How to change sandbox settings (population, loot, XP) on your Project Zomboid server
This article will cover the steps needed to adjust the sandbox configuration on your Project Zomboid server — zombie population, loot rarity, XP multipliers, and other gameplay tuning.
Step 1: Log into the Game Control Panel and navigate to your Project Zomboid service.
Step 2: Stop your server.
Step 3: Click on Configuration Files, locate servertest_SandboxVars.lua, and press the Text Editor button.
Step 4: Modify any of the following key sandbox variables:
| Variable | Default | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
Zombies |
3 |
1=Insane, 2=High, 3=Normal, 4=Low, 5=None | |
Distribution |
1 |
Loot distribution (1=Urban Focused, 2=Even) | |
DayLength |
2 |
Day length in hours (1=15min, 2=30min, ... 8=24h real) | |
XpMultiplier |
1.0 |
Global XP multiplier | |
LootRespawn |
1 |
1=None, 2=Every Day, 3=Every Week, 4=Every Month | |
HoursForLootRespawn |
0 |
Hours before unlooted areas re-populate (0 uses LootRespawn preset) |
|
MaxItemsForLootRespawn |
4 |
Max items in a container before respawn skips it | |
StarterKit |
false |
Spawns players with a small starter inventory | |
Nutrition |
true |
Track hunger nutritional content | |
FoodRotSpeed |
2 |
1=Very Fast, 2=Normal, 3=Very Slow | |
ZombieAttractionMultiplier |
1.0 |
How loud the world is to zombies | |
VehicleEasyUse |
false |
Lowers vehicle skill requirements | |
Farming |
2 |
Crop growth speed (1=Very Fast, 2=Normal, ... 5=Very Slow) | |
WaterShut |
2 |
0=Instant, 1=0-30 days, 2=0-2 months, 3=0-6 months, 4=0-1 year, 5=2-6 months, 6=6-12 months | |
ElecShut |
2 |
Same scale as WaterShut | |
TimeSinceApo |
1 |
1=0 days, 2=Several weeks later, ... 8=1 year later |
Step 5: Click Save and start the service.
Example — easy-mode preset:
Zombies = 4,
DayLength = 4,
XpMultiplier = 3.0,
LootRespawn = 2,
StarterKit = true,
FoodRotSpeed = 3,
Example — hardcore preset:
Zombies = 1,
DayLength = 1,
XpMultiplier = 0.5,
LootRespawn = 4,
FoodRotSpeed = 1,
ZombieAttractionMultiplier = 1.5,
WaterShut = 0,
ElecShut = 0,
Step 6: Existing player progress is preserved. Loot already in containers is unaffected — only respawns and new gains use the new settings.
For zombie population settings to take effect, you may need to start a new map — existing populated tiles cache zombie counts.
