The Apocalypse Survival Thread

[Seitsuki]

The advantage of a bladed weapon is simply that it is much lighter to carry and faster to use compared to a sledgehammer or the like. On the whole I think a blunt weapon is more useful overall as it can be used for other situations (smashing down doors, creating barricading material etc.)

None of them really substitutes for a gun though.

[Magnamon]

I will gladly take a sledge and any kind of gun I could find but as backup I'd take a couple of knives

[Cub-Sama]

Originally Posted by Seitsuki

The advantage of a bladed weapon is simply that it is much lighter to carry and faster to use compared to a sledgehammer or the like. On the whole I think a blunt weapon is more useful overall as it can be used for other situations (smashing down doors, creating barricading material etc.)

None of them really substitutes for a gun though.

The reason why I said makeshift weapons only is because a lot of people aren't going to have instant access to guns, due to gun laws in different gun laws, like a japanese person is going to be almost screwed because gun laws are so strict. You are going to have to find a way to survive until you find firearms.

What if the zombies learn to use guns? Should we just give up?

[psycho_luny]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Bladed weapons will definitely degrade over time after use. When you hack at something hard, the part of the blade in contact with the hard thing will invert inwards due to the mallenable nature of metals. Keep going and the inversion will be more visible, and finally, break the blade at its brittle core.

Swords and blades aren't just molded from any piece of metal you know, not even your kitchen knife. They are built with hard metal cores and soft metal exteriors (sometimes treated to prevent rust) to give it a cutting strength, thus the reason why even stainless steel can rust due to the wearing out of the stainless exterior.

but the thing is....we probably won't have any advanced equipment....and what we do have is too loud and will make the zombies come to us....so eventally....all we have is just a blade that's made out of only iron plate....

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Cub-Sama

The reason why I said makeshift weapons only is because a lot of people aren't going to have instant access to guns, due to gun laws in different gun laws, like a japanese person is going to be almost screwed because gun laws are so strict. You are going to have to find a way to survive until you find firearms.

You know, there is one gun that is legalised everywhere because it is a power tool.

Using it is a different matter though, I tried one in a DIY store on Saturday without nails loaded, and it kicks twice as hard as a pistol.

What if the zombies learn to use guns? Should we just give up?

Then it becomes military tactics time. Flanking, fire drawing, etc.

Originally Posted by psycho_luny

but the thing is....we probably won't have any advanced equipment....and what we do have is too loud and will make the zombies come to us....so eventally....all we have is just a blade that's made out of only iron plate....

I wouldn't want to take any piece of iron and make it into a blade. Not funny to have it breaking on you on the first cut. I would rather make a stabbing weapon out of a pole and bastard file than just turn some piece of metal into a "katana"!

Besides I don't know what is the hype about a katana. A decent parang is a much more lethal weapon to use despite the lack of length. It has a more lethal cut due to the weighted end combined with the Principle of Moments and Momentum.

[Cub-Sama]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Besides I don't know what is the hype about a katana. A decent parang is a much more lethal weapon to use despite the lack of length. It has a more lethal cut due to the weighted end combined with the Principle of Moments and Momentum.

Katanas are awesome, can block/reflect bullets, give you bullet time, makes you 10x more effective in combat than someone with a gun and gives you access to sword techs as you level up.

Wait...that can happen in real life right?

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Cub-Sama

Katanas are awesome, can block/reflect bullets, give you bullet time, makes you 10x more effective in combat than someone with a gun and gives you access to sword techs as you level up.

Wait...that can happen in real life right?

Only when you are -incepted- into a game of Ninja Gaiden.

Besides, the objective of holding bladed weapons is to decapacitate the zombie's head or chop it into half - the katana is made more for slashing than cutting due to the weight of the blade not being at the end but rather, in the middle, depriving it of a larger cutting force when swung.

The objective is not to leave a mere cut, but to chop the whole damn thing off in one blow. Thus you might want to have fatter blades with a good balance and overall weight. A Kukri would be great but it is too short, so you might want to get a hunting machete.

[Cub-Sama]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Only when you are -incepted- into a game of Ninja Gaiden.

Besides, the objective of holding bladed weapons is to decapacitate the zombie's head or chop it into half - the katana is made more for slashing than cutting due to the weight of the blade not being at the end but rather, in the middle, depriving it of a larger cutting force when swung.

The objective is not to leave a mere cut, but to chop the whole damn thing off in one blow. Thus you might want to have fatter blades with a good balance and overall weight. A Kukri would be great but it is too short, so you might want to get a hunting machete.

Actually a katana can be used for one slash kills, from the neck to the hip in one slash you could literally cut your opponent in half. Check mythbusters, the katana is a very good weapon for decapitation etc...

I think the curve allows it to cut more easily or something.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Cub-Sama

Actually a katana can be used for one slash kills, from the neck to the hip in one slash you could literally cut your opponent in half. Check mythbusters, the katana is a very good weapon for decapitation etc...

I think the curve allows it to cut more easily or something.

You have to be very close because you are cutting with the entire blade length from end to end....pythagoras theorem applied to force vectors.

Basically when you make the first cut, you are sliding the entire blade outwards from the hilt while pushing it downwards (at the point of draw) to achieve the more than usual cutting force. This means point blank range - you don't want to get that near a zombie do you?

P.S Mythbusters is more of entertainment than documentary if you did Pure sciences in highschool.

[Neat Hedgehog]

Personally, I would rather use a heavier sword, or some kind of thick iron or steel plate, preferably of medium length. Anything too long, and you risk it being too awkward indoors. Whatever material you make it out of, it should be heavy enough that it doesn't rely on having a sharp edge for cutting, since it will probably lose the edge if it is used in combat frequently, and sharpening a blade is time consuming, and noisy. If you have a crafted edge weapon, you would probably be better off keeping it in good condition for crafting traps, and preparing food.

What you really want (or what I would want, anyway) for combat is essentially a weapon with blunt-force trauma concentrated on narrow edge, allowing you to smash bones, and requiring minimal (if any) upkeep. It should also be heavy enough that even if you hit a non-vital area it will knock a zombie to the floor, and likely cause enough damage to make it take a little extra time getting to its feet.

[ZeKeR]

Originally Posted by Arbitres

....I thought he meant makeshift as, you know... weapons made from scratch or stuff not meant to be a weapon. A katana is definitely a weapon meant to be a weapon.

? Or maybe I'm wrong?

katana is for OFFENSE.... it cant be a utility tool most of the time... the bolo and my fave... the kukri... can.... and they deliver hacking blows.....

[ZeKeR]

Originally Posted by Arbitres

Self-explanatory. I'm not as ignorant as I claim to be.

I suppose I worded it wrong, again. I need to get Takeo in here so he can explain stuff for me.

lawl sorry.... but when in times like this.... you need both IT and a versatile knife

[Shizuo]

Pfft. You people with your fancy weapons. Real men don't need to use such fancy things against zombies. All I need to keep the zombies back are my fists. And if things get too rough, I'm sure there is a street sign or something I could use.

[grylsyjaeger]

All you blokes and your bloody melee.

You're just going to end up as another zombie to shoot.

[Kafriel]

^ All three suck:P
1) Hospital: smells like a hospital, has more moist than a regular building and it's easy as hell to get lost even with a map (once I took the stairs to the 3rd floor and met a wall right where the end of the stairs was supposed to be o_0). Only advantage would be its huge size, you could garrison many people there.
2) Fast food restaurants got glass doors...enough said.
3) A garage is big enough to house two people and a cat...can't see outside, stale air, nothing really useful to defend yourself either. At least the hospital's got scalpels and the restaurant should have burgers...what, they're deadly if you eat enough!

I'd pick the restaurant btw, since the hospital can be a maze, it's hard to 100% check for lurking zombies, so chances of an invasion are high if you only got a small team.

[spikexp]

No hospital, every one who got bite in the start of the Z-war are gonna go there. Hospital is probably the place with the higher amount of zombies you can find.

Fast food.... you better stay in shape is you want to survive, fast food is not the best idea and of course the windows everywhere.

Garage.... I just don't see the point.

The garage seem to be the best place to stay.

[Xion Valkyrie]

Originally Posted by Arbitres

The closest thing I'd get to melee would be a shotgun. But you do have to realize guns do break, jam, or run out of ammo.


Question: Which would be a more preferable place as a safezone/safehouse... A hospital, a fast food restaurant, or a garage?

Yes, it's a question largely denoted towards preference or stance of survival. Don't nitpick at it.

Dude, you're obviously supposed to hole up in a pub.

[Tempy]

Originally Posted by Xion Valkyrie

Dude, you're obviously supposed to hole up in a pub.

Will Queen be playing?

[Kafriel]

The garage seem to be the best place to stay.

But the garage is the most confined space, if a zombie shuffles around, you won't be able to run away, and you can only apply so much force...if it brought friends over, your brains are for lunch

Dude, you're obviously supposed to hole up in a pub.

Actually a pub would be good...assuming it's not active.

[Black0raz0r]

Spoiler for my equipment for fight agains lot of zombies:

for beats


for safty



for close combat Katana


for fights in houses




for big mutant packs



for the distance


some grenades

my iPod


and of course...

lots of this


and this

what do you think?