their car.

11-14 Looters
Roll d6 - on a 1, the encounter is with "professionals" such as an outlaw gang or prison escapees; on a 2-6, the looters are just frightened civilians looking for desperately needed wrapping paper and Christmas lights. The former encounter is at least as dangerous as zombies. The latter may or may not be dangerous as dictated by circumstance. Well equipped but careless Cast Members may become a target by the former.

Table IV Zombies: Roll 2d6. Subtract 2 if encounter is in rural area; add 2 if encounter is in urban area.

2 Encounter 1d6 zombies

3-5 Encounter 1d6 X1d6 zombies

6-9 Encounter 1d6 X 10 zombies

10-11 Encounter 1d100 zombies

12-13 Encounter 1d100 X 10 zombies

14 Encounter Zombie Hoard (1000+)

Table V. Attitude: Roll 2d6. Subtract 4 from rolls made in “good” situations (such as dealing with nonviolent people). Add 1 in “desperate” situations (such as dealing with violent people).

Roll – Attitude.

3 or less Helpful (will assist to one degree or another, even if it's simply by not attacking)

4-7 Neutral (probably won't help, but not likely to attack, would like to ignore Cast Members)

8-11 Hostile (might attack if situation is favorable, if opportunity presents itself, or if tensions rise)

12-13 Violent (will attack)

Alternative Version, or “Hey! Where’d All Those Zombies Come From?”

In formerly high-population urban areas, for every fifteen minutes the Cast Members are exposed and moving openly or engaged in noisy physical activity (boarding up windows, for example), there is an 80% chance that 1d6X10 zombies will be attracted to the movement and sounds. Once zombies are attracted, every fifteen minutes another 1d6X10 zombies will arrive on the scene.

In suburban areas, for every fifteen minutes the Cast Members are exposed and moving openly, there is a 70% chance that 1d3X5 zombies will be attracted to the movement and sounds. Once zombies are attracted, every fifteen minutes another 2d6 zombies will be attracted.

In populated rural areas, for every hour the Cast Members are exposed and moving openly, there is a 10% chance of attracting 1d6 zombies. After the first zombies are attracted, there is a 10% chance every fifteen minutes of attracting 1d3 more zombies.

In unpopulated rural areas, there aren't that many zombies around. There is a base 1% chance per day of attracting one or more zombies. In a national park, it is more possible there could be dead folks about than out in the desert fifty miles from the nearest road and sixty miles from the nearest town.

Obviously, it pays to be quiet and stay out of sight as much as possible. If the Cast Members are taking efforts to move silently, under available cover, use padded hammers, operating at night, etc. the chances above are cut by ¼ to ½.

Sincerely,

TexasZombie, a.k.a. Evil Overlord 668, the Neighbor of the Beast

eMail comments to: eviloverlord668@yahoo.com

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This Deadworld Scenario was directly based on the concepts presented in the following movies and novels. No copyright or creative infringement is intended. This is intended as a tribute, not a rip-off.

· Night of the Living Dead, 1968 film, (Alpha Video made the CD I have, but I’m not sure if there is another production company that should be named – legal eagles, please have mercy on me); Romero, Russo, et. al.

· Night of the Living Dead, 1989 film, Columbia Pictures, Savini, Romero, Russo, et. al.

· Night of the Living Dead, 1974, John Russo, Pocket Books.

· Dawn of the Dead, 1978, George Romero and Susanna Sparrow, St. Martin’s Press.

· National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (1989, Chechik and Hughes, et al, Warner Studios)

In addition to the core rulebook, the following Eden Studios publications are recommended for this Deadworld: Atlas of the Walking Dead, Coffee Break of the Living Dead, Book of Archetypes, Book of Archetypes 2, and One of the Living.