Permit me a moment of rambling: I have lived in Ottawa, ON for the past 15 years, but my family home was in a small town called Penetanguishene. While I was a student at university, I would travel back and forth from Ottawa and Penetang by way of the Greyhound bus. This trip would pass south of Algonquin Park, through a town called Bancroft, ON. Off in the woods of Eastern Ontario, this was easily the largest town between Pembroke and Orillia, as it boasts a Tim Hortons, a McDonalds, and even a Canadian Tire! However the isolation of this place always struck me and it seems as though it might provide a good backdrop for a Zombie scenario, if you are still interested. Now, I only told you that story so I could tell you this one:
The ribbon of asphalt highway that winds through the Eastern Ontario woods joins little hamlets and townships together, providing the only viable artery for the folks who live there. The landscape appears to have moulded, as the granite hills rise and fall, sometimes thousands of feet, in rolling hills and cliffs covered in thick mixed forest. At the tops of hills, pine trees form needle-like crowns of green, while in the valleys thousands of lakes and rivers join to make overland travel all but impossible. Nestled among the trees is a small town, whose main intersection slopes downwards towards the river, along which local businesses vie for both picturesque views, and dwindling tourist dollars. In Victorian times, a railway line once joined Bancroft to Irondale and the Central Ontario Railway to the East, and Ottawa and the Grand Trunk Railway to the West. But times changed, and by the 1980s, scarcely 100 years since they were laid down, the iron was lifted up, and now is little more than an overgrown walking path into the forbidding woods. Further signs of the times are the old mines that dot the rock hills of the area, like gaping maws of stone in unwelcoming landscape. All of these have been abandoned, but serve as stark reminders of a way of life that has disappeared with the turn of the centuries.
Landscape around Bancroft:
http://photoclub.canadiangeographic.ca/mediadetail/11587215?offset=14http://robertschaetzlephotography.blogspot.ca/2011_01_01_archive.htmlhttp://www.mindat.org/article.php/369/+The+now+closed+MacDonald+Mine%2C+north+of+BancroftThere are a few ways to “keep” the players in the town. First, the landscape is unforgiving. Steep, rolling hills and dense forest would test the mettle of experienced outdoorsmen, while low-lying wetlands and lakes slow progress and divert otherwise straight courses into twisting routes with no easy path. Now, the group could opt to walk the highway, but of course, so will the Zombies, so they take away one difficulty, and replace it with another. Second, the town is remote. With a population of less than 4,000 people, this is still easily the largest urban center for 100 km (60+ miles) in all directions. If the group wants a hospital, police station, restaurant, hardware store, even a gunsmith, they will have to stay around the town. Third is a combination of the first two, and has been suggested by previous posters: weather. In the winter, a blizzard can completely lock down the town, making the only viable vehicles being snowplows or snowmobiles; each having their own complications. Snowplows could have been out clearing the beginning of the blizzard when The Wave hit, and are now miles down the snow-choked roads. Snowmobiles are great, if you know the local trails, otherwise they are a quick way to drive into a frozen swamp or off a cliff.
So, with a snowy landscape in mind, let’s set up some random Drop-In scenes for when the group seems to be determined to leave the relative safety of the town:
SNOW ON THE ROAD:The day dawns chilly and overcast. You are not on the highway long before the snow begins. First the small white flakes fall softly and eddy in the cold wind. Then both wind and snow pick up, and you are enveloped in sheets of white, the wind gusts leeching the heat from you despite your heavy clothes. Your faces take the worst of it. Between gusts the temperatures seem bearable. The intensity of the snow increases so that soon you can barely see the person ahead of you and the forest on both sides of the road is invisible in the falling snow. Ahead, you see a strange sight: a wall of solid white, disconcertingly featureless in the distance. Before you can read any detail, you realize that it is advancing, swallowing objects as it comes. First distant peaks and ridge-lines are blotted from sight, and then nearby trees and rock outcroppings. The wind gusts briefly as it envelops you, and you find yourself enshrouded in white blankness. So heavy is the snowfall that the collective impact of flakes is audible as a soft, pattering hiss. They impact on your eyelashes and get in your eyes, melting and blurring your vision, but there is nothing to see anyway… not until the heart of the snowstorm passes you over.
[When heavy snow comes on this quickly, it is easy to become disoriented: visibility is limited to a few feet, and tracks are quickly obscured. A party traveling in dispersed formation or sentries on patrol are easily scattered and lost.] PENALTIES: Skills that require clear vision are -90% like Land Navigation, Detect Ambush, etc., Tracks are covered in 1D4 minutes, making Tracking nearly impossible, Spd is reduced by -60%, and it is impossible to see targets more than 8 feet away. Ranged Called Shots are impossible beyond that distance (all combat past 9 feet is considered fighting Blind; -10 Strike, Parry, Dodge). In addition to the weather, pain and numbness impose a -10% for Skills that require manual dexterity, -2 Attacks per Melee, Combat Bonuses are halved, and if the PC does not treat the affected areas quickly (Face, hands, feet, exposed skin) then frostbite may occur. Frostbite on exposed skin requires a Save vs. Cold (14+) or suffer -6 on all Combat Rolls, -50% Skill performance, and 1D4 SDC damage, and will get much worse the longer it goes untreated. Finally there is an Environmental Horror Factor of 10, with failure adding an additional -5% to skill performance.
FIRST FORAY INTO THE WOODS:The snow that fell days ago has now been blown into long drifts in the lee of every tree and boulder. The wind’s action and the sun’s warmth have compressed the snow’s surface into a thin crust. The surface is such that it supports small ground animals, but the weight of a person buckles the crust and sends you plunging hip-deep into a drift. Around you a cold wind blows, sending shivers up and down your spine. The effort of hoisting each leg out of its hole to punch another is exhausting; your thighs and gut ache from the effort before the first mile is behind you. Occasionally your step collapses snow being supported by a bush, or some other structure, spilling you sideways into a deeper snow bank. You quickly acquire skinned knees, twisted ankles, and wet feet. Your tracks are very detectable here.
PENALTIES: Fatigue rate is PE in melees, unless the character has Wilderness Survival or Outdoorsmanship, at which point is becomes PE in minutes. Every time this time period goes by impose -2 Spd, -1 Initiative, -1 Parry, -1 Dodge, -2 Damage. According to the Encumbrance rules found in The Mechanoids, a character can travel with PS x5 in gear without being considered encumbered, if this amount is exceeded, double the previous fatigue penalties. Reduce Spd by -50%, unless the character is encumbered, at which point reduce it by -75% (snowshoes reduce Spd by -25%, or -50% if encumbered). This extreme exertion in cold weather conditions requires an adult human to intake 5,000 to 7,000 calories per day to remain at peak efficiency; if these are not ingested the character begins to suffer from starvation, -10% Skills, -25% Spd, and -1 Initiative.
GMs should roll on the Damage Penalties:Injury Table, Minor found in most of the core Palladium RPGs for general damage penalties associated with trips and falls.
DESCENDING INTO THE VALLEY:On the other side of a clearing the hillside descends very fast, much too steep to climb down and made worse by the coat of ice that covers it. As dangerous as it looks, it is also very pretty, the way the sun shines directly onto it, sending forth rays tipped in prismatic colors. A better way down the slope lies to your right, a more gradual grade that has obviously been used before as you see stakes and wooden slats driven into the rock. The slats are covered in snow and ice but look sturdy. Chipping away the ice should not take long. The dull roar you have heard for the past hour has steadily grown louder, amplified by the grey and red stone walls of the pass as they inch closer together. Somewhere among the peaks, a notch in the rock aligns so perfectly with the prevailing wind that it creates an eerie whistling sound. You cannot tell from which direction the sound comes; it is carried by the wind, rising to a scream, then falling to a murmur. The effect is disconcerting; with any luck, the wind will die at twilight, silencing the dreadful keening. You look up and see a small strip of blue inside the endless expanse of heavy grey. As you strain your eyes to try and make out the position of the sun beyond the cloud cover, mist begins to pelt your face. The temperature has dropped noticeably in the course of only a short time. Soon, slushy hail begins to fall. The temperature continues to plummet on the ground, but warmer temperatures aloft prevent snow from forming. Instead, the biting rain freezes on your clothes and equipment. Buckles, zippers and laces freeze solid, and equipment become unwieldy in numb fingers. When you find respite [perhaps in the lee of a stone or in a stand of trees] and shrug out of your outer layers, you find that they sit like hollow suits of armor, sheathed in ice.
PENALTIES: Unless the characters were wearing a totally waterproof base layer, they will have been soaked through their clothing. The characters are suffering from Stage 2 Hypothermia, and will die within 30 mins +1 minute per PE point. -20% to all skills, reduce Speed attribute by half, -1 Attacks per melee, has no Initiative, -2 on all Combat Bonuses, and may need to make a Roll with Punch/Fall/Impact vs. a 10 for every 100 feet walked, or else he will fall down. It takes an act of will power to get back up (and a successful Maintain Balance), and get back moving again. The character probably cannot feel his hands or feet anymore. It typically takes 3D6x10 minutes of being wrapped in warm, dry blankets and exposure to heat (stove, fire, etc.) before the individual begins to feel completely warm and normal. The maximum rate of travel here is just one or two miles per hour with rests required every two hours or so. At a more leisurely pace the characters can cover less than a mile an hour. Speed Modifiers: Maximum speed is reduced by -70% along icy rocks and boulders. Moving along a road or other flat surface that has been covered in a sheet of ice halves Spd, and provides a -1 to Strike, -2 to Dodge, and -5% to Skill use. This heavy exertion in cold weather conditions requires an adult human to intake 3,500 to 5,000 calories per day to remain at peak efficiency; if these are not ingested the character begins to suffer from starvation, -10% Skills, -25% Spd, and -1 Initiative. Finally there is an Environmental Horror Factor of 12, with failure subtracting an additional -5% to skill performance.
ALONG THE RIVER TO A COLD LAKE:You walk along a river, the chill of winter biting hard on your skin. The solid, snow covered ground crunches with every step you take. Ice covers parts of the river, but you can still see it flowing strongly under the temporary frozen ceiling. Evergreens line the riverside and their limbs hang low, heavy with frozen snow that has settled on them with every blizzard that has come during this harsh winter. The trees are pines which cast almost no shade. Evergreen bushes are pushing up from the snow banks, the rocks seem very dark and the snow, blindingly bright. Above and beyond this basin, the fir-clad hills rise to great heights. Suddenly you notice a small lake ahead, shining and black in the weak sunlight. The lake, when you reach it, is an obsidian sheet. The light breeze makes faint ripples on its surface so the surrounding hills appear as dark areas, not clear reflections. Ahead, the water is shallow and the bottom appears gravelly. Logs and standing dead stumps, old and smooth, protrude from the icy lake to your right. To your left, a wide clear stream splashes into the lake over shallow rapids of boulder-sized smooth rocks. As you look again into the river that you have been following, a swell of water forms right in the center of the current. You can’t tell what caused the odd movement of water, but in this cold season it seems unlikely that there is anything living in the river large enough to create that ripple.
PENALTIES: Characters can maintain a maximum walking speed of 6 miles (9.6 km) per hour, but this is fairly dangerous. For each hour of travel at this speed, characters have a 01-30% chance of slipping and falling (1D4 damage) and/or twisting or spraining their ankle (2D4 damage and reduce speed by 20%). Approximately three, possibly four miles (4.8 to 6.4 km) per hour at a brisk pace, or one or two miles (1.6 to 3.2 miles) at a leisurely pace offers no risk of stumbling and hurting oneself. Maximum Spd is reduced by -30%. This heavy exertion in cold weather conditions requires an adult human to intake 3,500 to 5,000 calories per day to remain at peak efficiency; if these are not ingested the character begins to suffer from starvation, -10% Skills, -25% Spd, and -1 Initiative.
NIGHT IN THE WOODS:As you rise in the dead of night you quickly form the suspicion that no night has ever been more bitterly cold. It is the deepest part of winter, and although many hours have passed since sundown it will be many more yet before the sun makes its feeble attempt to warm the earth from its low path through the winter sky. On top of that, the night is clear; no blanket of clouds serves to trap yesterday’s heat. Overhead, the stars twinkle coldly, as if they themselves were scintillating shards of ice. Your body immediately begins to shiver in a subconscious effort to generate heat. Your breath freezes instantly in the still air, and ice crystals form on your eyelashes [and beard or other facial hair] and clothing. The frigid air stings your nose and cheeks and burns your sinuses; your eyes water involuntarily, tears freezing halfway down your face. The world is silent, for in a cold as inhospitable as this, no living thing stirs from its den or nest. In the starlight, the landscape is devoid of color; that, coupled with the silence, renders the night strangely surreal. Only the mind-numbing cold reminds you of how painfully alive you are. Suddenly, wolves or coyotes howl above you, from one of the hilltops. They sound distant but you know that sounds can be deceiving, so you must be cautious. As you continue to listen, the air becomes still and quiet for several moments. Then, like a faint echo, the howling begins again. It sounds as if it is further away than the first time you heard it, but as time passes the echoes of the calls start to sound as if the creatures are approaching your location.
PENALTIES: -30% to Skills that require good vision, also -30% to Prowl due to the extreme stillness in the air. The character is suffering from Stage 1 Hypothermia, with a body temperature of 97.6 – 95 degrees Fahrenheit (36.4-35 C). If the character does not increase their body temperature quickly, they will move into Stage 2 Hypothermia. Likewise, pain and numbness from early frostbite symptoms combined with the hypothermia impose a -45% Skill performance, and -3 on all Combat rolls, and if the PC does not treat the affected areas quickly (Face, hands, feet, exposed skin) then full frostbite may occur. Frostbite on exposed skin requires a Save vs. Cold (14+) or suffer -6 on all Combat Rolls, -50% Skill performance, and 1D4 SDC damage, and will get much worse the longer it goes untreated. Finally there is an Environmental Horror Factor of 12, with failure subtracting an additional -5% to skill performance.
You might notice that none of these scenarios involve Zombies. I tend to prefer the “survival” part of Survival Horror” over the “horror”. In fact, apart from some vague hints at potential combat, there really is only the terrain and weather to challenge the PCs (although circling wolves, or half-seen zombies under the water are a great way to get the group to burn off some of their ammunition, while accomplishing exactly nothing.
Finally, if the characters are bound and determined to leave the town, even after you have thrown all this at them, well, I guess they are better woodsmen than the players in my group. All I usually have to say to them is:
“Remember, Mother Nature hates you, and wants you dead…”
Give them a reason to stay. "We'd sure get the hell out of here, but that cultist kidnapped my little sister. Or my hot hot girlfriend and hot girlfirends are hard to come by in the zombie Apocalypse. We can't leave till we get my little sister/hot girlfriend back from the cultists. etc. 