Richards is an Alpha Zombie and Zombie King of the hordes within the fallen city of Las Vegas, later becoming Zeus. He is portrayed by Richard Cetrone in Army of the Dead.
Biography[]
Little is known about Richards' initial life as a human, but what is known is that he was a soldier who worked at Area 51, where he volunteered to be a test subject of an alien sickness. Upon infection, he became the first zombie.
Army of the Dead (2021)[]
Following his transformation into a zombie, Richards remained in custody and was being transported from Area 51. He was able to escape containment, following his transport being hit by a civilian vehicle. He would then make his way to Las Vegas, but not before he killed off several members of his escort. He and his followers would attack the unsuspecting city of Las Vegas, where he not only resided in the Olympus hotel and casino, but also would come to rule both the alphas and shamblers alike. He also found a mate in the form of Athena, who ruled at his side, causing Vegas to become a quarantine zone in the process.
6 years later, Zeus remained the leader of the Vegas horde. Athena and his general returned with an offering from the Las Vengeance team in the form of Burt Cummings. He approached his queen, silencing a scared Burt with his roar and then listened to her abdomen before roaring in celebration. This was due to the fact that he was going to be a father and took to biting Burt, turning him into an alpha as well. Later on, Zeus came upon the decapitated body of his queen, which caused him to bring it to his palace and rip open her womb, revealing his unborn child. Both saddened and enraged, Zeus would rally his forces onto Bly's Casino, where the humans were at the time.
He would then engage Vanderohe in hand to hand combat, getting the upper hand on him at first, however was stopped thanks to Ludwig Dieter. Vanderohe escaped Zeus, but the zombie grabbed Dieter and likely killed him in the process. He then set his sights on the remaining humans, who he chased up to the roof, witnessing his fellow alphas burning alive. Lilly was able to get his attention by holding up the head of Athena, which allowed the remaining members to flee in a helicopter. Zeus then tossed his spear at Lilly, pinning her to a nearby wall by her shoulder, however she tossed Athena's head to the ground below, which was destroyed upon impact. Zeus was in anguish at the loss of his queen, however bit deep into Lilly's neck and then making his way back to The Olympus upon his horse, Wildfire. Here, Zeus found the remaining humans and Scott Ward, fired a grenade at him, leading him to be caught in the explosion. Despite this, Zeus survived and was able to catch up to those on the roof, thanks to the delay caused by Marianne Peters. He was able to board the chopper and engage in a fight with Scott, resulting in him biting his opponent, but leaving him open for Scott to blast his head apart with a bullet.
Characteristics[]
Physical Appearance[]
Before he became the king of the horde in Vegas, Zeus himself had short dark hair, with bloodshot eyes with sickly yellow irises. His skin was dead-looking and wore only pants with boots, complete with dog tags. He stood at 6'3" tall and weighed in at 170 lbs. 6 years following his rise to power, Zeus have come to wear a ragged cloth in the form of a makeshift shoulder cape, marking his status as a zombie king.
Personality & Traits[]
Zeus is easily a strong leader, which was demonstrated multiple times throughout his life as the zombie king. He was almost worshipped by his people, likely due to the fact that he was closest to the source of the infection that made them zombies. Even those that are alphas are not foolish enough to depose him. The only ones he truly cared for was Athena and their unborn child, but when she and their child died, he was clearly distraught, enough so to rally every zombie at his disposal to take out those that wronged him.
Powers & Abilities[]
- Alpha Zombie Physiology: Zeus was initially human, but due to experiments at Area 51, became a member of the undead, particularly an Alpha. He is the closest to the source of the infection that made him and his people. Despite this however, Zeus and other Alphas don't show signs of decay, but also possesses many abilities normal zombies don't possess.
- Intelligence: Compared to shamblers, Zeus is easily much more intelligent. He is not on the level of an uninfected human being, however, he is much more similar to an intelligent animal. This makes him a far greater threat than those that serve beneath him, particularly shamblers.
- Infectious Bite: Like other zombies, Zeus is capable of infecting others by simply biting them. Rather than making normal zombies however, Zeus' victims are converted to Alphas, which is due to the fact that he was the original zombie and had the most potent bite out of all the alphas.
- Superhuman Strength: Zeus possessed physical strength, that was able to overpower his foes. He was easily able to take on Vanderohe with great ease.
- Enhanced Coordination: Zeus' coordination allowed him to easily pin Lilly against the wall with his spear, which he threw, piercing her shoulder.
- Enhanced Endurance: Zeus was able to survive the resulting explosion from a grenade, launched by Scott Ward.
Equipment[]
- Metal Mask: Zeus knew full well that as a zombie, the most vulnerable part of his body was his brain. As a result, he would wear parts of an old S.W.A.T mask to protect his forehead from gunfire. When not in use, he typically placed it on the head, impaled on his rebar spear.
- Rebar Spear: Zeus had taken a rod of rebar as his personal weapon of choice.
- Wildfire: Zeus' personal steed was Wildfire, a former police horse, likely infected by him. Wildfire is stronger and faster than normal horses and likely can infect others via biting them.
Trivia[]
- Richards got his name Zeus when he came across the Olympus Hotel and Casino. He gazed upon the statue of the Olympian deity in front of the establishment.