Building a better zombie

[Dangerious P. Cats]

I've had problems with players not being scared of zombies. This means that I'm looking for fun ways to make zombies more threatening. I'm not a fan of the whole have differnt zomebies with wierd mutations in the Left 4 Dead style, I find it only works in video games and even then only as a game mechanic. What make zombies something to be scared of? How can one make them more powerful without losing the essence of being zombies?

[Nymdok]

Well that depends on what you think the essence of bieing zombies is.

The Horror did a good job of defning things by the fear that they were attached to. In modern zombie movies, Id say you could probably break it down to fears of

Infection
Loss of Identity
Isolation/Abandonment

Note here that we make no differentiation between zombie and ghoul as those definitions sometimes blurr.

For infection, its the fear of necrotizing disease. Make zombies plague monsters that erupt into infectious clouds. They attack with claws and bites.

Loss of Identity - For this one, playing up the fear of becoming a mental zombie is the real fear. Give the zombies vacant stares and blank expressions.

Isolation/Abandonment - Gotta make the adventurers feel like its them versus the shambling hordes. Attack with huge swarms that will grapple en masse and rend the players to bits.

Nymdok

[David Johnston2]

Originally Posted by Dangerious P. Cats

I've had problems with players not being scared of zombies. This means that I'm looking for fun ways to make zombies more threatening.

Have 'em reach up through the ground or through thin walls to grapple the PCs. That's always good for some laughs.

[lexington]

More HP and ST
No Brain [headshots aren't working!]
Striking ST (Bite Only -60%)
Discriminatory Smell [to justify how the zombies always always know where they are]


If it's set in a city keep in mind all the places people are and the jobs they have. Construction workers and people from a military base might be wearing helmets. If the people in the sewers get turned they'll have to find a hiding place far away from any manholes to be safe. A zombie might well survive throwing itself off a fourth story building, it doesn't have to be raining undead all the time but it's another good way to have them come out of nowhere.

[Edges]

You can make them rare.

In my modern occult campaign, I had them encounter a single (undead) zombie after 50+ sessions. The PCs had encountered a lot but up until then, all their enemies had been alive. The players (some of then veteran gamers) took it seriously. The PCs were very afraid. I think some of the players were a little afraid too.

The fact that the campaign had a quiet times helped too. If there's always foes jumping out of the woodwork (especially monsters) it becomes dull. If they have time to explore the human side of their characters, they have more to lose in the face of inhumanity.

EDIT:
And I'll second No Brain.
Some other possibilities,
Don't make them moan (it's silly)
Have them telepathically/magically linked to an intelligent necromancer/whatever so they're coordinated
Supernatural Invulnerability
Make one a former friendly NPC like an x-lover or Patron's go-between (and don't reveal it's become a zombie until it's grappling someone's throat)
"Suicide" bomber

[Apache]

Never underestimate the horror factor of making your zombies fast.

One of the reasons the classic 'Romero' zombie is so Not Scary is that it's hard to get scared of something with a top land speed of a crippled toddler.

Also, another really evil way to make your zombies SCARY is to let them keep their human intelligence.....and the only way the zombie can keep from losing his intelligence is, of course, by eating fresh brains...:)

[lexington]

Originally Posted by Edges

Have them telepathically/magically linked to an intelligent necromancer/whatever so they're coordinated

Another version of this. You can take a route similar to Cell and have the zombies form telepathic "hives". Each multiple of ten zombies in a hive raises IQ and DX (for a slower progression start at a group of 100 or 1000 rather than 10 or alternate which stat rises at each step).

A single mindless shambling zombie isn't so bad (IQ4, DX8). But when a whole town gets turned they're intelligent, coordinated and telepathically linked (IQ7, DX11).

It's like the inverse inverse ninja law. But with zombies!

[Jamaraq]

How would one go about making Zombies that erupt/explode in an infectious cloud of blood and (No) Brain matter upon 'death'?

I don't want to sound lazy, but I haven't statted something like this before, and it seems like an interesting game mechanic that forces the players to come up with different tactics that the usual hack n' slash.

I know there is no real need for GMs to put monsters into stats at all, but I'm just curious how you would model this using Gurps :).

[lexington]

Originally Posted by Jamaraq

How would one go about making Zombies that erupt/explode in an infectious cloud of blood and (No) Brain matter upon 'death'?

I don't want to sound lazy, but I haven't statted something like this before, and it seems like an interesting game mechanic that forces the players to come up with different tactics that the usual hack n' slash.

I know there is no real need for GMs to put monsters into stats at all, but I'm just curious how you would model this using Gurps :).

They could have Fragile (Explosive, Toxic Explosion +0%) and Infectious Attack, since any one source of damage can carry it. But I think Kromm has said that a toxin released on death can be done as just a perk or a Payload.

[Jamaraq]

Originally Posted by lexington

They could have Fragile (Explosive, Toxic Explosion +0%) and Infectious Attack, since any one source of damage can carry it. But I think Kromm has said that a toxin released on death can be done as just a perk or a Payload.

Thank you, you gave me an cool idea. Zombies with Payload stuffed with Alchemist's Fire. (Probably not a new idea, but it is for me :D)