For the Brooks!Zombie, they've all been reanimated by some fictional virus called Solanum - it's origin and mechanism of action is never fully grounded in science, but then again, stuff like this never is.

I remember reading an in-universe "Survival Guide" that detailed past events in which Solanum outbreaks had occurred - fictional accounts of zombies being drawn in cave paintings, Roman soldiers being issued specific orders on how to deal with zombies, Egyptian embalming methods as a tried-true way of preventing the dead from re-rising.

The virus, though, supposedly turns the brain into a fully autonomous entity and it remains alive. There was a 'documented case' of a severed head being kept in a jar of oil that dated back to some dynasty in China - the head was still moving, still alive, still snapping at the fingers that came near it.

I'm pretty sure there would be major lulz/shock/terror/awe in throwing around severed heads that could still bite you.

 

Max Brooks never shied away from the illogicality of the Zombie Infection, several characters highlight it.

But an important question, what would be the most offensive effective spells against Zack, some sort of fire spell? Wizards seem to be at a disadvantage since their trump card is worth jack in this case. Or do you just loose the various magical creatures like dragons (possibly immune?) on them as pest control?

 

Fire only works effectively with zombies if you can get them to stay in one place to sit and burn. And it'll take some time to completely kill them. The fire won't slow a massive horde shambling toward you -- you'll just have a massive flaming horde shambling toward you.

Works best when you're under siege, behind and above some obstacle (a castle wall, for example). You just pour oil over them and set them on fire. They can't try to put themselves out, and they're kept from getting at you while they burn.

For wizards, their best weapons are probably some kind of locater and immobilizing spell. Locater spells keep you from being ambushed or anything, and immobilizing spells keep them from attacking you. From there, you can do anything that will destroy the brain. Blast their heads, conjure some blade and split their skulls, etc. Protective charms that keep them from biting you and something that will prevent infected blood (zombie blood is more like thick sludge, but still infectious) from getting in your mouth, eyes or open wounds would be very useful as well.

If you're someone like Dumbledore and can manage a kind of vaporizing spell that can turn an army of zombies into fine powder, well, that'll work.

Unforgivables are a no-go. Spells that cause pain are useless, since they don't react to pain, which discounts Cruciatus Curse. Killing Curse is useless, as they're already dead. Imperius Curse might work, since it seems to effect the brain somehow, but turning a few zombies against each other is hardly an effective tactic when other spells are so much better at it.

 

I just got an image of a fully dragonhide clad Mage Corps soldier skilled in Transfiguration and using Blast-Ended-Skrewts as distractions or someshit like that.

Off.To.Draft.Nao.

 

No one has mentioned severing or piercing curses yet. On the undead who wouldn't shield, would be something. Sectumsempra would work well.

How about wards, or traps leading undead into wards that can destroy them. Wide effect magic/tactics seem to be the way to go, along with fighting smart.

 

This presupposes the most constrictive, useless, least powerful view of magic it is possible to take from canon. Basically, this is a 100% Muggle way of thinking. Yes, the Killing Curse should not work because zombies aren't dead: they walk about, groan, try and kill people, etc. There is no reason to assume the Avada Kedavra curse becomes ineffective in this situation when, to a wizard's point of view, only a fool would claim zombies aren't dead.

 

I always thought that, since the Killing Curse didn't seem to do any harm to the physical body, it did something to the "soul". And since zombies don't have souls (well, I don't think they do), I figured it wouldn't work. But maybe it would, I don't really know.

Even if it did, the spell would be limited to people who could actually cast it. And with the high amount of power needed to cast it (according to fake-Moody in GoF, at least), I'd think there are better spells to use with that power.

Well, yes, you could cut zombies apart with Sectumsempra. You'd certainly slow a horde down if you cut all their legs off. But they're only completely dead when their brains are destroyed.

In WWZ, when they were taking back the planet from the undead, they used lures like loud music to attract zombies out into the open so they couldn't ambush them in a building or sewer. They'd lead them into well-prepared killzones so they could mow them all down. Wizards could do the same, just replace a killzone with a magical trap that can incinerate them or something.

 

Yeah...sorry about that. It's been about a year since I read the book, and I only brought the idea up was because it's being turned into a movie and it sparked my interest in it once again. I could have sworn it was in the eighties, but my memory has always been shit, so there you go.

As for the tech being compatible with an earlier timeline, it wasn't that advanced(except for maybe that bomb they used in Yonkers.). The suit they had at the end seemed to only be modified Kevlar, while the rifles, and ammuniton, seemed about what could be capable of being made in the nineties era, where the story would most likely take place. The bullets they talked about reminded me of a smaller version of a sabot round. I feel like I'm missing something here, so if I am, don't hesitate to point it out.

I don't think that would work. In the book, I remember the people talking about how the Solanum in the zombies just repelled all the animals they came into contact with, and I think Zombie Survival Guide mentioned it too(can't be sure). If magical animals reacted like normal one's do, then that idea's a bust. But thats only IF.

Flaming horde? That would ruin anyone's day. Complete suck city.

I think you have a point, but I'm still gonna go with the AK=fail idea, mostly because I'm pretty sure it would be ineffective IMHO.

To expound on your arguement though, if it did work, it would be because the Solanum is keeping the zombie in a state of quasi-life. I've got a couple of questions though.

Does the AK do anything to dead flesh? If it does, yay, if not though, then you're still going for head shots, as the brain seems to be the only thing thats really alive(in any way, shape, or form). Take off a zombies arms or legs, it still comes at you. Cut off the head, body is uselss, but head can still bite you. Destroying the brain is the only way to kill them. I'm not sure if it will work on Inferi if anyone wants to combine the two.

They never did it in the books, but can you use a corpse as a meat shield for the AK? Will the corpse explode when the spell hits it like it does to concrete, or any inanimate matter? Hmm. The meat shield idea has merit, if not in this, then in some other fic. Seems kinda cool.

Anyways, going with what Sion said:

What I'm trying to say from all that, is that the killing curse would be the muggle equivalent to a sniper shot. Although powerful, the cost would be pretty high energy-wise, and it's still only a single kill. Considering that they usually amass in hordes of hundreds or thousands, I think it would just be a waste of magic. And thats if they can cast it at all anyway.

You know what woud be a total mind fuck? If the Solanum negated magic entirely. Imagine, cutting curses, bludgeoners, the killing curse; all useless. That would certainly make things interesting.

All that aside, I would like to thank you all for all the input so far. If anyone does write one based on what was written here, I think it might turn out alright. So once again, thanks.

 

Zombie survival guide states that Solanum kills all animals and can only mutate humans into zombies. Where creatures like centaurs come in is up to you. Persoanlly, seeing as Centaurs have a human brain, I reckon they'd be turned into zombies.

 

I admits its a small point, but you have apparently misunderstood my arguement. I do not think the Killing Curse will affect zombies because the virus somehow keeps them in a state of 'quasi-life.' Whatever biological processes are going on in the zombies brain is completely irrelevant to the magical mindset. The Killing Curse kills things, i.e., makes it so that the target is on the floor, not moving, not thinking, not seeing, not trying to kill you, nothing - in short, dead - and as long as a zombie does not fulfil those criteria the Killing Curse should still work.

A wizard will care as much about the biological condition of a zombie when he casts Avada Kedavra as he would about the molecular arrangement of a cat when he conjures one.

 

Let's keep it simple. The killing curse fails against zombies. That addsa certsin degree of horror to the mix. "They can't be killed by the most lethal curse ever!"

It also gives a free pass to be as gory as fuck when writing the fic, which is what you want in a zombie fic. If the Killing curse worked it'd be boring. You have a straightforward excuse to nont fall into the lazy pit.

 

Zombies terrify the fuck out of me.

That said - a group of coordinated wizards should be able to smack the shit out of the World War Z zombies. I read the book a couple years ago, but from what I recall they were slow moving like the Night of the Living Dead variety, not 28 Days Later. So yeah, I could easily foresee the Wizards dying in significant numbers at the initial outbreak, but then transfiguring their property to zombie traps (Hell, just dig a moat, and cook the zombies with fire every morning to get rid of the buildup). The biggest issue would probably range from the food supply to environmental damage on the global stage.

 

Nefar, I completely agree with you concerning your theory on the AK just now. If that's the case(and I can think of no reason why it wouldn't be), then it would indeed kill that zombie fuck-puppet dead as dogshit.

But, even you have to admit that in the canon books, they didn't sling the killing curse around like it was a levitating charm; it seemed to be used as either a last resort, or the coup de gras. For some reason they used other spells like bone-breakers and entrail-expellers instead of going straight for the AK(Although I will admit I never read the last book, got it but just lost interest in the series after HBP, so I am probably mistaken). That never made sense to me. The only reason I can think of is that maybe it has a really high energy/magic cost or whatever you'd call it.

Truth be told though, it doesn't really matter whether it works or not, unless one of us were to write it. Ultimately, it's up to the writer. What I think we're doing here is giving said writer multiple options to pick from that might help make their story better.

I think we should move on to maybe timelines. Nefar, if you want to continue this particular line of thought, I'd be glad to keep it up, 'cause your making some pretty awesome points, and I'd like to think I've made a few myself.

If not though, Timelines? Possible Scenarios?

 

I might be misunderstanding your argument again, but you can't just say "it kills people because it's magic!". There has to be some plausible reason why it would work or wouldn't work on a zombie. Especially if you're crossing over with a book that is, for the most part, very realistic.

It would lower magic's effectiveness for offense. You could still manipulate the environment around them -- break the ground under them, topple a building on them, etc., but that would take some tactical skill that the average wizard probably won't have, and probably won't bother with.

Might relegate the use of magic for helping with the Muggles' survival, like keeping agriculture alive once the atmosphere is fucked over from the Iran-Pakistan nuclear exchange and the massive amounts of destruction to the environment, or with conjuring defenses for bastions in the sea of zombies as the Redeker Plan (and all its derivatives) outlines. Solanum being immune to magic would mean it can't be cured by magic, but magic could still help with healing of regular injuries and illnesses.

I'm remembering a scene from one of the A Song of Ice and Fire books, where an Other is riding a zombie horse. Zombie centaurs = :awesome

I don't think a zombie's bite will penetrate a dragon's hide, but if they eat a zombie they'd die from the virus.

Animals are shown to get very nervous around zombies in Brooks' books. They have a "fight or flight" response. Same with dragons, I imagine, despite their obvious advantages over zombies: some might just not have a "fight" reaction and will freak the fuck out near them and get as far away as possible. Others will napalm them to hell and back.

I think for story purposes, the majority of magical animals should have a "flight" response. Or if they fight, most of them make the mistake of ingesting the zombies and die. Otherwise it's too easy.

Now, a thought on the actual plot of this concept. Given that the setting doesn't really seem to favor the plots of any of the books, I think it'd be best to set it after the series. It being set in ~2006 places Harry in his late twenties -- not too young and not too old -- and a member of the Aurors, so he'll not be totally useless in terms of magical skill. His fame for being both the Boy Who Lived and the Chosen One would put him in a great political position to make a difference in the world. Maybe he gets disillusioned with the running of things by the Ministry and starts a civil war, as the Chinese do in World War Z, and starts his own government.

Most of the British population retreat to medieval castles, like Windsor Castle, so Hogwarts would probably play a very important role.

If we go by the Epilogue, he'd also be married to Ginny by then, and have at least one of his kids. This war gives us a fantastic opportunity to make them die horrible deaths and have Harry blow their undead heads off. Maybe extend that to the rest of the Weasleys. Hell, it gives us an opportunity to cleanse the entire HP world of what we don't want, and reshape what's left as we will.

Just tossing ideas about.

 

Sion_Revan, you are asking for two separate things here. First you ask for the a method by which the Killing Curse functions. Second you ask for a 'plausible' reason why the Killing Curse would or would not function properly on a zombie.

As to the first question, you clearly expect the method by which the Killing Curse functions to be mechanical (not the best word - perhaps procedural would be better?) in nature. For example, a suitable method to you would probably be that the Curse causes heart failure, slices apart a few linkages in the brain, other random internal destruction, or even forcibly shunts the target's soul into the next life. Note, however, that all of these methods of killing, while certainly valid, do not credibly supply a reason for the name of the Curse. If the Killing Curse caused massive cerebral hemorrage, it would be called something like the "Massive Cerebral Hemorrage" Curse. There are other canon spells that can clearly cause instant death if applied to the right area. They are all, however, named after what they do, and not one of them is named the 'Killing' Curse.

I hope my point is obvious: rather than the AK causing damage to its target which then induces death, the AK actually directly induces death in its target. This, however, is accomplished "because its magic!" and may therefore be unacceptable to you.

As to your second question, for a "plausible" reason for the AK to work on a zombie, I respectfully submit that I have already provided one in my above post. Perhaps you might read that post, then critique my idea?

If I am correct in summarizing you opinion about how simple, direct magical induction of death by the AK is unacceptable to you, then I simply don't agree with your viewpoint. While you perhaps have been conditioned by the functioning of magic in settings other than HP to require magic to accomplish actions through physical means in order to preserve your suspension of disbelief, I do not believe HP canon has ever suggested that the Killing Curse causes any form of trauma in its victim as the means of causing death. This magic spell does, in fact, work on magic.

 

Nefar, Sion, I think the AK arguement should be laid to rest. We are argueing semantics about fictional characters in two different genres that we are trying to mesh together to make an entertaining read. Like I said earlier, in the end it'll be up to the author whether the damn thing will be effective or not, so it's essentially a moot point. Let's stop kicking the dead horse/pig/goat(whatever the fuck farm animal floats your boat.)


as a side note though:

I like that one. Have him run into the house to try and save the whole fandamnily, go up to his wife(I will not type the name of she-who-must-not-be-acknowledged), she tried to eat his face, so he gives her a bludgeoner to the face. Happy ending indeed.

 

I can just imagine Ron being one of the dick heads who gets the infection and doesn't tell anyone about it.

Oh, and according to this quiz it would take Ron approximately 1 hour and 10 minutes after first exposure to the infection to start biting everyone's face off.

That's my contribution to the thread.

 

Not sure about the idea of putting this Post-Voldemort, since he could potentially add another dimension to the conflict.

Excellent thoughts all around though, would definitely Read something like this if written competently enough.

 

I'm glad thers so much discussion about this topic, but is anyone gonna write this or do I have to.

 

I've got an idea brewin'. Might be able to put fingers to keys soon.