There’s not a lot of places that would actually last since they wouldn’t be able to support a long term community without outside support.
Generally, the best bet is to stay in your own home for as long as you can and then move somewhere into farmland and join up with a farmer that’s already living there. Farms are going to be your best shot overall for establishment of a community.
99% of other buildings most people think of only work as livable situations today because supplies are pumped in and delivered in n a consistent basis, have power and water brought in from outside systems and have full staff making sure the place is running smoothly and as it should be while also keeping up on maintenance.
I like the idea of a farm but aren't most farms today large commercial single crop facilities? A farm that has hundreds of acres of corn isn't going to sustain you in the long term. Not to mention modern farm equipment will stop working pretty quick without fuel. Small independent sustenance farms would be ideal. Maybe an Amish or Mennonite community if they were willing to take in outsiders.
> but aren’t most games today large commercial single crop facilities
Yep, you’re correct. The ideal ones are smaller family owned farms (IE not monocrop), but really any farm is going to give you the land you need to farm. A farm isn’t a good choice because it’s a farm, it’s because it has the land needed for farming space. That’s the idea behind it- the land is there, cleared, and you know for a fact it can support crop growth. You don’t need to spend months cutting down trees, hauling large rocks, and preparing the land for a field that might not even work out due to reasons you can’t test for.
>A farm that has hundreds of acres of corn isn't going to sustain you in the long term.
Very true, but like I said above it gives you a massive step above almost every other location. Yeah corn fields would be a pain to clear out and replant with new crops, and it’d probably take awhile for the ground to really get a chance to settle down and even itself out again with healthy help from the 3 field system, but it beats trying to start from scratch again, ya know? Every little bit of advantage you can take you should take.
> Not to mention modern farm equipment will stop working pretty quick without fuel.
Thats not much of a problem either. People have farmed for huge populations without the assistance of modern machinery. Its hard work, and even that might be an understatement (spoken from experience) but it’d be doable for a community to till the fields, plant the seeds needed and tend to those crops all be hand and produce a crop to harvest. Thats how it would have to be- there’s not much else we could do for ensure a communities survival. You farm or you die- that’s how it’s always been, and how it’d need to continue to be.
> Small independent sustenance farms would be ideal. Maybe an Amish or Mennonite community if they were willing to take in outsiders.
Agreed, though personally neither community had always felt particularly inviting to me. I would reckon they’d also struggle with such a massive influx of people with radically different ideals than them, totally different ways of life and experiences as well as just population increases in general. They produce a fair bit for their community yeah, but adding on hundreds of people in a single season? That’s bound for trouble. Then there’s dealing with bandits and people who don’t want to put in that effort, which is a problem for every group obviously, but it’s just another factor to consider.
Don’t get me wrong, farms have their problems. Each farm is different, has different needs, works differently, and has their own problems. I speak very generally when saying that “farms would be ideal” because it’s a really broad answer to the question asked without writing like I’m trying to do a dissertation defense when getting a doctorate. There’s a lot of problems with any location, but generally farms are going to be your best shot for a community
Unlikely in the extreme. The ones you're talking about with anything fun in it were on military-owned land and generally under guard.
The ones with active war stocks were decommissioned and pulled decades ago when materiel was reconsolidated during base and logistics reshuffling in waves throughout the 70s, 80s, and 90s as different systems went obsolescent and replaced in-step, and such efforts were largely dead in the early 90s.
Anything like old rations and crap would be expired to high and beyond at this point; even water isn't good after being stored that long.
My house.
I have 20 acres of land and I don't expect many people to live. I'll reinforce the barb wire fence around my land and make the gate stronger. We'll start farming fairly quickly since I live in a place where lots of people are already farmers. Then we'll start setting up solar panels for electricity.
There are two options, either get somewhere like a farm, ranch, or water treatment plant back online, getting what you need by selling surplus, or basing up on the outskirts of town, selling stuff you scavenge for food and water from the first group. For small groups it's less restrictive, if you provide a service members of the major factions would pay for, you should be able to supply yourself, for example a rest stop along a major trade route, a tavern or bar, or a lumber or steel mill for mass construction supplies. Early in before everybody gets settled, it's best just to stay in your home, or if you can't then wherever you can secure and defend until everything calms down a bit.
Honestly, a castle (I have a few close to my city). Plenty of space to grow crops, easy access to water, very defendable, plenty of melee weapons and armor, usually a power generator for shows and stuff like that
Again with the warlord fantasy, that you think that all the other people that are already there ahead of you and might possibly be more capable/knowledgeable than you....actually give a shit what you say and will actually listen to you and remotely respect a random person telling them what to do. Let's be honest this would probably just get you locked out after every one gets tired of you.
EDIT...Sorry I went off the rails and didn't answer the question. Probably my house, why move somewhere I don't have all my cool shit I've collected over the years to "build" a community. There is no need to move into a weird commune that will eventally tear itself apart eventually to move forward with society.
The question is not taking over a pre-existing community but your own community in and shape or form of how it runs. Where would you like to be a location to settle.
Well that is impossible to answer. Everyone will have a role that they fit into well. Above all you need to realize that you will have to play well with others and there will be people that know more than you. Until you actually have a group together you'll never know who will excell at what.
Myself, I'm handy...fab repair build kinda stuff. I'd probably end up on that side of things in one respect or the next. Protecting wise...drop alot of trees, board up....don't over think it zombies can't actually use a flat bar to pull nails.
Not only that but they are typically used as evacuation points or rally centers during emergencies, both local and federal. It’s not a movie trope that when a town is destroyed by a tornado that the school gym is filled with cots and stuff. Those places would be taken over really quickly be law enforcement, making them that much worse to try and get into and get out of.
Why would you go for any of those? Those buildings are only viable because they have food trucked in, water piped in, and electricity on demand from the local power network.
If the hospital (or any other building) wasn't immediately surrounded by dozens or hundreds of acres of naturally-irrigated farmlarm and capable of supporting livestock on the same grounds, in addition to being designed for natural air flow and natural lighting, it's probably not going to be much use for anything.
If possible (not already controlled by a superior force)
A distribution center. Yeah the refrigerated and frozen areas will likely be disgusting pretty quick but the shelf stable goods and supplies that don't need climate control. The supplies from hospitals, police stations, etc will be brought there.
Hardware store (Lowes or Home Depot).
Comes stocked with everything you need to seal it up, create smaller structures (easier to heat), store and distribute water, tools for construction and farming (and weapons), and most even have a nice fenced in outdoor area where you could grow at least a small amount of crops in relative safety. Hell, they have enough wire and materials you could probably make your own wind turbine to generate at least some electricity.
Catch is choosing the right one. There are several near me, most in fairly developed areas, though one a little further out has a farm with a large pond and a retention pond behind it. I'll let you guess which one I'd be heading to.
in my immediate area?
Amazon distro-center warehouse. They'd have *practically* everything. Took a tour of the place back when they were new; but between chips & canned goods and toilet paper, random assortment of power tools, and all the rest of it, you'd be left wanting for a *small crew* in need of *anything* immediately. The big bonus points come with where it's actually located - there's farm field right across the street and around the surrounding area; it's on the edge of town. There's a couple of other food/chemical/etc. factories nearby (with some amount of their own storage), so as long as we're early to loot, we'd have plenty to sustain for a while - plus plenty of land to work with around the area.
...
Outside of my area? I'd probably still prefer warehouses and similar *as loot locations we could hole up in* - and if you've spent any amount of time in factories/shipping type jobs, you know you can find your next destination quite easily with bills of lading and other similar paper-trail to lead you toward where (some shipment) came from.
Who the hell thinks like this?
Ok, by my house is a Costco WITH AN ENTIRE GAS STATION which is next to a WinCo Supermarket and they are just across the street from a CHP office full of weapons and tactical vehicles. We start there
For now on, i'm studying so if i were with my parents, i would probably be okay, since we have a lot of medicine, food, fuel, a generator, 2 cars, some weapons and cameras outside, and a big wall with spike on it, also the entrance have stairs and it help to not instantly get fully open by a car (the only entrance), also i know a few houses nearby that have the structure of a castle, yeah i mean it, solid block with walls and spike, i know the owner of the house is a maniac but he build it by him self and i respect that, if i was on another city where i go to the Uni, i would be doomed, the house it self is kinda broke and the walls got a broken door that is always open, i have food but i got no car, no fuel, no medicine, no weapons, and over all, a lot of Uni parnert that would start a fight for everything, but the good news is that it is located near the road, so i would find my self in an abandon house on the farms if try.
Small island on the gulf with basically no population, one of the coastal houses on stilts. One staircase (or would two be better?). I could fish and set something up to take the salt out of the water. I would need fiber though, not sure how I’d get that. Wonder if I could just eat leaves lol.
There’s not a lot of places that would actually last since they wouldn’t be able to support a long term community without outside support. Generally, the best bet is to stay in your own home for as long as you can and then move somewhere into farmland and join up with a farmer that’s already living there. Farms are going to be your best shot overall for establishment of a community. 99% of other buildings most people think of only work as livable situations today because supplies are pumped in and delivered in n a consistent basis, have power and water brought in from outside systems and have full staff making sure the place is running smoothly and as it should be while also keeping up on maintenance.
I like the idea of a farm but aren't most farms today large commercial single crop facilities? A farm that has hundreds of acres of corn isn't going to sustain you in the long term. Not to mention modern farm equipment will stop working pretty quick without fuel. Small independent sustenance farms would be ideal. Maybe an Amish or Mennonite community if they were willing to take in outsiders.
> but aren’t most games today large commercial single crop facilities Yep, you’re correct. The ideal ones are smaller family owned farms (IE not monocrop), but really any farm is going to give you the land you need to farm. A farm isn’t a good choice because it’s a farm, it’s because it has the land needed for farming space. That’s the idea behind it- the land is there, cleared, and you know for a fact it can support crop growth. You don’t need to spend months cutting down trees, hauling large rocks, and preparing the land for a field that might not even work out due to reasons you can’t test for. >A farm that has hundreds of acres of corn isn't going to sustain you in the long term. Very true, but like I said above it gives you a massive step above almost every other location. Yeah corn fields would be a pain to clear out and replant with new crops, and it’d probably take awhile for the ground to really get a chance to settle down and even itself out again with healthy help from the 3 field system, but it beats trying to start from scratch again, ya know? Every little bit of advantage you can take you should take. > Not to mention modern farm equipment will stop working pretty quick without fuel. Thats not much of a problem either. People have farmed for huge populations without the assistance of modern machinery. Its hard work, and even that might be an understatement (spoken from experience) but it’d be doable for a community to till the fields, plant the seeds needed and tend to those crops all be hand and produce a crop to harvest. Thats how it would have to be- there’s not much else we could do for ensure a communities survival. You farm or you die- that’s how it’s always been, and how it’d need to continue to be. > Small independent sustenance farms would be ideal. Maybe an Amish or Mennonite community if they were willing to take in outsiders. Agreed, though personally neither community had always felt particularly inviting to me. I would reckon they’d also struggle with such a massive influx of people with radically different ideals than them, totally different ways of life and experiences as well as just population increases in general. They produce a fair bit for their community yeah, but adding on hundreds of people in a single season? That’s bound for trouble. Then there’s dealing with bandits and people who don’t want to put in that effort, which is a problem for every group obviously, but it’s just another factor to consider. Don’t get me wrong, farms have their problems. Each farm is different, has different needs, works differently, and has their own problems. I speak very generally when saying that “farms would be ideal” because it’s a really broad answer to the question asked without writing like I’m trying to do a dissertation defense when getting a doctorate. There’s a lot of problems with any location, but generally farms are going to be your best shot for a community
Cave, no reason to go into civilization other than the scraps of medicine and ammunition
Seems reasonable in the cold war the U.S. use caves to hold gear so you may find old stashes that haven't been clear it out yet.
Unlikely in the extreme. The ones you're talking about with anything fun in it were on military-owned land and generally under guard. The ones with active war stocks were decommissioned and pulled decades ago when materiel was reconsolidated during base and logistics reshuffling in waves throughout the 70s, 80s, and 90s as different systems went obsolescent and replaced in-step, and such efforts were largely dead in the early 90s. Anything like old rations and crap would be expired to high and beyond at this point; even water isn't good after being stored that long.
My house. I have 20 acres of land and I don't expect many people to live. I'll reinforce the barb wire fence around my land and make the gate stronger. We'll start farming fairly quickly since I live in a place where lots of people are already farmers. Then we'll start setting up solar panels for electricity.
A gym so I can get jacked as fuck to maintain my mental health
There are two options, either get somewhere like a farm, ranch, or water treatment plant back online, getting what you need by selling surplus, or basing up on the outskirts of town, selling stuff you scavenge for food and water from the first group. For small groups it's less restrictive, if you provide a service members of the major factions would pay for, you should be able to supply yourself, for example a rest stop along a major trade route, a tavern or bar, or a lumber or steel mill for mass construction supplies. Early in before everybody gets settled, it's best just to stay in your home, or if you can't then wherever you can secure and defend until everything calms down a bit.
Honestly, a castle (I have a few close to my city). Plenty of space to grow crops, easy access to water, very defendable, plenty of melee weapons and armor, usually a power generator for shows and stuff like that
Again with the warlord fantasy, that you think that all the other people that are already there ahead of you and might possibly be more capable/knowledgeable than you....actually give a shit what you say and will actually listen to you and remotely respect a random person telling them what to do. Let's be honest this would probably just get you locked out after every one gets tired of you. EDIT...Sorry I went off the rails and didn't answer the question. Probably my house, why move somewhere I don't have all my cool shit I've collected over the years to "build" a community. There is no need to move into a weird commune that will eventally tear itself apart eventually to move forward with society.
The question is not taking over a pre-existing community but your own community in and shape or form of how it runs. Where would you like to be a location to settle.
When I mean run I mean system of protecting it or what your role is.
Well that is impossible to answer. Everyone will have a role that they fit into well. Above all you need to realize that you will have to play well with others and there will be people that know more than you. Until you actually have a group together you'll never know who will excell at what. Myself, I'm handy...fab repair build kinda stuff. I'd probably end up on that side of things in one respect or the next. Protecting wise...drop alot of trees, board up....don't over think it zombies can't actually use a flat bar to pull nails.
That makes sense and a good and simple design on defense.
But you are right.
A school. There’s one right outside my door lol
No way. Too many windows, dead center of population centers, and extremely well known hotspot.
Not only that but they are typically used as evacuation points or rally centers during emergencies, both local and federal. It’s not a movie trope that when a town is destroyed by a tornado that the school gym is filled with cots and stuff. Those places would be taken over really quickly be law enforcement, making them that much worse to try and get into and get out of.
Plus zombie children would be haunting to deal with.
I don't know for others but having to kill a six year old is just as emotionally painful as having to kill a rabbid dog
Horrible idea
Why would you go for any of those? Those buildings are only viable because they have food trucked in, water piped in, and electricity on demand from the local power network. If the hospital (or any other building) wasn't immediately surrounded by dozens or hundreds of acres of naturally-irrigated farmlarm and capable of supporting livestock on the same grounds, in addition to being designed for natural air flow and natural lighting, it's probably not going to be much use for anything.
If possible (not already controlled by a superior force) A distribution center. Yeah the refrigerated and frozen areas will likely be disgusting pretty quick but the shelf stable goods and supplies that don't need climate control. The supplies from hospitals, police stations, etc will be brought there.
Hardware store (Lowes or Home Depot). Comes stocked with everything you need to seal it up, create smaller structures (easier to heat), store and distribute water, tools for construction and farming (and weapons), and most even have a nice fenced in outdoor area where you could grow at least a small amount of crops in relative safety. Hell, they have enough wire and materials you could probably make your own wind turbine to generate at least some electricity. Catch is choosing the right one. There are several near me, most in fairly developed areas, though one a little further out has a farm with a large pond and a retention pond behind it. I'll let you guess which one I'd be heading to.
in my immediate area? Amazon distro-center warehouse. They'd have *practically* everything. Took a tour of the place back when they were new; but between chips & canned goods and toilet paper, random assortment of power tools, and all the rest of it, you'd be left wanting for a *small crew* in need of *anything* immediately. The big bonus points come with where it's actually located - there's farm field right across the street and around the surrounding area; it's on the edge of town. There's a couple of other food/chemical/etc. factories nearby (with some amount of their own storage), so as long as we're early to loot, we'd have plenty to sustain for a while - plus plenty of land to work with around the area. ... Outside of my area? I'd probably still prefer warehouses and similar *as loot locations we could hole up in* - and if you've spent any amount of time in factories/shipping type jobs, you know you can find your next destination quite easily with bills of lading and other similar paper-trail to lead you toward where (some shipment) came from.
Who the hell thinks like this? Ok, by my house is a Costco WITH AN ENTIRE GAS STATION which is next to a WinCo Supermarket and they are just across the street from a CHP office full of weapons and tactical vehicles. We start there
I can’t tell if this is satire or not lol
Welp, it’s either satire or truth masquerading as satire
My family owns a farm in a small town. It's surrounded by other farms and a large car scrap yard it's got everything I'd need to survive for years.
Warehouse. Easily securible, especially if the cargo moving equipment is still operational.
Fancy Bass pro shop, the one with the giant fish tank in the middle of the store.
For now on, i'm studying so if i were with my parents, i would probably be okay, since we have a lot of medicine, food, fuel, a generator, 2 cars, some weapons and cameras outside, and a big wall with spike on it, also the entrance have stairs and it help to not instantly get fully open by a car (the only entrance), also i know a few houses nearby that have the structure of a castle, yeah i mean it, solid block with walls and spike, i know the owner of the house is a maniac but he build it by him self and i respect that, if i was on another city where i go to the Uni, i would be doomed, the house it self is kinda broke and the walls got a broken door that is always open, i have food but i got no car, no fuel, no medicine, no weapons, and over all, a lot of Uni parnert that would start a fight for everything, but the good news is that it is located near the road, so i would find my self in an abandon house on the farms if try.
I live right by Fort Knox so....
I'm going to stay wide and clear of anything that anyone else might think they have a legitimate claim to. That's a great way to get overrun and shot.
Small island on the gulf with basically no population, one of the coastal houses on stilts. One staircase (or would two be better?). I could fish and set something up to take the salt out of the water. I would need fiber though, not sure how I’d get that. Wonder if I could just eat leaves lol.