There are many mistakes that a person can make when trying to survive a zombie apocalypse. This article will cover some of the main mistakes that you don't want to make during your first time in the zombie-plagued wasteland.
Combating Zombies
Lighting Zombies on Fire
Although it is a tempting concept, refrain from using fire to combat the undead. Most zombies are oblivious to fire, much less afraid of it, and although fire does eventually kill zombies, it takes a long time to do so and since they are unfeeling, they will continue to come at you, now even more dangerous. The flaming ghouls are also a threat to your place of refuge and any supplies that you have within it.
Using a close-range Weapon
Although melee weapons are common in zombie films, games and books and many self-proclaimed experts suggest the use of melee weapons, they should be a last resort only. The close range required to engage the zombie will increase the chance of getting infected by either bite or the blood splatter. Also, most melee weapons won't break a human skull in one hit.
Underestimating the Undead
Although zombies are in essence the mangled, decomposed corpses of humans, that does not make them any less deadly. When in a zombie-filled environment, you must resist the temptation to underestimate them. For starters, avoid close range combat with ghouls, you have a much better chance of defeating the undead if you stay out of range of their arms. When you are fighting in close proximity to the walking dead, do not try to overpower it. Even if you do manage to wrestle it to the ground, it can easily bite your arm or hand, infecting you on the spot. On another note, don't underestimate the senses of the undead. Although they don't look like it, they have a good sense of hearing and can locate you if you make too much noise.
Removing the Head
The two main ways to kill a zombie is to remove the head or destroy the brain. Depending on the Zombie anatomy, removing the head will make them immobile but it doesn't mean that they'll stop trying to infect or eat you. It'll just be a hindrance until they can bite you in the ankle. Play it safe and destroy the brain as insurance in case the Zombie finds an opportunity to bite you. It may seem stupid but a zombie is still a zombie.
Style over Substance
It's generally the case that the more complex or overwhelmingly powerful the weapon you are using, the greater chance you'll die (good examples of such weapons are chainsaws, large caliber handguns, machine guns and flamethrowers). The reason for this is simple and spans the entire history of human conflict. Societies have developed methods of warfare designed to be used with increasing efficiency against living enemies whereas conflict against the undead takes place on a more basic level with one goal: destroying the brain. High tech weaponry and gear can also create a false sense of security, a dangerous attitude of assumed invincibility. This effect is especially true to those who choose to wear armor. Wearing clothing and a hairstyle that will deter a zombie from grabbing you is far superior to just about any armor on the market today. When the dead rise, some of the first casualties will be the show-offs, attempting to look like some sort of bad-ass from an action film and getting themselves killed in the process. Simple methods, tools and weapons are often safer and/or more efficient to use, and style counts for nothing in a survival situation. Remember, if you see a potential weapon and think to yourself "I'd look damn cool fighting a zombie with this thing!", you should probably reconsider.
Weapon Use
Many newcomers to the world of the undead go with the "super commando" strategy: load up on the biggest and most impressive weapons, and then run around killing as many zombies as they can. This is ultimately pointless, as a survivor's primary goal in a zombie apocalypse should not be the destruction of zombies, but simply that of long-term survival. If the infection has progressed to the point to be described as an "apocalypse", there will inevitably be far too many zombies for even a large group of survivors to effectively destroy. This is further exacerbated when the "super commando" has no experience or only the most basic idea of how to use the weapons in general, especially against zombies.
The zombies are mainly depicted as navigating through the environment by hearing sounds, if a survivor goes in guns blazing in order to fight zombies then the survivor will be quickly overwhelmed by zombies due to their attraction to sound or the survivor will waste too much ammo resulting in difficulty escaping from the horde of zombies that they summoned due to the gunfire.
Vehicular Attacks
While using a car is better for transporting yourself and or your group to new areas, it's a bad idea to use a car as a weapon by either driving into zombies or letting your partner use weapons while you drive because you will lose focus and crash your car which can result in your death. Car fuel can also be hard and rare to find due to other groups getting fuel for their cars as well. It's also a bad idea to use cars as weapons because if you survive the car crash or the car runs out of fuel then you will be trapped with a group of zombies.
Unlucky Survivors
Zombies were once human, while some zombies were created in the first few weeks of the outbreak or the zombies multiplied within a few months. Survivors tend to forget that the recently infected zombies were survivors once, survivors expect zombies to be either hiding in buildings or hiding homes but they don't acknowledge that zombies can be in air vents or under cars. For example a survivor could have tried to hide in an air vent in order to escape an approaching horde but could die in the vents by either getting lost, starvation, dehydration or they could have been unknowingly infected, if the survivor in the vent became a zombie then it means that there is a zombie in the vent which could easily kill a survivor by accidentally falling out of the vent or the survivor jumping into the vent to escape the zombies but due to the claustrophobic environment of the vent shaft, the survivor will have difficulty reaching their weapon to save themselves.
To avoid this it's best to do a scan of the vents after checking the base or by sealing the vents, most buildings will have a machine in order to scan for shaft damages or blockages. Only consider sealing the vents as a last resort because you will still need another form of escape in case your trapped. Also always check the cars for zombies before driving or salvaging for fuel.
Knife-Wielding
Learn how to wield a knife for combat, hunting or escapology because knives are going to be your best friend in the apocalypse because most survivors will have a higher chance of holding a knife to quickly and silently kill zombies or other humans. Knives are also used to cut a rope, sharpen wood to use as spears and hunt animals. Don't rely on knives as your only weapon but always keep one on your person in case you need to get out of a scenario.
Environment
Don't rely on simply killing or outrunning a zombie or human. Use the environment to your advantage by setting traps, wearing camouflage or using rocks to bludgeon them to death or by carving tree branches into spears. For example in the Vietnam war, the Viet Cong made booby traps out of steel rods, sharpened wood and tin cans. Tunnels were also used against American soldiers which caused paranoia and stress which affected their morale and sanity. This strategy was regarded as The Elephant and the Grasshopper. Like the elephant, the Americans made their presence known by using napalm and making themselves a target because of their lack of stealth. The Viet Cong were regarded as the Grasshoppers because they rarely fought the enemy directly due to their use of tunnels and booby traps allowing them to be stealthy and build a psychological threat to the enemy.
Weight
Many people don't really consider weapon or armour weight. When imagining a fight with the undead, you'd picture yourself wielding a minigun and a full suit of armour. This is a terrible idea for a number of reasons; first being is that you'd essentially be a walking dinner bell for all zombies in the area. Secondly, you'd need a lot of strength to move as you'd be weighed down by the equipment, forcing slower movement and when you've fallen to the ground. You'll have some trouble getting back up. Thirdly, Both the armour and weapons will need maintenance from hard to find materials. Finally, you will need a longer time limit to prepare yourself for battle and getting out of your armour will take just as long.
Play it safe by getting lighter equipment, you will need speed and discipline to survive the horde. You may have more defences while wearing heavy armour but once you're out of bullets or pinned to the ground, you're at the mercy of a zombie. Worse case scenario, when you reanimate you'll be the hardest zombie to kill.
Surviving
Rescuing People
When the outbreak strikes, many people feel strongly compelled to search for friends or family to rescue them, without considering the circumstances or making any plans or preparations whatsoever. Simply rushing out to go and save someone without even the vaguest notion of where exactly they are, how you're going to get there or how you'll defend yourself against the undead will only get you killed, and you won't be able to help anyone if you're dead (or, worse, undead). Take a moment to consider the circumstances before departing on any haphazard rescue missions:
- Distance: The greater the distance between your friend or family member and you, the more difficult it will probably be to reach them, and the greater the probability that they won't be there when you arrive.
- Location: If they live in a remote or sufficiently defensible area, they may be safer than you are. Don't get yourself killed by rushing to them assuming they need your help this instant when they may not be in danger.
Underestimating Survivors
A zombie apocalypse is no longer the place for abrasiveness or order because those who are able to survive the first few weeks or months of the apocalypse have developed an emotional detachment towards killing zombies and hostile or dangerous survivors. If you're trying to negotiate with a group of paranoid survivors by threatening them or being abrasive during the negotiations then they will have no objections with murdering you or sacrificing you to zombies. It's also a bad idea to try and threaten them with a handgun or weapon single-handedly because chances are that they will have faster reflexes or more skilled with weapons.
Mistreating your group members is also a bad idea because sooner or later you and your group might be captured by hostile survivors or face a horde of zombies, if you mistreat your group members then they will be reluctant towards saving you from zombies or they will sacrifice you to hostile survivors if they given an offer that could be beneficial to the groups survivors.
Re-populating the planet
In movies in an apocalyptic event there will always be more than one person who suggests repopulating the planet, This is a bad idea for a number of reasons because humanity may still be trying to find the right survival tactics in order to defeat zombies so producing more offspring without survival knowledge will merely increase the body count, Medical professionals are going to be a rare sight because they are probably the first to become infected when treating zombie bites at the start of the outbreak meaning that if a pregnant woman was due to give birth then they may die of easily preventable infections (in a world without antibiotics) or blood loss. In order to repopulate the planet, you would need roughly need two hundred or more people but there might not be enough people due to the near-genocide of the human race. Babies are also ill-advised in a zombie apocalypse because a baby will cry at the first sign of distress which can result in the attraction of zombies. Save the re-population for after you have learned how to survive or when the zombies are greatly reduced to a point where they can be easily exterminated or rendered extinct. This isn't to say that survivors should stop having sex in general but survivors should try to find some birth control pills or condoms when going through stores.
Know When to Run
Lots of people have fantasies of becoming a one-man army when a zombie apocalypse happens and they believe that they can kill ten zombies with five bullets. You shouldn't overestimate yourself and take too much responsibility for other people. Some people can't mentally handle the zombie apocalypse and if they chose to allow zombies to kill them then you shouldn't blame yourself for their deaths. You should know when to run and hide because violence isn't always the first answer and if there is a horde of fifty or more zombies then you should run away or hide in a place that can't be easily accessed by zombies. If someone outside of your family is refusing to listen to reason by trying to go guns blazing against a horde of zombies then it's best if you leave them because they have stubbornly become bait for zombies and have bought you and your group time to escape.
Sexual Assault
The gender of the survivor is irrelevant but some survivors won't see it that way, when it's the apocalypse survivors will do anything in a frenzy and because the authorities are no longer a problem for them. Some survivors (regardless if they are male or female) will feel that they are entitled to sex for saving other survivors or will try to commit sexual crimes (i.e paedophilia or rape).
Social Darwinism
Social Darwinists are people that people that believe that only the strongest survivors should inherit the world and control the new world order meaning that they will not use medical supplies on the sick, crippled or elderly (and to certain extent children) because they believe that they are not worth saving. If people have known disorders or mental conditions then they will be at risk depending on the mentality of the Darwinists for example Carver from Telltales Walking Dead allowed Reggie (who lost an arm to a zombie bite) to stay with his group as long as he could fulfil his duties but killed him when Clementine or Sarah didn't finish a job when they were under his supervision (Sarah seemed to have autism or an anxiety disorder so she also applies to this). If the Darwinists followed a Nazi-like regime then it's best to avoid them at all costs and escape as fast as possible.
Hairstyles
Due to the zombies heavily restricting the utilities of the survivors, people will grow their hair to ridiculous lengths and make it very long. You need to keep your hair short or tuck your hair under the collar because zombies and hostile survivors will grab the hair in an effort to get a hold of you which will definitely cause problems or in some scenarios you can get your hair caught in machinery which will kill you or heavily injury you. At any opportunity, you need to keep your hair short or tucked into your collar.
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