Zombie Fighting Tactics - Mission Planning

If there is ever a Zombie apocalypse, you don't want to be wandering about aimlessly.  Instead, you should consider any excursion outside of your defenses to be a mission.  Each mission should be rigorously planned ahead of time.

US Military, Turkish Military, and Civilian Contractors plan the movement of earthquake relief supplies - Photo By: Cpl. Jimmie Perkins, U.S. Marine Corps [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

On TV, characters usually just get their gear together and roll out.  If your life is at stake, you'll want to be far more careful.  The Army plans small unit missions by asking officers to consider the mission, the enemy, the troops, the terrain, and the time available (METTT).  You can too.

Mission - Why are you going?  What do you expect to achieve?  You need concrete objectives to ensure that there is a well thought out reason for going.

Enemy - Will you be facing zombies or humans or both?  What are the capabilities of the enemy?  How many are there?  How fast can they move?  What kind of weapons do they have?  What is their morale like?  What are their strengths and weaknesses?

Group of Zombies from film - Meat Market 3 - Photo by Joel Friesen [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

 Troops - In The Walking Dead terms:  Do you have five Daryl's and a Mishone or a bunch of scared Alexandria citizens?  You have to honestly assess the condition of your group.  What weapons do you have?  How much ammunition is available?  Are you healthy or wounded?  How fast can you move?  How skilled is your team in moving and fighting?

The Pope's Swiss Guards Could Kick Zombie Ass - photo by Kremlin.ru [CC BY 3.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0) or CC BY 4.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

Terrain - Where can you hide?  Where can the enemy hide?  What areas will have the most Zombies?  Where will humans lie in ambush?  What's the best route to your objective?

A Sand Table Used By the Afghan Army to plan route clearance missions - photo By Sgt Bryan Peterson [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Time Available - If you need to get medical supplies for a seriously injured family member, you will be operating faster and more urgently.  If this excursion is just to bolster an already bulging supply cabinet, you can move more slowly and more deliberately.


No one is going to transform your family of survivors into a hardened military unit.  But, you can stop, think, and plan before you take action that might have life altering consequences.