Recently I posted some rules for zombies in Faster Than Light: Nomad. Honestly I wasn’t satisfied with the rules for “fantasy style” zombies: too much die rolling. So below I consider alternate rules.
ZOMBIE / SKELETON, Undead, Version 2
| Type | Size | Stamina | Armor | Damage | Skills |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skeleton | Medium | special | special | claws 1D or weapon | Combat 0, Physical 0, Stealth 1 |
| Zombie | Medium | special | special | claws 2D or weapon | Combat 0, Physical 1, Stealth 0 |
These zombies (and skeletons) are fantasy staples, created to do the necromancer’s bidding. Depending on the tale, they may or may not hate the living. With no orders they may simply stand dumbly or wander off to find some mortals to kill.
Talents/Abilities/Inabilities
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Undead throw skills not listed at a -2D Disadvantage.
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Undead are dead; they are immune to suffocation, poison, disease, stun, and mind control. They can be controlled, just not with psionics.
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Undead have Blindsight; they ignore penalties for darkness, fog, and other obscuring conditions, but can only sense creatures at Near range. Their sense of hearing, on the other hand, is uncannily acute.
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Undead have a Hive Mind; they all seem to know when one senses prey.
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A Critical Hit (natural 12 on the attack dice) always kills an undead.
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When a zombie or skeleton’s attacker throws damage dice, the Referee counts the Zombie or Skeleton as dead if at least one of the damage dice rolled a six (6). Armor does not benefit a skeleton or zombie.
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Damage does not carry over to the next attack.
Chance of Survival
(Numbers based on this article.)
| Damage Dice | One Hit | Two Hits |
|---|---|---|
| 1D | 83.33% | 69.44% |
| 2D | 69.44% | 48.22% |
| 3D | 57.87% | 33.49% |
| 4D | 48.23% | 23.26% |
| 5D | 40.19% | 16.15% |
| 6D | 33.49% | 11.22% |
ZOMBIE / SKELETON, Undead, Version 3
| Type | Size | Stamina | Armor | Damage | Skills |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skeleton | Medium | 14 | 1 or worn | claws 1D or weapon | Combat 0, Physical 0, Stealth 1 |
| Zombie | Medium | 17 | worn | claws 2D or weapon | Combat 1, Physical 1, Stealth 0 |
Talents/Abilities/Inabilities
-
Undead throw skills not listed at a -2D Disadvantage.
-
Undead are dead; they are immune to suffocation, poison, disease, stun, and mind control. They can be controlled, just not with psionics.
-
Undead have Blindsight; they ignore penalties for darkness, fog, and other obscuring conditions, but can only sense creatures at Near range. Their sense of hearing, on the other hand, is uncannily acute.
-
Undead have a Hive Mind; they all seem to know when one senses prey.
-
A Critical Hit (natural 12 on the attack dice) always kills an undead.
-
Skeletons take only half damage from slashing or piercing weapons, including arrows and bullets.
ZOMBIE HORDE
(Based on a suggestion by Robert Garitta.)
| Size | Stamina | Armor | Damage | Skills |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| variable | special | 0 | 2D or grapple | Combat 0, Physical 0, Stealth 0 |
These zombies are not much of a threat singly, but in a horde they can be deadly. It’s unclear if the Horde wants to eat the living, or merely rend them into small pieces.
The Referee should determine how many zombies are in the Horde and whether they’re moving slower than the player characters or at the same speed. These decisions, in turn, depend on how many player characters are armed.
Players should lure zombies through a choke point or otherwise filter their numbers lest they be overwhelmed.
Talents/Abilities/Inabilities
-
The Horde throw skills not listed at a -2D Disadvantage.
-
The Horde are dead; they are immune to suffocation, poison, disease, stun, and mind control. They can be controlled, just not with psionics.
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The Horde have a Hive Mind; they all move in unison, and all individuals sense what one has sensed.
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The Horde can surround a target, gaining Advantage on all attacks against that target. At most six members of the horde can attack a single target, or three if the target has their back to a wall.
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Members of the Horde will attempt to grapple a target, pinning the target in place and granting another level of Advantage to other zombies’ strikes.
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A member of the Horde is re-killed if struck with a substantial melee or ranged weapon (≥ 2d6 damage) and the attack roll shows a total of 10 or more. 8 and 9 hit, but cause that specific zombie to halt for a turn. The attacker does not roll damage; every strike is a kill or a miss. If using a weapon that can take out multiple targets, e.g. a shotgun or a grenade, roll for each target.