How to Change the Spawn Point on a Project Zomboid Server
On a Project Zomboid server, each new player picks where to spawn from the towns in the <name>_spawnregions.lua file. To have everyone start in the same place, leave just one town there, or set fixed coordinates in the .ini's SpawnPoint. Both changes apply to characters created afterwards: they don't move anyone who's already playing.
The three ways to decide where people spawn
Spawn regions (spawnregions): the list of towns each player chooses from when creating their character. Removing towns limits where you can start.
SpawnPoint: exact coordinates where every new player spawns, with no choice. It's how a group literally starts together, or how a big server gets an arrival area.
Respawning in the safehouse: with SafehouseAllowRespawn, whoever dies can start again at their group's base. It's the most used among friends once you have a home (what happens when you die).
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Leave a single town (or remove some)
The file sits next to the .ini, in the Server folder (on your PC, Zomboid\Server\servertest_spawnregions.lua if you didn't change the name). The server creates it the first time it starts, with one line per town, like this: { name = "Muldraugh, KY", file = "media/maps/Muldraugh, KY/spawnpoints.lua" },. On Build 42, according to the official wiki, they are: Brandenburg, Echo Creek, Ekron, Fallas Lake, Irvington, March Ridge, Muldraugh, Riverside, Rosewood, Valley Station and West Point.
Stop the server
And back up the file before touching it: if you slip up with a comma, the server can't read it.
Keep only the ones you want
Delete the lines for the towns you don't want to start in, or put -- in front of them to disable them without deleting them. Every remaining line ends with a comma and everything stays inside the braces of the return.
Start it and test
Create a new character: when choosing where to spawn, only the towns you kept show up. Anyone already playing stays where they were.
One exact point for everyone: SpawnPoint
In the .ini, SpawnPoint=x,y,z forces every new player to spawn at those world coordinates. At 0,0,0 (the default) it does nothing. The z is the floor: 0 is street level.
You get the coordinates from the map at map.projectzomboid.com, the one the game's own help mentions: find the spot and note its x and y. Before setting them, test them: join as an admin and type /teleportto x,y,z. If you end up inside a wall, in the water or surrounded by zombies, pick another spot. How to make yourself admin, in the admin guide.
Spawning on a modded map
If the map comes with its own spawn points, you add a line with its name and its spawnpoints.lua file to <name>_spawnregions.lua; if you want people to start only there, leave just that one. If it doesn't, players get there on foot or by car, or with a SpawnPoint inside the map. The details for each map, in the Workshop maps guide.
The file the server generates also includes, commented out with --, an example of a custom point (the Twiggy's bar in West Point) that reads the points from <name>_spawnpoints.lua, where you can set different places per occupation. For a single point, SpawnPoint is simpler.
What they spawn with: SpawnItems
SpawnItems, in the same .ini, gives every new player some items when they spawn, separated by commas: for example, Base.Axe,Base.Bag_BigHikingBag to start with an axe and a big hiking bag. Together with a fixed arrival point, it's the classic way to start a server with everyone on equal terms. The rest of the .ini, in what each option does.
If someone spawns in the void
The official wiki describes a case: a player who joins with a profile they already used in a game hosted with “Host” can get stuck in the void. The fix it gives is to quit, change the username in the server's entry under “Favorites” (for example, from player to player_1), save and join again: they spawn in a normal area with a new character.
With NapNodes
SpawnPoint and SpawnItems are in “Settings”: type “SpawnPoint” or “spawn” in the search box, change the value (it saves on its own) and click “Restart”. Spawn regions are edited in “Files”, in .cache/Server/napnodes_spawnregions.lua, with the server stopped; make a backup in “Backups” first if you're on a paid plan.
If you're setting up the server from scratch, the guide to settings for playing with friends goes over everything else worth deciding before anyone joins.
Frequently asked questions
How do I make everyone spawn in the same place in Project Zomboid?
Set coordinates in the server .ini's SpawnPoint (SpawnPoint=x,y,z) or leave a single town in <name>_spawnregions.lua. It applies to new characters.
Where is the spawnregions file on my Project Zomboid server?
Next to the .ini, in Zomboid's Server folder: <name>_spawnregions.lua (servertest_spawnregions.lua if you didn't change the name). On NapNodes, .cache/Server/napnodes_spawnregions.lua.
How do I find coordinates for SpawnPoint?
From the map at map.projectzomboid.com, the one the game's own help mentions. Before setting them, test them as an admin with /teleportto x,y,z.
Does changing the spawn move players who are already on the server?
No: it only decides where characters created from then on spawn, including those of players who die.
Can you respawn at your base when you die?
Yes, if the server has SafehouseAllowRespawn on and the base is a claimed safehouse: when you create your new character, you get the option to respawn there.
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