Want deeper instructions, or to see how the game is played before you buy? Click the above banner to read our expanded instructions, or see the FAQ below for some answers to common questions:
How many Wounds before Survivors die?
It takes three wounds for most survivors to die. There are of course things that can change that number, such as being the Bouncer or a Settings card, but it's usually three Wounds to die.
How does trading Equipment cards work?
Survivors can trade cards or give cards away freely any time, except during combat, or when dying. Cards from Survivor's hands aren't traded in secret - they can be shown and inspected, though players can feel free to trade their cards however they'd like to. If a Firearm with Ammo tokens on it is traded or given away, the Ammo tokens go with it.
What does "alone" mean?
So far I'm aware of two places where the word "alone" shows up on cards, and might confuse people:
Fighting Alone - in some fights, each Survivor must fight alone, meaning the other survivors cannot play extra Weapons to help, unless a special rule in in place.
"If you are alone..." Some Event cards have different effects if there is only one Survivor encountering the Event. On these, the text will read something like, "If you are alone..." If the Survivor who read the Event card is alone (in the world of the game), then follow the directions.
Fighting Alone - in some fights, each Survivor must fight alone, meaning the other survivors cannot play extra Weapons to help, unless a special rule in in place.
"If you are alone..." Some Event cards have different effects if there is only one Survivor encountering the Event. On these, the text will read something like, "If you are alone..." If the Survivor who read the Event card is alone (in the world of the game), then follow the directions.
How many Weapons does each Ammo count as?
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The number of Weapons each Ammo counts as will be on the Equipment card. Most count as one.
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How do Firearms without Ammo work?
Firearms are a type of Weapon, that's all. Most of them use Ammo, but not all - for examples, the crossbow is simply a Firearm that counts as a Weapon, or the flare gun is a Firearm Weapon with one use.
I've been asked, is it possible to add Ammo to a Firearm that doesn't normally use Ammo? For example, if you have a Crossbow, could you add some Ammo tokens to it, to be able to fire more than one shot per turn? That is an interesting question! The official answer is no, since there's no Ammo being used, adding Ammo to the card wouldn't change anything about it - it would be a crossbow with some bullets taped to it or something. The idea behind Firearms such as the Crossbow is that they may only fire once per round, but they will never run out of Ammo, AND it's a silent Firearm, which are rare and can be exceedingly helpful!
HOWEVER, if being able to pile a bunch of Ammo tokens on your Crossbow or your Flare Gun sounds more fun to you, then feel free to make that a house rule! I could see that adding some excitement. I would only ask that, if you do, please let me know if it's a big hit, or if it breaks a game!
I've been asked, is it possible to add Ammo to a Firearm that doesn't normally use Ammo? For example, if you have a Crossbow, could you add some Ammo tokens to it, to be able to fire more than one shot per turn? That is an interesting question! The official answer is no, since there's no Ammo being used, adding Ammo to the card wouldn't change anything about it - it would be a crossbow with some bullets taped to it or something. The idea behind Firearms such as the Crossbow is that they may only fire once per round, but they will never run out of Ammo, AND it's a silent Firearm, which are rare and can be exceedingly helpful!
HOWEVER, if being able to pile a bunch of Ammo tokens on your Crossbow or your Flare Gun sounds more fun to you, then feel free to make that a house rule! I could see that adding some excitement. I would only ask that, if you do, please let me know if it's a big hit, or if it breaks a game!
What do the icons in the bottom right corner of some of the cards mean?
If you opened your game and mixed all of the cards together, you may be wondering now why most of the cards don't have anything in their bottom right corner, while some do. The three-hundred-and-fifty cards from the Base Game Set have no icons, while the cards that do have icons come from the following expansions:
Dead Arm of the Law - this fifty card expansion adds cards of every time, and introduces a new card type, "Settings," and cards with a new keyword, "Pets."
Extra Life Bonus Pack - these eleven free bonus cards were added to the game, as a thanks to everyone who backed the project on Kickstarter. These cards will be included in every Base Game Set for this first printing of the game.
Kickstarter Exclusive Cards - these four cards were added to the Base Game Set, as the Kickstarter reached various stretch goals. These gamer-themed cards will never be sold, and are included for free as long as supplies last.
Do you keep Broken Equipment cards?
When an Equipment card Breaks it is discarded, unless something is done to save it - for example, if a Ducktape card is played, or if the Mechanic uses their special ability.
When a Flip is re-Flipped or overridden, how does it work out?
As cards are played that overwrite each other, they take place backwards from the final card played.
So, for example, imagine a player named Leeloo needs to Flip for being Bitten. She Flips Tails, which according to the card means she's going to die and become a Zombie, so she plays a Lucky Rabbit's Foot to re-Flip, and gets a Heads. But then, a Zombie player plays Bad Luck - then she would need to re-Flip once again. If other Lucky Rabbits Foot cards or Bad Luck or Evil Luck, or anything that causes a re-Flip, then the series of re-Flipping would continue.
A couple of cards come up in questions, such as Evil Luck. With Evil Luck, the Zombie player can determine the value of a Flip. If someone plays a card or uses an ability to cause more re-Flipping or to change the value of the Flip, then they would do just that.
Weak Blood is another card that might cause questions - it reads, "For the rest of the game, each time that player needs to Flip for being Bitten, the first card Flipped is automatically Tails." This means that if a player Flips for being Bitten, the FIRST Flip would always Tails, but that Flip can be re-Flipped, if cards are played for re-Flipping.
The Gambler's ability states on the card that it supersedes any cards played before or after it concerning the Flip.
So, for example, imagine a player named Leeloo needs to Flip for being Bitten. She Flips Tails, which according to the card means she's going to die and become a Zombie, so she plays a Lucky Rabbit's Foot to re-Flip, and gets a Heads. But then, a Zombie player plays Bad Luck - then she would need to re-Flip once again. If other Lucky Rabbits Foot cards or Bad Luck or Evil Luck, or anything that causes a re-Flip, then the series of re-Flipping would continue.
A couple of cards come up in questions, such as Evil Luck. With Evil Luck, the Zombie player can determine the value of a Flip. If someone plays a card or uses an ability to cause more re-Flipping or to change the value of the Flip, then they would do just that.
Weak Blood is another card that might cause questions - it reads, "For the rest of the game, each time that player needs to Flip for being Bitten, the first card Flipped is automatically Tails." This means that if a player Flips for being Bitten, the FIRST Flip would always Tails, but that Flip can be re-Flipped, if cards are played for re-Flipping.
The Gambler's ability states on the card that it supersedes any cards played before or after it concerning the Flip.
Do Equipment cards played down on the table in front of a Survivor count towards the card hand limit?
Yes they do! Playing Equipment cards down on the table really only matters for Equipment cards with Ammo, as a way of keeping track of which tokens apply to which card.
It's also a matter of game play style. Personally, I keep all of my equipment cards hidden as long as possible, because I have trust issues when the dead start wandering around hungry. Some people love to have all of their gear out in the open, to promote trust and teamwork. Which sometimes works amazingly well! Just not always for that player...
It's also a matter of game play style. Personally, I keep all of my equipment cards hidden as long as possible, because I have trust issues when the dead start wandering around hungry. Some people love to have all of their gear out in the open, to promote trust and teamwork. Which sometimes works amazingly well! Just not always for that player...
What about blue keywords on cards that aren't in the glossary?
The most common blue keywords like these are probably Fear and Run!!!, but there are others. If you see a blue keyword that isn't in the glossary, then it's the name of a card in the game. The three types of blue keywords are:
- Rules keywords (Flip, Heads, Tails, Break, Weapons, Bitten, Pet, Firearm, Ammo, Wound, Zombie Power-Up, Hideout, Light, Rope, and Vote)
- Player roles (Survivor or Zombie)
- Card types (Character, Event, Zombie, Equipment, or Settings)
- Words from card titles (such as Rifle, Saw, Fear, Infected Blood, Sheriff, or Run!!!)
Can the game be played with two players, or solitaire?
Yes! However, the game is definitely designed to be a social game with more players. That said, it can be tough to get people together, so here's how to play with two or one player!
Two players - Each player begins with two "Core" Characters, and plays both of them as two separate people. Imagine them as your "lives" - your goal is to have at least one of them survive! Select one character to go first, then one of your opponent's Characters, then the other one of yours, and then the final one of your opponents, and THAT is a full round. All Event cards, including any "do not read out loud" Event cards, are resolved from the perspective of the Character who's turn it is. As Characters die, however, they do NOT become zombies - they are simply dead and out of the game (though they could be returned with something like the Antidote). The game lasts twelve rounds, at the end of which, any surviving Characters win (modified by any rules that have come up along the way, as usual). Equipment cards are assigned to each Character, so players must be careful to not mix them (though, when not in combat, they can trade cards between their own Characters freely). Voting works as usual, with each Character counting as having one Vote, unless there are other rules in play. In this version, the two players may choose to work together to try to sabotage each other, whatever they think will help their characters survive!
This style can also be fun for 3 or more players, if this is more your type of game!
Solitaire - This method is more of a zombie horror simulator, and pits you against the game! Deal out four "Core" Character cards on the table, and the correct number of Equipment cards to each. All of the cards can of course be face up. Play the game as usual, drawing an Event card for each Character one at a time and resolving them from that Character's perspective. "do not read out loud" cards can be tricky - but simply play them from that Character's perspective! You'll of course know what each one is, but the goal in this game is to get as many of your 4 Characters to survive until morning as possible! As they die, they do not become zombies - they're simply dead and out of the game, though they could be revived with something such as the Antidote. The game lasts five rounds to begin with, but once you manage to beat a game with all four Characters alive, bump the game up to six rounds and try again! With this method, I would suggest even giving the Character's names, and really weave the story in your mind - it will feel like you're watching your very own choose-your-own-adventure zombie movie!
If you play one of these methods, I would love to hear how it goes for you, and if you have any tweaks that you use for how you play, so that I can share them with everyone else!
Two players - Each player begins with two "Core" Characters, and plays both of them as two separate people. Imagine them as your "lives" - your goal is to have at least one of them survive! Select one character to go first, then one of your opponent's Characters, then the other one of yours, and then the final one of your opponents, and THAT is a full round. All Event cards, including any "do not read out loud" Event cards, are resolved from the perspective of the Character who's turn it is. As Characters die, however, they do NOT become zombies - they are simply dead and out of the game (though they could be returned with something like the Antidote). The game lasts twelve rounds, at the end of which, any surviving Characters win (modified by any rules that have come up along the way, as usual). Equipment cards are assigned to each Character, so players must be careful to not mix them (though, when not in combat, they can trade cards between their own Characters freely). Voting works as usual, with each Character counting as having one Vote, unless there are other rules in play. In this version, the two players may choose to work together to try to sabotage each other, whatever they think will help their characters survive!
This style can also be fun for 3 or more players, if this is more your type of game!
Solitaire - This method is more of a zombie horror simulator, and pits you against the game! Deal out four "Core" Character cards on the table, and the correct number of Equipment cards to each. All of the cards can of course be face up. Play the game as usual, drawing an Event card for each Character one at a time and resolving them from that Character's perspective. "do not read out loud" cards can be tricky - but simply play them from that Character's perspective! You'll of course know what each one is, but the goal in this game is to get as many of your 4 Characters to survive until morning as possible! As they die, they do not become zombies - they're simply dead and out of the game, though they could be revived with something such as the Antidote. The game lasts five rounds to begin with, but once you manage to beat a game with all four Characters alive, bump the game up to six rounds and try again! With this method, I would suggest even giving the Character's names, and really weave the story in your mind - it will feel like you're watching your very own choose-your-own-adventure zombie movie!
If you play one of these methods, I would love to hear how it goes for you, and if you have any tweaks that you use for how you play, so that I can share them with everyone else!