Liliana Vess (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
deathsmajesty) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png)
fandomhigh2024-02-22 02:08 am
deathsmajesty) wrote in fandomhigh2024-02-22 02:08 am
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Necromancers Guide to the Undead, Thursday, Period 1
Liliana looked positively delighted to be in front of the class today and it was with great impatience that she waited for the bell to ring and class to begin. Considering they were meeting in the Danger Shop, currently configured to look like a normal classroom, that may or may not spell good things for the rest of you.
"Zombies!" she said. "We've finally gotten to zombies. As we've discussed previously, necromancers are capable of raising, controlling, and interacting with all kinds of undead, from spirits to skeletons to mummies. Mummies will be getting short shrift, I'm afraid, as apart from their ceremonial wrappings, they're basically either skeletons or zombies and by covering both of the latter, we negate the necessity of discussing the former." Boy was she going to have to revise this class after her trip to Amonkhet. "However, most necromancers have specialties - and my specialty is ghoulcalling. That is, I summon zombies directly from graveyards and have them do my bidding. Or, to put it bluntly, we're on the part of class that I wrote my undergraduate thesis on and have spent nearly the last two hundred years studying."
So prepare for even more lecture than you've gotten before, class! This is her special interest!
"To begin, it's important to understand that zombies are not a monolith. There are multiple types of zombies, and different planes have their own unique take on the undead. The most common kind of zombie is what is known as a ghoul or a revenant: a corpse animated by magic with little to no connection with the soul of the deceased. It is the equivalent of an abandoned house with the lights turned on. As per usual, ghouls can occur naturally, when a something dies or is buried near a font of black mana, but the vast majority of ghouls you find roaming around were raised by necromancers. Whether or not they're still under necromantic control is debatable, but their creation was due to deliberate magic used for that purpose.
"While there are multiple types of intelligent zombies, today's class is going to focus on the unintelligent ones. While there are multiple ways to classify even unintelligent zombies, the most important classification, at least for most you, is whether the zombie is feral or not. Feral zombies are the types you see in various kinds of popular media: mindless, shambling undead interested only in devouring the flesh of the living. Their hunger is insatiable, and while a feeding feral is generally preoccupied with the meal before it, attracting its attention can cause it to leave the carcass of its previous meal to attack the next. If you are lucky enough to come across a feral zombie while it's eating, use of stealth is your best bet to continue to survive, whether you're sneaking away to leave the area immediately - the wisest decision - or to sneaking up and attempting to kill it. For the record, the latter is an incredibly stupid move if there are more zombies than there are capable zombie killers, and also, you run into the risk of zombies returning immediately from re-death who are now aware of your existence, thus cementing the idea that you have made a stupid choice."
There was also the strategy of knocking someone down and leaving them to be caught while you made a break for it, but the people in the class who were inclined that way had doubtlessly already thought of that and those who weren't didn't need to bewarned in advance horrified that others did.
"Non-feral zombies are certainly may still feed, but they're not as single-focused as ferals. When left to their own devices, the brainless ghouls as mentioned above are generally - please know that I'm always speaking in generalities, darlings, there are always exceptions - good for four things: killing one's enemies, devouring the flesh of the living, passing along diseases, and, in the case of infectious zombies, creating more of themselves," Liliana continied. "When I say infectious, I do mean the type that can cause reanimation in creatures that they bite. Pretty much all zombies are infectious the other way. The human mouth is disgusting even when we're alive, and only moreso once you start introducing filth and rot into the mix. When I was giving a similar lecture to Jon's class last semester, he asked if there were any way of telling if a zombie was of the infectious variety or not. Sadly, the only real answer is 'Wait and see what happens after a bitten victim has died. The timeframe for that does vary, however. If the zombies have been raised because of an immediate fight the necromancer is in, the body will raise almost immediately to continue fighting, though on the necromancer's side. If it isn't part of an immediate battle defense, then it can take up to several days for the first victims to rise again."
So, as Jon had surmised many weeks ago, do try to avoid getting bitten class. And, more importantly, do also avoid getting on the wrong side of a necromancer. "Zombies that are bound by a necromancer will serve that necromancer's will, carrying out their orders. However, mindless zombies are just that, with even less mental capacity than last week's skeletons. They cannot use tools or weapons; if you see a zombie with a weapon in hand, you're dealing with one that has at least the moderate ability to think for itself. Again, my suggestion to you for dealing with zombies is to run. Most zombies are very slow - though those raised by any necromancer worth her salt will have been meticulously put back together, including muscles and tendons. On the positive side, that means more targets to hit than, say, a skeleton; hamstringing a zombie can be useful if you're looking to get away. On the negative side, that does mean that zombies are capable of running. Or flying, as the case may be. If running is not an option, blunt weapons are stillbetter than sharp. Zombies cannot bleed and do not feel pain. Your best option is to do enough damage to incapacitate them, which is most easily done by crushing bones. Hard to chase if a kneecap is pulverized, easier to break a grip if the ulna and radius are dust. Sharp weapons that can remove limbs are helpful, but only if you have the strength to cleanly remove them. Otherwise, you're more likely to get the weapon lodged in bone or rotting flesh and then you're struggling to get your weapon back while the zombie's friends are surrounding you. Sharp weapons and a working knowledge of anatomy can help, if you know what tendons and ligaments prevent moving or grabbing. To be clear, though, I mean that it will help your friends. You'll likely be devoured pulling off fancy maneuvers like that, but your friends will hopefully live long enough to say pretty thank yous at your funeral." Beat. "Or to your wandering corpse, if infection is in play.
"Additional strategic thoughts: first and foremost, don't let yourself get surrounded and overwhelmed. Zombies are slow, but their strength is in numbers - save when their strength is in strength, but we'll get to different types of zombies next time - and even the strongest and most tireless fighter can't fight off an entire horde by themself. Second, zombies aren't like humans - they don't have morale, they don't get afraid, they don't get tired. They are persistence predators and they will not stop until you or their necromancer is dead. Which is the last bit of advice I have for you - if you cannot outrun the zombies and there are too many to safely fight, your best bet is to go after their controlling necromancer and hope that they were raised quickly and will die with their master. Some necromancers do raise zombies specifically to go feral after their deaths, but that's just a risk you're going to have to take." She smiled at the assembled students.
"Any questions?"
"Zombies!" she said. "We've finally gotten to zombies. As we've discussed previously, necromancers are capable of raising, controlling, and interacting with all kinds of undead, from spirits to skeletons to mummies. Mummies will be getting short shrift, I'm afraid, as apart from their ceremonial wrappings, they're basically either skeletons or zombies and by covering both of the latter, we negate the necessity of discussing the former." Boy was she going to have to revise this class after her trip to Amonkhet. "However, most necromancers have specialties - and my specialty is ghoulcalling. That is, I summon zombies directly from graveyards and have them do my bidding. Or, to put it bluntly, we're on the part of class that I wrote my undergraduate thesis on and have spent nearly the last two hundred years studying."
So prepare for even more lecture than you've gotten before, class! This is her special interest!
"To begin, it's important to understand that zombies are not a monolith. There are multiple types of zombies, and different planes have their own unique take on the undead. The most common kind of zombie is what is known as a ghoul or a revenant: a corpse animated by magic with little to no connection with the soul of the deceased. It is the equivalent of an abandoned house with the lights turned on. As per usual, ghouls can occur naturally, when a something dies or is buried near a font of black mana, but the vast majority of ghouls you find roaming around were raised by necromancers. Whether or not they're still under necromantic control is debatable, but their creation was due to deliberate magic used for that purpose.
"While there are multiple types of intelligent zombies, today's class is going to focus on the unintelligent ones. While there are multiple ways to classify even unintelligent zombies, the most important classification, at least for most you, is whether the zombie is feral or not. Feral zombies are the types you see in various kinds of popular media: mindless, shambling undead interested only in devouring the flesh of the living. Their hunger is insatiable, and while a feeding feral is generally preoccupied with the meal before it, attracting its attention can cause it to leave the carcass of its previous meal to attack the next. If you are lucky enough to come across a feral zombie while it's eating, use of stealth is your best bet to continue to survive, whether you're sneaking away to leave the area immediately - the wisest decision - or to sneaking up and attempting to kill it. For the record, the latter is an incredibly stupid move if there are more zombies than there are capable zombie killers, and also, you run into the risk of zombies returning immediately from re-death who are now aware of your existence, thus cementing the idea that you have made a stupid choice."
There was also the strategy of knocking someone down and leaving them to be caught while you made a break for it, but the people in the class who were inclined that way had doubtlessly already thought of that and those who weren't didn't need to be
"Non-feral zombies are certainly may still feed, but they're not as single-focused as ferals. When left to their own devices, the brainless ghouls as mentioned above are generally - please know that I'm always speaking in generalities, darlings, there are always exceptions - good for four things: killing one's enemies, devouring the flesh of the living, passing along diseases, and, in the case of infectious zombies, creating more of themselves," Liliana continied. "When I say infectious, I do mean the type that can cause reanimation in creatures that they bite. Pretty much all zombies are infectious the other way. The human mouth is disgusting even when we're alive, and only moreso once you start introducing filth and rot into the mix. When I was giving a similar lecture to Jon's class last semester, he asked if there were any way of telling if a zombie was of the infectious variety or not. Sadly, the only real answer is 'Wait and see what happens after a bitten victim has died. The timeframe for that does vary, however. If the zombies have been raised because of an immediate fight the necromancer is in, the body will raise almost immediately to continue fighting, though on the necromancer's side. If it isn't part of an immediate battle defense, then it can take up to several days for the first victims to rise again."
So, as Jon had surmised many weeks ago, do try to avoid getting bitten class. And, more importantly, do also avoid getting on the wrong side of a necromancer. "Zombies that are bound by a necromancer will serve that necromancer's will, carrying out their orders. However, mindless zombies are just that, with even less mental capacity than last week's skeletons. They cannot use tools or weapons; if you see a zombie with a weapon in hand, you're dealing with one that has at least the moderate ability to think for itself. Again, my suggestion to you for dealing with zombies is to run. Most zombies are very slow - though those raised by any necromancer worth her salt will have been meticulously put back together, including muscles and tendons. On the positive side, that means more targets to hit than, say, a skeleton; hamstringing a zombie can be useful if you're looking to get away. On the negative side, that does mean that zombies are capable of running. Or flying, as the case may be. If running is not an option, blunt weapons are stillbetter than sharp. Zombies cannot bleed and do not feel pain. Your best option is to do enough damage to incapacitate them, which is most easily done by crushing bones. Hard to chase if a kneecap is pulverized, easier to break a grip if the ulna and radius are dust. Sharp weapons that can remove limbs are helpful, but only if you have the strength to cleanly remove them. Otherwise, you're more likely to get the weapon lodged in bone or rotting flesh and then you're struggling to get your weapon back while the zombie's friends are surrounding you. Sharp weapons and a working knowledge of anatomy can help, if you know what tendons and ligaments prevent moving or grabbing. To be clear, though, I mean that it will help your friends. You'll likely be devoured pulling off fancy maneuvers like that, but your friends will hopefully live long enough to say pretty thank yous at your funeral." Beat. "Or to your wandering corpse, if infection is in play.
"Additional strategic thoughts: first and foremost, don't let yourself get surrounded and overwhelmed. Zombies are slow, but their strength is in numbers - save when their strength is in strength, but we'll get to different types of zombies next time - and even the strongest and most tireless fighter can't fight off an entire horde by themself. Second, zombies aren't like humans - they don't have morale, they don't get afraid, they don't get tired. They are persistence predators and they will not stop until you or their necromancer is dead. Which is the last bit of advice I have for you - if you cannot outrun the zombies and there are too many to safely fight, your best bet is to go after their controlling necromancer and hope that they were raised quickly and will die with their master. Some necromancers do raise zombies specifically to go feral after their deaths, but that's just a risk you're going to have to take." She smiled at the assembled students.
"Any questions?"
Sign In - 02/22
Listen to the Lecture
Watch the Wakedancing
"While there are a number of ways to summon zombies, there are some that are unique to each plane. One of the oldest ghoulcalling traditions on Innistrad is that of 'wakedancing,' a shamanic ritual that is unlike anything I've seen elsewhere," Liliana explained. "The herbs she is burning will help guide her into a meditative trance where she will not feel pain or fatigue, which is useful considering she will likely dance for hours. Many wakedancers do so barefoot, sometimes in the cold and snow, or over rocks and sticks, and end up leaving bloody footprints in their wake. Once she is prepared, she will begin to dance and that dance will draw in black mana to her, which she will guide via her steps."
Another few deep inhales and the woman rose and began to dance, movements graceful and oddly jerky at the same time. Drums and louder chanting accompanied her dance, which got faster and wilder. Partway, she left the stone circle and began to dance her way across the moors. Where she danced, the covered forms began to twitch and move, eventually sitting up. As the coverings fell away, the class would be vastly unsurprised, surely, to see that they were freshly-created zombies.
"Wakedancing can only create zombies from very fresh corpses," Liliana explained. "The very strongest 'dancers can awaken corpses that are a few hours old, but most of them can only raise corpses that have died withing the last handful of minutes. 'Dancers used to accompany soldiers into battle, dancing the recently slain back as ghouls, which might be one reason their numbers are so limited now. Drugs, dancing, and warfare are rarely a pretty combination."
In those few areas where the Church of Avacyn does not hold sway, many funeral wakes have dancing as a major cultural component, though with fewer herbs to inhale. It's considered good luck if the guest of honor climbs out of their casket to join the festivities, though they will generally run out of mana before the end of the celebration and need to be returned for the burial."
Learn Some Steps
An instructor appeared in front of them as Innistrad vanished, becoming a dance studio instead. Jangly hip scarves were folded neatly in front of each student for them to don before the lesson began.
"Put on your hip scarf and pay attention to the lesson," Liliana said. "Who knows, perhaps one of you will end up discovering you have a knack for wakedancing yourself."
Talk To Liliana
OOC
Re: Sign In - 02/22
Re: Sign In - 02/22
Re: Watch the Wakedancing
The idea of someone joining in the dancing at their own funeral was interesting. Maybe even beautiful if they'd agreed to it in advance.
Re: Learn Some Steps
This was not how Stark had expected to any morning, really.
He was hesitant, at first, but he'd give it a try.
It was really too bad Summer wasn't there to see him shimmying with the scarf around his hip.
Re: Sign In - 02/22
Re: Watch the Wakedancing
There were a few magical traditions she knew about that incorporated dance, but few to this degree.
Re: Learn Some Steps
She dutifully tied on her scarf, although she was a little dismayed at the loss of Innistrad for the remainder of the lesson. It was a gorgeous plane.
Re: Sign In - 02/22
Re: Talk To Liliana
The deceased joining in the dancing was a bit much though, but he was trying not to judge too much. And yes he was not going to address the main zombie discussion, thanks.
Maybe someone should take him to a funeral in New Orleans. Corpses might not be dancing but he'd enjoy the music.
Re: Talk To Liliana
"So many wakes are just such boring, droning affairs, it's nice to see something more inclined towards celebration," Liliana replied. "I know a vampire that throws himself a wake and a funeral every couple of decades or so just for fun."
Re: Talk To Liliana
"So he can see what others have to say about him? Or so he can pretend to be someone else? Both?"
Re: Talk To Liliana
"A bit of both," Liliana said. "All of his bloodline is expected to attend and mourn, but in the end, I think he just enjoys the aesthetic."
Vampires were weird, man.
Re: Talk To Liliana
"I wonder if Eric has ever done that..." It was possible, at least.
"Celebrating a life is a good way to mourn. Or not mourn for someone who isn't even dead. Death needn't always he so sad."
Re: Sign In - 02/22