Sea Zombie

Also called drowned ones, sea zombies are the free-willed remains of humans lost at sea. They look long submerged: swollen, discolored flesh streaming foul water, empty sockets, blackened lips and often a lolling tongue, many bearing bite marks from deep-sea scavengers. Anyone who sees one within 20 feet must save vs. poison or be nauseated and horrified for 2d4 rounds, at -1 to attack rolls and +1 to AC. Ashore they shamble clumsily, but underwater they are frighteningly fast.

Hating all life, they attack whenever they can, often with real cunning: they steer ships onto rocks and kill survivors struggling in the surf, or swim out to anchored vessels, climb aboard and drive crews into the water where they have the edge. Their sailors' weapons (short swords, daggers, hooks, clubs) deal 1d10 thanks to unnatural strength, and every hit has a 10% chance of passing on a severe blood disease from their filthy water.

Their sodden flesh takes half damage from fire but double from cold, lightning and electricity. Illusions, sleep, charm and any other mind-affecting magic fail against them. Because the forces of the misty dread realm animate them, priests turn them at -2.

They keep their living abilities; each has a 25% chance of being a spellcaster of level 1-6, empowered by the dark powers of the realm. On some other world they serve a reaper god of death instead and receive only baneful spells.

Drowned ones gather in loose packs with no motive but hatred of the living. They need no food but may tear and chew prey, likely to spread terror. Underwater they never rest and often haunt the wrecks they died in; above water they move only at night, rarely more than 100 yards from shore. Fog blown inland carries them as far as it reaches, but when it retreats or dawn nears they must go back. Coastal folk dread fog for this reason, and some throw living sacrifices into it hoping to buy the rest of the town's safety. They speak among themselves by telepathy and whisper spell components unintelligibly.

They consume and produce nothing, cooperating only to kill better. In the dread realm they are most numerous in a seaweed-choked sea domain, which supplies a constant flow of bodies, and also along a gloomy northern sea and the waters of the bayou domain. Elsewhere they swarm the shallows of a warm inland sea, fed by drowned pirates and freebooters, especially around several pirate-haunted island chains.