How you prepare specifically depends on the type of zombie.
Low threat: Slow zombies, ala Dawn of the Dead. A guy with a .22lr rifle, 30$ worth of ammo up in a tree can kill an infinite number of slow zombies. Zombie apopcalypse unlikely.
Mid Threat: Fast zombies, ala 28 days later. Just have to wait these guys out and try to avoid open areas where you cannot out-run them.
High Threat: Smart, fast, strong zombies, ala I am Legend. This is where you really need to be prepared. Survival is not assured.
Very High Threat: Gun-weilding zombies, ala Doom. Zombies that drive cars and shoot at you is nightmare mode. Luckily, if they have guns they will end up shooting victims instead of infecting them. This might limit the chances of a full-on zombie apopcalypse, but if caught in an outbreak, survival is nigh impossible.
Zombies have various different traits and assuming they fit into a specific category could lead you to making bad assumptions and contributing your biomass to the horde...
Resiliency, This is usually a strong point, in the rare instances of human resiliency there really isn't much point in calling them zombies.
Human: They can bleed to death, die from organ failure or malnutrition. You are probably dealing with a disease rather than the undead. Complicated by the fact that it may well be curable...
Superhuman: Could be anything from continuing to attack for a time after their head has been removed to visibly regenerating from injuries. Massive damage and force recommended, shotguns, clubs, and cars. industrial machinery in extreme cases.
Weakness: they can be killed only by a specific type of injury, typically shooting through the head but it could be anything, head, heart, knee, their sustaining forces could be gathered anywhere. Probably incurable as their human physiology is no longer sustaining them.
Vulnerability: A specific type of weapon needs to be used, silver, holy water, solar light, fire, anti-biotics... You are probably dealing with vampires, but you will probably be ineffectual unless you are familiar with the horde.
Perpetual: Cannot be killed, although you may be able to damage them, typically resolved by trapping or dissecting the zombies. Note that until you find out how to kill them, all zombies are like this.
Resistance
Soft: Limbs can be pulled off with little effort, bisection is not uncommon with most weapons. Try punching through their heads...
Human: tougher than you might expect, go for the joints and have a backup plan in case your attack doesn't work.
Dense: You can damage them, but nothing works as well as it should. Bring a bigger boat...
Armoured: Most attacks just bounce right off, watch out for reflected weapons. Look for piercing weapons, once you have a hole exploit it, they are probably either soft in the middle or brittle, fire or levers should help.
Speed
Lurcher: Limited motor function. Stay in the open where they can't sneak up on or surround you, always maintain a lookout. They probably can't climb but you don't want to get trapped...
Lurchariffic: Look like lurchers but have a habit of maintaining their momentum and keep turning up. Avoid rough terrain and find a way to deal with them, you should be able to outrun them but they will catch up when you rest.
Runner: They can run like you can and may have more stamina, but you can probably hide from them. Tend to be focused, this means they can probably outrun you, but will be vulnerable to traps, probably even simple spikes sticking out of the ground. If you can't get reliable access to vehicles, build a patch of familiar terrain, or just stay out of sight.
Acrobat: Jumps, climbs, and effectively runs faster, further, and better than you do, usually accompanied by visible irregularities. They probably possess extra bulk, so cramped quarters could be an advantage, but you will probably need to find a way to disable this variety, escape is not likely.
Braaaaains
Mindless: will follow a simple pattern, approach, grab, then bite, for example. often strong enough to bash through obstacles so difficult terrain is preferable to obstructions, but a simple metal fence might be enough to stop them. Should be of limited threat, but be aware they are capable of surrounding surprising you, you have an advantage here, use it...
Reactive: Won't particularly plan or puzzle a situation, but they may spot a weakness that you overlooked. Maintain a position with a simple front and concealed traps against obvious points of access. Expect to be ambushed if you travel.
Berserk: Quite intelligent but limited in its application. These should be quite predictable once you figure them out but be aware of surprises, especially if they are frustrated.
Human: Can conceal infection and will generally engineer multiple advantages before attacking. Due to their alien objectives and your reliance on prediction they WILL outsmart you. Maintain strictly ordered routines with chaotic personal activities and group objectives. Order will limit their activities and chaos will limit their ability to plan. if they have infiltrated you they will be on a specific mission at all times, their obsession is their greatest weakness.
Enhanced: Extremely dangerous, your best bet is to try to lure them into exposing themselves and assaulting them with multiple redundant forms of brute force. Consider appealing to their ego, hunger, or desire for a predictable world.
Weapons
Weak: No great offensive ability, use a large shield to prevent accidents and limit luck.
Strong: Can break obstacles and inflict damage even if blocked. Avoid close combat and try to maintain offensive momentum.
Melee: Carry a shield, avoid close combat, be wary of thrown weapons.
Ranged: Rely on ambushes, avoid protracted fights, they will likely have advantages that make direct confrontations impractical.
Infection: Carry a supply of effective and quickly appliable restraints. Carry large shields, preferably translucent, try to avoid confrontations but be merciless and methodical if they occur. Attempting to identify the exact means and limitations of transmission should be a priority.
Modifications: Spikes and claws may not seem particularly dangerous, but be wary, were there is one change there may be others, the spikes may extend or even projected, there may be concealed weapons, even under exposed skin, and weapons may even exhibit properties not present in conventional weaponry. Collect as much data as possible before, during, and after battles, and be wary of apparently decease opponents, as they may possess concealed threats such as delayed explosives, additional entities, partial functionality, or any number of dangers that will not have occurred.
Mindless lurchers with guns are not excessively dangerous. But it doesn't matter how slow they are if they are stronger than you, smarter than you, and cannot be damaged.
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Topic: Zombie preparedness (Read 133851 times)