Afraid of Encounters

Indonesian TTRPG Blogwagon: The Pocong

This post is an entry for the Indonesian TTRPG Blogwagon

The Pocong is one of the most popular Indonesian ghosts or spirits besides Kuntilanak, the white lady ghost. Personally, it's not my favorite. That honor goes to the Kuyang, a black magic practitioner who can detach their head and internal organs to feed on flesh and blood.

But to me what makes the Pocong fascinating is its appearance and behavior, which I will explain in this blogpost. There is also a Liminal Horror stat block at the bottom (and maybe other stat blocks when I revisit it).

by Citaaticat lower res

Pocong illustration by my wife, Citaaticat

What is a Pocong?

In Indonesian folklore, a pocong is a dead person whose body remains wrapped in its burial shroud, now returned as a wandering ghost.

Immediately recognizable, yeah? If not, try to imagine it. A human figure stands upright, wrapped from head to toe in a white Muslim burial shroud called kain kafan. The shroud is tied on the head, around the neck, arms, and the feet. Unable to walk normally, the pocong is traditionally depicted as moving by hopping.

One common version of the story says that the knots of the shroud must be undone after the body has been buried. If they are not, the dead person remains trapped and returns as a pocong, wandering among the living and seeking release. Different stories give different details about when or how this release occurs, so I wouldn't treat any particular version as a universal rule.

The Pocong is folklore, not an element of Islamic religious doctrine. It is better understood as a supernatural figure that emerged within a cultural landscape shaped by Islamic funerary practice and local beliefs about death, spirits, and the boundary between the living and the dead. Especially since these beliefs have been around since before the Islamic, Hindu, and Buddhist kingdoms.

Pocong in Indonesian Horror

I already mentioned that Pocong is one of the most recognizable figures in Indonesian popular horror. It appears in ghost stories, television, films, internet folklore, and countless supposedly true stories of supernatural encounters. I guess you can say that Pocong is like the fills the zombie archetype in Indonesian Horror.

And there isn't necessarily one single pocong story.

Different regions and storytellers have developed their own variations. Stories have included unusual pocong appearances (e.g. red pocong who can control other pocongs), vengeful pocong, and even stories of groups or colonies of pocong. These variations are part of what makes the creature useful for TTRPGs: the basic image is recognizable, but the details can change depending on the story you want to tell.

How to Make Pocong Work in TTRPG

  1. The Pocong is the Unfinished Dead: Something went wrong. A burial wasn't completed properly. A promise wasn't fulfilled. A death wasn't properly acknowledged. Someone was forgotten. The pocong is the consequence.

  2. The Pocong is Bound: Its body is literally bound by its shroud. That gives you an immediate visual motif for restraints, knots, graves, burial rites, and unfinished business.

  3. The Pocong Wants Something: A pocong doesn't have to be a mindless undead monster. Perhaps it wants its shroud released. Perhaps it wants its killer found. Perhaps it wants someone to deliver a final message. Perhaps it wants revenge. Or perhaps it simply wants the living to understand why it cannot leave. That is where the pocong becomes much more interesting than simply “a ghost that attacks the players.”

Pocong Stat Block for Liminal Horror

STR 11 DEX 13 CTRL 8 HP 5

Bite (d6)

Hop: The Pocong moves in sudden, unnatural bursts despite its bound feet. It can hop over obstacles and leap across gaps of up to 10 feet without slowing.

Unfinished Dead: The Pocong cannot be permanently killed until its unfinished business is resolved. When reduced to 0 HP, it collapses into its shroud. Unless its unfinished business is addressed, it returns at the next sunset.

Release: Resolving the Pocong's unfinished business causes it to disappear permanently.

d6 UNFINISHED BUSINESS

  1. Unfinished Burial. The Pocong's burial was never properly completed. Its knots must be untied in its grave for it to rest forever.
  2. Unreturned Possession. Something important was taken from the dead before burial. Return it to the grave.
  3. Unfulfilled Promise. The deceased made a promise they could not keep. Someone living must fulfill it in their place.
  4. Unavenged Death. The Pocong was murdered. It will not rest until its killer is exposed and brought to justice.
  5. Forgotten Dead. Nobody remembers the deceased or even tends their grave. The Pocong seeks someone who will remember their name.
  6. Unspoken Truth. The deceased died with a secret that must be revealed before they can finally rest.

d4 VARIANTS

  1. Levitating Pocong. This Pocong does not hop. It floats a few feet above the ground.
  2. Decomposed Pocong. Its shroud is torn and stained with dirt, exposing glimpses of the corpse beneath. STR save or vomit.
  3. Faceless Pocong. The shroud completely covers its face, with no features visible beneath it. Anyone who meets its gaze, or what should be its gaze, briefly sees the face of someone they have lost. d6 Stress.
  4. Red Pocong. Its burial shroud is stained dark red with blood. This Pocong is unusually violent. It also commands d6+1 pocong.

(p.s. I will revisit this with a Call of Cthulhu stat block, a B/X or OSE stat block, a Pathfinder 2e stat block, and perhaps a system agnostic stat block.)