The Walking Dead, Survival Rule Of The Week: Don’t fall for traps

When we left off in The Walking Dead, Daryl and Carol had walked into a massive trap. If you keep these lessons in mind, maybe YOU won’t make that mistake.

Since it’s almost inevitable that, in a zombie apocalypse, you’ll come up against hostile people, it’s probably just as inevitable that some of those hostiles will try to lure you into a trap. Since humanity has been using traps and ambushes since before recorded history, I feel like this is an easy assumption to make.

With that in mind, and especially since the midseason finale of The Walking Dead ended with Daryl, Carol, Aaron, Magna, Connie, Kelly, and Jerry all walking into a massive trap, I figured I’d give some pointers to avoid them.

Speaking of assumptions, while the fact hostiles will try to use traps at some point is a smart assumption to make, assuming the opposite is a…dumb assumption.

Now, I freely admit that you will come up against people who may not bother with traps, and just try to attack straightforward, just because that will happen, doesn’t mean that you should assume that A) Every hostile will do that, or B) That, even if they do, that makes them stupid.

If you’re dealing with hostiles at just about any time after the zombie apocalypse has caused civilization to collapse, then, that means those people have to have some level of intelligence to survive that long, and, the longer you go in the apocalypse, the smarter they have to be.

If you assume that your enemy is stupid, you’re underestimating them, and, at that point, the only one who’s stupid…is you.

You see, even the crudest of people can lure you into a trap…with the right bait.

In The Walking Dead’s midseason finale, it was the prospect of finding Alpha’s horde, i.e. her ultimate weapon, but, it could be anything: A large store of food, weapons, supplies, hostages, you name it.

The thing is, this is all “Espionage 101”: Make your enemy think they’re getting a strategic advantage over you, and you can use that to get them to make themselves vulnerable to attempt to achieve it.

In a zombie apocalypse, you should be very wary of this. If you walk into a situation, and it seems like the equivalent of your enemy’s nuclear codes are sitting out in the open, this should seem fishy to you.

It’s an old adage, but, it still works: “If something seems too good to be true, it probably is.”

Speaking of which, chances are, if you were to gain access to a hostiles “nuclear codes”, it wouldn’t be by accident, but, by someone telling you where they are — In other words, a spy.

Now, while spies can certainly be effective…they may not be all that reliable. In fact, if a member of a hostile group comes to you and says they can give you vital info on their own group, you should immediately be suspicious.

Look at it this way: If this person is willing to double-cross a group that their life has been depending on for months or maybe even years…who’s to say they won’t double-cross you? If they do, by the time you find out, it’ll be too late.

However, if you’re smart enough to think about this possibility, might I also suggest thinking about a plan to get out of the trap should your source, in fact, double-cross you?

What that plan might be all depends on the situation you’re walking into, but, if it’s a specific location, try to learn as much about it as you can so that, if it is a trap, you know how to get out of it. Furthermore, bring extra weapons with you, because they will likely be your best tools for escaping the trap once it’s sprung.

Though, that said, there is one thing better to have should you walk into a trap: Backup.

Seriously, I got annoyed watching Daryl lead EVERYONE into the cave during the midseason finale, simply because there were seven of them…why not leave three behind in case there was trouble!?!

If you’re managing to ignore any other warning signs that you may have had that a plan is afoot (Relying on spies, things seeming too good to be true, etc.), and are still going ahead with whatever it is you’re doing, do yourself a favor: Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

What do I mean? Well, if you’ve got other people with you…just let them hang back somewhere nearby so that, if there’s a trap, you haven’t trapped your entire team, and instead, have some backup waiting to pull you out of the fire.

See how much better of an idea that is?

And, lastly — I shouldn’t even have to say this, but, it’s so obvious, that…people often overlook it, and that’s kind of the point, actually… — be observant.

I’m not even kidding, you could probably avoid so many bad situations if you just stopped for a second to observe the environment around you. For example, Daryl and his party were, apparently, told Alpha stored her horde in a cave. The moment you walk up to a cave — An underground tunnel with solid rock on, essentially, all but one side — your brain should immediately say to you “Wait…if something happens to this opening…I’m trapped.“, and, you should not go in there.

Follow your gut. If you’re walking into a place you are unfamiliar with, a place that obscures the visibility of anyone entering it, a place with only one way in and one way out, a place where zombies can densely pack, a place with a confusing layout, anything like that, and it doesn’t feel right…don’t go in.

Like I said… shouldn’t even have to say this.

People need to be crafty to survive a zombie apocalypse, and, some of those people may not be very nice. As resources get thinner, they may want to take what you have, and luring you into a trap may be their preferred way of doing it.

You need to pay attention and be cautious when dealing with other people, because, all it may take is a little hastiness or lapse in judgment and, before you know it…you’re caught in someone’s trap.

This is why you follow…The Rules.

And that’s our Survival Rule Of The Week! Hopefully, you’ve gained a little insight into all the various things you’ll need to look out for and do. If you like this and want to find out more rules to survive the zombie apocalypse, why not pick up a copy of my book, The Rules: A Guide To Surviving The Zombie Apocalypse! You can also get it at Amazon here, on iTunes here!