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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Holy Smokes" data-source="post: 4619450" data-attributes="member: 81729">The Zombie ApocalypseThe Tome of Infection is linked to a special domain in the Shadowfell, similar to a Domain of Dread. Technically, this domain was created by Orcus, who linked its control to the Tome. The demon prince could reclaim or destroy this domain at will, but this fact was lost forever with the loss of the original author.Infected Zombies can be summoned into the mortal world from this domain by means of the Tome. Every time a mortal human is killed by an Infected Zombie, a necrotic impression of that person is sent back to this domain. This provides the energy pattern for a new Infected Zombie. Thus, a necrotic image of every human who was ever killed by an Infected Zombie is recorded in this domain, ready to be summoned anew as Infected Zombies themselves.Rite of the LocusBefore a new owner of the Tome can summon up Infected, they must locate a place in the mortal world somehow linked to the Shadowfell. It is less important how this affinity was created, as long as it is strong, and is in or near a human community. The Tome must be used in a ritual to anchor the necrotic energy flows required to summon Infected. This locus will eventually become the site of a portal to the Infection domain.Rite of the MasterOnce the locus is established, the Tome's owner can summon a small crowd of Infected Zombies, who complete the ritual by attacking and killing their summoner. If the rite is successful, the summoner rises as a special Infected called the Infected Master. Unlike all other forms of Infected, the Master retains the memories and personality they had in life, and can now continue the scheme in undeath.As an Infected Zombie, the Master must start the Infection plague by killing some humans. Even though the Infection domain in the Shadowfell contains virtually limitless zombies for summoning, until the portal is opened, the Master can only summon Infected created by the new plague. As more Infected become available for summoning, the plague grows stronger and finds more victims.Rite of ApocalypseAs the plague grows, necrotic energy is collected at the locus. Provided that sufficient victims are at hand, no insurmountable resistance forms, and the Master remains safe, the final rite may  be performed within two weeks of the plague's beginning. This ritual consumes the plague energy at the locus, creating a portal to the Infection domain. Once the ritual is completed, the Infected Master passes through into the portal, assuming control of the new Zombie Apocalypse.Each time a new portal is opened into the Infection domain, it is remade into a mirror plane of the mortal world the portal is anchored to. This new nightmarish domain is an exact physical copy of the mortal world, except that it clearly lies withing the Shadowfell, it is always night, and that it is inhabited solely by every Infection Zombie that ever existed. The Infection Master cannot shape the physical reality of the domain like a true Domain of Dread. However, the Master controls all the Infected in the domain; they appear wherever and whenever desired, and there is a nigh inexhaustible supply of them.Completing the CycleIt is critical that the Infection portal remain open from this point forward. If the portal is closed for any reason, the parallel Zombie Apocalypse world will collapse in on itself, destroying the Master entirely, and ejecting the Tome of Infection randomly back into the mortal plane. To remain open, the portal continues to consume necrotic energy, and thus the Infection plague must continue to spread at a steady rate. However, the Master now has access to the entire Infection Zombie domain to send back through the portal, with fewer limits on the forces brought to bear against the living.Besides closing the portal outright, the plague may only be stopped by 'starving' the portal of the necrotic energy it requires, or killing the Master. If the plague deaths can be slowed down to a hundred a day or less, the open portal will start draining power directly from the Tome, which acts as a kind of necrotic battery for the portal. Closing the portal this way require several days of starvation; half as many days as the portal has already been open under full power. Finally, the most successful Infection Masters inevitably draw the attention of powerful heroes. A truly apocalyptic zombie plague that swallows cities whole will certainly draw paragon and even epic heroes to its locus portal. Mortals that enter the portal are trapped in the Zombie Apocalypse, and cannot escape or pass back through the portal. Thus committed, they must slay the Master to survive. This will also cause the domain to collapse, thrusting the surviving mortals back through the closing portal. The Tome of Infection is randomly ejected back into the mortal plane, where the cycle can begin anew in another place and time.</blockquote>

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