Chapter 1
Melee in Build 42
Guns are loud. Melee is how you survive most days. 6 skills, one for each kind of weapon.
Every melee weapon belongs to one category. Hitting a zombie with it trains that category's skill. Higher skill means faster swings, more damage, more crits, and better weapon handling. Build 42 also added muscle strain: swing a heavy weapon too much and your arms tire, and skill reduces that too.
Axe
Big hits, tree chopping. Costs stamina.
Long Blunt
Bats, crowbars, rakes. The safe all-rounder.
Short Blunt
Hammers, pipes. Common, one-handed, good crits.
Long Blade
Machete and katana. Rare, strong, the only one with books.
Short Blade
Knives. Quiet, quick, the jaw stab.
Spear
Reach and instant kills. Fragile.
Why one lane
Switching between an axe and a bat spreads XP across 2 skills. Both stay low. Pick a main and train it.
Chapter 2
Build your fighter
Jobs and traits give the first levels. After that, only zombies do.
Lumberjack (job)
Axe levels, faster axe swings, and tree work. The axe main.
Police Officer, Security Guard (jobs)
Short Blunt from nightsticks. Police also gets Aiming.
Firefighter, Construction Worker (jobs)
Axe and Short Blunt respectively, plus fitness.
Veteran (job)
Firearms mostly, but Desensitized means no panic in a brawl.
Hunter (trait)
+1 Short Blade among others.
Brawler, Axe Man style traits
Build 42 has traits giving +1 in specific weapon skills. Read the trait list.
Watch out: point costs change
The game makers still tune traits and jobs. Always read the numbers on your own character screen.
Secret: Long Blade is the only weapon skill with books
Long Blade and Maintenance have skill books. The other 5 weapon skills do not. Their grind is hits only.
Chapter 3
What a weapon skill does
The same 5 things, for every category.
- Attack speed. Faster swings, less time exposed.
- Damage. Fewer hits per kill.
- Critical chance. Crits can kill in one hit.
- Grab escape. A chance to auto-shove a zombie that grabs you from the front.
- Durability. Half your weapon skill adds to the Maintenance wear roll. See the Maintenance guide.
- Muscle strain. Higher skill means less arm fatigue from that weapon type.
Watch out: multi-hit is a sandbox setting
Whether one swing can hit more than one zombie is the Weapon Multi Hit option. Sandbox: Weapon Multi-Hit Off in Apocalypse. On in some other presets. A weapon's "max hits" number only matters when it is on.
Chapter 4
The 6 skills, side by side
| Skill | Weapons | Strength | Weakness | Hands |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Axe | Hand axe, fire axe, wood axe, and Build 42 moved slashing knives like cleavers here | Big damage, chops trees and doors | Stamina, muscle strain | One or two |
| Long Blunt | Baseball bat, crowbar, rake, sledgehammer, spiked bats | Reliable, common, the rake is rated the strongest melee weapon since 42.20 | Slow, heavy ones tire you | Two |
| Short Blunt | Hammer, pipe, nightstick, wrench | Crits without the jaw stab, does not damage clothing, easy to find | Low damage per hit | One |
| Long Blade | Machete, katana, and forged blades | Very strong late game, has books | Only 2 loot weapons, damages zombie clothing you might want | One or two |
| Short Blade | Hunting knife, kitchen knife, stone knife | Instant-kill jaw stab, quiet, low stamina | Tiny reach, risky in groups | One |
| Spear | Carved spears, headed spears, garden fork | Reach, high crit, instant kills, craftable anywhere | Breaks fast, all two-handed now | Two |
Pick your lane
4 questions. Get a weapon skill to main.
Chapter 5
Axe
The lumberjack's weapon. Hits like a truck, tires you like one too.
- Axes kill in 1 or 2 hits at good skill. Fire axe and wood axe are two-handed monsters.
- They also chop trees and break doors. One tool, three jobs.
- Build 42 folded slashing knives, like the meat cleaver, into the Axe skill.
- Heavy swings build muscle strain fast. Rest between fights.
Secret: Lumberjack swings faster
The Lumberjack job has a hidden axe swing speed bonus on top of its levels.
Watch out: an axe on a tree does not train Axe skill for combat
Chopping trees is not hitting zombies. Only zombie hits give combat XP.
Chapter 6
Long Blunt
The safe default. If you do not know what to pick, pick this.
- Baseball bats and crowbars are everywhere. A crowbar barely wears and opens barricades.
- The rake is rated by players as the strongest melee weapon since 42.20: range, speed, huge crits, easy to mass-produce.
- Sledgehammers hit hardest but drain endurance.
- Carving makes bats at level 7 and 9. Blacksmithing makes bolted and sheet-metal bats.
Secret: crowbar for the long run
On default settings with multi-hit off, many veterans call the crowbar the safest long-term main. It almost never breaks.
Chapter 7
Short Blunt
The backup that becomes a main.
- Hammers, pipes and nightsticks are in every house and garage.
- One-handed. Carry a flashlight or a spare in the other hand.
- Crits happen without a jaw stab, and hits do not tear zombie clothing, so the loot stays intact.
- Low damage per hit. Skill fixes that.
Secret: the hammer you build with
Your Carpentry hammer is a Short Blunt weapon. You always have one.
Chapter 8
Long Blade
Rare, beautiful, deadly. And the only weapon skill you can read about.
- Just 2 loot weapons: machete and katana. Forged blades from Blacksmithing add more.
- Higher skill: faster, harder, more crits, more grab escapes, slower wear.
- Skill books exist for Long Blade. Read them before you find the katana.
- Blades damage zombie clothing. Good against armored zombies, bad for your loot.
Watch out: the katana cannot be sharpened
Players report it has a sharpness value but no sharpen recipe. Treat it as a special-occasion weapon.
Chapter 9
Short Blade and the jaw stab
Knives are weak. Knives with skill are assassins.
The jaw stab
Stand still. Aim at a single zombie. When your survivor's hand raises in aim mode, attack. The knife goes through the jaw. Instant kill.
- Quick, quiet, low exertion. The best weapon for one zombie at a time.
- Terrible in groups. The reach is tiny.
- Stone knives from Knapping count.
Secret: whittle a horde one at a time
A high Short Blade player can pull zombies one by one and jaw stab each. Slow, but zero noise.
Chapter 10
Spear
Reach, crits and instant kills, from a stick you carved.
- Spears poke farther than anything but a long blade. Fight from outside their arms.
- High crit chance and an instant-kill thrust.
- All spears are two-handed in Build 42.
- Crafted spears break fast. Fire harden and bind heads. Carry 2 or 3. Level Maintenance.
- Spear charge attacks wear the spear faster.
Secret: the spear is always available
Long stick plus knife at Carving 0. When every other weapon is broken, the forest still has spears. See the Carving guide.
Chapter 11
How to actually fight
Skill is half of it. Positioning is the other half.
- Shove first. Space is safety. A shoved zombie is a free hit.
- Stomp the fallen. No weapon wear, no XP, but a guaranteed kill.
- Fight in doorways. One at a time.
- Back up while swinging. Never stand still in a crowd.
- Watch endurance. Exhausted swings miss. Swap to a light weapon when your arms go.
- Never fight tired, hungry or panicked. All 3 cut your damage.
- Stay out of grabs. Long sleeves, gloves, and Tailoring.
Watch out: muscle strain
Build 42 tracks strain per body part. Spam a sledgehammer and your arms hurt for hours. Alternate heavy and light weapons.
Chapter 12
Training plan: 0 to 10
No books except Long Blade. No TV. Just hits. Make the hits safe.
Levels 0 to 3: single zombies
Pick your lane. Pull zombies one at a time with a shout or a knock on a window. Shove, hit, stomp. Every hit is XP.
Levels 3 to 6: fences and doorways
Fight over a low fence: zombies climb and fall, you hit them on the ground. Fight in doorways. Clear a street a day.
Levels 6 to 10: the long road
Thousands of hits. Keep the same weapon type. Level Maintenance alongside so it lasts. Long Blade readers: read all 5 books.
Secret: XP is per hit, not per kill
A weak weapon that takes 3 hits per zombie gives 3 XP chances. Early on, a hammer trains faster than an axe.
Level by level: Weapon skills
The best single thing to do at each level. Read the matching book first when one exists.
| Level | Do this for most of your XP | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 0 to 1 | Pick one lane. Single zombies: shove, hit, stomp | XP is per hit, not per kill |
| 1 to 2 | A cheap weapon that takes 3 hits per zombie | More hits, more XP rolls |
| 2 to 3 | Fight over a low fence | They fall, you hit them down |
| 3 to 4 | Doorway fights, one street a day | Volume, safely |
| 4 to 5 | Long Blade only: read the books. Others: same lane | Only Long Blade has books |
| 5 to 6 | Pull groups of 3 to 5 with noise, fight in a corridor | Bigger packs, more hits |
| 6 to 7 | Level Maintenance alongside | Your weapon must survive the grind |
| 7 to 8 | Clear a building a day | Thousands of hits |
| 8 to 9 | Same lane, better weapon now | Crits climb, kills get faster |
| 9 to 10 | Never switch lanes. Months | No shortcut |
Fight day checklist
Weapons
Body
Plan
Your ticks are saved in this browser, on this device only.
Chapter 13
Tips, tricks and fixes
20 tips from the street
Choosing
- Pick one lane and stay in it.
- Long Blunt or Short Blunt for a first character.
- Crowbar for the long run.
- Rake if you can make one.
- Read Long Blade books before you find the katana.
Fighting
- Shove, hit, stomp.
- Doorways and fences.
- Back up while you swing.
- Do not fight exhausted.
- Alternate heavy and light for strain.
- Jaw stab standing still.
- Spear from outside their reach.
Upkeep
- Carry a backup weapon.
- Level Maintenance too.
- Sharpen blades after fights.
- Fire harden and bind spears.
- Multi-hit is a sandbox setting.
- Cover your arms with Tailoring.
- Stomps are free kills with no wear.
- Rest between clears.
Fix-it table
| Problem | Likely cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| My swings miss. | Exhausted or panicked. | Rest. Beta blockers. Back off. |
| Skills stay low. | Switching weapon types. | One lane. |
| One swing only hits one zombie. | Multi-hit is off. | Sandbox setting, or accept it. |
| My arms hurt. | Muscle strain. | Lighter weapon. Rest. |
| The spear broke in 2 fights. | Plain shaft, low Maintenance. | Fire harden. Bind a head. Carry spares. |
| Jaw stab does nothing. | Moving, or bad timing. | Stand still. Wait for the raised hand. |
| I keep getting grabbed. | Standing still in a crowd. | Back up. Shove. Level the skill for grab escapes. |
| No books for my weapon. | Only Long Blade has them. | Hits are the grind. |
| Chopping trees gives no Axe XP. | Combat XP needs zombies. | Fight. |
| The katana is dull. | It cannot be sharpened. | Save it for emergencies. |
Chapter 14
Fighter's test
7 questions. Get them all right and you can clear a street.
Chapter 15
Words and sources
Fighter's word list
- Weapon category
- Which of the 6 skills a weapon trains.
- Crit
- A critical hit. Often a one-hit kill.
- Jaw stab
- The short blade instant kill.
- Multi-hit
- The sandbox setting for hitting several zombies per swing.
- Muscle strain
- Build 42 arm fatigue from heavy swings.
- Shove
- The push that makes space.
- Stomp
- Killing a fallen zombie with your foot.
- Grab escape
- The skill-based chance to auto-shove a front grab.
How sure are we?
Every fact here was checked in September 2026 for game version 42.20.4. Order of trust: the official wiki, then well-sourced fan guides, then player reports.
- The 6 categories, what skills affect, the jaw stab, Short Blunt not damaging clothing, Long Blade books and its 2 loot weapons. Confirmed on the official wiki.
- Multi-hit as a sandbox option and muscle strain. Fan guides for 42.19.
- The rake as the strongest weapon and the crowbar as the safest main. Player consensus, not official.
- Cleavers moved to Axe. A community wiki report.
- Job and trait values. May change.
Sources
- PZwiki (the official wiki): Weapon, Long Blade
- PZfans best melee weapons for 42.19 (multi-hit, strain, crowbar)
- Bamboo Gaming weapons and skills databases for 42.20.4
- NamuWiki melee weapon page (rake, cleaver category change)
- Projectzomboid.wiki weapons guide