International Politics and Zombies Game Overview This is a fast-paced game to explore the interaction between Realism, Liberalism, and Constructivism in a simulated zombie outbreak. There are five states that must attempt to coordinate to head off the threat. Within each state are four players, each of whom represents one of the three IR theories. Each theory has it’s own win conditions, so players on the same state may not always agree with one another on the best course of action.

Survival A necessary prerequisite for all players is to survive. A player survives if their state contains at least one non-infected square of territory by the end of the game.

The Board The game is played on an 8x8 grid. States occupy squares on the grid, while zombies occupy the lines of the grid.

States There are five states: Red, Blue, Green, Orange, and Brown. Each state occupies territory along the perimeter squares of the game board. At the beginning for the game, Red occupies 3 squares; Blue, Green, and Orange each occupy 2 squares; and Brown occupies just 1 square. A state’s territory may expand or contract, but it must only occupy contiguous territory along along the perimeter of the board.

Units Each state receives one unit for each square within its territory. Units can be deployed to attempt various actions. Regardless of success or failure, all units are dissolved at the end of each turn. States begin the next turn with new units based on the size of their territory.

Zombies The zombies are mindless brain eaters. The do not negotiate. They do not deviate. The zombies begin the game in the center intersection of the board. An intersection or line that is occupied by zombies is infected. Each turn, the zombies will spread outward along each of the lines connected to any and all infected intersections.

At this stage of the outbreak, there is no cure, and international forces have not devised an effective strategy to reduce the numbers of zombies. Direct combat with the zombies leads to two new zombies for every one zombie that is taken down. You cannot defeat the zombies; you can only hope to contain them. If one of a state’s border lines is infected by zombies, then that entire square is considered infected. It is still considered the territory of the state, but it does not produce units. This occurs only if a line is infected, a single corner intersection is not considered an infection.

Actions Each turn, states receive units based on the number of squares they occupy, and they can deploy their units to any square on the board. Only one unit at a time can occupy a square. At the end of the turn all units are dissolved. Units can take one of five actions: 1. Contain: Deploy a unit to a square adjacent to a zombie-occupied intersection in order to prevent the zombies from spreading along the bordering infection vectors. The unit rolls a 1d6. A roll of 3 or higher results in success. A roll of 1 or 2 results in a failure. In order to stop the zombies from spreading along a line, a unit in each of the bordering squares must successfully contain. Example: The zombies begin the game occupying a single intersection at the center of the board. If uncontained, they will spread along the lines north, south, east and west of that intersection. Red deploys a unit to the northwest square. Blue deploys a unit to the northeast square. Brown deployed a unit to the southeast square. No one deploys a unit to the southwest square (not a recommended strategy). Assume that Red (northwest) and Blue (northeast) both roll a 3 or higher. The zombies are prevented from expanding along the northern line, because units have successfully contained on both sides of the line. However, assume that Brown (southeast) rolls a 2. Even though Blue (northeast) was successful, the zombies will still be able to spread along the eastern line. Since no one attempted to contain in the southwest, the zombies will automatically spread along the southern and western line. 2. Expand: Deploy a unit to a square adjacent to your own territory to attempt to increase your state’s territory. The unit rolls a 1d6. A roll of 4 or higher results in success. A roll of 3 or lower results in failure. If successful, the square is occupied and added to the territory of the state. That state will receive an additional unit in the next turn. Note that expansion can occur only in adjacent squares, so a

state may only attempt up to expand up to two squares (one on each side) in a single turn. States may “turn the corner” and continue expanding along the perimeter of the board. 3. Attack: Deploy a unit to a square in the territory of another state in order to attack. The square need not be adjacent to the attacking state’s territory. If there are no defending units in the territory then the attack is automatically successful. If there are defending units in the territory, then each state rolls 1d6 per unit in the territory and the highest total wins. In the event of a tie, the defending state wins. If a state successfully attacks another state, then the defending state loses a square from one end of its territory (the attacking state may choose which end). If a state attacks and fails, there is no change. If the attacking state and the defending state share a border, then a successful attacker can also choose to annex the territory. NOTE: IF A STATE HAS ONLY ONE SQUARE OF TERRITORY, THEN BOTH THE ATTACKING AND THE DEFENDING UNITS CAN OCCUPY THE SAME SQUARE.

4. Defend: Deploy a unit within your state’s territory to defend against other state’s attacks. A defending unit can defend every square in its territory, not just the square it occupies. The attacker, on the other hand, must target an open square. Note that a defender could use this to their advantage by leaving multiple units to defend, which in turn limits the available squares for an attacker to target. In theory, a state could leave all of its units in defense and no one else could attack it. 5. Support: Deploy a unit on behalf of another state. This unit can expand, attack, or defend, but any benefits of the action will accrue to the supported state. The state sending the support chooses both which the square to which the unit will deploy and the action it will take. The receiving state is not permitted to override that decision or refuse the support. A state may even deploy a unit into another state’s territory for purposes of defense, but that is the only action that it could take there. Support is a good way to lend assistance to allies who are outmatched or to otherwise attempt to maintain a balance of power. Example: Red supports Brown by attacking Blue. Brown cannot decline the support, even if it disagrees with the action. In the even that Red ’s attack is successful, then Blue would be reduced by one square and Brown would be increased by one square. Red would remain unchanged, since the action was in support of Brown.

Decisions In order for a state to deploy a unit, at least two players must agree on the action. If two players agree and there is no opposition from within the state, then the action will be taken. If a player disagrees with an action, then the majority will prevail. If two players agree on an action, and the other two players agree on a different action for a unit, then each side roles 1d6 and the higher number prevails. In case of tie, re-roll. Example 1: Two players agree on an action, one player disagrees, and one player abstains. The action supported by the two players will be taken.

Example 2: Two players agree on an action, two players disagree. The two sides role 1d6 to determine which action is taken. Example 3: All four players prefer different actions, and no two players agree. No action is taken.

Players There are four players in each state. Each player is assigned a theory of international relations, and the scoring for each player is based upon their assigned theory. Players may not switch theories. Players may reveal their theories to other players if they wish, but it is not required. The only exception is for Constructivists, as discussed below. The theories and scoring rules are as follows: 6. Realist: You are concerned with your state’s power relative to other states. At the end of the game, you receive 2 points for each square of your territory that is larger relative to each other state. If your state is smaller than another state, then you can receive negative points. Example: At the beginning of the game, a Realist in Red State would have 10 points: 2 x [(3-2)+(3-2)+(3-2)+(3-1)]. A Realist in Orange State would have 0 points: 2 x [(2-3)+(2-2)+(2-2)+(2-2)+(2-1)]. 7. Liberal: You are concerned with your state’s absolute power and the integrity of the international system. At the end of the game, receive 1 point for every square of area that your state occupies, 1/2 points for every square that another state occupies, and 2 points for every state that remains zombie free. Example: At the beginning of the game, a Liberal in Red State would have 16.5 points: 3 + [(3+2+2+2+1)/2) + (2 x 5). A liberal in Brown State would have 14.5 points: 1 + [(3+2+2+2+1)/2) + (2 x 5). 8. Constructivist: Begin the game with 26 points. Lose 1 point for every square that the zombies occupy. Example: At the beginning of the game, a Constructivist in any state would have 25 points (26-1). Special: Players with the Constructivist role have one additional ability. In each round, any constructivist player can rise to their feet and attempt to sway world opinion for or against an action. To do so, they must offer a normative justification for their position. If I determine that the justification is supported, then the player can add 1 or subtract 1 (depending on the argument) from a dice roll. Multiple Constructivist players can join in to support or oppose any roll, but players may not repeat the same arguments. All players must state their positions prior to the roll. NOTE: CONSTRUCTIVISTS CAN USE THIS ABILITY ON ANY DICE ROLL, INCLUDING THOSE USED TO RESOLVE INTERNAL STATE DISAGREEMENTS ABOUT ORDERS. THEY MAY EVEN USE IT TO INFLUENCE DICE ROLLS TO RESOLVE INTERNAL STATE DISAGREEMENTS IN

ANOTHER STATE, BUT THEY MUST SUPPORT THEIR INFLUENCE WITH A NORMATIVE JUSTIFICATION FOR DOING SO.

Rounds Each round lasts 15 minutes and is divided into 5 stages of 3 minutes each. Play proceeds as follows: 1. Discussion: Players may discuss within their state or with players in other states to work out strategies, etc. 2. Decision: Players within the state decide on their actions and write down the orders for their units on a slip of paper to pass to the instructor. In the event of a disagreement that must be decided by the dice, then each side prepares a slip of paper and the instructor will only accept the winning side’s orders. Any constructivist who wishes to influence the results of a disagreement must do so before the dice are rolled. 3. Deployment: Once all orders are received I will deploy the units accordingly on the game board. 4. Resolution: Any required dice rolls are conducted. Any constructivist who wishes to influence the results of a disagreement must do so before the dice are rolled. 5. Adjustment: Any spread of zombies or realignment of territory is carried out, and units are adjusted accordingly for the next round.

Conclusion The game ends when I say it does. At that point, anyone whose state has been eliminated automatically loses. All remaining players will tally their points according to the scoring rules of their theory. The highest point total wins. Extra credit points may be awarded based on final scores. NOTE: PLAYERS WHOSE STATE IS ELIMINATED BEFORE I DECLARE THE GAME OVER WILL BE ASSIGNED THE ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL REPORTER. THEIR JOB IS TO MAKE A RECORD OF THE GAME AND WRITE IT UP AS A NEWS REPORT BEFORE THE END OF CLASS.

Presumably, if states have made it this far, they just might have bought enough time to develop better strategies to actually push the zombies back in future encounters.