Guide to Zombicide Black Plague Inside a building – An Actor sees into ALL Zones that share
an opening with the Zone the Actor currently occupies. If
SET-UP
- Choose a Quest.
- Place the tiles.
- Place doors, Objectives, and all tokens as indicated.
- Divide the Survivors amongst the players.
- Each player takes one Dashboard for each of their
Survivors, placing the Survivor’s ID card on it. Attach a
colored base to each Survivor and take the tracking pegs in
the same color.
- Put aside all Starting Equipment keyword Equipment
cards. Also set aside Equipment cards with the Vault
keyword.
- Deal Starting Equipment as you see fit amongst the
Survivors. Each Survivor starts with at least one card. If a
Survivor’s starting skill lists any starting weapons, they
receive those now as well.
- Shuffle the Zombie cards into one deck and the Equipment
cards into another deck.
- Place Survivor miniatures on the Starting Zone(s) as
indicated by the chosen Quest.
- Each player sets their Survivor Dashboards on the 0 XP
space of the Danger Bar, places a tracker in the 0 slot of the
Wound Bar, and places a tracker in the slot for the first
(BLUE) skill. Place 3 more trackers in the reserve slots at the
top of the Dashboard.
- Decide who will be the first player and they take the first
player token.
GAME OVERVIEW
The game is played over a series of rounds with 3 phases:
 Player Phase
 Zombie Phase
 End Phase
WINNING & LOSING
The game is lost when all Survivors have been eliminated or
if too many Necromancers escape. Some Quests can be lost
when certain conditions are met (losing a single survivor, for
example). The game is won IMMEDIATELY when ALL of the
Quest objectives have been accomplished.
Actor – A Survivor or Zombie.
Zone – In a building a Zone is a room. On a street, a Zone is
the area between two linear markings and the walls of
buildings along the street.
LINE OF SIGHT
On the streets – Actors can see in straight lines that run
parallel to the edges of the board and their Line of Sight
covers as many Zones as the line can pass through before
reaching a wall or the edge of the board. Actors CANNOT
see diagonally.
there is an opening, the walls do NOT block Line of Sight
between the two zones. An Actor’s Line of Sight inside a
building is limited to a distance of ONE zone.
If the Survivor is looking out into the street, or from the
street into a building, the Line of Sight can go through ANY
number of street Zones in a straight line, but ONLY ONE
Zone INTO the building.
MOVEMENT
Actors can move from one Zone to the next as long as the
first Zone shares at least ONE edge with the destination
Zone. Corners do NOT count, so Actors CANNOT move
diagonally.
On streets – Movement from one Zone to another has no
restrictions, however, Actors MUST go through a door (or
opening) to move from a building to the street and vice-
versa.
Inside a building – Actors may move from one Zone to
another as long as these Zones are linked by an opening.
The position of a miniature in the Zone and layout of the
walls do NOT matter as long as the Zones share an opening.
READING AN EQUIPMENT CARD
Melee Weapons – display a 0 Range value and can ONLY be
used in the same Zone as the Survivor.
Ranged Weapons – have a Max Range value of 1 or more.
Attacking at Range 0 with a Ranged weapon is still a Ranged
Action.
Combat Spells – have a scroll and a Max Range value of 1 or
more. Attacking at Range 0 with a Combat Spell is still a
Magic Action.
Some Equipment cards belong to several types at once, e.g.
Orcish Crossbow is BOTH a Melee and a Ranged weapon.
Door-Breaching – Equipment that allows you to open doors
with a die roll has a die symbol with the MINIMUM roll
needed to open. Equipment that allows you to open doors
WITHOUT a roll just has the door icon.
Zombie-Killing – Equipment with the Combat bar at the
bottom containing Combat characteristics allows you to kill
Zombies.
Noise – If an action has the Noise symbol, it produces a
Noise token. If it has the Noise symbol crossed out, it does
NOT produce a Noise token.
CARD ANATOMY
Dual – blue circle with crossed swords at top left – if you
have Dual weapons with the SAME name in each hand, you
may use them BOTH in a single action combining their
effects. Dual Ranged and Dual Combat Spells must be
aimed at the same zone.
Gems – gems along top of card – these indicate what
Danger Level a Survivor must be at to use the card. In the
base game, all cards display all 4 gems. Expansions will have
cards with some gems removed, meaning card CANNOT be
used until Survivor is of that level, though it MAY be stored.
Hand –fist at top right – the Equipment card MUST be in
hand to be used.
Open Doors – door with/without die at middle right – this
Equipment card allows you to open doors. If a noise symbol
is present, attempting to open the door causes Noise.
Range – 1st box in combat bar at bottom – Min and Max
number of Zones the weapon can reach. A 0 indicates the
weapon is Melee ONLY.
Dice – 2nd box in combat bar at bottom – roll as many dice
as shown to use this weapon.
Accuracy – 3rd box in combat bar at bottom – each roll that
EQUALS OR EXCEEDS this value is a success. Rolls less than
this are failures.
Damage – 4th box in combat bar at bottom – damage
inflicted for each success. A 2 value or more is required to
eliminate Fatties.
NOISE
Whenever Noise is produced place the Noise token in the
Zone where the Survivor resolved the Action. It stays in the
Zone where it was produced even if the Survivor moves.
A single Action can only produce a SINGLE Noise token, no
matter how many dice are rolled, hits obtained, or if Dual
weapons are used.
Noise tokens are REMOVED from the board in End Phase.
Each Survivor ALSO counts as a Noise token.
EXPERIENCE (XP), DANGER LEVEL, & SKILLS
For each Zombie killed, a Survivor gains 1 XP AND moves up
a notch on his Danger Bar. Some Quest objectives provide
more XP as does eliminating Abominations.
There are 4 Danger Levels – Blue, Yellow, Orange, and Red.
At each Danger Level, a Survivor gains a new Skill. Skills add
to each other across Danger Levels. At Yellow, Survivors
gain a 4th Action. At Orange, a Survivor chooses one of the
two Skills available. At Red, a Survivor chooses one of the
three Skills available.
Experience has a side effect. When you draw a Zombie card
to spawn Zombies, you spawn based on the Survivor with
the HIGHEST Danger Level, i.e. the stronger your strongest
Survivor is, the more perilous the situation will become!
INVENTORY
Each Survivor can carry up to 8 Equipment cards, divided
among 2 Hands, 1 Body, and 5 Backpack slots. You MAY
discard cards from your inventory to make room for new
cards at ANY time for FREE, even during another player’s
turn.
Hands – Both Hand slots are reserved EXCLUSIVELY for
Equipment cards bearing the Hand symbol. Equipment
cards bearing the Hand symbol can ONLY be used when in
Hand.
Body – The Body slot is reserved for cards bearing the Body
symbol. ALTERNATIVELY, it can hold the SPECIFIC (meaning
EXACT – Sword does NOT mean Short Sword, Great Sword –
it means SWORD) Equipment card that is listed on it.
It is then considered to be equipped in Hand, representing a
piece of Equipment the Survivor can draw quickly – yes, like
a 3rd Hand! Equipment cards bearing the Body symbol can
ONLY be used when on the Body.
Backpack
Up to 5 cards of ANY type can fit in the Backpack slots.
Equipment cards with the Hand or Body symbol can be
stored in the Backpack but CANNOT be used while there.
ANY TEXT ON THEM IS NOT IN EFFECT UNTIL THEY ARE IN
THEIR APPROPRIATE SLOT. An Equipment card with the
Backpack symbol can ONLY be stored in the Backpack.
THE ZOMBIES
Walker – Min Damage to Kill: 1 / XP: 1
Fatty – Min Damage to Kill: 2 / XP: 1
Runner – Min Damage to Kill: 1 / XP: 1, Runners get TWO
Actions per Activation.
Abomination – Min Damage to Kill: 3 / XP: 5, Wounds
inflicted by Abominations CANNOT be prevented by Armor.
A Damage 3 weapon is needed to kill them – in base game
only Dragon Bile or Samson with Damage 2 weapon with his
+1 Damage Skill.
Necromancer – Min Damage to Kill: 1 / XP: 1, The
Necromancer’s entry is marked with their own Spawn
token. They have special rules detailed below.
A - PLAYER PHASE
Starting with the first player, each player activates their
Survivors, one after another, in the order of their choice.
Each Survivor can perform 3 Actions at the Blue Danger
Level.
ACTIONS
1 - Move – The Survivor can move from one zone to the
next, but not through walls or closed doors. If there are
Zombies in the Zone they are attempting to leave, the
Survivor MUST spend 1 extra Action per Zombie to leave
the Zone. Entering a Zone containing Zombies ENDS the
Survivor’s Move Action, EVEN if they have a Skill that allows
them to move through multiple Zones per Move action.
2 - Search – You can ONLY Search in a building Zone and
ONLY if there are NO Zombies in the Zone. The player
draws a card from the Equipment deck and then places it in
the Survivor’s Inventory OR IMMEDIATELY discard it.
A Survivor can only perform a SINGLE Search Action per
Turn, even if it’s an extra free Action.
After Searching, the Survivor may freely Reorganize their
inventory (NOT TRADE). You MAY discard cards at ANY
time for FREE. When the Equipment deck runs out,
reshuffle discards. DO NOT shuffle in Vault items, but DO
shuffle in STARTING EQUIPMENT.
Food/Water found with a full Backpack CANNOT be
discarded from hand for their effects. They have the
Backpack symbol and MUST be used from there.
3 - Open a Door – MELEE weapons with the Open Door
symbol can be used to open a door next to the Survivor.
Spend an action to roll AS MANY DICE AS THE WEAPON’S
Dice value. The door is opened on any die result equal or
greater than the weapon’s Accuracy. Place a Noise token in
the Zone. If the weapon has the Open Door symbol without
a die, it opens doors without a roll.
Opening a door is NOT a Melee Action, so you do NOT gain
the benefits of Dual wielding, Melee bonuses like Skills or
a Dagger’s extra bonus die. Use ONLY the raw value.
Some Quests have colored doors that CANNOT be opened
until a condition is met, e.g. finding the matching Objective.
Spawning in Buildings – Opening a closed building FOR THE
FIRST TIME reveals ALL the Zombies inside ALL rooms of the
building. A single building extends to ALL rooms connected
by openings, sometimes straddling several tiles.
Indicate each Zone of a building and draw a Zombie card for
each. Place the corresponding number and type of Zombies
drawn.
If you draw an Extra Activation, IMMEDIATELY perform the
action on the card.
If you draw a Double Spawn card, DON’T spawn Zombies in
this zone. Spawn TWO cards worth in the next.
Some effects allow an open door to be locked. If it is
opened again, it does NOT trigger another spawning.
When the Zombie deck runs out, reshuffle the discards.
Buildings open at the beginning of the game are NEVER
spawned in.
Vault Zones & Doors & Vault Artifacts
Vault doors can be opened like standard doors and CAN be
opened from inside its Vault Zone.
Open Vault doors give access to the Vault of the matching
color as if they were connected. There is no Line of Sight
between the Vault and it’s connected Zones.
Vaults are building Zones, but they CANNOT be Searched
and do NOT Spawn Zombies when they are revealed. Quest
rules may supersede the standard rules here.
A Survivor can spend an Action to take a Vault Artifact
stored in the Vault. This is not a Search Action and MAY be
done multiple times if there are several Artifacts.
4 – Reorganize/Trade – For 1 Action, a Survivor can
reorganize his inventory in ANY way he wishes. The
Survivor can simultaneously exchange ANY number of cards
with ONE AND ONLY ONE Survivor in the same Zone. This
other Survivor ALSO Reorganizes their inventory for free.
The Trade Action does NOT have to be fair if both agree.
5 – Combat Actions
Melee Action – The Survivor uses a Melee weapon they are
holding in Hand to attack Zombies in their Zone. Each
success equals a hit and hits are divided as a player wishes
among the possible targets. Missed melee strikes do NOT
cause Friendly Fire.
Ranged Action – The Survivor uses a Ranged weapon they
are holding in Hand to fire at a SINGLE Zone within the
Range shown in their Line of Sight. Firing at 0 Range is still a
Ranged Action. Actors fire at ZONES, not Actors – this is
important because of Targeting Priority. Misses on Ranged
attacks CAN cause Friendly Fire! Actors do NOT block Line
of Sight. You CAN make Ranged attacks EVEN with Zombies
in your Zone.
Targeting Priority: When using a Ranged weapon (even at
Range 0), the shooter does NOT choose targets hit by
successful rolls. Hits are assigned in Targeting order:
 1.) Walker
2.) Fatty or Abomination (shooter chooses)
3.) Runner
4.) Necromancer
Hits are assigned to lowest priority until they are all
eliminated, then to the next. Damage must be great
enough from each individual shot – DOESN’T STACK.
Friendly Fire: A Survivor CANNOT hit themselves with a
missed attack, however misses from Ranged or Magic
attacks AUTOMATICALLY land on Survivors in target Zone.
These are assigned however you want. Armor rolls ARE
allowed, as normal. Remaining hits are assigned as
Wounds.
Reloadable Weapons – Weapons requiring reload, are
turned over after firing, to show that it needs a reload. If
passed to another Survivor, it still MUST be reloaded. All
weapons are automatically reloaded in the End Phase.
If equipped with 2 identical Dual weapons, a single action
reloads both. A Survivor may also choose to use Dual
weapons individually at two different Zones at the cost of
an additional Ranged action.
Magic Action – The Survivor uses a Combat spell they are
holding in Hand to attack Zombies in their Line of Sight and
follows the same rules as Ranged Actions. Misses on Magic
attacks CAN cause Friendly Fire!
Friendly Fire: A Survivor CANNOT hit themselves with a
missed attack, however misses from Ranged or Magic
attacks AUTOMATICALLY land on Survivors in target Zone.
These are assigned however you want. Armor rolls ARE
allowed, as normal. Remaining hits are assigned as
Wounds.
Dragon Fire: A Dragon Bile card can be discarded from
Hand to put a Dragon Bile pool token at Range 0-1 from the
Survivor. Later, a Torch card can be discarded from Hand to
ignite the pool at Range 0-1 and create a Dragon Fire.
EVERY Actor in the token’s Zone is killed regardless of its
Damage threshold, Armor values, or remaining Wounds.
Dragon Fire does NOT produce Noise.
The pool token is then removed and the Survivor that threw
the Torch earns all of the XP. If all of the Dragon Bile tokens
are on the board and you need to set a new one, remove
one from the board and move it to the new Zone.
6 – Enchantment Actions – The Survivor uses an
Enchantment they are holding in Hand. Resolve the effects
as described on the card.
Enchantments are cast at target Actors or Zones (as
described) within Line of Sight.
If the target is a Survivor, the caster may target themselves.
Most Enchantments state “Once per Turn”. If the Survivor
has multiple copies of the same Enchantment, they CAN
EACH be used independently.
The same Enchantment can be cast MULTIPLE times in a
Game Round if Survivors exchange it and cast it as their
turns go by.
7 – Take or Activate an Object – The Survivor takes an
Objective in the same Zone. Effects are by the Quest.
8 – Make Some Noise – The Survivor makes Noise in an
attempt to attract Zombies. Place 1 Noise token in their
Zone.
9 – Do Nothing – The Survivor ends their turn prematurely.
B - ZOMBIE PHASE
Once all players have activated all of their Survivors, the
Zombies play according to the following steps in order.
Step 1 – Activation
Each Zombie activates and spends its Action on either an
Attack OR a Move, depending on its situation, per single
Action. Resolve ALL Attacks FIRST, then ALL Moves.
Zombie Attack
Each Zombie in the same Zone as Survivors performs an
Attack. A Zombie’s Attack is ALWAYS successful and inflicts
ONE Wound. Survivors in the Zone share the Wounds in
any way the players prefer, even if it means inflicting them
all on a single Survivor.
After any applicable Armor roll, adjust the Wound tracker
by 1 for each Wound received. A Survivor is eliminated at 3
Wounds. Remove their miniature and DISCARD their
Equipment.
Feeding Frenzy – ALL Zombies activated in the same Zone as
a Survivor join in on the Attack, even if it would be overkill.
Armor Rolls – Survivors wearing Armor can use Armor rolls
to avoid Wounds. Roll as many dice as the number of
Wounds the Survivor has been allocated (all are allocated at
once, NOT one at a time). Each result that equals or
exceeds the Armor number negates a Wound.
Abominations & Dragon Fire IGNORE Armor.
Shield – A Shield in Hand allows Armor rolls if the Survivor
isn’t wearing actual Armor. If the Survivor has Armor AND a
Shield, the Shield allows re-rolling of Armor dice. RE-ROLL
ALL ARMOR DICE (even successes) and the new result
REPLACES the old one.
Zombie Move
Zombies that have not attacked use their Action to Move
one Zone toward Survivors.
1 – Zombies Select their Destination Zone: First is the Zone
with Survivors in Line of Sight that has the MOST Noise
tokens. REMEMBER – Each Survivor counts as 1 Noise
token. If no Survivor is VISIBLE, they move toward the
noisiest Zone. In both cases, distance is irrelevant, Zombies
ALWAYS go for the noisiest meal they can see or hear.
2 – Zombies Move 1 Zone Toward Their Destination Taking
Shortest Available Path: In case there are no open paths to
the noisiest Zone, Zombies move toward it as if all doors
were open though locked doors still stop them.
If there is MORE than 1 route of the same length, the
Zombies split into groups of equal numbers to follow ALL
possible routes They ALSO split if different target Zones
contain the SAME number of Noise tokens.
If necessary, ADD Zombies so that all new groups resulting
from a splitting group contain the same number of EACH
Zombie type.
Abominations and Necromancers NEVER split. You decide
what direction they will go. Necromancers ALWAYS Move
toward the nearest non-Necromancer Spawn Zone.
If there aren’t enough Zombie minis to make an even split,
decide which group gets final reinforcement and which
direction the uneven split groups go. This case does NOT
generate extra Activations for running out of minis.
Runners – Since they have 2 Actions per Activation, after
ALL Zombies (including Runners) have gone through the
Activation step and resolved their first Action, Runners go
through it again!
Step 2 – Spawn
The Quest map shows where Zombies appear at the end of
each Zombie Phase – these are Spawn Zones. Indicate a
Spawn Zone and draw a Zombie card. The Danger Level of
the most experienced Survivor indicates what to place.
Repeat for each Spawn Zone and ALWAYS start with the
same one and go clockwise.
Some Quests feature colored Spawn Zones that do NOT
spawn until a specific event happens and activates them.
Extra Activation Cards – When revealed, NO Zombies
appear in that Zone. Instead, ALL Zombies of the indicated
type IMMEDIATELY get an extra Activation.
Double Spawn Cards – When you draw a Double Spawn
card, NO zombies appear in the designated Zone. The NEXT
Zombie Spawn is resolved by drawing TWO Zombie cards
instead of one. These cards are drawn TOGETHER and
resolved in drawing order. If one is a Double Spawn, resolve
the standard spawn THEN the Double Spawn.
Running out of Minis – If you run out of a particular TYPE
(walker, runner, etc., not sculpt), ALL of the Zombies of that
type IMMEDIATELY get an EXTRA Activation. This is
especially important for the Abomination and the
Necromancer as there is only 1 of each type of these.
Necromancers – The Necromancer is a Zombie for game
purposes. When he appears, put an additional Zombie
Spawn token (Necromancer side) on the board and
IMMEDIATELY resolve a regular Zombie spawn for it. From
now on, it is active and spawns just like a regular Spawn
Zone.
Every additional drawing of Necromancer Zombie cards, no
matter the type, gives an extra Activation to EVERY
Necromancer on the board until they flee or die.
The game is IMMEDIATELY LOST if a Necromancer
manages to escape once there are a total of 6 Zombie
Spawn tokens on the board (including the Necromancer
Spawn token).
A Necromancer tries to flee the board. If there are no
Survivors in his Zone for him to Attack during his Activation,
he Moves 1 Zone toward the nearest Spawn Zone (NOT his
entry Zone), ignoring any Survivors he might see. If there
are several Spawn Zones of equal distance, the players
choose which one.
A Necromancer escapes the board as soon as he activates
on his escape Spawn Zone. Replace the Necromancer
Spawn token with a standard Zombie Spawn token.
If you kill a Necromancer, choose a Spawn Zone (including
the Necromancer Spawn Zone) and remove it from the
board. If the Necromancer Spawn Zone was not chosen,
replace it with a standard Spawn Zone.
SPECIAL EXCEPTION – There may be a point where ALL
Spawn Zone tokens are in the same map Zone. In that
case, a Necromancer STILL comes with an additional
Necromancer Spawn token, but he flees as soon as he
activates.
C - END PHASE
 Remove ALL Noise tokens from the board
 Rotate the first player token
Necromancer Cabals coming soon!