Zombie Template

[Flyndaran]

Originally Posted by Alonsua

It is p.58 from Zombies by Sean Punch.

Interesting. That means most apes, a few monkeys, cetaceans, and many birds at least don't have Bestial in Gurps terms.

[Alonsua]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

Interesting. That means most apes, a few monkeys, cetaceans, and many birds at least don't have Bestial in Gurps terms.

I just checked Campaigns on this, and it seems like no current animal got it, which is weird xD

[Flyndaran]

Campaign's very "sparse" on Animal write up material even for stuff in the Basic.
I often forget it's even there at all and just create my own versions.
It's not like everyone agrees on how strong, smart, or healthy real humans are let alone variable sizes of crocodile, or hawk.

[Alonsua]

Originally Posted by Flyndaran

Campaign's very "sparse" on Animal write up material even for stuff in the Basic.
I often forget it's even there at all and just create my own versions.
It's not like everyone agrees on how strong, smart, or healthy real humans are let alone variable sizes of crocodile, or hawk.

Have you got a list of animal templates, or something like a collection? I would be pleased to look further into your conclussions with specific examples :)

[Alonsua]

Originally Posted by ericthered

Ok, so are you embracing "this is a movie zombie", or are you trying to embrace "super soldier with zombie-like features"? It seems that you're stuck somewhere between the two and the template suffers for it.

Having both Numb and sensory upgrades is weird. Why did they improve all senses except for touch?

No sense of humor feels out of place once you have uncontrollable appetite, low empathy, and Bestial.

Cannot speak and Disturbing voice are an odd combination.

For No Sense of Humor I just found it at p. 58 in Zombies :S

[GreatWyrmGold]

Originally Posted by Alonsua

By the reading: "When it sees someone it wants to eat (in whole or in part), it must make a self-control roll or attack."
I thought it would fit their predisposition to eating, since their requirement to eat more would translate into more preys needing to be hunted down in order to satisfy their hunger.

Is their desire to eat human flesh motivated in need (they need to eat several meals a day, and can only eat humans, so...sorry) or want (they just want to eat humans, and may do so even if they aren't hungry)? The two have drastically different implications on how the zombies behave. For instance, the former would save spare meat for later, wouldn't attack when not hungry, and might try to find some kind of substitute for human flesh (especially when suffering from a glimpse of clarity). The latter would just gorge itself on human flesh when available, eat normal food when not, and might try to sequester itself away from humanity when in the grasp of clarity.

As for building their own society, I thought Bestial would prevent them to use skills such as Agriculture, so they would need to survive on a hunter/nomad basis, was I wrong?

Nomadic hunter-gatherer societies are still societies. They certainly act differently than your stereotypical gaggle of zombies who happen to be hunting in roughly the same place!
Of course, if you want them to be less organized and more mob-ey, there are ways to do so. Bad Temper combined with the Berserk they already have would cause arguments to easily erupt into combat, for instance. Individuals would still use more tactics and forethought than your stereotypical zombie, and would hold grudges (possibly even against other zombies), but they wouldn't coordinate in large groups.

The original development was intended to be an injectable non-contagious virus capable of overall improving physical and mental abilities, and it was being tested in both human and animals :)

So, basically what happened, except without impeding the user's sanity or hygiene? And not contagious? I can suspend my disbelief for that.

[Alonsua]

Originally Posted by GreatWyrmGold

Is their desire to eat human flesh motivated in need (they need to eat several meals a day, and can only eat humans, so...sorry) or want (they just want to eat humans, and may do so even if they aren't hungry)? The two have drastically different implications on how the zombies behave. For instance, the former would save spare meat for later, wouldn't attack when not hungry, and might try to find some kind of substitute for human flesh (especially when suffering from a glimpse of clarity). The latter would just gorge itself on human flesh when available, eat normal food when not, and might try to sequester itself away from humanity when in the grasp of clarity.


Nomadic hunter-gatherer societies are still societies. They certainly act differently than your stereotypical gaggle of zombies who happen to be hunting in roughly the same place!
Of course, if you want them to be less organized and more mob-ey, there are ways to do so. Bad Temper combined with the Berserk they already have would cause arguments to easily erupt into combat, for instance. Individuals would still use more tactics and forethought than your stereotypical zombie, and would hold grudges (possibly even against other zombies), but they wouldn't coordinate in large groups.


So, basically what happened, except without impeding the user's sanity or hygiene? And not contagious? I can suspend my disbelief for that.

This gave me some thought because I did not consider that they could try to commit suicide while "Glimpses of Clarity" switches on, and I just let No Humor Sense go in exchange for a Flashback level of "Glimpses of Clarity" with -2, 2d seconds. It really seems like a very interesting proposition though. Would I prefer to sequester myself away from humanity if I had been a crazy cannibal for months and I get half a minute of "human level" self-awareness or keep living like one? Makes for several dramatic scenes if combined with Compulsive Generosity or some forms of Sense of Duty for sure.

As for the former, they need to eat several times a day, and though they can keep a human diet, I want them to have clear carnivore tendencies (so they prefer meat) and quite of a hunting instinct. They would also be territorial, which is the reason for them to roll Berserk on sight of any living and non-infected being, but if they are not hungry and you dont enter their territory you may actually make out alive. I would also be fine with them developing a colony, or something like that, just as many apes naturally do.

I also considered giving them Bad Temper, but for some reason p. 65 on Zombies says that "Uncontrollable Appetite overlaps Bad Temper and
Bloodlust, so it’s best to pick just one", which is why I put Bad Temper out of the equation, but I am actually considering giving it an in :)

[AlexanderHowl]

Bad Temper and Berserk would probably explain the behavior of a 'realistic' zombie, with the self-control number dropping as the condition progresses, while Odious Personal Habit (Cannibal) would fit the desire for human flesh.

[Alonsua]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

Bad Temper and Berserk would probably explain the behavior of a 'realistic' zombie, with the self-control number dropping as the condition progresses, while Odious Personal Habit (Cannibal) would fit the desire for human flesh.

I think so, but unfortunately and for some unknown reason p. 65 on Zombies states that "Uncontrollable Appetite overlaps Bad Temper and Bloodlust, so it’s best to pick just one". Probably that makes for somehow a "more civilized" zombie though, as soon as Berserk or Uncontrollable Appetite do not switch on xD

[Alonsua]

Originally Posted by AlexanderHowl

Bad Temper and Berserk would probably explain the behavior of a 'realistic' zombie, with the self-control number dropping as the condition progresses, while Odious Personal Habit (Cannibal) would fit the desire for human flesh.

Proceeded to add Bad Temper (12) at phase 2 and "Bad Temper (12) switches to Berserk (Vicious)" at phase 3, thank you :)