Example of a typical Soviet architecture.
Well, I was wondering for some time what if... zombie apocalypse happens! It is hard to think about a universal plan, because our living locations greatly differ, for example I live in a former Soviet country, Lithuania. Here in smaller towns, there are a lot of industrial buildings, old Soviet buildings have mainly few possible entries available for zombies to get in (windows on first floor are quite high, and the doors sturdy enough to withstand zombies breaking in). But, lets get back to the main thing, how to survive a Zombie apocalypse. I will be having in mind, that all of this happens for a person that lives in a city or suburb. Also I will be having in mind that zombies are like from The Walking Dead. Not very slow and not too fast either, clumsy, not intelligent. Everyone is infected so, bitten or not, you will turn unless someone kills your brain., but you can save your-self (or someone else) by amputating your bitten limb, or simply die.
Zombie a.k.a "walker" from AMC's "The Walking Dead"
Also that you have no serious physical illness. I am also assuming that the survivor has driving skills, knows how to use firearms, is not hot-headed. It is not necessary to have military, engineer background or some survival skills for a hunter, scout and etc. Those can be learned if the person is creative, adaptable to environment and has a higher than an average IQ. It is important to think widely: shelter, food, weapons, building materials, car spare parts, places to find everything, where can you find gas engines for electricity? Nearest shops, to remember friends, relatives who might have specific things, like a hunter friend, he will have a rifle in his home, a police officer, an engineer will have some valuables in their home too and etc.
Preparedness before the Zombie Outbreak[]
Have in mind, that having some basic ideas, on what if... Is crucial. So some things that are important:
- Map with key locations. Whether it is a smartphone with built in GPS maps, (you can always tag the nearest survival, gun, building material shops, military, police depots, other important locations) or a simple map with tagged locations. It is also very good to have them in mind.
- Basic durable clothes, carrying and defensive gear. Durable, silent and warm clothing, a backpack, fingerless gloves (to keep hands from minor injuries climbing fences and etc.) and a knife, machete, axe (best if tomahawk). Bandana, shemagh or head-wraps I believe to be extremely necessary since they can be used in many ways, from keeping your neck warm, to stopping the bleeding. These things are always nearby, in your house, you might be carrying a knife for self defense, a backpack.
- Strategy. Since waking up in the morning and seeing zombies in the street or in your home, parents that might be human flesh eating zombies will be shocking, you must keep your head intact, be self-aware and don't get lost in stressful situations. Have a plan with your friend, like if this really happens, where you would meet and when, just in case the is no phone signal. The first steps that you will do, best is getting weapons as soon as possible, survival gear and finding a shelter, then thinking about the future steps.
I'm not including situation that you might already have weapons, all the survival gear, everything for survival, even a gas generator. It is great if you do, but just in case if the scenario is, that you don't which is most possible. It is always best to expect the worst. Now let's just say it happened. I'm going to talk about the important things in survival during the zombie apocalypse
Bear Grylls on "The Ultimate Survival" surviving in urban conditions
Traveling[]
The main method of traveling in urban areas is on foot. For people that are agile, and fast it is the best method, for everyone else, the key of survival traveling on foot is always staying low profile, watching the sound of your foot steps, being crouched (it takes some practice, to crouch correctly, if not, you will get tired quickly), and most important, be aware of your surroundings. See possibilities, a zombie behind a corner, a car, bush, behind the shop glass. The are two types of areas on the ground: open areas and closed areas. Open areas means you see nearby surroundings with ease, but you are an easier target to be spotted for other survivors or zombies, but more options to navigate, except if a zombie horde is coming from all directions. Closed areas are buildings, alleys, places with limited space and options to go, it is easier to stealthily travel in close areas if you are a sneaky type, but also easier to be ambushed by zombies or other survivors. Other options are underground and roof travel. It is extremely dangerous, especially in underground, as it is dark in there and you might encounter wandering zombies and roof are high, one clumsy step and you might fall to death. I prefer to leave them for the agile people or critical situations. Of course cleaning up the underground with other people might provide safe travel around the city!
Vehicle travel is of course inevitable for your survival. Small, compact cars are always good for traveling between and in cities, as they offer mileage and maneuverability. Some examples would be a VW Golf, Ford Fiesta, or Chevrolet Trax hatchback. However, a body-on-frame SUV would probably be your best bet overall. These vehicles are durable, get decent mileage (the newer ones), and since roads might (will) be blocked with debris or/ and abandoned vehicles, pulling off the road won't be the best thing for a low slung, 2WD car. A 4X4 SUV has a lot more versatility this way. Also, since going to another city means you will be searching for supplies and you will need space, an SUV provides that space. Good examples would be a Toyota 4runner, a Chevy Tahoe/ GMC Yukon (NOT the Denali version), and a Nissan Xterra. Avoid any SUV vehicle deemed 'Crossover'. Smaller ones have their few uses, larger ones should be avoided like zombies.
For traveling fast and high mobility I always prefer ATV. Motorcycles such as dirt bikes are also good of course. The main disadvantage is that you won't get protection if caught by zombies from all directions, but the mobility and speed is the price. ATV's can stash more than motorcycles and are somewhat more stable on rough roads. Many special forces operators prefer ATV's than motorcycles because of those two things.
The are many other traveling ways, such as helicopters, air planes, boats, tanks and etc. there is nothing much to tell about them, since to travel by air or in a tank you need special skills and it is less likely that you will be using such methods, except if you build your base on an island that has no zombies or other hardly reachable object. Of course having a pilot and a helicopter can make things very easy, such as landing survivors on the roof of buildings, gathering supplies from there, reaching various points, such as boats in the middle of lake (emergency case if survivor gets chased on the land and is surrounded by zombies), building roof and etc.
| On foot | Car/SUV | ATV/Motorcycle | Helicopter/airplane |
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Weapons and fighting[]
While there are many information about the weapons, ammunition and where to find it, in this Wikia, I believe I should talk more about using weapons, types of fighting. Since the zombies are attracted by sound most of the contacts will be dealt with stealthily, or at least by those who are willing to survive. Also you will probably be in a group of at least a few people. It is important for each of them to know what type of combatant they are, whether a sniper, a rifleman, or good in close combat. The list of roles I show is just my own opinion, there may always be other roles or crossings between them.