Tomb Raiser Zombie is a premiumsuper-rarezombiecard in Plants vs. Zombies Heroes and a member of the Sneaky class. He costs 4 to play and has 5/3. He has the Gravestone trait, and his ability makes a random zombie with the Gravestone trait, including another Tomb Raiser Zombie, in a gravestone on a random lane every time he does damage to the plant hero unless all other non-aquatic lanes are occupied.
His ability is a reference to how he throws bones to make tombstones on the lawn in Plants vs. Zombies 2.
His description alludes to the fact that his ability makes more zombies, thus literally making more "friends."
Statistics
Class: Sneaky
Tribe: History Zombie
Trait: Gravestone
Ability: When this hurts the Plant Hero, make a random Gravestone in a random lane.
Set - Rarity: Premium - Super-Rare
Card description
He's good at making friends.
Update history
Update 1.24.6
▲ Health change: 3 → 4
Update 1.30.4
▲ Strength change: 2 → 3
Update 1.60.79
▲ Strength change: 3 → 5
▼ Health change: 4 → 3
Strategies
If my systems f-f-f-freeze up, we could be stuck here forever!
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Tomb Raiser Zombie's ability is great for bringing more zombie fighters into the battle for virtually free, and on top of that, they will be hiding in gravestones, which protect the lane until the next Zombie Tricks phase unless Grave Mistake, Grave Buster, or Blockbuster is played. Since he makes an extra zombie when he hits the plant hero, he synergizes well with Unlife of the Party and Grave Robber (as Impfinity), as each gravestone revealed counts as playing another zombie and Grave Robber will receive a boost for each zombie revealed from a gravestone.
However, Tomb Raiser Zombie's ability only activates when he hurts the plant hero, so it is recommended to keep Tomb Raiser Zombie alive as long as possible and also his lane clear, either by avoiding direct combat or by having Tomb Raiser Zombie get over anything in his way.
If you are using the former method, moving him to an empty lane with tricks like Smoke Bomb is a good way, as your opponent cannot do anything during the Zombie Tricks phrase. Bonus attack cards like Carried Away (as Super Brainz) or Lurch for Lunch are another option, as they allow Tomb Raiser Zombie to either destroy a plant in his way or make more gravestones. However, Tomb Raiser Zombie must have sufficient strength boosts to destroy plants, which the Brainy class is not good at giving. And finally, you can remove the plants blocking his way by either destroying or Bouncing them with tricks.
If you want to use the latter way, make sure you have some brains left over for stat-boosting tricks, because with the stats of 3/4 on turn 4, it can be hard for Tomb Raiser Zombie to even survive the turn he is played without stat boosts. Strength boosts will allow him to destroy tougher plants, while health boosts will allow him to take more hits. Giving him the Frenzy trait by playing Possessed or Maniacal Laugh can let him attack the plant hero if he manages to destroy all the plants in the lane with his attack as long as he still survives.
Headstone Carver gives Tomb Raiser Zombie a small head start for a cheap price, as well as any future zombies made by Tomb Raiser Zombie, so he isn't that bad of an option either. Tomb Raiser Zombie can also be paired with certain environments to give him a greater chance of activating his ability. Notable environments include Laser Base Alpha, Moon Base Z (PvZH) (as Impfinity), and Ice Moon (as Huge-Gigantacus), which give him traits that can easily hit the plant hero. Stat-boosting environments like Meteor Z, Cone Zone, and Area 22 are also good choices, but keep in mind those environments can be replaced.
Additionally, keeping a lot of pressure in other lanes is another good way to let Tomb Raiser work his magic. When used alongside other cards that rely on hitting the Plant hero, such as Dr. Spacetime and Raiding Raptor, it can easily become overwhelming for the Plants to try to block everything.
However, do be reminded that this zombie's ability is luck-based. While it adds an element of surprise and gives you access to powerful zombies like Surprise Gargantuar or even a legendary like Binary Stars, you could just as easily get zombies with situational abilities like Mad Chemist.
Despite having under-average stats for his cost, Tomb Raiser Zombie can become devastating if you give him a chance and should be destroyed as soon as possible. When you see him, block his lane quickly, as he can only make gravestones when he does damage to you (Soul Patch could also redirect his damage) . If he does get a hit, he could possibly create trouble by giving the Zombie Hero zombies normally excluded from their playable classes.
You can also use Spyris to know which zombie is inside the gravestone made by Tomb Raiser Zombie. This way you can prepare to face threats from the gravestones. You can also pair Cool Bean with Winter Squash to Freeze and then destroy all the gravestones he has made. To stop Tomb Raiser Zombie if he has already emerged from his gravestone, Shamrocket, Lawnmower, a Berry Blast, two Banana Bombs, and other tricks will all work due to his average stats. Alternatively, Grave Buster) can also destroy him even before he has a chance to emerge.
Gallery
Plants vs. Zombies Wiki has a gallery for Tomb Raiser Zombie.
He appears on Rustbolt's premium pack, even though the player can't get him from that pack since he is in the Sneaky class and Rustbolt can't play him normally.
There was a glitch where Mixed-Up Gravedigger could be made by his ability, even though he does not have the Gravestone trait.
This might be because Mixed-Up Gravedigger makes every zombie on the field hide in a Gravestone when he is played, including himself, and mixes them around, thus technically giving him the Gravestone trait.
The game softlocked upon making one, as Mixed-Up Gravedigger made every zombie on the field hide in a Gravestone, but because Tomb Raiser Zombie did not hide inside a Gravestone prior to that, the turn could never end.
Sneaky class. He costs 4
to play and has 5
/3
. He has the Gravestone trait, and his ability makes a random zombie with the Gravestone trait, including another Tomb Raiser Zombie, in a gravestone on a random lane every time he does damage to the plant hero unless all other non-aquatic lanes are occupied.
Frenzy trait by playing Possessed or Maniacal Laugh can let him attack the plant hero if he manages to destroy all the plants in the lane with his attack as long as he still survives.
Brainy
Crazy
Hearty
Sneaky