Character Creation: Death Throes

Six days into October and no chargen for some spoopy game yet? I blame Baldur's Gate.

The Game: Death Throes
The Publisher: Ex Stasis Games
Degree of Familiarity: None with the system, plenty with the genre
Books Required: Just the one

Death Throes is a zombie apocalypse game, but instead of taking place in the post-apocalypse, as with Zombie World or Red Markets (or All Flesh Must Be Eaten, depending), it takes place as the zombie apocalypse is happening. And as I'm thinking about it, that's often where a lot of the real tension in a zombie scenario lives. Death Throes works on the same system as Trophy Dark, which I have but have not read yet, but it doesn't much matter because the game explains itself nicely. Actually, it's a pretty well written and easy to understand game, and I think it's going on the next one-shot menu. 

So let's make a character real quick! I need a scenario. There are seven in the book, so I think I shall roll a d6 and skip the one about the undead psychic aunt (it's a cool scenario but it's pretty specific). And a roll of 5 gives me...Necrotic Noir!

OK, so the basic idea here is that there's a cargo ship that's come into Atlantic City, supposedly carrying Nazi gold, but in fact character dead Nazi (best kind!) zombies (oh, no). So shades of Ghost Ship and perhaps Dead Snow, maybe? And also there's a big mobster component. 

Well, if this is noir, then I want a morally grey character, so who better than a cop? Detective Sigmund Hoff has been on the force since 1930. Now it's 17 years later (there's not a year specified, but based on the genre tropes let's assume late 1940s) and all he's got to show for it is a leg that aches like crazy when it's humid (he took a bullet in his leg in 1929, and it kept him out of WWII but he'd much rather have been shot killing Nazis than chasing bootleggers), alimony payments, a shitty pension, and a bar tab he'd rather not think about. Doesn't help that his family is of German extraction, so he's been hearing the same "Sigmund Freud" jokes for years...when his "brothers in blue" aren't painting swastikas on his hat brim. Bastards.

So, Notable Feature. First thing people notice about Detective Hoff? Probably the limp. Background - "burned out cop on the take." Role is about Hoff's position and contribution to the group of survivors. I think Hoff has been on this beat long enough that everyone knows him and either owes him or is owed by him, so what he brings to the group is "knows everyone." 

Skills: Just three things Hoff is good at. So we'll say "streetwise" and "pistols".

What's Hoff's unique Talent, though? I wish there were examples of these. In the example of play (which I wish were a little more robust) a player mentions his characters Talent as being able to hold his breath a really long time. You know what, let's say that Hoff's Talent is that he speaks and reads German. Seems a small thing, but in context it wouldn't be common and would come in handy.

Drive is why Hoff is determined to survive, but it's meant to be more specific than, say, Chill Drives. Let's say that Hoff wants to live to retire. 

Finally, Lost One. This is a person that Hoff is looking for or missing. Doesn't have to be a positive relationship, so let's say Hoff is looking for "Jimmy Grover, sleazy dockhand." Jimmy owes Hoff money from a baseball game they bet on, and Hoff's getting tired of excuses. 

I start with one Ruin and since I didn't take any more Talents, that's all I get. 

Hoff is in his late 40s. Balding gray hair, cigarette stains on his fingers, thin mustache, walks with a limp because his right knee hurts like a sonofabitch but he ain't using any damn cane, thanks. Wears a cheap suit, usually with a short-sleeve shirt and the jacket slung over his shoulder so everyone can see he's armed. (He's got a backup piece on his ankle, though, ssh.)

That'll do it!