Walkers

Overview
A walker is a human that has been infected with the early strains of The Pathogen, and subsequently turned.

Multitudes of sluggish, diseased bodies roam the city, looking for survivors to sate their ravenous appetite. The millions of these frames were former men, women, and even children that have become thralls to The Pathogen. During the early days of the initial outbreak, Class 1 Infected, or walkers, were the only infected type to walk the city. As The Pathogen began to evolve, mutate, and spread throughout the city, new, dangerous strains began to emerge - fast, running types and more fearsome mutants. However, it has been constant that the strain that causes walkers remains the most transmissible strain and as a result, most of the infected in the city are walkers.

the people of Canisbury saw the increasing prevalence of fearsome mutants.

Millions of former human beings have been reduced to these poignant frames

Biology
Class 1 infected are characterized by their weary, miserable nature and will always be significantly less intelligent and weaker than the average human being. Some of the early strains of The Pathogen caused mostly degenerative symptoms on people who were infected, battling the immune system and breaking down the host's body until it can no longer resist the onslaught of The Pathogen. When an individual infected with such a strain completes the process of turning, they will become a walker. Considering the sickly nature of this type of infected, they present the least danger out of all infected types. Contrarily, they also can be the MOST threatening due to their omnipresence across the whole map.

Special Characteristics :
The initial strains of The Pathogen were relatively weak and healthy human immune systems were strong enough and capable of resisting the infection for a fair amount of time, leaving only the elderly and the immunocompromised as the most vulnerable targets for The Pathogen. Eventually, even healthy people could not surmount The Pathogen, and all that were infected fell victim to its effects. The fatality rate for these initial strains were surprisingly low and only a small percentage of the infected actually died from symptoms alone - most transformed into walkers.

Walkers are the only zombie that can be considered both dead AND alive as technically, when a person succumbs to the final stages of a walker-strain infection, they are pronounced clinically dead - but then undergo a post-death resuscitation by The Pathogen just before they are actually beyond bringing back to life. This means they are not strictly reanimated corpses, but are still in some ways "undead". However, the human being that hosted The Pathogen before and during infection is still there after turning, meaning they are actually gravely ill humans that have lost most control of their bodies, as opposed to a soulless body reanimated by The Pathogen.

Mental Qualities:
When The Pathogen gains control of the brain, it will "shut it off" momentarily as it begins to rewire it for full control. The amount of control The Pathogen gains is never complete, however, as only a fraction of the brain is reactivated - leaving the infected with limited functioning capacities. The infected individual essentially reverts to a primitive, animal-like state - focused purely on the hunting of prey, and losing satiation of their hunger.

Firstly, walkers lose most, if not all, of their higher-brain functions. Speaking, thinking, remembering, and all capacities for logic and reasoning are generally no longer present after the host turns.

Walkers seem to suffering from a sort of encephalopathy or encephalitis, or perhaps The Pathogen causes symptoms similar to such conditions.

The Pathogen induces a type of amnesia very similar to Alzheimer's, where the infected host loses the capability to recognize anybody and is intensely violent towards those around them.

The Pathogen's main focus is to control the brain, and to do that it must bypass the immune system. When it finally breaks down the immune system, penetrates the blood-brain barrier, and gains limited control of the organ, it momentarily shuts the brain off and begins the last stages of infection. When the person wakes from the coma, they will have fully-turned and are now a walker.

*A characteristic common in those infected with The Pathogen is losing the capability to experience fear, and so infected individuals will never falter or flee, even in the face of death.* (move this bolded section to The Pathogen's main page)

Like others infected with The Pathogen, walkers can no longer experience fear and will charge headfirst into dangerous situations with little regard for their own safety and self-preservation.

Walkers lose all of their memory - they will attack, kill, and eat loved ones with no hesitation. Coupled with the loss of higher-thinking, they no longer are able to do things they should be extremely familiar with when they were uninfected: opening doors, driving vehicles, finding their way home, and using a cell-phone are only a few examples.

benign

Physical Qualities:
When the human body fights infection by a walker-strain of The Pathogen, the body as a whole and its immune system expends a great amount of resources, and as a consequence the host body grows weak and infirm. Once the infected person enters the last stages of infection and succumbs to The Pathogen, they will return just as enervated and frail as they were before they turned. From the moment it wakes, the revitalized vector is still significantly frail from fighting the Pathogen for so long. As a result, the diseased body will be physically incapable of vigorous activity and will only be able to move slowly and perform the simplest of actions. Coupled with the loss of muscular power and obtainment of symptoms resembling those of osteoporosis (severe weakening of bones), the body of the infected will be extremely fragile and easily damaged. One example of this is that bones and limbs are relatively easy to break and dismember, when compared to uninfected, healthy humans. Also, a walker will have lost a large amount of strength and muscle mass, meaning that a walker is often easily overpowered by most reasonably fit people. Their weakened legs and absence of energy means they can only move at a walking pace, and their loss of coordination gives them awkward gaits that resemble shuffling or limping. In the face of all their physical limitations, walkers are still far from harmless and will easily maul and devour a survivor, given the chance.

Appearance:
Physical appearance-wise, walkers, along with runners, are generally the least changed by The Pathogen - at least when compared to other infected like the mutants. For the most part, they retain a human silhouette and as a result become almost indistinguishable from an uninfected human at distance.

While walkers tend to vary wildly in appearance, all walkers seem to share a few common characteristics - bleeding eyes

Some walkers appear to have areas of their body bandaged, and a valid inference from this is that the wounds underneath could be where the Pathogen entered and infected the host.

Behavior:
Like any other infected, walkers generally exhibit highly aggressive behavior towards uninfected humans. Upon detecting a survivor, a walker will attempt to kill and consume them, sometimes in the reverse order. Lacking in the special abilities that more advanced infected possess, walkers often utilize the straightforward method of grabbing and biting into their prey until they are dead. They tend to bite the neck area, oftentimes severing major blood vessels and causing the victim to bleed out and die quickly. However, some

Strangely, some common infected (walkers and runners collectively) seem apathetic or indifferent to an uninfected's presence, but for the majority of the infected population, extreme antagonism is the expected behavior towards any uninfected person.

Walkers are sensitive to light

Horde behavior:
Horde

Idle:
If observed without being detected, idle walkers can be seen doing a number of things, usually indicative of their sickness:


 * Infected may sometimes randomly double over and clutch their abdomens, seemingly in pain, and this is often accompanied by the infected vomiting. The infected may make a groaning or retching sound when doing so. The vomit in question is bloody and red in color, suggesting either hematemesis, or simply the regurgitation of consumed flesh. This may last for a few seconds.
 * Infected may be seen staring directly at walls or the floor for long periods of time. Usually if an infected is seen doing this, that specific infected will not move away from their spot on their own unless detecting a survivor. They seem to be in some sort of trance, and this makes them easier to sneak up on, as their awareness is reduced.
 * Infected may be witnessed on the floor having a seizure that usually lasts for several seconds. When this is over, they will sometimes remain on the floor in one spot indefinitely, unless an uninfected is detected.
 * Though infected are not known to be quiet, as groaning and other vocalizations are common behaviors, they may occasionally bellow or wail loudly for a few moments, unintentionally announcing their presence to survivors. The cause of this is unknown, however a few believe it is the original host attempting to regain control of the body.
 * When observing a walker eating a corpse, they may glance at the corpse's face (if it has an intact one) and suddenly freeze in place as if paralyzed or deep in thought. After a few moments they will resume eating again.
 * Similar to a gorger, another thing that might happen during a walker's feasting is they may randomly vomit. Usually after this, they will discontinue eating and stand back up.
 * A walker might sometimes be seen engaged in combat with nothing. This is not a bug - they will swing their arms at or attempt to grab the air, suggesting that hallucinations are a symptom of The Pathogen.
 * Some walkers will curl into the fetal position and begin making choking sounds. After a few moments, they will suddenly quiet and die - apparently having choked to death, whether on their own blood or flesh they have eaten that is not being digested.
 * The walkers that appear to "lie in wait" to ambush survivors may not actually be attempting a strategy to obtain easy prey, but rather are actually dormant until their senses detect an uninfected survivor. This dormancy may be a side-effect of being infected with The Pathogen.
 * Though walkers in pursuit of a survivor will attempt to forcefully break down or ram themselves through doors that survivors close between them, an idle walker that is not currently pursuing survivors may be seen standing at a door, repeatedly bumping into it softly. This may imply that the walker has a limited memory of what doors are used for, but forgot how to use one. Another theory is that the walker was in pursuit of a survivor behind the door but eventually lost their stimulus as the survivor has not been seen in a while, but didn't lose their interest, as the walker remains at the door.

hostility and violence

Evasion:
Evading walkers is relatively straightforward, and much less difficult than evading other other infected types, or bandits - they are not fast, and they are easily distracted, making escapes or preliminary avoidance both easier tasks.

Avoidance:
Idle walkers are usually somewhat pacified - they are zoned out, in a state of low activity, and so their senses seem to be diminished. They are essentially like distracted children. To evade walkers effectively, it is imperative to keep walkers in this state of pacification.

Moving quietly and keeping a low-profile is usually enough to not attract an idle walker's attention. Staying out of sight is also imperative to keep idle walkers pacified. Some find it even possible to move right through the middle of a walker-infested area by using this method. Moving too close to a walker or staying in their line of sight too long may stimulate them, rousing their energy. If one walker is active in an area full of walkers, chances are that a chain reaction of other walkers "waking up" will commence.

Staying still and not moving is very effective at concealing yourself from idle walkers - however it is not foolproof. If you let an idle walker move too close to you, they will detect you by smell. Be aware of your surroundings and stay away from walkers that seem to be moving in your direction.

Elusion:
If you have caught the attention of a walker or two, then avoidance has failed. Elusion of pursuing walkers is still possible and quite easy if good situational awareness and the right strategy is kept on hand.

Breaking a walker's line of sight for long enough will cause them to lose you. Running around a corner or moving behind a large object counts as breaking their line of sight. They will usually attempt to follow where you went, but their impaired memory capacities will make them forget where you went if you stay out of sight long enough. If a walker is in pursuit and there is a large enough object nearby with space on all sides, a good strategy to employ is to hide behind the object, breaking the walker's line of sight. When the walker gets close to getting around the object and seeing you, move to the other side of the object. Keep repeating this until the walker forgets where you are, and cannot figure it out. Staying quiet is also imperative here. Making noise will just keep the spotlight on you, and motivate the walker to continue searching for longer.

Putting a solid door (no windows or screen doors) between you and the pursuing walker(s) is another method to aid in elusion. The walker(s) will angrily attempt to force down the door. If the door holds strong and there aren't many walkers pounding and clawing at it, they will eventually lose interest and forget where you went.

The most straightforward way to elude walkers is to run. They can only walk, after all. They will not catch up to you, unless you run at the speed of snails. Putting enough distance between you and a pursuing walker(s) will usually lead to them forgetting what they were chasing, as you are already gone and cresting the horizon. This method, though simple and easy, also comes with its cons - running is risky. It's noisy, uses your stamina, and if you are not familiar with the area, you may accidentally run into a greater danger than you are running from. You may have outran those few walkers, but you ran right into a horde of more. Now you are out of breath and all that noise you made has caused the horde to set their sights on you. You don't have the stamina to fight them or run further and so you get eaten. Be very careful with this method.

Another method to lose the attention of walkers is to distract them with something else. Walkers tend to investigate a strong stimulus, so lighting firecrackers, turning on a siren, and throwing breakable objects, are good ways to distract a walker. Combining this with hiding behind a wall or other object afterwards basically guarantees the walker to lose you. This method is only useful if a walker hasn't detected you yet or has only barely detected you and is investigating. This method is not effective if you are standing right in front of a walker, because in most cases they will ignore what you are trying to distract them with and go right for you instead. Be careful, however, as making loud noises can be counterproductive - waking up more idle walkers or summoning more infected to the area.

Stealth:
Like all other infected, walkers are most vulnerable when they have not detected you. Successfully sneaking up to a walker allows you to instantly kill the infected in a single hit. Though a sneak-kill is not completely silent and can still catch the attention of a nearby infected, this is often the most effective way to dispatch infected quietly. For an infected in close proximity to one that is to be sneak-killed, a viable plan is to wait until one of them moves away before going for a kill. There is always a risk to waiting, however, as one of them may just detect you and alert the other, forfeiting the opportunity to at least take out one of them.

If a walker has detected you, however, there are several strategies to effectively and safely engage them in combat:

Firstly, walkers are least dangerous when they are alone. Since their physical strength has atrophied and they attack in a predictable manner, almost anyone can physically overpower a walker in single combat. Dodging or intercepting their attacks safely, and then swinging a melee weapon at their head is the most reliable strategy to kill a walker. Usually, only a few blows to the head is enough to subdue the infected, if not kill it outright. Swinging at other body parts will still damage them and can even kill them too, but their decreased sensitivity to pain makes this method much less effective than striking their head and instantly disabling their brain. A walker may not flinch at repeated strikes to their body, but a good strike to the head may stop them dead in their tracks, even if it doesn't kill them.

Alternatively, one can easily kill them from a distance by shooting them, as there is no risk of getting scratched or bitten, but this usually comes with the consequence of attracting more walkers, or even worse foes, to your location.

Some survivors may be confident enough to engage two or three walkers in combat at one time. These survivors are usually more experienced, skilled, or better-equipped, but some are just foolhardy. Fighting more than one walker at a time will obviously multiply your chance of getting bit, scratched, or just killed by them, but some manage to pull it off due to the natural ineptitude of walkers. It is always a better idea to fight walkers one-on-one, but sometimes where survivors find themselves surrounded by walkers, there is little choice. There are still a few strategies to employ if you absolutely must fight multiple walkers at once:


 * Fighting in a wide, open area, gives you more room to step back if you need a breather or require time to strategize. Fighting multiple walkers in a small room can easily lead to you getting cornered and eaten. Fight them outside, or in a sufficiently large room where you are aware of all exits.
 * Take account for and keep track of every walker - do not let any of them get behind you. Constantly move in a circle around them when fighting, or just make sure that you keep them all in front of you.
 * Be aware of any doors or other places where more infected may appear and join the battle. Not being aware can lead to you confidently beating the walkers you are aware of, and then suddenly getting grappled by one you didn't see walk through the door behind you.
 * Make sure you are in good shape - running out of stamina when fighting multiple infected usually means you will not have the power to resist being eaten if they all grapple you.
 * Use companions - another weapon and brain at your side can turn the tide of battle significantly. They may also be able to save you if you cannot escape a grapple, or are about to be eaten.
 * Use distractions - throwing firecrackers or using other loud objects can effectively divide a group's attention, and give you opportunities to sneak attack them. Be wary, however, that this can also attract more walkers.

Obviously, the most effective method in eliminating multiple walkers is to shoot all of them, but it is also obviously the most risky. Repeated gunshots may summon double the amount of infected that were a problem in the first place.

Trivia

 * Since it took such a long time for a human to fully succumb to the early strains of the infection, this also meant that people infected with the walker strains generally suffered the longest, and arguably the most.