Axiom Null: I AM ZOMBIE RPG Instruction Manual (2015)

From publisher blurb:

NOTE: Contains the I AM ZOMBIE prologue and full deck of 54 human print and play ID cards.

PRACTICAL PLAY
THE AXIOM WAY

The Axiom System revolves around simple and elegant rules. Much like a modern board game, its complexities are front-loaded and not piled on at the back end with exceptions, mini-systems, and charts. While the dice-rolling conventions are more involved than in most RPGs, once you know them, everything else just... FLOWS.

In Axiom, dice are not just a way to determine whether you succeed or fail: they work like a series of BETS where a number of factors play into every roll. Will you gain Brainz or Chaw? Will you beat the Hazard number and avoid hurting yourself or a friend? Do you reroll those low numbers, or do you play it safe? Will you use a Twist to skew the odds? All of this makes each and every roll (and reroll) a compelling tactical decision.

The core advantage of the system is that players have many different goals in mind, and thus many ways to both achieve and measure success. It’s not about simply making a roll; every roll is a series of decisions that can potentially change everything down the line. Axiom is dynamic and versatile.

Like A Swiss Watch:
A Finely Tuned Precision Instrument

Axiom also warps what a turn is so that the story unfolds organically and ensures that no one gets bored. By deconstructing the turn, we created a unique initiative and pacing system. You start your turn by taking an action and making a roll, and then on each of your rerolls—which are made on another player’s turn—you pile on details. You can “spend” successes (boosts) as Descriptors to add to the story. The drama of the scene builds step-by-step over each turn, and waiting to see what happens ratchets up the tension.

You can make a character in minutes (“Just pick five cards”), but each persona is interesting and compelling. More than the ultimate pick-up game, I Am Zombie is also a great arena in which to experiment and play. Just pick and choose which Axioms to use!

This fluid and responsive storytelling system is as smooth & elegant as the cards themselves. Indeed, a novice Narrator doesn’t need to know much about how the system works as the rules and the players work together to run things themselves. Thus, the only thing the Narrator really needs to worry about is... THE STORY.