Shiv
| Shiv | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Class | Short Blade |
| Skill | Short Blade |
| Damage | 0.3-0.5 |
| Range | 0.61-0.8 |
| Crit | 10% x5 |
| Condition | 5 |
| Weight | 0.5 |
| Hands | One-handed |
| Crafting Skill | Maintenance: 1 |
| Crafting | See How to Craft |
| Location | Containers |
| Spawn ID | /additem Base.KnifeShiv
|
| Crafting XP | 20 XP (Maintenance) |
The Shiv is a small home-made blade, ground from a scrap of metal and wrapped for a grip. It is a one-handed stabbing weapon that trains the Short Blade skill.
It is light and easy to make, but it hits softly and breaks quickly. It is a stopgap weapon for the first days or for a survivor with nothing else. It can be crafted once the recipe is known, and it turns up in survivor caches, survivor safehouses and on prison inmates. The best occupations for short blades are the Burger Flipper, the Chef and the Doctor. Each starts with the same Short Blade skill.
Combat
The Shiv stabs at very close range, about 0.8 tiles. Each hit deals between 0.3 and 0.5 damage, so most stabs only wound. The crit chance starts at 10 percent, and a crit multiplies the damage five times. Its weight of 0.5 makes each stab cheap in endurance.
The short reach means the zombie must be right next to the survivor. That makes it a poor choice against more than one zombie. It suits finishing a zombie on the ground. The Short Blade skill raises damage, crit chance and stab speed as it levels.
Compared with a Kitchen Knife, it hits softer and its crit is weaker. A Screwdriver has the same weight and a stronger crit. The Shiv is worth carrying only until a real knife turns up.
How to Craft Shiv
Each recipe that makes the Shiv is listed with its materials and the tools it keeps.
Make Shiv
The Make Shiv recipe makes the Shiv. It needs Maintenance level 1. The recipe has to be learned first.
| Name | Image | Amount | Kept | Spawn ID |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steel Bar Quarter | 
|
1x | No | /additem Base.SteelBarQuarter
|
| Whetstone | 
|
1x | Yes | /additem Base.Whetstone
|
| Rag | 
|
1x | No | /additem Base.RippedSheets
|
Repair
The Shiv has 5 condition. Each hit has a 1 in 7 chance of taking a point off, so it breaks after a short fight. The Short Blade and Maintenance skills both lower that chance. A dull edge can be sharpened with a whetstone, on a Grindstone, or poorly with a file. Making a new one is often quicker than keeping an old one going.
Locations
The Shiv is most common in survivor caches, where survivor crates and counters often hold one. Survivor safehouses keep them in cardboard boxes, crates, small boxes and on metal shelves. It can also turn up on zombies wearing an inmate outfit, in shelters and in prison cells.
The places where it spawns, with the rough chance per container. Each tab shows one kind of place.
| Location | Container | Chance |
|---|---|---|
| Survivor cache | Survivor crate | 17.9% |
| Survivor safehouse | Cardboard box | 12% |
| Survivor safehouse | Crate | 12% |
| Survivor safehouse | Small box | 12% |
| Survivor cache | Counter | 12% |
| Survivor cache | Counter | 12% |
| Survivor safehouse | Metal shelves | 9.6% |
| Survivor cache | Survivor crate | 8.9% |
| Survivor cache (large building) | Survivor crate | 8.9% |
| Survivor safehouse | Counter | 7.2% |
| Location | Container | Chance |
|---|---|---|
| Any building | Zombie wearing a inmate outfit | 7.7% |
| Any building | Zombie wearing a inmate khaki outfit | 7.7% |
| Location | Container | Chance |
|---|---|---|
| Drug shack | Other | 3.1% |
| Drug lab | Counter | 1.6% |
| Drug lab | Overhead cupboard | 1.6% |
| Prison cells | Other | 0.3% |
| Derelict | Other | <0.1% |
| Derelict steel factory | Other | <0.1% |
| Prisoner belongings | Clothes dryer | <0.1% |
| Location | Container | Chance |
|---|---|---|
| Any building | Shelter | 1.5% |
| Prison laundry | Clothes dryer | <0.1% |
| Prison laundry | Clothes dryer | <0.1% |
| Prison laundry | Clothing rack | <0.1% |
| Prison laundry | Washing machine | <0.1% |
| Prison laundry | Locker | <0.1% |
| Prison laundry | Metal shelves | <0.1% |
| Prison laundry | Other | <0.1% |
Notes
- The Make Shiv recipe needs Maintenance 1 and must be learned first.
- Almost any small scrap works as the blade, from a bar quarter or Scrap Metal to a Butter Knife, Fork or Spoon.
- A broken sword or katana blade shard also makes a Shiv.
- The recipe keeps a whetstone, a file or a saw, and uses a binding or tape for the grip.
Template:ProjectZomboidWeaponTiles
All Short Blades