Breathless Survival;Horror;Rules Lite;Low Prep;Quick-Play
At-a-glance: Survival Horror • Polyhedral dice (d4-d12) with degradation • 2-5 + GM • Low prep • Rules-lite • 2-4h sessions
Theme and Setting
The city has been sealed off from the outside world, trapping survivors inside with hordes of "Crawlers"—zombies driven by insatiable hunger. You are surrounded by strangers in a crumbling urban landscape where ammunition dwindles, weapons break, and every breath could be your last. The setting draws from zombie media like Shaun of the Dead, Left 4 Dead, and The Last of Us, emphasizing desperate survival over heroic action. There is no rescue coming, no cure on the horizon—only the relentless pressure to survive another day.
Core Mechanics and Rules
Breathless centers on a dice degradation system: skills and items are assigned die ratings from d4 to d12. When you use a skill or item, you roll that die hoping for a 4+ to succeed—then the die degrades to the next step down (d12 → d10 → d8 → d6 → d4 → exhausted). This creates an economy of diminishing returns where your best tools and abilities wear out exactly when you need them most.
The "Catch Your Breath" mechanic allows recovery during quiet moments, but at a cost—accepting a narrative complication in exchange for restoring dice. Stunts let you push for extra success by accepting stress. The backpack system tracks scavenged gear with limited slots, and loot tables provide randomized weapons, locations, complications, and missions. Combat is deadly and to be avoided; the focus stays on tension, resource management, and knowing when to run.
What Makes It Unique
Breathless distills survival horror into a printable half-fold brochure containing everything needed to play—rules, setting, tables, and character sheet. The degradation mechanic elegantly models exhaustion and equipment wear without complex tracking. The entire system creates natural pacing: tense action sequences where dice dwindle, followed by desperate moments of recovery where complications emerge.
The game spawned over 250 derivative works through its open SRD, making it a significant touchstone in the rules-lite movement. Its format philosophy—inspired by 2400's minimal page count—prioritizes accessibility and immediate play over comprehensive rules. You can learn the system in minutes, teach it in seconds, and be playing within moments of printing.
Target Audience and Player Experience
Ideal for groups seeking pickup-and-play horror without prep overhead. Fans of zombie media, survival video games, and tense resource-management scenarios will feel immediately at home. The brochure format makes it perfect for convention games, spontaneous sessions, or introducing newcomers to TTRPGs. Not suited for players seeking character advancement, tactical combat depth, or campaign-length arcs—Breathless shines as a focused one-shot experience where survival is always uncertain and often brief.
