Play@YSDC

Welcome new and old players.

For those who don't know, Zombie Apocalypse actually began on another forum, NMA-Fallout.com, home of all things Fallout.

For those who seek a review of that campaign check out-
NMA - http://www.nma-fallout.com.

Zombie Apocalypse begins here- http://www.nma-fallout.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19285

zombies? in my C4XTC?

it's more likely than you think!

So, when/how is this gonna start, and how do I get myself involved in the I Love Being Rinsed in Zombie Brain Matter society?

Welcome old and new players alike!

I'll be posting instructions over the next few days explaining how players can get started. For now, just post in this thread and let me know if you want to play. You're in now, OathinBlood. Our players from Chapters 1 and 2 who are joining us here are Fearlessfred, Mr. Zombie Killer, SuAside, and Stompie if he returns (though he's been missing for over two months now). Several other players have expressed an interest, and I'll be letting them know we're getting started soon.

I'll be fairly busy over the next few days, but I expect to get the character sheets up this weekend. All characters are pregenerated, and there are over 30 new characters to choose from. There are also plenty of available characters from the first two chapters, though a lot less than there used to be...

I'll explain the details of character selection when I post the character sheets, but each player will be choosing three characters from the pool of pre-gens (or four if you're feeling daring). Our existing players already have most of their characters from before, but they'll be able to replace their dead characters. New players will have first pick of the new characters, since they cannot choose existing characters unless they've read one or both of the preceding chapters, and those are very long. Any characters that have not been selected by players will be NPCs and will be available to replace losses...if they survive. A few characters can only be played by the Keeper.

Once the character sheets are up, character selection should take about a week. I hope to get started playing either on the evening of the 15th or on the 16th. I'll have extra time this coming Monday and Tuesday, and I'm off from work on Monday the 18th, which will help me get everyone started and the game moving.

I expect players to post for each of their characters at least once a week, preferably twice if you can. I hope to update each story thread at least twice a week, time permitting. If you haven't posted for your characters and you haven't given me any standing orders for them by the time I update, they'll just stand around doing nothing. Unlike most games, time is very critical in this one. Each major update represents approximately one minute of game time. This may seem slow, but don't worry - there's a lot going on! If you disappear for more than a week without letting me know, your characters may revert to NPCs until you return, or something very bad could happen to them. Of course, something very bad could happen to them anyway, but it's more likely in this case.

I'm still here waiting for the game to start.
I hope my characters have as good luck as in the first chapter.

Welcome to the new home of Zombie Apocalypse, Fearlessfred! Actually, you didn't join until the second chapter, but you were lucky not to lose a single character yet. I think the only other long-term players who were lucky enough not to lose any characters were Stompie (though one of his characters has been bitten) and myself (unless you count Sean Blank, but I was only temporarily playing him while his player was AWOL). All four of my original characters are still alive, but that's likely to change in Chapter 3.

For those who don't know, this is a very lethal game. Characters will die, which is one reason every player has multiple characters. Of the original cast from Chapter 1, around 40% of them died in that chapter. In Chapter 2, 25% of the combined pool of survivors from Chapter 1 and new Chapter 2 characters kicked the bucket, and a few others have been bitten by zombies but are still alive. Chapter 3 is likely to be a lot more dangerous than Chapter 2.

My bad I ment the second chapter. Also zombies aren't the only thing to watch out for .

Don't worry about it. I knew what you meant anyway.

Yes, that's true about zombies not being the only danger. Humans are something you especially have to watch out for. Humans have killed more people (or gotten them killed) in Zombie Apocalypse than any other threat, including the zombies themselves. Humans have probably killed more humans than all the other dangers combined, in fact.

Don't discount the other nasty things out there, however. The zombies are an ever-present threat, and they can kill you too. Then there are the other horrible things that aren't zombies but aren't human either. They've inflicted their share of casualties already.

Well Fred- I have to say that I took special delight in "the Evil Mosquitos from outer space that inject victims with the venom that turns them into zombies." The thing below was another fun monstrosity. And more nasty surprises await.

Some questions. Feel free to PM me the answer if you don't want to reveal it to other players.

1. Zombies. Shambling, Romero-esque zombies, or berserker infected from 28 Days Later? A mixture of both, perhaps? I'm guessing about only an minimalistic level of intelligence and an unnatural sense for finding living humans.

2. Is this a pseudo-supernatural game, ala Resident Evil, or a pseudo-scientific game, ala Romero?

3. Is disease an issue that we will have to cope with?

4. Injuries. Is there long-lasting damage, causing limps and broken arms, or is there the HP system?

5. Bites. One bite and we're doomed, or is there a cure?

6. How does one become a zombie? Does one have to be bitten, or just die under any circumstances?

7. Are headshots the only thing that will stop a zombie, aside from de-limbing it?

Thanks. Can't wait for this to begin!

Also, if anyone would care to read what I consider THE best piece of zombie literature EVER, read David Moody's Autumn series. you can read the first book, Autumn, free online, which is an awesome marketing tactic. He puts a new spin on zombies which is really nice - not too different that it will turn you off, but just enough that it will intrigue you. I really do adore his work.

OathinBlood wrote:Some questions. Feel free to PM me the answer if you don't want to reveal it to other players.

I'll post the answers here, since this is good for all players to know. Just remember to keep your characters' knowledge separate from your personal knowledge (and keep their knowledge separate from each other for that matter).

1. Zombies. Shambling, Romero-esque zombies, or berserker infected from 28 Days Later? A mixture of both, perhaps? I'm guessing about only an minimalistic level of intelligence and an unnatural sense for finding living humans.

You've pretty much got it. There's a mixture of slower-moving, Romero-style zombies and fast-movers like in 28 Days Later. About ten percent of all zombies are runners.

2. Is this a pseudo-supernatural game, ala Resident Evil, or a pseudo-scientific game, ala Romero?

As far as everyone knows, it's pseudo-scientific. There are a number of scientist characters who have put their knowledge to good use.

3. Is disease an issue that we will have to cope with?

It's certainly something to consider. Anything that can happen in the real world can happen here.

4. Injuries. Is there long-lasting damage, causing limps and broken arms, or is there the HP system?

Both. I use hit locations, and high damage to a limb can break it. A couple of characters currently have broken limbs even though they've healed much of the original injuries in terms of HP.

5. Bites. One bite and we're doomed, or is there a cure?

There is no known cure, and one bite is always lethal in the end. There is one exception: one of the characters has been bitten twice and appears to be immune. She has shown no symptoms so far, but why this is the case is one of the mysteries of this game.

6. How does one become a zombie? Does one have to be bitten, or just die under any circumstances?

Anyone who dies becomes a zombie. However, those who died from severe head injuries (or received them post-mortem) did not rise up, and anyone whose body is destroyed would not become a zombie either.

7. Are headshots the only thing that will stop a zombie, aside from de-limbing it?

Doing enough damage to a zombie's body will keep it from moving, though it will remain animated until either its brain or its spine is damaged enough. A dismembered zombie is still active and can still bite, it's just immobile. The only quick way to take out a zombie is with a headshot. I'll explain the rules we use for that when I get around to posting a rules thread.

Thanks. Can't wait for this to begin!

No problem. I can't wait either!

So, can i join?

Correction to Handy's rules-

No, you can destroy a zombie with sufficient damage.

The head shot is really the quick way. Zombie heads that take, I think, 10 points of damage, essentially destroy the zombie. But if you don't do the head shot, you may want to go for full body damage. So for instance- if a zombie takes a certain amount of damage from a blast (I think its like 50-60 points), the zombie is essentially destroyed.

So a zombie riddled with bullets will still be coming for you. But if you riddle him enough, then you might have done enough damage that he is essentially non-functional. (You may still want to smash in his brain, cause you can never be sure).

Also- there are other nasties in this game. Zombie dogs, evil mosquitos, and strange tenticulared beasts.
As well as your fellow mankind.

Hello! I do suppose that its been quite some time since I've posted. Since then, I moved back home, am working 40 hr's a week, and taking 14 units at a community college. I would like to rejoin, if their are no hangups. It will be great playing with you guys again.

welsh wrote:
Also- there are other nasties in this game. Zombie dogs, evil mosquitos, and strange tenticulared beasts.
As well as your fellow mankind.

... Did I miss something?

Welcome aboard, kabukiman! Welcome back, Stompie! You're both in, and there's no problem.

Stompie, you've still got all of your characters alive. Wallace did get bitten, but you can continue to play him for the rest of his life. He only took 1 damage from the bite, so it'll take him longer to die than usual. He should last a few hours, which is more than the average life expectancy for a Zombie Apocalypse character anyway. Duke hasn't been infected, but he has been exposed to...something. You did miss a bit, so you should read the rest of Chapter 2 to catch up while I'm setting up Chapter 3 and getting new players ready to go. The mosquitos were in Chapter 1, but they haven't shown up again yet. There were zombie dogs in Chapter 2 when you were still here. As for the strange beast, Duke had a run in with it. There was also some human-on-human violence you missed.

Currently, Wallace is up on the motel balcony. In your absence I had him agree to help Captain Lereux take his command back in exchange for being allowed to stay at the motel since everyone else at the garage had done so. Things didn't go exactly according to plan, however. Ortega is in fine shape, and he even got a promotion to Acting Senior Airman. Hockey freaked out and blew a Sanity roll. He ran away and slid down the zipline (badly). He took 2 damage from colliding with the lamp post at the bottom, but that's nothing medical treatment won't fix. He then ran to the diner and came to his senses just outside, and just in time to help out Willie and the other civilians. However, he got trapped below ground in the underground facility when the zombies overran the diner. Duke is even further underground, exploring the lower level of a secret lab.

EDIT: Welsh is correct about the damage zombies can take before going down. 10 or more damage to the head will kill any zombie, but doing less damage will also slow down a faster zombie. Otherwise, it takes 40 damage total to neutralize a slow zombie and 50 for a fast one. This is almost impossible to do with a single shot, so head shots are the way to go. A neutralized zombie ceases to move around or pose a threat, unless you do something silly like walk up to its head. It may still be animated, it just can't go anywhere or do much of anything. It's a "twitcher." Putting a bullet or two in its head at this point should be simple.

Hello All,
i am waiting to play Chapter 3 having played since late in Chapter 1. I have lost 3 characters so far and am currently playing Alice the history professor who is a babe, Jim Kerr who is a fish and wildlife cop, and I just picked up Bobby Sheen who is a sniper. I would like to pick one more character but i have to wait to pick from the new until all you newbies have picked.
Oh and Mr. handy I just finally got a new job and will be working 40 hours a week. This job last until April at least but hopefully I will pass the temporary position and get a permant position at the company. Anyway I can still play. Oh and since we are now at this site do I have to leave the other site up and bookmarked or are all the posts going to be at this site from now on?

Welcome to the new forum, Steve! Congratulations to you and Stompie on your jobs as well!

All posts will be made here from now on. I'll lock the OOC thread on the old forum now that the gang's all here. For any information that's needed from the old board, I'll either copy it here in new posts (such as with character sheets) or post links to it (such as with the first two chapters).

So far we've got all four of our existing players and two new ones confirmed. I'm hopeful that Laraqua and Andrew will join us as well. I'll start posting character sheets Friday night if I get a chance, and I hope to have them all up by sometime on Saturday. Note that existing players can freely choose characters from the first two chapters at any time. If you've seen all the new characters and you'd rather have an existing one, and you have any slots left, you can pick them. You should have at least three characters when we start, and you may optionally take a fourth if you're up to it.

Here's the cast so far:
Fearlessfred (1 slot available):
Trooper Joe Barring
Javier Ramirez
Sgt. Sam Black

Mr Zombie killer (1 slot available):
Alice
Jim Kerr
Airman Bobby Sheen

Stompie (0 slots available):
Wallace Red Crow
Duke
Airman Justin Hockey
Acting Senior Airman Manuel Ortega

SuAside (2 slots available):
Luke the Hunter
Bob Larkin

kabukiman (4 slots available):

Laraqua (3 slots available):
Trooper Rick Brenner

OathinBlood (4 slots available):

If we have multiple characters, are we expected to RP all of them at once?

When we will be able to see (and chose) our characters?

A couple of questions.
Handy is currently the Keeper on this while I was the original keeper. He and I continue to cooperate in plot elements, structure, story, etc. Most of what you can expect in the next chapter is Mr. Handy's creation.

The way Zombie Apocalypse runs is that it slows down time. The idea for this came for watching too much 24 and being surprised with how much can be crammed into an hour. There are also elements of this drawn from Lost- multiple characters with their own backstories and agendas. Finally, the main source of inspiration are the Romero zombie movies. Because we liked the "fast zombies" of the most recent Dawn of the Dead film, we incorporated three types of zombies- Runners, walkers and twitchers. Runners are usually those zombies that are still "the most together" and are capable of higher level brain functions necessary to sustain sufficient dexterity for running. Climbing is, so far, still hard.

Otherwise you should think of zombies as walking, eating machines that will home in on whatever morsal is closest.

Each character plays a number of characters- all pregens. Characters come from varied backgrounds and experiences and also harbor personal secrets and fears. Although the Keepers may know your character's backstories, you need not disclosed those to your colleagues. This creates a push/pull dynamic between the need for characters to cooperate (man as social animal) and man's own individualist nature (man's sense of self-preservation).

But the plot of Zombie Apoc also builds on stranger elements. A quick review of the story-

Our characters meet at a lonely truck stop off I-80 in Nebraska, on the outskirts of Warren AFB (a major US missile site) and near the border with Wyoming and Colorado. This is, we discover, no ordinary truck stop. Across from the diner/garage is a Motel (run by a mysterious Asian couple) that we later find out was a Cold War eaves-dropping/ communications station. We later find out that underneath the truck stop are more secrets- what appears to be a prison, and below that, a lab. And there are.... things... down there best not discovered.

But there are also things above that are causing problems as well. During the previous night, a meteor shower has hit the earth. Unlike most meteorite showers, these meteorites have hit the earth causing devestation across much of the planet. What is later discovered is that these meteorites carry... something. But that's not all not only are the recently dead being reanimated, but even some of the older dead. Worse yet, while our heroes discover that a zombie bite will turn you into a zombie, so will a gunshot wound, a traffic accident, and just about anything else that can kill you.

Our truck stop is caught between two towns- Sydney and Kimball, and two smaller communities, Poke and Browson. It doesn't take long for zombies to begin arriving at the truckstop. But humans have also started to come in. The first group (and this begins even before our narrative) are the passengers and crew of a NPS helicopter on a desperate and secret mission to Omaha where a CDC station waits for secretive information. The helicopter has broken down enroute and needs to be repaired.

But that's not all- a nearby white supremist militia movement has its own interests in the Truck Stop. They come demanding one of their members, now long dead, and the confrontation leads to a rather nasty fight as the zombie horde closed in.

Those at the truck stop emerge victorious from this first battle. But soon a new group of humans joins our group of survivors- a small detachment of USAF Security Troopers who seek to secure the Hotel- which offers one of the few communications links remaining with the rest of the world. The USAF is to hold the communications center at all cost but are suspicious of potential "infected" coming from the truck stop. Matters are made more complicated still when a State Trooper helicopter arrives. The passengers of the NPS use the helicopter in a desperate effort to continue on their journey east. But the move sets off a chain of conflicts over command that explodes near the end of Chapter 2 as yet another group of zombies begins to arrive.

Weakened by internal conflict and by waves of zombie, our groups are overwhelmed. Those at the hotel are forced underground and deeper into the lab. Those above are few and trapped.
The situation grows increasingly desperate.

As for game mechanics- remember time slows down. Players should use their characters as seperate individuals. This is not a game for team work among your characters- no convenient allies please.

All NPCs are played by the Keeper. Players post what they do, the Keeper posts what happens. And the clock ticks as the zombies close in.

Actually it was the group at the diner forced underground the group at the motel are still in control.

Yes, that's right. The motel is still in human hands...for now.

Though you'll each play multiple characters, they will usually be in separate threads. It may happen that you'll have two characters interact with each other. It's not impossible for your characters to work together in that case, but they should have good, in character reasons for doing so. It's also possible that your characters might end up working at cross-purposes to each other.

I'll start posting the character sheets Friday night if I can, and they should all be up by the end of Saturday. Once they are, you'll be able to choose your characters. I'll post a character selection thread with instructions for how to do this where you can reply with your choices. Once you've chosen your characters, I'll send you their secret information. All characters have secrets, but some have more than others.

I've been following the zombie apocolypse thread for a little while now, and am interisted in joining. I'd most likely only play 2 characters, with a slight possibility on a 3rd.

I'd most like to play one of the Under characters, if there are any open.

My second choice would be one of the Through characters (probably one of the relief troops). I'd prefer to play a trained sniper type (non-cerebral good-ol-boy that happily transfered his deer poaching skills to people poaching) ...ish. Hmmm.... on second thought something less like Bubba Redneck and more like the american sniper from Saving Private Ryan.

A third but less likely choice, would be someone with more leadership skills and tactical savvy. Not necessarily a team leader, possibly someone more like Radar O'Reilly ("Sir, those things keep sneaking up on us through the grass. Maybe we should burn it down or something. Sure the winds going the wrong way, but we could back-burn it. You know burn it in strips from close to far so it'll die out if it comes back our way. Yes sir, I'm glad you thought of that. I'll get some men right on that.") or something.

A couple of questions: What kind of posting frequency are we looking at? It kinda varied in the 2 chapters.
Could you repost the instructions for invisible castle? it would be more convenient to have it here than the other forum.

Welcome aboard, Stoned_Golem! Since you've read Chapters 1 and 2, you can certainly play one of the Under characters. There are still several available, as a lot of people got trapped underground when the zombies rolled over the diner. I'll post the full character sheets here, probably on Saturday, but you can still see them on the old site. The Under characters currently still available are:

Rosie the waitress
Lynne (she's got a broken leg)
Max the dog
Mrs. Foo
Mr. Foo
Ellen Cody
Sally the traveling nurse
Willie the aging camera man (currently wounded and unconscious)
Jenny Cooper the lab assistant
Kimberly the pharmacist (badly wounded)
Michael Walters the British psychologist
Kerry Pierce

The other Under characters are being played by others already. Randall is an NPC, but he was bitten and doesn't have long to live anyway. If you recall, he intends to sacrifice his life to seal the hatch once everyone gets below.

If you want a sniper character, there's a National Guard sniper in the Over group (Private Simone Dawkins), but she's rather different than the sort of character you're talking about. The relief troops don't have a sniper per se. None of them have sniper rifles, though there are some with good sharpshooting skills who might fit the bill. You might like Senior Airman Roger Coltrane. He's a good marksman as well as a fire team leader. There are also some characters in the biker group with military backgrounds, and a couple of them have scoped rifles and good skills with them.

While the characters have fixed stats and skills, their personalities are yours to shape (within the loose bounds of their descriptions and secrets, and anything they've already done if they're not new characters). If you want to play Coltrane like Radar O'Reilly, for example, feel free!

The posting frequency varied based on the time available to myself and the other players. Unlike the first two chapters, I'm going to be using multiple threads that can be updated independently. I'm hoping to update each thread at least twice a week, though there may be slower or faster periods, and some threads may move at different speeds depending on the posting frequency of the players in them.

I will repost the Invisible Castle instructions as well as the important rules and guidelines from the old board here in a new thread. I want to get the character sheets up first so players can choose, and while I'm waiting for them to choose I'll post the other things. I'm not going to have a chance to post any sheets tonight, but tomorrow looks good.

Are there any extremely stealthy, thief-type characters about? They'd be interesting to role-play. Otherwise, I'd just like to go for the average guy, perhaps with a stronger than normal swinging arm. It's cool that you can play a dog.

Many of the military characters have good stealth skills and are fairly strong. If you want a thief-type, Airman Brian Kincaid may be close to it, but he lacks stealth. Airman Thomas Cole is a scout and Airman Frank Hodges is a recon specialist. All three are strong too.

There are a couple of stealthy characters with thief skills among the existing characters, but you'd need to have read the first two chapters to play them. Lynne is one of them, but she's got a broken leg and can't move around so well now. Mr. Foo is another, though he does only have 6 Dex. Azadeh had the requisite skills, but she died.

I like that you can play a dog too. There used to be two of them, but one met a tragic end thanks to a reckless character and some very bad rolling on Invisible Castle.

Just a question - I've been ready through the first chapter, and it seems more like a join-effort story with some skill checks than a role-playing game. Is this just the finished version of several role-playing threads?

No, the first two chapters always had a single main thread (supplemented by PMs and such). This is actually the fourth or so attempt to run Zombie Apocalypse - Welsh has been refining it since its earlier incarnations. The early parts of Chapter 1 may have seemed more freeform, but there are definitely rules here. The players decide what their characters want to try to do, but the Keeper (with the help of the dice) determines the outcome. The players are most definitely not in control of the game world, and can only attempt to influence it by using their characters' abilities. If you've gotten to the first mass death, you'll see just how little control the players can have over what happens.

The PCs will often be reacting to the situation as the Keeper develops it, but it really pays to plan ahead. Many of the disasters of the first two chapters could have been avoided or mitigated by proper planning and better cooperation between characters. Another thing to keep in mind is that the world is chaotic in that small details can have a great influence on the outcome of events. Where you chose to park your car, for example, might have made a difference between it getting blown up or just having its windows blown out. This is one way you can have an influence on the outcome of events, but often it's impossible to predict what the results of seemingly minor decisions will be. Only the Keepers have full knowledge of the situation, but even we don't have complete control. That's where the dice and the players' freedom of action come in.

Another thing to keep in mind is that anyone can die at any time. A mistake can get you killed, but you can also die even if you do everything right just by being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Being a tough character and having great stats won't save you - just ask Alex (one of Stompie's characters who died early on). Many of the characters who survived the first two chapters are in fact those with poor stats and little to no survival skills (Mrs. Foo, for example). One reason for this is because the more capable characters seem to be the ones who take risks more often.

OathinBlood wrote:Just a question - I've been ready through the first chapter, and it seems more like a join-effort story with some skill checks than a role-playing game. Is this just the finished version of several role-playing threads?

To be fair, the main problems with early Zombie Apoc games at NMA was that NMA players were, in practice, free form joint effort story tellers. The problem with that, however, is that you can't do horror. The current ZOmbie Apoc incorporates CoC Rules (but CoC rules lite) consistent with the transition from free-form roleplay to more structured horror role play. In practice quite a few of the first players (free form) didn't jive the transition and dropped out and it took a bit of time to develop the practice of more rule based gaming.

But what you see us settling into by the end of Chapter 1 and into Chapter 2 is pretty much the way the game plays out- attempting to balance agent free will with structural determinism.

Hello.

Looks like a fun game, I'm interested in playing. I hope there's still a place free?

Ben.

Welcome aboard, Ben! Yes, there's still plenty of room. Go ahead and look over the character sheets in the thread by that name and choose the ones you want to play. Information on how to choose them is in the Character Selection and Discussion thread. I'm planning to start the game this weekend. Have fun!

I'm still trying to read through all the previous threads, but Christ, it's long. It's interesting, though disjointed, so it's both enjoyable to read yet hard at the same time. There's so many different characters and places!

Hey Oath-

That was kind of the idea- sow seeds of confusion but allow even something that seems rather simple (a truck stop in the middle of Nebraska- even if its a rather unusual truckstop) a lot going on. Much of the success or failures of the game arise not from the zombie or individual actions, but the interactions of the characters. The narrative breaks and the confusion I think adds to the uncertainty and horror of the game.

Yes, that's one of the great things about how Zombie Apocalypse works. That will continue in Chapter 3, but in a different way. We're going to have several different story threads, and players will only be allowed to read the threads in which they have characters (non-players are of course free to read everything). This limits the amount of information you have to work with since you don't know the whole story and enhances the effects of confusion, and it also limits how much you need to read.

Shame I may just need to pick a character in over so that I can read the whole story .

Even then you wouldn't get to read the whole story. Each section (Over, Under, and Through) has its characters split up into multiple groups, each with its own thread. You can only read the threads for the groups your characters are in. The characters in the prison level in Under (such as Joe Barring) aren't going to know what's going on with the characters in the lab level and vice versa, at least until they meet up. The Over characters start out in three different locations (the helicopter, the tower, and Hangar 1). The Through characters also begin in various places. Each subgroup will remain in sync with the other subgroups in Over, Under, or Through, but will be independent of the other two large groups. Under and Through are near each other, so it is possible for one of them to affect the other or even eventually reunite.

True it should make it interesting to say the least.

any chance i can jump in late on this one?

You sure can! Look through the Character Sheets thread (one of the stickied ones at the top). You may choose one or more characters to play. Multiple characters are recommended, as the game is very lethal and characters will die. You can have three, or four if you're really up to it.

You don't need to read the first two chapters in The Story So Far if you choose only characters newly added in Chapter 3, and there are still several available. Almost all of those are in the Through section. Currently the only new characters available in Over are Dr. Bernard Smith and Lucy Armstrong (both of whose players are missing), but they won't have much to do besides talk until Chapter 4 starts, which is months away. There are no new characters in Under at this time. The new characters available in Through are:
2nd Lt. Rebecca Doolittle
Senior Airman Roger Coltrane (abandoned by player)
Airman Thomas Cole
Airman Greg Applebee (abandoned)
Amanda Deeds
Lewie Newton (abandoned)
Ernest Granger (abandoned)

Once you've made your selections, post them in the Character Selection and Discussion thread. I'll send you their secrets, and then you can start posting once you've read those and caught up on what your characters have done so far in Chapter 3. In the Locations thread there is a thread history for each surviving character that will tell you which threads to read. Players are not allowed to read the threads their characters haven't been in. The Rules and Guidelines thread also contains helpful information. Welcome aboard!

Hello all, I'll be taking over Ernest Granger from now on!

Uhm... Hey.

There room for an utter newbie to squeeze in and play a character or two?

Yes, there's still room! Most of the new characters for Chapter 3 have been claimed, but you can still play Airman Greg Applebee, Amanda Deeds, or Dr. Dale Owens in Through. I'll also allow you to choose Joe Soarez, since his player never started playing the game. In the Over section, Dr. Bernard Smith and Lucy Armstrong are still available, but they won't have much to do besides talk until Chapter 4 begins, which is still months away. If you want to play characters that have been around longer, you'd need to read the first two chapters (or Chapter 2 if you want characters that were added in that chapter). When Chapter 4 starts, there will be many more characters added, so you can always pick more at that time.

Ok, sure. I'll take Greg... He sounds like my kinda psycho...

Just so you know, this is my first ever attempt at anything CoC based, or forum based... I'm reading the quickstart rules now, and I've read your guidelines thread but go easy on me, ok?

No problem! I'll help you with any rules questions you have. This is a lethal game, however, and Applebee is already badly wounded and half-insane, but he might just get through this alive if you use your head. I'll send you his secrets in a few minutes. To catch up on his story, read Unhappy Landings first. The Out Of Character comments there are also a good tutorial for applying the rules, rolling dice, and combat. Then you should read Iroquois Down, and finally The Siege. Once you've caught up, you can start posting in The Siege when you're ready. Remember not to read the other In Character threads that your character hasn't been in.

Cool, thanks.

I'll keep that in mind ^_^

The way I see it, if I play and like it, I can add more characters as they become available... If I play and dislike it, I can drop out, and I've only affected one character.

I'll start reading those threads. ^_^

Hi all. I'll be jumping in at the start of Chapter 4. See you there... maybe... if you're quick enough to keep away from those hungry critters.

Welcome aboard, Imp! Chapter 4 should be starting in a couple of weeks, and I hope to start posting character sheets about a week from now. At that time I'll be moving the old character sheet, OOC, and other threads into the Chapter 3 subforum and locking them. New threads will be placed in the Chapter 4 subforum.

Hi everyone I am Alex. I'm a big fan of both zombies and roleplaying so when I saw the first two chapters over at NMA needless to say it cought my eye. While I have not read the full chapters I glanced at several parts of the story and it seemed like a lot of fun. So I sent off a private message to Mr. Handy and he was kind enough to let me join. I haven't really role played over a forum before but I am more than willing to learn. I after looking at several in game posts by Mr. Handy and others I think I get the general idea. I'm looking forward to playing with you all.

Welcome, Alex! You might want to read the Rules and Guidelines thread while you're waiting for the new character sheets (which should start to appear within days). It has a lot of information that can be useful to new players.

Mr. Handy wrote:Welcome, Alex! You might want to read the Rules and Guidelines thread while you're waiting for the new character sheets (which should start to appear within days). It has a lot of information that can be useful to new players.

Thank you. I have read over the guide lines and several posts in Chapter 3. I think I understand most of it but we will see. Please forgive any mistakes I may make.

No problem. The beginning of Chapter 4 will be like a tutorial to help new players ease into the game and existing players to refresh their understanding of how it works. I should be able to post the new character sheets tonight, and then you'll be able to choose which ones you want to play.

Wow, gotta say i am impressed with everythign you got going..trying to read up on everything and understand what im suppose to do...Hope i can figure it all out in time. would love to try and play

Welcome, beertender! The first thing you should look at is the Character Sheets thread in the Chapter 4 subforum to see which character or characters you'd like to play. Any that aren't played by another player or the Keeper are free for you to select from, but you'll probably want to choose from the ones newly added in Chapter 4 unless you want to read a lot of backstory. Fortunately, the vast majority of the characters are new. Don't worry if you don't understand the stats and skills yet, just be aware that higher numbers are better and pick the sorts of characters you'd like to play. There's still a wide selection from which to select.

The instructions for selecting characters are in the aptly named Character Selection and Discussion thread in the main forum, on page 5 of that thread. Just reply in that same thread with your decisions, and I'll send your the characters' secrets in a PM.

The next thing you'll want to check out after you've picked your characters is the Rules and Guidelines thread. You don't have to memorize it or even read everything there, just skim it and refer back to it as needed. Then you'll be pretty much set. Feel free to chat in the OOC thread in the Chapter 4 subforum. You don't need to read the first three chapters unless you want to play the characters who survived them, and you should not be reading the Chapter 4 IC threads at this point. Once you've picked your characters you may read IC threads for your character, but you may not read the other IC threads. This keeps the suspense higher and prevents you from knowing things that your character shouldn't know, helping keep out of character knowledge separate.

The locations and weapons thread is a useful reference too. It will help you keep track of where your characters are and what they have, and it also contains a thread history so you know at a glance which threads you're permitted to read. I'll add in hyperlinks there eventually, so that clicking on the thread's name will take you to the thread (or the relevant portion of it).

Hi Mr Handy,

I am looking to join the campaign. Keep in mind, I'm a total noob to PbP and have only watched others play on the first site I discovered, which was the Federation Space site a month ago. I just discovered this site four days ago but am interested in participating. I could take on two of the pre-generated characters for Chapter 7 unless you believe it would be more appropriate to just run one until I have a handle on things. Either way, I have been reviewing the Rules and Guidelines post. I believe the keys here would be registration at Invisible Castle and understanding how to use the Spoiler and Spoiler Button Tags. If there are other areas I should focus on, please feel free to let me know.

As for character selection, do I choose from the Chapter 7 Character sheets post?

Thanks for the help and hopefully I'm not a burden here as a green rookie....

Have a good one!
Pickman37

Welcome, Pickman37! Don't worry about being new to play by post. A lot of players in Zombie Apocalypse have been new, and I can help you get started. It's perfectly fine to start with two characters, or even three, as long as you have the time. You can always add more later, too.

One important thing to note is that you shouldn't read IC threads that don't have your characters present. Even then, you shouldn't read the parts before your character entered or after your character left. There are helpful hyperlinks by each character's name in the Locations and Weapons thread in each chapter that will lead you through that character's story so far.

When you've decided which characters you want, you should post your choices in the Character Selection, Creation, and Discussion thread. The following new pregenerated characters are still available:
GOLD
Airman Jason Baker
Airman Carolyn Wagner
Airman Peter McBain

SWORD
Staff Sergeant Larry Dauterive
Tricia Barrett
Jake Bell
Mary Bell
Clyde Bell
Veronica Bell

All new pregenerated characters in Omaha are already claimed, but new characters can be created there. I recommend taking one character in Gold and one in Sword.

Once you've chosen your characters, you can read their IC threads up to the present to catch up on their stories, which shouldn't take long for the new ones. I'll also PM you with your characters' secrets. Once you've read those, you can start posting in your characters' threads.

Thanks Mr. Handy.

I should be ready in the next few days. I have some unexpected RL issues to deal with tomorrow but should be able to get set up over the weekend. Once I have things sorted out, I should be good to roll and ready to put in the time!!

Cheers!