Zombie Survival

[Eazey Diamond]

Zombies; we're practically all gamers so an overwhemling majority of us appreciate zombies one way or another. Rather than the classic question "what would you do in a zombie apocalypse?" which is a far too open question allowing for too many belligerent, poorly thought out answers, how about we use some structure.

Keep in mind that when answering these questions you CANNOT use guns, chainsaws or motorised vehicles (not including water transport), have your safe destination be "a mall/shopping centre" or your plan involve just going outside and kicking arse. What I mean is no macho, gun/buzzsaw crap or B-movie stereotypes...plan to survive...

A) Your top three weapons of choice that you actually own or have immediate access to?
B) Short term destination (3 months)?
C) Mode of transportation?
D) Method of barricading holdout if required?
E) Would you lead the group or not and why?
F) Other pertinent aspects of your survival plan?

I'm hoping to get an interesting intelligent discussion from this despite it being a total hypothetical. The minus guns/malls aspect is to make the American contingent think beyond the barrel of a gun and the safety of a mall for protection and for us British to be on an even keel. It's all well and good to be packing enough heat to be a one-man-army but for so many people in my country firearms are just a no go.

Discuss

 

[Eazey Diamond]

I might as well get the ball rolling...

A) Frog bayonet (short, thick machete) & lump hammer (essentially a one-hand mini sledge)
B) My home in the short term and I would hope my cousin's off-shore oil rig in the long term
C) Bicycle or on foot but rowing boat if travelling on rivers. For the sea, whatever's handy
D) Tearing apart long tables, screwing (preferably) or nailing them across entrances and topping it up with heavy bulk on the inside
E) I wouldn't trust anyone else to lead unless they severely impressed me with their forethought and on the spot critical thinking skills
F) Herding and circle-strafing techniques when the only choice is to deal with/neutralise zombies, only travel during daylight, never use the basement, get upstairs and demolish stairs, avoid hospitals and police departments and finally if there is disagreement or resentment within the group it is vital that it be discussed before moving on.

 

[gostlyfantom]

A) fire axe, pocket knife, hatchet
B) short term location would be north and my longterm would be even farther north(im canadian,any farther north and the zombies would freeze solid!)
c)by foot, when the snow melts then by bicycle
d) I would barricade holdouts with planks and tightly packed snow
E) I would not lead the group, I am not a very skilled leader and I would most likel get us all fucked over.
F) I would make an effort to excersise extreme caution always, I would try to locate firearms if I get the chance, and I would immediatley cut all of my current bonds(family, friends, etc)

overall I think i would do all right.

 

[Cheesus333]

A: The only thing I can thing of is a large metal shovel in the garage. I guess I could disassembly my cymbal stands and sharpen them down or something to make a decent spear. Or just smack them with the drum stool.

I also have a plank!
B: I'd go to my friend Andy's house, because his driveway is literally a 45 degree angle and it has a good defensive position. Failing that, I could pull up the ladder in my loft and just stay there for as long as I need to (depending on food supplies). Long-term's a bit harder though, I guess it would make sense to seek out one of Britain's military installations and defend ourselves there.
C: Well I'm only 16, so I can't actually drive, but I guess road safety went out the window then the drivers all got their necks chewed open by their passengers, so I guess it would be as good a time to learn as any! It's not like I can't reach the pedals or anything, I'd easily be able to manage, I just wouldn't be particularly careful.
D: Board up doors with sheets of metal or thick wood, use molotovs to cover our exit if we have to make a quick escape.
E: I would if it were a group of friends. If I were with strangers I'd let someone else take the reins. Leadership requires either pre-existing respect or a natural charisma, and I only have one of those things.
F: If a member of the group gets infected, we say our goodbyes as fast as we can and we shoot them in the head from behind. If someone gets lost, we find them, unless the situation at hand means they're more likely to be dead (i.e. they've been swarmed and can't get out). Other than that, we find somewhere good to stay and we wait for the whole thing to blow over. If it doesn't, we shoot ourselves.

 

[Brutus03]

The Mall would be out of the question. If people suddenly turned into zombies it would be filled with them.

A: I have several poles I can use, Heavy duty desktop which would be a one time use to knock them down then run, and a Small Hatchet in the garage.
B: short term would be Chinese buffet (food wouldn't go bad for a few days and the buffet would actually have food in it for later storage) (Lots of fried food means lots of gas stoves. Knock out a few gas valves and lure the local zombies there, escape then blow the place). Long term would head north to my Sisters farm (3 months at least). (Note: If I lose my mind then I would head East of my current location and fulfill a promise)
C: My Feet and a bike if I can find one. (note: Need to raid shoe store and place with lots of socks)
D: It would have more than 1 floor and next to another building with easy access to a roof. I can barricade the door leading to the 2nd floor, clear out the 2nd floor zombies or trap them in rooms. Wait for them to gather and move to the next building if possible. If no building next door find a place I can jump\climb out with little to no injury. Should be vending machines with decent food somewhere in the building.
E: If I found a group I wouldn't lead but follow. I'm no leader and people always seem to rely on me for some reason. I would provide support as best as I can and drag people away if the situation is hopeless (IE stumble in a crowd of zombies and a majority of the group gets bitten\dragged down by zombies).
F: Staying away from malls, hospitals, military bases, major cities, towns. Go to out of the way places and if I'm forced into a city I would stay on the roof tops as much as possible. Main food source would be vitamins, food from vending machines, and cooked animals. Study zombies by testing what distractions draw them away (Music, loud noises, shiny things, smells).

 

[jdun]

If you have no means of protection it can only end in one way. Your death. Either by the zombie or by a living person with a weapon.

Every general survival plans (zombie and non-zombie) out there will have some kind of weapon(s) for personal protection. The prefer weapons are firearms with a knife as a back up.

 

[xdiesp]

I find zombie stories naive. In the past with plague and famine, people had it worse and still came out on top: your average zombie survivor instead will always shoot himself in the foot. While as soon as you have mastered the building of brick walls on plain terrain, zombies can never reach you.

 

[Saint of M]

A) K-Bar (marine combat knife); this one bladed weapon that I do not know the name of but it fits into a pipe that can either be used as an handle or as a secondary handheld weapon (one stabs, the other bludgeons);
B) Short term would be my house as I have propane tanks, stoves, food, food, and plenty of wood to barricade doors and windows. Plus my front and side doors are metal, so no zombies getting in there. Long term would be a house with solar panels and a good size backyard so I could entertain myself with electronics, and plant some vegetables and such.
C) Most likely walk, although I'd try and figure out how to hot wire a car if needs be.
D) I have a lot of 2 by 4s in the rafters of my garage, so I would use that to barcade the windows and doors. I would use sheets and towels nailed to a few windows that were out of reach of the zombies that way I could look though a small hole in it to see if the close was clear. Around the house I would take some junk to block some of the walkways. I would see if I had any concrete in the garage, and if so make some and use the bricks near my rose bushes to make wall.
E) I wouldn't be the leader, and I would most likely keep to my self until the loneliness forced me to find another human being.
F) Wait until some of the zombies have moved on, then raid the super market and a local gunstor for weapons, and camping supplies. I would collect rain watter and put it into some 50 gallon drums in my back yard. Once I get that. I would also dedicate some places for the growing of crops I could eat. There are a few places to raid around town, I could see if any of that works. Hunt and fish when I can, stay indoors when I can't.

 

[jdun]

I find zombie stories naive. In the past with plague and famine, people had it worse and still came out on top: your average zombie survivor instead will always shoot himself in the foot. While as soon as you have mastered the building of brick walls on plain terrain, zombies can never reach you.

People assumed that zombie is the main threat and that might be in some case. If the zombie don't kill you than the break down of law will. There are other threats like people, wild animals, fire, disease, famine, etc.

 

[nuba km]

A: Large kitchen knife, metal pole, hammer.
B: short term local garage after a quick stop at the corner store, long term closest military location.
C: car hopefully a sturdy one but really depends at what is in the garage.
D: well I think the military got that one handled with guns but if they aren't their properly sand bags lots of sand bags as the military would properly have that if that doesn't work out I'll use a blow torch to weld doors shut in a worse case scenario.
E: a group of four would be good as it's properly going to be the number of people that fit in the car and you sort of need a small group of people in a zombie scenario.
F: screw emotional attachment and think everything through with logic!

 

[xdiesp]

Don't want to criticize or anything, but imho the zombies in the actual apocalypse would be the *resource* to be gathered... against humans in an all out biowar.

 

[jamesworkshop]

I will plan for zombie survival when zombies are more life threatening than an OAP

 

[loc978]

Aw, man... I can't use any [http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n182/loc978/Photos/DSC01160.jpg] of [http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n182/loc978/Photos/DSC01166.jpg] my [http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n182/loc978/Photos/DSC00007.jpg] guns [http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n182/loc978/Photos/DSC01162.jpg]? Sort of a ridiculous limitation, but oh well.
So...

A)
(not to be an internet cliche, but...these are just the best I own) My high-speed steel [http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n182/loc978/Photos/AMBA0097.jpg], differentially tempered [http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n182/loc978/Photos/AMBA0083.jpg] katana [http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n182/loc978/Photos/AMBA0081-1.jpg]... My Hanwei Practical Wakizashi [http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n182/loc978/Photos/DSC02620.jpg] (made of a more traditional monosteel, but also differentially tempered)... and my Stanley 36" wrecking bar [http://i112.photobucket.com/albums/n182/loc978/Photos/0603081544.jpg].

B)
A ski resort on a mountain summit nearby for the short term. For the long term, a certain mansion I know of in the hills near that resort (about 10 acres of good soil surrounded by a 12-foot wrought-iron fence designed to keep people out).

C)
...no motorized transport is a ridiculous limitation, I have easy access to several of these [http://www.steelsoldiers.com/avatars/bms07.gif?dateline=1281055575]... but, assuming for some reason I couldn't get to those 5-tons, my bicycle... which would be awkward as hell, toting a backpack full of food and water, two swords and a very large crowbar... but still doable.

D)
For the resort, snow and cold. Assuming these zombies follow the laws of physics to any extent, once I clear the resort itself... their decidedly human muscles should become frozen quickly in the sub-freezing temperatures, considering they have no active circulatory system pumping blood or creating heat.
For the mansion, I'd be reinforcing the wrought-iron fence and setting up security cameras if possible... also, scavenging as much diesel fuel as possible and acquiring a generator.

E)
If it's a very small group of people I know... probably, to an extent. I'm fairly well versed in combat and survival situations. Much larger, and I'd act as an advisor... I'm not much good at handling diverse or hot-tempered personalities, except in telling 'em to STFU.

F)
-Scavenge, scavenge, scavenge. Anywhere that sells packaged food, drinks, ammo, quality weaponry (especially hunting crossbows & bolts... gunfire should be avoided unless absolutely necessary, for noise reasons) or fuel for transport gets at least a quick look, possibly a quick raid.
-The better part of valor: avoid conflict when it's risky at all. A single zombie that can be taken down with a quiet crossbow bolt with a large payoff in supplies is a good risk. Several dozen zombies is not. No heroics, either. A person screaming and surrounded is probably already infected.
-Everyone on the team needs to understand what happens if they're bitten. Maybe we off you, maybe we lock you in a room in temporary shelter with a warning scrawled on the door. Either way, you're done, and we split up your supplies.
-Avoid major highways and population centers. This is pretty much a no-brainer.

 

[Saippua]

Why cant I use my own guns? Its bit illogical and screws up my plan.
A:Hatchet, a local machete equivalent and makeshift spear made with a pole duct tape and a hunting knife.
B:Short term either my grandparents house which is easily defensible and they have guns in there or the nearest military base which is under an hours drive from where I live but there's a city between me and it. Long term either nothing or one of the islands in the gulf of finland if the zombies can't swim.
C:Bike.
D:Furniture in front of the doors and planks on the windows.
Erobably not. Im not the leader type.
F:Gathering as much food/firewood as possible so I don't starve/freeze to death during the first winter after society collapses.

 

[ecoho]

A. 30-06 rifle,12 gauge shotgun, wrench(edit just saw the no firearms thing....dam you! in place of my two firearms my fire place poker and the fucking sheild on my wall)
B.short term the jr high by my house(i have ammo and they have all the suplies i need)long term the national gaurd armory 4hours north of me its an old nuke silo
C.snow plow i know were they are and can drive one
D.weild the metal tables to the doors and windows at the school and just close the door at the armory.
E. id lead a group but only the ones who would swear to do as told id never force anyone to follow me but i dont have to take care of them if they dont.
F.train everyone to do head shots and before i go to my first hold out wait 3 days in my house(school is less then 10 mins away walking less then 2mins driveing get my family out but make sure non have been bitten, and finaly if someone was bitten id give them a choice a shot to the head now quick and clean or give them a pistal and some ammo and let them go kill as many as they can before turning or being eaten.

edit: i draw the line on no motor veichles thats a bit stupid when you think of how many people have them and how easy it is to hotwire one.......

 

[Karhukonna]

A) I guess I'd pick up an axe from the garage, or a shovel.
B) I would probably seek out a large building that's easy to lock down, like the local school or something for starters. I'd then either head for the Åland Islands through Helsinki, or maybe travel deep into the wild of Lapland. If I was sure to get a boat, I'd most likely seek travel through a smaller city.
C) I would use my car, but since the rules limit that, I'd ride my bike.
D) Lots of furniture stacked in front of the doors, propably nail it down with some planks.
E) We have a clear chain of command amongst us military reserve forces. If an officer or a higher ranking NCO is present, I will gladly follow. If none are available, I will assume leadership. If civilian-service wimps or others give me shit about it, they can feel free to beat it.
F) I'd run a strict military style defence plan. All rules, no exceptions.

 

[Eazey Diamond]

The reason I mentioned no firearms is because unless you personally have your own storage of ammunition, guns and maintainance equipment youll be going out looting/scavenging/raiding for them which increases risk upon you and youre group. If you live in a country where guns are far more available and commonplace, working them into your survival plan may be wise. However for those who don't possess firearms and/or do not live in a gun-friendly country, acquisition would be too dangerous.

Motor vheicles for several reasons. After a week plus of people panicking and trying to escape, most roads in and around built-up urban areas may be clogged with traffic. It's all well and good having an army truck loaded to the hilt with reliable survivors, consumables and equipment but getting it to where you want it to be may prove to be somewhere between difficult to impossible. Knowing back-roads and clear, drivable routes out of your vicinity towards where you want to be would be vital for survival. Fuel for your automobile may not be an issue in the short term if you have full jerry cans before the crisis occurs but siphoning or scavenging petrol after hell comes to earth or even trying to buy it will be a dangerous problem.

The final problems with automobiles would be conspicuity i.e. how obvious you are regarding noise, light etc, and repair. Any car, truck, skidoo or fuel powered vehicle creates noises and despite some being quieter than others, a simple car driving down a long street will draw the attention of plenty of zeds. They might not be running down the street at you 28 days later/ I Am Legend style but youll not be unable to stop them being drawn into your wake and potentially condense their numbers following you and your noise. Id prefer to cycle quickly and quietly through an area before i meet a barrier or need to turn back instead of driving along easily, stopping for whatever reason and having a big old group of them gaining on me. On repair, the hefty truck youre driving could probably mow down quite a few zeds but it would only be able to take so much before youre either dragging an increasingly messed up body down the road, picking hair n skull fragments from the radiator and clouds of smoke eminating from the bonnet. A man-powered machine such as a bicycle will be much more exposed but you wont be running anything down, putting your vehicle's security in jeopardy and it weighs far less to carry repair/maintainence equipment for a bicycle than a car/truck. Compare what may break or become faulty on a bicycle to what could happen to a car...it's swings and roundabouts but in my opinion and experience, my chances of survival would be greater on a decent bike than driving.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

And in roll the next wave of Zombie threads, haven't seen these in a few months.

A)None, actually.
B)The RAAF base right next door.
C)Foot/Car
D)It's a military installation. Come on.
E)Group? Pah!
F)Nope.

 

[sycoesis]

i have a crowbar, an double sided axe my friend made me for Christmas and a baton for weapons

short term place of stay would be the abandoned general store near the edge of town (thick walls and plenty of boards hammers and nails, they were planning to fix it up but gave up on it stuff still there)

transport would normally be a ups truck or a small bus ideally an ambulance but since no motorized vehicles id say a bike would be most efficient

depending on the type of zombie i would barricade myself mainly to a water tower or similar high structure or just get to the roof of a building using a zip line for when i need escape

i would lead because im the only one in my group of friends who do well under pressure and the least likely to snap (according to them)

and lastly there is no surviving the zombie apocalypse just living longer than the other guy so stock up on any acholhal that ages and go out with a blast

 

[imnot]

A) Katana, Rifle, crowbar ( theres a gunshop down the road )
B) The big thre story building in the village centere & the shopping center in town.
C) bike
D) furniture
E) a few freinds
F) SAVE THE JELLY!