Communications is a key component to working as a group or even making contact with the outside world.

A good Scrounger needs to know his comms.



Cell Phone.
Cellular, handy, or mobile. Whatever you call it, it will be useless when the power goes out or your cellular provider's local office is overrun. Even in the first hours of a general panic, the lines will be jammed and calling friends and family may be difficult. Text messaging will be a more reliable form of communications to get your emergency plan out to loved ones. After that, it will only be useful if you need a night light until the battery runs out.

Walkie-Talkie.
These small, inexpensive, hand-held radios can allow teammates to communicate for short distances. They operate on fixed frequencies called channels in the U.S on the Family Radio System and/or General Mobile Radio Service FRS/GMRS from 462 to 468MHz. Some models come with a "scan" feature that will make finding other survivors easier. They have an extremely limited range and rely on "line of sight" to work clearly, so they will be degraded or even blocked by hills and buildings located between users. It is illegal to modify the antennas of these radios, but after the fall of civil society, they can be altered to provide much longer ranges.

Walkie-Talkies are great if you need cheap, short-range coms between several members of a fire team or within your compound. Many can even be accessorized with earphones and clip microphones to lessen the chance that Zed may hear your buddy calling you at the most inopportune time. Stock up on your AA and AAA batteries.

CB Radio.
Civilian Band Radios are larger and more powerful than their handheld walkie-talkie brothers. Operating in the 27MHz band, they require large external antennas and draw more power. Vehicle mounted versions are in nearly every commercial truck and will work as long as the vehicle's battery lasts. Other versions use 120/220 V AC which will require a generator and all the headache that entails (finding gasoline, making zombie-attracting noise, etc) unless you have invested in wind or solar power for your zombie bunker.

Marine VHF.
Required on commercial boats and found on nearly all blue water private vessels, the marine VHF is a great find for the scrounger at the marina. Handheld versions may reach six miles while larger, high powered versions with external antennas may reach fifty. The universal emergency frequency is channel 16 at 158.6MHz and will be used by survivors for communication

Short Wave Radio.
SW has the longest range of any radio. Ham radio users pride themselves on the range of their radios. A well-powered SW with a good antenna and the right weather conditions can reach thousands of miles. Lightweight battery, crank and solar powered receivers can be found at most electronics stores. Transmitters, however, require licensing. This is fairly easy and worth the effort for any true Zombie Survivor; just join a local ham radio club and thezy will assist you in acquiring your license as well as buying and setting up your equipment.

Wire Communications.
Almost like the old can and string, simple crank, sound or battery powered phones can be set up within your compound, run to observation points, sniper positions, or to neighboring compounds. The US Army version, the TA-312, can be found throughout North American and European surplus stores. It runs on common D-Cell batteries and WD-1 wire, but 2-wire speaker wire works just as well. Crank or voice powered phones will work after your batteries run dead.

Visual Signals.
Hand and arm signals, light pulses, flags, smoke signals, mirrors and others techniques have been used since the dawn of time to convey messages when the roar of battle, long distances or the need for noise discipline makes audio communication impossible. They are silent and work for as far as the eye can see. The drawback is that if anything blocks your line of sight or if someone simply not looking in the right direction, visual signals are useless. Zombies are attracted to light and movement, so use visual signals carefully. Establish a standard set of signals that everyone in your party knows and practice them.