Project Zomboid – Handy West Point Guide

A guide I’ve shoved together from countless runs and lives where I’ve survived in West Point and the area around it. Hopefully this helps you out if you’re getting started or are interested as to what this town has to offer!

Outline of West Point

West Point is typically regarded to as the most riskiest spawn out of the four starting towns due to the high zombie density along the roads. While this is definitely true, this also allows you to get a head start if you’ve got what it takes to take on zombies and small hordes. The long roads that stretch from east to west allow you to get across the town relatively quickly, albeit with a trail of zeds in tow. The amount of houses and fences allow you to lose hordes if you’re sufficient at being nimble.

The best way to go about West Point as a new / inexperienced player is to stick to the outskirts and keep away from the commercial part of the town. You’ll find the heaviest density of zombies here, so take care venturing close to this area.

You can find gas stations to the east and the south of the town with shops attached to both. Industrial can be found to the south-east too, and most garages in the town will have a wide variety of industrial components and tools. Unfortunately, the most you can find in the way of dedicated industrial is a single factory and a self-storage lot. The commercial strip has everything that you’d need, such as medicine, books and fresh food. If you’re going in solo, or as a large group of players, you’ll always have enough supplies to go around. Don’t forget to loot the Giga-Mart that is located to the east of the commercial portion of West Point.

West Point

The town as a whole has a lot of buildings to explore and scavenge from, although a large portion of the town is made up of mostly residential and community buildings. This means that what can be said for one area can very likely be said for another.

Overhead view from the centre of West Point.

The town can be considered fairly dense given how many buildings make up West Point, although a majority of them are Residential buildings. There’s an even mix of single-storey and two-storey buildings, with the latter having garages located next door. These buildings can be a great place to start in, since you’ll be given a quiet house with two floors, a garage and plenty of ways to secure it as a small fort. However, one downside of spawning in a two-storey house is its location. These buildings are typically in the centre of West Point, so you’ll be required to clear out zombies if you want to make any progress throughout of the town. It’s best that you secure the buildings around your spawn house to clear out zombies and check for house alarms.

If you spawn in a single-storey house, your chances at getting out of the town and being able to loot the stores in the east are higher. The zombie population is still dense on the outskirts, but you won’t have to fight through dozens of hordes just to exit the town. The major downside of these houses is that they rarely contain a closet with materials inside. You’ll be lucky to find tools to fortify your house early on, so play it safe and be quiet. The proximity to the river is helpful as you’ll be able to get a fairly consistent supply of fresh food with a decent fishing skill.

Houses located to the North of West Point.

Houses located in the central portion of West Point.

The residential portion of West Point doesn’t offer a huge variety for a scavenger, although it’s an excellent place to go for food and water. The garages offer a mix of contents, from metal components to a wide range of tools. In short, the residential part of West Point is a great spot to start if you’re not willing to take on hordes of the infected just yet. The western portion of West Point consists of two-storey houses, fields and a large school. If you head to the riverside, you can also find a small dock that could be used as a small shelter. There’s not a lot of zombies along the riverside, making this a relatively calm area to be. Fishing is also a great benefit of West Point, as the dock offers you a comfortable place to set up and spend a day or two fishing.

The school offers a strong place to fortify up, due to its large size and ability to barricade rooms on the upper floor. The canteen downstairs offers you a good amount of perishable goods and a fully functioning kitchen. No need to go scavenging, since it’s all there for you! The sports hall, the most spacious room in the school, has sporting goods and melee weapons in cupboards that can help you defend yourself. Don’t forget to check the lockers for backpacks, food and materials. These contain most of the loot in the building, but they typically contain a lot of junk and miscellaneous pieces.

First floor view of the school.

Across the road from the school, you can find a small grocery store with a mixture of food and bags. You can find snacks and non-perishables inside, so you’re in no rush to knock this store over before food begins to rot. You’ll find a backroom with some shelving that you can use for storage, as well as dumpsters for garbage bags.

To the south of the town, you can find two restaurants, a clothing and grocery store clumped together. These buildings are relatively isolated from the rest of the town, so it has potential for a small base or a compound. This place can keep you going for a week or two if you manage your resources well.

Group of stores to the south.

To the west of the town, you can begin to find farmhouses and fields. While nothing special, their position outside of the bulk of West Point means you can safely loot these without running into too many hordes. A nice bonus is the presence of farm sheds, which offer you a mix of farming, industrial and crafting supplies. Most houses have a shed, so you can happily go from house to house and gather up a good amount of supplies. Typically, you’ll be able to set up a small farm for yourself after raiding a handful of these sheds.

Downtown

The downtown portion of West Point is similar to the high street in Riverside and is where you may spend most of your time on loot runs! There are a dozen or so storefronts that you can access, like a clinic, a hardware store, a library and a coffee shop!

Commercial portion of West Point.

Going from left to right, the first building that is worth mentioning is the gas station located along the main road. It only has two pumps to take fuel from, though the building on the lot offers food for any long road trips you have planned. Due to its proximity to the bulk of West Point, you should expect to see a small horde or two nearby to this area. While they shouldn’t be too much of an issue to deal with on foot, driving in with a vehicle will draw in more than expected. There are only a few ways into the gas station building, so causing any noise in this area can be risky due to the few avenues of escape. However, when you’re inevitably able to clear this area out, you’ll be able to extract as much fuel as you’d like.

Gas station located along the high street.

On the other side of the street from the gas station is a store that has two sections. A lower floor with a general store and an upper floor with a living section. There’s a good mix of food, clothing and drinks on the lower floor, allowing you to stock up where needed. The upstairs of the store, the apartment, allows you to rest up before heading further east into the town. Upstairs, you can find an abundance of crates that contain mostly food. This can be good as a prefab storage room, or a chance to level up your carpentry skills. Nevertheless, you’ll have a full stomach once you settle in this home. You’ll be able to stay in this room with the addition of a TV, allowing you to binge-watch as many VHS tapes of woodcraft as you’d like.

Wooden crates containing food upstairs.

To the North of the commercial zone, you can find a group of buildings separated by parking spaces. Here, you can find an auto shop, a laundromat, a clinic and a Spiffo’s. The clinic serves two purposes: medical and snacks. It contains a front room, with shelving that stocks food and some medical supplies. You can find fridges that line the back corners offer water and perishable goods also. However, the back room is where you want to focus your search. Break or dismantle a couple doors and you’ll gain access to a bountiful amount of medical supplies. The Spiffo’s is like most other restaurants. The kitchen holds nothing special, though you can find sacks and kitchen utensils here if you’re in need of them. However, since most of the food here is perishable, you might want to avoid this late into the apocalypse. Your chances of running into a horde around this location are high, so be careful making noise here. The risk for the reward might not be worth it.

Clinic located next to the laundromat.

The commercial district has a great amount of supplies, so keeping a large group going will never be an issue if you manage resources well. The Giga-Mart to the east has a large amount of shelves and fridges that you can find both perishables and canned goods in. Food like ramen, peas and canned goods can be found all throughout the store, so making sure you have sufficient storage before scavenging is paramount to making the most of this area. Windows make up the majority of the walls for the main room, so keeping your presence unknown to the undead will keep you safe. It’s no good being weighed down on a loot run when zombies break through the windows around you.

The police station located in West Point is one of the more sought-after parts of town. Guns and melee weapons located in the armoury and locker room can keep you fighting the hordes of West Point until you’re the last thing standing. The armoury contains a handful of shelves and gun lockers, though it’s located behind two locked doors. Finding a key shouldn’t be too difficult with the amount of zombies that can spawn in the area. With luck, a police car will spawn in the surrounding parking spots and you’ll have a vehicle that appropriately fits with whatever clothing you may take out of the police station.

Police station located next to the bank.

The two last places worth mentioning in the east / downtown part of West Point are the Giga-Mart and the gun store. The Giga-Mart can be summarised in two words: food and storage. You can find dozens of shelves in the front and the back room, all of which are typically stocked to the brim with food and water. The meat counters at the back of the building has ovens to cook, sinks to clean and cupboards with most forms of meat that you can find in the world. Raiding this area early on is good, since you’ll be able to keep the food refrigerated in your chosen base or safehouse. Moving on to the back room, you’ll find a handful of metal shelving units which can total up to 100 storage units each. For a solo player, this back room will have enough shelves to last you a run if you manage storage well. For a team? This can serve as a nice storage hub or personal storage shelves. The other benefit is the loading dock, which is large enough to fit most commercial vehicles. This allows you to transform the back of the Giga-Mart into a garage or autoshop, depending on your characters skills.

Interior view of the Giga-Mart.

Now, onto the gun store. While it sits out of the way of the town, you can still find some zombies around it. Keep that in mind, as you’re not able to enter the gun store in any conventional way. To gain entry, you either need to find and use a sledgehammer or be very careful with a molotov and on hand with extinguishers. Upon entry, you’ll be greeted by shelves and display cabinets that can house guns, attachments and ammunition! Not only that, but the zombies can’t break down any of the iron bars that block the doors and windows. You’ll be safe in here as long as you’re able to keep any zombies out from the entrance you created.

Base Locations

Now that we’ve discussed what West Point has to offer, it’s time to talk about what locations you can choose to base up at. I’ll go over my personal choices, as well as the pros and cons of each location.

Twiggy’s Bar

Twiggy’s Bar is a place you might pass over when you go on a loot run. What does it have to offer aside from booze and some tables to break down? Well, assuming you haven’t got the materials needed to fortify a large area of town or a large building, the bar is for you! It has a lot of floor space, few windows and two floors to make use of. This provides you with an easy floor plan to use, as there isn’t much to deconstruct on the second floor to make use of the room. You’ll be able to spend less time on deconstructing and more time on stocking up.

Don’t forget that this building also has a small pile of cardboard boxes in the upstairs corner. Offering some storage off the bat, this place is ideal for a starter base in my opinion. The major downside of this place is its location, as it’s to the far east of West Point. This means it’s out of the way of most hordes, but you’ll have to head through or around the downtown area. Remember, the hordes in that part of town can be huge and everywhere.

Pros:

• Easy to fortify
• Lots of floor space
• Fairly isolated
• Next to a gun store

Cons:

• No space for vehicles
• Next to a forest (sneaky zombies)
• On the eastern most point of town

Conclusion: I’d give this location a 3/5. It’s a well-positioned building, but being on the far side of town makes excursions to the West a time-consuming manner. Due to it’s size, it can work well as a solo and team base.

School

The school can take up a lot of your time exploring. Each room has its small kitchens, with some food and materials to scavenge at every corner. But what if it was your home? Then you’d never need to meticulously check each room before you leave! The school has a lot to offer you as a home. Tons of rooms to fortify, a kitchen ready and waiting and an easily accessible rooftop for rain collectors. These features of the school make it a lovely sounding place, but there’s one major issue. The hordes. Due to the amount of rooms, the chances of a zombie sneaking in through a window or door can be high. It’s unreasonable to barricade every window as a solo player, so the next best option is to choose the upstairs as a home. Having a sledgehammer will make this potentially the best base on the list, as breaking the staircases opens up the entire second floor safely. The other feature about this place that makes it good, especially for a group, is the sports hall. Considering the fact that it’s a large, open room, you can easily convert it into a garage with some demolition and craftsmanship. Don’t forget, there’s a small medical cupboard in the reception area that can have more medical supplies than you’d expect!

Pros:

• Amazing potential with a group
• Rooftop with easy access
• Canteen and sports hall with supplies
• Massive floor plan when secured

Cons:

• Potential locked behind having a sledgehammer
• Hordes can destroy sheet ropes
• May be difficult to clear when solo

Conclusion: I’d give this base an 4.5/5. While it’s a fantastic place to fortify if you have the supplies or people, it can be difficult if you’re playing solo. The hordes can make it difficult to stay safe, which is why this is just behind a full score. A team can make the most out of this location, offering tons of space for cars, materials and food.

Two-Storey House

These houses are everywhere in West Point. You’ll run into dozens of them, checking for food or weapons. Anything to help you last another night in this miserable town. The garages are stocked well, the cupboards not so much. But you can stock them up, by living in this place yourself! While it may not seem like much, these houses can keep you going if you know how to. Fortifying the doors and windows is the best way to keep yourself safe here. While it’s not much compared to the other two places listed thus far, the main strength of these houses are their locations. They’re the bulk of the town, so you can have anywhere you choose. This means you’ll be able to pick and choose where you want to be. While most of its floor space is taken up by pre-existing furniture, you can use that to your advantage. Whether it’s for storage, breaking them down for planks or putting them in front of windows / doors. On the other hand, having a kitchen prepared for you with food and water stocked already is excellent. Plus, a garage out back allows you to separate construction equipment and food. Unfortunately, the houses are best suited for a solo player, or a very small group.

Pros:

• Can choose virtually any house
• Comes with a kitchen and food
• Garage offers a variety of construction items
• Two floors offers some security

Cons:

• Hordes can be a problem
• Suitable for one to two players only
• Garage is separate from main house

Conclusion: This place is a 2/5. While you can find this type of house anywhere across West Point, this doesn’t necessarily make it a viable place everywhere. The hordes along the main roads will always pose a threat, so you’ll need to be either very sneaky or fortify the windows early on. This place is more suitable for a solo player or small group, so be sure to keep that in mind when you consider storage and keeping the place well-stocked.

Dock

Out of the way, quiet and tranquil. Aside from the few zombie groans along the riverbank, this place is a cosy place to set yourself up. First and foremost, this is very much a solo place due to it’s size. At around a rough 28 tiles, you’ll barely have room to fit yourself. The main advantage of the dock is the river. You’ll be able to fish up all the food you need. On demand, too! Keep your fishing gear in tip top shape and you’ll be fine to live out a lovely life here. The zombie count along the river isn’t anything to be scared about. If you manage to clear out the few groups of infected that are around here, then you’ll not run into zombies for a while. Maybe a few stragglers here and there, but nothing you’ll have any trouble dealing with. Having a lot of space outside of the dock allows you to park your vehicles with much more ease than the other locations.

Pros:

• Access to fishing
• Extremely out of the way
• Exterior space for vehicles

Cons:

• No interior space
• Solo players only

Conclusion: I’d give this place a 3.5/5. The location of the dock makes it extremely promising if you want a safe, calm and relatively unique location to choose as a home. If you have a team, you could make this into a small compound built around fishing. Though, it is advised that this is a solo base due to the small size that it initially starts off as.