Scorched

The Scorched are semi-intelligent ghouls in Appalachia who have been infested with the Scorched Plague, which has erased their individual consciousnesses and linked them to a primitive hive mind. They are described as being halfway between feral and sane, and have the ability to use weapons, but they lack any social structure and exhibit extreme hostility towards any person or creature they encounter that is uninfected.

Background
The Scorched mostly consist of former West Virginian residents and military personnel who, after becoming infected, banded together into small groups before succumbing to the effects of the infection and regressing physically and intellectually. Like the marked men of the Divide, and unlike typical feral ghouls, they retain enough fine motor skills and higher brain function to still use firearms and melee weapons. It appears many West Virginia National Guardsmen, police officers, firemen, Vault-Tec employees and other groups have undergone the transformation into Scorched.

Scorched have been observed to retain vague memories of their life before infection, clinging to remnants of their past, such as the hand tools they used and the uniform they wore, or staying near places that held significance to them, such as workplaces. In addition, some may participate in events they organized as a human, such as the scorched in the Protest March event, who are seen carrying protest signs even though the workplaces have long since turned into ruins, and the people they're protesting against died or joined their ranks.

In addition to the shriveled, burned skin typical of ghouls, the Scorched possess green crystalline growths throughout their body, piercing through their skin in irregular patterns. According to preliminary field research done by the overseer of Vault 76, the Scorched are former humans that have contracted the Scorched Plague. The Responders tried to help those with the disease by setting up small clinics where the Responders would survey and try to treat the disease, to help delay the disease while a cure is being worked on, though it was never finished.

Scorched also possess a hive mind, sometimes stating "we are one" when attacking, as detailed in the Overseer's Flatwoods log.

At times, the growth caused by the plague will overtake its host and root them where they stand or lay, causing them to slowly decay into human-shaped fungal bioforms before crumbling to dust. Some Scorched may even be found mid-petrification in some locations, such as the Helvetia church.

Biology
The Scorched are former humans infected by the Scorched Plague. They are linked via a hive mind born of a fungal infection. This hive mind links them to scorchbeasts and other infected creatures. They have pink shredded skin with sores and small crystalline protrusions poking out. The crystals are made of ultracite, which emits a weak radiation signature that allows scorched creatures to be tracked. The presence of ultracite in their tissues makes them particularly weak to the depleted form of the mineral. This weakness was leveraged by the Responders' elite unit, the Fire Breathers, by lacing their munitions with depleted ultracite crystals.

Gameplay attributes
Though they often use guns, they also use melee weapons, making it hard to get away if they spot the player character. Although they are semi-intelligent, they don't get alerted when guns are fired, thus making it incredibly easy to stealthily kill them. They may hide among petrified corpses or as one, mid-petrification. In this state, they can be identified by targeting, clothing (petrified corpses don't have clothing), and the pink color of their skin (vs. the corpse's black/gray color).

Scorched
The weakest and most common variant of Scorched. They can usually be killed with minimal effort. They are found most commonly around buildings and towns within The Forest but can be found all over Appalachia.

Scorched wanderer
Normally equipped with a double-barrel or pump-action shotgun, wanderers are a slightly tougher than standard scorched, but one of the weaker named sub-types.

Scorched officer
The Scorched officer was once a high-ranking officer in the United States Armed Forces, who was responsible for carrying one of the eight launch code keys which are needed to launch a nuke from one of three nuclear I.C.B.M. silos located in Appalachia. They can be identified by their unique radio packs on their back that emit a red light, and a high pitched sound that plays on and off, in a regular sequence. One may be found at Belching Betty.

Scorched believer
One contains the holotape Scope out the crash.

Scorched conqueror
The strongest variant of scorched, these enemies have assault rifles and combat shotguns as main weapons, and some even carry grenade launchers. Along with guns some use melee weapons such as sledgehammers and fire axes. Found mostly around the outskirts of Watoga and throughout the Cranberry Bog.

Notable Scorched

 * David Thorpe - Former leader of the now defunct Cutthroats raider gang.
 * Evan - The Vault 76 overseer's pre-War fiancé.
 * Scorched officers - while not a unique variant, Scorched officers are notable as they carry Nuclear keycards, and are easily identifiable by the radio backpacks they wear.

Appearances
The Scorched appear only in Fallout 76.

Bugs

 * Some limbs of a Scorched might turn blue while in combat.
 * When Scorched are posing as petrified corpses, a headshot kill with any gun may send them ragdolling into the air. This was observed at Camden Park.
 * Scorched will drop weapons different from the ones they use to attack the player character, this may be intended.
 * Some limbs of Scorched will have a limb shot off, but another the scorched will retain the limb. That leads to dead Scorched having both a decapitated head, and a head attached to its body.