RECON 6 CAMPAIGN

GAMEMASTER GUIDE
Version 1
January 2013
Design: Russell Brown
Playtesting: Nick Gubbins, Ryan Tuck, Kyle Holbach

Copyright 2013 Russell J. Brown

D6Pool Rules Copyright 2011, 2012 Russell J. Brown
Logo font Neou v1.0 designed by Andr Uenojo

This document is licensed under a

Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License
See http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

CHAPTER 1: GAMEMASTER INTRODUCTION

alien invaders and less then two months after
the release of Strain 816. Players will initially
have no idea that aliens are present. Even after
they encounter the thin, grey humanoid visitor
aliens and the ursoids, which look like pink,
shaved bears (for good reason), they may just
assume that the disease has begun to mutate
humans instead of killing them outright. Some
players may even get giddy with hope that they
have stepped into a zombie apocalypse, but
they will be disappointed.
The disease is just a convenient first step in
the invaders program of wiping humanity
from the face of the Earth. The players will
eventually discover true aliens from a
completely different world, and the evidence
will be undeniable. At that point the focus of
the campaign may switch from survival and
discovery to armed resistance and military-styl
raids.

This document is intended for the

campaigns gamemaster.
Players should not read it!

Each player should have access to the Recon 6
Player Guide, which provides guidelines for
creating characters and an overview of the
setting from the perspective of the players
(who dont initially know whats really going
on.)

GAMEMASTER BACKGROUND
Recon 6 is a near future D6Pool setting where
the player characters are humans trying to
understand, resist, and survive an alien
invasion of Earth. This document provides
information about the aliens, their plans, and
their technology.
The campaign begins at the end of August,
2013, a few months after the arrival of the

CHAPTER 2: ORIGINS
The Alien Race is not a single species, but an
intertwined society of thousands of different
species and their living, symbiotic tools.
The progenitors of the Alien Race evolved in
the dense, swirling, volatile-rich, internally
warmed cloud layers of a gas giant slightly
smaller than Jupiter. They were bulbous,
fragile, and about the size of a human hand.
The gas environment provided a vast, truly
three-dimensional biosphere with radically
different chemical composition and
ecosystems at different layers of the
atmosphere. Mutations and behavioral
adaptations allowed some species to cross
over and thrive in different bio-layers. The
three dimensional nature of the world
meant the total volume in which life could
evolve was thousands of times larger than
the surface of the Earth and its oceans.

individual symbionts, but a series of mass

migrations during times of exceptional
atmospheric activity.
The ancestors of the Alien Race arrived on
the second moon of the gas giant, which was
already saturated with diverse, but very
passive and mostly immobile life forms. The
light, relatively fragile filter feeders did not
survive on the new world, but many of their

INTO SPACE
On multiple occasions, life forms in the
upper atmosphere of the gas giant were
tossed violently enough by the
meteorological forces of the planet to be
thrown clear of the atmosphere into low
orbit. Already equipped to survive in the
rare atmosphere, many of these survived
to reach the gas giant's terrestrial inner moons
and establish life there.
The ancestors of the Alien Race were among
the largest, and the most complex creatures to
survive such a journey. They had adapted to
the upper atmosphere through a symbiotic
relationship with large, gas-filled filter feeders.
The ancestors of the Alien Race learned to
predict and ride the currents in the upper
atmosphere to escape predators and soon
were riding the symbionts higher and higher.
This desire to escape higher resulted,
consciously or subconsciously, in the breeding
of higher riding filter feeders that could
assume a protective spore-like state in the near
vacuum of the upper layers. The final trip into
orbit was not a piecemeal launching of

riders did. They became the root of an

explosively diverse evolutionary tree. Most of
the resulting species maintained their
propensity for symbiotic relationships and
merged with native species of the moon.

TECHNOLOGY OF DIVERSITY
Diversity was key to the Alien Race's
development, as advances in technology came
only through new or as yet unrecognized life
forms and genetic sequences. This symbiosis
with other life resulted in a technology and
society very different than that of humans. The
members of the Alien Race hold deep respect
for their living symbionts and value living
diversity above all else.
The Alien Race returned to space millions of
years ago through a very conscious, multi-

generational symbiont breeding program

which led to the development of living ships
which traveled on a combination of electrolysis
and combustion. They set out from their moon
to other moons, some of them rich with life
ejected from the giant mother planet, and
eventually they returned to explore and join
with the life of the gas giant itself.
Interstellar travel came after thousands of
years of spacecreature breeding. The Alien

Races migration to the stars was slow at first,

fueled only by chemical reactions and possible
only for species which could suspend their life
for centuries in a chrysalis state. Eventually,
space creatures were found which could
concentrate and refine fissionable materials,
then control fusion reactions. The Alien Race
moved quickly out among the stars, studying
and harvesting living diversity wherever they
found it.

CHAPTER 3: THE EARTH

Millions of years ago, the Alien Race discovered
Earth, a wet terrestrial planet orbiting a yellow
star two thousand light-years from their home
world. Since the Earth already had life, they did
not colonize the system for fear of
contaminating it with their own life forms. To
the Alien Race, the diversity of life on Earth
was a sacred resource.

amazingly homogenous to the Alien Race, and

seemed intent on wiping out all other large
creatures which resemble them in any way.
The destruction of living ecosystems to create
and power dead tools was repulsive to even
the most materialistic of the Alien Race.

VISITORS
The Alien Race carefully retrieved specimens
from Earth as the basis for breeding a set of
creatures that could visit the planet without
fear of genetic contamination. The most mobile
and intelligent creatures in each of Earth's
biospheres became the seeds for a wide range
of what human's would later consider "alien"
visitors.
From the equatorial grasslands they
abducted early hominids, which have since
evolved into a race of thin, gray humanoid
visitors with big eyes and large heads.
In the vast northern forests they found early
bears which showed promise of developing
complex vocalization and manual dexterity.
These have evolved into the powerful ursoid
visitors.
And in the oceans they found dolphins,
already possessing complex speech patterns,
cross-species communication with whales, and
a familiar propensity toward symbiotic
relationships.
The Alien Race became both the exploiters
and protectors of the Earth's ecosystems. They
also colonized many of the star systems
nearby, bringing dead worlds to life. Over the
past million years, they have fought off
invasion attempts by other races and
harvested life from Earth as it changed
gradually over time.
The Alien Race began to see humans, the
descendant of the same early hominid creature
used by the Alien Race to create its indigenous
workforce, as a threat to the overall diversity
of the planet. Human's themselves appeared

THE INCREASING THREAT

As the industrial revolution began on Earth
and the impact of humans became measurable
on a global scale, a call for help went out from
the indigenous visitors to their Alien Race
mentors in nearby systems. Efforts increased
to acquire human specimens and study their
habits without further disturbing the
ecosystem. By the mid 1900's the human
population was in a bewildering exponential
expansion and the human's ability to destroy
the environment had increased dramatically.
Their horrifying dead spacecraft would soon
allow them to escape into space and spread to
other planets. 1947 was a year of
unprecedented UFO activity around the world,
as the indigenous visitors poured down from
orbiting stations to search for a solution.
Abductions and hypnotic suggestion proved
useful but not enough.
The decision was made to observe for a few
decades in hope that the humans would see the
damage and reverse the process. In the mean
time, small groups of humans were abducted
and adapted to life on a moon prepared for

them in a system twenty light years from Earth

just in case.

aliens symbiont technology.

PRESERVING DIVERSITY
The end goal of the entire alien operation is to
preserve diversity on Earth. This limits the
actions they can take against the humans to
those which will not severely impact the
environment. Killing millions of humans with a
tailored disease is good for the environment,
but blowing them up with a nuclear weapon is
not.

DECISION POINT
In 2012, the United States secretly tested the
first cascading anti-matter bomb on the far
side of moon. Though only the size of a soup
can, its blast was as powerful as any

RESETTLEMENT
There is a slight paradox associated with
destroying a species (humans) to preserve
diversity. To remedy this, Alien Race planners
have set aside a large, dead moon in a star
system about twenty light years from Earth to
resettle a few thousand humans.
thermonuclear warhead in existence, and it got
the attention of the visitors and the Alien Race.
In Spring of 2013, The Alien Race made the
decision to surgically remove the human race
from Earth's Ecosystems. They had their
indigenous visitor races, as well as an array of
Earth-compatible symbiotic technology to help
them. They could use disease targeting the
homogenous human physiology, and, as a last
resort, they could call on the perverted
inventions of the Alien Race's own Dead Tool
users.
When the Recon 6 campaign starts in
August of 2013, the invasion has begun. The
Strain 816 virus has left only one out of every
25 humans alive, and visitor aliens are
beginning to capture and dismantle industrial
infrastructure.

EXPLOITATION
Although the Alien Race truly values diversity
for its own sake, it does plan to eventually
exploit the diversity of Earth to create new
servant races and symbionts, and possibly
even as a source of genetic innovation in their
own bodies.
DISSENTERS
A small group within the Alien Race, including
some visitors, believes that humans should be
part of the diversity of Earth and should not be
wiped out completely. They have taken
independent action to immunize some humans
and then guide and protect them.

INVASION TIMETABLE
What follows is the actual invasion timetable,
some of which has already occurred.
May: Alien Race mother ships arrive in system.
June: Visitor aliens begin abduction of humans
for resettlement.
July: Visitor aliens release Strain 816 in major
population centers. Dissenters abduct some
humans and genetically immunize them with a
viral vector, creating protected Carriers.
August: Aliens let Strain 816 run its course.
96% of human population dies.
September: Beginning of campaign. Alien Race
spacecreatures destroy Earth satellites,
including GPS. Ursoid and Humanoid visitors

GOALS
The actions of the aliens may seem, well, alien
to the players, but everything they do is in line
with the following goals.
DESTRUCTION OF HUMANS
The primary goal of the Alien Race's Earth
invasion is to destroy the human race, or at
least wipe out most of it along with its
industrial base. This is necessary in order to
preserve the diversity of life on the planet - a
good source of new living material for the

capture power, communication and defense

facilities. Dolphoid visitors destroy shipping
and deep sea cabling
Oct: Dead Tool Visitors sweep developed areas
before tools are destroyed. Visitors begin
destroying all dead tools and technology in
ways that will least disrupt the environment.

protect yourself. Weapons will get even more

valuable when rumors begin to spread about
strange alien creatures.
COMMUNICATION
Normal communication, even radio broadcasts
for entertainment, continue into August, but
fade as more and more people die and flee
population centers.
The
Visitors
specifically
target
Communication infrastructure in late August,
and most electronic communication, including
GPS signals, cease. The day that government
emergency radio stations stop broadcasting
(and possibly drop hints about aliens) is a
great time to start the campaign.

EFFECTS OF THE INVASION

DISEASE
Well-known terrestrial diseases have become a
problem. As the alien invasion broke down
civilization, millions of humans died of
starvation and disease born of poor food
preservation, lack of medication and bad
sanitation.
But the main killer of mankind was the
Strain 816 virus. It targeted
specific human DNA sequences
and quickly began destroying
organ tissue and spreading via
bodily fluids and special airborne
viral casings. Most victims died
within days of exposure. A little
more than one percent of those
infected survived, but sometimes
with permanent damage to vital
organs. The Carriers, who were
given immunizations by the
Dissenters, are safe themselves,
but are still contagious.

TRANSPORTATION

ECONOMICS
By the time the campaign begins
in late August, so much of the
human race has died that previous
economic concepts no longer apply. Markets
have collapsed, currencies are worthless, and
even many commodities that were valuable in
the industrial world have little value for day-
to-day survival. Barter exists, but in truth most
small bands of humans survive on scavenging
and sharing.
Values of items shift over time as the reality
of the situation settles in. Gold is valuable if
you think society will recover, but it does not
put food on the table. Weapons are more
valuable when you accept that the local and
national authorities are gone and you have to

With the exception of price increases due to

fuel hoarding, transportation systems
remained relatively normal until late July. Air
travel became prohibitively expensive by mid-
July, and regular rail traffic was sporadic by
August.
The supply of salvageable gasoline may last
though the end of the year, though most urban
roads will be jammed with abandoned vehicles
and, eventually, unsafe to travel due to alien
activity.
CRIME
As fear of Strain 816 cleared out the cities,

RESISTANCE
When alien attacks come in August, Military
and technical forces deployed to contain Strain
816 will suddenly find themselves in the best
position to fight the aliens. With poor or no
communication to the national governments,
these groups will function more like
independent bands of resistance fighters than
a national army. They will have to handle their
own supplies and do their own recruiting and
training.
Strong local groups, especially those
prepared ahead of time with weapons and
supplies, will rise up to defend small areas.
Religious groups may band together, and many
new ones will form when confronted with
what appears to be the end of the world.
There will still be some attempts to
coordinate at the highest levels of government,
and special think tank groups will influence the
fight from secret bunkers, but their actions will
be slow. If anyone can stop the invaders, it will
be the small, desperate resistance groups out
in the field, reacting quickly to threats and
willing to take risks when necessary.

looters and scavengers moved in. Thieves

became much more practical and desperate,
forgoing a nice television set to steal an
armload of canned goods. As it became
apparent that the collapsing economy wouldnt
recover, many law-abiding people turned to
theft to survive. Rural families and small
towns formed militias to defend their land and
resources from urban migrants. In most places,
possession is now a matter of force, not law.
GOVERNMENT
In June, world governments were scrambling
to isolate and control the Strain 816 outbreak.
By the end of the month, most nations were
under martial law with the military restricting
movement and enforcing large quarantine
areas.
National governments survived until all
major power systems were lost in early
August, taking most necessary communication
with them. Since then, local governments and
field military units have been acting on their
own, with only occasional radio messages or
hand-carried orders from the capital.

CHAPTER 4: ALIENS
Members of the Alien Race and their Earth
visitors have the usual human attributes, plus
skills representing their sensitivity in each of
the four alien languages. These language skills
influence their ability to communicate with
each other and control specific symbionts.

BIOLOGY
All members of the Alien Race are carbon-
based and methane breathing. Their genetic
encoding/messenger scheme is simple and
similar to viral systems on Earth, with different
base molecules. They ingest other life forms for
nutrients, breaking them down in a series of
layered digestion sacks that surround multiple
heart-like organs. Outside the digestion sacks,
just below the outer surface of the body, is a
layer of respiration sacks that pull in the
methane. Methane metabolism, including
production of more complex, benzene ring
structures for energy storage, occurs in long,
individual cells, and in a specialized organ. If a
member of the Alien Race breathed Earth
atmosphere without a proper breathing
symbiont, it would die of oxygen poisoning
long before it suffocated from lack of methane.

ALIEN TYPES
Each individual of the Alien Race either
specializes in a certain task or acts as an
overall planner, coordinating the work of
specialists and perhaps other planners.
Visitors, on the other hand, are versatile
descendants of Earth stock, able to operate on
their own in many different situations.

Major Types of Aliens

Alien Race Planners
Alien Race Specialists
Visitors
Alien Race Symbionts
Visitor Symbionts

Alien Race Languages

Chemical
Electromagnetic
Tactile (including sound)
Visual

Both the Alien Race and visitors depend

heavily on symbiont species, though those
used by the visitors arent physiologically
compatible with the Alien Race and vice versa.
Symbionts are described in more detail in
Chapter 5. They range from small, squid like
creatures that help the Alien Race breath in
Earths atmosphere, to the massive
spacecreatures that carry them between the
stars.
The Alien Race and its symbionts are rare
on Earth. Players will generally encounter only
visitors.

SENSES AND COMMUNICATION

Each diverse species of the Alien Race has a
combination of four different senses and forms
of communication. Tactile communication is
similar to human hearing and speech, but the
aliens are able to sense and communicate
through many mediums other than air. Alien
visual senses are similar to human vision, but
many aliens have an increased capacity to
communicate visually, through complex
signaling appendages or shifting color
patterns. The sensory part of the Alien Races
chemical communication is similar to human

smell, though far more sensitive, but the

closest Earth analogy to alien chemical
communication is the pheromone system used
by some insects. Many aliens also have the
ability to sense electromagnetic fields at far
lower frequencies than the visual spectrum,
like radio and microwave.
Alien Race sensory and communication
organs vary dramatically from species to
species, but some patterns are consistent.
Visual organs tend to be at the ends of fleshy
stalks high up on the aliens body and are
usually more sensitive in the infrared.

basic morphologies - quad, base, and biped -

which in turn descended from a single species
which made the original trip from the gas giant
to the second moon. The Alien Race ranges in
size from a half meter to well over four meters,
with quads dominating both extremes.
QUAD
The most common morphology is a plump
quadruped, or "quad" with four legs and two
long, thin, spiny arm appendages, usually
tipped with broad sensitive "fingers".
Variations on this morphology include thin
appendages that split halfway down,
resulting in four "hands", and
differences in posture from low and
straight with an upward bend at the
"neck" to straight up and down like a
four-engine rocket. Quads typically
excel
in
chemical
and
electromagnetic senses, and are
visually weak or blind.

Chemical senses appear as wet bulges at the

openings of one or more respiration sacks.
Electromagnetic sensors tend to be internal,
twisted nests of long, iron-heavy cells, but they
are sometimes at the end of extended stalks.
Tactile organs can be just about anywhere, but
tend to be on the surface, or below hard
surface structures that amplify or filter certain
frequencies.

MORPHOLOGIES
Most of the Alien Race members and some of
their symbionts descended from one of three

10

BASE
The
second
most
common
morphology is distinguished by a
large, wide base, which actually
contains the fused remains of two
appendages. These Base aliens have
four other arm-like appendages
which vary in size, shape and
function, and which may be used
occasionally to assist in locomotion.
Base movement is some combination
of rocking, gliding and slithering.
Base aliens, due to their limited
mobility, are generally large, well
defended, and excel in remote senses
like Visual, Chemical and Electromagnetic.
BIPED
The least common morphology, more
prevalent among planners and dead tool users,
has two arms and two legs. It is capable of
moving faster by bending and using its arms as
legs. A true neck and something resembling a
head place their basic senses up high. Bipeds
are primarily dependent on visual, tactile, and
electromagnetic senses.

REPRODUCTION

TEND VISITOR
This skill reflects the ability of a member of the
Alien Race to raise, train, and control members
of the Earth visitor species.

The Alien Race is sexual in nature, but without

defined sexes. Most individuals can mate with
almost any other individual of appropriate size,
and generally in accordance with the genetic
plans of a tender species. Mating does occur
across morphologies and is sometimes
encouraged.

SYMBIONTS
Each alien description below includes a list of
typical symbionts that alien might carry. This is
only a suggestion. Aliens might need other
symbionts, depending on the situation. For
example, a demolition egg tender might need a
digger symbiont to correctly place its
explosives, and any Alien Race member
operating on Earth would need a rebreather
symbiont to survive.
Some members of the Alien Race also have
the Empathy advantage. These advantage dice
apply to any attempt to attach or use a
symbiont.
Symbionts are described in detail in the
next chapter.

NEW ALIEN SKILLS

In addition to the skills and abilities listed
below, the descriptions of the Alien Race also
use skills and abilities from the D6Pool Baic
Rules and Cast of Characters books.
ALIEN RACE WEAPONS
This skill is used when operating and tending
Alien Race weapon symbionts, like the toxic
dart weapon.
Multiple Alien Weapon Shots (action): Make
multiple attacks with an alien weapon
symbiont up to the number of dice in Alien
Race Weapons skill, provided the symbiont can
support multiple attacks. Multiple action
penalty dice apply.
Precise Aim: You may apply more than 1
success die from your Aim action to your Alien
Race weapon attack, up to a maximum equal to
the number of dice you have in your Alien Race
Weapons skill.

DEAD TOOL USERS

There is a small group within the Alien Race
that sees merit in many of the dead tools used
by humans. These dead tool users are seen as a
sort of heretical cult within the Alien Race, but
no action has been taken to stop them. Perhaps
they see this different outlook on technology as
a form of diversity, and therefore something
that must be nurtured, not eradicated.
While the number of dead tool users among
the Alien Race is very small less than a
hundred planners and specialists they are in
significant positions to influence Earth visitor
species and be influenced by the visitors
discoveries. So the number of dead took users
among Earth visitors, especially humanoids, is
much higher.
Many of the dead tools used are replicas of
human tools and weapons, and many may even
be actual stolen human items. Some dead tool
users have developed the human skills to use
them well. There are even a few dead tool
users who have taken to wearing human
clothing. In a sense, the dead tool users have
gone native, but that doesnt always mean
they sympathize with the human cause.

SPACECREATURE PILOTING
This is a special skill for those among the Alien
Race who pilot the gigantic spacecreatures
used as spaceships and air transport.
TEND ALIEN RACE
This skill reflects the ability of a member of the
Alien Race to take care of the basic nutritional
and hygienic needs of another member of the
Alien Race.
TEND SYMBIONT
This is a set of skills, one for each category of
symbiont tended. For example, Tend
Symbiont(spacecreature) covers the care and
breeding of spacecreature symbionts.

11

TYPE ONE PLANNER (5)

Strength-2
Intelligence-3
Stamina-2
Charisma-4
Dexterity-1
Perception-4

PLANNERS
Planners sit at the center of a web of
communication symbionts and recorder
symbionts, coordinating all the members of the
Alien Race and their visitor species. At the top
of this hierarchy of control sits a small council
of Supreme Planners for the Solar System, one
of each of the three primary morphologies.
Type one planners are the broad
masterminds of the Alien Race and its
operation on Earth. They are the conscious
keepers of the Alien Race's goals and vision.
Type two planners are cross-over planners,
generally with some remnants of a specialty.
They are sometimes used in new situations
because they have the specialty skills, as well
as the analytical ability to adapt. Type two
planners are the source of most innovation,
within their specialties. Their size and
appearance varies widely, sometimes closely
matching that of the corresponding specialist.

Empathy-2
Slow-1
Language (electromagnetic)-native
Language (visual)-2
Language (tactile)-2
Language (chemical)-1
Biology-2
Concentration-3
Focus
Management-3
Coordination
tactile-electromagnetic translator
visual-electromagnetic translator
visual concentrator
visual store

Each type one planner is generally
surrounded by a small army of type two
Planners, storage symbionts, translators, and
their symbiont tenders. It might appear to like
a queen bee, or a spider inside a web. To a
human, with little or no electromagnetic
sensing capability, a type one planner may
appear to be using some form of telepathy or
telekinesis to communicate with other aliens
and control the symbionts around it.
An example type one planner might be a
four foot tall biped with a pear-shaped "head"
and large number of fingers at the end of the
two arm appendages. The planners Legs
appear to have more joints than human legs.
All Fours: Type one planners gain two
bonus dice for movement challenges when on
all fours.
Stasis: Once per scene, a type one planner
can create an electromagnetic field that
hardens its skin and gives it two armor points
against all attacks for two rounds. It is
completely immobilized during this time.

12

SPACE TRAVEL TYPE TWO PLANNER (3)

Strength-2
Intelligence-3
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-2
Perception-3

Empathy-1

Command-2
Multiple Assists
Concentration-1
Language (tactile)-native
Language (electromagnetic)-2
Language (chemical)-1
Running-3
Tend Symbiont(spacecreature)-2
Spacecreature Piloting-1

tactile-visual translator
tactile concentrator
tactile store

VISITOR CONTROL TYPE TWO PLANNER (3)

Strength-2
Intelligence-3
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-2
Perception-3

Empathy-1
Slow-1

Language (visual)-native
Language (chemical)-2
Language (electromagnetic)-2
Language (English)-1
Command-2
Multiple Assists
Concentration-1
Tend Visitors-

tactile-visual translator
mobility symbiont
visual concentrator

This type two planner manages everything to
do with breeding, care and control of the Earth
visitor species. It works closely with visitor
tenders and even visitor leaders themselves.
This planner is nearly seven feet tall and
has a base morphology, freeing four arms and
hands
for
its
complicated
visual
communication. It is slow, but has a six-legged
mobility symbiont.

This type two planner manages the details of

space travel, from the tenders who raise and
care for the spacecreatures, to the navigators
who chart courses between planets and stars.
It is a quad standing eight feet tall, with four
legs extending outward to form a cone shape.
Its two spindly arm appendages are not split
and contain only three claw-like fingers each.
The planners sensory organs are arrayed
along a short stalk-like neck with no apparent
head.
Retract: This planner can retract its
sensory stalk into its body to protect itself. This
adds two penalty dice to any perception
challenges it makes, but reduces any critical
hits against the planner by one die.

13

SPECIALISTS

TACTILE-ELECTROMAGNETIC
TRANSLATOR TENDER
Strength-2
Intelligence-1
Stamina-3
Charisma-2
Dexterity-2
Perception-2

Describing a representative subset of the

specialists within the Alien Race would take
hundred of entries. This section only provides
statistics for a handful, but they should be easy
to adapt to different skills and roles within
your campaign
Specialists can be divided into broad
categories of tenders, symbiont users, and
dead tool users. Tenders take care of
symbionts, as well as visitors and other
members of the Alien Race. They understand
the needs of their adopted life forms and make
sure they are met. They also help insure
increasing diversity through controlled
breeding programs and genetic modification.
Symbiont users are specially trained to join
with a class of symbionts to carry out some
task. Note that symbiont users may require
tenders to help them train and take care of
their symbionts. Good specialists tend to
attract good tenders and vice versa.
Dead Tool Users scare off all but the bravest
of tenders, which they still need to take care of
the special symbionts they use to produce raw
materials.

Empathy-2

Acrobatics-2
Biology-2
First Aid-2
Language (tactile)-native
Language (electromagnetic)-3
Language (chemical)-1
Running-3
Tend Symbiont (translator)-3
Specialty (Tactile-Electromagnetic Trans)

tactile-electromagnetic translator
tactile store

These tenders specialize in raising and
breading tactile-electromagnetic translator
symbionts. One or more of these may be
nearby when their translators are in heavy use,
and a small team of them works at each
symbiont nursery and training facility.
A typical tender of this type is five feet tall,
and has a classic quad shape, with four
relatively equal legs and a raised neck of
sensory organs. Its legs are multi-jointed, and
when not running most of this tenders body
hangs below the top of the highest knee joints.
These tenders are sleek and quick aliens,
skittering back and forth between the
symbionts under their care. They almost
always have one or two symbionts hanging
from the special nursing areas on their torso.
.

14

VISUAL STORE TENDER

Strength-1
Intelligence-2
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-3
Perception-3

QUAD TENDER
Strength-2
Intelligence-1
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-3
Perception-2

Empathy-1
Acute Vision-2
Stealth-2
Biology-2
Language (visual)-native
Language (electromagnetic)-2
Language (chemical)-1
Tend Visual Symbiont-3
Specialty (Visual Store)
visual concentrator
visual store
visual-tactile translator

Empathy-2
Stealth-2
Biology-2
Dance-2
Language (tactile)-native
Language (electromagnetic)-2
Language (chemical)-1
Tend Alien Race-3
Specialty (quad)
Tend Symbiont (cleaner)-2

Alien Race food excreter

quad cleaner

These tenders specialize in raising and
breading visual stores, or the equivalent of a
living video camera. They are nearly as adept
at tending visual concentrators and have
nursing organs capable of nurturing either.
A typical visual store tender is four feet tall,
making it one of the smallest of the base
morphology aliens. It is also among the most
visually adept creatures in the Alien Race, and
surprisingly adaptable for a specialist. Its top
two arms are three feet long and have crude
grasping digits at the end. Its lower arms are
much shorter and are used to manipulate
objects under close inspection. It has four
visual sensor films on four bulges on its head.
These constantly pulsate.

Quad tenders are expert users of the symbionts
required to take care of themselves and other
quad morphology aliens. They not only handle
basic bodily needs, but may also provide what
could loosely be termed entertainment, or
distraction, which seems to have some positive
physiological effect. Quad tenders don't plan
their own activities ahead, they merely
respond to chemical and touch signals from
quads in their care.
A typical quad tender is a seven to eight foot
tall quad, but with a low-set, bulbous torso. It is
agile and appears thin and frail, yet it is
surprisingly strong. It is bred to serve quads
without interrupting their work patterns,
moving smoothly within and active work
environment.

15

VISITOR TENDER
Strength-3
Intelligence-2
Stamina-2
Charisma-3
Dexterity-2
Perception-2

TOXIC DART WEAPON USER

Strength-2
Intelligence-1
Stamina-2
Charisma-1
Dexterity-5
Perception-3

Empathy-1
Biology-3
First Aid-2
Language (visual)-native
Language (tactile)-2
Language (English)-2
Pathology-2
Tend Visitor-3
Specialty (humanoids)
electromagnetic-visual translator
rebreather
tactile store
visitor food excreter
visitor medislug

Acute Electromagnetic Sense-2

Acrobatics-2
Combat Reflexes-2
Language (chemical)-native
Language (electromagnetic)-2
Language (chemical)-1
Stealth-2
Alien Race Weapon-2
Precise Aim

toxic dart weapon

living armor
rebreather

Toxic dart weapon users take care of and use
the small symbionts that grow and launch
sharp needles filled with toxic venom.
A typical toxic dart weapon user is four feet
tall, with a very flexible quad body which it can
contort to hide behind any cover. It can use the
toxic dart weapon with either of its small
upper arms. When aiming, this alien freezes in
place and locks its weapon arm into a crease in
its head. Small sensing veins extend from the
sides of its body to triangulate on
electromagnetic signals.
Immune to venom: Toxic dart weapon
users are immune to the venom of toxic darts.

Visitor Tenders take care of the physical and
social needs of the Alien Race's Earth visitors,
and they also acts as translators and liaisons
between visitors and the rest of the Alien Race.
These tenders have a difficult task because the
genetic impulses and urges of the Earth species
are very different from those of the Alien Race,
and there is always the threat that planners
will decide to destroy the humanoid visitors
along with the human race, making the tenders
themselves expendable. They have little direct
physical contact with the visitors, only
providing them with food and medical care if
they need it.
A typical visitor tender is five feet tall, with
a base morphology. They make slower,
smoother movements than most of the Alien
Race, similar to the visitor species they tend.
Sensory organs are located on a stubby stalk
that is constantly turning in all directions.
Visitor tenders have been bred to generate
humanoid vocal sounds using the flaps
covering their breathing pores.

These Aliens are Alien

Remember the Alien Race thrives on
diversity. Dont be shy about making up your
own variations with new abilities and their
own bizarre symbionts. Except for the
visitors, which tend to have less diversity, the
PCs probably shouldnt encounter two of the
same aliens.

16

SPACECREATURE PILOT
Strength-1
Intelligence-4
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-2
Perception-3
Empathy-2
Climbing-2
Language (Tactile)-native
Language (Electromagnetic)-3
Language (Chemical)-2
Tend Symbiont(Spacecreature)-1
Spacecreature Piloting-4
electromagnetic concentrator

DEMOLITION EGG TENDER

Strength-4
Intelligence-2
Stamina-5
Charisma-1
Dexterity-2
Perception-2

Empathy-1

Explosives-2
Specialty(demolition egg)
Language (Electromagnetic)-native
Language (Tactile)-2
Language (Visual)-2
Physics-2
Running-4
Tend Symbiont(Demolition Egg)-3

Spacecreature pilots specialize in controlling
the huge spacecreature vessels that the Alien
Race uses to cross between stars. These
tenders are long and spindly and communicate
with their spacecreature through tactile and
electromagnetic interaction. Their navigation
is based on their own electromagnetic senses,
as well as the information passed to them from
the spacecreature.
A typical pilot for one of the huge
interstellar spacecreatures is also huge,
towering to eight or nine feet, with long limbs
and lots of joints that make it look like some
sort of Earth insect. Each limb ends in a pad of
special sensory organs, which attach to the
wall of tissue inside the spacecreature, just
behind its brain.

demolition egg
digger
rebreather

Demolition egg tenders are a special form of
tender designed to actually produce a
symbiont device; in this case, a volatile egg on
the verge of setting off a massive explosion.
Demolition egg tenders are huge biped
morphology aliens with a special egg pouch.
They normally produce one egg every few days
and leave it in their egg sac, inert. When the
egg emerges from the sac, exposure to a special
chemical begins the countdown to explosion.
The demolition egg tenders can control the
time to explosion, varying it from a few
seconds to an hour.
A typical demolition egg tender is a nine-
foot tall biped with a sagging pouch. Its small
head is covered in fanlike chemical sensors
capavle of detecting how close a demolition
egg is to exploding.
Armor plates: A demolition egg tender can
extend armor plates around its egg sac to
protect it. This increases armor for attacks on
the sac by 2 and prevents critical hits from
exploding the egg.
Might Explode: Any wounds to the egg sac
or confirmed critical hits on this alien cause
any mature demolition egg in its sac to
explode.

17

VISITORS

SPACECREATURE TENDER
Strength-2
Intelligence-2
Stamina-4
Charisma-2
Dexterity-3
Perception-2
Empathy-1
Acrobatics-2
Climbing-2
Concentration-2
Focus
Language (Electromagnetic)-native
Language (Visual)-3
Spacecreature Piloting-1
Swimming-2
Tend Symbiont(Spacecreature)-3
rebreather
spacecreature cleaner

Visitor are the genetically modified

descendents of species taken from the Earth
almost a million years ago by the Alien Race.
They are the Alien Races operatives on Earth,
observing the progress of humans and their
impact on ecosystems. The three types of Earth
visitor are humanoids, descended from early
hominids, ursoids, descended from bears, and
dolphoids, from dolphins.
The relationship of visitors to Earth species
leads many humans to believe, early in the
invasion, that they are just humans or animals
that have been horribly disfigured by Strain
816.
There are thousands of visitors living in
large, hidden colonies of connected
spacecreatures in Lunar Legrangian orbits.
They have lived and died there as species for
hundreds of thousands of years, using small
spacecreatures to visit Earth when necessary.
Because of their ancestry, visitors need no
special symbionts to survive in the Earth
environment. They are also trained to interact
with humans, so most humanoid visitors, and
some ursoids and dolpoids, speak one or more
human languages.
Visitors generally have their own species of
symbionts, attuned to their Earth physiology.
Note that these symbionts may also be able to
bond with humans.

Spacecreature tenders take care of the special
neads of spacecreature symbionts. They are
very agile and tough, and are constantly
crawling around the spacecreature, both inside
and out. These tenders are quads, but often use
their arms as legs, making them look and move
like a six-legged spider. Most are only about
three feet tall, and some, bred to get inside the
tiniest crawlspaces, may only be the size of a
human hand.
Pressure Seal: Spacecreature Tenders can
operate for five minutes out of every hour in
the vacuum of space without harm.

18

HUMANOID VISITOR (2)

Strength-1
Intelligence-2
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-3
Perception-3
Empathy-1
Acrobatics-2
Rough Move
Alien Race Weapons-2
Biology-2
Language (Tactile)-native
Language (English)-3
Stealth-2
Surveillance-2
toxic Dart Gun
visual Concentrator

Humanoid visitors appear to be unclothed,
genderless, emaciated, hairless humans with
pale grey or blue skin and proportionally large
heads. They are the frontline explorers, troops,
and diplomats of the Alien Race.
Most humanoid visitors are about 5 feet tall,
but some may be much taller, depending on
their assigned tasks. The smaller, quicker
individuals tend to be stealthy operational
agents and observers.

19

DOLPHOID VISITOR (2)

Strength-3
Intelligence-1
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-2
Perception-3

URSOID VISITOR (3)

Strength-4
Intelligence-1
Stamina-3
Charisma-2
Dexterity-2
Perception-2
Acute Hearing-2
Acute Smell-2
Climbing-2
Swimming-2
Language (Chemical)-native
Language (Chinese)-1
Natural Weapons-2
Powerful Natural Attack
Running-2
Intimidation-2
Frighten

Acute Hearing-3
Acrobatics-2
Combat Reflexes-2
Awareness
Language (Tactile)-native
Language (Visual)-1
Language (Chemical)-1
Language (English)-1
Natural Weapons-2
Swimming-3

Dolphoid visitors retain the basics of their
original shape, though they are stockier than
their modern counterparts and have shorter
snouts. Without the help of a mobility
symbiont and a waterskin, they are confined to
operating in the Earths oceans and rivers.
From there they monitor human activities and
communicate with the ancient whale
communities, the great underwater chroniclers
of the rise of humans.
Aquatic: Dolphoids must remain in water.
When out of water, they suffer 3 penalty dice
on any physical activity.
Echolocation: Dolphoids can add their
Acute Hearing advantage dice to any
underwater perception check.

Ursoid visitors are basically hairless bears.
They are more intelligent than their ancestors,
and a bit more able to manipulate objects with
their paws. At first glance, they might appear to
be large, pink, bloated humans.
Ursoids are the heavy soldiers of the Alien
Race, sent in to protect key sites or to beef up
visitor raids on key human installations. After
the invasion, some ursoids are left to just
wander the Earth, hunting down surviving
humans.
Natural Armor: Ursoid visitor hide adds 1
point of blunt and sharp armor.

20

CHAPTER 5: SYMBIONTS
The technology of the Alien Race is based on
living symbionts, and advancement of that
technology requires genetic diversity. It was
partially this search for diversity that drove
them into space and eventually to Earth.
Symbionts serve many of the same
functions that the tools of humans serve in
modern society. Symbionts protect aliens
from the elements, allow them to breath in

hostile environments, magnify and store

images, sounds and smells from the world
around them, and allow communication over
great distances. There are also symbionts that
the Alien Race uses in combat. Even the great
ships the Alien Race uses to travel through
space are living symbionts. It is very rare to
see a member of the Alien Race that isnt
bulging with symbionts.
storing other symbionts and making sure

Alien Race Symbionts

Backbag

Used to store supplies or other symbionts

Cleaner

Used by tenders to keep other Alien Race members clean.

Communicator

Used to communicate over long distances

Concentrator

Concentrates or magnifies one type of sensation

Demolition Egg

Very destructive explosive symbiont

Digger

Symbiont with tough digging claws that attaches to the hands.

Food Excreter

Symbiont specialized to produce complete dietary requirements for a specific

sub-species.

Living Armor

Symbiont shell that provides protection in combat

Medislug

Symbiont that can dispense coagulants and other drugs to stabilize wounded
creatures.

Mobility

Increases mobility of member of the Alien Race

Rebreather

Allows members of the Alien Race to breath in hostile atmospheres like Earth

Spacecreature

Symbiont bred to carry the Alien Race through space.

Spacecreature
Controller

This is specialized electromagnetic communicator that acts as a sort of remote

control.

Sensory Store

Stores specific type of sensation for later review

Toxic Dart

Symbiont that produces and projects poisoned darts.

Translator

Translates between two alien senses (not languages).

Vectorslug

Produces and delivers immunization to diseases

Waterskin

Allows dolphoid visitors to operate on land (with a mobility symbiont)

they have what they need to survive.
Backbags can be used to store other supplies,
but they have been known to reject any dead
items that might be harmful to symbiont
contents.

BACKBAG
A backbag symbiont looks like a sack of tough
skin with a large opening at the top that could
once have been a mouth. The backbag is more
than a simple bag, however. It specializes in

21

CLEANER
None of the normal hygienic tools that
humans use exist within the Alien Race
culture no soap or towels or combs or
deodorant or shampoo, or toilet paper. The
personal hygiene tasks in the Alien Race are
taken care of by specialized cleaning
symbionts. Some members of the Alien Race
wear one or more cleaning symbionts at all
times, while others just use them periodically.
There are also cleaner symbionts that clean
other, very specialized symbionts like
spacecreatures.

minutes. The egg does 16d of blunt damage

with a blast radius of 5 feet.
DIGGER
This is a symbiont that resembles a small,
furless, headless rodent with extra-large
hands and claws. It is worn like a glove and
can dig through the toughest rock and
concrete.
FOOD EXCRETER
A food excreter symbiont is capable of
ingesting a wide variety of waste and
scavenged material and then excreting food
paste specifically optimized for a certain
members of the Alien Race or symbiont. Food
excreters have also been bred to produce
food for Earth visitor species.

COMMUNICATOR
The closest human analogy to the Alien Race
communicator is the radio. Communicator
symbionts allow members of the Alien Race
to communicate over long distances.
Communicator symbionts generally use
electromagnetic signals, but there are also
communicators for underwater that use
vibrations, and others that use beams of light.
Generally, communicators are operated using
the associated Alien Race language (an
electromagnetic communicator is operated
through
electromagnetic
language).
Translator symbionts joined with the
communicators allow operation across Alien
Race languages.

LIVING ARMOR
Alien Race living armor appears to be a soft
shell that forms itself to the host, but once in
place, it becomes extremely hard and tough.
Typical living armor adds 2 points of blunt
and sharp protection and one penalty die of
encumbrance. Living armor can take 6
wounds before dying, but will drop from the
host after 3 wounds and seek a tender for
help.
MEDISLUG
A medislug is a short, slug-like creature about
the size of a football. It attaches to the host
through a large maw and a series of small,
sharp probes. Medislugs are not attached to a
host until the host is injured, because the
symbiont has an anesthetic effect that impairs
thinking. When applied to a member of the
Alien Race, the medislug cures one die of
wounds and gives the host an immediate
toughness challenge with 2 bonus dice. The
host also gains one penalty die on any mental
challenges for the rest of the scene. A
medislug takes one round to apply. It falls off
of the host and dies after use.
Special medislugs are available for use by
Earth visitors, and these will also work on
humans.

CONCENTRATOR
A concentrator symbiont magnifies a
particular
type
of
sensory
input.
Electromagnetic concentrators are similar to
human antennas. Visual concentrators act like
telescopes, or binoculars, or microscopes.
Chemical concentrators are sensitive
chemical detectors, and tactile concentrators
act like audio or seismic amplifiers. Typical
concentrators add 2 bonus dice to applicable
challenges, though more rare and specialized
symbionts can be much more effective.
DEMOLITION EGG
The demolition eggs produced by demolition
egg tenders are powerful explosives. The
tender sets the chemical fuse on the egg when
it is removed from the carrying sac, to any
length of time from five seconds to sixty

MOBILITY SYMBIONT
Mobility symbionts act as personal vehicles

22

SPACECREATURE CONTROLLER
This special electromagnetic communicator
symbiont that allows remote control of a
spacecreature. Successfully bonding with this
symbiont and gaining control of its
spacecreature requires a successful difficulty
2 [Charisma + Self Control] check. This
difficulty increases for larger spacecreatures.
Operating the spacecreature requires basic
skill in Language(electromagnetic) and a
successful [Perception + Spacecreature Pilot]
challenge.

for members of the Alien Race that have

limited
movement.
Typical
mobility
symbionts are concave, six-legged creatures
with Dexterity-4, Running-2. They take one
penalty die of encumbrance when carrying
their host. Mobility symbionts are typically
controlled through Language(tactile) or
Language(chemical) skills.
REBREATHER
Earths atmosphere is not directly harmful to
members of the Alien Race, but it is not
breathable either. Members of the Alien Race
must wear a rebreather symbiont to operate
on Earth. This symbiont looks like a flat patch
of flesh covered with a thick carpet of thin
tubes. It completely covers the hosts
breathing orifices.

TOXIC DART WEAPON

The toxic dart weapon is a special symbiont
that produces and ejects anesthetic darts. In
ranged weapon terms, it does 2d of sharp
damage, has 5 rounds of ammunition, and
range increments of 20/40/80. Attacking
with it uses Alien Race Weapons skill
challenges. If an attack with a toxic dart does
any damage, the target is also exposed to a an
anesthetic poison that takes effect
immediately with 7 attack dice, 2 stun
damage, and a recurrence every three rounds.

SENSORY STORE
Sensory stores are the recording devices of
the Alien Race. Each sensory store is capable
of recording and replaying many hours of
information in one of the Alien Race modes of
communication

chemical,
tactile,
electromagnetic, and visual.

TRANSLATOR
The Alien Race developed with four major
modes of communication tactile, visual,
chemical, and electromagnetic. In order to be
able to communicate between the diverse
morphologies and use specialized symbionts
that only understand particular languages,
the Alien Race developed translator
symbionts. These are generally about the size
of a coffee mug and come in all shapes and
sizes depending on their function, but they
are, perhaps the most intelligent and
important of the symbionts. Each translator
can translate not just sensations, but actual
meaning from one Alien Race language to
another, and vice-versa. The symbiont gives
the host the same skill in the translated
language as the original language, up to a
maximum of 3. For example, a host with
Language(tactile)-native
(4)
and
Language(electromagnetic)-1 wearing a
tactile-electromagnetic symbiont would have
an Language(electromagnetic) skill of 3.

SPACECREATURE
Space creatures are gigantic symbionts, bred
to carry the Alien Race between stars. Some
are large enough to carry thousands of
passengers, while others are only large
enough for one. Very small spacecreatures
can be used as unmanned drones, operated
through remote spacecreature controller
symbionts.
The typical spacecreature encountered on
Earth is about thirty feet across and can carry
up to ten passengers. It can fly in Earths
atmosphere, but is not capable of space flight.
In vehicle terms, it has a speed of 90,
Maneuver 8, Acceleration 20, and provides 2
points of cover. Operating a spacecreature
requires Spacecreature Piloting skill This
spacecreature has 2 points of blunt and sharp
armor. If it takes 4 wounds, it lands. At 6
wounds it falls from the sky, and after 10
wounds it dies.

23

VECTORSLUG
The vectorslug is a squat, segmented creature
about the size of a human fist. It attaches
painlessly to its host with a mouth like a
suction cup, then extends a sharp probe from
within its mouth to puncture the hosts skin
and deliver an immunization.
Vectorslugs have been bred and used
by dissenter aliens to immunize a
small group of humans against Strain
816.

Other symbionts, like concentrators,

sensory stores, and spacecreatures, require
the host to gain empathy with them by
making a successful difficulty 1 [Charisma +
Self Control] check, and to control them using
the appropriate Alien Race language. Visitors

WATERSKIN
This is a special form of rebreather
symbiont that covers most of a
dolphoid visitors skin with a layer of
salty moisture, allowing the dolphoid
to operate out of the water for up to 24
hours.
generally know at least one Alien Race
language, and it is usually tactile or visual,
given their limited ability to generate
chemicals and electromagnetic signals.
Humans can also learn these languages over
time, under the right circumstances, and then
use visitor translators if needed to control
symbionts.
Note that many alien weapons, like the
toxic dart symbiont, dont require a language
skill, but instead use the Alien Race Weapon
skill.

USING CAPTURED SYMBIONTS

If humans capture and try to use symbionts
bred for Alien Race hosts, most likely the
symbionts will not even attach. If they do,
they will likely cause physical or mental
damage.
However, humans are fully compatible
with the symbionts used by the Earth visitor
races. Many of these symbionts, like living
armor or medislugs, require no active control
by the host and will immediately attach and
perform their function, even on a human.

24

CHAPTER 6: RECON 6 CAMPAIGN

Before starting the Recon 6 campaign, players
should read through the Recon 6 Player Guide.
This short guide will give them all the
background known by their players and
provide special instructions for creating a
Recon 6 character.

SETTLEMENT COMMANDER (3)

Colonel Anthony Kellogg
Strength-3
Stamina-3
Dexterity-2

THE ROLE OF THE PLAYER CHARACTERS

Initially, the players will know only that they
are trying to survive in a world devastated by
disease and societal collapse. They should have
no clue that aliens are behind the apocalypse,
and the GM should try to keep it that way for a
little while.
The PCs may catch glimpses of visitor
aliens, but they will probably suspect that their
strange appearance is just the next phase of the
disease. Eventually, when they detect radiation
at a spacecreature landing site, or someone
with the Carrier disadvantage has a flashback
to an alien abduction, or they see a symbiont in
action, the players will realize theyre dealing
with aliens and everything will click. Theres a
good chance at least one of the players will be
disappointed by this, probably because they
wanted all the dead people to rise as zombies.
Though they will still be struggling to
survive, the PCs should turn into the core of a
resistance group fighting to stop the aliens
from wiping out the human race. They may
make allies among other human groups, and
perhaps even among the aliens themselves.

Intelligence-2
Charisma-3
Perception-3

Military Rank-1
Combat Reflexes-2
Command-3
Inspire Ally
First Aid-2
Handgun-1
Multiple Handgun Shots
History-2
Persuasion-2
Unarmed-2
Cautious
Good delegator
Listens before speaking

Water for the settlement comes from a
single hand operated pump in Alcova Heights
Park. In fact, the pump was the main reason
Colonel Kellogg chose the site for the
settlement.
The roads in the area are littered with
abandoned cars and makeshift roadblocks, but
the Colonel has sent out teams to clear the
major roads enough for a single vehicle to pass
through. A run on gas early in the collapse left
many gas stations empty, but it also means
there is gas left in the tanks of many cars, if it
can be found and siphoned.
Grocery stores, like the Food Star just on the
other side of George Mason, were a prime
target for looters and scavengers and have
little left, but some of the smaller convenience
stores and gas station shops may have been
overlooked.

ARLINGTON
Colonel Kelloggs band of settlers lives in the
houses along Randolph Street in central
Arlington, near the intersection of Columbia
Pike and George Mason Drive. There are no
other survivors in the immediate area, but
most of the stores have been stripped of food
and supplies, either by early scavengers or by
Colonel Kelloggs systematic methods.

25

barricade at Arlington Blvd, near the Jefferson

Community Center. At least three hundred
civilians, mostly unarmed, ran into the gunfire
of a dozen soldiers and overwhelmed them.
The breach grew, soldiers refused to fire on
apparently healthy civilians, and those that
wanted to escape the quarantine did. By that
time it didnt really matter concentration of
the disease was nearly as high in the rest of the
city as it was in the quarantine zone.
The barricades are still mostly intact
around the quarantines zone, and the bodies of
the dead are still stacked in advanced states of
decay in alleys between buildings and on
vacant lots. Fires consumed many of the
buildings and burned out vehicles block the
streets. Colonel Kelloggs crews have cleared
the barricades and debris enough for vehicles
to drive down Columbia Pike and Arlington as
far as Fillmore Street, but no one from the
settlement has ventured farther east.
Because of the panic and desperate
attempts to escape the quarantine zone, less
effort went into looting resources there. The
stores and individual homes in the zone may
still contain vital supplies that have
disappeared throughout the rest of the city.

Police Officer (2)

Rebeka Hayes
Strength-2
Stamina-2
Dexterity-2

Intelligence-2
Charisma-2
Perception-3

Law Enforcement Powers-1

Good Luck-1
Biology-1
Combat Reflexes-2
Improved Initiative
Concentration-2
Focus
First Aid-1
Handgun-1
Law-2
Persuasion-2
Surveillance-1
Bad Temper.
Looking for someone to blame
Nature lover
Pistol
Club

RADIATION
When complete failure of the US power grid
came, most nuclear reactors had enough staff,
backup power, or automated procedures to
shut down, but the North Anna power station
in Louisa, Virginia suffered a meltdown,
making a large area to the south and southeast
of Washington D.C. uninhabitable. PCs with
Geiger counters or other radiation sensors may
notice the increased radiation as close as 20
miles south of D.C.

QUARANTINE ZONE
The entire east-central section of Arlington,
bordered by Fort Myers to the east, South
Glebe Road to the west, Wilson Blvd to the
north and Columbia Pike to the south, was
declared a quarantine zone in the early days of
the outbreak. The area had a high
concentration of disease and was cordoned off
by National Guard barricades along the roads
and army personnel patrolling the low fences
of Fort Myers. As things grew more desperate,
sick people from outside the quarantine zone
were forced inside. The panic and violence and
spreading fire inside the zone was horrendous,
and those on guard outside witnessed much of
it.
Some of those in the zone eventually
overcame their panic and organized a
coordinated attack on the National Guard

SCAVENGING
The most difficult resources to find in
Arlington in late August are non-perishable
foods. Food was the target of looting before the
collapse and organized scavenging by
survivors afterwards. There is still food
around, but most of it is hoarded somewhere
or still stored away in individual homes.
Colonel Kellogg has stuck to scavenging
businesses so far, but soon the people of the

26

settlement will have to risk searching more

individual homes for supplies.
There are still sources of clean water, and
the Potomac river gets cleaner every day.
Gasoline still fills the tanks of thousands of cars
in the area, and batteries can still be found.
Non-consumable items, like clothing,
cooking utensils, knives, vehicles, and homes
are in ample supply. With only four percent of
the population left, there are plenty of these
items to go around.
The nearest gun shops are iabout 10 miles
out, in Falls Church or Capitol Heights. There
are firearms left, but no ammunition. A few
sporting goods stores in Arlington still have
hunting bows and arrows.

dangerous to travel in the area. See Chapter 8

for more details.

ALIEN RACE GOALS

The Alien Race has two goals in the
Washington, D.C. area. First, they seek to
directly wipe out any surviving humans.
Failing that, they will attack and destroy any
infrastructure that might be used by humans to
rebuild civilizations, whether its a powers
station, a freeway overpass, or a political
symbol like the nations capitol. Their main
base of operation in the area is Washington
National Airport.

DISSENTERS
A small group within the Alien Race, including
some visitors, believes that humans should not
be wiped out completely. It was the dissenters
who immunized thousands of humans against
Strain 816, and they still operate on the
ground, helping humans survive where they
can.
Unfortunately, it is impossible to tell a
dissenter alien from the aliens that are
determined to destroy humanity. It is only by
their actions that the PCs will realize they have
allies among the aliens.

SURVIVING HUMANS
The eighty or so residents of the Kellogg
settlement are not the only survivors in the
area. There are probably many similar
settlements within five miles and thousands of
individuals or families hiding out and
scavenging in secret. Many of the survivors in
the area fled west, believing that agricultural
land in Virginia and beyond was their only
hope of long-term survival.
FORT MYER RADIO STATION
Colonel Kelloggs settlers have a radio, with
which they have been able to make contact
with an emergency radio station at Fort Myer,
a few miles to the east. Through that contact,
they have learned of other human colonies in
the area that also have radios one to the
north, across the Potomac in Georgetown, and
another far to the west in Annandale.
The Kellogg settlement makes daily contact
with Fort Myer and uses those conversations
to arrange special direct contact times with the
other settlements.

CARRIERS
PCs with the Carrier disadvantage have been
abducted by alien dissenters and immunized
against Strain 816. They differ from other PCs
who have fought off the disease in that they are
still carriers still contagious and they had
the traumatic experience of being abducted
and subjected to symbionts.
The alien dissenters also administered
amnesia drugs to the carriers, so at the start of
play they remember nothing about their
ordeal. However, during the campaign, the GM
may roll the Carrier disadvantage die
whenever a carrier PC encounters and alien if
the check is a success, the PC has a flashback to
his or her experience on the alien ship, perhaps
seeing the vectorslug being attached or the
anesthetic symbiont being place over their
face. This may cause irrational behavior in the
moment.

STICK MEN
The area that was once the quarantine zone,
between the Kellogg settlement and Fort Myer,
is now the territory of a band of armed
scavengers who mark their territory by spray
painting stick men on buildings. They are not
systematic in their scavenging, and their
leadership is shaky, but they still make it

27

 Over time, with enough of these recall

episodes, a carrier may piece together the
whole encounter with the aliens and realize
what truly happened.

The Colonel gives the PCs containers for the

soil samples, as well as the supplies listed in
the Recon 6 Players guide. He also gives them
a paper map of the Washington, D.C. area,
including Arlington.

Note: If, for some reason, you feel the PCs are not
yet ready to set out on their primary mission,
perhaps because they are just getting familiar
with the D6Pool rules or because all of the
players havent gathered yet, you may want to
have Colonel Kellogg first send them on the
mini-mission detailed in the next chapter:
Scavenging the 7-Eleven.

THE MISSION
The Player guide to the Recon 6 campaign ends
just before Colonel Kellogg briefs the PCs on
their mission as the newly formed Recon 6
team. The Colonel had intended to send the PCs
to collect soil samples in the area so they could
plan for agriculture in the spring, but
something has changed.

The Colonels Orders
Your mission has changed somewhat. As of
yesterday, we have lost contact with Sergeant
Holden and the radio station at Fort Myer. I had
planned to send you in that direction anyway, so
determining the status of our radio contact is
now your first priority.
Your secondary objective is to visit the
national mall and Washington National Airport
and return soil samples. We cant scavenge food
forever, and come spring we have to be ready to
farm.
As always, scavenge whatever you can, based
on the list of priorities I had you memorize. Can
you recite them?

28

Chapter 7: Scavenging the 7-Eleven

This chapter presents a short encounter that
can either act as an introduction to D6Pool
and the Recon 6 setting, or as filler before the
main storyline gets going.
Officer Rebeka Hayes, whos in charge of
security at the settlement, informs the PCs
that Maynard Wheldon, another resident, was
on watch and heard strange sounds from the
7-Eleven to the south, across Columbia Pike.
She wants the PCs to investigate, see if there
are any survivors there, and scavenge
whatever they can. She suspects that the
place is pretty picked over.
The PCs can take the equipment they will
use on their recon mission, including any
weapons.

HOMELESS WANDERER (0)

Skinny Pete
Strength-1
Stamina-2
Dexterity-2

Intelligence-1
Charisma-2
Perception-2

Drug Resistance-1
Poor Hearing-1
Climbing-2
Local Knowledge (Arlington)-2
Vehicle Mechanic-2
Calm in a crisis
Cant pass up a drink
Inappropriately Loud

THE SURROUNDING AREA

The 7-Eleven faces George Mason Drive to the
west. To the north, on the corner, is the
parking lot of the Select Auto used car lot, and
to the south is a vacant lot. The back of the 7-
Eleven butts up against a row of three-story,
red brick apartment buildings set at angles to
on another.

If Skinny Pete or the PCs manage to break
into the truck, theyll find it belongs to a
company that builds and maintains sewers
and manholes. There may be a few useful
tools inside, but little else.

SKINNY PETE

FERAL DOGS

A thin, disheveled man wanders the 7-Eleven

parking lot with a crowbar in his hand. This is
Skinny Pete, a homeless alcoholic who sees
the apocalypse as a welcome chance to live in
whatever house he likes and shop without
money. He is currently using the crowbar to
break into a white panel truck with the label
AM-Liner on the side. If questioned, hell tell
the PCs hes looking for medical supplies for
his family, but hes actually more interested
in finding alcohol. For some reason, he hasnt
thought to check the grocery store just to the
north.
Skinny Pete will check out the PCs if they
approach him, but he wont run. If its obvious
the PCs are armed, hell tell them hes glad to
see it. Someone has to take care of those
Mutated Bastards.

The activity in the area has attracted a pack of

four feral dogs looking for food. They stay
back if they see a group of people, but they
will attack a lone PC or Skinny Pete.

THE VACANT LOT

The vacant lot to the south is covered in
grass, with a few bare dirt patches. If any of
the PCs have a Geiger counter or any other
way to detect radiation, they will notice that
the radiation level in the field is about twenty
times the normal background radiation. This
is because one of the spacecreatures landed
there recently to drop off a pair of visitors.

29

FERAL DOG (1)

Strength-1
Intelligence-1
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-3
Perception-3

Street View
Arlington is a real place, as is this particular 7-
Eleven store, and the houses on Rudolph Drive
where the survivors live. If you have access to
the Internet while you play this campaign, it
might be helpful to use Google Maps Steet View
to get a better look!

Acute Smell-2
Acute Hearing-1
Acrobatics-1
Intimidation-1
Natural Weapon-2
Multiple Natural Attacks
Running-2
Self Control-2
Tracking-2
starving
never attack alone

THE VISITORS
There are two visitors in the area on a search
and destroy mission for surviving humans. A
humanoid visitor is in cover inside the store,
watching Skinny Pete and waiting for his
ursoid companion to return from a search
through the woods. The ursoid returns
through the vacant lot at some point judged
most dramatic by the gamemaster, and the
feral dogs begin barking at it (if the PCs
havent killed them or driven them away).
This encounter should take place before the
PCs enter the store.
The ursoid visitor has no symbionts. The
humanoid visitor has a toxic dart weapon, a
visual sensory store attached to the side of its
head, and living armor.
The ursoid attacks, but if it is wounded at
all or realizes it is
outnumbered, it runs
away
through
the
apartment complex to
the east. The humanoid
visitor fires its toxic
darts from cover in the
store. If it sees the ursoid
retreat, it runs out the
back of the store and
also flees to the east.

If PCs make an intentional search of the
vacant lot, a successful difficulty 2 [Tracking +
Perception] challenge will reveal that the
grass here has been depressed in a oval about
thirty feet across.

30

SEARCHING THE 7-ELEVEN

The inside of the store smells of rotting food
and has been thoroughly. There is still some
candy and plenty of non-consumable items
like flashlights, magazines and old movies on
DVD. If the PCs search the managers office,
they find two packs of batteries, as well as a
flask of whisky hidden inside the desks lap
drawer.

URSOID VISITOR(3)
Strength-4
Intelligence-1
Stamina-3
Charisma-2
Dexterity-2
Perception-2
Acute Hearing-2
Acute Smell-2
Climbing-2
Swimming-2
Language (Chemical)-native
Language (Chinese)-1
Natural Weapons-2
Powerful Natural Attack
Running-2
Intimidation-2
Frighten
no symbionts

HANDLING CAPTURED VISITORS

This encounter is intended to give the PCs a
quick glimpse of visitors, and Skinny Pete is
there to get the idea of disease mutations into
their minds as an explanation. If the PCs
manage to actually capture or kill a humanoid
visitor, or even grab a blood sample, they
might be able to determine that the creature
was of human origin. It might also become
apparent that the ursoid is somehow related
to a bear. The mutation idea should hold up.

WHAT ABOUT SKINNY PETE?

If the PCs return to the settlement with

Skinny Pete, Officer Hayes will express some
disappointment. It doesnt appear that Pete
has anything to offer the settlement and
might even be a burden to them. If Pete
helped the PCs in the encounter with the
visitors, that will be a point in his favor, and
Officer Hayes could be convinced with an
apposed challenge of [Intelligence +
Persuasion] vs. her [Perception].
If the PCs are willing, they can take Pete
along on their mission as a test of his
usefulness.

HUMANOID VISITOR
Strength-1
Intelligence-2
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-3
Perception-3
Empathy-1
Acrobatics-2
Rough Move
Alien Race Weapons-2
Biology-2
Language (Tactile)-native
Language (English)-3
Stealth-2
Surveillance-2
toxic dart
living armor
visual sensory store

31

CHAPTER 8: THE ROAD TO FORT MYER

The PCs closest objective is the silent radio
station at Fort Myer. They will see on their map
that Fort Myers is a straight shot east on
Arlington
Blvd
or
Columbia
Pike.
Unfortunately, both of these routes go right
through the old quarantine zone, which is now
the territory of the Stick Men. As soon as the
PCs cross Glebe Street, they may notice stick
men figures spray painted on the corners of
buildings to mark the gangs territory.
The Stick Men are dangerous, but they have
begun to clean up the quarantine zone
forcing unarmed captives to bury or burn dead
bodies and clear roads so their small convoys
can pass.
If the PCs avoid the quarantine zone by
swinging far to the south, the GM should feel
free to throw alternate dangers their way
perhaps a patrol of visitors from the airport. In
any case, the PCs will have to deal with the
Stick Men and their leader when they reach
Fort Myers.

The humanoid visitor following the PCs

carries no weapons, but does have a visual
concentrator symbiont and a medislug. His
designation in the alien tactile language sounds
like Shishna to human ears.

Shishna

HUMANOID VISITOR (2)

Strength-1
Stamina-2
Dexterity-3

Intelligence-2
Charisma-2
Perception-3

Dissenter-2
Acrobatics-1
Alien Race Weapons-1
Biology-2
Language (Tactile)-native
Language (English)-3
Running-2
Stealth-3
Surveillance-2

VISITOR SIGHTING
Sometime after entering the quarantine zone,
the PCs should catch a glimpse of a humanoid
visitor. This particular visitor is a Dissenter,
and has no intent to harm the PCs he may
even help them if he has the opportunity.
On the other hand, he does not want to be
detected or caught, either by the PCs or other
visitors.
Perhaps the PCs will spot the visitor when
they stop to investigate the stick men symbols,
or during their encounter with Ronald Goggin
(see Lone Survivor below).
As with the 7-Eleven encounter, this may
turn into a chase, with the PCs trying to catch
the visitor. Its OK if the PCs capture him, but it
drains some of the mystery and drama from
the next few encounters. Perhaps, if the PCs do
catch up the visitor, it might be a good time to
shake things up by introducing the Stick Men
patrol (see below).

visual store
visitor medislug

LONE SURVIVOR
A survivor named Ronald Goggin still lives in
one of the apartment houses in the quarantine
zone, somewhere along the PCs route to Fort
Myer. His wife died trying to escape in one of
the early quarantine riots, but he doesnt know
what happened to her. He survived the
craziness of the quarantine by building a secret
room in his closet to hide himself, as well as his
food and water. He keeps his apartment messy,
to make it look like it has already been looted.
When looters caught him in the apartment, he
pretended he was a disappointed looter who
had found nothing.
Ronald is running low on supplies, so he
must risk going out into the world to scavenge.

32

First he found whatever was left in the other

apartments in his building, then he carefully
scouted from windows and learned that the
main threat out there was the Stick Men
patrols, and he can usually hear them coming.
The PCs may run into Ronald if they try to
scavenge from his apartment building, or while
hes out scavenging. He is Unfriendly toward
the PCs. He is also slightly paranoid and will
resist most Persuasion challenges using his
Perception Attribute, looking for reasons to
distrust the PCs.
Ronald carries a pint of water, binoculars,
and a loaded .38 caliber pistol with him
whenever hes outside. In his apartment he has
a few days of food and water, 50 rounds of
ammunition for his pistol, a small laptop
(Portable Basic Computer) and a small hand
generator that he uses to charge it. He also has
flashlights, batteries, and stacks and stacks of
books.

STICK MEN PATROL

The Stick Men are a gang organized under a
charismatic leader. They patrol the old
quarantine zone, not allowing any competition
for scavenging in the areas they have marked
with their stick man figure. Their leader is a
little crazy, and has used his followers to hunt
alien visitors for sport. They have captured and
tortured enough aliens to find out what is
really going on.
As the PCs make their way toward Fort
Myer through, or along the edge of the old
quarantine zone, they should notice the stick
man markings painted on the corners of
buildings. At some point as they near the base,
they will encounter a Stick Men patrol.
The PCs can hear the Stick Mens noisy,
poorly maintained vehicles coming well in
advance with a successful difficulty 2
[Perception + Vehicle Mechanic] challenge. If
the PCs get only one success on this roll, they
have two rounds to prepare or get into hiding
before the Stick Men check to notice them.
Note that this perception check could be more
difficult if the PCs themselves are very noisy.
The Stick Men patrol consists of two
soldiers and a scavenger in a Lincoln Navigator
(sport utility vehicle), one scavenger and one
soldier in a compact car, and one scavenger on
a small motorcycle.

LONE SURVIVOR (1)

Ronald Goggin
Strength-1
Stamina-2
Dexterity-2

Intelligence-3
Charisma-1
Perception-3

Acute Vision-1
Bad Knee-1
Business-2
Computers-3
Deception-1
Driving-1
Finance-2
Handgun-1
Quick Draw
Stealth-1
Trust No one
Books are civilizations only hope
Someday hell find his wife
binoculars
pistol

33

 A dead ursoid visitor is strapped like a

bearskin rug across the hood of the SUV, like a
huge hood ornament. To the PCs, it may look
like a large, hairless, pink, mutated human. A
successful difficulty 2 [Perception + Animals]
challenge will reveal, even from a distance, that
the creature has bear-like qualities and may
just be a skinned or shaved bear.
The Stick Men are out searching residential
buildings for supplies to bring back to their
base at the Jefferson Community Center. If they
notice the PCs, or detect their presence
somehow, they will send the scavenger on the
motorcycle back to the base for help, and then
hunt the PCs down and try to kill them. After
about five minutes, three more soldiers will
arrive in a pickup truck.

Each Stick Men soldier carries a semi-

automatic rifle with twenty rounds of
ammunition, a pistol with eight rounds, and
wears leather (Heavy Clothing) to provide one
point of armor against sharp attacks.

STICK MEN SCAVENGER (1)

Strength-2
Stamina-1
Dexterity-2
Acute Vision-1
Command-1
Driving-2
First Aid-1
Local Knowledge (Arlington)-2
Persuasion-2
Self Control-1
Stealth-1
Vehicle Mechanic-2

STICK MEN SOLDIER (2)

Strength-4
Stamina-3
Dexterity-2

Intelligence-1
Charisma-1
Perception-2

Armor-1
Armor Mobility
Combat Reflexes-2
Zone of Control
Handgun-2
Intimidation-2
Rifle-2
Running-1
Unarmed Combat-2
This is our turf
Dont waste ammunition
Rifle
Pistol
Heavy Clothing

Intelligence-2
Charisma-2
Perception-3

More is better
Let the soldiers do the fighting
pistol

Stick Men scavengers are the leaders of patrols,
in that they decide where the patrol is going. If
the patrol encounters any threats or survivors,
the soldiers go into action and the scavengers
go into hiding. Each scavenger is armed with a
pistol, but is not very effective at using it.
The SUV contains enough food and water to
supply the PCs for a week, along with 50 extra
rounds of rifle ammunition that the Stick Men
will only use as a last resort. Note that the Stick
Men may attempt to capture and enslave
helpless PCs, rather than kill them.

34

CHAPTER 9: FORT MYER

When the disease crisis began and extra
coordination was required to contain the
quarantine zone in Arlington, the US Army set
up a special radio communication station at
Fort Myer. The army chose the bases new
Child Development Center (daycare) as the
comm centers location, since all activities for
military children were cancelled during the
epidemic.
The CDC building is just inside and to the
south of the bases 2nd street gate. The east side
of the building is only a few yards from the
fence of Arlington National Cemetery.
Unfortunately, the Stick Men got wind of the
communication between settlements and
decided it was not in their best interest to let
that happen. They had avoided raiding the base
in the past, but now they risked it. They
attacked suddenly, hitting the corner of the

CDC building supporting the radio antenna

with a bazooka, destroying the station
equipment and killing one soldier stationed
there.
This activity drew the attention of a visitor
patrol. They killed one humanoid visitor and
started a pyre to watch both bodies burn
before a spacecreature full of ursoids from the
airfield to the south came and drove the Stick
Men away.

AFTERMATH OF STICK MEN ATTACK

Between the base gate and the CDC building is
a baseball diamond and an open field with a
few trees. When the PCs arrive here, they see a
thin plume of smoke rising from the field.
There is also smoke rising from the building
itself. The corner of the building is destroyed,
as if by explosives. Scraps of burned paper

35

litter the ground everywhere and blow around

in the wind.
Spacecreatures have landed multiple times
on the baseball diamond. It now produces
elevated levels of radiation, similar to the field
at the 7-Eleven.

soldier killed in the explosion (and burned on

the pyre with the visitor). They will also find a
small generator with a few hours of fuel that
somehow survived the explosion. It is possible
that the records of contacts with other
settlements were in those file cabinets, but
they are now burned up or blown across the
base.

THE PYRE
The smoke in the field rises from a dying fire.
Upon close examination, its obvious that the
remains of the fire contain two bodies not
completely consumed by the flames.
Both bodies appear human, and probably
male, but only one seems to have worn any
clothes. Also, the naked person appears to have
been very thin.
This may be the first time the PCs have had
a close-up look at a humanoid visitor. If a PC
specifically examines the thin body and
succeeds on a difficulty one [Perception +
Biology] check, they notice that, although the
thin person was probably barely five feet tall,
he had unusually long fingers and a large head.
A thorough search of the ashes (difficulty
two [Perception + Concentration] challenge)
reveals the tiny, flexible rib cage of the visitors
toxic dart symbiont, as well as a few surviving
darts.

VISITOR IN HIDING
One of the visitors from the patrol took cover
in the building, was wounded by Sergeant
Holden, and was unconscious when the
spacecreature came to retrieve them. Now the
visitor is hiding inside the building. It wont go
into the eastern half of the building out of fear
of the Sergeant, so hell try to sneak past the
PCs and get across the fields to the gate.

WOUNDED HUMANOID VISITOR (2)

Strength-1
Intelligence-3
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-3
Perception-2
Acrobatics-1
Alien Race Weapons-2
Multiple Alien Weapon Shots
Biology-2
Concentration-1
Focus
Language (Tactile)-native
Language (English)-2
Stealth-2
Surveillance-2

THE RADIO STATION

The northwest corner of the Child
Development center has been destroyed by an
explosion and appears to have contained the
radio station at least thats where a fallen
radio antenna seems to have toppled from. A
difficulty two [Perception + Special Weapons]
check reveals that it was hit by some sort of
projectile explosive from the outside like a
bazooka.
The rooms hit by the explosion are in
disarray, and some items in them are still
smoldering. It appears that some file cabinets
were at the center of the explosion, spreading
burning papers everywhere. None of the radio
equipment is in working order, but some may
be repairable. Treat this as an emergency radio
with two wounds.
In addition to the radio equipment, the PCs
will find bloodstains in the room from the

1 Wound
toxic dart gun
living armor

If the wounded visitor does escape, he may run
into the returning Stick Men (see below), or
make his way down to the airport to get
reinforcements.

36

SERGEANT HOLDENS TRAPS

The two soldiers who operated the radio

station knew that desperate people might one
day come for their supplies or try to shut down
their broadcasts. They had also seen visitors
from afar, which added to their anxiety.
They created a retreat in the basement of
the building. One of the soldiers was killed in
the Stick Mens bazooka blast, but the other,
Staff Sergeant Holden, was only wounded and
is hiding out in the lower level with two weeks
worth of food and water. He also has two hand-
wound flashlights, an ebook reader that hes
managed to keep charged from the radio
station generator, and quite a bit of first aid
supplies, plus prescription antibiotics and
painkillers.
To help protect his supplies, Sergeant
Holden has set up a barricade of childrens
desks in the lower level hallway. He also sprays
the stairs leading to the lower level with
lubricant. The first PC on the stairs must
succeed at a difficulty 2 [Perception +
Acrobatics] check or take damage from a 10-
foot fall. After that, players who know about
the lubricant may safely use them with a
difficulty 1 [Dexterity + Acrobatics] or
[Dexterity + Climbing] check. Sergeant Holden
Keeps a small section of each step clear of
lubricant, but only he knows the pattern.
Sergeant Holden has also run a tripwire
across the northern end of the lower hallway.
It is connected to a grenade tucked into a wall
outlet. The first PC passing that way must
succeed on a difficulty 2 [Perception +
Explosives] check or set off the grenade.
Sergeant Holden doesnt want to hurt
anyone hes actually a pretty nice guy. Hes
just seen too many strange things lately. If he
knows the PCs are in the building, he will hide
behind his barricade. If he hears them coming
down (or falling down) the stairs, he shouts a
warning that hes armed and ready to defend
himself.
Sergeant Holden is also alone now, and his
radio station has been destroyed, so he might
be convinced through Puruasion to join the PCs
and Colonel Kelloggs settlement.

RADIO OPERATOR (2)

Staff Sergeant Nick Holden
Strength-2
Stamina-3
Dexterity-2

Intelligence-2
Charisma-2
Perception-2

Good Luck-1
Communications-3
Computers-1
Concentration-1
Focus
Explosives-1
Handgun-1
Language(English)-native
Language(Spanish)-2
Operate Industrial-1
Stealth-1
History-1
1 Wound (shoulder)
No family nearby
Determined to continue his mission
Assault Rifle

STICK MEN RETURN

The Stick Men who were driven away by the
approaching spacecreature kept watch and
saw it leave again. They gather a few more
friends and head back to the Fort Myer to see
what they can scavenge, and to mark it as part
of their new territory.
This patrol consists of a scavenger and two
soldiers in the Lincoln Navigator with the
ursoid visitor strapped to the hood, another
scavenger in a compact car, and the stick man
leader, Chad Guryev, in a yellow 1966 Mustang
Convertible.
The Stick Men enter through the 2nd street
gate and cross the fields in their vehicles to the
small parking lot on the west side of the CDC
building. They are on the lookout for visitor

37

stragglers, but dont expect any human

resistance.
A few cars are still parked in the parking lot
from before the collapse, so even if the PCs
parked a vehicle there, the stick Men may not
notice it. If the PCs parked out in the middle of
a field, the Stick Men will notice and will
approach cautiously.
One of the Stick Men scavengers moves to
spray paint their symbol on the corners of the
CDC building, and on a base infirmary building
to the south. The Stick Men leader and another
scavenger stay with the vehicles while the
soldiers investigate the building.

STICK MEN SOLDIER (2)

Strength-4
Stamina-3
Dexterity-2

Intelligence-2
Charisma-3
Perception-2

Allies-2
Attractive-1
Armor-1
Armor Mobility
Concentration-2
Focus
Driving-2
Combat Driving
Intimidation-1
Language(Russian)-native
Language(3)-English
Persuasion-2
Shotgun-2
Shotgun Assault
Unarmed Combat-1
A few good men can rule this town
The only good alien is a dead alien
Shotgun
Pistol
Heavy Clothing

This is our turf

Rifle
Pistol
Heavy Clothing

Armor-1
Armor Mobility
Combat Reflexes-2
Zone of Control
Handgun-2
Intimidation-2
Rifle-2
Running-1
Unarmed Combat-2

STICK MEN LEADER (4)

Chad Guryev
Strength-3
Stamina-2
Dexterity-3

Intelligence-1
Charisma-1
Perception-2

STICK MEN SCAVENGER (1)

Strength-2
Stamina-1
Dexterity-2

Intelligence-2
Charisma-2
Perception-3

Acute Vision-1
Command-1
Driving-2
First Aid-1
Local Knowledge (Arlington)-2
Persuasion-2
Stealth-2
Vehicle Mechanic-2

More is better
Let the soldiers do the fighting
pistol

38

CHAPTER 10: THE NATIONAL MALL

The PCs have been instructed to collect soil
samples from the national mall to see if it will
be a good location to farm in the spring.
The visitors cleared out all the human
settlements around the mall days ago and left
only one lone humanoid visitor as a lookout
at the top of the Washington monument.
Demolition teams have destroyed most of the
symbolic buildings around the mall, like the
capitol building, the White House and the
Lincoln Memorial.

either end of each bridge (see Chapter 5 for

special abilities). If the PCs defeat or drive
away the visitors in one of the teams, that
teams Demolition Egg Tender will try to flee
south where a small spacecreature will float
north from the airport to rescue it. Demolotion
Egg Tenders avoid combat, but may sacrifice
their egg in an attempt to set a trap for any
pursuing PCs.
If the PCs dont stop both of the teams
assigned to a bridge, that bridge will be
destroyed within an hour.

DEMOLITION TEAM
If the PCs try to cross one of the bridges over
the Potomac (Interstate 66, 395, or the
Arlington Memorial Bridge), they will come
across teams of aliens in the process of setting
explosive charges to blow key bridge supports.
The alien teams consist of one humanoid
visitor, one dolphoid visitor, and one
Demolition Egg Tender, with one such team on

DEMOLOTION EGG TENDER

Strength-4
Intelligence-2
Stamina-5
Charisma-1
Dexterity-2
Perception-2
Empathy-1
Explosives-2
Specialty(demolition egg)
Language (Electromagnetic)-native
Language (Tactile)-2
Language (Visual)-2
Physics-2
Running-4
Tend Symbiont(Demolition Egg)-3
demolition egg
digger
electromagnetic communicator
rebreather

THE LOOKOUT
A single humanoid visitor watches the mall
from the top of the Washington monument. It
scans the area with a visual concentrator and
through the use of a small, remotely-operated
spacecreature It will report any sightings of
humans to the Alien Race planners at the
airport using its communicator symbiont.

39

HUMANOID VISITOR
Strength-1
Intelligence-2
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-3
Perception-3
Empathy-1
Acrobatics-2
Rough Move
Alien Race Weapons-2
Biology-2
Language (Tactile)-native
Language (English)-3
Stealth-2
Surveillance-2
toxic dart weapon
living armor
visual-electromagnetic translator

HUMANOID VISITOR LOOKOUT

Strength-1
Intelligence-2
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-3
Perception-3

Empathy-1

Acrobatics-2
Rough Move
Alien Race Weapons-2
Biology-2
Language (Tactile)-native
Language (English)-3
Stealth-2
Surveillance-2

backbag
electromagnetic communicator
tactile-electromagnetic translator
visual concentrator
spacecreature controller

DOLPHOID VISITOR
Strength-3
Intelligence-1
Stamina-2
Charisma-2
Dexterity-2
Perception-3
Acute Hearing-3
Acrobatics-2
Combat Reflexes-2
Awareness
Language (Tactile)-native
Language (Visual)-1
Language (Chemical)-1
Language (English)-1
Natural Weapons-2
Swimming-3
tactile communicator
visual concentrator

If the lookout reports a human sighting, a
spacecreature will launch from the airport and
glide north to the mall to unload 2 humanoid
visitors and one ursoid visitor. In addition, two
dolphoid visitors will swim north into the Tidal
Basin just south of the mall. This visitor
response teams mission will be to find and
destroy any humans in the area. They will
pursue the PCs all the way back into Arlington
or to anywhere within about five miles of
Washington, D.C.

THE SMITHSONIAN
The visitors cleared all of the humans out of
this area relatively early, so many of the nearby
buildings remain unlooted. There may be a
little bit to eat and drink in the vending
machines and cafeteria in the Smithsonian. The
PCs may also find interesting and unusual
items in the museum displays themselves, or
useful books in the library of congress.
Sentimental PCs might even rescue the US
Constitution and the Declaration of
Independence from the National Archives
before the aliens realize their significance and
destroy them.

40

CHAPTER 11: THE AIRPORT

Reagan Washington National Airport is the
main base of Alien Race activity in the
Washington D.C. area. There are a half dozen
Alien Race planners here, as well as a few
demolition egg tenders, spacecreature tenders,
and a small army of visitors. The main
objective of the Alien Race expedition here is to
make sure that Washington doesnt become a
symbolic rallying point for the
remaining humans. They carry out this
mission by destroying the most
sentimental
buildings
and
by
exterminating any humans they come
across.

First, if it seems like the PCs have led the

aliens anywhere near the settlement, the
Colonel orders an evacuation of everyone. He
splits the settlement up into small groups, to
move in secret by different paths and
rendezvous as soon as possible, five miles to
the west in Roundtree Park, in the north side of
Annandale. From there he will send out teams

SECURITY
The main gates into the flight line are
each covered by a team of three
humanoid visitors with living armor
and toxic dart weapons. But there are
so many places where someone might
sneak in through a cargo hangar or
jump a fence far out along the runway.
Because of this, ursoid visitors patrol the
perimeter with their keen sense of smell, small
smacecreatures hover overhead, providing
eyes in the sky through spacecreature
controller symbionts, and dolphoid visitors
swim up and down the river, watching the
riverbank.
The PCs should have little difficulty getting
close enough to see the level activity at the
airport and possibly catch a glimpse of a few
actual members of the Alien Race. What they
see will probably convince them that its time
to head back and report to Colonel Kellogg.
Perhaps they will swim ashore or jump a fence
ahead of time to get the requested soil sample,
but a direct confrontation with the aliens here
would almost certainly be deadly.

to make contact with the human settlement in

Annadale.
Third, if the PCs have successfully fought
and killed multiple aliens without much
damage to themselves, the Colonel may decide
to organize his small settlement to fight back.
That will mean getting more weapons, possibly
forming an alliance with the Stick Men, and
setting up safe houses and defensible retreat
positions around the city.
If the PCs have taken serious wounds from
the encounters with the aliens and the Stick
Men, Colonel Kellogg may invoke protocols to
keep the settlement safe armed pickets at the
approaches to the area, lookouts to warn of
approaching spacecreatures, curfews during
the day and limitations on noise at all times. He
will probably begin planning a move west in
the spring.

WHERE THE CAMPAIGN GOES FROM HERE

If the PCs report back to the Colonel with all
that theyve seen, he has three choices.

41

CHAPTER 12: GLOSSARY OF TERMS

BASE
Alien with four arms, plus two legs fused into a
single, wide base,

QUAD
Alien with four legs and two arms.
SPACECREATURE
Large, balloon-like symbiont to carry members
of the Alien Race across space. Some can also
be used for transportation within an
atmosphere.

BIPED
A member of the Alien Race with two arms and
two legs.
CARRIER
A human immunized against Strain 816 by
dissenter aliens. Carriers are immune, but still
contagious.

STICK MEN
Militant gang of humans that patrols and
scavenges in eastern Arlington.

DEAD TOOLS
Any tools used by the Alien Race that are not
living symbionts. For example, all conventional
human tools would be considered dead tools.

STRAIN 816
Deadly virus introduced on Earth by the Alien
Race to wipe out humanity.

DISSENTERS
Group within the Alien Race that believes that
to preserve diversity, humans should not be
completely wiped out.

SYMBIONT
A living tool of the Alien Race. Symbionts
operate by attaching themselves to, and
usually feeding off of, a host alien.

DOLPHOID VISITOR
Alien visitor species bred from dolphins.

TENDERS
Aliens whose specific purpose and task is to
take care of other aliens or symbionts.

EMPATHY
Alien advantage that applies to attempts to
bind with a symbiont.

URSOID VISITOR
Alien visitor species bred from an early bear
species.

HUMANOID VISITOR
Alien visitor species bred from early human
ancestors.

VISITOR
Creatures bred by the Alien Race from native
Earth species, so that they can operate freely in
the Earth environment.

42