So party is going to be dealing undead but not undead need a bit of advice.

[Throne12]

So the party has been sent to another Continent with a blue print of a special magic item of a lamp the repels these special undead. in short its lamps the Admits UV light. These undead don't like UV light/day light. Now this Continent is based off of Canada/Alaska so a few months out the year its dark.

Sorry I was going on a tangent. Anyways my question is everyone thinks these are undead. They are rotting corpus and are hard to kill ect. But they arnt really undead there is a larva like Parasite that is infesting these bodys. So they arnt undead so what should I tell my party's paladin when he uses divine sense? Or should I classifie them as undead or something else.

[elyktsorb]

If they aren't actually undead, a paladin's divine sense would tell them nothing, and because of that they would know the creatures aren't undead (or celestials or fiends)

[dragoeniex]

First off, neat setup! Sounds like a cool, spooky environment, and it lining up near Halloween is even better.

As for the question, I'd let the paladin know they feel like undead, but the sensation is a little different. Doesn't seem like a lot of magic is coming off the corpses, doesn't reek of infectious disease...

Mechanically, treating them as undead would be fine. They're still walking corpses; they just have a different animating force. A big thing with zombies is that the original person isn't really inside now anyway.

If you're not a fan of this, toss the paladin a bone and say they don't feel like undead, but they're definitely not alive. Otherwise, you might make them think these enemies are cureable.

[Lunali]

I'd say don't classify them as undead, they don't have the negative energy or soul bound to them that would set off undead detection. Intellect devourers would be a similar case.

As for their classification, I'd go with monstrosity or aberration depending on whether they developed on the prime material plane or came there from somewhere else.

[Unoriginal]

So the party has been sent to another Continent with a blue print of a special magic item of a lamp the repels these special undead. in short its lamps the Admits UV light. These undead don't like UV light/day light. Now this Continent is based off of Canada/Alaska so a few months out the year its dark.

Sorry I was going on a tangent. Anyways my question is everyone thinks these are undead. They are rotting corpus and are hard to kill ect. But they arnt really undead there is a larva like Parasite that is infesting these bodys. So they arnt undead so what should I tell my party's paladin when he uses divine sense? Or should I classifie them as undead or something else.

If they're not Undead, then they shouldn't be treated as Undead just because people expect them to, and the Paladin can't detect them as Undead.

As they seem to be fundamentaly alien lifeforms, I would classify them as Aberrations.

Also just spitballing but I think it'd be fun that while they hate sunlight/are damaged by it, being exposed to it also allows them to deals radiant damage by "expulsing" the light they absorb, once they've absorbed enough.

[GeoffWatson]

Sounds like Yellow Musk Zombies from previous editions.

Look and act a lot like zombies, but animated by fungus instead of negative energy.

[Elbeyon]

Sounds like a meta/gotcha monster. I would clue the paladin in really quick. There should be lots of clues these are not undead creatures.

[MrStabby]

Sounds like a meta/gotcha monster. I would clue the paladin in really quick. There should be lots of clues these are not undead creatures.

I agree with this but also not that the paladin has the exact ability they need to determine this. If they don't use it - then that's on them.


I think it is an unusual monster and I wouldn't like it myself but thats a stylistic thing rather than a mechanical (I see another larval parisite animating the flesh as being more Sci-fi than fantasy and I have a persona preference for keeping the genres seperate).

[Unoriginal]

I agree with this but also not that the paladin has the exact ability they need to determine this. If they don't use it - then that's on them.


I think it is an unusual monster and I wouldn't like it myself but thats a stylistic thing rather than a mechanical (I see another larval parisite animating the flesh as being more Sci-fi than fantasy and I have a persona preference for keeping the genres seperate).

So you don't include Mind Flayers and Intellect Devourers in your settings?

[Kurt Kurageous]

So you don't include Mind Flayers and Intellect Devourers in your settings?

Me, no. It' just takes me out of the muddle-through Oerth world I know and love best.

Categorically, no Illithids. Ever. I liked them better when they were psionic in AD&D, as bad as those rules were.

[Unoriginal]

Me, no. It' just takes me out of the muddle-through Oerth world I know and love best.

Categorically, no Illithids. Ever. I liked them better when they were psionic in AD&D, as bad as those rules were.

They're still psionic, though.

[Xervous]

Wasn’t there a Star Trek episode on something like this?

[Evaar]

Sorry I was going on a tangent. Anyways my question is everyone thinks these are undead. They are rotting corpus and are hard to kill ect. But they arnt really undead there is a larva like Parasite that is infesting these bodys.

I would classify the parasite according to its origin (undead if they're coming from Kyuss, or aberrant if coming from illithids/aboleths, or monstrosity if they're not coming from anywhere specific and are intended to be an exaggerated form of natural threats).

I think I would classify the inhabited corpses as undead regardless. One could make an argument for classifying them the same way as the worms, but there's a bit of dissonance to me in calling a dead humanoid a monstrosity because it has worms.

I'd let the Paladin use his stuff against the corpses as undead, but not the worms themselves. If anyone asks, I would say the Divine Sense regards the infestation of the corpses as a desecration even if it isn't quite necromancy. So it still pings, but a little differently.