Game Master's Guide
Everything you need to run Ashfall. Build encounters, generate content, and bring the wasteland to life.
Your First Session
You can be running a game in under 30 minutes. Four steps.
A complete one-shot with everything you need: read-aloud text, NPC motivations, maps, and encounter stats.
Four ready-to-play Level 1 characters with gear, goals, and backstories. Or use the full character creation rules.
3-action economy, attacks, damage, and reactions. You will reference this the most at the table.
Describe the world, ask the players what they do, and roll dice when the outcome is uncertain.
You don't need to memorize anything. The starter scenario tells you what to do, the pregens are ready to go, and the rules are here when you need them. Just describe the world, ask the players what they do, and roll dice when the outcome is uncertain.
The Starter Scenario
A zero-prep one-shot to get your table playing immediately.
The Dead Signal
A pre-war relay station is broadcasting a 60-year-old distress signal. The party investigates — but Iron Wolf scouts got there first. Multiple approaches: fight them head-on, negotiate passage, sneak through the maintenance tunnels, or create a distraction and slip past. The scenario adapts to whatever your players try.
Read the Scenario →How Encounters Work
Enough to build your first encounter. The full system is in Running the Game.
Start with Medium difficulty. Adjust based on how your table handles it. A party of four Level 1 characters has a level sum of 4 — so a Medium encounter has a CR budget of 2.4.
Full encounter building rules →Running the Wasteland
Principles that make Ashfall sessions sing.
Gritty Rests Shape Everything
Short rests take 8 hours. Long rests take a full week. Every fight has consequences that echo for days. Plan your pacing around this economy — it is the engine that drives tension.
Ammo and Supplies Are Currency
Track consumables. When the party counts their last three magazines and their last stim, that is when Ashfall is at its best. Scarcity creates drama without you having to invent it.
The Wasteland Is a Character
Radiation zones, toxic atmospheres, ash storms, dimensional anomalies — the environment is as dangerous as any raider band. Use weather tables and hazards to keep it unpredictable.
Let Factions Move
Between sessions, advance faction goals. The Iron Wolves raid a trade route. Dynaxis opens a new factory. The Ashen Veil pushes deeper into the Voidscars. The world should change whether the players act or not.
Bounded Lethality Means Respect
A max +18 bonus cap means even veteran characters respect a well-armed squad. Do not let players feel invincible — the wasteland punishes overconfidence.
Start Small, Let Players Drive
A single settlement. A few NPCs with conflicting needs. A threat on the horizon. Ashfall shines when the players' choices create the story, not a pre-written script.
Core GM Tools
Your essential resources for session prep and improvisation.
Bestiary
Over 100 creatures across five categories, ready to drop into your sessions.
Mutant Fauna & Flora
Razorbacks, blighthounds, spore colonies, and wasteland predators.
Humanoids & Constructs
Raiders, warlords, rogue synthetics, and military constructs.
Eldritch Horrors & Aliens
Breach-spawn, dimensional entities, and alien species.
Undead & Arcane Beasts
Revenants, ashwalkers, and creatures warped by magic.
Parasites & Apex Predators
Symbiotes, hive organisms, and legendary boss creatures.
Quick Reference
Rules you will look up mid-session. Keep these bookmarked.