Rathlord Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 Doctor Kelthorn Research Notes: The Zombie Pathogen Summary10 patients infected by the pathogen. I will observe the progression of the disease, study the subjects in detail, and obtain as much information as possible about the pathogen itself. This will not be a study of zombie behavior; we’ve all experienced that first hand. Moment of InfectionPatients infected with the pathogen. Appears to spread by exposing any infected bodily fluid to a human’s circulatory system. Trials with Patient 1 showed that amputation is not sufficient to stop the infection, as expected. In a single heartbeat, the pathogen is already well beyond the area of infection and past stopping. Trying to amputate someone to save them will just end in them being dead much quicker. Progression of InfectionThe most incredible thing about the infection, really, is the extraordinary speed at which it propagates. This has led me to an initial supposition that it is viral or bacterial in nature, as I can’t imagine any other pathogen reproducing this rapidly while simultaneously accomplishing what this one does. It takes about 2 hours for the pathogen to fully circulate through the body. This time does seem to vary quite largely. I don’t have a large enough test group to be sure, but it appears to multiply more rapidly in more physically fit humans. This suggests that the body is utterly incapable of even slowing down the disease; instead, the pathogen is using the body’s own resources against it to reproduce even faster. This points to a viral infection. Symptoms and TreatmentSymptoms are quite easy to see. A massive fever spikes almost instantly to levels nearly high enough to kill and stay there until the patient dies. Vasodilation is also instantaneous and noteworthy, as the heart rate skyrockets simultaneously. I believe this may be related to the reproduction of the pathogen- carrying it around the body more rapidly with dilated blood vessels and extreme heart rate. This would kill a person within a day or so normally, but the pathogen doesn’t have to worry about that. The fever, I believe, is not because the body is trying to fight off the infection, but because so much energy is being expended by the reproduction of the pathogen that it causes the heat. I’ve attempted to treat Patients 2 through 7 with a variety of drugs in an attempt to slow down or kill the infection. Patients 2 and 5 got various antibiotics, Patients 3 and 6 got a cocktail of anti-viral agents, and Patients 4 and 7 got simple anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen. Unsurprisingly, none of the treatments were able to kill the pathogen. The antibiotics and antiviral treatments were, as I fully expected, completely ineffective. However, as I suspected, the anti-inflammatory drugs were able to slow the infection rate. Patients 2, 5, 3, and 6 all died within 3 hours, with most of the results favoring about 2 hours. However, Patient 4 lasted 12 hours before giving in, and Patient 7 could have lasted much longer if I hadn’t stopped treating her. This seems to suggest that with copious amounts of anti-inflammatory drugs, a person could reasonably aim to delay the effects of the infection by as much as a week by my projections (not that it would do them any good in the end). DeathEventually, the high fever and rapid pulse cause the body to simply shut down. Once dead, it takes about 7 minutes for reanimation to take place. From my cellular analysis and tests, it appears that much of the two hours the patients spend alive but infected is used to rewrite the genetic code of the body. Once reanimated, the body functions incredibly different than that of a normal human, which could only truly be accomplished by the addition of extra RNA to cells. This almost certainly confirms my theory that it is, indeed, a virus. It appears that the pathogen makes use of the extra electrical gradient left within the human body after death. As the body begins to fully shut down, it kickstarts the brain with the leftover electrical energy. However, only a few small parts of the brain are restarted. The brain stem, for one, is returned to full function which allows the zombie to theoretically do anything a human can physically. The hypothalamus is not only restored to full function, but is completely overworked, causing the characteristic aggressive behavior. The hypothalamus also controls hunger, and even though it’s disconnected from anything that should be signaling hunger, it gives the overwhelming feel of hunger to the patient. The occipital lobe continues to function to register hearing and seeing, as well. No parts of the brain capable of logic, reasoning, or empathy is restored. This is so consistent that it appears something the virus does makes it physically impossible for these parts of the brain to function. As such, that tissue dies within minutes of the zombie being reanimated. This confirms my suspicions that no cure will ever be found for already zombified zombies. Restored FunctionsContrary to popular belief, most of the zombie’s body continues to function and work in a “living” way. Here’s a quick reference of parts of the body that continue to function: *Some parts of the brain (as above)*Eyes and optic nerves*Ears and auditory nerves*All muscles*Salivary glands And parts that cease completely: *The rest of the brain*The circulatory system*The respiratory system*Most of the exterior nerves (more on this later) It appears that the pathogen rewrites the body to continue to function in two different ways; the parts of the body exposed to air (mostly skin tissue) begin to respirate much as plants do- they take oxygen from the air. On the inside of the body, cells use anaerobic respiration to reproduce without oxygen (unless they become exposed to air). Anaerobic respiration is highly inefficient and can’t be used to sustain complex life for long periods of time. However, the zombie is much less of a complex life form than its human counterpart. When not affected by stimuli, it spends large amounts of its time stationary. Since it neither breathes nor circulates blood, very little energy is actually being used. When the cells inside the body run out of energy, they begin digesting other cells around them for energy (with the exception of muscles, ligaments, and tendons, which are prioritized beyond everything else to be kept alive). This gives zombies the appearance of decomposition. It is not, however, the kind of decomposition that happens to corpses. It is actually that the cells are being digested and repurposed to give energy to the rest of the body. Due to the copious amounts of blood splatter that tend to happen when killing a zombie, my colleagues had once posited that blood continues to flow in the zombie. That is, however, untrue. With only a few minutes of death and then the restoration of oxygen and energy to blood, most of it doesn’t die. It just doesn’t circulate, either. It coagulates a small amount- only enough to make it a bit clingy and thick, it still remains a liquid. From there, it is largely used by the zombie to fuel muscles and other vital cells. Hence, the longer a zombie has been zombified, the less blood remains intact within it. Most of the nerves in the body, also, are used for energy. With the exception of those closely connected to or in the brain (such as the auditory and optic nerves), the nerves are broken down and die. Thus, zombies feel no pain and get no stimulus from any sense of “feeling.” TransmissionTransmission of the pathogen occurs when any part of infected tissue (that remains alive) or fluid enters the body. This most often comes from either a bite or a scratch. Biting, obviously, imparts both blood and saliva into the victim. My comrades were, for a while, baffled by scratching infections. They thought at the time that somehow the pathogen collected under the fingernails and was transmitted that way; this is preposterous. Transmission through scratching happens because most zombies have stripped the skin off of the end of their fingers. Whether it be clawing doors, windows, barricades, or anything else in an attempt to get to their victims, they have no sense of self preservation or pain. This leads them to ripping large amounts of flesh from their hands, leaving bone and tissue exposed. The sharp edges of broken fingernails and jutting bone cut the victim, and the zombie’s blood is quickly sucked into the victim’s bloodstream. There are some less common ways of transmission as well. One occasional occurrence is blood splatter while killing a zombie. This is much less frequent than biting or scratching but can happen. There is much less blood splatter from hitting a zombie than there is from hitting a human due to the zombie blood being partially coagulated, but keep your mouth closed if you’re killing one. It’s also a bit thicker, so it tends not to get into superficial cuts in the skin like some diseases can. Still, caution should be taken to not let zombie blood get into open wounds or other orifices. Finally, it should be noted that ingesting zombie flesh does not infect the individual; it instantly kills them. Instead of digesting the pathogen, it is quickly transmitted across the body and causes such shock that the victim is killed in mere moments. This is not enough time for the pathogen to spread and do the necessary work in the body, and by the time it’s ready to there’s not enough electrical gradient remaining to revitalize the person. Un-reanimationPatients 8, 9, and 10 were used to see what effective methods there were of killing them. Patient 8 had parts of the body ripped off until only the head and spinal cord remained. It remained alive all the way until the end; zombies can live on without any part of their torso intact for a time. However, they quickly run out of food and the brain begins to digest itself, causing a fairly quick (2 days) death. Patient 9 was dealt massive trauma to the spinal cord. This was enough to “kill” it eventually. Most of the lower spine was damaged with no effect (other than paralyzing parts of the zombie), but once the brain stem was damaged it fell to the floor. Unable to move, the zombie remained “alive” and probably would continue to even if the entire brain stem was removed. However, it is completely incapable of taking any action. The only threat that remains is that if one were to trip over it or otherwise injure oneself upon it, you could still be infected by it. In Patient 10 I dissected the brain. Destroying the hypothalamus was an interesting experiment; without the hunger and aggressiveness, the zombie did nothing. Nothing at all. It stood in place and didn’t react to a single stimulus. A zombie like this is completely harmless. However, actually disconnecting the hypothalamus is something that could only be done in a laboratory like this one. After disconnecting the hypothalamus, I disconnected the occipital lobe, once again with very interesting results. The zombie fell to the floor, no longer receiving any stimulus- audio, visual, or other. With no impetus to act or ability to perceive, it just lay on the ground. It was still capable of moving- the brain stem was intact- but had no reason to. As such, if any of the facets of the brain are damaged or destroyed the zombie, while not technically dead, becomes a complete non-threat and for all intents and purposes is put down. ConclusionThe pathogen behind the zombies is almost certainly some kind of virus. Because of it’s make-up, current test results, and my experiments I firmly believe that no cure, antivirus, or vaccine will ever be plausible. There is no way a zombified individual could ever be cured. Any kind of passive immunity appears to be impossible- from what we can tell, it affects 100% of the human population. One final sidebar is that the pathogen does not effect other animals. Something about the differences in brain makeup make the pathogen incompatible- it causes the same symptoms (fever, heart rate, death) but no reanimation. God help us all. Daman453, Dryke, Blasted_Taco and 8 others 11
Footmuffin Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 Neat. Looking past the spelling errors, I'd call this canon.
Fj45 Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 Eh, its good but I would prefer it being closer to WWZ lore.
Rathlord Posted December 22, 2013 Author Posted December 22, 2013 Neat. Looking past the spelling errors, I'd call this canon. Can you mention any spelling errors you see so I can correct them? Thanks! Eh, its good but I would prefer it being closer to WWZ lore. This is an attempt to strike out from Brooks' lore a bit. My telling is more rooted in actual science (as much as such things can be) and is tailored to be unique to PZ. While PZ's lore is influenced by Brooks and Romero, it is unique and I think locking it into someone else's view of zombies (Brooks, for instance) does it a disservice. Just my 2¢. Fj45 1
Connall Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 Neat. Looking past the spelling errors, I'd call this canon. Can you mention any spelling errors you see so I can correct them? Thanks! Eh, its good but I would prefer it being closer to WWZ lore. This is an attempt to strike out from Brooks' lore a bit. My telling is more rooted in actual science (as much as such things can be) and is tailored to be unique to PZ. While PZ's lore is influenced by Brooks and Romero, it is unique and I think locking it into someone else's view of zombies (Brooks, for instance) does it a disservice. Just my 2¢. How does it differ from WWZ, I don't actually see how it does? In any case really nice write up.
Rathlord Posted December 22, 2013 Author Posted December 22, 2013 Probably he's referring to my supposition that the body mainly stays "alive" when infected. Really, though, it's the only way it makes sense. It's 'similar' to the rage virus (e.g. 28 days later), but in mine the patient is still dead for a time and when restored their bodily functions are completely dissimilar to a human's, making it still a true zombie pathogen.
Footmuffin Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 Doctor Kelthorn Research Notes: The Zombie Pathogen Summary10 patients infected by the pathogen. I will observe the progression of the disease, study the subjects in detail, and obtain as much information as possible about the pathogen itself. This will not be a study of zombie behavior; we’ve all experienced that first hand. Moment of InfectionPatients infected with the pathogen. Appears to spread by exposing any infected bodily fluid to a human’s circulatory system. Trials with Patient 1 showed that amputation is not sufficient to stop the infection, as expected. In a single heartbeat, the pathogen is already well beyond the area of infection and past stopping. Trying to amputate someone to save them will just end in them being dead much quicker. Progression of InfectionThe most incredible thing about the infection, really, is the extraordinary speed at which it propagates. This has led me to an initial supposition that it is viral or bacterial in nature, as I can’t imagine any other pathogen reproducing this rapidly while simultaneously accomplishing what this one does. It takes about 2 hours for the pathogen to fully circulate through the body. This time does seem to vary quite largely. I don’t have a large enough test group to be sure, but it appears to multiply more rapidly in more physically fit humans. This suggests that the body is utterly incapable of even slowing down the disease; instead, the pathogen is using the body’s own resources against it to reproduce even faster. This points to a viral infection. Symptoms and TreatmentSymptoms are quite easy to see. A massive fever spikes almost instantly to levels nearly high enough to kill and stay there until the patient dies. Vasodilation is also instantaneous and noteworthy, as the heart rate skyrockets simultaneously. I believe this may be related to the reproduction of the pathogen- carrying it around the body more rapidly with dilated blood vessels and extreme heart rate. This would kill a person within a day or so normally, but the pathogen doesn’t have to worry about that. The fever, I believe, is not because the body is trying to fight off the infection, but because so much energy is being expended by the reproduction of the pathogen that it causes the heat. I’ve attempted to treat Patients 2 through 7 with a variety of drugs in an attempt to slow down or kill the infection. Patients 2 and 5 got various antibiotics, Patients 3 and 6 got a cocktail of anti-viral agents, and Patients 4 and 7 got simple anti-inflammatory drugs such as ibuprofen. Unsurprisingly, none of the treatments were unable to kill the pathogen. The antibiotics and antiviral treatments were, as I fully expected, completely ineffective. However, as I suspected, the anti-inflammatory drugs were able to slow the infection rate. Patients 2, 5, 3, and 6 all died within 3 hours, with most of the results favoring about 2 hours. However, Patient 4 lasted 12 hours before giving in, and Patient 7 could have lasted much longer if I hadn’t stopped treating her. This seems to suggest that with copious amounts of anti-inflammatory drugs, a person could reasonably aim to delay the effects of the infection by as much as a week by my projections (not that it would do them any good in the end). DeathEventually, the high fever and rapid pulse cause the body to simply shut down. Once dead, it takes about 7 minutes for reanimation to take place. From my cellular analysis and tests, it appears that much of the two hours the patients spend alive but infected is used to rewrite the genetic code of the body. Once reanimated, the body functions incredibly different than that of a normal human, which could only truly be accomplished by the addition of extra RNA to cells. This almost certainly confirms my theory that it is, indeed, a virus. It appears that the pathogen makes use of the extra electrical gradient left within the human body after death. As the body begins to fully shut down, it kickstarts the brain with the leftover electrical energy. However, only a few small parts of the brain are restarted. The brain stem, for one, is returned to full function which allows the zombie to theoretically do anything a human can physically. The hypothalamus is not only restored to full function, but is completely overworked, causing the characteristic aggressive behavior. The hypothalamus also controls hunger, and even though it’s disconnected from anything that should be signaling hunger, it gives the overwhelming feel of hunger to the patient. The occipital lobe continues to function to register hearing and seeing, as well. No parts of the brain capable of logic, reasoning, or empathy is restored. This is so consistent that it appears something the virus does makes it physically impossible for these parts of the brain to function. As such, that tissue dies within minutes of the zombie being reanimated. This confirms my suspicions that no cure will ever be found for already zombified zombies. Restored FunctionsContrary to popular belief, most of the zombie’s body continues to function and work in a “living” way. Here’s a quick reference of parts of the body that continue to function: *Some parts of the brain (as above)*Eyes and optic nerves*Ears and auditory nerves*All muscles*Salivary glands And parts that cease completely: *The rest of the brain*The circulatory system*The respiratory system*Most of the exterior nerves (more on this later) It appears that the pathogen rewrites the body to continue to function in two different ways; the parts of the body exposed to air (mostly skin tissue) begin to respirate much as plants do- they take oxygen from the air. On the inside of the body, cells use anaerobic respiration to reproduce without oxygen (unless they become exposed to air). Anaerobic respiration is highly inefficient and can’t be used to sustain complex life for long periods of time. However, the zombie is much less of a complex life form than its human counterpart. When not affected by stimuli, it spends large amounts of its time stationary. Since it neither breathes nor circulates blood, very little energy is actually being used. When the cells inside the body run out of energy, they begin digesting other cells around them for energy (with the exception of muscles, ligaments, and tendons, which are prioritized beyond everything else to be kept alive). This gives zombies the appearance of decomposition. It is not, however, the kind of decomposition that happens to corpses. It is actually that the cells are being digested and repurposed to give energy to the rest of the body. Due to the copious amounts of blood splatter that tend to happen when killing a zombie, my colleagues had once posited that blood continues to flow in the zombie. That is, however, untrue. With only a few minutes of death and then the restoration of oxygen and energy to blood, most of it doesn’t die. It just doesn’t circulate, either. It coagulates a small amount- only enough to make it a bit clingy and thick, it still remains a liquid. From there, it is largely used by the zombie to fuel muscles and other vital cells. Hence, the longer a zombie has been zombified, the less blood remains intact within it. Most of the nerves in the body, also, are used for energy. With the exception of those closely connected to or in the brain (such as the auditory and optic nerves), the nerves are broken down and die. Thus, zombies feel no pain and get no stimulus from any sense of “feeling.” TransmissionTransmission of the pathogen occurs when any part of infected tissue (that remains alive) or fluid enters the body. This most often comes from either a bite or a scratch. Biting, obviously, imparts both blood and saliva into the victim. My comrades were, for a while, baffled by scratching infections. They thought at the time that somehow the pathogen collected under the fingernails and was transmitted that way; this is preposterous. Transmission through biting happens because most zombies have stripped the skin off of the end of their fingers. Whether it be clawing doors, windows, barricades, or anything else in an attempt to get to their victims, they have no sense of self preservation or pain. This leads them to ripping large amounts of flesh from their hands, leaving bone and tissue exposed. The sharp edges of broken fingernails and jutting bone cut the victim, and the zombie’s blood is quickly sucked into the victim’s bloodstream. There are some less common ways of transmission as well. One occasional occurrence is blood splatter while killing a zombie. This is much less frequent than biting or scratching but can happen. There is much less blood splatter from hitting a zombie than there is from hitting a human due to the zombie blood being partially coagulated, but keep your mouth closed if you’re killing one. It’s also a bit thicker, so it tends not to get into superficial cuts in the skin like some diseases can. Still, caution should be taken to not let zombie blood get into open wounds or other orifices. Finally, it should be noted that ingesting zombie flesh does not infect the individual; it instantly kills them. Instead of digesting the pathogen, it is quickly transmitted across the body and causes such shock that the victim is killed in mere moments. This is not enough time for the pathogen to spread and do the necessary work in the body, and by the time it’s ready to there’s not enough electrical gradient remaining to revitalize the person. Un-reanimationPatients 8, 9, and 10 were used to see what effective methods there were of killing them. Patient 8 had parts of the body ripped off until only the head and spinal cord remained. It remained alive all the way until the end; zombies can live on without any part of their torso intact for a time. However, they quickly run out of food and the brain begins to digest itself, causing a fairly quick (2 days) death. Patient 9 was dealt massive trauma to the spinal cord. This was enough to “kill” it eventually. Most of the lower spine was damaged with no effect (other than paralyzing parts of the zombie), but once the brain stem was damaged it fell to the floor. Unable to move, the zombie remained “alive” and probably would continue to even if the entire brain stem was removed. However, it is completely incapable of taking any action. The only threat that remains is that if one were to trip over it or otherwise injure oneself upon it, you could still be infected by it. In Patient 10 I dissected the brain. Destroying the hypothalamus was an interesting experiment; without the hunger and aggressiveness, the zombie did nothing. Nothing at all. It stood in place and didn’t react to a single stimulus. A zombie like this would be completely harmless. However, actually disconnecting the hypothalamus is something that could only be done in a laboratory like this one. After disconnecting the hypothalamus, I disconnected the occipital lobe, once again with very interesting results. The zombie fell to the floor, no longer receiving any stimulus- audio, visual, or other. With no impetus to act or ability to perceive, it just lay on the ground. It was still capable of moving- the brain stem was intact- but had no reason to. As such, if any of the facets of the brain are damaged or destroyed, the zombie, while not technically dead, becomes a complete non-threat and for all intents and purposes is put down. ConclusionThe pathogen behind the zombies is almost certainly some kind of virus (be it a normal virus, a prion, or a viroid). Because of it’s make-up, current test results, and my experiments I firmly believe that no cure, antivirus, or vaccine will ever be plausible. There is no way a zombified individual could ever be cured. Any kind of passive immunity appears to be impossible; from what we can tell, it affects 100% of the human population. One final sidebar is that the pathogen does not effect other animals. Something about the differences in brain makeup make the pathogen incompatible- it causes the same symptoms (fever, heart rate, death) but no reanimation. God help us all. Here you are! I've emboldened the corrections, though I see you've already made some new corrections since I first read it. Rathlord 1
Rathlord Posted December 22, 2013 Author Posted December 22, 2013 Thanks! I put it in spoilers so as not to take up a massive amount of room on the page. A zombie like this would be completely harmless. This seems right to me. I'm referring to a zombie 'in the wild' so to speak, not the current subject. However, it's a bit confusing so I think I'll change it anyways.
ShadowDimentio Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 A fantastic read. Theoretically, it would make a very, very interesting custom story located inside an overrun laboratory complex, with small snipits of the report located here and there. Perhaps the last part could be on the Director's corpse, with one hand clutching a pistol, and the other the report. Suicide.
harakka Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 The pathogen behind the zombies is almost certainly some kind of virus (be it a normal virus, a prion, or a viroid).Prions are not viruses. American Steel 1
Rathlord Posted December 22, 2013 Author Posted December 22, 2013 The pathogen behind the zombies is almost certainly some kind of virus (be it a normal virus, a prion, or a viroid).Prions are not viruses. They're almost always grouped together, but you're right, though they operate similarly the structure isn't remotely similar (although it has been hypothesized that the ontogenesis of all viruses was from prion-like substances). I suppose for clarity I should probably separate that. Although now that I think about it, a prion would be less able than a virus or viroid to alter other structure and function in the body- I think I will go ahead and take it out. Thanks for the feedback!
Fj45 Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 Perhaps the last part could be on the Director's corpse, with one hand clutching a pistol, and the other the report. Suicide. Well what else was he going to do? Formulate a cure with gun parts?
ExcentriCreation Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 Nice creative writing, I was expecting a lot more techno babble. That said though, I would enjoy it more if he were making more assumptions....More "I Believe".....Less "It Is!" Edit: Or, maybe a better Idea would be to have multiple reports from different medical examiners arriving at contradictory conclusions
Rathlord Posted December 22, 2013 Author Posted December 22, 2013 It specifically uses the scientific method- the conclusions he draws are shady at best, and he never says for sure "It is…" anything =D
Waib Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 (edited) One occasional occurrence is blood splatter while killing a zombie. This is much less frequent than biting or scratching but can happen. There is much less blood splatter from hitting a zombie than there is from hitting a human due to the zombie blood being partially coagulated, but keep your mouth closed if you’re killing one. It’s also a bit thicker, so it tends not to get into superficial cuts in the skin like some diseases can. Still, caution should be taken to not let zombie blood get into open wounds or other orifices. cool, is this going to be implemented? i always thot that would be a very realistic addition to the game, u could use things like goggles or bandanas, or tie a dish cloth around your face or something. **jw if you wrote it for fun or if that is actually the games lore Edited December 22, 2013 by Waib
Rathlord Posted December 22, 2013 Author Posted December 22, 2013 It's not currently in the game and probably won't be for gameplay issues. It would be a really frustrating way to lose your character. But since there is bloodsplatter in the game, I wanted to mention it. We'll just say our characters are smart and keep their mouths and open wounds closed or covered =D
Rathlord Posted December 22, 2013 Author Posted December 22, 2013 I thought the point was there was no clue at all where the infection was from, i.e it could be bloody voodoo for all we know? Yes, this isn't meant to be canon lore for PZ. It's just my perception of what we're dealing with in the game.
PlasticandRage Posted December 22, 2013 Posted December 22, 2013 You see, when undead mommy's and daddy's love each other very much.. LeoIvanov, chthonic and Footmuffin 3
ExcentriCreation Posted December 23, 2013 Posted December 23, 2013 I was operating under the assumption that you intended to use it for survivor stories.... That is, of course, IF you & RoboMat are still working on it.... TransmissionTransmission of the pathogen occurs when any part of infected tissue (that remains alive) or fluid enters the body. This most often comes from either a bite or a scratch. Biting, obviously, imparts both blood and saliva into the victim. My comrades were, for a while, baffled by scratching infections. They thought at the time that somehow the pathogen collected under the fingernails and was transmitted that way; this is preposterous. Transmission through scratching happens because most zombies have stripped the skin off of the end of their fingers. Whether it be clawing doors, windows, barricades, or anything else in an attempt to get to their victims, they have no sense of self preservation or pain. This leads them to ripping large amounts of flesh from their hands, leaving bone and tissue exposed. The sharp edges of broken fingernails and jutting bone cut the victim, and the zombie’s blood is quickly sucked into the victim’s bloodstream. There are some less common ways of transmission as well. One occasional occurrence is blood splatter while killing a zombie. This is much less frequent than biting or scratching but can happen. There is much less blood splatter from hitting a zombie than there is from hitting a human due to the zombie blood being partially coagulated, but keep your mouth closed if you’re killing one. It’s also a bit thicker, so it tends not to get into superficial cuts in the skin like some diseases can. Still, caution should be taken to not let zombie blood get into open wounds or other orifices. Finally, it should be noted that ingesting zombie flesh does not infect the individual; it instantly kills them. Instead of digesting the pathogen, it is quickly transmitted across the body and causes such shock that the victim is killed in mere moments. This is not enough time for the pathogen to spread and do the necessary work in the body, and by the time it’s ready to there’s not enough electrical gradient remaining to revitalize the person. This part, with the exception of the scratches, comes across like he is stating facts as opposed to drawing conclusions based on tests
Rathlord Posted December 23, 2013 Author Posted December 23, 2013 Those are things that can be categorically proven by direct observation, though. They don't need to be particularly vague if you can see it happening. The assumption you're meant to take from this is that the doctor is actually infected uninfected humans just for the sake of his tests. It requires a bit of reading between the lines, though. I hadn't actually considered this for Survivor Stories, but yes RoboMat is still working on it. Might do as was suggested and break it up into sections and put it in, though.
ExcentriCreation Posted December 23, 2013 Posted December 23, 2013 Nice Might I reiterate the Idea about conflicting medical reports though, the flipside could be a medical examiner that was incapable of drawing any conclusions due to the lack of solid information & ends up resigning from his position as a result.Maybe argumentative emails/memos between different members of the medical community incapable of arriving at a single conclusion.
Rathlord Posted December 23, 2013 Author Posted December 23, 2013 I don't want to have to much debate involved- this isn't an attempt at making an "official" lore for PZ, but it is an attempt by me to define what my version of the lore is. As such, the goal was to make a sensible conclusion at the end so that people could reference this if they're wondering roughly what kind of zombies PZ has, without leaving them guessing.
Footmuffin Posted December 23, 2013 Posted December 23, 2013 Do they turn and die that quickly in the game, though? I thought it was something like 2-3 days. Unless I'm confused and the infection mortality setting for survival mode really is 0-12 hours. <3
Rathlord Posted December 23, 2013 Author Posted December 23, 2013 You're right, it is slower. I may have to alter that a bit.
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