Green Dawn

[kylesgames]

Everything from the past still exists today, it just isn't as nice as it was.

Green Dawn has been rebooted, not as a transhuman science-fiction zombie game but more of a contemporary game. It aims, like the original, to look at late-stage zombies; after all has been said and done, there's still a world out there. There's a number of things I'm looking into to make it unique.

It's going to be worked on at my site (), though I don't have much up there yet.

Infection

There will be ten strains of the zombie virus, each taking effect at various times, and measured by severity (when people turn, how quickly they turn, if they gain bonuses when turning). Low-level zombies (Strain I) transmit in an airborne fashion (and the majority of survivors have it, including the players). Dangerous zombies have Strains VII-X, and become tougher and may even turn before technical "death". These strains, however, are transmitted only by contact. There aren't any instant-turn strains left (though there were some when there were still more zombies, and they may be in some lab somewhere), though there are a couple rarer ones that have impact months or years after infection.

Society

People have begun to rebuild, and they are hopeful. They've sprung from the ashes, after all. Technology has largely survived, sans for the lack of a stable power grid and internet (again, conditional), though there is a race against time to preserve things that existed before. Prototyping machines and the like allow a society with fewer engineers to still produce fully viable technological wonders like computers, cyberware, and composite body armor, and even some things that don't start with the letter "c"! Life is still difficult due to the population loss-farming and agriculture is in high demand, and the setting I'm focusing on (my home, the desert) is a little bit bad for that, though it's possible to survive.

Also, due to the fact that infected people can be dangerous after their death, they are often secluded from less-infected or pure society. There are only a handful of enclaves of entirely uninfected people, and since the virus can be transmitted at worst like the flu and at best through bodily fluid contact, people are understandably paranoid about allowing people with infections in their midst, though checking for this is often difficult.

Technology

There is cyberware, and there are computers and manufacturing equipment that makes a lot of things easier and prevents a major backslide. Recovering the absolute peak of technology is still a concern, and without a reliable power grid and maintenance there are fears that many old artifacts could be lost forever inside crumbling buildings and through torrential floods. Cyberware comes with a cost; it makes people more likely to turn (since it is physical trauma) when infected with all but Strain I, though very expensive cyberware may be available to "turn back the tide". (Most!) Zombies cannot use cyberware, however, meaning that a guy with replacement limbs is less dangerous than his unaugmented counterpart in terms of actually being a zombie.

[koipond]

Here's a thought, just to throw out an idea on how to do something possibly different.

How does your community pass on information? Do they try to keep written records, or have things gone to the point where it's mostly oral traditional that keeps things alive, and if so how are things distorted?

[kylesgames]

[bosky]

When I read the title "Green Dawn" I honestly thought the game was going to be like the movie Red Dawn, but with violent environmentalists instead of invading communists. Must be time for more sleep.

[kumakami]

[kylesgames]

Which reminds me that I need to get back on writing for this; I have all the concepts written up but I've been returning to my position as a featured reviewer at DriveThruRPG (after having it confirmed that I can still review even while I write my own games), so I've been a little busy working to review things.

I've been debating how to do the Tetris-styled inventory, primarily in the form of notation for complex shapes (I don't think a handgun in an inventory space would be 2x3, just a 2x1 and 2x1 attached), as well as contemplating ways to integrate another video game feature; Diablo-styled prefixes and suffixes that have percentile effects.

[Chainsaw Aardvark]

Let me introduce you to a little video-game called

Items could be fairly regular rectangles, but the grid area could be oddly shaped, thus complicating item placement. For example, it might be kind of flack-vest in area (think of an H, with the bottom filled in), but as damage puts holes in the armor, gaps form where you can't have stuff. Or perhaps you only have so many pockets of a certain size, but a lot of larger items. A set of Alice web gear has a half dozen magazine pockets, two one by two, and one two by three pack.

Another idea - you can expand the size of a pocket, in exchange for an initiative penalty. Sure, you can carry extra stuff on your back, but good luck getting to it quickly.

[kylesgames]

I loved S.T.A.C.K.E.R.

It's actually what made me feel like undertaking this.

As far as the inventory system works; there's no inherent inventory space (except for stuff held in the hands), though slings can allow for weapons or the like to be carried.

Backpacks, tactical pouches, utility belts, holsters and the like allow some additional degree of carrying space, but are all pretty small.

Cybernetics function on a body-area based thing, with various size groupings.

EDIT: Basically arms, legs, torso, and head are all separate, some implants have to be in certain areas.