Fix: Zombie Plague Round Doesn't Start

You installed Zombie Plague, the map loads, players spawn — and the round just plays out like normal Counter-Strike. No one turns into the first zombie, the mode never triggers, and the HUD that should announce the infection never appears. The mod is loaded but the round mode is not starting. This is almost always one of four things: a plugin that failed to load, a wrong load order, a cvar or delay that gates the first infection, or too few players. Work through them in that order.

1. Confirm every Zombie Plague plugin actually loaded

Zombie Plague is not one file — it is a core plugin plus a set of sub-plugins (classes, items, extra modes). If the core failed to load, nothing triggers. Check the plugin list from the server console:

amxx plugins

Find zombie_plague40.amxx (or your version's core file) and confirm it reads running, not bad load or debug. A bad load means the core never initialised, so it never schedules the first infection. If you see it, open the AMX Mod X log to find out why — that is step 4. For a clean install from scratch, follow the Zombie Plague install guide; our own maintained core is CSB Zombie Core.

2. Fix the load order

The sub-plugins depend on natives the core registers, so the core must load before everything that extends it. In addons/amxmodx/configs/plugins.ini the core line comes first, then the add-ons:

zombie_plague40.amxx
zp_class_nemesis.amxx
zp_class_assassin.amxx
zp_extra_infbomb.amxx

If a sub-plugin is listed above the core it will fail with an undefined-native error and can drag the mode down with it. The rules for this are in plugins.ini load order. Change the map after editing, because plugins.ini is only re-read on map change.

3. Check the cvars that gate the first infection

Zombie Plague waits before infecting, and it needs a minimum number of players. Two settings decide whether the round ever converts. They live in the mod's config, usually addons/amxmodx/configs/zombie_plague/zp_config.cfg or zombieplague.cfg:

zp_delay 10          // seconds after round start before first zombie is chosen
zp_required_players 2 // minimum humans before the mode activates

The second one is the usual culprit on a quiet server: with zp_required_players 2 and only one person connected, the mode correctly refuses to start and you get a plain round. Lower it to test alone, but restore a sane value afterward — a single-player infection round is pointless in practice. If zp_delay was set absurdly high, the infection is coming, just much later than you expected. Read the values back with the cvar name and no argument to see what is really set.

4. Read the AMXX log for the real error

If the core shows bad load or the mode still will not fire, the reason is written down. Open the current error log:

addons/amxmodx/logs/error_<date>.log

Two messages are common here. A missing dependency:

Plugin "zombie_plague40.amxx" failed to load: Module/Library "cstrike" required for plugin. Check modules.ini.

— means a required module (often cstrike, fun, fakemeta or hamsandwich) is not enabled in modules.ini; enable it and restart. Or a native error:

Run time error 10: native error (native "...")

— usually a sub-plugin loading before the core, i.e. the load-order problem from step 2. The full method for reading these lines is in reading the AMXX error log and debugging AMXX plugins.

Common errors

• Round plays as normal CS, no infection — too few players for zp_required_players, or the core is bad load. Check both.
• 'failed to load: Module ... required' — a needed module is off in modules.ini. Enable it and restart.
• Sub-plugin throws a native error — it loads before the core. Move the core line to the top of plugins.ini.
• Infection eventually happens but very late — zp_delay is set high. Lower it to a few seconds.
• Everything loads but weapons/models are wrong — that is a resources issue, not the round trigger; check precache and FastDL, not the mode cvars.

Verification

Set zp_required_players 1 temporarily, change the map, and join. Within zp_delay seconds the server should pick a first zombie and the infection HUD should appear. Confirm the core is healthy with amxx plugins (it reads running) and that the current error_*.log gained no new lines during the round. Once the mode fires reliably, put zp_required_players back to a realistic value for your player count so rounds only convert when there are enough humans to make them fun.