Eden Studios Presents, Vol. 2

Buffy the Vampire Slayer™ & © 2005, ANGEL™ & © 2005. Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation. All Rights Reserved. The Unisystem™ Game System © 2005 CJ Carella. The Unisystem™ is used under exclusive license.

© 2005 Eden Studios. All Rights Reserved.

Visit www.edenstudios.net$15.00 (U.S.)EDN5501

ISBN 1-891153-66-8

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Welcome to the second volume of Eden Studios Presents (ESP). This issue focuses on the dead and loving them. Vampires, vampyres, zombies, and apes forgotten by time can be found between these covers! If you love the dead, this issue is all for you.

Volume 2 of the ESP supplement series features:• Dead Ops, James Wilber's much anticipated AFMBE scenario.• The Apes that Time Forget, a Terra Primate Apeworld by Gerry Saracco.• Crossover rules from Jason Vey combining vampires from the cinematic

and classic Unisystem game lines.• Rules for expanding your vampires tales from Alessandro Gandini and

Peter Trueman.• New zombies to spread the love from Andrew Ferguson.• A Tommy Brownell article on vamps gone good for the Buffy the Vampire

Slayer and Angel roleplaying games.• Background on the cover-image Scepter of Penance by Charlie Von

Eschen.

After devouring this volume, stay tuned for the next, featuring brand new magical mojo for your Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel roleplaying games, as well as the first in a series of articles detailing a brand new setting.

ESP is an ideal showcase for both new and known authors, giving everyone the potential to be a part of the Eden team! Eden realizes there are a great many quality “unknowns” out there and wants to give them the opportunity to shine. Veteran writers are also wel-come, providing solid groundwork for gamers to use, spindle, and mutilate. Whether you are a up-and-comer, an oldtimer, or just a fan, you'll find new and interesting Unisystem material in each book.

So, what are you waiting for?



Visit www.edenstudios.net$15.00 (U.S.)EDN5501

ISBN 1-891153-66-8

EDEN

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Welcome to the second volume of Eden Studios Presents(ESP). This issue focuses on the dead and loving them.Vampires, vampyres, zombies, and apes forgotten by time canbe found between these covers! If you love the dead, this issueis all for you.

Volume 2 of the ESP supplement series features:• Dead Ops, James Wilber's much anticipated AFMBE scenario.• The Apes that Time Forget, a Terra Primate Apeworld by Gerry Saracco.• Crossover rules from Jason Vey combining vampires from the cinematic

and classic Unisystem game lines.• Rules for expanding your vampires tales from Alessandro Gandini and

Peter Trueman.• New zombies to spread the love from Andrew Ferguson.• A Tommy Brownell article on vamps gone good for the Buffy the Vampire

Slayer and Angel roleplaying games.• Background on the cover-image Scepter of Penance by Charlie Von

Eschen.

After devouring this volume, stay tuned for the next, featuring brand new magical mojofor your Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel roleplaying games, as well as the first in aseries of articles detailing a brand new setting.

ESP is an ideal showcase for both new and known authors, giving everyone the potentialto be a part of the Eden team! Eden realizes there are a great many quality “unknowns”out there and wants to give them the opportunity to shine. Veteran writers are also wel-come, providing solid groundwork for gamers to use, spindle, and mutilate. Whether youare a up-and-comer, an oldtimer, or just a fan, you'll find new and interesting Unisystemmaterial in each book.

So, what are you waiting for?

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Eden StudiosPresents Volume 2From the Editor 2by Derek Stoelting

Cover Shot: The Sceptor of Penance 3by Charlie Von Eschen

Cinematic Vampyres 4by Jason Vey

Light Sleepers 9by Alessandro Gandini

Of Fear, Pain, and Ecstasy 12by Peter Trueman

When Bad Vampires Go Good 23by Tommy Brownell

The Apes that Time Forgot 40by Gerry Saracco

Fresh Flesh 47by Andrew Ferguson

Dead Ops 50by James Wilber

Editing and Proofingby Shari Hill, Daniel Holmes, M. Alexander Jurkat, Derek Stoelting, Jason Vey

Cover Art Interior Artby Carlos Samuel Araya by Travis Ingram, Cary Polkavitz, James Powers, Gregory Price

Graphic Design and Art Direction by George Vasilakos

Special Thanks To Evin and Ray, for the last minute brain-fest. To Shari, for making sure I’m right, when I try myhardest to be wrong!

Produced and Published by Eden Studios6 Dogwood Lane, Loudonville, NY 12211



No part of this book may be reproduced without written permission from the publisher, except for review purposes. Any similarity to characters, situations, institutions, corporations, etc. (without satirical intent) is strictly fictional or coincidental. This book uses settings, characters and themes of a supernatural nature. All elements, mystical and

supernatural, are fiction and intended for entertainment purposes only.

Comments and questions can be directed via the Internet at www.edenstudios.net. via e-mail to [email protected] or via letter with a self-addressed stamped envelope.

First Printing, January 2005

Stock EDN5501 ISBN 1-891153-66-8 Printed in USA

A Brief Note from Derek Stoelting,Editor of Eden Studios Presents

Living.

Dead.

Undeath.Most of us only get to experience the first two. Unlucky others get to have fun with the third. This second

volume of ESP introduces you to those who haunt the night, searching for love, blood, or brains.

This volume starts out with a Cover Shot by Charlie Von Eschen. He went to the depths of a soul (lucki-ly not his) to bring you this item of power. Jason Vey picks up the brain and takes it through a piece cover-ing the use of WitchCraft Vampyres with those found in more cinematic settings. Alessandro Gandini andPeter Trueman keep the blood flowing with their furthering of vampiric powers, including a few life suck-ers you don’t want to meet in a dark alley! Tommy Brownell follows them up with some vampires you maywant to delay dusting—after all, even old vampires can learn a new trick or two. We sneak in an Apeworldfrom Gerry Saracco to put a stake in the vampire articles. Next, “Ferg” supplies all you zombie (masters)with some Fresh Flesh, because Fresh Flesh is the Best Flesh™. Finally, James Wilber shoots us in the brainwith his long awaited AFMBE scenario, Dead Ops. We had to trim Dead Ops down to fit in here! So, expectto see web expansion material at Unisystemfans.com to further your zombie survival.

For those not familiar with the Unisystemfans.com, let me introduce you. Soon after I got my damned,dirty paws on the first printing of AFMBE I started up a fan site for the game. Some of you may rememberit. I called it Spreading the Love. Some of my material appeared, but most of it belonged to other fans ofsurvival horror with zombies. Why not much from me? Honestly, I love working with authors. I love help-ing them develop their work.

A few years later, Alex Jurkat and George Vasilakos got in touch with me. They knew of Spreading theLove. They also knew me from my helping them at major conventions. I would run demo games for Edenand help at the booth when they needed breaks of sanity. Well, it turned out they were sitting on a load offan material that they didn’t have time to handle. They wondered if I could take it off their hands and hostit online. I said, “Sure, send me some loving” and thus was born the Garden of Eden.

More recently, Ed Spade has taken over the official fan site for Eden games. Check out his work, and oth-ers, at Unisystemfans.com. All hail Ed!

Following up on the initial success of the Garden of Eden, Eden Studios decided to produce a journal offan supplied material. Once again, George Vasilakos and Alex Jurkat got in touch with me. They had previ-ously asked me to head up the Book of Archetypes project for the AFMBE game line and were curious to seeif I could undertake a new project. That new project now rests in your hands at this very moment—EdenStudios Presents.

Now, back to the subject matter.

Most companies wait until Halloween to publish a book on the undead. Not Eden Studios. (Ministry song:Every Day Is Halloween?) Why wait to get to the good stuff? If you don’t have a vampire, zombie, or apein your game, you must be doing something wrong!

Aren’t you?

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The Scepter of Penance is all that remainsof Henri Solon. Henri was a Vampyre withboth the Magus and Wither abilities (MysteryCodex, pp. 104-107). He had been aRosicrucian seeking ever-greater power anddelved into the forbidden paths of Sadicas.After his covenant hunted him down andtook his life to stop the evil he had become,he experienced the Unbirth of the Undead.His magical talent was stripped away in theThreshold while escaping the Grim Reapers,but his taste for misery and his tainted waysof gathering power were amplified.Revenge against those who had spurned himconsumed him and his plans were rapidly setin motion. Few sorcerers can stand up to theunexpected assault of a Vampyre who knowsits victim’s every habit.

Whitmore Thomas was Henri’s last target,the leader of the covenant. Away on businessthe week after Henri was brought to justice,the Vampyre satiated its desires with theThomas family, Maria and the three children.He drained them of life so completely, theyappeared to be aged dolls of themselves.Staging an elaborate scene to welcomeWhitmore home, Henri waited for his finalrevenge. Unfortunately for Henri, WhitmoreThomas was rather more than theRosicrucian he appeared to be, he was aresearcher of both Magic and the Sight andhad achieved enlightenment. In his grief andrage, he discovered darker abilities thatwould enable him to quench his thirst forvengeance on Henri. He used these horridabilities to strip away every last shred ofHenri Solon, leaving only one tibia, filledwith feelings of terror and a re-stitched ver-sion of Henri’s abilities. Regaining his sens-es, Whitmore banished himself to theSephiroth of Chesed, to hunt fiends until hisrage was slaked. It is said that he still pursuesthat goal. Those that know the story almostfeel pity for the fiends that cross WhitmoreThomas’ path.

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The Scepter of PenanceClassic: The scepter is a repository for the Magus and

Wither Vampyric powers from the Mystery Codex. Theymay be initiated through a Simple Willpower Test. Failureon the Test causes the holder of the scepter to feel a momentof Henri’s dying terror and pain, losing D10 x 2(10)Essence and Endurance points in addition to D10(5) LifePoints. Success means the wielder may use the active formsof those powers, draining either the target’s EssenceChanneling in Essence points or the wielder’s Willpowerscore in Essence points, whichever is greater. If the wield-er is attacked by an Invocation, a Difficult Willpower Testallows him to absorb the Essence expended in theInvocation without harm. If used as a weapon, the scepterdoes damage as a Vampyre’s claws according the toManipulations of the Flesh chart in Mystery Codex. Use thewielder’s Willpower score.

Cinematic: The scepter provides protection from others’sorcery and power. By winning a resisted Willpower (dou-bled) roll, the wielder absorbs the potential spell castingfrom the target. The wielder gains additional Sorcery cast-ings without penalties for that day for each spell absorbed.The attacker’s Sorcery is affected as if she had just quickcast a spell (next spell cast is at –2 per number of timesdrained by the scepter). Used as a weapon, the scepter doesWillpower plus Sorcery level in damage. Using the Scepterto power one’s sorcery is likely to cause magic addictionover time.

Cover Shot: The Scepter of Penance

Introduction A very interesting possibility for exploring non-

canon ideas in a cinematic Unisystem game is thecombination of elements from Eden’s other super-natural games, WitchCraft, All Flesh Must Be Eaten,and Armageddon. Inserting the creature types, var-ied organizations, and mythologies from these twogames can make for a fascinating, if unorthodoxcampaign. Imagine a super-powered demon fightertrapped in one of the Deadworlds from All FleshMust be Eaten. Better yet, how would the organiza-tions in your cinematic world deal with the appear-ance of the Rosicrucians on the scene? Or theTwilight Order? Or even better. . . the Iscariots?

Of course, this brings up unique logistical prob-lems. Of particular interest are the integration of theWitchCraft versions of certain supernatural crea-tures: demons, Vampyres, and ferals among them.Zombies are described in existing cinematicUnisystem sourcebooks and are really just anotherkind of custom flesh-eater, easily compatible withany All Flesh Must be Eaten or WitchCraft zombiesthat might be used. Demons are not overly difficult:these are far more powerful than your “typical” cin-ematic Unisystem demon. Ferals, too, are not muchdifferent from those presented in the cinematicUnisystem books, just more detailed and “fleshedout.” Not much of an integration problem there.

Vampyres however, present a singular challenge.Vampyres in WitchCraft are extremely differentfrom those in cinematic Unisystem products, andare entirely reliant upon Essence for their specialabilities and very survival. Since Essence does notexist in some Cinematic Unisystem games, how dowe convert these creatures to make them work?Further, how do we justify their existence oppositewhatever vampires may already be in that particularsetting? Read on.

The Strigoi and Moroi While it is extremely rare, it is possible for a stan-

dard vampire to regain their human soul—their iden-tity, conscience, and sense of self from their days asa mortal. Gypsy curses and demonic quests are twopossibilities, but there are plenty more means toaccomplish this. However, what if there is another,slightly more common means of vampires possess-ing souls? What if there are those who possess thesignificant strength of will to hold on to theirhumanity, or at least some spark of it, when they aresired? These creatures could then go on to makemore like them, undead leeches who feed on the lifeforce of mortals just as standard demonic vampires,but who still possess a sense of right and wrong, andthe free will to pursue one or the other? If these crea-tures exist, there are then two breeds of vampirewalking the earth: demonic (or “dead”) vampires,the Strigoi; and living Vampyres, or Moroi.

The Moroi are quite rare compared to Strigoi, asthey are far less likely to sire (they refer to theprocess as “embracing” or “bringing across”) othersout of vengeance, spite, or for mere cannon fodder.Moroi tend to sire out of very strong emotions, bethey the desire to hold someone very dear to themclose for all eternity or the drive to punish those theyhate with the curse of immortality. Strigoi sire forthese reasons as well, but also tend to sire at a whimor out of sheer fascination with a subject. Thus,Strigoi are a plague compared to Moroi, who tend tostay low-key and pursue their ends privately.

The Moroi view the Strigoi as base and disgustingcreatures, little more than animals exhausting a foodsupply with no thought to the eventual conse-quences. As such, Moroi sometimes use their uniqueability to enter the Death Realms to thwart the siringprocess of a Strigoi, by dragging the departed soul ofa victim back, and forcing it to coexist with thedemon inside, or even driving out the demon. Thisresults in the creation of a new Moroi rather than ademonic vampire. More often however, a Moroiwho is present at a demonic siring simply attempts


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The MoroiWitchCraft-Style Vampyres in a Cinematic World

by Jason Vey

to kill the new vampire and its sire rather than riskfailure or the creation of a flawed Vampyre.

Strigoi view the Moroi as pompous pretenderswho refuse to simply accept what they are, and therehave been times where small armies of Strigoi weresired to wipe out a few Moroi. The war between thetwo species of vampire has lasted for millennia, witheach species claiming to be the first, original, andtrue vampire. Unfortunately, the Moroi are on thelosing end of this eternal war. Their human soulsrefuse to allow them to create the army of cannonfodder that the remorseless Strigoi are willing toexpend, and the Moroi know this. As such, mostMoroi in the modern era are content to keep theirnumbers low, their existence secret. Indeed, it hasbeen so long since a battle broke out between theStrigoi and Moroi that most elder Strigoi have for-gotten the existence of their soul-bound cousins.

Moroi Existence Moroi are more communal in nature than Strigoi,

and where groups exist, they function smoothly.This differs from Strigoi, who have a “pack” men-tality whereby the strongest tends to lead, solely byvirtue of his ability to overpower his underlings.Unfortunately, the comparative rarity of Moroi gen-erally holds such groups to minimal numbers. Themost notable societies to include Moroi are theTwilight Order, the House of Thanatos, and theIscariots (detailed in WitchCraft, Mystery Codex,and Abomination Codex respectively). Moroi havebeen members of many secret societies through theages, though most of the time these creatures keeptheir true nature hidden for fear of being murdereddue to a lack of understanding by their human com-panions.

The life of a Moroi is a lonely and sad one. Thevast majority of Moroi spend years, decades, evencenturies of existence searching for the meaning ofwhat they are, the reason why they still walk theEarth and haven’t passed on to some sort ofAfterlife. Even those Moroi who exist out of a vol-untary decision to become what they are often regretthe decision as years turn into decades, and decadesinto centuries, without any comfort or companion-ship to see them through.

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Moroi relationships are often shallow and short-lived, as these immortal creatures find it increasing-ly difficult to watch mortals they come to care forgrow old and die while they never change. Thosewho do learn to cope with their endless, unchangingexistence often become harsh and unfeeling. Still,there are those Moroi who manage to maintain boththeir humanity and passions, and cope with immor-tality at the same time. These are some of the mostpowerful and potent champions of light in the world.

It cannot be stressed enough that Moroi areextraordinarily rare among the vampire population.Sheer numbers and brutality keep the Strigoi hold-ing the upper hand in their eternal struggle, and theMoroi prefer to live in peace with humankind gen-erally. Moroi villains are cold, calculating, andincredibly ruthless, often dominating packs ofStrigoi from behind the scenes, like a criminal mas-termind dispersing his pawns, to the eternal detri-ment of the heroes. Such a monster would make anextremely formidable Big Bad for a series, particu-larly if one of the players happens to be running aMoroi Cast Member.

Moroi and Feeding Lest you begin thinking that Moroi are the fluffy

puppy dogs of vampirism, be assured that they feedoff of the life essence of human beings just likeStrigoi do. In some ways, Moroi are worse, as theycannot simply exist on the blood of animals.However, while Moroi must feed on human beingsto survive, they need not kill their victims to do so.Moroi must purchase a Power or Vulnerability thatrepresents their means of feeding (Blood Addictionis the most common) and can only regain LifePoints through this feeding process. In many ways,this makes the existence of a Moroi even more trag-ic, for they have a soul and thus, the means to feelremorse over their parasitic nature. Yet they arebound to it.

Vampyres regain one Life Point for every LifePoint they drains through methods that inflict physi-cal harm, such as blood drinking or Withering.Damage inflicted in Life Points is equal to the listedEssence point damage in the book. These attacksheal as any other normal damage heals (generally,Constitution per day unless the victim has some sortof regeneration ability).


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Use of other means of feeding, such as Muse orsexual stimulation gives the Vampyre one Life Pointback for every two Life Points she inflicts upon hervictim. However, human vessels recover fromattacks that do not inflict physical harm at the rate ofone Life Point per Constitution Level per hour,unless the attack kills the victim (reduces them to–10 Life Points or less). While less efficient, thesemethods of feeding are far less lethal and someMoroi prefer them as a result. In fact, the standardmethod of feeding listed in the Mystery Codex (seep. 99) that allows Vampyres to feed on strong emo-tions becomes a 12-point Quality in the cinematicUnisystem (see p. 8).

Playing a Moroi Playing a Moroi is not much different from play-

ing a Strigoi, or standard cinematic Unisystemgame vampire. Moroi is a Quality that gives playersaccess to a set of special abilities and powers beyondthose of normal humans. The details of this Qualityare as presented in Mystery Codex (see pp. 32, 97).This article explores the differences and modifica-tions that must occur to transport such creatures intoa setting where Essence does not exist.

In cinematic Unisystem, rather than keeping trackof Essence and Life Points, Moroi gain a particularvulnerability to certain types of attacks, and a par-ticular resistance to others. They also lose their stan-dard regeneration against attacks to which they arevulnerable. All attacks that harm supernatural crea-tures can kill a Moroi; if an attack deals Essencedamage in the classic Unisystem, it deals full LifePoint damage to Moroi in the cinematic. Life Pointslost to attacks that exploit the weaknesses of a Moroiare only regained through feeding, described below.Thus, magical attacks such as Soulfire (seeWitchCraft, p. 222) are particularly potent weaponsagainst Moroi. In addition, all standard weaknessesof Vampyres as listed in the Mystery Codex deal LifePoint rather than Essence damage to Moroi in thecinematic Unisystem. Slash/stab attacks deal onlyhalf of their normal base damage (and do not dou-ble) against Moroi; further, the Moroi regeneratesdamage from such attacks at the rate of one point perConstitution level per turn.

Example the First: Drake, a Moroi with aConstitution 6, is shot by a 9mm handgun. Thehandgun normally deals 12 points of damage;against a normal human, this damage would bemodified by Success Levels and then doubled, for aminimum of 26 (12 + 1 for Success Levels, doubledfor damage Type). However, against Drake theweapon deals only half the base (round down;Success Levels still count). Therefore, he would suf-fer a minimum of seven points of damage (half of 12is six, plus one for Success Levels). Worse, at theend of the round he heals his Constitution level inLife Points back from that damage. With hisConstitution 6, that handgun shot is barely going toscratch him.

Example the Second: After Drake sucks up theshot from the handgun, a witch nails him with aSoulfire blast that deals 15 points of damage. Draketakes the full 15 points of damage, and can onlyregenerate if he feeds. A few more blasts like that,and Drake is only a threat to a vacuum cleaner.

This requires a bit of bookkeeping on the part ofthe player and Director, but is the easiest solution tothe problem of Essence. Likewise, rather thanspending Essence to maintain their bodies, Moroimust spend Life Points, which also do not replenishwithout feeding. The cost to maintain one’s exis-tence costs the same in Life Points as the Essencepoint costs in Mystery Codex (see p. 102). However,on the up side, it does not cost Life Points for aVampire to use their Manipulations of the Fleshabilities, or any special powers which they purchaseusing Quality or Metaphysics points. Rather, thesepowers function off the Moroi’s Willpower andVampyric Focus roll.

Vampyre Powers Moroi gain access to a number of special powers

that Strigoi do not have. These are the Powers andQualities, Drawbacks and Vulnerabilities listed inthe Mystery Codex (see p. 103). Many of these pow-ers refer to the means of feeding by the Moroi. Incinematic Unisystem games, every Moroi isrequired to purchase a mode of feeding; no Moroican simply feed from any old strong emotion.Others are special abilities that Moroi gain access tobecause of their supernatural natures. Activating a

power requires rolling Willpower (doubled) againstthe power level of the ability in Question.Optionally, the Moroi may purchase a four point perlevel Quality, Vampyric Focus. This Quality workssimilarly to Sorcery or the Necromancy skill andadds to the Willpower roll to activate Vampyric pow-ers. Each ability is also a separate Quality, with thecosts as listed in Mystery Codex. The power level ofan ability is equal to the Essence cost required toactivate the ability.

New Qualities Emotion Feeder

12-point Quality

Prerequisite: Moroi (Vampyre)

This Quality is the standard method of feeding forVampyres in the Mystery Codex. It allows a Moroi tofeed simply by eliciting strong emotions in a victim(any will do, from fear to excitement to bliss) andmaking a Willpower and Vampyric Focus roll; eachsuccess level drains one Life Point from the victimand restores one Life Point to the Vampyre. Victimsheal this damage the same as any other non-damag-ing Vampyre attack (one Life Point per ConstitutionLevel per hour).

Vampyric Focus

4-point per level Quality

Prerequisite: Moroi (Vampyre)

This Quality is available only to Moroi, orWitchCraft-style Vampyres, and is required to acti-vate any metaphysical power a Moroi has, fromManipulations of the Flesh (see Mystery Codex, p.102) to special Vampyric powers such as GreaterShifting. It is not required for Invocations or ChiAbilities, which function on their own systems notdetailed in this article. Vampyric Focus alwaysworks with Willpower to determine success. UsingManipulations of the Flesh requires only a basic suc-cess (nine or better) for the Vampyre to manifestclaws, fangs, or funky facial features. Moroi usingthis ability can mimic a Strigoi’s game face if theyso desire, but do not automatically manifest a gameface when they use their powers, as Strigoi do.Moroi do not naturally (un-naturally?) possess agame face as Strigoi do. Such an alteration of fea-

tures is a conscious act of will on the Moroi’s part,and most Moroi find the appearance of a game facerather distasteful. They only manifest the featureswhen attempting to “blend in” among Strigoi (usual-ly for survival purposes). Other Vampyric powersneed a base number of Success Levels equal to thelisted Essence cost to use the power.

Afterword So, there you have it! Complete guidelines for

adding a new supernatural baddie to your existingcinematic Unisystem game. The aspects of play thatthe addition of these powers introduce can enhanceany game, and can include a great many surprisesthat enterprising (and underhanded) Directors canthrow at their Cast, and what director doesn’t love itwhen their players go, “What the hell!?” “Who—!?”“You’ve got to be joking!” and my personal favorite,“Oh, you just suck.”

Enjoy!


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Moroi and Metaphysics In addition to normal Vampyre powers,

Moroi may purchase any Metaphysics exceptfor Divine Inspiration. Either they may bebuilt using the basic Hero Character Type, orthe Undead Character Type as presented inthe Mystery Codex. However, if using theUndead Character Type, the pool ofMetaphysics points should be reduced byfive, and starting Drama Points must be pur-chased using Metaphysics, Quality, orDrawback Points at a cost of two points perDrama Point.

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Light SleepersAdditional Vampyre Rules

by Alessandro Gandini

This article presents additional material forVampyres. This new material provides Chroniclerswith various vampire-related source elements forVampyre characters.

Mind Control Bonuses When supernatural powers affect free will, crea-

tures forced to act against their nature resist strong-ly. For instance, attacking someone without reasonwould grant a +3 bonus, suicidal orders a +6, andcomplex orders involving abominable actions up toa +7. Charisma modifiers usually apply to mind con-trol rolls, unless otherwise stated, and Attractivenessmay apply as well. Finally, ancient creatures get toadd their Age levels to their rolls.

New Qualities Resistance (Daily Essence)

1-point/level Supernatural Quality

This Quality allows Vampyres that stay in theshadows to be active during the day, losing only oneEssence Point every several minutes of activity, asper the following:

Level Time (minutes)

1 2

2 5

3 10

4 30

5 60

Willpower rolls to wake up during the day gain abonus equal to the levels in this Quality.

Resistance (Sunlight)

2-point/level Supernatural Quality

Prerequisite: as many levels of Resistance (DailyEssence)

Each level in this Quality reduces Essence loss bydirect sunlight, adding a “grace period” of oneminute per level: a Vampyre with Resistance(Sunlight) 5 loses two Essence points every six min-utes. Sunlight penalties still stand, and normal dam-age applies to incapacitated or otherwise uncon-scious Vampyres.

New Powers Animal Affinity

5-point Power

Prerequisite: Greater Shifting

Using this Power, a Vampyre can force an animalto obey his will. At a cost of two Essence per animal,or five animals in a group of small ones, theVampyre can issue orders as complex as a smart dogcould follow, using a Resisted Simple WillpowerTest (applying Mind Control Bonuses above). Whenthe order is carried out, the Power’s effect ends. Forlong-lasting orders, maximum duration is oneminute per Success Level. To use this Power, the tar-get must be of the same family of one of the formsthe Vampyre can assume: for instance, wolf shape-shifters can control dogs, coyotes, and other canines.

Blood Link

5-point Power

Prerequisite: Sire

Like Sire, but works on humans or semi-humans(e.g. Ferals, Immortals, Inheritors, etc.). The cost isfive Essence points, and most humans have no wayof absorbing it save by drinking the Vampyre’sblood. A mundane human, by herself, has no chanceof resisting the Vampyre’s commands or of breakingthe bond. Gifted and others resist using their powers,

or as children Vampyres. A Seer who establishes atelepathic contact with a blood-linked Mundane canresist on her behalf.

Domination

3-point Power

Prerequisite: Manipulate Emotions

Using this Power, a Vampyre can force a (mostly)human (including Ferals, True Immortals, and otherVampyres) to obey his will. Brief orders (one sen-tence) are issued with the same rules as perManipulate Emotions, applying Mind ControlBonuses. When the victim carries out the order, thecontrol ends. Long-duration orders (such as “don’tmove until I tell you to”) have maximum duration asper Manipulate Emotions.

Manipulate Senses

4-point Power

Prerequsite: Manipulate Emotions

Vampyres with this power may swap the victim’sperceptions. The ability to exchange pain with pleas-ure gave birth to legends about a vampire’s bite as aunique source of ecstasy. This Power follows thesame activation rules as Manipulate Emotions(applying Mind Control Bonuses, plusAttractiveness). It lasts one Turn per Success Level.A Resisted Difficult Willpower Test is then applied(although the Vampyre can use a Seduction Taskwhere applicable), with the victim having a penaltyequal to the number of Success Levels of the activa-tion roll. If the victim wins the Power will still beactive, but only half the amount of Essence isreleased.

Using pain/ecstasy (inflicting one point of damageper Turn or more), D10(5) Essence can be drainedevery other Turn—making the classic bite quiteeffective. This Power can also be used to mask theeffects of Wither, until a victim is drained to zeroEssence or less, for one Essence point every otherTurn. Note that people killed by Essence loss cannotcome back as Vampyres, although those who die ofexsanguination during the “kiss” can.


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Mist Shape

10-point Power

Prerequisite: Greater Shifting

This Power allows the Vampyre to shape-shift intoa thin mist, allowing him to enter non-airtight placesand avoid damage from normal weapons. Shebecomes extremely difficult to see: in a misty areashe cannot be detected visually; at night, Perceptionrolls have a –7 penalty, reduced to –4 with decentlighting and –1 in full daylight or equivalent. Thetransformation costs five Essence points, and oneper Turn afterwards, happening instantaneously ifactivated and deactivated in the same Turn (allowingone “dodge” per Turn, or to “flow” around an obsta-cle). Otherwise one Turn is required to regain nor-mal form. The Vampyre can carry objects up to hisnormal capacity, with normal encumbrance penal-ties, and up to Willpower/2 willing (or unconscious)creatures. Objects up to 30 pounds have no cost,each 60 additional pounds require one Essence perTurn. Creatures cost one point per Constitution levelper Turn. Powers requiring physical form areunavailable while in Mist Shape.

Air currents may influence movement; use Speedand Strength minus wind speed. If the Vampyre’stotal is below zero, he will be blown away (unless hereturns solid), and if the difference is lower than theVampyre’s Speed Attribute it will be the maximumspeed he can reach against the wind. It gives thewind a bonus equal to its speed. The Vampyre willalso be able to move vertically at half his Speedupwards, twice that value downwards (modifiers forvertical air currents apply), and to avoid falling dam-age entirely, by transforming before landing (at leastat the beginning of the same Turn). Regaining phys-ical shape after a fall requires one full Turn.

Sire

4-point Power


This power creates a bond with a willing child,who must drain two permanent Essence points fromthe sire. Blood drinking is the “canonical” method,but any applicable way (including free donation)will do, allowing the sire to sense her emotions and

surface thoughts, as long as both are on the sameSephiroth. Two-way telepathy and deep mind-read-ing (which uses the Mindsight Art table) require twoEssence points per Turn, and the latter can be resis-ted with a Willpower Test (Simple for the sire,Difficult for the child); apply the Mind ControlBonuses above. If the child manages to block theprobe, he becomes immune for one day per SuccessLevel. The sire can also sense the general location oflinked offspring; tracking them more preciselyrequires the expenditure of one Essence Point perTurn. The bond can be broken, willingly by the sireor forcibly (with a Resisted Willpower Test asabove). Breaking the bond forcibly permanentlycosts the child twice the Essence invested by thesire, and a failed attempt costs half the total.

After successfully severing the link to her sire, achild cannot be remade into a “child.” However, achild can be sired by another Vampyre.

Soul Union

6-point Power

Prerequisite: Blood-Bond

Soul Union functions as per Sire, except with anykind of (willing) creature. Vampyres cost five pointsof permanent Essence, other beings cost 15.Inhumans and non-offspring Vampyres use Simple(and not Difficult) Tests.

Author’s Note: I wish to thank Peter Trueman forhis invaluable help in the development and stream-lining of this text, as well as Jason Vey, whose com-ments gave me the initial idea.

This article outlines three subspecies or breeds ofVampyres, designed for use in the WitchCraft andArmageddon games. They are also quite suitable forany other Unisystem game setting. Chroniclerswishing to use these rules in a WitchCraft campaigncan either add one or more of these subspecies asvariations to the normal Vampyre presented in theMystery Codex, or they can replace the normalVampyre altogether with these breeds, ruling thatVampyres in their game world have to be one ofthese three variants.

Background These Vampyres each feed exclusively upon one

of the three emotions that nourish standardVampyres: fear for Lamias, pain for Draculs, andecstasy for Succubi. Fledglings of each subspeciesbegin as blood-drinkers but with time may learn tobypass the need for blood and feed directly upontheir victims’ Essence Pools.

Any person made into a Vampyre by a Succubus,Lamia, or Dracul will be of the same type as theircreator. The process of creating a Vampyre is essen-tially the same as that described in the MysteryCodex, but with one important exception. The cre-ator Vampyre must personally kill the person sheintends to transform before following her spirit intothe Threshold.

Succubi commonly do this by draining the vic-tim’s blood, bringing the victim to the point of death.Lamia and Draculs can do likewise, but they willjust as likely do it by simply ripping their victimapart. Any form of death dealing will also workagainst all three—guns, knives, even ramming thevictim with a car.

In the world of WitchCraft, it is up to eachChronicler to determine how these different sub-species interact with each other. They may clannish-ly stick together, engaging in power struggles oreven outright battles between the breeds, or theymay intermingle freely and without antipathy.

Succubi Succubi are generally the most benign of the

breeds. Beautiful, charming, and civilised in theirappearance, Succubi obviously appreciate the finerthings in life. Art, performance, magic, and sex havespecial value to succubi. They seldom kill in theprocess of feeding and their victims generally havepleasant experiences. Some victims even choose tovoluntarily submit to Succubi, risking the dangerthat the Vampyre might one day go too far, inexchange for an ecstasy seldom experienced by mor-tals. An old, experienced Succubus may possess aharem of such willing concubines.

Lamia Lamias are the stuff of nightmares. They derive

their sustenance from scaring their victims to neardeath. Most Lamias who survive for any length oftime come to enjoy the experience of inflictingsheer terror on people. Lamias care less for theirvictims and, as such, are more likely to kill them.Survivors of Lamia encounters are traumatised forlife. They are inflicted with recurring nightmaresand the appearance of phobias pertaining to thedark, bats, or other memories that remind them oftheir brush with death.

Dracul Draculs are the most depraved of the breeds.

Inflicting pain to exist, they end up existing to inflictpain. Draculs seldom recruit people into their rankswho are not cruel and callous. Compassionate peo-ple do not survive very long. Draculs’ victims sel-dom survive capture, with their deaths rarely quick.Draculs take a cat-like joy in tormenting their cap-tives, often playing with them, letting them thinkthey have escaped only to easily recapture them.

The differences in personality among theseVampyre types may cause Chroniclers to restrictCast Members to playing Succubi. Creating the dra-matic situation of a decent person struggling withthe monster she has become could be a good reasonto allow Lamia or Dracul Cast Members.


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Of Fear, Pain and EcstasyThree New Vampyre Styles

by Peter Trueman

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Powers and VulnerabilitiesCommon to Succubi,Lamias, and Draculs

From Mystery CodexMetaphysics, Creatures of Flesh and Essence,*

Enter the Threshold, Essence Depletion,Evolution, Invulnerability, Semblance of Life,and Holy Burial.

*Note that Succubi, Lamias, and Draculs canchannel up to their Willpower in Essence everyTurn, but do not regain Essence normally. In addi-tion, they cannot absorb ambient Essence the waythat standard Vampyres do.

Other Powers andVulnerabilities

Bloodlust: When confronted with a large quantityof blood or a bleeding person, these Vampyres mustmake a Simple Willpower Test to avoid automatical-ly trying to feed on that blood or person.

Debt to the Master: These Vampyres must makea Difficult Willpower Test to resist obeying anycommand given by their creator. The creatorVampyre makes a Simple Willpower Test to suc-ceed. The creator Vampyre can use ManipulateEmotions to increase her chances of success.

Vulnerable Heart: A wooden stake driventhrough the heart of one of these Vampyres willimmobilise and paralyse her until removed. Whilethus immobilised, the Vampyre may not speak noruse any of her supernatural abilities. She remainsconscious and aware of her surroundings, however.

Special PowersAccessible to Succubi,Lamias, and Draculs

From Mystery CodexGreater Shifting, Manipulate Emotions,

Mirage

From Light SleepersBlood Link, Domination, Mind Link (per Sire

Power), Mist Shape, and Soul Fusion (per SoulUnion Power). See pp. 9-11.

New Special Powers andVulnerabilities

Command the Beasts

3-point Power for one species; 2 points peradditional species


With this power, the Vampyre can control animalsof one species (selected by the player or theChronicler) and give them simple commands. Thepower costs two Essence points per large animal, pergroup of up to 10 small animals (like birds or rats),or per group of up to 100 tiny animals (such asinsects or spiders) affected. The animals follow sim-ple orders for up to one minute per level of theVampyre’s Willpower, or until the instructions arecarried out, whichever comes first. Dangerous com-mands—attacking people, for instance—require aSimple Willpower Test with a –3 penalty to success-fully impose her will upon the beasts. Suicidal com-mands require such a Test with a –6 penalty.


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Flight

5-point Power

With this power, the Vampyre can fly, bearing upto her carrying capacity in additional weight, at herbase Speed. She can also levitate and hover. All ofthese activities require the expenditure of twoEssence Points per minute.

Heartless

1-point Power

With this power, wooden stakes have no specialeffect upon the Vampyre outside of normal physicaldamage.

Invisibility

10-point Power

With this power, the Vampyre is able to becomeinvisible at will. This transformation takes a Turn ofconcentration to effect. While invisible, the Vampyrestill produces noise, even if electronics and thehuman eye cannot detect her. Normal rules apply forattempting to attack an invisible opponent. TheVampyre must spend two Essence points per minutewhile invisible.

Reduced Damage (Fire)

1-, 5-, or 10-point Power

With this power, the physical damage that aVampyre takes from fire is reduced to either onehalf (one point), one fifth (three points) or one tenth(five points) of normal—unless the flames aresomehow charged with Essence (e.g., holy or magi-cal fire). Vampyres still take Essence damage equalto the reduced physical damage.

Reduced Damage (Weapons)

3-, 10- or 20-point Power

With this power, the physical damage that aVampyre takes from weaponry (bullets, blades,shrapnel, piercing, or bludgeoning weapons) or nat-ural attacks (i.e. fists, claws, fangs, falling or suddenimpacts) is reduced to either one half (five points),one fifth (10 points) or one tenth (20 points) of nor-

mal, unless the attack is somehow charged withEssence (e.g., holy or magical weapons).

Reduced Damage (Sunlight)

5-points/level Power

Prerequisite: Must possess at least as many levelsof Wake by Day

With every level of this power, the amount ofEssence loss due to exposure to sunlight isdecreased.

Time Period Level (Succubi, Draculs) (Lamias)

0 1 minute 1 Turn

1 2 minutes 1 minute

2 5 minutes 2 minutes




6 2 hours 30 minutes

7 6 hours 1 hours

8 12 hours 2 hours

9 24 hours 3 hours

10 Immune 4 hours

At level 10, Succubi and Draculs are effectivelyimmune to daylight; sunlight does not feel painful oreven uncomfortable to them. Lamias cannot gainsuch complete immunity.

Wake by Day

2-point/level Power

With this power, the Vampyre takes reducedEssence loss for activity during the day and the rollneeded for the Vampyre to wake up during daylighthours gains a bonus equal to the level of this power.The level also determines how frequently aVampyre loses an Essence Point for activity duringthe daytime.

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Level Time Period

0 1 minute

1 2 minutes

2 5 minutes

3 10 minutes

4 30 minutes

5 60 minutes

6 2 hours

7 6 hours

8 12 hours

9 24 hours

10 Immune

Once the Vampyre has reached level 10, stayingawake during the daytime is no more difficult than atany other time and the Vampyre need not make a rollto awake from sleeping. In fact, given that Vampyresdo not suffer from fatigue, those with 10 levels ofthis power need never sleep at all, although it cantake a while to overcome the psychological habit ofdoing so.

Wall Crawler

5-point Power

With this power, the Vampyre can cling to solidsurfaces, even vertical or upside-down ones, like aspider. To dislodge the clinging Vampyre requires ablow of equal strength as would knock her over ifshe were standing upright.

New VampyreRacial Qualities

Succubi Use the Undead or the various Supernatural

Character Types for beginning costs. They then mustpurchase the Succubi Quality. Cost: 3 points (15 forbeing Undead – 4 for Bloodthirst – 3 for reducedAttribute bonuses – 1 for Vulnerable Heart – 1 forBloodlust – 1 for Debt to the Master – 2 for reducedManipulations of the Flesh).

Attributes: +2 Str, +2 Dex, +2 Con

Attribute Minimum: 3, Attribute Maximum: none

Secondary Attributes: +20 Essence, NoEndurance Points

Common Succubus Powersand Vulnerabilities

Essence Vampirism: Without the special abilityEssence Mastery (Ecstasy), Succubi are only able toabsorb the Essence of humans by drinking theirblood (see Bloodthirst Vulnerability, Mystery Codex,p. 103). It is not necessary to kill the victim to gainEssence, but neither does feeding preclude death.Victims fed upon by Succubi experience a state ofecstasy as their blood drains. This experience is sopowerful that they seldom struggle once feeding hasbegun (a Difficult Willpower Test is required, with apenalty of –1 per positive level of Attractivenessand/or Charisma possessed by the feedingVampyre). The Vampyre or others must halt thefeeding before death occurs.

Manipulations of the Flesh: As per MysteryCodex (p. 100), except Succubi may only use thisability to make their appearance more attractive andlife-like. Succubi do not possess the ability to sproutclaws or drastically reshape their faces or bodies.Fangs about twice the length of human eyeteeth canbe grown, but these do a mere Strength damagepoints. They can be very useful, however, for open-ing a major blood vessel in a potential victim, pro-vided he is not struggling at the time.

Vulnerability to Daylight: As per Mystery Codex(p. 102).

Special Succubus Powersand Vulnerabilities

From Mystery CodexBard (Prerequisite: Essence Mastery (Ecstasy)),

Magus, and Muse.

New Succubus Powers andVulnerabilities

Essence Mastery (Ecstasy)

4-point Power

Succubi with this power no longer need to feed onblood, although they retain the ability to do so.Instead, they can feed directly on the Essencereleased by the experience of ecstasy. However, theymust be the cause of the ecstasy experience.Typically, this requires them to become intimatewith those from which they wish to feed. A humanbrought to ecstasy through any combination of sen-sations loses D10(5) Essence points.

Death is rarely a risk with this manner of feeding.Most humans cease to be capable of feeling strongpleasure once their Essence Pool lowers to zero.Still, the need to become so intimate with their vic-tims can be distasteful to some Succubi, who insteadstrive to master one of the higher forms of feeding.

LamiasUse the Undead or the various Supernatural

Character Types for beginning costs. They then mustpurchase the Lamia Quality. Cost: 4 points (15 – 4for Bloodthirst – 1 for Vulnerable Heart – 1 forBloodlust – 1 for Debt to the Master – 1 for reducedManipulations of the Flesh – 3 for increasedVulnerability to Sunlight).


Attribute Minimum: 4, Attribute Maximum:none


Common Lamia Powers andVulnerabilities

Essence Vampirism: Without the special ability,Essence Mastery (Terror), Lamias are only able to

absorb the Essence of humans by drinking theirblood (see Bloodthirst Vulnerability, Mystery Codex,p. 103). It is not necessary to kill the victim to gainEssence, but neither does feeding preclude death.Victims fed upon by Lamias experience a state ofsheer terror as their blood drains. They seldom strug-gle once feeding has begun (a Difficult WillpowerTest is required, with a penalty of –1 per negativelevel of Attractiveness and/or Charisma possessedby the feeding Vampyre). The Vampyre or othersmust bring the feeding to a halt, as the victim cannotfight back.

Manipulations of the Flesh: As per MysteryCodex (p. 100), except Lamias may only use themanipulations to make their appearance more horrif-ic and deadly. Lamias do not possess the ability toenhance their beauty or attractiveness. Fangs andclaws are available per Mystery Codex.

Vulnerability to Daylight: As per Mystery Codex(p. 102) except Lamias are particularly vulnerable tosunlight and lose one Essence Point per Turn(instead of one per minute) while exposed to it.Their flesh can be seen to blister and smoke undersuch circumstances and they suffer considerablepain, incurring a –3 penalty to all tasks.

Special Lamia Powersand Vulnerabilities

From Mystery Codex Nightmare

New Lamia Powers andVulnerabilites

Essence Mastery (Terror)

4-point Power

Lamias with this power no longer need to feed onblood, although they retain the ability to do so.Instead, they can feed directly on the Essencereleased by the experience of terror. However, theymust be the cause of the fear. Typically, this requiresthem to terrify those from which they wish to feed.Manipulations of the Flesh is the easiest way to dothis, but Manipulate Emotions works quite well tooand the two powers together can cause even thestoutest of individuals to become a quivering wreck.


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Anyone who fails a Fear Test in the presence of aLamia unconsciously releases D6(3) Essence pointsevery Turn (ignore Essence losses detailed in theFear Table, if used). The Lamia absorbs these lossesautomatically and all at once as long as she is with-in a yard. This process can be repeated until thehuman is reduced to –30 Essence points, at whichpoint the human has the usual risk of dying. The ter-ror experienced under such circumstances is suchthat the victim does not pass out or cease to feel fearonce their Essence Pool drops to zero or lower.

Draculs Use the Undead or the various Supernatural

Character Types for beginning costs. They must pur-chase the Dracul Quality. Cost: 4 points (15 – 4 forBloodthirst + 3 for increased Attribute bonuses – 1for Vulnerable Heart – 1 for Bloodlust – 1 for Debtto the Master – 1 for reduced Manipulations of theFlesh – 6 for Vulnerability to Fire).


Attribute Minimum: 5, Attribute Maximum:none


Common Dracul Powersand Vulnerabilities

From Mystery Codex Vulnerability to Daylight

New Common Dracul Powersand Vulnerabilities

Essence Vampirism: Without Essence Mastery(Pain), Draculs are only able to absorb the Essenceof humans by drinking their blood (see BloodthirstVulnerability, Mystery Codex, p. 103). It is not nec-essary to kill the victim to gain Essence, but neitherdoes feeding preclude death. Victims fed upon byDraculs experience a state of agonizing pain as theirblood drains. Victims will struggle violently to freethemselves from the Vampyre’s grip. Unfortunatelyfor them, Draculs are very strong.

Manipulations of the Flesh: As per MysteryCodex (p. 100), except Draculs can only use thispower to make their appearance more horrific anddeadly. Draculs do not possess the ability to enhancetheir beauty or attractiveness. Fangs and claws areavailable, which are both functional and terrifying

Vulnerability to Fire: Draculs are incrediblyvulnerable to fire. Burning damage also inflicts anEssence loss equal to the amount of physical dam-age received. Furthermore, any Dracul confrontedwith a flame of torch size or larger must make aDifficult Willpower Test to avoid at least recoilingin terror (lose all actions that Turn) and a SimpleWillpower Test to avoid fleeing altogether.

Special Dracul Powersand Vulnerabilities

From Mystery Codex Wither

New Special Dracul Powersand Vulnerabilities

Essence Mastery (Pain)

4-point Power

Draculs with this power no longer need to feed onblood if they do not wish to, although they retain theability to do so. Instead, they can feed directly on theEssence released by the experience of pain.However, they must be the cause of the pain beingexperienced by their victim, so typically thisrequires them to injure or torture those from whichthey wish to feed.

If a Dracul injures a person by slashing them withclaws, fangs, or some sort of blade, the injuredhuman releases Essence equal to one quarter of thephysical damage taken. Torture is a slightly moreeffective means of gaining Essence. Each Turn aDracul tortures someone, the victim loses D8(4)Essence points, which the Dracul fully absorbs.

This process can be repeated until the human isreduced to –30 Essence Points, at which point sheruns the usual risk of dying. The agony experiencedunder such circumstances is such that the victimdoes not pass out or cease to feel pain once theirEssence Pool drops to zero or lower.

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Development withAge

Not all of the special powers listed above are read-ily available to all Vampyres. Many take centuries tomaster and newly created Vampyres have a muchsmaller range of powers to choose from.

Six different age categories serve to groupVampyres according to the number of years spentactive. Time spent in suspended animation (seeMystery Codex, p. 102) does not count towards thisage.

Fledgling: less than 10 years

Young: 10 to less than 50 years

Mature: 50 to less than 100 years

Master: 100 to less than 500 years

Elder: 500 to less than 1000 years

Ancient: 1000 years or more

As a Vampyre moves through these age cate-gories, more special powers become available to her.The following list is a guideline only. A Chroniclershould feel free to alter or adjust it, if he has somestrong reason to do so.

Each age category naturally has access to thosepowers listed in the categories before it.

Fledgling: Command the Beasts, GreaterShifting, Manipulate Emotions, Wake by Day (max.level 1), Wall Crawler

Young: Domination, Flight, Mirage, ReducedDamage (Fire) (one half), Reduced Damage(Sunlight) (max. level 1), Wake by Day (max. level 3)

Mature: Essence Mastery (any), Invisibility,Mind Link, Muse, Reduced Damage (Fire) (onefifth), Reduced Damage (Sunlight) (max. level 3),Reduced Damage (Weapons) (one half), Wake byDay (max. level 5)

Master: Bard, Blood Link, Heartless, MistShape, Nightmare, Reduced Damage (Fire) (onetenth), Reduced Damage (Sunlight) (max. level 5),Reduced Damage (Weapons) (one fifth), Wake byDay (max. level 7), Wither (touch version)

Elder: Magus, Reduced Damage (Sunlight)(max. level 7), Reduced Damage (Weapons) (onetenth), Soul Fusion, Wake by Day (max. level 9),Wither (ranged version)

Ancient: Reduced Damage (Sunlight) (max.level 10), Wake by Day (max. level 10)

When creating a Vampyre character, theChronicler (or the player in conjunction with theChronicler, in the case of Cast Members) shoulddetermine roughly how many years the Vampyre hasbeen actively undead. This may necessitate the pur-chase of one or more levels of the Age Quality. Acharacter that becomes a Vampyre during game playstarts as a Fledgling.

Weapons for theVampyre Hunter

Destroying a Vampyre requires reducing theirEssence Pool to below zero. There are a number ofways to accomplish this.

Sunlight: This is a good weapon to use againstyounger Vampyres, particularly Lamias. Manyolder ones, however, have acquired some resistanceto this.

Fire: This is very effective in destroying Draculs,even those who have hardened themselves againstits effects somewhat. If Essence fuels the fire (suchas the magical fire produced by the Elemental FireInvocation, or the Holy Fire of the divinely Inspired,or even the Mindfire ability of Seers), the Vampyrecannot block the attack.

Mindkill: This Seer ability directly attacks aVampyre’s Essence Pool.

Soulfire: No Vampyre-hunting magic-user shouldbe without this Invocation, which can quickly dis-pose of the undead.

Necromantic Bolts: Vampyres have reason tofear a powerful necromancer. These bolts directlyattack the undead’s Essence Pool, per Soulfire.

Orikalk Weapons: Melee weapons or projectilesmade from this mythical metal will inflict up to halftheir damage directly to a Vampyre’s Essence Pool.


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Rituals: If none of the above are available,hunters may need to knock the Vampyres uncon-scious physically, stake them, or bind them to keepthem from escaping, and perform the ritual of HolyBurial over them. Older Vampyres may need to havethis ritual performed more than once before beingcompletely destroyed.

If a hunter is up against a Vampyre who hasacquired some resistance to weaponry, specialimplements are in order.

Wooden Stakes: Assuming the Vampyre has notoutgrown this vulnerability, a successful strikeupon the critical organs of the torso usually immo-bilises him and allows the hunter to finish theVampyre at her leisure.

Magic Weapons: Melee weapons or projectilesimbued with any sort of magical power, even thosesimply consecrated as vessels in which to storeEssence, bypass any resistance the Vampyre hasacquired to weaponry.

Silver Holy Weapons: A blessed silver weaponcan be charged with Essence through prayer. If theweapon is newly blessed (e.g. a bullet, a new knife,etc.), then it holds at the most one Essence point. Ifthe weapon is a genuine holy artifact, it may holdmany more. When a Vampyre is struck by a weaponcharged with Essence in this manner, not only is hisresistance to weaponry negated, but the undeadtakes further physical damage equal to D8(4) xEssence released from the weapon.

Holy Water: If a priest, minister, rabbi, or mullaof faith properly blesses water, it assumes the abili-ty to absorb Essence in a manner similar to silver.No more than one Essence Point can be absorbedper pint of water. Splashing such water over aVampyre causes physical damage equal to D8(4) xEssence released.

Author’s note: I wish to thank AlessandroGandini for his invaluable help and collaboration inthe development of this article, as well as Jason Vey,for his comments and feedback on the Eden StudiosWitchCraft Discussion Board.

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Str 5 Int 2Dex 4 Per 3Con 6 Wil 4

LPS 63 Speed 20EPS n/a Essence 74

Qualities/DrawbacksLamia (4)Adversary (Sentinels) (–3)Charisma +1 (1) Contacts (Underworld) (2)Fear of Rejection (–1)Good Luck 3 (3)Hard to Kill 3 (3)Increased Essence

Pool +25 (5)Nerves of Steel (3)Resources (Poor)

(–6)Situational Awareness (2)

Skills Brawling 2Computers 1 Dodge 3 Driving (Cars) 1Escapism 2 Hand Weapon (Club) 2Hand Weapon (Knife) 1Intimidation 3 Notice 2 Pick Pocket 2 Smooth Talking 1Stealth 2 Streetwise 2Swimming 1

Powers/VulnerablilitesManipulate Emotions (2)Greater Shifting (wolf, snake, giant spider) (9)Command the Beasts (rats) (3)Wall Crawler (5)Flight (5)

PersonalitySo there I was, living on the streets—my career,

my family, and my self-respect all gone. I kept com-pany with beggars and winos, doing a little pettytheft to survive. I thought my life had hit rock bot-tom. How little I knew.

We found Johnno first. He was lying onhis back in an alleyway. And his face! Tosay that he looked like he’d seen aghost would be like calling Mt. Everest

a little hill.

Old Martha was next. And thenlittle Freddy. We knew then thatsomething was preying on us. Iorganized those of us able tofight and we went out lookingfor it.

We found it—a creature morehorrible than I imagined. After

it killed everyone else, it stoodover me and its features became

more human. It said, “Kid, I likeyour style and your guts.” And thenit made me into one of its kind.

I’m sleeping in sewers by day anddrinking blood by night. There are

religious maniacs with crosses andwater that burns that keep looking forme. I’ve learned a lot since that fatefulnight. However, I know there’s a lotmore I still have to learn.

Quote“Want to see something really scary?”

Young LamiaLesser Supernatual • Age: 44 (undead 17 years)

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Qualities/Drawbacks Dracul (4)Adversary (a Storm Dragon)* Age (+100 years) (5)Bad Luck 3 (–3)Contacts (Triad) (3)Covetous (Ambition) (–2)Cruel (–3)Delusions (Prejudice: Hates police

and the military) (–2)Fast Reaction Time (2)Increased Essence +70 (14)Minority (Asian) (–1)Natural Toughness (2)Obligation (Major) (–2)Paranoia (–2)Resources (Well-off) (4)Status +2 (1)& *from Age Quality & +1 from Resources Quality

Skills Acrobatics 3 Climbing 2 Computers 1 Driving (Cars) 1 Escapism 2 First Aid 1 Guns (Handgun) 2 Hand Weapon (Sword) 3Hand Weapon (Knife) 1Hand Weapon (Nunchaku) 2Intimidation 3 Language (Cantonese) 5 Language (English) 3Martial Arts 4 Myth and Legend (Chinese) 2Notice 3

Questioning 1Stealth 2Surveillance 1Swimming 1

Powers/VulnerablilitesEssence Mastery (Pain) (4)Chi Mastery 4 (8)Heartless (1)Invisibility (10)Reduced Damage (halve Fire) (1)

Speed of the Tiger 3 (6)Wake by Day 2 (4)

PersonalityI was born in early 19th century

China, when the country was stillbeing carved up by imperialistEuropean powers. I’ve seen a lotof change since then—the BoxerRebellion, the Long March, TianAnmen Square. But now I’m inAmerica, taking advantage of the

corruption of capitalism to furtherthe ends of the Brotherhood and pur-

sue my own pleasures.

It’s not well known that there is a sig-nificant minority within the Triad who arelike me. My old master still stalks thestreets of Beijing and I have offspring inother American cities. Our unique abili-ties make us very valuable. We are oftendeployed to locations proving trouble-some or sent to resolve particularlyintransigent problems.

I enjoy my work. I particularly likeit when I get to kill police or soldiers.I feel like I’m striking back for whathappened to my sister nearly twocenturies ago. The unlucky ones arethose that I manage to capture. Ihave lots of fun with them.

Quote“Huang, hand me my number

three branding iron.”

Master DraculSupernatural • Age: 192 (undead 160 years)


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Qualities/DrawbacksSuccubus (3)Adversary (Rosicrucians)*,

(Knights Templar)*, (Combine)*Age (+1000 years) (50)Artistic Talent (3)Attractiveness +3 (3)Charisma +3 (3)Contacts (5)Covetous (Lechery) (–1)Cowardly (–1)Emotional Problems (Fear of

Commitment) (–1)Hard to Kill 5 (5)Honourable (–1)Increased Essence +50 (10)Obsession (Illumination) (–2)Resources (Rich) (8)Secret (–2)Showoff (–2)Status 2& * from Age Quality & from Resources Quality

Skills Acrobatics 4 Acting 3 Beautician 2 Brawling 1 Computers 1 Dancing (ballroom) 3Disguise 2 Driving (Cars) 1 Fine Arts (Painting) 3 First Aid 2 Guns (Handgun) 1 Hand Weapon (Sword) 3 Hand Weapon (Bow) 2Instruction 2 Language (French) 5, (German) 3, (Latin) 3, (Greek) 2, (English) 4 Magic Theory 4 Magic Bolt 7 Myth and Legend (Germanic) 2Notice 2 Occult Knowledge 7

Occult Knowledge (Alchemy) 9Play Instrument (Harp) 3Research/Investigation 5 Rituals (Rosicrucian) 3, (Templar) 2Sciences (Chemistry) 3 Seduction 4 Singing 3

Sleight of Hand 4Smooth Talking 3Storytelling 2Writing (Poetry) 2

Powers/VulnerablilitesCommon Succubus Powers and

VulnerabilitiesBard (9)Domination (3)Essence Mastery (Ecstasy) (4)Greater Shifting (raven, panther) (7)Heartless (1)Magus (15)Manipulate Emotions (2)Wake by Day 6 (12)Reduced Damage (Sunlight) 5 (15)Invocation: Elemental Fire 3 (6), Elemental

Air 3 (6), Elemental Earth 2 (4), Shielding 3 (6)

PersonalityThey say the alchemists of old were looking

for a way to turn base metal to gold. Otherssay they were looking for immortality. Well, Ihave all the gold and immortality that youcould want and I can tell you, that’s not whatthey were looking for.

Why do you think they called it the“Philosopher’s Stone?” Those ancient schol-ars were looking for illumination, for thefusion of the left-brain and the right brain, fortotal control over magic and essence. Andthat’s what I’m looking for.

The Rosicrucians don’t have the secret ofit. Neither do the Templars. Nevertheless, Iknow there are those who do—theIlluminati. If I can find them, I can wrest thesecret from them, I’m sure of it.

From my birthplace in medieval France,all over Europe, and now into the NewWorld, I have chased my dream, performing,teaching, swindling, and seducing as I went.

I’m close now, very close. I can feel it in myunliving veins.

Quote“It’s showtime!”

Ancient SuccubusGreater Supernatural • Age: 1057 (undead 1022 yeaars)

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The Buffy the Vampire Slayer and AngelRoleplaying Games allow vampires as CastMembers, but outside of mentioning the canon“chipped” or “has a soul” rationales, the game mate-rials don’t go into details on exactly how a vampirecould be “good.” This article addresses the subjectof “good” vampires. A selection of vampiric arche-types follows the article.

Soul PurposeThe first and most obvious manner of vampires

“going good” involves the acquisition of a soul.We’ve seen two vampires with souls in theBuffyverse, Angel and Spike. Angel was cursed withhis soul after killing a gypsy girl, a curse which stip-ulated that should he ever achieve a moment of truehappiness, his soul would be lost, for a moment ofcontentment would mean that Angel had movedbeyond the suffering he felt from the memories ofhis reign of terror as Angelus. Spike traveled to ademon’s lair in Africa and faced a series of tests—the first of which being a warrior with flaming fistsand a later test being an attack—and bodily inva-sion—by a swarm of insects. Upon surviving withhis desire intact, Spike had his soul returned to him.

What are some other ways that a vampire couldregain her soul? Episode 5.13 of Angel, “Why WeFight,” reveals that Angel has sired one vampiresince regaining his soul, a Navy officer named SamLawson. Lawson felt compelled to mete out deathand destruction, but found that it gave him no senseof satisfaction and in fact, left the proverbial badtaste in his mouth. While most run-of-the-mill vam-pires would have been happy with the slaughter ofinnocents, Sam’s admission that he had no purposeand found no joy in his mayhem could have beencaused by the presence of a soul. This may imply, asmentioned in Monster Smackdown, that a souledvampire could sire a new vampire that would, inturn, retain their soul. Now then, if one souled vam-pire could sire another souled vampire, then a wholeline of souled vamps could emerge. Perhaps a hero-ic Order of Aurelis would emerge? Of course, com-

bine an order of good vampires with a world full ofSlayers and the Buffyverse becomes much grayer.

How about a vampire witch who winds up tappinginto the White Magic that Giles used to spikeWillow’s high in Season Six, the same powerWillow later channeled in Season Seven? A vampiresorceress, lusting for power, winds up filled with aprofound desire to protect life—not the same thingas a true soul but the effects might be the same. Andtalk about quandaries—try feeling a profound con-nection with all living things while needing to drinkblood to survive.

It’s worth mentioning that Darla “felt” Connor’ssoul while she was pregnant with him, especially inthe last couple of months. Though she seemed evenmore conflicted than Spike or Angel did after regain-ing their souls, this was most likely due to it notbeing hers. A pregnant vampire Cast Member prob-ably isn’t the best option for a game though, seeingas how they’ll likely have to die to give birth or, ifthey somehow survive, would revert to evil afterbirth. But hey, ambitious Directors and players cando anything if they try.

Keep in mind that the presence of a soul doesn’tmean that a vampire automatically does good. Afterall, it’s generally agreed that all humans (exceptmaybe that kid possessed by an Ethros Demon in1.14 of Angel) have a soul, even Wolfram & Hartemployees! And yet, plenty of human evil abounds.What a soul does is provide a counterpoint to thedemonic hunger, a conscience that says, “Hey, it’snot such a nice thing to drink virgin blood. MaybeI’ll drink some pig’s blood instead.” A vampire witha soul, especially if she’s a particularly angry orunconscionable person before her siring, is every bitas likely to wreak havoc as an unsouled vampire.Moreover, doesn’t that make her more evil?However, playing a person so totally evil that evenhaving their soul stuck back in them isn’t enough toembark them on a path of good isn’t a very goodoption for a Cast Member. In the end, a soul is abouta choice. Well, mostly. We’ll get into unsouledchoices in a little bit.

When Bad Vampires Go GoodRoleplaying Vampires in the Buffyverse

by Tommy Brownell

A vampire with a soul is a prime candidate foremotional problems such as depression and guilt.Obsession (Redemption) or perhaps Covetous(Redemption) would not be out of line for a souledvampire Cast Member, either.

Chips A-headIn Season Four of Buffy, we’re introduced to the

Initiative, a government agency tasked with seekingout, capturing, studying, and controlling HostileSub-Terrestrials (angry, underworld monsters likedemons and vampires). They did this by usingbehavior modification chips placed in the brain. Thechips (at least the ones we saw on the show) “dis-couraged” violent tendencies towards humans bysending searing pain into the brains of the chippedHSTs. The chips were advanced enough to work onintent, as Spike was zapped for pointing a gun athumans with intent to shoot, not even actuallypulling the trigger.

Thus, playing a chipped vampire is a perfectlyvalid choice. After all, a vampire with a behaviormodification chip in his head still has a demoninside of him compelling him to maim, murder, andkill. If a vampire can’t crush people, why not crushdemons or other vamps? Now, vampires and demonsalike tend to think ill of traitorous vampires, so thecast member will probably earn a free level or two ofAdversary before you even hit mid-season, but forall the fun of characterization and roleplaying inBuffy and Angel, there’s rarely a shortage of combat.

Within the subset of chipped vampires, cast mem-bers still have options. Spike was an escaped HSTwho used his knowledge of the Initiative to black-mail the Scooby Gang into not staking him at first,and later went after the demon world with vim andvigor when he discovered that he could take out hisanger and frustration on monsters.

What if the Initiative had succeeded? What if theyput together a “Suicide Squad” of chipped vam-pires sent into the underworld on missions, wipingout demon cults, assassinating warlocks, overthrow-ing Middle Eastern dictators and more? The PCscould all be vampire commandos or even a mix ofhuman commandos and chipped vampire soldiers.The Military Monster Squad sourcebook can be used

to flesh out a Dirty Dozen with Fangs game consid-erably, including new chips like Slave Chips andvarious Behavior Modification chips. As anothertake on a similar campaign, what about a vampiresquad whose chips start failing one by one, leaving alone vampire commando under the thumb of thegovernment and having to track down and kill hiscomrades. This is an excellent option if the group isinto the military thing but lacks players.

How about a rogue scientist who happened uponsome old Initiative files and began experimentingwith chipping on his own, perhaps because hewants a force of vampire thugs, or perhaps some-one he cares about is chained up in his basementafter being sired. Of course, chipping her becauseshe was sired doesn’t mean she’s gonna be happywith the rogue scientist. The playable options couldbe an experimental vamp or, for the roleplay heavy,how about spending the first six episodes or so ofthe game chained to the wall, as the relative in needof “saving?”

By the Grace of GodMoving away from the canon rationales, how

about a truly religious vampire? Drusilla was aboutto become a nun, but she was driven to the conventat least in part because she thought she was evil, dueto her visions. In addition, while Angel’s old horror-mate Penn was a Puritan, there’s no solid evidencethat he was a truly pious man.

Wanna spend some points on Age? How about avampire that really was at the Crucifixion and wasdriven by the sacrifice of Christ to be a do-gooder?Alternately, maybe the vamp even drank of theChrist’s blood. A Christian, regardless of age, trulymoved by God could find herself holding the demonoff and may even be able to shrug off the vampiricvulnerabilities to Holy symbols and the like, by pur-chasing the corresponding Resistances. Most wouldagree, though, that it would be far more befitting theBuffyverse for a truly devout vamp to still find her-self smoldering while holding a cross or touchingholy water.

Christianity is hardly the only belief system thatsomeone could have a devout interest in. A Taoiststrives towards immortality, and not of the meta-


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physical, Living-in-the-Grace-of-the-Creator-in-the-Afterlife kind, but true Walking-the-Earth immortal-ity. Imagine their reaction to achieving immortalityand then finding that they’ve become a monster inthe process! The demon would likely seek to aban-don the meditative practices of the former self, but atruly disciplined Taoist could somehow force thedemon to hold itself in check, when he realizes thathis new vampiric vulnerabilities and hunger makehis immortality an imperfect achievement.

There is still potential for perversion and abuseamong those with strict beliefs, especially if theybelong to a religion known to veer into extremepractices such as Islam with its Jihads andChristianity with its Crusades. In a cute bit of irony,the people most likely to find themselves resistingvampirism through their religious beliefs are thesame ones likely to pervert their belief: Zealots.Humans with the Zealot drawback are driven bymore than hunger and a destructive desire, whichare the main aspects the vampiric demon seems tobring to vampires.

This only applies to the truly devout among thevarious religious bodies. Those who merely pay lipservice to God, who are more Wanna Blessed-Be’s,or who think being Zen’s gonna help ‘em pick upchicks are far more apt to forget their religiousleanings when consumed by the demon. Still, theymay find themselves snacking on their former spir-itual brothers and sisters more so than other groupsof victims.

Curses!While we talked about one aspect of Angel’s

goodness, his soul, we didn’t mention the other, thecurse. Most folks think of Angel, when they think“cursed vampire,” but that doesn’t have to be thecase. Even if gypsies were the only people (orthings) capable of cursing, there’s nothing say theyhave to curse someone with a soul.

Curses can take many forms:

• A vampire could be cursed to guard aHellmouth. Variable conditions could be untilhe’s dust, until it’s opened, or until a certainthreat has passed.

• A vampire who murders a parent could be sad-dled with the responsibility of defending thechild, either to adulthood, to the child’s death oruntil the child fulfills a certain role in the world.

• The Chumasch Indians seem to have left somecurses in their California territory. What if theywere to curse a vampire to defend, say, a burialground? If the artifacts were stolen, the vampwould be compelled to seek out the items for theIndians. This notion could be applied to any cul-ture and their burial grounds or artifacts.However, allowing a PC to play a vampirecursed to defend a stationary object, like a tem-ple, could get problematic in adventure design.

• A cursed ring (or other object) could compel avampire who has donned it to seek out anddestroy a major Adversary, such as a Hell-god-dess, a major demon like The Judge, or even aTrue Demon.

Soul(less) SurvivorsWhat about those who have no soul, no chip, and

no religious leanings? Does that mean there’s nohope for a soulless vampire? Not even.

There’s no law against vampires having honor, sohow about a duelist vampire who finds himself best-ed in combat by a Slayer or a Champion of Good?Instead of running him through, the hero spares thevampire’s life, leaving him honor-bound to defendthe hero until the debt is repaid.

A comic book geek may find himself thrilledwith his new superpowers, so he sets out in capeand tights to defeat evildoers and defend the inno-cent. Unfortunately, he’s liable to start taking hisbeatings too far, and in a bloodlust, he might injurethe police who arrive on the scene or even the peo-ple he’s protecting.

While Angel said that he wasn’t capable of lovingDarla, that doesn’t mean that soulless vampirescan’t love. For all Drusilla’s insanity, she lovedSpike, just as he did her and later Buffy. A vampirefalling for the “wrong” girl (such as a Slayer) orguy, can use that love as an impetus for fighting thedemon within.

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Harmony is a great example of a vampire withouta soul who has no specific evil tendencies. While shedoes enjoy beating up on people and is perfectlywilling to torture a bad guy for the cause, this ditzyvampire has no grand scheme or motivation to seekout victims when she’s off the clock. After all, evilcan be hard work, especially if you’re not particular-ly competent. So much easier to just drink pig’sblood and play nice.

And how about a hemophobic vampire? Picture avampire who is so squeamish and afraid of blood thatnot only can he not kill his victims, he has to keep theblood stored in a covered mug and he drinks througha colored straw! Not to say he’s incapable of evil, butit’s a good start for a vamp to not be bad.

A vampire who’s helping the heroes just becausethey’ve lowered the vampire population in the areaworks, too. After all, the drinking of blood is a sur-vival instinct, which is why those being sired can’tresist even if they want to. So why not rat out vam-pire nests if it keeps the Slayer from staking you?Sure, you’re going to find yourself with some newenemies, but that just keeps the game interesting.

Speaking of a sense of self-preservation, Spikesaved the world in Season Two because he ratherliked his undead existence. Makes sense, what’s notto like? You maim, kill, torture, and otherwise wreakhavoc, and your only real restrictions are no sunlight(unless you have some necro-tempered glass lyingaround) and no church. Of course, that doesn’t stopother demons, vampires, and even some humansfrom trying to destroy the world. Your vampirecould decide to temporarily forego murder and may-hem for a while in order to look at the big picture.With all the Hellmouths, apocalypse cults, andbranches of Wolfram & Hart in the world, there’s noshortage of global-scale peril to keep a vampire frombeing able to mind his own business.

Two’s a CrowdAnother option could be a true internal struggle

for control of the body. A Cast Member with multi-ple personalities could have a personality or twowho aren’t evil and are in fact quite heroic. TheDirector could control the evil personality (or per-sonalities), unless the group trusts the player to han-dle his evil character for short stretches.

A vampire could find himself haunted, perhaps bya loved one or, as suggested in Monster Smackdown,by the soul that originally inhabited the body. A soulbasically haunting itself could make for a fun game,with the Director using the soul as Supporting Castand the player playing the vampire as a CastMember. An interesting variant could feature a CastMember ghost with a vampire adversary runningaround in his body.

A third twist could involve a Revenant (see AngelCorebook, p.62) leaping into a freshly killed body,only to find that it had been sired, but not risen. Thatleaves two beings in the body, neither of whomshould be in there! From a character creation stand-point, this becomes a logistical nightmare. One sug-gestion for dealing with a Revenant/Vampire wouldbe to take the better of the Attribute bonuses, leavethe vampiric vulnerabilities in, and keep the physicalups and downs of each Quality for what would comeout to be about 22 points. The problem with makinga player pay 22 points for this Quality is that theywould lose the vampiric abilities and vulnerabilitiesthat alter the Quality’s cost when they when they dieand emerge in a fresh body, essentially becoming“just” a Revenant after that. However, if your playerdoesn’t mind losing the points, who are we to saynot to do it?

The easiest way to get around the point totals issimply for the player to create a Revenant, lay theVampire Quality over the top of it, and subject theplayer to Willpower rolls to resist the demon as dis-cussed below. After all, if the Revenant/Vampiredies from anything other than fire (which wouldinclude burning to death in sunlight), he’ll live on ina new body.

Playing the PartSome have debated the “good” Spike performed

before he won his soul back. He might have beentruly doing good, or he might have been trying toaccomplish something else and good just happenedto keep happening because of it. The answer, as faras this article is concerned, is that it doesn’t matter.PCs can create a vampire who has, for whatever rea-son, an honest desire or compulsion to be heroic.PCs can create a vampire who is just bored withwinning fights too easily, so he’s stopped hunting the


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hunters and is instead hunting demons. The onlythings that matter in the context of the Buffy theVampire Slayer and Angel Roleplaying Games arethe Director’s approval of the character, and thecharacter’s ability to interact with the other CastMembers without eating them or being staked.

There are a few ways this could be played, butagain, Director and Cast Member(s) should be on thesame page. A vampire who fights evil and still snackson people is one option. While this isn’t highly rec-ommended, it could be done, especially in a sologame or at least as long as the vampire tries to coverup her misdeeds so the other players don’t dust them.

A vampire who is honestly struggling with herinner demon is certainly a playable option as well. Itcan also be difficult for a player to do, especially atfirst. In nearly every case, even with souled vam-pires, the temptation to do evil is still there. If theplayer is roleplaying the conflict just fine, then youcan leave dice out of it. In fact, a player doing anexceptional job of handling this balance on theirown should probably net at least an extra DramaPoint or two from time to time.

That said, die rolls are sometimes the best way tohandle these things. When a vampire is faced withthe temptation of succumbing to her vampiric natureand demonic tendencies, a Willpower (not doubled)roll should be made (hey, no one said being goodwas a cakewalk). If the vampire is wounded, starved,or otherwise pushed to an extreme, penalties shouldcertainly come into play—the more morally ambigu-ous the act, especially for an unsouled vampire, theharsher the penalty. An unsouled vampire trying tonot skewer a Wolfram & Hart lawyer that has beendogging her for many Episodes could find herselffacing Heroic-level (–6 to –9) penalties. Trying toavoid feeding off of a wounded innocent shouldlikely require at least an unmodified roll, as evenAngel gets tempted from the smell (and especiallytaste) of blood.

After the vampire crosses a certain point, say tenor so consecutive moral dilemmas in which shemanaged to take the high road, allow her to rollWillpower (doubled) instead.

Of course, they can always spend a Drama Pointon a Heroic Feat when battling their inner demon,whether they’re rolling Willpower doubled or not.

After all, if trying to hold back the evil within isn’theroic, especially with the Hero and Champion’ssmaller amount of Drama Points, then what is?

Oooh . . . Bite MeThink you wanna play a good vamp? Or, as a

Director, you need a good vampire Supporting CastMember for your Series? Following this article is aseries of vampire archetypes using some of the ideasdiscussed. A mix of Hero and Champion charactertypes were used. Buffy rules were kept away fromChampions, Angel rules were excluded from Herocharacters. Enjoy!

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Qualities Fast Reaction Time (2)Hard to Kill 4 (2; 2 from Vampire Quality)Nerves of Steel (3)Situational Awareness (2)Vampire (15)

DrawbacksAdversary (Former Vampire Soldiers) (4)Can’t Harm Humans (from Vampire Quality)Obligation (Military) (3)Reckless (2)

Skills Acrobatics 2 Art 0 Computers 1 Crime 3 Doctor 0 Driving 2 Getting Medieval 5 Gun Fu 3 Influence 0 Knowledge 0 Kung Fu 2 Languages 0 Mr. Fix-it 0 Notice 2 Occultism 0 Science 0 Sports 0 Wild Card (Military Training) 3

Chipped Vampire Character Type Hero

Life Points 70 Drama Points 10

Background on the Chipped VampireI had it all worked out. Hittin’ frat parties and pickin’ off sorority girls . . . it was the life!

Then I got shot with a taser.

I woke up in a cell underneath one of the dormitories on campus! The government was hunting vampiresand studying us. They put a “behavior modification chip” in my head! Try to bite a human? Zap!

They put me and some other chipped guys to work, killing demons and vampires as a strike force. Theykept us stocked up on blood and goodies, so we had no incentive to run off. Why get chased down by G.I.Joe when he’s giving you all the blood you can drink?

Then the chips stopped working. One by one, the others found themselves able to hurt people, until theywere able to indulge in a full-fledged killing spree. One night, they turned on the commandoes we were sup-posed to help out against some demons. Of course, I knew better than to run. Those guys had no respect fora vamp who couldn’t kill his own food.

Luckily, the military does.

I returned, explained things, and got sent after my ex-comrades. In exchange? I get my chip shut off.

Quote“Don’t dust you? Dusting is half the battle! (stakes) Yo Joe!”

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Combat ManeuversManeuver Bonus Base Damage Notes

Big Knife 10 18 Slash/stabBig Pistol 8 15 BulletBreak Neck 8 24 Bash, Survival

Test or neck brokenDodge 10 — Defense actionPunch 7 12 BashKick 6 14 BashShotgun 8 20 BulletStake 10 12 Slash/stab(Through Heart) 7 12 x5 vs vamps


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Qualities Age 3 (6)Fast Reaction Time (2)Hard to Kill 6 (4; 2 from Vampire Quality)Nerves of Steel (3)Vampire (15)

DrawbacksAdversary (Demons and Vampires) (5)Adversary (Slayers and Watchers) (3)Antisocial Impulses (Cruelty) (1)Antisocial Impulses (Violence) (2)Mental Problems (Deathwish)

(from Vampire Quality)Mental Problems (Reckless) (2)

Skills Acrobatics 4 Art 0 Computers 0Crime 4 Doctor 0 Driving 2 Getting Medieval 6Gun Fu 5Influence 2Knowledge 0Kung Fu 5Languages 3 Mr. Fix-it 0Notice 4Occultism 5Science 0 Sports 0 Wild Card 0

Demon Hunter V Character Type Champion


Background on the Demon Hunter VWhoever said they wanted to live forever, didn’t really. Ask me, I’ll tell you.

When I got turned, I reveled in the power, the violence. I started with everyone I never liked in life, andthen went after everyone I never dared to. I learned to fight, honed my skills, became more than a killer. . . I became a warrior.

Just when I was getting bored with people, I met a girl. She was fast, strong, hot. She came closer to kick-ing my tail than anyone else since I’d risen. Blood tasted so sweet. She was my first Slayer, though she was-n’t my last. They’re a cocky lot, cockier than vamps, even. Makes ‘em taste sweeter.

Funny thing set in about a hundred and a half ago, though. Found myself bored with pickin’ off peopleand demon hunters. Started hunting vampires next. Made my blood boil, as it were. Then, I needed biggergame. Demons. Trolls. Werewolves. You name it. I’m tired of this life, but I never was a quitter. So, I’ll keeplooking. Something’s gotta be big enough to kill me. God knows nothing human can, so I’ll keep pickin’on demons . . . ‘till I’m dust.

Quote“So you’re gonna kill me, eh? Don’t say it if you don’t mean it.”

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Aiming (crossbow) 9 — Adds SLs to shotAiming (gun) 8 — Adds SLs to shotBite 12 15 Slash/stab,

must grapple firstBrain Shot (BAP) 6 18 Damage x4Break Neck 10 20 Bash,

must grapple firstCatch Weapon 5 — Defensive ActionCrossbow Shot 11 16 Slash/stab

(Through Heart) 8 16 x5 vs VampsDecapitation 6 20 Damage x5Dodge 11 — Defense actionFeint 10 — Add SLs to

next actionGrapple 12 — Impairs targetGunshot 10 18 BulletKick 9 12 BashParry 11 — Defensive ActionPunch 10 10 BashStake 11 10 Slash/stab

(Through Heart) 8 10 x5 vs vampsSword 11 20 Slash/stabWhirling Sword 7 20 Attacks all in range

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Qualities Nerd (3)Photographic Memory (2)Vampire (15)

DrawbacksImpaired Senses

(Vision, corrected by glasses/contacts) (1)Attractiveness –2 (2)Mental Problems (Mild Cruelty) (1)Misfit (2)Showoff (2)Teenager (2)

Skills Acrobatics 0 Art 2 Computers 6 (+2 from Nerd)Crime 3 Doctor 0 Driving 0 Getting Medieval 0 Gun Fu 0 Influence 0 Knowledge 3 Kung Fu 3 Languages 2 Mr. Fix-it 3 Notice 1 Occultism 1 Science 3 Sports 0 Wild Card (Comic Books) 5

Four Color Vampire Character Type Hero


Background on the Four Color VampireSo I wasn’t bitten by a radioactive spider, and I’m not really from another planet. And even though I was

certainly born different than everyone else, that didn’t make me superhuman. I was brought low by afiendish nightstalker, who failed to keep me in my grave, for I clawed my way forth and realized that I hadbeen given a heavy burden. I, and I alone, have the power to protect the night from fiends and monsters thatwould pluck hapless young virgins from their nightly rounds.

Vampires, demons, cultists, date-rapists, gangbangers. They all wilt before my might! And my unholybloodlust is hardly a problem! I simply drink upon the blood of the guilty! It’s like killing two birds withone stone! Heh, you should have seen the look on our local so-called “jock hero” when I crashed his date.A broken femur or two and he thought better of drugging and assaulting another helpless damsel. And thenthere was the paint can I busted into the face of the graffiti “artist” who messed up my favorite comic shop.

I don’t see how the world got by without me before.

Quote“Stand back, citizen! I shall not rest until evil pays for its crimes . . . in blood!”

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Bite 9 15 Slash/stab, Must Grapple first

Dodge 7 — Defense action

Grapple 9 — Holds opponent

Punch 7 10 Bash


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Qualities Fast Reaction Time (2)Hard to Kill 5 (3; 2 from Vampire Quality)Vampire (15)

DrawbacksAdversary (Vampires and demons) (4)Honorable (Rigid) (from Vampire Quality)Humorless (1)Obligation (Even score with Slayer) (2)

Skills Acrobatics 3 Art 0 Computers 0Crime 2 Doctor 0 Driving 0 Getting Medieval 8Gun Fu 0Influence 2Knowledge 0Kung Fu 4Languages 3 Mr. Fix-it 0Notice 4Occultism 2Science 0 Sports 0 Wild Card 0

Honorable Vampire Character Type Champion


Background on the Honorable VampireI lived my life with a code of honor. As a duelist, I was among the best living. And therein lies the catch.

I met my better one eve, a bloke who was faster, stronger . . . just better. Moments after I admitted defeat,his brow furrowed and he revealed himself to me. A vampire. My sword came back to my hand too late,and his fangs sank into my throat.

I lived my death with a code of honor. A duelist, I was among the best ever seen. I fought, humiliated, andkilled every swordsman with potential. I hadn’t had a challenge in years. I met my better one eve, a girl whowas faster, stronger . . . just better. Moments after I admitted defeat and prepared for my unlife to end, shechallenged me to do something harder than lose.

She wanted me to live.

My code of honor and my debt to the Slayer are all that separates me from the beasts. I swore I woulddefend her until our score was even, but she has saved me many times since.

Lived by the sword, died by the fang, carried by honor, in debt to the Slayer.

Quote“You just don’t get it, do you? Some things are more important than food.”

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Decapitation 6 24 x5 damage Disarm 9 — Resisted by ParryDodge 13 — Defense actionFeint 8 — Add SLs to

next actionKick 7 14 BashParry 11 — Defense actionStake 11 12 Slash/stab

(Through Heart)8 12 x5 vs vampsSweep Kick 7 6 Knocks target downSword 13 24 Slash/stab


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Qualities Age 3 (6)Contacts (Assorted underworld contacts) (3)Occult Library (Impressive) (3)Vampire (15)

DrawbacksAdversary (Assorted demons) (5)Obsession (Ensuring that the world doesn’t end)

(fromVampire Quality)Paranoid (2)Zealot (Destruction of demon cults) (3)

Skills Acrobatics 0 Art 0 Computers 3 Crime 2 Doctor 2 Driving 1 Getting Medieval 3 Gun Fu 0 Influence 2 Knowledge 0 Kung Fu 2 Languages 5 Mr. Fix-it 0 Notice 5 Occultism 6 Science 0 Sports 0 Wild Card (Demon Cults) 5

Scared Straight Vamp Character Type Hero


Background on the Scared Straight VampBetween you and me, there’s some truly scary things in the world! Sisters of Jhe, Vahrall demons, hell-

goddesses, humans becoming demons, vampires summoning demons, it’s crazy! I’m going about my busi-ness as a self-respecting bloodsucker when some depressed whackjob wants to summon Sarregoth, the VoidBeast of Suffering! Do you realize what that would do? Unleash an emptiness upon the world that wouldkill most people and a lotta vamps, too!

Around the millenium, demon cults really stepped up their rituals, and I was out of allies, since most vam-pires are too scared to even cross an Arakos demon. Top of the food chain my ass. So I turned to Lunchablesfor help. You know, humans. If they weren’t plannin’ to stake me all the time, I might have even been friendswith ‘em. As it is, I did get a good meal outta them. Don’t look at me like that! I gotta have that blood, see.I can’t really fight demons if I’m starvin’ to death, can I? Oh, don’t be so upset, I’m gonna do more goodfor the world than you would. Now hold still, it’ll only sting for a minute.

Quote“Wait . . . who said I was one of the good guys?”

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Axe 9 35 Slash/stab

Decapitation 4 35 x5 damage

Dodge 9 — Defense action

Magic 10 by spell Varies

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Qualities Fast Reaction Time (2)Iron Mind (3) Situation Awareness (2) Vampire (15)

DrawbacksHumorless (1)Mental Problems (Mild Zealot—Taoist) (from Vampire Quality)Minority (1)Outcast (3)Resources (Destitute) (2; 1 from Vampire Quality)Secret (Slaughtered his fellow priests) (3)

Skills Acrobatics 5 Art 0 Computers 0 Crime 0 Doctor 2 Driving 0 Getting Medieval 3 Gun Fu 0 Influence 0 Knowledge 0 Kung Fu 6 Languages 2 Mr. Fix-it 0 Notice 3 Occultism 2 Science 0 Sports 0 Wild Card (Taoism) 6Wild Card (Meditation) 5

Taoist Vampire Character Type Champion


Background on the Taoist VampThe flow of the Tao throughout the universe had unanticipated side effects on my existence. A creature in

the darkness, a moment of extreme violence, and I was forever marked. My first impulse was to revel in therealization of my immortality. My brethren saw what I had become . . . and tried to destroy me.

They were ill prepared for combat.

I partook of their blood. Feasted on their souls. I had achieved the end result of my life’s pursuit: true,walking immortality. Imagine my surprise when I found the Tao refused to allow the demon to control mecompletely. My pleasure replaced with horror, I cried as I tried unsuccessfully to revive my fallen brothers.I cursed myself for my failings and threw myself to the horizon, awaiting my death. And then the demonawoke. My very beliefs failed me! The demon sent us on a bloody course towards a village at the base ofthe mountain from the monastery. I overtook it and slaked its thirst on mountain goats instead. I can hold itin check most of the time. Except when I try to kill it. Someday, my discipline will overwhelm my innatedesire to live forever.

Quote“Be careful what you wish for. You just might live forever.”

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Break Neck 11 20 Bash, must Grapple first

Catch Weapon 8 — Defense action

Dodge 13 — Defense Action

Double Jump Kick 9 18 Hits two targets (see Angel, p.121)

Feint 8 — Adds SLs to next action

Grapple 15 — Resisted by Dodge

Jump Kick 10 18 Bash, special (see Angel, p. 122)

Kick 12 12 Bash

Knockout 11 By move, Knocks halved opponent out

Punch 13 10 Bash

Spin Kick 11 14 Bash

Sweep Kick 12 5 Bash, knockdown

Takedown 11 5 Bash, knockdown

Toss 6 5 Bash, knockdown, must Grapple first

Wall Flip 9 — +3 to defense on this Turn


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The BasicsLost worlds are a classic. This one is a tropical,

prehistoric rainforest hidden in the frozen Antarctic.Dinosaurs abound, ape-like Neanderthals eke out aprimitive existence, and an offshoot of gibbons hasachieved sentience, developing a civilization!

Protagonists are usually explorers, intrepid jour-nalists covering said expedition, or ex-military typeswho have signed on as guards in case of trouble. TheBig Game Hunter (see Terra Primate, p. 76) isappropriate for this setting, though the Apeman (seeTerra Primate, p. 74) would work as well, being thedescendant of an earlier expedition to this hiddenrealm. Sample archetypes at the end of this arti-cleshold inspire ideas for characters.

Adversaries will typically be hungry dinosaurs,Neanderthals, and the gibbons. The priests of theVolcano God will be the fiercest adversaries fromthe gibbons, wanting to sacrifice the protagonists totheir fiery deity!

The ApesThese intelligent apes are an offshoot of the gib-

bon. Their fur is more of a grayish tint than white.They are intelligent and capable of speech. Theyretain some of their animalistic origins. While theywalk upright, they are only partial bipeds. Like otherapes, they cannot swim, and avoid large bodies ofwater whenever possible. They are rational, yet canbecome atavistic at times.

Their civilization consists of one major city locat-ed at the base of a volcano. Parts of the city lay in theside of the volcano. Smaller communities exist;these outposts are walled encampments that have todeal with the dinosaurs and Neanderthals more oftenthan the city must.

The gibbons possess the equivalent of Iron Agetechnology. The nearby mountains are rich in theores needed to make iron, as well as heavily ladenwith gold, silver, and precious gems. They tend touse mud bricks in their buildings, though some stoneand wood is used. They use oil for lamps and such,having a steady source nearby.

Soldiers wear leather-like armor, including leatherheadgear. This armor is usually made from dinosaurhides, and is thus green and scaly looking. Shieldsmade of wicker, with a bronze rim are also used.Officers wear iron helmets. Common arms arespears and clubs. Swords are a recent invention, andmore commonly carried by officers. Bows exist andare used by special troops.

Homes tend to be spacious, with at least one roomhaving a tree in it that stretches outside the roof.Otherwise, the architecture tends to mimic ancienthuman cultures.

Their society is very humanistic, though retainingsimian customs of grooming and intimidation.Monogamous relationships and family units are typ-ical.

The Apes That Time ForgotA Terra Primate Apeworld

by Gerry Saracco

Stevens ran through the thick brush. He still couldn’t believe it. They had come south to investi-gate the disappearance of the Martin & Lewis Expedition. What they found was much worse: A pre-historic rain forest hidden in the middle of the Antarctic. Filled with dinosaurs, even primitivehumans, this place held an even worse secret: intelligent apes that walked and talked! These apes hada civilization and worshipped a volcano. Most of the Expedition had been sacrificed to this so-called“god” the apes worshipped. Stevens’ group had been captured, but they organized a breakout, lead-ing the Neanderthal-like humans in a revolt against their captors. Stevens had seen the rest of histeam killed by guards, but Martin and Lewis had fled with him into the jungle. Martin and Lewis,along with the few Neanderthals who had escaped, were attempting to lead the apes after them, whileStevens headed back to his base camp. He hoped to organize a larger rescue party. He just prayedMartin and Lewis could hold out long enough for him to get his men armed and out to rescue them.If his bearings were right, the base camp was only a day’s travel . . .

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Their religion posits that the volcano near theircity is a god. This god protects them, provideswarmth, and keeps the dinosaurs at bay (mostdinosaurs avoid the volcano, whether out of instinctor fear). The priesthood is a powerful force in thecity, and every so often, they sacrifice capturedNeanderthals to the Volcano God. This, the priestsclaim, keeps the god appeased and the city continuesto thrive.

Neo-Gibbon Quality 4-point Quality

Attributes: Gibbons add +6 to Dexterity, +1 toConstitution, and –1 to Intelligence. These modifierscost six points

Qualities and Drawbacks: Gibbons haveAtavism (–1), Brachiation (+1), Delusions (Phobiaof Drowning) (–2), Negative Buoyancy (–1), andPartial Biped (–1)

Powers: Gibbons add +10 inches to their high-jump, and +10 yards to their broad jumping ability.This costs one point.

Natural Attacks: Gibbons have a natural biteattack that does one point of stabbing damage perlevel of Strength. This costs one point.

Gibbon SoldierSupporting Cast/Adversaries

Strength 3 Constitution 3Dexterity 6 Intelligence 3Perception 2 Willpower 2LPS 34 Spd 18EPS 29 Essence 19Qualities/Drawbacks: Delusion (Prejudice vs.humans) (–3), Military Rank (Private) (–1),Neo-Gibbon (4), Nerves of Steel (3)

Skills: Brawling 2, Climbing 3, Dodge 2, HandWeapon (Stone Club) 2, Hand Weapon (StoneSpear) 2, Intimidation 2, Survival (Jungle) 2

Equipment: Dinosaur Hide Leather Armor andHelmet, Stone Club, Stone Spear

Gibbon PriestAdversaries

Strength 2 Constitution 2Dexterity 6 Intelligence 3Perception 3 Willpower 3LPS 26 Spd 16EPS 26 Essence 29Qualities/Drawbacks: Delusion (Prejudice vs.humans) (–3), Increased Essence Pool +10 (2),Neo-Gibbon (4), Status (Religious Leader) 2(2), Zealot (–3)

Skills: Bureaucracy 3, Climbing 3, Haggling 2,Hand Weapon (Knife) 2, Myth & Legend(Volcano God) 3, Notice 2, Questioning 2,Smooth Talking 2

Equipment: Ceremonial (and Sacrificial)Dagger, Necklace with Volcanic RockMedallion, Robes

The HumansTrue humans are not native to this lost world. The

only human-like inhabitants are the Neanderthals.These people have a more ape-like appearance, andare less civilized than the Gibbons. They wear loin-cloths of animal skin, and carry weapons made ofstone, flint, or wood. They are a hunter-gatherersociety and eat their food raw.

The Neanderthals gather into small tribal unitsmore akin to a clan. An elder leads each tribe. Themen hunt, while the women gather vegetables, raisethe children, make more loincloths, or make replace-ment weapons for the men.

The tribes live in caves, though some have builtcrude huts using wood and mud. Some even have asmall palisade made of wood and mud to preventdinosaurs from just charging into the encampment.


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Neanderthal Quality 5-point Quality

Attributes: Neanderthals add +3 to Strength, and+3 to Constitution. This costs six points.

Qualities and Drawbacks: Neanderthals haveAttractiveness –3 (–3), Hard to Kill 5 (+5), ImpairedSpeech (–1), and Low Intellect (–2)

Powers: Neanderthals have no special powers.

Natural Attacks: Neanderthals do not have anynatural attacks.

Neanderthal TribesmanSupporting Cast

Strength 5 Constitution 5Dexterity 3 Intelligence 2Perception 3 Willpower 2LPS 50 Spd 16EPS 41 Essence 20Qualities/Drawbacks: Neanderthal (5),Resistance (Disease) 3 (3), Status (Neanderthal)–3 (–3)

Skills: Brawling 2, Climbing 2, Dodge 1, HandWeapon (Stone Axe) 1, Hand Weapon (StoneSpear) 2, Intimidation 2, Notice 2, Survival(Jungle) 4

Equipment: Loincloth, Stone Axe, Stone Spear

Stone Age WeaponsNeanderthals use flint and/or stone weapons.

These weapons are not as durable or sharp as stan-dard weapons. The Stone Age Weapons Table detailsthe statistics for these weapons.

Stone Age Weapons TableWeapon Type Damage EV Cost Aval

Axe, Stone* D6(3) x (Strength – 2) 1/1 n/a C

Knife, Stone* D4(2) x (Strength – 2) 1/1 n/a C

Spear, Stone*& D6(3) x (Strength – 1) 2/1 n/a C

Spear Charge, Stone*& D6(3) x (Strength) 2/1 n/a C

* Slashing/stabbing weapon, except penetrating damage is not doubled.

& Weapon may be used two handed, raising the character’s effective strength by one when calculatingdamage.

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LPS 35 Speed 10EPS 23 Essence 15

Qualities/DrawbacksAddiction (Habitual Drinking) (–1)Good Luck 1 (1)Hard to Kill 3 (3)Situational Awareness (2)

Skills Brawling 3Dodge 3 Driving (Car) 2Gambling 4 Guns (Handgun) 3Guns (Rifle) 3Notice 4 Piloting (Blimp) 6

GearBinoculars, Compass, Cold WeatherGear, Flare Gun, .45 Hand Gun with5 Magazines

Personality

I learned to fly blimps during the Great War. Afterthe war, the Professor was looking for a blimp pilot

for an expedition to the Antarctic, I applied forthe job. I had no idea what I was getting myselfinto!

The sea voyage down south was uneventful,until the search plane found a tropical forest inthe middle of the Antarctic! The Professor was

ecstatic. We inflated the blimp and flewin. I was awestruck at the sight of a jun-

gle in the middle of that bleak waste-land.

Things went smoothly for the firsttwo days. Then, some sort of flyingcreatures attacked the blimp. TheProfessor said they were dinosaurs!

We discovered intelligent apesliving in the forest. They walked,talked, and even built a city on the

side of a volcano! The downsidebeing they thought the volcano was a

god. The Professor and some of the oth-ers were captured by the apes.

We’re gonna go in and save theProfessor. If any of them apes get in ourway, well a .45 slug should put them downjust like any other creep.

Quote“I realize those flying lizards are getting

closer! No matter how much you complain,I can’t make this blimp go any faster . . .”

Blimp PilotPre-Heroric Character


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Qualities/DrawbacksAdversary (Rival Explorer) (–3)Contact (South American Archeologist) (3)Hard to Kill 5 (5)Honorable (Mild) (–1)Nerves of Steel (3)Photographic Memory (2)Situational Awareness (2)

Skills Brawling 2 Climbing 3 Dodge 2 Driving 2 Guns (Rifle) 3 Haggling 3 Humanities 4 Language (Spanish) 4Myth & Legend (Inca) 3Myth & Legend (Mayan) 3Notice 3Research/Investigation 4Ride (Sled & Dog Team) 3

GearBackpack, Binoculars, Compass, ColdWeather Gear, Flares (Box of 6),Matches, Rations (2 Weeks Worth),.30-06 Rifle with 200 rounds of ammunition

Personality

I’d done a bit of exploring around South America,with a few trips to the Antarctic. The Professor asked

me to join a search and rescue mission. Wesailed south as far as we could and then sent

out sled teams and an airplane to conductsearches. It took about a week, but wefound the place.

The Professor was elated. I wasenthusiastic, until we saw the flyingreptiles. Gideon confirmed myworst fears when he told the blimppilot that those were indeeddinosaurs. It was a good thing webrought Army veterans along forsecurity. We set the camp upwith no problems.

After we started our search ofthe jungle, it started to get really

hectic. Our guards had to takedown a T-Rex on the third day. Threemen died before we put it down. Twodays later, primitive humans resem-bling Neanderthals attacked us.

We were in over our heads, and Itold the Professor that we needed togo back to the ship to rethink ourplans. He wouldn’t listen. Thedamned fool pressed on in the middleof the night without me. Now, he’sgone and been captured by intelli-gent apes!

Quote“I’ve seen many ruins in my day.

This one, for all appearances, is notMayan. They didn’t build theirhomes around trees.”

ExplorerHeroric Character

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Qualities/DrawbacksAddiction (Habitual Smoking) (–1)Adversary (Rival Reporter) (–1)Contact (Information Broker) (2)Hard to Kill 3 (3)Photographic Memory (2)

Skills Brawling 1Bureaucracy 3 Dodge 2 Driving (Car) 2 Guns (Handgun) 1Haggling 3 Notice 4 Questioning 3Research/Investigation 4Streetwise 3 Writing 4

GearCamera, Cigarettes, ColdWeather Gear, Film, Flares (2),Flash Bulbs, Matches, Notepad,Pen, .32 Revolver with 30rounds

Personality

I covered the Western Front during the Great War.Being around danger like that gives you a buzz.After the war, I covered all the hot spots, hoping for

more excitement.

None of that compares to thisassignment! The Professor was look-

ing for a hidden jungle in the Antarctic.I smelled a big story, so I approached the

Professor about joining his expedition. Hewas reluctant at first. I showed him some of

my war correspondence and that changedhis mind real quick.

It took a long time to get closeenough to find this place. I couldn’tbelieve my eyes, a giant crater contain-ing a tropical forest. We sent searchparties out to look for a base camp. AT-Rex ambushed one of the parties. Isaw the carcass, and it was huge! Itook a picture of it before they carvedit up.

Things got worse a few days later.Men in some kind of scaly armorambushed us. The men turned outto be intelligent, bipedal apes!Most of us were captured, the rest

killed.

Other explorers that the Professorknows are here. They say the apes planto sacrifice us to their volcano god.

Quote“Dinosaurs? Intelligent apes? This is

the story of the century for sure. I guar-antee it!”

Intrepid JournalistPre-Heroric Character


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Qualities/DrawbacksAcute Sense (Vision) (2)Charisma +3 (3)Fast Reaction Time (2)Hard to Kill 5 (5) Honorable (Mild) (–1)Nerves of Steel (3) Reckless (–2)

Skills Brawling 3 Climbing 2 Demolitions 2 Dodge 3 Driving (Car) 3 Guns (Handgun) 2 Guns (Rifle) 3 Guns (Submachine Gun) 4Hand Weapon (Knife) 3Intimidation 3 Language (French) 2Language (German) 2Language (Spanish) 1 Stealth 2 Survival (Forest) 3

GearCold Weather Gear, Thompson SMGwith 5 Magazines, .45 Handgun with 5Magazines

Personality

During the Great War, I fought in the trenches andhated every second of it. Work was hard to find afterthe war. I became a mercenary with my old squad

mates. We fought in conflicts around the globeand made some good money.

We got an offer from some professor need-ing muscle for an expedition. We all thoughtthis was someone’s bad idea of a joke. After

meeting the Professor, we knew it wasn’t. Turns out, there is a hidden

forest in the Antarctic. Since no oneknew what was living there, theyneeded some hired guns just incase. Good thing too, cause noone expected what we found.

Dinosaurs. Living, breathingdinosaurs. We bagged a T-Rexwhen it tried to attack our

search party. Later, one of thesearch parties was attacked by some

sort of intelligent ape! The apes killedsome on sight and stole away with oth-ers.

Now, the pilot wants to take theblimp, fly to this ape city, and rescueeveryone. We’re going to fly in, gunsblazing, and if need be, kill everydamn ape in that city. I just hope Ihave enough bullets.

Quote“I’ve fought petty warlords in

China, and two bit revolutionaries inMexico. You think these talking apesare going to scare me?”

Soldier of FortuneHeroric Character

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Fresh FleshNew Zombies for AFMBE

by Andrew Ferguson

Note: All of these zombies include the basic zombie package (see AFMBE, p. 146).

The Living Dead at theManchester Morgue

Last week, the Ministry of Agriculture inManchester began testing a new method utilizingradiation to terminate pests. The machine alters theresponse of simple nervous systems, causing pests toattack their closest neighbors. Thus far, it has been aroaring success! In fact, the technicians are gearingup to boost the machine’s energy so that it will workup to a five mile radius.

They were unaware of the strange effects thatwould soon begin within one mile of the testingsite. Newly born babies started exhibiting violentresponses to various stimuli. Drunks also began tobecome more agitated. Their nervous systems weremay not be strong enough to fight off the effects ofthe machine.

Of further concern is the blood of the living seemsto cause the dead to return from the grave.

The Living Dead at the Manchester Morgue

Strength 4 Constitution 2Dexterity 2 Intelligence 2Perception 2 Willpower 2DPS 15 Spd 4EPS n/a Essence 14Skills: Brawling 2

Attack: Punch D4 x 4(4)

Weak Spot: Fire [–5]

Getting Around: Life-Like [+3]

Strength: Strong Like Bull [+5]

Senses: Like the Living [+1]

Sustenance: Daily [0], All Flesh Must Be Eaten[0]

Intelligence: Tool Use (Level 1) [+3], LongTerm Memory [+5]

Spreading the Love: Bury the Body [–2] andeither Special (Blood of the Living) [+6] orSpecial (Radiation from the Dept. of AgricultureMachine) [–2]

Power: 21/13

The Vad VelenA most strange creature will come,

From the sea marsh of Rhianedd,

As a punishment of iniquity,

On Maelgwn Gwynedd;

His hair and his teeth,

And his eyes being as gold;

And this will bring destruction

On Maelgwn Gwynedd.

Shortly after Saint Teliavus received the pastoralcare of the Church of Llandaff, on account of a pesti-lence, which nearly destroyed the whole nation, hewas obliged to leave Wales. They named the disease“Yellow Pestilence,” because it made everyone itattacked yellow and bloodless. It appeared to men asa column made from a watery cloud passing over thewhole region. Everything living that it touched withits pestilential breath either died straightaway orbecame sick unto death.

Seemingly this Yellow Pestilence appeared withsome frequency; a vaporous cloud that floated gen-tly down the valleys, descending on St David’s(although the tale is told of in Ireland as well as otherparts of Wales) and rained down upon the populace.All who touched the cloud, or who breathed of it,were struck down by the yellow plague. Theybecome lethargic, sick, and finally turned yellowbefore succumbing to death.

However, what if there was more to it than that. . . ?


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Plague This is a time when buboes herald the coming of

death. Villages close their boundaries to all out-siders, turning away those travelers trapped betweensettlements and raining arrows on messengers whomay carry the black death between towns. TheYellow Pestilence strikes in the valleys of Wales.

The villagers sicken, turning bright yellow in hue,and die, only to rise again as the Yellow Pestilencefeeds them.

Then it clings to them, carried by their dead stepsto another village. And another. And another.

The Vad VelenStrength 2 Constitution 2Dexterity 1 Intelligence –2Perception 2 Willpower 2DPS 25 Spd 4EPS n/a Essence 7Skills: Brawling 2

Attack: Bite damage D4 x 2(4)

Weak Spot: All [0]

Getting Around: Slow and Steady [0]

Strength: Dead Joe Average [0]

Senses: Like the Living [+1], Life Sense [+2]

Sustenance: Who Needs Food? (The Vad Velenreceive their sustenance from the YellowPestilence cloud) [+8]

Intelligence: Dumb As Dead Wood [0]

Spreading the Love: Bury the Body (The airand vapor of the cloud) [–2]

Special: Diseased Corpse [+3]

Power: 17

Granny GreenteethLurking under layers of bilious pond scum and

floating serenely among the pondweed lays GrannyGreenteeth, a children’s folk tale made real. There isnever a stirring on the pond’s surface and animalslong ago stopped drinking from the stagnant water.Something keeps them away.

Sometimes in the summer, when the leaves on thebranches obscure the sickly green waters, the unwarystray too near. A shadow’s movement draws the eyeof the pond witch. With a lightning lunge, an explo-sion of scum and water, the unwitting passer-by isfighting for their life on the now-slick grass . . .

Granny GreenteethStrength 7 Constitution 2Dexterity 1 Intelligence –2Perception 1 Willpower 2DPS 15 Spd 2 (3 Underwater)EPS n/a Essence 6Skills: Brawling 2, Swimming 2

Attack: Bite 6 per Turn

Weak Spot: Spine [+5]

Getting Around: The Lunge [+3], Aquatic [+2]

Strength: Monstrous Strength [+10], Teeth [+4]

Senses: Like the Dead [0]

Sustenance: Occasionally [+2], Blood [–2]

Intelligence: Dumb as Dead Wood [0]

Spreading the Love: One Bite and You’reHooked [+2]

Power: 31

Toolbox Hey you! Hey kid! Get away from there!

Don’t you know not to hang around derelict hous-es? Don’t you watch movies?

I don’t care what you heard. I don’t care what youthought you saw in that shack. You don’t wanna behanging around here.

Why not? Why not? I’ll tell you why not.

A kid died there, that’s why. Not much older thanyou. That’s why no one lives here. The family movedaway years ago, claiming the place is haunted.

Killed by his friends he was. Nobody knows why.

First anyone knew about it was when he finallystaggered out of that there shack.

According to folk around here he was bristling;screwdrivers had been driven into his chest and back,

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his arms and legs, as had nails and screws of alllengths and sizes. Saw blades were stuck in the meatof his muscles and a claw hammer embedded in hisskull. There wasn’t a bit of him that hadn’t been tor-tured, not a bit of him that his friends had not tried tokill. Wire had been wrapped around his face and skinhad been torn away with gardening tools or burnedwith chemicals. He emerged out of the shack glitter-ing with shards of metal and glass, trailing bloodbehind him. The most he managed was a wet, rattlinggasp before he collapsed to the ground.

See, the story goes that boy, he still walks theearth, looking for revenge or something. He comesfrom that very shack at midnight looking for thosethat have intruded on his peace and gives them a tasteof what he received. He takes the tools from his owntortured body, the hammer and the screwdrivers, thenails and shears and he goes to work on them.

ToolboxStrength 2 Constitution 2Dexterity 1 Intelligence 1Perception 1 Willpower 2DPS 15 Spd 2 EPS n/a Essence 6Skills: Brawling 2

Attack: Bite D4 x 2(4)

Weak Spot: Heart [+7]

Getting Around: Slow and Steady [0]


Senses: Like the Dead [0]

Sustenance: Occasionally [+2], All Flesh MustBe Eaten [0]

Intelligence: Tool Use (Level 1) [+3]

Spreading the Love: Only the Dead [–2]

Power: 17

AigaumchaIn the tropical forests of Africa, the great rivers

wind their way under the blanketing darkness of thecanopy. It is easy for a traveler to become lost in themenacing murk, pushing their way through stems,roots, and leaves, disoriented by the constant shriek

and cry, rustle and snap of the hidden creatures thatsurround them.

Ever alert, a traveler may well sigh with reliefwhen they arrive at a clearing or find themselves atthe bank of a river, a place of rest. Here the sun canfinally break through, affording an opportunity totake bearings or set a course.

Yet, safety is an illusion in the realm of the jungle.

When all falls silent, when the jungle holds itsbreath to await the fate of one of its own, it is timeto feel fear.

Real horror comes not from the large creaturesone runs to avoid, but at the sudden strike of theunseen predator.

For the traveler is not alone. The Aigaumchawatch.

Tiny monsters with eyes on their feet watch fromthe branches. They watch from among the rotten veg-etation carpeting the forest floor. The creatures of thewild fear them not, for only one thing sates theappetite of this unseen creature. Human flesh.

AigaumchaStrength 1 Constitution 2Dexterity 2 Intelligence 0Perception 2 Willpower 2DPS 22 Spd 8

(3 underwater, 1 climbing)EPS 18 Essence 9Skills: Swimming 2, Climbing 2

Attack: Bite D4(2)

Weak Spot: All [0]

Getting Around: Life Like [+3], Leaping [+3],Aquatic [+2], Climbing [+2]

Strength: Ninety Pound Weakling [–3], Teeth

Senses: Like the Living [+1]

Sustenance: Occasionally [+2], All Flesh MustBe Eaten [0]

Intelligence: Animal Cunning (Level 1) [+2]

Spreading the Love: n/a

Power: 17


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Dead Ops is an All Flesh Must Be Eaten adven-ture, ideal as either a “one-shot” convention demo oras the basis for a longer All Flesh Must Be Eatencampaign. Although the nature of the scenario doescall for advanced rules involving gunfights, theUnisystem game mechanics make it easy for playersto quickly understand the rules.

This adventure is dedicated to Jeff, Dave, John,Jim, Big Daddy Thwak, and all of the men andwomen in the U.S. Armed Forces who have fought,and often times died, defending their country.

Part One: Adventure Overview

HistoryFor decades, U.S. scientists have been developing

biological warfare projects for the military. One ofthe scientists, Dr. Alfred Bergman, came from apharmaceutical company where he was working ongene-therapy drugs to promote longevity. Dr.Bergman was never able to keep human tissue fromdeteriorating, but he did discover a method to revivecells after they had “died.” As he worked, the ideastruck him to mix his two areas of research together,creating a virus that thrived in a human corpse, re-animated the body’s cells, and restored basic brainfunctions. These “infected cadavers” would then bea drain on the resources of any enemy they encoun-tered.

The Pentagon, realizing the power of this newweapon, increased the program’s funding. At thesame time, officials deemed that this project shouldbe carried out with the utmost secrecy. A press leakabout the disease would be a political nightmare. Forthis reason, all testing would occur off U.S. soil.

Conveniently, the U.S. government had been pro-viding funding and aid in the form of military advi-sors to the nation of Colombia. With all of the clan-destine U.S. military operations in the region, it wasa simple thing to move the zombie project (or DeadOps, as it was now being called), to a U.S.-friendlyColombian base.

A growing faction of communist guerillas inColombia, called Fuerez Armadas Revolucionarias deColombia, or FARC, has recently been stepping up itsattacks against the Colombian government. Usingmoney taken from Colombia’s notorious drug cartels,they have acquired an impressive and deadly arse-nal—which they are now using to drive their offen-sive toward the research base used by the Americans.

Current EventsNinety-six hours ago, during the final testing stage

for the biological agent, the Pentagon lost all contactwith the research base. The military believes that theFARC has overrun the base and taken the scientistscaptive. In reality, the scientists, rushing to finish thetesting of the disease before the FARC arrived, hada major outbreak in one of the labs. They decided tosalvage what they could by immediately transport-ing it to the closest safe area.

Unfortunately, the nearest “safe area” was also thehome base of a particularly ruthless group of SouthAfrican mercenaries, hired by British Petroleum toguard their oil-producing facilities. They were quitesurprised to see the U.S. scientists emerge from thejungle. After learning of the scientists’ work, themercenaries quickly imprisoned them and forcedthem to begin producing more of the virus. TheSouth Africans wanted this weapon for themselves.

In order to find out what has happened to the proj-ect, the U.S. Army has decided to send in a Rangerteam. Its mission is to enter the original base andbring the U.S. personnel to a safe extraction point.

The AdventureThe Cast Members learn that the Army has lost

contact with a base in Columbia containing U.S.military advisors. They jump into the jungle by hel-icopter, twelve miles from the base. After makingtheir way through the brush, they find the basedeserted and crawling with zombies.

While the Cast Members are trying to figure outwhat’s going on, a company of FARC rebels attacksthe base. After capturing the Cast Members andlearning about the zombie threat, they offer the Cast

Dead OpsA Scenario for AFMBE

by James Wilber

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Members a deal. The FARC knows that in a nearbybase, the South African mercenaries have beenrounding up civilians from villages that are loyal tothe FARC. They also know that the South Africanshave imprisoned the U.S. scientists. If the CastMembers agree, the FARC will lead a raid againstthe base, distracting the bulk of the South Africanforces, while the Cast Members rescue the scientistsand civilians.

During the raid, the Cast Members learn that theSouth Africans have already created a zombie army,which is now loose and spreading the disease acrossthe countryside.

What Kind of Zombies AreThese?

The zombies are the result of an airborne diseasethat alters the genetic pattern in the cells of humancadavers, causing the cells to re-activate, and restor-ing rudimentary instinct and brain function. So far,the virus in airborne form is not strong enough toovercome the living human immune system.Recently however, the scientists have learned thatafter the virus has incubated within a host cadaver, itmutates into a form that not only is communicablethrough saliva, but also is strong enough to kill ahuman being within hours.

The activated cadaver still needs its primary nerv-ous system to function. Any physical damage thatdestroys the brain or severs the brain from the rest ofthe body destroys the zombie.

Dead Ops ZombieStrength 2 Constitution 2Dexterity 1 Intelligence –2Perception 1 Willpower 2DPS 26 Spd 2EPS n/a Essence 6Skills: Brawling 2

Attack: Bite D4 x 2(4)

Weak Spot: Brain [+6]

Getting Around: Slow and Steady [0], The Lunge [+3]


Senses: Like the Dead [0], Life Sense [1]

Sustenance: Who Needs Food? [+8], All FleshMust Be Eaten [0]

Intelligence: Dumb as Dead Wood [0]

Spreading the Love: One Bite and You’reHooked [+2]

Power: 20

To make things simple on the ZM, anyonebitten by a Dead Ops zombie simply hasConstitution x 3 hours to live. Of course, do nottell the player exactly how long their characterhas. Simply describe the effect of the disease:fever, uncontrollable twitching (feel free toassign penalties to any Dexterity-relatedactions), hunger pangs, and yet, the victim feelsstronger than they ever have before (no trueincrease to Strength).


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Part Two: Advice for Zombie Masters

Dead Ops is a militaristic thriller, in the traditionof such great authors as Tom Clancy and LarryBond. Like other stories in the genre, it includes ahealthy dose of true-to-life politics, situations, andmilitary procedures, with a nice fictional twist. Eventhough the zombie twist in Dead Ops is a bit morescience fiction than most, the conventions of thegenre remain the same.

One of those conventions is that the heroes inthese stories are often the consummate profession-als, usually intelligence agents or military personnel.Dead Ops was designed for all of the heroes to beU.S. Army Rangers Cast Members, but unless theplayers have had a good dose of high-level militarytraining, or have done a lot of research on the sub-ject, the players will not act like real U.S. Rangers.In this case, it’s up to the ZM to help the players withinformation and procedures their characters wouldknow. Even if the ZM doesn’t quite know the prop-er procedure himself, assume that the charactersknow the best way to operate in these conditions.

Example: When opening the door to a buildingfilled with enemy soldiers, a Ranger would know theproper procedure—one man opens the door, onecovers, one throws a grenade. If the players do notknow this, they may get themselves into all sorts oftrouble, while in truth, their characters should knowwhat to do.

This is especially true when running this adventurein a convention-demo setting. Not only are the playersunfamiliar with their roles, they are unfamiliar with thegame system. As any good ZM knows, the Unisystemis particularly unforgiving when it comes to combat,especially firefights. If the characters get involved in aprolonged gunfight, chances are good they will all die.It’s only fair to warn them, loudly and repeatedly at thestart of the adventure, that this is the case.

With this in mind, be forewarned that Dead Ops isdesigned to kill at least a couple of the characters.It’s the “nature of the beast”—there is simply no bet-ter way to instill a sense of horror than death. ZMswill find, however, that most players do not mind iftheir character dies, as long as the player knows itwas because of a mistake they made.

The worst mistake that the players can make inthis adventure comes at the point when the FARCrebels attack the research base. The FARC companyoutmans and outguns the characters. If they decideto push an attack against the FARC, they will prob-ably all die. It is up to the ZM to convey the hope-lessness of the situation, and the wisdom of negoti-ating with the FARC. Most roleplayers are used toheroic roleplaying, not survival roleplaying—nego-tiation is not a part of their vocabulary. It’s up to theZM to discourage this tendency, but if they stillinsist on pushing an attack, let the chips fall wherethey may.

Part Three: Cast Members

For those folks not overly keen on a strictly mili-tary approach, other ideas for Cast Member teamsinclude:

• CIA Operatives—Spying is not all the CIA han-dles. The ZM may decide that this situationneeds the love and caring of a stealthy unit fromthe Company.

• Mercenary Unit—The U.S. government hasdecided the situation is too hot to handle withofficial troops. The players represent a unit ofmercenaries hired to tackle the situation.

• Special Operations Command Team—Not onlydo the U.S. Rangers have the ability to handlethis situation, but so would a combined unit ofU.S. Rangers, Delta Force, SEALs, and MarineRecon Force members.

Player Handout One is useful as a player refer-ence, no matter what kind of team the players arerunning.

Whether this becomes a game of military “Joes,”spies, or mercs, the following personnel are recom-mended for a team: a radio/computer expert, a dem-olitions expert, a vehicle mechanic/driver, a medic,and a heavy machine gunner. Teams should alsohave members who are fluent in the local language.

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New Rules

New QualitiesIf the characters are Rangers or other U.S. military

personnel, they should have some level of theMilitary Rank Quality. This is simply a generic indi-cator of their rank within the Army or other armedservice, and is the same Military Rank Quality pre-sented in other Unisystem books. Military Rankranges from –1 to +9 and costs one point per level.

Rank Level Description

–1 Private Soldier, Seaman

0 Corporal

1 Sergeant

2 Sergeant First Class

3 Lieutenant

4 Captain

5 Major

6 Lieutenant Colonel

7 Colonel

8 Major General

9 General

A brand new Quality is Highly Skilled. It allows acharacter to trade one point in Qualities for threeskill points. This Quality represents excess amountsof training many people receive in school and themilitary. Highly Skilled costs one point per level.

New SkillThe skill Guns (Missile Launcher) covers the use

of shoulder-launched artillery such as the LAW orthe Stinger. Chroniclers are free to disallow otherGuns Type skills to be used as a default or toincrease the penalty for such alternative use.

New WeaponsWeapons used in Dead Ops include concussion

grenades, Claymore mines, rocket-propelledgrenades, and other light anti-tank weapons. Moreweapon descriptions and stats are available inArmageddon, Eden Studios’ RPG of myth and war.

Concussion grenades stun opponents and are use-ful in areas where it is hard to distinguish friendfrom foe. Anyone within one yard of the grenade’sdetonation must make a Difficult Constitution Testwith a –3 penalty to the roll. Those within two yardsof the grenade must make a Difficult ConstitutionTest with a –1 penalty to the roll. Those within fiveyards make a Simple Constitution Test with a +1bonus to the roll. Failure to pass any of these testsresults in the character suffering a –2 (stunned) mod-ifier to all actions for five Turns. In addition, thecharacter also takes Bashing damage (see p. 54).

Claymore mines are anti-personnel shrapneldevices, designed to be detonated by remote control.Typically, a soldier places the mine under light coverand a wire connected to the detonation switch trailsback to a secure position. When an enemy approach-es, the soldier detonates the mine.

Both rocket-propelled grenades and other lightanti-tank rocket launchers are shoulder-fired rockets.Some rocket-propelled grenades may be reloaded,although LAW rocket launchers may not. Both ofthese weapons operate on a “fire and forget” basis.You aim and shoot, hoping to hit. There is no wire-guided, laser-guided, or heat-seeking equipment onthese weapons.

Part Four: More Than Just a Job. . .

What’s Going On?The adventure starts quite suddenly for the Cast

Members. They are aboard an Army transport planethat is re-routed to Ft. Sheridan in Panama. Once inPanama, they are stripped of their dog tags and iden-tifying insignias. The squad leader receives theirorders: enter a U.S. base in Colombia, find any sur-vivors, and escort them to an extraction point. Not adifficult or politically sensitive mission, so why treatit as a black op?

Setting the SceneThe Cast Members are simply going to Ft. Hood in

Texas to help train the recon division stationed there.They are aboard a typically uncomfortable Armytransport. Since the characters are all part of the sameunit, they know each other fairly well. Have everyone


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give a brief description of their character, with what-ever details that they believe the others might knowabout them. Give them a few minutes to roleplayamong themselves before starting the adventure.

Tell the StoryAfter everyone has gotten comfortable, read aloud

the following:

[READ ALOUD TO PLAYERS]

The plane finally comes to a halt on the run-way. You start picking up your gear and stretch-ing, glad to be on the ground again. You waitimpatiently for the pilot to open the hatch, won-dering what is taking him so long. After a goodtwenty minutes, the pilot’s voice comes over theintercom.

“Sorry gentlemen, I’m afraid you’re not get-ting off here.” He pauses, sounding puzzled. “Ihave been given orders to fly you directly to Ft.Sheridan in Panama. The boys on the groundare refueling us right now, so you might as wellrelax, it’s going to be a long ride.”

The characters are free to question the pilots ifthey wish. The pilots only know that they wereordered to fly to Panama, allowing no one disembarkfrom the plane until they reach their destination.

After the characters have had enough time to won-der about their predicament, read the following:


The flight to Panama is torturous. Everyoneseems lost in thought, thinking about what maylie ahead. The plane lands in the early morninglight, the touchdown jarring you back to yoursenses. The door opens and standing behind it isan impressive man in full dress uniform; per-fectly pressed coat and pants, medals on hischest in perfect rows. He takes three rigid stepsforward and puffs out his chest. You salute bypure instinct. He salutes back, his grim expres-sion never changing, his eyes undetectablebehind mirrored sunglasses. A secretary, asharply dressed corporal, follows him with aclip board under his arm.

“Good morning gentlemen, I am Colonel

New Weapons Table

Explosive Damage Weapon Type Ground Zero General Effect Maximum Range

Claymore Mine D8 x 10(40) D8 x 6(24) D8 x 2(8)

Concussion Grenade D6 x 6(18) D6 x 2(6) D4 x 2(4)

LAW/RPG D10 x 10(50) D10 x 6(30) D10 x 2(10)

Explosive Area of Effect Explosive Type Ground Zero General Effect Maximum Range

Claymore Mine 5 yards 12 yards 40 yards

Concussion Grenade 1 yards 2 yards 5 yards

LAW/RPG 1 yards 2 yards 5 yards

Explosive Weapon Table Weapon Range EV

Claymore Mine n/a 4/2

Concussion Grenade Thrown 1/1

LAW/RPG 20/200/400/600/1000 25/12

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Jurkat.” He pauses, studying your faces. “We have alittle situation on our hands down in Colombia andI think you boys can give us a hand with it.”

“First,” he pauses and motions for his secretaryto step forward, “I need you to surrender your dogtags and any other identification you are carrying.”

You try not to let your expression change as theorder sinks in: this is a black op, and you are nowofficially in deep shit.

The secretary takes your dog tags with analmost gleeful expression on his face.

“There is a helicopter waiting for you outside,gentlemen, with the gear you will need for this mis-sion.” The colonel looks at the Cast Member incharge and says, “Come with me.” He motions forthe team leader to join him as the others disembark.

The colonel is only going to give the orders for themission to the team leader. The ZM should pull theplayer aside and relate this information in private. Itis up to the player how much information he wantsto relate to the others.

[READ ALOUD TO PARTY LEADER]

The colonel’s commanding voice lowers.“This is our situation. As you know, the U.S.Armed Forces have been supplying our friendsin Colombia with arms and military advisors, tohelp them in their fight against the drug cartelsand a communist insurgent group known as theFARC.”

He pulls out a map to help illustrate the con-versation.

“Twenty-four hours ago, we lost contact withone of the bases we are using in Colombia tohelp train their military. We are unsure whathappened to them, but we do know that FARChas started a major offensive in the region. TheFARC may have overrun the base.”

“You are to drop by helicopter here,” hepoints at the map, “approximately twelve milessouth of the base, in order to avoid enemy

surveillance. You will make your way to thebase and determine the situation there. In theevent that any of our personnel are still present,you will escort them to the extraction point,here.” He points at a place about twelve milesnorth of the base. “You will radio for a pick up,and we will take you out by helicopter.”

“Do you have any questions?”

Let the team leader ask as many questions as helikes, until it gets annoying. The colonel does notknow much more than he has already stated. Hewarns that the FARC is well armed and well trained.He suggests that the team should not engage theFARC, if possible—however, they are authorized touse any means necessary to defend themselves.

With the orders given, the characters don new jun-gle BDUs bearing no insignias, gather any gearnoted on their character sheets, and retrieve maps ofthe locations they will need. Then, it’s time foranother long ride.

Part Five: Base One

What’s Going On? The adventure becomes location-oriented as the

Cast Members explore the abandoned base. Contactwith the zombies is inevitable and there is a chancethat one or more of the characters will becomeinfected. When the ZM believes that the charactershave learned enough, the FARC attacks the base,and captures the PCs.

Setting the SceneThe helicopter drops the Cast Members into the

jungle during the pre-dawn hours. After an unevent-ful trek, they arrive at their destination around noon.Even from a distance, they can tell something iswrong. A thorough search of the base will reveal whatis going on.

If at any time the Cast Members communicate viaradio with their command and mention the words“zombie” or “walking dead,” command severs radiocontact. The Army will not risk a security leak ofany kind. If the characters do this, they are on theirown; no one will be coming to lift them out.


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Tell the Story


The ride in is always the hardest part. Thereis a sense of helplessness. You can do nothing tomake sure that no one shoots your whirly-birdout of the sky. As is customary, you sit on yourhelmets for the entire trip. Not exactly comfort-able, but no really believes that the armor plat-ing on the underbelly of a helicopter is going tostop anything.

The drop goes by the book, 90 feet down to thejungle below. You account for your gear andmake your way through the dark jungle. Strangesounds and uneven terrain keep you on your toesfor the entire trip. By lunchtime, you are standingon a hill, overlooking the base. It looks like astandard Army base: a tall chain link fencetopped with barbed wire surrounds several con-crete block buildings. One “bird’s nest” guardtower stands at each corner. A quick scan throughyour binoculars tells you something is amiss.

Your first clue that the base is empty is that noflag flies from the pool. No one is moving, andno vehicles are present. Between two of thebuildings lies what appears to be a body,dressed in a hospital gown.

Give the players their copy of the Base One map.On the players’ map, certain buildings are unlabeled;this is because their function is not immediatelyapparent. The X marks the location of the corpse,which is visible from their vantage point. The labs,the test subject holding and the armory have no win-dows. The door to Lab Two is open, swinging in thebreeze. Approaching the base is easy. The gate islocked, but the characters can easily cut a waythrough the fence.

The first thing they probably do is check out thecorpse. The corpse is a zombie, escaped from LabTwo. It has simply deactivated, due to the lack ofhuman presence, but it rises and attack as the charac-ters approach. The zombie has been lying out in thesun for some time now. Some of its internal organswere removed for experimentation (not immediatelyapparent under the gown). Be certain to describe thezombie’s horrific appearance and stench as it attacks.

Check Point (a): This building monitors traffic toand from the base. The only thing of interest is aduty log containing an endless list of times and vehi-cle numbers. Most are supply trucks or vehicles car-rying petty officers. The scientists were not permit-ted to go off-base.

Guard Towers (1): The towers are 20 feet tall,and completely empty. Apply bonuses and penaltiesas are appropriate if any of the characters end upshooting from one of the towers.

Barracks (3): These are standard military bar-racks, capable of housing about 150 soldiers. Thesecond floor contains a mess hall and recreationarea. They are completely empty, except for a fewminor personal items left behind. The items leftbehind indicate that the soldiers were probablyColombian.

Lab One (4): The ZM should run the search ofthis building room by room. The Cast Membersshould be puzzled as to why this facility is here. Thelocked doors are made of solid metal, but the charac-ters may force them open with great effort. Two zom-bies have broken free of their restraints and are wan-dering the building. They cannot enter any of thelocked rooms unless someone opens the door.

Operating Rooms: Each of these small operatingtheaters contain an operating table and basic equip-ment. Zombies are strapped to the tables markedwith an X. Buckets of visceral matter are in each ofthe rooms.

Consulting Room: A basic meeting room, therenothing of interest here.

Lab/Staff: A laboratory used to synthesize thevirus. Some notes are here. Characters with limitedmedical knowledge could guess that a virus was indevelopment here. This is a Very Difficult Task (–4),using the Medicine Skill.

Break Room: This room contains vendingmachines, a microwave, and chairs.

Storage: Various advanced medical supplies,including canisters of the virus, kept in an electron-ic, refrigerated safe. Breaking into the safe is almostimpossible. It is a Heroic Task (–8), using theComputer Hacking or Electronics Skill. The use ofexplosives to enter the safe would be much easierbut would also destroy (or release) the contents.

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Computer Lab: This is where the characters canfind the most information. The scientists, not beingmilitary men, were a bit lax in security and forgot todestroy the computer files before the evacuation.Getting into the system is a Difficult Task (–2). Athorough search of the system takes three hours. Inthat time, the characters can find the entire history,purpose and execution of project Dead Ops. Thesefiles include military orders, scientific data, and videofootage of tests. The last video file on record showsthe zombie break out. The video shows a group ofthree scientists performing an operation on a zombieas it tries to break free from its bonds. The zombiemanages to slip through the restraints and bites two ofthe scientists before someone shuts the camera off.One of the memos on the computer (see PlayerHandout Two) contains the order to evacuate thebase, but does not reveal their destination.

Transporting the discovered information could bedifficult. They could simply throw a few of the per-tinent documents (but not the videos) onto floppydisks. Floppy disks, being notoriously fragile, maynot survive the trip home. The players could alsotake the hard drive from the main server. This is anAverage Task (+1), using the Computers Skill. Thisallows them to keep more information, though themedium is still likely to break under heavy stress(such as combat).

Test Subject Holding (5): This simple buildingcontains a few jail cells and a duty station. Prisoners,most of them detained FARC members, were some-times held here and used for experimentation. A logof prisoners “used” is present. Some twenty-fivepeople have been through the process. The remain-ing prisoners were moved during the evacuation.

Lab Two (6): This building should also besearched room by room. The construction of thisbuilding is the same as the first lab with one notice-able exception. It is plainly visible from the outsidethat one of the rooms has a large refrigeration unit.The vents for the unit are visible and audible, quiet-ly humming on the south side of the building.

Computer Lab: There are five computers here.Someone deleted all of the files on this system.

Lab/Drugs: Some medical supplies can bescrounged here, nothing else of interest.

Exam Rooms: These rooms look almost like thetypical doctor’s office examination rooms, except allhave manacles installed on the walls. The examrooms marked with an X have zombies chained tothe wall.

Exam & Procedure: This room is like the otherexam rooms, just a bit larger. The three zombies inthis room have managed to escape their bonds. Theyshould not be too much of a challenge for our braveRangers.

Observation Room: This room contains videoequipment and a two-way mirror on the wall thatadjoins the Zombie Storage room. The zombie roomilluminates when the light switches are turned to the“on” position. The twenty zombies in storage willrise from the ground and started beating on the wallsand the door. One might even start banging on themirror, though they cannot see through the glass ontheir side, the zombies simply know that when thelight turns on, humans are near.

Zombie Storage: The door is reinforced. Thisroom is refrigerated and twenty zombies lay aboutthe room. Woe to the Ranger team that opens thisdoor before looking in the observation room. Thefight should not be too bad, as long as the charactersfall back and shoot from a distance. A few of thezombies might not cooperate though, and theRangers will need to hunt them down at close range.

Long House (7): This spartan housing unit held theU.S. scientists. It is mostly empty now, except for afew personal belongings. In one of the rooms, there isa laptop computer. They wiped the computer’s harddrive, but forgot the floppy disk remaining in thedrive. This disk contains one small file, a daily journalentry of one the scientists. See Player Handout Three.

Officer’s Quarters (8): These are small ranch-style houses, split into two apartments each.Personal items left behind indicate that the inhabi-tants were probably American.

Armory (9): The metal door to this small win-dowless building is reinforced. The Columbian sol-diers were about as good at following orders as thescientists. All of the rifles are gone, but two cases of5.56 mm ball ammunition (2400 rounds) and a caseof offensive grenades (24) remain.


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Part Six: Enter, the FARC

What’s Going On? The FARC rebels, sick of having a U.S. presence in

the region, attack the base that the characters areexploring. They are unaware that the original inhabi-tants of the base have already left. As stated, this is acritical point in the adventure. If the Rangers decideon a head-on assault, they are most certainly doomed.

Setting the Scene The beginning of this phase of the adventure is all

a matter of timing on the part of the ZM. It is sug-gested that the attack begin while the Cast Membersare searching one of the buildings, perhaps after theyhave finished searching the computer system.

The FARC attacks with seventy-five soldiers.Twenty-five of them are hiding in the tree line allaround the base to prevent a retreat. The attackbegins with the FARC mortar shelling the baseindiscriminately. They are aiming for the guard tow-ers but they are not very accurate. A few of the shellsmay hit the characters’ building. This will not hurtthem, but it should shake them up a little. After acouple of minutes of shelling, the FARC realize thatno one is returning fire. The remaining fifty soldiersdrive through the front gate, using old military per-sonnel carriers and surprisingly new AmericanSUVs. They search the entire base in groups of five.One member of each group will have an RPGlauncher with three rockets.

Tell the Story While the characters are wrapping up their search,

begin describing the FARC attack. Ranger charac-ters understand quickly that they are not under directfire, but things could get ugly quickly. If the charac-ters do not rush out to greet their guests, they have alittle extra time to determine their course of action.Things should progress quickly though, do not givethem time to form complex plans. Make it clear thatrunning is not a good option, either.

The FARC accept any honorable surrender. Thismeans that a character must present himself withouta weapon, in a non-threatening manner, and followall instructions given by their captors (which proba-

bly include “hands on your head,” “get down on theground,” in English and Spanish).

If the characters decide to resist, the situation goesfrom bad to worse. The Rangers are quite capable oftaking out a good number of the FARC, but they willlose in the end. If the characters take a defensive posi-tion, the FARC go in after them. After losing morethan three soldiers, they simply sit back and blast theCast Members’ building with rockets and grenades.

Average FARC SoldierStrength 2 Constitution 2Dexterity 2 Intelligence 2Perception 2 Willpower 2LPS 26 Spd 8EPS 23 Essence 12 Skills: Brawling 2, Demolitions 2, Dodge 2,Driving (Truck) 1, First Aid 1, Guns (AssaultRifle) 2, Guns (Missile Launcher) 2, Stealth 2,Survival (Jungle) 2, Swimming 2, Throwing(Grenade) 2

Gear: Assault Rifle with 3 Magazines, 3Offensive Grenades. One in five FARC mem-bers will be carrying a rocket propelled grenadelauncher (RPG) with 3 rockets.

FARC Commander Christian FloresStrength 2 Constitution 3Dexterity 4 Intelligence 4Perception 4 Willpower 4LPS 60 Spd 14EPS 32 Essence 21Skills: B

Qualities: Charisma 2, Hard To Kill 5, Nervesof Steel 2, Situational Awareness 2

Skills: Brawling 2, Demolitions 2, Dodge 4,Driving (Truck) 1, First Aid 3, Guns (AssaultRifle) 5, Guns (Handgun) 4, Guns (MissileLauncher) 2, Intimidation 3, Stealth 2,Surveillance 4, Survival (Jungle) 2, Swimming 2.

Gear: Assault Rifle with 3 Magazines,Handgun with 3 Magazines

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Commander Flores sees himself as a modern-dayRobin Hood. He is self-sure and smooth. Educatedin the U.S., his English is flawless and only slightlyaccented. He is in control of any situation andalways has a smile on his face.

After things calm down Commander Flores has achat with the Rangers. He is perplexed that the baseis empty and is curious about what is going on there.This will be a good roleplaying moment. The bestthing that the characters can do is show the FARCproof of the zombies. This will make them angry atfirst, especially since their own people are part of theexperiment. As long as the characters make it clearthat they find the zombie experiments reprehensiblethemselves, the FARC commander does not threatento kill them. When the dead walk, strange bedfel-lows are made.

Commander Flores finds the Ranger’s predica-ment rather amusing and wants to use it for his owngain. The rebels were about to attack another basewhere they know more of their people are prisoner.They also know that the next base is the home ofSouth African mercenaries: a very deadly crew whoare more than likely to give them a bit of trouble.The FARC commander’s plan is simple: the FARCwill shell the base, drawing out the mass of regularColombian Army troops that are stationed there. TheRangers will go in, eliminate the South Africans, andrescue the prisoners. As added incentive, the com-mander explains that the South African’s base is theclosest “friendly” shelter in the area—if the U.S. sci-entists went anywhere, it was probably there.

After this touching scene of camaraderie, startquickly with the next phase of the adventure.

Part Seven: Base Two

What’s Going On? The Rangers join with the FARC to stop the

spread of the zombies. The South African mercenar-ies are determined to keep the scientists and are forc-ing them to produce more of the zombie disease.This is the final shoot-out. Of course, there will be afew surprises, like lots and lots of zombies. This isAll Flesh Must Be Eaten, after all!

Setting the SceneIf the Rangers ran early and fast, and managed by

some miracle to escape the FARC, they are on theirown. That is okay; just drop some clues that leadthem to the second base. Things are a lot more diffi-cult without the FARC. They have to contend withall of the Colombian soldiers at the base and themercenaries. Players may attempt to negotiate withthe mercenaries, but this is a bad idea. The SouthAfricans consider anyone with knowledge of the sci-entist’s whereabouts a threat; they shoot to kill.

If the characters are with the FARC, CommanderFlores invites them to watch an amusing show ofColombian Army predictability. The FARC start fir-ing mortars at the base, and sure enough, theColombian soldiers come out of the base to attack.The FARC then lead them on a merry chase throughthe jungle, giving the Rangers time to rescue theFARC prisoners and the scientists.

Things are not all that easy: there are still twelvewell-trained South African mercenaries guarding thebase and a handful of Colombian soldiers. For theColombians, use the same stats as the AverageFARC soldier.

Average South African MercenaryStrength 2 Constitution 3Dexterity 3 Intelligence 2Perception 3 Willpower 3LPS 30 Spd 12EPS 29 Essence 16 Skills: Brawling 3, Demolitions 2, Dodge 2,Driving (Truck) 3, First Aid 1, Guns (AssaultRifle) 3, Stealth 2, Surveillance 3, Survival (Jungle) 2, Swimming 2, Throwing(Grenade) 3.

Gear: Assault Rifle with 5 Magazines,Handgun with 5 Magazines, 3 OffensiveGrenades. One in five mercenaries carries arocket-propelled grenade launcher (RPG) with3 rockets.


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Tell the Story After all the roleplaying is through and the char-

acters have decided on a course of action, read thefollowing.


The FARC load you into one of their newSUVs, bought with drug money no doubt (amore expensive vehicle than you could everafford). Your driver is a small, skinny boy whocouldn’t be older than sixteen, wearing a redbandana, a dirty yellow t-shirt with a faded pic-ture of Guy Cheguevara. He immediately cranksup the AC and starts blasting AC/DC’s“Highway to Hell” on the stereo. He looks backat you and gives you a huge shit-eating grin.

You fly down rutted jungle roads, bouncingout of your seats the entire way. After a coupleof hours the FARC caravan comes to a quickstop and the soldiers pile out. CommanderFlores walks up and salutes you.

“The prisoners are being held at a facility ahalf-mile north of here. There are some one-hundred Colombian Army there, but do notworry, my men and I will cause a little diver-sion.” He smiles when he says this.

“You should take up positions so that you canwatch the base. When they leave to give chase,make your move. I trust you know what you aredoing—you are Rangers, after all.” He flasheshis devilish grin again. “Yes, I know you areRangers, I myself trained at your School of theAmericas, and made many friends there.” Hepauses and takes a more serious tone, “Goodluck.” He salutes you again, and then starts giv-ing orders to his men.

It is a short hike to the base, which is crawl-ing with Colombian soldiers. You have no timeto assess the situation. As soon as you take yourposition, the familiar whistle of mortar shellscatches your attention. Shells land randomlyaround the base. Just like clockwork, theColombians scramble, loading into personnelcarriers and tearing off into the jungle.

You hear sporadic automatic fire coming fromthe jungle behind you, as the Colombians chasethe FARC. Soon, everything goes quiet. You cansee that they left a skeleton crew, a few men inthe watchtowers, but that is about it.

The characters may now start their rescue attempt.They can see that there are still two Colombian sol-diers in each watchtower. These soldiers will see thecharacters as soon as they break from the jungle(about 50 feet from the base) and open fire. Thecharacters should make a coordinated effort to takeout the towers on at least one side of the base in asurprise attack before entering.

The characters can also see a building near thefront gate that appears to hold the prisoners (6). Afenced in yard is in front of the building, thoughnone of the prisoners are out in the yard. This iswhere the mercs are keeping ten FARC membersand about thirty people from local villages loyal tothe FARC. The FARC members will not volunteertheir help once released, and if simply let free, theyquickly escape into the jungle with the others.However, if they are given arms, the FARC willfight with their rescuers.

Elsewhere in the base are twelve mercenaries. TheBP Oil company hired these mercenaries to helptrain and support the local government, in order toprotect their oil-producing facilities. All of the SouthAfricans start out in the mess hall. Six will go outand attempt to stop intruders from entering the baseas soon as they hear gunfire. They move in pairs,hiding around corners and trying to pick off their tar-gets one by one. The other six mercenaries stay inthe mess hall, guarding the scientists in the doctor’soffice.

Check Point (a): This small booth is currentlyunmanned.

Guard Towers (1): Same as the U.S. base, smallten-foot square platforms. They offer cover to any-one in them. As stated, two Colombian soldiers maneach tower.

Barracks (2): Housing for the Colombian Army.Once again, nothing to see here.

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Office/Mess/Infirmary (3): This is a multi-pur-pose building, used for administration and an offi-cer’s mess. Positions marked with an “M,” arewhere the South Africans stand when the charactersenter. They fire at anyone coming through the doorand thus will probably get the drop on the characters.The scientists are in the doctor’s office. They aretired, confused, and not much help. They look to theRangers to get them out safely and have no informa-tion to give them.

Garage (4): This is the fun part. Characters mayenter this building through the course of a regularsweep through the base, or if they are looking fortransportation to get out.

The door on the east side of the building is weldedshut. The Cast Members must use explosives to openit. The door on the south side is a large, metal, rollingdoor that lifts up from the bottom. It is pad-locked.

The South Africans have not been idle. They arealready well on their way to building a zombie army.Ever since they captured the scientists, they have beenrounding up villagers for “recruits.” This building nolonger holds any vehicles, for it now houses some fivehundred zombies. That’s right, five hundred.

If the Cast Members enter here, the first personthrough the door does not stand much of a chance.Everyone should start running very, very fast. Thezombies swarm anyone in sight and start moving outinto the countryside.

Officer’s Quarters (5): The South Africans havecommandeered these apartments. Move along, noth-ing to see here.

Stockade (6): A gate allows access into thefenced in yard. The door is locked. Prisoners aredescribed above.

Wrapping Things Up The surviving Rangers now have all sorts of prob-

lems. Even if they do not release the zombies in thegarage, the airborne version of the virus is nowspreading from village to village. All of this isbeyond the scope of this adventure.

Two endings present themselves. First, the charac-ters call for their ride, go to the extraction point andgo home. This is probably the best ending as far asthey are concerned, though there are complications.

The second ending is automatic if the Rangersbreached security. Any mention of zombies over theradio and the government will consider the entireoperation a botch, leaving the Rangers out to dry.The players may even decide that their faith in theArmy has been destroyed, so they might as well notgo home. In any case, if the Rangers stay, the FARCinvites them stop the rise of the walking dead.

ZMs can use one of the following narrations toend the adventure, tailoring it to the actions of theirplayers.

Ending One: Going Home

You call for your ride and head for theextraction point with a bunch of dazed andfatigued scientists in tow. All of the scientistshave guilty looks on their faces. Despite all youhave seen, there does not seem to be anything totalk about. Everyone is still trying to digestwhat has happened.

Amazingly, you fall asleep on the helicopterand are led bleary-eyed off the runway todebriefing.

You are grilled for hours by a group of stony-faced intelligence officers, none of them ranklower than colonel. As expected, they instructyou to never speak to anyone—including yourdog—about what you have seen.

Immediately following, you are placed on atransport back to Ft. Benning. You undergomore debriefing at Ft. Benning before theyfinally release you.

As you file out of the debriefing room, it’sbarely noon, but you all silently agree to go tothe bar. On your way, you pass by a newspaperstand. The civilian behind the counter stiffens asyou pass, as if given a sudden case of the chills.You see The Weekly World News displayed onthe rack, screaming its bold headline: “THEDEAD WALK IN SOUTH AMERICA!”

No one says a word. You just keep walkingtowards the bar.


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Ending Two: StrangeBedfellows


You run, because it seems like the thing to do.You are not sure where to go, or what you’regoing to do when you get there, but you run any-way. It seems as though you are trying to runaway from everything you have seen.

Eventually, you collapse on the ground,unable to run any further. As if they had beenwaiting for you all along, the FARC appear,silently, out of the jungle.

Commander Flores is with them, he smiles atyou.

“You have done me a great favor here today,and I am grateful.” For the first time since youhave met him, he stops smiling. The graveexpression on his face is enough to break youfrom your stupor.

“But I believe our problems are not over. Twoof my men were shot during the raid, casualtiesare a fact of life, but the odd thing is, a few min-utes after they were killed . . . they got up andstarted to walk.”

“One of my men was bitten, he is sick evennow.” He looks all of you straight in the eye; itis easy to see why he inspires his men. “Itappears that we are no longer fighting for ide-ology, but for survival. You may join us if youwish.”

At that moment, you all wish that you reallyhad something better to do.

Part Eight: Continuing the Adventure

Dead Ops makes a great beginning for an AllFlesh Must Be Eaten campaign. You have a groupof characters with all the skills necessary to handlethe problem, caught in the worst situation in theworld.

A great way to continue is to have the zombie dis-ease start spreading like wildfire. The nation ofColombia is ill-prepared to deal with the menace,both militarily and economically. This means thatthe zombies have a good head start, giving them thepotential to be a true worldwide threat.

The FARC distrusts the government and the gov-ernment distrusts the FARC. Each side takes thisopportunity to wipe out the other, leading to morezombies. The characters can try to get the two sidesto cooperate and fight the real enemy.

The U.S. military is desperate to erase all proof ofits involvement. If they learn that the Rangers arestill alive and active in Colombia, they will sendassassins to dispose of them.

If the characters did make it out, they can still beinvolved. Due to their experience, the Army maymake them into a zombie strike team, and send themback to Colombia in order to kill the zombies andcover up the whole thing. In that situation, a verypissed off Colombian government and the FARCwill start gunning for them, blaming the U.S. for alltheir problems.

About the Author James Wilber resides in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He

is the event coordinator for Big Daddy Thwak’sMillennial Army, a club dedicated to running gamesat conventions that do not suck (the games that is,not the conventions).

He is also the proud owner of a 1976 CadillacHearse, which he fondly calls “Morticia.”

Mr. Wilber has been an avid fan of George A.Romero since childhood. Romero has taught him thetwo most important things about zombie movies: no“happy ending” and everyone’s gonna die!

This is his first published adventure for All FleshMust Be Eaten.

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Recognizing that I volunteered as a Ranger, fully knowing the hazards of my chosen profession, I will always endeavor to uphold the prestige,

honor, and high esprit de corps of the Rangers.

Acknowledging the fact that a Ranger is a more elite soldier who arrives at the cutting edge of battle by land, sea, or air, I accept the

fact that as a Ranger my country expects me to move further, faster, and fight harder than any other soldier.

Never shall I fail my comrades. I will always keep myself mentally alert, physically strong, and morally straight and I will shoulder

more than my share of the task whatever it may be, one hundred percent and then some.

Gallantly will I show the world that I am a specially selected and well-trained soldier. My courtesy to superior officers, neatness of dress, and care of equipment shall set an

example for others to follow.

Energetically will I meet the enemies of my country. I shall defeat them on the field of battle for I am better trained and will fight with

all my might. Surrender is not a Ranger word. I will never leave a fallen comrade to the hands of the enemy and under no circumstances will I ever embarrass my country.

Readily will I display the intestinal fortitude required to fight on to the Ranger objective and complete the mission,

though I be the lone survivor.

Player Handout One


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Player Handout Two

Base MemorandumTo: All base personnel

From: Cpt. Edward Cooper, commander

Subject: Evacuation

Date: 11 Jul 01

CC: Dr. Benjamin White, Chief of Research

An evacuation of all base personnel will com-mence at 13:00 hrs. All staff will report to the

barracks and be assigned a vehicle.

No weapons are to be left on base and all classified documents should be destroyed.

Command personnel shall secure all buildingsbefore reporting for transport.

No personnel will be allowed to remain on baseafter 14:00 hrs.

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Player Handout Three

July 10, 2004

I will never again be annoyed by the smugness of those who have a degreein psychology. This dumb-ass journal . . . okay, not so dumbass. It reallydoes help. Thank you, Stephen, you poor fucking bastard.

Okay, I’m working this out in my head.

Today, the aforementioned Dr. Stephen Richards—the brave, smug, psy-chology degree-holding member of our research team—was bitten by oneof those things. And Tracy too, don’t forget him. Bastard still owes me around of drinks at his country club, if and when we get home. Well, if I gethome. He’s dead, too.

You never explained how I’m supposed to keep focused while I do this,Stephen.

Start Over.

Stephen and Tracy were bitten by one of the infected cadavers today. Nottoo big a deal, we thought. Clean the wound, put a bandage on it, every-thing’s fine. The virus can’t affect the living. The dumb shits should havetied the thing down better anyway.

Why are we so stupid?

Playing with things we don’t understand. That’s what Julie would havesaid. Just like Frankenstein.

We were wrong, so wrong. The virus mutated in ways we couldn’t imag-ine. How could we? No one has ever seen anything like this. I need to stayclinical, but fuck, this is really like a horror movie and it just keeps gettingworse and worse.

Apparently, after the virus has incubated inside a cadaver it mutates,grows stronger. That, combined with the fact that it adapts to the blood ofits host, makes it lethal. And of course, those who die come back.

Stephen died in less than eight hours, six for Tracy. That’s just fuckingincredible. Nothing works that fast. If it wasn’t all so damn horrific I mightactually be geeked about discovering the thing.

Oh shit, a bunch of G.I. Joes are knocking on the door. Cooper would goape-shit if he knew about this journal. “It’s a breach of security!” he wouldexclaim in that whiney-ass voice.

End Day.


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1. Guard Tower2. Parking Lot3. Barracks4. Lab One

5. Test Subject Holding6. Lab Two7. Long House8. Officer’s Quarters

9. Armorya. Check Pointb. Helicopter Padc. Gas Pumps

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Front Gate

Base One: Zombie Master Map

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Front Gate

Base One: Player Map

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1. Guard Tower2. Barracks3. Office/Mess/Infirmary

4. Garage5. Officer’s Quarters6. Stockade

a. Check Point

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Front Gate

Base Two: Zombie Master Map

Front Gate

Base Two: Player Map


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1. Computer Lab2. Break Room3. Consulting Room4. Bathroom

5. Lab/Staff6. Storage7. Operating Rooms

Base One Lab One: Zombie Master Map

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1. Computer Lab2. Exam Room3. Exam and Procedure Room4. Zombie Stortage

5. Lab/Drugs6. Bathroom7. Observation Room

Base One Lab Two: Zombie Master Map

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1. Lounge2. Office3. Exam4. Kitchen5. Mess Hall

6. Doctor’s Office7. Storage8. Bathroom9. Breakroom

Base Two Office/Mess/Infirmary: Zombie Master Map

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M

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Eden Studios Presents, Vol. 2

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