Type

Undead (Sea-Corrupted Corpse)

Origin

The Drowned are born from corpses surrendered to the ocean without proper passage rites. Once a common result of sea-burial, they now arise from shipwrecks, executions at sea, or any body lost overboard and abandoned to Ghor’s dominion. The tether of the soul is severed by drowning, but the empty flesh festers in salt and corruption until it rises again.

Appearance

• Bloated, waterlogged flesh tinged pale blue or grey-green.
• Skin split and torn by swelling; often infested with barnacles, seaweed, or shells.
• Constant streams of saltwater leak from mouths and lungs.
• Movements are jerky, staggering as though dragged by invisible currents.

Abilities & Behaviour

• Mindless hunger: They do not think; they only drag the living beneath the waves.
• Relentless grasp: Sodden limbs are heavy but strong, clinging with crushing weight.
• Group emergence: Often rise in clusters from wrecks or mass sea-burials.
• Shore stalkers: Sometimes lurch ashore on stormy nights, though bound to water.

Weaknesses

• Slow and clumsy on land; easily outpaced.
• Fire and sunlight dry and weaken them.
• Passage rites spoken over their remains cause collapse into lifeless husks.

Cultural Notes

Sailors say: “The sea keeps what it is given.” Coastal folk warn children that if a drowned hand grabs their ankle in the surf, they must kick free and run before being dragged down. Once, sea-burial was considered honorable; now it is feared as feeding Ghor’s army.

Related Creatures

• The Wailing Drowned — souls of those who drowned alive, retaining memory and malice.
• Zombies — their landbound cousins, husks animated after burial.