Zombicide: Invader – Survival on a Distant Planet

With the discovery of the small planet PK-L7, humanity thought their energy concerns were over. A highly volatile material known as Xenium was the perfect fuel for deep space travel. Within a year, teams of civilian scientists and investors had set up a thriving home base on the barren rocky surface. There was a lot of money to made in the Xenium business, and you can bet that these companies wanted to protect their investment. Accompanying the civilians were carefully selected international military personnel. It might have seemed like overkill to have so much firepower on what was essentially a corporate endeavor, but that was before the attack, before everything went wrong. It seems humans weren’t the only ones that discovered PK-L7 and wanted to harvest its resources.

The Xenos, as they were referred to by the human inhabitants, arrived at around the same time as the Earthlings, and set up their own Xenium extraction program. Although communication between the two intergalactic races was limited, the Xenos seemed peaceful. But something changed. The first attack occurred deep below the surface, in one of the mining tunnels. The human forces were almost entirely wiped out, and those that made it back to the base let the others know that the Xenos had become violent.

In Zombicide: Invader, 1 to 6 players take on the role of Survivors on PK-L7. They must work together to withstand an onslaught from an alien force. The battles take place within the walls of the international space station, as well as on the surface of PK-L7.

Invader is the latest entry in the award winning Zombicide series. For this adventure, many new elements were introduced to offer a fresh challenge to fans.

The Survivors in Invader come in one of two classifications. They are either Civilians or Military. The Civilians don’t have the same training or heavy-duty armored tech suits that the soldiers have. They are a weaker bunch, with only two hit points. However, they do have an intimate knowledge of the base, and they are able to search anywhere, allowing them to get their hands on useful equipment. The Military members are protected inside their suits, with three hit points each. They are the best bet in combat situations. However, they are less familiar with the base and only able to search for items in Security rooms.

The human Survivors are going to have to work together and make use of the technology around them if they ever hope to leave the planet. The Xenos are a terrifying foe that seem to be reacting to the Xenium in a way that turns them into vicious monsters.

The most common of the Xenos are referred to as the Workers. They are a bit weaker than some of their larger brethren, but no less enthusiastic when it comes to killing. The Workers are not just deadly, they are numerous, appearing in swarms to overwhelm their targets. The Hunters are also not large in appearance, but what they lack in size, they make up for in skills. The Hunters have clearly had some sort of combat training, learning to avoid ranged attacks until they’re close enough to launch some of their own. Giant, lumbering beasts known as Tanks have caused nightmares for the Survivors on PK-L7. They move slowly, but when they get within range of a target, they deal out a devastating two points of damage, and they require two damage to defeat. Finally, the last known Xeno type is the Spoiler Abomination. It seems to be infected more than any other Xeno, with corrosive Mold oozing out of its pores. Everywhere the Spoiler Abomination goes, it leaves behind a trail of Mold which eats away at the walls of the base. Active Mold also serves as a Spawn point for new Xenos to enter the board. The Survivors will have to work to destroy its spread before it takes over the entire base and loses them the mission.

Staying alive on PK-L7 is not going to be easy for the Civilians and Soldiers. The Xenos are surrounding the base and it’s only a matter of time before the walls are breached. Battles take place inside as well as in the vacuum of the planet’s surface. They may have come here as individuals, but if they want to get home, they are going to have to work as a team.

Zombicide: Invader will be available in Q3 2019.

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Sean Jacquemain is a Content Producer for CMON and Managing Editor and photographer of The Daily Worker Placement blog. He lives in Toronto, where he worked as a Game Guru and Manager at Snakes and Lattes Game Cafe.