GM Quick Reference - Post-Apocalyptic

👤 Wasteland Survivor Names (d100)

Names and nicknames for wastelanders, raiders, and vault dwellers

1-25

Rusty
Ash
Scrap
Doc Mercer
Rattlesnake Kate
Tinker Tom
Maya "Dust"
Old Man Hendricks
Cricket
Junkyard Jake
Red
Prophet Ezra
Sparks
Luna Ravenscar
Diesel
Mother Salem
Wrench
Caravan Master Chen
Bullet
The Collector
Grease
Sister Abigail
Rads
Marlowe the Trader
Ghost

26-50

Scar
Vault-Tec Vanessa
Machete Mike
Dr. Keller (Pre-War)
Spike
Moira the Scribe
Scorpion
Elder Morrison
Nitro
Cassandra "Cass"
Rivet
Father Domingo
Halflife
Merchant Rosa
Buckshot
The Librarian
Chrome
Mama Hicks
Hazard
Vault 42 Victor
Shiv
Doctor Graves
Fallout Felix
Sarah Songbird
Nuke

51-75

Junker Joe
The Seamstress
Slider
Captain Hayes
Patch
Preacher Mann
Razorwire
Auntie Radiation
Bolt
Mad Dog Marcus
Gauge
Three-Finger Pete
Burnout
Miss Atomic
Circuit
The Wanderer
Cinders
Vault Keeper Knox
Slag
Doctor Payne
Trigger
Grandmother Willow
Isotope Izzy
Clutch
Baron Brass

76-100

Viper
Old World Blues
Gunner
Madame Curie
Shrapnel
The Archivist
Torque
Sister Mercy
Breaker
Caravan Master Wu
Glowstick
Judge Blackwood
Striker
The Surgeon
Rad-Away Ray
Professor Stone
Knuckles
Water Witch Wanda
Cleaver
Elder Ruth
Geiger
Blackjack Betty
Warhead
The Mechanic
Fallout Jones

🗣️ Wasteland Rumors (d20)

What survivors hear in trading posts, settlements, and around campfires

d20	Rumor
1	"Vault 47 opened last week. Dwellers came out speaking a language nobody recognizes. They're trading advanced tech for seeds and soil."
2	"Raider gang hit the northern settlements. But they only took medical supplies and books. Left food, water, and weapons untouched."
3	"Pre-war bunker discovered in the ruins. Military facility. Automated defenses still active. Three scavenger teams went in. None came out."
4	"Mutants in the deadzone are organizing. Building structures. Someone saw them farming. Farming! Like they're planning to stay."
5	"Trader caravan found a working radio tower. Been broadcasting pre-war music for 200 years. Problem is - playlist updated last month."
6	"Clean water spring appeared overnight in the crater. Geiger counter says it's safe. Doc says everyone who drinks it has the same dreams."
7	"Someone's been leaving supply caches in the wasteland. Food, water, ammo. No notes, no demands. Sixth cache this month. Who can afford charity?"
8	"Old world satellite fell from orbit. Crashed east of here. Scavengers say it's still transmitting. To something. Up there."
9	"Settlement to the south claims they cured radiation sickness. Actually cured it. Sharing the cure freely. Too good to be true?"
10	"Ghoul elder says the bombs didn't fall by accident. Says she worked for the government. Before. Says they knew. Says it was planned."
11	"Pre-war grocery store completely intact. Food still good. Not irradiated, not spoiled. Been there 200 years. Physics say that's impossible."
12	"Children in the settlement keep drawing the same symbol. None of them know where they learned it. Symbol matches marking in the old missile silo."
13	"Caravan master swears he saw pre-war aircraft. Flying. Not crashing - actually flying. Says it had lights on. Nobody believes him."
14	"Vault-Tec facility found underground. Experiment logs say Vault 13 was the control group. But there is no Vault 13. Never was."
15	"Raiders offering bounties on specific pre-war tech. Paying in clean water, antibiotics, fuel. Who's backing them? What do they need it for?"
16	"Doctor in Megaton claims she's treating a patient who doesn't age. Been treating them for 40 years. Patient still looks 30. Documentation backs it up."
17	"Scavenger found a working cryopod. Person inside from before the war. Still frozen. Still alive. Vault dwellers want to wake them. What if they shouldn't?"
18	"Radiation storm lasted 13 days. When it cleared, entire settlement was gone. Not destroyed - just gone. Foundations still there. People aren't."
19	"AI in the old military base is still running war simulations. Asks every visitor the same question: 'Has peace been achieved?' Reacts badly to 'no.'"
20	"Cult forming around old ICBM. Worshiping it. Claim it speaks to them. Claim it's not empty. Geiger counter readings support that. Radiation's increasing daily."

🔍 Scavenge Results (d20)

What survivors find in ruins, wrecks, and the wasteland

d20	Item Found
1	Sealed pre-war rations. Still edible. Expiration date was 180 years ago. Tastes terrible but provides full nutrition.
2	Vault-Tec lunchbox containing bottle caps (23), rusted scissors, photo of smiling family. Photo dated day before the bombs.
3	Functional Pip-Boy 2000. Cracked screen but working. Previous owner's data still stored: diary, maps, quest log. Last entry ominous.
4	Military-grade gas mask with 3 filters. One filter unused. Tag inside: "Property of Vault 108 - Security Division."
5	Pre-war medical kit. Stimpaks (2), RadAway (1), Med-X (1). Plus syringe full of unknown substance. Label illegible.
6	Broken robot parts. Salvage value high. But memory core intact. Contains pre-war surveillance footage. Someone died here.
7	Ammunition (2d6 rounds). Wrong caliber for your weapons. Right caliber for weapons you saw raiders using yesterday.
8	Pre-war book. "Wasteland Survival Guide" by Moira Brown. Published 2077. Problem: bombs fell in 2077. Book discusses post-war survival.
9	Nuka-Cola Quantum (3 bottles). Glows blue. Highly radioactive. Also highly valuable. Rumored to have strange effects on ghoul physiology.
10	Holotape labeled "Terminal Password - Red Sector Access." No indication where Red Sector is. Coordinates on back lead to crater.
11	Weapon parts. Enough to repair or improve one weapon. Or combine into something new. Some parts are clearly post-war manufacture.
12	Hazmat suit. Used but functional. Previous owner's name tag: Dr. J. Hendricks. Dog tags in pocket: different name, different person.
13	Box of pre-war cigarettes. 200-year-old tobacco. Extremely valuable to addicts. One cigarette has handwritten note inside: "Check the basement."
14	Geiger counter. Still working. Immediately starts clicking. Rapidly. You've been here five minutes and radiation seems normal. What's it detecting?
15	Pre-war identification. Driver's license, social security card, credit cards. Person in photo looks exactly like someone in your settlement.
16	Fusion core at 23% charge. Enough to power armor for a few hours or settlement lights for a week. Or something else. Your choice.
17	Locked safe (requires lockpicking). Heavy. Definitely something valuable inside. Also definitely trapped. Previous scavenger's skeleton nearby suggests caution.
18	Stealth Boy (1 charge remaining). Pre-war military cloaking device. Works once. Makes you invisible for 5 minutes. Or until you attack. Yours now.
19	Bag of mutated seeds. Unknown crop. Might be edible. Might be poisonous. Might be neither. Vault agricultural logs mention "never plant outdoors."
20	Pristine pre-war flag. Somehow undamaged. Some survivors would pay anything for symbol of old world. Others would burn it and you for having it.

🎭 NPC Personality Quirks (d20)

Quick traits for wastelanders and vault dwellers

d20	Personality Quirk
1	Vault dweller. First time outside. Everything terrifies them. Sky is too big. Horizon goes on forever. Won't stop staring upward.
2	Pre-war ghoul. Remembers "before." Refers to everything as "used to be better." Usually right. Occasionally breaks down crying over parking meters.
3	Radiation cultist. Worships the glow. Seeks out hotspots. Claims radiation gives visions. Disturbingly healthy for someone with that much exposure.
4	Scavenger obsessive. Can't pass ruins without searching. Pockets always full of "useful" junk. Knows exact value of everything. In bottle caps.
5	Brotherhood sympathizer. Hoards technology. Won't share or sell. "Too dangerous for wastelanders." Elitist and probably right to be concerned.
6	Raider reformed. Trying to go straight. Reflexively sizes everyone up as threat or target. Catches themselves. Apologizes. Trying hard.
7	Conspiracy theorist about the war. Thinks they know why bombs fell. Has evidence. Actually compelling evidence. Dangerous knowledge to share.
8	Caravan trader. Knows every route, every settlement. Never stays long. Paranoid about raiders. Checks exits constantly. Missing three fingers.
9	Doctor with pre-war medical training. From vault or cryosleep. Frustrated by lack of proper equipment. "This is Stone Age medicine."
10	Mutant sympathizer. Treats mutants as people. Makes others uncomfortable. "They didn't choose this." Gets defensive. Has lost friends over it.
11	Gun nut. Can identify any weapon by sound. Names their guns. Talks to guns. Guns might talk back. Hard to tell if serious or coping mechanism.
12	Settlement builder. Sees potential everywhere. "We could farm here, build there, defend from that ridge." Exhausting optimism in wasteland.
13	Chem addict. Functional but barely. Hands shake without fix. Knows every dealer for 50 miles. Would do anything for next dose. Anything.
14	Child of the wasteland. Never knew pre-war world. Doesn't understand "nostalgia." This IS normal to them. Disturbing adaptation to horror.
15	Religious zealot. Apocalypse was divine judgment. Seeks meaning in radiation. Quotes scripture mixed with vault-tec manuals. Sincere but unsettling.
16	Ex-slave. Free now but scarred. Collar marks on neck. Flinches at sudden movements. Deadly with makeshift weapons. Never talks about before.
17	Storyteller. Remembers or invents tales of pre-war. Entertaining and possibly lying. Or possibly not. Some details too specific to fake.
18	Mechanic genius. Can fix anything with scrap and time. Covered in grease and radiation burns. "It'll hold." It always does. Somehow.
19	Lone wanderer. Doesn't do groups. Helps people then leaves. No explanations. Mysterious past they refuse to discuss. Skills suggest military training.
20	Institute conspiracy believer. Thinks synths are everywhere. Paranoid about replacements. Tests everyone. Sometimes they're actually right. That's the problem.

⚠️ Wasteland Complications (d12)

When things are going too smoothly, roll for obstacles

d12	Complication
1	Radiation Storm: Geiger counter screaming. Green clouds rolling in. Need shelter now. Exposure means sickness. Maybe worse. No good options nearby.
2	Raider Ambush: They were waiting. Knew you'd come this way. Someone talked. Or someone's tracking you. Either way, surrounded.
3	Equipment Failure: Critical gear breaks. Weapon jams, armor cracks, or water purifier dies. Can be fixed. Need parts you don't have. Time you don't have.
4	Creature Territory: Deathclaw scratches on trees. Or radscorpion burrows. Or worse. You're in something's hunting ground. It knows you're here.
5	Radiation Exposure: Geiger counter spiked. Didn't notice until too late. Accumulating rads. Need RadAway soon. Don't have enough.
6	Supply Shortage: Out of water, food, or ammo. Thought you had more. Calculations wrong or someone's been stealing. Either way, problem.
7	Rival Scavengers: Someone else found this place. Got here first. Not willing to share. Armed. Desperate. You are too.
8	Contaminated Resources: Water source is irradiated. Food supply spoiled. Medicine expired dangerously. Discovered only after using some. Effects pending.
9	Settlement Needs You: Radio call. Emergency back home. Need to return immediately. But mission here time-sensitive. Can't do both.
10	Old Enemy: Someone from your past. Vault exile, former raider buddy, or person you wronged. They remember. They're not happy. They're armed.
11	Trap Triggered: Mine, tripwire, or worse. Pre-war security still active. Or raiders set it recently. Either way, incoming. Seconds to react.
12	Chem Withdrawal: Someone in party addicted. Out of supply. Withdrawal starting. Combat effectiveness dropping. Judgment impaired. Need fix or need to wait it out. Both dangerous.

🎲 GM Quick Reference