Improvised Poncho is a clothing item in Project Zomboid. It gives 0 bite and 5 scratch defence where it covers you, with 0.1 insulation. Build 42.21 data, November 2026.
Clothing Clothing & armour
It gives 0 bite and 5 scratch defence where it covers you, with 0.1 insulation. Wearing it changes run speed to 0.9.
Clothing only protects the body parts it covers. Bite and scratch defence stop wounds, insulation keeps you warm, and wind and water resistance matter in storms. Heavy or bulky pieces can slow your running.
Use the item ID in sandbox loot settings, admin tools and mods.
| Item ID | Game category |
|---|---|
Base.PonchoGarbageBag | Clothing |
Base.PonchoGarbageBagDOWN | Clothing |
Base.PonchoTarp | Clothing |
Base.PonchoTarpDOWN | Clothing |
4 versions share the name Improvised Poncho, usually different colours, sizes or states.
Improvised Poncho is on 4 loot tables in the game files. Share is how much of a table's total weight this item takes, before your sandbox loot settings. Each container rolls its table several times, so a bigger share and more rolls both mean you see it more often.
| Loot table | Where that table is used | Share | Rolls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Safehouse Armor Mid | Survivor safehouse (mid game) (box, crate, drawer, …) | 0.99% | 2 |
| Safehouse Armor Late | Survivor safehouse (late game) (box, crate, drawer, …) | 0.80% | 3 |
| Safehouse Armor | Survivor safehouse (early) (box, crate, drawer, …) | 0.35% | 2 |
| Survival Gear | Attic (box, crate); Closet (box); Garage storage (box); and 2 more places | 0.21% | 4 |
On zombies: zombies in these outfits can carry it: Survivalist, Survivalist 02, Survivalist 02 Late, Survivalist 02 Mid, Survivalist 03, Survivalist 03 Late, Survivalist 03 Mid, Survivalist 04 and 7 more.
Inside bags and cases: Military Backpack.
Town by town: loot locations.
| Recipe | Ingredients (used up) | Tools (kept) | Requirements |
|---|---|---|---|
| Make Garbage Bag Poncho On any surface | 2 × any garbage bag; 3 × Duct Tape | any sharp knife or any scissors | Tailoring 1 |
| Make Tarp Poncho On any surface | Tarp; 3 × Duct Tape | any sharp knife or any scissors | Tailoring 1 |
Made with:
Where to find it (loot tables with the highest weight first):
Counts as: any ignorezombiedensity.
Base.PonchoGarbageBag, Base.PonchoGarbageBagDOWN, Base.PonchoTarp, Base.PonchoTarpDOWN (variants share the name).
Bite defence 0 and scratch defence 5.
Stats and item IDs from the Build 42 game data as listed on pzfans.com. Item art is from Project Zomboid.