Sea zombie

Sea zombies, otherwise known as drowned ones, were a variety of zombie who arose from the corpses of humans who drowned at sea. Slaves chained to a sinking ship would often arise as sea zombies.

Description
Being the corpses of drowned humans, sea zombies typically looked bloated and had discolored flesh that was dripping with foul water. Their eye-sockets were empty, they had blackened lips, and their tongue frequently protruded.

Behavior
Unlike the standard land-dwelling zombie, sea zombies possessed free will and could be rather running. They typically harbored hatred towards the living and it was one of the few things that motivated them.

Biology
Because their bodies were waterlogged, it was difficult to harm sea zombies by means of fire or fire-based magic. However, they were very vulnerable to lightning, electricity, and severe cold temperatures.

On land sea zombies moved at a very slow, clumsy and shambling gait, but in water they were very fast swimmers.

Their appearance and the stench of decay from their bodies often caused living creatures within of them to feel nauseated. The putrid water that dripped from their bodies also contained many bacteria, which carried a small chance of their victims contracting a severe disease.

Abilities
Being a form of undead, sea zombies were immune to sleep, charm spells, illusions, and other types of mind-altering spells. Unlike other types of undead, they could not be turned. They also uniquely possessed a form of telepathy, by which they used to communicate among themselves.

Whenever a priest reanimated as a sea zombie they would receive spells from evil deities.

Combat
As many sea zombies were reanimated from the corpses of sailors, they typically wielded weapons common to that profession. Such as belaying pins, clubs, daggers, hooks, and short swords. They were often known to launch attacks upon anchored ships, climbing aboard the vessels and forcing their occupants overboard where they could be dealt with more easily.

History
Some time in the early-14 century DR, a necromancer by the name of Delthrin Everet rose a legion of sea zombies and other aquatic types of undead to defend Marsember against a pirate raid.

In the Year of the Shield, 1367 DR, the Rat Hills Conflagration drives many sea zombies out of the Rat Hills and into Waterdeep.

In the month of Marpenoth, 1369 DR, Iakhovas lured the entire population of the Whamite Isles into the ocean with kelpies, drowning and reanimating them into an army of sea zombies. These and many other aquatic undead later fought in the fought in the Twelfth Serôs War of 1439 DR.

Also in 1369, during the event known as Halaster's Higharvestide, one hundred and thirty-six sea zombies arose from the sea bordering Waterdeep and walked across the Sea's Edge Beach. The then-Blackstaff of Waterdeep fought them off with a Walking Statue and many uses of the wall of fire spell, eventually vanguishing them all within an hour.

Rumors & Legends
Rumors circulated claiming that sea zombies were animated by the will of a variety of evil deities. On Oerth, the most prevalent rumor tied them to that planet's native death deity Nerull.

Sword coast folklore spoke of sunken ships within the Mere of Dead Men that were swarming with sea zombies.

Ecology
Sea zombies were often found to congregate in loose packs.

Diet
Sea zombies had no need to eat flesh, though they often did so just to strike terror in others.

Habitats
Sea zombies were almost always found in bodies of water, most often shallow bodies. They normally only strayed as far as from water.

In the Sea of Fallen Stars they could be found in the Shipwreck Plains, the Haunted Plains, and the ruins of Voalidru. In its extension, the Alamber Sea, many sea zombies could be found in the shipwrecks near the Alaor islands.

On the Faerûnian mainland, there were many that inhabited the Rat Hills dump near Waterdeep.

Beyond Toril, this type of undead was also known to occur on the planet of Oerth.

Appearances

 * Wyrmskull Throne