🎒 Survival Equipment Guide
Comprehensive equipment reference for GMs. Every item has tradeoffs. Weight, noise, effectiveness, availability. Force players to make hard choices about what to carry and when to use it.
🔨 Melee Weapons
Silent, reliable, but require getting close.
Pros:
- Common, found everywhere
- Good reach
- No training required
Cons:
- Can break on skulls
- Two-handed
- Makes noise on impact
Pros:
- One-hit kills
- Never breaks
- Opens doors, breaks locks
Cons:
- Heavy, tiring to use
- Slow swings
- Loud impact attracts zombies
Pros:
- Lightweight, fast swings
- One-handed
- Quiet kills
- Utility: chop brush, open crates
Cons:
- Requires skill to use effectively
- Can get stuck in bone
- Less reach than larger weapons
Pros:
- Extremely versatile tool
- Opens doors, breaks locks, pries boards
- Never wears out
Cons:
- Awkward to swing
- Less effective than dedicated weapons
- Short reach
Pros:
- Found everywhere
- Silent
- Easy to carry multiple
Cons:
- Must target brain precisely
- Blade can bend or break
- Very short reach
- Dangerous in melee
Pros:
- Excellent reach
- Keep zombies at distance
- Easy to craft (pole + blade)
Cons:
- Fragile, breaks easily
- Awkward indoors
- Hard to retrieve if stuck
🔫 Firearms
Effective but loud. Every shot attracts attention.
Pros:
- One-handed, can use flashlight
- Common ammo
- Easy to carry
- Quick to draw
Cons:
- Every shot alerts area
- Requires headshots
- Limited range
- Ammo scarcity
Pros:
- Devastating close range
- Headshot not required
- Can hit multiple targets
- Intimidating
Cons:
- Extremely loud - alerts everything
- Heavy recoil
- Slow reload
- Limited ammo capacity
- Shells are bulky
Pros:
- Excellent range
- One-shot kills
- Scope available
- Kill from safety
Cons:
- Two-handed, cumbersome
- Useless in close quarters
- Loud
- Ammo uncommon
Pros:
- Suppressed - doesn't attract attention
- Lightweight
- .22 ammo is common
- Low recoil
Cons:
- Weak - requires perfect headshots
- Suppressors rare
- Not reliable for multiple zombies
🎒 Essential Survival Gear
What keeps you alive between fights.
40-50 liter capacity. Essential for carrying supplies. Choose external frame (more capacity, noisier) or internal frame (quieter, less capacity). Shoulder straps can fail - keep duct tape.
Carry Capacity Guidelines:
- 3 days food (6 lbs)
- 2 liters water (4 lbs)
- First aid kit (2 lbs)
- Spare ammo (3-5 lbs)
- Tools/misc (5 lbs)
- Total: ~20-25 lbs sustainable
Critical for night operations. LED lasts longer than traditional bulbs. Headlamp frees hands. Red filter preserves night vision. Every survivor needs backup batteries.
Remember:
- Light attracts zombies
- Batteries expire (2-3 years)
- Backup light essential
- Cover lens to reduce glow
More important than food. Pump filter, UV sterilizer, or iodine tablets. Assume all water contaminated. One filter can process thousands of gallons.
Options:
- Pump filter: reliable, slow
- UV pen: fast, needs batteries
- Tablets: lightweight, alters taste
- Boiling: free, requires fire
Bandages, antibiotics, painkillers, sutures. Assume no hospitals. Every wound can get infected. Pain management is humane. Know how to use everything you carry.
Priority Supplies:
- Antibiotics (infection = death)
- Painkillers (morphine if possible)
- Trauma bandages
- Suture kit
- Antiseptic
Knife, pliers, screwdriver, saw. One tool, dozens of uses. Leatherman or similar quality. Cheap ones break. This is daily-use item, not emergency backup.
Repair gear, makeshift bandages, secure doors, quiet rattling equipment, fix boots, patch tents. One roll weighs nothing and solves hundred problems. Gorilla tape even better.
💡 GM Guidance: Equipment & Scarcity
Managing Resources
Equipment scarcity drives decisions. Players with unlimited ammo will shoot everything. Make them count bullets. Make them choose between carrying food or ammo. Force them to use melee weapons to save bullets for emergencies.
Ammo Scarcity
- Start Low: 1-2 magazines per gun. Feel the pressure early.
- Make Them Choose: Shoot now or save for worse situation?
- Different Calibers: Found guns useless without correct ammo.
- Deterioration: Old ammo misfires. Add risk to shooting.
Weight Management
- Track It: Players carrying 60 lbs can't sprint.
- Force Choices: Take extra food or extra ammo? Not both.
- Exhaustion: Heavy loads mean tired survivors.
- Noise: Overloaded packs rattle, clank, give away position.
Loot Distribution
Early Game
Melee weapons common. Firearms rare. Food scarce. Medicine precious. Players improvise, scrounge, desperate.
Mid Game
Established base. Some stockpiles. Still rationing. Occasional luxury finds. Scarcity drives plot.
Late Game
Good equipment but wearing out. Repairs difficult. Can't replace broken gear. New scarcity: parts, tools, expertise.
Making Equipment Matter
• Breakage: Melee weapons break. Guns jam. Gear fails at worst moment.
• Maintenance: Clean guns, sharpen blades, patch clothing. Neglect has consequences.
• Specialization: Each character masters different weapon/tool. Creates interdependence.
• Loss: Player drops machete while fleeing. Backpack falls in water. Knife wedged in zombie skull. Equipment isn't permanent.
• Trade Economy: Good gear has value. What will players trade to acquire it?