Have you ever wondered just how effective certain weapons would actually be against zombies? One of my goals here at the ZLC has been to test weapons and tactics and bring the results to other survivors. Much like Mythbusters I want to present actual field tests or as close as can be safely simulated. And apparently I am not the only one.
These guys are taking everyday items and putting them to the test as a new youtube channel, ZombieGoBoom TV. Now it looks like they will be including: nunchucks, hammer, baseball bat, umbrella, hunting knife, soft drink, a package of lunch meat, ball point pen, guitar and with a line up like that I think we can expect a whole lot more to come. They plan to take these items and rate them based on type, size, weight, splatter rating and survival rating.
The first episode is all about baseball bats. Looking at the advantages of an aluminum bat versus a wooden bat. Now survivors I just want to do a quick little comparison myself: wooden bat breaks eventually, doesn't provide as much impact due to softer material. Aluminum bat, provides a faster swing with but isn't as heavy or carry as much crushing power. I have done no tests to prove these things but those are my first observations. Now ZombieGoBoom took two bats, did not tell us how heavy they were and used each to smash a coconut in ballistics gel. Then without giving any actual data collected. Made pretty close to the same statements I made above. Sadly while I expected a lot from these guys they did not deliver on this first video.
However these are not the first people to attempt this type of video however. Check out Zombie Command for example. Without making any major claims they simply state they will be testing weapons used in zombie movies against coconuts to simulate a zombie head. No promises of data collection or anything of that sort and thus when any information at all is given it is taken as extra instead of waiting for more. In this one video alone they test a straight blade knife, ball peen hammer, crowbar, kukri knife and chainsaw.
There are many videos out there of this nature. Looking at and determining if certain weapons are choice for killing zombies. No video series I've found so far has provided actual statistics and analytical data about if these weapons are actually useful or not. Sadly one of the differences between real survivors and many of these video makers is understanding there is more to killing zombies then just smashing heads.
Stay vigilant, may the infection never reach you, and those close to you have the resolve to do what is needed should you be so unfortunate, Mike D.
Monday, June 6, 2011
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Space Zombies part 3
Now here is a setting that needs no introduction but for the people who haven't been around for the last ten years and at risk of upsetting the elitists I will offer one. Humanity has expanded, colonies stretching across the galaxy, nothing stands in our way. Except for the Covenant, an alliance of alien species unhappy with humans continued growth and virus-like expansion. Also the fact humanity itself grows too large and hates being controlled so the colonies verge on civil war. Thus a new kind of soldier is made, a race of super soldiers called Spartans is engineered from young children to face the threats against humanity both from without and from within. Wars have come and gone, eventually mankind has been reduced to much less then it once was and only a single Spartan remains. And if things weren't bad enough suddenly a new menace resurfaces. A parasite that once wiped the galaxy of all life, was contained and has now found new hosts a plenty in the wake of the human/Covenant war.
This is the setting of the Halo universe. Very science fictiony and super-hero, standard first-person shooter fair really. Until suddenly The Flood arrive; a race of parasites from another galaxy which were treated as a virus instead of as an enemy in a war and thus they grew to destroy most of our galaxy. The parasite attaches to the body of a dead, sentient creature and reanimates and mutates the body into a killing machine. With the sole purpose of killing more to create more corpses for other Flood to infect. Called Inferi redivivus (the dead incarnate in Latin, a name also given to vampires in other lore) the Flood works by reanimating dead hosts.
The Flood take the memories and intelligence of the creature they infected and assimilate it into itself and eventually the Gravemind, a powerful being which simultaneously controls all of the Flood in the area it has access to. The Flood use combat tactics, weapons and stratiges, becoming ever more dangerous as they infect more intelligent beings.
The Flood can infect a living being by connecting directly into the nervous system via tentacles all of the combat forms develop. It is possible to be immune to the Flood or to cure someone who has been infected but not yet killed. ORION genetically altered soldiers are immune as well as it is possible to kill the infection with electric charges without harming the host.
The Flood are an extremely complex race from another galaxy which has evolved at incredible speeds and continues to evolve to survive in whatever circumstances it is in or to assimilate whatever species it can find. The Flood can also reproduce among themselves but this is viewed as a last ditch effort if all other avenues of infecting fresh hosts are gone.
Cause: Parasite
Undead: Yes
Body: Humanoid (mutated)
Freewill: Yes
Infectious: Yes (tentacles)
Fear: No
Flood while at first glance appear to be standard zombie fair are in fact very far from being zombies it would seem. While a parasite they are extremely intelligent, causing the first major reason they are not zombies. Add in the way infection works and the fact it can be cured are nothing like a zombie virus. Not to mention being able to reproduce without new hosts to infect. All in all a terrifying enemy but not a zombie horde as much as it may feel like one running through dark tunnels gunning them down in scores.
Stay vigilant, may the infection never reach you, and those close to you have the resolve to do what is needed should you be so unfortunate, Mike D.
This is the setting of the Halo universe. Very science fictiony and super-hero, standard first-person shooter fair really. Until suddenly The Flood arrive; a race of parasites from another galaxy which were treated as a virus instead of as an enemy in a war and thus they grew to destroy most of our galaxy. The parasite attaches to the body of a dead, sentient creature and reanimates and mutates the body into a killing machine. With the sole purpose of killing more to create more corpses for other Flood to infect. Called Inferi redivivus (the dead incarnate in Latin, a name also given to vampires in other lore) the Flood works by reanimating dead hosts.
The Flood take the memories and intelligence of the creature they infected and assimilate it into itself and eventually the Gravemind, a powerful being which simultaneously controls all of the Flood in the area it has access to. The Flood use combat tactics, weapons and stratiges, becoming ever more dangerous as they infect more intelligent beings.
The Flood can infect a living being by connecting directly into the nervous system via tentacles all of the combat forms develop. It is possible to be immune to the Flood or to cure someone who has been infected but not yet killed. ORION genetically altered soldiers are immune as well as it is possible to kill the infection with electric charges without harming the host.
The Flood are an extremely complex race from another galaxy which has evolved at incredible speeds and continues to evolve to survive in whatever circumstances it is in or to assimilate whatever species it can find. The Flood can also reproduce among themselves but this is viewed as a last ditch effort if all other avenues of infecting fresh hosts are gone.
Cause: Parasite
Undead: Yes
Body: Humanoid (mutated)
Freewill: Yes
Infectious: Yes (tentacles)
Fear: No
Flood while at first glance appear to be standard zombie fair are in fact very far from being zombies it would seem. While a parasite they are extremely intelligent, causing the first major reason they are not zombies. Add in the way infection works and the fact it can be cured are nothing like a zombie virus. Not to mention being able to reproduce without new hosts to infect. All in all a terrifying enemy but not a zombie horde as much as it may feel like one running through dark tunnels gunning them down in scores.
Stay vigilant, may the infection never reach you, and those close to you have the resolve to do what is needed should you be so unfortunate, Mike D.
Friday, June 3, 2011
Space Zombies part 2
In another section of space we find humanity has once again conquered everything in its path. Now we have tools capable of "cracking" open entire planets and harvesting the resources within. Except on one planet we find something much older then humanity. And discover that while humans knew they weren't completely alone, whatever is out there, does want us all dead.
The video game which has spawned an plethora of content for it's expanding universe is Dead Space. And in Dead Space we find something that has been missing in video games sinse the old Resident Evil and Silent Hill games, true horror. A game that you play at 3 A.M. with the lights turned off knowing that it will make the maniliest of men jump and have nightmares. The reason for this scare factor? A large part of it lies with the unknown. The enemies are complete unknowns, Necromorphs they are called, mutated bodies of dead humans. But the Necromorphs mutate in many unpredicted ways.
While the humans gone crazies are one thing to generate fear in and of itself (also crazy humans never equals zombies) the Necromorphs are the true terror of space. Once the alien parasite has latched onto a corpse it takes ten seconds for the body to mutate and rise. The Necromorphs have no real need for any of the host body's functions so they are virtually impervious to damage and the most useful way of fighting them is to simply disable them by removing all limbs. Once a Necromorph has been created it's sole goal can vary depending on the type of Necromorph created but in general, is to kill more creatures so other parasites can find hosts.
The Necromorphs have proven to be predators who hunt in packs and set ambushes, often waiting in vents or playing dead, until a victim is close enough to kill in a single strike. Beyond this they also have a sort of Hive Mind and will listen to "leaders," more advanced Necromorphs, which sometimes are composed of multiple host bodies merged together. This base intelligence makes the Necromorphs a threat humans in todays culture often refer to as the end of mankind, that is to say, intellegent undead.
So to break it down:
Cause: Parasite
Undead: Yes
Body: Humanoid (mutated)
Freewill: Yes
Infectious: No
Fear: No
In the end I have to say Necromorphs, while more dangerous then any zombie are not infact zombies. They are intelligent predators, which zombies are not, and they are not directly infectious. While they are a parasite which infects and reanimates the dead this alone does not a zombie make.
Stay vigilant, may Marker never reach you, and those close to you have the resolve to do what is needed should you be so unfortunate, Mike D.
The video game which has spawned an plethora of content for it's expanding universe is Dead Space. And in Dead Space we find something that has been missing in video games sinse the old Resident Evil and Silent Hill games, true horror. A game that you play at 3 A.M. with the lights turned off knowing that it will make the maniliest of men jump and have nightmares. The reason for this scare factor? A large part of it lies with the unknown. The enemies are complete unknowns, Necromorphs they are called, mutated bodies of dead humans. But the Necromorphs mutate in many unpredicted ways.
While the humans gone crazies are one thing to generate fear in and of itself (also crazy humans never equals zombies) the Necromorphs are the true terror of space. Once the alien parasite has latched onto a corpse it takes ten seconds for the body to mutate and rise. The Necromorphs have no real need for any of the host body's functions so they are virtually impervious to damage and the most useful way of fighting them is to simply disable them by removing all limbs. Once a Necromorph has been created it's sole goal can vary depending on the type of Necromorph created but in general, is to kill more creatures so other parasites can find hosts.
The Necromorphs have proven to be predators who hunt in packs and set ambushes, often waiting in vents or playing dead, until a victim is close enough to kill in a single strike. Beyond this they also have a sort of Hive Mind and will listen to "leaders," more advanced Necromorphs, which sometimes are composed of multiple host bodies merged together. This base intelligence makes the Necromorphs a threat humans in todays culture often refer to as the end of mankind, that is to say, intellegent undead.
So to break it down:
Cause: Parasite
Undead: Yes
Body: Humanoid (mutated)
Freewill: Yes
Infectious: No
Fear: No
In the end I have to say Necromorphs, while more dangerous then any zombie are not infact zombies. They are intelligent predators, which zombies are not, and they are not directly infectious. While they are a parasite which infects and reanimates the dead this alone does not a zombie make.
Stay vigilant, may Marker never reach you, and those close to you have the resolve to do what is needed should you be so unfortunate, Mike D.
Thursday, June 2, 2011
May poll results
Well survivors May has been a crazy zombie awareness month but I consider it a success. I created and gave out my grey zombie awareness pins. The ZLC went from hundreds to thousands of readers. I completed my goal of a-post-a-day-for-May.
I am now going to try to keep up with posting every day but these three months are my biggest money earning months so I really need to put a lot of hard work into my other endevours. Never fear though! I am planning special posts about each city I travel to over the next few months and have been inspired by the sudden increased in readers to keep the content coming fast and furious! Hopefully on those days I can't fit a post in there will be lots left on the site you haven't read or you can post a comment somewhere about your thoughts or ideas for posts you want to see. I do get and regularily respond to a lot of e-mail traffic, mdthesoldier@hotmail.com feel free to send anything there as well that is ZLC related.
Now to the meat of this post.
Would you rather become a zombie or die?
Bite me: 13%
Save a bullet for me: 86%
Even among survivors the rate of people who would rather become zombies is unfortunately high. This is not completely unexpected though. As much as zombies represent death, they can also represent a twisted continuation of life as many other undead do. People are so afraid of death they would rather live the sick and twisted life of a zombie. Here is the fatal flaw in this thinking however. A zombie is not you. Whatever you are, whatever your soul is, it has moved on. A zombie is an empty husk being controlled by a virus or parasite. There is no cure. There is no living on as a ghoul. Becoming a zombie is infact dying, someone else just has to clean up your mess. The more zombies means the less chance of humanity surviving, becoming a zombie, for whatever misinformed or estranged reasoning is a selfish act of desperation that will not prolong your life but might end someone else's. Do the world a favor and let's try to get this number from 13% to 0%.
More discusion on this topic can be found here.
Stay vigilant, may the infection never reach you, and those close to you have the resolve to do what is needed should you be so unfortunate, Mike D.
I am now going to try to keep up with posting every day but these three months are my biggest money earning months so I really need to put a lot of hard work into my other endevours. Never fear though! I am planning special posts about each city I travel to over the next few months and have been inspired by the sudden increased in readers to keep the content coming fast and furious! Hopefully on those days I can't fit a post in there will be lots left on the site you haven't read or you can post a comment somewhere about your thoughts or ideas for posts you want to see. I do get and regularily respond to a lot of e-mail traffic, mdthesoldier@hotmail.com feel free to send anything there as well that is ZLC related.
Now to the meat of this post.
Would you rather become a zombie or die?
Bite me: 13%
Save a bullet for me: 86%
Even among survivors the rate of people who would rather become zombies is unfortunately high. This is not completely unexpected though. As much as zombies represent death, they can also represent a twisted continuation of life as many other undead do. People are so afraid of death they would rather live the sick and twisted life of a zombie. Here is the fatal flaw in this thinking however. A zombie is not you. Whatever you are, whatever your soul is, it has moved on. A zombie is an empty husk being controlled by a virus or parasite. There is no cure. There is no living on as a ghoul. Becoming a zombie is infact dying, someone else just has to clean up your mess. The more zombies means the less chance of humanity surviving, becoming a zombie, for whatever misinformed or estranged reasoning is a selfish act of desperation that will not prolong your life but might end someone else's. Do the world a favor and let's try to get this number from 13% to 0%.
More discusion on this topic can be found here.
Stay vigilant, may the infection never reach you, and those close to you have the resolve to do what is needed should you be so unfortunate, Mike D.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Space Zombies part 1
Every mythology seems to have a version of zombies. Often causes this is simply zombies, nothing hidden or changed about it but what has always interested me is how futuristic settings always seem to have zombies of one sort or another. I would like to talk about two types of zombie.
The first is set in a dark universe 38,000 years in our future. Mankind has conquered the galaxy, more or less. Other races still wage war on man and the hellish alternate universe exists, constantly trying to destroy our own. Also a strange new race has appeared, a race that travels from galaxy to galaxy consuming all there is to consume, adding everything to it's own massive army and moving on. This is the world of Warhammer 40,000.
The last race I mentioned is the one I want to talk about. Already it sounds a little zombish; a race that literally takes every bio-organic life and substance on a planet and converts it into goo which it uses to create it's own mindless (or rather, Hive-minded) army. There is one particular type of creature in this strange army that works slightly differently, Genestealers. There are two myths about where the name comes from, the first is that these dangerous monsters have ended many family lines and possibly entire races own their own, thus steal the genes from the universe. But while they have done these things the name comes from something else entirely.
Genestealers are humanoids, barely. With two legs, a torso, a head and six arms. Each arms ends in three twelve inch long claws that can rip through the most powerful in the galaxy. The body of the genestealer is covered in a hard carapace that requires significant force to penetrate and has mutated to have 0% body fat. The legs in particular have enhanced muscles to make these creatures move at incredible speeds, faster then most vehicles in fact. The head has also mutated to allow for a massive tongue and dozens of teeth just as sharp as the claws. The head has also formed a massive shell as it grows larger and in this shell is the brain but also a virus, the virus is transferred by the tongue to the claws and teeth making even the slightest scratch a dead sentence and worse.
I mentioned a couple times that these attributes of the genestealers are mutations. This is because the virus which kills a genestealers victim, also mutates and reanimates the body. As soon as the victim dies the virus starts changing the DNA of the human. Literally stealing genes and replacing them to create an entirely new creature. Once the transformation is almost complete the body is brought back to live and the muscles finish growing and forming while the genestealer starts looking for it's first victim. Genestealers have also been suggested to not be part of the Hive-mind, they are supposedly just killing machines with the sole purpose of the continued spread of the virus inside them.
All of this really sounds like a creature we already have here on earth. So are genestealers in fact space zombies? Well we can take a look at the things that make a zombie and compare.
Cause: Virus
Undead: Yes
Body: Humanoid (mutated)
Freewill: No
Infectious: Yes, via bite and scratch.
Fear: No
Well fellow survivors I have to say I am glad to be alive today and not in the year 40,000AD, because these creatures are in fact futuristic space zombies. They match up to being a zombie better then zombies from most zombie films or books do.
Stay vigilant, may the infection never reach space, and the Space Marines have the firepower to do what is needed should we all be so unfortunate, Mike D.
The first is set in a dark universe 38,000 years in our future. Mankind has conquered the galaxy, more or less. Other races still wage war on man and the hellish alternate universe exists, constantly trying to destroy our own. Also a strange new race has appeared, a race that travels from galaxy to galaxy consuming all there is to consume, adding everything to it's own massive army and moving on. This is the world of Warhammer 40,000.
The last race I mentioned is the one I want to talk about. Already it sounds a little zombish; a race that literally takes every bio-organic life and substance on a planet and converts it into goo which it uses to create it's own mindless (or rather, Hive-minded) army. There is one particular type of creature in this strange army that works slightly differently, Genestealers. There are two myths about where the name comes from, the first is that these dangerous monsters have ended many family lines and possibly entire races own their own, thus steal the genes from the universe. But while they have done these things the name comes from something else entirely.
Genestealers are humanoids, barely. With two legs, a torso, a head and six arms. Each arms ends in three twelve inch long claws that can rip through the most powerful in the galaxy. The body of the genestealer is covered in a hard carapace that requires significant force to penetrate and has mutated to have 0% body fat. The legs in particular have enhanced muscles to make these creatures move at incredible speeds, faster then most vehicles in fact. The head has also mutated to allow for a massive tongue and dozens of teeth just as sharp as the claws. The head has also formed a massive shell as it grows larger and in this shell is the brain but also a virus, the virus is transferred by the tongue to the claws and teeth making even the slightest scratch a dead sentence and worse.
I mentioned a couple times that these attributes of the genestealers are mutations. This is because the virus which kills a genestealers victim, also mutates and reanimates the body. As soon as the victim dies the virus starts changing the DNA of the human. Literally stealing genes and replacing them to create an entirely new creature. Once the transformation is almost complete the body is brought back to live and the muscles finish growing and forming while the genestealer starts looking for it's first victim. Genestealers have also been suggested to not be part of the Hive-mind, they are supposedly just killing machines with the sole purpose of the continued spread of the virus inside them.
All of this really sounds like a creature we already have here on earth. So are genestealers in fact space zombies? Well we can take a look at the things that make a zombie and compare.
Cause: Virus
Undead: Yes
Body: Humanoid (mutated)
Freewill: No
Infectious: Yes, via bite and scratch.
Fear: No
Well fellow survivors I have to say I am glad to be alive today and not in the year 40,000AD, because these creatures are in fact futuristic space zombies. They match up to being a zombie better then zombies from most zombie films or books do.
Stay vigilant, may the infection never reach space, and the Space Marines have the firepower to do what is needed should we all be so unfortunate, Mike D.
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