Year of The Undead - Final
Year of The Undead - Final
Year of The Undead - Final
of the
Undead
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Table of Contents
What is this game? 4
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What is this game?
Year of the Undead is a collaborative story-telling game for 1-4
players that pits survivors against the slim odds of survival in
a zombie apocalypse. Each player represents the actions of
different survivors in this grim and unforgiving new world
that is ravaged by the hordes of undead.
After one year has passed, the hordes of the undead will have
decayed and the threat will be gone.
Author’s Note:
This game has been a work of passion as I’ve hacked and slashed
away at this for the better part of a year now. What comes at the
helm of ideas much more coherent than my own will hopefully serve
you and your group in having fun and creating memorable
experiences at the table together. I’ve been inspired by the works of
creators like Inky Ginge, and the games they have made like The
Gardener is Dead. Likewise, thematic elements of the zombie genre
have been informed upon from the copious tomes of horror movies
and survival games that I’ve watched, played, and admired
throughout my life.
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Rules of the Undead
The following text describes the game and how it is played.
How to Begin:
Define your setting and group style. It does not have to be a
solitary location. Many groups wander the roads in search of
hope that a new area will offer them stability. Some stay idle
and build upwards,and some go out to find other groups to
take from. Others seek out those who need protection from ill-
willed humans and defend them selflessly. The choice is
yours.
After choosing the setting and style, players can create the
survivors that will inhabit the group. Survivor Creation can be
found in the chapter Survivors of the Undead.
Each card represents one week of the year, and players will
take turns describing their card’s results and how it affects
the group, or simply their own survivor’s experiences.
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Survivors will roll for who may go first, with the highest
number allowing that player to begin.
Players will then take turns drawing cards and having their
Survivors responding to the prompts of the deck.
The charts below will offer the prompts provided for each
scenario, and the player will establish the results of any
outcome by rolling a die to measure the success, or failure,
that the characters have in their efforts. The stakes should be
defined before the roll is made, and the roll will inform the
player of how to proceed.
The results from the rolls to respond with each prompt are
subjective, but the guidelines for play are that the lower the
number of the roll, the lower the level of success. A one is a
complete failure of their attempt, while a six is a complete
success of their attempt. Partial Success or Partial Failure are
more ambiguous, but they should be used as elements that
move the story forward in either positive, or negative, ways.
Not all card prompts will require dice rolls, but the ones that
do should carry weight for the story at hand.
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Determining Success and Failure
Dice Results
These points are all available for any player to use, and are
gained for the group at the start of the game.
At the start of each game, each player will make the survivors
that will fill their group, and roll the dice to find out how
many survivor points they start with. These points will
determine how lucky, ingenuous, or resourceful they are in
any life-threatening situation.
Gameplay Example
“Well,” Jennifer says, “Since we dealt with a horde last round, our
supplies must be running pretty low, and munitions aren’t something
we can afford to lose any more of.”
‘I know,’ she continues, ‘that Alex has old friends in the neighboring
settlement, and they really need our protection from roving gangs,
but we just can’t afford to do that right now. Not without painting a
giant target on our own back. I’ll talk to him to see if we can find a
solution.”
They determine that even though they got all of his friends out safely,
the neighbors know about this escape and they’re furious. Because
of this, they are going to be actively hostile to them on any
interactions going forward.
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Survivors of the Undead
Players may control as many Survivors as they would like. The
group’s size does not inherently impact the success or failure
of the ultimate goal of survival, but it should play a factor on
how the group chooses to operate. Such large sizes can offer
unique problems of their own, while small groups can offer
different problems altogether.
Each Survivor will correspond with one suit, and the suit of
the card will give direction to what the main motivations will
be for each Survivor.
Motivations
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Making Survivors
On a blank piece of paper, make the following notes to fully
create your character.
• Choose one suit for your Survivor. This is their strong suit,
and any rolls made during a card of the matching suit will
allow the Survivor to roll twice, and pick which roll they
would like to use.
• Their name.
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Example Character
Player Name:
Alex
Character Name:
Melvin Carter
Suit:
Spades
Personality:
Home:
Before:
After:
Goals:
Survivor Points: 3
Group Total: 15
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The Deck of the Undead
Each card drawn represents one week of adversity, and the
group members will decide how they would like to deal with
the situation given.
There are three types of hordes that survivors will face, and
each offers a different modifier to the results for this turn.
Against the horde, failure can often mean death. Though
sometimes, but very rarely, it is only a permanent and lasting
effect.
The Deck
This sets the tone for how your group will interact with them
going forward.
Nine-The Holiday
There is a national holiday this week. Does your group do
anything to try and celebrate? If so, how? If not, why?
Discuss what they are, and what impact they have on your
character.
Ace-The Horde
A horde of zombies lays siege on your home. Roll on the chart
below to determine horde size, then deal with it accordingly.
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Hordes
While lone undead are easy enough to fight, undead in
numbers are oftentimes deadly. It is only hordes that are
sizable enough to pose a risk to survivors, as even their paltry
numbers can easily become overwhelming, and turn an easy
resolution into a downward spiral of misfortune quickly.
Horde Chart
Horde Reaction
Since these dangerous dealings can begin and end within mere
moments, only a certain amount of actions can be taken in
these life-threatening moments.
After rolling for the size of the horde, all Survivors present
will roll one d6-die to show how many actions they are able to
take in this scene. Likewise, each turn is to be taken
simultaneously with all other players, and the overall amount
of successes vs. failures will determine the group’s dealing
with this horde. If there are more successful rolls, then the
horde is resolved. However, if the horde is not defeated, then
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it is shuffled back into the remaining cards of the deck, laying
in wait to be dealt with once more.
Horde Actions
Movements and actions can be interpreted however players
see fit, however, for the sake of interactions with Hordes,
actions can generally fall into these three categories:
• Running
• Hiding
• Running
Example Horde
Now that his situation is set up, he can roll to discover what type of
horde he now faces.
With massive tools all around, Derrick states that instead of trying to
run away, Patrick will indulge in this cathartic violence and try to→
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blow off the rest of his pent-up anger in the form of fighting this horde
in the metal shop.
Derrick rolls for the amount of turns he will be able to take against
this horde, and it is three. So, he has three attempts at solving this,
and he has already chosen to fight for all three.
But, since Derrick used the last points the group had, this means
complete failure for the group if they fail even one more time…
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