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Here is a guide that is meant for surviving a zombie apocalypse. Actually much of this can be adapted for apocalypse survival in general. If there is something specific you would like to learn just scan for Phrases in red. Colors in red will mark each topic I cover.

If you have read the Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks I suggest you take it with a grain of salt. Actual zombies have not been observed and documented. For that reason most of this guide is hypothetical and even opinion based. The Max Brooks book is not absolute fact written in stone and neither is this guide I am writing. When dealing with hypothetical situations like zombies it is best to speak in terms of possibility rather than absolute fact.
As a disclaimer I have not read the Max Brooks book. Any similarities between his book and my guide are a coincidence. I have no intention to take credit for his work. Anyway lets get down to business. Anyway my guide is based on my understanding of science and biology. I could be wrong, but this is what makes sense to me.


The first thing we need to know is What is a zombie?. The first rule of combat is to know your enemy. I mentioned in the introduction that zombies have not been documented so this is probably the most contraversial topic of zombies.

1. The original Night of the Living Dead movie claimed that radiation was reviving corpses. First you would die then the radiation would bring you back. I don't see how radiation can reanimate a corpse or control it.

2. The Voodoo zombie is someone who goes into some drug induced coma or something. Respiration and circulation slow to a crawl so it looks like they are dead. Then they are burried so they get almost no oxygen which causes brain damage. The drugs wear off and they come back as a braid damaged retard. I think thats how it works anyway. I've heard it mentioned a few times, but I have not researched this any.

3. Demonic possession is another thought. In the Dawn of the Dead movies you have some religious person saying that hell is overpopulated with souls so they are being sent back to earth. There is absolutely no science behind this that I can think of. If this does happen we have bigger problems than just walking cannibals.

4. Most modern zombie movies have settled on disease such as a virus or a parasite. Some parasites and viruses can actually alter behavioral patterns of the host. As far as I know no virus or parasite has controled the host enough to make them kill other people and eat their flesh. Still being able to alter behavioral patterns is a start. This makes the most sense to me. For the body to go on a murderous rampage it needs some control. The body is a puppet that needs a control system to pull the strings. Whether or not the body actually dies is a matter of debate. I suppose it is possible for an intruder to spread to the brain and simply sieze control without killing the brain.

Another good question is Do zombies sprint like in new movies or do they slowly walk around like in the old zombie movies? I do not know, but I think it is best to assume they sprint. If we are wrong and they just shuffle around slowly like in older movies that's great for us. If they do sprint then we have a better idea what to expect. On the other hand if we were to expect they walk slowly and it turns out they do sprint then underestimating them can be a fatal mistake.

If the zombies are caused by a virus how fast will it spread? Well lets start off with the 28 days/weeks later movies. In that movie the virus gains control in a matter of seconds. In Resident Evil it looked like it was a matter of hours. A real virus would probably take days or even weeks at the very least. 15 seconds isn't even enough time for the virus to spread through the body. HIV can take years before its effects can finally kill you. Also if is a virus it can probably be transmitted through the usual means. Sexual transmission, contact with blood or saliva, or air born infection are all possibilities. If it is parasitic I'm not sure what do assume.

Can zombies reproduce? Well if the vital organs are working I don't see any reason the reproductive system wouldn't work unless the virus caused sterility or something. With no subjects to study I can't say for certain if it is or is not going to happen. I won't carry that discussion any further as some find it disturbing.

Can zombies learn? This is a very important question. Some people think you can put 6 zombies on one side of a broken bridge and a human on the other side. One by one they would fall off the bridge trying to get to the human without learning from the other zombies mistakes. I disagree. Organisms have a tendency to adapt to situations. It is best to assume they can learn. You should prepare for the worst, but hope for the best.

Do zombies keep some of their memories or emotions from when they were human? This can be highly controversial. It's been argued both ways, but there is no telling one way or the other unless the hypothetical situation of zombies becomes real and one can capture and observe a zombie.

So we have zombies. What do you do? I am going to evacuate the city or I am going to loot Walmart. These are two very common responses. It is best to assume that everyone else in the area will try to loot the stores or escape. The streets are likely going to be congested with everyone trying to get out especially if you are in a heavily populated city. If you have a lot of people concentrated in an area and they are all scared it can be a time bomb of disaster. If you think about a stampede with cattle very much the same can happen with people. If you want to run to the store and steal that plasma TV you always wanted I can't stop you, but you might not make it out of the store alive.

So I am not supposed to evacuate or go to the store. What do you expect me to do? As difficult as this can actually be when the time comes you need to above all else don't panic. If you panic that's when accidents will most likely happen. It's easier said than done, but it really is the best thing to do. How you deal with everything is up to you. Personally I think the best thing to do at the moment of the outbreak is to stay where you are. It will be helpful if you have people you can trust. Safety in numbers is a good idea so if you have good friends nearby maybe you can get them to round up some supplies then decide where to stay. It's a good idea to fortify a place. While you wait out the first few days of insanity you will probably want to keep people out. Lock the doors and bar the windows. You don't just want to keep the zombies out. You probably don't want panicing people with guns breaking in to your place to steal your stuff. It's probably a good idea to wait at least a few days for the majority of the panic to die down. While you wait for the hystaria to die down you might want to start making your plans for the long run. You might wait at your little fortress for the zombies to die off. You might want to go above the snow line where zombies will freeze to death. You might want to take a boat and get to some island away from people. Maybe some other idea will work well for you. Anyway waiting for the first few days to pass will give you plenty of free time to decide. When planning for things like this one should prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

What supplies should take priority? The exact order of priorities can vary by personal opinion and situations, but these will always be important.

1. Water is always a very high priority on the list of supplies. People can last weeks without food, but you can only last so long without water. Supposedly people can last 3 days without water. I'm not sure what conditions that is under though. If you are doing physical labor, the weather is hot, or you are sick your body will need more water than if you are healthy, resting, and in cooler weather. Keep hydrated. If you have to travel try staying near a source of water. You might want a kettle so you can boil your water before drinking. It will keep things sanitary. Better safe than sorry.

2. Food is important. You can last weeks without food, but if you are going to do any physical work like building or traveling you will need the energy. For the first few days if you have taken sanctuary in a building with a refrigerator you can trust it. I'm not sure when the power will go out. When it does the refrigerators are insulated so if you don't open the door much it should keep food cold. I wouldn't trust refrigerated food much more than a day after losing power. After that perishables should probably be avoided. Produce that isn't showered with water at the grocery store can probably keep for a few days more if it isn't cut into. Potatoes will last a good while. After a few weeks you're going to have to rely more and more on preserved goods. Potato chips, cookies, canned goods, and other such supplies can last a long time. If you are planning to travel the best foods to take are dehydrated meals, trail mix, and beef jerky. Dried goods in general are the way to go. They have a very long shelf life and they are light. Canned goods are heavy because of all the water and the metal cans themselves.

3. Ammunition is important. You don't want to carry too much on you because it can slow you down, but you want to have enough to last.

4. Medical supplies can be important. If you get a cut it's best to wash it out, apply antiseptic, then get a clean bandage on it. You don't want to have to worry about a bad infection while you travel somewhere or gather supplies. It will be painful and I doubt a doctor will be waiting at the hospital with an IV of antibiotics. It would be nice to have someone who knows medicine. If you do get an infection and need antibiotics you need the right amount. Too much can be toxic for you and if you don't take enough the infection will grow immune to the antibiotic making it stronger and harder to get rid of. When possible I would suggest avoiding stuff like morphine or other medications that will impair your motor skills. If something serious comes up that needs your attention you probably don't want to be too drugged up to do anything.


If I have to kill a zombie where do I aim? Well if the zombies are caused by a demonic possession I'm not sure anything will actually stop them. Assuming they are viral or parasitic it's like killing almost any other body. Many people think destroying the brain is the only way. I think it is possible for other means to kill them. The brain is the control center. Destroying the brain shuts everything off. The body still has its needs though. For the muscles to work for motion they need oxygen and energy. This means they need a working heart and lungs to obtain and distribute oxygen. If the zombie is to live more than a few days it will need a working digestive system. These systems are all vital for the body to operate so I'm pretty sure they would still need to work for a zombie. If not we're in trouble, but going for the brain might still work. Anyway assuming that these systems work a torso shot can destroy vital organs and/or cause massive bleeding either of which can be fatal. I mostly mention this for those who want to fight zombies with guns. The torso is a much better target to aim at than the head. Avoid fighting zombies with fire. Do not use molotov cocktails, improvised flame throwers, or any other weapon that would catch them on fire. The sense of touch may or may not still exist. If the sense of touch is no longer working they will not feel it. Now you not only have to worry about zombies chasing you, but you have to deal with flaming zombies chasing you. I'm not sure how long fire would take to destroy muscle tissue enough to immobilize them. When they are gone though then fire could be a good idea. Leaving the corpses there will cause them to rot which smells horrible and can help spread disease. Burning the bodies after you kill them will stop that and can destroy muscle tissue so it can't reanimate again. I'm not sure it could if you kill it, but better safe than sorry right?

I have been bitten by a zombie what is going to happen? In a lot of the movies when you are bitten you will become a zombie. What exactly needs to be done is a problem up to debate. If this were viral the infection could spread through the wound. It you have a bite on the hand or some other limb a tourniquet could be used to stop the blood flow slowing the spread of the infection. The infected area could be amputated to save the victim. This is not guaranteed to work at all though. If this were to happen the victim would have to be watched to make sure the amputated stump doesn't get infected and you want to make sure they don't become a zombie anyway. You could just kill them off and call it good. You can hope that it is not caused by a virus and just leave them be. If you do this you better keep a very close eye on them just to make sure. The problem here is we probably don't know for a fact what we are dealing with. I guess you just need to make your own judgment.

What weapon should I use? This is a matter of opinion. Some people think "I will use a sword". Personally if possible I would prefer a gun as my primary then use mele like a sword or club as a backup. If you do use mele be careful. Mele demands more energy so you can get tired more easily than with a gun. Do your best to avoid contact with blood. If this is viral than contact with blood is a very likely way for you to get infected. Also it might be a good idea to use a tool like a crowbar or a halligan. It's nice to have a tool you can use to kill zombies or use to open a jammed door. Versatility and improvisation will become very important.

If I use a gun what do I need to keep in mind?
1. Decide what form of combat you want. If you want precise shots to the center mass to drop the enemy then a hunting rifle sounds like a good idea. If you want a weapon that doesn't need pin point accuracy, but can do wide spread damage then a shotgun is a good weapon. There are other kinds of weapons. Just decide what works best. If you do use a shotgun you might not want to use it when a friendly is near a target. Friendly fire can be fatal.

2. Choose something with readily available ammo. You might be a hotshot in the video games with a P90, but if you get one for real you will find that 5.7mm ammo is pretty rare. An AR15 on the other hand takes .223 rifle ammo which is much more common. 12 gauge shotgun shells are also very common.

If you have anything else you want to know about guns you can consult my Gun Education Guide

What else should I know? Well first aid is a very important skill. You never know when someone has a deep cut that needs and antiseptic or a broken bone or something. Just knowing the basics can be a life saver. Hunting can be important. If you run out of supplies it would be nice to know how to kill and cook an animal for survival. Distilling alcohol can also be a good skill. Aside from the obvious being able to get drunk it's also a good antiseptic and a clean burning fuel. Survival skills in general are helpful. Even if you aren't planning on a zombie apocalypse it might be a good idea to learn how to survive in the wilderness. Some day it could save your life. Sanitation is also important. You probably don't want to get e coli or any other serious sickness.

As I have mentioned before I hope my zombie survival guide has been taken somewhat seriously. There are elements of this that can be adapted to other apocalyptic disasters. Remember the Max Brooks book is not absolutely right about everything just as my guide is not absolutely correct. When you discuss zombie survival with others remember that even you can be wrong. It's a good idea to avoid speaking as if everything is absolute. We have no experience in this field so we are not experts. I hope you found this guide somewhat useful in preparation for the future.