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Graveyard Keeper 2 Undead Army Guide — Soldiers, Battles and Town Defense

The undead army is Graveyard Keeper 2’s combat layer: the same corpses that staff your production lines can be armed, armored and marched into Town battles against the corrupted zombie hordes. This guide covers how soldiers are made, how battles actually play out, and what to build before the first siege.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do battles work in Graveyard Keeper 2?

Town battles are checkpoint-capture fights. You build defenses at a red table, then move your squads by dragging their banners. Each battle usually has around 3 objectives to capture and hold until the timer runs out. Winning opens up new parts of the Town, and some fights include a second defensive phase afterward.

Can zombie soldiers die permanently?

No. Fallen zombie soldiers can be recovered: their core animated remains can be picked up from the battlefield and reassembled at the repair table. A zombie is only truly lost if its core is destroyed. You can also swap gear and unlock combat perks on survivors between battles.

How do you unlock more zombie squads?

Squad slots at the Barracks are expanded with Defender's Emblems, which are battle rewards — you give them to the ram after a victory. Battles also hand out Town Gratitude, Zombie Goo, keys for looters and Victory Banners.

What is Defence Power?

It's the entry requirement for Town battles. The first battle needs 12 Defence Power: the hireable mercenary squad contributes 8, and two basic Barracks defenses cover the remaining 4. Fortifications stored at the Barracks count toward the total.

From worker to soldier

Section titled “From worker to soldier”

Any resurrected zombie can become a soldier. The process, as verified in the launch build:

  1. Arm it. Use the Inspect function to equip a zombie with armor and either a spear or a bow. The equipment decides its combat role — pike-and-shield for melee, bow for ranged.
  2. Station it. Carry the recruit to the Barracks and place it in a squad slot.
  3. Expand the roster. More squad slots unlock by spending Defender’s Emblems (battle rewards) at the ram.

Zombie soldiers never need food or wages, can’t permanently die (see the repair table above), and can be swapped out or re-equipped at any time. Their combat perks are capped by the red-skull level of the corpse they came from — save your most corrupted bodies for troops you plan to invest in.

How a Town battle plays out

Section titled “How a Town battle plays out”
  1. Scout the plan first. Bars at the top of the screen show each attack lane and the timing of enemy waves (red areas = when the lane gets hit). Place your best defenses where the pressure lands.
  2. Build at the red table. Barricades and archer towers have predefined spots. You can trade some barricade slots for extra towers.
  3. Command with banners. Each squad follows its banner. Plant banners on objectives to hold them, or carry one yourself (you can only carry a single banner at a time) to lead a squad around.
  4. Fight yourself — you’re the strongest unit. Your Keeper has real damage output and a brain. Chop up clusters with a bow, keep potions on the hotbar, and watch your stamina.
  5. Capture and hold. More soldiers at a flag means faster capture. The safest pattern: let waves break on your defenses, then push objectives during the lulls.
  6. Watch the notifications. An alert that you’re losing a flag means pull a squad back, not push further forward.

Some victories open new Town districts for restoration, and some battles have a second phase where you must defend what you just took — you’ll get time to rebuild between them.

Fortifications cheat sheet

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Structure Use it for
Standard Barricade General lane-blocking; sturdy and cheap
Spiked Barricade Lanes with lots of melee zombies — they take retaliation damage while attacking it
Fortified Barricade Maximum delay on a dangerous lane
Archer Tower Ranged damage behind a stable front; never leave one uncovered

All of these are built through the Barracks, and pieces stored there contribute Defence Power even before a battle starts.

Squad composition

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The proven setup is one melee squad + one ranged squad once the battle supports multiple slots:

  • Pike zombies hold choke points, protect ranged units and contest flags.
  • Bow zombies shoot over the frontline, weaken incoming waves and cover lanes.

The same principle from production applies here: train specialists, not generalists. A dedicated pike line and a dedicated tower crew beat a mob of identical zombies.

Are mercenaries worth it?

Section titled “Are mercenaries worth it?”

For the first battle, yes. The Barracks has a hireable mercenary squad (pike and bow included) that contributes 8 of the first battle’s 12 Defence Power — by far the simplest route. Two notes:

  • The fee is tied to your next victory, so a failed attempt doesn’t waste the payment outright.
  • Mercenaries get more expensive after victories and occupy a squad slot, so once your own zombies have gear and perks, home-grown soldiers take over.

What’s next

Section titled “What’s next”