VS.

is a roleplaying game for three to six players in which youll create two teams
of murderously opposed characters, and find out which of them has any members
left at the end of the game. Example Scenarios
VS. was specifically inspired by the horror thrillers Green Room and Youre Next -
both of which you should watch immediately - but works for any scenario where Punks vs. Nazis
two groups of people are trying to kill each other... Victims: The Refuse, a scrappy
Youll need a regular pack of playing cards with the jokers included, a pack of punk band
index cards and enough pens for everyone to write with. Also find somewhere Aggressors: The Oregon
comfortable to play where people wont look at you weird for describing hideous Brotherhood, heroin-dealing
violence. Neo-Nazis.
Location: The Nazis
Create the teams, the location and the setup backwoods bar.
Start with a loose concept, defined as X vs. Y. Throughout the rules, well be The setup: The Refuse were
using the examples of Punks vs. Nazis, Bank Robbers vs. Corrupt Cops, and Post booked to play the bar without
Apocalyptic Settlers vs. Desert Raiders. Play with them if you like, or roll your own. realising its full of Nazis. After
the gig, they witness a murder
Next, add a little detail to the two teams. Decide which of them is The Aggressors, and are locked in there dressing
and the other should be The Victims. The Victims arent necessarily defenceless - room while the skin headed
this is not the Michael Haneke RPG - but they dont start the fight. thugs try to get in to kill them to
Teams should be created in the form of NAME, ADJECTIVE NOUN, and should build cover up both the murder, and
up from your X vs. Y concept. The teams dont have to have an actual name in the their drug dealing operation.
fiction if it doesnt make sense, but youll need one at this meta level to differentiate
the two sides from each other on the index cards. Write the team names on an Bank Robbers vs. Corrupt
index card each, and place them in the center of the table in easy view of all the Cops
players.
Victims: The Last Chancers,
Decide where the action of your game will take place. This should be suggested tough but honourable thieves.
by the two teams; the punks and the Nazis could be at the Nazis punk bar, for
example. The location also has a setup attached: a reason why the Victims are
there, and a reason why the Aggressors are being so darn aggressive. Decide on
those between yourselves, and add them to another index card.

Oli Jeffery did all the writing, layout and art apart from the bits he stole from Bret. 2016.
Create Characters
Each player create two characters: one for the Aggressors, and one for the Victims. Aggressors: The Strike Squad,
Characters should be created using the formula NAME the ADJECTIVE NOUN, corrupt cops.
similarly to the Teams. Theres some wriggle room in the formula, as youll see in
the examples in the sidebars. All characters go into a central pool, so you wont Location: A warehouse in an
necessarily play the characters you create. Write each character on an index card, abandoned industrial district.
along with the name of the team theyre on. If you have access to different coloured The setup: The Last Chancers
pens, that might help too, one colour for each team. arranged with the Strike Squad
for police attention to be
Scenes diverted from them during the
bank robbery, for a cut of the
Setups done. Lets get killing. take. The Strike Squad have
decided theyd rather take it all,
The game is played by improvising through scenes together. One player (starting and get rid of any loose ends
with the who most recently killed a man, or if youre feeling more charitable, while theyre at it.
the last player to watch a violent movie) takes the role of the Director in each
scene. Theyre responsible for framing the scene, deciding where and when the it Post-Apocalyptic Settlers vs.
takes place and where the scene starts and end. The role of the Director passes Desert Raiders
clockwise around the table each scene.
Victims: The residents of Black
The scenes are: Fields, desperate settlers.

Meet the meat Aggressors: Giganto

Morgansens Boys, vicious
In the first scene, introduce the Victims. Everyone picks a Victim to play from the motorcycle raiders
communal pool. Give them a reason to be at the location youve chosen, and hint at
the horrors that are to come, but dont commit any actual violence yet against any Location: Black Fields, a walled
of your characters. post-apocalyptic settlement.

No Way Back
In the second scene, something terrible happens that means the situation is going
to go fuck shaped very shortly. Everyone picks a character to play; there must be at
least one member of each team present in this scene. This is the scene where the
Aggressors circle and the Victims wonder how the hell theyre going to get out of
this; things can and should get very tense here, but nobody can die yet.
Violence Ensues
Gloves are off now. The Director starts by drawing a card from the deck. If its a red
The setup: Black Fields has
card, the scene is going to be about the Victims trying to escape. If its a black card,
scrabbled a little something
its going to be about the aggressors trying to kill the Victims. Discard the card.
resembling life together by
Everyone chooses a character to play. The Director must choose a character from refining oil from the black sands
the team that this scene is focussed on - a Victim if a red card was drawn, and an that give the town its name.
Aggressor if a black card was drawn. There must be at least one character from Giganto Morgansens Boys
each team. want it all for themselves. A few
of the residents have decided
All of the characters chosen are in danger of dying. Other characters might be in to fight back with the makeshift
the background of the scene, but they wont be portrayed by one of the players and weapons and vehicles they can
theyre not in danger of death in the scene; you can work them into your narration, piece together.
and you can imperil them, but you cant kill anyone not being actively played.
The Director frames the scene, but also plays a character. All players roleplay Example Characters
through the scene - during which, the Directors character must attempt to kill
one of the opposing team. How you frame this act is up to you - if youre playing Punks vs. Nazis
one of the Aggressors, it can be as simple as viciously trying to murder one of the Victim: Cindy, the tough as nails
Victims; if youre playing one of the Victims you might want to frame it a little more riot-grrrl.
sympathetically at the start - e.g. the Aggressor tries to shoot you, you struggle
with each other, and their gun goes off in the tussle, blowing their own head off Aggressor: Christie, the all-
instead of yours. business Nazi club-owner.
Once youve decided which character youre going to attempt to kill, describe the Bank Robbers vs. Corrupt
moments leading up to the death, but not the death itself - because that might
not happen. Everyone draws one card from the deck, which they keep secret. The
Cops
Director draws one more card from the top of the deck and chooses one of them to Victim: Joe, the nervous first-
play. The player of the character whos being targeted can then play their card. One timer.
of the following happens...
Aggressor: Mac Vickery, the
The targeted character dies cold-blooded squad leader.
If the targeted players card is lower than that of the player trying to kill them, or if
they have no cards left to play, their character dies. The player doing the killing gets
to describe it in all its gory detail.
The targeted character gets away
If the targeted players card is higher than their attackers card, they fight them off
- the triumphant player gets to narrate how they *just* scrabble away - nothings Post Apocalyptic Settlers vs.
heroic in this game, everythings a desperate, last minute knuckle bleeder. You can Desert Raiders
narrate hurting your attacker when getting away, but you cant kill anybody.
Victim: Custodian Incandacia,
If this happens, the role of the Director passes immediately clockwise around the the stoic guardian of the town.
table, and the new Director continues the scene, attempting to kill a member of
the opposite team (which might mean that the targeted team changes). They then Aggressor: Giganto Morgansen,
draw a card from deck, and their target has to play a card to defend themselves, the masked messiah-figure.
and so on, until someone dies.
So much death
Meet the Meat and No Way
If the targeted players card equals the attackers card, *both* the characters die.
Back Examples
They could potentially kill each other accidentally, it could be a bloody, protracted Punks vs. Nazis
fight that neither of them comes out of, or it could be two separate events - one of
the Victims kills an Aggressor, and is standing triumphantly when a sniper blows The punks arrive at the Nazis
their head off. club and antagonise the
skinheads by playing Nazi
Helping your friends avoid murder and/or murder people Punks Fuck Off.
If the targeted player would have either the Targeted player dies or So much After the gig, the band
death result, one of the other players can play their card as well; if its higher than witnesses a murder backstage
the attackers original card, it changes to The targeted player gets away. and are locked in their dressing
Of course, someone from the Attackers team can also do this, changing The room with one of the Nazis at
targeted player gets away to one of the other options by playing a higher card than gunpoint.
the targeted player.
This can go back and forth several times, until nobody else is willing to help, or
all the players have played their card. Whenever helping a member of your team,
narrate how your character does this.
Of course, once youve played your card, youve played your card, so if helping your
friend get away gets you targeted next, youll have nothing to defend yourself with.
Instant death. Nasty. The attacking player should ensure that the description of
your characters death is particularly pitiful.
 Double-crossing bastards
If at any point a player draws one of the two Jokers from the deck, their character
double crosses their team and switches sides. Scribble out their team name and Bank Robbers vs. Corrupt
write in the other team name instead. How this comes about in the roleplay is up to Cops
you. The player immediately discards the Joker and draws another card to act as
their actual card. The thieves successfully pull
off a tense armed robbery and
If the Joker is drawn before the scene starts, when determining which team is head off to meet the cops for
going to be on the attack, whichever character the Director chooses will switch their payoff - but get a message
sides during that scene, before they attempt to kill anyone. saying that the meeting place
Moving on has had to be changed at the
last minute.
Once at least one person has died in a scene, the role of the Director passes
clockwise around the table, and you play through another Violence Ensues scene, When they get there, the thieves
picking a card from the top of the deck to determine which team is the focus of the find that the cops are planning
next scene. Keep playing through scenes like this, reframing a new one each time to murder them and pocket all
somebody dies until... the cash.

Post Apocalyptic Settlers vs.

The Bloodbath
Desert Raiders
When there are a total number of characters from both teams equal to or less than
the number of total players, play through one last climactic scene. The settlers are on a supply
run when they see the raiders
When someone dies, instead of framing a new scene, play continues in the existing attack and kill some victims in
scene. The player of the attacking character draws another card and may attack the distance - but the raiders
again. spot them too.
Play continues until only members of one team remain, covered in the spilled The raiders turn up at the gates
blood of their friends and enemies. Players of surviving characters can narrate an of the settlement the next night
epilogue, or just stand there in shocked silence. and demand the settlers hand
over their oil reserves.

Where this game comes from

VS. is a hack of Bret Gillans The Final Girl. This is a bare bones document,
so itll probably make a lot more sense if youve read and/or played that.
Seriously, its Pay-What-You-Want on drivethrurpg.com, you have literally
no reason not to get one of the funnest games out there.