Zpocalypse: Zmergency Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Component List
• Components Breakdown
  • Map Tiles
  • Armory Cards
  • Encounter Cards
  • Items Card
  • Survivor Cards
  • Bunker Token
  • Daily Goals and Scenario Cards
  • Survivor Tokens
  • Obstacle Tokens
  • Barricade Tokens
  • Door Tokens
  • Sneak Check Tokens
  • Loot Tokens
• Enhanced Quick Play Rules
  • Setup
  • Trap! Encounters
  • Sneak Encounters
  • Help Me! Encounters
• Encounter Example
  • Get To Da Choppa
  • Ankle Biter (Trap)
  • Sneak Over Bodies (Sneak)
  • The Waking Dead (Help Me!)

Component List

• 1 Zmergency Manual (this book)
• 12 Larger-sized Cards consisting of:
  • 4 Goal Cards
  • 8 Scenario Cards
• 27 Poker Size Cards consisting of:
  • 9 Armory Cards
  • 16 Encounter Cards
  • 1 Item Cards
  • 1 Survivor Cards
• 4 Survivor Tokens (red, green, blue, yellow)
• 3 Sheets of Punchboard consisting of:
  • 1 Bunker Entrance Token
  • 6 Barricade Tokens
  • 6 Door Tokens
  • 12 Map Tiles
  • 6 Obstacle Tokens
  • 11 Loot Tokens
  • 11 Sneak Check Tokens
  • 4 Survivor Tokens (red, green, blue, yellow)

Components Breakdown

Map Tiles

The map tiles link together to form the game board. Each tile is divided into squares. You may not have more than one Squad on any given square. At most, 2 zombies may occupy the same square, represented by a green zombie miniature. This is known as a double zombie. Zombies and Squads may not occupy the same square. NOTE: The Helicopter Pad is treated as 1 square just like the Bunker in the main game.

Armory Cards

These cards represent equipment players will find during gameplay. The deck contains armor, firearms, and melee weapons.

Encounter Cards

These cards present challenges for Survivors to overcome when drawing a tile during the Enhanced Quick Play Scenario. The Encounters are broken into three subtypes:

• Help Me: These cards involve encounters with zombies attacking a lone Survivor.
• Sneak: These involve a Sneak Check tile, failure results in disturbing dormant zombies.
• Trap: A trap attempts to harm the Squad that tripped it.

Items Card

Zmergency includes a single new Item card, the Doctor's Bag. Shuffle this into the Items deck for any Zmergency Scenario.

Survivor Cards

Zmergency includes a single new Survivor, The Doctor. Unlike other Survivor Cards, you may not start with this Survivor in your Squad.

Bunker Token

This token is used in Scenarios that only use the Zmergency Tiles, but require a Bunker Entrance.

Daily Goals and Scenario Cards

Each player will get a Daily Goal. If they complete the Goal they earn Victory Points or even a perk. The Scenario Deck defines the type of game you are going to be playing.

Survivor Tokens

Survivor Tokens are used during Enhanced Quick Play Scenarios (See page 6 of the Zpocalypse Rule Book.) When drawing a new tile, in conjunction with drawing an Encounter Card, there is a chance the card drawn will have a Survivor on it. The Survivor is placed down in a disabled state (X) side up. They require a Food card to add them to your Squad.

Obstacle Tokens

Obstacles function like temporary sandbags, and require 1 Survivor and 1 action. They can be placed during the Combat Phase adjacent to your squad. Obstacles cannot be placed adjacent to a square with zombies on it. Gain 1 Victory Point when placed.

Barricade Tokens

Barricades function as temporary walls and require 1 Survivor, 1 Gear and 1 actions. They can be placed during the Combat Phase adjacent to your squad. Barricades cannot be placed on a tile that has any zombies on it. Gain 2 Victory Points when placed.

Door Tokens

Doors function like gates and require 1 Survivor, 2 Gear and 2 actions. They can be placed during the Combat Phase adjacent to your squad. Doors can only be placed adjacent to red bordered walls, when no zombies are adjacent. Gain 3 Victory Points when placed.

Sneak Check Tokens

Sneak Check Tokens are placed when an Encounter Card says to make a Sneak Check using a Brain check. If successful, the token is placed face down adjacent to the Squad on a square of their choice. It remains in play until another Squad fails a Brain check when stepping onto the same tile. On failure, flip the token and place the number of zombies listed on the same / adjacent squares. Discard the Sneak Check Token.

Loot Tokens

Loot Tokens are placed when an Encounter Card says to place them. They should go on any existing squares with a Biohazard, Radiation or Triangle symbol. They cannot be placed on each other. When a Survivor stands on a Loot Token they may spend ONE ACTION and roll their Brain check. If successful, flip the token and draw the listed number of cards from the respective deck.

Enhanced Quick Play Rules

Setup

The Quick Play Scenario is a Combat Phase only game that ignores all other Phases. The map is expanded in a different manner than the Main Game Scenario. You start with just one tile (determined by the Scenario being played), and on each turn you may walk off the board and place a new tile. In Zpocalypse, players roll a die to determine how many zombies spawn on that tile. Zmergency Rules differ in that they utilize the deck of Encounter Cards.

Choose a Scenario Card labeled with "Setup: Enhanced Quick Play Rules." Follow instructions on the card for starting Food, Items, Survivors, Tiles and Weapons.

On a player's turn they may spend one action to walk off the map and draw a new tile. Zombies will always move 3 squares toward the closest Squad, even if out of line of sight. When a new tile is placed draw an Encounter Card and follow the instructions.

Example: To the right is an example of the first round of the Get To Da Choppa Scenario for three players. Each player is dealt their starting Survivors and gear. The Zmergency Hospital Reception Desk Tile is placed to start. Players place their miniatures anywhere on the tile and determine who goes first.

Trap! Encounters

Red player decides to go North and spends 2 movement to walk off the Reception Desk Tile, this counts as one action. He draws the MRI Tile and places it on the North side of the Reception Desk. Next, he draws an Encounter Card, and ends up getting the Ankle Biter encounter which is a TRAP! Card. Traps are encounters that require a Brain check to overcome some immediate threat. In this case, pass a Brain check, or lose a Survivor from a bite wound.

Sneak Encounters

Green player decides to go East and spends 3 movement to walk off the Reception Desk Tile, this ends her first action. She draws the ER Tile and places it on the East side of the Reception Desk. Next, she draws an Encounter card, and ends up getting Sneak Over Bodies which is a SNEAK card.

Sneaking is required when there are too many bodies lying around. Squads must tread carefully or risk waking up some zombies! Sneak Cards all utilize the Sneak Check tokens.

The Green player rolls a success on her Brain check. She places a Sneak Check token face down adjacent to her Squad on the ER tile (choosing which square.) She is free to move through the tile at no penalty, unless she walks on or over the Sneak Check token. In that case the trap is triggered! "CRAZY"

When any other Squad enters a tile with a Sneak Check token they must attempt to pass a Brain check. If they FAIL they would flip the token, place the number of zombies indicated on the back of the token, and remove it from the board. These zombies would be placed as close to the location of the Sneak Check token as possible. The zombies placed will not attack until the zombie's turn.

(See the Next Page for Blue Players Example)

Help Me! Encounters

Blue player decides to go South and spends 2 movement to walk off the Reception Desk Tile, ending his first action. He draws the Bloody Hallway Tile and places it on the South side of the Reception Desk Tile. Next, he draws an Encounter card, and ends up with The Waking Dead, a HELP ME! Card.

HELP ME! Cards represent a lone Survivor being attacked by a group of zombies. Each HELP ME! Card will have the player place a single disabled Survivor token, 1-6 zombies, and occasionally Loot Tokens to set up the tile.

Setting up the Tile: In the example to the left, the Blue Player's HELP ME! Card says to place 1 Survivor, 2 Loot Tokens, and 5 zombies on any Radiation, Biohazard or Triangle squares. Items must be placed on a square that contains the listed symbols on the card. If there are more items then available squares, then the player may distribute them to adjacent squares. A square must be currently accessible for an Encounter item to be placed on it.

Disabled Survivor Token (Survivor): The Blue Player takes the Blue colored Survivor token and places it, X side up, on the Biohazard square diagonally across from his Squad. With his last remaining action, the Blue Player moves to the Square with the disabled Survivor Token and the Loot Token, on top of the Biohazard symbol. He loses 1 Health for stepping on the square. As a one action, he spends a food card, reinvigorates the disabled Survivor by flipping the token, and draws a new Survivor from the Survivor deck. The Blue Player can decide to add this Survivor to his Squad (if there is room in his Squad) or choose to leave the Survivor behind. If chosen remove the token from the board. If left behind, the Survivor will just stand there, until someone else decides to claim him, or until a zombie eats him.

Loot Tokens (Loot): The Blue Player decides to place his 2 Loot Tokens on each of the Biohazard squares directly in front of him. Since this particular tile has only 4 Biohazard symbol squares and there are a limited number of squares with symbols, he decides to place one of the tokens on the same square as the disabled Survivor. This way when he takes his next action, he can move onto both the disabled Survivor and one of the Loot Tokens.

Zombies (Zombie): Zombies are placed following the same rules as disabled Survivors and Loot, remember they can stand on a Loot Token if there are not enough available squares that have the appropriate symbols. Once placed, the zombies will remain there until the start of their turn, when they move the default 3 squares. If no one saves the Survivor by taking him into their Squad, and the zombies are able to reach him during their turn, then the first to reach the disabled Survivor will use its attack action to kill him, instead of attacking another player. Once killed, the Survivor rises as a new single zombie.

Remember: green zombies are double and are worth 2 zombies.

Diagram captions from the Help Me! example: "Before placing zombies and Loot Tokens:" and "All tokens and zombies placed." The diagrams themselves are not reproduced.

Encounter Example

The printed example uses the Get To Da Choppa scenario card and three encounter cards. The example diagrams are not reproduced; the card text and captions are.

Get To Da Choppa

There's a helicopter on top of the hospital; can you find it and escape?

Setup: Enhanced Quick Play Rules

ONLY Phase 4: Combat

Each player starts with: 2 Survivors, 2 Weapons (weapons only) and 1 Item.

Shuffle the Hospital Stairwell wTile and Hospital Helicopter Tile in the bottom half of the Zmergency tile stack. Start Survivors on the Hospital Reception Tile. Follow Enhanced Quick Play Rules as outlined in the Zmergency rule book. Zombies have 3 movement and move towards the closest Squad. When you get to the helicopter you must start it by passing 4 separate Brain checks, each taking one action. On the first attempt to start the helicopter add 2 zombies randomly on every tile as zombies are drawn to the sound. (Trade one Gear for one extra die when trying to start the helicopter.)

Objective: Once the helicopter has been started all Squads must be standing on the Helicopter Tile in order to win this scenario.

Ignore Daily Goal Cards and Tunnels

Note: the scenario card prints "wTile" in the first line of its setup; it is transcribed as printed.

Ankle Biter (Trap)

You hear a scraping sound, like a bag of garbage being dragged across the ground. Wary, you fan your Squad out to find the cause of the sound. You're about to give the all clear when one of your Survivors cries out in shock! A mangled torso and head appear out from behind some garbage. It's a crawler who immediately attacks for a die of damage.

Make a Brain check:

• Success: It's just a flesh wound. Take the damage rolled. Spend 1 action to stomp out the crawler. Otherwise place a single zombie on its side next to your Squad.
• Failure: It's a bite! Remove one of your Survivors and place a fresh single zombie next to your Squad. If this is your last Survivor, you have died.

Sneak Over Bodies (Sneak)

A low-hanging mist almost hides the numerous rotting corpses lining the tiled floor. Your brain says these bodies are dead, but your gut says they may just be faking. Moving stealthily, you creep across the ground trying to not disturb any of the bodies.

Make a Brain check:

• Success: You managed to sneak by. Place a Sneak Check token adjacent to your Squad.
• Failure: One of your Squad members tripped over a corpse. The damn thing wasn't really dead and lets out a moan. Roll a die and place that many zombies on the tile as close to your Squad as possible.

The Waking Dead (Help Me!)

You see a Survivor charging towards you carrying a crate of food with a group of undead patients trailing behind. The stumbling zombies look like they literally woke up from their graves. Some are still wrapped in tattered body bags with ID tags hanging from their toes. They must have been killed before everyone knew to shoot the dead in the head.

Place 1 Survivor, 6 zombies and 2 Loot Tokens on Triangle, Radiation or Biohazard locations on the tile. When possible place zombies surrounding the Survivor.

Printed discrepancy: the card above reads 6 zombies, but the Blue Player's Setting up the Tile paragraph in the example says 5 zombies for the same card. Both are transcribed as printed; the rulebook does not say which governs.