Sunday 26 September 2010

ATZ Supplement - I, Zombie

At last, the supplement that all fans of ATZ have been waiting for has been released. I,Zombie finally sees the light of day. This is the third and final part of the ATZ trilogy and it is easily the biggest, running to 130 pages. Contents include rule changes and new rules, which include phobias and quirks, fame and fortune points, buildings, bicycles, boats, swimming, horses, breakage, lack of sleep and bartering. The Lazarus Project section includes rules for two new types of zombie - ragers and smart zombies (or smarties as they are nicknamed). Also included are rules for using Big Ass Worms (of the kind found in the Tremors series of films) and psykers and psionic powers. The next section focuses on encounters and introduces PEFs (Possible Enemy Forces) to ATZ. The final section of the book is devoted to a campaign setting based in and around Lake Havasu City in Arizona. Here, you get detailed info on the area, its inhabitants, major NPCs, and how to interact with them. Also included in this section are rules for zombie wrangling, zombie racing (taken from the Dead Heat game) and pit fighting. Finally, there is a brief preview of THW's next gamebook - After The Horsemen.
I'll take a closer look at what's inside, along with my views. Most of the new rule changes are logical and worth adopting. The new Fast Move rules (roll 2d6 and add the result (limited to up to twice your Rep) to your Move value) are fine but neglect to mention those with the Athlete or Slow Attributes. I'd recommend rolling 1d6 for those who are Slow (like Vampifan) and 3d6 for those who are Athletes. The Rep limit would still apply, of course.
The first of the new rules is Phobias and Quirks. They provide a bit more flavour and personality to your Stars and Grunts and like all of the stuff presented here are entirely optional. To gain a Phobia or Quirk you roll 2d6 at character creation or whenever you gain a new Rep and add your Rep score to the total. Easy enough. But look closely at the table on p.8 and to get the best result you'd have to roll double 6 and be Rep:12! Rep:12? WTF? I know Ed said there is no limit to how high your Rep can go but I do think the numbers on this table need revising! I may use these rules but only if the relevant table is amended.
The only advantage of using the new Fame and Fortune Points rules is to make it easier to get a Rep increase. If you do use them you just might get that Rep:12 character! I don't think I'll be using them.
The new rules that deal with buildings are definitely welcome and I like them a lot. For me though, the floorplans you are meant to draw to represent a building's interior are unnecessary, given the amount of interior detail I include in my model buildings. Whilst I won't be using the floorplans, I will be using the rules. For those of you using the likes of model railway buildings, these will be a godsend. Ed helpfully provides numerous examples of building floorplans.
The rules for bicycles, boats and swimming probably won't get much use in my campaign but I do like the new rules for lack of sleep. Unless your heroes have a permanent place to spend the night, lack of sleep will be a constant threat.
The Lazarus Project rules are probably what most of us zombie fans have been waiting for. The goverment began working on ways to reverse the zombie outbreak from the start of the apocalypse. On Day 13, they made their first breakthrough. Those infected who were exposed to the antidote seemingly made a full recovery within 24 hours. Production of the Lazarus Virus went into overdrive and by Day 21 the government were ready to distribute the antidote by spraying all of the major cities from the air. On Day 22 the planes took off and discharged their payload. It was a complete and utter failure that only worsened the crisis. Instead of curing folk, it created two new types of zombie - Ragers and Smarties.
Ragers are fast and deadly in melee. They do not feed on victims but instead rip them apart. They will attack humans or zombies but not other Ragers. The really bad news about Ragers is that if you defeat one in melee combat you may still end up being infected and turning into a Rager. Nasty!
Smarties are by definition cleverer than normal zombies. They can use firearms and melee weapons but are notoriously bad shots. Regardless of modifiers they only ever hit if you roll a 6 on a d6 followed by a roll of 1,2 or 3. It works the same as Rep:3 humans who are Pitiful Shots. It is possible to play a smart zombie as one of your Grunts but I doubt if non-party members would see the wisdom in fighting alongside a zombie! Even so, smarties can be a serious threat to a party.
Next up, we are introduced to the Big Ass Worms. These creatures are the ultimate predators with a Rep of 6 and 9d6 to use in melee. It is almost impossible to hurt them because of their incredibly tough skin. I will not be using them in my campaign as they do not fit in with my vision of my campaign world.
Finally, in this section are the rules for Psykers and psionics. These seem to be a straight copy from the rules in the 5150 sci-fi game and some will say they should have stayed there. Not me! I must admit that when I think of psionics, I think of sci-fi games but I can see the merit of including them in ATZ. It is probable that I will include Psykers in my campaign at some point in the future. That is something that will more likely happen later down the line than sooner.
The second half of the book is devoted to running a campaign and these new rules are the best reason for buying this supplement. I can't stress enough how good they are. Adding PEFs to ATZ is an inspired move. These will certainly be used in my campaign.
If you do decide to set your campaign in the setting provided be aware of some important facts. First, the campaign is set three years after the zombie outbreak. Secondly, the zombies won! The human population is a mere fraction of its number prior to the outbreak.Thirdly, humanity lives a day to day existence with survival being the major priority for most people. Lake Havasu City offers a place of refuge but it is not all sweetness and light within. It is run by a cruel and despotic governor, with his private police force who are little more than thugs in armour who carry lots of guns. Entertainment is provided by Governor Newness in the form of zombie racing and pit fights between humans and either zombies, ragers or other humans.
Of course, you don't have to use the setting provided, you can design your own. The thing is, Lake Havasu City provides you with a template to design your own setting and there are rules aplenty to accomodate most folk's vision of the future. I think it highly unlikely that I'll be using the Lake Havasu setting in my own campaign. It'll be interesting to see to see just where Team Vampifan are in three years after the outbreak, assuming they are still alive!
I'll close this review with a few words from Ed Teixeira, the book's author. "What started out as a Zombie game has evolved into a post-apocalyptic game with Zombies in it. And after playing I, Zombie you'll realise there is a difference. The ATZ world will give you hours of fun at any level you want. Remember, it's your game so use as much or as little of the rules as you feel like. And yes, there will be more ATZ scenarios to come in the near future."
Well, hooray for that. I had high hopes for I, Zombies and I must say, I am not disappointed. This supplement was everything I was hoping for and more. Go buy it now, if you haven't already! It costs $25 for the book version or $20 for the PDF version from the THW website. Those who buy the book version (like I did) will get a free copy of the PDF version.

One final comment before I leave - did you see the results of the Readers Poll on the TMP Forum? ATZ:BDTZ won first place in the Best Sci-Fi Rulebook or Codex for 2009. Who said zombie gaming was a flash in the pan and dying? Many congratulations to Ed for a very worthy winner. I just look at all the new blogs devoted to this game that have sprung up this year and realise that ATZ might be undead but it certainly isn't dead! Long may it continue!

26 comments:

  1. Bryan, you failed to mention just how nasty the Ragers can be. I played two games using them and both games my characters bought the farm because of the Ragers, the fact that when knocked down they get back up almost instantly is brutal, added to the fact that they are allowed to move at 6 inches after getting back up.

    The BA Worms are another nasty addition, the game I used one in, my characters luckily made ti to a rocky outcropping and jsut kept taking post shots as the Worm as it circled around them, until finally I was able to score a critical hit that drove it off.

    As for the Campaign, I am already using the campaign rules to create my own Survivor Colony for my personal campaign, centered around Mackinac Island, Michigan USA. Mackinac Island is home to a Fort Mackinac, a former British Fort built during the revolutionary war, finally relinquished to the Americans 15 years, yes 15 years, after the war ended. The island itself is a tourist location, also housing the Michigan Governors Summer Home. The island is home to approximately 500 full time residents (they live there year round), and also contains the only State Highway in the US that motor vehicles are prohibited on (all motor vehicles with the exception of the City of Mackinac Island's Police Cruiser and Fire Truck for emergency use and when oked by the City Council Construction and Maintenance vehicles to maintain the road ways and for any necessary construction purposes). The islands overall size is roughly 3.8sq miles (approx 9.8sq km). I figure with the Fort there on the Island it would make a fairly decent sanctuary for any survivors who can get to it by boat, and once cleared of the undead, it would make a great staging area for supply runs up and down the coastline of the Great Lakes.

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  2. Believe it or not I still don't have this yet! As soon as I get the green light I will grab it though.
    The ragers sound like a nightmare and are probably just what we need to get clan LTL sweating bullets again. They've been having too easy a go lately.
    Me and the kids did a new day one scenario today, well actually two of them because the first one ended abruptly, very abruptly! I'll get them batrepped asap.
    Thanks for the great review Bryan, I'm really drooling now.

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  3. The Ragers are evil! I think I will roll d6 at the start of every scenario. When I roll a "6" the Ragers will be widespread enough to possibly appear in my campaign (in every scenario from that moment on). I like this chapter the most, because there's nothing I have to customize to use it.

    I will use the Quirks & Phobias system and the FFP, but start with it when my Stars reach the next level of Rep. I am still not sure how the Quirks & Phobias work alongside of attributes, but Ed said in the Yahoo Group that the new system isn't intended to replace the attributes.

    My biggest problem with IZ is that it is written for Havasu, 3 years after. The campaign, random encounters are not generic and for me it's harder to extract a basic system from something specific than the other way round. I will use the Havasu Barter table and the NPC Interaction table instead of those found in BDTZ, but may add the "Ganger / Survivor" modifications to it.

    I have not yet decided about PEF movement and resolution. I guess I will use PEF movement like it's done in NUTS! but I am not sure if the "resolve PEF" table is generic enough to use it in my campaign.

    For me this book has a lot of high quality rules that I will use in my campaign. The negative points are rather subjective: many rules are very scenario specific and in my opinion the book isn't well structured. Some rules seem to be randomly arranged throughout the book.

    Whiteface / Oliver

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  4. @Eldorf. Yep, Ragers are totally hardass! Admittedly I could have said a lot more about them but after reading your comment, I think everyone will now know how great a threat they are.
    As I said, I won't be using BA Worms in my campaign but congrats to your party in surviving an encounter with them.
    Your plans for your own campaign are very well thought out and I wish you the best of luck with your campaign. Will you be chronicling it in a blog? I'd love to read about it.

    @LTL Dad. If you want a challenge for the LTL Family have them mix it with a pack of Ragers. With LTL Mom and Dad being Rep:7 they should fare okay but it will be one tough fight for them.
    I'm looking forward to reading about your own Day One experiences.

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  5. @Whiteface. I'm thinking of doing something similar in my own campaign regarding Ragers, although they won't be making an appearance until after Day 22.

    Quirks and Phobias are not meant to replace Attributes but to add to them if you so desire.

    I totally agree with you about the Lake Havasu setting. I have no intention of using it but there are campaign rules tied to it that I will use like the barter table and the Movement and Action table you mentioned. The random road encounters need replacing as they are too much tied in to Lake Havasu and a rural setting. The idea of tracking small/big game in a city environment just feels wrong. I plan on designing my own random encounter tables based more on those found in BDTZ but with Ragers and Smarties added to the mix. I'll publish them on my blog when I get them done.

    I can't comment on the way PEFs work in NUTS! as I still haven't bought that supplement. I really must rectify that ASAP! That said, I like how PEFs work in ATZ. Maybe I'll change my mind when I can see how they compare with the rules in NUTS!

    The way that a lot of the THW books are structured and laid out is a common criticism, so you aren't the first person to say this and I doubt if you'll be the last.

    I have to agree that the negative points are subjective. The rules that I've dismissed may well be just what someone else is looking for. As Ed said, you don't have to use everything in the book. Thanks for your thoughts, Oliver. I felt a separate reply was in order due to the many points you raised.

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  6. Well, I think that the structure and appearance of THW rules has improved big time since CR 3.0. There are still things that I would arrange differently (like not writing PEF rules in the first scenario they are used for but inside a "All rules for NPCs" chapter), but this is just a matter of taste.
    This time it's a bit different though. I feel like I have to look in three different locations when I want to know how to handle a situation.

    I hope that ATH will be more generic. Give me a random table to determine that I just found a "small" settlement of a "well-armed" "death cult" and the rules to handle them and I am a happy wasteland desperado. No need to tell me what the cult is all about or giving me ready-made NPCs.

    The PEFs in Nuts! move a distance, not a section of the board. ATZ is my game and it's great for solo-gaming, but Nuts! is an impressive piece of work. Like really impressive!

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  7. Shortly after I posted my previous reply to you, Oliver, I went to the THW website and ordered a copy of NUTS!. It's something I've been after for quite a while. Basically, what I'm saying is you gave me the final push to buy it. Many thanks, my friend!

    Getting back to I,Zombie, I'm going to introduce the new rules to my campaign very gradually and over quite a few months. I need to fully familiarise myself with the book and instinctively know where stuff is that I want to use without looking it up. You have to admit that the index and list of tables at the back are helpful. I fancy there is going to be a bit of a learning curve to using this new stuff.

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  8. Bryan- I don't really know if I will record the campaign I am working on. As for the idea of tracking game in and Urban environment, you have to remember even today with urban sprawl (at least here in the US) you have wildlife that you wouldn't normally find in cities, coming into the cities, there have been numerous reports here int eh US of Coyotes, Mountain Lions, Deer, and even Bears coming into urban (and Suburban) areas due to the areas where the animals live getting built up by the Humans. Now look at the amount of work we humans do to keep nature from reclaiming our cities even farms. Nature will quickly try to reclaim areas once abandoned by man. While you will still have structures standing, you will also have a number of them that have crumbled to ruin from the elements and plants invading any cracks in the foundation and walls of the buildings. Add to the fact in a Zombie outbreak scenario, like ATZ where the dead have basically driven humanity to the point of just trying to survive, during the initial days and months of the outbreak during all the mass panic you will have rioting and looting, and probably more then a few fires raging in the cities, these fires will also help hasten the deterioration of the buildings in their path.

    I could fully see a city being filled with both small and big game in a zombie apocalypse due to nature reclaiming the city, as long as the zombies are of the type where they only go after living humans. If they are like the zombies in Max Brooks, World War Z, that devour any thing living, they yes I can see the lack of game in urban environment.

    Now as for my campaign I am drafting up right now, with it taking place in Northern Michigan, there's a lot of forested area up there, just to the south of Mackinac Island is Round Island, and uninhabited forested island and there other forested islands with little to no human population on them scattered throughout the Great Lakes. Now Bois Blanc Island which is directly south of Round Island is inhabited in real life but in my campaign its a desolate rock, a wildfire destroyed the forest on it, leaving only scrub brush, and I also have it inhabited with BA Worms, and a mysterious crashed Evil Pharmaceuticals Company transport plane (thinking of using Ebbles UD-41 Utility Dropship as the transport plane since the evil Pharmaceuticals Company, Castle Pharmaceuticals, in my campaign also has some advanced technology, like the dropship). Truthfully though I doubt for the campaign I will actually have any of it take place on Bois Blanc Island, I did create this back story for the island just in case, though if playing with some friends I may just do the Bois Blanc Island scenario to see what my friends say about the BA Worms.

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  9. My ears perked up! Here's my two cents.
    Nuts is a pretty good game but in my opinion ATZ is King. One thing that bothers me a little bit about all the rules is they seem to be getting a bit too cluttered. At the end of the day the original simplicity of early chain reaction is what got players to the table and kept them there. I'm afraid that with complexity we are losing playability.
    Nuts vs original ATZ is a great comparison as with ATZ you can have new players drop in and have a great time. With Nuts it is not quite so. The guy running the game better REALLY know his stuff, and the players will have to have some sort of dedication to learn the game.
    The PEFs in Nuts work out pretty well but Zombies are way easier and quicker as they always follow four basic rules, easily memorized.

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  10. @Eldorf. You make an excellent point about nature reclaiming towns and cities. It's something I hadn't even thought about but now that you've pointed it out, it seems so logical. As the number of humans dwindle, wildlife will become more prevalent, unless the zombies eat them as well. Man, I like the way you think!

    Whether you record your campaign or not, I wish you every success with it. Writing a blog does require time and effort and if you're working and have a family to support I understand why it may be too time-consuming to pursue.

    @LTL Dad. You too, make an excellent point. Is ATZ getting cluttered with too many rules? Like you, I love it for its simplicity and ease of play. I know that you've played NUTS! before so I bow to your expertise on the game. I've just had a quick scan through the NUTS! PDF that Ed has just sent me and my first impressions are that there's a lot to it. Of all of the THW games that I've seen so far, ATZ is unquestionably the easiest to play. The bottom line is as Ed says, use what you like and ignore what you don't like. I can live with that.

    You know, before I posted this review, Oliver/Whiteface predicted it'd lead to some lively debate. He wasn't wrong! Keep your views coming, folks!

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  11. Bryan- its not that its too time-consuming, its just that I am lazy and would rather play games of ATZ then have to take time recording the game. Though I do plan to on posting my campaign setting once I finish fleshing it out. If I do start a blog I will let you be one of the first to know.

    I still have to test out the Psy's though the Smarties are an interesting twist, from Eds description of them I picture them having limited vocabulary, and since the are motivated by survival and not the unsatisfiable undead hunger that motivates regular zombies, I see them becoming parts of some of the more tolerable communities, matter of fact I am thinking of adding one to my Mackinac Island Campaign, and if I do will be using the Zombie Smith figure from ZombieSmith to represent the Smartie that the community has allowed to live among them. I also see the Smarties being treated as second class citizens in a number of the communities where they are tolerated, given jobs like sewer work and trash detail at the local dump, that the regular humans dont want to do. I also see other communities where they have been fully accepted working along side teams going out for find supplies, I see them as the perfect scout, they are able to move among the undead unimpeded, giving them the advantage of locating necessary supplies for the community.

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  12. Sorry about the double post Bryan, but I jsut realize something, wasnt PEF first introduced to ATZ in the Giving Up the Goat Scenario? I know that scenario introduced the rules for Boats to ATZ.


    BTW on another note I seriously need to run through that scenario to see how bad the Chupacabras can be, might add them to my Mackinac Island Campaign as possible Castle Pharmaceuticals experiments (think along the lines of the Hunters in Resident Evil). I seriously cant wait for Ed to release After the Horsemen, want to see what other "experiments" I can throw into a ATZ campaign, I am already working on drawing up a Super Zombie ala the Resident Evil Tyrants.

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  13. The best point of all.
    "use what you like and ignore what you don't like"
    That sums up why THW games are so good. You can do exactly this without breaking the games.
    Guys like me who play a lot of games with a lot of different people need simplicity and can get it, while the die hards can go over the top with all the extra content Ed provides.
    What bugs me is I read all the clutter and want to use it all, but I know that realistically I can't!

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  14. I rate Nuts! as #1 because presentation, structure and rules are top-notch. BUT I play ATZ, because it has zombies and I don’t need hordes of infantry and all kind of WW2 vehicles. And ATZ is more about the individual and coming from a role-playing background this is very important for me. And it has zombies. I’ve just read the CoT supplement for Nuts! and I have to say that it is really tempting.

    @Eldorf:
    Yes, very good point about nature reclaiming the cities. It still may not be the best hunting ground, but there will be animals for sure. If everything else fails hunt dogs or cats ;o)
    On a side note – Clash Of Titans includes zoo animals for Stalingrad or Berlin scenarios…

    @LTL Dad:
    Yep, over-complexity is one of my major worries too. I am all for complex before-the-game (generating encounters, setting up terrain etc.) or after-the-game rules (recovery, keeping it all together etc.), but would like to keep the actual gaming a simple as possible.
    As I mentioned in my own blog I may just move PEFs around like in other THW games and resolve them like a building instead of using the IZ system.
    What I do like in BDTZ is the balance of scarcity-of-resources vs. danger-of-area. Go into the city find food and get killed by zeds or stay in the rural area and starve. Now that is a tough choice. I am not sure if IZ doesn’t unbalance this system.
    What I do like in IZ is the NPC interaction. The first incarnation of Mr. Whiteface has been shot (BDTZ rules) not because he was dangerous or unfriendly but just because he was inexperienced. The new interaction rules may alleviate this a bit.
    I do like ragers & smarties rules because they are so easily included or just left away. These are perfect rule modules.

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  15. @Eldorf. QUOTE - "it's just that I'm lazy and would rather play games of ATZ than have to take time recording the game." I so admire your honesty! Spoken like a true gamer, sir!
    What a great idea for using smarties as scouts in highly populated zombie areas. Regarding limited vocabulary, I'd say it's not unfeasible to give all smarties this ability. Nor too, is your suggestion about giving smarties second class citizenship status.
    Yep, you're absolutely right in that PEFs and boats were introduced in the Giving up the Goat scenario. Well remembered!
    I'd very much like to see what you come up with for your rules for Resident Evil type Super Zombies. I'm sure a lot of other folks would as well!

    @LTL Dad. Absolutely spot on - you can use what you want without breaking the game. ATZ has wormed its way into my affection so much that I can safely say it is now my all-time favourite game!

    @Oliver. I agree with you about making the game itself overly complex. It's the main reason why I don't want to introduce so many changes to my campaign all at once.
    I like the new NPC interaction table a lot. That will certainly get used sooner rather than later. I'll be playing some more of my campaign real soon (this weekend, in fact) and I still haven't decided what new rules (if any) from I, Zombie that I'll be using. I'll just decide on the day, depending how I feel.

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  16. @Vampifan:
    QUOTE - "I still haven't decided what new rules (if any) from I, Zombie that I'll be using. I'll just decide on the day, depending how I feel."
    So true. I change my mind every day and I guess I will make the final decision when I start the next scenario. The new zeds will be delayed per random die roll, but the NPC interaction rules will be included ASAP. These rules where the last push I needed to give Mrs. Whiteface the "Born Leader" attribute. She surely is a determined and charismatic person (and not one of those dull grey teachers that try to hide behind their desk).

    I'll stay away from the extended building rules and the NPC movement & action rules for the time being. Maybe later, at the moment simple survival gaming is enough.

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  17. THW is so versatile. I love the fact that we can do just about anything with just minor tweaks. When you start using all those vehicles Bryan, you can just add some elements from Nuts into your ATZ games and you are there. The only other rules that I have found that I like are some of the Song of XXXX games by Ganesha to fill some holes that THW doesn't cover. That is another simple rules system that is very flexible and it is a one reference chart type game. I think I will be using them for some Nappy skirmish games.

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  18. I'm going to stick with the official ATZ line regarding Ragers and Smarties and not introduce them until after Day:21. Even then, whether they appear or not will de determined by a die roll, much as Oliver suggests. I'm currently up to Day:10 so that gives me a bit of leeway before they may appear.

    @Oliver. I'm with you, mate. A simple survival game is all I want at the moment, as well. I'll implement the rule changes on pages 2-7 in I,Zombie in my next game. Other stuff will follow later.
    I think Mrs. W deserves the Born Leader Attribute. Take LTL Mom as her role model and you won't go far wrong!

    @LTL Dad. I do hope Nappy skirmish gaming refers to Napoleonic gaming. I have this awful vision of Diaper Wars. Who can fill their pants with the most crap? Extra points given for how great it pongs! LOL!

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  19. Hello,
    after including the first PEFs (Nuts! rules) in my ATZ game I have to say: use the simpler PEF movement system from IZ instead. With PEFs moving 8" or 16” they can just be moved into the next section instead. This should have the same results but will be easier to memorize.

    And don't - let me repeat that: DON'T - use one PEF instead of the zombies normally placed on the board at the beginning of the game (my reasoning was something along the line of: well, you may get several zeds for a PEF but some PEFs will resolve into nothing at all). A board with 9 PEFs coming at you with a speed of 16" / 8" is intimidating.

    Now I just have to compare the PEF resolve table from IZ with my simple system of resolving PEFs like possible encounters in BDTZ buildings (Probabilities and everything).
    I have used the NPC interaction table and I do already like it, but I had to flip back and forth through the book.

    I've got loads of ammunition for diaper wars, I am just short of a catapult. Yuk!

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  20. Thanks for your advice, Oliver. I think I'll be sticking with the PEF rules from I, Zombie. I fully intended to use PEFs in addition to the starting zombies for my games.

    A board with 9 PEFs on would certainly be intimidating but I'm curious to know how it could happen? Initially, only 3 PEFs are placed on the board and further PEFs may be generated on the roll of doubles for Activation if you so choose. If this is tied in with the PEF rules from NUTS! it's something I won't be using.

    I know for a fact that when I next play ATZ there will be a lot of flipping back and forth through both BDTZ and I,Zombie. I guess that's just inevitable.

    As for Diaper Wars you remind me of that Chinaman called Hu Flung Dung! Yuk, indeed!

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  21. No, I tried a house rule. Instead of placing 1D6 zeds per human on the board I thought I could place 1D6 PEFs per human on the board, because I thought at least half of them would dissolve into nothingness. That might have happened in a rural area, but won't happen in the suburbs and will surely kill you in the cities. Three PEFs is enough!
    Using the distance system from Nuts! instead of the board section movement from IZ increased my workload without adding more to the game. I guess that's why this system is used in Lost Lands and IZ.

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  22. Ah, thanks for the explanation, Oliver. That clears up my confusion now.

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  23. Thank goodness our diaper days are over around here. Although, I think the kids make more mess now because at least when they were in diapers they weren't so able bodied.
    Nick can destroy an anvil with a rubber mallet.

    You are correct about it referring to Napoleonic minis.

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  24. Phew, thank God for that! The alternative was just too bizarre to contemplate!

    QUOTE: "Nick can destroy an anvil with a rubber mallet!" That has to be a super-power, surely?!

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  25. Bryan,
    I remember finding a summary of the ATZ line by it's designer somewhere on line. He summarised each rules set and which background or aspect of he zombie apocalypse they would best suit. Does anyone else remember seeing this ?

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    1. I do remember this, Phil, and I'm pretty sure it was on the 2 Hour Blog run by Ed himself. You could check through his older posts until you find it. If I remember correctly it was in one of his posts about the Hospital 911 supplement. I hope that helps you to narrow your search down.

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