Living Corpses

Base Cost: 24 points

Strength 7x

Agility 3x

Intellect 3x

Willpower 2x

Hand Size: Edge:

2 (10) 0

Origin:

The living corpses are the deranged creation of Doctor Bruno Varoz. Using his artificial blood formula and a jolt of electricity, he can reanimate dead tissues, creating horrible, zombie like creatures that are obsessed with evil - and follow his every diabolical command!

Powers:

Agelessness (s): Varoz's living zombies have no metabolism to speak of. As such, they do not age whatsoever. If carefully maintained, a living corpse can last indefinitely for labor or other uses; they do not age, even if they can be destroyed by conventional means.

Body Armor (s): living corpses are surprisingly tough, despite looking like decomposing human bodies. They enjoy intensity 4 (+1) damage reduction against all physical attacks that do not strike them in the head; other damage forms affect them normally.

Environmental Independence (s): no longer truly alive, living corpses do not need to eat, drink, breathe, or sleep. While they may find themselves immobile for vast stretches of time, Varoz's 'children' are never 'unconscious', and always alert and aware of the world.

Resistance to Cold and Pressure Variance (s): as walking dead, Varoz's creations need not worry about the rigors of extreme cold or pressure. Possessing this power at intensity 16 (+5), a living corpse can maneuver in the depths of the sea or in interstellar space equally well.

17 + 3 + 6.5 +4

Hindrances / Augmentations:

Inert Metabolism: the problem with living corpses, as far as a long-term existence is concerned, is that they have no metabolism. Since their body is 'just there', with most of it slowly decomposing, living corpses lack the abilities that come with a metabolism - like healing.

In other words, once a living corpse takes damage, it will not recover from it. Ever. Bits that are chopped off become inanimate again, and will not grow back on their own. However, as long as none of the damage taken is to the brain, a living corpse can persist indefinitely.

Even at zero Health!

Monstrous: no matter how fresh they were before Varoz got done with them, these walking dead take on a sickly green pallor, and an almost skeletal countenance upon their reanimation. Living corpses are at Willpower zero (0) to prevent others from fleeing at the mere sight of them.

Equipment:

Not all living corpses carry equipment. However, numerous members of Varoz's legion of evil dead have been seen wielding clubs, knives, and even firearms! Furthermore, they have made use of advanced equipment to extend their crime spree, including fixed-wing aircraft!

Skills:

Unlike traditional zombies, the living corpses appear to retain their minds to some extent, even if they're obsessed with crime. As such, a living corpse can retain any skills it possessed in life - even something as complicated as firing a gun or piloting airplanes!

Contacts:

A living corpse could conceivably rely upon former friends and family for assistance should they request it, though that would require getting past the fact that a dead friend and/or relative is trying to get them to aid and abet their murderous crime spree.

Calling:

Demolisher: upon their revivification, living corpses may retain knowledge they possessed in life, but do not hold any emotional or ethical attachment to it. No, they are reborn solely to steal, smash, and kill, and relish in the opportunity to do so.

Characteristics:

All of Varoz's living corpses are obsessed with crime. They eagerly engage in villainy, and continue to do so even if Varoz is not directing them in this regard. Once free of his control, they will simply continue to steal, smash, and slay - just doing so under their own direction.

Appearance:

The living corpses are dead humans. They have a green pallor and vaguely skeletal appearance, as corpses tend to once they begin to decompose. They still possess eyes and ears, though their mouths are trapped in a terrifying rictus. Their bodies are devoid of hair whatsoever.

For some reason, Doctor Bruno Varoz felt the need to clothe his living corpses in a like fashion - but then, it's not like people are usually buried in functional clothing. All of his living corpses were given long green robes to wear upon being restored to an animate state.

Ecological Niche:

Living corpses are unnatural abominations birthed in the derelict laboratory of the mad neurologist Bruno Varoz. Reanimated via his artificial blood formula and a powerful dose of electricity, they exist outside any natural ecosystem, and live (again) only to steal, destroy, and murder.

They are similar to zombies in many respects, but they possess minds and the ability to use tools. This would make them exceedingly dangerous, save for the fact that they appear to be unable to create more of themselves - not without Varoz's reanimation process, that is.

With his laboratory destroyed, it is unknown if living corpses will plague the earth once more. It's possible that his hunchbacks could replicate the process of their creation, having witnessed it first-hand, or perhaps someone else could develop Varoz's methods in parallel.

How long the process which reanimates a living corpse lasts is unknown. They showed no sign of breaking down during their initial crime spree, but it's possible that they may need additional electricity to empower their artificial blood over time, or perhaps more artificial blood.

All of which is pure conjecture, of course.

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