Bringing back a headless hero

[Zeromage]

A cleric recently left our campaign and his character was found dead on a road. the campaign is undead heavy so the party removed his head and left his body. I'd like there to be consequences for not giving him a proper burial so my question is are there any undead who don't require heads? A headless horseman won't do as he never rode a horse once during the game. Can zombies be headless? Are there any other options?

[Nalz]

Just out of curiosity - what level is your party?

Assuming they are high enough level to at least sort of deal with incorporeal creatures:

If you want to call them out for not burying their friend, a ghost might work as they would need to bury the body - assuming that being unburied is the reason for its existence - to completely remove the threat. (Also, if they kept the head it would give the ghost a good reason to keep following them around as its body and head could act as two separate fetters.)

[Zeromage]

They're level 2.

[Mikaze]

Cutting off your friend's head instead of giving them a proper funeral rite causes problems. >:)

[Zahir ibn Mahmoud ibn Jothan]

I'd wait until they were a number of levels in the future and stick the Head of Vecna on him, but that's just me.

[Lincoln Hills]

Part one of Carrion Crown presented the beheaded, severed heads that fly about. (Mikaze already pointed them out.) There was also a headless skeleton warrior in that adventure, but he was seriously impeded even in a dungeon corridor - in open country he'd be useless. Your best bet may be the Revenant, modified slightly so that there's a drifting incorporeal pair of eyes above the neck-stump.

Whoops - I almost forgot the possibility (unlikely, but not impossible) that an enthusiastic golem-crafter is the next one to come along the road, and loads the headless corpse into his corpse-wagon to use as parts in his next carrion golem. Apply the 'awakened' template once the enraged former PC's spirit takes over the combined husk and you're ready for some real fun.

[Ascalaphus]

Make a headless horseman?

[Theconiel]

Are gunslingers legal?

[Snow_Tiger]

U are looking for a Dullahan, which is in beastiary 2. It's like CR 7 or so, so you should probably wait a few levels to use it

[Zahir ibn Mahmoud ibn Jothan]

Ascalaphus wrote:

Make a headless horseman?

The OP explained why this is not possible.

[Mikaze]

Zahir ibn Mahmoud ibn Jothan wrote:

Ascalaphus wrote:

Make a headless horseman?

The OP explained why this is not possible.

That possibly also rules out a horseless headless horseman.

[Ascalaphus]

Eh. So a headless infanterist then.

I think the theme of a headless body looking for its head is simple and to the point. It might even revive again and again if it's only killed by brute force; it needs to be either reunited with its head or some other more sophisticated solution needs to be found.