Zombie (Dungeons & Dragons)
Encyclopedia
In the Dungeons & Dragons
fantasy role-playing game
, the zombie is an undead
creature, usually created by applying a template to another creature.
(1974), where they were described as acting under the instructions of their motivator, usually a magic-user
or cleric
of chaotic alignment.
The ollam-onga, a zombie variant, appeared in Supplement IV: Gods, Demigods, and Heroes (1976).
The ju-ju zombie, a more intelligent zombie, and the monster zombie first appeared in Monster Manual II (1983).
The Strahd
zombie first appeared in the original Ravenloft
module (1983).
Several zombie variants appear in Dragon
#138, in Tom Moldvay's article "The Ungrateful Dead" (October 1988), including the greater colossus and lesser colossus, the hungry dead, the le grand zombi, and the walking dead.
The sea zombie for the Greyhawk
campaign setting
first appeared in Greyhawk Adventures (1988).
The living zombie for the Forgotten Realms
campaign setting first appeared in Lords of Darkness
(1988).
(1977, 1981, 1983). The zombie was also later featured in the Dungeons & Dragons Game
set (1991), the Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia (1991), the Classic Dungeons & Dragons Game set (1994), and the Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game set (1999).
The lesser lightning zombie and greater lightning zombie appear in the Wrath of the Immortals boxed set (1992).
The sea zombie appeared in the Monstrous Compendium Greyhawk Appendix, and was reprinted in the Monstrous Manual.
The Strahd zombie for the Ravenloft
setting appeared in the Ravenloft: Realm of Terror
boxed set (1990), and later appeared in Ravenloft Monstrous Compendium Appendix III: Creatures of Darkness (1994). The zombie lord is introduced in Monstrous Compendium Ravenloft Appendix (1991), and is reprinted in the Monstrous Manual. The zombie wolf appeared in Castles Forlorn
and Ravenloft Monstrous Compendium Appendix III: Creatures of Darkness (1994). Several new zombie variants appeared in Ravenloft Monstrous Compendium Appendix III: Creatures of Darkness (1994), including the cannibal zombie, and the desert zombie. The mud zombie appears in Death Ascendant (1996) and is reprinted in Monstrous Compendium Appendix Four (1998).
The thinking zombie was introduced in the Dark Sun Monstrous Compendium Appendix (1995).
The lesser lightning zombie and greater lightning zombie appear in the Mystara Monstrous Compendium Appendix (1994).
The zombie undead dragon appears in Dragon #234 (October 1996), which later appeared in Cult of the Dragon (1998). In the same issue of Dragon, the "Dragon's Bestiary column features the absorbing zombie, the acid zombie, and the quick zombie.
The tyrantfog zombie appears for the Forgotten Realms
setting in Monsters of Faerun (2001). The juju zombie appears in Unapproachable East (2003), for the Forgotten Realms
campaign setting.
zombie, the gray render
zombie, the human commoner zombie, the kobold
zombie, the minotaur
zombie, the ogre
zombie, the troglodyte
zombie, the umber hulk
zombie, and the wyvern
zombie.
The zombie dragon template appeared in Draconomicon: The Book of Dragons
(2003).
The bloodthirsty zombie, the diseased zombie, the fast zombie, the hunting zombie, and the unkillable zombie appeared in Libris Mortis: The Book of Undead
(2004). This book also featured a number of sample zombies, including the behir
zombie, the black bear zombie, the centaur
zombie, the dire ape zombie, the dire rat zombie, the five-headed hydra
zombie, the gnoll
warrior zombie, the gnome
warrior zombie, the goblin
warrior zombie, the hound archon
zombie, the megaraptor zombie, the skum
zombie, the vrock
zombie, the werewolf
zombie, and the wolf zombie.
The necrocarnum zombie template appeared in Magic of Incarnum (2005).
The living zombie for the Forgotten Realms
setting returned in Champions of Ruin
(2005).
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
fantasy role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
, the zombie is an undead
Undead (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, undead is a classification of monsters that can be encountered by player characters. Undead creatures are most often once-living creatures, which have been animated by spiritual or supernatural forces....
creature, usually created by applying a template to another creature.
Dungeons & Dragons (1974-1976)
The zombie was one of the first monsters introduced in the earliest edition of the game, in the Dungeons & Dragons "white box" setDungeons & Dragons (1974)
The original Dungeons & Dragons boxed set by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson was published by TSR, Inc. in 1974. It initially included the original edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game...
(1974), where they were described as acting under the instructions of their motivator, usually a magic-user
Wizard (Dungeons & Dragons)
The wizard is one of the standard character class in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. A wizard uses arcane magic, and is considered less effective in melee combat than other classes.-Creative origins:...
or cleric
Cleric (Dungeons & Dragons)
The cleric is one of the standard playable character class in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. In the game, clerics are versatile figures, both capable in combat and skilled in the use of divine magic. Clerics are powerful healers due to the large number of healing and curative...
of chaotic alignment.
The ollam-onga, a zombie variant, appeared in Supplement IV: Gods, Demigods, and Heroes (1976).
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition (1977-1988)
The zombie appears in the first edition Monster Manual (1977), where it is described as a magically animated corpse, an undead creature under the command of the evil magic-user or cleric who animated it.The ju-ju zombie, a more intelligent zombie, and the monster zombie first appeared in Monster Manual II (1983).
The Strahd
Strahd von Zarovich
Count Strahd von Zarovich is a fictional character originally appearing as the feature villain in the highly popular Advanced Dungeons and Dragons adventure module I6: Ravenloft. Later, this character and his world would be explored in followup modules, novels, and a campaign setting called...
zombie first appeared in the original Ravenloft
Ravenloft (D&D module)
Ravenloft is an adventure module for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. The American game publishing company TSR, Inc. released it as a standalone adventure booklet in 1983 for use with the first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons game. It was written by Tracy and Laura Hickman,...
module (1983).
Several zombie variants appear in Dragon
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#138, in Tom Moldvay's article "The Ungrateful Dead" (October 1988), including the greater colossus and lesser colossus, the hungry dead, the le grand zombi, and the walking dead.
The sea zombie for the Greyhawk
Greyhawk
Greyhawk, also known as the World of Greyhawk, is a fictional world designed as a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game...
campaign setting
Campaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
first appeared in Greyhawk Adventures (1988).
The living zombie for the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
campaign setting first appeared in Lords of Darkness
Lords of Darkness
Lords of Darkness is the name of two accessories for the fictional Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 1st edition:...
(1988).
Dungeons & Dragons (1977-1999)
This edition of the D&D game included its own version of the zombie, in the Dungeons & Dragons Basic SetDungeons & Dragons Basic Set
The original Dungeons & Dragons Basic Set boxed set was first published by TSR, Inc. in 1977, and comprised a separate edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, distinct from the first edition of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons game, which was initially published in the same...
(1977, 1981, 1983). The zombie was also later featured in the Dungeons & Dragons Game
Dungeons & Dragons Game (1991 boxed set)
The New Easy to Master Dungeons & Dragons Game is an accessory for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, published in 1991....
set (1991), the Dungeons & Dragons Rules Cyclopedia (1991), the Classic Dungeons & Dragons Game set (1994), and the Dungeons & Dragons Adventure Game set (1999).
The lesser lightning zombie and greater lightning zombie appear in the Wrath of the Immortals boxed set (1992).
Advanced Dungeons & Dragons 2nd edition (1989-1999)
The zombie, ju-ju zombie, and monster zombie appear first in the Monstrous Compendium Volume One (1989), and are reprinted in the Monstrous Manual (1993).The sea zombie appeared in the Monstrous Compendium Greyhawk Appendix, and was reprinted in the Monstrous Manual.
The Strahd zombie for the Ravenloft
Ravenloft
Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a pocket dimension called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of land pieces called domains brought together by a mysterious force known only as "The Dark...
setting appeared in the Ravenloft: Realm of Terror
Ravenloft: Realm of Terror
Ravenloft: Realm of Terror is a boxed set accessory published in 1990 for the Ravenloft campaign setting for the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Contents:...
boxed set (1990), and later appeared in Ravenloft Monstrous Compendium Appendix III: Creatures of Darkness (1994). The zombie lord is introduced in Monstrous Compendium Ravenloft Appendix (1991), and is reprinted in the Monstrous Manual. The zombie wolf appeared in Castles Forlorn
Castles Forlorn
Castles Forlorn is an accessory for the 2nd edition of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, published in 1993....
and Ravenloft Monstrous Compendium Appendix III: Creatures of Darkness (1994). Several new zombie variants appeared in Ravenloft Monstrous Compendium Appendix III: Creatures of Darkness (1994), including the cannibal zombie, and the desert zombie. The mud zombie appears in Death Ascendant (1996) and is reprinted in Monstrous Compendium Appendix Four (1998).
The thinking zombie was introduced in the Dark Sun Monstrous Compendium Appendix (1995).
The lesser lightning zombie and greater lightning zombie appear in the Mystara Monstrous Compendium Appendix (1994).
The zombie undead dragon appears in Dragon #234 (October 1996), which later appeared in Cult of the Dragon (1998). In the same issue of Dragon, the "Dragon's Bestiary column features the absorbing zombie, the acid zombie, and the quick zombie.
Dungeons & Dragons 3.0 edition (2000-2002)
The zombie appears in the Monster Manual for this edition (2000). Described are zombies of several size categories, including tiny, small, medium-size, large, huge, gargantuan, huge, and colossal.The tyrantfog zombie appears for the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
setting in Monsters of Faerun (2001). The juju zombie appears in Unapproachable East (2003), for the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
campaign setting.
Dungeons & Dragons 3.5 edition (2003-2007)
The zombie appears in the revised Monster Manual for this edition (2003), as a template. This book also featured a number of sample zombies, including the bugbearBugbear (Dungeons & Dragons)
The bugbear is a type of fictional monster for player characters to encounter in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.A bugbear is depicted as a massive humanoid distantly related to goblins and hobgoblins...
zombie, the gray render
Gray render
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the gray render is a magical beast born from various terran substances present in swamps and marshes.-Publication history:...
zombie, the human commoner zombie, the kobold
Kobold (Dungeons & Dragons)
Kobolds are a fictional species featured in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. Aggressive, xenophobic, yet industrious small humanoid creatures, kobolds are noted for their skill at building traps and preparing ambushes...
zombie, the minotaur
Minotaur (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, minotaurs are a race of monstrous humanoids, resembling bull-human hybrids. Many minotaurs worship the demon lord Baphomet.-Dungeons & Dragons :...
zombie, the ogre
Ogre (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, ogres are a lesser race of giants, rather being simply large brutes with clubs. An aquatic subrace of ogres is known as "merrow." D&D ogres are also closely related to the race of ogre magi, a smarter race with blue skin and great magical abilities...
zombie, the troglodyte
Troglodyte (Dungeons & Dragons)
The troglodytes is a fictional race of primitive reptilian humanoids in the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Publication history:The troglodyte was introduced to the D&D game in the first edition of Advanced Dungeons & Dragons....
zombie, the umber hulk
Umber hulk
An umber hulk is a fictional creature in the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. They are large, bipedal, insectoid aberrations with an ape-like build. The creature has the ability to confuse any creature that sees all four of its eyes at once. They are often found in the Underdark, where they are...
zombie, and the wyvern
Wyvern (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons and Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the wyvern or WHY-vern) is a species of dragon.-Publication history:The wyvern was based upon the wyverns of legend.-Dungeons & Dragons :...
zombie.
The zombie dragon template appeared in Draconomicon: The Book of Dragons
Draconomicon
The Draconomicon is an optional sourcebook for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, providing supplementary game material focusing on dragons. Different versions of the Draconomicon have been printed for different editions of Dungeons & Dragons...
(2003).
The bloodthirsty zombie, the diseased zombie, the fast zombie, the hunting zombie, and the unkillable zombie appeared in Libris Mortis: The Book of Undead
Libris Mortis
Libris Mortis: The Book of Undead is a book which is an official supplement for the 3.5 edition of the Dungeons and Dragons role-playing game...
(2004). This book also featured a number of sample zombies, including the behir
Behir
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the behir is a huge serpentine magical beast.-Publication history:The behir first appeared in the first edition adventure module, The Lost Caverns of Tsojcanth , and was reprinted in the Monster Manual II .The behir appeared for the second...
zombie, the black bear zombie, the centaur
Centaur (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the centaur is a large monstrous humanoid. Based upon the Centaurs of Greek myth, they resemble humans with the lower body of a horse.-Publication history:...
zombie, the dire ape zombie, the dire rat zombie, the five-headed hydra
Hydra (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the hydra is a reptilian magical beast that has anywhere from five to twelve heads.-Dungeons & Dragons :...
zombie, the gnoll
Gnoll
A gnoll or gnole is a fictional humanoid creature - a cross between a gnome and a troll. They first appeared in Lord Dunsany's story in The Book of Wonder: How Nuth Would Have Practised His Art upon the Gnoles and subsequently reappeared in Margaret St. Clair's, The Man Who Sold Rope to the Gnoles...
warrior zombie, the gnome
Gnome (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, gnomes are one of the core races available for play as player characters. Some speculate that they are closely related to dwarves; however, gnomes are more tolerant of other races and of magic, and are skilled with illusions...
warrior zombie, the goblin
Goblin (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, goblins are a very common and fairly weak race of evil humanoid monsters. Goblins and Kobolds are commonly non-human monsters that low-level player characters will face in combat. In D&D, goblins aren't smaller cousins of orcs, but are a part of...
warrior zombie, the hound archon
Archon (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, archons are a type of creature from the Dungeons & Dragons role playing game. In 1st and 2nd edition, they are powerful lawful good creatures from the upper planes, and in 3rd edition they are celestials. These creatures are sent by higher powers...
zombie, the megaraptor zombie, the skum
Skum
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the skum is a fish-like aberration.-Publication history:The skum first appeared in second edition in Polyhedron #67...
zombie, the vrock
Vrock
A vrock is a fictional demon from the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It resembles a humanoid with the head, claws, and wings of giant vulture. Vrock typically stand eight feet tall and weigh 800 pounds...
zombie, the werewolf
Lycanthrope (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the lycanthrope is a humanoid shapeshifter based on various legends of lycanthropy.-Dungeons & Dragons :...
zombie, and the wolf zombie.
The necrocarnum zombie template appeared in Magic of Incarnum (2005).
The living zombie for the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
setting returned in Champions of Ruin
Champions of Ruin
Champions of Ruin is a hardcover accessory for the 3.5 edition of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.-Contents:Champions of Ruin is an expansion to detail the role of evil in the Forgotten Realms setting.-Publication history:...
(2005).