Session Zero

There are a few things to sort out amongst the group before we get started.

You are the good guys

I'm not interested in GMing a group of murder hobos marauding across Europe. So remember:

• You don't kill prisoners
• You don't kill wounded
• You (as a rule) don't kill helpless or incapacitated enemies
• You might not help every desperate individual who crosses your path, but neither do you rob them, enslave them, or murder them
• Nothing says you have to help people for free, however. Guns need ammo. Vehicles need spare parts. You need food, water, and medicine. Negotiating a hard bargain is fine

What do you want to do?

That's the big question I have for the group. What's your goal for the campaign? Some ideas include:

• Make it back to the USA
• Find a place of safety somewhere in Poland or Europe
• Make a place of safety somewhere in Poland or Europe (The game includes some nifty base-building rules that I'd be happy to try out, which would let you establish your own base with a motor pool, farms, medical clinic, and so on)

I'm open to other big ideas if people have them. I've got all of the 1st edition modules, so I can run the game across or around Europe and/or back to the US and then around the US, or even around the world. My own preference would be to see the group stick around a region for awhile and play something of a sandbox.

Character Niches

4th Edition is not an overly crunchy system. There are 4 attributes, 12 skills, and 70 specialties and values only range from d6 to d12. I think everyone will have the most fun if you coordinate character creation so that we don't end up with 2 top-notch doctors, 2 crack drivers, or 2 ninjas.
In addition, as a survival game, there are a number of skills that, if the party lacks them, could make for a tough time:

• Command (important for keeping cool under fire and helping others overcome incapacitating stress)
• Tech (necessary for preventative maintenance of guns and vehicles, repairing damaged gear, scavenging spare parts, and building new gear)
• Survival (necessary for foraging, hunting, trapping, fishing, scrounging, making camp, cooking, and navigation)
• Recon (used for Keeping Watch, hunting, and hiding your camp)
• Medical Aid
• Persuasion (helpful if you want to sometimes talk instead of fight)