The first night ended with a bang—literally. Burned leaves, exploded zombies, and steaming piles of undead tofu decorated the lawns. Yhakal sat on his porch with a small glowing screen in hand, scrolling through the Backyard Defense HUD like someone flipping through emails they didn't ask for.
New Plant Available: CABBAGE-PULT
"Heave your greens—let the sky fall!"
Cost: 100 Sun
Type: Lobber
Effective against: Zombies behind cover or over obstacle.
"Finally," Yhakal muttered, rubbing his temple. "Projectile arc support."
The HUD pinged again.
Wave 3 begins in 5 minutes
Objective: Defend your lawn
Bonus Objective: Protect at least one neighbor
Additional Modifier: Fog patch spreading from east side
He looked up. The far end of the road shimmered with a low-lying mist that hadn't been there five minutes ago. Fog, in this context, was bad news. Visibility dropped. Zombie movement became erratic. And it meant new mechanics were on the horizon.
Yhakal stood up and cracked his knuckles.
"I hate when PvZ goes full horror mode," he said to no one.
📡 Across the Street
Ellis was attempting to set up a third Sunflower. He'd leveled up enough to unlock Snow Peas, but his layout was a chaotic mess—plants zigzagged with no symmetry.
Yhakal jogged over.
"You're putting Snow Peas in front of your Sunflowers?"
Ellis blinked. "I thought they were like meat shields."
"They're gunners. Think ice machine guns. Rear lane. Behind a Wall-nut if possible."
Ellis groaned. "I never played the game, man! I was a Candy Crush guy."
Yhakal placed a hand on his shoulder. "Then we're in this war to make you better."
You have earned a +5 Coordination Bonus with Player 'DefaultPlayer69420'
Ellis grinned. "Wait… Is that how team skills unlock?"
But before Yhakal could answer, the fog rolled in deeper—fast and unnatural. Like it wasn't spreading but stalking.
🌫️ Wave 3 Begins
The ground trembled again as glowing green cracks opened near the fog zone. A rotten wheelbarrow pushed itself up from the earth, its passenger a grayish-green zombie in farming overalls.
New Enemy Detected: Pitchforker
Mid-range stab attacks
Can reach over Wall-nuts
Wears straw hat for zero protection, purely aesthetic.
Yhakal slammed down a Cabbage-pult in the midlane. It flung its first leafy projectile high over a Wall-nut and slammed directly into the Pitchforker's chest.
The zombie grunted, stumbled… then screamed.
Not moaned. Screamed.
Ellis paled. "Why do they sound human now?"
Yhakal didn't respond. He was already planting another. The screams faded, but a new sound took their place: wooden clattering.
A wave of Compost Carts came through the fog—three of them, side by side. Their carts trailed plumes of smoke, and inside one of them—
"Is that a… birdhouse?"
New Variant: Aviary Cart – Launches zombie crows over defensive lines
The first crow swooped in, letting out a rusty caw that sounded like a blender full of nails. It flew over two Wall-nuts and landed near Yhakal's Sunflowers.
"Oh no you don't."
Cherry Bomb, deployed.
BOOM.
The crow, the Wall-nut, and half the grass tile vaporized in flame.
The HUD screamed:
SUNFLOWER LOST
Replant Time: 20 seconds
Too long. Too risky.
Meanwhile, Ellis' Lawn
Ellis screamed.
One of the crows had landed on his roof. A second later, a zombie in tight black clothes rappelled down on a vine.
New Enemy Detected: Stealth Vegan
Appears behind defenses
Weak HP, high damage
Says things like "Capitalism rots the soul" while attacking Sunflowers
"BACKDOOR ZOMBIES?!" Ellis yelled.
Yhakal shouted across the street. "They're glass cannons! Hit 'em fast!"
Ellis smashed the stealth vegan with a Cherry Bomb. His plants survived—barely.
🌪️ The Final Push
The fog shifted color—greenish now, like moldy spinach soup.
FINAL WAVE INCOMING
Pitchforkers, Aviary Carts, and regular zombies charged en masse. Yhakal threw everything he had down:
Three Peashooters on mid-lane
A Snow Pea on each flank
Two Cabbage-pults on elevated platforms (built from lawn furniture)
A well-timed Wall-nut upgrade
Cherry Bombs on cooldown
His last defense?
A Potato Mine. Armed just in time.
The final Pitchforker stepped on it.
KABOOM.
The dust cleared. No more moaning. The mist stopped pulsing.
Wave Cleared Casualties: 1 Sunflower, 2 Roof Tiles Bonus Achieved: Neighbor Protected Loot Unlocked: Coffee Bean 🌱
☕ Aftermath
Back at the porch, Yhakal sipped a warm can of weirdly-flavored cola labeled "Zom-b-free."
Ellis flopped onto a bench beside him.
"That was insane," Ellis muttered. "They came from the sky now? That's not PvZ, that's Left 4 Dead."
"Welcome to PvZ: Hardcore Mode," Yhakal replied. "They're evolving. The fog means new mechanics are active."
Ellis blinked. "So… what next?"
Yhakal turned toward the backyard where a new seed packet floated in the air.
"Now," he said, "we bring out the caffeinated plants."
Zombiepedia – Chapter 4
The fog crept in, and with it, new horrors. The zombies are evolving, exploiting new mechanics, and becoming far more aggressive—and theatrical. Below are the newest enemies encountered in the most recent wave.
🧠 1. Pitchforker Zombie
Traits: Mid-range attacker with a pitchfork
Speed: Slow
Threat Level: ★★★☆☆
Behavior: Can attack over Wall-nuts or Tall-nuts; limited reach but bypasses typical tanking strategy
Quote:"Your barricade is adorable."
Weaknesses: Arc plants (like Cabbage-pult), Spikeweed, and instant-kill plants like Potato Mine
🧠 2. Aviary Cart Zombie
Traits: Launches zombie crows
Speed: Medium (cart), Fast (crows)
Threat Level: ★★★★☆
Behavior: Sends flying zombie crows over plant defenses to land deep in the lawn
Quote:"Birds aren't real, but these ones are brain-hungry."
Weaknesses: Cherry Bomb (for cart and crows), Snow Pea (slow the cart), Peashooter spam on landing zone
🧠 3. Crow Zombie(Aviary Spawn)
Traits: Flying, low HP
Speed: Fast
Threat Level: ★★☆☆☆
Behavior: Flies over defenses, lands and starts pecking nearest plant
Quote:"Caw-caw... CAWTHULU."
Weaknesses: Immediate damage upon landing—Peashooters, Cherry Bombs, Squash
🧠 4. Stealth Vegan
Traits: Rear-line infiltrator
Speed: Fast
Threat Level: ★★★★☆
Behavior: Descends from above (e.g., rooftop or vine), bypasses lanes; attacks sun producers directly
Quote:"You can't spell sustainable without stab."
Weaknesses: Cherry Bomb, squash, Peashooter rows if tracked early
Notes: First example of "infiltration" zombie class
🧠 5. Fog Mechanic (Environmental Hazard)
Effect: Limits visibility in lanes
Zombies Gain: Concealment, surprise spawning, and improved stealth entry
Countermeasures (Later): Torchwood (to burn fog), Plantern, or Coffee Bean + night plants
Quote:"The mist isn't natural. Neither are they."
💀 Returning Favorites (Recap)
Compost Cart Zombie – Still dropping minions and chaos
Buckethead Vegan – Still tanky, still smug
Basic Vegan Zombie – Still lawn meat