skills

There are many things to do in the world, and likewise, there should be many options in a post-zombie world. To survive, we need people who can cook, defend against zombie and human alike, build shelter, repair and maintain transportation, provide water, entertainment, leadership, and on and on and on.

There are so many aspects to society and necessities for any group to truly survive that any initial starting condition in a zombie outbreak is likely to leave holes and deficiencies in any party. In fact, some members may be so deficient that they may prove a liability, a party so weak that it is necessary to maintain relations with an unsavoury member or group.

It's this imbalance that provides the most interesting dynamics in an essentially-closed social system. In fact, there is a certain sense of irony in being let loose in an entire world, free to perform any action your desire, but forced to compromise on value or direction due to limited social options.

Be that as it may, much of the core mechanics of ATE revolve around Skills. As described previously Skills, and proficiency at them, is largely based on the 3 Aspects of Age, Background, and Psychological Profile. Moreso the first 2, and less that latter.

Here is a first brain-dump of some obvious ones. By no way is this considered complete or exhaustive.

Firearms: This could be further discretized, but essential to any defense is a proficiency at firearms of some kind; small, semi-automatic, full-automatic, etc. One would have to be of considerable age to be proficient and posess mastery of this Skill. Obvious Backgrounds that lead to a proficiency of this Skill are Soldier, Sniper, Law Enforcement, Government Agent, Survivalist, Sportsman. One does not require a proficiency in this Skill to firearms in general, however a proficiency of some-degree leads to increased precision when firing, as well as regular maintenance of firearms and increased durability, and the ability to train others in their use.

Engineering: There could be many variants here, the more apparent ones being vehicular mechanics. One proficient in this skill would be able to repair, maintain, hotwire vehicles of a mechanical nature (modern cars are debatable, since many incorporate computer components that require further specialty). Specialized mechanics may even be able to improvise vehicles, modifying them to be more defensible, durable, offensive. A military engineer may be able to fasten a heavy weapon to a vehicle of sufficient capability. In lieu of a specialized military engineer, a civilian mechanic and a military person with heavy firearms proficiencies may be able to accomplish the same thing. Other kinds of mechanics may exist, to improvise and fashion weapons, alarm systems, or robotics (eg UAVs). Another form of specialization may be the energy technician. One may be required to restart, repair, or maintain an electrical station.

Information Technologist: IT professionals are proficient at operating computer software of varying degrees. They are also expert problem-solvers and may be able to provide alternative solutions to problems.

Medical Professional: Medical staff also come in a variety of proficiencies, but most are proficient at immediate health care and remedies. They may provide salves to staunch wounds, set fractures and sprains, and treat illnesses like gangreen, pneumonia, and even stave off infection.

Agriculture: Although there may not be much opportunity for growing crops, an agrarian may provide guidance on foods and supplies, or may be instrumental in setting up sustainable food sources if a "dig-in-and-stand-ground" strategy is adopted.

Social Engineer: This Skill primarily affects stability and direction for the group. Many different types may fall into this category, Politicians, Psychologists, Psychiatrists, Socio-Paths, Military Officers, Philosophers, Religious Authorities.

aspects

At its heart ATE is a simulation of survival in a post-zombie world. The player would assume the role of a fully customizable character, and may play alone, with simulated party members, with other players, or a mixture of both.

Each character, Player-based or simulated, is described by Attributes, Skills, and a Psychological Profile. These aspects are determined upon character creation/simulation start as a function of Age, Background, and a degree of Situational Profiling.

Here I discuss the core pillars, or aspects, of character creation.

Aspects

Age: No single aspect of a character is a clear and distinct advantage. Age is one such double-edged aspect. A young character (ages 5-11) may be small, quick, agile, and perceptive, but lacks strength, endurance, psychological resilience, and advanced skills. An adult (ages 22-39) provides a middle ground, full grown, more experienced, skilled, but may also be psychologically fragile having had their world turned upside-down. A mature adult (ages 40+) may be less physically adept, but may also be worldly, psychologically rigid, and proficient in fine-tune skills.

Background: A background provides backstory, but also provides the mechanism for skill proficiency. In addition to any natural talent or affinity for a skill (such as intelligence, charisma, or athleticism), backgrounds also speak to training, tracts, and vocations. For example a child gamer may be adept at twitch skills, a track and field student may have increased endurance and hand-eye coordination skill. A mechanic will be proficient at maintaining and salvaging road vehicles. A soldier may provide leadership, marksmanship, tactical perception. Backgrounds operate on the assumption that mastery comes with dedication and practise (ie the "outlier" principle of 10,000 hours required for mastery of a skill). A background may also dictate starting conditions, such as do you start in a party of friends in the woods, stuck on a tram, on honeymoon or holiday with your family, or perhaps alone atop a snowy peak in the Andes or waking up from a coma in a hospital.

Psychological Profile: The more nebulous aspect is the Psychological Profile. The psych profile informs both interactions and reactions to in-game events. Losing a child or loved one may destabilize a caring parent, or deepen the scars of an abusive one. They may also dictate sexual interactions among the party or advances to other wandering survivors. Greed, cowardice, self-preservation, these are all motivators to acts of heroism, barbarism, and betrayal. A Psych Profile may be built at simulation start by a series of situational queries, or pre-built templates, and modified (albeit slowly) by actions and social interactions during gameplay.

In summary, these three aspects are by and large determined a-priori, at simulation start. Very little may change during gameplay. The idea is give the Player an infinite pallette, reasonable restrictions, and then let the simulation roll.

abstract

all things end (ATE) is a working title for a zombie Intellectual Property (IP). At its heart, ATE strives to be an open-ended, social-simulation in a post-zombie world. Survival in this simulation is based on a character's skill, co-operation with other agents in the world, and social interactions with these agents.

Regarding copyright, nothing is written down or notarized. This blog simply serves to document various thoughts and musings on the subject and desired implementations. Perhaps one day something may come of this (ie personal endeavour) or if anyone wishes to use this as inspiration or out-right steal it, by all means, I would love to play a game that delivers on the pillars described herein.