Survivor

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Project ZomboidWorldAISurvivor
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PlushSpiffo.pngThis article is about NPC survivors. For player survivor, see Player.

A survivor is a human NPC that has survived the initial infection and is trying to survive the Knox Event.

Future survivors

PictureKate.png
This is a future feature.
This article is about an item or mechanic that is currently unimplemented and planned for a future version.
It has either been previewed or found in the game files and does not exist yet.
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Editors are encouraged to add any missing information to the article, while verifying that the article's current content is correct.
Kate and Baldspot as a future teased NPCs.

Survivors are going to be reintroduced in build 43 as a fully interactable NPCs. It is currently unknown how recruiting or joining survivors will work as much of this is still in the early phases.

Legacy survivors

A NPC rejecting a team request.
A survivor (right) threatens the player with a shotgun.

Survivors, simply called an NPC back then, were present in older versions of the game and subsequently removed in order to be reworked and readded in a later version, currently scheduled for build 43. Survivors served as an interactive element within the game's environment. These characters, operating under the game's AI, performed a variety of tasks within the game world, and possibly forming either helpful partnerships or becoming adversaries with the player.

Generally, survivors could form alliances with the player or other survivors, or engage in combat. A survivor's response to a team request from the player would be influenced by the player's attitude and the survivor's personality, ending in either a good relationship or a duel to the death. Once a survivor has formed an alliance with the player, they could take on assigned roles, and act under given commands such as "stay", "follow", or "guard."

Survivors demonstrated AI that allowed them to perform a multitude of tasks, mirroring what the player would do to survive. They roamed around the game's world, engaged in combat with zombies, sought items for scavenging, and consumed food and water for survival. They also had the ability to loot buildings and fortify shelters through barricading or installing sheets. When not in a team with a player, survivors could form alliances among themselves and assign each other tasks such as seeking food or zombie hunting.

Beyond their actions, survivors exhibited their own set of traits and professions, randomly assigned from the same pool available to the player. They also had the ability to gain experience and level up in skills, improving their survival abilities over time. One unique aspect of their design was their attribute for bravery, those with low bravery might choose to flee when confronted with a threat, while those with high bravery may opt to stand their ground and fight.

Specifically, three variations of NPC survivors existed in-game: gun nuts, true neutrals, and loners, each having different interaction patterns and behavior tendencies with the player and game environment.

Gun nuts

Gun nuts were hostile survivors who would verbally warn (and then attack) anybody — the player, zombies, or other survivors — on sight. These NPCs didn't spawn naturally but only made appearances at scripted locations in Story Mode. They were unable to join the player's team or engage in dialog with the player, serving solely as a threat.

True neutrals

True neutrals were initially friendly survivors who could ally with the player. Their willingness to team up was contingent upon the player's attitude. Once teamed up, these NPCs could be directed by the team's "leader" (the group creator) to assume roles or take on orders. The player could bestow items upon these group members, receiving gratitude in return. Otherwise, true neutral NPCs would stay neutral and not attack players unless attacked first.

Loners

Loners were solitary survivors who committed to surviving by their own efforts and refused to join the player's team, irrespective of the player's attitude. Persistent team requests could irritate a loner to the point of instigating a fight with the player. Other than their reluctance to team up, loners generally behaved like true neutrals, opting not to attack players unless provoked.

Survivor homes

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Survivor homes are often boarded up houses where living people stayed at some point. They are set apart from the surrounding houses by having boarded up windows, hiding goods (and zombies) within.

These homes are a fantastic source of rare items, including skinny leather Trousers (or the nearly identical black leather trousers), katanas, M16s (often including, like any other guns that can be found, magazines, ammo, and attachments for it), sledgehammers, and more. These valuable items will often be found in cabinets, rather than on the housed zombies themselves.

Because they are often already boarded up, survivor homes can also double as a fantastic base of operations in a heavily populated city, for example, Louisville, as long as the player keeps quiet while inside.

The cars outside these homes are also often in a generally better condition, have a higher amount of gas in them, are more likely to have the keys in the ignition, and tend to contain more/better loot inside.

Surivor homes tend to contain more zombies than the average house, but they also contain exponentially more/better loot, essentially making them dangerous lootboxes.

Survivor hordes

Players can sometimes encounter the so called survivor horde, it can also be spawned using one of the debug mode options. Survivor hordes feature a sizeable group of zombies, including one zombie with a large backpack with food and supplies.

Survivor stories

In build 41 there are multiple survivor stories that can sometimes spawn dead or zombified survivors.

Randomized building survivor stories

Inside any house, these stories that currently appear are:

  • Suicide by Bleach
  • Gunslinger
  • Locked in Bathroom
  • Dead Drunk
  • Eating zombies
  • Bathroom Zed
  • Bedroom Zed
  • Football Night
  • Hen Do
  • Stag Do
  • Student Night
  • Poker Night
  • Suicide Pact
  • Prison Escape
  • Prison Escape with Police
  • Skeleton Psycho
  • Corpse Psycho
  • Police at House
  • House Party
  • Tin foil hat family
  • Hockey Psycho (friday 13th!)

Vehicle stories

There exist some extra vehicle stories as well:

  • Utility Vehicle
  • Construction Site
  • Burnt Car
  • Police Blockage Shooting
  • Police Blockade
  • Basic Car Crash
  • Ambulance Crash
  • Basic Car Crash Corpse
  • Changing Tire
  • Flipped Crash
  • Bandits on Road
  • Trailer Crash
  • Crash Horde

Zone stories

There are also the following zone stories available:

  • Basic Forest Camp
  • Forest Camp Eaten
  • Burying Camp
  • Beach Party
  • Fishing Trip
  • BBQ Party
  • Hunter Forest Camp
  • Sexy Time
  • Trappers Forest Camp
  • Baseball
  • Music Festival Stage
  • Music Festival

More randomized stories were teased to be added in build 42. Each of those stories can also be spawned using debug mode.

Annotated maps

The annotated maps also contain notes from fellow survivors.

Metagame

Main article: Metagame

Most metagame events, including a helicopter event, indicate survivor presence, however, as of build 41, no physical survivors correlate to this.

Other

It is also possible to encounter barricaded houses and crashed vehicles, also, as time passes, it is possible to encounter zombies with unusual weapons. Both are an attempt of indicating survivor presence.

Unique survivors

See also