Welcome To Lazarus

Zombie Superman

2012-02-21T07:00:00.003-06:00

Ok, I realize that it's not REALLY Superman! What kind of dork would think that a comic book hero could be turned into a real life zombie...geesh. This guy, obviously, was some sort of convention geek, who ended up on the wrong side of the undead menu, right? Imagine a survivor's surprise, though, to see the Man of Steel come shambling down the street, looking at them like they were today's blue plate special.

This figure is a re-purposed Heroclix Bizzaro Superman miniature, purchased from Troll and Toad. TandT is an excellent source for collectible prepaints, with a good selection and great service. The fig is based on a 25mm round slotta base. The hunched over stance and the vacant look make him a perfect zombie, IMO.

Power and Light: ATZ Campaign Day 7

2012-02-14T07:00:00.133-06:00

I have been remiss, and for that I apologize. For the last 2 months, I have literally sat down 5-6 times to get another game in. I just haven't been able to do it, though. I finally managed to get the drive together to get another one played. In fact, I feel so refreshed by the experience, I am going to finally paint up the minis I need for Day 8, and get to work on playing it out, this week.. So, without further adieu, here is the latest installment of my ATZ campaign, entitled "Power and Light"

Prologue:

“We gotta go down there and fix a transformer that’s popped. Can you guys keep the rioters away while we work?”, the utility worker asked the 4 police officers. The officers looked at him. His use of the “rioters” could mean only one thing, he had not seen what they had seen over the last several days.

“You just do your job, we’ll do ours. If we tell you to move, though, you do it as though it had come from the mouth of God, got it?”, one of the policemen snapped.

“Yeah, whatever,” the man replied turning to his partner chuckling, “A bit dramatic ain’t he?”

Officer Baakus grabbed his arm and spun him around. Growling he said, “Listen, you wanna stay alive, you do what we tell you; else you are on your own.” There was a look in Baakus’s eyes and tone in his voice that told the man to stay quite. Officer Baakus pointed at the nearby man-hole cover and spat, “Now get down that hole and do what you gotta do…quick.”

The utility workers gave Officer Baakus a surly look as they began preparing to make their repairs, as the police set up barricades in the street.

Setup:

LPD cars 1 (Baakus and Toner) and 13 (Zentti and Jones) have been dispatched to provide traffic control and security for Lazarus P&L crew, whose job it is to get a downed transformer back on line. They've setup around a manhole in front of a convenience store in the middle of downtown Lazarus.

Special Rules:

When Doubles are rolled on initiative rolls, special events will take place, per the rules on page 27 of the ATZ: Haven book. The game ends when the utility workers fix the transformer and make it to safety, or are killed.

Turn 1

Human Move: Workers get the man-hole cover off.

Turn 2

Human Move: The utility workers enter the man-hole.

Turn 3 (Doubles)

Special Event: The police hear a barking dog, which seems to be coming closer.

Turn 4 (Humans 3, Zombies No Move)

Human Move: The utility workers start looking for the problem with the burned out transformer.

Turn 5 (Zombies 1, Humans No Move)

Zombie Move: The dog turns the corner and moves towards the police officers (10in move). Six zombies come around the corner, following the dog. Baakus recognizes them for what they are and draws his weapon, yelling at Toner to do the same. They snap fire (pass 2D6 In Sight); of the four rounds fired, one round strikes home, dropping a zombie in its tracks.

Turn 6 (Humans 1, Zombies No Move)

Zombie Placement: Drawn by gun fire a zombie comes out the front door of the convenience store.

Human Move: Zenetti has LOS on the zombie, but doesn't fire (pass1 In Sight). Toner sees the movement and turns, snapping 2 rounds off. Both rounds strike the Zed, vaporizing its head. Baakus fires two more rounds at the Zeds chasing the dog, and drops a second zombie.

Turn 7 (Doubles)

Zombie Placement: A single zombie is comes out of one of the tenements, drawn by the gunfire.

Special Event: Three zombies enter the map from the SW, and move 12 in to join up with the zombies by the corner.

Turn 8 (Doubles)

Special Event: A car enters the map in the SE corner, moving to the west. It contains a male driver (Rep4) and female passenger (Rep 3). They are trying to escape the city.

Turn 9 (Doubles)

Zombie Placement: Two zombies come up the road, attracted by the sound of the car's engine.

Special Event: Another group of 7 zombies comes from the direction the other zombies did.

Turn 10 (Humans 1, Zombie No Move)

Human Move: As the utility workers fix the downed transformer, Baakus and Toner fire on the advancing zombie again. They manage to drop 3 more zombies with their four shots. Further down the street, the driverof the car sees a group of people ahead. He slows (moving to ½ speed, via reaction check).

Turn 11 (Zombies 2, Humans 1)Zombie Placement: Two more zombies come out of the convenience store. Down the block the escaping car is now drawing a lot of attention. A total of 8 zombies appear from the shops that line the street.

Zombie Move: The zombies charge the car, from multiple directions. Four zombies smash into the moving car. Two of them go under the wheels, and two are knocked down. The driver maintains control (pass 2, Loss of Control). The car rolls over a third zombie, and then slams into 6 more. One is thrown to the side, while the others are run down. The impact causes the driver to lose control. The car rolls over, and the woman is thrown from the car and killed, and the man is knocked unconscious. The zombies by the store charge Toner, and he is unable to fire as the zeds attack him (Pass 1, Being Charged). The zombies manage to bite Toner, and he screams as he goes OOF.

( Game Note: I kind of improvised with the rules on this part of turn 12. It always bothered me in ATZ that a car would stop, if the wrong die came up on initiative, and could be acted against in place. I decided to use a simultaneous move system, where the zombies and car would move an inch, any interaction was resolved, then the next inch was moved and so on, until all the zombie movement was expended. The occupants of the car could do nothing, except react to what was happening via the reaction chart. That's how we get the scene above as the car plows through the crowd of zombies, even though the humans didn't move this turn)

Human Move: Baakus fires at the undead standing over his partner, and gets one hit. One of the zeds drops. Jones drops the second zombie from down the street. Zenetti moves towards the downed officer, yelling at the two utility workers as they exited the manhole to run.

Turn 12 (Humans 3, Zombies 1)

Zombie Placement: A total of 6 Zombies are drawn to the area, from all the noise. The only ones that are of any danger to any humans are three that enter the map near the wrecked car.

Human Move: Baakus turns and fires at a zombie advancing from his left, dropping it easily. He then rounds the car to help Zenetti get Toner into the back seat of the patrol car. Jones moves to Patrol 13, and then realizes that Zenetti has the car keys. The utility workers get into their work van. Back at the overturned car, the driver comes to and struggles to get out of the wreckage.

Zombie Movement: The zombies by the car surround it; pouncing on the trapped man. He feebly attempts to defend himself, and is quickly overwhelmed. His screams echo against the building walls as they begin feasting for 3 turns. The dog chasing zombies advance on Baakus and Zenetti. While 3 of them are unable to reach the humans, one is able charge Zenetti. They become locked in melee as Zenetti fights the zombie off.

Turn 13 (Humans 3, Zombies 1)

Zombie Placement: None

Human Move: Baakus casually aims his pistol at the head of the zombie attacking Zenetti and pulls the trigger. The zombie drops lifelessly to the asphalt. Baakus gets in the car and locks the doors, as Zenetti sprints back to the other one. He and Jones get in and likewise lock the doors. The utility workers try to start their truck, but it won’t start.

Zombie Move: The zombies at the car continue to feast. Two zombies start pounding on Zenetti’s car, while three attack Patrol 1, to no avail.

Turn 14 (Zombies 3, Human No Move)

Zombie Placement: Only one zombie is drawn to the area.

Zombie Move: Two more zombies join the attack on Patrol 1. None of the attacks on the cars are successful.

Turn 15 (Humans 3, Zombies 1)

Zombie Placement: None

Human Move: The utility workers manage to start their truck and drive off, making it to safety. Neither patrol car manages to start.

Zombie Move: The passenger side window of Patrol 1 begins to break

Turn 16 (Humans 4, Zeds 2)

Zombie Placement: Three more zombies are drawn to the area

Human Move: Both cars mange to start to move to saftey. Baakus manages to successfully execute a spectacular J turn in reverse (pass 2, Driver and Loss of Control), running over 2 more zombies in the process.

Aftermath:

All three vehicles make it to safety. Despite its best efforts, the utility department is unable to keep the grid up. Bit by bit, block by block the power starts going out across the city. By night fall, much of the city proper is without power. As the power went out authorities last more and more control. At an ever increasing pace, they were unable to maintain order as chaos began to engulf the city.

Baakus preformed admirably this game. I think he has more than redeemed himself, and may rate STAR status here pretty soon. Although, he keeps managing to loose parents to zombie bites. Well, it'll give a revolving door of side characters once I get inot the campaign proper.

The point in the middle of the game where 3 doubles were rolled on initiative was the weirdest thing. It was actually a series of 4 doubles on initiative. As God is my witness, here's how it happened. First double is rolled; no big deal. Second double is rolled, with the exact same numbers; I must not have shaken the dice, discard and re-roll. Third doubles is rolled, with different numbers; WOW, these dice are strange, I'll take this result, though. I changed dice, shook them really well, threw them. DOUBLES; I doubt I could ever duplicate it, again!

Even though the utility workers (whose vans look suspiciously like UPS trucks) managed to get the power back on, day 8 will dawn with things sliding more out of control in Lazarus. Let me sit down and figure out what's on the agenda for its good, and maybe not so good citizens. Until then, I hope you enjoyed this installment.

Big John and the Zombies, Pt 2

2012-02-06T18:33:00.003-06:00

Looks like Big John, and his buddies, are in a spot of trouble. Caught out in the open, they've found themselves surrounded by a large mob of undead!

Believe it, or not, I am parting ways with these figs. I really like them; they look like I envision Zombie Apocalypse figures should be. As stated before, they are a bit over sized for my tastes. That, coupled with my 2012 gaming project's need for capital, has led me to this point. So, these figures will be finding a new home soon. You'll find postings at The Miniatures Page and the Post Apoc Wargames Forum.

On The Workbench - 02/12

2012-02-03T07:00:00.001-06:00

Already into the second month of the year, and I forgot to queue this up. Oh well, I had an anniversary on the first, a 15 year old's birthday on the 4th,the wife a youngest are going to Omaha this weekend, and Valentine's day on the 14th. I think I'm allowed a bit of lee-way this month. Here's this month's "On the Workbench" post.

The new items and projects that I added stuff to are denoted by an * next to them.

On the Workbench for February 2012:
(This is all stuff that is partially finished; in no particular order)

15 28mm PA Survivors - 3, 5 man packs from Lead Adventure Miniatures
26 Heroclix Figs* - Figures for conversion into sci-fi and horror gaming minis
16 x Pulp/Steampunk Minis* - 5 more figs added for the commision painting of some Fiendish Fabrications figures
20 Mantic Ghouls - Mantic Ghoul Regiment

6 28mm Survivors - Obelisck Nighthawk gang
2 x HotWheels Planes* - Conversions for 15mm post apocalyptic style games
5 28mm Vampires - Pontoonier Wierd West vampires for Two Hour Wargames. Unfinished commission work that is grinding along on no certain timeline.

28mm Post Apoc Ruins Project - Ruins made from Gamecraft's Foamcore 6 story building. This one is half done.
10mm Ruins Project - Foamcore ruins for a BTech style game using Mechwarrior figs; another half finished project.
28mm Vehicles* - 6-8 vehicles for my survivor
15mm Suburbia - Paper/foamcore houses for suburban Lazarus.
50 20mm WWII Russians - Minis for a semi defunct NUTS! East Front project I planned
2 T-34/85s - Same As Above
Various Fantasy/Sci Fi minis* - I have a box of old minis I use to try out techniques and hone my skills. I have quite a few half painted figs that I'd like to finish

January's Finished Projects/Minis
(I will be posting these up through out the month, as I get photos and such)

5 x MegaMinis Forest Creatures - Critters for THWs, post pending.
20 28mm Zombies - Wargames Factory Plastic Zombies.
4 x 28mm PA Ruins - 3 more ruins for my PA project posted on ZSS last month.
8 28mm Survivors - The last of the Atcheson Designs ATZ figs.
1 x Horrorclix Dire Wolf - Posted on ZSS last month.

Wargames Factory Zombies

2012-01-31T07:00:00.047-06:00

I picked these figs up at a convention, last year, on the cheap. I put the multi-part plastic figs together, and wasn't really impressed. They languished on the shelf for a long time. For the price I paid, they were a great bargain, though. The quality and crispness of the parts leaves a lot to be desired. In the end, though, they painted up well enough to fill out a zombie horde.

Some of the figs you can put together are nice figs; others, though not so much. Here's a pic of some of my more favorite finished figs. You can see that I used some Mantic zombie heads, in place of the WGF ones. They work with some of the torsos.

I used a speed painting technique I read about on the Lead Adventure Forum. Basically, you prime in a light color, and then use washes and stains to finish the figs. It was quick, about 4 hours to totally finish these 23 figs. For quick and dirty, playable figs for the table, I may use it again.

For the record, the figs that WGF has in their on-line shop are painted very nicely, and show what someone with a lot of talent, time and patience could do with these figs; you should check them out.

My "Clicky" Zombie Horde Grows

2012-01-24T06:46:00.000-06:00

About mid December, I received a package, containing some Horrorclix figures; most of which were zombies. I managed to pick them up on the cheap and have been able to bulk up my "Clicky" zombie horde by 15, for a total of 20. A little bit of converting, a little bit of painting; add in the five I already have completed, and here are the results.

The first group of new zombies are some "Zombie Cops". I swapped a head with a "Shambling Zombie" on one figure (the one with the hat on), and a Mantic zombie head on another. Three were painted as policemen, while the fourth was done up like a security guard

The next group are three "Shambling Zombies" and a "Pod Zombie". Again, some head swaps, and the removal of a torn off arm. The "Pod Zombie" is just a straight up rebase/repaint. He's a little out there; I figure he's been in a swamp for a while and just arrived on the scene.

The next group are female entries into the horde. Three "Sorority Zombies" and a "Cheerleader Zombie" Like the "Pod Zombie", these are straight rebase/repaints. I have to say that so far, these are the weakest zombie figs in the lot; especially the face on the cheerleader (even if she is quite bubbley with her intestine pom-poms and skip in her walk). They work, though.

Last but not least, we have some "Zombie Lawyers". Who doesn't like to see deceased lawyers? Getting to off them a second time is just gravy. :-) It's hard to see, but I repositioned the foot on the one in blue to face forward. Other than that and removing the letter openers from a couple of them, they are straight forward.

Check back in a couple of days as I post a pic of the horde, along with Big John and his new Friends.

Acheson ATZ Minis - Pt 4 (Militia #1 Painted)

2012-01-17T06:52:00.001-06:00

This is the last batch of the current Acheson Creation figures that I have on the workbench. Out of the three sets I bought, this is by far my favorite one. All four of the minis are good sculpts. Their equipment is easily identifiable and is a mix of Army surplus and law enforcement. The uniforms could easily pass for late 80's/early 90's BDUs; even though I painted them up straight olive drab:

Starting from the left, the first figure is armed with an M-79 grenade launcher. The next figure has a P90 style SMG. The third figure is armed with a bolt action long rifle, complete with folded bipod. Finally, the fourth figure is armed with what looks like a SPAS12 combat shotgun. All the figures are equipped with old M17A2 gas masks and on their hips. They are all wearing 1980's style flak vests, and knee and elbow guards, as well. These figures could just as easily fit into a crime scenario, as a SWAT Team as they would a Post Apoc one.

Like I said, these are my favorite out of the three sets I recently purchased from Acheson Creations. Now its time to to scrape together some money to get some more from their ATZ line.

On a side note;this has been a good exercise in photography and Photoshop, even if it hasn't turned out the best, so far. Thanks to my lighting, the color of the minis, and the back ground, I can't seem to get a picture that shows both the color of the flesh tones and the greens. I can get one, but not the other; the photo above is somewhere in the middle. I've tried different backgrounds and playing with the RGB properties in Photoshop. Nothing has worked. I'm gonna plug a way and see if I can get better pic; somehow.

Acheson ATZ Minis - Pt 3 (Males Crazies and Cultists #1 Painted)

2012-01-10T07:00:00.044-06:00

Today, we have the second set 4 minis from the Acheson ATZ minis, entitled Males Crazies and Cultists #1. Again, these figures paint up much better than the Acheson site would suggest.

These figures make nice modern survivor types. Starting from the left, we have a figure with a field jacket and a P90 style SMG. The hand I had issues with in my original post paints up well enough; although better sculpting, or casting would be more desirable. Next is a figure with decently sculpted dreadlocks and an M-79 grenade launcher, who is wearing coveralls. Instead of a survivor, the fig would work just as well as a modern criminal. Next we have a man in a contamination suit, with a flame thrower. This is one of the nicer figs of this type I've seen. The stance is very natural, IMO. You can imagine him contemplating whether that approaching group are undead, or rag tag survivors. Lastly, we have a dwarf (not a youngster) wielding an M-60 machine gun. Once painted it's obvious he's not a youngster, like I thought originally. The fig has an awesome Elvis pompadour hair style. I painted him to look like he is wearing a Mo. Conservation Dept. uniform. Don't ask why, I just thought it worked.

Acheson ATZ Minis - Pt 2 (The Clown and Cultists Painted)

2012-01-06T07:00:00.005-06:00

Here are the first painted offerings from Acheson Creations line of 28mm All Things Zombie line of figures. After my initial review last week, I decided to paint the Clown and Cultists set. Mainly, because the three over sized figures tie in nicley with the Big Jon and the Zombies post from December. You can see in the photo below, that even mounted on fender washers, they stand half a head taller than the other fig on a 25mm round slotta base.

I was right, these figures paint up much nicer than the photo on the Acheson site would suggest. I don't know if it is the photo, or the paint job, or what; they just do. The homeless guy has lots of "flair" on his coat and a maniacal look on his face. The clown's face is just down right creepy. And again, who doesn't need an evil clown in their collection? The machete wielding man has what I take to be a flight suit and life preserver on; which makes my mind whirl thinking of what kind of back story you could come up with for him. The pot bellied man is wearing what looks like a tuxedo jacket, complete with tails, and trousers to me, and has a tool belt, complete with hammer and other tools, and a boy scout hatchet chinched around his waist. Again what a back story you could weave for him.

All in all, at $7.50 + shipping, these figs are well worth the price, in my book.

On The Workbench 01/12

2012-01-03T07:00:00.010-06:00

I hope the new year finds everyone in good health. Big plans this year, so let's get started. Here's this month's "On the Workbench" post. Despite all that went on last month, I did manage to complete several items.

The new items and projects that I added stuff to are denoted by an * next to them.

On the Workbench for January 2012:
(This is all stuff that is partially finished; in no particular order)

15 28mm PA Survivors - 3, 5 man packs from Lead Adventure Miniatures
20 Mantic Ghouls - Mantic Ghoul Regiment
20 28mm Zombies - Wargames Factory Plastic Zombies
6 28mm Survivors - Obelisck Nighthawk gang
5 28mm Vampires - Pontoonier Wierd West vampires for Two Hour Wargames. Unfinished commission work that is grinding along on no certain timeline.
5 x MegaMinis Forest Creatures* - More commission work
11 x Pulp/Steampunk Minis* - Commission painting of some Fiendish Fabrications figures
8 28mm Survivors - Atcheson Designs ATZ figs. Four down, eight to go.
28mm Post Apoc Ruins Project - Ruins made from Gamecraft's Foamcore 6 story building. This one is half done.
10mm Ruins Project - Foamcore ruins for a BTech style game using Mechwarrior figs; another half finished project.
28mm Vehicles* - 6-8 vehicles for my survivor; added another vehicle in November
15mm Suburbia - Paper/foamcore houses for suburban Lazarus.
50 20mm WWII Russians - Minis for a semi defunct NUTS! East Front project I planned
2 T-34/85s - Same As Above
Various Fantasy/Sci Fi minis* - I have a box of old minis I use to try out techniques and hone my skills. I have quite a few half painted figs that I'd like to finish

December's Finished Projects/Minis
(I will be posting these up through out the month, as I get photos and such)

20 Clicky Zombies - These will be up this month on this blog.
2 x Ral Partha Fantasy - A Ranger and a Rogue on ZSS
2 x Pontoonier Figures - Mayan Vampire Priest and a Spanish Missionary, coming soon on ZSS
3 x 28mm PA Ruins - 3 more ruins for my PA project on ZSS
1 x Zombie Reindeer - Christmas greeting from WTL and the first mini in my 2012 FCM Challenge
4 x Acheson Creation ATZ Minis - Coming in a couple of days
28mm River Barge - Post Apoc watercraft on ZSS

Acheson ATZ Minis - Pt 1

2011-12-29T06:55:00.000-06:00

Searching for inexpensive 28mm Survivor types, I found Acheson Creations "All Things Zombie" figures. The line is made in conjunction with Two Hour Wargames ATZ. They are reasonably priced at $7.50 plus shipping for 4 figures. There are 9 set; although only 6 of them have pics in the online catalog. I bought three set in order to see what they were like. I'm going to do a set of quick reviews of these minis as I ready them for the table. I bought the following packs:

Clown and Cultists

This set comes with(from L to R) a bearded knife and shotgun armed homeless looking man. A chainsaw wielding clown. A figure armed with a silenced pistol and machete who's mug bears an uncanny resemblance to Ed from THW. The final figure is a pot-bellied man, with a scoped rifle. As you can see, three of the four figs are rather large; much larger than the forth figure. These three figs will fit in well with my burgeoning "clicky" zombies. The detail on all the figures is good, and they had very little flash on them, which is the same across the sets I got.

Males Crazies and Cultists #1

This set contains (from L to R) an individual with what looks an old field jacket and bull-pup style AR. I can't tell if his outstretched hand is miscast, or just poorly sculpted. Next is a man in a jump suit armed with an M-79 grenade launcher. Third is a bio-suited flame-thrower operator and finally a youngster, or maybe a dwarf, wielding an M-60 machine gun. The figures are equal in scale to the pot-bellied man from the set above. These figs have some character; even if the youngster/dwarf leaves me a little flat.

Militia Set #1

The final set I purchased has 4 figs kitted out in paramilitary gear. Three are bare headed, while the fourth has a patrol style cap on. All have headsets and mikes on. They are armed (from L to R) with a nondescript SMG, another bull-pup AR, and scoped rifle and a combat shotgun. These guys would make good survivalists, or guards.

As you can see from the pictures, with the exception of the first three figs, the minis fall well within the 25/28mm range. While the details aren't the best in the world, they do look like they were worth the price of admission. We'll see how they paint up as I work on them in the coming weeks. I will be honest. I am not impressed with the paint jobs these minis got on Acheson site. I think these minis can look way better than they do in their online catalog.

Hmm, I'll be able to squeeze at least 3 more posts out of these minis.

"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and GAAAAHHHHGG!!"

2011-12-25T06:03:00.006-06:00

Santa made his rounds last night, and his last stop was the city of Lazarus. It's not that his night's work was done. He just ran into some troubles that kept hm from completing his rounds. No photos of the jolly old fat man have turned up. We were able to snap one of his eight tiny reindeer, though.

OH MY!!! I certainly hope he made it to your house before he stopped in Lazarus.

All joking aside, I hope you have a very Merry Christmas

Mantic Zombies - The Start Of A 28mm Horde

2011-12-22T07:00:00.003-06:00

I made the decision to game the Zombie Apocalypse in 15mm several years ago. For some reason, though, recently I've had the itch to start collecting minis to game it in 28mm. There are just so many excellent minis for the genre now, I can't fight it. To that end, I went out and got a Mantic Zombie Regiment box set, containing 30 plastic zombies.

You get 10 identical sprues, with 3 torsos, 3 legs, several left arms variants, and 5 heads. The only problem I see with the set has is that the right arms are attached to the torsos; not separate, like the left ones. This does lead to a limited amount of poses you can make. Still, the figs paint up quiet nicely, with lots of character, and despite the fact that they are meant for use in a fantasy setting, they will work quite well in a modern Zombie Apocalypse. In my opinion, these are the best plastic zombies on the market, and some of the best in general; plastic or metal.

On these figures I used what I call "The Dip Plus" method. That is blocking in the base colors, using "The Dip" method, then going back and heavily highlighting the figs. It is a bit more involved than a basic Dip, and not as much work as doing a "proper" paint job on them. I based them on the 25mm square bases that come with the set. You could just as easily base them on other style/size bases, though. I will use them to fill out the coming horde; sprinkling in modern looking metal ones. Here are a couple of my favorite figs from the batch:

Big John and the Zombies

2011-12-16T06:00:00.099-06:00

Big John and the Zombies...heh, sounds like a rock band, of some sorts. Actually, they are a Foundry Street Violence figure and a couple of re based/modified/painted Horrorclix figs. It's a strange combination for a post, I know. If you'll bear with me for a minute you'll see the connection.

First we have "Big John" He's a slightly modified Foundry figure I had floating around. He originally had a big semi-auto in his had. I used it on another mini, so I replaced the gun, hand and all, with a revolver from one of the Reaper Chronoscope weapons sprues. It works well. With the cheap looking grey suit, he has that haggard low rent Dick look to him...at least I think so:

The next couple of figs are re based, re painted Horrorclix figs. The one on the left is the "Hard Hat Zombie" He's a straight re base/ re paint. The other is the "Human Fly" figure, with the head and arms replaced with Mantic Zombie ones. I like the way it turned out:

Here's a group photo with the other Horrorclix zombies I painted up a while ago:

Now on to why I lumped this all together. If you hadn't caught on by now by reading this blog, I am some what of a stickler about scale; specifically between minis and vehicles on the table. I do not like it when they are too far out of scale with each other. With that said, the "Big John" figure is a giant, even compared with other Foundry figs. Here it is with Foundry and Black Cat Bases figs for comparison:

The guy looks like Andre the Giant to me. The same can be said for the Horrorclix figs,as well:

They are all just a tad to big for my tastes, when put with my other figs. Here's the good news that wraps this all up in a tidy little ball. When put together, Big John and the Horrorclix figs are perfect match:

In fact, they are such a good match that I was moved to start a side project to beef up the number of Horrorclix zombies in my collection, via E-Bay, and also have found a home for 3 more survivor type figs I have kicking about that are too big for my tastes.

MIBs and Gunmen; more from The Scene

2011-12-07T07:00:00.020-06:00

As I stated last week, I have another group of figs from the British company called The Scene. This time it's a group of government agents, aka MIBs and gunmen. Again, these are great miniatures; filled with loads of details:

As with the other batch, these minis are on the large size:

The up side of them being larger is that HO scale vehicles, which there are many to choose from, scale with them much better, than they do with true 15mm figs. Real HO vehicles tend to be a bit large side by side with 15mm figs, IMO.

On The Workbench - 12/11

2011-12-04T07:00:00.011-06:00

Here's this month's "On the Workbench" post. Despite my best efforts, I ended up adding more stuff to the pile of unpainted minis. My finished items and new items offset each other, a bit. Still, not a bad month's output for November.

The new items and projects that I added stuff to are denoted by an * next to them.

On the Workbench for December 2011:
(This is all stuff that is partially finished; in no particular order)

15 28mm PA Survivors* - 3, 5 man packs from Lead Adventure Miniatures
20 Clicky Zombies* - Beefing up the amount of clicky Zeds I have.
20 Mantic Ghouls* - Mantic Ghoul Regiment
20 28mm Zombies - Wargames Factory Plastic Zombies
6 28mm Survivors - Obelisck Nighthawk gang
6 28mm Vampires - Pontoonier Wierd West vampires for Two Hour Wargames. Unfinished commission work that needs to be done ASAP, as I've really let Ed down on this. I have a feeling that I am just going to finish the project gratis
12 28mm Survivors* - Atcheson Creations ATZ figs. I will be doing a review and size comparison on them, soon.
28mm Post Apoc Ruins Project - Ruins made from Gamecraft's Foamcore 6 story building. This one is half done.
10mm Ruins Project - Foamcore ruins for a BTech style game using Mechwarrior figs; another half finished project.
28mm River Barge - Post Apoc watercraft
28mm Vehicles* - 6-8 vehicles for my survivor; added another vehicle in November
15mm Suburbia - Paper/foamcore houses for suburban Lazarus.
50 20mm WWII Russians - Minis for a semi defunct NUTS! East Front project I planned
2 T-34/85s - Same As Above
Various Fantasy/Sci Fi minis* - I have a box of old minis I use to try out techniques and hone my skills. I have quite a few half painted figs that I'd like to finish

November's Finished Projects/Minis
(I will be posting these up through out the monthr, as I get photos and such)

15mm Armor - USMC LAV-25 and a US Army M2 Bradley
30 28mm Zombies - Mantic Zombie Regiment Box (Look for this post over at Welcome To Lazarus in the future)
2 "Clicky" Zombies - (Look for this post in the future)
1 Foundry Street Violence Figure (Look for this post in the future)
6 man 28mm Post Apoc gang - Junior's Salvage Crew
10 15mm Survivors -You can see the first half of the "Here"
15mm Suburban House Test - Test house for modeling a suburan area for Lazarus
1 "Clicky" Scarecrow Conversion - Not sure where this one will show up, yet.

15mm Survivors from The Scene

2011-11-30T08:09:00.000-06:00

This week I have the first of 2 offering from a company called The Scene. The first group of minis are some survivors. They are listed as 15mm; they are very large, though. They tower above most 15mm mini I have. They are closer to true HO or 18mm, than 15mm. With that said, they are, in my opinion, some of best sculpted 15mms out there. Huge amounts of detail packed into a small figure. They paint up very well:

Here is a comparison with some of the larger Rebel Mini zombies:

If scale and size differences don't matter to you, then any Rebel zombies will work on the table top. If they do matter to you, then you will have to weed out some of the smaller zombies. Still, there are enough in all three of the Rebel Mini packs that you will find more than you need to fill the table with zombies that fit these survivors.

Next week, I'll have a group of Government Agents and Gunmen from The Scene.

Quarantine - ATZ Campaign Day 6

2011-11-25T06:00:00.072-06:00

I decided for Day 6, I'd play the "Quarantine" scenario from the ATZ: Haven book. I played it straight by the rules, so some of the humans were bumped up to Rep 4, including our old friend Officer Baccus. Can he redeem himself on this night?

Prologue:

After the very violent, and widely televised, attack on the Wilson campaign rally, city officials decided that something had to be done. A quarantine order was signed, as it was obvious that some disease or pathogen was causing people to become murderous animals. The words "terrorist attack" was even bandied about by the talking heads, in am attempt to make sense of it all. Starting at midnight, every available law enforcement officer would be used to create a cordon around the area where the attacks were taking place. In two man teams, they would let no one in or out, until 8 AM. In the morning daylight, people would be checked for symptoms and aid would be rendered to those who needed it.

Officer Paine was not happy. He had been partnered up with Baccus, who had become some what of a pariah over the last few days. He had lost two partners; rumor was that he had left them high and dry in a deadly situation. To top it off, many thought he was losing it. At the precinct, he spoke of the dead coming back to life and zombies. If it weren't for the fact that every man was needed, his superiors would have relived him by now. As it was, Paine just prayed that Baccus didn't flake out on him and get him killed during the night.

Special Rules
(Per scenario description in ATZ-Haven book)

Anytime Doubles are rolled for activation there is an encounter; roll on Quarantine Encounter table.
Whenever the Police and a Civilian come face to face (6 inches and in sight) roll Rep d6 and consult the “Halt Quarantined” table.
All forces start with weapons holstered. It takes on activation to draw your weapon and you may only snap fire on the same activation it is drawn. The shotgun takes one activation to unlock and access so it may not be fired on the same activation
All forces are subject to Zed or No Zed rule on page 33 of ATZ rule book.(exception: Baccuss and SWAT team in Lazarus world have already taken test and passed)
Zombies cannot be generated by gunfire or similar noises, but those that enter may still be attracted by it.

Setup

The board shows a section of the quarantine line. There are two police cruisers (Patrols 1 and 13) blocking intersections leading out of the quarantine area. Officer Baccus and Paine are on foot patrol, between the 2 cruisers. Building 1-10 are in the quarantine area.

Turn 1 (Police 4, Civilians No Move)

Police Move: Officers Baccus and Paine begin their patrol.

Turn 2 (Double 6s)

(Encounter) An adult male comes out of building 4 and approaches foot patrol. He says his girlfriend is sick and needs an ambulance. He called for one but it hasn't arrived, he begs for help. Officer Baccus says he will call for one and tells the man to go back inside to wait.

Turn 3 (Police 4, Civilians 2)

Police Move: The foot patrol waits for the man to go back inside
Civilian Move: The man retreats nervously back into the building.

Turn 4 (Civilians 2, Police No Move)

Civilian Move: The man returns and approaches the foot patrol again. Before the officers can say anything, the man draws a pistol and fires (+1 Civilian success Halt Quarantined (HQ) roll). The bullet barley misses Baccus's head. Both officers duck back into cover and begin to draw their side arms (seems logical they would start drawing once fired on, even if not activated this turn). The officers down the street strain to see what is going, but do nothing.

Turn 5 (Civilians 4, Police 2)

Civilian Move: The crazed man advances on the foot patrol, firing two more shots. The bullets clang into the dumpster the officers are using for cover.

Police Move: Both officers have their side arms drawn by now and fire at the man. Three bullets strike the man. He drops to the ground seriously wounded and "Out Of the Fight". One officer from each patrol car comes to investigate. The officers call for an ambulance. Dispatch informs them that a police van will arrive shortly (3 turns), because there are no ambulances available.

Turn 6 (Police 4, Civilians No Move)

Police Move: The police administer first aid, and keep the man alive (pass 2, Modified Recovery test).

Turn 7 (Police 2, Civilians 1)

Police Move: The police continue life saving steps on the man.
Civilian Move: The man regains conciseness long enough to mumble about his sick girl friend.

Turn 8 (Double 4s)

(Encounter) Someone screams "FIRE!". The officers look up to see black smoke pouring out of building 2. The officers call it in and fire truck will arrive in 5 turns.

Police Move: The police van arrives. They load the injured man into it and it pulls away, to take him to the hospital.

Civilian Move: A lone civilian runs from the building and heads towards the open part of town. The police tell her to not cross the quarantine line. Seeing the 4 policemen standing there, she turns around and runs into the night (+3 police success, HQ roll).

Turn 9 (Civilians 4, Police 1)

Civilian Move: Another civilian exits the building, this time from the rear exit. The lone officer by the Patrol 1 tells her to halt. Suddenly the woman bolts across the quarantine line (+2 Civilian success, HQ roll). She crosses the line and moves down the street.

Police Move: The police officer chases after the woman. He easily catches up to her, telling her to halt again. Once again she ignores his instructions and charges down the street (+1 Civilian success, HQ Roll). The police officer's partner comes around the corner, just in time to see the woman running into the darkness (the fig made it off the board on its last HQ win). All police officers who haven’t moved return to their posts.

Turn 10 (Police 1, Civilians No Move)

Police Move: Patrol 1 sees 2 people exit the back of the burning building. They mill about, confused. The police watch them closely, but they do nothing.

Turn 11 (Double 1s)

(Encounter) Patrol 13 sees a group of 7 people moving up the street towards them under the dim street lamps.

Police Move: Patrol 13 gets ready to turn the advancing group back. Patrol 1 tells the two people by the burning building to halt and to not cross the quarantine line. Both civilians comply (+1 Police success HQ roll) and move across the street to an all night gas station and watch the building burn.
Civilian Move: The civvies continue to watch their building burn.

Turn 12 (Zombies 4, Police 3, Civilians No Move)

Zombie Move: The group of people in front of Patrol 13 continues to move towards it. The police officers tell the crowd to halt. Suddenly, the group charges the police officers (+3 Zombie successes, HQ roll). As they come near, the police officers see that they are bloodied, and grotesquely disfigured. The police officers are completely overwhelmed by the rushing horde; unable to even draw their weapons (Zombie Surprise total 13 to 7). The first officer goes down screaming as he is torn to pieces by the first zombie to reach him. The second officer manages to kill one of his attackers, before being dragged down, as well. The attackers begin feasting on the bodies for 4 turns.

Police Move: Baccus and Paine hear the screams down the block. Under a distant street light, they can see their companions being eaten alive. Baccus nervously mutters, "It's them" and draws his weapon as he calls for help on his radio (A SWAT Team will arrive in 3 turns). Paine, realizing that Baccus isn’t crazy and steeled by his demeanor draws his sidearm as well. A fire engine arrives and begins to battle the fire in the burning building.

Civilian Move: Still complying with instructions, the civilian from the building stand aside and let the fireman do their work.

Turn 13 (Double 6s, Zombies 1)

(Encounter) Baccus and Paine hear a barking dog in the distance. They look across the small park in front of them and see a dog running towards them. Following not far behind is a group of bloodied figures. Baccus nods his head in their direction, "more of them, get ready".
(Encounter; part of the "Fire" encounter from turn 8) Down the street, there is a “POP”. Sparks and chunks of asphalt fly as a bullet ricochets off the pavement. Someone yells "SNIPER!" as Patrol 1 draws their weapons scanning the area for the shooter. The firemen and civilians duck for cover. One of the officers retrieves the shotgun from the cruiser.
Zombie Move: The zombies follow the barking dog.

Turn 14 (Civilians 4, Police 2, Zombies 1)

Civilian Move: The civilians decide that they need to leave the area and head for the quarantine line. Patrol 1 orders them to stop, emphasizing things with their drawn weapons. The civilians turn on their heels and head the opposite direction (+3 Police success, HQ roll) , while the firemen resume battling the fire.

Police Move: Baccus and Paine stand their ground watching both groups of zombies. Patrol 1 continues to man its road block, as well.

Zombie Move: The barking dog easily out paces the shambling zombies. It makes no difference, though, as the zombies have spotted the humans to their front. They advance towards them, through a small park, as the zombies at the corner continue to feast.

Turn 15 (Police 3, Zombies No Move)

Police Move: A SWAT van turns the corner and heads towards the downed officers of Patrol 13. As it screeches to a halt, heavily armed SWAT members rush from the van. Without hesitation, they begin to pour fire into the zombies feasting on human flesh. They easily dispatch the pre-occupied zombies. Baccus and Paine fire at the advancing zombies as they pass through the small park. Baccus drops 2 of them, while Paine misses.

Turn 16 (Police 4, Zombies 1)

Police Move: Baccus and Paine fire again. Baccus drops another zombie while one of Paine’s bullets passes through the chest of another. The SWAT team advances to the sound of the gunfire and takes out the last 2 zombies.

Aftermath:

Despite their best efforts there were too many incidents like down fall of Patrol 13. Large gaps developed in the quarantined line, and there were not enough officers to plug them. More and more people started to exit the quarantine zone, many of them sporting wounds from rampaging attackers. Faster and faster things spiraled out of control.

Game Note: I will be honest, I wasn't sure how this one was going to go. By the scenario rules in the ATZ - Haven book the game lasts 16 turns. minimum. Since nothing happens unless doubles come up on activation rolls every turn, you could potentially have a game 16 turns long where nothing happens. Needless to say, with 4 encounters taking place, that wasn't a problem this time around. The game turned out quite enjoyable, as I didn't have any idea what was going to happen next.

Also, Officer Baccus finally redeemed himself. I was beginning to worry that I might have to just relegate him to zombie fodder, if he didn't shape up. I think he gets to keep his 4 Rep, and will see more acion in the days to come.

A question of scale..."Why 15mm?"

2011-11-21T06:55:00.000-06:00

Mathyoo's question on the previous thread of "Why 15mm" was a very valid one. I wrestled with it when I decided to start my ATZ project. I'd be interested to hear why others went with the scale they did.

To recap my reasons, they were:
1) Economy of cost: 15mm is way cheaper than the other scales.
2) Economy of scale: I can put a lot more "stuff" on the table. Plus, I would need a 10x10 table, minimum, to host what do on a 3x3. It takes up a lot less storage space, too.
3) Economy of time: It takes a lot less time to get 15mm stuff ready for the table; especially when I have a one off thing I need, quickly.

I think hearing how multiple others went about deciding on what scale to go with would be of benefit for any aspiring gamers, too. So, if you'd like to chime in, feel free to do so...it's several days before the next scheduled post, so fire away!

Suburban Test House

2011-11-18T05:38:00.000-06:00

Soon, my Lazarus campaign will move into the suburbs of the city. I have nothing built, as far as terrain goes, for that setting. I have about 5-6 different style paper house I can build, to give my neighborhoods some variety. So, that's not a problem. The issue I have is capturing the real feel of a US suburb.I could just plop my houses down on a green table top, but that would just look weird. Drive ways are the answer. How do I model them in an easy and durable manner that, though? I searched the web and found what I think is a great solution; roofing shingles!

I took a shingle, left over from my house being re-roofed. I traced out the shape I wanted and cut it out. Use a cheap utility knife, as these things will ruin an Xacto blade in a heart beat. I then used wood glue to affix the paper and foam board house to the BACK SIDE of the shingle. I painted the area around the edge brown and glued static grass to it. I dry-brushed the areas that would be concrete grey and then painted in expansion joints. I used green scratch pads for hedges and even made a little flower bed. Here's the results

Here's an action shot with minis and vehicles for scale:

Going forward, here is what changes I am making to the process:

The driveways need to be longer, so two vehicles can be parked tail to nose in them.
Add back patios to the bases
I am going to lightly over-spray the base with grey primer, so I won't have to dry brush. That'll lighten the color up, as well.
Paint the edges brown BEFORE gluing the houses on.
Find, or build AC units, satellite dishes, etc to add detail
I am going to use shingles for my suburban roads, as well.

15mm Heavy Metal

2011-11-11T06:00:00.005-06:00

My 15mm military forces got a littl extra fire power this week. I finished a couple of Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs) They are done up in colors for the mid-east. They can, and will, just as easily fit into the middle of a US city. I don't really like basing my vehicles. The way these things went together, though, I really didn't have a choice, unless I wanted the tracks popping off every time they hit the table.

The M2 Bradley (foreground) is from a company that I can't recall and the LAV-25 is from QRF Models. The photos below show them with some Peter Pig US Marines. Honestly, they are little on the small side. Still they are nice models and look good on the table.

LAV-25

M2-Bradley

This armor will make good back up, for my Irish Serb HMMVs. I replaced the resin .50Cal on the HMMV on the right with a metal one from Peter Pig. It looks much better. The Irish Serb HMMVs are the best on the market, IMO, and well worth the price.

The turrets on both vehicles are removable, so I took an extra one and modeled it as manned. I used the kneeling Peter Pig Marine .50 Cal gunner; hacked off at the waist, and card for the hatch doors.

Los Surenos - 28mm Survivors

2011-11-04T16:50:00.000-05:00

"Hey, esse, end of the world, or not, this barrio is our home. Mi madre, mi padre, all my brothers and sisters; the pinche dead got them. These vatos are the only ones I have left; mi familia. You understand homes?"

Los Surenos are another gang living in the remnants of Southern California. They rule the barrios keeping all outsiders away; dead or alive.

Los Surenos

Ramone

Eduardo

Pupito

Chui

Gustavo

Tigre

This is another set of Gangstars from Obelisk Miniatures; sold at Black Cat Bases. These are from the same line as the minis in my "Las Chicas" gang. Excellent minis, and I highly recommend them to the 28mm gamer/painter/collector.

"On The Workbench" - 11/11

2011-11-01T07:00:00.068-05:00

I decided that as an ongoing feature, I am going to post a rundown of what I have on the work bench, and what I have completed from the previous month's list. Some of the items will not be Zombie gaming related. They do affect what I get done in regards to material for this blog, though. So, I figure they are pertinent to the conversation. Many of them will be dual use for Welcome To Lazarus and other projects. I'll denote them with an asterisk.


The workbench in the Hobby Cave. It's actually much better lit than the pic suggests.

If anything, this running dialog will keep me on track and help me prioritize what I need to get done. Your input is more than welcome, and you never know. Maybe if there is enough hue and cry, an item will get bumped to the top of the list, just to placate the masses.

On the Workbench for November 2011:
(This is all stuff that is partially finished; in no particular order)
15mm Armor - USMC LAV-25 and a US Army M2 Bradley *
30 28mm Zombies - Mantic Zombie Regiment Box
20 28mm Zombies - Wargames Factory Plastic Zombies
6 28mm Survivors - Obelisck Nighthawk gang *
2 "Clicky" Zombies - Ongoing conversions
6 28mm Vampires - Pontoonier Wierd West vampires for Two Hour Wargames. Unfinish commision work that needs to be done ASAP, as I've really let Ed down on this. I have a feeling that I am just going to finish the project gratis
12 28mm Survivors - Atcheson Designs ATZ figs. I will be doing an indepth review and size comparison on them *
28mm Post Apoc gang - More survivors to battle in the rubble.
28mm Post Apoc Ruins Project - Ruins made from Gamecraft's Foamcore 6 story building. This one is half done.
10mm Ruins Project - Foamcore ruins for a BTech style game using Mechwarrior figs; another half finished project.
28mm River Barge - Post Apoc watercraft
28mm Vehichles - 6-8 vehicles for my survivors *
15mm Suburbia - Paper/foamcore houses for suburban Lazarus. *
10 15mm Survivors - Figs from a company called "The Scene". I have 5 Survivors and 5 Government types in the works. *
50 20mm WWII Russians - Minis for a semi defunct NUTS! East Front project I planned
2 T-34/85s - Same As Above
Various Fantasy/Sci Fi minis - I have a box of old minis I use to try out techniques and hone my skills. I have quite a few half painted figs that I'd like to finish

October's Finished Projects/Minis
6 28mm Survivors - Look for them next Friday!*
2 28mm Aztec Vampire Maidens - Part of my sidetracked Weird West commision for THW
1 Steampowered Armored Suit - "Clicky" rebase and paint for Post Apoc gaming
90 15mm Rebel Minis (Zeds and Survivors) - Commision job for Scale Creep; looking forward to seeing what Mark does with them. It'll be a hoot.
5 28mm Ruins - Part of my Post Apoc Ruins project

High School Of The Dead - Zombie Anime

2011-10-28T06:00:00.002-05:00

I've said it before, I'll say it again, "I love Netflix Instant View". I can troll around and find mindless movies to watch, as I piddle around the hobby cave. Well, I found one that I can post on WTL; "High School Of The Dead", or "H.T.O.D". As the title of this post says, it's zombie anime. It is presented in a series of 12 episodes, each about 20-25 minutes long, and is based on a manga (that's a Japanese graphic novel, for the uninitiated) of the same name.

Hold on, don't get all indignant about it. It's actually a decent zombie tale; once you get past the anime. Additionally, the anime isn't all the bad; the zombies are done very well. I'll let the Wiki blurb explain the plot.

"Highschool of the Dead is set in the present day, beginning as the world is struck by a deadly pandemic that turns humans into zombies, euphemistically referred to by the main characters as "Them". The story follows a group of high school students, the high school's nurse, and a young girl as they fight their way to safety through the deadly streets of Japan during a worldwide catastrophic event known as the "Outbreak". As the cast tries to survive the zombie apocalypse, they must also face the additional threats of societal collapse, in the form of dangerous fellow survivors, and the possible decay of their own moral codes."

Now on to lay out why I am going to recommend this to the zombie aficionado. As far as zombie stories go this is a really good one. It's not all zombie slaying and the characters are explored. Their pasts are explored and the way they each deal with the the end of the world is more interesting than the plot of most zombie flicks. Additionally, the zombies are rendered very well and are true Romeroesque zombies. When the zombies make an appearance the sense of dread is enhanced by their looks as well as a decent soundtrack. At points, there is a whole "28 Days/Weeks later" vibe; mostly due to the soundtrack.

Now, the caveat. It is anime; your typical anime. I like certain anime; "Akira" and "Ghost In The Shell" are two of the greatest Sci-Fi stories on film, in my opinion, but most leaves me flat. I don't like certain aspects of most anime, and this one has them. Not enough to make it unwatchable; enough to grate on my nerves at times.

First, while some of the animation is really good, life like and such, some of it is typical anime. Eyes are too big, as well as boobs at times. There are lots of up skirt shots, that the Japanese are so fond of. Most irritating of all is the anime habit of shifting into what I call "Hello Kitty mode", where the animation morphs momentarily into super simple, over exaggerated style; ala Hello Kitty. Hey, my daughter is the age that she was into it when she was younger; hence my knowledge.

Secondly, most anime has an under current of the repressed sexuality of Japanese culture. It's released in gratuitous scenes with nudity and sexual innuendo. I am not a prude. Still, there were times that it detracts from the story.

Lastly, and this isn't really a big one, at least for me anyway; is the action at times. Close combat can be portrayed WAY over the top; at times even putting John Woo to shame. I can get past it, others may not be able to.

In conclusion, I'd say that if you like zombies and anime, you'll like this one. If you are a zombie fanatic, give it a try; it's better than most low budget zombie flicks you've sat through. If you can't stand anime, even the zombies won't be enough to get you through it.

Survivor House

2011-10-21T06:00:00.006-05:00

Here's a bit I did a couple of years ago and sold. I ran across the pics browsing through my photobucket albums, looking for something unrelated. This is an old Plasticville O scale house that I turned into a suburban fortress. I made it around the time the "Dawn Of The Dead" remake came out; hence the message on the roof. It definitely fits the genre, and I hope it gives someone some inspiration.

If you've seen it before, apologies. If you see this, and are the person that bought it, post some pics of it in action...please!

The Walking Dead Returns

2011-10-17T07:08:00.000-05:00

This is one of those posts from the "In Case You Missed It" Dept. Last night, 10/16/11, was the 2nd season premiere of AMC's "The Walking Dead". I have to admit my geek meter was pegged. As a zombie gamer it was a good week for fodder to get the juices flowing. Season 1 of " The Walking Dead" came out on Netflix Instant Watch, so I had something to throw on while hiding out in the hobby cave this last week.

Then, yesterday AMC showed all the TWD - Season 1 episodes during the day, leading up to the premiere. Since my Chiefs weren't taking the field, I had a bit of free time, for a change, on a fall Sunday afternoon. So I bounced back and forth to AMC all day. Also, AMC has some decent Walking Dead "webisodes" and videos on the TWD site, along with other show related vids. The whole site is really well done, and I say that from an IT Professional stand point, not just a zombie geek one. Then of course the premeir last night.

One last thing, a comment on last night's episode, and Season 2. I liked it. My expectations were met, and I look forward to the rest of the season. I will say this, though. The producers and writers of the show are cruel SOBs. The story thus far has really diverged from the graphic novels. Not a bad thing; it just is what it is. Last night, they threw out a what looked like a bone to those who had read the graphic novels, only to take the story in a completely different direction. It wasn't a shock to me; I will venture that some of the print purists were a little shocked by it, though :-)

TWD definitely gets my zombie gaming juices flowing, so as I said at the outset, I really had a good zombie gaming week, because of it's return to the idiot box.

More 15mm(ish) Cars

2011-10-14T06:00:00.007-05:00

I was digging around in my bit box for some things. Way down at the bottom of it, I found some 15mm(ish) vehicles. I don't remember where they came from. I'm thinking they were from a car hauler that I used for another project, or maybe they came in an E-Bay purchase I got many moons ago. Anyway, I remember throwing them in the bit box, because they looked bad and I couldn't use them; cheap looking, the tires were WAY to small, and I was doing 20mm at the time.

With my current emphasis on 15mm in mind, I dug them out to see if I could come up with anything. The tires; the tires were still a problem. I looked around a bit more and came up with a solution. I cut the wheels off some of the left over, out of scale vehicles from my previous vehicle project and replaced the tires. It worked better than I imagined it would. So, here I am with some rather unique 15mm vehicles; an extended cab pick-up, a VW Beetle, and Jeep Commander looking SUV:

Additionally, there was a truck that was missing the glass, for some reason. I mulled ideas around and came up with this; a burned out vehicle:

Those are the original tires, painted to look like rims.

Ambush Z - Outbreak (Battle Report)

2011-10-07T06:00:00.069-05:00

I had such a good time playing the games that Ambush Alley Games hosted at Fall Recruits (Lee's Summit, Mo) last month, I decided it had been WAY to long since I broke open any of their rules. With that in mind, I set about refreshing my memory on Ambush Z. Instead of Hometown USA, I've set it in the Middle East; just so I can break out some different scenery. Here's the results; enjoy.

Situation:

A team of Scientists (aka Whiskey Charlies) has taken up refuge in a nearby building; due to a broken down vehicle. A US Army fireteam (Fireteam Blazer) is dispatched to rescue them.

Setup:

The board is setup per the scenario directions in the Ambush Z rulebook.


The board with Hot-Spots (HS), zombie units (Z#), the human Entry/Exit Point (E) and the target wayward Whiskey Charlies (X) The frightened scientist look on from the balcony of their hideout.

Turn 1

Living Turn: Fireteam Blazer rapid moves 12 inches, into awareness zone of group Z3. It interrupts, but can't get through the hedge. Since the Whiskey Charlies can see Fireteam Blazer, they move from the building, cautiously to the gate of the compound.

The Whiskey Charlies move to the gate, anticipating rescue.

Zombie Turn: All unmoved zombies mill around.

Zombie Reinforcements: Z4 (8 Zeds) appear by HS 1

End of Turn 1

Turn 2

Living Turn: Fireteam Blazer rapid moves 12 inches towards the small white shop to its front. Z3 interrupts Fireteam Blazers movement, but Blazer wins the Reaction Check (RC). Again, the zombies can't get through the hedge, so they follow Blazer’s movement down the hedge row.

Zombies looking for Fireteam Blazer

(Game Note: I wasn't sure how to handle the situation. The zombies knew the living were there, but couldn't get to them on their interrupt. Conversely, the Living couldn't Def Fire on the Zs, but knew they were there. So, I had the zombies shadow the living unit down the hedge row, until they could attack.)

Fireteam Blazer makes its first kills.

As Fireteam Blazer makes it to the patio of their target building, they engage the pursuing zombies with Defensive Fire (Gunfire Zombies: Z5 (6 Zeds) appears at HS4). They fire and kill 4 zombies. As they reach the street, the remaining 2 zombies come around the corner and engage them in Close Combat (Gunfire Zombies: 0) As Fireteam Blazer finishes its move it enters group Z2's awareness zone. Z2 interrupts Blazer’s movement, with the humans winning the RC again. One zombie is killed as Z2 charges Fireteam Blazer (Gunfire Zombies: Z6 (5 Zeds) appear at HS2). The remaining 5 make it into melee. After 4 turns of melee Z2 is destroyed; with no human casualties. (Gunfire Zombies: Z7 (6 Zeds) appears at HS3).

The humans take on the second wave of undead.

Z6 interrupts and charges Fireteam Blazer. The humans are able to defensive fire and kill one zombie, before Z6 can enter melee (Gunfire Zombies: 0). Z6 is wiped out in one round of Close Combat.(Gunfire Zombies: 0). The Whiskey Charlies move to join Fireteam Blazer and become their dependents. Z1 see’s them cross the street and is able to activate. It advances towards the humans, but can’t reach them. Fireteam Blazer passes a Quality Check and is able to hold fire.

(Game Note: I didn't want Blazer to fire at the zombies, as I knew they couldn't reach them. I figured that in the heat of battle, though, there was a good chance that the humans would open fire a the advancing threat; hence the QC to hold fire.)

Zombie Turn: All unmoved zombies advance towards the sound of the recent gunfire.

Zombie Reinforcements: Z8 (5Zs) appears at HS1

End of Turn 2

Turn 3:

Living Turn: Fireteam Blazer moves cautiously, due to its dependents, back through the patio it had entered the street from. It is headed towards the exit point, and safety.

The humans start to head to safety.

Multiple zombie units attempt to interrupt their movement; Interrupt Chain Z7, Blazer, Z1, Z4,Z5, Z6. Z7 charges into melee, and after 2 rounds of melee Z7 is wiped out. Wounded by a zombie, Blazer’s Grenadier becomes a dependent. (Gunfire Zombies: Z9 (9 Zeds) appear at HS2). Blazer passes the ensuing Morale Check for the wounded member. The rest of the interrupting zombies are only able to follow at a distance; unable to catch up to the humans.

Zombie Move: The remaining unactivated zombies move towards the gunfire; most of them just following the crowd.

Zombie Reinforcements: 0

End of Turn 3

Turn 4 (Zombie Quality Goes up to D8)

Living Move: Fireteam Blazer continues to move towards safety and Z1 tries to interrupt. Even with the Whiskey Charlies dragging the injured grenadier, the zombies are unable to catch up with Blazer.

Two Whiskey Charlies drag the wounded Grenadier to safety, while the rest of Fireteam Blazer watches the rear.

The humans move into Z9’s awareness zone, activating it, but it can't get through the hedge (same situation as Turn 2), so it shadows Fireteam Blazer’s movement. Eventually, this movement takes Z9 to an opening that will allow it through.

Zombie Move: All remaining zombie units follow Fireteam Blazer's path.

Zombie Reinforcements: Z10 (5Zs) appear at HS 2

Turn 5

Living Unit: Fireteam Blazer moves towards the exit point. Again multiple zombie units attempt to interrupt; Interrupt Chain Z1, Z9, Z4, Fireteam Blazer, Z6. Z1 charges into melee. Caught off gaurd, Blazer is unable to Def Fire on the cahrging zombies. Blazer’s SAW gunner goes down in the first round of melee. Having survived the first round of melee, Blazer elects to flee Close Combat. It moves 6 inches away from Z1, which is directly towards the exit point. None of the other interrupting zombie units could catch up with the humans at this point.

Zombie Move: All remaining zombies move after the humans.

Zombie Reinforcements: Z11 (6Zeds) appear at HS4.

Turn 4 Movement and the End of Turn 5.

Turn 6

Living Move: Fireteam Blazer moves off the map, as no zombie unit is able to interrupt it.

Aftermath:
Fireteam Blazer escorted the scientists to safety. Unfortunately, the Grenadier died from his wounds, and the SAW gunner was put out of action for a long time.

Victory Points

Tallying up the points in the Ambush Z rule book, it is obvious that the humans won (Humans 45, Zombies 3), no question.

Game Notes:
It's been a while since I played Ambush Z, and I am positive that I screwed some things up. Two things I know for sure are:

1) I allowed the civilians to leave the house, before Blazer reached them. They could see the rescuing unit, so I think it was within the guidelines of the rules, but I am not sure it was within the spirit of the scenario.

2) The humans should have had to get into cover to asses their first causality on Turn 4. I didn’t realize this until after I had finished. I think the zombies most likely would have won had they done this. The zombies would have swarmed the building the next turn, and kept the humans from getting away. In any event it would have been a lot closer run thing than it was.

All in all I had fun getting to know the Ambush Z rules again.

15mm Hedges - An Idle Mind At Work

2011-09-30T06:00:00.003-05:00

Something nice and simple this time around...

I was fiddling around, trying to come up with, yet another, an easy way to make hedges. Yes, things like this are what I do when my mind is idle. Here's what I came up with:


15mm Peter Pig Marines, and an Irish Serb HMMV for size reference.

The bases (there are 3 pieces in the pic) are made from a Sintra like plastic, painted earth tone, with Woodland Scenics lichen glued to them. The gate is from a pack I got at a convention many moons ago for $1. Upside is that they were cheap; made with stuff I had on hand, and easy; longest time block used was figuring how to paint the plastic bases, as the paint didn't want to stick. The down side is that the lichen seems very fragile, if you will. Because of that, even though I will make more of these pieces, they are not something that I would travel and play with. They will be strictly for use in the hobby cave.

Ladies Of The Night - Pt. 2 (WIP)

2011-09-26T06:00:00.001-05:00

As promised, here is a pic of the last three "Sin City" girls I am working on.

It's the Anime twins, Sora and Yumi, who are REALLY into COSPlay, along with Ellie, who has a bit of a cowboy fetish.

More Reaper-Chronoscope figures.

Ladies Of The Night

2011-09-23T06:00:00.026-05:00

Lazarus has it's seedier side, and the women who work it are a tough lot. They were survivors even in the best of times. Now a days, the problem isn't pushy johns, or violent pimps. It's the hungry undead prowling the streets:

Group Photo:

Sonja

Ginger

Mia Li

Peaches

These are Reaper Chronoscope figures, with weapons (also from the Chronoscope line) added. I wanted to go with a "Sin City" meme with them. You know an uparmed group of prostitutes protecting themselves from a cold and mean world. I actually have three more figs to add to the group. I'll post a WIP in a couple of days.

The only things I am not satisfied with on these figs are:

1) I should have put them on regular slotta bases so they matched the rest of my figs.
2) In the pic of Sonja it looks like her gun hand is bigger due to the focal point of the lens. Well, that's not it, her gun hand is HUGE compared to her other one. The original hands, both of them, were tiny, even for a female fig, and the gun hand is well...manly. I should have re-sculpted her off hand to make it match in size, better.

A Man Of The People - ATZ Campaign Day 5

2011-09-16T06:00:00.046-05:00

It's been over a month since the last installment of the Lazarus Campaign. This game took 4-5 evenings to do. I think it turned out pretty good. I hope you enjoy it.

Prologue:

What a mess, well “crisis” actually, the man thought as he checked himself in the mirror. It wasn’t his crisis, though, so it was OK. The crisis belonged to a man whose office he coveted. Like a well known politician once said, “Never let a crisis go to waste". He had no intention of doing that. This was just the thing to bring down his opponent, and as an experienced community organizer, and mayoral candidate, he was going to use it. His people had assembled a crowd and summoned the media to his campaign HQ. He sneered as he thought of how badly he was going to stick it to the mayor with his speech. He was going to work people into a frenzy, and when all was said and done, the mayor would beg him to take his office.

He adjusted his tie and headed out of his office. This was his day, after all, because he was a man of the people.

Special Rules

The presser will last for 5 turns, and then the news media gets to ask questions for 5
Each stand represents a group of people. If the zombies attack the crowd, each stand will flee a random direction.
If a zombie comes in base to base contact with a group of people, 1D6 will be rolled to see how many people are attacked, then 1D6 rolled for each person attacked, with a 6 being an immediate kill; else just a wound.
After the first police officer sees a zombie, he will call in for help. A 4 man SWAT team will arrive 1D6 turns later.
Due to the noise of the crowd, and the PA system, 6D6 will be rolled each turn for Zombie placement, in addition to any other rolls for zombie attraction.

Setup

The board shows the area around Candidate Wilson’s campaign HQ. A large crowd of supporters has gathered; along with the media. There is one police office stationed at a traffic barrier on either end of the street; with Officer Bakkus next to the patrol car.

Initial Zombie Placement: 5 Zombies start on the board at (Direction O’clock – Distance from the campaign HQ building):

2-6, 3-11(inside building), 5-11, 7-5,7-6

Surveillance camera footage of two of the initial zombies

A zombie watches the crowd.

Turn 1 (Zombies 3, Humans No Move)

Zombie Move: Drawn to the noise of the crowd, the zombies move towards it. Officer Bakkus sees a figure turn the corner, tries to figure out if it is a zombie, or not. He is certain that it is a zombie when it charges. Officer Bakkus retires (Pass 0, Being Charged) into his patrol car and locks the doors and beings calling for help. The SWAT team will arrive in 5 turns.

Zombies advance on the unsuspecting crowd.

Turn 2 (Humans 3, Zombies 2)

Zombie Placement (None)

Human Move: Officer Bakkus remains hunkered down in his car (Pass 0, Rally). Officer Thomas moves around the crowd to see what's going on. Officer Thomas sees 2 figures and is shocked when they both charge him (Pass 0, Zed no Zed). They fall on him. He swings his baton and cracks one in the head, killing it instantly. The other grapples with him as some n the crowd turn to look at what is going on.

Zombie Move: The zombie by the police car loses interest in Officer Bakkus as it sees the crowd milling in front of it. It charges into the crowd, attacking. Four civilians are bitten, 2 of them mortally. The zombie attacking Officer Thomas manages to bite him and put him OOF.

Officer Thomas battles the zombies, while the zombie by Officer Bakkus tries to get into the patrol car.

Turn 3 (Zombies 3, Humans No Move)

Zombie Placement: (7-6, 12-10)

Zombie Move: Officer Thomas is unable to defend himself, as the zombie tears into him. Zombies that killed feast for 5 turns, other zombies fall on the terrified onlookers. Another 3 people are bitten, none mortally.

The zombies attack.

Turn 4 (Humans 3, Zombie No Move)

Zombie Placement: (10-1, 8-9, 4-1)

Panic send the crowd fleeing.

Human Move: The crowd surges away from the attacking zombies. They scatter to the wind. One group goes in the nearest door and locks it behind them. The news Producer sees a zombie that shambled around the corner and screams for his camera man to get it on film. The zombie attacks him ferociously (Pass 0 on Zed No Zed). He manages to knock it to the ground. (+1 Melee Success). The Photographer turns to snap a picture and a zombie attacks him. He swings his camera bag and is locked in melee. The Soundman sees a zombie coming towards him and bolts to the nearest door, which is the campaign office and slams the door shut. The Cameraman stands his ground and tries to film the whole incident (Pass2, Zed No Zed). Candidate Wilson recognizes the threat (Pass 2, Zed No Zed) and turns to go inside. The Soundman is blocking entrance, though. The Soundman and Candidate Wilson battle for the door. In his terror, the Soundman manages to lock the door and Candidate Wilson is stuck outside (+2 Success v Candidate Wilson).

The Cameraman and Candidate Wilson face a zombie.

Turn 5 (Zombies 3, Humans No Move)

Zombie Placement: (7-11, 6-7, 4-7)

Zombie Turn: The zombie the Producer knocked down gets to its feet. The Photographer is beset by a second zombie. He doesn't last long and the zombies begin feasting for 2 turns on him. Zombies attack the fleeing crowd from several directions; in total, 10 people are bitten/scratched; one fatally. A zombie feast ensues for 3 turns.

Turn 6 (Humans 3, Zombies No Move)

Zombie Placement: (8-4, 6-7, 7-7)

Human Move: The crowd, some of them bloodied and wounded, flees; some groups moving faster than others. Some make it to safety, while others are still in danger. Officer Bakkus decides it is time to get out of Dodge and drives off (Pass 1, Rally). Candidate Wilson, the Producer and Cameraman follow the crowd down the road. The Cameraman tries to get footage while he is moving.

The crowd runs for safety.

Turn 7 (Zombies 3, Humans 1)

Zombie Placement: (8-9, 8-6, 11-4)

Zombie Move: A crowd running down the street is surprised when two zombie step out an open door into their path. The zombies launch themselves into the crowd. Seven people are attacked, and each of the zombies brings a person down. They feast for two turns. The Zombies by the campaign HQ see the people huddled behind the doors and move to the front of the building.

Zombies attack the last of the crowd running for safety.

Zombies gather in front of the campaign HQ.

Human Move: The crowds all make it to safety, along with the Candidate Wilson and the Producer. Keeping his wits (Pass 2, See The Feast), the Cameraman stops and films the crowd, along with the Candidate Wilson running away. He then swings his camera to the zombies hunched over the dead bodies. Down the road, the Swat Van arrives at the campaign HQ. The Swat officers pile out of the vehicle, with orders to shoot to kill any one acting in a threatening manner. They immediately take out 4 Zombies, and move towards those attacking the building....

The SWAT Team arrives and begins clearing the area.

Aftermath:

Even though the film of the initial attack was nothing but a blur of people, along with most of the flight down the street, the film the Photographer got of Candidate Wilson fleeing with the crowd and the zombies tearing up their victims was golden. News 6 couldn’t get it on the air fast enough. They were unable to tell how many innocents were killed, as the victims were mixed in with the “deranged attackers”. It was confirmed that 16 people were treated by rescue crews. Some were sent home, while others went to a nearby hospital. What wasn’t reported was that all the injured soon came down with a very puzzling fever and began slipping into coma. Finally, an editorial was run, showing Candidate Wilson fleeing the scene. The question was asked, “Is this the man we want running our city? “ By 10:20PM Candidate Wilson’s political career was over.

People began to question what was really going on. Speculation was raised as to what is causing these outbreaks of violence. “Experts” postulated that some sort of hallucinogen had been used. Others wondered how that could be, as reports were popping up across the region of similar attacks. There are those that began to think the unthinkable, the visions are seared into their memories. What is certain is that something must be done, and city official move to take control of the situation in the city.

Game Notes: Well, Officer Bakkus survived another encounter with the undead. Unfortunately, his actions were rather cowardly, and I simply can not raise his Rep to 4. The Cameraman, on the other hand, did a bang up job and I think he rates Rep 4, when he shows up again. He will show up, too, as the news station wants more footage of what’s happening in the city. Candidate Wilson is surly a bitter man, after being ruined by the news report. The question is, how bent on revenge is he?

It was a fun game that grew in scope as I played it. I think I have some good stuff for use down the road.

Bodyguards/Hired Guns

2011-09-09T06:00:00.018-05:00

Whether it's a high stakes drug deal, a diva with a stalker, or the end of the world, ala the undead, there are people willing to pay for protection. With the right skill set, a person, or persons, could survive and prosper. Here are a couple of former hired guns who are not only capable of protecting themselves, but any one with the resources (cash isn't worth much these days), as well.

These are a couple of Foundry "Street Violence" figs I pick for a buck a piece at a local show 2-3 years ago. As a range, "Street Violence" is probably my favorite 25/28mm one. I just wish I had the $$$ to get the whole line. IMO, the guy on the left is a dead ringer for Vincent Vega (aka John Travolta) in "Pulp Fiction".

I've got some more "Street Violence" figs painted, and unpainted, that I need to get posted up, as well. So, stay tuned.

10,000+ Views!!!

2011-09-03T13:34:00.000-05:00

Wow, you guys are awesome! Since April, of this year, this blog has had over 10,000 page views. Tuesday, I think it was. Compared to some of your blogs, it's not much. Still, it's a nice milestone to observe. I know it took a lot more people than the 44 following me right now. You zombie addicts that are following my exploits, commenting and giving me support make it all worth while, though. Thanks for your support. Now, back to the apocalypse.

Clicky Zombies

2011-08-31T06:00:00.003-05:00

Every knows that HorrorClix has some great figs that can be used in 25/28mm zombie games. They can be rebased and painted easily. Others have posted about them; VampiFan has some great posts on his blog about converting all sorts of clicky minis, not just HorrorClix, for use in a zombie game. While I've done quite a few rebase/repaints, these are the first zombie figs I've done.

Of the three, the Irradiated Zombie fig on the right of the first pic is my favorite. The sculpt is great, especially considering it's a clicky.

Fast vs Slow And The Pathology Of Zeds (Pt. 2)

2011-08-26T06:00:00.003-05:00

Well, if you're back, then I haven't chased you off thinking I am a complete loon. If you are just getting here, go back to the previous post, before continuing on; things will make a lot more sense, if you do...we'll wait.

Good, now that we are all on the same page, let me lay out my reasoning on why fast and slow zombies can coexist in the zombie genre in general, and in my zombie world specifically. Mind you this all only in regards to the undead variety of zombies; even if some of the reasoning about speed and strength can be applied to the "rager" types.

The Pathology Of the Zombie Cycle

STAGE 1 (Infection and 1st Death): A person is infected. Through whatever means a person "catches" whatever it is that will eventually re-animate them. They are still alive, but usually just barely. Eventually, the person dies; brain functions cease and the body starts to decay immediately. The brain is the last to go, as it slowly dies from lack of oxygen. Even if resuscitated, higher brain function can be irreparably damaged.

STAGE 2 (Re-Animation): The dead body is re-animated, usually within hours, if not minutes. The reanimation agent, usually described as a virus, reanimates the brain first. Higher functions are gone; due to brain death. Reasoning, communication, and all the other skills that separate us from the animals are gone. Base instinctual functions, such as locomotion, hunger, etc.are all that remain. The body is clumsy and slow to respond; this accounts for the Romero-esque view of the newly undead shambling zombie. They can attack quickly from short distance, usually from behind it seems, but can't chase prey down if they run away.

STAGE 3 (Rigor): For whatever reason decay is slowed down to a snails pace. How else can we explain zombies hanging around, rotting, for years? Rigor mortis will eventually set in. The process can start before re-animation, depending on how long Stage 2 takes to manifest itself. This accounts for the stiff legged, stiff armed zombies we see. Eventually, rigor mortis will go away naturally. How long this takes, seems to vary from person to person.

STAGE 4 (Evolution): After rigor mortis goes away, and sometimes before, the zombie "evolves", for lack of a better word. Limbs become more pliable and the body's natural healing processes take over, as best they can. The brain begins to re-route signals and gain more control over the body. Coordination increases and the instinctual processes become more focused. This accounts for two types of zombies we see:

Fast/Strong Zombies - Some zombies will still suffer from rigor, or injuries sustain at or after death. They may be slow, but the pack mentality of the horde manifests itself. Others will not suffer from things that could slow them down. The bodies can move, almost as if they were still alive. Because they are dead, though, they have a distinct advantage over their human prey; they do not suffer from the regulation of pain. As a result, the zombies who may have been average in life are super fast, or super strong, or both in death. Even though they may be more dangerous, these types of Zeds tend to fall by the wayside quicker than the shambler type, as tendons are pulled, and muscles and ligaments are torn, as the bodies are pushed beyond all tolerances in the pursuit of prey. Eventually, the bodies are unable to function; physically destroyed, because of the abuse.
Intelligent Zombies: These are rare, but they do pop up from time to time. These are Zeds whose brains were not damaged as badly as the normal type of zombie's is. As the body tries to heal itself, some higher reasoning is restored. These types of Zeds are extremely dangerous, because they can reason out the hunt and see potential dangers in their environment. On rare occasion some have an intellect on par with the living; and even higher at times, as in the "Monster Island" books.

In both cases, the key is the body's natural healing process. The inability of the natural healing process to overcome the decay of death is also the ultimate demise of every zombie.

STAGE 5 (Decay and 2nd Death): Despite the fact that the body will try to heal itself, it is dead. Because of that, it is a losing battle. Barring being killed by the living, or falling prey to environmental dangers, eventually, the body will decay to the point that it is nothing more than a pile of bones and ooze. Remember the danger posed by these types of Zeds in the first person accounts in "World War Z"? This decay may take years, but can apparently happen in days/weeks/months, as seen in "The Walking Dead". Eventually, the body is unable to sustain any type of activity, and the brain rots away to nothing, bringing about a 2nd and final death.

There you have it, my explanation as to how the fast and slow zombie crowds can live in harmony, without completely destroying canon in any of the zombie worlds pop culture has brought us. Now back to gaming the Zombie Apocalypse.

Fast vs Slow And The Pathology Of Zeds (Pt. 1)

2011-08-22T06:00:00.000-05:00

Ok, I am going to take a little time to bloviate, here, and give my views on the fast vs. slow zombie argument. We aren't talking classical voodoo zombies; we are talking about the celluloid "BBBRRAaaaains" type we all like watching on the screen and gaming with. Since both All Things Zombie and Ambush Z have rules for the different types, I think it's something to discuss, plus I'm a bit bored right now.

I'm not really sure which is more geeky; the fact that there is fast vs. slow zombie argument, the fact that I am going to post my thoughts on it all, or the fact that you are actually going to sit there in front of your computer and read what I am about to post. You are here to begin with, so you have already embraced your geekiness, let's continue on full speed ahead. Back to the matter at hand...

Fast vs Slow

Proponents of the "fast" zombie, as seen in, say, "Dawn Of The Dead (2004)", think that they are much more terrifying, in that there is no getting way from them, short of being a track star. Fast zombies also open the door for a broader interpretation of the genre. The "rage" zombies from the 28 Days franchise are a good example. They are zombies in every aspect, other than they are not "undead". No matter where you stand, you have to admit the idea of being chased down and being eaten, by anything, is an unsettling thought. Especially true if you were a slow poke, like me, as a kid. I wasn't fat, I was "husky"!

Purists say that the genre has no place for "fast zombies". They point to Romoero's vision of zombies as slow moving husks, which are only dangerous if they surprise you, or overwhelm you, as the one true zombie arche-type. Their terror is derived from their slow monolithic pace. No matter what you do, no matter where you go, they are going to come after you and eat you. Fast zombie supporter's argument against them can basically be summed up in a word..."BORING!". Personally, I blame computer games and the instant gratification impulses of the youth culture...that's another issue, though.

I fall in the middle. I think that both types fit perfectly into the genre, and can in fact co-exist; especially in zombie games. From a physiological approach, my stand point makes perfect sense...well okay as much sense as can be had in this discussion. Think about what happens to the human body when we die. Immediately, the body starts to decompose. Within hours, rigor mortis sets in, making the body stiff. hours, sometimes days after that rigor goes away, and the joints are again easily movable. If we apply what we know about horror zombies to the process, we see stages in the life (death?) cycle of a zombie.

If you've stuck with me thus far, I'm gonna leave you hanging, until the next post in a few days. In it, I'll lay out the "logic" behind my stance, and walk you through the pathology of the zombie cycle in the world that Lazarus exists in.

15mm Post Apoc Riders - Rebel Minis

2011-08-17T06:00:00.000-05:00

Again, more minis that I painted for RM's online store, so you may have already seen them. I really like these.

It kind of sucks, painting these at times. I can't post them immediately, because they are RM's minis after all. I am trying to work it so that I can "sneak peek" images here, before they hit RM's online store.

The Infamous Carolee in 54mm

2011-08-10T06:00:00.007-05:00

Carolee is Two Hours Wargame's mascot, if you will, and she is a complete bad-a##. She is not only a zombie killing machine, but she was also, in a past life, a Gladiatrix, apparently. In real life, she's easy on the eyes, and creates quite a stir every time Ed posts her visage in a THW news post over at The Miniatures Page. She's shown up in 15mm, ready to kill zombies as well as dressed for the gladiatorial arena. She's got her own card in the All Things Zombies Risk and Rewards Deck (review coming soon). She's also been done in 54mm and there are plans to release a 28mm figure, as well. Here is my painted homage to the infamous Carolee in 54mm, enjoy:

Figure Basing - Basic Technique

2011-08-03T06:00:00.010-05:00

This is a re-post of a tutorial I posted on a forum several years ago. I thought I'd share it here, in the hopes of helping out people who may be new to the hobby.

I am sure that this is a variation on how others do it. This a a basic technique. I was asked, though, so here we go:

1) Prep the figure
As part of the preparation process, sand the bottom of the figure with some coarse grit sand paper. This removes anything that will cause the fig to not sit on the base flat, and gives the glue something to grab on to.
2) Glue Figure To Whatever Base You Wish.
Super glue the figure to the base. I use Slotta style bases, fender washers, pennies; whichever suits the figure. FWIW, pennies and nickels are more cost effective than using the same size fender washers, if you are buying them at the DIY store; at least in my area.
3) Build Up The Base
If holes need to be covered up on washers, or the base needs to be built up to match base on the mini, now is the time to do it. I use a variety of things; JB Weld, Dry Wall Mud, and Sculpey to name a few. You can press bits of other materials into the base, before it hardens to add character. If you texture the base before it hardens, you can skip #4. Alternately, you can skip #3 and just go straight to #4.
4) Apply Base Material
Using an old paint brush, apply straight white glue, or carpenter's glue, to the base. Keep it off the figure itself, as much as possible. Once the glue is applied, dip the figure in a bucket of sand. I have a plastic gallon ice cream tub that I filled with road sand last spring that I use. I filtered all the big chunks and such out with a pasta strainer. I have enough sand to last me for years, at this point. Run your finger along the edge of the base to remove any extra sand that may have got on the edge. You can use an Xacto knife to remove any sand that got onto the figure itself.
5) Base Coat The Figure
After the glue has dried, base coat the figure. I use cheap Dollar Store Flat Black spray paint. I paint the figure and base at the same time. The paint will help adhere the sand to the base better than just the glue.
6) Paint the figure
Self explanatory, eh?
7) Paint The Base.
The colors I use vary, depending on the mini. The color scheme is always the same; Dark Color, Light Color, Dove Grey, Sand/Sable, Trim Color. Example; Dark Chocolate, Moccasin Brown, Dove Grey, Sand/Sable, Black. Applying these colors is a 5 step process:

1) Water down the Dark Color, so it will flow into all the nooks and crannies on the base. Apply it liberally to the base.
2) Once the Dark Color dries, heavily dry-brush the base with the Light Color.
3) Once that dries, lightly dry-brush the Dove Grey on the base. Apply it a bit heavier on larger bits that look like rocks, and such.
4) Once dry, very lightly dry-brush the Sand/Sable to the base.
5) Finally apply your Trim Color to the edge of the base. I use mostly Black, although it depends on the mini.

To speed things up at this point, I keep a cheap hair dryer next to my table that I use to dry the paint. On high setting, it dries craft paints remarkably fast.

8) Finish The Base
Take white glue and apply it randomly on the base. Dip the base into some Woodland Scenics Turf; basically finely ground foam; suitably colored. Next apply patches of Woodland Scenics Coarse Turf; ground up foam in bigger chucks, with glue and tweezers. The tweezers give you more control of how much and where it is applied. You can also apply static grass; I got mine from Gale Force 9, although it can be found in most train shops. I finish the whole thing off with a coat of cheap spray wood varnish, and then a couple of coats of Dul-Cote. This helps seal the mini, and keeps the base material from coming off.

Here are some examples of bases finished this way:
On Pennies w/ Just Sand And Flock/Static Grass:
(20mm Liberation Minis)

On a Slotta Base w/ Just Sand And Flock/Static Grass:
(Reaper Chronoscope Pulp hero)

On Fender Washers w/ Textured Sculpey:
(Artizen Cowboys)

On Fender Washers w/ Added Bits
(MegaMinis Kanines; I think that's whose selling them now)

Reach Out And Touch Someone - Spec Ops Shooter

2011-07-27T06:00:00.006-05:00

A lot of noise can bring down a world of pain, these days. So can a big crowd. There are times when a lone survivor, with special skills, can do more than an entire truck load of yokels loaded for bear. Here's just the man for the job.

This is another mini from Black Cat Bases. I bought it because it's a neat fig; the pose is a little constricting for game play, IMO, though. I wish they had a version of him moving, with the rifle at the hunt position. I finished painting it, sat back, and asked myself , "What the heck an I going to do with it now?"

"Tooth and Nail" by Craig Dilouie (Book Review)

2011-07-20T06:00:00.017-05:00

"Tooth and Nail", by Craig Dilouie is not your typical undead zombie novel. It falls squarely in the "28 Days" rage zombie camp. Still, this is probably one of the best zombie genre novels I've read in a long time.

The Plot:
The action centers around a company of US Army soldiers in the middle of Manhattan, after an emergency redeployment from Iraq. They find themselves, still shaking Iraqi sand out of their boots, guarding a hospital as New York, America, and the rest of the world deals with a flu pandemic the likes of which has never seen. Things quickly go from bad to worse, as a small percentage of flu victims become violently aggressive. These victims ferally attack any non-infected person they find; in turn infecting more and more people. These infected people become no more than vicious, mindless zombies.

Their mission morphs from one of security to one of survival as things unravel quickly. With a population of over 500K, Manhattan becomes a nightmare landscape, as bands of "Mad Dogs" roam the streets attacking any uninfected they come across. The Battalion that the company belongs to is tasked with rescuing a stranded doctor, who has unlocked the secrets of the "Hong Kong Lyssa" virus. She may very well hold the key to the survival of mankind. I won't go any deeper, because I really think it would only diminish the reading experience if I did.

First The Negatives:
There are always good and bad points to every story. I will start off with the bad, as I see them. There are only two things I would even remotely consider as being in the negative column. The first is that the zombies are not your atypical undead variety. Purists may find this a deal breaker; for me it really didn't matter. The zombie's behavior is consistent with the genre, and does make for a compelling threat to the main characters. The second thing I would consider a negative is that the storyline is sort of formulaic. I mean you can see major turns coming, because the story really couldn't go any other direction. Upon reflection, almost all zombie fiction falls into this trap. It's one of the pitfalls of the genre; there are only so many ways you can write of a zombie apocalypse, and any one who is an avid fan will most likely have run across the varied plot devices and hooks in some previous story. I don't think that either of the negatives I mentioned detract from the book one bit.

And Now The Positives:

Now onto the positives. The first is that this is a rip roaring action book. The author sets up the story and then dives in. The action is hard and heavy, yet evenly paced. The lulls make sense, and he uses them to drive the narrative forward. The second positive is that unraveling of society makes sense. Nothing happens in the story that made me go, "why that makes no sense and is just dumb". While formulaic, as mentioned before, nothing jumps out, and it all fits together well. It really turns me off when post apocalyptic writers make these huge jumps in logic when dealing with how things fall apart, simply to drive a story forward.

Thirdly, and this is a big one for me, the author has at least a passing knowledge, if not practical, of how the Army works. As a military veteran, nothing drives me crazy, or turns me off more than an author who obviously has no clue when writing about military characters or action. Everything from improper nomenclature and equipment to action that absolutely would not take place in a US military unit, even during an apocalypse, are things that simply drive me batty. There is only so far I can take suspension of disbelief. There are some things that he gets wrong, and at least one sentence that is obviously an editing error. Still the author here does a great job of steering clear of that pitfall by and large.

The last positive I'll note is the one that simply makes this book for me; the characters. The author does a fantastic job developing them into people that you can empathize with. You've got the various archetypes you find in every action and/or zombie story. The warrior, the goofball, the reluctant leader, the lost, etc. They are more than simple cardboard cut outs, though. He does a great job of fleshing them out; giving them real feelings. I found myself thinking, "Man, that's how I think I'd feel, if it were me", or "that's completely understandable, given the situation". There are some real poignant moments as they contemplate the idea of their loved ones suffering hundreds of miles away or deal with the fact that their fellow citizens are now the enemy. The passages that made me go "Wow", was when the unit dealt with fellow soldiers who had become infected. They will strike a cord with anyone who has ever felt the camaraderie that is present in a tightly knit military unit. In the end, you'll care about all of the main characters, and even feel for the "zombies" as well.

I have a compulsive habit of reading about the first 1/4 of a book, then flipping to the last page and reading the last paragraph. I have no idea why I do this. If the last paragraph doesn't grab me, at that point, my interest in a book will wane, and it will take me longer to finish, if I do at all. If the last paragraph does grab me, then I dive right back in. I did that with this book, and the my first though was "Yeah, I kind of saw that coming", quickly followed by, "Man that kind of sucks, I wonder how he (the author) got there?" I then proceeded to finish the novel in the next 48 hours. Closing the book I was very satisfied.

Weighing everything together, this book is a must read for any zombie, or PA, enthusiast. You won't go wrong.

We're Alive, Zombiepodcast - Chapter 23 on line

2011-07-19T07:13:00.003-05:00

Chapter 23 of "We're Alive" ; all three episodes, is posted on line at zombiepodcast.com.

Again, if you haven't heard this podcast, check it out. It's the story of a group of survivors in the LA area, post Zombie Apocalypse. The zombies aren't your standard Romero-esque types, so the purist may be disappointed.

Chapter 23 is entitled "The Devil's Workshop", and finds our survivors trying to find a working aircraft so they can safely escape the city, searching for missing companions, and more.

It's all good fodder for your zombie gaming.

For the record, I have no affiliation with We're Alvie, I just find it enjoyable

Who Are These Clowns?

2011-07-13T06:00:00.004-05:00

You'd think that at the end of the world the Zombies would be the most dangerous things out there. Most of the time you'd be right. On other occasions, you'd find out that there are things much more disturbing, and dangerous, than the living dead.

Bobo:
For most, the fall of civilization was a traumatic affair; what with the walking dead and all. For Bobo, though, it was liberating. Now, instead of curtailing his hunting to once or twice a year, he could do it when ever he wanted. Better still, he didn't have to hide it anymore, either. In fact, the more zombies he killed, the better. The prey didn't react in a very satisfying way; no begging, or crying...no suffering. They made up for it in numbers, though. Anyway, every now and then, there was a live one that brought back the old thrill.

Mr. Jangles:
Mr. Jangles liked his wine. Now, most, in fact all the parents didn't like it when he showed up to their kid's party sinking of Night Train, and slurring his speech. He found though, that once they talked to Mr. Beretta, the complaining stopped; permanently. If it weren't for the incessant crying of the little brats,it would have been a cushy gig. Now that the dead had risen, the brats didn't cry anymore. He could still find Night Train, and Mr. Beretta still did a lot of talking.

These are a re-post of minis I put up on at least one other forum, way back when. Clowns tend to creep people out, so I figured I'd repost them here for anyone who had not seen them before.

They are rebased/repainted/mods of the Horrorclix Jester figure. Bobo is just a straight up rebase/repaint. Mr. Jangles was a bit more involved. He had the heads cut off and his arm repositioned. I used green stuff to fill the gaps, and gave him a semi auto pistol from a Foundry Street Violence fig. The knife was cut off and a bottle made from sprue. He was then rebased and repainted.

Timeline and Index Page Added

2011-07-08T07:39:00.000-05:00

As they say, "Time marches on." Well in Lazarus, so do the zombies. As a tool to help keep things straight, and chronicle my campaign, I have added a static page to Welcome To Lazarus (that's it over to the left) that details a broad overview of the time line I am following in my campaign.

ATZ fans will recognize it as the time line from the ATZ rulebook. Never fear, Ed gave his blessings, so all is proper in Copyrightville. On this page, the games I've played will be listed in order, so that readers can see where they fit into the big scheme of things. Surfers will be able to go directly to this page and click on the campaign games in chronological order, and watch the world unravel.

Enjoy.

A Walk In The Park - - ATZ Campaign Day 4

2011-07-06T06:00:00.085-05:00

Prologue:
The lights of the patrol car flashed off the buildings in the gathering gloom. Two patrol officers stood talking to a frightened man, watched by a small group of people. "OK, OK, relax, and tell me what happened", Officer Hansen said to the wide eyed man.

"Well", he stammered, " Jimmy and I were taking the trash out like Mr. Keenan told us to. While we were out back, these 4 bums came out of the woods. They didn't look right, though; all bloody n stuff, you know? Jimmy yelled at them to get lost. Suddenly they attacked us. One of them bit me on the arm", he continued holding up a bandaged fore arm. "I managed to get inside the store, but Jimmy couldn't get past them. I saw him break free and run off that way", he said pointing towards the city park; which backed up against the store. "They followed him into the woods. A couple of minutes later we heard this, like, horrible scream. Oh man, you think Jimmy is OK", the man said almost in tears.

"I don't know sir", Officer Gillian said. He spoke into the radio at his collar. "Patrol 1, this is Patrol 13. We need to search the park. May be a victim of assault, and some violent types around. We'll start in from the north, you start in from the east. Keep in contact, and be careful; there's some crazy stuff going on these days, over"

"Roger that", was the reply, "Patrol 1 out."

Special Rules:

Each tree stand represents a dense copse of woods, movement is 1/2 while moving through them; LOS is 3 inches.
When entered, the police will roll a "What's Inside" searching the woods for the attackers. They will search every turn while inside a copse of woods.
On turn 5 it gets dark, with all the assorted Die roll modifications.

Setup:
The board shows the northern edge of the Lazarus Memorial City Park, which backs up against a business district. Patrol 13 (P13) starts in the NW corner f the board, and Patrol 1 (P1) starts in the SE corner of the board.

Video stills of Patrol 13 officers Gillian and Hansen (left) and Patrol 1 officers Abbot and Bryce just before they entered the woods.

Patrol 13 searches the first woods.

Turn 1:
Patrol 1 enters the first copse of tree and searches. They find evidence of a blood trail, but no sign of any bodies or the attackers. Patrol 13 enters and searches the trees nearest them, with the same result.

Turn 2:
Both patrols follow blood trails to the next copse of woods and find nothing, again.

Turn 3:

Patrol 13 dispatches the first Zombie

Patrol 13 continues to move through the large woods searching again. They are jumped by 2 zombies. Officer Hansen is surprised, and unable to get a shot off. Melee ensues as one of the zombies attacks him. After a brief struggle, he bludgeons the zombie to death. Officer Gillian manages to fire his weapon at the other attacking zombie, hitting it twice and killing it. Patrol 1 hears the gun shots and moves in a straight line towards them. They move towards the sound of the gunfire, ending their movement in the open, between two sets of trees.

Movement through the first part of the up coming Turn 4.

Turn 4: (Humans 3, Zombies 2)

Officers Abbot and Bryce (Patrol 1) find the frightened hobo.

Zombie Reinforcements: A lone zombie rises from the low grass 10 inches away from Patrol 1 at about 5 o'clock
Human Turn: On the alert, Patrol 1 moves to the next set of woods. They hear movement, and ready their weapons. A disheveled hobo stumbles out of the underbrush. Wide eyed he points the direction of the gunshots and mutters something crazy about the undead. Meanwhile, Patrol 13 finishes the zombie on the ground off. They then move to meet up with Patrol 1.

Patrol 13 meets it's grizzly end.

They exit the woods they were in and move quickly towards another stand of trees. As they enter, they are surprised by 3 zombies (+2D6 in Melee). The zombies attack them, and quickly overcome both officers, knocking them OOF.
Zombie Turn: The zombies begin feasting on the downed officers for 5 turns.

Turn 5: (Zombies 4, Humans 1)

Patrol 1 stumbles across the feasting zombies

Zombie Turn: As darkness falls, the zombies that just killed Patrol 13 continue feasting, and the lone roaming zombie joins them.
Human Turn: The hobo with Patrol 1 looks in terror when they hear the dieing screams of the fallen policemen. He takes off running the opposite direction. Officers Abbot and Bryce move quickly towards the screams through the brush along the edge of the woods. Suddenly they stumble upon a writhing mass of bodies. In the fading light Patrol 1 can tell that the attackers are tearing the bodies of their fellow officers apart and eating them. In terror, both officers duck back (both Pass 1 on "See The Feast"). The officers move into nearby woods. Officer Abbot is looking to hunker down (Pass 1 "Sanity Test") while Officer Bryce is on the verge of a complete breakdown (Pass 0 "Sanity Test).

Patrol 1's fate is sealed.

As they enter nearby trees, looking for cover, they are attacked by three zombies. Surprised, neither are able to fire (both Pass 1 "Being Charged"). Officer Abbot manages to bludgeon one of the charging Zombies to death. Officer Bryce, in his terror is unable to defend himself; his throat ripped open, before he even knows what is happening (+2 Success in Melee for the Zombie). The third zombie falls on Officer Abbot and after a brief struggle, overpowers him, knocking him OOF.

Aftermath: Police dispatch lost contact with Patrols 1 and 13 shortly after sundown. Despite the heavy volume of calls the department was getting, they managed to dispatch a couple of additional units to check out the situation. They arrived to find the patrol cars several blocks apart, both locked, with the lights still flashing, and no one around. It was dark, and witnesses said they saw the missing officers go into the woods, then they heard gun shots and what sounded like screaming. Reluctantly, and without backup, as there was none to be had on this night, they went into the woods. Not all of them came back out of those dark woods. The tale the surviving officers told was one that in normal times would have stood out for all the horror it held. As it was, it was lost in the flood of stories that were written across the city of Lazarus that night and in the following weeks.

WOW, it's been over a month since I played a campaign game! Getting back into the swing of things, it might seem, once again, that my having Humans as Rep 3 did them in. That's not the case this time, believe it or not. The Human die rolls, once the Zombies showed up, were so bad that the only way any of them would have survived was if they were a STAR. I contemplated having Officer Bakkus (semi reoccurring character, at this point) take part in this game, but decided against it. Good thing, too, or I would have had to start grooming another character to become a STAR, down the road. All in all, it was a fun, quick game.

15mm LEOs - More Rebel Mini Goodness

2011-06-29T06:00:00.003-05:00

Rebel Minis are now offering these Law Enforcement Officers; to keep your minis in line.

First up is the Task Force pack. It contains 5 minis decked out in tac gear, sans helmet. If have to say, these are some of my favorite figures. The sculpting it excellent for 15mm.

The next group are modern day Marshal's. I like these guys, due to their 10 gallon hats. They have that air about them.

Both these sets are ones I did up for Rebel. I really feel I've got a good professional relationship developing with the crew over there; they keep asking if they can give me money to paint for them. They are stand up guys, and provide a great product to gamers. Additionally, seeing them at conventions, they reach out to gamers, in order to make it a great experience. If you re going to game in 15mm, send some $$$ their way, so it's worth while for them to stay in business.

Las Chicas - 28mm Survivors

2011-06-22T06:00:00.021-05:00

Las Chicas are an all female gang in the remnants of Southern California. "Amiga, it's not that we don't like men, it's just that a good man is hard to find these days, and we can't trust them like we can nuestras hermanas. Entender?"

Las Chicas

Marisol - La Jefe

Rita - La Ejecutor

Karmen - La Mujer Fatal

Salma - La Nina

Azteca - La Radical

Gizmo

These are Obelisk Miniatures Gangsters, sold at Black Cat Bases. Each set comes with 5 gangsters and a mascot. Gizmo's colorization is actually based on my wife's Teddybear Mal-Schi-Poo of the same name.

Kentucky Fred Zombie and John

2011-06-16T11:50:00.000-05:00

I've been posting a lot of 15mm stuff, lately, so I thought I post some bigger eye candy, just so everyone knows I'm not a one trick pony :-)

Black Orc Games makes several 25/28mm zombies in their "Hundred Kingdom" line. I will be honest, as a whole, these are not some of the best sculpts out there. The big redeeming factor is that they are super cheap; between $1.00 and $1.50 each. Also, two of my favorite zombie figs do come out of the line. They are:

Kentucky Fred Zombie (every table needs an undead zombie chicken mascot)

and "John" the Zombie (what can I say, bathroom humor is still funny, even at my age)

Inexpensive 15mm(ish) Vehicles

2011-06-08T06:00:00.000-05:00

You may have seen some vehicles in my recent AARs that fit well in 15mm. Vehicles that really fit 15mm can be hard to come by. HO scale vehicles tend to be a bit over sized, as HO scale is 1/87 and 15mm is closer to 1/100. Plus, they can be expensive; costing from $3 up to $15 each, depending on what you get. Cheaper toys may not hurt the pocket book as much, but tend to look like...well, cheap toys..

The vehicles shown in my pics come from Hobby Lobby. They sell as a product called "Toobs", for about $8.89 + tax. There are several different sets pf "Toobs", covering various subjects. This set is called "On The Road"

It contains vehicles in 3 different scales. Inside, the contents are:

The motorcycle and quad are big, too big to even use with 28mm figs. The semi, firetruck and bus might fit 10mm; I haven't checked, yet. The vehicles we are concerned with, the van, police car, pick-up and Mustang, fit with 15mm perfectly, as you can see below.

With a little bit of work you get vehicles that look great on your table All I did was wash them with a black ink/Future wash, then pained the windows and lights. I added some rust spots to one of the pickups, as well. In the end, they each end up costing around $2.25 each. That's assuming you have zero need for the other scaled vehicles, or can't find someone to buy the extra vehicles off you.

Pickup Trucks with a couple of Peter Pg AK-47 minis, and a recoil-less rifle.

Delivery van in UPS livery, and a couple of not-Mustangs with a Rebel Mini ganger.

Some police cars and SWAT van, again with Rebel Minis figs. The SWAT van is the delivery truck, with a light bar made from sprue, and repainted. I am thinking about getting some custom decals for the Swat and Delivery vans from a local model RR shop. Even w/o the decals, they work great. I just noticed that I need to finish the windows on the Swat van...grrr.

The Coolest Zombie Mini...EVER!

2011-06-03T08:51:00.000-05:00

I've been trying to set a schedule for releasing posts; I don't want to run thin on material. I figure once a week is sufficient. With that said, I absolutely have to share this right now, on the spot. I have found the most coolest, best, outstanding zombie mini ever produced...at least by my low standards. Introducing, from Wyrd Miniatures Malifaux line...wait for it...the Zombie Chihuahua!!!

I am sure that some, if not all, of you zombie aficionados may have seen this one before. I hadn't, until I ran across a post on the Cool Mini Or Not forum discussing it. The price is a little steep, IMO, on the Wryd site; $7.00 for a 32mm scale Chihuahua. Still, I am going to have to procure one, simply because this thing is awesome; even beating out Zombie Clowns!

Speaking Of A Horde...

2011-06-01T06:00:00.012-05:00

Following up on the movie review I posted a couple of weeks ago, we'll explore how to populate your table with vast amounts of undead. Even in 15mm, putting enough zombies on the table in order to get that "horde" effect can be pricey. Rebel Minis 15mm Zombie packs cost $11.99 for 22 Zeds. Put 100+ of them on the table and you've dropped over $60! Here's a way to bulk up your 15mm Zombie horde w/o offering up an arm and a leg, or would that be your brains?

Get on e-Bay and buy a pack of plastic HO scale Model Railway figures like the ones below. You can buy 100 figures for about $12.50; that's including shipping!

Once the figs arrive , you can "zombify" them by touching up the skin tones with grays, pale blues and sickly greens, as well as adding copious amounts of blood. Once that's done, get some different sized steel fender washers from the local DYI store. Glue sand to the washers, then paint the ground color; earth tone brown works. After that, super glue the figs to the base. Gel type super glue works best, for me, as I don't have to hold the figs upright while it dries. I make bases with 2, 3,5 and 10 figs on them, so I can add and subtract bases from the table as Zeds are killed/drawn into the fight. My single Zombies are the metal Rebel Mini figs. Once all the figs are based, wash the figs and bases with a black wash. I use Future floor wax with black India ink mixed in. Once the wash is dry, go back and dry brush the base with tans and light grays, to bring out details. Finish it all off with a bit of flock, or ground cover.

All this work can be done over the course of an evening and the end result of your work is a bloody horde of hungry Zombies, ready to swarm your survivors:

The inclusion of kids in this HO scale set means you can have a swarm of rugrat zombies, if you wished. You can see a couple in the above pic.

Zombie horde bases mixed in with Rebel Mini zombies

You can also use these figures to create a good sized crowd to hold a protest and/or riot. I for went the zombification of the figs below, and added some individuals with protests sings, and viola, instant mob.

Apparently, this crowd is mad at Two Hour Ed for some reason!

Me Stylish?!?

2011-05-28T07:07:00.004-05:00

Much to my surprise, I was nominated for a "Stylish Blogger Award". Surprised, because A) I didn't even know such a thing existed and B) because, I've been called lots of things during my days, and "stylish" has never been one of them.

As I said, I didn't know that such an award existed, so the first thing I set about doing is finding out what, exactly, the whole thing was about. Here is what I found...there are rules (of course, why wouldn't there be?).

To receive the award there are four steps to follow:

Send a thank you and a link to the nominating blog.
Share seven things about yourself.
Pass the word on to 10 or so other deserving blogs.
Let them know of your nominating them for the award.

Well, it all sounds easy enough, so I set about fulfilling the rules and criteria. I found some things out along the way.
#1 - It's really hard to sound gracious, and not come off like a duff. Sending thank yous for the nomination, I had this visual loop running through my head of me as a weepy eyed Sally Fields accepting the award...disturbing.
#2 - I am my favorite subject; it's hard, when pressed, though, coming up with 7 things people might find interesting about me.
#3 - I am relatively new to the whole blog-o-sphere thing; I am a sort of Luddite in that respect. Rummaging around looking for 10 sites to nominate, though I've found there are a plethora of excellent sites out there, full of eye candy, creativity and gaming resources galore.

Now, On to "7 Things About Me" or "Things people didn't really care to know..."

I have been married 19 years; father of two; ages 18 and 14. My son starts his path to becoming an Officer in the U.S. Army in 23 days (we are very proud of him) and my daughter, the aspiring musician, starts high school next year (we are proud of her, too; I guess)
I am a United States Marine Corps veteran and life time member of the VFW.
Despite being an IT professional for over 25 years, my idyllic lifestyle would be to chuck it all and live in a rustic cabin in the woods, sans 90% of the daily technology we live with.
My first gaming memory is sitting on the living room floor playing Avalon Hill's "Panzer Blitz" and "Panzer Leader" with my dad as a child.
I paint and scratch-build terrain more than I game; selling off most of what I produce. It pays for my hobby as well as keeping my shelves free of clutter.This blog is intended to get me gaming more.
We have 2 cats (Honey and Hildebear), a female Blue Fronted Amazon Parrot named Caesar (don't ask), and 2 Dogs, a 195 Lbs Great Dane (Russel) and a 5 Lbs Mulschipoo (Gizmo). There is some fear that when the are both in the back yard together Russell will poop and accidentally bury Gizmo...we are very watchful.
I am a Christian in faith and will do my best to try and not look like a hypocrite on my blog and through my daily life. I am usually not very good at it, so I apologize in advance.

Finally, for this post, here are my nominations for the "Stylish Blogger Award". I chose as much on content and intent as I did for the looks of it all. In no certain order:

General Game Blogging
Bandit86 blog; fantastic scratch builder and converter, in all sorts of genres.
Tiny Solitary Soldiers; solo 15mm gamer goodness.
Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog; the content, both quality and quantitiy says it all.
Industry Updates and WIPs
The Weekly One Five; home of the talented sculptors who brought us many of the 15mm figs that are on sale today.
2 Hour Blog; Two Hour Wrgames official blog. Ed is a dynamo in generating interest in the hobby. Oh, to have that energy.
SciFi Gaming
Dropship Horizon; the starting place, IMO, for small scale SciFi miniature gaming on the web.
Zombie Gaming
Vampifan's World Of The Undead; no zombie gamer should miss this blog.
Brains and Guts; more zombie blogging goodness. This guy is all over the place giving encouragement to people and being involved. He's the one that originally got me involved in this whole awards thingy, so blame him.
The Quick and The Zed; shambling through getting into zombie gaming. He's another awards nomination culprit.
Obviously Zed; follow the Whiteface family as they negotiate the zombie apocalypse.

Now, if you'll excuse me, I am off to tell these people that they've been nominated as a "Stylish Blogger".

For the record, I understand that this is all about building community and interest in the hobbies of miniature gaming and blogging. So if you are a beardy old git, full of cynicism,no need to make any comments about it all...NYyyaaa! :-P

Drive-By Of The Dead - ATZ Campaign Day 3

2011-05-25T06:00:00.141-05:00

Prologue:
The Westside Crips and the Southside Bloods had been enemies for as long as anyone could remember; different sets, different blood. Things had been escalating for weeks. Now with what went down at the hospital there was no turning back. Tito and Tiny were there, but had disappeared. They weren't in jail, and the police weren't releasing any names. Their homies knew that they were dead. When it all went down, and witnesses saw 2 Crips running from the scene. The SBs were able to find out who they were. Better yet, they knew where they were and one of them was wounded. They were holed up someplace in "the Greens", the WC's home turf. Once home to nice working class apartments, the area was now run down, and dangerous. Not so dangerous that the SBs didn't think they couldn't exact a pound of flesh for Tito and Tiny, though.

It was late at night, as the Southside Bloods approached "the Greens". Their lights turned off, their cars eased down the street. Guns were loaded and cocked, as drugs and alcohol were passed around to fortify nerves. Those SOBs Ghost and Beebo were who they were after, but any Westside Crip would do. Anybody they found would pay the price. Oh yeah, it was payback time.

Special Rules:

Ghost and Beebo will be found hanging out together on any doubles rolled on an occupant check,
The Southside Bloods arrive from a random street.
Zombie numbers are still low, so rural zombie generation (6 on 1D6) will be used.
Zombie Tito, Tiny (from Day 2) will be the first 2 zombies the Bloods directly encounter. They must take a Zed No Zed test upon seeing them.
It's still early in the plague, so there are still no STARs, and the Humans only have a Rep3

Setup:
Lazarus Greens is located in Westside. The map represents the neighborhood around "the Commons"; the open spaces around the center of the projects. PEFs are located in Sector 1 (Fish shop Rep1), Sector 2 (Burger King Rep2), Sector 5 (Food-O-Rama, rep 2). The Southside Bloods enter from road 3. There are 3 in a car and 2 in a truck.

The Southside Bloods

Turn 1 (Zombies\PEFs 4, Bloods 3)

Zombie\PEF Move: No PEFs may move

Bloods Move: Bloods entered from road 3 and saw what looked like gangers inside the Burger King. They stopped and 2 Bloods got out of the car to check it out. They walked towards the Burger King, guns hidden. They saw 3 Crips (all armed w/ hidden pistols) sitting by the window. They pulled out their guns and opened fire (double barrel and pistol), through the window. Shotgun fired and knocked one down, killing him. He then realized he forgot to bring ammo with him (Double 1s on To Hit). Pistol fired and missed.

Shotgun and Pistol move towards the Burger King

Turn 2 (Zombies\PEFs 4, Bloods 1, Crips Inactive)

Zombie Placement: 8 rolls, 1 zombie appears on road 4 by the Burger King.

Zombie\PEF Turn: The newly arrived Zombie moved towards the car.

Bloods Move: Shotgun saw what appeared to be a bloodied Tito stumbling around the corner of the Burger King. Pistol saw Tito, too, and called his name (Pass 0 Zed No Zed). The zombie closed, then lunged at Pistol biting him. Pistol stumbled away, blood gouting from his neck (OOF Result). Shotgun stood there in shock. The other 3 Bloods exited their vehicles. The car driver was attacked by the Zombie Tito (Pass 0 Zed No Zed). They became locked in melee. The truck driver was in shock, and didn't move. AK-47, exited the truck’s passenger door, knowing that something was desperately wrong (Pass 2 Zed No Zed). He charged forward and attacked Zombie Tito from behind with butt of weapon. He bashed it twice, killing it.

Pistol stumbles away, bleeding, as Zombie Tito attacks the driver of the car.

Turn 3 (All Inactive)

Turn 4 (Bloods 3, Zombies\PEFs 1, Crips Inactive)

Zombie Placement: No zombies were drawn to the area by the noise.

Bloods Move: The Bloods grabbed Pistol and threw him in the car, as the surviving Crips remained under cover. The Bloods vehicles took off down the street.

Zombies\PEF Move: Food-O-Rama PEF moved along side walk heading towards the Bloods. Fish Shop PEF ended up cutting across “the Commons”.

Turn 4 Movement

The dead Crip in the Burger King reanimated. After passing a Zed No Zed test and being involved in a brief struggle, the Crips killed the zombie with a pistol.

Turn 5 (Zombies\PEF 4, Bloods 3, Crips Inactive)

Zombie Placement: No new zombies are drawn to the area.

Zombie\PEF Move: No Zombies or PEFs were able to activate, or move.

Bloods Move: The Bloods sped down the deserted street, with the truck in the lead. They took the corner and sped by a group of old men walking down the side walk (PEF resolution of D). The old men shook their fists and yelling for them to slow down.

Turn 6 (Zombies\PEFs 4, Crips 2, Bloods Inactive)

Zombie Placement: A zombie stumbled out of the darkness by the gas station, moaning as the tail lights of the cars sped away. Another zombie arose from behind a trash bin next to the Inferno strip club. Finally, 3 zombies lurched around the corner by the Food-O-Rama, apparently following the old men.

A zombie watches as the Bloods speed down the street.

Zombie Move: The zombie by the gas station moved after the Bloods. The zombie by the trash can charged out into the street and reached the Pickup truck, as it slowed down to make the corner. The driver recognized Tiny in the gloom. As Zombie Tiny charged forward the driver yelled for him to get into the bed of the truck (Pass 0 on Zed, No Zed). AK47 screamed "NO!" (Pass 1 Zed No Zed).

Zombie Tiny reached through the open window of the still moving truck. As the truck drug him along, Zombie Tiny scratched and clawed at the driver. Suddenly, blood sprayed across the inside of the truck, as the driver was mortally wounded (OD Melee result). AK-47 grabbed at the wheel trying to control the truck (Roll 1D6 on Loss of Control). The truck careened across the sidewalk, glanced off a building, hit a parked vehicle, and flipped (Pass 0). AK-47 was dazed, but unhurt, as he tried to untangle himself inside the cab. The zombie was thrown clear and knocked down (GMs discretion).

Zombies attack the over turned truck.

Crips Move: The two surviving Crips ran towards the Green, from Burger King, to get help. They entered the nearest project building and searched for other gang members (zombie result = Crip ganger on What’s Inside). None were found in the first building. The old men went running into the night, terrified.

Turn 7 (All Inactive)

Zombie Placement: 2 more zombies turned the corner across from the Food-o-Rama

The driver of the car slammed on the breaks and brought the car to a stop. They could hear AK-47 screaming in terror. His screams turned from terror to ones of pain and anguish. Suddenly, the screaming stopped. The air was quite, the only sound was the idling engine of the car, and the quite hissing of steam escaping the broken radiator fo the nearby crash. All they could see was hunched over figures around the overturned truck (the zombies began to feast for 1 turn).

Turn 8 (All Inactive)
Zombie Placement: No new zombies are drawn to the area.

The driver of the truck reanimated, but the was stuck in truck (GMs discretion; I didn't want to mess w/ any more figures. Things were going badly enough for the unfortunate Southside Bloods as it was.).

Turn 9 (Zombies 2, Crips 2, Bloods Inactive)
Zombie Placement: No new zombies are drawn to the area.

Zombie Move: AK-47 arose as a zombie, as the other zombies moved towards the idling car. Of the group that attacked the truck, only one could reach the car, even if it is unable to attack, yet. Blood and drool fell on the hood, as it hungrily eyed the passengers. Transfixed, they didn't see the gas station zombie come up the rear driver’s side. It reached through the window attacking the driver in a surprise attack (+2D6 Melee). Quickly, the driver was knocked OOF.

The driver of the car is attacked.

Crips Move: The two Crips moved to the next building, in search of reinforcements. They triggered the 1 Rep PEF, but it turned out to be kids playing (again PEF Resolution result of D). They reached the building and found 4 gangers hanging out on the stoop. They quickly dispersed to grab their pistols.

Finding help.

Turn 10 (Zombies 4, Bloods 2, Crips Inactive)

Zombie Move: The Zombies swarmed the Blood’s car. As the Zombies charged, Shotgun bolted from the passenger door, leaving Pistol and the driver to the Zombies (Pass 0 Being Charged). Two zombies followed Shotgun to the back door of the nearest project building. They pounded on the door as he pushed to keep it closed. The rest of the zombies began to feast on the car's unfortunate occupants for 4 turns.

The feast begins.

Bloods Move: Shotgun decided it's time to get out of dodge. He bolted through the building as fast as he could, and headed up he street they had originally come down.

Turn 11 (Crips 3, Bloods 1, Zombies Inactive )

Crips Move: As the Crips gathered forces; they saw a person bolt from the front door of a nearby building. Some one yelled, "There's a Blood, get him!" The 6 took off after the running figure. The quickly caught up with the running figure. Five of them surrounded the hapless Shotgun, cursing. One of the Crips pulled out his pistol and fired it point blank into Shotgun's chest (2+ Melee Successes). Shotgun fell to the ground dead.

Shotgun's Demise

Turn 12 (Zombies 4, Crips Inactive)

Zombie Move: No new zombies were drawn by the single gunshot, and the zombies continued to feast by the car.

Turn 13 (Zombies 1, Crips Inactive)

Zombie Move: Shotgun began to reanimate while the Crips stared in confusion. As the zombie rose, 3 of the Crips bolted into the nearest building. Zombie Shotgun lunged at one of the remaining gangers, and a vicious struggle ensued. The ganger finally killed the zombie, while the feast continued by the car.

Turn 14 (Crips 3, Zombies 1)

Crip Move: The three Crips that retired hunkered down inside the building. The others decided to check out what was happening down the street. They moved cautiously (normal move) and stopped far enough from the car that they felt safe. They could see the crowd tearing at and eat the occupants of the car! In shock, one of the gangers ducked behind the building (Pass 1 See The Fest and Santiy). The other two ran back to the building their friends went into. Pounding on the door they screamed to be let in. Once inside, they both cowered in fear (Pass 0 See The Feast and Sanity).

Ducking Back

Turn 15 (Zombies 2, Crips 1)

Zombie Move: The zombies finished feasting on the car's occupants

Crips Move: The Crip left out side entered the building he was next to, and locked the door. Pulling out his cell phone and he dialed 9-11.

Aftermath:

The Westside Crips barricaded themselves inside the project buildings. The 9-11 call was logged, but a patrol car was long in arriving. The gangers, and other occupants of the Greens watched through pulled blinds as the killers wandered around the outside. Conversations were whispered, but no one was calling them zombies, yet. Most wandered off into the darkness. By the time a patrol car did show up, after day-break, the remaining one or two killers had been dispatched. No one would talk, as the police gathered evidence and information. Officer Bakkus surveyed the scene, noting the killers and the victims. His head swam, as the word Zombies, as crazy as it sounded, rolled around his brain.

GM's Notes - OK, this one did not turn out REMOTELY like I had hoped for, or envisioned. I was hoping for a showdown between Ghost, Beebo and the SBs, and I envisioned getting another Blood character I could use again. Still, it was a fun game.

One thing I needed to reconsider was having the humans as Rep 3, as it puts them at a considerable disadvantage. With that, the Zombies are even more deadly. After thought, I am leaving humans at Rep 3 until day 9. I figure that people are a bit slow on the uptake that the end is nigh. From days 10 to 19, reoccurring characters will go up to Rep 4; I have 3 at the moment, even if they haven't been directly involved every scenario. On day 20, any surviving reoccurring characters will be eligible to become STARs, based on their past performances; only cool people need apply.

I wanted to use this game to get the mechanics of how PEFs and Vehicles work. I got experience in spades on both accounts. Finally, from the time I rolled the first dice, to the time I finished was about 6 hours. That includes, taking notes, photos, editing them and ripping out this BatRep. That's not including time tinkering with the BatRep for a few days. Not a bad way to to spend a lazy Saturday.

The Horde - Movie Review

2011-05-18T06:00:00.002-05:00

I love Netflix, especially the Instant View feature. It gives me the opportunity to watch all sorts of movies that I would not normally see. I don't go to theaters except on the very rare occasion; maybe once every 4-5 years. Netflix has quite a few zombie flicks. Most are real stinkers, while others are really good. I am going to periodically review these movies in order to showcase what I consider the gems, and save someone the pain of watching others. I'll do my best to highlight the good parts, warn of the bad, and not ruin it by giving away too much of the plot. Now, with no more undue tarrying, on to my first review.

The Horde (2009)

"The Horde" is a French zombie flick that is surprisingly good. Who knew the French could do horror? Filmed in 2009, it is not your run of the mill B-grade zombie movie. I would say that production values are on par with big hit movies like "Dawn of the Dead (2004)" and "Zombieland", even if it isn't as sweeping in its view of the Zombie Apocalypse. The movie is in French, with English subtitles, so if you don't like subs, you won't enjoy the experience. I don't mind them so I jumped right in.

The Plot: The plot revolves around a group of 4 police who decide to take justice into their own hands, in order to avenge a colleague/family member. They go to take out a gang of thugs, who are hold up in a seedy apartment block in a Paris suburb. The gang consists of a couple of Nigerian brothers, a greasy Chekh, and some nameless French guys. Well, things don't go well for the cops and they end up at the mercy of the bad guys. This is all within the first 10 or so minutes of the movie! Things really start to go down hill, as the returning dead show up, slowly at first, then en-masse. After the initial zombie caused deaths, the two groups begrudgingly unite against the common enemy. As they try to escape the building, they encounter more zombies, and what is probably one of the best characters I have ever seen in a zombie movie. They meet up with a crusty old French guy with an axe. He is a survivor of Dien Ben Phu, and slides into dementia every now and then thinking he's back in Indo-china. It sounds weird; it works, though. As the group tries to escape, there is conflict between everybody; the thugs vs cops, cops vs cops, thugs vs thugs, crusty old French dude and everyone. Meanwhile the zombies are pressing forward. They manage to find a cache of illegal weapons; which apparently are as common in France as Dunkin Donuts shops are in the N. Eastern US. Not to ruin the plot, I'll leave it at the survivors make it out of the building.

The Good: There are some really good things about this movie. First and foremost, French guys get ripped to shreds by zombies...just kidding mon ami! As I said, the production values are pretty good. It doesn't look like it was shot on video, or is coming right off the shelves of the SciFi channel (or whatever they are calling it nowadays). 99% of the special effects are real effects, not computer generated. The zombies look good, and the deaths are not so gory that they are comical. There are a couple of scenes that rank up with the best of them, too, IMO. The first is when the group is on the roof of the building, and they come to the realization of what is going on. The Paris skyline is back lit by fires; smoke rising in the night and punctuated by explosions. The scene did a great job of giving a sense of wide spread chaos and destruction. The other scene was an epic scene when the crusty old guy takes a stand in a narrow hallway against the advancing zombie horde; armed with a belt fed .30cal MG. It's classic and exactly what ever zombie gamer wants to happen in their games. There are a couple of heroic last stands that are done well, and one of the characters turns into a total bad-***, snapping not one, but two zombie's necks in H-2-H fighting.

The Bad: This movie is not without its foibles. The first thing I didn't like was that the cinematography was really dark. I mean to the point that some scenes were hard to see. Admittedly, I watched it on a 19in CRT, streaming on my PC. Still, it was dark; a couple of 100 watt bulbs couldn't have been included in the budget? The second thing I didn't like was that there was a HUGE amount of cursing throughout the movie. I'm not a prude; I spent 10 years in the Marine Corps. I used to be able to curse with the best of them. I also don't have a problem with the judicial use of vulgarity in movies. Still, this was just gratuitous and did nothing to develop the characters or move the story along. There are people that curse like that in real life, and I have found that they are, to a person, ignorant and boring; not the type I'd care about getting eaten by a zombie. The last thing turned into more of an annoying distraction than being actually bad. After the zombies showed up, every surface, in every scene, was smeared with blood, and I mean EVERY floor, wall, door, window, what not. It got to the point that instead of paying attention to the action my mind would wander on to, "Geeze, where the heck did all that blood come from?"

Conclusion: In the end, the good outweighs the bad in this movie by a long shot. The characters are not particularly deep. They are engaging. The plot moves along at a fast pace, with lots of zombie fighting going on. While it's formulaic, as most zombie movies are, there are some twists and turns that make it interesting. It's much darker than most zombie movies in its view of human nature and the outcome of the zombie apocalypse. There is not a complete sense of hopelessness, though. Definitely not a movie for younger viewers to see; lots of violence and cursing.

All in all, I thought it was a good movie; on a scale of 1-5, I'd give it a solid 4.5. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to get the zombie juices flowing. There's a lot here to give you inspiration for your games, whether you do table top or RPG.

P.S. - I forgot to mention the added bonus at the end of the movie - French Ganster Rap during the credits. Think of NWA meets Euro-trash house music; it's an experience that must be had to truly appreciate.

Code Blue: ATZ Campaign Day 2

2011-05-11T06:00:00.002-05:00

Prologue:
An uneventful shift change took place. There were a couple of gang bangers, from different gangs, in the exam rooms. They each had a buddy in the waiting area, who were giving one another the ole stink eye. The only unusual thing was the police officer who had been brought in with a nasty wound to his neck. Even though he had lost a lot of blood, the ER staff had managed to stabilize him. Curious thing was that despite their efforts, he had immediately begun to go down hill. They were waiting for an ICU bed to open up in the morning so they could move him upstairs. Until then, he was in the ER, being monitored by the doctors and nurses. His vitals were widely erratic, for reasons unknown, and they weren't sure he was going to make it through the night. Being unwed, his partner was the only person, other than the ER staff, keeping a vigil for him, and he had gone out to grab a change of clothes and bite around midnight.

The intake nurse sat at the front desk watching the 2 gangers; lest trouble start. Security was nearby, but still... At 3:43 the PA system rang out "Code Blue, Code Blue, ER, Stat". The nurse stuck her head around the corner and saw a bustle of activity, as her colleagues frantically worked to save the police officer. She went back to the front to ensure nothing happened there. Shortly, a male nurse stepped out and said that the policeman had died, and no one knew why. He turned around and went back to tend to the body and clean up. The nurse shook her head, thinking, "Wow, what a way to start the day..."

Special rules:

The Police Zombie gets a free move at the start of the game and the first human it sees automatically passes 0 on a "Zed no Zed" test. People still do not understand what is going on.
Since the ER staff is trained to save lives, they will try to subdue the zombie, instead of killing it. All melee by ER staff result in a "Knock-down" on the Police Zombie
Two hospital security will arrive, 1 D-6 turns after the zombie's first attack. They are armed with pistols and batons. They will not have any qualms with dispatching a zombie, if a death has occurred by the time they arrive.
OD zombie victims will re-animate 1 full turn after their death; what ever is causing re-animation is especially virulent at this point.
One gang banger, in each gang, is armed with a pistol; randomly decided on first activation.

Setup:
The map represents the inside of Lazarus General Hospital's ER, which is located in downtown Lazarus. There are 6 ER staff ( 2 Doctors and 4 Nurses, all Rep 3) going about their nightly duties. There are 4 gang bangers (all Rep 3), two of which are randomly armed with pistols. There are 2 in the waiting area, and one each in a couple of exam rooms. The body of Officer Jones lies on a table in the main ER area, being attended to by one of the nurses.

Z1 - Zombie Officer Jones, N1 - Nurse Davis, N2 - Nurse Sams, N3 - Nurse Thomas, N4 - Reception Nurse, D1 - Dr. Salvena, D2 - Dr. Epping, G1 - Tito, G2 - Tiny, G3 - Beebo, G4 - Ghost

Note: While I like ATZ's rules for action inside buildings for their simplicity, I wanted more detail. The only thing that kept me from building a 3-d version of the ER is the fact that I have too many projects going on as it is. I wouldn't be able to play this scenario for months, if I did. I downloaded a floor plan off the web, and used Photoshop to edit and scale it for 15mm. I then printed it out and taped it together. You can get the blank floor plan here: Floor Plan.

Turn 1 (Zombie Surprise Attack)

Turn 1 - Nurse Davis is killed by Zombie Officer Jones

Zombie Move: The body of Officer Jones rises silently from the table and attacks the Nurse Davis from behind (+2D6 for Melee). Nurse Davis is knocked OOF.

Turn 2 and 3 (Zombies Active, Humans Inactive)
Zombie Move: Zombie Officer J begins to munch on Nurse Davis for 2 turns.

Turn 4 (Humans 2, Zombies 1)

Turn 5 - The Humans "See The Feast"

Human Move: Nurse Sams leaves Beebo, a Crip gangster, in Exam Room 1 to get some gauze. He turns the corner into the Procedure Room and nearly trips over Zombie Officer J and the body of Nurse Davis (Zombie Surprise Totals 10 vs 4). He manages to keep Zombie Officer J at bay, as he tries to bite him. Other staff come running. Reception Nurse pushes the panic button and stays at her desk (Security will arrive as the last human move on turn 9). Nurse Thomas comes from the lounge and freezes (Pass 0 "Wanting To Charge"). Dr. Epping saunters from the lab see about the ruckus (Pass 0 on Fast Move, unable to reach melee). Dr. Salvena leaves Tito, a Blood gangster, in Exam Room 4 and goes down the hallway; freezing when she sees the scene (Pass 0 "Wanting To Charge").

Zombie Move: Zombie Officer J manages to take a hunk out of Nurse Sams neck, putting him OOF.

Turn 5 - Dr. Salvene faces the zombies.

Turn 5 (Zombies 4, Humans Inactive)
Zombie Move: Zombie Officer J begins feasting on Nurse Sams. All the humans in LOS take a "See The Feast" test. Dr. Salvena isn't shocked and stands her ground. Dr. Epping turns and locks himself in the X-Ray room, whimpering. Nurse Thomas screams and runs back to the Employee Lounge. She locks the door and begins piling furniture against it. The body of Nurse Davis stirs and rises.

Turn 6 (Zombies 1, Humans Inactive)
Zombie Move: Both Zombies charge Dr. Salvena, who is unable to get way. As Zombie Officer J grapples with her, Zombie Nurse Davis attacks and knocks her OOF.

Turn 7 - Action in the hallway.

Turn 7 (Humans 3, Zombies 2)
Human Move: Tito sticks his head out of Exam Room 4 and sees the zombies attacking Dr. Salvena. He pulls a pistol from his waistband and fires once wildly down the hall. In the waiting room, Ghost, Beebo's Crip Homie, pulls his pistol out and scans the room after he hears the shot. He sees a Blood across the room and takes aim. Tiny, the 2nd Blood gangster sees Ghost aiming at him and ducks into the hallway. Ghost cautiously stalks him across the room (Pass 0 "Fast Move"). The Reception Nurse ducks under the counter as Ghost goes by.

As Tiny enters the hallway, he sees the Zombies attacking the downed doctor and freezes. Zombie Nurse Davis turns and charges him (pass 1 "Zed no Zed"). He stands his ground as the zombie charges into melees with him. Beebo looks in the hallway, from Exam Room 1, and sees all the action. He decides it's time to leave. The only problem is that the hallway is choked with tussling bodies. He must charge past the grappling Tiny and zombie. Unfortunately, he gets tangled up with them (pass 0"Wanting To Charge", GMs prerogative).

Zombie Move: Zombie Officer J begins to feast on Dr. Salvena for 2 turns. Zombie Nurse Sams rises and joins him. Tiny reaches up and snaps Zombie Nurse Davis's neck as they melee; killing it.

Turn 8 (Humans 2, Zombies Inactive)
Human Move: Tiny and Beebo are locked in melee. Ghost comes up behind Tiny and shoots him in the back, killing him (OD result in Melee). Tito sees this from down the hall and shoots at the Crips. He hits Beebo, knocking him down and stunning him (pass 2 "Knockdown Recovery). Ghost ducks back into the Waiting Room.

Turn 9 -Beebo goes down as the zombies feed.

Turn 9 (Humans 3, Zombies Inactive)
Human Move: Tito fires at the Zombies in the hallway, hitting Zombie Nurse Sams killing it. Ghost steps into the hallway, reaching down to help Beebo, firing at Tito in the process. He hits him in the chest and knocks him OOF. Ghost grabs Beebo and drags him through the Waiting Room and out the front door.

Hospital Security finally arrives. They come up the stairs and turn the corner into the Procedure Room. They spy Zombie Officer J feasting n Dr. Salvena. SO Jenkins is unfazed (pass 2 "See The Feast), but SO Duncan freaks out and turns back around the corner and hides stunned in the stairwell. SO Jenkins draws his baton and advances, but is unable to reach the zombie.

Turn 10 (Humans 2, Zombies Inactive)

Turn 10 - SO Jenkins standing over the dead

Human Move: SO Jenkins raises his baton and brings it squarely down on Zombie Police J's head several times, eventually killing it.

Turns 11 and 12 (Both Inactive)

Turn 13 (Zombies 4, Humans 1)

Turn 13 - The undead Dr. Salvena chases SO jenkins

Zombie Move: Both Zombie Dr Salvena and Tito reanimate. SO Jenkins sees this and turns on his heels retiring (Pass 0 on all related tests). He takes cover behind the counter in the Procedure Room, drawing his gun. The Zombie follows, but is unable to reach him.

Human Move: SO Jenkins regains his wits, as he crouches in cover (Pass 2 "Rally").

Turn 14 (Zombies 1, Humans Inactive)


Turn 14 - Zombie Tiny advances.

Zombie Move: Zombie Tiny sees Tito laying in the doorway, down the hall, and advances on him. Zombie Dr. Salvena charges SO Jenkins. As they fight, SO Jenkins manages to put his gun under the zombies chin and pull the trigger. The body falls to the ground, unmoving.

Turn 15 (Zombies 3, Humans 2)
Zombie Move: Zombie Tiny reaches Tito and begin feasting on him for 2 turns.

Human Move: SO Jenkins calls for SO Duncan to follow him. SO Duncan hunkers down and refuses to move. SO Jenkins cautiously moves across the room into the hallway. He sees Zombie Tiny bent over a prone body. He yells at it to freeze, which causes the zombie to charge (pass 1 "Zed No Zed"). Shocked he doesn't shoot and the zombie reaches him. The zombie seriously mauls him (OOF Melee Result)

Turn 16 (Humans 1, Zombies Inactive)
Human Move: The Reception Nurse uses the lull to vault the front desk and run out the door.

Turn 17 - Zombies make their way out into the city.

Turns 17 and 18 (Zombies Active, Humans Inactive)
Zombie Moves: SO Jenkins’s body reanimates, as does Tito's. The three Zombies follow the trail of fresh blood Beebo left behind out the ER door and into the night.

Aftermath:

The police arrived shortly after the zombies slipped into the darkness. Even the most stalwart of the officers as shocked at the viciousness of it all. It took over an hour to coax a frighted doctor out of his hiding place. The survivors spoke of dead bodies getting up and cannibalism. The police wrote it off to hysteria. One of the officers believed them, even if he didn't say so out loud. Officer Baakus just went about his job. Much to the Mayor's officer dismay, the news media got a hold of the accounts. They went into a frenzy, as city officials did their best to calm the public down.

SMM Soldiers in Chemical Gear - Painted!

2011-05-09T06:00:00.000-05:00

I painted up the Sgt Major Miniatures Soldiers in Chemical Gear 1 & 2 packs(codes Pulp11 & 12) from the previous 2 postings. They turned out pretty good, and are ready to take on hordes of undead. Actually, these guys will be spending more time killing mutants in a ruined Post Apocalyptic world. They will be on stand by, though, if I find someone wanting to zombie game in 28mm:

Pulp11

Pulp 12

As I said before, due to their size, I mounted them on 25mm round slotta bases; in order to give them height. Here is a comparison of one with a Street Violence(l) and a Alpha Forge(r) fig. It all worked out very good, and they are quite compatible.

Sgt Major Miniatures - Get Some! 28mm (Pt. 2)

2011-05-06T06:00:00.001-05:00

I liked the first two packs I got from SMM, so I went ahead and order the packs that compliment the ones I had. I got SMM Pulp 12 and SciFi 12 packs. Again, shipment was fast, and communications were excellent. The flash on both sets was WAY less on these figs than on the original batch I got. Both packs give a good mix of poses for 10 man units. Here's what they look like.

Pulp 12 has 5 minis in it, one of which is a com guy; that's the guy in the middle. The only down side to the Pulp11/12 packs is the absence of support weapons. I told Andy he needs to offer a support pack with 2 M-203s, an M-60E1, and a M-14 with Starlight Scope (very 80's), so people can field a complete squad with attached support. Anyway, I've based them on 25mm rounds, in an attempt to give them some height.

SciFi 12 adds 5 more feral looking figs. Again based to give them some height. I may buy one more pack of these and convert them to carry guns; giving the unit a little more punch.

The next post will show what the Soldiers in Chem Gear look like painted up and ready rock n roll.

Sgt Major Miniatures - Get Some! 28mm (Pt. 1)

2011-05-04T06:00:00.001-05:00

I wanted to check out Sgt. Major Miniatures, and see what they were like. I'm gonna offer up a brief WIP and review of them. I bought these in primarily to use in a Post Apoc setting. With that said, the Chem Suited troopers would work great in a Zombie game.

I ordered 2 packs of minis from their 28MM "Get Some" range; Codes Pulp 11 and Scifi 11. I ordered them late Friday April the 9th. They arrived today, Thursday the 14th, via USPS Priority Mail. The total cost , with shipping was $30.20 USD; which has each of them costing $3.02 each.

PULP 11 are Soldiers in Chemical Gear 1, and are armed with M-16s. They have an 80's vibe to them, but they are nondescript. The gas masks are not 1980s military issue, but rather like the newer ones. The sculpts are good, with decent details,and the poses are great, IMO. The only down side to them was the amount of flash on them, and the fact that one of the castings was really mis-aligned. I know that this happens, so I am reserving judgment until I get another order of figs from them. It took me an hour to get most of the flash off, and fix the mis aligned fig.

SCI-FI 11 are described as "Space Cannibals" on the SMM site. A better description should be "Not Firefly Reavers" :-) The Get Some 28MM SciFi line thus far released/pictured is "Not Firefly", so it's all good. The amount of flash on them was far less than on the other set. Again, the sculpts are good, with decent detail, and the poses are very animated. The faces have what I would call a Troglodyte look about them, making them look rather primal. They are armed with improvised armor, and weapons fashioned from scrap metal. The only down side is the fact that some of the hands are rather "mushy" on the sculpting.

Here's a photo comparing them with some Foundry Street Violence figs, and an Alpha Forge one; from L to R , Street Violence, SMM Pulp 11, Street Violence, SMM SciFi 11, Alpha Forge. They are smaller; but not enough to preclude them from use, IMO.

The Pulp 12 and SciFi 12 codes have the same type of figs in different poses, giving you a good variety in a ten man unit. A big plus is that they are a lot cheaper than other ranges; Foundry's Street Violence and Pig Iron come to mind first. The down side is that the crispness of the sculpts are not as good as the more expensive figs. Being a frugal gamer, the trade off is quite fine with me. There is no doubt in my mind that both these lines are perfect for Post Apoc gaming, and I plan on getting more, in the near future, as I bulk up my Post Apoc forces.

I give them a thumbs up.

Addendum: I originally posted the above on a Post Apoc gaming forum I frequent. I let Andy at SMM know about the review, out of courtesy. Upon hearing about the mis-aligned figure, he immediately offered to replace it, free of charge. There was no need to do that; still the offer was greatly appreciated, and my stock in his company went up even further. Good customer service is always a plus.

We're Alive Zombie Podcast

2011-05-03T17:38:00.001-05:00

The latest installment of "We're Alive" at zombiepodcast.com is out.

If you haven't heard this podcast, check it out. It's the story of a group of survivors in the LA area, post Zombie Apocalypse. The zombies aren't your standard Romero-esque types, so the purist may be disappointed. They put out 1 part of a three part chapter once a week, on average.

All in all, its a good yarn and great fodder for the imagination. I throw it on while painting minis and time flies.

To Serve And Protect - ATZ Campaign Day 1

2011-04-30T15:20:00.000-05:00

I wanted to start off my campaign with several short games, just to set the tone. There are no Stars, as of yet, and everyone is cannon fodder at this point. A brave soul may survive, to become one; time will tell.

9-11 Dispatch: "Lazarus 911, what is the nature of your emergency?"

Caller (old woman's voice): "You need to send police over here immediately. One of the prostitutes that live in my apartment building is attacking the UPS guy out on the sidewalk."

9-11 Dispatch: "Ma-am what is the address of you location? We'll get a patrol car over there immediately."

Caller: "Oh dear, hurry, it looks like she's gone crazy and is really hurting him."

9-11 Dispatch: "Yes, ma-am, stay inside and lock you door, help will be there shortly."

9-11 Dispatch: "Patrol 13 codes J-04 at.....please respond."

Setup:

Downtown Lazarus: It is an urban location, in the seedier part of Lazarus. Lazarus PD patrol car 13 has been dispatched on an assault call. Officers Jones and Baakus (both Rep 4, armed with pistols and batons) are expecting nothing more than one of the locals who is high on meth causing trouble.

Downtown Lazarus

Turn 1: (Police 3, Zombies 2)

Patrol 13 en-route.

Police Move: The patrol car arrives on scene, and the police officers exit the vehicle. They see what looks like a hooker bent over a body dressed in UPS brown on the side walk.

Officers Baakus and Jones exit their car.

They both pass 2 on a "See the Feast" roll. Since it is Day 1, I decided that they don't understand what's going on, and must take a "Zed No Zed". Officer Baakus passes 2 and recognizes that the man is being brutally attacked by the hooker. He also recognizes the hooker as one of the regulars (double on "Zed No Zed" test) and calls her name. Officer Jones passes 1 on the roll and doesn't recognize the threat. He advances towards the hooker.

Zombie Move: The zombie charges Officer Jones and they begin grappling. As they struggle, Jones bashes the zombie's head on the concrete; killing it.

The Zombie hooker attacks.

Turn 2: (Zombies 3, Police 1)

Zombie Move: The body of the downed UPS driver stirs and rises to its feet; turning to face the officers.

Officer Jones is attacked from behind.

Police Move: Events are moving fast, and Officers Baakus and Jones still don't understand the nature of the threat (GMs prerogative). They take another "Zed no Zed" test, which they both pass 1. As a result, the zombie charges the closest officer. This happens to be Officer Jones, who has his back turned as he looks down at the dead hooker (-2d6 in melee; again GMs prerogative).

Officer Down!

The zombie scores one more success than Jones and knocks him out of the fight. At this point, Officer Baakus pulls his baton (+1D6 in melee) and charges around the car to aid his partner. He swings at the zombie, which is bent over Officer Jones. He connects, but does no damage (0 successes on melee roll).

Turn 3: (Zombies 3 Police 1)

Zombie Turn: After being struck from behind, the zombie turns on its attacker. Officer Baakus brings his baton down on zombie's head and splits it open. It lays dead in the street.

Baakus stands over 2 dead zombies and his wounded partner.

After the fight:

Officer Baakus frantically applies first aid to his partner, who is bleeding profusely from a bite wound to the neck. He calls for an ambulance. Help arrives and Jones is rushed to the hospital; hanging on to life by a thread. The ER staff works to stabilize him; little do they know, though, he is infected (roll of 6 (4+2) on a “Harry Are You Okay?” roll). Soon, he would be among the first living dead in Lazarus, but definitely not the last...

Rebel Mini's Zombie Pack #3

2011-04-27T06:00:00.000-05:00

I got a pack of the newest Zombies from Rebel Minis. These are some of the best they've put out, and by far has one of the best 15mm figures in it...the Zombie Clown. There are 21 figures in the pack. IMO a must for your Zombie Horde.

A little bit of "coolness" with these. You may have seen the group photo on at the top of The Miniatures Page, or on Rebel Minis site. I sent the photos to Mike at Rebel, and he decided they were worth using to pimp the minis.

The Dead Shall Consume - 20mm Zombies From Elheim Miniatures

2011-04-22T06:00:00.001-05:00

Keeping along the lines of Zombie gaming in 20mm (1/72nd), here are some pics of zombies from Elhiem Miniatures - The Dead Shall Consume range. I highly recommend them; Matt is a talented sculptor, and a good guy to boot.

Zombie Gaming On The Cheap - 1/72nd Plastics

2011-04-18T07:10:00.000-05:00

Ok, "on the cheap" is a relative term in the world of miniature war gaming. Any gamer who has bought more than one figure in their lifetime can attest to that. Still, as a frugal gamer, there are ways to put a lot of figs on the table, without putting too much hurt on the pocket book. Most people Zombie game in either 28mm, or 15mm metal. I'm here to tell you there is an inexpensive alternative; 1/72nd Plastics (20mm ostensibly).

With advances in plastics production in recent years, along with the rising interest in 20mm ranges, outside WWII, you can fill the table with not only survivors, but hordes of zombies, as well. Here are my suggestions:

SURVIVORS:
Caesar Miniatures has several boxes that provide amble choices for survivor types, and are the place I would look first. The boxed sets below can be gotten for around $9.00 - $10.00 USD on line, and provide anywhere from 36-41 figures each.

So, for around $30 + shipping you can get upwards of 120 survivor figs. If you are industrious, like I was, you'll paint up the best poses for yourself, and sell the rest, recouping your $$$. Paint the ones you sell, and you can actually making a small profit, which will help pay for the...

ZOMBIES
There is only one company that I know of that makes plastic zombies, compatible with 1/72nd/20mm, and that is "Twilight Creations"; producers of the beer and pretzel game series "Zombies". The zombies come in only 4, maybe 5, different poses, but can be bought in bags of 100 (aptly named "Bag O Zombies") for again, about $9.00 - $10.00 USD on line. The differnt main types of zombies they offer are:

the basic zombies which come in the boxed game, as well in the voluminous "Bag O Zombies"...

Bag O Zombie Babes...

The oh so fun "Bag O Zombie Clowns...

Not pictured are the Zombie dogs, for a little Resident Evil action, and the Glow In The Dark Zombies, which are the basic Zeds which glow in the dark. Maybe there is a Zombie Chernobyl scenario to be had there someplace. The Zombies game also offers a lone Survivor pose that could be used as well; if one was inclined. What I did was buy the basic Zombies game. This gave me a slew of Zombies to use, as well as a game to play with the kids that was a quick and enjoyable diversion.

What Do They Look Like Painted?
That's a great question; I'm glad you asked. See that just goes to prove the superior intellect of those who follow my blog; they ask these timely and pointed questions. Here are some shots of what some of the above mentioned plastics look like:

Zombie babes and basic Zeds:

Mixed Zombies and a 5 man Caesar SAS team (discontinued, but some of the poses made it into the "Modern Special Forces Worldwide box):

Mixed Zombies and a 6 man Caesar US Army team:

What About Terrain and Vehicles In This Scale?
Well, this post was really meant to be about figures that you could use. Since no one wants to game on a flat, featureless surface, I'll touch on it. In 1/72nd / 20mm scale the best way to go is with HO scale model RR buildings. They can be expensive; if you watch E-Bay hard, you can find some really good deals, though. As far as vehicles go, you can choose anything from die cast cars from the Dollar Store to metal 20mm military vehicles to go with your figs. Go back to the "Welcome To Lazarus Battle Report" post to have a see of what you can do in regards to terrain and vehicles.

Final Pontifications
I focused on Caesar for us as survivor types, because they give the best variety, within a manufacturer line. With that said, any 1/72nd scale modern military figs would work. Other manufacturers, Revell and Orion come to mind, do modern sets as well; US Infantry, German KSK and Chechen Rebels. Caesar also does a French Army/Chinese PLA set (weird combo, but it sells, I guess), so you could do a scenarios almost anywhere in the world if you wanted. Don't be constrained by pre-conceived notions of plastics and different scales; there is a lot more to choose from than first meets the eye.

The Streets Of Lazarus - How're They Made?

2011-04-13T21:24:00.001-05:00

The question has been asked, "How did you make the city scape for your convention game?" The tiles are MDF, with World Works Games "Mean Streets Of Mayhem" street tiles glued on (9 total for each board). They are scaled down to 65%, via Photoshop. The gas station and small accessories (phone booths, vending machines, etc) are also WWG

The rest of the buildings are a mixture of free down loadable stuff and buildings off a CD I bought on ebay years ago, that has buildings for scale RR enthusiasts to use. All the buildings are mounted on foam core I salvaged from work. They are fit together nicely, in my opinion.

Here's a link to a Warseer thread with good stuff on it: Warseer Paper Buildings Thread.

The Dead Invade Spring Recruits 2011

2011-04-11T14:34:00.001-05:00

Spring Recruits 2011 was held the weekend of March 25/26th/27th, in Lee's Summit, MO. Despite attending twice a year for the last 5-6 years, I had never run a game. So, this year I went ahead and jumped in. I ran several games of All Things Zombie called "The Mean Streets Lazarus". Despite having not played for 6 months, and winging some very unusual situations, I had a good time, and got nothing but good feedback from all the players. Here are some highlights of the weekend:

The Setup
Here are some photos of the setup for a couple of the games. The tiles are all 12x12, and the buildings are paper mounted on foam core.

Our words haunt us
Here are a series of pics that show that a GM needs to watch what he says. In the second game, the question that started it all was "How big is the the explosion of that propane storage tank?" "Twelve inch radius", I replied, not thinking. The next question was "Is the Mk 19 on that HMMWV operational?". "Sure", I replied, quickly adding, "but, you're not military, so you are at a -2 to hit anything with it.". The first pic shows us that if you roll a D6 enough, eventually, you are going to get a 6, as a Ganger pumps a 40mm round into a store full of Zombies. The pics after that shows us how our words sometimes come back to haunt us. The players got a big hoot out of the resultant mayhem; so much so that they did it in 4th game as well.

The best laid plans (or Include everyone in your schemes)
Going back to the second game, the players objective was to find the man with "The Cure". If doubles were rolled on a building search, the doctor was in the building. After finding him, l they had to make their way to the helipad in the center of the board. The doctor had to be on the pad, with no zombies within four inches of it. One of the teams found him on turn 2, remarkably, and headed quickly to the helipad. The other teams moved to intercept them. After a brief, but intense firefight, which cost the lives of several Grunts, and wounded several Stars, a truce was called, as the players decided they would all fly out on the helo together. The rescue helicopter was called in, and the area was cleared of zombies.

This is the point where mistakes that the GM make sometimes work in our favor :-) Our trigger happy Ganger (who happened to be my son) has a little bent out of shape that his Gangers were gong to be left behind, so he started chucking Mk19 rounds at the propane storage tank near the helipad. He got a hit and it went up in a blinding flash. The other players thought it was great, until they realized that the rescue chopper was caught in the rising fireball!

The Rep 3 pilot failed his "Loss Of Control" test and the went spinning into the ground and exploding.

A grizzly end...
In the last game, one to the players encountered four zombies on Turn 1, while searching a gas station. Over the next couple of turns, more and more popped up around him. His two man team fought them off valiantly, and left a path of dead zombies across the board. He decided he needed to get in a jeep to move faster. Unfortunately, a turn in which the Humans didn't activate left his jeep covered with zombies. The driver sped off, with 9 zombies clinging to it. He still had a chance, until the driver was "knocked down" and lost control. The ensuing crash, and resultant explosion, killed everyone, and thing, in and on the jeep; except his STAR, who was left unconscious. Alas, the next turn he became Zombie fodder.

Again in the final game, one of the teams had found the objective (a doctor with "The Cure"), and tried to get him to the helipad for rescue. The two man team ( a Rep 5 Star, and a Rep 4 Grunt) had found 4 Survivors (all Rep 3) while searching for the doctor, so he had a good sized force. The rescue heli wouldn't land, because there were zombies within 4 inches of the pad, so he had to clear the area. His team charged the pad and killed the 4 zombies that were on it. The next turn, Zombies won the initiative. Seventeen Zombies charged the valiant group. Turns out that none of the Rep 3 Survivors were all that valiant, as they all failed their "Being Charged" tests and ran for cover. This left the two team members alone on the pad. The resultant slaughter lead to the a mass of "See The Feast" tests. which led to a mass of insanity, running away, and curling up into fetal positions. Most notably, the rescue pilot decided that all was lost on the ground, and flew off; radioing for the "sterilization process" to be initiated.