Bodyguard Zombie

Bodyguard Zombie is the ninth new zombie encountered in The Sanctuary in Plants vs. Zombies: Lost World, first appearing on Level 22A. Bodyguard Zombies come in pairs and always appear alongside the Very Important Person (will be referred to as VIP going forward), with one in front and the other behind. They can only appear on the red carpet laid down by Carpet Roller Zombie. Bodyguard Zombies are tasked with the job of protecting the VIP using multiple abilities while making their way across the lawn, and will make sure to keep their formation while progressing. For example, if the front Bodyguard Zombie is dealing with a plant, the other Bodyguard Zombie and the VIP will stay put and wait until the front Bodyguard continues to progress. If there's any situation where the Carpet Roller Zombie is still rolling the red carpet but is being stalled through some way (e.g. being chilled by Icy Currant), the Bodyguard Zombies and the VIP will also slow down to wait for the Carpet Roller Zombie to continue progressing (if the Carpet Roller Zombie is defeated or is no longer rolling the carpet, this rule is ignored). They may also attempt to change their formation if it is necessary to protect the VIP (more on this later).
Bodyguard Zombie's have the added passive ability of being able to absorb AoE and piercing attacks, so attacks from plants like Laser Bean or Gloom-shroom can't pass through the zombie. Bodyguard Zombies make advantage of this trait of theirs to protect the VIP in case they are in range of an imminent AoE or piercing attack. Bodyguard Zombies also attack plants by punching them instead of biting them. They punch at the same speed as a regular zombie that attacks by biting, but punches deal 10 times the damage of a bite, meaning that they can instantly defeat most, if not all non-defensive plants.
The following are the possible active abilities that Bodyguard Zombies are able to utilize to protect the VIP:
*If the Bodyguard Zombies and the VIP reach the end of the carpet, one of the Bodyguards (the Bodyguard from behind is prioritized) will carry the VIP while they traverse the lawn off the carpet. This is to protect the VIP from ground plants like Spikeweed and Potato Mine. If the Bodyguard Zombie lifting the VIP is defeated, even if by an AoE attack, the VIP won't die but will dismount and walk on the ground, unless there's another Bodyguard Zombie that can lift him up.
*If the VIP is being threatened by attacks from the side (e.g. by Rotobaga or Starfruit), or by an AoE attack, one of the Bodyguard Zombies (the Bodyguard from behind is prioritized) will move to the VIP's position in order to shield them and tank the attacks. Once the attacks have ceased, the Bodyguard Zombie will move back to their original position. This ability does not activate if the VIP is being lifted up by another Bodyguard Zombie, since that Bodyguard can tank the attacks.
*If one of the Bodyguard Zombies are defeated, the formation will change (if necessary to ensure) that the remaining Bodyguard Zombie stays in front of the VIP. If there are any attacks coming from behind, Bodyguard Zombie will shield the VIP again in order to tank the attacks until they cease, unless the source of the attacks are at close range (most a tile away from the VIP), in which the Bodyguard will attack them.
If, on the rare occurrence that the VIP is defeated even though there are some Bodyguard Zombies remaining, the remaining Bodyguards will carry the VIP's dead body and immediately flee from the lawn at Flighty speed.
==Origins==
As their name suggests, Bodyguard Zombie is based on a bodyguard, a type of security guard that is tasked with protecting an important person or group of people. In this case, Bodyguard Zombie has a range of abilities that allow him to protect the VIP from harm.
==Almanac entry==
Bodyguard Zombie
Toughness: Machined
Speed: Hungry
Risks their life to protect a Very Important Person on the red carpet.
Damage: Punches plants.
Special: Absorbs piercing and AoE attacks.
Special: Will perform the appropriate actions to protect the Very Important Person if they are in danger.
Bodyguard Zombie frankly hates his job. This little stuck-up imp thinks he can just casually abuse his power and order his bodyguards to trek through a battlefield of death just to give him a false sense of immortality, all while Bodyguard Zombie is cursed with the certainty of knowing that the moment he steps onto that lawn, he'll never see his wife and kids ever again.
==Encounters==
The Sanctuary: Levels 22A, 23A, 26A, 29A, 30A, 34A, 39A, 8B, 7C, 9C, 12C, 6D, 6E, 8E and X.
==Strategies==
Although Bodyguard Zombie has an impressive set of abilities that allow him to prevent the VIP from perishing, the VIP is not really the main target that you need to worry about, considering that he has no abilities. The Bodyguard Zombie, on the other hand, spawns in a pair, has a high amount of health, can absorb AoE and piercing attacks and can take down plants quickly with powerful punches, making him a dangerous threat.
Bodyguard Zombie has no apparent weaknesses, so raw firepower is needed in order to deal with his high health. If needed, stalling options are good to implement in order to make sure this zombie doesn't get a chance to punch through your plants. A defense using ice plants like Cold Snapdragon or Iceweed is an option you can use to slow the zombie down (just keep in mind that you'll need to make sure you can get past the carpet from Carpet Roller Zombie to be able to chill the zombies (more on the carpet later)). Hurrikale can also be used to push them back to give you even more time to deal with them.
There are unfortunately not a lot of defensive plants that can withstand Bodyguard Zombie's punches, so if he does happen to reach your defense, you'll have to try resorting to strategies that you may use against a vehicle zombie or Gargantuar when they breach your defenses and continue to stall him as much as possible or resort to single-use plants.
If your defense relies heavily on AoE and piercing attacks, it's not necessarily a bad thing if Bodyguard Zombie is able to absorb them, in fact it might still be a good thing depending on what plants you use. Bodyguard Zombie still prioritizes in protecting the VIP and only the VIP, so the Bodyguard Zombies themselves and other surrounding zombies are still vulnerable to any AoE attacks (e.g. from Gloom-shroom or Earthstar) that you might be using to take down the horde. AoE plants in this case are still good since they can attack past Carpet Roller Zombie's carpet and even target both Bodyguard Zombies at once if you're using the right plants. Piercing plants (e.g. Bloomerang and Laser Bean), however, although can still attack past Carpet Roller Zombie's carpet, may have a harder time dealing with the Bodyguard Zombies since they can only hit the one in front, they won't be able to attack the other Bodyguard Zombie and other zombies taking cover behind him. They're still better than non-piercing plants, but AoE plants may have a better time trying to deal with the Bodyguard Zombies.
Since Bodyguard Zombie always appears with Carpet Roller Zombie, however, you can take advantage of the carpet's weakness to fire in order to get rid of the carpet (and deal a little bit of damage), leaving the Bodyguard Zombies (and the VIP) at least a little more exposed since they are now vulnerable to ground plants and you can plant more single-use plants at their position that might make it easier to stop them. For this strategy, a defense utilizing fire will be needed, so plants like Snapdragon or Morning Glory, or even Torchwood with some peashooting plants or a single-use plant like Lava Guava can help to burn the carpet down. Keep in mind that this strategy will not synergize well with the ice defense strategy from earlier, so choose the best strategy that suits your playstyle. For more detailed strategies regarding Carpet Roller Zombie, you can look here to read more.
If you want to try to deal with the Bodyguard Zombies through easier ways, you may consider using some single-use plants. If the Bodyguards are off the carpet, you can give one a Hypno-shroom to get both of them to fight each other, which will result in the other Bodyguard with much less health if he still survives the brawl, allowing your other offensive plants to finish him off. Zzz Plant is also another option you can consider, since one use of him is enough to be able to completely disable both of the Bodyguard Zombies' active abilities, making them much less dangerous. However, do keep in mind that once they wake up, they'll walk past your defenses and ignore your plants, which is still risky considering their high health and AoE/piercing attack-absorbing passive ability, so make sure you're prepared for that (refer to some of the strategies mentioned above that talk about these particular traits in order to deal with them).
==Gallery==
Bodyguard Zombie.png|Bodyguard Zombie (HD)
Degrade (Bodyguard Zombie).png|Degrade
About to instantly defeat a Rotobaga (Bodyguard Zombie).png|Bodyguard Zombie punching a Rotobaga in the way
Carrying the VIP off the carpet (Bodyguard Zombie).png|Very Important Person being lifted up by Bodyguard Zombie after reaching the end of the carpet
Guarding VIP from AoE attacks and attacks from the side (Bodyguard Zombie).png|Bodyguard Zombie protecting the Very Important Person from AoE attacks and attacks from the side
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Category:Zombies
Category:Zombies with "Hungry" speed
Category:Zombies with "Machined" toughness
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