Who is the main character in Dead Island?

Dead Island

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Playable Characters

The description of the four playable Dead Island characters:

Xian Mei * Sam B * Logan Carter * Purna Jackson

Xian Mei

Strategy

• Xian Mei has the lowest health in the game, even when the level cap is reached, so make sure to always have medkits in your inventory.
  
• Most of her inventory should be bladed weapons, you can still have firearms and blunt weapons though.
  
• It is not recommended to charge into large groups of Walkers, but you can if you are coordinated in your attack style and if you have any weapon with a long reach (i.e. Machetes, Axes, etc.), or if you are in rage mode.
  
• It is highly recommended to upgrade the Flying Strikes, Backstab, and Deeper Pockets skills to rank 3.
  
• It's recommended to upgrade her Picklock skill to level 2 (not to level 3 — it would be a waste since level 3 chests are difficult to find).
  
• Xian Mei's true colors show when she uses the Zed's Demise or any other sword, but the downside of using swords is that they have a low durability, and a high repair cost.
  
• A majority of the bladed weapons in your inventory should have a long reach, if not medium.
  
• Using short range weapons such as knives are not very useful unless you are in the Resort area.
  
• It is recommended to upgrade Telling Blows and Pressure to level 3, so that Xian Mei's critical chances are higher. These 2 skills are also good in conjunction with Flowing Strikes so Xian's Fury meter will be filled quickly.
  
• Poison Mods work best for Xian Mei because she has 2 skills related to it and that Poison will not cause much damage unlike shock and fire.
  
• Focus on her Fury and Combat tree since Xian Mei has the lowest health, she needs to be able to dish out high damage against enemies.
  
• When her main combat skills are upgraded she can do the following special attacks:
  - Blade Fighter skill is upgraded: Xian holds a sharp weapon with a long blade with both hands and slashes its against the zombies neck with full force, when she attacks again she slashes the zombie in a down to up motion.
  - Sharp Expert skill is upgraded: When Xian is holding a knife, she stabs the zombie's neck, when she attacks again she slashes the zombie's face with the knife.
  - Blade Master skill is upgraded: Xian does the same attacks as listed above, but it can be activated while jumping.
  
• All of these attacks need to be aimed at the head or neck to be activated.
  
• Most walkers will die when these combos are unleashed upon them.

Trivia

• She is the only character in the game that does not have a skill in firearms, likely from the lack of training she was not given from the Hong Kong Police force.
  
• Promotional artwork of Xian Mei seems to differ from her actual in-game character model. Ex: Darker skin.
  
• Her blood type (along with the other Heroes) is O- / O negative.
  
• There appears to be a glitch with Xian's character model in cutscenes as one of her eyes may jump to an angle while the other stays.
  
• So far, Xian Mei is only character appearing in every Dead Island game released to the date.

Sam B

Strategy

For most enemies the tactics are relatively similar, try to draw a couple off at a time so that you don't get surrounded and bash them flat. The one enemy that needs a very different tactic is gun-toting humans. Trying to charge one (and usually there are more than one at a time) is a bad idea; unless you are able to sneak up close to one without them noticing until it's too late, they will be able to put several shots into you before you get in range and they will occasionally backstep to try to avoid you. It's best to keep one good pistol on hand and try to shoot them in the head, which is almost always a one-hit kill. Look through the ironsights while doing this for better accuracy.

Trivia

• To promote Dead Island: Riptide, a live action music video for No Room In Hell featuring Sam B was released. This makes Sam B the only Hero currently depicted in live action.
  
• His blood type (along with the other Heroes) is O negative.
  
• If you stay idle for long enough, Sam will start whistling and singing his Who Do You Voodoo? song.
  
• The Game Text files have the following scrapped closing dialogue for Sam B:
  "For the longest time, there was nothing there. Nothing inside me. When I was young I had so much to say. So much to prove. Man, I had so much anger inside of me. I knew the whole ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ world was against me. But then I made some money and I didn't know what to say. And the money went away and still had nothing to ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ say. Well, I have something to say now. The world ain't so black and white no more. It's black and white and red all over, man. People do amazing ♥♥♥♥ when they up against it. The one's who think they're all that, the ones you think will stand their ground, they ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ run. And the quiet ones. The ones you don't even notice. Man, they don't give an inch. They'll give up everything for someone they don't even know. There's a song there somewhere. A song about something real. ♥♥♥♥, I don't even know if anyone's gonna be left when this is all done. But if they is… believe me, I got something to say."
  Sam B is the only Hero to call the zombies by their actual name instead of nicknames such as "bastards", "freaks", and so on.
  
• Sam B is the only hero who doesn't reveal his surname, "B" not being his real surname.
  
• His last name as it is shown in the game, which is 'B', may refer to the word 'blunt'. Blunt being his preferred skill set.
  
• His full name may also be an unusual reference to the word zombies. If you say his full name, Sam B, it sounds like zambie. This being a play on words of the word zombie.

Logan Carter

Strategy

• Logan is the throwing expert. When the right skills are upgraded, his throwing deals more damage and damages multiple foes at once. He can also retrieve his weapon right back, so it's recommended to use throwing when possible.
  
• Logan is the Jack of all Trades of the Group due to having skills that upgrade all kinds of weaponry — blunt weapons, bladed weapons, and firearms. It does not matter what kind of weapon the player uses at the point the player levels the sharp skill and blunt skill; instead
  
• Logan's skill actually focuses on one-handed weaponry. One-handed weapons will consume less stamina, gain more rage, and will deal more damage given the proper upgrades, so one-handed weapons will be superior over two-handed weapons.
  
• Logan is the only hero who benefits from consuming alcohol. Once the player has upgraded the related skills, it's recommended to keep a few bottles handy for use in combat. If the player can stand the impaired vision and the lack of ability to walk straight, then they effectively have themselves a potion that increases Logan's damage and regenerates the character's health. Keep in mind that if you're knocked over, the benefits will be temporarily canceled.
  
• Logan has the least stamina to begin with, but has the most when upgraded through the skill tree. During the early stages of the game it's recommended to kick enemies down, then take a break and swing a melee weapon. If the enemy tries to stand up while the player is taking a break, they should kick them again. Once Logan's stamina is upgraded, any combat scheme will be available to the player.
  
• The Sticky Bomb Mod is affected by the Boomerang skill. There is a chance the player will retrieve it and still blow up the enemy, greatly increasing the lifespan of the mod. Making a few is recommended as the player will be able to blow up zombies multiple times.
  
• The headstomp ability drains drastic amounts of stamina. Before his stamina upgrade, the stomp will drain half his stamina, even if not counting the amount of stamina used to knock down the zombie. Use it sparingly on zombies before the stamina upgrade. After the upgrade, Logan can stomp about 3-4 times before he needs a break.
  
• Economic Throw should be upgraded to level 3 so his throwing deals damage to nearby enemies.

Trivia

• His blood type (along with the other Heroes) is O negative.
  
• Before Dead Island was released, Logan was to be a surfer instead of a Football player.
  
• If Logan is idle for a while he might say, "Oh, that Chinese chick's pretty smoking".
  
• Logan's name is written on Spiky Bat, Barbed Baseball Bat and Surge Bear light melee weapons in Dead Island: Epidemic.

Purna Jackson

General Combat

• Though she is a firearms expert, she does own one blade-related skill. As a result, bladed weapons are a slightly better choice than blunt weapons.
  
• Use the stomp ability. Stomp is an automatic kill with damage in five figures. In a normal stomp, Purna spends approximately two to three seconds stomping zombie's head with one foot; when upgraded Purna will jump on the zombie's head with both of her heels, significantly reducing stomp time to approximately a second. Even though you still can be damaged by zombies nearby during the stomping motion, it will not suspend the stomping unless Purna dies.
  
• When in a pinch, use high ground. Zombies are brainless, so they usually cannot climb on high ground such as walls and cars. Hop on a car, and let the zombies gather, then crouch and start hacking. Machetes or similar long-reach bladed weapons works well.
  
• Don't save up on money. When you die, a portion of your money is gone too. It is better to invest money in ingredients and upgrading weapons.
  
• Base ingredients do not count as inventory slots. Stocking up on ammo and explosive ingredients will virtually make the workshop an armory for Purna.
  
• Kicking while jumping activates jumpkick. It will knock down Walkers and Infected no matter how much stamina they have. However, it does not affect tougher zombies such as Thugs (although they will stagger a little) and it will drain half of Purna's stamina at the same time.
  
• Purna is the only Hero to have a skill for more damage upon the opposite sex. As such, male zombies and all Punks (there are no female punks) will be much easier to kill. Leave the female zombies to your teammates and deal with the males yourself.
  
• Her Boost Skills only take effect when the Hero has a skill related to augmenting damage, durability, force and handling.

Rage

• Activating the Rage skill heals health: use it wisely.
  
• Her rage skill is very useful for clearing crowds of weaker enemies, and can sometimes be useful against Thugs, Floaters, Rams, and Butchers.
  
• Many of her skills, when combined, can reduce her rage requirements as low as 9 kills, which enables Purna to spam her rage frequently.
  
• Purna's Rage Mode has minimum range: if a zombie is too close, the revolver might not shoot.
  
• You are still susceptible to damage from zombies. You can die during rage mode. Keep your distance from enemies, especially from fast ones like Infected or Butchers.

Weapons

• She is a Firearms expert, however the main issue is that ammo and weapons are rare, if not non-existent until you progress to Act II. For the duration of Act I, stick to bladed weapons since it is the only melee weapon she has skills with. Though if you rescue Omar Torres you can get a revolver.
  
• You can make your own ammunition and requirements are not very tough to meet. All ammo mods require bleach for extraction of Potassium chlorate (KClO3) and 2x Metal Scraps for actual bullets and casing. All these can be found randomly over the course of game or from various merchants.
  
• Always modify your weapons: many of Purna's skills are based on modified weapons.
  
• Upgrade does not count as modified; only those upgraded with mod blueprints are considered modified weapons.
  
• Guns do not require repair; if you are going to use guns predominantly you do not need durability-related skills.
  
• Shotguns in close range can dismember and explode zombie's body parts. When a zombie's head or leg dismembers/explodes, it will die regardless of how much health it has left. This makes close-range shotgun play very efficient, albeit risky.
  
• Zombies do not carry bullets. Don't expect any.
  
• Against various human enemies, pistols are sufficient. Headshots are an automatic one-kill.
  
• Do not use kick since they will evade most of it or back away shooting, most likely resulting in the player's death.
  
• Do not invest much in her melee-related skills because guns will be redundant from Act II until Act IV.
  
• Upgrade Recycler and Providence to get more ammo from loot and crafting (crafted ammo counts as loot, therefore the effect will stack, at level 3 of each skill this synergy also makes buying large quantities of bleach and metal scraps from merchants and crafting your own ammo yield slightly more ammo/$ for shotguns and pistols and substantially more for rifles vs. buying ammo packs from merchants).
  
• Upgrade Rain of Bullets to get a higher ammo carrying capacity.

Against Various Zombies

• Walkers: When they are in small groups, they are not considered a lethal threat. One should kick, stomp, rinse and repeat to conserve stamina for larger threats. If they are found in large groups, it is advised to pick them off from afar or deal with each of them as a separate threat.
  Infected: If a single Infected is encountered, jumpkick it to knock it down and stomp it to swiftly handle it before more appear. However, when encountered with several or a continuous flow of Infected, pistols with large clips will do the job since infected have significantly low health compared to the walkers.
  
• Thug: Two headshots with a shotgun. With enough practice this will literally blow the Thug's head off right away regardless of remaining health. Just don't get too close. If the Thug's head fills the iron sight, shoot it.
  
• Floater: Thrown explosives and rifles are the best bet. Don't get too close and shoot the head with a rifle.
  
• Butcher: Just like Thugs, one well-placed headshot with a shotgun will kill a Butcher right away. However it may be hard to do so since Butchers run fast. First shoot the Butcher in torso to stagger it and aim for the head for the killshot.
  
• Ram: After evading a charge, shoot or start hacking the back side. Either way does the job. Shotguns fare poorly compared to other guns against Rams. Rams only take 1 damage if shot in the frontal torso so don't waste ammunition unless it's necessary.

Trivia

• Her blood type (along with the other heroes) is O negative.
  
• There seems to be some inconsistency with Purna's biography as it says in the Dead Island manual and official website that she killed the child molester; however, her in-game bio states she only injured him and wishes to finish the job once she leaves Banoi.
  
• When left idle long enough, Purna will regretfully state that she chose to give up smoking during the week that the outbreak began.

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