end of the world apocworldhack 123112

8/13/2019 End of the World ApocWorldHack 123112

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End of the

WorldPoWeReD bY tHe ApOcAlYpSeGrEmLiN LeGiOnSDeCeMbEr 31 2 0 1 2

Players Guide


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Who are you?You are a disparate group, people from

all walks of life. Maybe you know theothers, maybe they are strangers...butright now you need all the allies you canget.

What is happening?There is something wrong with theworld, but were not sure what. Tensionsare boiling over, markets are crashing,buildings are on fire. Whether it was

caused by rebellion, terrorists, globalwar, a zombie plague, or aliens, youdont know. Will you find out?

Where are You?

Youve taken refuge, huddled togetherfor safety against the chaos outside.Hopefully you can all hold out until...until things get better. But supplies arelimited, and you dont know how long

theyll last...

What do you do?Based onApocalypse Worldby Vincent Baker, World of Dungeonshack by

John Harper, and inspiration from Chronica Feudalisby Jeremy Keller


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Your CitizensPick three backgroundsfrom those provided later,

and use them to define your past and personality.

They list certain Skills add +1to a Skill if listed,

and subtract -1if it is instead marked with an ,

giving you totals between -2 and +3. You can

select the same background more than once, but

you cannot have a combination that would lower

any Skill below -2.

SkillsAware Staying alert to your surroundings.

Bypass Sabotaging or disarming security and devices.

Charm Sociability, style, and attractiveness.Combat Martial training and marksmanship.

Deceit Lies, cheating, and manipulating people.

Expert Scientific understanding and analysis.

Fitness Physical prowess, mobility, and agility.

Menace Threats of force, violence, or defamation.

Renown Reputation and social influence.

Repair Designing, fixing, and modifying devices.

Search Uncovering clues and scavenging materials.

Sneak Concealing your activities and position.Survive Enduring the elements and foraging for food.

Treat Diagnosis of ailments and providing aid.

Wisdom Common sense and general knowledge.


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What You HaveYour start with ten pointsworth of Trade things

you had before all hell broke loose or that you

picked up on the run, things which people still value

and would exchange for useful items. During setup,

you can freely spend Tradefor Goods, Tools, and

Arms. Afterwards, getting what you need will be a

matter of bartering, hard work, and luck.

One Tradewill buy one point of Goods. These

are spent as one-time bonusesto particular Skills,

such as Repair (machine parts, duct tape), Treat

(antibiotics, bandages), or Survive (rations, all-

weather matches). You dont need to define what

the Goods are, just which Skill they benefit.

Two Tradewill buy one point worth of Tools.

Tools make certain Skill actions possible. If you

had Repair, you could figure out what was wrong

with an engine, but not actually fix itwithout the

right Tools. Tools can also be spent, but insteadof adding a bonus, they improve the resultof the

Skill.

Two Tradecan also buy one point worth of

Arms, either weapons or armor. Weapons cause

Harm, while armor Soaksthe damage inflicted.Remember that guns are going to be loud,

explosives will be dangerous, and armor will make

you a target.


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Example Tools

Binoculars Aware Credentials Renown

Lockpicks Bypass Tool Kit Repair+Heavy

Gun Scope Combat Geiger Counter Search

Forged Papers Deceit Ghillie Suit Sneak

Climbing Gear Fitness First Aid Kit Treat

Example Armor Example Handguns

Vest 1 Soak Derringer 1 Harm

Jacket 2 Soak Pistol 2 Harm

Bomb Suit 3 Soak +Heavy SMG 2 Harm+Auto

Example Melee Heavy Pistol 3 Harm

Knife 1 Harm Stun Gun 1 Stun

Big Knife 2 Harm Example Rifles

Crowbar 2 Harm Hunting Rifle 2 Harm

Sword/Axe 3 Harm Sawed-Off 3 Harm+Blast

Chainsaw 4 Harm Shotgun 3 Harm

Example Explosives Assault Rifle 3 Harm+Auto

Grenade4 Harm +Blast

+Stock

Sniper Rifle 3 Harm+Silenced

Machinegun 4 Harm+Auto

C-44 Harm+Blast+Stock +Charge

Heavy

Machinegun

5 Harm+Auto+Heavy

+Auto: Can Harm up to three targets, but must reload afterward+Blast: Does Harm to all within close proximity of the primary target,

but must reload afterward

+Charge: Each additional charge adds +1 Harm+Heavy: While carried, suffer -1 to all rolls+Silenced: Cannot be heard when fired from concealment+Stun: Treat as Harm instead of Wounds, target is -3 to all rolls,

reduce by 1 each minute

+Stock: Half base cost for one item, +1 Trade per extra (e.g. agrenade would cost 4 Trade, +1 per additional grenade)


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Doing ThingsWhen you attempt something difficultor

dangerous, roll 2D6and add a Skillappropriate to

your action. The result is based on your total. The

Overseer will tell you some of the possible risks

before you roll, and you must decide if you want to

take the chance.

6 or lessis a Failure; things dont gowell, and the Overseer will describe aconsequence or Fallout.

7 to 9is Passable; you do it, but thereis some cost, compromise, or otherTrouble.

10 to 11is a Success; you do it withoutany undueTrouble.

12+is an Opportunity; you not onlydo it, but you get some extra benefit oradvantage.

Before you roll, you can spendavailable Goodstoadd up to +3to your total. After you roll, you can

spend your Toolsto increase the results by one

rank.

!OppositionOften you will be facing other people, whetherbartering, fighting, or evading. The Overseer will

describe what you perceivetheir strengths and

motives are, instead of explicit risks...because

people sometimes defy expectations.


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Harm and RecoveryWhen you take Harm, reduce it by your armors

Soakand check the resulting Woundbelow.

Unarmed attacks to 0 Harm, and unarmored targets

have 0 Soak. Wounds are cumulative a second

Graze would become a Light Wound, for example.

Lesser Wounds heal first, and you can roll +Treatto

reduce a Wounds healing time by one rank.

0 GrazeYou arent really hurt, just a bit winded or

off balance: rest a turn to recover

1 LightMere scratches: they wont matter after

an hour of rest.

2 MinorBruises and lacerations: youll feel better

after a day of rest.

3 MajorBleeding, possibly some minor

fractures: heals after a week of rest.

4 Severe

Broken bones, blood dripping everywhere,and you need to roll+Fitnessto not slip

into unconsciousness: takes a month of

rest to recover.

5 Dying

You are slipping away, and need

someone to roll+Treatjust to keep youalive: takes a month of rest to recover.

6+ Dead Theres no saving you now.


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The OthersSometimes youll be at cross-purposes with other

players. You should negotiate and come to a

compromise. If neither side budges, you can offer

up Trade or items, or give them one Favorwith you

if they give in.

!Helping and HinderingIf you try to assist or interfere with someones action,tell everyone what you are doing to get involved, and

then you can choose to either give them +1to their

next roll (Helping) or -2(Hindering), but you cant

do anything else until they are done with that action.

You can, instead, spend one Favorwith someone to

Help or Hinder and still be able to do other things.

!Hurting OthersIf it comes to blows, the aggressor will roll as with

any other combat. The defender can try to Hinder

their attack, or counter with their own attack.

AdvancementYou can find more Tradethrough your explorations,

or perhaps as reward for your deeds. You can give

your Trade to others for Favors, one per total Favor

you will havewith them (e.g. raising 2 Favor to 3 willcost 3 Trade).

You can advance your Skills by trading in five Favors

per Skill bonusyou will have, to a maximum of +4

(e.g. raising +2 to +3 will cost 15 Favors).


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ActivistAware

BypassCharm or

MenaceRenown

Survive

Bystander3 of choice


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AuthorityCharm

Combat orWisdom

DeceitExpertRenown

OperativeCharm

CombatBypass or

MenaceDeceitSneak


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ArtistAware

CharmMenace

Renown or

WisdomSearch

CelebrityAware or

Fitness

CharmDeceitRenownSneak


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DrifterAware

Deceit orRepair

Renown

SneakSurvive

FugitiveBypass or

FitnessCombat

MenaceRenown

Survive


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EnforcerBypass or

ExpertCombatDeceit

MenaceSearch

ResponderFitnessor

Search

Menace RepairSurviveTreat


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CriminalAware

BypassorMenace

CombatDeceitFitness

MiscreantBypassCombator

SneakDeceitSearchWisdom


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ResearcherCombat

DeceitExpertRepairor

TreatWisdom

TechnicianAwareor

Search

BypassExpertRenown

Repair


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SpecialistBypass

CharmCombatDeceit

Repairor

Treat

VeteranAwareCharm

CombatFitnessSneakor

Survive


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End of the

WorldPoWeReD bY tHe ApOcAlYpSeGrEmLiN LeGiOnSDeCeMbEr 31 2 0 1 2

Overseers Guide


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Playing with the ApocalypseThe Overseer manages the flow of play in End of

the World. You control the non-player characters,

describe scenes and environments, introduce events,

and otherwise present challenges for the players

to confront or circumvent. You arent necessarily

opposing the players and their actions instead, you

are using their actions and the conflicts that arise to

build an interesting story.

It can be very tempting when you first start playing

End of the Worldto immediately plot out ideas for

what happened and why things are the way they

are. You may want to steer the story in a particular

direction, or introduce complex plot twists, or emulateyour favorite disaster or horror movie.

Dont do that.

End of the Worldis about surviving the downfall

of society, and seeing what comes afterward. If the

players or you, the Overseer, want to discover how

the world ended, then it will be important to introduce

people or motivations that make that important to the

story. If the reasons why arent driving at least one of

the players forward towards action, then dont worry

about it. Otherwise, play to find out what happened.

There are very few rules to this game, but here are

some suggestions that you, as the Overseer, should

follow.


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DonT Bother RollingThe Overseer, will very rarely ever have to pick up

the dice. The action of End of the World is all player-

driven, so everything should be decided in termsof player rolls. Are the players trying to accomplish

something that is difficult or dangerous? Have them

roll. Are the players reacting to something difficult or

dangerous? Have them roll.

If you need the players to react to something, frameyour NPC actions as either as Trouble or Fallout,

depending on the situation. Have the players been

snooping around somewhere they shouldnt? Have

a thug come up to them to push them around,

threatening to hurt them, and ask them what they doabout it. Keep them on their toes.

Anything beyond a players control will either be

decided by the Overseers whim, or by a single

D6 roll. Oddnumbers will be bad, evennumbers

are good. Exactly what good and bad means willdepend on the situation. This kind of roll can also be

used when someone take an action for which sheer

chance is the only deciding factor.

Its all gone to shitNothing the players do will be able to stop the end ofthe world, whatever form it takes. It HAS happened,

and right now theyre dealing with the results. They

need to make the best of it that they can.


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Together at the EndThe players should all start somewhere that

is, at the moment, secure...but not completely

defensible. Wherever they are holed up, it willlikely be cramped, overcrowded, vulnerable,

uncomfortable, or otherwise lack sufficient supplies

for the long-term. Eventually they will need to

venture forth.

Keep Things DangerousThe players are normal people; while they are

central to the story, they are not action-movie

heroes. If they make bad choices, bad things

should happen. Feel free to throw obstacles and

opponents in their way, and see how they react.

This doesnt mean you should murder or torture

them without some good reason...thats what

NPCs are for, after all. NPCs should be dying in

terrible, painful, tragic ways, usually as a result of

the players choices...particularlybecause of theplayers choices.

Keep Asking QuestionsThe End has happened, but what exactly was it?

Ask the players leading questions about what they

saw or experienced, why they chose to hide where

they did, who or what they may have left behind.

You need to take notes of the answers, and use

those to build the story.


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Keep things RealDont overload the players with lots of extraneous

details and flowery speech. Dont describe things like

they were scenes from a movie describe them as ifyou experienced them yourself. Lots of noise, pain,

and stench, but dulled colors, blurred details, and

somewhat uncertain facts.

Everyone they speak to is an individual give them

a name if you can, or some spark of personality thatmakes them feel like people. A bum on the street would

be easily forgotten or sacrificed, but Stocking-Cap Hank

who drags his pit bull puppy everywhere is someone the

players may come to rely on or care about.

Keep things Weird?Try to maintain some internal logic to the story, and

dont allow yourself or the players to stray too far from

reality without first establishing that something weird

is happening. Yes, the world is ending, but whether

that was caused by global warming, sunspots, socialunrest, or alien invasion needs to be established by

questions asked of the players.

If you are trying to push things in a weird direction

(like I usually do), ask things like What is it that

seems odd about the guy in the green coat? or Howdid that sound make your pets react? or Why were

those people jumping off the bridge? If youre getting

mundane answers, thats a sign you shouldnt move

in a weird direction.


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Making NPCsUnlike players, who only need to keep track of

their own character and their important details, the

Overseer not only has to take notes and sketch

out ideas and sometimes rough maps, but must

handle all the various other characters the players

will interact with.

Most NPCs will be extras, and can be described

in fairly broad strokes. However, once the players

interact with them, you need to start giving them

some life of their own. Here are some ideas to

add depth or personality to your NPCs, whether

other citizens, conspirators, enemy combatants,

prisoners, or monsters.

What is their name? Do they even have one?

What are they like? Use two or three senses to

describe them.

What motivatesthem? Are they hungry,

savage, scared, controlling, greedy? Who do they knowor work with?

Who have they run afoulwith?

Do they have an obvious strength?

Do they have a secret strength?

Do they have a perceived weakness?

What is something the players dont know

about them that they should know?

What is something that even you dont know

about the NPC?


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Scavenging and BarteringEventually the players are going to run out of Trade,

and theyll need to find more in order to replenish

their supplies. But when society has collapsed, this

isnt such an easy task.

Finding fresh Trade usually requires either a

roll+Searchin urban areas, roll+Survivein rural

areas. This involves activities such as scavenging

parts and trinkets, collecting recyclable materials,

hunting for game, gathering berries or herbs, etc. A

Passable result means they find their lowest rolled

dieworth in Trade, the highest dieif a Success, and

the sum of the diceif an Opportunity. For example,

if you rolled a 2 and 6, a Passable result would netyou 2 Trade, a Success would get you 6, and an

Opportunity would provide 8.

The Overseer should mark how many times the

players have gathered supplies from a particular

area in a month. After three marks, any Failurewillmean that it has been picked clean for the near

future.

Exchanging Trade for Goods, Tools, and Arms is

also not so easy. After character creation, Trade

costs are doubled, though players can try to barterto drop the prices down a quarter, maybe more with

an Opportunity. Bartering is typically a roll +Charm,

+Deceit, +Menace, or +Renown, though

alternatives can be suggested by crafty players.


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Trouble and FalloutTroubleis typically the result of a Passable

result, but can also be caused by inactionor

recklessness. Trouble can also be used to describe

the intent of enemies. What do the players do in

response?

Falloutis the result of a Failure, but can also be

caused by terrible choices andrash decisions.

What follows are some possible examples.

TroubleDelaythem Offera compromise

Distractthem Provokea response

Escalatea danger Reactto their action

Exaggerateperceptions ReturnHarm for Harm

Impairperceptions Revealnew dangers

Impedemovement Takesomething away

FalloutCapturethem Preventtheir action

Destroysomething Reinforcea danger

Forcea choice Screwwith them

InflictHarm Separatethem

Killan ally Surprisethem

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