Husks (True20)

Husks. Scarecrows. Night-crackers. These are but a few of the names serfs give to the walking dead. Husks are clinically dead but animated creatures who quickly become host to all manner of carrion. These zombies are known haunt the badlands, the most desolate, rural areas on many worlds. They rarely plague urban areas. Most city dwellers think of them as folk stories. A “zombie plague” first erupts among those on the verge of death — soldiers dying of sword wounds, terminally ill patients in Church hospices, or peasants dying of malnutrition. These near dead suddenly discover a new hunger for life. Possessed by an unnatural strength and bloodlust, they can carve their way through a rural population in no time. Each person they kill also becomes a husk.

When husks first appeared, the serfs prayed for deliverance  – this was a sign of the end times. Some scientific heretics in the Engineers guild scoff at this, believing that the phenomenon has a rational cause. They have yet to find one. Newborn night-crackers possess exceptional strength and resilience. They also retain all their mental faculties. This does not last long, however. The initial burst of energy quickly fades; within a week they become mentally and physically lethargic. They still present a threat, however, because they remain hungry for flesh and are difficult to kill.  Many of them possess a low, feral cunning. There are stories of some husks who retain their intelligence for longer periods, although even the most degenerate of these creatures may occasionally form a coherent sentence.

Immunities: Zombies are immune to poison, sleep, paralysis, stunning, disease, and mind-influencing effects (including mindinfluencing powers). They are not subject to critical hits, non-lethal damage, ability damage, ability drain or any effect requiring a Fortitude save, unless it works on inanimate objects.

Slow: Zombies have poor reflexes and can perform only a single move action or standard action each round. A zombie can move up to its speed and attack in the same round, but only if it charges.