Permadeath

Permadeath is one of the defining features of STAR WARS Zero Company, and it is switched on by default. When a squad member is lost in combat, that loss can be permanent. The character is gone from the rest of the campaign, and any bonds, skills, and history built up with them go too.

Injuries Lead to Death

Losing all health does not kill an Operator outright. Instead the Operator is Downed and takes an Injury, and a Downed Operator can still be Rallied by an ally. Injuries hurt combat stats and stack, and a third Injury results in permanent death on standard difficulty. Managing Injuries between fights, through the Den Medbay, is part of keeping a squad alive across a campaign.

Stakes in Every Fight

Because Operators can be lost for good, every encounter carries real weight. A reckless push into the open or a misjudged flank does not just cost a turn, it can cost a person. This is what gives the tactical layer its tension: you are not only trying to win, you are trying to bring everyone home.

The Exception

Hawks is the exception to the rule. If the leader falls, the mission ends and you try again, rather than losing the protagonist forever. Companions and custom Operators do not get that protection. Losing one changes the story rather than ending the run, and the narrative continues without them. The Den keeps a Memorial that honors Operators who fell, where you can review their stats and accomplishments.

Difficulty and Saves

On higher difficulties the pressure increases further, pairing permadeath with limited saves so that mistakes cannot simply be reloaded away. That combination pushes players to plan carefully, value their squad, and accept that some losses are meant to stick. Players who prefer a gentler experience can lean on the lower difficulty settings.

Turning Permadeath Off

Permadeath is a setting rather than a fixed rule. It is enabled by default, and it can be turned off for players who would rather not lose Operators for good. Bit Reactor has been direct about this: the recommendation is to set it to whatever produces the best experience for you. Their case for leaving it on is thematic rather than mechanical, since loss and pushing through loss run through Star Wars storytelling, and the mode is built to make that land.

Turning it off does not remove Injuries or the Medbay. Operators still go down, still accumulate Injuries, and still need time and money to recover. What changes is the consequence at the end of that chain.