Are there free basic rules somewhere? I couldn't find any with a search.
I may have gotten the wrong impression with this game.
Thanks for all the different recommendations, folks.
No. But here's the nutshell
standard 4-attributes for YZE.
Attributes rated by die-size (d6/d8/d10/d12), skills by die size (no-die/d6/d8/d10/d12)
Difficulties adjust size of dice: Harder lower the dice; easier increase the die size. Skilled actions never drop below 2d6.
A 6, 7, 8, or 9 on a die is 1 success; a 10, 11, or 12 is two.
A fumble is both dice on 1.
Initiative and Action economy is typical YZE: one major and one minor action, and can do a second minor by forfeiting your major.. Initiative is by cards; you can reserve your actions for reactions.
Hit Points are based upon average of the two physical atts, Stress points by average of the two mental atts.
Hit locations are needed only for armor and crits.
As is standard for YZE, a critical is generated either by enough extra successes upon or by zeroing out the HP. Stress has a similar system for mental issues.
The random encounter system is based upon the card deck, and it does correlate to the standard bridge/poker decks. The full text of them is in the GM's book (within the boxed set).
Movement is hex-based outdoors, room/zone indoors (30m hexes...)
Autofire uses extra d6's.
Ammo is slightly abstracted.
Combat is brutal... survival includes water and food needs, and good hunting, fishing, and foraging rules.
The custom dice are nice, but totally non-essential (still, I bought several sets...).
The cards... you can use a standard deck, but it means drawing the card, then looking it up in the GM's book.
If one is familiar with other Year Zero Engine games, the big difference is the step dice instead of a larger pool of d6's.
Character gen can be the typical YZE "Pick a template, distribute some levels"... or it can use the Travelleresque lifepath minigame. I had players who asked for the minigame, and others who wanted the templates; there were very few integration issues.
(Note: Older T2K – 2.0 and 2.2 – are indirectly derived from Classic Traveller via the Traveller:2300/2300AD game. Lifepath is a minigame there, too.)
