Your Character in Wake the Dead is the main protagonist of the Wake the Dead book.
Although her/his default name is "Ash Archer", the player can choose to name her/him as they wish.
Appearance
The appearance of your character is up to the player.
Personality
Generally, you are the leader of your colony once it becomes established, doing what you can to prepare for the upcoming solstice. You can choose to be brash, take chances, or to err on the side of caution. You are given hard choices to make and must decide what is best for your colony.
Background
When you and your sister were children, you two lived with your fathers somewhere in or around the city of Reno, Nevada[1]. During this time, one of your fathers (Dad) was bitten by a Zombie and your other father (Papa) refused to kill him, believing that your father was still the same man somewhere inside. However, as the infection spread and Dad turned, he attacked Papa and the latter was proved wrong. Papa yelled for the two of you to leave, and your sister grabbed you and fled. She had no time to put shoes on your feet, and her last memories of them -that she shielded you from and kept hidden from you for twenty-some years - involved Dad tearing into your Papa and killing him.
As you two hit the outskirts of Reno, you two met Candace, a fellow survivor on her way out of the city. She helped you into the caravan as it headed towards The Tower before she fell victim to the zombies herself. You two were taken into The Tower, and you grew up there since an approximate age of four. As you grew older, you began questioning Blackstock's authority, which your sister didn't mind but wished you would stay quiet about and not draw attention to yourself. When you turned 18 years old, you wanted to join the Scavengers, in an effort to see the outside world. The Scavengers were groups that looked for resources to bring back to the colony. However, your sister went behind your back and had you transferred to Pest Control. That way you would learn to fight with melee and ranged weapons and become prepared to join the Scouts when you turned 25. You were angry with her for forcing you to stay inside for another 7 years, but did not fight her and venture out on your own. You finished your Scout training years before your 25th birthday, and on that day, you finally got your wish to see the outside world and went out on your first mission with the Scouts.
Chapters
Wake the Dead
Wake the Dead
- Chapter 1: The End of the World
- Chapter 2: On the Run
- Chapter 3: New Home
- Chapter 4: Unusual Allies
- Chapter 5: Death Comes Knocking
- Chapter 6: Aid and Abet
- Chapter 7: Highway To Hell
- Chapter 8: Build Up or Tear Down
- Chapter 9: Throw Down The Gauntlet
- Chapter 10: Another World
- Chapter 11: Things Fall Apart
- Chapter 12: Prove Your Worth
- Chapter 13: Under One Banner
- Chapter 14: Hold the Fort
- Chapter 15: The Siren's Call
- Chapter 16: Into The Deep
- Chapter 17: Shadows of the Past
- Chapter 18: Brought Low
- Chapter 19: The Solstice
- Chapter 20: Survival of the Fittest
Relationships
Your Sister
Your sister is your older sibling who has always protected you. When you two and your friends escape The Tower, she explains that your name had been placed on Marcus Blackstock's list. While she did not know what would have happened to you, you two soon find out when you happen upon a clearing where he and his men have gathered the list of people. You all watch in horror as he and his men sacrifice the people to zombies before Nina tries to stop it and alerts his attention to your location. Bullets ring out and your sister is struck as your group is pushed further into the woods in hopes of escape.
When Eli gives your party shelter in his cabin, you have the choice to assist Shannon as she tends to your sister's wounds. However, when zombies begin to converge on the cabin, your sister realizes that she is no shape to continue and stays behind to give you and the rest of your friends time to escape. The last thing you hear as you run from the cabin is a gun shot, and you believe she is dead.
Dirk
When your sister takes you out on your first scouting mission, Dirk is part of the scouting party. Your actions on rescuing Shannon determine whether or not more zombies converge on your location, the faster and louder of which injures him. When your group flees the Tower, he is amongst them. He abides by your sister's wishes to leave her in Eli's cabin and later when your group finds Red Meadows, he is put in charge of maintaining and supervising improvements to your colony while you, Shannon, Troy, Eli, and Angel form a scouting party. It is your choice on how to treat him, especially when he voices his concern or disapproval of your actions and allies. In Chapter 13, he drunkenly admits to you that he wishes he could go back to the time where he was ignorant of the world outside the Tower, where life was simpler. He also wishes that your sister survived and you had died in her place.
Shannon Fox
Shannon Fox is one of your potential love interests. She is the scientist you and the scouting party rescue in Chapter 1. Although it is not explained why, she joins you, your sister, and friends as you flee from the Tower. In Chapter 8, you come to a hard choice on whether to help her or Minna Arbogast against the zombies that they are fighting. If you decide to help Minna, Shannon becomes traumatized and begins to suffer from claustrophobia or PTSD.
In Chapter 10, if you decide to romance Shannon, you have the opportunity to kiss her. In Chapter 11, before you meet up with Sledge to discuss a possible alliance, you can talk to Shannon first. If you had kissed her, she will kiss you again. If you hadn't, she will hug you instead. In Chapter 13, you can choose to become intimate with her.
Troy Hassan
Troy Hassan is one of your potential love interests. You two have been friends for a long time, and when your sister and her friends decide to escape the Tower in lieu of being sacrificed, he joins the group since he was in the process of escaping on his own.
In Chapter 10, if you decide to romance Troy, you have the opportunity to kiss him. In Chapter 11, before you meet up with Sledge to discuss a possible alliance, you can talk to Troy first. If you had kissed him, he will kiss you again. If you hadn't, he will hug you instead. In Chapter 13, you can choose to become intimate with him.
Eli Sipes
Eli Sipes is one of your potential love interests. As the Tower guards chase you, you and your party run into him in the woods. At first, he wants you and your friends to get off his property and not attract zombies to the area. However, when he sees how badly injured your sister is, he allows your group to find refuge in his cabin. When zombies begin to attack the cabin, he reluctantly leaves it and joins your party.
In Chapter 10, if you decide to romance Eli, you have the opportunity to kiss him. In Chapter 11, when your party is running from the Raiders who wish to kill you, Eli is attacked by a zombie on the outskirts of the amusement park. Although he tells you to shoot him, you decide not to and your party takes him back to your colony. Knowing that there is a possibility to save Eli, you decide to meet up with Sledge and the Raiders to discuss a possible alliance. Before you do, you can talk to Eli first. If you had kissed him earlier, he will kiss you again. If you hadn't, he will hug you instead.
In Chapter 12, you have the hard choice on whether or not to shoot him when you believe the epinephrine shot did not cure him from the zombie parasite. If you decided to shoot, your shot misses him and he awakens from his berserk rage surprised that you pulled the trigger. He wonders why you waited instead of shooting him earlier outside the amusement park. If you decided not to shoot, he later mentions that you did not follow Rule Three. In Chapter 13, you can choose to become intimate with him.
Angel Savage
Angel Savage is one of your potential love interests. When you and your party go to scavenge a nearby dilapidated mall, you fall into the trap she had set for zombies. She helps you and your party out of it, and tells you that there isn't much left at the mall that others haven't already taken. After fighting more zombies, she agrees to join your colony and asks to bring her zombie parents with her. You have the hard choice in deciding to take them along or to kill them. If you decide to kill them, Angel will remember your actions and will become snarky when you deal with future choices.
In Chapter 10, if you decide to romance Angel, you have the opportunity to kiss her. In Chapter 11, before you meet up with Sledge to discuss a possible alliance, you can talk to Angel first. If you had kissed her, she will kiss you again. If you hadn't, she will hug you instead. In Chapter 13, you can choose to become intimate with her.
Sledge
Sledge is the leader of the Raiders, and one of your potential love interests. When you and your party disrupt their agreement with the Sunflower Creek colony in Chapters 6 and 7, she seeks you out in Chapter 10 to kill you. Your fighting abilities can either impress or not impress her in Chapter 11, and in Chapter 12, she gives the chance to prove your worth and earn an alliance between your colonies. In Chapter 13, you can choose to become intimate with her.
Character Customization
Outfit Choices
Body Type 1
Body Type 2
Miscellaneous
Trivia
- A female version of your character is shown on the cover of Wake the Dead.
- If the default name is kept, he/she will share the same name as Ash Tanaka from Bachelorette Party and default forename of Guard from Guarded.
- The book reuses three male faces from the Open Heart series and three female faces from It Lives Beneath.
- In Chapter 20's premium scene, it is revealed that citizens (of the Tower) that wish to become Scouts must be 25 years old before joining the team. Given that your birthday occurred in Chapter 1, it was your first Scouting mission, and the time lapsed between Chapter 1 and Chapter 20 is approximately 1 month, your age is 25.