The Fresh Start Club, a society of the undead. Illustration by Paul Kidby.

In Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels, the undead are seen less as monsters, and more as characters with unusual cultural quirks. They even have their own bar in Ankh-Morpork. Image File history File links Size of this preview: 461 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (612 × 795 pixel, file size: 110 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) This work is copyrighted and unlicensed. ... Image File history File links Size of this preview: 461 × 599 pixelsFull resolution (612 × 795 pixel, file size: 110 KB, MIME type: image/jpeg) This work is copyrighted and unlicensed. ... Paul Kidby is an English artist. ... Terence David John Pratchett OBE (born April 28, 1948, in Beaconsfield, Buckinghamshire, England[1]) is an English fantasy author, best known for his Discworld series. ... Cover of an early edition of The Colour of Magic; art by Josh Kirby Discworld is a comedic fantasy book series by the British author Terry Pratchett set on the Discworld, a flat world balanced on the backs of four elephants which are in turn standing on the back of... Ankh-Morpork is a fictional city-state which prominently features in Terry Pratchetts Discworld series of fantasy novels. ...

It should be noted that the term "undead" is used on the Discworld to refer to many races that seem to be more like separate species, such as werewolves, banshees and bogeymen. Zombies are the only race that belong exclusively to the category "undead", in that they were once living (and human, in all cases seen so far). Vampires are borderline, in that some used to be human, whereas most seem to have been born as vampires.

Zombies

Zombies are the most basic kind of undead. Essentially, they are people who are dead, but haven't stopped moving. Unlike zombies in most folklore and horror fiction, they are not automatically mindless but may retain the same personality they did when they were alive. Undead is a collective name for mythological beings that are deceased yet behave as if alive. ... A group of actors portraying zombies in a film A zombie is an animated human body devoid of a soul. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Horror fiction is, broadly, fiction in any medium intended to scare, unsettle, or horrify the reader. ...

This personality tends to be obsessive in some way. A zombie can (usually) only be created if there is something more important to it than passing on. In this case, they may be summoned back by a voodoo practitioner, or simply refuse to leave. For instance, Mr Slant, head of the Guild of Lawyers, was executed for an unknown crime centuries ago, but refuses to die until his descendants agree to pay the firm for his defending himself at the trial. The Discworld in Terry Pratchetts Discworld novels runs on magic. ...

If, for some reason, Death is prevented from releasing someone's soul from their body, the result is many aimless zombies. This has, however, only happened once without someone else taking up the role. Death is a fictional character in Terry Pratchetts Discworld series. ...

The most difficult thing about being a zombie is that your body has actually stopped living. This means bits are likely to drop off unless you take precautions. It also means you need to think about your autonomic processes, as they no longer happen automatically. A zombie can remain active even if its flesh is lost to wear, tear and rot. Since this is very inhibitive to social acceptance, most zombies apparently use some artificial methods of preservation. This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

Noted zombies in the novels include: Baron Saturday, Mr Slant, Windle Poons and Reg Shoe. It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with List of Discworld characters. ... Coat of arms of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. ...

Mummies

Mummies tend not to come back to life on the Discworld. There are only two cultures (Djelibeybi and Tsort) who really believe in mummification anyway, and they have both lost interest in it in recent years. Pyramids, however, describes an occasion when the dead of Djelibeybi did return to their bodies. Essentially they seemed much like zombies, only better preserved. They unanimously despised the pyramids in which they were interred, and upon their release they helped to destroy the Great Pyramid and then dissolved their corporeal bodies in the Djel. This caused some problems for Death, as he was unused to having over 1,600 souls to take at one time. Prior to the events of Pyramids, the souls of those mummified appear to have been prevented from totally dying, and were instead trapped within their pyramids. The Discworld is the fictional setting for all of Terry Pratchetts Discworld fantasy novels. ... A mummy is a corpse whose skin and dried flesh have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or airlessness. ... Pyramids is the seventh Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett, published in 1989. ... Pyramids is the seventh Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett, published in 1989. ...

Vampires

Nosferatu Sanguineus

On the Disc, all our world's vampire legends are true, even the contradictory ones. They just aren't all true for the same vampire. Philip Burne-Jones, The Vampire, 1897 Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings that subsist on human and/or animal lifeforce. ...

The "default" Discworld vampire is generally consistent with the Dracula image. Their homeland is Überwald, a land that does not so much resemble Eastern Europe as the Universal and Hammer Horror movie stereotypes of the region. When you live for centuries and instinctively see humans as prey, it's very easy to decide that this means you're destined to rule by force. Überwald is filled with vampire aristocrats. Dracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker, featuring as its primary antagonist the vampire Count Dracula. ... In Terry Pratchetts fictional Discworld universe, Ãœberwald is a region located in near the foot of the Ramtops, farther from Ankh-Morpork than Lancre is. ... Map of Eastern Europe Pre-1989 division between the West (grey) and Eastern Bloc (orange) superimposed on current national boundaries: Russia (dark orange), other countries of the former USSR (medium orange),members of the Warsaw pact (light orange), and other former Communist regimes not aligned with Moscow (lightest orange). ... Universal Pictures is the main motion picture production/distribution arm of Universal Studios, a subsidiary of NBC Universal. ... Hammer horror refers to a series of gothic horror films produced from the late 1950s until the 1970s by the British film production company Hammer Film Productions Ltd. ...

One odd element of this vampiric attraction to nobility is their names, which often run for several pages. Over the course of their long lives, vampires acquire titles in much the same way as a philatelist acquires stamps. Collecting titles is both a means to pass the time and a subtle reminder to hoi polloi of whom to respect. Close examination of the Penny Red, left, reveals a 148 in the margin, indicating that it was printed with plate #148. ... The hoi polloi protesting their perceived maltreatment by the wealthier classes. ...

The more intelligent vampire nobles know better than to oppress the local peasants too much, realising that there's no sense in driving them to become a torch-bearing mob. Others are too arrogant to worry, or see the whole business of feeding on humans as a very complicated, relatively stylized hunting sport. These vampires (most notably the old Count Magpyr, who returned from the dead so often his coffin had a revolving lid) "play by the rules" and give their quarry ample opportunity to defend themselves. Realizing that even death is rarely permanent for a vampire, these traditionalists like to give their prey a sporting chance and so keep their castles stocked with large collections of holy water, garlands of garlic, wooden stakes (complete with anatomical diagrams detailing the position of the heart in order to reduce the likelihood of their being left looking like a pincushion), metal decorations easily bent into holy symbols, and very clean windows covered by easily pulled-aside drapes. Vampires only really become dangerous when they start breaking the rules, as demonstrated by the younger Count Magpyr, who developed immunity to the traditional weaknesses by lengthy conditioning of himself and his family. A throng of people returning from a show of fireworks spill in to the street stopping traffic at the intersection of Fulton Street and Gold Street in Lower Manhattan. ... St. ... Binomial name Allium sativum L. Allium sativum L., commonly known as garlic, is a species in the onion family Alliaceae. ... Look up stake in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The heart and lungs, from an older edition of Grays Anatomy. ...

The craving for human blood appears to be more an addiction like alcoholism than a strict dietary requirement. Vampires are reported to have some need for extra "haemo-goblins" and must consume blood to survive, but this blood need not be fresh, or even human. The addiction to fresh, human blood is one which a growing number of vampires are beating, with help from support groups like the Überwald League of Temperance (the "Black Ribboners"). They refer to this change in diet as "going cold bat" (cf. cold turkey). Many get jobs at butcher shops or slaughterhouses in order to obtain their sustenance without harming human beings. In giving up human blood, most vampires sublimate their desire into a secondary, more socially acceptable addiction such as coffee, photography or even politics. Vampires denied the opportunity to satisfy their secondary addiction may begin suffering from severe withdrawal symptoms, including hallucinations such as with delirium tremens. Vampires in this state will eventually become unable to control their natural addiction to blood. An addiction is a recurring compulsion by an individual to engage in some specific activity. ... Alcoholism is the consumption of, or preoccupation with, alcoholic beverages to the extent that this behavior interferes with the drinkers normal personal, family, social, or work life, and may lead to physical or mental harm. ... Structure of hemoglobin. ... In Terry Pratchetts fictional Discworld universe, Ãœberwald is a region located in near the foot of the Ramtops, farther from Ankh-Morpork than Lancre is. ... Cold turkey is a slang expression describing the actions of a person who gives up a habit or addiction all at once. ... In psychology, sublimation is a coping mechanism. ... A cup of coffee Workers sorting and pulping coffee beans in Guatemala Mature coffee fruit still on the plant Coffee is a widely consumed beverage prepared from the roasted seeds — commonly referred to as beans — of the coffee plant. ... Photography [fÓ™tÉ‘grÓ™fi:],[foÊŠtÉ‘grÓ™fi:] is the process of recording pictures by means of capturing light on a light-sensitive medium, such as a film or sensor. ... The Politics series Politics Portal This box:      Politics is defined as a group of people who are influenced to change laws and other such things to make the world a better place the process by which groups of people make decisions. ... Withdrawal, also known as withdrawal syndrome, refers to the characteristic signs and symptoms that appear when a drug that causes physical dependence is regularly used for a long time and then suddenly discontinued or decreased in dosage. ... A hallucination is a sensory perception experienced in the absence of an external stimulus, as distinct from an illusion, which is a misperception of an external stimulus. ... For the beer, see Delirium Tremens (beer). ...

Discworld vampires can survive in sunlight, provided they wear heavy clothes and broad-brimmed hats. When exposed to direct sunlight they will be immediately reduced to ashes, but require merely a drop of blood to recorporate. Many Black Ribboners carry a dustpan, brush, and explanatory card asking bystanders for assistance in reviving them.

Vampires can create new vampires with their bite, but generally prefer not to. Given the existence of vampire couples with vampire children, they seem able to reproduce sexually. Ankh-Morpork resident Arthur Winkins became a vampire as part of an inheritance that included an old castle in Überwald and the accompanying noble title. His wife Doreen Winkins refers to herself as a vampiress, or vampire by marriage, although she is not actually undead.

Coolness, poise and self-assurance come easily to natural born vampires. A female vampire will look fabulous even in a modestly priced dress. Members of the Überwald League of Temperance seek to renounce vampiric stylishness in all its forms, ditching sleek black cloaks for ratty jumpers and mournful violin playing for building models out of matchsticks.

Vampires have the ability to levitate and change into bats or other animals, although "beetotallers" find using these talents more difficult. It is easier to transform into many bats, thereby maintaining the same body mass. However, the vampire must then control all the bat bodies with a single mind and female Vampires must keep a few carrying clothes unless they wish to arrive naked. For the flying mammal see bat. ...

This is because although male vampires can recorporate their clothes after an ashing or a transformation, female vampires find this more difficult. The reason for this is unclear, though many speculate it is to do with the "underwired nightdress thing". In other words, according to narrative convention (the all-powerful force on the Disc), female vampires must always be sexy. There are some exceptions to this rule; in Monstrous Regiment one female vampire recorporates her clothes. The Discworld is the fictional setting for all of Terry Pratchetts Discworld fantasy novels. ... Monstrous Regiment is the 31st novel in Terry Pratchetts Discworld series. ...

A recent trend among rebellious younger vampires involves dressing in bright clothes, drinking wine (or more commonly drinking blood from wine bottles), and staying up until nearly noon.

Noted vampires in the books include: Arthur and Doreen Winkins (the Count and Countess Notfaroutoe), the Dragon King of Arms, the Magpyr family, Lady Margolotta, Otto Chriek, Mr Morcombe, lawyer to the Ramkin family (though some in the League suspect he may merely be a man who stubbornly managed to live for 400 years), Maladict(a) and Salacia "Sally" von Humpeding, the first vampire City Watch constable. A Mr. Bleakley is also referred to in several books as a prospective vampire Watch officer. The Magpyr family are a family of vampires from Terry Pratchetts longrunning Discworld series of fantasy novels. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with List of Discworld characters. ... Sybil Ramkin is Samuel Vimes wife in Terry Pratchetts City Watch books in the Discworld series. ... Coat of arms of the Ankh-Morpork City Watch. ...

Werewolves

Lupus Sapiens

There is some debate on the Discworld as to whether werewolves are undead or not. The general consensus seems to be "they're big and scary, they come from Überwald, and if you stab them with a sword they don't die. What more do you want?" Regardless of whether or not they are technically undead, inhabitants of the Discworld generally lump werewolves into the same category and treat them in the same fashion. A German woodcut from 1722 A werewolf (also lycanthrope or wolfman) in folklore is a person who shapeshifts into a wolf or wolflike creature, either purposely evil, by using magic, or after being placed under a curse. ...

There are as many werewolf barons in Überwald as vampire ones, and for much the same reason. Many werewolves combine carnivorous animal instincts with the human trait of sadism that real wolves couldn't hope to understand. Others just make the best they can out of a life where, once a month, they find themselves stealing chickens. Wolf Wolf Man Mount Wolf Wolf Prizes Wolf Spider Wolf 424 Wolf 359 Wolf Point Wolf-herring Frank Wolf Friedrich Wolf Friedrich August Wolf Hugo Wolf Johannes Wolf Julius Wolf Max Franz Joseph Cornelius Wolf Maximilian Wolf Rudolf Wolf Thomas Wolf As Name Wolf Breidenbach Wolf Hirshorn Other The call...

A "true" werewolf is a human three weeks out of four, unless (s)he chooses otherwise, and a wolf the week of full moon. There are also yennorks, werewolves who cannot change, and are permanently in human or wolf form. They usually find werewolf culture uncomfortable and leave to live in a village or pack, or in at least one case as a champion sheepdog.

This is where the other kinds of werewolves come from. Crossbreeding between yennorks and ordinary humans has resulted in various other forms of werewolf. The most obvious are the people who turn into wolf-men, rather than wolves, at full moon, but the spectrum ranges from people who have hairy palms and eyebrows that meet in the middle to creatures that look like feral wolf-human hybrids... except at full moon when they turn into wolves. Meanwhile yennork/wolf mating has led to some extremely intelligent wolves, and is possibly also the cause of the occasional "were-man", a wolf that turns into a wolf-man at full moon. Sometimes, ordinary humans, dogs and wolves are produced.

While there have been some suggestions that Discworld werewolves, like the Hollywood stereotype, can "infect" others with lycanthropy through their bite, on the whole it appears that werewolves on the Disc are born, not made. In folklore, lycanthropy is the ability or power of a human being to undergo transformation into a wolf. ...

Werewolves do not get on with vampires. This is less to do with deep-seated polito-racial rivalry and more because the effortless cool of vampires make werewolves feel like hairy animals.

One Hollywood stereotype they do conform to is their vulnerability to silver, which causes burns even on light contact. A longtime supremacy of a number of werewolf clans in Überwald led to a ban on dwarfs mining silver in the region, though that ban was lifted when the most powerful werewolf clan was destroyed. General Name, Symbol, Number silver, Ag, 47 Chemical series transition metals Group, Period, Block 11, 5, d Appearance lustrous white metal Standard atomic weight 107. ... In Terry Pratchetts fictional Discworld universe, Ãœberwald is a region located in near the foot of the Ramtops, farther from Ankh-Morpork than Lancre is. ...

Werewolves are synaesthetes, being able to "see" smells. This article or section is in need of attention from an expert on the subject. ...

Noted werewolves in the books include Ludmilla Cake, Lupine (a were-man) and Sergeant Delphine Angua von Überwald and her family. Delphine Angua von Ãœberwald is a character from the Discworld novels of Terry Pratchett. ...

Banshees

Little is known about Discworld banshees. Although the banshee of Gaelic folklore are always female, the only two banshee to appear in the Discworld books have been male, as all of the female banshees have now become extinct (see The Discworld Portfolio, and The Truth). They are described as the only humanoid race on the Disc that can fly unaided. Look up banshee in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... The Pratchett Portfolio is a small collection of the artistic works of Paul Kidby, illustrating the characters of Terry Pratchetts Discworld. ... This article or section should include material from [[{{{1}}}]]. Mr. ...

Banshees are tall, lean figures, who appear to be wearing long leather capes. These are actually their folded wings. They have flight muscles like steel armour, but their skeletons are fragile. Banshees have two hearts and many rows of teeth.

The Discworld banshees seem to have evolved in the jungle, where they used their power of flight to help them hunt small (and many not-so-small) animals. This carnivorous instinct tends to backfire in Ankh-Morpork, where any uncooked animal is basically food poisoning on legs. A foodborne illness (also foodborne disease) is any illness resulting from the consumption of food. ...

There appear to be two kinds of banshee, civilised and feral. Civilised banshees can apparently sense when a person is about to die. They will traditionally scream from that person's rooftop as a sign of impending death. However, Mr. Ixolite, the banshee featured in Reaper Man, has a speech impediment and prefers to leave a note instead. Hearing the scream of a feral banshee is also a sign that you are about to die, but the connection in this case is much more direct, i.e the Banshee is coming right towards you and is going to be the cause of your death. Interestingly, though, Mr. Gryle the feral banshee worked as an assassin for large amounts of money, and berated himself for being unable to fight the urge to snatch pigeons out of the air when they scattered. Reaper Man is a Discworld novel by Terry Pratchett. ... Speech disorders are a type of communication disorders where normal speech is disrupted. ...

Noted banshees in the books include Mr. Ixolite (civilised), and Mr. Gryle (feral, although he can talk and understands the concept of money). Mr. Ixolite was described as the last banshee on the Disc, but this has clearly been retconned with the introduction of Mr. Gryle. This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ...

Bogeymen

While not technically undead, verging more on anthropomorphic personifications, bogeymen are frequently lumped into this category. Bogeymen are manifestations of human fears, both childish and primal. They seem to be sustained by the fear of humans (belief has considerable power on Discworld), which gives them ample reason to keep to their traditional work of frightening people. When off-duty, quite a lot of bogeymen seem to frequent Biers, the unofficial bar for the undead in Ankh-Morpork. See also: Discworld magic The Discworld gods are the fictional deities from Terry Pratchetts Discworld series of fantasy novels. ... Ankh-Morpork is a fictional city-state which prominently features in Terry Pratchetts Discworld series of fantasy novels. ...

Because one of the standard tricks used by children wanting to get rid of bogeymen is to put their heads under the covers, bogeymen become extremely confused and begin to doubt their own existence if a blanket, pillow, or even a handkerchief is thrown over their own heads. Bogeymen do not have a fixed appearance, usually being able to manifest themselves as whatever the viewer fears most. Their true physical form is usually obscured by the frightening illusions they project. The only bogeyman revealed so far in the books resembled a small, wizened monkey.

The original bogeyman eventually became the Discworld Tooth Fairy. See also: Discworld magic The Discworld gods are the fictional deities from Terry Pratchetts Discworld series of fantasy novels. ...