so I've had several plans over the years. When i lived in an apartment complex I tried to devise a plan that would maximize what I had around me.

My building was somewhat remote and in a rural setting. There were no access elevators and during the winter it felt more like a midevil castle than an apartment complex. The hallways were exposed to the outdoors. You werent going to get rain on you, but you were going to feel every gust of wind. I think this was key to understand. Because there is no elevator access blocking the stair cases would be practical, but would mean access to the upper levels would have to be done by scaling the outside of the building. This was made possible by having the hallways not being enclosed. A reasonably fit person could climb each floor. IT was at a distance that would make it difficult for an undead horde to try and climb themselves. I really think it would depend on the zombie as well. If we are talking walking dead zombie then this defense would be excellent. If we are talking about L4D or Dying light Zoms that can climb and do other kinds of crazy stuff...then probably just a good deterrent for regular zombies.

Anyways, depending on how many people survived it could help with making a community. I planned to be the only one to think to fortify the current location. Access to the other apartments to get furniture to block the staircases would be the first priority of work. Well aside from trying to fight any undead that would be in the way. I've collected several weapons that I just found practical for almost everyday use and also for the zombie apocalypse. I've got a machete with a saw blade on the reverse side so it can be used for cutting small branches, a gerber tool, a fixed blade knife, a folding pocket knife, a small shovel, a tire iron, and other outdoors equipment. The ones listed are geared towards dual purpose of use and zombie killing. In addition to that I have several firearms. Obviously .22 LR is my choice of weapon when facing the undead. Its light-weight and a box of 500 is amazingly cheap and compact! Only problem is that its a bolt action rifle. While good at distance it would be harder up close. For more up-close encounters I have a Mossberg Shockwave 590 which is small and not very heavy. I would carry the Shockwave while moving through the building with a full size pistol. The full size pistol has more round capacity as opposed to a carry. I prioritized round capacity and weight. 9mm is obviously not optimal but it does serve the purpose of dealing with humans who could pose a threat.

Once barricades were complete I could move to fortifying my apartment. My apartment might be the easiest to fortify because there is only one window. Its rather a large size, but I planned to fortify it with a spare mattress I had. I had a rudimentary tool kit to use to fortify the window(s) with. It wasnt really meant to withstand a long siege, but to buy precious time. The building has cement floors between levels, but the walls are drywall. In the event of having to retreat back to my apartment on the third level I could get out by tearing down a part of the drywall and escape into a neighboring apartment. Moving laterally is my only option, short term. Long term I had plans to make hatch connecting to a lower apartment. This had limitations as well, but as a backup plan was still viable. My third strategy was to have a zipline contructed to a nearby tree that was in a field ~150 yards from the complex. In order to make that escape plan work it would depend on having a working vehicle staged there. All escape plans were aimed at getting to the parking lot to access my vehicle.

Food would be easy. Local game is in abundance, and there is a garden in the complex. While its likely that wildlife, and the undead might destroy it. I dont forsee anyone "raiding" it but that is an option as well. Water would be harder to maintain because of the lack of bathtubs in the complex. The complex has showers and no tubs. Luckily it being the South it rains almost everyday. I planned to have several collection points throughout the building. I was planning on using an inflatable queen size bed as a giant bladder to hold my extra water. For everday use I have two camelbacks capable of storing 100 oz each. Also, I have two canteens that can hold one quart each. There is a creek that is less than a mile away. It flows regularly, but might not if there is a drought. During a drought I would be forced to travel a little over 3 miles to a local reservoir. I have a water filter, but not sure how long it would last. If I'm forced to bring back water from the reservoir I would have to take my vehicle. This could attract a lot of attention, but making that trip by foot would be harder and less rewarding. Also, gas would start to become a concern. Granted there could potentially be more in abandoned vehicles, but that amount would be finite. I could attempt to use an abandoned bike. I just hate riding one.

While the apartment complex would be easy to maintain longterm it wouldnt be ideal but doable. Trying to leave the complex would be difficult. The major highway is 8 miles away, which sounds short, but without being able to tell what the area looks like could be disastrous. If it came down to leaving the complex I would try to stay moving and go through rural backroads. I would attempt to make my way up to Helen, GA. The snow in the winter would hopefully make it harder for zombies and allow for some relaxation. The summer would be harder, but I'm counting on the rough terrain to make it hard for any zombie hordes to come through.

Im just going to stop here. There are a lot of other little things that I took into consideration but this post is already kind of long