Zombicide: 2nd Edition FAQ
272 questions players ask · Updated Nov 13, 2026 · Full rulebook
Setup
- Can you play Zombicide: 2nd Edition with fewer than six Survivors?
- How do you divide the six Survivors between three or four players?
- With fewer than six Survivors, how are the six Starting Equipment cards handed out?
- Do you place door tokens on the printed doors during setup?
- Do zombies start inside the unopened buildings on the map?
- Can a Pimpweapon (Epic Weapon) crate be used more than once?
- Which Pimpweapon cards go in the deck when you use the Reboot box with 2nd Edition missions?
- What is the Zombie Reserve in the Zombiefest mission?
The Basics
- Does gaining Adrenaline Points give a Survivor extra Actions?
- Does the mission fail if any one Survivor dies?
- How do Survivors level up?
- Do ranged weapons run out of ammunition?
- Do zombie spawns follow the highest Danger Level in the group?
- Can you see or shoot diagonally across the board?
- Can zombies see more than one room into a building?
Inventory
- Can you discard Equipment at any time, and does discarding cost an Action?
- Can you discard food like Water or Canned Food for its Adrenaline Points without spending an Action?
- Does discarding a card let you reorganize your inventory for free?
- What counts as equipped when a weapon bonus needs another weapon?
- After a Search, can you discard the drawn card, or make room in a full inventory first?
The ZombiesExpansion
- Do zombies keep damage between attacks?
- Do Brutes (Fatties) still spawn with two Walkers in 2nd Edition?
- Do 1st Edition special zombies such as Seekers, Berserkers and Toxic Zombies keep their 1st Edition rules in 2nd Edition?
- Are killed zombie miniatures put back into the supply to be spawned again?
- How many Actions do Runners get, and when do they take them?
- Can a Runner pick a new target between its two Actions?
- How is the Abomination chosen when an Abomination spawn card is drawn?
- How many Actions does an Abomination get when it activates?
- Do Abominations deal the same damage as regular zombies?
- What happens when an Abomination spawn card comes up while one is already on the board?
- What happens when the Abomination deck runs out?
- Does Dreadnought stop both of Reaper Eddie's game effects?
- Can the Fort Hendrix Shooter zombies be added to the base game missions?
- How many Shooter zombies can share a zone, and how far can a Shooter shoot?
- How do Shooter zombies fire and spawn in Fort Hendrix when a Shooter-symbol card is drawn?
- Does a Trejo Abomination change what happens when another Abomination card is drawn?
- Does the Berserker Abomination still move two zones in 2nd Edition?
Player PhaseExpansion
- Can a Survivor take an Objective or Epic Weapon crate when zombies share the zone?
- Is taking an Epic Weapon crate the same as a Search, and does it use your Search?
- Does taking a Pimpweapon crate give 5 Adrenaline Points like an Objective?
- Can a Flashlight let a Survivor draw two Epic Weapons from a crate?
- Can you take an Objective or crate and also Search in the same turn?
- Can a Survivor search a Dark Zone?
- Do you roll dice to open a door in 2nd Edition?
- Does a closed door need an item to open when the Survivor is already inside the building?
- Does entering a dark zone trigger a spawn, or only opening the building door?
- What happens when an Aaahh!! card comes up during a Search or a crate draw?
- Does picking up an Objective token cost an Action, and does it give Adrenaline?
- Does trading equipment with another Survivor cost an Action?
- Can more than one Survivor search the same room in the same round?
- Can a free Move Action pay for the extra Actions needed to leave a zone with zombies?
- If an Aaahh!! card calls for a Walker and none are left, does that type get an extra Activation?
- Can a Survivor search the same zone more than once in a turn?
- Playing solo with six Survivors, can you choose the activation order without a First Player token?
- Can a car on a Fast Drive turn a corner?
- When a Survivor gets in a car and changes seats, is that one Action or two?
- When do you draw from the Epic Weapon deck instead of the Equipment deck when searching in Rio Z Janeiro?
Zombie PhaseExpansion
- If there is no open path to the zombies target zone, do they move toward it or fall back to a quieter zone?
- If several spawn markers sit in one zone, how many spawn cards are drawn?
- Can all of a group zombie wounds go to one Survivor, even if that overkills them?
- When a Rush card spawns zombies, do all zombies of that type activate or only the new ones?
- Do newly spawned zombies act in the same Zombie Phase they appear?
- When zombies tie for the noisiest zone or for equal routes, do they split?
- Do zombies that can see several Survivors all head for the noisiest zone, whatever the distance?
- If zombies are already in the noisiest zone with no Survivors visible, do they still act?
- What happens when a spawn needs more zombies of a type than you have left?
- Can zombies open closed doors or path through them?
- Can zombies step onto a Tank in Washington Z.C. to reach the noisiest zone?
- Can Rio Z Janeiro surprise spawns happen outside its campaign missions?
- Do zombies walk through Sandbags?
- Do zombies activated by a light beam move toward the beam?
- Does an Abomination on the board activate when an Abomination spawn card with a 0 value at Blue is drawn?
Combat
- Does taking a wound still make a Survivor lose equipment in 2nd Edition?
- Does a ranged attack at Range 0 risk hitting fellow Survivors with Friendly Fire?
- Can one hit kill several zombies, or can damage be pooled across hits?
- If a weapon rolls two or more hits in one attack, does each hit kill a different zombie?
- What counts as a hit or a miss when rolling to attack?
- How much damage does a friendly fire hit do to a Survivor?
- Must ranged hits go to Brutes and Abominations first, even if the weapon cannot kill them?
- When a Sniper rolls several dice against a zone with several zombies, how are hits assigned?
- Does Targeting Priority Order apply to melee attacks?
- Where do first-edition Crows, Crawlers and Dogs sit in the Targeting Priority Order?
- What is the targeting priority for Toxic and Berserker zombies in ranged combat?
- Where do Lost Zombivors sit in the Targeting Priority Order?
- If you fire two identical Dual weapons at one zone, does each success kill a separate zombie?
- If two identical Dual weapons are equipped, must the Survivor fire both?
- Do damage values add up across hits or paired Dual weapons, for example to kill a Brute or Abomination?
- Does 2nd Edition have a concentrated attack or concentrated fire rule?
- Is there a maximum number of dice for a single combat action?
- How many noise tokens does a dual-fired noisy weapon produce?
- How does the Combat damage 2 skill work?
- Does Swordmaster still require both dual-wielded melee weapons to be identical?
- What are the Wound cards in Zombicide 2nd Edition, and what does each do?
Equipment TraitsExpansion
- Is an Epic Weapon the same thing as a Pimpweapon?
- Can a Ka-Bar in the Webbing add its bonus die to an attack made with another weapon?
- Can any Survivor fire a Sniper Rifle, and does using it give the Sniper ability?
- Can the RPG-7 shoot at a zombie in its own zone or one zone away?
- How do you choose the target for the RPG-7 card's two rows?
- Can one Action reload two Dual weapons, and do dice-adding skills apply to each weapon?
- Does discarding a food card like Water give you 3 Actions?
- Do you need a Flashlight in your inventory to search, or to make a 0-1 Ranged Action, at night?
- Does turning a Flashlight on or off cost an extra Action?
- Does another Survivor's Flashlight beam help you search or shoot at night?
- When a Flashlight search draws two equipment cards, do you keep both?
- Do two equipped Ka-Bar knives give four attacks?
- Can a Katana be dual-wielded with a weapon other than another Katana?
- Does discarding a Molotov to attack count as a Ranged Action?
- Does a shotgun need a Reload Action after each attack?
- Can Plenty of Bullets or Plenty of Shells reroll only the dice that missed?
- Can a Survivor choose not to use a Flashlight, so that a Search draws only one card?
- Does a Flashlight help when opening an Epic Weapon (Pimpweapon) crate?
- What happens when an Epic Weapon crate draws the Aaahh! card?
- Does a zombie get an extra activation if I switch the Flashlight off before the Zombie Phase?
- What do the red icons in the upper left of weapon cards mean?
- How does the Exploding Die promo card resolve?
- Are Plenty of Bullets or Plenty of Shells discarded after they reroll an attack?
- What do the lock and explosion symbols on an Epic Weapon mean?
- How does a Proton Pack's roll-of-6 bonus work when more than one 6 comes up?
- Can a Survivor with a multi-profile weapon choose between profiles, and is there a two-handed rule?
- Which All-Out equipment deck should be used when both Washington Z.C. and Fort Hendrix are owned?
- Does a Ka-Bar's bonus die let you roll its All-Out die when another weapon goes All-Out?
- Does a melee weapon with the Reload trait need reloading after it is used in melee?
- Can Plenty of Shells reroll a melee attack with Ma's Shotgun?
- Do Proton Pack damage bonuses carry over to later attack actions?
Additional Game ModesExpansion
- Can a Survivor sitting in a car make melee or ranged attacks?
- Can a Survivor inside a car search, discard equipment or take normal actions?
- Does a Survivor need to be inside a car to use a car action or search a Police Car?
- Does getting into or out of a car cost an Action, and can you get in when zombies are in the zone?
- Can a passenger change seats with the driver if the driver's seat is occupied?
- Can a car make a U-turn during a Fast Drive, or by doing two Fast Drives in a row?
- Can a car's Fast Drive move only one zone instead of two?
- Can a car turn corners or change direction partway through a Fast Drive?
- Does a Fast Drive automatically kill every zombie in the zones it passes through?
- How many car attacks does a Fast Drive make, and does it attack the starting zone?
- Does the Combat +1 die skill apply to attacks made with a car?
- Does a Survivor sitting in a car get protection from zombie attacks or friendly fire?
- Can friendly fire from a car hit another Survivor in the same car?
- Can a Survivor search a Police Car while Zombies are in the same zone?
- Do search effects such as a Flashlight apply when searching a Police Car?
- Can you search a Muscle Car more than once for weapons?
- Can zombie wounds be assigned to a Companion instead of a Survivor?
- Does friendly fire hit a Companion standing in the same zone as the shooter?
- Do zombies attack a lone Companion that no Survivor has rallied yet?
- Do dark zones block line of sight and shooting in the base game?
- Can you trace line of sight into a dark zone beyond range 1?
- What accuracy do ranged attacks into a Dark Zone need?
- In Washington Z.C., do dark-zone spawns depend on whether it is night?
- In Washington Z.C., can zombies see into dark zones by day and at night?
- Do zombies move toward a light source during the Zombie Phase?
- Do items, AP and unlocked skills carry over from one mission to the next?
- In a Rio Z Janeiro campaign mission, is kept equipment assigned on top of starting equipment?
- What happens when a Survivor's adrenaline goes past 43 AP?
Missions
- Do Epic Weapon crates give Adrenaline Points like Objectives do?
- What happens when you open an Epic Weapon crate and draw an AAAAAH! card?
- In Burning Streets (M13), do the cars have to be torched with Molotovs?
- In M4 Drive-By Shooting, does a car explode if a shot misses the zombie sharing its space?
- In M4 Drive-By Shooting, where do spawn tokens go when a car destroys a Red Spawn Zone?
- In M2 Y-Zone, must every objective token be collected?
- In M6 The Escape, do objective tokens count toward the food goal?
- Can you search the starting building room in City Blocks (M1)?
- In M1 City Blocks, must the team still find food after collecting all objectives?
- In M1 City Blocks, can Objective tokens be traded, and is the mission lost if one Survivor takes too many?
- In M9 Might Makes Right, how does a Companion work with its Leader?
- In M11 The Ditch, is the Abomination's open path to the Survivors the same as line of sight?
- Does a Molotov count toward the Mission 10 'Get a Molotov' objective if it is later used up?
- What is the win condition for M15 United We Stand?
- Are objective tokens required to win a mission when the mission text does not mention them?
- Is an Objective card taken when revealed, or must its effects be fully resolved?
- If a KO'd Survivor is taken as an objective token, where does the miniature go and can it be played again?
- In a campaign, what happens when no character keeps a weapon that opens doors?
- In Burning Streets (M13), does a Molotov on a Red Spawn Zone remove it or just move its spawn token?
- Do zombies spawn in the Survivors' starting building at the start of Mission 1?
- Must a Survivor who reaches the Exit escape, and can they escape with Zombies in the zone?
- In the Doug origin mission, can Doug gain a free Melee action after a Ranged action kill?
- Can an Epic Weapon crate sit on a Muscle Car, and how is it taken?
- Can a KO'd Survivor in a car be rescued from inside the car?
Skills
- Can Destiny be used when taking an Epic Weapon from a yellow crate, to pick between two?
- Does the extra action from Born Leader let the receiving Survivor use once-per-Turn skills again?
- Do skills stack in 2nd Edition, for example two copies of Lucky?
- How does Brother in Arms work when Survivors share a Zone?
- Can a Survivor who moves into a Brother in Arms zone use the bonus, and does it stop when the holder leaves?
- If a Survivor reaches a new Danger Level mid-Turn, can the new skill or bonus action be used right away?
- How many zombies does the Reaper skill kill per hit?
- With Reaper, are hits assigned before the bonus kill when a Survivor faces mixed zombie types?
- What do Companions do, and can they carry equipment or take Actions?
- Does a Companion count as noise?
- Does the Tough skill stop wounds from friendly fire or from zombie attacks during the Player Phase?
- Does Tough ignore a wound from each Runner's second attack?
- Does a Survivor with 'Starts with [Equipment]' get that card in addition to a random starting item, or instead of one?
- Does the Charge skill give a free movement, and can it move a Survivor away from zombies?
- When a Survivor levels up, do they keep the skills from earlier levels?
- What are the reserve trackers for in Zombicide 2nd Edition?
- Can Destiny be used twice in one search when a flashlight draws two cards?
- With Webbing, can a Survivor fire four weapons in one Action?
- Does Tess's Bloodlust require going All-Out, so the free attack uses the All-Out dice?
- Can a Field Medic heal themselves without moving?
- Can a Field Medic heal every wounded Survivor in the zone with one Action?
- What does Slippery do when a Survivor leaves a zone with zombies?
- Can a Sniper throw a Molotov into a zone with a Survivor and avoid hitting that Survivor?
- Does Matching Set count weapons made Dual by Gunslinger or Swordmaster?
- Can a Survivor with the +1 free Search action search twice in one Turn?
- When a Matching Set skill draws a second free weapon in the same Search, where does it go?
- Does Zombie Link at Blue level still give an activation when no Zombie activates?
- Does the +1 Damage skill make a 1-damage pistol able to kill a Brute (Fatty)?
- Does Reach +1 on Lili's Basic skill make a melee weapon count as a ranged attack?
- Does Anton's red-level All-Out skill give a free normal Combat Action after the free All-Out attack?
- Can a Kid use Slippery more than once per turn if she gains Slippery as a skill?
- Does Phil's Ranged Damage 2 skill add 2 damage to his attacks?
- Does Home Defender let a Survivor see more than one zone through building zones?
- How does Barbarian count dice when a Survivor uses dual melee weapons?
- Does a weapon's skill like Danny Trejo or Escalation stack with the same-named Survivor skill?
- Does a Survivor who takes a child companion also gain the child's extra once-per-turn ability?
- Can Full Auto add dice for each zombie in the target zone, and does it ignore targeting priority?
- Can the Lucky skill be used with the car Fast Drive action?
General
- What changed in the updated February 2023 2nd Edition rulebook?
- Can 2nd Edition Modern content be mixed with other Zombicide settings?
- Can 1st Edition expansions and core sets be used with 2nd Edition?
- Can you play as the zombies in Zombicide 2nd Edition?
- How do you cross the streams to eliminate Stay Puft?
- What is the difference between Washington Z.C. and Fort Hendrix rules?
Zombicide (2nd Edition): Rio Z JaneiroExpansion
- Does healing a wounded Survivor remove their Wound cards in Rio Z Janeiro?
- Can walkers and other non-Abomination zombies enter Narrow Zones in Rio Z Janeiro?
- When do zombies pull Survivors out of a Narrow Zone in Rio Z Janeiro?
- Is the crashed boat on Rio tile 24V its own zone, and does boarding it cost an action?
- Can Survivors on the boat or the beach shoot zombies in the sea zones?
- Are the wavy sidewalk strips on Rio beach tiles separate zones?
- Does the Rio Z Janeiro RPG Epic Weapon need ammo before its first attack?
- How does Master Planner work when playing Rio Z Janeiro solo?
- Can Destiny avoid a Surprise Spawn on the first card drawn in Rio Z Janeiro?
- Can a Survivor and a companion both pass through a one-circle Narrow Zone?
- Can a Survivor break a thin wall in a Rio Z Janeiro building from a Narrow Zone or another room?
- Is the rubble alley on Rio tile 27R a separate Narrow Zone?
- Can breaking Thin Walls collapse a building in Rio Z Janeiro?
- Does Shine in Darkness follow the rulebook or the Survivor card text in Rio Z Janeiro?
- On Map 6, can an Objective that straddles a wall be taken from outside the room?
Zombicide (2nd Edition): Washington Z.C.Expansion
- Can Washington Z.C. decks be mixed with the base game decks?
- Can All-Out dice be used in games outside the Washington Z.C. campaign?
- Can Secret Service Ka-Bars be dual wielded in Washington Z.C., and what do they add?
- How many Bonus Actions can a Survivor spend in a Washington Z.C. mission?
- Do wounds carry over between Washington Z.C. missions, and how do KO'd Survivors return?
- How does the Repair Kit work with All-Out attacks?
- Can the Oval Office on tile 14R be searched?
- In Washington Z.C. mission 5, do doors opened from the Red Carpet or into dark rooms spawn zombies?
- In Washington Z.C. mission 5, do zombies spawn in stairwells and enter zones with Survivors?
- What does Washington Z.C. Mission 1 Objective card #1 do when its miniature is missing?
- What does Washington Z.C. Mission 3 card #06 do?
- Where is the Humvee placed in Washington Z.C. mission 1?
- In Washington Z.C. Mission 1 with Kids, what happens to Objective card 2 when the kids are escorted or left behind?
- When a light beam gives a zombie an extra activation, does it move toward the light or the noisiest zone?
- Do light-beam extra activations follow the normal zombie selection rules?
- Can a Survivor in the street shoot into a lit or open room and hit whatever is inside?
- Do Night rules apply indoors, and do lit corridors still count as night?
- What is the difference between 'All out: +1 free combat action' and '+1 free All out combat action'?
- Does the ALL OUT +1 die bonus add a standard die or an All-Out die?
Zombicide: 2nd Edition – Fort HendrixExpansion
- Is there an ID card for Penny in Fort Hendrix?
- Are the thin lines at tile borders on Fort Hendrix tiles 18R, M2 and M6 walls?
- How many dice does Dual Wield Ka-Bar roll in Fort Hendrix?
- In Fort Hendrix Mission 2, are the openings between tiles 17R, 18B and 19R doors or full walls?
- In Fort Hendrix M4, can an Incendiary Grenade replace a Molotov?
- How do zombies from the green zone move in Fort Hendrix Mission 10?
- Do you spawn zombies in a dark zone when opening a door in Fort Hendrix, and how do objective cards interact?
- Is Michelle's red-level Roll 6: +1 Damage skill a Combat skill?
- Does a Survivor who gains the Hendrix achievement ignore Contamination for the rest of the campaign?
- When a Walker Rush card places a Shooter Walker, is it placed before or after the rush movement?
- Must everyone be in the server room for Penny's mission 2 events in Fort Hendrix?
- If a Survivor card's abbreviated skill text conflicts with the rulebook, which governs?
Zombicide (2nd Edition): PariZExpansion
- Can a Survivor starting a PariZ mission keep a weapon and also take a starting weapon?
- In PariZ, where does the 1st Spawn Zone go when the initial board is relocated?
- In PariZ, what does a Zombie Rush card place on revealed trees?
- How many zones are on the Eiffel Tower tiles in PariZ?
- Can ranged attacks or polearms target a Zone linked by a trapdoor in PariZ?
- Can zombies use trapdoors to move between the Zones they link in PariZ?