Infection in Project Zomboid, much like the real thing, can be pretty deadly. In a world where the undead are up and walking around, any threat to your health can get you killed. There are several negative conditions you might have to deal with when playing PZ, so it’s best to learn them before you land in the thick of it.
The first thing you need to learn is what Moodles to look out for. important identifier are the Moodles which appear at the top right of your UI while in-game. These denote both positive and negative effects that can apply to your character. Green ones are usually good, while red ones are bad. They can indicate when you’re well-fed, but also when bad things are going on. If you’re fatigued or overheated, you will see a Moodle for it here. If you see the following Moodles, that’s a bad sign: Queasy, Nauseous, Sick, Fever.
When you start to see random Moodles coming up and you’re not sure where the source is, check your character screen. The screen is extremely important for tracking how you’re doing physically and mentally.
How To Deal With an Infection in Project Zomboid (Build 41)
First, you need to know what kind of infection you have. You can get normal infections from open wounds, flu or food poisoning. Each of these can be treated in the same basic way. You need to keep any wounds clean, and get some rest. There’s one infection that’s much more deadly.
Zombie Infection
Zombie Infection is deathly serious. If you get bitten or scratched by a zombie, you need to pay attention. If you get bitten, there’s a 100% chance you will become a zed. A scratch has a 7% chance, and a deep laceration has a 25% chance. There’s no way to cure the zombie virus in the vanilla game, so if you get the zombie virus, you’re done.
There’s one thing to keep in mind though. If you plan to continue on that map with a new survivor, there’s a way to loot your dead corpse if you need to. You can drink bleach and this will stop you from reanimating. It’s unclear if this is intended or not, but it seems to work. So to stop your zombie body from wandering off, so you can find it later, take that route.
To know what kind of infection you have, you need to know what you’ve been through and check the Health tab, A character’s health is displayed in the health window, which is accessible by clicking the heart icon on the upper left side of the screen. This is where you will check for infections and other maladies. Open up the health tab and look things over, looking for any cuts that you see. These can and will get infected if left untreated. Now let’s assume you have a normal infection.
Here’s what to do to treat a wound in PZ.
- Disinfect the wound with some form of disinfectant
- Cover the wound with a clean bandage
- Keep your character well fed and get lots of rest
- Continue Changing Bandages
You will really want to try and find some basic medical supplies at some point in your survival runs. You need to find alcohol or other disinfectants, because you will inevitably get infected if you can’t properly clean wounds. You can use Garlic, Alcohol, foraged healing balms and other items to do this.
Bandages can be made from a few different things. You need to sterilize them, Combining a Bottle of Disinfectant and Ripped Sheets is the best way to make bandages. You can also use a Bottle of Whiskey to get it done. You can also apply those same dirty bandages to Cooking Pot filled with Water on a heat source to sterilize them. Anytime you see a cut or other injury, be sure to bandage it ASAP to avoid infection and slow bleeding.
When you apply a bandage, it will eventually get dirty. You need to use the disinfection process for used bandages, which usually is boiling them, to have a fresh one ready to go. Check the Health tab to see if a bandage is dirty, then change it when you can.
Getting over an Infection in Project Zomboid (Build 41)
Rest is key. Not engaging in too much strenuous activity is a very important part of this process. You also need to make sure you get plenty of food and water. It’s the best way, bar none, to get over most health issues in the game. As you rest and keep fed, the hidden health stats improve, giving your survivor a better chance at making it out alive. As long as you’re lucky and follow the steps in this guide, you should make it over the infection.
