This involves a group of high school kids getting past the crowds of zombies and into the safety of a shopping mall. Obviously this is a modern setting but it could just as easily be a beleaguered keep or even just a fortified homestead. Flavor text is always the DM’s pervue of course.
Anyway pasting it here en masse so I don’t have to go looking if I want to use these ideas.
You can find the original thread here.
Updated version:
Skill Challenge: Getting into the Mall
Complexity: 5 (12 successes before 3 failures)
Primary Skills: Acrobatics, Athletics, Diplomacy, Bluff, Stealth, Streetwise
Other Skills: Perception
Victory: The PCs manage to make their way into the mall, without the zombies getting in.
Defeat: The PCs are caught in the full force of the horde and a combat encounter begins immediately.
Acrobatics: Moderate DC (1 Success, no maximum)
The character manages to weave, dodge, or maneuver through the zombies.
Failure: The PC is caught in the middle of the zombies, and they hold him back. He loses one healing surge as they tear at him. Mark a failure.
Knowledge Skills (Arcana/Dungeoneering/Nature/Insight/Religion): Moderate DC DC (0 Sucesses, but provides +2 to next skill check by any PC, failure gives -2 to next skill check)
Your knowledge of Zombie Movies (Arcana), the mall’s inner workings (Dungeoneering), places of natural camouflage (Nature), insight into the zombie’s senses (Insight), and power of faith (religion) allows you to give assist the others on what you should or should not do against zombies.
Failure: -2 to next skill check. You have no clue what you are talking about.
Athletics: Moderate DC (1 Success, no maximum)
The character barrels through the zombies, getting closer to the doors.
Failure: The PC is caught by the zombies, and they tear at him. Lose one healing surge. Mark a Failure.
Bluff: Hard DC (1 Success, no maximum, Gives -2 to next diplomacy check)
The character pretends to be a zombie, and successfully moves forward through them.
Failure: The PC does not fool the zombies. They surge around him, forcing one of the other checks. Once a bluff is failed, that PC cannot attempt this again.
Diplomacy: Hard DC (1 Success, 3 maximum, Gives -2 to next Bluff Check)
The character convinces the NPCs in the mall to help them. The NPCs will begin attacking zombies to distract them and opening the barricades. Success allows for the following options: +2 to any skill check, a reattempt on Bluff/Stealth, or negate the loss of a healing surge when using Acrobatics/Athletics.
Failure: Mark a Failure.
Perception: Easy DC (0 Sucesses, but provides +2 to next skill check by any PC, failure gives -2 to next skill check)
The character notices a path that is clear, which zombies are distracted, or if zombies are hiding where they are going.
Stealth: Moderate DC (1 Success, no maximum) +2 check if another pc failed Athletics/Acrobatics check.
The character evades notice and sneaks to the entrances of the mall.
Failure: The PC is spotted and zombies surge towards him. This forces him to use another skills. Once a stealth check is failed, that PC cannot use this skill again.
Streetwise: Hard DC (1 Success, no maximum)
Using his knowledge of the mall, the pc finds a path closer to the mall without being noticed by the zombies.
Failure: Mark a failure. Took a wrong turn, zombies!
Thievery: Hard DC (1 Success, Maximum 3)
You assist with finding a way through the barricades.
Failure: Mark a failure. You think you know what you’re doing, but the truth is you should just be hammering on the door. The zombies close in.
And there’s another option although this one would be a little more difficult to fantasize but still well worth looking at for ideas.
Destroying the Mall
You must drive the propane truck into the garage, next to the boiler room, without stalling out or getting overwhelmed by zombies.
There are three parts to the challenge.
1) You must get the truck running, sneak and repair the truck or defend the truck while repair it.
2) Drive the truck to the Garage, while the zombies try to overwhelm it and crash it. Defend, Assist, or Drive.
3) The security gate to the Garage is locked. You either have to open the gate or crash through it. Opening the gate without destroying it allows you to close it behind you.
Part 1-Fixing the truck.
4 successes before 3 failures.
Victory: You get the truck started and begin driving towards the sublevel parking garage. Defeat: Combat Encounter starts. Zombies surge the truck and try to force their way through barricades.
Skills: Stealth and Thievery.
Stealth: Moderate DC (1 Success, Max 2)
You hide, keeping the zombies from noticing you in the truck.
Failure: Mark a failure. You are noticed by a zombie, he has not been noticed by others yet.
Thievery: Hard DC (1 Success, Max 3)
Failure: Mark a failure. You fail to get the truck started, but it makes noise. Zombies begin to file closer to the truck.
Creative uses of other skills can add to these checks. If combat breaks out, the zombies will attack. To get the truck started, you must succeed at the thievery checks.
Part 2- Driving the Truck
Complexity 4: 10 successes before 3 failures.
Victory: The truck makes it to security parking gate.
Failure: Truck crashes. Have to leave it behind and fight the big boss without a big propane bomb.
The way this challenge will play is that you have choice to drive, assist, or fighting the horde.
Driving: Hard Difficulty-Any skill or stat can be used with a descriptor, but repeated use of the same skill drives up DC +1. These checks are only ones that can give Successes for Victory
Assistance: Easy Difficulty- Gives +2 to next driving check. Failure gives -2 to next check. Repeated use of same skill gives +1 DC.
Fighting the Horde: Whenever there is a failure on the driving test, a zombie climbs up on the truck. When the third zombie gets on the truck, it crashes. If you choose to fight, make an attack (any attack power or basic attack), if you are successful, the zombie is knocked off the truck and a failure is removed. If you miss, you miss. Encounter powers gain a +1 to attack roll. Daily powers gain a +3 attack.
Part 3- Opening the gate
Complexity: 4 successes before 3 failures
Victory: Gate is opened for truck, but closed before zombies get in.
Defeat: You cannot get the gate open. Your options are to crash the truck through or climb through to fight big bad without propane bomb.
Before this challenge begins, assuming the pc’s still have the truck, they can simply choose to drive the truck through the gate. Make a +8 vs AC attack on each person in truck, for 2d8+3 damage. The downside is that the zombies will follow them into the garage, making escape difficult.
Skills: Thievery, Athletics, both Hard DCs. Do not increase DC for repeated use.
Other skills can assist, giving +2/-2 per normal. +1 dc for using same skill repeatedly.
While this challenge is ongoing, a combat encounter is going on. A skill check for the challenge takes a standard action.
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