Having watched alot of zombie movies, combined with my limited Army training I have thought up a few ideas that may be beneficial in a Z related combat environment. Just wanting to share a few with the collective.

1. I will avoid cammo and clothing of a militaristic background. ACU, ABU, etc all scream "I have resources and training" This could make me a valuable target to looting and raid attacks to get my gear. Even if my cargo pockets and tac vest is filled with skittles and redbull-they may see it as grenades and "secret Army shit". Also, in the event I do encounter other friendlies I can explain my skills and gear easily enough to prove my value without screaming it to the heavens with patches and a perfect uniform.

2. I will stop at every cop car, taxi, pickup truck, or other vehicle with a punisher, NRA, or shooting related sticker or emblem to scavenge for supplies. I live in a very small town with almost no violent crime and our police STILL carry ar15's, shotguns, and less than lethal shot guns in EVERY cruiser. The keys are usually on the officers person but I can still take ammo and, given enough time, disassemble a weapon for parts or maybe break the lock open. Taxis usually carry some tools and parts for repair or at least commo gear, and some carry guns. Private vehicles with NRA stickers or other similar stuff are flags for possible gear. Especially if I encounter a car wreck/pile up that may have killed someone who was just trying to escape with their gear.

3. I will carry a small .22 revolver and a small container or two of bullets on my person. Think how many rounds can be carried in a tin of dip, pill bottle, or loose in a pocket. Several hundred easily, with very little weight. And all you have to do is put some cotton balls or similar material in the top of the container and it will not rattle around. A fanny pack could hold everything, never need to be removed, and weigh very little. The revolver is high reliable and not likely to jam up, plus I will not drop and loose the small magazine. Think maybe a rugar bear cat or S&W J frame. This is useful in situations where I am pinned down but currently safe. (Think the scene in The Walking Dead where the two guys are on the bleachers in the highschool. A 22 and 100 rounds and they could just shoot all day and clear out the threat.) This way, I may take my time and clear out several dozen Z's rather than having to jump or run somewhere else. While this may be a rare situation 1.5 pounds around my waist offers alot of security for very little effort.

4. I will raid small towns and stores on the outskirts. I will avoid cities of a population greater than 20K like the plague. Yes they may have fancy guns, shelters, survivor pockets, and more food, but the increased risk of running into a mega herd makes this too dangerous. Small towns in rural areas will have general stores that sell everything and are less likely to be overrun rather than abandoned.

5. I will practice, enforce, and teach light and noise discipline in my group. Too often you see someone with a flashlight just walking around at night, or a house with the lights on, or a campfire, or calling out for something. Fuck That Shit. If your not seen or heard you have a better chance of slipping by unnoticed. The level of discipline needed will depend on the intelligence of the Z, but even basic things like not using light at night or whispering can avoid drawing unnecessary attention to your self.

6. I will teach and use basic military planning skills to everyone. A well briefed plan with return instructions is essential to prevent all the "Where is Bill?" "When did they say they would be back?"  "We cant find them, now what do we do?" Bullshit that leads to bad choices. Use buddy teams for christ sake

7. I will carry a hand to hand weapon that uses blunt force rather than piercing for damage. Not so much fun when your knife gets stuck in a skull or your hand slips and cuts itself on a Z soaked blade. Maybe a carpenters hammer or small crowbar.

8. WEAR MOTHERFUCKING GLOVES. Tough leather gloves and a long sleeve jacket will help prevent alot of infection. Add a surgical mask and some goggles and you arent going to get any oral or ocular transmission from splash back.

9. I will carry my Ipod/Phone or similar device with a way to charge it without electricity. This .2 pound device can hold more information and resources then can be used. Books on survival, weapons use, field manuals, maps, etc can all be had at a moments notice. I dont know where this charger can be bought but they can be made. Putting the item in a proper case like an otter box, or wrapped up in some socks can prevent accidental damage.


Anyone got anything else?

Heavy machete and suppressed .22 with several mags.  Maybe a Glock for if things get bad.
I have both.  Don't want to draw too much attention.

Okay, I have a question, in the event of a "walker (the Walking Dead)" Apocalypse, where would be the best place to go to seek refuge? I was at first thinking an island that was close to land (one mile at the longest), because you can live off the land by fishing and if any other needs arise, you can go to the main land and get supplies. And then that proved useless. Two reasons why: 1) depending on which "walker" story you read, walkers can survive under water. 2) if a threat came by, you could be easy pickings for anyone with a boat. They see you, and boom, you're a target.

So, now I'm thinking the country side (like The Walking Dead) or possibly, and shoot holes in my theory please, a 5 to 6 story building in the downtown part of a city. The reasons, 1) you can smash the first flight of stairs so no walkers can get up to the second floor, 2) you're close to abundant resources, 3) in the summer, if it gets too hot, you can open the windows for a light breeze, 4) you can use the roof as a place to put a garden and to collect rain water for drinking, 5) you can put a pully system in place to lift supplies, 6) easily defensible if attacked by a rougue element, 7) and the most important, plenty of rooms for people to live in. A hospital would be ideal because of all the medicine, hallways, rooms, and facilities they have to offer.

The country side does seem ideal, too. Take a small town, block off the few roads that allow cars in, consolidate to a defensible position, and dig in. You might have a few walkers enter every now and then, but it wouldn't be as densely populated as a city. When bad guys do come rolling through, you can make like a hole in the wall, and they might totally miss you altogether.

Another thought occurred, a prison/jail. That is a building/complex designed to keep people in, and out. Think of all the different angles and choke points that you can design. One problem, though, is that you need to have an exit plan that works or things can get pretty bad if the enemy has more than you do.

Military base goes without saying... Enclosed fences/walls, I would believe a healthy supply of guns and ammo. I would like to believe a couple of heavy duty vehicles (Stryker LAV comes to mind) that can carry a group of people, if needed. A barracks that would be a great place to defend.

Any thoughts?

A place like an old military base will likely be overrun within the first few weeks- it will a sight, light hospitals, police stations, and outposts that people are ORDERED to report to and will have infected amoungst the living.  Even if people are screened amazingly well, too many people and the noise they make will draw zed in for miles and miles.  And this all assumes that the place you are staying at even lets you in with your WEAPON and doesnt take it from you right off the bat!

I realize that people need people, and that support structure helps people get through their lives to function another day, but me and mine wil be practicing avoidance of people and places until things level out.

Thanks Forest, that helps a lot.  You just made me re-evaluate my current plan.  A couple things to note from your comments:

1) I dismissed Hospitals for another reason than already full of germs.  The reason, the fact that is flush with medical supplies means that anyone traveling by that hospital would want to peer inside and take what they wanted.  fight ensues that leaves you worse off than before.  Don't pick a place that needs constant defending of the supplies.

2) I forgot about the steel/concrete stairs.  That would be a big problem.  

3) The building I had in mind was a four story building with a loading dock and a two story parking garage.  It's also the largest building in the area.  No sniper problems there.  It's also near a very large neighborhood so supplies would be ripe for the picking.  Opening a window is easy, that's what bullets are for.

I think I disagree with the first point. If anything I think that sort of stuff can have a positive psychological effect. All gear stuff tells me is that the person wearing it gave this enough prior thought to go out and get that stuff. Particularly when shown by multiple people in a group, it suggests a degree of organization and advanced preparation. It's often said that you should avoid tacticool stuff because it may draw the attention of law enforcement or other authority types. And I think there is some truth to that. But I think that stuff would be more likely to make looters run in the other direction than draw in attackers. If I was the bad guy I would think twice before attacking someone that looked like they had the training and capability to leave me shot to pieces. Yeah I know in theory, one unexpected shot from concealment can take out Rambo but I would think twice about taking that shot, because if you miss he is going to kill you. It's like how they say bad guys will rob CCW holders for their guns. Who wants to try that when if you screw up in anyway you are going to get shot in the face?

That's not to say that camo and tactical stuff is like some magic shield you can throw up. It only really helps if you know how to use it. If you are packing a bunch of nice high speed gear and supplies but obviously don't know how to use it (cause you are making obvious mistakes) then that would put you on the "High Value Target List". It also would help if you look credible, as in you aren't a flabby bastard.

Not to mention, that stuff is comfortable!

I prefer BDUs in the dark blue or tan side- that way, on zday, you can blend in with people but you dont stand out as a target or threat.

You wear camo or bdu in the city, it will draw unwanted attention.

http://diydrones.com/profiles/blogs/ardupilot-mega-home-page

scouting missions, locating hordes, finding survivors and resources, diversions, i dont know much about rc planes but if the battery life is good that could be extremely useful if outfitted with a decent camera, you could watch the hordes in your town especially during the initial days of the infection

They make solar chargers for just about everything ( so no Book of Eli going into town for a battery charge)

I agree with the idea of going to a fortified location to sleep.. I.E. police stations, jails or military bases ..

Just about every grocery store has a back up generator, so most of the frozen foods will be alright for a day or two... And were there is a generator there is gas..  

On the Zombie Weapon pic thread, I see a lot of ammo cans filled with ammo.  What is the suggested ammo count per weapon type.  I was thinking around 1000 rounds per weapon.  Anyone else's thoughts?

Well, having a s&*^load of ammo for every weapon you own could posse a problem.
Ask yourself this- what will be your primary non 22 weapon in zpoc? Primary backup?  

A 'few' ammo cans for those will do you good (for veh travel) + a crapload of 22 and your 22 weapon of choice.

For me it would be my AR, glock 21 ( i have a can on the way), and sig 1911 in 22 along with my AR 22conversion kit.

I have an AR15, and am about to get a Glock 17.  I have 200 .223 rounds now.  Also thinking about getting a Mossy 500 for close encounters.

+1. While the tactical gear is an advertisement that you're prepared and supplied, the benefits far outweigh the drawbacks. My tac vest carries 5 AR mags and 3 pistol mags. Not sure how you could carry that covertly and still access it quickly when needed. A well set up tactical system goes a long way as long as you train with it and can access gear without fumbling around. That being said training is essential, as in stressful situations you will lose your fine motor skills.

Personally I would rather avoid trouble on Z-day, but that being said walking around with civy clothes and only a few mags and handgun is just asking to be zed food. I have a pretty decent EDC with basic cargo shorts (compact .40, knife, mutlitool, phone, wallet, basic first aid kit, and keys) but I wouldn't feel comfortable walking down a zombie infested street with only those items. Just remember, more rounds and more tools = more options. A good set of tactical gear will allow you to carry all the weapons and tools you need all in a way that still allows you to be mobile. Tactical gear has always been about utility, long before pop culture made it cool. Take advantage of the utility of the gear and you'll be better prepared.

When the dead rise I'll be sporting the gear below. Full size sidearm goes in the thigh rig and my AR will be slung over my shoulder. Not suggesting everyone needs to go out and outfit themselves like a SWAT team, but don't dismiss the idea either. I'd rather look prepared and BE prepared, then try to blend in and end up wishing I had carried an extra mag as I'm being chewed on...
http://i294.photobucket.com/albums/mm119/Tzerne/Guns%20and%20Tactical%20Gear/PA200009.jpg

What vest is that?  And is that a water bladder unit on the right?  

I was thinking:

http://www.amazon.com/NcStar-CTV2916B-Tactical-Vest-Black/dp/B0032UDKW0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_npd?ie=UTF8&coliid=IK173FZ0KWY95&colid=MBWCU17AO2XW
and
http://www.amazon.com/Rothco-Black-Large-Transport-Pack/dp/B004I49OP6/ref=wl_it_dp_o_npd?ie=UTF8&coliid=I2SX9MQ2WVIQCC&colid=MBWCU17AO2XW

Each of these has a water bladder system.

Did the Crovel from that Doomsday Preppers show make it as your all in one hand to hand yet?

Were you asking me that question?  If so, then no.  I haven't seen that episode...  If not, then sorry.

To the OP re: his item 2:



Yes to looking for those types of vehicles for supplies  but NO to taking time to disassembling anything on site.  And now, Rule #34 shall be added to the current 33 Official Zombieland Rules:

34: Grab and go.

Which is also good for when an armored car loses its load in front of you....

I would defiantly use a GOTWA with my group