# How to Change Zombie Settings on Your 7 Days to Die Server (/docs/7-days-to-die/zombie-settings)



7 Days to Die gives you granular control over zombie behavior. All settings are in `serverconfig.xml`.

Zombie Movement Speed [#zombie-movement-speed]

Zombies have separate speed settings for different times and states:

```xml
<property name="ZombieMove" value="0" />         <!-- Daytime -->
<property name="ZombieMoveNight" value="3" />    <!-- Nighttime -->
<property name="ZombieFeralMove" value="3" />    <!-- Feral zombies -->
<property name="ZombieBMMove" value="3" />       <!-- Blood moon horde -->
```

| Value | Speed     | Description                                    |
| ----- | --------- | ---------------------------------------------- |
| 0     | Walk      | Slow shamble — least threatening               |
| 1     | Jog       | Moderate pace                                  |
| 2     | Run       | Fast — hard to outrun on foot                  |
| 3     | Sprint    | Very fast — default for night/feral/blood moon |
| 4     | Nightmare | Extremely fast — terrifying                    |

> 💡 **Tip:** For a classic zombie experience, set daytime to Walk (0) and nighttime to Sprint (3). For maximum horror, set everything to Nightmare (4).

Feral Sense [#feral-sense]

Controls how well zombies can detect players:

```xml
<property name="ZombieFeralSense" value="0" />
```

| Value | When Active | Effect                                              |
| ----- | ----------- | --------------------------------------------------- |
| 0     | Off         | Normal detection — line of sight, noise, smell      |
| 1     | Day only    | Zombies have enhanced senses during daytime         |
| 2     | Night only  | Enhanced senses at night (extends default behavior) |
| 3     | Always      | Zombies always know roughly where you are           |

Spawning Controls [#spawning-controls]

```xml
<property name="EnemySpawnMode" value="true" />    <!-- Master toggle -->
<property name="EnemyDifficulty" value="0" />       <!-- 0=Normal, 1=Feral -->
<property name="MaxSpawnedZombies" value="64" />    <!-- Global zombie cap -->
<property name="MaxSpawnedAnimals" value="50" />    <!-- Global animal cap -->
```

* **EnemySpawnMode** `false` disables all zombie spawning (peaceful mode)
* **EnemyDifficulty** `1` makes all zombies feral from the start
* **MaxSpawnedZombies** is the single biggest performance lever — reduce to 32–48 on lower-end hardware

Difficulty Levels [#difficulty-levels]

```xml
<property name="GameDifficulty" value="2" />
```

| Value | Name        | Zombie HP | Zombie Damage | XP Bonus |
| ----- | ----------- | --------- | ------------- | -------- |
| 0     | Scavenger   | Very low  | Very low      | None     |
| 1     | Adventurer  | Low       | Low           | Slight   |
| 2     | Nomad       | Normal    | Normal        | Normal   |
| 3     | Warrior     | High      | High          | Good     |
| 4     | Survivalist | Very high | Very high     | High     |
| 5     | Insane      | Massive   | Massive       | Maximum  |

Block Damage [#block-damage]

Control how much damage zombies deal to your base:

```xml
<property name="BlockDamageAI" value="100" />      <!-- Normal zombie damage to blocks (%) -->
<property name="BlockDamageAIBM" value="100" />    <!-- Blood moon zombie damage to blocks (%) -->
```

* Set to `0` to prevent zombies from ever destroying blocks
* Set to `200` for double damage (hardcore)
* `BlockDamageAIBM` only affects zombies during blood moon hordes

Recommended Presets [#recommended-presets]

Casual / PvE [#casual--pve]

```xml
<property name="GameDifficulty" value="1" />
<property name="ZombieMove" value="0" />
<property name="ZombieMoveNight" value="1" />
<property name="ZombieFeralSense" value="0" />
<property name="MaxSpawnedZombies" value="40" />
```

Standard Survival [#standard-survival]

```xml
<property name="GameDifficulty" value="2" />
<property name="ZombieMove" value="0" />
<property name="ZombieMoveNight" value="3" />
<property name="ZombieFeralSense" value="0" />
<property name="MaxSpawnedZombies" value="64" />
```

Nightmare Hardcore [#nightmare-hardcore]

```xml
<property name="GameDifficulty" value="5" />
<property name="ZombieMove" value="2" />
<property name="ZombieMoveNight" value="4" />
<property name="ZombieFeralSense" value="3" />
<property name="MaxSpawnedZombies" value="80" />
```

Related Guides [#related-guides]

* [Blood Moon Configuration](/docs/7-days-to-die/blood-moon)
* [Server Configuration](/docs/7-days-to-die/server-config)
* [Loot & Drop Settings](/docs/7-days-to-die/loot-settings)