When the dead drag themselves out of their graves, the cities are usually one of the first places to be written off. They’re jammed full of people, which means there’s a risk from both the living and the dead, and supplies will run out faster than they might in other places. However, while a lot of folks head for the hills, there are plenty of people who stick it out. Not only that, but there are going to be people who find the wilds aren’t for them, and they’d rather brave the chaos of the concrete jungle.

If your campaign takes your players into a major American city, they might meet some of the following people. Whether they’re friends, antagonists, useful contacts or just background members of a survivor community is largely up to you, and how important you want to make them in your game. So without further ado, let’s meet the folks who’ve managed to survive (and even thrive) in this strange new world!

To use the list, either roll d100 for a random result or select appropriate ones manually.

Here are some sample results:

61. Rebecca “Becky” Tomlinson: A big sister to her mother’s brood, Becky was a terminal babysitter. When the world’s natural balance upended itself she had to get herself, and her half dozen siblings, to somewhere safe. She barely managed it, and found herself becoming the baby wrangler for the community she found herself in. Telling stories, playing games and teaching the little ones new skills, she kept the kids out from under the adults’ feet. It’s been years now, and Becky has become something of a den mother since then… which has made her surprisingly influential within her little community.

62. Stephen Crawford: One of the city’s last real reporters, Stephen lost his hair color several presidents ago. Working the crime beat, he made the public aware of corruption all throughout the city, but the walking dead caught him as off-guard as anyone else. With an unparalleled knowledge of the city streets, construction projects, buried supply caches and more, his encyclopedic mind has been quite a valuable resource for those who’ve stayed on his good side. Despite a bad hip and a nasty smoker’s cough, Stephen has managed to rebuild his network (somewhat), and he seems to always know what’s going on throughout the crumbling hulk of the city.

63. Jamie Erskine: With her shaved head, tattoos and scars, Jamie looks like a post-punk lioness with one hell of a chip on her shoulder. Rough all-around, she ran a crusty little dive that specialized in aggressive tunes, warm beer and violent mosh pits. There were already bars on the windows, heavy locks on the steel doors and thick brick walls, which made this venue a fortress. The place has managed to do fairly well for itself, and over time Jamie and her community have taken over the upper floors, cutting holes in the ceilings and installing ladders and stairs to go up through the various floors so no one has to go outside. She defends her place and her people fiercely, and she’s not above busting kneecaps with the scarred bat she calls Thumper if that’s what it takes to deal with problems.

Released: 15h August 2026 Pages: 23

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