THE SHOTGUN DIARIES

A Zombie Survival Roleplaying Game

Written by John Wick

Written for Nick Watts
Title by Rochelle Watts

The Shotgun Diaries is © and TM 2009 by John Wick, used by permission. All characters and situations
presented here are fictional and any resemblance between real persons is coincidental. Except for Nick.
He’s real. And zombies. They are real, too. And it’s later than you think.

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 Dear Diary,

Went to the grocery store today for supplies. We got canned soup, canned

vegetables and canned fruit. We lost Marie.

After we all agreed to stay together, after we all agreed going out alone

was too dangerous, after all of that, she decided to search the backroom.

And none of us noticed. None of us noticed until she started screaming.

Our buddy system completely failed. Jay ran for the front door and never

looked back. Ron and I dropped our bags and shouldered our rifles. When we

got there, it was too late. We blockaded the door and grabbed what bags we

could. Then, we tried to catch up with Jay.

He was already in the shop, the iron gate shut. If Ron didn’t have his own

key, Jay would have left us out there. I was almost out of ammunition when

the gate went up. We had to cut off their hands to get it closed.

It’s never easy to confront someone when everyone has guns. Jay wouldn’t

back down. He was right to run, he said. He was right to get the hell out of

there. Ron tried to tell him that Marie was his buddy and it was Jay’s fault

it happened at all. Jay wouldn’t listen and at the end, he decided he would be

better off on his own. We agreed he could take whatever he could carry and

let him go. He went out the roof exit and ran across the rooftops toward

the edge of the city.

That leaves us with seven. Only three of us can make the grocery run.

Walter and Virginia are too old, Tommy is too young and Elizabeth should be

giving birth any day now. None of us know what to do. We can’t even get to

1
the library to get a book.

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 My day trudges forward. I eat canned peaches and look out the window.

The iron gate keeps them out of reach of the glass. Fortunately, the gun

store has bullet proof glass, so even if they get through the gate, the glass

will buy us time to reach the roof. I finish my peaches and look out at the

faces. They aren’t even human anymore. I don’t know why I’m so compelled

to watch them. Maybe I’m looking for mom and dad. Maybe I’m looking for

Debbie. I haven’t seen them yet. Ninety-two days gone and I haven’t seen

anyone I know. How weird is that? I haven’t seen anyone I know.

Day is done. I’ll try to sleep. The place where I do see the people I know.

And I watch them die again and again and again. Good night, diary. One more day

under my belt. At least there’s that.

2
Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2
 Introduction
The Shotgun Diaries is a roleplaying game about zombie survival horror.

Specifically, this is Nick’s roleplaying game about zombie horror. I designed it

for his birthday, so if it seems I’m talking to a specific person, I am. This

game belongs to Nick and he gave me permission to show it to you. So, if you

like it, the next time you see him, make sure to thank him.

(And happy birthday, Nick!)

In the game, you play the roles of survivors of the zombie apocalypse.

Why the zombies are here really doesn’t matter, does it? We know what

happens to those who try to find a cure. We know what happens to those

who study the zombies. The only choice here is to survive.

You will need three to six players (less and more than that diminishes

gameplay) and a Zombie Master who acts as the referee. You also need six-

sided dice and different tokens for the Zombie Clock and Fear.

So, let’s find out who your alter ego is in this world of fear and teeth.

MAKING A SURVIVOR
All zombie survival movies have particular kinds of characters. You may

even call them archetypes. What is your archetype?

The Clever Survivor

The Clever Survivor knows how to make tools out of the strangest things.

He also knows how to make complicated machines work. He always rolls at

least four dice for any risk involving tools, devices or machines.

3
Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2
 The Dangerous Survivor
The Dangerous Survivor has been trained with weapons. He’s a cop or a

soldier or just a gun nut. The Dangerous Survivor always rolls at least four

dice for any risk involving weapons.

The Fast Survivor

The Fast Survivor isn’t very big, isn’t very smart, but she can run like hell.

The Fast Survivor always rolls at least four dice for any risk involving speed.

The Sneaky Survivor

The Sneaky Survivor knows how to get around without being seen. He

always rolls at least four dice for any risk involving sneaking around and not

being seen.

The Strong Survivor

The Strong Survivor may not be very smart, but when you need to block

the door, he’s the guy to get. The Strong Survivor always rolls at least four

dice for any risk involving any physical actions.

The Helpless Survivor

The Helpless Survivor is in a wheelchair or is pregnant or is a little child

who can’t protect himself. The Helpless Survivor never rolls any dice, but if

anyone takes a risk to help or protect him, they roll two additional dice.

(Note: the Helpless Survivor is best played as an NPC. Most players will

find the Helpless Survivor difficult to play because he doesn’t have any dice.

However, if players are willing to take a chance on a particularly challenging

4
role, the Helpless Survivor is the way to go.)

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 TAKING RISKS
Whenever your character wants to take a risk, roll dice. Roll a number of

six-sided dice equal to your Survivor type. If any of your dice rolls a 6, you

get to say what happens to your Survivor. If none of your dice rolls a 6, the

Narrator says what happens to your Survivor.

That’s the basic mechanic. But, there are some complications.

No Zombie? No Roll!
First, an important rule: if no zombies are present, the Survivors don’t need

to roll for any risks.

If the Survivors are locked up in a shopping mall and they’ve cleared all the

zombies out, they don’t need to roll for anything.

No Dice? No Dice!
If you can’t roll dice, the Zombie Master says what happens. That

doesn’t always mean you get eaten by zombies, but it probably does. Time to

make a new Survivor. This means if you are the Fast Survivor and you need to

lift a heavy gate to get away from the zombies… you get no dice to roll.

Killing Zombies
On the other hand, if you are rolling dice, zombies are present. However,

no Survivor should ever “roll to kill zombies.” In this game, I assume that if

you are rolling dice, you are always killing zombies. Climbing a ladder? You’re

killing zombies. Trying to get through the window? You’re killing zombies.

Grocery shopping? You’re killing zombies. Saving another Survivor from a

5
zombie attack? You’re killing zombies.

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 Every risk involves shooting zombies. Don’t waste rolls trying to shoot

specific zombies. You are always shooting zombies.

Don’t Split the Party

Whenever you take a risk, roll your basic dice from your Survivor Type.

However, if you are with other people, you can roll a number of bonus dice

equal to the number of people with you.

For example, if you are out getting groceries at the local food shop,

trying to sneak by the zombies, you roll a number of dice appropriate to your

Survivor Type plus a number of dice equal to the number of people with you.

If you have five people with you, roll five bonus dice. If any of those dice

rolls a six, you get to say what happens to your Survivor.

Tools & Weapons

Whenever you are using tools or weapons, you increase your chance of

success. Tools and weapons give you a specific bonus listed as “+1” or “+2.”

Most tools give you a +1 bonus and most weapons give you the same bonus.

A +1 bonus lowers the difficulty of a risk from 6 to 5, essentially adding

one point to any die you roll, turning a 5 to a 6 (with a +1). So, if you have

the right tool for the right job, any 5 or 6 allows you to say what happens

to your Survivor. A tool or weapon that gives you a +2 turns a 4, 5 into a 6,

giving you a success.

Tools only have a +1 bonus.

Hand weapons (such as lug wrenches, baseball bats, katanas, and chain

saws) also give a +1 bonus.

Firearms have a +2 bonus.

6
Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2
 SUPPLIES
At the beginning of play, every Survivor rolls four dice. Any die that rolls a

6 gets thrown into a common pool. This is your Supply Pool. It represents

food, ammunition, bandages and other things necessary for survival. The more

dice in the pool, the more supplies you have.

At any time during the game, a player can draw dice from the Supplies

Pool. These count as bonus dice he may roll to succeed in a risk. However,

once the dice are gone, the Survivors no longer have the supplies they need to

survive. The ammunition is gone, they have no more clean bandages, the propane

tanks are empty, a tire blows out on the car, etc.

This doesn’t mean you can’t fight zombies, but it does mean you have

no bonus dice to do it. Supplies provide the kind of bonuses Survivors need

to continue surviving. To replenish their Supply Pool, Survivors must find

sanctuary.

SANCTUARY 7
For a break in the horror, Survivors can try to find Sanctuary. A safe place

to rest, recoup and replenish supplies.

Finding Sanctuary requires a risk. Every Survivor takes a risk based on their

unique abilities. The Fast Survivor rolls four dice, the Smart Survivor rolls

four dice, etc. If the Survivors roll a number of sixes greater than their

current number (four Survivors rolling five or more sixes; three Survivors

rolling four or more sixes), they find Sanctuary. Gather up all your sixes. The

number of sixes you roll equals the safety of your current Sanctuary. A gun

shop. An abandoned grammar school. A grocery store.

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 Throw all the dice that rolled a six into a common pool, which becomes

the Supplies Pool. If the Survivors already have supplies remaining when they

find a new Sanctuary, the new roll adds to the current Supply Pool.

The number of sixes rolled also represents the relative security of the

found Sanctuary. But if a Survivor exits the Sanctuary (to get food, find

more Survivors or for any other reason), the Survivor is not safe and must

deal with the zombies.

THE ZOMBIE CLOCK

The Zombie Clock represents the imminent and inevitable arrival of zombies.

At the beginning of the game, the Zombie Clock starts at 1 (one zombie). You

can represent the Zombie Clock any way you like. Dice, figurines, skulls,

teeth, etc.

Every ten minutes of real time that goes by:

• roughly, a day passes, and

• the Zombie Clock inches up one more rank, and

8
• the Supply Pool goes down by one.

Again: Zombie Clock goes up one, Supply Pool goes down one. This

represents the passage of time. Zombies gather and Supplies dwindle.

At any time, the Zombie Master can unleash zombies in the Survivors’

direction. The number of zombies equals the rank of the Zombie Clock.

If the Zombie Clock’s rank is lower than the security rank of the

Sanctuary, the zombies cannot find a way in. The Survivors are safe. No

zombie can enter the Sanctuary.

This gives the players time to prepare for the inevitable. Sooner or later,

the zombies will find out what’s going on inside the Sanctuary and find a

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 way to get through the Survivor’s defenses. As soon as the Zombie Clock

reaches a rank greater than the Sanctuary’s security rank, the zombies have

found a weak spot and start creeping into the Sanctuary.

After any attack of zombies, the Zombie Clock resets itself back to zero.

Complications
The Zombie Master may also use the Zombie Clock to create

complications in the game. By discarding one rank of the Zombie Clock

(turning it down from four to three, for example), he can cause a particular

complication for the Survivors.

• The car’s engine overheats or runs out of gas.

• The power goes out in the Sanctuary and can only be fixed outside.

• A small fire mysteriously breaks out in the kitchen.

• The faucets go dry.

• A lone zombie finds an unprotected Survivor.

Complications deduct one rank from the Zombie Clock, providing the

Zombie Master an opportunity to throw problems into the Survivor’s faces.

Complications override all other rules. Even if the Survivors are safe in the

Sanctuary, a single zombie can stumble his way through their defenses and

find the Survivors. The Sanctuary cannot be fully compromised, but one small

thing can go wrong. Perhaps the dogs and cats in the pet store are infected

and attack one of the Survivors? Or perhaps they missed a zombie in the

Sporting Goods Section, just behind the golf clubs…

9
Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2
 FEAR 10
Fear eats at your confidence and makes you act in stupid, selfish

ways. Every character can earn Fear based on his experiences in the zombie

apocalypse. Your character starts with one Fear Rank.

Whenever you make a risk, you must use a number of Fear Dice equal to

your Fear Rank. Pick a d6 that doesn’t look like the others. That is your Fear

Die.

So, if you have a 1 Fear Rank and you are rolling 4 dice, you roll 3 normal

dice and one Fear Die. If your Fear is 3 and you are rolling four dice, you

must roll three Fear Dice and one normal die.

If you ever choose your Fear Die as a success, you must use your action

to hide, run away or otherwise save yourself. Your friends on the other side

of that door? Lock it. There’s zombies, too! And they can’t get in here!

Fear Checks
Certain events can cause your Survivor to gain Fear Ranks. We call this

a Fear Check. Whenever your Survivor sees one of the following events, roll

one die. If the result is higher than your current Fear rank, your Fear rank

increases by one. For example, Nick is wandering around the Sanctuary when

he opens a door and finds a zombie chewing on a corpse’s brain. This is a valid

cause for a Fear Check. Nick’s current Fear Rank is 2. He rolls a die. The

result is 4. Because Nick rolled higher than his current Fear Rank, his Fear

Rank increases by one rank.

Just seeing zombies is not enough of a reason for a Fear Check. Zombies

are everywhere and you see them all the time. Specific circumstances must

be met to cause a Fear Check.

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 Some examples of what could cause a Fear Check:

• he sees another Survivor eaten by zombies

• he sees a zombie he recognizes

• finding a zombie in a Sanctuary

• he loses something key to his survival (a gun, food, a hiding place)

• another Survivor ditches him out of self-survival

• any other scene of horror and hopelessness (as per Narrator’s

judgment)

THE DIARY 11
Your Survivor has a diary, recording his daily existence in the zombie

apocalypse. Every day is one page. Every day is an affirmation that you are still

alive and every day you are still alive is another chance that something will

change. Someone will come. A break in the horror will allow us to escape.

Every day is another day.

Benefits
Every game session is an opportunity to write an entry in your diary. It

must be a full page. If you write an entry in your diary, you get two small

benefits.

Every entry lowers your Fear Rank by one. But your Fear Rank is always at

least one; it never goes to zero. Not ever. You may have hope, but the zombies

are always within reach.

Waiting for you to make a mistake.

Every day, you can say something is true. Make sure to underline this or

highlight it in some way. The thing you write down that’s true gives you one

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 bonus die for a specific circumstance. For example, you write down that

Survivor Jill is a nurse. She gets a bonus die for any risk that’s appropriate.

You write down that Survivor James is great at finding food. James gets a

bonus die for finding food. Remember: your bonus die only counts for one

specific circumstance.

You can even write down things that are true about zombies. They’re slow

or fast. They eat brains or they don’t eat brains. You have to shoot them in

the head or you don’t have to shoot them in the head.

Don’t go writing down “I’m awesome!” and expect a bonus die for all

actions. Only a wanker would do that. And you’re not a wanker, right?

RESCUE
If you wish, set a time for rescue. A real time. Say… five game sessions.

Each game session is one day. Anyone who makes it to the end of the time

period gets rescued by the helicopter or by the army or by rednecks with

shotguns in pickup trucks. Congrats. You made it. Until next time.

ZOMBIES 12
So, let’s talk about zombies.

First off, zombies don’t get any dice. Zombies win a die roll when the

Survivors fail one. Otherwise, they don’t get any dice.

Also, the Zombie Master can use Complications to allow zombies to

stumble upon solutions they would normally not be able to solve themselves.

For example, we’ve got a bunch of zombies in the elevator. Complication Point:

one of them elbows the seventh floor button. Or, the zombies can’t get up

the escalator. Complication Point: one of them stumbles up the right way.

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 Infection
Instead of dying from zombie attack, a Survivor can become infected by

the zombies. This happens when the Survivor fails to roll a six. The Zombie

Master shows mercy on the poor Survivor and allows him to live just a little

bit longer.

The Survivor remains infected until the Zombie Master spends a

Complication Point to turn the Survivor into a zombie. He should do this at

13
the most opportune (or inopportune) time.

Survivor Zombies
If a Survivor dies, he becomes a zombie. If the player wishes, he can

continue playing his character as a Zombie. Note the difference between

zombies and Zombies. Make sure to use the proper inflection to note the

difference.

(“Is it a zombie or a Zombie?”)

A Zombie has four dice to be a zombie to do the things zombies do: rip,

tear, break, bite, chew, gut and destroy. But deep in his dim and dead mind, he

still has foggy memories of what he used to be. So, each zombie type gets

one special ability. All of these turn back the Zombie Clock by one rank if a

Zombie chooses to use them. If the Zombie Clock is at zero, the Zombie

cannot use his special ability.

If the Total Fear of the Survivors is greater than the number of

Survivors, Zombies can use their special abilities at will.

• The Strong Zombie gets four bonus dice for physical risks (that’s a

total of 8!).

• The Sneaky Zombie can sneak into a Sanctuary without being seen.

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 • The Clever Zombie can sabotage the Supply Pool by 1d6.

• The Dangerous Zombie cancels the benefit of weapons.

• The Helpless Zombie can overwhelm a victim with complete hopeless

pity, stealing two dice from his roll.

Survivor vs Zombie
The only time Survivors roll against zombies is if they encounter a Zombie. Both

the Survivor and Zombie roll appropriate dice. Whoever rolls the most sixes says what

happens. This doesn’t mean the Zombie kills the Survivor if he rolls the most sixes, but it

generally does. Ties go to the Survivor, but the Survivor becomes infected.

Zombie Master Notes

Finally, a few notes for you, the Zombie Master, on how to make the game

fun, intense and interesting.

Watch Zombie Movies

No kidding, huh?

But you’d be surprised by how many ideas you get from sitting down

with your favorite zombie movie and a notebook. Watch critically. Think to

yourself, “How would I use this in the game?” A little preparation this way

will give you a whole tablet full of ideas for your next game.

Know Your Players

This is a game about being afraid. That means, you have to know how to

scare your players. And that means you have to be a little mean. Find out

what scares your players and use it. Just make sure, before the game begins,

14
Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2
 that your players are okay with a little fright now and then. If they aren’t,

maybe you should play a game where they get to feel powerful instead.

There’s more in the world to be afraid of than zombies. Use them. If

Jessie is afraid of spiders and Joannie is afraid of drowning and Jacob is afraid

of clowns, make sure to use those things in your game.

Also know when not to do things to your players. Fun is fun and scared is

scared, but sometimes scared isn’t fun. Know the difference.

15
And get a helmet.

Atmosphere & Mood

There’s a thin line between humor and horror. Know it. And don’t let your

players cross it too often. Although, you may want to run a horror/humor

game (in the tradition of Army of Darkness, for example). Just make sure

there’s the right blend of laughs and screams. And, of course, dim the lights,

put on some scary music and encourage your players to maintain the mood.

And if they joke around too much, bump up the Zombie Clock. That gets

them worried right quick.

Speed, Speed, Speed

This isn’t a philosophical game. It isn’t a game about the existential

dilemma. This is a game about zombies eating your brains. And they’re right

outside the door. And they’re banging on that door and they’re going to get

through any second now. So run, run, run! Run you bastard, run!

The only stat on the players’ sheets is Survivor Type. You give them Fear

Points, so they don’t need to write those down. And when a Survivor dies or

gets infected, it’s just that easy to make a new one. So run! Run! Run! Run!

You can rest when you find sanctuary. But not for long.

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 Last Words
If you, player or Zombie Master, don’t know what to do, roll dice. A six

means the player says what happens and anything else says the Zombie Master

says what happens. That’s really all the rules you need. Everything else is

just clever dice tricks.

This game isn’t about building a character that can protect himself or a

character who has the best traits or feats or skills or anything like that. All

you’ve really got is your one trick, a shotgun with a few rounds and the will

to survive.

And that’s all you need.

Keep running. I’ll see you at the sanctuary.

JW

16

A previous version of this game was privately distributed. Modifications, changes and corrections have
been made. This is still Nick’s game, used by permission of the owner.

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2

 A Game Called
F E A R
An Anthology Horror Game from John Wick Presents

COMING SOON

www.johnwickpresents.com/fear

Jam Bam (order #1729488) 2