This is something that I was working on during a discussion of late war demographics.
https://forum.juhlin.com/showthread....t=demographics
I'm not sure how interesting these are, but here they are.
The Country Veterinarian
This itinerant vet serviced a couple of Polish farming collectives before the war. Although she has no formal training in medicine for humans, many of her veterinary skills can still be applied to treating people- she can set a broken bone, deliver a baby, and perform minor surgery, for example.
Club Foot
One of very few military-aged male in the village, and the only one who hasn’t served in the armed forces. Aside from limited mobility (he walks with a pronounced limp), this young man is physically capable, and very intelligent.
The Wounded Warrior
Former Polish army AFV crewman, now blind, both eyes destroyed in battle. Battles PTSD and depression. He can offer mechanical advice (can help PCs on skill rolls) and, with time, could perform simple tasks by feel.
The Deserters (3 Variants)
1.
The Coward: he deserted because he’s afraid of being maimed or killed. Still pretty much useless in a fight.
2.
The Idealist: Opposes the war- war in general, really. Refuses to fight, but willing to provide assistance of non-lethal nature.
3.
The Secret Keeper: Served in the hated ZOMO paramilitary riot police- routinely used violence against unarmed protestors prior to the war; hunted partisans during; deserted when the rest of his small unit was wiped out during the last NATO offensive in the area. When he sought shelter in the village, he lied that he was a lowly motor rifleman; he’d likely become the village pariah if anyone found out the truth about him.
The Aspiring Teacher
Although she’s received no formal pedagogical training, this 18-year-old young woman uses her own limited education to do her best to teach the few village children basic reading, writing, and arithmetic skills. She also speaks some English.
The Broken Woman
Nothing particularly horrible happened to her- nothing that hadn’t happened to many others- but something about the war broke her psyche. She carries around a doll and interacts with it as though it’s her real child who was, in reality, a casualty of the war.
The Great Patriotic War Vet
An elderly man who fought with one of the Soviets’ Polish formations in the last world war, growing to loathe the USSR in the bargain. Can offer general tactical advice and insight into the Soviet military mind. Can also handle a bolt-action rifle quite well, but is slow-moving.
The POW
This [insert appropriate nationality] soldier was captured earlier in the war and subsequently loaned out to a local collective farm as manual labor. He escaped in the confusion of nearby heavy combat and found his way to the village. He’s managed to earn the villagers’ trust and has been “adopted” as one of their own.
The City Mice
A middle-aged refugee family from a nearby city. Father was a government accountant before the war, but cooking the books is a skill that’s not particularly useful in today’s world. Mother was a secretary. Their two children, a girl and a boy, now teenagers, were students. They all try to earn their keep on the farm but usually end up getting in the way more than helping.
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