It’s been almost 2 months now since I last updated Crimson Dawn, due in part to the hectic schedules of the holidays making time to sit down and write a synopsis (or even run a game) hard to come by.

These real life obligations combined with a nasty case of food poisoning; conspired to keep me away from the keyboard and gaming table for far too long. Now with the New Year before us I hope to resume bi monthly updates to Crimson Dawn without further delays. Now without further ado, I present the next Installment of: Crimson Dawn

“There’s another reason they call it the chain of command you know.” –Riley, recalling his military training.

“Because they tie you in chains if you don’t obey it?” –Renee, taking a wild guess.

“Because the lives of everyone under your command weighs like a ball and chain around your neck.” –Riley, remembering the troops who looked to him for leadership in the war.

Adventure #22

After a moments hesitation Riley sends an open inquiry across the radio, identifying himself as “Sergeant Riley,” and asking for identification of the unknown forces outside the building.

Seconds after his transmission the troops outside came to a dead stop as their commander crouched down near the front wheel well and keyed his ear mike, apparently taking orders from someone further away. A minute more of tense silence ensues before an commanding voice breaks across the radio, demanding Riley identify which unit he is part of and to give a current “sit rep.” (Situation Report)

A brief discussion ensues between the group as they debate what to tell the unknown forces outside, a second, more demanding inquiry putting a stop to their discussion as the group decided on telling the forces outside the truth. Keying the mic, Riley tells them his is a lone solider with four civilians who sought temporary shelter after a wild animal attacked one of them; and that they do not seek conflict with military forces.

A few more minutes of tense silence follows, as painfully Heather dresses herself and straps on her weapon belt, the group keeping a careful eye on the soldiers outside, two of the unknown militia having moved out of their sight around the sides of the building. Moving quietly Renee carefully moves from room to room, trying to get a better view of the soldiers from the second story windows, quietly reporting back they have taken up position at the rear door of the farm house.

A burst of static fills the radio for a heart beat before the same commanding voice informs Sergeant Riley he is now returned to active duty and part of Charlie Company effective immediately, and for him to instruct the civilians to lay down their weapons and exit the building at once for processing and return to base camp Bravo.

As the group sits in stunned silence the voice continues, informing them, the military vehicles outside the building have been rightfully repossessed by remnants of the US Army for military use, along with any other needed supplies to be determined after assessment by Commander Braddock. In the distance the group sees a M1 Bradley pulling away from the convoy and slowly down the dirt path towards them, followed by a cargo truck.

A heated argument immediately erupts among the group, who are reluctant to relinquish their transportation, as Riley suggests they may be able to convince the Army to assist them with the gang problem back in Ruthton. After Renee points out the military convoy may well take most of their supplies and leave them stuck at their compound, as well as taking Riley from his pregnant wife, the group agrees unanimously not to submit to military command.

(Gm note: I was expecting them to lay down their arms and submit, and had an adventure involving a splinter faction of the military at base camp, unhappy with their commander’s leadership going rogue with the groups help; but alas the side plot went unused and cut this session somewhat shorter then planned.)

Thinking quickly Riley told everyone to follow his lead  and take turns with the only radio they had (They had smaller hand held sets but didn’t consider them  having enough range for the military to get a clear signal) using a separate radio channel,  and convince the approaching military forces they were about to be ambushed. (Which got a lot of confused looks around the table before everyone nodded in agreement)

Grabbing up the radio and setting it to a different channel Riley began to speak:

Riley: “This is Echo-Four to Spearhead, the recon force is parked right over the surprise package, and they got two more transports about to enter the KZ, (kill zone) are we cleared to proceed?”

Jessy taking the radio from Riley: “Hold fire until both transports are in the blast zone, we want this diversion to keep their attention.” A pause as Riley motions for him to keep talking. “Hammer and Anvil are you in position to hit the main force with the party favors?” 

Renee, quickly snatching he radio from Jessy: “Hammer here, ready to pop the party favors on your go. Are you sure this stuff won’t take us out too if the wind shifts?

Riley Taking back the radio and giving her a thumbs up: (and making a Nuclear, Biological, Chemical Warfare skill check) “This is Echo-Four, risk from sarin exposure minimal in current atmospheric conditions, stand by to-“ He stops speaking as Heather slaps his shoulder to get his attention and points to the window.

Outside the group notices the approaching APC and cargo truck are quickly reversing course, with the convoy in the distance suddenly being covered by a smoke screen, obscuring the vehicles from view.

Down below the smaller force surrounding the hummer is quickly falling back as smoke grenades erupt around the hummer, the soldier manning the machine gun falling over the side of the vehicle in his haste to get away. Riley gives the group a thumbs up and mentions they need to keep selling it, tossing the radio to heather before running off down the stairs. (As Riley’s player passed me a short note with his plans, which I greeting with a smile and a note back telling him the requisite skill check and difficulty)

Heather on the Radio in a panicked voice: “This is Anvil, main target is a bust, I repeat, main target is a bust, they’re rabbiting, what are your orders?”

Jessy taking the radio back from Heather: “Spearhead to all engagement forces, go to radio silence and pursue convoy with MBT’s at distance, and wait for rogue element to update with convoys new position and status; I say again, maintain radio silence and pursue convoy with main battle tanks at range and wait for rogue element info.”

(The former bit of improv was pulled off surprisingly smoothly by the group, with them using a near by empty juice bottle as a prop for the in game radio; and playing off each others convos without a hitch once Riley’s player got things rolling.

I was originally going to call for a few knowledge: military etiquette or performance skill checks to see if their bluff worked, but with how well everyone did with this bit of unexpected bluffing I decided to let them succeed without a skill check.)

As Jessy moves to pass the radio to Renee, a loud explosion outside the building knocks them off their feet, several windows shattering form the concussion wave. As they pick themselves off the ground they notice the wrecker truck in flames just outside the garage, a coil of oily smoke erupting from the wreckage.

As Jessy, Renee, and Heather look at one another in bafflement they see Riley outside giving them a thumbs up next to the hummer, where they all quickly rejoin him. Riley grins and explains he used a welding tank from the garage and a little improvised demolitions (and demolitions skill check which he scored a critical success on) to make it appear from a distance their surprise package had taken out the hummer.

Their morale bolstered by the brilliant plan the group agrees not to stick around long enough for the military convoy to see through their diversion, and decide to abandon the damaged cargo truck in favor of the well maintained hummer the recon force was kind enough to leave behind in their haste to withdraw.

Wasting little time the group piles into the Hummer and undamaged cargo truck, (Dubbing the hummer “Hammer” and the cargo truck “Anvil”)  Jessy taking a couple extra minutes to spark a cheery blaze inside the farmhouse, hoping the ensuing fire will further cover their retreat. As the group drives away in a south east angle through the cornfields, Heather makes a startling inquiry: “Anyone seen Thomas around since the military arrived?”

* * * * *

Will the groups newly acquired Hummer and .50 caliber machine gun prove helpful in their upcoming trials? Will Thomas’s whereabouts be revealed? Will Charlie Company find them again? Find out in the next adventure synopsis #23, coming soon!

by Malcolm E. Hays

Introduction

Many GMs have a tough time working out some of the details in a campaign. To be honest, designing a campaign can be a lot of work, especially when you have other things that also occupy your time like school and work. GMs like to put as much detail into their campaigns as they can because they feel it really spices it up.

Players, on the other hand, like to have a free hand in the direction a campaign takes. A rigidly scripted campaign might be fun for the Game Master, but the players will soon tire of it and try to take the campaign in an unexpected direction.

Since this is often the case, I present to you an alternative and easy method of generating a really fun and exciting campaign. This method is designed for the Quest type of campaign, where the players strive to achieve some well-defined goal. It is a simple method of 11 steps, each of which requires a little work, but not as much as many GMs are used to putting into a campaign.

There are two main parts to the 11-step process: designing the Hierarchy of Evil, and Character Generation. The first part is GM intensive, while the second part is player intensive.

Hierarchy of Evil

Step 1: Decide on a Goal for the Villains

Villains in a fantasy campaign always have a goal they are trying to accomplish. Generally, it is a goal that involves acquiring more power and influence over the affairs in the region, country, or world. The scale of the campaign influences what sort of Arch Villain is most likely to be in charge. A global-spanning campaign might involve deities and powerful kings.

On the other hand, a locally based campaign in a small village or town might only involve the Sheriff or local noble. The nature of the Arch Villain is left up to the GM. Many great villains begin in goodness, but are corrupted by an increase in power.

Some of the worst evildoers are the ones who do not realize their actions are causing harm. For example, a witch hunt led by the local clergy, who burn and persecute those accused of witches in the name of goodness. The clergy are trying to do good works, but they are actually severing ties between neighbors and turning villagers against each other, leaving only suspicion and paranoia.

Step 2: Choose an Arch Villain

Once the goal of the villains has been decided, you must choose the grand architect of the evil scheme. He is the major mover and shaker of the campaign, though he will not always be known to the Player Characters (PCs). In fact, for real excitement, the PCs should be completely in the dark as to who the real villain in the campaign is.

At the start of the campaign, the Arch Villain should be many times more powerful than the most powerful of the PCs. There are a good number of reasons for this. For one thing, the Arch Villain is trying to alter the shape of the region, kingdom, or world. That requires a fair amount of resources and power.

Also, the more powerful the Arch Villain, the more the PCs have to work together to defeat his schemes. No single PC should ever be able to defeat an Arch Villain by himself. This really emphasizes the use of cooperation in solving a difficult task and leads to a more balanced party.

On the other hand, there are reasons for choosing an Arch Villain who could be weaker than the PCs, but will acquire vast amounts of power by the end of the campaign and need to be destroyed.

Sometimes it is just a matter of the wrong device falling into the wrong hands at the wrong time. The bumbling wizard Akar Kessel in R. A. Salvatore’s The Crystal Shard is an example of this type.

In order to represent the Hierarchy that develops from the Arch Villain, it is useful to create a tree diagram of the Hierarchy. The Arch Villain is at the top, and the lower levels branch out from his (or its) evil influence.

Step 3: Choose the Arch Villain’s Chief Lieutenants

No Arch Villain ever acts alone. He (or she) always has cohorts, underlings, flunkies, and a host of assorted cannon fodder. These are usually controlled directly by the Chief Lieutenants who answer only to the Arch Villain.

These might include a local Lord who has made a Pact with a Demon for more control over his serfs, a General serving his King by leading a conquering army across the sea, a lesser Mage serving a greater Mage for more power and riches and fame.

All Chief Lieutenants are motivated by personal gain, though some might also be motivated by duty or loyalty. They almost always know what is going on and can be even more difficult to deal with than the Arch Villain. They are the last line of defense for the Arch Villain and should be almost as powerful as the Arch Villain, though never equal to him.

The main reason they serve the Arch Villain is because he, she, or it can offer them something that they believe will make them greater (though this is often just a self-delusion; demons are notoriously untrustworthy).

Sometimes the Chief Lieutenants have no choice in the matter, though. They could be enslaved or blackmailed by the Arch Villain into serving him. These are important considerations because this then becomes a weakness that can be exploited by a clever group of adventurers.

Step 4: Decide on the Cannon Fodder

Cannon Fodder is the term for anyone below the rank of Chief Lieutenant in the Hierarchy of Evil. The Chief Lieutenants are the only ones who are indispensable to the Arch Villain.

Cannon Fodder serves as the eyes, ears, hands, and mouth of the Chief Lieutenants. They include soldiers, apprentice magi, beggars in the street, merchants, assassins, and anyone else who serves the needs of the Chief Lieutenants but will not be missed if they suddenly turn up dead.

At the top of the Cannon Fodder food chain are the Lieutenants. These are the direct underlings to the Chief Lieutenants and directly control most of the actions of the Cannon Fodder. They are extremely useful to the Chief Lieutenants but can always be replaced if the PCs get a lucky shot in and take out a Lieutenant.

Cannon Fodder is useful to the PCs because they provide the necessary clues that will lead them to the Chief Lieutenants and subsequently to the Arch Villain. However, they can also be used to lead PCs astray by providing false or misleading information.

They are also good for ambushes, especially when the PCs start getting too close to the Chief Lieutenant. Cannon Fodder seldom knows who the real Arch Villain is, and sometimes not even the Chief Lieutenant. They are often contracted by other Cannon Fodder to do the dirty work for the Chief Lieutenant who then has “plausible deniability”.

Step 5: Relationships Within the Hierarchy of Evil

One major consideration in our Hierarchy of Evil that is often overlooked is the infighting that goes on between members. Cannon Fodder’s main goal in life is to become the next Chief Lieutenant.

With that in mind, they are quite willing to sell out their fellow Cannon Fodder for a chance of advancement. This can often be beneficial to PCs who know the value of a well-placed bribe. The Chief Lieutenants have to watch out for daggers from the shadows and the Arch Villain has to keep his Chief Lieutenants from becoming powerful enough to become a threat to their own schemes. It is very, very dangerous to be in the Hierarchy of Evil and the road to the top is paved with daggers.

Character Generation

Character Generation is at least as important as the Hierarchy of Evil and, depending on the course of the campaign, can become an integral part of the Hierarchy itself (e.g. by infiltrating an organization).

The players are an integral part of the campaign as much as the Villains. The GM and players work together to create the story of the campaign and thus the GM must take an active hand in Character Generation.

The GM represents the world and the player represents a character living in that world. The player should interact extensively with the GM when creating his character. This is an excellent time for the GM to start introducing campaign “hooks” to intrigue the player and get his character more involved in the world. A player should not present a completed character concept to the GM.

Rather; he should present it at various stages and ask the GM for advice, suggestions, and ideas. In that way, both the player and GM share more of the responsibility in designing a unique and memorable campaign.

Step 6: Attributes

Most role-playing games have various methods of generating attributes. Many players generate them without thinking about why their PC has the attributes they do. Why does their Mage have a high Intelligence? Why does a fighter have incredible Strength?

These are generally a function of upbringing and natural inclination. Magic-using types generally come from a moderately wealthy background and are naturally studious. Fighters can come from any walk of life and are athletic, energetic, and highly physical people. There should always be some reason why the attributes turned one person into a Fighter, while another person became a Thief.

This leads us to our next phase of Character Generation:

Step 7: Skills

Not all games have skills, but most do in some form or another. These are very important to the PCs and the GM because they determine the balance of the party. A party that has few combat skills is not going to be running around in the middle of a battle.

The GM needs to pay attention to which skills the PCs have, so he can tailor his campaign to the general inclination of the PCs. Likewise, a combat oriented group is probably not interested in political intrigue and would much rather be dungeon-crawling.

Skills are a good way to gauge the flavor of the party and the direction the campaign is likely to go. As with Attributes, Skills should have a reason for being. They should fit the PCs personality and desires. A Mage who studies swordplay makes little sense unless the background of the PC allows for a Combat Mage. The wise party of adventurers will seek a balance of social, magical, and physical skills so that every potential situation is covered.

Step 8: Other Abilities

In some games, PCs have certain extra abilities, such as Advantages & Disadvantages in GURPS, Benefices & Afflictions in Fading Suns, and Quirks & Counter quirks in Dangerous Journeys.

Each extra ability should have some logical reason for existing and being part of the PC. Ghost, a PC from GURPS, has the Advantage of Shapeshifter (Weresnake). This is a result from his training by an evil mage to be sorcerous assassin. He eventually broke free of the evil mage’s control, but he still retains the ability to become a python on nights of the full moon.

This also gives him a snakelike appearance and adds to his reputation (another advantage) of being a ruthless killer. At the same time, a major Disadvantage is his fear of open spaces, a result of living the first 10 years of his life inside a tower.

Step 9: Special Connections

Special Connections are the PC’s contacts. They supply miscellaneous information throughout the course of the campaign when the PC is looking for vital clues. These can be predetermined or developed over the course of the campaign. Most Connections will have an “effective” skill level that determines their general usefulness.

They will also have a certain trustworthiness based on their relationship to the PC. A close friend is much less likely to betray the PC than the leader of the local Thieves Guild. Even though the leader of a Thieves Guild can provide great quantities of information, it is of a dubious nature at best. A university professor who is specialized in a topic of interest to the PC’s, such as History or a branch of Magic, is going to be extremely knowledgeable on his topic and is therefore a highly reliable source of information.

Most Connections should be chosen based on the PC’s interests, social standing, and personal life. A Thief from the gutters is not going to be on friendly terms with the local Duke, unless there is a really good reason. However, he will be quite familiar with the local tavern owners in his area and other assorted thugs, cutthroats, prostitutes, etc.

Step 10: Background

Every Player Character has to come from somewhere. They all were born, grew up, and became adventurers for one reason or another. Each player should determine a comprehensive history for his PC. This history should include where he was born, his family, some significant events from childhood, some more events from adolescence, and some more details from his recent adult life. Probably the most important consideration in creating the history is determining where his Skills, Attributes, and Other Abilities all come from.

There are also many personality traits associated with one’s upbringing that will emerge through game play. Illand the Sage was always intensely curious about everything as a child, so when he grew up, his natural inclination was to become a scholar.

This curiosity often gets him into trouble, but he always learns something new (usually what button NOT to press!). Clever Game Masters will incorporate background histories into the campaign. Players like this because then their characters become more personally involved with the campaign.

For example, Zander the Bard has been chased by mysterious figures who are trying to kidnap him. He later finds out that it all has to do with his ancestry. A powerful force for evil needs to use him in a dark ritual to free itself from its prison. His family history has hidden this secret for generations and now it has come back to haunt them.

Step 11: Tie It All Together

Now we have decided on a plot, created a Hierarchy of Evil, and created PCs. What happens next? The PCs must somehow be integrated into the story. Their backgrounds should all tie into the storyline somehow, though not necessarily directly.

The Hierarchy of Evil should at times act independently of the PCs as the plots are furthered and the Hierarchy changes. The involvement of the PCs should seem accidental at first, but then they start realizing what is going on as more information is revealed through the actions of the Hierarchy.

Gradually, the PCs will begin thwarting more and more schemes of the Arch Villain, who will not be happy at all. The Arch Villain should become more and more involved with the PCs as the campaign continues, eventually resulting in a show-down between Arch Villain and PC. However, Arch Villains are very difficult to kill and even more difficult to capture. They should always have a way out so they can return in the sequel.

Conclusion

Designing a campaign really only takes a few sheets of paper: one page of notes on the general goals of the Arch Villain and how he is going to accomplish them; one page of notes for the Hierarchy of Evil, including the relationships between various members; one page of notes on the PCs strengths and weaknesses.

However, this is not so the GM can exploit them, but so he can get a feel for how the PCs will react in certain situations. Most of the work should actually go to the players in designing their backgrounds for their PCs. This is the real meat of the campaign. The GM provides the guidelines for the campaign and the players flesh it out. Above all, the goal of GM and players alike is to create a memorable and enjoyable campaign, one that will be talked about for years to come.

 by Silveressa

“In light of this whole zombie plague I’m thinking they’re going to have to redefine R.I.P to Rise in Putrescence.” –Riley, recalling the usual gravestone markings.

“How about Rot In Pieces?” –Jessy, proving acronyms can mean whatever the reader intends.

Adventure #21

A cold wind buffets the vehicles as the hiss of static answers Renee’s desperate radio plea, Riley struggling in the back of the cargo truck to stabilize Heather and push the concerns for his wife’s continued safety from his mind, the bright lights from Jessy’s vehicle providing questionable aid, Jessy himself yelling back to Thomas and attempting to get directions to any near by medical facilities, Thomas mentioning the closest ones were in the cities, which would be either ransacked or crawling with undead.

After nearly an half hour of jarring travel over the poorly paved road Renee receives an faint reply to her distress call, one of the Reapers on a handheld set greets her panicked voice, giving her directions to a cache of resources they had hidden along the highway when they passed through that way a couple days earlier, which should have the necessary medical supplies they need to treat her girlfriend. As the voice fades to static Renee can barely make out his warning that other groups may have also heard his directions to the supply cache, be on the way to claim it for them selves.

Increasing her speed, Renee rockets down the highway, keeping an eye out for a deer crossing sign, and a dirt side road down which an abandoned garage and the promised supplies lay. Several bone jarring minutes later Renee spots the turn off rapidly approaching, the dirt road nearly hidden by the jutting branches of a cherry tree.

Yanking the wheel sharply she barely makes the turn, clearing out a mailbox along the way and almost busting her drivers side mirror on a looming tree. Carefully slowing down on the narrower dirt road, the group found Steve’s Garage at the end, several rusting hulks of cars visible on the edge of the truck lights, the main structure itself a faded blue, with the back of a wrecker truck hanging form the nearest garage door.

Leaping from the truck Renee gathers up her shotgun and surveys the silent building before her, joined seconds later by the rest of the group,

(GM note: With her character still unconscious I offered to let Heathers player take control of Thomas for the rest of the session, but she instead asked to play as her surviving dog Maki, which sounded like fun so I readily agreed.)

After a quick strategy meeting, during which Thomas volunteered to stay behind and keep an eye on Heathers still unconscious form, and the road for incoming hostiles the group took Heathers surviving German shepherd and spread out to cautiously survey the garage and attached two story house. Realizing the area was cleaned of zombies by the reapers the group conducted a brief cursory patrol around the building, searching for signs of recent occupation, and finding none entered from the backdoor, grateful; yet slightly suspicious the door was unlocked.

As they entered the houses kitchen Maki’s keen canine nose detected the faint odor of gun powder, blood, and the stronger smell of human sweat, someone had been in this room very recently.

(Gm note: this info, along with other observations Heathers player made while controlling Maki I wrote in quick notes to her, so as not to ruin the suspense for the rest of the group.)

Growling in low warning to the rest of the group Maki cautiously advanced sniffing at the air to discern the occupants’ location.

Taking queue from Maki’s nervousness the group turned off their flashlights, letting Riley give a two second burst of light before moving several steps in the darkness, followed by a second burst of light; a defensive house clearing method Riley had learned in the military. Taking point Maki strained his ears to make out any sounds of occupation, the scent of blood growing stronger as he closed in on the staircase to the second floor.

As the rest of the group neared the stairs Jessy spotted a dark wet patch on the carpet, closer inspection revealing it to be blood, no more then a few hours old at most. Maki, at Renee’s urging, bounded up the stairs, his keen senses now picking up the smell of excrement mixed with the blood, and sounds of wet gnawing on the upper floor.

Creeping close behind Riley pointed to several drops of dried blood on the hardwood flooring, as it leaded down the hall into a bedroom at the end, the same place Renee was told the supply cache had been hidden. Growing more urgently as the smell of blood and entrails assaulted his nostrils Maki took a reluctant lead, looking back at the group for guidance as they neared the doorframe.

From inside the room Maki could make out a faint shuffling like dozens of tiny claws on a chalkboard. Snarling Maki leaped into the room, pinning the humanoid shape slumped against the bed to the ground, his teeth firmly around the corpses throat, the rest of the group close behind as a half dozen field rats scattered between their feet in terror.

The room was brightly illuminated under the beams of all three of their flashlights, the partially rat eaten body of a leather clad man barely recognizable under Maki’s growling form, the contents of a emergency medical kit strewn across the bed, an empty syringe still grasped in the dead mans hand. After noticing the mans partially consumed body the group quickly decided he was no risk of coming back as a zombie, Riley guessing the man had accidentally over dosed on painkillers while trying stitch a nasty looking gun shot wound on his leg.

Wasting little time they carried Heather into an adjacent upstairs master bedroom, Jessy locating, and switching on a noisy generator out behind the garage, the additional light making it far easier for Riley to tend to Heathers injuries. As he performed field surgery, making careful note not to stitch any of bite marks closed. (A successful medical skill roll informing him that suturing bite wounds from any animal, prevents drainage and often leads to lethal infection in a matter of hours.)

As Riley supplies fresh bandages and an injection of antibiotics the rest of the group set about disposing of the dead biker and exploring the house and its adjacent garage, taking stock of available supplies and locating a replacement radiator for their damaged truck. Shortly after Riley finishes his treatment Heather painfully regains consciousness, and is nearly squeezed back into a coma by a tearfully relieved Renee, (much to the embarrassment of Riley, Jessy and Thomas.) Grateful Heather is on the mend the group calls it a night and the guys retire to the remaining bedrooms, leaving Renee to share the master bedroom with Heather.

The next morning as the group enjoys a properly cooked meal (courtesy of the electric stove and generator) Jessy raises the suggestion that maybe since they were at a garage, they should take some time the following day to upgrade their rides, which sparked a in depth discussion as to exactly what kinds of modifications they should make.

(Gm note: This discussion took up a lot of the game time, as they all went into detail of how to best go about “Mad Maxing” their rides, I.E welding on ramming prows, and otherwise armoring up the two cargo trucks to better withstand the dangers of the road, Thomas helpfully pointing out a few of their ideas were likely a bit out of their skill range.)

As the groups discussion of how to modify their rigs draw to a close, Maki (still being played by Heathers player) thinks he spots the movement of several approaching vehicles in the distance, proceeding in a slow convoy down the main road. Barking in warning to the group he heads to the window and looks pointedly out towards the highway, everyone making the connection soon after, Renee takes off in a mad dash for the generator as Jessy grabs his SMG’s and shouts a warning upstairs to Thomas.

The rumble of the generator fades to silence, as the group holds their breath in anticipation, the convoy of camouflaged vehicles in the distance slowing, the lead vehicle turning off down the side road towards the garage, Maki growling softly at it’s approach, the group quickly taking up defensive positions on the second floor, Riley’s hand held radio cracking to life with the indecipherable chatter of an encoded radio transmission.

Minutes later the vehicle pulls into full view, a military hummer, complete with a .50 caliber machine mounted in the roof turret a man in camouflage manning the turret, three other similarly clad soldiers disembarking from the hummer moments after is ground to a stop. Recognizing their body language and the short hand signals the leader of the group gave Riley informed everyone the new arrivals were either mercenaries, or actual soldiers.

As the newly arrived militia fanned out and began to circle the groups cargo trucks Riley keyed his radio, and attempted to contact the soldiers below them.

* * * * *

Will the newly arrived military force prove an asset in their travels? Will Mad Maxing their cargo trucks prove successful? Will Heather find a replacement for her deceased canine companion? Find out in the next adventure synopsis #22, coming November 21st!

By Rana Loreus

1.     Bring the Combatants to Life

The barbarian berserker let loose with a cry of savage wildness, and throws himself at his opponent, a swordsman dressed in midnight black. Even as the berserker let loose a torrent of blows at the swordsman, the swordsman’s composure remains calm, and with a smug smile playing on his face, deflects all the barbarian’s attacks. A look of uncertainty and anxiety finally creeps into the berserker’s face.

The above example shows how a combatant’s expression and reaction can be used to liven up combat. You could have a confident and complacent warrior who keeps commenting on the “puny and clumsy” attacks of the PCs, or a goblin that panicked at every thrust and slash thrown at him. A combatant’s expression and reaction can be used to describe how effective (or ineffective) a PCs’ attack could be.

2.     A Hit isn’t always a Hit

Here’s a challenge — come with as many sentences as possible which describes some poor soul being maimed by a weapon. Even with the aid of the mighty thesaurus, and plenty of time, you may have difficulty coming up with enough prose to last a single encounter.

Almost virtually every game has some form of “Hit Points” to keep track of each combatant’s state of health. However, it is not always necessary to describe a loss of hit points as a direct hit.

In Dungeons and Dragons, Hit Points is an abstract concept which includes the PC’s health, luck and ability to reduce the impact of blows and wounds. Hence, when Hit Points is lost, it doesn’t necessary means that the PC is wounded. Rather, it can also be meant that the PC’s ability to avoid fatal wound is reduced. Hence, a loss of Hit Points could be described in a variety of ways, such as:

• The combatant manages to defend himself, but is winded by the opponent’s blow.
• The combatant manages to evade the attack, but put himself into a disadvantageous situation.
• The combatant is being worn out by the opponent’s relentless attacks.
• The combatant’s focus on the combat is scattered, hence making him more vulnerable.

Remember that those are just descriptive ways to describe a loss in Hit Points, not literal rulings. This may be problematic if your combat in your games are run like a mini war-games, with great attention paid to the details of the rules. After all, a cleric casting Cure Wounds is not going to help a fighter whose loss in hit points are described as “his attempts at evading the fireball has put him into a disadvantageous situation”, if Cure Wounds can only cure wounds.

3.     Dramatize the Misses as Well

A miss in combat is often boring. No one get hits, no damage dice is rolled, and no die in a moment of spluttering blood and gore. As it is unlikely that everyone hits all the time, there will be plenty of misses and fumbles, and you may as well make the best of them.

Try to think of how a miss could be livened up. The warrior’s two-handed sword, instead of cleaving into the flesh of his opponent, may split a boulder into twain, or chop a table into half. The magical bolt of power which misses its target narrowly may collides into a wall, exploding into a firestorm of sparkling lights and flame. Arrows can get stuck into trees and morning stars can smash into walls. You can also dramatize near-hit by having the weapon slicing off some of the opponent’s hair or slashing a small section of the opponent’s clothing.

4.     Vary your Voice and Mode of Speaking

Sometimes, the simple sentence could sound utterly impressive with the right voice and pacing. Let take “The goblin lurches at you with his sword” for example. If spoken calmly, or worse, with a monotonous voice, this could be downright yawn-inducing. But if spoken loud enough, with alacrity and enough energy, it is effective – it gets the point across fast and it catches the PCs’ attention.

Varying between short and long descriptions and different speaking voice creates a sense of variety and can help to keep the combat encounter interesting.

5.     Give players “Moments of Glory”

Why must it always be the GM’s fault when combat descriptions get dry and boring? Or put it another way, does always have to be the GM’s onerous to provide an interesting, lively and dramatic commentary of the combat sequence? Shall not the players contribute somewhat too? This is the idea of this tip.

From time to time, give players “Moment of Glory”. I would tell the player something akin to, “You manage to disarm your opponent’s weapon, hurling it far away to one side. It’s your moment of glory” and the delighted player will go on with a dramatic description of how he manages to disarm the weapon and how stylish the weapon flies through the air, and etc.

Of course, you shall choose with care when to give Moments of Glory, and whom to give to. I usually give those Moments to critical hits, killing blows, exceptional success and the like.

Some ground rules shall also be established. My ground rules are:

• Your moment of glory is not allowed to affect the statistics of any other combatants.
• Your moment of glory shall not encroach on the sovereignty of other PCs and even the NPC’s. Hence, a Moment of Glory can describe that the disarmed weapon flies narrowly close by an enemy, but cannot describe that the weapon hits the enemy, or that the enemy got so scared that he wets his pants.
• Your moment of glory must not be overly long. You only have one minute to describe your moment of triumph!

Giving critical hits as Moments of Glory to players is obvious. What about critical failures, or fumbles? How about it giving it to another player and have him to describe the poor PC’s plight? The GM will announce the result of the fumble (“he breaks his sword, and the shards do 2 points of damage to himself”) and have another player to narrate the scene. Use this to get quieter players to speak up.

Moments of Glory can also be applied to other actions beside combat too. Experiment and find out what works.

6.     Get the basics right first

Combats tend to be complicated and fraught with many rulings – what with initiative, AC, Basic Attack Bonuses, multiple attacks, attacks of opportunity and etc. Giving great combat descriptions are easier when you have the ruled tied down. Trying to get the rules right and thinking of powerful prose at the same time can be downright stressfully. You may be worrying about the rules too much to pay attention to what you are saying and what you are not saying.

7.     Try Describing Combat from a Third Person Perceptive

I called this the “Running Commentary” technique and a prime example of it happens whenever you watch soccer on the television. Describe the combat sequences as an observer, and from time to time, have the observer do some wondering. So, instead of saying, “Alreic, make a to-hit roll”, try “Could Alreic strike the goblin with his long sword?” Players could take this as a cue to start rolling their dice.

Have the imaginary observer reacts to the PCs and the NPC’s’ actions. Cry out “Alas, alas!” when the Fighter fumbles a blow or, “That was a shaft well-shot!” when the Ranger manages to succeed in a well-placed called shot.

Whether to describe combat using a second-perceptive view (“You deal out a powerful strike, aiming at the goblin”) or a third-person view is extremely subjective, and hence up to your personal preferences. It is still possible to hold a running commentary using the second- person voice. Experiment and figure out what works for you.

8.     Read, Read and Read

If you have a problem coming up with descriptive combat sequences on your own, get it from the masters. Start reading up on novels which feature the type of combat sequence that you are looking for. However, don’t just read. Pick out the interesting phrases and sentence structures and play with them around in your mind. Write them on a piece of scrap paper and pin it on your GM screen. Put them in your notebook and refers to them in your free time.

9.     Encourage Dramatic Speech instead of Game Speech

Combat can be much more fun and interesting if everyone sticks to “dramatic speech” instead of game speech. After all, how exciting are “I attack the goblin” and “I use Power Attack on the enemy”? If the players want interesting combat sequences, they shall work for it too, won’t they?

Encourage PCs to dramatize their combat actions. If necessary, flick open a thesaurus and find all the synonyms for “attack” and prepare a list for the PCs. Ask them to think of cool, memorable quotes to say during combat. Even a cliché “For the King!” can promote some mood.

If the game sports special combat techniques (such as the “Power Attack” feat in D20), insists upon the players to “dress” them up differently. A “Power Attack” could be “I lift high my sword and chop it down with a vicious swing”. Even “I try to trip the goblin with my stave” sounds so much better than “I use Improved Trip on the goblin.”

Spells, likewise, shall also be lifted out from the typical “I cast a Magic Missile at the goblin”. Try having the wizard describe what happens when the spell is cast or provide some alternative names for the spells. Insist that the wizard comes up with new name for the spells or to personalize the spells to suit his character concept.

The action get stale quickly if all the combatants do is to hack and slash at each other. Set the fight in an interesting locale to spice things up, so that the combatants can do more just swing their weapon. The typical example is that of a tavern brawl. You get to throw mugs about, jump on the tabletops, swing from the chandlers and there is always the threat of the Town Watch turning up.

Remember, the more varied the actions of the combatants, the easier it is to come up with descriptions. Say you set the battle in a vast plain of grass with no obstacles in sight. All your PCs can do is to attack each other and your description is just about hacking and slashing. However, if the battlefield allows for more options, there’s less chance of you repeating the same descriptions over and over again.

“I can’t help but wonder if this whole undead business is restricted to humans or if it affects animals too.” –Riley, pondering the effects of “the wave.”

“You do know humans are just another animal in the grand scheme of evolution right? –Renee, showing off her intellect yet again.

“Ssh! Not so loud, you might tempt fate into having us find out!” -Heather, displaying an unusually superstitious fear of fate. (And of tempting the GM)

Adventure #20

After returning to war wag one the group carefully secures the vehicle, Heather making sure to check underneath the truck and in back for any unwanted passengers, her dogs continually glancing back up road at the wreckage of hamburger lane in the distance, faint shadows of movement visible in the fading light.

As darkness falls over the group they quickly discuss whether to abandon war wag one until dawn and seek safe refuge elsewhere for the night, or to make the repairs using flashlights and quickly leave the area before their noise and commotion draw more undead down upon them.

Renee helpfully points out they have no clue where a safe place to spend the night even is, and they would be burning even more fuel to return and repair the truck the next day, the group reluctantly agrees to make the repairs that night, Riley mentioning the cigarette light adapter for the soldering iron should prove sufficient to make the repairs inside of a couple of hours.

While Riley and Thomas struggle to repair the holed radiator the rest of the group set up a defensive perimeter, with Renee laying on top of war wag one with her rifle to pick off any incoming corpses while Heather and her dog walk Patrol, Jessy heating up dinner for everyone using a few cans of sterno and a portable camping stove in the back of war wag two, grateful for a chance to be off his injured leg; the bullet wound from over a week ago still not fully healed.

No sooner did everyone stop to eat, when they noticed Heather’s two dogs abandoning their meal to growl at the darkness beyond the headlights of war wag two, the low rumble of the trucks engine drowning out any attempts to hear what within the shadows. Suggesting it was scavengers drawn by the smell of the cooking food Renee flicked on the light under her shotgun and swept it across the cornfield, the swaying stalks making it impossible to see more than a few short feet within.

Dropping their food the group draws their weapons and Heather’s dogs back up closer against her they hear a faint moan, echoing on the wind, joined soon after by a half-dozen more, the origin unknowable in the wind and darkness, although Jessy insists it’s from up the road where Hamburger lane is located.

Forming into a defensive circle the group decide to quickly refill the still damaged radiator and put as much distance between themselves and this area before the vehicle overheats and forces them to stop again, Riley certain the few leaks that remain would allow them to make at least twenty miles or more.

All seems quiet as they split up into teams and start to re-enter war wags one and two, (with Thomas offering to ride in the back of war wag two with Heather’s dogs) However, as heather steps up to enter war wag two’s driver seat, (and botches her perception roll) she catches a flash of a black shadow from the side seconds before it slams into her, sending her tumbling sideways into the cornfield and out of sight, a predatory growling arising from the blackness as her dogs leap from the back of war wag two to the rescue, Renee blinking in surprise at Heather’s sudden disappearance.

(GM note: Originally I had planned to attack the last person to enter a vehicle with this deadly aggressor, which I expected to be poor Thomas. However, Heather made sure her pups and Thomas were loaded first before entering the vehicle herself, making her the unlucky target.

Botching her perception roll, and then failing her unarmed combat/dodge rolls made this attack far more effective than I originally planned, but since this is a survival horror game I let the dice fall as they wished and ran with it.)

Screaming out a warning Renee dives back out of the cargo truck and charges into the cornfield after her girlfriend, the frenzied barking of Heather’s dogs, and the screeching of the unknown attacker drowning out all attempts at normal conversation, Jessy and Riley running close behind as fast as their injuries would allow.

Roughly eight or so feet inside the cornfield Renee’s shotgun mounted light highlights a scene of gruesome carnage, with Heathers’ bloody form lying in a patch of broken corn stalks, one of her dogs broken body limply splayed across her, a bright spray of arterial blood and entrails covering them both, to their right, mere inches away Heathers’ remaining dog rolls in a tangle of fur and fangs with a heavily muscled black shape, the twisting and thrashing of their forms making identification of the monstrosity all but impossible.

Raising her shotgun Renee fires blindly into the tangled mass, fearing more for her safety then the life of  Heathers’ canine companion. Her shotgun slug misses both creatures, the loud explosion of sound panicking the attacking monstrosity as it rolls backwards away from the blood soaked dog, hissing in outrage; Heathers’ light illuminating the sleek muscled form of a blank panther. (An escapee from the zoo months earlier.)

As Renee racks the shotgun to chamber a fresh round Jessy and Riley arrive on the scene and open fire with abandon into the panther, sending it spinning into the cornstalks in a shower of blood and fury. In the aftermath Renee collapses to her knees, cradling Heathers’ head in her arms and crying, Jessy choking back the taste of bile as it rises in his throat, Riley, remaining eerily calm as he recalled he’d seen lots worse in his tour of Iraq, and deeply wishing they had a real doctor for situations like this.

Pushing the gutted canine from on top of her, Riley does a quick examination of Heather, noting the large welt on her head and the deep lacerations across her ribs and shoulder, reassuring Renee that while seriously injured and unconscious, she was still alive, but needed stitches and a compress to stay that way.

The quick sense of relief at his news vanished as more gunshots are heard from behind them, back at the parked military vehicles, the bark of Thomas’s .308 Springfield a sharp reminder danger was still close at hand. Rising to the occasion Jessy tells the rest to “Get Heather and her mutt loaded into war wag one, I’ll help Thomas hold off whatever else has found us and follow you in wag two.” before charging off into the darkness towards Thomas, ignoring everyone else’s protests.

Leaving the rest to care for Heather, Jessy emerged from the cornstalks to find several undead scattered across the road, Thomas gripping a .45 1911 in one hand while leaning out of the back of the truck, giving Jessy a silent thumbs up, offering up only six words in explanation. “Stayed behind to watch your back.”

Nodding to Thomas who began to reload his rifle, Jessy wastes no time running back to the front of the truck and pulling it around behind war wag one, sighing in relief as Heather and her surviving dog are loaded into the back by Renee and Riley, Renee returning to the driver’s seat and pulling away, leaving Riley in back to apply first aid, Jessy following close behind and hoping his trucks light will help Riley see well enough to tend to Heathers’ Injuries.

Upfront in war wag one, Renee struggles to keep sight of the road through her tears and makes a panicked distress call over the CB, asking for anyone in range with medical skills to please respond, anyone…

* * * * *

Will Heather and her dog survive their injuries? Will the partial repairs to war wag one prove sufficient? Will Renee’s distress call be answered? Find out in the next adventure synopsis #21, coming November 6th!

by Silveressa

“Thomas Baker? An interesting name for a Bakery store owner.” –Heather, musing over their new acquaintances name.

“Back in the day it was common for people to have last names based on their profession. Smith would be a blacksmith, Carpenter a woodworker, and so forth. –Renee, showing off her intellect.

“If that’s true, then what about John Hancock?” Jessy, being a dirty old man, like usual.

Adventure #19

Riley takes little time in yelling up to Heather and the rest how the sniper assisted him against the zombies, after which they quickly regroup outside next to war wag two (seeming to forget the earlier moans of the third remaining zombie in the clothing store) Initially the group is unsure whether to trust the snipers aid, Jessy voicing his concern the man may be baiting them into the open for a clearer shot so as to conserve ammo. After several minutes of debate the group hears the sound of a car engine, and peering around the corner of the clothing store spot a light blue sedan driving up the main street from the bakery towards them, a white flag attached to the antenna.

Reading their weapons the groups nervously awaits the newcomers’ arrival, the moans of a zombie seeming to mix in with the approaching vehicle, although no one was able to detect the source. Upon its arrival the drivers’ door opens and an older man in his mid forties steps out, several days’ growth of beard covering his face that breaks into a toothless grin upon seeing the group.

He quickly introduces himself as Thomas Baker, and apologies profusely for the unintended bullet into the trucks windshield upon their arrival, gesturing to the dead child zombie and mentioning that it was perched on top their roof and he was trying to pick it off before it could ambush them when they stopped.

While slightly doubtful of the truth behind his claim, the group decides to take him at his word, and begins an inquiry as to what happened within the town, and why he was here by himself, Heathers two dogs growling and pacing uncertainly. (This put the group even more on edge about this new comer, and focused all their attention on him.)

While Renee patched Riley’s new injuries with the trucks medical kit, Thomas quickly recounted his tale of “The Wave” and how the town tore itself apart in the aftermath, when even his own wife who had died of the pandemic arose and a walking dead and he was “forced to put her down like a rabid dog.” As he finishes his tale with recounting his survival within the brick bakery living off the supplies he had in the cellar, the sounds of shattering glass echo across the town followed a fraction later by a body plummeting from the second story window of the clothing store to land nearly on top of poor Thomas.  (Queuing up an .mp3 of breaking glass made everyone at the table jump as well, which worked nicely, throwing everyone off balance and refocusing their attention which had been drifting during Thomas’s tale.)

The groups panic at finding an enraged zombie in their midst after being lulled into a sense of relaxation by the mans story proved disastrous, with none of them prepared for the assault, every scrambling for their guns and rolling out of the way, leaving Thomas to face the zombie in unarmed combat for several dangerous seconds. Jessy was the first to recover, raising his MP5 to unleash a full auto fusillade at the zombie, only to have Riley kick the gun from his hands, yelling that he would hit Thomas as well. (This upset Jessy’s player to no end, spoiling what would have been a critical strike on the zombie.)

As Thomas fell to the ground screaming, Heathers two dogs leaped upon the zombie, tearing into its rotted form and giving Renee an opening to drag their new found companion to safety as heather carefully dispatched the walking corpse with a single bullet to the head. As Renee checked over Thomas for injuries Riley and Jessy got into a heated argument about friendly fire, Jessy claiming he was preparing to shoot but was going to hold fire for a clear shot, and Riley recounting his numerous full auto experiences before this as evidence of his lack of trigger discipline.

The inter group argument was ended abruptly by the declaration from Heather that “Either you both knock it off or I’ll find the ugliest pair of granny panties in that store and wear’em till doomsday!” (This made Renee’s player laugh hard enough to shoot Pepsi out her nose, allover her character sheet, and completely diffused the mounting tension outside of game.) Blinking in shock at Heathers statement both Riley and Jessy blushed several shades of crimson, and dropped the argument entirely as Thomas looked on in bewilderment and Renee choked, Riley quickly changing the subject to that of auto repair, and citing how important it was to be back on the road before darkness overtook the town.

After a quick inquiry to Thomas as to the towns’ layout, the groups piled into war wag two and headed to the hardware store, spending little time in ransacking the place to essentials, Jessy in a flash of brilliance suggesting they use soldering tool to patch the holes in the radiator, which the rest of the group happily agreed with. After gathering some other supplies, mostly flashlights, batteries, and several sets of hand held two way radios.

After some more discussion of the fate of the world with Thomas, and how he would be better off with them, the group drove back to war wag one with their new team mate and his bolt action Enfield rifle, hopeful the truck repair and next leg of their journey would be less eventful.

* * * * *

Will Thomas prove to be a useful ally to the group? Will Jessy finally learn trigger discipline? Will Heathers ongoing commando style of dress continue? Find out in the next adventure synopsis #20, coming October 2^3rd!

by Silveressa

“What made you think all these naked dummies were zombies?” –Renee, still amazed at Jessy’s lack of control.

“Because normal people don’t stand around naked in the rain? –Jessy, displaying his “common sense.”

Adventure #18

At the back of the clothing store Renee spends a good 5 minutes furiously trying to kick in the rear door, yet succeeding in doing little more then scuffing the paint and tiring herself out, Jessy helpfully offering to “put a few rounds through that puppy!” Which resulted in a glare from Heather at the unintended double meaning, and an exasperated sigh from Renee, who was more used to kicking down doors in Hollywood then real life. (Failing her strength roll three times when she tried to kick in the door didn’t help matters)

After hearing the group loudly debating on how to open the door, Riley retreated back from his over watch position and helpfully smashed out a side window with the butt of his rifle, shaking his head and walking back to the front area without saying a word, giving the rest of the group another of those “why didn’t I think of that” moments.

Upon returning to the front of the store he was greeted by the echoing moans of two fast zombies, as their thin gangly forms could be seen bounding in between cars as they rapidly closed the distance to the clothing store, Riley’s attempts at sniper fire failing miserably in the rainy weather against such fast moving targets.

Around the side, Renee crawled through the window, careful to avoid the bits of broken glass, and headed to the rear door where Heather and Jessy were waiting, the group assuming the rifle shots from Riley were merely cover fire as they stepped into the darkened interior of the building, the smell of mothballs and laundry detergent assaulting their nostrils.

Back up front, Riley fire off several more shots at the rapidly closing enemies, managing to score several torso shots on one of the zombies as it leaped onto the hood of a car, the bullets having little effect beyond staggering its loping run for a brief few seconds. As the two closing enemies vanished from view behind a large green van barely fifty feet away, Riley heard a scraping of claws on metal from behind him, spinning around to see a little girl crouched on the hood of War wag Two, and her dead milky eyes staring into his soul.

Inside the store, after Heather left her two Germans Shepherd to guard the back door, (fearing they could be shot by Jessy’s full auto gunplay,) Renee takes lead with her shotgun, the affixed light illuminating the dozens of mannequins within the store, many of them lining the isles in various states of dress, from a cheerleader outfit to a three piece business suit, their plastic gaze and glassy eyes reminding them far too much of the undead outside the walls.

As they navigate the cramped isles, Heather snags the muzzle of her lever action rifle on the hem of a bridal grown, pulling the mannequin off balance where it collapses back and out of sight, the sudden crash followed by a loud moan that seemed muffled within the cramped confines of the store, the single moan quickly joined by two more from elsewhere in the store, the group shining flashlights around in a panic, unsure if the humanoid shapes they illuminated were plastic, or flesh and congealed blood.

Meanwhile, outside, in the driving rain, Riley hesitates, knowing full well the damage gunfire will cause War Wag two should he miss the crouched zombie, and keenly aware of the approaching enemies at his back. Thinking quickly he draws his survival knife and throws it one handed, scoring a solid hit in the child zombies chest, the impact sending it sliding over the side of the truck and out of sight, a brutal hit on his back sending him face first into the mud, the ragged nails of the first zombie tearing across his back, the other living corpse fastening a vice tight grip around his arm and pining him to the ground as it lunges forward to bite at Riley’s exposed neck.

As Riley fights for his life, scant yards away the rest of the group carefully makes their way toward a stairway at the far side of the shop, their eyes straining to spot any movement within the shadows, the creaking of the floorboards and their breathing thunderous in the intermediate silence between the three distinct zombie moans.

From the side as Renee steps past a clothing rack, a rotted arm lunges from between a hanging pair of denim jackets and grabs for her, Heather stepping forward to slam the butt of her rifle into the exposed arm in a two handed strike, the snap of breaking bone like the crack of a gun shot, Jessy letting his Mp-5 swing freely on its sling as he shoulder slams the clothing rack, sending both it, the zombie, and himself into the next isle in a swirl of denim and suede.

The yells of combat and melee within the store are but faint murmurs of noise to Riley, the taste of blood and mud filling his mouth as he struggles to overcome the undead strength of the two zombies suffocating him into dirt, his left hand barely able to touch the butt of his .45 pistol. From the side an explosion of howling rage and bared fangs slams into the zombie on his back, followed by a second furred assault at the corpse pinning him from the side, Heather’s dogs making their presence known in a vicious display of canine prowess.

Taking the opportunity to roll to the side and ready his pistol, Riley finds himself side slammed by the child zombie, his survival knife still protruding from it’s chest in between the white frills of her Sunday school dress.

Raising the pistol as he falls to his side, Riley fires off four shots into the zombie girls’ abdomen, the gunfire oddly muffled by thick dress and sagging flesh underneath. With a moan the child wraps her icy fingers around his throat, choking off his cries for help.

Struggling against her death grip Riley manages to grab the hilt of his survival knife and rip it free of her ribcage, plunging it under the zombies chin and into her brain with a final thrust. (And critical success on his attack roll) Rolling onto his back and gasping for breath Riley struggles to find a clean shot in the chaotic scene before him, the ongoing fight between Heather’s two dogs and the attacking fast zombies, one of which was now missing a good portion of its left hand.

Within the darkened confines of the clothing store a different conflict was unfolding, as Jessy fell on top of the undead body of an old man, its fragile skeleton collapsing beneath his weight like the breaking of hundreds of match sticks, Jessy kneeling onto the zombies chest and placing a point-blank full auto burst into it’s head.

Off to the side Heather notices the staggering tumble of another zombie as it falls down the stairs, spilling into a shoe rack at the bottom, its limbs twisting at unnatural angles. Wasting no time she quickly dispatches its broken form by way of a rifle stock to the head, Renee, keeping lookout for the third zombie, its moans still filling the room.

Regrouping at the foot of the stairs the group decides to head upwards, to the second floor of the building, where they hope to assist Riley in dealing with the sniper at the far end of the town, discovering the upstairs of the clothing store seems to be set up as a small apartment, the living room windows giving them a panoramic view of the village, where they notice a figure in the distance on the bakery roof, waving a white flag on the end of what appears to be a broomstick or rifle.

Down below as Riley moves around trying to get better aim at the zombies, two more distant shots ring out from deeper within the town, Forcing him to dive prone and roll sideways back into the safe shroud of the clothing store, blinking in surprise as he notices the two zombies the dogs were fighting are both missing a good portion of their skulls, the lifeless bodies still being torn into by the enraged canines.

* * * * *

Is the unknown sniper friend or foe? Will the group manage to fix War Wag one and continue on their Journey? Will Heather find new set of panties within the clothing store? Find out in the next adventure synopsis #19, coming October 2^nd!

by Silveressa

While later then planned due to Hurricane Irene laying waste to Vermont, and slightly shorter due to a lot of the session time taken up by the characters trying to formulate plans in game on how to deal with a few situations, I present you with the next installment of: Crimson Dawn

“Do ya think we should offer any of these panties to Heather to replace her missing set?” –Riley, referencing the lingerie covering his windshield.

“And ruin the best form of entertainment around now pay per view is gone?” –Jessy, being a dirty old man like usual.

Adventure #17

After taking a few quick minutes to verify their coordinates via GPS, the group quickly got back on the move their morale bolstered by the realization they were only a few short hours form their target destination, Cooper’s Chase Distillery. The road ahead mostly straight, running through a large array of cornfields, the thick fog hiding the view to either side, the journey interrupted moments later by the rising heat gauge in Riley’s truck cab and a thin curl of steam creeping form under the hood, the unpleasant realization giving both occupants good cause to unleash a string of curses the like of which only soldiers and old men can quite manage.

Pulling over to the side of the road, the group meets in between the two parked trucks to discuss the situation, Riley quickly locating the problem, several slivers of metal wedged into the front radiator, past which still trickle a steady stream of liquid onto the wet blacktop. (Caused during their collision through the RV earlier) A in depth discussion then follows, the group debating how best to proceed, and trying to determine if the damage is repairable with duct tape or not, (with most of the group lamenting out of character how none of them thought to take automobile mechanics during character creation.

In the end after nearly 30 minutes of trying to formulate a plan, with the fog lessening as the thick mist turns into a dreary cold drizzle, the group settles on temporarily abandoning war wag one and heading for a near by garage and look for something to add to the radiator as a quick fix. (Jessy with a successful jury rigging roll suggests using either black pepper or egg white to temporarily seal the holes, but isn’t confident either one will work for long on a vehicle that size, and with so many holes.)

Moving the truck to the side of the road and yanking the battery cables the group then piles into war wag two (after spending another hour transferring all their supplies from war wag one) with Heather and Renee in the rear with Heathers dogs, and make a detour off the interstate, to the near by down of Sweetwater, the icy rain helping to wash the rotting stink from their truck as they approach.

The empty streets seem mostly deserted, save for tattered fliers warning about quarantine, and the weather faded banners of a spring festival hung between the stores spanning the street, several inches of murky water covering the road, a bloated arm seen wedged from the near by storm drain, several fingers bent at crooked angles.

Stopping at the edge of town the group discusses whether to risk taking the vehicle deeper inside, their planning session interrupted by the crack of a rifle, and the front windshield spider webbing from a bullet impact. Throwing the vehicle into gear Riley quickly reversed back up the road as more shots echoed from the town, everyone else ducking down and trying to spot the shooters location. (Which from a moving vehicle in the pouring rain proved impossible.)

After nearly backing into a ditch and over a parked motorcycle Riley pulls the truck to a stop around the corner of a clothing store and turns it off, the sudden silence and quiet tick of the cooling engine in the rain fall eerily menacing. Wasting little time the group vacates the truck and split up to flank around both sides of the building Riley using a pair of binoculars to peer around the front down the empty street, scanning the windows for sights of the shooter, Heather kneeled down beside him with her lever action rifle at the ready.

Around the back of the structure Jessy leaped out with his MP5, immediately unleashing a rain of death upon the dozen naked humanoid shapes clustered at the back door. Renee winces at the echoing roar of Jessy’s full auto greeting, wishing she had picked up some hearing protection when she was back in Ruthton.

Up front Riley nearly drops his binoculars in surprise at the barrage of gunfire from the back of the store, but not before spotting movement on the rooftop of a bakery at the end of the street, His yelled orders to Heather drowned out in the echoing shots, along with Heathers screamed profanities at Jessy’s use of full auto gunfire yet again.

At the back of the store while Jessy hurriedly reloaded Renee took stock of the carnage, count a full five mannequins blasted into wood splinters and bits of ruined plastic by Jessy’s eager attack, giving him a stern reminder to check his targets before pissing away ammo all the time; Jessy only nodding in response as he chambered a fresh round.

After a shouted explanation of the situation at the back of the store Riley ordered heather to fall back and breach the building from the rear with the rest of the group and try to find a roof access or firing position from the second floor while he kept an eye on the shooter and provided cover as needed, the group making note of acquiring some small two way radios from a hardware store in town before leaving.

* * * * *

Will the groups attempted raid of Sweetwater prove successful? Will the sniper prove more deadly then the other hidden dangers in town? Will more innocent mannequins lose their un-life at the hands of a mad gunner? Find out in the next adventure synopsis #18, coming September 25^th!

by Silveressa

This synopsis is the beginning of the second installment of my Darkest of Winters campaign, under the new name “Crimson Dawn.” Now summer is drawing to a close and free time is more abundant I’ll be resuming my campaign synopsis updates on bi-weekly basis, and will return to a weekly basis as fall arrives.

The second half of my Dead Reign campaign is filled with more action, and is a bit darker in tone, with some unexpected twists and surprises in store as the brave travelers continue their journey to the Alaskan weather station.  A journey that will test not only their resolve, but their dedication to each other and the unspoken obligations that come with friendship.

In the land of the undead being human is more then having a pulse, it’s having a heart and the courage to cling to your humanity even when it can cost you your life.

Now without further preamble, I present Crimson Dawn:

“Ya know, I never took Riley for the hearts & kisses boxer shorts type of mechanic.” –Heather, commenting on Riley’s choice of undergarments.

“Could be he was inspired by your short skirt and no undergarment approach to every day life?”-Renee, commenting on Heather’s choice of no undergarments.

Adventure #16

After their run in with the Reapers the group re-boarded their trucks and set course forHamburger Lane, the groups plans to push their way through at high speeds eagerly embraced by everyone, despite the potential danger. Riley took the lead with Jessy, a thick low lying fog making the early morning visibility difficult, despite the powerful lights on the two military trucks, Jessy commenting how the fog seemed “unnatural somehow, like a shroud or veil that’s hidden the undead from view.”

Despite the road ahead obscured by the mist, the convoy keeps up an acceptable speed of 25mph, Riley holding course down the center of the road and simply slamming derelict vehicles out of the way in a scream of tortured metal and breaking glass, the few moving shapes within them quickly left in the dust.

The road clearing approach makes for relatively quick (if noisy) progress until the lead truck comes upon an overturned bus blocking most of the road looming ahead out of the fog. Braking suddenly and yanking the wheel sharply to the right Riley narrowly avoids a head on collision, coming to a halt inches from the wreck, Renee swerving to the side and ricocheting off of the guard rails as she barely avoids rear ending War wag one.

No sooner do the two trucks stop moving then a series of echoing moans are heard from deeper within the fog, and the crack of breaking glass. With some tricky maneuvering Riley manages to squeeze his truck past the over turned bus and guard rails, the heavy vehicle barely able to nudge the buses mass to the side enough to scrape by.

As Renee maneuvers her truck close behind a series of heavy thumps are heard landing on her roof, and the skittering of claws scraping across the metal. Yelling for heather to “DO something!” Renee accelerates to keep Riley’s truck in view as he pulls ahead into the fog, Jessy yelling at them over the radio to “keep close we’re putting the pedal to the metal!”

Back inside war wag two Heather yells at Renee to punch it and secures her seat belt more firmly, trusting in the vehicles armor to keep the undead at bay. The throaty roar of the machine drowns out any further commentary from Heather as Renee surges forward, plowing into, and through the twisted forms of several zombies as they fall from the tops of a Gray Hound bus into the road in front of them; the wash of gore and spray of entrails covering the hood of their vehicle.

Up ahead war wag one finds itself beset by surprisingly fast moving zombies that leap from one wrecked derelict to another keeping pace aside the truck as they moan in unison, Jessy rolling down his window and taking a few (full auto) pot shots at the runner on his side. Riley struggles to swerve around the looming hulks of buses, flinching at the stream of hot brass Jessy’s full auto fire sends flying through the passenger compartment as he unloads an entire clip of ammo at the running zombie; managing to score several strike at the end of his burst and send it tumbling in a shower of blood and bone in-between a set of wrecked cars.

As he is cheering his successful drive by shooting the fast zombie from Riley’s side leaps across onto the hood of the truck, its rotted fingers grabbing for purchase as it tries to slam its head through the glass into Riley. With his view blocked Riley struggles to see around the fiend, as Jessy helpfully reaches over to turn on the windshield wipers in an unsuccessful attempt to dislodge the attacker and warns the girls in war wag two of their situation over radio.

Behind them Renee holds course, matching Riley’s crazy path between the smashed vehicles and array of body parts, the barking of Heathers dogs from the cargo area reminding them of the unwanted passengers still clinging to the roof.  Fearing the zombies up top will manage to block their view similar to Riley’s problem Heather rolls down her window and leans out revolver in hand, struggling to get a clear shot at the unexpectedly obese zombie oozing over the top of their cab.

Timing her shots to match the sway of the vehicle Heather managers to place three solid hits into the center mass of the zombie, the mounds of its blubbery flesh absorbing the impacts without apparent effect, the noise and attack only serving to draw the zombies attention to heather where it clumsily lunges forward with its right hand, a stubby mess of gristle writhing with maggots in the gaping finger sockets.

Meanwhile war wag one continues to careen forward, Riley choking back a rise of bile as the zombie still clinging to the hood has its nose torn free in a spray of puss by the windshield wiper, its death grip on the truck unshaken by Riley’s frantic maneuvers. Ahead Jessy spots a Winnebago looming out of the mist and screams an unintelligible warning to Riley seconds before impact.

At over 50 mph the six and half ton truck explodes through the side of the RV in a spray of aluminum, insulation, and splintering wood as the recreational vehicle disintegrates under their impact, a tangled mass of lingerie and other unmentionables still clinging to the truck as it erupts from the other side, it’s undead passenger swept aside in the maelstrom of debris.

Within war wag two Renee quickly reaches over and grabs at Heather, dragging her back inside by skirts her belt seconds before her truck follows Riley’s through the RV in a bone jarring impact that mingles with the sound similar to that of a sledge hammer hitting a sack of rotten fruit. Struggling to regain control Renee side swipes war wag one, ripping off its passenger side mirror before coming to a stop several dozen feet later, the frantic barking of Heather dogs all the more deafening in the sudden silence.

Staring in shock at the rotting corpse previously obstructing his view of the road now replaced by a bright pink bra and panty set, Riley looks over and gives the dazed Jessy a thumbs up, only to wince at the squealing scrape of war wag two as it tears past them coming to rest further down the road a train of slimly entrails covering its rear cap and forming a bloody trail behind it.. A quick radio exchange between the two vehicles confirms everyone is mostly okay aside from several scrapes and bruises.

Their brief respite is short lived however as the echoing moans in the wreckage behind them reverberate within the fog, a cold reminder the denizens ofHamburger Laneare now behind them in eager pursuit.

* * * * *

Will the next leg of their journey be plagued by zombie followers? Is the road ahead safer then the path behind? Can the heroes return by the same route with their volatile cargo safely? Find out in the next adventure synopsis #17 coming September 5^th!

by Delphine T. Lynx

Fear. One of our strongest emotions, and yet one very difficult to conjure up unless it’s genuine. It can be fleeting or eternal, gentle or monstrous. But how does Fear apply to RPGs?

It is important to note that not every roleplaying game would benefit from a sense of impending doom, of a sniper on every rooftop and a cutthroat down every alleyway. This is something each GM must decide individually, whether the sense of urgency is worth the effort.

Creating true fear in an RPG is a very difficult task because there’s an innate expectation that the “Good guys [PCs] will win in the end”. With that expectation in mind, of course they don’t take it seriously when you threaten to blow them all off the face of the earth. This is the first situation that needs to be rectified.

A lot of very good movies have started with a sequence of powerlessness. Even “The Matrix”, where the heroes possessed exceptional abilities, began with the heroine running furiously. If at all possible, begin your game in this manner. Make it clear to the players that their phenomenal health isn’t going to matter if a sniper puts a bullet through their eye. Even when the players have accepted that they can die, though, it is still difficult to inspire a fear-filled atmosphere.

One of the things most detrimental to creating fear is knowledge. If a player is at all aware of a situation, he will be less fearful of it. It is also very important to destroy the feeling of immortality that players seem automatically to possess. Demonstrate that a single ambush can end a character’s life, and demonstrate it very clearly. By this I am not suggesting you massacre your PCs; start with NPCs. As their friends start dying they will become more and more paranoid. Only if all else fails do you kill a PC, but if you are forced to do so, insure it occurs in such a way as to provoke the maximum possible amount of fear. Depriving a player of their character is never a kind thing to do, and must be addressed on a group specific basis. In some cases this may entail replacing it, guaranteeing a lucky break for the re-rolled character, etc.

The difficulty a GM often faces in creating the effect of powerlessness essential to fear is that it will often cause the players to lose interest. A good way to solve this is to make the ultimate goal easy enough, but the obstacles a challenge. In many novels the evil lord is taken down with relative ease, but his nigh-immortal infantry is a source of terror up until the moment of triumph. Capitalize on this. Perhaps the classic example is the immortal undead faced in many different works of fiction. Not very threatening, and generally only average in skill – if you could kill them. The immortality, the fact that, no matter what, the skeleton you faced yesterday could be around the next corner, that’s what makes it frightening.

Something I often to do to soften the effect of powerlessness on my PCs is to divide the overall goal of the game into smaller pieces. This way you can sprinkle completions of these mini-goals throughout the adventure, which will temper their frustration. In fact, it can provoke an effect that will actually boost morale. “Those guys were immortal, and we beat them anyway! Yeah!”

Very important to avoid is the trap which arises from too much fear, wherein the players are so suspicious of everyone and everything that the game bogs down and progresses at a snail’s pace, as hours are spent interrogating peasants on the road. This is the worst possible situation for the GM. Hints given IC to signify the safety of the situation would be disregarded as red herrings. Likewise, if OOC hints are employed the players will then utilize the lack thereof in the future to be aware of a planned set up – ruining the effect of paranoia altogether.

There is very little that can be done to escape the paranoia trap; my suggestion would be to immediately cease the cause of said paranoia, allowing the players to become slightly more trusting. Once you’ve ‘successfully’ gotten into a paranoia trap, you’ve determined that you can scare the players – this is a good thing. One other method that often serves as an escape to the paranoia trap is to drastically change settings. If the players are terrified on Continent X, try giving them a boat ride to Continent Y – they may treat it as a ‘clean slate’, and fear less.

Remember, there is no perfect balance, and in this short article I’ve touched on just a few of the many possibilities. Be sure to check back in the future for additional thoughts on this complex issue.