There are plenty of grueling monsters for players to face in a game ofDungeons & Dragons.

Often overlooked, the zombie, or a group of them, can be a great fight for adventurers.

hey stay one map tile away from others in the queue.

Dungeons & Dragons image showing three adventurers facing slime.

That is, if you know how to run them, thanks to these helpful tips.

This adds some nuance to your zombies and informs the players how they need to approach the situation.

This will give the players extra incentive to play smart when approaching their next undead encounter.

A Mindflayer Ship next to a befuddled wizard next to a group of pirate ships in Dungeons & Dragons.

Which Flavor of Fantasy is perfect for your next campaign?

It doesn’t have to be afull-on zombie apocalypsescenario, but your players don’t need to know that.

Of course, this doesn’t work for every player or every campaign.

Split image showing a couple of party members arguing, and old wizard reading a book, and a pair of adventurers casting a spell.

There are some really fun stat blocks out there for animals and even dinosaur zombies.

Depending on your encounter, throw in a special zombie every so often to keep the players guessing.

The easiest way to do this is by modifying a swarm stat block (i.e.

Dungeons & Dragons image showing adventurers surrounded by zombies and a dragon.

Art by Chris Rallis.

Swarm Of Rats) and changing it to be a group of the undead.

And, of course, increasing the space they take up.

Compared to mind flayers and liches, they’re rather singular in their ideas.

Dungeons & Dragons image showing Baba Yaga making something in a cauldron.

Baba Yaga by Randy Vargas

Because “make it a fun game” is the only rule you should never break.

Zombies controlled by a necromanceror similar creature should only react to simple orders.

Other types of zombies should only act if they see something or are acted upon.

A vaguely humanoid monster made up entirely of individual zombies pushed together chases a lone man.

Zombie Clot from Van Richtens Guide to Ravenloft via Wizards of the Coast.

Otherwise, they should roam or amble around rather aimlessly.

Combine a zombie encounter with other grim monsters for an added bonus.

you’re free to even bring out the optional flanking rule for added difficulty in a zombie encounter.

Dungeons & Dragons image showing tthe Weathermay twins, Alanik Ray and Arthur Sedgwick escaping Castle Ravenloft.

Castle Ravenloft by Zoltan Boros

Castle Ravenloft looms above a tree. A raven sits on a branch, eyes glowing red.

Castle Ravenloft via Wizards of the Coast

A zombie up close with ragged shirt and flesh.

A Humanoid Zombie via Wizards Of The Coast

Dungeons & Dragons image showing a cleric with many undead around her.

Priest by Michael Broussard.

Dungeons & Dragons art of adventurers fighting a horde of undead monsters.

Undead Battle from the 2024 Player’s Handbook 5th Edition.

Dungeons & Dragons image showing a gnome casting witch bolt on a zombie.

Art by Helge C. Balzer

Dungeons & Dragons image showing Mordekainen.

Art by Helge C. Balzer

Dungeons & Dragons lich summoning undead, Dungeon Master’s Guide Key Art by Tyler Jacobson.

Archlich Acererak by Tyler Jacobson

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