DayZ Beginner's Guide: Your First Hour, Bleeding, Clean Water and Losing the Infected

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1. Check what you're carrying Open your inventory with Tab as soon as you spawn. A fresh character usually carries very little; small items like a chemlight or rags matter. Knowing what's in your pockets decides what you do at your first wound.
2. Head inland from the coast Coastal villages are the busiest and most picked over. Check a few houses quickly, then move a little further inland. Sprinting burns stamina and energy faster; a jog is enough when there's no danger.
3. Loot house by house, find a sharp tool Your first targets are food, a water container and a knife or similar tool. According to the wiki, knives, axes, saws, screwdrivers and similar tools let you cut clothing into rags. Rags stop bleeding and help start fires.
4. Learn where clean water is Water pumps in villages are safe sources. The community wiki says drinking straight from ponds, lakes and streams carries a cholera risk, and freshly found plastic bottles and canteens can be contaminated too. Purify suspect water with chlorine tablets or boil it in a pot.
5. Stop bleeding immediately When you're wounded a bleeding icon appears and you start losing blood. Take a rag or bandage in your hands and choose the option to treat your own wound. The wiki says bandaging takes about 10 seconds and moving interrupts it, so get to cover first.
6. Eat and drink in small portions Your stomach is limited. According to the wiki it holds up to 2 litres, a stuffed-stomach warning appears when it's half full, and going past the limit makes you vomit and lose what you ate. Stop at the warning and let it digest.
7. Learn to make a fire Once you find matches or a lighter you can start a fire. The wiki says combining two of rags, paper, bark, bandage or a short stick makes a fireplace. Fire warms you, dries wet clothes, cooks meat and boils water. It won't light in pouring rain or indoors under a low ceiling.
8. Slip past the infected quietly The infected react to noise, movement and bright lights at night. Crouch-walking past avoids waking most of them. If one chases you, break line of sight: a building corner, dense trees or a house with the door shut; the wiki notes the infected can't open doors.

• The icons are talking to youHUD icons show water, energy, blood, health and temperature, and small arrows show whether each value is rising or falling. That's the game's only warning system, so glance at them often.
• Staying wet will kill youClothes soaked in rain drain your body heat quickly. Being cold burns energy faster and raises the risk of illness. Shelter in a building and dry wet clothes next to a fire.
• Don't eat with bloody handsAccording to the community wiki, even drinking from a water pump with bloody hands can give you cholera. Wash your hands with clean water after bandaging or skinning an animal.
• Avoid rotten fruitSome fruit and vegetables spawn rotten and can poison you whatever their condition. Read the item's state when you hover over it before eating anything.
• Unclean rags are a gambleThe wiki says bandaging with a rag that hasn't been disinfected carries a 15 percent chance of wound infection. If you find alcohol tincture, iodine or disinfectant spray, clean your rags beforehand.
• Your voice carriesVoice chat attracts the infected too. According to the wiki, whispering reaches about 7 metres, normal voice 25 and shouting 45. Switch to whisper when talking to a stranger (the Up arrow cycles voice level).
• Sidestep in meleeFighting the infected with a melee tool saves ammo and doesn't wake others nearby. Stepping aside as they swing and striking after they miss is the safest approach.
• Don't log out while unconsciousIf your shock drops too low you pass out and the screen goes black. The wiki warns that logging out during that black screen kills your character. Wait; unless you've lost a lot of blood, you'll come round.
• Visit hotspots with suppliesMilitary areas and airfields hold the best gear, but soldier infected are tougher and other players go there too. Don't go without food, water, bandages and a good melee tool.
• Learning the map takes timeThere is no position marker on screen. Find a compass and a paper map, read road signs and learn town names. The community's popular online maps help as well.

• Drinking straight from lakes and streams: cholera causes vomiting and fast water loss and ends many early characters.
• Eating everything at once: exceed stomach capacity and your character vomits it all back up.
• Ignoring bleeding: an untreated wound drains hundreds of units of blood within minutes and you pass out.
• Always sprinting: energy and water drain faster and the infected notice you from further away.
• Staying out in the rain: wet clothes lower body temperature, bringing illness and energy loss.
• Turning your back on strangers: friendship is possible in DayZ, but trust is earned over time; keep your distance.

This guide was written for version: This guide reflects the current version as of September 2026. Keys are the default PC bindings and can be changed under Settings > Controls. Numbers come from the community wiki and may change with updates; modded servers may use different rules.

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