Decomposing Pumpkin

Decomposing Pumpkin is a in . He is a defensive plant which can be planted atop other plants, offering extra protection for them, even from - attacks. However, Decomposing Pumpkin gradually loses health over time. Upon death, Decomposing Pumpkin will divert nearby zombies and heal the surrounding plant if it was damaged.
== Origins ==
=== Physiology, Naming and Imagery ===
Decomposing Pumpkin is based on pumpkins, which are cultivated winter squashes in the genus Cucurbita. He is also inspired by the process of decomposition, also known as rotting, where dead organic substances break down into simpler forms such as water, carbon dioxide and compost. Decomposing Pumpkin's mouth resembles that of a jack-o'-lantern, a lantern carved into a pumpkin to resemble a face, which is a common Halloween tradition.
Decomposing Pumpkin's design and abilities are largely based on , a plant featured in both the original and . Both are defensive plants that can be planted on top of other plants to protect them. His name is a combination of 'decomposing', referring to his ability, and 'pumpkin', referring to the plant on which he is based upon, both in real life and in Plants vs. Zombies.
=== Creation===
Decomposing Pumpkin is a plant originally created on October 7th, 2019. He began as a 25 -cost wall plant that was functionally very similar to the iteration of , capable of being planted on top of other plants to provide defensive support. However, when Decomposing Pumpkin is planted, he would begin to decompose, causing damage to himself which reduces his health. After thirty seconds on the lawn, Decomposing Pumpkin would completely rot away.
On December 22nd of the same year, Decomposing Pumpkin underwent a visual overhaul by one of Aster's frequent collaborators, Spark. On February 7th, 2020, Decomposing Pumpkin was redesigned, lowering the sun cost to 0 and giving the plant the additional ability to heal the plant on which he is planted after he rots away. Additionally, no more than two Decomposing Pumpkins can be planted on the lawn at any one time. However, these changes were not enough to save the plant, as on April 8th, 2020, Decomposing Pumpkin was deleted by DsFanboy for being too unoriginal, as it was often labeled as a simple combination of Pumpkin and the Plants vs. Zombies 2 version of . On April 1st, 2024, to coincide with the April Fools' celebrations on the wiki, Decomposing Pumpkin received a ground-up remake, now being a plant.
==Overview==
Decomposing Pumpkin is a defensive plant that has half the health of a . Unlike Wall-Nut, however, Decomposing Pumpkin can be planted on top of other plants and allows other plants to be planted inside of him, as he does not occupy a single garden tile by himself. This provides an extra layer of protection, as any zombies attacking a space with both a plant and Decomposing Pumpkin will target the Decomposing Pumpkin first. Unlike , Decomposing Pumpkin also offers protection against bowling balls lobbed by , as well as a single smash. 
The drawback to using Decomposing Pumpkin is that he slowly loses health over time, at a rate of 66 per second. This means that the longer a Decomposing Pumpkin remains on the lawn, the lower his health becomes. When Decomposing Pumpkin's health reaches zero (which happens after approximately 30 seconds), he dies, causing all zombies on both the tile he is on and the tile in front of him to into another lane. Upon his death, Decomposing Pumpkin also heals the plant he was surrounding if it is damaged.
==Strategies==
Decomposing Pumpkin's ability to be planted on top of other plants is immensely helpful when facing zombie hordes. However, players must be mindful of the fact that Decomposing Pumpkin loses health over time. To maximize the benefits of Decomposing Pumpkin, try to place him down just as zombies begin to approach the plant on which you intend to place him. This way, you can make full use of the 2000 health that Decomposing Pumpkin starts with.
Decomposing Pumpkin pairs extremely well with and . Decomposing Pumpkin is resistant to all attacks, as well as heals damaged plants when he rots away. This means that if a zombie is already eating a Wall-Nut before Decomposing Pumpkin is planted, it can stall the zombie for a longer period, allowing you time to recharge - and/or the , as well as being able to get more shots from the slow . Lychee is an excellent pairing with Decomposing Pumpkin because he allows the plant to execute more attacks than it normally could. However, Decomposing Pumpkin's best usage is undoubtedly with . The short range of Bonk Choy makes it more likely to be eaten, but with Decomposing Pumpkin protecting it, Bonk Choy can continue its melee attack without the worry of being quickly overwhelmed.
Decomposing Pumpkin's death ability, which diverts nearby zombies, is best utilized in tandem with Bamboo Shoots and Squash. Both of these plants have splash damage, enabling them to better handle large groups of zombies made by the diversion.
==Gallery==
Decomposing PumpkinHDNew.png|HD Decomposing Pumpkin (made by Vander Graaf)
Decomposing PumpkinSeed1.png|Decomposing Pumpkin's seed packet
Decomposing PumpkinSeed2.png|Lower-quality version of Decomposing Pumpkin's seed packet
Decomposing Pumpkin Final Render.png|The final render for Decomposing Pumpkin
===Other===
HDDecompsiting Pumpkin.png|First design for Decomposing Pumpkin, made by Aster
Decomposing PumpkinHD.png|Second design of Decomposing Pumpkin, made by Spark 
Image0 (9).png|Degrades for the second design
Icy Decomposing Pumpkin2.png|The Icy counterpart of Decomposing Pumpkin, made for April Fools day celebrations
DecomposingHyper.png|A version of Decomposing Pumpkin created by Hyper
HU Decomposingpumpkin.png|Decomposing Pumpkin featured on a premium tile for the scrapped Plants vs. Zombies: Hyper Universe game, made by Hyper
DecomposingHUDraft.png|An original draft of Decomposing Pumpkin, made by Hyper
DecomposingBlackbarrierSketch.png|Concept sketches done by Vander Graaf of the current versions of Decomposing Pumpkin and Blackbarrier.
==See also==
*The original Decomposing Pumpkin page
*
==Trivia==
* Decomposing Pumpkin is the first of Aster's remakes not to feature art from Instartist and instead features art from Vander Graaf, a user who is currently working on the Plants vs. Zombies 3: What Could Have Been project.
* Decomposing Pumpkin is also the first of Aster's remakes not to be from . 
*The reason Decomposing Pumpkin was released during April Fools' celebrations is due to Icy Decomposing Pumpkin, which was released exactly four years prior as an April Fools' joke.
* Decomposing Pumpkin is the first article on the wiki to be verified.
Category:Aster 2019
Category:Aster's Remakes
Category:Wall plants
Category:Defensive plants
Category:Vine plants
Category:Vines
Category:Board affecting plants
Category:Healing plants
Category:Area of effect plants
Category:Pumpkins
Category:Mediocre recharge plants
Category:Plants vs. Zombies 3 plants
Category:Remakes
Category:Plants vs. Zombies 3
Category:Plants that divert zombies