Zombie survival

[Walsingham]

As you know, as a responsible community, Obsidian fora are committed to supporting and encouraging the preparation and use of zombie survival schemes.*

 

For those of you new to the forum this means we encourage members to think about, train for, and be supportive of survival in the face of a zombie holocaust.

 

Speaking for myself, I have two negatives to own up to.

 

1. My store of emergency foodstuffs has been eaten, and needs to be replaced. I keep meaning to do something about it, but failing miserably.

 

2. One reason I have not done much recently is that being a member of the Territorial Army it is now my obligation to be called up in the event of a zombie outbreak, and witness the progressive disintegration of my unit, finally fleeing crosscountry in commandeered transport while smoking a looted cigar.

 

 

 

 

On the positive side I can report being fit enough to pass the ZET fitness test, and am also in possession of a sharpened entrenching tool.

 

 

 

 

*Can anyone do us a logo?

[Gorgon]

I'm afraid I'm not in a good tactical position.

 

I live on the 4th floor and there are no connected roofs I could use for escape. I have no suitable weapon other than perhaps filing a screwdriver to a point, and I have no supply of canned goods.

 

There are many small boats mored by the south docks, I could probably steal one and head for one of the artificial islands in Copenhagen harbor, but getting there through the horde armed with a screwdriver is quite another story.

[Sand]

In terms of zombie attack I only live a few blocks from work which would have all the supplies I need. Also many of my friends have done weapons training in both military and the SCA, so I can be very protected. Given that even in my ample form, I can still run faster than my roommate if need be. Also I have a friend who can give me access to the ROTC armory on campus.

Edited May 26, 2008 by Sand

[Musopticon?]

I can run fast and fit into a very small space.

 

Ergo, I'm dead meat.

[Humodour]

Recently I have been stocking up on powdered milk, kilograms of pasta, and multivitamins. I believe on balance this would provide suitable nutritious, light-weight and long-life sustenance in the event of a zombie or mutant invasion. Moreover, I recently acquired a tomahawk with which to sever Zombie heads into eternal rest... however I lament that it would require multiple swings to be effective. Finally, I am halfway through crafting a set of ring-mail armour, which I believe capable of repelling zombie teeth.

 

I regret that my home is unfortunately unsecured against zombie threat, but will in the future hopefully be installing spear trap floor plates with which to immobilise the zombies, as well as head-height saw-blade traps.

[Enoch]

I'm afraid I'm not in a good tactical position.

 

I live on the 4th floor and there are no connected roofs I could use for escape. I have no suitable weapon other than perhaps filing a screwdriver to a point, and I have no supply of canned goods.

 

There are many small boats mored by the south docks, I could probably steal one and head for one of the artificial islands in Copenhagen harbor, but getting there through the horde armed with a screwdriver is quite another story.

I'm in a similar situation-- a 5th floor apartment that lacks the storage space to be a decent anti-zombie bunker. Plus, I'm about a half-mile from Arlington National Cemetary. Which means that, instead of plain ol' civilian zombies, I'd be dealing with zombies with lots of military experience. Not a comforting thought.

[thepixiesrock]

I can beat them with the power of rock.

[taks]

I can run fast and fit into a very small space.

 

Ergo, I'm dead meat.

i'm slow and large and can't fit anywhere. dead meat, too. if i keep dropping the weight like i have been, however, then i'll be slow and skinnier than a rail, but still dead meat.

 

taks

[theslug]

I'd most likely be zombie food in no time.

 

Tactical Position: Dismal. Second floor in a suburban home amidst a sprawling suburbia reaching out miles and miles away. This means zombie growth potential to be in the tens to hundreds of thousands in a relatively short time. The summers are brutal and make moving during the day treacherous without modern marvels such as air conditioning. The winters aren't anything compared to other places but I think they can be kind of chilly :'(. On the up side, the thousands and thousands of homes offer a myriad of hiding places that are just a wall hop away for miles in every direction. A large percentage of homes within the city have pools which means relatively safe drinking water for at least 2 weeks from spring to fall before the algae and mosquitoes take over.

 

Food: Despite having a walk in pantry that is literally three times the size of my closet we have a supreme lack of viable food in it. In the can department we mostly have cream of ____ and chicken noodle soup. We also have a ton of rice and pasta which I suppose could be eaten and good carbs. On the other hand I have cliff bars, multivitamins, and Muscle Milk. Both the cliff bars and Muscle Milk have whey protein and a ton of vitamins and what not.

 

Weapons: No guns but I suppose I could rig up a broom handle with a large sharpened knife on the end and duck tape the hell out of it to make it stable but thats not exactly a great weapon....I've fired a "real" gun once but it was only a .22 so I don't have all that much experience with firearms.

 

:'(

My only regret will be that I wish it was Walshingham who infected me....wait what

[Deadly_Nightshade]

Location: My current abode is not the ideal place to endure a zombie uprising, but it could be made into a fairly daunting fortress nonetheless. The fact that it is, mostly, on one story is the most pressing problem, but there are ways to overcome that flaw - and the advantages still outweigh the detractors. In addition, I have easy access to four-legged, equestrian transportation, as my sister's stable is nearby.

 

Food: Thanks to my mother, I have over thirty sealed drums of various non-perishable foodstuffs that would be enough, if rationed correctly, to last several people at least two-to-three years. I also have the small garden in the backyard and a large, and relatively tame, deer population that could be killed for venison. Water could be gotten from nearby steams, provided it was purified before hand -although that would not be hard-, and a generator could be harnessed to provided power to the well pumps.

 

Weapons: Although I do not have any firearms at my current location, I do have a large assortment of bladed weapons, including some that were manufactured for combat, and several hunting bows are on the premises. The forge could be re-located from the outbuilding, a relatively weak structure, to the main house and would be useful when it came to repairing and manufacturing arms. The ranged-weapon crisis could also be negated by the arrival of a friend who collects, or rather hoards, weapons and ammunition - including the legal to own, but not fire, fully-automatic AK-47 and M-16*, and several WWII and WWI vintage machine-guns. The fact that she also makes chain-mail armor is another plus, and even if Val could not get here I could manufacture a crude plate-mail variant fairly easily.

 

 

 

*It might only be the semi-automatic AR-15, I know she has at least one of those as well.

Edited May 26, 2008 by Deadly_Nightshade

[Deraldin]

Location: Smack dab in the middle of a city of 80,000 people. Not exactly the best place to be. Our house is totally indefensible with numerous entry points and many large windows. There isn't a room in this place that doesn't have at least one window large enough to get through. While three of the doors are pretty damn solid and IMO would stand up quite well to someone trying to bash them down, the garage door is really flimsy and the door in the garage that leads into the house wouldn't last five minutes. On the plus side, there is no way that a zombie would be able to get through all the crap in our garage and the basement in order to get into the house proper through that route.

 

Food & Water: We're pretty damn screwed when it comes to food. We have a small kitchen that doesn't have much space to store lots of food so we end up going through what we do have fairly quickly. As for water, we would do pretty well on that front I think. Our neighbour has one of those old fashioned well hand pumps that is about 20 feet from our front door. Last I heard (last year) the well water is still drinkable and the pump is in good working order.

 

Weapons: We're pretty screwed here too. We have no guns in the house and as far as I know, none of our immediate neighbours do either. The only weapons we have are a couple axes and a hatchet in the basement that are left over from when we had a wood fireplace (replaced it with gas). Other than that we have a crowbard and a few aluminum baseball bats, but that's about it. My dad works in the same building as the wildlife conservation officers who have an extensive collection of rifles stored in the building so we might be able to get something, but it all depends on how much warning we have.

 

The only saving grace for this place is that we are only 2km from the marina that has dozens of boats sitting there all year round. Thankfully the lake doesn't freeze in the winter and is full of fish so it would be possible to escape by boat if we could get there before everyone else thought of the same thing. I suppose we're also pretty good in that as long as we can survive through the summer and fall, the zombies will all freeze solid in the winter.

[framerate]

I chose my new apartment very carefully. It's on the bottom floor with 2 major entrances/exits and strategic window placements in case both exits are blocked.

 

I'll admit, my food supply is a bit low, but that's understandable since I just moved in here. I'm working now on my motion sensor security system and getting a permit to keep my 12-gauge legally with me at all times in the state of California.

 

If anyone knows the number of the local Zombie Preparations Group? The one I had back in the midwest was a real good source of information, and I'm hoping to find a weekly group in the greater Orange County area.

 

Any help would be appreciated, since I'm new to the area

[Krookie]

Well, I live in a 3 story town-house of sorts, pretty sturdy as it's mostly brick minus the garage. Probably would destroy the bottom set of stairs and hang in the living room/kitchen which is on the second story. Good lookout position would be the a large window to allow us to see most of whats going on outside. If worst came to worst we could move up to the third story.

 

Food would be super simple because there is a minit-mart right across the street from me.

 

Weapons would be scarce but I'm pretty sure we have like 2 axes, and a bunch of other sharps stuff in the garage. We have a pick up truck that would be good for get-aways I suppose.

 

The number one thing to remember is to gather food, get upstairs, and destroy the staircase behind you.

[Musopticon?]

I have easy access to four-legged, equestrian transportation, as my sister's stable is nearby.

 

Yay for zombie horses!

[SteveThaiBinh]

We're getting a new security 'feature' to add to our existing safe rooms (the downstair toilet) - a lockable iron grill at the foot of the stairs. I think I can survive on the first floor for a week or so until the water runs out. I'd like to think the British Consulate would have sent a helicopter by then, since I spent flippin' ages registering on their stupid website.

[Walsingham]

Sorry, framerate. I'm Queenside so can't help with Orange County. Anyoen else help out? Surely Obsidian should have a company sponsored scheme of sorts?

 

Krookie, the minimart might be a liability. Looters would be sure to head there. Speaking of which I've been wondering how to camouflage/hide my stash of food. One thought I had was to store some of the tinned goods inside tins of paint. Also, I was thinking of using the papered over fireplaces. Not for the main stash, you understand, but for the latter stages. It also occurred to me that if anyone does get the upper hand it might be wise to let them find at least one decent stash of stuff, to placate them.

 

Weapons wise I must say I'm against firearms on the grounds that they need ammunition. I like theslug's idea of an improvised spear. Except, you know, not improvised.

 

I'm also rather nervous about theslug.

[mkreku]

Location: First floor, two exits, lots of windows. But I sleep like a log Dead meat.

 

Food: I have a can of moose meat and a lot of booze. Dead (but adequately drunk) meat.

 

Weapons: I have an aluminium bat! And a hockey stick! No guns though. My father is much better off in that regard.

 

3/10.

[Deadly_Nightshade]

Plus, I'm about a half-mile from Arlington National Cemetary. Which means that, instead of plain ol' civilian zombies, I'd be dealing with zombies with lots of military experience.

 

Well, if we were dealing with an outbreak of a human-born zombie virus, id est like in World War Z, a graveyard might be a very good place to flee to.

[Humodour]

Upon reflection, I think I might just stock up the car and head for the country if things get bad. I live at the edge of town right next to the road to nowhere, which is perfect.

 

Zombies don't set up road blocks, do they?

[Deadly_Nightshade]

No, but if you hit a traffic jam be prepared to ditch the car and run as a hoard of undead could descend and trap you within your vehicle.

[tarna]

I live in a single story home mostly made of brick. Sadly, I have few firearms ( a .32 acp, a single shot 20 gauge shotgun, a single shot .22 and a lever action ww2 vintage 308. I should work on this ). However...I do store a large quantity of varied chemicals and varied gases on site ( enough to void my homeowners' insurance if this were known ). Keep in mind that I tend to hoard stuff and I had at one time had an explosives handlers licence issued by the BATF. Knowledge is a wonderful thing! . I have hydrofloric acid, nitric acid, hydrochloric acid and on site as well as gaseous chlorin ( a novelty that I ran across ) and have the ability to pump it into my sprinkler system. I also have a large amount of oxygen and acetylene on site. Blasting caps can be made out of simple materials like citric acid ( vitamin C ), camp fire tablets and such ( no...I'm not giving you the freeking details ).

I do however, have a lot of bladed weapons ( ask Eldar ). I have 2 Katanas and a Wagisashi and my wife's Damascus blades ( all sharp as Hell! ) as well as some ugly-assed defensive blades. Pretty to look at but ugly if I am swinging them in your direction. I also have oven cleaner ( sodium hydroxide ) in spray form. Try it in the eyes and see how you fair. :wink: Undead or not, ya gotta see yer food.

Krookie, the minimart might be a liability. Looters would be sure to head there.

Looters are usually stupid. Intellect trumps all.

Speaking of which I've been wondering how to camouflage/hide my stash of food. One thought I had was to store some of the tinned goods inside tins of paint.

This is a fantastic idea. Instant adaption/theft of this idea.

Also, I was thinking of using the papered over fireplaces.

I once stored a pistol in this manner. A hollowed out section of wall in my apartment bedroom with a paper-mache section covering the weapon. Easy reach if needed. Luckily, it never was.

Not for the main stash, you understand, but for the latter stages. It also occurred to me that if anyone does get the upper hand it might be wise to let them find at least one decent stash of stuff, to placate them.

This is called 'burglar bait' BTW. Poison it with nitromethane or dimethyl sulfinoxate mixed with rat poison, snake venom or some other interesting toxin.

[Humodour]

You store hydrofluoric acid in your house? Sheesh man.

[Gorth]

He probaly has a pit of that stuff under the "Welcome" mat

[Tale]

If you elect me President, I promise to you that I will put a ban on all domestic research into zombie voodoo, viruses, and add another few feet of dirt to all cursed graveyards. I will vigorously pursue the development of anti-zombie weaponry, including high energy lasers and giant robots. I will secure our borders against Mexican tequila zombies.

 

I will ensure that we will never have to endure another zombie crisis like the one last year in California. It was irresponsible handling of the situation by the current administration that led to such a tragedy and threatened our country to its very core... you, the people. I will not let it happen again!

 

You cannot afford to not elect me. My opponents will downplay the issue. Some may even disavow the existence of zombies and call me a kook. They will only lead us to our doom.

 

Vote for Tale in '08.

Edited May 27, 2008 by Tale

[Walsingham]

Tale, you are the wave of the future, and I intend to surf you. Chainlink over all graveyards.