Overview
I felt that the official survival guide was a bit too long and complicated, heres a shortened and more accurate one.
Introduction
Objective maps (any map that doesnt have the nms_ prefix) are for vegetables, ok, now that we got that out of the way, lets talk survival (any map that has the nms_ prefix).
Step Number First
Depending on what map you chose, you could either have terrible zones or amazing zones. If you lose all 3 zones then you lose. It is always smart to barricade at 1 zone instead of all 3, due to the lack of resources. Once you’ve chosen a zone with as few entrances as possible, begin building. Also, make sure the entrances are a doorway or are just barley big enough for a player, so you can barricade them. You want your main entrance to be accessable by players, so when nailing, only nail in the top board so you can crouch under. (Yes, the zombies are too stupid to crouch, just watch out for crawlers.) Any other entrance should be nailed completely shut to stop the zombies from getting in. If you dont know how to nail boards on, you need to find a hammer and some boards. (Boards are ammo for the hammer.) Once you get boards and are ready to build, just right-click with the hammer out and you will pick up a board, and then you just left-click and hold on one of the ghosted planks in view. (If no ghosted planks appear over a doorway or window when you right-click, then its either too big to be built on, or wasn’t meant to be built on.)
Thats some good guns there kid
After you get a barricade set up, you want to have about 80% of your team defending the barricade, and the remaining 20% to be scavenging. Scavengers only need to carry a pistol with a single mag and a very very light melee weapon if one at all. Then, have your scavengers grab everything they see and just have them chuck it inside the barricade. That will be your ammo and weapon stockpile. Usually better items require either really good luck, an easter egg, or a risky play (Breaching a room full of zombies.) to be found. For example, finding a wielding torch to cut the lock on the gunstore on northway to get assault rifles and ammo for your team, whilst defending from the zombie horde at your base and the store. Even while defending, never carry more than 1 mag at a time. (Other survivors need it too, you know!)
HEEELEPPPLELPELP MEEEE MY SCREEEEEN BE YELLLOOWOWOWOWO
Now lets talk about meds. They are the second most important thing to have your scavengers grab. (Second to ammo of course!) Sometimes if you get hit by a zombie or explosion or some other type of damage, your character will gain a bleed debuff, lose health, or get infected, or all 3.
Bleeding Debuff
Cureable by bandages and medkits
Health Loss
You can gain health with either a medkit or medical crate
(Press and hold e once it’s been planted correctly.)
Infected
Cureable by gene medication shot
Can be temporarily cured by pills
(If you’ve played any other survival game, PILLS HERE! This also means that pills won’t save you, they just give you enough time to find a shot to fully cure yourself. Never forget that pills dont cure, they only postpone the infection.)
Supply Drops and Victory
Depending on your map supply drops may not drop every 2 rounds. It might be every 3 or 4 rounds, and victory might not come by wave 6, it could come later, these are just the default wave times.
Supply Drops
Drop every 2 rounds and are full of weapons, ammo, and utilities. They come automatically, but you can call them in quicker with a flare gun. Every 2 rounds another will drop only if you have already emptied the last one they dropped, it is also good to note that they do the same thing to flares if the last drop wasn’t emptied. (They want you to put that loot to good use!)
Rescue
After wave 6 a rescue chopper or vehicle or something will come, please note that while you are making your way to the rescue, the zombies become high on every type of drug and gain huge huge huge buffs to murder you.
Extra stuff to remember
other people bring up good points like:
learn to save up resources. Shoot slowly and accurately, in the head. Try to go for a double headshot. And don’t use guns if you don’t have to – you can easily dispatch 5 zeekes with a shovel. Just learn how to keep distance and shove. Generally speaking – Round 1 and 2 should be done with melee. Stuff like that is super important on favela, where you have 9-10 rounds. (sledge hammer on the staircase on night of the living dead is super OP because it breaks the zombie’s AI.)