>Me: An insomniac with little physical strength but good shooting skills.
>A 6'5 powerhouse with no useful skills except playing the guitar.
>An emo bodybuilder with a drinking problem.
>A reclusive programmer.
>A weird quiet chick with a knack for setting fires and improvising explosives that I've never brought myself to ask her to explain.
>A mechanical engineer in training. He'd probably be in charge if the barricades.

I've actually got a semi-decent team.

I used to play rugby and boxer I'm in decent shape and I have a decent amount of rifle training and I'm pretty good at fixing stuff and it would probably be my brother with me at any given time who is a rugby player training with scotlands junior team

50% chance i am on board a ship, which means i am pretty much safe until we run out of fuel or provisions. I reckon we have from a month and a half to three months in provisions and enough fuel to last for up to 6 months, with fuel use decreasing the more of it we use up (HFO needs to be heated to prevent it from solidifying so heating needs decrease as we use it up). Should be able to join up with a convoy or fleet eventually, trading our cargo/fuel for provisions and protection. Might be able to make provisions last longer but then we're talking serious rationing of food (water is no problem as long as we have fuel).

At worst i'm on the outskirts of a small city, it'll be me and my bug out bag against the world.

Me: Computer geek living in Japan on safe installation in rural japan
Coworker A: Filipino car guy in shape
B: Country mommas boy bodybuilder kinda dumb
C: Lazy islander black guy nerd
D: In shape but lazy half black half filipino nerd
E: Dumb out of shape hick
F: Out of shape nerd
G: In shape black guy
H: In shape black islander guy
I: Out of shape skinny tall black guy.
J: Out of shape old guy

Our relative location would provide us the most safety. The fact that we all have some sort of training helps too. The fact that my group is rather large would be cause for alarm. I pretty much can predict the first three to die, but that would actually be a positive effect on our group. We could probably last three months on supplies and infrastructure where we are. After that we would have to leave our relatively secure location and find more supplies/rations. This is where it would get interesting. I'm pretty sure there would be an argument on transport and I would bring up using mountain bikes and packing lightly but intelligently...

This is where people would end up splitting up. I would try my hardest to not be in the group with two of the three that I think are destined to die. I would try to keep one of them on our team, just in case I needed to trip him to survive. Being that we're in Japan, the roads are tiny and rice patties are a plenty, but the ocean is near so I would attempt to head to a harbor and get myself and my team a fishing vessel. Food, transport, and protection. I would try to convince our crew to head south to Australia. It seems like a better continent to hold off zombies and stay alive. Arid, Hot, has own ecosystem, somewhat secluded, and the animal life is probably more dangerous than zombies. That's my plan so far. Questions? Comments?

>>3046
can't you fish?

Of course, but land would be better, I mean, what of water? Can't drink the ocean. Secondary thought, I would probably try getting as much beer and water as possible for my voyage.

>>3063

We could probably fish but as i am not talking about a fishing vessel we would have to spend a very long time every day just to catch fresh fish to eat. There are other concerns that are just as important that are also fairly long term.

Also, fishing isn't reliable enough for a ship this size using improvised fishing gear so there would be many days we would have to do without food if we relied too much on fishing.

It is probably easier to catch seagulls considering the swarms of them that tend to follow ships around.

You guys are coming close to one of my solutions to the z day puzzle.

Except, for some reason you've chosen a powerboat, and the great salty vastness of the ocean.

>>3072
I just got out of the hospital for a severely low blood sugar so I'm not taking a bunch of time to go into everyone's posts; I will type that knowing how to vapor desalinate water on a boat can indeed let you stay adrift. This of coarse leads to one of the biggest elephants in the room that I typically don't get into unless I am talking about it in person. The ocean is kind of a catch all... I mean that unless zombies stay out of it for some reason, we are fucked depending on how the "infection" spreads. What on earth does the ocean NOT touch, that's the question. I choose vapor distillation for water treatment because bacteria just doesn't cling on in that process. It becomes pure water and pure water is what the body needs, in my opinion. More on all this later and if I'm typing in circles, I apologize but I already typed why if I am.

>>3075

Vapor desalination isn't enough though. An industrial evaporator like those we have on board still need a sterilizer for the water to be completely safe to drink, this because while the water may be fine, the equipment does get dirty and vapors can carry some unwanted substances with them.

Now, this happens to industrial grade equipment so i can imagine it also happens to commercial and homegrown solutions as well. This means you will still need to boil the water to be completely safe.

Boil and evaporate it in a traditional alcohol/fuel still and you can probably feel safe though because it has higher temperatures which automatically kill off germs. Just make sure you clean it regularly, ethanol is a good solvent for this purpose.

in a toy store playing either World of Darkness, vidja, board games, or war games... with full access to a small arsenal, each one of us fully trained in the use of fire arms.

six of us; an ex-firefighter that's still in shape, an ex-cop that became an owner of a gaming store, a biotechnician (me) that's probably one of the weaker ones, but a tactician, and a teen that doesn't give a fuck.

mind you, there's still the other traffic the store gets; who knows who else we'll have as bait.

>>3079
whoops, i forgot about the insurance banker that's a bro and the other guy that does sketch shit, but would destroy everything. and then, yeah, the other traffic.

>>3078
Sure man, all true enough but I'll clarify a couple things; a/the water treatment should be scaled back and bare bones enough for it to not be a problem. If you have a clean glass, a deep and dark basin, plastic film that more than covers the top of the basin, and a small weight to make a drop point, you have water from anything organic that's good enough to drink. Stop over thinking it. b/you should have a designated boiling pan/pot and enough to improvise with. More often one is limited by the lack of ingenuity than by the lack of possibility. This is all thinking outside the box and not putting all your eggs in one basket. Fortification is a LAYERED thing, it should be approached and executed with that in mind. There's more but I'm still resting up so I'll type more later and let people have a chance to fine tune their points as well.

>>3085
no offense, and i find you interesting and all but shouldn't you make a seperate thread for all this?

>>3085

What you describe there in your post is a very simple solution normally used in something called a solar still and is often good enough. However, if there ever were walking corpses eating people then i would probably play it safe which is why i mention the overkill options of boiling and evaporating.

>>3091
I feel it was on topic enough to leave it here but I'll make another thread if it ends up taking us further from the original point of the thread.
>>3099
Correct and also understandable thought process on the 'overkill'; I know overkill is how a lot of my plans go so I can totally relate. I think that I should also clarify the point that I was offering that as a low technology option. If anyone is familiar with how I sometimes water fast, it should be clear that I am passionate about always having a way to have clean water for hydration and health.

>>3103

I am also a fan of low tech solutions.

I'm sure i would use primitive survival skills at first if caught outside of my usual environment (home, on board etc) but survival is already discussed by others, i just mention the slightly more advanced stuff you could do when you're beyond the basic needs of survival, when you have some safety and free time to work on projects.

Making your own still for example is quite easy, Especially if you have access to vast amounts of junk, like in a situation where population decreased to a billion or maybe even a few hundred million people. Making a still could be as simple as repurposing a hot water tank or a boiler from a house, this basic setup can then be improved further by turning it into a solar still using salvaged mirrors, scrap wood and some nails for example. This is in my eyes lowtech as it doesn't need electricity nor oil or even any special understanding of science/technology to function and could be built with junk.

Most of these projects would in fact be a lot easier because most of what you need could be salvaged for free rather than bought and there would be no neighbors who would object and raise hell over you building a blast furnace in your front yard.

OP here, it's fine to use this thread this way, it's a little over my head but it's educational...

Best idea evar. Aside who id like to be with, i never thought about who i will certainly end up with.
Im screwed since i work underground in downtown houston. Lest i make it out solo. Then again, i wont mind hitching a person or two. The two old and short ladies i work with will likely fall to the infection.
At home, its just my roommate and her daughter. If she brings along her vile boyfriend, ill ditch them and find my own companions, if possible.

Okay, to be perfectly honest, I'll have to bug in to my apartment and find a way to block my windows, since it's right next to our front door at our second floor landing. If Z-Day hits and I'm at my apartment, I'm screwed. My roommate is a trustfund baby who spends all day getting high and talking about all these wonderful libertarian conspiracy theories and how the poor are destroying America. If he's clued in to what's going on, he's loading up in his candy apple green Camaro and lighting off for Houston as fast as he can. My brother's in Austin with a former US Army Ranger, so I know they're safe in the short term. Now if I were back home or living with my girlfriend and our common friends, I think we'd be just fine. Also, I have no access to weapons where I'm at other than a knife, cast iron skillet, and an entrenching tool. At least I've got about two weeks worth of food and water stocked up here since I have no car and have to wait for friends, family, or my girlfriend visiting to do any major shopping, so that's a plus. I can also take care of myself in the field, can cook, do basic first aid, etc. It's just being cut off from anyone I know that's a problem for me.

>Me: •Medical training (nursing, pharmacy)•Slightly above average IQ, spiritual •Out of shape •Suffers delusion and melancholy. •Shooting: 4/10
>1: •Auto Mechanic •Gunsmith, hobbyist •Family are serious preppers •Average IQ, religious and spiritual •Very fit, brawler •Shooting: 6/10
>2: •Handy-Man, various (factory work, housing maintenance, carpentry) •Gunsmith, hobbyist •≤Average IQ, spiritual •Tubby but strong •Shooting:5/10
>3: •Charismatic eccentric •Inspires comradery, maintains moral •≤Average IQ, spiritual •Highly delusional •Thin but fit •Shooting:4/10
>4: •Eccentric Prepper •Law student •Rural off-grid cabin •Heavily armed •Above average IQ •Paranoid •Thin but fit •Shooting: 8/10

This is my closest social circle dating back Highschool (im 27) we're all a bit daft and have taken the idea of zombie readiness to a rather extreme level at least by common standards. I guess you could say we're zombie hipsters...we had a plan long time ago

Id be an all around balanced sorta guy. No stranger to armed or unarmed combat (avid martial artist). In good shape but keep a slight 'reserve' in me for a few days of starvation. Fast, light, agile,quick thinking, with high levels of abstract,creative and critical thinking skills.

Love to problem solve and general analyzing skills.

Learned in a number of 'academic' subjects that can help in survival times. anything from chemistry to certain types of engineering (like mechanical, electrical and computer)

Like I said..Id be a well-balanced type of person learned and experienced in almost everything you'd need for this specific situation PLUS more.

However Im sorta a loner and none of my friends would be in conditions to actually be of benefit to me in a Z-survival contingency. (However there is one person I would save and have no qualms about expending energy to provide for both of us)

well most likely since I'm still a teenager I would have my mom (who is an expert marksman I might add), my dad who sadly is overweight and has a leg injury, the guy I am in love with who also knows how to shoot a gun and who ever else we find who isn't a threat. oh and I am slightly overweight but I am an expert strategist and can come up with a quick solution on the fly :3

>>4161
Well teen means anywhere from 13 to 19, which are you?

Hole the fuck up in my apartment. Ration food so that it lasts for over a month or so. The way my apartment is designed and placed is highly convenient for sitting out a zed storm.

Anybody notice that the whitebread kid on the right in OP's pic, the one striking the macho pose with the AR on his shoulder, has the barrel of his weapon pointed right at the humongous black guy's neck? Lord, it scares me when I see a firearm in the hands of someone who SO OBVIOUSLY DOESN'T KNOW HOW TO USE IT! If Z-Day were to roll around, I would be more scared of the suburban upper-middle-class vegan activist who has never held a gun before than of either zombies or hostile survivors.

>>4823

I'm more what-the-fucking at everybody having their goddamn finger on the trigger.

Although given the amount of friendly fire you eat in an average game of L4D, I guess it shouldn't be surprising.

>>4857

There are two possible explanations for this phenomenon.

1) The artist is just completely ignorant of the basic rules of firearm safety.

2) Average people really ARE this lethally stupid.

The thing that scares me is that I know the answer to this question. Somewhere in the wilds of Alaska is looking better and better; I'll take my chances with hypothermia and the bears! In the event of any type of crisis where the Gov. isn't going to be there to hold their hands and wipe their tushies, the people of this country are simply too stupid to live, and I don't want them dragging me down to Hell with them.

the entire premise of the game is that reality has gone out the window and it's time to own stuff

and it's kind of evident since all the "campaign" title shots are of movie style posters

and the AI thing is called "the director"

Shit. I'm still nomadic, but I'm trying to figure out where to settle down for a while.
One positive is that I'm on an island right now. A pretty damn big island, but that still means smaller hordes.

My dog is my only constant companion. We do work well together finding food, and she keeps guard when we stop to camp (I'm not much of a sleeper either so I wouldn't mind keeping guard for a while if we were out on the road).
She is still young though, and it's possible she would get us killed.
When practicing stealth at night(i.e. running to bushes/treeline when cars come), she thinks I'm playing some fucking game and might start running around, drawing attention.
But then, without her, if I was alone, I might lose my mind.