7 Days to Die How to Survive and Thrive in 7D2D- A Walkthrough (Alpha 15.2)

Introduction

This ISN'T the type of game where one enters the world, runs over to a loot crate, finds a great gun and starts slaughtering tons of zombies. Its a SURVIVAL game where you start with almost nothing, and through careful planning and crafting and looting you eventually get yourself set up to ward off the hordes of zombies that attack you every 7 days.

The purpose of this guide is to help new players get a good solid start in the game. The methods used are no big secret, and to some, may seem like common sense, but on many occasions I have encountered people who join a server and ask many, many questions concerning "how to play" and "what to do", "got any tips?" so i know there is a need for this type of guide.

I am no expert by any means but, I would say I am "experienced" with over 900 hours in game and have, through trial and error, found ways to start strong and stay strong throughout the game.

My goal is to outline the methods i use when starting a new game. There are many ways to play and many opinions on the "best" way to survive, but these are the methods that I have found work best for me and possibly can help you too.

For the purposes of this walkthrough I started a new single-player Navezgane map and kept track of my progress which i will pass on to you. This represents how i typically start every new game and , although the numbers vary slightly from game to game, its the exact methods I employ every single time... because they work.

First Day -Harvesting

Typically the game starts the player, standing on the road near a vehicle and several lootable containers. A small house will be nearby and tonight that will be the "safe" place, but first, there is work to be done.

Quest windows pop up prompting me to start by making a stone axe, so, let's make that axe.

This is the ONLY quest i do for the time being. All the quests require materials, so, I spend the day doing nothing but collecting 4 main materials as quickly as I can. These materials are PLANT FIBERS, WOOD, STONES and FEATHERS.

I start out by punching grasses while looking for single small stones and small bushes (for wood). As soon as I have the materials needed, I craft the stone axe.

I only gather roughly 100 or so plant fibers which is MORE than enough to make additional axes, as needed, and to finish all quests (later on).

With axe in hand, I run to the nearest tree and chop on it a few times but dont chop it all the way down. ( The first axe doesnt last very long and want to ensure enough materials are in my inventory to make more axes)

I run over to the nearest medium boulder and "mine" it with the axe until it vanishes. [Medium boulders give small stones, iron ore and possibly other items such as coal, nitrate powder,lead etc.] Once an axe is depleted, I make a new one, scrap the old one, and continue harvesting.

I harvest medium boulders until i have 300- 500 stones. [Stones are needed for crafting new axes, for making arrows (need as many stones as feathers collected 1;1 ratio), and for making a campfire (for the quest later on).]

During times when stamina is very low, I look around for nests and loot them, allowing stamina to recharge. (When stamina is low you get fewer resources per hit, meanwhile axe is still taking the same damage, so its good to keep the stamina up for maximum yield).

Wood is the main resource i am after, so I harvest as MANY trees as i can ( again while stamina is low, search for nests) While I am running from tree to tree or to boulders, I have my eyes peeled for Nests, which give feathers and eggs.and loot EVERY one of them i can find.

I Keep an eye on the clock because at 12:00 noon zombies start spawning. it's usually only 1 or 2 random zombies and I try to avoid them by crouching and staying away from them while I continue harvesting wood. If a zombie spots me , I "lead" it away from the house then run away and crouch when its line of sight is broken. I dont attack zombies at this point, it only wastes time and possibly hurts me (or kills me). It's easy enough to get away from them.

At around 16:00 -17:00 I start looting the car and nearby lootables (trash piles, coolers, boxes, mailbox etc) and start thinking about wrapping up my resource gathering, and getting ready to make my safe spot inside the house.(I Loot ANY stumps i find right away...stumps tend to have better loot items including clothing, canned food, weapons, honey, First aid kits etc.)

While i am looting, I craft 5 or 6 wooden ladders and 10 wooden frames IF it is a one-story house. (For a 2 story, the ladders and frames are not needed.)

I keep gathering wood and feathers until about 18:00, then i move inside the house to prepare for night.(Night comes at 22:00 so I ensure I have enough time to prepare before it gets here)

I quickly loot anything inside the house (kitchens, bathroom, trash piles etc) I also look around for "peculiar" looking metal plates on the floor. In my experience, almost all of the "starter" houses have one metal plate that appears to be slightly "floating" above the floor and below it is usually a backpack or purse. Don't try to destroy the metal plate it takes time and makes noise. Either break a wooden block next to it or, even quicker, trace the cursor along the edge of the metal plate and the item underneath will highlight when you are just right. I often find useful items in these.

Now I move upstairs. I stand on the top landing and break the lower 2 steps and all the blocks under them, cutting off access to any zombies that may get in during the night.

In a one-story house I place ladders up the wall to the little "ledge", up in the rafters, then build out the ledge with additional wood frames (and upgrade them) to make a "loft" in which to camp out for the night. I do NOT extend the ladder all the way to the floor, as zombies can climb them, instead, I start 1 or 2 blocks high on the wall, place the ladder then drop wood frames to help me jump up and reach the ladder. Once I'm on the ladder, I reach down and pick up the frames and continue up to the ledge. In both situations, I ensure that the zombies have no way to reach me, thus, making it "safe".

I always craft a secure wood chest, place it down and put all my extra inventory in it (everything besides wood, stone plant fibers, feathers and Iron ore. The last thing i usually do before nightfall is place the torch on the wall so I can see.

In a nutshell, I spend the entire day gathering the 4 main resources... as MUCH as I can as FAST as I can. Loot EVERY nest and stump as I find them. Loot the car and other containers. Get inside the house and prepare my safe spot for the night (remove all access a zombie might have to reach me)

Note: I do not bother with repairing any damaged walls/doors in the house...some people do, but, I find it a waste of time and resources.This is only a temporary, one-night shelter and, as long as all access to yourself has been removed, theres no need to upgrade any house blocks.

First Night- Crafting

The first day has drawn to a close and Night is upon me. Sitting up in my safe place, It's time to tally up how many materials were gathered during the day.

The following totals are what I gathered on the new game i started for this walkthrough,

of course, the numbers will vary from game to game, but generally i get similar amounts of resources each time i play. Im not going to describe EVERY item i looted as this is always different and not important to the essence of this guide.

I gathered:

Wood- 5366

Stone- 631

Plant Fibers- 151

Feathers- 395

NOW it's time to put all these things to good use. Start out by finishing the quests.

-make plant fiber clothing and put them on

-make a wooden club and scrap it (will be making a better one at the end)

-make wooden bow and scrap it (will be making a better one at the end)

-make TWO arrows (only 2 right now for quest)

-make 3 wooden frames, place them and upgrade them with axe

-make bedroll and place it

-make campfire and place it

That questline is done and a new quest pops up to locate the trader settlement. (that will wait until morning)

-set aside 32 wood into your secure chest to use at the end of crafting ( enough for a bow and club)

Open crafting menu:

-craft the max amount of arrows (in this case 393 arrows) (KEEP these)

-Craft max amount of wood clubs (in this case aprox. 473 clubs)

I drop these on the floor as I make them. It seems like a waste of materials but wood is easy to get and have limited time until morning comes so i drop them. (You may want to save them so craft a few additional chests and place them. As you craft the clubs, drop them into the chests to be scrapped at a later time)

Once all the wood is used up, I scrap 34 Iron ore which = just over 100 IRON. (3 Iron per Iron ore scrapped) The Iron Ore was gathered as a result of mining medium boulders (got 230 Iron ore) DO NOT scrap ALL of the Iron Ore. You take a loss when scrapping them this way as compared to smelting them in a forge. I only scrap 34 of them to make 1 club and keep the rest for when i get my forge made.

I take out the wood I had set aside and craft 1 wooden bow ( It comes out at quality 294) Not good enough, so i quickly pick up a bunch of the discarded clubs from the floor and scrap them, giving me a bit more wood to work with. I craft a few more wooden clubs until I am able to craft quality 300 weapons.

I craft a new bow and 1 iron reinforced club, both of which came out at quality 300. By crafting all those arrows and clubs I raised my weapon smith skill to over level 40.

Not too shabby....By the end of the first day/night cycle, I now have a decent bow and a decent melee weapon, and 395 arrows.

Opened up my skills page and had 11 points to spend... put ALL points into scavenging.

I ALWAYS put all my points into scaveging until i reach 100 (after that I fill all 3 ranks of "quality Joe" before putting points in anything else). Taking these skills makes it so anything looted has a good chance to be high quality even PERFECT 600 quality once those 2 skills are maxed.

Day 2- Search For Food/Water

Morning is here and my food and water levels are low. It IS possible to eat raw eggs (24) that were gathered while collecting feathers, but, they carry the risk of food poisoning. I ONLY eat raw eggs if theres no other option. Note: I do NOT ever make boiled eggs. Boiled eggs require bottled water and when you use bottled water in a FOOD recipe such as this, you lose the empty jar, also the boiled eggs dont restore much hunger. I always save my eggs to make Bacon & Eggs and Blueberry Pies , which both raise wellness (max HP)

I eat the can of chili I started with and drink the one bottled water. This helps very little but at least it's something to hold me over until I find more consumables.

This house was only meant to be a one night stand, and I have a quest to travel to the trader, so, i gather up all my items. I leave the bedroll as it is used as a spawn point (in case of death).

I open my map and find the trader location and mark it with the quick waypoint, giving me a red flag to follow on my compass.

Armed with new decent weapons, I head in the direction of the marker, keeping an eye out for any animals to kill, houses to scavenge, zombies, or any lootable container along the way.

Besides food, I am looking for possible places where a cooking pot might be found. Usually they are found in cabinets (ie kitchens, bathrooms etc) or found near campfires in camping POI's.

As I make my way toward the Trader location, i pass a camp which does, indeed, have a cooking pot on the ground. SCORE. Fresh water is no longer an issue. (While I looted the kitchen in my starter house, i had looted 6 empty jars (which i filled in a river as i traveled toward the trader)).

At the camp POI, I kill all of the zombies, loot their bodies and destroy their corpses. ( I always use a knife and destroy corpses in order to get rotting flesh to be used later to make fertilizer) SEE MY FARMING WITH FERTILIZER GUIDE for more details.

Ok, zombies are dead so i use the campfire at the camp (using cooking pot) and boil all my water and drink it. filled up to 100% YAY. Take remaining waters and cooking pot and head toward Trader once again. Before long, I see a deer and shoot him dead. As i am harvesting him, another deer comes over the top of the nearby hill so I also Kill him and take all his resources. I craft a quick campfire and cook bacon and eggs using cooking pot. Now my hunger is gone and my thirst is gone and , by eating the bacon and eggs, which has added benefit of raising wellness, my max health went up by 2 (102 health).

I make my way to the Trader; finishing that quest, and now I turn my attention toward finding and making a SAFE place to put my base of operations.

NOTE: Some trader outposts have a workbench. Workbenches have a feature that lets you combine like items (ie- wooden bow +wooden bow = better wooden bow)

very easy at this point to craft more bows and/or clubs and raise your weapon quality, even to 600 if you want. (Higher quality = Higher damage).

ALSO: depending on which biomes you find yourself in, edible plants can be found all over the map. in desert biomes, yucca (or cactus) can be harvested to give edible yucca "fruit". In plains biomes, cactus can be found or the occasional random corn stalk. In snow biomes, blueberries can be found or loot honey from tree stumps. Caves usually have mushrooms growing. Water CAN be consumed directly from water sources but only use as last resort. Yucca Juice can be crafted using 4 yucca fruit with 1 empty jar (no fire required). Empty cans may be used on campfire to boil individual servings of clean water. Theres also a couple POI's which have good amounts of edibles growing.... Theres a big cornfield with all the corn you could ever eat and a house East of Crack-A-book which has a large patch of blueberries growing in the back yard.

Of course theres also canned foods all over the world in cabinets, stumps, coolers, boxes and even on zombies. Theres no reason to die from starvation or thirst.

Day 2-6 Making A Base

Up until now, this guide has been straight forward and mostly common sense, dealing with collecting resources and how to secure food and water.

This section deals with making a "base" and is widely a matter of personal playstyle, and preference.

I know a great many people enjoy the "building" aspect of the game: to build a structure or giant compound, setting up traps and defending it, Some people like to find a nice prefab house and upgrade it, put walls and spikes all around it.

I am NOT going to explain how to "stack boxes" or set up traps and that sort of thing. If you have an interest in base designs etc, there are plenty of videos out there that deal with that.

I am going to explain what I personally prefer to use as a SAFE base of operations. I use this method every single time and have NEVER had zombies reach me or destroy my stuff. I might also add that I have never had other players reach the interior of my base or steal my items either. SAFE. I enjoy building in 7D2D, however, I do not use either of these methods for making a base.....I go underground..... at least for now.

There are several reasons I do this:

1. prefab buildings usually have zombie spawns nearby (some people like that, but i prefer not to camp out in the midst of a zombie spawn)

2. Prefab buildings attract other players who are out looking for loot to scavenge. If they wander up and discover someone has made this house a base, it becomes a very tempting target for raiding. Chances are there's chests full of easy resources and weapons and food inside.

3. Prefab buildings and Player-made structures require a LOT of resources (and time) in order to build, ugrade and defend with traps, especially to the point where it keeps zombies and other players out.

(If I am going to build a base on the surface, I want it to be made of stainless steel, with walls several layers thick, and many, many rows of pits with spikes etc, and at this point in the game (day 2), nowhere NEAR ready to do that.)

PROS to living underground:

-Stealth: Very high probability that other players wont discover the entrance to the base, especially, if certain techniques are employed to hide it (explained later in this guide)

-Cost: Very low amount of resources required (Only requires enough resources to replace whatever digging tools as they break.)

-Resources and XP: As you tunnel deep into the ground you will aquire a huge amount of Stone and other things, such as, Iron ore, lead, coal, sand, nitrate powder and, all the while, gaining XP in mining tools or construction tools, depending on what tool is used for digging.

-Safety from zombies: The deeper the base the safer it is from zombie attacks, even full-on hordes. Ive survived many, many horde nights, come up to the surface in the morning and found they had not even dug through all of the dirt layers, let alone the numerous (20+) layers of stone that seperate them from me. (This includes the corrosive vomit that cops emit) I have NEVER been in danger from hordes whilst sitting inside my underground base.

-Time: Remember that It's day 2 or 3, the horde will be coming in a matter of days, and its important to employ a method for creating a SAFE base that doesnt take a great deal of time. Digging deep doesnt take much. Speaking of time, Once you are established with a nice, underground lair, you have all the time in the world to craft materials needed to create concrete and/or metal needed to make a STRONG above-ground base if you so choose. The underground base provides you with the time and safety to craft everything you need.

Now that I explained WHY i build underground, i want to elaborate on WHERE and HOW, and also, what to do to conceal its location.

-Where: I tend to choose a location that is fairly close to looting oportunities such as nearby towns and POI's (within half day run). Availability to water is also important (later in the guide i will outline some tips that make water availability not-so-important in deciding where to establish the base) I look for a large hill or mountain where the extra land mass above the base adds that much more protection. By default, I usually find a location in the "green" biome as the temeratures dont seem to get very severe, also, one method for concealing the entrance involves Sod, which blends in better in the grassy areas. Look for a place where you wont be easily spotted coming out of the ground.

-How: Once a good spot is located, I face toward the mountain or hill and crouch down. I dig down 1 block then dig forward 1 block, dig down 1, dig forward 1 and repeat over and over. I dig this way because it creates a SMALL "ramp-like" tunnel leading downward, that allows "crouch-walking" but cant stand up in. I do this for 2 reasons: LESS digging than say, digging tall enough tunnel for upright walking, and MOST zombies cant use the tunnel to reach you. The only zombies that can "use" the tunnel are dogs and crawlers and, due to the nature of the tight quarters, they dont move very fast while inside the tunnel, making it quite easy to kill any that manage to get in there.

Dig down as far as desired (even down to bedrock) then level out and dig tunnel tall enough to walk upright (2 high). Dig forward this way for a bit (as much as desired) The idea here is to make a hallway where you will place multiple doors, adding layers of defense against Players.(Zombies are NOT an issue by this point). These doors eventually will be fully-upgraded Vault doors for maximum protection. After the hallway is long enough for 3-4 doors, dig out a room at least 7x7x 4-5 tall. Can be bigger if desired. I make this room big enough that walls and ceiling can be added, lining the whole room and top, and upgraded to stainless for maximum safety. I have, in the past made the walls and ceiling double thick but seriously not sure if thats neccessary. At this point I place my land claim block into the ceiling, in the hallway somewhere near the first door, and later on, when i can craft more land claim blocks, i make a bunch and place them wherever i think they need to be to give complete coverage of entire base (If, by chance, someone gets in and, they destroy a land claim, there will be others protecting your base. Maybe this is overkill but, as I stated earlier, I have never been breached. In MY opinion, you cant get any safer than this in the game.

-Hiding the entrance: Typically, the entrance is nowhere near the actual room (bedroll icon) so be sure to put a landmark on your map right where the "rabbit hole" starts, so you can find it again easily. I typically plant numerous trees around the general area. Place the trees RANDOMLY, trying to make it look natural. you dont want just one single tree there in case someone comes to cut it down and notices the hole in the ground. noone is likely to come over and cut down 10 trees in the same area as they are running through. Dont draw attention to the area of your tunnel. As added protection i will harvest / destroy any nests, stumps, boulders, flowers, cotton in the area so people dont have a reason to come near the tunnel. Try not to disturb the grasses in the area. Dont leave a big bare spot that might indicate something out of the ordinary. The last defense (If you think it's needed) is to craft some Sod, and "plug" the hole with it, every time you enter or leave the hole. It's a very good chance that any player who passes by will just keep going and never even notice anything.

Later in the game, once i have gathered AMPLE supplies, and have the ability to make fully upgraded blocks, I dig a ramp-tunnel up to the surface, the opposite direction from the other tunnel, and build a defensive horde "shooting gallery" for spending "Horde night" killing zombies.

I also build a garden for growing food supplies on the surface (seperate location with high walls all around it)

NOTE underground bases and tunnels WONT be safe in future updates.

Base Upgrades And Variations

As stated previously, once your base is dug out, you have plenty of time to craft whatever you need to make upgraded blocks. If you feel like you are still not safe enough from players raiding you, there are upgrades you can make to your base which will "strengthen it significantly.

As mentioned before, walls and ceiling (and floor, if not all the way to bedrock) can be placed to "line" the entire inside of your room, and can even be several layers thick if you so choose.

This is the point where resources become an issue, but the good part is, that you have plenty of time to gather everything over the course of days and make these upgrades, in your already-relatively-safe bunker, as you are able. Keep in mind that if you want to go several layers thick with your blocks, you will need to completely upgrade the outer walls before adding another layer, working inward (you cant run outside and ugrade). Another ugrade you can do to add even more protection, is to make your hallway wider and taller and line those walls with upgraded blocks as well. (also floor and ceiling too) The thought here is that IF a raider was determined to get into your loot room, they might opt for digging the stone NEXT to your doors which has MUCH lower hp's than your actual door, essentially bypassing all your "security". I say, If they want it, make them WORK for it. Make it difficult enough that they give up trying.

I recently tried a completely different tactic which I tested and got results. I was playing on a VERY busy MP server (usually 20+ people on at any given time) and felt it was just a matter of time before my location would be found, so i got an idea to set up a decoy. About 10-15 blocks into my "rabbit hole", I dug into the tunnel wall leading a different direction and carved out a decoy room.

I made the room fairly small and placed a campfire, bedroll and secure chest in it. I put about 53 wood logs in the campfire and a couple jars of water as though it was "used". I placed a bunch of random junk objects in the chest and conveniently left it unlocked. I also put some resources in it such as cotton, wood, stone etc to add even more convincing "loot". Back in the rabbit hole leading toward my actual base, I blocked the tunnel with Stone, made in the cement mixer. It made the tunnel, from ground level , look like someone dug in a ways then turned and made a little shelter.

Every time i entered or left i blocked the tunnel this way and often checked the contents of the chest. finally it hapened that someone DID get in there and took most of the items but never thought to dig any further in the main tunnel.

Theres probably other creative ways to hide yourself from other players. Use your imagination.

I guess the best way to approach it is to "think like a raider" Figure out any weak areas and reinforce or trick them (like the above example). I have also hidden chests this way before. really valuable items I did not want to lose, I hid the chest inside a wall, covered the hole with stone, and simply dug a hole again, anytime i needed something from the chest. its a bit of work but totally worth it i think. (also hidden forges etc this way) What can I say I am paranoid after over 1200 hours on RUST lol. Any EXTREMELY important items you want to keep safe, keep ON your person when you log out.

Of course, NONE of these upgrades are needed if you are playing single player (SP) game. Zombies cant get you that deep underground..... YET. Someday they will be able to dig down to you and/or go directly to your "rabbit hole"

A LOT of diehard 7D2D players consider the underground base to be "cheese" gameplay or an exploit, but to each their own I guess. In a zombie apocalypse the goal is to NOT get eaten and, underground is a great way to stay safe until you have the means and materials to build a base on the surface that you can properly defend ( IF thats the way you want to play the game).

Thoughts About Gameplay

This guide has come under attack from 2 or 3 long-time players who LOVE screaming "EXPLOIT" and try to enforce their playstyle and opinions on others. NONE of the strategies outlined in this guide are CHEATS, they are just strategies. They are mechanics currently implemented in this current version of Alpha and completely legal, viable strategies.

These people feel that "spam crafting" clubs is a cheat. Building underground is a cheat. Using workbenches to combine items is a cheat. Having Purple gear before day 7 is a cheat, and a number of other game mechanics as well. It's very simple... If you feel like something is an exploit, dont do it. If you feel like opening the creative menu and giving yourself the best of everything, It's totally acceptable to do so. The Devs have given us the options to configure the game however we want to play it right on the game creation page.

As this is an ALPHA project, currently (not even a complete game), It is our duty as "testers" to play it in every possible way and give feedback so that the Dev team can determine what the weak areas are that need fixing. Be aware that game mechanics WILL change as the Devs add new content and revise old content in order to make the game as they have envisioned.There is no WRONG way to play it, as these few people suggest. Now, with that being said...

I am NOT suggesting that anyone spend their entire game underground "hiding" from Hordes as fighting these zombies is quite fun AND the loot they drop can be quite good ( Military armors, nice guns /ammo and a variety of other great gear). Many people build platforms or "cage" style areas in which they stand on or inside on horde night, and fight the zombie hordes in relative safety, then collect all the gear dropped by these zombies.

I DO ecourage people to eventually come out of hiding and fight the Hordes once you are READY to do so... this includes being geared up with whatever armors you deem adequate, plenty of weapons (in good shape) and appropriate ammo, AND have the neccessary materials for building a horde night fighting area. The Underground base of operations is a great way to keep your hard earned workstations and loot stash out of harms way during a blood moon, while you go up top and fight the dirty zombies.

Lets address "spam crafting"

The mass production of items for the purpose of raising skills.

Just about every game I"ve ever played has a certain amount of "grinding" in order to advance your level/skills. At this time, this game has the same mechanics. The more you craft the higher your skills go and the more your xp increases. As xp is earned, points are given to spend on skills and perks (ANY skills and perks you want) to further make you stronger and more prepared to survive. You have to spend points to gain certain skills such as Steel crafting, which will not be available until you do. How you spend these points is totally up to you.

Just about everything in the game requires mass production or repetition to raise skills, from weapons, to armor, to frames, to building supplies (ie cobblestones), Tools, Foods, Med supplies, running or walking (athletics), even killing zombies is a repetative act to gain xp and weapon skills. Not sure its anyone's business to dictate WHEN or HOW FAST or HOW MANY items is acceptable or "normal" gameplay. Some may suggest that you only craft a new weapon when the current one is about to break or ONLY craft what you are going to "use" (ie- wood clubs dont get used, they get scrapped or discarded so considered "exploiting" by some if it's done that way)

Basically Play it how you want to play it, and ignore the "exploit police" as they are just trying to force their OPINIONS on people and shaming them into converting to THEIR style of play. If you feel that the methods in this guide are "cheese" or "exploits" then DONT use them. Easy as that.

Find other ways to survive and have fun in the game that fits your playstyle.

When the game is FINISHED and released we will know what the "boundries" of gameplay are, and must adapt to whatever mechanics are in that final product.

Until then... ENJOY and have fun.

Tips - Making Life Easier

These tips might be well-known, but I am including them in the spirit of making a more complete guide.

- Snow is a good source for making drinkable water. Go to the snow biome and dig up as much snow as you want. One advantage to this is that snowballs stack up to 5000, they dont melt in your backpack, and dont require any special container to carry them or store them back at your base. Essentially, you can carry many thousands of units of potential water with little impact on inventory space. (requires boiling to get drinkable water)

- As mentioned earlier, Drinkable "water" can be crafted by combining 4 yucca fruits with an empty jar to create yucca juice. It not only quenches thirst, but also, has a "cooling" effect and raises wellness a small amount. Great survival drink in a pinch. Best part is, It does not require fire to make it. Not quite as thirst queching as water but it's close.

-Eat better foods and drinks whenever possible. Some foods and beverages have the added benefit of adding "wellness" such as, bacon and eggs, blueberry pie, Goldenrod Tea etc. By using these better foods, you will increase your total maximum Hitpoints (It is possible to achieve 250 Health with the use of certain perks) The higher your Health the better you can survive getting hit by zombies. (Making a garden is great for growing ingredients often used in higher-end food recipes)

- Items such as Chemical Stations and Cement Mixers, and Workbenches found in various places on the map, can be "harvested" and collected by hitting them with a wrench. Once they are "destroyed" they go into your inventory, allowing you to place them wherever you want. ie- back at your base.

Note: These items found at Traders cannot be harvested this way.

-Take advantage of what the Workbench allows you to do. Combine LIKE items to produce better quality items, weapons, tools, clothing. Items must have EXACT same name. (you cant combine

RED wool shirt + BLUE wool shirt.) Very useful for upgrading items such as gun parts or making your mediocre bow into a perfect 600 quality bow.

- Always carry a bedroll on your hotbar when you are out scavenging. If you get into a bad situation, and you are about to die, place the bag and when you "revive" you will be close to your dropped gear. Place it if you know you are about to enter a zombie- infested area, just in case.

- If you are away from home and about to get caught out after dark, quickly dig yourself a hole 5-6 blocks deep (or more) and place several wood frames above you to "block" the hole. If a zombie gets on top of the frame you can safely shoot it without damaging the frames. In the morning, remove the frames and jump up, placing frames beneath you, to get out. It could just save your life. OR place ladders up the side of a house and ride out the night safely on the roof.

- If you see zombies in the distance but have not been spotted yet, crouch down to take your first shot. shots made while "hidden" do extra damage. (aim for the head)

- Aim for the head. Headshots do additional damage and occasionally take their head off, killing them instantly.

- Aim for the legs? I noticed that hitting Lumberjacks in the leg, really messes them up. It often stuns them and/or slows them way down as they start walking with a "limp". Seems to be their "weak" point?

- The best tool for opening locked safes is the sledgehammer.

- If you are having trouble getting enough animal hides for crafting a forge, find leather chairs and couches and hit them with an axe to get Leather ( can make bellows using leather). Lots of leather furniture in Crack-a-book, higher-end houses, and Hospital. Also a great source for crafting leather armors.

- If you find a container that has already been opened but still has an item inside, remove the item, and possibly the contents will instantly "renew" resetting it to "untouched" status.

- A good source for getting mechanical parts is to use wrench on shopping carts.

- Once you are able, craft gun safes to use for storage. Waaaaay more secure than wooden chests, especially when land claim blocks are present in the base.

-To quickly sort and consolidate your inventory (or storage chest) click on the backpack Icon at the top of the inventory (or storage) window.

- Dig down near gravestones at cemetery to find burried coffins.

Theres absolutely a ton of good tips out there and I simply cant get them all, but do a little research and , by all means, look up current maps for Navezgane. The Following link is the map I use.

http://7daystodie.gamepedia.com/File:Navezgane_A15_B105_Fullmap_Names_Roads_2k_by_Curbolt.png

I hope this guide helps. Best wishes and Good Luck.

P.S. Visit my other guide

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=860664356

Source: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=864204531

How to Survive and Thrive in 7D2D- A Walkthrough (Alpha 15.2)