Survival

Argumentum survival · mixed

Your own existence – or that of your group – is immediately threatened: cold, hunger, enemies, illness, catastrophe. Death approaches; every decision could be the last.

Design question – What threatens your characters’ survival – and what sacrifices does getting through demand?

Reference example – Minecraft (Survival mode): “The first night is coming – by then you need a shelter.” Dead of Winter: “A colony in the zombie winter – supplies, cold and mistrust.”

Compatible with

• Three-Act Structure (NA-01) – Crisis → adaptation → stabilization or failure.
• Iterative Narrative (NA-12) – Repeated survival attempts with knowledge gain.
• Cyclical Structure (NA-07) – Day-night cycles, seasons.

Tension with

• Rescue (AR-01) – Distinction: getting others through vs. getting oneself through.