Season 2: Everfrost Era — Last Z: Survival Shooter Guide
Updated 7 Aug 2026 · 19 min readOverview
Everfrost Era
The 45-day winter season. Resistance is everything.
The core loop
Smart Greenhouses generate Icebloom. Icebloom feeds your Bio Lab. The Bio Lab grants virus resistance. Higher resistance lets you kill bigger creeps, which drop more Frost Cores, which fund the next Bio Lab level. Miss a beat in week 1 and you spend the rest of the season catching up.
How to use this guide
On desktop, the feature list stays visible on the left — click any feature to switch instantly. On mobile and tablet, the feature list is at the top of the page; tap any feature and the page scrolls to its content.
Why resistance is the whole season
Everfrost isn't a build-anything-you-want season — nearly every system feeds into a single stat. Smart Greenhouses fund your Bio Lab, the Bio Lab grants resistance, resistance lets you beat higher-level Snow Leopards and Frostbanes for more Frost Cores and Personal Glory, and Glory feeds back into more resistance through milestone rewards and the Glory Leader tier's permanent +720 bonus. Wartime Investment, the Season Journey pass, and Influence Milestones all exist to push that same number higher, faster.
Because everything loops back to resistance, the players who fall behind in week 1 stay behind — a low-resistance account clears smaller creeps, earns fewer Frost Cores, and upgrades the Bio Lab slower, which keeps resistance low. Getting Greenhouses and Bio Lab moving on Day 1 matters more here than in most other seasons.
Grouping & Rules
Grouping & Rules
The official mechanics, straight from the in-game Rules panel.
How grouping works
At season start, four states are grouped together. You'll see alliances from all four on the shared seasonal map. Cities, creeps, and Glory War targets are all cross-state. Your S1 base, troops, and research carry over unchanged — only the seasonal layer is new.
The Everfrost screen shows which cities you can attack at the current point in the season — usually a range like Lv.1 to Lv.6 that widens over time. Don't bother scouting cities outside the range; you can't take them.
Seasonal Buildings
Seasonal Buildings
The five structures that define the Everfrost meta.
All five buildings
| Building | Slots | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Smart Greenhouse | 4 / 5 | Boosts Icebloom output (5th slot unlocks with Wartime Investment) |
| Bio Lab | 1 / 1 | Boosts troop resistance to the virus — makes high-level monsters easier to beat |
| Command Post | 1 / 1 | Central seasonal HQ structure |
| Icy Arsenal | 1 / 2 | Boosts morale to greatly increase troop attack ability |
| Icy Fort | 1 / 2 | Solidifies defense to greatly boost troop defense ability |
Smart Greenhouse — your Icebloom engine
You get up to 5 Smart Greenhouses. They generate Icebloom passively, which is the resource you spend to upgrade your Bio Lab. The 5th Greenhouse only unlocks if you buy Wartime Investment 4 times. More Greenhouses = more Icebloom per hour = faster Bio Lab progression. Smart Greenhouse production caps at 15,000,000 Icebloom, so collect regularly.
Bio Lab — the resistance factory
Only 1 Bio Lab per player. It's the single most important seasonal building. Each level grants a large chunk of virus resistance, which is the multiplier that makes every creep kill faster and every Glory War rally hit harder. Bio Lab upgrades cost Icebloom + Frost Cores. Never let it sit idle.
Command Post — central HQ
One per player. Acts as the central command structure for your seasonal base. Level up alongside the other buildings — required for unlocking higher-tier seasonal upgrades.
Icy Arsenal — offense
Boosts morale to greatly increase troop attack ability. Slot 1 unlocks early, Slot 2 ("Offense Line II") unlocks later in the season. Don't rush this until your Bio Lab is at a strong baseline — the attack bonus scales with resistance, so it's weak early and strong late.
Icy Fort — defense
Solidifies defense to greatly boost troop defense ability. Slot 1 unlocks early, Slot 2 ("Defense Line II") unlocks later in the season. Same logic as Icy Arsenal — defensive value scales with resistance.
Priority order
Greenhouses → Bio Lab → Greenhouses → Bio Lab for the first week. Once your Bio Lab is at a strong baseline (resistance ≥ 2,000) and Greenhouses are 14+, then build out Icy Arsenal and Icy Fort. Save Command Post for required upgrade gates.
Resource caps
Heroes
Heroes — Bella, Alma, Harleyna
The three new Everfrost heroes.
Should you buy?
If you're already T10-training on a budget, hero packs are usually not the highest dollar-for-resistance buy of the season — Wartime Investment and Season Journey Premium give more impact per dollar. But heroes carry past the season, while seasonal buildings don't. If you'll play multiple seasons, hero spend has long-term value.
Season Tasks
Season Tasks
Daily and weekly objectives.
Daily routine
Common mistake
Players burn creep attempts on small targets because they look easier. They're not better. Bigger creeps give roughly double the Frost Cores per attempt and more Personal Glory per first kill. Use your highest-tier creep attempts first, every single day.
Season Journey
Season Journey
The pass with Freebie and Prime tracks.
Sample reward thresholds
| Points | Freebie | Prime Rewards |
|---|---|---|
| Early | EXP books | Notebooks + EXP books |
| Mid | Bulk Icebloom | Hooks + speedups |
| Later | Bulk Frost Cores | Materials + crates |
| Final | Equipment fragments | Fragments + crates |
Wartime Investment
Wartime Investment
The $10 pack you buy four times.
What's inside (per purchase)
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| V-Badge | 10 |
| Diamonds | 5,000 |
| Icebloom (large) | 5,000 |
| Fuel (50) | 5 |
| Standard Crate | 8 |
| Icebloom (small) | 1,000 |
| Frost Cores (small) | 1,000 |
| Wood / Food | 200 each |
Season-long perks
Rankings
Alliance Ranking
The alliance leaderboard. Two layers decide what you actually receive.
How alliance points are earned
| Source | How it works |
|---|---|
| Personal Glory (all members) | Sum of every member's individual Glory contribution |
| City occupation | Cities your alliance holds generate points over time |
| Clash wins | Winner steals 20% of the loser's season points |
Alliance reward tiers
Your final reward depends on two layers — your alliance's tier (above) and your internal slot inside the alliance (Alliance Leader / Backbone / Key Player / Contributor). See the Grouping & Rules → Season Rewards sub-tab for the full distribution breakdown.
Realistic goals
Top 10 is achievable for a coordinated mid-tier alliance. Top 5 requires a full pack-buying core plus daily participation from every member. #1 typically goes to the strongest server-leading alliance with multiple whales and tight coordination.
Personal Glory
Personal Glory
Your individual score. Drives Glory Chests, milestone rewards, and your tier rank.
How Personal Glory is earned
Glory comes from first kills on higher-level Snow Leopards and Frostbanes. The game shows three direct task buttons:
You also earn Glory from Yeti final-raid participation, city occupation contribution, and Clash damage. Auto-rally helps — you get first-hit credit even with a small contribution, which is how lower-spend players keep up with whales.
Glory milestone chests
Hit specific Glory thresholds to unlock one-time chests. Sample thresholds from a live state:
| Glory Threshold | Reward |
|---|---|
| 59,500 | Silver chest |
| 62,500 | Purple chest |
| 65,500 | Gold chest |
| 70,000 | Top tier — Glory Leader title + maximum rewards |
Glory Leader rewards
Reaching Glory Leader is the top personal achievement of the season. Confirmed rewards:
| Reward | Amount |
|---|---|
| Virus Resistance | +720 (permanent for season) |
| Hero EXP | 5,000,000 |
| Diamonds | 100 |
| Badges | 700 |
Glory tier ladder
Personal Glory has multiple tier ranks. Glory Leader is the top (#1 rank). Full tier ladder coming as community data is collected.
Glory Chest — the 8-hour loop
Independent of milestone chests, there's a Glory Chest reward available every 8 hours (3× per day). Each chest's contents scale with your current Glory score.
Endless Night
Endless Night Falls
Sundays. Yetis. Where strong states pull away.
Sunday strategy
Clash / Glory War
Clash / Glory War
The TvT finale. Week 3 onward.
Pre-war checklist
Combat principles
Coordinate targets — the whole alliance focuses one structure at a time. Open the path to the enemy Alliance Center I, since destroying it ends the fight instantly. Reinforce your own AC constantly. Heal in batches. Click Alliance Help every chance you get. Clash is decided in week 1's Bio Lab pace, not week 3's coordination — but coordination is the difference between top 5 and top 1.
Building priority for war
Bring your seasonal combat buildings online in this order: Icy Arsenal first (attack scales harder with resistance than defense does), then Icy Fort (defense for the inevitable counter-attacks), then their second slots (Offense Line II / Defense Line II) if available. Command Post upgrades as required by gating.
Related: Canyon Clash playbook →
Snowman Mania
Snowman Mania
Collect snowballs. Build the snowman. Keep the decoration.
Reward levels
| Snowman Level | Reward |
|---|---|
| Lv 5 | Small decoration |
| Lv 10 | Resources + speedups |
| Lv 15 | Mid-tier decoration |
| Lv 20 | Level 5 permanent decoration ★ |
Special Bounty
Special Bounty
Daily target rotation. Quick claim.
Why it's lighter
Special Bounty tasks usually overlap with what you're doing anyway: creep kills, building upgrades, city attacks. The reward is modest per day but compounds over 45 days. Don't skip it.
Season Timeline
Season Timeline
How the 45-day Everfrost cycle actually plays out week to week.
Week 1 — Build the engine
Place Alliance Center I immediately — nothing else builds until it's down, and only the leader or R4s can place it. Once it's up, rush Smart Greenhouses, then alternate Greenhouses and Bio Lab upgrades. This is also when you clear every Freebie tier on the Season Journey and start the daily creep-kill routine — biggest creeps first, every day, no exceptions.
Weeks 1–2 — Grind and compound
With Greenhouses and Bio Lab online, your daily routine is: use all creep attempts on the highest-level target first, rally Yetis (2 daily, 5 on Sunday's Endless Night), claim the 8-hour Glory Chest, and upgrade whatever seasonal building is next in your priority order. Wartime Investment, if you're buying it, should be bought early — the 4th purchase's Smart Greenhouse V unlock compounds for the rest of the season, so the earlier you finish the set, the more total Icebloom you bank.
Week 2–3 — Combat buildings come online
Once your Bio Lab is at a strong baseline and Greenhouses are built out, shift into Icy Arsenal and Icy Fort — offense first, since attack scales harder with resistance than defense does, then defense for the counter-attacks that follow. This is also prep time for Clash: check the pre-war checklist (Bio Lab level, resistance, Greenhouse count) against your alliance's actual numbers.
Week 3 — Clash for Glory
Any alliance can declare on another and the defender can't refuse. Whoever holds more Glory Points when it ends steals 20% of the loser's season points — and if either side's Alliance Center I falls, that side loses instantly regardless of points. This single event can swing your alliance several ranking tiers, which is why the pre-war checklist isn't optional.
Season end — reset and rewards
Season buildings, world resource tiles and neutral city ownership all reset. Your HQ, troops, research, gear, heroes and Snowman Mania decorations carry over unchanged. Alliance ranking and your internal reward slot lock in and get distributed by leadership after the season closes.
Strategy trade-off: spend now vs. bank later
The core spend decision in Everfrost is Wartime Investment vs. Season Journey Prime. Wartime Investment (4x $10) is the best dollar-for-resistance buy in the game because Smart Greenhouse V compounds for the rest of the season — buy it as early as you can afford it. Season Journey Prime ($25) is cheaper per unlock but its value is spread across doubled Glory Chests, Privilege buffs and pass rewards rather than one big permanent unlock. If you can only afford one early, Wartime Investment first — the earlier that 5th Greenhouse comes online, the more total Icebloom it produces before the season ends.
There's a similar trade-off with Icy Arsenal vs. Icy Fort — attack scales harder with resistance than defense, so bringing Arsenal online first gives Clash-week damage output a bigger boost per resistance point than the same investment in Fort. But going too far offense-only leaves you exposed to counter-attacks during the Battle phase, so the practical answer is Arsenal first, Fort close behind — not Arsenal only.
Common Mistakes
Common Mistakes
What actually tanks a season, and how to avoid it.
FAQ
FAQ
Quick answers to the questions we get most about Everfrost.
Frequently Asked Questions
Around 45 days, with cross-server matchmaking grouping 4 states together for the duration.
Bio Lab. It's the only building that grants virus resistance directly, and resistance is the stat that everything else in the season — creep kills, Glory, Clash — scales off.
For most spenders, yes — buying it all 4 times ($10 each) permanently unlocks Smart Greenhouse V and adds +100 flat virus resistance plus season-long perks. It's widely considered the best dollar-for-resistance purchase of the season.
Mainly from first kills on higher-level Snow Leopards and Frostbanes, plus Yeti raid participation, city occupation contribution, and Clash damage. Glory unlocks milestone chests and a recurring Glory Chest every 8 hours.
The winning alliance steals 20% of your season points, and if your Alliance Center I is destroyed during the fight, you lose immediately regardless of the points total. Protecting AC1 is the top defensive priority.
Season buildings, world resource tiles and virus resistance reset. Your HQ, troops, research, gear, heroes (including Bella, Alma and Harleyna) and Snowman Mania decorations all carry over unchanged.