Area: Scavenger's Wish
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The FroGames Card
You meet another scavenger on the trail. You have two white cards and two black cards in hand. Choose: share resources or strike first. He does the same. You reveal the cards together. Someone walks out alive, someone doesn't.
WHAT IT'S ABOUT
The Zone you no longer know
Zona: Scavenger's Wish is the expansion for Zona: Secret of Chernobyl designed by Maciej Drewing and Krzysztof Głośnicki, published by Rebel Studio in 2026. The art of Tomek Zarucki continues to shape this contaminated post-apocalyptic landscape, now even more unpredictable and dangerous.
The expansion introduces new mechanics of direct interaction between scavengers (trail encounters, temporary alliances or betrayals), recruitable companions with unique abilities, persistence dice that amplify successes and risks, and luck cards to manage defeats. More event cards, more mutants, more anomalies, more bunkers. The Zone reveals an unknown face even to the toughest veterans.
What they say abroad
"Zona reveals an unfamiliar face to the toughest veterans."
Zona rivela un volto sconosciuto anche ai veterani più duri.
— Rebel Studio
Scavenger's Wish has just been released and we are exploring it together with the first players. This card is based on official documentation and publisher materials, and will be updated as we accumulate games and community feedback.
— FroGames
Zona: Scavenger's Wish
The base game officially supports solo play, and the expansion adds components that can also be used solo (companions, persistence dice, luck cards). However, the trail encounter mechanics are designed for multiplayer and lose their bite when played alone. It remains a good alternative for those who want more variety in Zona solo play, but it's not where the expansion shines brightest.
FrogScore · FroGames editorial rating · first reading: based on rulebook and official presentation, updated with first playthroughsWhat the expansion adds
New tools, new dangers
Trail encounters
When you meet another scavenger, choose two cards: white to cooperate (resource recovery, items), black to attack (inflict damage). Simultaneous choice and reveal: then count the bodies.
Companions
Recruit inactive scavengers as temporary allies, each with unique abilities. They accompany you in the Zone and can save you in critical moments, but they take up space and resources.
Persistence dice
Special dice without negative modifiers, increasing the probability of success. The price? Much higher risk of accumulating radiation or fatigue during tests.
Luck cards
You get them when you fail a test. You keep them and play them when it really matters: to turn the odds, optimize an action, recover from a desperate situation.
🎲How to playThe rules in four steps▼
How to play
The flow of each round (with expansion)
The expansion does not change the basic turn structure, but it adds layers of decision-making and interaction.
Each player takes 2 actions (move, explore, fight, rest, etc.). If you end up in the same location or an adjacent one to another scavenger, you can declare a path encounter: simultaneous black/white choice, alliance or betrayal.
Each player draws an event card based on their location (green, yellow, bunker). New expansion cards introduce tasks, rarities, recruit companions. If you have an active companion, you can use their unique ability.
During events or combat, decide whether to use your normal dice or persistence dice (higher chance of success, higher risk of radiation/fatigue). Fortune cards accumulated from previous failures can be played here to balance the odds.
The first player draws a rumor card that advances the emission and creates global effects. The timer tightens. If the final emission hits and you're outside a bunker, you pay a heavy price. The game ends when someone opens the Sarcophagus or everyone is eliminated.
⏱️Your first gameThe chronicle, moment by moment▼
A game in five moments
What happens at the table
Not the rules. The experience.
New faces, old fears
Expansion setup: you shuffle new event cards into existing decks, add mutants and anomalies, prepare companions. The Zone feels familiar, but you already know that something has changed. The first turns proceed as always: movement, actions, events.
The first encounter
Two scavengers end up in the same location. The path encounter is triggered: both draw two white and two black cards, choose one secretly. Simultaneous reveal. One chose cooperation, the other betrayal. The damage is done, and the table explodes.
Companions and persistence dice
Someone recruits a companion for a key ability. Someone else decides to use persistence dice for a crucial test: guaranteed success, but radiation levels rise. Fatigue accumulates. The Zone gives nothing for free.
Fortune from the ashes
A failed test gives you a fortune card. You keep it. Turns later, when all seems lost, you play it: flip a die, optimize an action, save the situation. The legendary moment of the game arises from a previous defeat.
The final sprint
Someone is close to the Sarcophagus. The others must decide: slow them down with encounters, betray them, or run on their own. The last event cards are brutal. The final emission approaches. The first one to arrive wins, but some don't arrive at all.
🐸Before you know itThree honest things, from friends▼
Before you know it
Three things to keep in mind
It's an expansion, the base game is needed
Scavenger's Wish is NOT a standalone game. It requires Zona: Secret of Chernobyl to be played. It adds components and mechanics, but does not replace the base content. If you don't have Zona, start there.
The weight increases again
The base game is already a 3/5 complexity. The expansion adds layers (encounters, companions, persistence dice, fortune cards): the learning curve lengthens and downtime can increase with 4 players. It's not a gateway, it's for those who already know Zona.
Luck has more tools, but remains central
Fortune cards and persistence dice give you more control than the base game, but Zona remains a game where a bad die roll can ruin you. If you can't stand high variance, the expansion doesn't solve this aspect, it manages it.
🏆Victory and defeatWhat the ending rewards▼
How it ends
How to win and how to lose
The victory and defeat conditions are those of the base game, but the expansion makes everything more unpredictable.
Victory
- Collect 2 Secrets from secret locations
- Reach the Sarcophagus of the Chernobyl power plant
- Complete the final Sarcophagus event before others
Elimination
- Accumulate too much damage or radiation and die
- The final emission hits you outside a bunker
- The rumor deck runs out and the Zone swallows you
Scavenger's Wish transforms Zona into a more social, tense, unpredictable experience. Trust is a luxury few can afford in the Zone.
💬Frequently asked questionsQuick answers before checkout▼
Frequently asked questions
FAQ about Zona: Scavenger's Wish
Is it playable without the base game?
No. Scavenger's Wish is an expansion and requires Zona: Secret of Chernobyl to function. It adds cards, mechanics, and components, but does not include the board, base characters, or fundamental rules.
Are the new mechanics mandatory?
It depends. You can choose to use only certain parts of the expansion (e.g., only companions, or only fortune cards) and leave out path encounters if you want a less confrontational experience. The rulebook provides for this modularity.
Do path encounters work in solo play?
No, they are designed for multiplayer. In solo play, you can use companions, persistence dice, fortune cards, and the new event cards, but encounters lose their meaning. The expansion improves solo play, but doesn't revolutionize it.
What mechanics does Zona: Scavenger's Wish use?
Action points, dice rolling, push your luck, stat check resolution, variable player powers, narrative events. The expansion adds simultaneous choice (path encounters) and light hand management (fortune cards).
Is it available in Italian?
The edition for sale on FroGames is in English. The game has text on the cards (events, companions, fortune) and requires a good understanding of the language. No official Italian translations are currently available.
The people behind the game
Who invented it, who designed it, who publishes it — and what else they've done.
Zona: Scavenger's Wish is the expansion for the board game Zona: Secret of Chernobyl, designed by Maciej Drewing and Krzysztof Głośnicki, published by Rebel Studio. For 1-4 players, ages 18+, duration 120-180 minutes. It adds direct encounters between scavengers, recruitable companions, persistence dice, and fortune cards, expanding the post-apocalyptic survival experience in the Chernobyl Zone with new interaction and risk management mechanics. Available on FroGames.it.
Area: Scavenger's Wish
Frequently Asked Questions
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