History TabletopGame / ZombieTheCoil

* AmnesiacDissonance: When a zombie is Born, they'll remember very little of their previous life, this is represented in game mechanics as Whispers. The number of Whispers one begins with depends entirely on their state of decomposition with those who start out appearing less like a human, the more said zombie will remember of their past life. And By following Compulsions (routines they once had in life), they will eventually gain access to more Whispers. So when one becomes a zombie a lot of things will changes. To such an extent that a zombie would unlikely be able to recognize their old self. However were a zombie to ever hit 10 Whispers,[[spoiler: Then it will remember EVERYTHING of their old life. Their old personality is reborn within them, and as such, they have a few options: one consumes the other, relegating it to the subconscious; they are in equal balance, or they fuse, and the zombie will experience a third Birth.]]

Life is a cycle: we’re born, we live, we die.

But what happens when someone doesn’t stay dead?

This fan-made game set in the TabletopGame/OldWorldOfDarkness asks that question, exploring just how far someone is willing to go to stay "alive" once given a second chance. It’s an extremely nihilistic world where your next meal may just be someone you cared for, or who cared for you. Perhaps, if you can fight off the survivors’ guilt, the Fever and your Lich, you may just find an answer to it all. Or maybe you’ll just become yet another Yuya.

* AGodAmI: A sentiment found in various cells, but is most highly concentrated in the Seraphim.
* UsefulNotes/TheAmericanCivilWar: A major turning point in the history of the Living Dead: with the deaths of so many people, more Féos became Living Dead. They had to organize, or be wiped out. So they created their own Underground Railroad, figuring they’d be safe. Then came WWI and WWII. These decades were known as the Hounfar Rush. They led to the creation of Zombie culture, and according to some, the first Births.

* TheAtoner: Penitents, some Crying Skull Posse members.

* ChurchMilitant:
** The Mortuum Templum, with the emphasis on the Militant.
** Also, the Echelons organize themselves with religious titles: the grunts are organized into Choirs, above them are Preachers who run the choirs. Parts of cities are overseen by Ministers who have their own special choirs, which are populated by under-priests, who spy on the choirs to make sure they stay good little zombies. Then there are the Cardinals who run the city.
* ConspiracyTheorist: The Zahn.
* CorruptChurch: The Prima and Seraphim cells.
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: This is the Crat Cell’s MO.
* CrapsackWorld:
** It’s an oWoD. What more do you need to know?
** Well, there is the fact that several Cells work to make the life of the average Living worse, since it makes it easier to feed that way. You know that charitable organization working to improve the nearby slum? The one that got shut down? It was cutting off their access to easy bodies.

* EnemyWithout: The status as such for Liches, since they are the personal nemesis of every Zombie, and take the form of the nearest dead thing when a zombie is at its weakest. Note that ‘dead thing’ can include [[ParanoiaFuel animal corpses, the human they just ate, the nearest wooden house…]]

* FantasticRacism: Grandes consider Jackals disturbing, sick and twisted monsters for eating the flesh of the dead (they call it ‘ripened’). Jackals call Grandes murderers and cannibals. And both groups look down on the Féos (referring to them as the mindless Walking Dead).

* IntrepidReporter: Usually what the Zahn see themselves as.
* KnightTemplar: The Templum Mortuum.
* MadScientist:
** The MO of the Pulse Wave cell.
** To a degree, also the MO of the Cell of Eyes.
* TheMasquerade: Again, an oWoD game. The Haze (the Coil causing the Living to forget) and the Zombies themselves make sure to keep the reality of the Living Dead a secret.

* NoZombieCannibals: Averted - while Jackals tend to prefer dead bodies that ''aren't'' walking around, they'll eat other zombies in a pinch.
* OurAngelsAreDifferent: There is a cell known as the Seraphim. They like to go for the Old Testament look. It isn’t pretty.
* OurZombiesAreDifferent: They come in two playable flavors: [[IAmAHumanitarian Grandes]] and Jackals. Zombie bites are not infectious. All start as Féos, the Walking Dead, consumed by their Fever. After their Birth, they become either Grandes or Jackals, depending on how they got their Birth meal. Around one in four Féos actually experience Birth.
* PathOfInspiration: The Echelons, the Seraphim, the Prima.
* {{Reincarnation}}: GoneHorriblyWrong is (one of) the explanations for Zombies.

* SociopathicHero: The Dalinari, for a certain definition of hero.

* WindsOfDestinyChange: The Legbé Viva, with a healthy dose of ScrewDestiny

* AwesomeMcCoolName: Some of the sample names for the Living Dead include: Donna Damnit and Johnny Muertos. Some are more mundane however, depending on what they remember from before their deaths.

Administrivia/NeedsABetterDescription: shifts to second person and needs more explanation of plot elements referenced (the Fever, Lich, Yuya).

* NotSoDifferent:
** Zombies hate the trafficking and enslavement of their kind, especially by Augurs. However, many of them participate in the Marketplace, where Living are bought and sold to feed the Zombie population. The irony isn’t lost on the majority of the [[IncrediblyLamePun consumers]], they just don’t care, as it makes a tough job a whole lot easier.
** Then there are the Lanmora, who have chosen to become Augurs. Their reasons are varied, from outright sociopathy, to wanting children, to wanting some kind of security. And they do provide a necessary evil: during Hounfars they control the majority of the Féos, which keeps their reshufflings low, Living mortality low, and keeps the Living Dead hidden.

The [[http://mrgone.rocksolidshells.com/pdf/Misc/Zombie%20the%20Coil.pdf rulebook]] and [[http://mrgone.rocksolidshells.com/pdf/Misc/ZombietheCoilSheet.pdf character sheet]] are hosted courtesy of BigNameFan Mr Gone.

* BilingualBonus: Grandes and Féos are Spanish for "large ones" and "ugly ones", respectively. The name of the Zahn cell comes from the German word for "tooth".

* ChurchMilitant: The Mortuum Templum, with the emphasis on the Militant.

* CrapsackWorld: It’s an oWoD. What more do you need to know?

* MadScientist: The MO of the Pulse Wave cell.

* NotSoDifferent: Zombies hate the trafficking and enslavement of their kind, especially by Augurs. However, many of them participate in the Marketplace, where Living are bought and sold to feed the Zombie population. The irony isn’t lost on the majority of the [[IncrediblyLamePun consumers]], they just don’t care, as it makes a tough job a whole lot easier.

* ShoutOut: Several, although probably the most humorous one is where the [[ConspiracyTheorist Zahn]] sneer down at a small internal faction that claims to have found evidence of an [[TabletopGame/VampireTheMasquerade “international organization of blood-drinking aristocratic families has been manipulating the mundane population for the past several centuries as pawns in their own interpersonal wars and conflicts”]].

* AmnesiacDissonance: When a zombie is Born, they'll remember very little of their previous life, this is represented in game mechanics as Whispers. The number of Whispers one begins with depends entirely on their state of decomposition with those who start out appearing less like a human, the more the zombie will remember of their past life. And By following Compulsions (routines they once had in life), they will eventually gain access to more Whispers. So when one becomes a zombie a lot of things will changes. To such an extent that a zombie would unlikely be able to recognize their old self. However were a zombie to ever hit 10 Whispers,[[spoiler: Then it will remember EVERYTHING of their old life. Their old personality is reborn within them, and they have a few options: one consumes the other, relegating it to the subconscious; they are in equal balance, or they fuse, and the zombie will experience a third Birth.]]

* AmnesiacDissonance: When you are Born as a zombie, you remember very little of your Living life, represented in game mechanics as Whispers. The less human you start out, the more you remember. By following Compulsions (routines you once had in life), you eventually gain more access to your Whispers. Becoming a Zombie can...change you. You may not even recognize your old self. And if you ever hit 10 Whispers,[[spoiler: you remember EVERYTHING of your old life. Your old personality is reborn in you, and you have a few options: one consumes the other, relegating it to the subconscious; they are in equal balance; or they fuse, and you experience a third Birth.]]

''A Storytelling Game of Tragedy, Mortality, and Freedom.''

* UsefulNotes/JackTheRipper: Even zombies wanted to know who he was, and this hunt led to the birth of the Zahn.

* WorldWarOne: The start of the Hounfar Rush.
* WorldWarTwo: The end of the Hounfar Rush.

** During one hounfar, a Pulse Waver used the Impuestos Viva to control a bunch of Féos to [[MichaelJackson re-enact a dance sequence from a famous music video.]]

* WindsOfDestinyChange: The Legbé Viva, with a healthy does of ScrewDestiny

* TheAmericanCivilWar: A major turning point in the history of the Living Dead: with the deaths of so many people, more Féos became Living Dead. They had to organize, or be wiped out. So they created their own Underground Railroad, figuring they’d be safe. Then came WWI and WWII. These decades were known as the Hounfar Rush. They led to the creation of Zombie culture, and according to some, the first Births.

* JackTheRipper: Even zombies wanted to know who he was, and this hunt led to the birth of the Zahn.

* ParanoiaFuel: A Pelé will look just like a normal human, only with a Fever telling them to eat you. They could be anyone, especially your loved ones. And the Carnes and Knochens, who are too decayed to pass as normal? They can use a Viva to appear completely human. The fluff stories introducing this Viva has the Zombies as workers at Disney World. Feel safe anymore?

NeedsMoreLove.

* HeroicSociopath: The Dalinari, for a certain definition of hero.

* BilingualBonus: Grandes and Féos are Spanish, for large and ugly, respectively. The name of the Zahn cell comes from the German word for tooth.

* NotSoDifferent: Zombies hate the trafficking and enslavement of their kind, especially by Augurs. However, many of them participate in the Marketplace, where Living are bought and sold to feed the Zombie population. The irony isn’t lost on the majority of the [[AWorldwidePunomenon consumers]], they just don’t care, as it makes a tough job a whole lot easier.

* NotSoDifferent: Zombies hate the trafficking and enslavement of their kind, especially by Augurs. However, many of them participate in the Marketplace, where Living are bought and sold to feed the Zombie population. The irony isn’t lost on the majority of the [[IncrediblyLamePun consumers]], they just don’t care, as it makes a tough job a whole lot easier.

This fan-made game set in the old WorldOfDarkness asks that question, exploring just how far someone is willing to go to stay "alive" once given a second chance. It’s an extremely nihilistic world where your next meal may just be someone you cared for, or who cared for you. Perhaps, if you can fight off the survivors’ guilt, the Fever and your Lich, you may just find an answer to it all. Or maybe you’ll just become yet another Yuya.