Dead... and Back is a survival horror Role Playing Game. The Anarchy Zones is its official setting - aliens, reanimates, and the ruins of 2055 America.

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

So What Do You Want in the Next Edition?

It is getting about time to release a new edition of "Dead... and Back". I've always had a list of things to change, but with spring in the air, something needs to be done.

Most of what is changing this time is clarifications to rules and a bit of rearranging. Character creation has been expanded slightly, adding a discussion phase, as well as formalizing the ability to get a few starting altruism points if you create NPCs for the GM. Yet more optional rules will be included - as well as some insight on how to use them. Some examples are getting redone. The old character sheets apparently need revision - I apologize to anyone who used the second of the two provided sheets, which was missing a few data entry spaces. Some setting information about Oborous, Unit 2552, and the Anarchy Zones is present as well, though the AZ seems to demand its own book (possibly more than one, actually) at this point.

Perhaps the biggest change I'm considering is an alteration to combat. I want to come up with some basic hand to hand options to make unarmed combat a bit more useful. So far the options are Pin, Grapple, Throw, and Subdue non-lethally. Another possibility is altering how combat range and difficulty is determined. Rather than altering the number of dice rolled, or requiring extra successes, range and complication just increases the effective Sufficient Damage Index of the target - its harder to get bullets on target and hit vital points.

Another possible big change might come in the attribute derivation section. Right now, secondary abilities tend to be very similar due to the stats being averaged. So I'm thinking of having players sassing a few extra values (-2,-1, 0, 0, +1, +2) at this stage to change things up. A random table might be nice for starting occupation or derived attribute mods.

Currently, there are seventeen listed general skills, but I'd like to bring this up to twenty-five to give a little more variation in the possible character types.

So as usual, I'll ask the community - what else would you like to see in the rules, and are there any other stories you want to see, or technologies you wish to learn more about.

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