The Antithesis is a death cult that was formed by a psychopath who has since begun calling himself Zarysh instead of his real name. They have taken control of downtown Anchorage, where a majority of the zombies seem to congregate. From here they perform their vile religious rituals, involving kidnapping survivors and sacrificing them to their "god" of death.
Policy and rivalries[]
A typical Antithesis cultist.
The Antithesis believes in a god of death who sees transformation into the undead as the ultimate evolution of life. Members of The Antithesis serve the dead, and though they do purposefully sneak between the local undead creatures (and with surprising ease), they do this as a sort of sacrifice on their own part — waiting to transcend into undeath in order to "aid" outsiders in their ascension. Those deemed unworthy of the ascension are simply killed by The Antithesis.
Should a member of their cult volunteer for the procedure (which is an option of theirs should a member shame their cult to redeem oneself, but it is also an option taken for other reasons as well), they will don bright cloth with shining eye pieces in order to attract zombies to become one themselves. This procedure is, as evidenced within their other cult policies, a great honor.
The Antithesis sees the other surviving group populations within the city as heretics, choosing to forsake the god of death to selfishly continue mortal existence. As such, The Antithesis often attack both the religious zealots, The Solution, as well as the desperate hippies of PETA; however, since PETA exists on the opposite side of the city the encounters between those two are far less frequent than those against The Solution, who are considered a more immediate threat (the fact that PETA holes themselves up into one location surrounded by Bombies is also considered a reason to ignore PETA for now). Regular survivors are also considered as targets, seen as those poor souls who have not yet heard of their god. The two options of conversion to their cause is to either sic zombies upon them to allow their ascension to the next form or to transform them into a new member of The Antithesis. Some survivors, such as Thor Steinbach, Aaron Waller and Scott Root are considered too dangerous and heretical to live, and they seek to simply exterminate them if at all possible as to not "taint" the zombie hordes.
Tactics[]
Zarysh, leader of the Antithesis.
Those transformed into actual members of the cult are taught tactics that have been quickly picked up and learned for slipping between the ranks of the zombie hordes unharmed. This is even taught to Greyscales, although they are not quite as talented at this procedure and occasionally make fatal mistakes. Greyscales are not permitted weaponry though all ranks above this are given "blessed" weaponry to use to "convert" new members and cleanse heretics.
Base of operation[]
Although the actual base of operation is unknown to outsiders, The Antithesis seems to be found mostly around downtown Anchorage. They can be found in most major structures in this location, such as the mall and the museum. Large numbers of Greyscales can be found within the apartments around Elderberry Park, leading to the believe that they may be left to live in this location, away from the main "pack".
In truth, their HQ seems to be City Hall.
Ranks[]
- Greyscale: Greyscales are the inductees into the Antithesis. Many remain a Greyscale for only a few days before rising to the rank of Cultist. Greyscales are not permitted a color, hence their name, as the color of red is denoted to them upon their first spilling of blood. They are also not permitted any weaponry, and therefore can be considered pushovers in comparison to some later ranks.
- Cultist: Cultists make up the overall bulk of the Antithesis. They are those who have proven their devotion to the cult — originally this entailed the spilling of the blood of non-believers, but as time has gone on and the number of survivors has dwindled, other ways to prove one's worth have sprung up as well, such as helping the cult to horde food and other usable items from the non-believers. Cultists regularly enter the world of the undead to gather supplies for the rest of the order. They are still not trusted with weapons, and must fend for themselves out in the real world, stating that this will help them come face to face with what the cult is all about.
- Fanatic: Fanatics are the first level of true devotee to the cult. They have become blinded to any other way of life, and serve Zarysh with utmost fervency. They have been given a "ceremonial dagger", which is little more than a kitchen knife with the ideals of the cult carved into the handle. They openly move through the outside world, killing in the name of their death god and their order.
- Zealot: Zealots are an even higher rank of the cult, showing even more fanaticism than even the Fanatics themselves do. They sport dual knives, and work to both kill and maim unbelievers — the maimed are generally intended as a gift to their god. Unlike Fanatics, Zealots often yell battle cries while attempting to subdue a foe, specifically to bring upon the victim an unstoppable horde of the undead. As the death cult worships zombies, they know their way around a field of them and the Zealot himself has nothing to fear from these individuals.
- Berserker: Berserkers are the actual soldiers of the Antithesis. They wear red eye and mouth pieces to simulate a frightening face, and wield dual sickles to rip at their still-living opponents. Unlike other ranks, Berserkers are so fanatically devoted to their cult that it is like they are hopped up on some kind of drug, as they rush forward at an incredible speed towards any opponent they encounter, blind to their surroundings, the singular thought running through their head: "Kill".
- Assassin: Assassins hide in the shadows, slipping around zombie hordes, hunting down those who will not join the cult and show themselves to be a significant threat to the order. Despite their sneaky lifestyle, they carry unmuzzled shotguns, specifically to make their kills very obvious to people within the area. This will also attract zombies to the sound, whom will then hopefully consume the organs of the recent kill, recycling their parts to the great cycle of undeath. It also allows the possibility that if an Assassin misses his target, their intended victim's escape could be rendered impossible as the hordes swarm in.
- Organ Donor: Organ Donors can be created through various methods, but all of them are voluntary. An Antithesis cult member will shed their current cloak for one fashioned especially for this rank's purpose. The bright purple cloth and gold eye and mouth pieces are intended to attract the undead by making them much more obvious. At this point they will be torn apart by the zombies, not fighting back, to be transformed into a zombie themselves. This is considered a great honor amongst the Antithesis, and is generally the only way one can redeem themselves should they fall out of favor of the cult.
- Preacher of Death: Preachers of Death are the priests of their religious order. They spread the ideas and ideals of the cult amongst the city, most often speaking in front of a crowd of lesser ranks, utilizing a speaker system to broadcast their propaganda messages through the bodies of several zombies prepared specifically for this purpose. Excluding Father Death himself, the Preachers entail the smallest but most influential caste within the Antithesis.
- Father Death: Father Death is the uppermost rank of the Antithesis. The Father Death is the leader of the entire cult. The only Father to ever exist is Zarysh; with his (potential) death (player dependent), another may have been chosen.
Media appearances[]
They Rise (2009)[]
The Antithesis only appear in the first game in the series, as each game takes place hundreds of miles apart and the various affiliations seen between the games are all bound to their own locations.
Battle Royale (2010)[]
Zarysh, Father Death appears as a playable character in this 3D battle royale. He is of the mastermind class, able to summon other cultists to aid him in combat. He specializes in melee combat, using his knives in combat.
Monster Space (2013)[]
The Antithesis are an enemy type that can appear randomly in the game, with an increased chance of spawning in in areas where zombies have spawned. Zarysh can spawn in as a boss as well, in areas where Antithesis Cultists have spawned in.
Dangerous Wilds (2014)[]
The Antithesis appear again in this sequel to Monster Space. They serve the same purpose as before but will now also spawn in during zombie invasions against player settlements. Zarysh himself now has a higher chance to spawn in within City Ruins biomes.
Long Story (2015)[]
The Antithesis appear as a secondary antagonist during Chapter 4: Romerotown. In this game they ultimately begin to worship the Court of Bone, chiefly Black Death.
Grown (2016)[]
The Antithesis appear in Chapter 26 as a major foe for the player to face.
Thrillseeker Killseeker (2019)[]
One level in this 2D run n' gun game involves an undead infested city. The player(s) are then faked out in thinking that Zarysh is the stage boss only for them to get suddenly crushed as Black Death appears instead, landing on top of him. When Black Death is finally defeated another Antithesis cultist appears and takes the mantle of Father Death, only to immediately get killed by the player with a single shot.
Grand Collage Project (2020—current)[]
Zarysh is planned to appear in this prolonged art project. The Crimson Snifit, whom the antithesis cult is based upon, also is expected to appear.