In the "Zombiepocolypse" how would you fare?

8 1/2 · Post by **8 1/2** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 10:19 am

The scenario: For whatever reason, the dead have risen and are feeding on the living. Their numbers have been steadily growing, until now they have reached an infestation level in the population of over 60%. You hear on the news that a massive group numbering in the hundreds is moving toward where you live, and you have less than fifteen minutes before your area will be overtaken.

The challenge: Barring Wal-Mart (as it's just too easy) where will you head? In the fight for weapons, food and shelter, what will you do? Within the time frame given (fifteen minutes) what stores/places are you going to target? You can only use places that you actually live by, and vehicles that you already own. Saying "I'd steal a plane," is out of the question. You must survive with only what you have and what you can pilfer from retail outlets.

For myself, I don't own any guns, nor do I have anything else that's really going to stop a zombie, so I have to consider weapons. I live alone in an apartment so I don't have to worry too much about shelter since there's only one way in and I could bar the door pretty easily. I do have to think about food though, since I have absolutely nothing but beer and condiments in my fridge. This is kind of an odd thought, but if I only have time to hit one store and race back home, I think my choice would be Dollar Tree (a chain store that sells items for a dollar or less). It's not likely to be a focus of the panic-stricken crowd that will be racing for supplies throughout the city and they carry a large supply of non-perishible food. I could fill a shopping cart with canned goods, get a few cases of bottled water, and then head over the hardware/housewares section and pick up a hatchet and a some giant cleavers just in case I have to fight some of the undead.

Super Laydock · Post by **Super Laydock** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 10:34 am

Hmm, since we always have lots of beer in our storage and have lots of great options to barracade the house it would be an option...but not permanently of course.

Within 5 minutes walking distance of my house the is however a WWII war monument consisting among other things of a complete (and still intact) TANK.
I could run along my neighbours' house grasp the neighbour with me and run for the tank with a can of gasoline. I am not technical, but he is (and a former army man) and my best bet would be to hotwire the tank (it still rides once in several years so it is in good shape).
With a bit of luck we could breach to the hordes of Zombies and getting to a (temporarily safer place, like the Airforce base nearby..if it isn't infected yet).
If we get out of gas and still remain among the undead I guess we can stay in and at least won't be eaten alive since they can't get in the tank.
But I'd rather go out in a blaze of glory, wielding knives fighting my way out of the tank ...to be finally overpowered and consumed

neorichieb1971 · Post by **neorichieb1971** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 10:51 am

If that happened I would just watch coverage on CNN. I would only go out if my life depended on it.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 11:08 am

Fortunate for me I live in a very safe place and actually have access to the roof. I guess the issue would be running to the store quick and getting as much food as I can carry. I have a ton of camping supplies, so I think I'd just camp out on the roof (which is three stories up and zombie inacessible). For water I could do what they did in 28 days later--leave a lot of buckets out. Still, I don't think I could last on the roof forever...

Sly Cherry Chunks · Post by **Sly Cherry Chunks** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 11:21 am

It would all depend on whether the buses were still running. I'd be pretty screwed if they weren't.

Andi · Post by **Andi** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 12:59 pm

Completely on subject: Dude, read my online comic. It's all about this sort of thing.

http://drusucks.netfirms.com

MadSteelDarkness · Post by **MadSteelDarkness** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 4:09 pm

Great topic, 8 1/2! Zombie flicks are my faves.

Since I happen to have a couple of camping axes, as well as a pair of nunchaku, weapons wouldn't be a problem for me. Seeing as how the big food stores would be overrun with people, I'd avoid those and head to the little yellow convenience store on the corner. On the way, I'd grab one of the shopping carts the local homeless guys are always shuttling around, loot the vintage toy store (they've got a bunch of Atari 2600 and Intellivision stuff in great condition), the record shop (lots of good punk, noise, and jazz records there), and then the book store (tons of Burroughs and Bukowski...). Oh, and yes all of these shops are right next to each other on North Loop, just a block away from where I live (Damn, I love my neighborhood!). Once my shopping cart was loaded up with canned goods, bottled water, import beer, CDs, vintage games, and books, I'd haul ass back to my pad, board it up, and as Shaun said, "Wait for this to all blow over".

SheSaidDutch · Post by **SheSaidDutch** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 5:32 pm

12 inch vinyl

any tatics etc I'll watch Shawn of the Dead

steveovig · Post by **steveovig** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 5:58 pm

I would jump in a car ASAP, and drive until I found a great, uninfested area with another car. I would just keep switching cars and/or getting gas if I could. Once the infestation died down a little (as in, no more unifected for miles) I could worry about food, water, etc. I'd probably just load up my first car with all food I could fit in it from my house, as I could probably survive for a few days on that alone, eating sparingly. I would just keep driving/traveling and collecting food, weapons, etc. as I go until I could reach a boat harbor, and hopefully there'd be an extra boat someplace around there, maybe even a houseboat. Hopefully, I could live on the seas for a little while, maybe just driving the boat offshore 50 yards with a dingy and then turn off the boat. If I needed food or essentials, I hop in my dingy, jump in my car, and carefully head to a store. Of course, I couldn't stay for long as, sooner or later, I would end up looting all the food closeby, so I'd have to travel again. From movies like Dawn of the Dead, I can tell that with enough weapons I should be able to outsmart the infected and aim for their heads to eliminate them, unless there was a swarm of them to contend with. Especially, if I grab heavy explosives and blow the fuckers up. I could take out a group of them with a few grenades or 1 set of C4. I'd just keep hoarding weapons, mainly automatics and explosives.

judesalmon · Post by **judesalmon** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:01 pm

Shawn of The Dead for me too - I live in the UK, so no guns.

SheSaidDutch · Post by **SheSaidDutch** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:08 pm

judesalmon wrote:Shawn of The Dead for me too - I live in the UK, so no guns.

To the Wincheaster

MadSteelDarkness · Post by **MadSteelDarkness** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:10 pm

SheSaidDutch wrote:12 inch vinyl

any tatics etc I'll watch Shawn of the Dead

I dunno, man...they didn't seem too successful in that respect...

"That's the second record I ever bought!"

Ganelon · Post by **Ganelon** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:38 pm

Uh, wait for the local US military base to bomb the zombies?

judesalmon · Post by **judesalmon** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:40 pm

Cricket bats!

Super Laydock · Post by **Super Laydock** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:45 pm

Ganelon wrote:Uh, wait for the local US military base to bomb the zombies?

What if the base was infected already? Remember you only have 15 minutes to act! Waiting without acting could cost you your live!

*Zombie voice*: bomb the life out of those mortals, mwuhahahahaha...

Ganelon · Post by **Ganelon** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 6:54 pm

Hmm, well, a direct confrontation would require knowledge of zombie facts. For example, zombies are known to bash things.

But can they climb? If not, I can just rush to the ceiling of the highest building around.
Can they run? If not, I'll just run away.
Can they break through steel doors? If not, there's one around that I should be able to convince someone to open up.
Can they bite/scratch through foam? If not, I know a place with plenty of foam that I could surround myself.
Or at the very worst, I'll become a zombie myself and try to bite my enemies.

TWITCHDOCTOR · Post by **TWITCHDOCTOR** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 7:41 pm

This topic is stupid...everyone knows that all zombies are vegetarians. They're depicted "wrongfully" in the movies by eating human flesh, when all they really want is to crunch into some carrots.

Its the very same with Santa Claus. The guy's not fat at all. In fact he's quite thin. How do you think he slides down chimneys. Surely he wouldn't be able to do so if he was around 300 pounds!

judesalmon · Post by **judesalmon** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 7:43 pm

TWITCHDOCTOR wrote:This topic is stupid...everyone knows that all zombies are vegetarians. They're depicted "wrongfully" in the movies by eating human flesh, when all they really want is to crunch into some carrots.

Its the very same with Santa Claus. The guy's not fat at all. In fact he's quite thin. How do you think he slides down chimneys. Surely he wouldn't be able to do so if he was around 300 pounds!

TWITCHDOCTOR · Post by **TWITCHDOCTOR** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 7:47 pm

By the way...the Easter Bunny is an Atheist. Not everyone knows that, but the truth will come out sooner or later. Just keep watching Fox News and CNN.

UnscathedFlyingObject · Mon Apr 04, 2005 8:00 pm

I'd disguise myself as a zombie. We all know that zombies don't eat each other.

8 1/2 · Post by **8 1/2** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 8:29 pm

Ganelon wrote:Hmm, well, a direct confrontation would require knowledge of zombie facts. For example, zombies are known to bash things.

But can they climb? If not, I can just rush to the ceiling of the highest building around.
Can they run? If not, I'll just run away.
Can they break through steel doors? If not, there's one around that I should be able to convince someone to open up.
Can they bite/scratch through foam? If not, I know a place with plenty of foam that I could surround myself.
Or at the very worst, I'll become a zombie myself and try to bite my enemies.

Ah, good questions. I was thinking of the more traditional "shambling and stumbling" type of zombie as opposed to the "running like a track star" ones seen in 28 days later or the new Dawn of the Dead. As far as abilities, they have all the abilities of a rotting human, so they can make it up stairs and by sheer force of numbers break through normal doors and such. A steel door would certainly stop them.

As far as dressing up like a zombie goes, I think you'd have to find a dead body and smear yourself with rotting flesh or else they'd smell that you were living and eat you. I don't know why, but zombies always seem to be highly perceptive of who's living and who's not. Maybe the zombification hightens the sense of smell.

SheSaidDutch · Post by **SheSaidDutch** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 9:13 pm

MadSteelDarkness wrote:
SheSaidDutch wrote:12 inch vinyl

any tatics etc I'll watch Shawn of the Dead
I dunno, man...they didn't seem too successful in that respect...

"That's the second record I ever bought!"

ha ha I cant remember the actual record something from the 70's or something wasn't It

Could I fall into a vat and become a super mutant?
or would that spoil it too much

I'd be dumb strong and sterile no zombie would mess with me

zombies dont like sterile creatures...

Post by **BulletMagnet** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 9:35 pm

Methinks that ther living dead would take one look at me and say "THIS is the best that the powerless fleshly living have to offer us these days? It's...it's like some kind of walking, breathing Brussels sprout!" Then they'd decide to just go to White Castle instead.

Post by **nZero** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 10:07 pm

Mostly on topic: fantastic book

MadSteelDarkness · Post by **MadSteelDarkness** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 10:12 pm

SheSaidDutch wrote:
MadSteelDarkness wrote:
SheSaidDutch wrote:12 inch vinyl

any tatics etc I'll watch Shawn of the Dead
I dunno, man...they didn't seem too successful in that respect...

"That's the second record I ever bought!"
ha ha I cant remember the actual record something from the 70's or something wasn't It

Early eighties, I think...

"It's not Hip-Hop...It's Electro..."

magnum opus · Post by **magnum opus** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 10:25 pm

i'd do pretty good i suspect, i'm in the middle of a desert at the moment, so i don't have the swarm problem of say, down town L.A., there's an explosives research center five minutes walk from here, and a prison 20 miles up the road (good place to bunker down if need be) there's also half a dozen military bases/testing centers/roswel/physics research labs/red neck who probably have plenty of guns and ammo with in half a tank of gas from me. once i was sure i was ready I'd probably swipe a truck fill the back with gas cans and drive north, just keep going up to canada/alaska, to my knowledge zombies are not freeze proof and i doubt any of them remembered to wear a winter coat.

CMoon · Post by **CMoon** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 10:26 pm

RE: disguising yourself like a zombie...

haha! I can't believe they did this in shaun of the dead. It is the most stupid idea, and the funniest thing I've ever seen.

RE: Zombie survival guide

Jesus, does every book now need a flash site? Good lord someone needs to get busy and make a flash site for Moby Dick.

SheSaidDutch · Post by **SheSaidDutch** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 11:41 pm

CMoon wrote:RE: disguising yourself like a zombie...

haha! I can't believe they did this in shaun of the dead. It is the most stupid idea, and the funniest thing I've ever seen.

RE: Zombie survival guide

Jesus, does every book now need a flash site? Good lord someone needs to get busy and make a flash site for Moby Dick.

Thats the book your quoting from I see

kemical · Post by **kemical** » Mon Apr 04, 2005 11:58 pm

i'd just head to the mountains (to the northwest), which are far from here, but thats where i'd go.. (for any major end of world/country emergency really).

Damocles · Post by **Damocles** » Tue Apr 05, 2005 12:54 am

Well....since my family owns a gun shop, and I'm in northeast Kansas, I'd just grab everything in our house, head up on the roof, and have a ball. Seriously....I want this to happen. It's basically my dream to be able to sit on my roof and pop off zombies.