Undead Friend

Orrick Heretis was living an average high school life until a cute ghost girl named Mahalah appeared before him requesting to become his friend. When Orrick agreed neither of them knew they were entering a deadly game called Undead Friend. Now Orrick and Mahalah must lead double lives, killing monsters for points in order to not disappear. Along they way they befriend Wylie and his ghost Brigger, who help teach them how to survive in the game. NJ is bad at writing descriptions.

Undead Friend was originally posted in 2005. School pressures at the time forced NJ to shut it down after 10 chapters. UF returned in 2018 after NJ’s injury-induced hiatus. NJ is now joined by their husband Orion, who is an assistant writer for the rebooted comic. While following a similar story, this version is overall quite different.

The original 10 chapters can still be found in the Archives (they are bad though!)

Currently the comic is on temporary hiatus while NJ deals with health problems. Updates and art are being posted on their Patreon and Discord.

The update schedule for the comic has changed occasionally since its launch in July, 2018. It began as M-W-F, then switched to monthly chapter updates followed by a few months of a heavy M-F schedule. By late September, 2019, NJ switched back to M-W-F to accommodate continued medical and recovery needs. Bonus comics are updated regularly on the Patreon. Occasionally the comic goes on short breaks for medical reasons.

The main reason the comic is in black and white is time consumption, It’s a lot easier to maintain a schedule and large buffer with this style. NJ’s health is a big factor in this as well, as they have relapses in their health. However in 2024 the comic will be in color.

Name: Orrick Heretis

Age: 16. Height: 5’10”. Hair Color: Light Brown. Eye Color: Light Blue.

Undead Type: Zombie. Undead Hair Color: Green and Black.

Undead Eye Color: Red and Black. Undead Skin Color: Light Green.

Likes: Reading, romantic comedies, cartoons, cute things.

Dislikes: Mornings, bodies of water, violence and lying.

Bio: Orrick is a nice, affectionate, and somewhat clumsy young man. He’s very friendly but not very outgoing and prefers quiet nights in reading. He doesn’t have as much time to read as he used to since becoming friends with the ghost Mahalah and entering the Undead Friend game as a Zombie. He is learning, slowly, how to fight – though he is not very coordinated or very good at it despite having an athletic physique. He is having a hard time keeping his secret as his is a terrible liar. He is on good terms with his classmates, though he mostly only hangs around his best friends Darwin and Haley.

Orrick lives with Mahalah and his family, which consists of his mom and dad and the newly-taken-in stray cat, Casper. He also has an older brother named Quinnell who is currently living in a college dorm.

Name: Mahalah

Age: ??. Height: 5’4”. Hair Color: Red. Eye Color: Gold.

Likes: WTalking with Orrick and his friends, making fire..

Dislikes: Being alone.

Bio: Mahalah is cute, friendly, and excited to be here. A ghost with no memories, she doesn’t know how long she has been dead or how old she was when she died. Everyone seems convinced she’s a teenager and probably around 16-17. The only thing she knows for sure is her first name. She was haunting Orrick’s school for a many years before finally being able to speak to him thanks to advice given to her by a mystery ghost she met. Since she has amnesia and has been alone for so long she is a bit ignorant on human behavior and customs. She can be over-affectionate and a bit intrusive at times. She tries her best to get along with everyone she meets, though she’s easily prone to getting overly emotional.

Mahalah had only ever met one other ghost before making contact with Orrick, but she was not told about the game itself or the consequences.

Name: Wylie Kurosawa

Age: 17. Height: 6’1”. Hair Color: Dark Brown. Eye Color: Dark Brown.

Undead Type: Vampire. Undead Hair Color: Red.

Undead Eye Color: Red. Undead Skin Color: Pink.

Likes: Writing, pasta, quiet.

Dislikes: Almost everything else.

Bio: Wylie is anti-social, short tempered, and pretty much annoyed by everything and everyone. He is extremely smart and an academic genius. He attends the prestigious private school, Chiron Academy, and takes advanced classes. He always wears sunglasses – day or night – and smokes and drinks when he can, despite his age. He joined the Undead Friend game when he was 15 and has become a master fighter in the game. He was guilt tripped into helping Orrick and Mahalah figure out their lives as Undead.

When in Undead form Wylie is powerful and exceptionally fast. However, as a human he is very thin and frail and gets sick frequently. He lives in a somewhat rundown house with his abusive mom and his ghost partner Brigger. Wylie has a mysterious mirror with black glass that he feeds blood to but the reason why is unknown.

Name: Brigger Kadin

Age: 17 (at Death). Height: 5’6”. Hair Color: Blonde. Eye Color: Gold.

Likes: Parties, costumes, fighting fiends.

Dislikes: Wylie’s mom, the dark.

Bio: Brigger is a boisterous young ghost who enjoys having fun in whatever way he can. Like Mahalah, he did not know about the game when he sent his friend request to Wylie and has guilt issues over it. He is fairly obedient to Wylie, who tends to give the orders in their partnership. But he also keeps him in line, especially morally. The two did not know each other before Brigger died. They fight well together, though, and have both become very good at it. He helped pressure Wylie into taking in Orrick and Mahalah as students and has started to get along really well with Mahalah.

Brigger has the ability to conjure and control lightning. He often controls the power at their house and can even charge Wylie’s phone.

Name: Darwin Reda

Age: 16. Height: 6’7”. Hair Color: Purple. Eye Color: Purple.

Likes: Soda, snacks, listening.

Dislikes: His height, exercise, schoolwork.

Bio: Darwin is a man of few words and is usually snacking or drinking soda when he gets the chance. Darwin is a big guy, standing at 6’7” he can come across as intimidating to those who don’t know him – but he is really just a big softie and loves his friends and family dearly and will do anything to keep them safe. He is a little insecure and has a complex about his height. He is very observant, a clever liar, and overall pretty smart but he finds schoolwork boring and often gets below-average grades.

Darwin almost always wears his tan trench coat wherever he is. He lives with his two moms who run a local theater.

Name: Haley Andreas

Age: 16. Height: 5’6”. Hair Color: Black. Eye Color: Blue.

Likes: Theater, martial arts, jokes, anime.

Dislikes: Homework, being serious.

Bio: Haley is hyper, passionate, and a bit impulsive. She is prone to accidental violence and loves practicing various martial arts moves and is a fan of action movies, though she has no formal training herself. She often makes up miraculous tales that never happened but doesn’t lie about anything important. She tends to get average grades and excels at P.E. and theater.

Haley lives in a small house with her giant dog Floof and her dad who is a self-employed playwright. However she spends most of her time at Darwin’s place.