Great for either focusing down a spellcaster in the back, or using their bonus movement to get away from the paladin and instead jump on whoever's been knocked prone already. The zombie does two Overwhelm attacks as an action.įast Zombies: These are the ones that can get behind enemy lines. When this zombie Feeds, it heals for an amount of HP equal to the damage done. It becomes size Large, it's HP is maxed out (to 33HP), and both the DCs for Overwhelm increase by +2 to 15. If it dies while aflame, it explodes, dealing 4d6 fire damage in a 10ft radius. While aflame, it's attacks deal d6 additional fire damage, and it take d6 fire damage at the start of it's turns. Any amount of fire damage being done to it causes it to light aflame. On a failure, it contracts Necroplague (see section to the right). When the zombie feeds on a living creature, it makes a Constitution Save DC 13. This movement does not provoke attacks of opportunity. Hit: 11 (3d6 + 1) piercing damage damage.Īs a bonus action, this zombie may move up to it's movement speed towards a living creature. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. If a Zombie hits an already Grappled creature with this attack, they must made a DC 13 Strength save or be knocked prone.įeed. Hit: 8 (2d6 + 1) slashing damage damage, and creature is Grappled (Escape DC 13). Overwhelm Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Roll a d6 on the Variant Table once for each zombie to determine what variant they are. On a success, the zombie drops to 1 hit point instead. If damage reduces the zombie to 0 hit points, it must make a Constitution saving throw with a DC of 5 + the damage taken, unless the damage is radiant or from a critical hit. Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 8.Condition Immunities poisoned, frightened, charmed, exhaustion.Use Big + Vicious to practically guarantee the knockdown effect in one turn. Use Hungry + Virulent to keep the virus spreading in play longer. Fast + Ichor makes for some speedy zombie-bombs. In the event you want to make a zombie particularly terrifying, roll on the variant table more than once, or just pick the ones you want to use. An attack roll against the creature has advantage if the attacker is within 5 feet of the creature. A Prone creature has disadvantage on attack rolls.A creature with a movement speed of 0 cannot stand up from being prone.A grappled Creature has a movement speed of 0.Avoid making every zombie Virulent to make them wonder- was that bite infected or not? Things you should Know! To address this, I wanted to tap into the things that I find scary about Zombies- being overwhelmed by a horde (getting grappled, pulled prone, and eaten), & the danger of a festering bite (a long-form disease mechanic that stays meaningful in a world of clerics). Zombies in 5e feel uninteresting because they basically have the same attacks and abilities as an unarmed commoner, with the exception of Undead Fortitude. So to fix that, treat each mob-squad as having each variation of every zombie within that squad. Mob rules may get complicated if the zombies in each mob are different variants.
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Due to necroplague, these zombies remain threats at any level, though once you have a bunch on the field, you may want to consider using them in waves (to prevent AoEs nuking them down), and using the mob rules from page 250 of the DMG to make sure that at least some of them hit each round. For this though, use a tool like Kobold Fight Club to determine the right number for your group.
Dmg 5e handling mobs how to#
Scale for Party Size & Level: Usually I give specific instructions for how to scale an encounter, such as boosting save DCs or adding HP to the creatures. For each zombie, roll a d6 to determine it's type on the Variant Chart. Scales for: Number of Players, Player Level Ingredients: Actually Scary Zombies for 5e Spiciness: 5/5 Feeds any number of players, at any level