Learn how to build and use Blade Traps
Have you ever wanted to turn your defense systems in 7 Days to Die into a literal zombie blender? Now you can! Blade Traps utilize huge metal blades to slice up and dismember trespassers. These advanced traps deal devastating damage and can turn entire hordes of attacking zombies into minced meat.
This guide will walk you through how to craft and set up Blade Traps and offer advice on how they can be used to defend your base.
How to craft Blade Traps
Blade Traps are powerful, durable, and valuable. You’ll need at least level 25 in the Traps crafting skill to craft it. Additionally, you’ll need a functional Workbench and a few advanced materials.
Each Blade Trap costs the following:
- 15 Forged Iron
- 15 Forged Steel
- 12 Mechanical Parts
- 9 Electrical Parts
- 15 Oil
How to repair Blade Traps
Blade Traps will lose durability as they deal damage to enemies or are attacked. If their durability falls too low, they will eventually stop working until they are repaired.
Blade Traps can be repaired with forged steel and mechanical parts by using the secondary action of a stone ax, claw hammer, or nail gun while aiming at a damaged trap. Depending on how much damage the device has sustained, it may require more resources to repair.
How to use Blade Traps
Blade Traps are huge, and it can be difficult to find a proper location. On top of this, they function identically to strike an enemy with a blade, meaning that they may deal more or less damage depending on where the blades impact. Because of this, it’s important to think carefully about how you set up these traps.
1. Target Specific Body Parts
It’s tempting to set up a bunch of Blade Traps and let them run. This is still effective, but you can fine-tune your defenses by setting up your traps to strike specific body parts. A headless zombie is a dead zombie, so setting your Blade Traps above the path of your target can turn them into lethal automatic guillotines. Alternatively, you can set them at knee height and have your blades turn sprinting zombies into slow crawlers by slicing off their legs.
2. Overlap Blades
Players can set Blade Traps close enough to one another that the hitboxes of their blades overlap. This effectively doubles the damage of your traps and increases the chances of killing your target before they get through the trap. Placing these devices on either side of a narrow path is a great way to utilize this strategy.
3. Walls and Doors
Blade Traps can be affixed to walls and smooth surfaces to protect your fences and gates. Not only does this punish enemies who get too close to your walls by chopping off their heads, but the blades can be toggled off and on by controlling their flow of power with devices like switches. Since the blades themselves do not take up space or deal damage when not powered, they can safely protect doors in this way without limiting your use of them.
Pros and cons of Blade Traps
Cons
- Blade Traps are expensive, requiring high-grade materials to craft and maintain.
- These large machines make them difficult to fit into confined spaces and limit the placement of other traps around them.
- This trap requires a constant flow of electricity to remain functional. In addition, they require a lot of energy and will put significant strain on your power grid.
- They are quite loud and easy for other players to spot.
Pros
- Blade Traps are durable and can put out quite a bit of damage before becoming inactive.
- They are one of the deadliest traps in the game, dealing extreme damage.
- Blade Traps are capable of dismembering and even decapitating enemies.
- These traps can be toggled on and off using switches and pressure plates.
Tips and tricks for using Blade Traps
- Placing your traps so the blades spin at head level makes them more deadly, but only to standing enemies of average height.
- Standing on top of a spinning Blade Trap is perfectly safe, which can even protect you from zombies.
- Blade Traps are heavy; make sure whatever they are attached to can support their weight.
- Blades can be hung upside down from a low ceiling to target enemy heads while keeping the path clear.
Final thoughts on Blade Traps
Brutal, efficient, and tons of fun. The Fun Pimps really knocked it out of the park when they designed this trap. Its power is balanced by its costs, but at high levels, it is well worth it to invest in your own personal zombie mower.
Looking for some other tips to help you get started in 7 Days to Die? Check out our 10 Tips for Getting Started and our 7 Days to Die Beginner’s Guide.
