Embedded Files
--------------------------------
Posted By Friendly?: A DayZ Podcast | November 3rd, 2026 15:00 CEST
The Eagle Has Landed and Nasdara is Unleashed!
The Eagle Has Landed and Nasdara is Unleashed!
The wait is finally over: the Badlands expansion has launched and survivors are tearing across the scorching dunes!
Nasdara has landed as a massive success across the community. Its sprawling desert landscapes, harsh heat-stroke mechanics and blinding dynamic sandstorms have turned everyday survival into a brutal, tactical struggle.
Dropping alongside the terrain, Update 1.30 delivers some huge game changers. The headline addition has to be the Jana 50 and Bitrak 682 motorbikes, bringing two-wheel physics, kickstarts and plenty of chaotic airborne wipeouts to the wasteland.
On top of that, rebuildable stone structures and new underground bunkers are already changing how survivors set up camp. Add in the return of the iconic Lee Enfield, territorial dogs, digital code locks and QOL perks and inventory UI tweaks and 1.30 feels like a massive leap forward.
The best news? The dev blogs are not slowing down anytime soon! Bohemia is keeping the momentum rolling and we will be right here alongside them continuing our monthly Community Spotlight to celebrate the best stories, clips and creations from across the scene.
Grab your dust goggles, kick over an engine and get stuck in!
Community Spotlight
Community Spotlight
Each month we want to celebrate the hard work this community puts in to keep DayZ feeling fresh and new 13 years on! Below are some of our favourites from the last month.
Freshspawns Brave the Nazdara Dunes
Freshspawns Brave the Nazdara Dunes
Lots of creators have posted lots of content over the past few weeks, so we have our work cut out for us.
Starting off with @FreshSpawns. The gents tear through every corner of the arid terrain, testing out the new vital survival mechanics like scavenging water trucks and clearing out ruined houses to erect their first barricaded base.
Between unearthing flashy gold AKMs and navigating claustrophobic tunnels, the journey is packed with lethal PvP and brutal heat exhaustion. Fresh Spawns bring their signature chaos to the desert, delivering the ultimate first look at why Nazdara is punishing survivors. Give it a watch!
Handy Badlands Building School
Handy Badlands Building School
We love @CamCANTRUN, especially when he puts together an ultra-clean guide to save the rest of us from dying of thirst.
His latest breakdown dives headfirst into Nasdara base building and well construction. Cam walks through clearing rubble for free materials, mixing mortar without ruining your water supply, slapping up blast-resistant brick walls and locking it down with digital keypads.
He managed to gather 50 pristine bricks and endless mortar buckets remarkably quickly for a solo survivor (totally legit looting and definitely not an offline admin wand at work, right Cam? Right?!)
Thanks for helping us survive!
Catfish + Intrusive Thoughts = Fish Slap
Catfish + Intrusive Thoughts = Fish Slap
Teaming up is one of our all time favourite ways to play DayZ.
Perhaps you're a sniper duo, or want to split the base building load. Or, perhaps, you want to cure the boredom and give in to those voices!
We particularly love that @Sunday waited precisely 0 seconds before committing to slapping George (of @John & George fame) with the newly added catfish.
Think Spatious Thoughts!
Think Spatious Thoughts!
@AmishZed has locked in with the Nasdara content this past fortnight. This short is one of the first we saw of the tunnels.
With only a torch to guide the way, only for the light to abruptly die and plunge everything into complete, pitch-black darkness.
Let this record be a masterclass in sudden dread as strange noises echo out and something hostile begins stalking through the gloom. It is equally terrifying and hilarious, capturing that pure, unscripted panic every DayZ player knows all too well.
Definitely give this short a watch if you're not afriad of small spaces or the dark!
He's Done It AGAIN!
He's Done It AGAIN!
Just look at some of these clothing designs from @Asmondian. Some call DayZ a survival game, some call it a PVP mil sim. Some, well, few, call it a fashion show. Asmondian leans into that ethos with everything they have, and we're here for it!
Take a scroll through the packs below but there's more on his X page and Steam workshop!
The Inevitable Mansion Takeover
The Inevitable Mansion Takeover
Nasdara is full of unique assets. This mansion is probably one of our favourites.
When we saw this in the playtest, we said to each other "You do know @Geek and @Glaz are going to build a base here, right?"
Well, it didn't take long and it didn't disappoint. They are well versed in the vanilla base building system, so watching them get to grips with the new additions made for a great watch. On top of being avid base builders, they and their group are cracking shots.
Watch both of their perspectives below!
Vampires In Namalsk
Vampires In Namalsk
Of Azalea fame, @Olipollyz has launched a brand new project for this year's spooky season, and it sucks! (get it?).
This mod gives you a choice: band together with a team of Buffy enthusiasts to slay the blood suckers 1 by 1, or join the dark side and feast on the blood of the slain.
Either way, this makes for very interesting gameplay we've not seen in DayZ before.
#TeamSpike
3BAN - An Ode to the Cold
3BAN - An Ode to the Cold
As unofficial shareholders in @Skeezertrons inevitable music career, we like to share his work as much as we can!
Taking a step back from Nasdara, Skeezer has harnessed the feelings of the cold and committed them to this beautifully written song about 3BAN!
As far as 'DayZ' videos go, this 3:33 masterpiece will surely bring a tear to your eye. We get physical chills at 1:48!
Just remember, it's only a game.
We Have DayZ VR Before GTA VI
We Have DayZ VR Before GTA VI
You read that right. @Dab posted on X that 'someone' was making a VR mod for DayZ! That someone is yet to be named, but I know who I'd be putting my dollar on.
Obviously this is a project of passion and may never realise its true potential on this 14 year old game, but the thought of being held up in Cherno PD, forced to eat human meat and getting mowed down by a freshie on a motorbike has a freshness to it I wasn't sure we could still achieve with DayZ.
Long live the modding community!
A Decade on the Air: Huge Milestones for Jiinxy & LukeLight
A Decade on the Air: Huge Milestones for Jiinxy & LukeLight
Massive celebrations are in order for two titans of the streaming world reaching legendary milestones this month.
First up, @Jiinxy is celebrating a monumental 10 years of going live! Having kicked off the journey in the harsh lands of DayZ a decade ago, she is still here holding down the fort with bingo, merch giveaways and top-tier survival entertainment.
Alongside that, @LukeLight is marking 9 incredible years on Twitch. From humble beginnings streaming straight from console to building a genuine second family through car crashes, Deer Isle runs and DayZ adventures, Luke’s passion has never wavered.
Hitting numbers like this takes unreal grit and loyalty. Drop into their streams and send some well-earned love!
Our Favourite Shorts of the Month
Our Favourite Shorts of the Month
If you are looking for quick bursts of pure DayZ carnage, our community shorts have absolutely delivered this month.
If there’s one thing guaranteed to get DayZ players talking, it’s a new gun, and Infinity Dawn is wasting no time showing off the latest battle rifle! This short makes it clear that this thing means business, with firepower that looks ready to turn the next encounter into an absolute nightmare for anyone standing on the wrong end of the barrel.
DayZ Badlands is bringing plenty of new surprises, but FragDempsey might have stumbled across one of the most ridiculous yet! The new DLC has added lizards and apparently, simply picking one up isn't where the fun ends. Hold the little fella in your hands, hit the deck and press G, then sit back and enjoy the absolute nonsense that follows. Honestly, only in DayZ could finding a tiny reptile turn into this sort of entertainment. Forget hunting for high-tier loot for a moment, survivors have clearly found a new way to waste their time in the wasteland. We dread to think what players will discover next!
Think you’ve seen everything DayZ Badlands has to offer? Think again! ALXX is diving into five hidden secrets tucked away in the upcoming DLC, giving survivors even more reasons to explore beyond the usual loot runs. We all know the feeling of stumbling across something unexpected in DayZ, whether it’s a tucked-away location or a detail you’ve somehow missed after hours in the wasteland.
Video of the Month
Video of the Month
Every month on the podcast, we pick our favourite videos from the community and crown one lucky survivor with our Video of the Week award.
This time, though, there’s a clear winner from Episode 203, as Fynn has bagged this month’s honours with an adventure packed full of firsts! Taking on The Lab servers for the first time, exploring the brand-new NASDARA map and attempting a one-life run challenge is quite the baptism of fire. Thankfully, Fynn had an absolute blast and is already talking about giving the challenge another go. We’re also buzzing to hear more is on the way, because NASDARA has clearly made one hell of a first impression. Exploring fresh territory is always a treat, but the updated base-building tweaks could be exactly what vanilla DayZ has been crying out for. Congratulations, Fynn! Now, about that next run... we’ll be watching!
HollyRex Explores DayZ Badlands
HollyRex Explores DayZ Badlands
We absolutely loved this adventure from HollyRex, taking us on a cracking run through DayZ Badlands during the early access streamer server!
There’s something special about getting stuck into an upcoming DLC before the rest of the survivors have had their chance to rummage through every corner, and this run delivers that feeling in spades. With fresh locations to explore and new points of interest waiting to be discovered, Badlands looks like it’s shaping up to offer plenty of reasons to leave the usual coastal scrub behind. Joined by allenstreams, hbuss and Ninaaaer, HollyRex makes the most of the experience, giving us a proper taste of the adventures waiting around the corner. We’re already itching to get out there ourselves. Bring on Badlands!
How Does Nasdara Stack Up On Console?
How Does Nasdara Stack Up On Console?
Look who finally decided to come crawling back! We love @RECEDINGMAN, even if he did wander off to play FIFA for what felt like a year, but we are chuffed to see him back where he belongs.
Putting 40 hours into Badlands on Xbox Series X, he delivers an honest, thorough review of the console experience. Aside from a few distant rendering quirks, he calls the desert drop-dead gorgeous and reckons it runs smoother than Livonia or Chernarus.
He also rates the survival loop as spot on, trading freezing restarts for intense water runs and non-stop movement. Slapping it with a solid 8.5 out of 10, it is safe to say he is properly hooked again.
Go check it out!
Nate’s Claustrophobic Descent Beneath Nasdara
Nate’s Claustrophobic Descent Beneath Nasdara
Nate, the mastermind behind @A Beautiful Potato and The Outpost, has dropped an atmospheric cinematic tease set deep below the arid plains of Nasdara.
The premise is nightmare fuel: dry canals, sealed irrigation systems and one survivor trapped forty feet beneath the surface armed with nothing but a flashlight and a crowbar.
With the dark moving and water rising, escaping a barricaded hatch never meant to open from below is a race against time.
We like different takes on how we all create content. Keep it up Nate!
Friendly DayZ Podcast Episode 200: A Community to Be Proud Of
Friendly DayZ Podcast Episode 200: A Community to Be Proud Of
Hitting 200 episodes is a massive milestone, but we wanted to celebrate it the Friendly way, by giving the community the spotlight!
For this special episode, we brought together voice notes from listeners and content creators we’ve had the pleasure of interviewing over the years, and the response was absolutely brilliant. There was so much love, so many messages and so much support that the episode ended up being a proper extra-long celebration!
It’s a cracking reminder that Friendly is about far more than chatting about DayZ. It’s about the people behind the mics, the creators sharing their adventures and the listeners who keep showing up.
Huge thanks to everyone who contributed. You lot make this community what it is and we couldn’t have reached 200 episodes without you!
Screenshots
Screenshots
Here's a collection of some of our favourite screen shots from the community and some from DayZ!
Checking In: Taking Time Beyond the Screen
Checking In: Taking Time Beyond the Screen
Surviving the wasteland is tough, but everyday life outside the headset comes with its own heavy baggage. DayZ is brilliant for escaping, resetting and connecting with mates across the world, but sometimes sitting alone behind a screen makes it easy to bottle things up when life gets overwhelming.
You do not have to carry the weight on your own and taking five minutes to talk about what is actually going on can take a massive weight off your chest.
If you or someone you know is having a hard time, free, confidential support is available worldwide 24/7. Head over to SafeInOurWorld.org or findahelpline.com to find immediate, local support no matter where you are in the world.
Look after yourselves out there.
That just about wraps us up for this article. Thank you to everyone who has created something to expand the enjoyment of this game.
Continue to use #TalentForDayZ so we can find your stuff!
Keep on surviving.
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse