The Zombie Combat Manual (25 page)

•
Odor:
The scent of a walking corpse becomes increasingly distasteful the closer it is to the human olfactory receptors. Once in close contact, some humans are completely incapacitated by the smell, thus becoming easy victims of their ravenous attacker.

•
Panic:
Once a person is engaged in close-quarters combat with the living dead, panic may overwhelm the human defender. When a human being panics, hormones flood the body, causing a cascade of consequences, one of which is the decreased ability to execute movements that require a precise, steady hand. This loss of precision may affect one’s ability not only to draw a close-combat weapon, but also to execute a neutralizing strike at a specific target on the zombie skull.

Bane’s formula for this sharp swing in the curve is known as the
inverse combat distance coefficient
, and the severe flux point created by the rapid change in combat difficulty is known as the
Bane Spike
. Once the zombie is engaged at this range, two things may occur—either the human defender resets the distance between combatants to his or her advantage, or the engagement ends, with either human or ghoul victorious. Further studies have determined that most human deaths occur after the point where the Bane Spike has been surpassed.

So what does this mean for you, the readers, who are clearly looking to improve your odds in zombie combat? One vital point to extrapolate from Bane’s analysis is that, unlike the innumerable variations you may encounter in a human combat scenario, you do not need to master a vast array of maneuvers to defeat the living dead. The greatest liability of the zombie’s offensive attack is that it is predictable to a fault. This predictability enables you to use a limited but effective collection of fighting techniques successfully, regardless of your opponent’s physical attributes.

A ghoul does not have the tactical acumen to employ feints, lures, or deception. You will be able to use the same technique time and again without your opponent “catching on” or “getting wise” to your strategy. Use this ignorance to your advantage. Better to master two or three methods and execute them impeccably 100 percent of the time than to learn fifty techniques and master none.

It is also recommended that you take Bane’s findings with a grain of salt. The doctor’s analysis is based on a vast and diverse sampling of civilians who have engaged in undead combat. Statistical averages should not take precedence over your personal traits and talents, regardless of what these figures convey. If, for example, you find that it is easiest for you to dispatch ghouls at long distance with a sidewalk scraper, there is no need to wait until your opponent enters the Bane sweet spot. Remember to take an accurate inventory of your abilities and develop a personalized combat strategy. Study the techniques in the following pages. Learn at least one for each practical combat range. Practice them. Make them your own.

COMBAT REPORT: STEVE SHANAHAN

Police Officer, Retired, Chicago, Illinois

Steve Shanahan comes from three generations of Chicago police officers. Now retired, he runs his own consultancy specializing in “dead issues,” or security situations involving the living dead. Throughout his career with the Chicago Police Department, he has handled more than one hundred undead situations, including home invasion, perimeter breaches, and hostile containment.

SS:
I’ve had to take down EDPs
¹²
, tweakers, hard-core gang-bangers. Nothing comes close to going mano a mano with a DG.
¹³
Sure, it’s easier now that we know so much more about how to handle them—strikes, maneuvers, defensive tactics—but when Chicago PD was initially fielding these calls, no one knew jack. At that point we were getting very little intelligence from the CDC or DHHS, so we had to figure everything out on our own. They damn well couldn’t send SWAT down to every incident call. In those initial outbreaks, they were also being categorized as domestic or civil disturbances—people thought it was someone hopped up on coke or speed. I don’t blame them for miscalls; it’s easy to pinpoint a zombie after it’s been walking around for a month or so, but when it’s first turned, it was really hard to tell, especially if the infection point was not caused by a high-trauma wound. They almost look like everybody else, until they start biting. Hell, some of them look better than a lot of skels I’ve brought in. And when you’re in a hot situation with people running around like headless chickens, it’s real easy to get pulled into some dead guy’s mouth.

The type of housing structure you were called to made a big difference. Single-family homes were easier to handle. At least you can start by knocking out the windows and clearing a lot of the rooms from the outside. The first thing I would do with a house job is to smash any ground-floor windows open with my baton. Not only can you clear the floors faster, it starts airing the place out in case everyone’s been fermenting in there for a while.

If it was a slow and deliberate search, I wouldn’t even bother entering for the first fifteen minutes. That’s the thing about DG jobs—you don’t need to worry about being quiet. In fact, it was just the opposite. You actually wanted to let them know you were coming and clear out as many “walkers” as you could before you actually entered. Hell, if I could’ve tied a cowbell around my neck, I would have. Typically I’d set myself outside, tap my foot, and whistle a tune, just waiting for them to come to me. This wouldn’t work all the time, though. There would always be “brooders”—zombies that, for whatever reason, just sat where they were rather than responding to sound. Most of the calls weren’t the slow and deliberate type. Most of them were dynamic entries—someone calling because they were being attacked or were trapped by a DG. You couldn’t be slicing the pie and quick-peeking these types of situations. In a dynamic-entry situation, it was all about speed, power, and overwhelming violence of action.

Apartment complexes are a whole different story; they were the worst. We called them “chambers of horrors.” You respond to a DG job in one apartment, knowing full well that there are probably dozens of other residences where zombies have taken control, and there’s just no one left to make an emergency call. And these places reeked. Some residences would stockpile bodies, both dead and undead, in one or two rooms or apartments. As soon as you arrived on scene, you could smell that it was going to be a hell call. I was smearing menthol rub under my nose so much I should’ve bought stock in the company; stocks—remember those? Now there’s a blast from the past.

I’ll never forget one of the early calls I responded to in New Cabrini. There were already five units and two fire trucks on scene by the time I arrived. I was helping clear some of the upper floors when I opened up a bedroom to see a DG feeding on his wife. I pushed him off and cracked my steel-toed Danner over his temple. I was on the radio calling it in when what felt like a metal vise clamped down on my tricep. Sure enough, the wife had already turned. I spun around, but before I could clear my weapon from the holster, she was on me. She wasn’t a big lady, probably a buck-thirty, but fighting her was like trying to fend off a rabid chimpanzee. Now I’ve rolled with some pretty strong characters—wrestlers, judo guys—and never in my life have I felt anything like this woman. I’m damn lucky I wasn’t wearing our summer-issue uniforms; otherwise my forearms would have been torn to ribbons. I finally managed to get my weapon clear and get off two rounds—one that went wide right, and the other that took off her left ear. She grabbed my forearm and wrenched it so hard that it caused a hairline fracture in both the ulna and radius bones. That’s what caused me to drop my service weapon.

We wrestled around the room for the better part of five minutes; on the bed, against the bureau, back onto the bed. She had this crimson sludge running down the side of her head from where her ear used to be, and I just kept praying that none of it would drip into my eyes. I was exhausted. No matter what I did, I just couldn’t keep her off me. I didn’t have the strength left.

We ended up writhing on the floor, in the narrow space between the mattress and the wall. I grabbed her by the throat to keep her snapping jaws away from me, but I knew it was just a matter of time before my arm gave out. I turned my head and saw her ragged bedslippers under the box spring. “So this is how it ends,” I thought to myself, “staring at pink fuzzy slippers?” And then I heard the voice of my academy instructor in my head, cursing my stupidity for not pairing up on the room clears.

My arm started to give way, and I closed my eyes as I saw her mouth descending onto my carotid. Just then I heard a loud whack, and the woman’s jaw slammed shut, cracking several of her teeth. I looked up and saw the prong of a Halligan tool sticking out of the top of her skull, the other end held by one of Chicago’s bravest. He yanks her up by the head and tosses her aside. He then shoves the clean end of the Halligan toward me and helps me to my feet.

Who says cops and firemen don’t get along?

LONG-RANGE COMBAT

SAFETY LEVEL OF ENGAGEMENT: HIGH
COMBAT SKILL REQUIRED AT THIS DISTANCE: MEDIUM-HIGH
RISK OF INFECTION: 2-5%

Long-range combat is defined in this manual as combat with an undead attacker at a distance of 6 to 8 feet (1.8 to 2.4 meters) between opponents. Combat at this distance affords you the greatest level of personal safety to fight the living dead. Studies have shown, however, that it is also the most difficult range to engage and eliminate your attacker quickly. It takes substantial skill to wield a long-pole weapon and consistently deliver destructive blows, so armament selection, training, and practice are essential if you are frequently engaging the living dead at long range.

Long-Distance Combat Strategies

Regardless of the scenario, there are a few general strategies you can apply to all long-distance combat situations.

Maintain Your Balance

Because of the size and weight of the weapon you are handling at this distance, it is easier to be thrown off balance when fighting at this range more than any other. You must always focus on maintaining your balance when striking with your long-range weapon. Many people become captivated by the size and potential destructive power of a weapon such as a halberd or poleaxe. This makes them prone to engaging in an undead version of Home Run Derby, swinging the weapon with all their might. Witnesses have seen people stagger, lose weapons, even stumble into a mob of ghouls as a result of an overextended swing. Do not give in to this temptation. Always maintain even footing, and be in control of your weapon throughout your swing regardless of your target. Better to take two or three balanced strikes to eliminate a zombie than try to do so in a single, awkward rotation.

Avoid the Eyes

With a long-range stabbing weapon such as a spear, you may be tempted to try to attack the brain by driving the weapon through one of the eye sockets. In theory, this is a very effective strike point—it will cause minimal damage to your weapon and does not require excessive strength. In actuality, however, thrusting a weapon into a moving target the size of a quarter requires a great deal of precision and coordination. Untrained individuals have been seen attempting this technique, only to miss numerous times and have the attacking ghoul grab hold and pull the weapon from their hands. Unless you have practiced this technique incessantly and can execute it without fail, it is recommended that you use a different strategy.

Be Wary of Crown Attacks

Another possible enticement for an individual using a heavier bladed weapon is to “cleave the crown,” or attack the top of the head in an attempt to split the ghoul’s skull in half. Although it is undoubtedly a striking sight to behold and can be accomplished with a battle-axe or claymore, it is not recommended. Even if you have the strength and skill to do so, there are several reasons why you should not:

1.
Your weapon may get stuck:
With enough power behind your strike, splitting the skull like a piece of dry cordwood is definitely possible. However, the momentum of the blow may drive the weapon down into the body, embedding it in the neck and torso area and making it difficult to dislodge. The precious seconds required to extract and ready your weapon for another attack may cost you your life, particularly if another undead assailant is waiting in the wings.

2.
Your blade will rapidly dull:
Your weapons are the lifeline to your survival. Bladed arms need to be sharpened consistently, and persistent contact with bone will shorten their life span under normal wear. Why accelerate the process? Quality long-range weapons can be especially difficult to replace once damaged during a zombie outbreak.