The Zombie

The Zombie is the classic Undead, a shambling horror of undeath whose relentless pursuit of fresh meat is legendary. The Zombie enjoys all the benefits of being Undead, and often are blessed by a heightened sense of smell and death, but the older Zombies also exhibit additional powers like superior strength, toughness and even speed.

Origin Story:
The Zombie is created through several different means, since technically it is a categorization instead of a full blown species of Supernaturals. The most common Zombies are produced via magick, especially Necromancy. Zombies can usually transmit the 'virus' to a target via a bite or sufficient blood on blood contact with the victim.

Facts:
-Zombie are dead yet living, they have no heartbeat or a very reduced one. They never get sick or suffer ordinary illnesses or ailments. When injured, they heal quickly when they ingest fresh brains.

-Zombies are found mostly in far-removed, backwater areas of the world. Created by necromancers and other Undead, they rarely gain any sense of independence let alone true sentience. Those that do can prove creepily dedicated to freedom and a sense of democracy. A few "Zombie ghettoes" can be found in the more rundown, slummier sections of cities and urban communities, hiding themselves underground or in abandoned warehouses and the like.

-Used mainly as foot soldiers, they make implacable foes since nothing short of total destruction of the brain will stop them. Often called "Deadheads" or "Dreaded Z's," Zombies are awkward and usually slow, but they have relentless stamina and can prove deadly in numbers. Also, due to their state of suspended death, are completely immune to toxins, diseases, and all but the most concentrated radiation. Some of the more 'refined' strains of this Tribe even possess superhuman strength in their arsenal of supernatural tricks.

Types Of Zombies
Crawlers = Crawlers have lost their legs or lower bodily-extremities, yet they can pull themselves forward with unbelievable speed. They aren't a problem out in the open, but in enclosed, especially urban environments, or in thickly wooded areas with bushes, they can move quickly through cover to get to their targets and attack from the ankles up.

Trackers = Trackers have an uncanny sense of smell and often lead their brethren in hunting down their next potential meal. While this makes them doubly hard to escape from, their strength can quickly be turned into a weakness - a Tracker's sense of smell will overreact to powerful stimuli such as concentrated fumes or toxic chemicals.

Hunters = The standard Zombie, a largely mindless brute who runs on animalistic instinct. Can only be killed by destruction of the brain or total destruction of the body. All other Zombies are variations of the Hunter.

Hurlers = Hurlers can vomit projectile bile and anything else in their stomach for great distances. Their preferred method is to get close to their intended target and cover them with corrosive acids that burn the skin away, then feast on them in their wounded state.

Runners = Fresh Deadheads retain the ability to run, and coupled with their inability to feel pain or fatigue, they are relentless and quick.

Howlers = Howlers let loose with something between a wail and a moan or roar that can, with time, psychologically diminish prey. Remaining within the vicinity of a Howler or Howlers will result in induced stress levels and extreme agitation. Something about a Howler's yell is able to trigger those long dormant animal instincts that warn of danger, and prolonged exposure can be tiresome indeed.

Diggers = These Zombies, with massively deformed hands, tunnel through loose soil and the earth. They can't work that fast, but they are able to slowly but surely work their way through the ground (provided it's not rock solid) to get to their intended targets.

Trashers = Trashers are so rotten, so full of rot & decay, that the area around them is soaked with the vile smell of death. Anyone other than a Zombie will quite literally choke on the foul smell, including other Undead. When wounded Trasher's bodies release foul toxins and mold spores into the air around them, making them perfect biological weapons.

Brainwaves = These rare Zombies seem to possess latent psychic abilities, as they routinely are the most sentient and active of the walking dead. Brainwaves can sense the neuroelectrical impulses of other living things. They also possess calming emotion or even the ability to put potential prey into a faint, trance-like state before devouring them.

Bruisers = Most Zombies have only the most primitive of brain functions still active, and their bodies are, from a purely scientific viewpoint, dead. But Bruisers are Zombies whose metabolism, especially in relation to muscle growth, has somehow remained. After gorging on enough dead flesh, these Zombies' bodies have grown huge and bulky. They tower over other undead and their greater muscle mass ensures they pack quite a punch.

Death Master = A Death Master is, hypothetically, either a Zombie Brainwaves of great talent who can psychically direct an entire horde of walking dead; or a human who is somehow immune to the plague-curse but is still a carrier for it. Stories abound of 'normal' humans bitten by Zombies who can infect others, yet themselves remain alive and fully sentient. Worse yet, there are stories of these 'humans' being able to communicate with or control the hordes of living dead!

Undead Riders:
Around the world stories are told of Undead Riders, such as Zombie Cowboys, Dark Tartars and more. Zombie Riders aren't a specific type of Zombie, they are just Zombie who have enough mental faculty to ride a mount.

Most Undead Riders will find a worthy mount, usually a horse or something similar, and intentionally infect them with a Zombie plague (unless they are already Supernatural in origin).