Dawn of the Dice of the Dead

The zombie apocalypse is in full swing and the chaos and carnage is getting worse everywhere
around the world. It appears that drastic measures will soon be taken by the ad hoc U.S. government in
order to insure that at least some of humanity will survive. Small groups of uninfected survivors from
around the country, referred to as P1 groups, will be rescued and flown to a remote island where they
will try to rebuild a new civilization for humanity.
Your group of survivors, deemed worthy of P1 status by virtue of their combined scientific and military
credentials, received the final transmission with the instructions this morning... You are to get to high
ground somewhere in your current vicinity and try to remain safe until 24 hours from now, when
helicopters will scour the area looking for you. A unique color code has been given to each P1 group in
different areas. Your code is the letter X in red, with blue dots in the four spaces of the X. If the
helicopters do not see that code clearly displayed when they spot your group, they will assume that you
are not a P1 group, and if the code is not correctly colored, they will assume that a civilian survival
group is trying to take advantage of the P1 status, but didnt get the proper information about the colors
(false codes and colors have been circulated to distract non-P1 survivor groups). In either case, the
helicopters have orders to fly on, and you will be left behind. That wont be good for you...
As you look out across the town from your current safe house, which is becoming less safe by the
minute, you see zombies swarming everywhere. There are some hills nearby that would make good
pickup points for helicopters, but the likelihood of surviving out there is terribly small. But then you see
that one location has a large roof that is completely free of zombies... the Mall! You suggest it to the
group but there are some concerns... Even if you make it there, it might be difficult to survive long
enough to make it to the roof, as surely the inside of the mall is crawling with brain-eaters... And you
wouldnt be able to spend too much time focused on fighting off zombies, as youll need to have enough
time to get the color code painted or displayed up on the roof... Itll probably take most of your rounds
of Ammo and much of your remaining strength and energy just to get to the mall safely... But if the place
hasnt been ransacked too badly by looters, which it probably has, then there just might be some useful
supplies available there. Well, does anybody have a better idea? No? Then off you go...
REQUIREMENTS
The map and tracking sheets. Several 6-sided dice. Three different 8-sided dice (optional). Pen or
pencil. Cubes in three different colors (6 blue, 6 red, 12 yellow) and a bag for them. Coins/markers.
SET UP
Place one each of the 8-sided dice (or colored tokens) just outside any two of the four DOOR
locations on the Main Floor of the mall (each must be at a different DOOR), one with the 5 side facing
up, one with the 6 facing up and one with 7 facing up. These are your survivor groups.
So you made it to the mall, but at what cost? When you left the safe house you led a group of 44
survivors, and now there are only... well, you dont even know, exactly, because you decided to split up
into groups and head for different entrances, so you wont know how many of the others survived. That
may be just as well, though, as there probably wasnt enough room in the helicopters for 44 people...
But still, it was a brutal journey from there to here and you know at least half of those 44 perished on the
way... It took six hours to cover only two miles, your ammo is almost out, the batteries in your flashlights
have long run out, you havent slept well or eaten well in days and are completely exhausted and
hungry, and you have a lot to do in the next 18 hours if you hope to get out of this town alive and enjoy a
new life on a tropical island.
From outside the mall entrance you can see a few zombies shambling around inside... maybe there
arent that many to deal with, but this is just one side of the mall, so its hard to say how many there
really are throughout the building. It sure looks like a mess in there, but youve decided that while
youre there you cant afford not to search every store for valuable supplies. Just be careful not to touch
any rotting bodies or, well... you know what the infection can do to people. In any case, youre about to
find out exactly whats inside, for better or worse...

SURVIVORS
The game includes three different groups of survivors, beginning with 7, 6 and 5 survivors each.
There may be some uninfected people holed up in the mall, and some of your previous survivor group
might still find their way into the mall, so its possible that you might gain a few survivors while youre
there. However, a single survivor group can never have more than 8 people in it, and if a particular
group runs out of survivors, that die is removed and that group is considered gone for good.
GAME TURNS
Each game turn will be split up among the different survivor groups that are still on the map. Once all
available survivor groups have taken a turn of their own, then one whole game turn is considered
finished, and one box on the time clock should be checked off. (Note: A group consisting of only 1
survivor is still considered a group.)
INDIVIDUAL TURNS
The survivor groups may each take their turns in any order on any particular game turn. To take a turn
for a group, roll 5* white dice (hereafter referred to as the survivor dice), 1 red die (zombie die) and 1
black die (scavenger die). The red zombie die is immediately resolved to add dice to the Zombie
Fight Pool, and any 1s rolled on the white survivor dice are immediately placed into the Zombie Fight
Pool, but the remaining dice may be either locked, unlocked or rerolled up to two more times. After
three rolls at the most, all dice are considered locked where they are. Once all dice have been
resolved, reduce that groups Energy rating by 1.
*If a particular group has less than 5 survivors remaining, they roll the number of white survivor dice
equal to their number, instead of 5. They can never roll more than 5, though, even if they have more
than 5 in their group.
RESOLVING THE DICE
Zombie Die (red)
Immediately place a number of dice into the Zombie Fight Pool based on the Zombie Dies number:
1-2: 1 die
3-4: 2 dice
5-6: 3 dice and lose 1 Energy (this is in addition to the Energy that is always lost at the end of the turn)
Survivor Dice (white)
1: immediately place this die into the Zombie Fight Pool any time a 1 is rolled (may not be rerolled!)
2: reduce Energy by 1
3: move 1 space
4: move 2 spaces
5: add 1 die to Survivor Fight Pool
6: add 1 die to Survivor Fight Pool
Scavenger Die (black)
1: immediately take one Infected Marker (this may be rerolled after the Infected Marker is taken)
Note that there can never be more Infected Markers in a group than group members.
2: find one survivor (may add to group if group has less than 8 current survivors)
3: find 1 Food (+1 Energy)
4: rest for a few minutes (+1 Energy or +1 Strength)
5: find weapon/ammo/resolve (+1 Strength)
6: move 1 space or add 1 die to Survivor Fight Pool
LONE SURVIVOR RULE
If there is only one remaining survivor in a particular group, they will only roll 1 white die, but the white

die and black die are both doubled in terms of their strength for movement and fighting (everything else
is counted the same).
MOVEMENT
A survivor group may move their die up to the number of movement points they rolled for, but may
disregard excess movement if desired. A moving die may end its movement in the same space as one
(and only one) other survivor group. Place one die on top of the other, if necessary.
The Roof
The Roof is considered a wide open space with no movement restrictions, so any group that moves
onto the Roof is considered to be on the Roof somewhere. The spaces for the color code do not need
to be moved into... simply place color cubes into their respective spots when on the Roof.
SEARCH SPACES
A survivor group ending its movement on a SEARCH space may attempt to search in that location.
For every survivor in the group, roll a die. Each store has a different search rating for successful rolls,
and they each have limits on the number of total successes possible. Each success provides some type
of resource or benefit, depending on the location. Add resources gained to each particular groups
section of the tracking sheet. A group may stay at the same location and search on successive turns,
but they must still take a regular turn each time and fight off any zombies, etc. They would just ignore
any movement dice rolled for that turn.
Every location in the mall must be searched at least once during the game (the search doesnt
need to be successful). Place a marker in a location once a search has been made there to indicate that
it has been searched. Stores may be searched more than once... resources may be found on later
searches that werent found previously... but one search per location, performed by any one of your
survivor groups, is sufficient for the purposes of the search requirement. (Note: Resting at the Mattress
Store counts as the search for that location.)
The Search Spaces provide resources as follows (successful search roll target is in parenthesis,
followed by the maximum number of successful searches allowed during one search):
Clothing Store (roll 5-6, max 3 successes)
There are two Clothing Stores. In each Clothing Store, when you make a successful Search, you
draw a number of color cubes from the bag equal to the number of successes you had. These are
colored shirts that you can use to display the P.1 code, and must be carried to the Roof.
Restaurant (roll 4-6, max 3)
The Restaurant can be scrounged for food to help regain Energy. For each successful search in the
Restaurant, gain 1 Energy.
Electronics (roll 4-6, max 4)
Batteries for your flashlights can be found in the Electronics Store. For each successful search in the
Electronics Store, gain 1 set of Batteries. To use your flashlights, reduce your Batteries total by X to roll
X extra dice when Searching.
Shoe Store (roll 4-6, max 3)
Better shoes and fast sneakers can be found in the Shoe Store. For each success when searching in
the Shoe Store, gain one Speed Point. A Speed Point can be spent at any time to move one space.
Book Store (roll 5-6, max 4)
Books containing knowledge about how to kill zombies, use weapons, build barricades, etc., can be
found in the Book Store. For each successful search, gain one Knowledge Point. Knowledge Points

may be spent to re-roll any single die at any time. This may include the red Zombie die and the black die
when a 1 (Infected) is rolled. The new result after the re-roll must be kept, unless another Knowledge
Point is spent to re-roll again. Any re-rolls using Knowledge Points do not count toward the total number
of rolls for survivor dice rolls, combat rolls, etc.
Food Court (roll 5-6, max 2)
Some of the Food Court shops contain Food to help regain Energy. For each successful search in the
Food Court, gain 1 Energy.
Costume Shop (roll 4-6, max 3)
In the Costume Shop, you can find helmets to put over your heads to obscure the scent of your brains,
as well as makeup to have your survivors look like zombies, confusing the real zombies. For each
successful search in the Costume Shop, gain one Disguise Point. Disguise Points can be spent when
encountering zombies to remove one of the dice from the Zombie Fight Pool.
Clinic (roll 4-6, max 2)
In the Clinic, there are medical supplies that can help to heal wounded and infected survivors, and to
revive tired survivors. For each successful search in the Clinic, gain one Medicine. One Medicine can
be spent to increase Energy by 2, or to remove one Infected Marker.
Mattress Shop (n/a)
In the Mattress Shop, you can rest to regain Energy. You do not make a search check when you stop
on the REST space in the Mattress Shop, but simply gain 2 Energy immediately.
Sporting Goods (roll 4-6, max 3)
In the Sporting Goods Store, you can find guns and ammo, as well as hockey sticks and baseball bats
and other useful weapons. For each successful search in the Sporting Goods Store, gain 1 Strength.
Home Supply Store (roll 4-6, max 3)
The Home Supply Store contains wood and hammers and nails and other materials that are excellent
for building Barricades. Hammers, nail guns and crowbars can be used as weapons, and Batteries are
also available. For each successful search in the Home Supply Store, decide whether you want
Barricade Materials, Batteries or Strength, and take one of that resource.
Department Store (roll 6, max 2)
In the Department Store, you can find just about anything found in the other stores, but the supply is
more limited, as it was the first place to get looted when the zombie panic began. For each successful
search in the Department Store, choose from among the following: 1 Barricade Materials, 1 Strength, 1
Disguise Point, 1 Speed Point, 1 Batteries, 1 Clothing. You can also rest there on mattresses to gain 1
Energy. However, unlike the Mattress Store, resting in the Department Store does require a successful
search (you have to find where the mattresses are located).
----------------------------------------------------------Exchanging Survivors/Resources Between Groups
Survivor groups ending their movement in the same space may move survivors from one group to the
other. Adjust both dice accordingly. Resources may also be exchanged in this manner. Adjust both
groups resources on the tracking sheet as needed.
Lost Groups/Resources
When a group loses its last member, it is out of the game. Any resources that group had are also lost.
Barricades
Barricades can be erected on any of the four main level DOOR spaces, as well as on the Door to the
Roof. To erect a barricade, discard two Barricade Materials while in one of the spaces next to a Door,

lose d3 Energy, and place a marker or draw an X over the word DOOR to indicate that a barricade has
been built there. Only one barricade can be built at each Door location.
Barricade effects:
When any door has been barricaded, the group that barricaded the door ignores any Zombie Fight
Dice for that turn.
If two Doors have been barricaded, the red Zombie Die generates 1 less die than normal for the
Zombie Fight Pool.
If three Doors have been barricaded, the red Zombie Die generates 1 less die than normal for the
Zombie Fight Pool -and- you may reroll any 1s from the white dice as you would the other white dice
(1s still add a die to the Zombie Fight Pool if locked after the third roll).
If the color code has been correctly displayed on the Roof and you are able to barricade the Door to
the Roof before time has run out, you automatically win the game.
---------------------------------------------------------------------COMBAT
To resolve combat, do the following steps:
1. You may use Strength to add fight dice to your pool. Every Strength you spend gives you an
additional fight die.
2. Roll your fight dice. As with survivor dice you may roll the fight dice a total of three times, locking
any or all of the dice when you want to. However, every time you roll a 1 on a re-rolled die, you
immediately lose 1 Energy.
3. Roll the zombie fight dice. The zombies fight with all the dice you placed in the Zombie Fight Pool
earlier. You only roll the zombie fight dice once.
4. Infected. Before comparing results you may remove any one zombie die by gaining one Infected
Marker. You may not do this if you already have as many Infected Markers as you have party members.
5. Compare results. You may remove zombie dice by matching with fight dice on a 1:1 or 1:2 basis.
Note: Zombies always win on ties. For example, one fight dice showing 6 can remove any one
zombie die that is 5 or less or any two zombie dice that total up to 5 or less. But you can also use two of
your fight dice to remove one zombie die (e.g. a 1 and a 4 can remove a zombie die that is 4 or less).
6. Take casualties. For every zombie die remaining you lose one party member for that group.
ENERGY CHECK
Energy represents the health and stamina of each group. Food and rest are needed every so often to
keep everyones Energy level up. After every third hour has passed (6 game turns), each group must be
able to spend Energy equal to their number. If a group does not have enough Energy to spend, they
spend all that they have and lose any survivors from their group that did not receive any Energy. They
can not keep up and will soon be eaten by zombies.
A group may have 0 Energy and still continue normally until the Energy Check occurs (they are, in
essence, running on adrenalin).
INFECTED
After every Energy Check, there is also a check for every Infected Marker. If a group has any
Infected markers, roll a die for each one and consult the following table:
1-3: The infected person turns into a zombie and wounds another person in the group before being
killed. Lose 1 group member and keep the Infected Marker.
4-5: The infected person turns into a zombie and is killed. Lose 1 group member and discard the
Infected Marker.
6: The infected person is hanging on, but is growing weaker. Lose 1 Strength or 1 Energy (if the
group has no Energy or Strength, then lose 1 group member and discard the Infected Marker).

WINNING/LOSING THE GAME

The game is considered lost if at any time you have no survivors left, or if the 18th hour has passed
(36 game turns) and at least one survivor group is not on the Roof with the color code completed, or if all
of the locations in the mall have not been searched. If you have at least one group of survivors on the
Roof with the color code completed after the Energy/Infected check at 1:30 pm, and all of the locations
have been searched, then you have succeeded. Note that merely being on the roof with the color code
completed and all of the locations having been searched is not enough... you must survive and hold out
until the helicopters arrive after the 18th hour. However, if you can build a barricade on the roof door
after completing the color code and searching all of the locations, that guarantees a win.
Scoring (if rescued only)
Survivors on the Roof if rescued = +5 each
Bonus for having 2 groups of survivors on the Roof when rescued = +15
Bonus for having 3 groups of survivors on the Rood when rescued = +30
Each turn before the 18th hour that color code was finished and Roof door barricaded = +20 each
Remaining Energy of surviving groups = +1 for each Energy
Remaining Strength of surviving groups = +1 for each Strength
Doors barricaded = +10 each
Infected Markers in rescued groups = -5 each
This game was designed by Eric Herman, based on the system used in Dice of the Living Dead by Mads
Brynnum.

Dawn of the Dice of the Dead - Tracking Sheet

SURVIVOR GROUP 1

Die/pawn color: _____________

SURVIVORS (max 8): 7 __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

ENERGY (max 8): 4 __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

INFECTED
MARKERS

STRENGTH (max 4): 3 __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Barricade Materials: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Knowledge: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Speed: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ Disguise: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
Medicine: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Batteries: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Place Clothing cubes carried by this group within this box or to the side of this box.

SURVIVOR GROUP 2

Die/pawn color: _____________

SURVIVORS (max 8): 6 __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

ENERGY (max 8): 5 __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

INFECTED
MARKERS

STRENGTH (max 4): 4 __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Barricade Materials: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Knowledge: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Speed: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ Disguise: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
Medicine: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Batteries: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Place Clothing cubes carried by this group within this box or to the side of this box.

SURVIVOR GROUP 3

Die/pawn color: _____________

SURVIVORS (max 8): 5 __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

ENERGY (max 8): 3 __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

INFECTED
MARKERS

STRENGTH (max 4): 2 __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Barricade Materials: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Knowledge: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Speed: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ Disguise: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
Medicine: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Batteries: __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __

Place Clothing cubes carried by this group within this box or to the side of this box.

8 pm
11 pm
2 am
5 am
8 am
11 am

8:30 pm
11:30 pm
2:30 am
5:30 am
8:30 am
11:30 am

9 pm
12 am
3 am
6 am
9 am
12 pm

9:30 pm
12:30 am
3:30 am
6:30 am
9:30 am
12:30 pm

**Energy/Infected checks

10 pm 10:30 pm**
1 am 1:30 am**
4 am 4:30 am**
7 am 7:30 am**
10 am 10:30 am**
1 pm 1:30 pm**
HELICOPTERS
ARRIVE!

Scoring (if rescued only)

Survivors on the Roof if rescued = +5 each
2 groups of survivors on the Roof when rescued? = +15
3 groups of survivors on the Rood when rescued? = +30
Turns before 2 pm that code was finished and Roof door barricaded = +20 each
Remaining Energy of surviving groups = +1 for each Energy
Remaining Strength of surviving groups = +1 for each Strength
Doors barricaded = +10 each
Infected Markers in rescued groups = -5 each

SCORE: