What Is Project Z?
What Is Project Z?
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It’s a server-side overhaul mod — meaning many of its changes run on the server, and you don’t necessarily need to install heavy client-side mod files.
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It’s quite large in scope (“the largest … full set of mechanics” according to the author).
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Does not require disabling EAC (Easy Anti-Cheat), which is a big plus for many multiplayer servers.
Key Features / Mechanics Added by Project Z
Here are some of the major gameplay systems and changes Project Z brings in:
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Armor Rebalance
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All armor in the game is rebalanced.
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There are new “set bonuses” when wearing a full set of armor.
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Also, a “half-set” mechanic: wearing 2 or 3 pieces gives increased bonuses.
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Quest & Contracts
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More than 75 new mini tasks / contracts added to the game, with a variety of rewards and difficulties.
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Quest rewards (especially for higher-tier quests) have been reworked—more useful and generous.
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Inventory / Stacks
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Stack sizes for most items have been changed (“Better Stacks”) to make storage more manageable.
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The player's backpack is increased to 78 slots, plus a redesigned info panel. (Here at afterlife, we added even more slots, we have 104 slots!)
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Enemies / Bosses
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Adds unique bosses and minibosses, each with their own mechanics and special rewards.
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Introduces “Elite Zombies”: a more powerful class of zombies as the game progresses.
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Crafting and Ammo
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New ammo crafting: you can craft enhanced ammunition from regular ammo (with some cost difference).
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Adds a “Master Skills” block that expands crafting quite a bit: new workstations, food, items, etc.
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Skills & Character Progression
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Passive skills: a branch of bonuses that improve automatically over time.
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Perfection / Character Development: You can level up a lot—max level goes up to 500.
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Self Traits: When your character starts, they get positive and negative traits randomly. This adds a lot of variability.
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New Mechanics
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Fear & Fatigue: Adds a mechanic for stamina + “stress resistance.”
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Rough Terrain: Movement sensitivity depending on the surface (for both player and zombies).
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Vulnerability: Expanded vulnerability system in biomes — biomes are more dangerous or have more complex mechanics.
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Rare Resources: New rare resources to find.
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Universal Parts: Items can be disassembled into “universal parts.”
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Super Elixirs: Very powerful consumables (“elixirs”) that don’t exist in vanilla.
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Story / Quest Chains
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There are new quest chains for lore / character progression to help you learn and engage with the new systems.
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A “Radio Station” mechanic: more event-driven quests + rare resource rewards.
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Repair XP
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When you use construction tools to build or repair, you gain XP.
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HUD / UI
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The mod includes a new HUD (heads-up display) to reflect its expanded mechanics.
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Balance / Endgame Changes
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The mining balance is reworked: mining is tougher / more meaningful, so you’re not just digging massive quarries for free.
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The mod significantly extends the endgame: because of all the new gear, bosses, and high-level crafting, there’s more to do in “late game.” As one Redditor put it:
“Project Z then adds T4 (improved), t5 (unique) … some t6 weapons …” Reddit
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The bosses scale very high: some bosses can have very large HP pools (e.g., “red grade” bosses with 150-350k HP, according to a player).
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There’s also a radiation mechanic later in the game: high radiation can drastically change how much damage resistance you have.
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Traits / “self traits” can make your character have negative traits (e.g. being slower, jump lower) — but these can also be worked on and improved over time.
Community Feedback
Strengths / What People Like:
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Many players say it’s one of the best overhaul mods for 7DTD.
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It doesn’t feel like a total “conversion”; it keeps a lot of the vanilla feel but layers on new complexity (skills, bosses, quests).
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The random traits at character creation add replayability: your playthrough can feel quite different each time.
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The high-level content is very rewarding, so there’s a real sense of long-term progression.