Typical Zombies

Strength
6x
Agility
1x
Intellect
1x
Willpower
2x

Hand Size:
Edge:
2 (10)
0

Powers:

Agelessness (s): being physically dead, zombies lack a metabolism to speak of. As such, they do not age whatsoever. If carefully maintained, a zombie can last indefinitely for labor or other uses; they do not age, even if they can be destroyed by conventional means.

Body Armor (s): zombies are surprisingly tough, despite often looking like they're being held together by the tiniest of threads. They enjoy their Strength +2 protection against all physical attacks that do not strike them in the head; other damage forms affect them normally.

Life Support (s): no longer amongst the living, zombies do not need to eat, drink, breathe or sleep. While they may find themselves immobile for vast stretches of time, zombies are never 'unconscious', and always alert and aware (after a fashion; intensity 15).

Resistance to Cold and Pressure Variance (s): as a walking corpse, a zombie need not worry about the rigors of extreme cold or pressure on their bodies. Possessing this power at +10, a zombie can maneuver in the depths of the sea or in interstellar space equally well.

Equipment:

Usually none. Most zombies cannot operate equipment, much less hold it. However, useful items can be strapped (or nailed) onto a zombie, or even taped into its hands. Using such 'modifications' is another matter however, as the zombie must figure out how (average difficulty Intellect action).

Hindrances:

Curse of the Zombie: all zombies may transform living humans into more of their kind upon biting them. Upon being bitten, one must pass a challenging difficulty Strength action or be afflicted by the mechanism that causes zombification, all of which progress in a like manner.

Once afflicted, the victim must pass an average difficulty Strength action each hour or lose a card of health. Some time after the victim dies from this health loss, they'll rise again as a zombie, assuming the powers and statistics listed above (exceptional abilities may alter this some).

Inert Metabolism: the problem with zombies, as far as a long term existence is concerned, is that they have no metabolism. Since their body is 'just there', with most of it slowly decomposing, zombies lack the abilities that come with a metabolism - like healing.

In other words, once a zombie takes damage, it will not recover from it. Ever. Bits that are chopped off become inanimate again, and will not grow back on their own. However, as long as none of the damage taken is to the brain, a zombie can persist indefinitely, even at only 1 Hpt.

Monstrous: zombies are icky! Depending on how 'fresh' they are, some zombies won't actually have this hindrance, at least on sight; of course, once a zombie attacks, it will immediately come into play for the duration of the encounter.

Of course, once a zombie shows obvious signs of being undead (like missing body parts, otherwise lethal wounds that won't heal, etc), the zombie is at Willpower 0 to prevent Edge 0 humans and other like entities from fleeing them on sight - not that they normally try...

Skills:

Usually none. Zombies of truly exceptional people may exhibit some trace of a skill they had in their original life, however. Typically those talents that come through are physical in nature, but not always; of course, not too many people would employ a functionally skilled zombie regardless...

Calling:

Soldier: zombies under the control of someone (such as a necromancer or the like) have this calling. They have no motive or agenda, and will do what they are asked without question. Free-range zombies with no master, on the other hand, should be considered Demolishers.

Variant Zombies

For the most part, the creatures described above will be those which you will encounter on adventures or investigations into the bizarre. However, as many and varied as the sources of zombification can be, sometimes zombies will appear with different capabilities entirely.

One type of zombie variant is that which can move much, much faster than the shambling norm. These zombies should have an Agility score of 3 instead of 1. This accounts for their ability to maneuver at higher speeds (and they can sprint like a marathon runner).

Another is that which seems to harbor a much higher intellect than its normal fellows. These have an Intellect score of 3 instead of 1. While still sluggish from being dead, these zombies can think quite effectively - and worse, they can plan.

A rare form of zombie actually combines these two traits to present a truly terrifying foe - particularly in large numbers. These can often overrun an entire society in no time, causing a complete collapse of such frighteningly fast... and thus must be eliminated quickly.

Extra Goodies:

Typical Zombies Saga Text File Download

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