Post by Katherine on Jan 15, 2015 22:03:24 GMT
[The following is an archival post from the old forums. Plot believed the content useful/relevant/entertaining. If you are the original poster and would like me to take it down contact me at this account. ]
I have been researching and have found a tome compiled by one Master Yarrick of another world. I found it to be very interesting, and much of the information about undead is at worst interesting and at best applicable to our situation.
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Introduction:
This is an ongoing Compilation collected using information from sources all across Tyrra. I must give thanks to Squire Kabaka for his additions to the work, including a greatly expanded section on Vampires and to the library of the Jing Wu Mun school of martial arts in Elan for the core of the work making my undertaking much less daunting. As the power level of any creature tends to be dependent on the lands it is encountered in, any statistics gained from this Treatise should be taken with a grain of salt.
While they are fairly accurate at the present time, do not rely completely on them. Remember that judgment and prudence are the keys to survival in any encounter with any creature living or otherwise and to assume a Death Knight can’t dodge just because Yarrick's Treatise didn’t say they could--would be the height of stupidity. Of course, unfortunately, there are some adventurers who are that stupid and so this warning is necessary. Long have I fought the legions of chaos, the eternal war rages on despite the efforts of the hunters and Warriors of Order. Much blood has been shed over the millennia of conflict between Chaos and Order. The forces of chaos are numerous, from the elementals that occasionally manifest on this plane to the humble resurrection man that supplies the necromancers with their subjects. Most numerous of the forces of corruption are the Undead. I began compiling this treatise with my own notes and from books in my library, interviews with various adventurers and assistance from a few long range contacts who I have known only through the arrival of a messenger falcon and finally with information gathered through my own experience. Until now It has been a private book in my library and the notes I took were often leaves of parchment stuffed inside the cover of the book out of order with the rest of the core work. I have done the best I can with this work and intend to keep adding to it. However with the loss of my mark and transform my immortality is no longer assured. While the Full favor of Order no longer lies with me, the eternal oath is just that, eternal, and there are some things stronger than even the will of an elemental plane. So I find it my duty to share my gathered knowledge in the hopes that a new generation of hunters will not have to suffer as I did for the knowledge I have gained over time. This is, to my knowledge, the most complete bestiary of the walking dead any wear on Tyrra--and if a more complete one exists, then by all means inform me as to where it may be found. I shall continue to expand on the knowledge I have gained and so with time this book shall only grow with each edition. If you have any information not listed in this tome then by all means contact me no matter how trivial the information may be, the little morsel of knowledge that you have may save the life of a fellow hunter.
May Lady luck smile upon your endeavors.
Master Yarrick of no Kumpania worth Mentioning
Servant of Order
Archmage of Celestial Magics
Inqusitor and Djadadjii
Undead
Every undead being was once alive, and was either directly transformed into that state, or roused from their grave. The living dead are usually classified as either "greater" or "lesser" undead. Greater undead are those which have retained their living intelligence even in undeath, and they are usually physically more powerful and more resistant to attack than others. Lesser undead are usually totally mindless and very destructive.
(Compilers Note: There are several categories of undead in relation to transform and creation magic. I have set a category scale of 1-6. Category 1: Lesser, Category 2: Standard, Category 3: Greater Category 4: High Category 5: Master and Category 6: Unique. Any type of undead may come in any category, and an undead category rating is relative to its necro type. For example a Category 1 Vampire or Lesser Vampire (I have dubbed these nosferatu) is still a much greater threat than a category 4 Zombie. While a category 6 creature is a unique creature and is beyond the ability of a mortal necromancer to create. Kraveki would be an example of a category 6 Vampire.)
All undead take damage from healing spells, and heal when necromancy is cast upon them. Gustav's Spirit Evictor and Folson's Somnolent Vapors spells do not affect them, nor do poisons. All undead are immune to ice-based spells, Charm, and paralyze. Undead cannot be waylaid. Many types of undead cannot stand sunlight.
Vampires Prime Regents, Liche Kings, Death King and Kings of the Graveyard:
These 4 creatures are the most powerful unique undead and are usually found with a full army of undead around them. In fact they can control any undead other than one of the types listed there with a word. It has been noted a few times 2 or 3 of these have worked together on a goal but usually these creatures are too power-hungry and will eventually turn on each other for more power that they perceive the other has.
Banshee:
A banshee is the spirit of an evil human or elven female who was unjustly killed. These greenish-white glowing ghosts are unable to move far from their physical remains and are often found weeping over their corpses. Once a living being is within their sight, however, banshees will begin to wail, bringing death to those around them. Despite this fearsome attack, a banshee does not possess much strength of body; a Destroy Undead spell will reduce it to dust.
(Compilers Note: A female does not need to be "Evil" in order to become a banshee, nor does she need to be elven or human as I have reliable accounts of a Sarr banshee that terrorized the northern lands a few years back. Emotion level at the time of death seems to be the key factor in determining the power level of a natural banshee and may be the determining factor as to whether or not a banshee comes into existence at all. Also remember that a banshee may be created by the create undead formal magic, though the female corpse requirement seems to remain. I have no idea why this is necessary however I have theorized that it has something to do with the vocal harmonics of a female humanoids voice)
Death Dog:
These undead hounds were sighted recently in Briarwood [in Numenando]. A harm undead will almost destroy one, a destroy undead most certainly will. They seem to be pack hunters, however a few solitary creatures have been encountered.
Chiang-Shih:
(Also known as Kiang-shi and Kuang-Shi as well as the obvious Hopping Vampire)
According to Darkelven legend, this creature originated from a failed attempt by a Vornae necromancer to create a better bodyguard for his Empress. Unfortunately for him, the result is an extremely violent creature that is insane and driven by pure bloodlust. A Chiang-Shih is a blood drinker and extremely tough, however, the preservation and animation force is deeply flawed. The limbs of the creature are extremely stiff and seem to cause it great pain to move them, this results in the characteristic hopping motion that makes it so unique. They appear as decaying corpses and continue to rot throughout their existence, with the eldest of the necrotype appearing as a skeleton. (Note: This is one of the things that makes this creature so dangerous, a Hopping vampire is insane but not stupid and can be expected to use tactics such as masquerading as a common zombie or skeleton when in a larger group of undead. They have the ability to rift for traveling long distances. This creature has also demonstrated the so far unique ability to drain the blood of its victims from a distance, a magical attack and a gesture ripping open its victims veins and drawing a great gout of blood to be drawn into the vampires mouth. A victim hit by this attack will rise as another Ching-shih within five minutes if he does not receive a life spell. Fortunately the victim will dissipate as normal in one hour, if his spirit is strong enough to survive resurrection. This creature is also extremely dangerous in that it will spread its taint rapidly; entire cities have been overrun by infestations of these creatures. They are fairly tough in close combat and a warrior would be hard pressed to fight one without support from a healer. Fortunately they will fall to a single destroy undead spell.
A note for hunters:
Examine the corpse of an exsanguinated victim carefully the telltale mark of these creatures is the appearance of a small explosion within the veins of the deceased healer friend of mine called it a massive aortic aneurism, whatever that means.
Dames Blanche:
AKA white ladies. A type of undead fey, these creatures appear as beautiful women, who through subterfuge and magical charm lure men out into the woods, or into a secluded and unoccupied room. Things don’t go well from there. Dames Blanche are flesh eaters and blood drinkers. While not particularly powerful, their paralytic retractable claws and innate charming ability makes them a major threat to any male adventurer who is not careful. A dragon’s breath will almost kill a Dame Blanche, And Cold iron weapons are of particular use against them. It should be noted that a few of the more cunning creatures imitate nymphs to put their prey off guard. A Dame reproduces after a large feast her belly distending and finally ripping off of her frame to form an adult looking dame with all of the knowledge of her "Mother" the mother heals within a few minutes and goes back to feeding.
Death Knight/Lord/Rogue:
Death knights, Lords, and Rogues are powerful, intelligent undead and their might is eclipsed only by liches and vampires. Formal magic is used to transform a living creature into a decaying corpse and to grant innate enchantment to their weapons. They possess the ability to resist magical spells and are totally unaffected by blows from un-enchanted weapons. They can phase through weapon strikes a few times a day. They may also spell strike with Thorna's Accelerated Entropy. Death knights are known to be able to control lesser undead with the sound of their voice.
Compilers notes: It is fairly common for a templar wizard to use this as an alternative route to lichdom, a death knight has many close combat abilities that a Lich does not, included amongst them the ability to channel spell strikes innately. Deathknights are also fairly popular as a lieutenant for undead forces, their ability to command lesser undead with their voice means that a necromancer can effectively control by far more lessers than he would otherwise be able to do. Death knights usually have glowing red eyes, however this is not a 100% accurate as there are some who do not have this, the brightness of the eyes is also dependant on the individual death knight and apparently the level of chaos taint in the lands. In some lands the glow is barley visible and you have to look for it, in others the glow is bright enough to be seen from far off giving rise to the adventurer term "headlights". Apparently in some lands the power of a death knight can be determined by the color and brightness of its eyes. However my contacts were unable to provide a list for death knights stating that if the creatures eyes were glowing blue then it was a Master level undead and to be dealt with by extreme caution.
Death Jester:
I have little information about this undead creature` and it may be a sub category of death knight, the death jester is identified by its incessant cackling and the really bad jokes it makes as it goes about its business. They seem to be motivated by causing death and chaos finding the 2 subjects extremely amusing. I have avoided my demise on one occasion by simply playing possum. The creature decided that I was no fun and moved on to another building after a few minutes. Again at the time I was not
nearly powerful enough to deal with the creature and so I could make no observations beyond the obvious.
Note: Death Jesters are in essence similarly designed as a Death Knight and Lord are A Death Rogue can usually be considered to be almost a brother to the Death Jester save they favor different forms.
One thing I have noticed about all Death Jesters is that to top off all that was said previously ALL death Jesters are insane their mind is warped and they all wish to bring the world into the Dark Circus or the "Macabre" (which is the name of their master version)
Draugr:
A type of undead created as a guardian for the burial mounds of several old barbarian tribes, the draugr is very similar in power to a death knight and may be fought and destroyed in a similar way. The draugr remains dormant until its tomb is violated, usually by grave robbers or adventurers. The draugr will animate and attack anyone who enters its tomb. This is where things get interesting: If an item of the Draugr is removed from its tomb it will go berserk and begin killing every living being within a day’s travel of its tomb, destroying the creature only delays its nightly rampage as it will merely reform with the next sunset. There are only 2 ways a hunter may deal with this creature, 1 is to find and return the item of treasure that was stolen, or after defeating the creature, pin it to the floor of its tomb with an iron spear then reseal the tomb. It should be noted that should the spear ever be removed from the corpse the creature will immediately reanimate and continue on its rampage.
Frakaskoldus:
This creature appears to be a Vampire/Werewolf hybrid. Only silver weapons will harm it and it is unbelievably tough. I have personally seen one take no less than 12 destroy undead spells and a host of damage from other sources before going down. The creature feeds off of blood and can use the mist form ability of the vampire, and will take full effect from a stake of woe ritual. These are pack hunters and often have many lesser undead under their thrall. Thankfully they are forced to sleep during the day and for some unknown reason will not wake up until the sun sets. This is the best time to deal with them. Do keep in mind that they are well aware of their weakness and their lairs will, in all likelihood, be well hidden and guarded by both lesser undead and mortal dupes. I should also note that it is theoretically possible for a hybrid of any phenotype of lycanthrope. This creature seems to arise in areas of heavy chaos taint such as fell woods and black swamps. However, its requirement for blood means that it will seek civilization as soon as it arises.
Ghast/Ghoul(also Guhl and alguh):
These undead are very similar, except ghasts are a little stronger. They may be older versions of the same creatures. They possess a ravenous hunger for living flesh and will generally try to eat any victim they paralyze with their deadly claws. They smell horrible and may cause nausea to those around them. A Destroy Undead spell or a Lightning Storm should kill either type of creature.
(Compilers note: Ghouls seem to metabolize the flesh they consume to heal themselves and grow stronger. I am not sure if there is a limit to the strength they can gain by feeding, however I have never encountered a super ghoul that has consumed massive amounts of dead flesh though I know for a fact that the conditions exist in certain areas and times to allow for such a feast. It may be that the added energy gained from the dead flesh bleeds off with time. Note to spell casters bindomancy is extremely effective against these creatures)
Gore Child:
Aka buthcer brat, and slay mate. This undead is created by a necromancer who wants a melee bodyguard without the difficulty of controlling a greater undead such as a death knight. Having the appearance of a eviscerated and flayed child wearing a cloak sewn from its own skin and carrying a pair of bone shorts words sheathed in a belt made of its own viscera. Gore children are extremely fast and nigh impossible to hit with a spell once they have worked up a battle frenzy. They swing moderately hard and can usually swing a mighty blow 2 or three times per day. They will crumble if they are hit with a single destroy undead spell--hitting them being the operative word, a gore child is a fast as a quickling and can phase in and out of existence many times per day. Gore Children are driven by a need for slaughter and revel in inflicting death. Whatever you do, should you encounter one of these creatures, do not allow it to administer a killing blow, it will refresh its abilities. One small exploitable weakness is that they are easily distracted by children’s toys, a stuffed bear can be used to distract the child long enough to land a Destroy Undead spell. This only works if there is not already physical combat in progress nearby.
Leviathan:
These are lesser undead, so a Destroy Undead spell will destroy them, and they are affected by Trap Undead and Turn Undead spells. However, they are hulking stitched together corpses. The constitution from all the corpses is seemingly added together
Liche:
Liches are among the most powerful of the greater undead. They can raise and control the living dead at will and have the ability to resist magical spells cast upon them and phase through physical blows. Enchanted weapons are needed to affect them. Much like vampires, the abilities of each individual liche are different. however Glowing green eyes seems to be a common factor amongst the creatures, Glowing Blue again denotes a master level creature however as with death knights this is a generalization not a law. A Lich is an extremely powerful type of undead and as such should be dealt with using extreme caution.
(Compilers notes: Using bindomancy and curse's against a lich is an extremely bad idea, I have verified that they have the ability to innately cast a Dispel magic on themselves meaning that such magic is at best an annoyance to the creature and a waste of your own magic. Also note that a lich is quite capable of ripping from any bindomancy short of confine should it desire not to use its other innate abilities. It should also be noted that the Spirit Cradles mentioned in the section on vampires are also extremely common amongst liches.
Common Misconceptions about liches.
#1 a Lich must be a Necromancer
:Truth: mastery of the dark arts is not required for a lich to come into being. In fact the nature of transform and creation magic means that even a person with no mastery of magic whatsoever can become a lich. All that is required is a friendly formalist to cast the spell upon the subject in question. A liche’s abilities are heavily dependant on what it was in life. So a grand master warrior who was tuned into a lich would gain the significant arcane abilities of a lich, however would not be as powerful magically as a Wizard who underwent the same transformation. It should be noted that an extremely powerful Necromancer may reanimate naturally as a lich with no aid from formal magic, I hypothesize that this is due to the massive amounts of chaos taint that such a being draws upon itself during years of practicing the dark arts.
(Addendum: There is such a creature known as a celestial lich, Though some are undead in appearance they are in fact constructs and have few if any of the weaknesses of an undead chaos based lich. The difference is the same as the difference between a flesh golem and a Zombie similar appearance, vastly different creatures.
Mjertovjec:
Another hybrid creature, this undead combines a werewolf and a penagollin. The disembodied torso floats through the air trailing its entrails. While lacking arms it has a vicious bite attack and is able to entangle its foes with its lashing viscera. Beware also that the creature frequently will vomit jets of foul ichor that have the same effect as an alchemist’s vertigo gas. Thankfully this creature is only slightly tougher than a penagollin and will fall to 3 destroy undead spells or their equivalent. The mjertovjec is a blood drinker and draws strength and sustenance from its food. Like the penagollin this creature appears as a normal humanoid of any race during the day, but at night detaches itself from the lower half of its body to feed. The best way to destroy a mjertovjec is to find and destroy its lower body while it is out hunting. The creature will disintegrate at sunrise if it has not returned to its body by then. Contrary to what one would guess this creature cannot be harmed by silver or magic, but cold iron is its bane.
Mummy:
Beware the Mummy's Curse. If this cloth-wrapped zombie-like undead strikes you down and administers a killing strike, you will be beyond the reach of Angelica's Death Bane. They may bring disease or paralysis to their victims with their claw-like hands, but they move very slowly. They possess the strength to rip out of Pin and Bind spells. A Dragon's Breath will nearly kill a mummy,
and one Destroy Undead will certainly do it. There is another type of mummy that is known to roam the lands. My Evandarian contact has dubbed them Mummy Kings because of their great power and their ability to control other undead. He is unsure if they are of the highest level of undead or whether they could be classified as Master or High undead, but their control does extend over Greater Undead, such as Death Knights.
(Compilers note: the cloth wrappings which are considered the sign of a mummy are not necessary for the creature, I have had verifiable accounts from several different sources of a particular mummy who did not have the bandages and hid amongst packs of ghouls and ghasts. Another creature was able to raise zombies and wrapped them in cloth strips to confuse his hunters. In many cases the only way to be sure you are dealing with a mummy is when the killing blow does not allow the usage of a life spell to call back the spirit of the dead. I have a report of this effect being removed by a dispel magic or remove curse, but unfortunately I cannot confirm that report, however keep it in mind should you encounter one of these creatures.)
Necromental:
This creature appears as a swirling mass of blood, maggots, teeth and entrails. Its odor is horrid and very debilitating. Anyone who comes into contact with this creature will become diseased and an unfortunate who inhales a breath of its mist will be affected as if by a nausea poison. For lack of a better term these beings are necromantic taint personified. Once a necromental manifests it will begin animating any corpses it touches, tainting any source of water it finds and cursing the very land it touches (at will: animate dead, Taint well, corrupt land). A destroy undead spell will hurt these creatures, but a banish spell will dissipate the creature. These creatures tend to manifest in areas of already heavy chaos taint and seem to focus on spreading the taint further. Fortunately a necromentals manifested time is limited once it leaves the area which spawned it.
Revenant:
Revenants resemble zombies, but are much more powerful. For example, they may rip out of Peranore's Minor Binding and Lasset's Mystic Binding spells. Spells are much more useful against revenants than swords, for their undead bodies seem to deflect half the damage a weapon strike does. I believe it takes at least a Dragon's Breath and a Lightning Bolt to destroy a revenant, but Destroy Undead works wonders. There are natural revenants, called "Spirits of Vengeance," created when a person suffers his final death from a vampire's bite or, sometimes, when death comes unjustly. These cannot be destroyed but will go away with the sun, or once they have avenged their death. (Compilers Note: I have encountered one spirit of vengeance, we were able to destroy it but it continued to appear or reform within 5 minutes of its demise, this continued until sunrise).
Skeleton:
These undead have lost all their flesh and are walking bones held together by magical forces. Their lack of skin makes it difficult to harm them with weapons; it seems that weapon strikes harm them only half as much as they would a living being. A Lightning Bolt will finish most skeletons; two are needed for the bigger ones. A Harm Undead will destroy the smaller ones and almost finish the
biggest skeletons.
Soucouan:
Often mistaken for a willow wisp, this creature is actually a sub type of ghost, from a distance appearing as a floating ball of light, closer examination reveals a fanged maw and horrid burning eyes. The Soucouan has a paralyzing bite and is an essential feeder. It will feed off of the raw life force of its paralyzed victim until the victim finally collapses dead to the ground.
Spectre:
Spectres are ghostly humanoid figures. They usually retain their intelligence beyond the grave and with it the ability to speak. Most of them chose not to exercise this, though. They are immune to binding spells and require silver or magical weapons to affect them. Their bodies are weak, however, and a Harm Undead spell will almost dissipate a spectre. They can resist a few spells thrown
at them, and even will their bodies totally insubstantial so that a few weapon strikes will phase through them as well. All spectres have hands stretched into terrible claws, which they can use as weapons, but many choose to wield physical weapons as a memory of life. Regardless, the cold of a spectre's unbeating heart is so terrible that it can reach you even at the end of claw or blade and leave you bereft of strength or life essence.
Ustrel:
This foul creature is the resurrected corpse of a still born child. Unlike many types of undead this creature grows in size as it feeds, upon first arising it seeks out week prey such as rats, children and sheep. Each day it must returned to its lair, however after 10 successive nights of feeding the creature will grow beyond its need for rest during the day and have achieved its full size (approximately the size of a human adult). Even at its full size the creature retains its fatal appearance meaning an encounter with these creatures can be quite disturbing. An adult stage ustrel will usually fall to 2 dragon’s breaths and a lightning storm. Beware of engaging in close combat as they swing incredibly hard beyond the ability of a shield to stop, also have a poison shield spell active as the creatures frequently vomit great gouts of blood which may poison a person hit by this attack making him unable to do more than wretch. At close range a few of the creatures have been known to entangle opponents with the shriveled remains of the umbilical cord. However as with many undead age and access to prey affect its power level. A newborn ustrel is barely a threat to even the greenest of adventurers while an adult that has had a chance to gorge itself may challenge a well armed party.
Vampire:
Also known as Shilmulo, Wampire, Blautsauger, and Ogolojen.
Vampires are a curious form of undead. They are not created by spell or ritual, yet they have the taint of chaos upon them and are harmed by earth magicks. The weaker vampires (I shall call them lessers) can only create vampires of the same race as themselves. That is, a vampire who was a Hobling in life can only create a Hobling as a vampire minion. Again, that only applies to the smaller
vampires. Larger vampires can create vampire minions of any race. And once someone has been created as a vampire minion, they can be cured via a Destroy Formal Magic formal magic cast on their spirit or perhaps on the curse itself. I am not entirely sure. The victim of the curse will often report not feeling well afterward and is not a major threat unless they have a chance to feed. The elders of their kind possess incredible powers and are near immortal, but they are cursed with a craving for the blood of the living. Each vampire is different, and there is little that is common among them save those things that are common to all undead. Most vampires have the ability to turn their bodies into a mist, which makes it difficult to capture them. They can also bind a person in a powerful enslavement merely by staring into his eyes. The more powerful vampires do not even need to look at their victims to control them, but rather point as if casting a spell, but the orb of light that is cast forth cannot be blocked via a Shield or Reflect Magic spell. Most vampires are unharmed by normal weapons. Only the very oldest and most powerful of their kind can walk in sunlight, but there is a very ancient formal magic that allows them to do the same if they are not of such power. It is called a Cloak of Shadows (Compilers note: My contact in Evendar informs me that the Vampire known as Kreveki uses this enchantment). It is also important to note that the more powerful types of vampires will often have Spirit Cradles, places to which they can return if killing blowed or cut down to resurrect without suffering any ill effects. These spirit cradles must be destroyed before the vampire can be permanently killed. Even a stake of woe will be ineffective if a spirit cradle still exists. There is a great deal of superstition concerning vampires. Rumors persist that they cannot enter residential dwellings unbidden, cross lines of poppy or mustard seeds, or cross running water. It is said that if the vampire believes in them, it will be affected by such constraints. (Compilers Note: I have encountered an extremely weak type of vampire that is most likely a lesser undead, with very few spell defenses and will fall to a destroy undead. They are driven only by their hunger for blood, and they seem to be driven by raw instinct alone and have demonstrated very little cognitive ability beyond opening doors and tracking prey, none have attempted to communicate. I theorize that these unfortunates are mortals whose minds were too weak to grasp what they have become and so their Ego (Perception of self) has shut itself away from the outside world leaving the vampires Bestial instincts to run the show. This also may be a result of simple necrology, Hopefully in the near future I will be able to capture one and have a stone elf compatriot Link with their mind to find out the truth of the matter, I have dubbed these unfortunates Nosferatu. I have also been unable to confirm the benefits that a vampire gains from drinking the blood of its victims or even if it is required for the creature to do so at all. Accounts from some adventurers about an ancient vampire awakening at the scent of blood after hundreds of years of dormancy lead me to theorize that denial of blood for extended periods of time may force the creature into hibernation. However until I capture a test subject this will remain a theory.
Wraith:
These undead are very similar to spectres, but they like to scream a lot. Some say wraiths retain their intelligence initially, but they are usually insane. They are unaffected by normal weapons, but rarely have the ability to resist magical attacks. Much like spectres, wraiths have the ability to drain life essence with their very touch.
Zombie:
Zombies are the lowest forms of undead. They are mindless walking corpses that can barely follow the orders of their creator. They have minimal skill with weapons and cannot cast spells. A Cure Serious Wounds spell or a Flame Bolt will destroy most zombies.
(Compilers note: An area of heavy chaos taint may spawn zombies naturally; also Necromancers and other undead often use zombies as a part of a trap. A zombie may be commanded to pull a lever as soon as a creature enters an area setting off a trap hidden nearby, many times these traps are almost impossible to disarm without some causality. Fortunately a Zombies lack of ability to run, coupled with its lack of reasoning capability and low skill with weapons means that they are of little use on the battlefield except as cannon fodder. It should also be noted that a permently dead corpse can be made into a perment zombie, often a necromancer will use the create undead spell as a method for rapidly transporting corpses with minimal effort, once he has got them back to his lair he removes the animating magic and then uses the corpse to create a more powerful and more useful minion. A person whose spirit is still strong however will dissipate the corpse within one hour, even a relatively weak spirit will still shake off the effects of the spell weather or not he successfully resurrects is another matter entirely.
I have been researching and have found a tome compiled by one Master Yarrick of another world. I found it to be very interesting, and much of the information about undead is at worst interesting and at best applicable to our situation.
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Introduction:
This is an ongoing Compilation collected using information from sources all across Tyrra. I must give thanks to Squire Kabaka for his additions to the work, including a greatly expanded section on Vampires and to the library of the Jing Wu Mun school of martial arts in Elan for the core of the work making my undertaking much less daunting. As the power level of any creature tends to be dependent on the lands it is encountered in, any statistics gained from this Treatise should be taken with a grain of salt.
While they are fairly accurate at the present time, do not rely completely on them. Remember that judgment and prudence are the keys to survival in any encounter with any creature living or otherwise and to assume a Death Knight can’t dodge just because Yarrick's Treatise didn’t say they could--would be the height of stupidity. Of course, unfortunately, there are some adventurers who are that stupid and so this warning is necessary. Long have I fought the legions of chaos, the eternal war rages on despite the efforts of the hunters and Warriors of Order. Much blood has been shed over the millennia of conflict between Chaos and Order. The forces of chaos are numerous, from the elementals that occasionally manifest on this plane to the humble resurrection man that supplies the necromancers with their subjects. Most numerous of the forces of corruption are the Undead. I began compiling this treatise with my own notes and from books in my library, interviews with various adventurers and assistance from a few long range contacts who I have known only through the arrival of a messenger falcon and finally with information gathered through my own experience. Until now It has been a private book in my library and the notes I took were often leaves of parchment stuffed inside the cover of the book out of order with the rest of the core work. I have done the best I can with this work and intend to keep adding to it. However with the loss of my mark and transform my immortality is no longer assured. While the Full favor of Order no longer lies with me, the eternal oath is just that, eternal, and there are some things stronger than even the will of an elemental plane. So I find it my duty to share my gathered knowledge in the hopes that a new generation of hunters will not have to suffer as I did for the knowledge I have gained over time. This is, to my knowledge, the most complete bestiary of the walking dead any wear on Tyrra--and if a more complete one exists, then by all means inform me as to where it may be found. I shall continue to expand on the knowledge I have gained and so with time this book shall only grow with each edition. If you have any information not listed in this tome then by all means contact me no matter how trivial the information may be, the little morsel of knowledge that you have may save the life of a fellow hunter.
May Lady luck smile upon your endeavors.
Master Yarrick of no Kumpania worth Mentioning
Servant of Order
Archmage of Celestial Magics
Inqusitor and Djadadjii
Undead
Every undead being was once alive, and was either directly transformed into that state, or roused from their grave. The living dead are usually classified as either "greater" or "lesser" undead. Greater undead are those which have retained their living intelligence even in undeath, and they are usually physically more powerful and more resistant to attack than others. Lesser undead are usually totally mindless and very destructive.
(Compilers Note: There are several categories of undead in relation to transform and creation magic. I have set a category scale of 1-6. Category 1: Lesser, Category 2: Standard, Category 3: Greater Category 4: High Category 5: Master and Category 6: Unique. Any type of undead may come in any category, and an undead category rating is relative to its necro type. For example a Category 1 Vampire or Lesser Vampire (I have dubbed these nosferatu) is still a much greater threat than a category 4 Zombie. While a category 6 creature is a unique creature and is beyond the ability of a mortal necromancer to create. Kraveki would be an example of a category 6 Vampire.)
All undead take damage from healing spells, and heal when necromancy is cast upon them. Gustav's Spirit Evictor and Folson's Somnolent Vapors spells do not affect them, nor do poisons. All undead are immune to ice-based spells, Charm, and paralyze. Undead cannot be waylaid. Many types of undead cannot stand sunlight.
Vampires Prime Regents, Liche Kings, Death King and Kings of the Graveyard:
These 4 creatures are the most powerful unique undead and are usually found with a full army of undead around them. In fact they can control any undead other than one of the types listed there with a word. It has been noted a few times 2 or 3 of these have worked together on a goal but usually these creatures are too power-hungry and will eventually turn on each other for more power that they perceive the other has.
Banshee:
A banshee is the spirit of an evil human or elven female who was unjustly killed. These greenish-white glowing ghosts are unable to move far from their physical remains and are often found weeping over their corpses. Once a living being is within their sight, however, banshees will begin to wail, bringing death to those around them. Despite this fearsome attack, a banshee does not possess much strength of body; a Destroy Undead spell will reduce it to dust.
(Compilers Note: A female does not need to be "Evil" in order to become a banshee, nor does she need to be elven or human as I have reliable accounts of a Sarr banshee that terrorized the northern lands a few years back. Emotion level at the time of death seems to be the key factor in determining the power level of a natural banshee and may be the determining factor as to whether or not a banshee comes into existence at all. Also remember that a banshee may be created by the create undead formal magic, though the female corpse requirement seems to remain. I have no idea why this is necessary however I have theorized that it has something to do with the vocal harmonics of a female humanoids voice)
Death Dog:
These undead hounds were sighted recently in Briarwood [in Numenando]. A harm undead will almost destroy one, a destroy undead most certainly will. They seem to be pack hunters, however a few solitary creatures have been encountered.
Chiang-Shih:
(Also known as Kiang-shi and Kuang-Shi as well as the obvious Hopping Vampire)
According to Darkelven legend, this creature originated from a failed attempt by a Vornae necromancer to create a better bodyguard for his Empress. Unfortunately for him, the result is an extremely violent creature that is insane and driven by pure bloodlust. A Chiang-Shih is a blood drinker and extremely tough, however, the preservation and animation force is deeply flawed. The limbs of the creature are extremely stiff and seem to cause it great pain to move them, this results in the characteristic hopping motion that makes it so unique. They appear as decaying corpses and continue to rot throughout their existence, with the eldest of the necrotype appearing as a skeleton. (Note: This is one of the things that makes this creature so dangerous, a Hopping vampire is insane but not stupid and can be expected to use tactics such as masquerading as a common zombie or skeleton when in a larger group of undead. They have the ability to rift for traveling long distances. This creature has also demonstrated the so far unique ability to drain the blood of its victims from a distance, a magical attack and a gesture ripping open its victims veins and drawing a great gout of blood to be drawn into the vampires mouth. A victim hit by this attack will rise as another Ching-shih within five minutes if he does not receive a life spell. Fortunately the victim will dissipate as normal in one hour, if his spirit is strong enough to survive resurrection. This creature is also extremely dangerous in that it will spread its taint rapidly; entire cities have been overrun by infestations of these creatures. They are fairly tough in close combat and a warrior would be hard pressed to fight one without support from a healer. Fortunately they will fall to a single destroy undead spell.
A note for hunters:
Examine the corpse of an exsanguinated victim carefully the telltale mark of these creatures is the appearance of a small explosion within the veins of the deceased healer friend of mine called it a massive aortic aneurism, whatever that means.
Dames Blanche:
AKA white ladies. A type of undead fey, these creatures appear as beautiful women, who through subterfuge and magical charm lure men out into the woods, or into a secluded and unoccupied room. Things don’t go well from there. Dames Blanche are flesh eaters and blood drinkers. While not particularly powerful, their paralytic retractable claws and innate charming ability makes them a major threat to any male adventurer who is not careful. A dragon’s breath will almost kill a Dame Blanche, And Cold iron weapons are of particular use against them. It should be noted that a few of the more cunning creatures imitate nymphs to put their prey off guard. A Dame reproduces after a large feast her belly distending and finally ripping off of her frame to form an adult looking dame with all of the knowledge of her "Mother" the mother heals within a few minutes and goes back to feeding.
Death Knight/Lord/Rogue:
Death knights, Lords, and Rogues are powerful, intelligent undead and their might is eclipsed only by liches and vampires. Formal magic is used to transform a living creature into a decaying corpse and to grant innate enchantment to their weapons. They possess the ability to resist magical spells and are totally unaffected by blows from un-enchanted weapons. They can phase through weapon strikes a few times a day. They may also spell strike with Thorna's Accelerated Entropy. Death knights are known to be able to control lesser undead with the sound of their voice.
Compilers notes: It is fairly common for a templar wizard to use this as an alternative route to lichdom, a death knight has many close combat abilities that a Lich does not, included amongst them the ability to channel spell strikes innately. Deathknights are also fairly popular as a lieutenant for undead forces, their ability to command lesser undead with their voice means that a necromancer can effectively control by far more lessers than he would otherwise be able to do. Death knights usually have glowing red eyes, however this is not a 100% accurate as there are some who do not have this, the brightness of the eyes is also dependant on the individual death knight and apparently the level of chaos taint in the lands. In some lands the glow is barley visible and you have to look for it, in others the glow is bright enough to be seen from far off giving rise to the adventurer term "headlights". Apparently in some lands the power of a death knight can be determined by the color and brightness of its eyes. However my contacts were unable to provide a list for death knights stating that if the creatures eyes were glowing blue then it was a Master level undead and to be dealt with by extreme caution.
Death Jester:
I have little information about this undead creature` and it may be a sub category of death knight, the death jester is identified by its incessant cackling and the really bad jokes it makes as it goes about its business. They seem to be motivated by causing death and chaos finding the 2 subjects extremely amusing. I have avoided my demise on one occasion by simply playing possum. The creature decided that I was no fun and moved on to another building after a few minutes. Again at the time I was not
nearly powerful enough to deal with the creature and so I could make no observations beyond the obvious.
Note: Death Jesters are in essence similarly designed as a Death Knight and Lord are A Death Rogue can usually be considered to be almost a brother to the Death Jester save they favor different forms.
One thing I have noticed about all Death Jesters is that to top off all that was said previously ALL death Jesters are insane their mind is warped and they all wish to bring the world into the Dark Circus or the "Macabre" (which is the name of their master version)
Draugr:
A type of undead created as a guardian for the burial mounds of several old barbarian tribes, the draugr is very similar in power to a death knight and may be fought and destroyed in a similar way. The draugr remains dormant until its tomb is violated, usually by grave robbers or adventurers. The draugr will animate and attack anyone who enters its tomb. This is where things get interesting: If an item of the Draugr is removed from its tomb it will go berserk and begin killing every living being within a day’s travel of its tomb, destroying the creature only delays its nightly rampage as it will merely reform with the next sunset. There are only 2 ways a hunter may deal with this creature, 1 is to find and return the item of treasure that was stolen, or after defeating the creature, pin it to the floor of its tomb with an iron spear then reseal the tomb. It should be noted that should the spear ever be removed from the corpse the creature will immediately reanimate and continue on its rampage.
Frakaskoldus:
This creature appears to be a Vampire/Werewolf hybrid. Only silver weapons will harm it and it is unbelievably tough. I have personally seen one take no less than 12 destroy undead spells and a host of damage from other sources before going down. The creature feeds off of blood and can use the mist form ability of the vampire, and will take full effect from a stake of woe ritual. These are pack hunters and often have many lesser undead under their thrall. Thankfully they are forced to sleep during the day and for some unknown reason will not wake up until the sun sets. This is the best time to deal with them. Do keep in mind that they are well aware of their weakness and their lairs will, in all likelihood, be well hidden and guarded by both lesser undead and mortal dupes. I should also note that it is theoretically possible for a hybrid of any phenotype of lycanthrope. This creature seems to arise in areas of heavy chaos taint such as fell woods and black swamps. However, its requirement for blood means that it will seek civilization as soon as it arises.
Ghast/Ghoul(also Guhl and alguh):
These undead are very similar, except ghasts are a little stronger. They may be older versions of the same creatures. They possess a ravenous hunger for living flesh and will generally try to eat any victim they paralyze with their deadly claws. They smell horrible and may cause nausea to those around them. A Destroy Undead spell or a Lightning Storm should kill either type of creature.
(Compilers note: Ghouls seem to metabolize the flesh they consume to heal themselves and grow stronger. I am not sure if there is a limit to the strength they can gain by feeding, however I have never encountered a super ghoul that has consumed massive amounts of dead flesh though I know for a fact that the conditions exist in certain areas and times to allow for such a feast. It may be that the added energy gained from the dead flesh bleeds off with time. Note to spell casters bindomancy is extremely effective against these creatures)
Gore Child:
Aka buthcer brat, and slay mate. This undead is created by a necromancer who wants a melee bodyguard without the difficulty of controlling a greater undead such as a death knight. Having the appearance of a eviscerated and flayed child wearing a cloak sewn from its own skin and carrying a pair of bone shorts words sheathed in a belt made of its own viscera. Gore children are extremely fast and nigh impossible to hit with a spell once they have worked up a battle frenzy. They swing moderately hard and can usually swing a mighty blow 2 or three times per day. They will crumble if they are hit with a single destroy undead spell--hitting them being the operative word, a gore child is a fast as a quickling and can phase in and out of existence many times per day. Gore Children are driven by a need for slaughter and revel in inflicting death. Whatever you do, should you encounter one of these creatures, do not allow it to administer a killing blow, it will refresh its abilities. One small exploitable weakness is that they are easily distracted by children’s toys, a stuffed bear can be used to distract the child long enough to land a Destroy Undead spell. This only works if there is not already physical combat in progress nearby.
Leviathan:
These are lesser undead, so a Destroy Undead spell will destroy them, and they are affected by Trap Undead and Turn Undead spells. However, they are hulking stitched together corpses. The constitution from all the corpses is seemingly added together
Liche:
Liches are among the most powerful of the greater undead. They can raise and control the living dead at will and have the ability to resist magical spells cast upon them and phase through physical blows. Enchanted weapons are needed to affect them. Much like vampires, the abilities of each individual liche are different. however Glowing green eyes seems to be a common factor amongst the creatures, Glowing Blue again denotes a master level creature however as with death knights this is a generalization not a law. A Lich is an extremely powerful type of undead and as such should be dealt with using extreme caution.
(Compilers notes: Using bindomancy and curse's against a lich is an extremely bad idea, I have verified that they have the ability to innately cast a Dispel magic on themselves meaning that such magic is at best an annoyance to the creature and a waste of your own magic. Also note that a lich is quite capable of ripping from any bindomancy short of confine should it desire not to use its other innate abilities. It should also be noted that the Spirit Cradles mentioned in the section on vampires are also extremely common amongst liches.
Common Misconceptions about liches.
#1 a Lich must be a Necromancer
:Truth: mastery of the dark arts is not required for a lich to come into being. In fact the nature of transform and creation magic means that even a person with no mastery of magic whatsoever can become a lich. All that is required is a friendly formalist to cast the spell upon the subject in question. A liche’s abilities are heavily dependant on what it was in life. So a grand master warrior who was tuned into a lich would gain the significant arcane abilities of a lich, however would not be as powerful magically as a Wizard who underwent the same transformation. It should be noted that an extremely powerful Necromancer may reanimate naturally as a lich with no aid from formal magic, I hypothesize that this is due to the massive amounts of chaos taint that such a being draws upon itself during years of practicing the dark arts.
(Addendum: There is such a creature known as a celestial lich, Though some are undead in appearance they are in fact constructs and have few if any of the weaknesses of an undead chaos based lich. The difference is the same as the difference between a flesh golem and a Zombie similar appearance, vastly different creatures.
Mjertovjec:
Another hybrid creature, this undead combines a werewolf and a penagollin. The disembodied torso floats through the air trailing its entrails. While lacking arms it has a vicious bite attack and is able to entangle its foes with its lashing viscera. Beware also that the creature frequently will vomit jets of foul ichor that have the same effect as an alchemist’s vertigo gas. Thankfully this creature is only slightly tougher than a penagollin and will fall to 3 destroy undead spells or their equivalent. The mjertovjec is a blood drinker and draws strength and sustenance from its food. Like the penagollin this creature appears as a normal humanoid of any race during the day, but at night detaches itself from the lower half of its body to feed. The best way to destroy a mjertovjec is to find and destroy its lower body while it is out hunting. The creature will disintegrate at sunrise if it has not returned to its body by then. Contrary to what one would guess this creature cannot be harmed by silver or magic, but cold iron is its bane.
Mummy:
Beware the Mummy's Curse. If this cloth-wrapped zombie-like undead strikes you down and administers a killing strike, you will be beyond the reach of Angelica's Death Bane. They may bring disease or paralysis to their victims with their claw-like hands, but they move very slowly. They possess the strength to rip out of Pin and Bind spells. A Dragon's Breath will nearly kill a mummy,
and one Destroy Undead will certainly do it. There is another type of mummy that is known to roam the lands. My Evandarian contact has dubbed them Mummy Kings because of their great power and their ability to control other undead. He is unsure if they are of the highest level of undead or whether they could be classified as Master or High undead, but their control does extend over Greater Undead, such as Death Knights.
(Compilers note: the cloth wrappings which are considered the sign of a mummy are not necessary for the creature, I have had verifiable accounts from several different sources of a particular mummy who did not have the bandages and hid amongst packs of ghouls and ghasts. Another creature was able to raise zombies and wrapped them in cloth strips to confuse his hunters. In many cases the only way to be sure you are dealing with a mummy is when the killing blow does not allow the usage of a life spell to call back the spirit of the dead. I have a report of this effect being removed by a dispel magic or remove curse, but unfortunately I cannot confirm that report, however keep it in mind should you encounter one of these creatures.)
Necromental:
This creature appears as a swirling mass of blood, maggots, teeth and entrails. Its odor is horrid and very debilitating. Anyone who comes into contact with this creature will become diseased and an unfortunate who inhales a breath of its mist will be affected as if by a nausea poison. For lack of a better term these beings are necromantic taint personified. Once a necromental manifests it will begin animating any corpses it touches, tainting any source of water it finds and cursing the very land it touches (at will: animate dead, Taint well, corrupt land). A destroy undead spell will hurt these creatures, but a banish spell will dissipate the creature. These creatures tend to manifest in areas of already heavy chaos taint and seem to focus on spreading the taint further. Fortunately a necromentals manifested time is limited once it leaves the area which spawned it.
Revenant:
Revenants resemble zombies, but are much more powerful. For example, they may rip out of Peranore's Minor Binding and Lasset's Mystic Binding spells. Spells are much more useful against revenants than swords, for their undead bodies seem to deflect half the damage a weapon strike does. I believe it takes at least a Dragon's Breath and a Lightning Bolt to destroy a revenant, but Destroy Undead works wonders. There are natural revenants, called "Spirits of Vengeance," created when a person suffers his final death from a vampire's bite or, sometimes, when death comes unjustly. These cannot be destroyed but will go away with the sun, or once they have avenged their death. (Compilers Note: I have encountered one spirit of vengeance, we were able to destroy it but it continued to appear or reform within 5 minutes of its demise, this continued until sunrise).
Skeleton:
These undead have lost all their flesh and are walking bones held together by magical forces. Their lack of skin makes it difficult to harm them with weapons; it seems that weapon strikes harm them only half as much as they would a living being. A Lightning Bolt will finish most skeletons; two are needed for the bigger ones. A Harm Undead will destroy the smaller ones and almost finish the
biggest skeletons.
Soucouan:
Often mistaken for a willow wisp, this creature is actually a sub type of ghost, from a distance appearing as a floating ball of light, closer examination reveals a fanged maw and horrid burning eyes. The Soucouan has a paralyzing bite and is an essential feeder. It will feed off of the raw life force of its paralyzed victim until the victim finally collapses dead to the ground.
Spectre:
Spectres are ghostly humanoid figures. They usually retain their intelligence beyond the grave and with it the ability to speak. Most of them chose not to exercise this, though. They are immune to binding spells and require silver or magical weapons to affect them. Their bodies are weak, however, and a Harm Undead spell will almost dissipate a spectre. They can resist a few spells thrown
at them, and even will their bodies totally insubstantial so that a few weapon strikes will phase through them as well. All spectres have hands stretched into terrible claws, which they can use as weapons, but many choose to wield physical weapons as a memory of life. Regardless, the cold of a spectre's unbeating heart is so terrible that it can reach you even at the end of claw or blade and leave you bereft of strength or life essence.
Ustrel:
This foul creature is the resurrected corpse of a still born child. Unlike many types of undead this creature grows in size as it feeds, upon first arising it seeks out week prey such as rats, children and sheep. Each day it must returned to its lair, however after 10 successive nights of feeding the creature will grow beyond its need for rest during the day and have achieved its full size (approximately the size of a human adult). Even at its full size the creature retains its fatal appearance meaning an encounter with these creatures can be quite disturbing. An adult stage ustrel will usually fall to 2 dragon’s breaths and a lightning storm. Beware of engaging in close combat as they swing incredibly hard beyond the ability of a shield to stop, also have a poison shield spell active as the creatures frequently vomit great gouts of blood which may poison a person hit by this attack making him unable to do more than wretch. At close range a few of the creatures have been known to entangle opponents with the shriveled remains of the umbilical cord. However as with many undead age and access to prey affect its power level. A newborn ustrel is barely a threat to even the greenest of adventurers while an adult that has had a chance to gorge itself may challenge a well armed party.
Vampire:
Also known as Shilmulo, Wampire, Blautsauger, and Ogolojen.
Vampires are a curious form of undead. They are not created by spell or ritual, yet they have the taint of chaos upon them and are harmed by earth magicks. The weaker vampires (I shall call them lessers) can only create vampires of the same race as themselves. That is, a vampire who was a Hobling in life can only create a Hobling as a vampire minion. Again, that only applies to the smaller
vampires. Larger vampires can create vampire minions of any race. And once someone has been created as a vampire minion, they can be cured via a Destroy Formal Magic formal magic cast on their spirit or perhaps on the curse itself. I am not entirely sure. The victim of the curse will often report not feeling well afterward and is not a major threat unless they have a chance to feed. The elders of their kind possess incredible powers and are near immortal, but they are cursed with a craving for the blood of the living. Each vampire is different, and there is little that is common among them save those things that are common to all undead. Most vampires have the ability to turn their bodies into a mist, which makes it difficult to capture them. They can also bind a person in a powerful enslavement merely by staring into his eyes. The more powerful vampires do not even need to look at their victims to control them, but rather point as if casting a spell, but the orb of light that is cast forth cannot be blocked via a Shield or Reflect Magic spell. Most vampires are unharmed by normal weapons. Only the very oldest and most powerful of their kind can walk in sunlight, but there is a very ancient formal magic that allows them to do the same if they are not of such power. It is called a Cloak of Shadows (Compilers note: My contact in Evendar informs me that the Vampire known as Kreveki uses this enchantment). It is also important to note that the more powerful types of vampires will often have Spirit Cradles, places to which they can return if killing blowed or cut down to resurrect without suffering any ill effects. These spirit cradles must be destroyed before the vampire can be permanently killed. Even a stake of woe will be ineffective if a spirit cradle still exists. There is a great deal of superstition concerning vampires. Rumors persist that they cannot enter residential dwellings unbidden, cross lines of poppy or mustard seeds, or cross running water. It is said that if the vampire believes in them, it will be affected by such constraints. (Compilers Note: I have encountered an extremely weak type of vampire that is most likely a lesser undead, with very few spell defenses and will fall to a destroy undead. They are driven only by their hunger for blood, and they seem to be driven by raw instinct alone and have demonstrated very little cognitive ability beyond opening doors and tracking prey, none have attempted to communicate. I theorize that these unfortunates are mortals whose minds were too weak to grasp what they have become and so their Ego (Perception of self) has shut itself away from the outside world leaving the vampires Bestial instincts to run the show. This also may be a result of simple necrology, Hopefully in the near future I will be able to capture one and have a stone elf compatriot Link with their mind to find out the truth of the matter, I have dubbed these unfortunates Nosferatu. I have also been unable to confirm the benefits that a vampire gains from drinking the blood of its victims or even if it is required for the creature to do so at all. Accounts from some adventurers about an ancient vampire awakening at the scent of blood after hundreds of years of dormancy lead me to theorize that denial of blood for extended periods of time may force the creature into hibernation. However until I capture a test subject this will remain a theory.
Wraith:
These undead are very similar to spectres, but they like to scream a lot. Some say wraiths retain their intelligence initially, but they are usually insane. They are unaffected by normal weapons, but rarely have the ability to resist magical attacks. Much like spectres, wraiths have the ability to drain life essence with their very touch.
Zombie:
Zombies are the lowest forms of undead. They are mindless walking corpses that can barely follow the orders of their creator. They have minimal skill with weapons and cannot cast spells. A Cure Serious Wounds spell or a Flame Bolt will destroy most zombies.
(Compilers note: An area of heavy chaos taint may spawn zombies naturally; also Necromancers and other undead often use zombies as a part of a trap. A zombie may be commanded to pull a lever as soon as a creature enters an area setting off a trap hidden nearby, many times these traps are almost impossible to disarm without some causality. Fortunately a Zombies lack of ability to run, coupled with its lack of reasoning capability and low skill with weapons means that they are of little use on the battlefield except as cannon fodder. It should also be noted that a permently dead corpse can be made into a perment zombie, often a necromancer will use the create undead spell as a method for rapidly transporting corpses with minimal effort, once he has got them back to his lair he removes the animating magic and then uses the corpse to create a more powerful and more useful minion. A person whose spirit is still strong however will dissipate the corpse within one hour, even a relatively weak spirit will still shake off the effects of the spell weather or not he successfully resurrects is another matter entirely.