Tactics...

Ok, by now, everyone knows that head-shots are the rule for dispatching zombies. But as anyone who's had to make such a shot under pressure knows, the head is a relatively small target, that tends to bob around unpredictably as the zombie moves. In the case of fast-moving runners, unless shooting from a good defensive position, an effective head shot can be almost impossible. Torso shots are a waste of valuable ammunition, and trying to hit a runner's legs when it's on the move is also extremely difficult. So, what's the solution?

I've never been a proponent of using a shotgun as a primary zombie-killing weapon (scatterguns have a short effective range, limited ammo capacity; are slow to reload; and weight/size per shell are my reasons). But there IS one area in which a shotgun can make the difference between survival & becoming zombie-chow...

With proper ammunition (buckshot), a shotgun blast to a a zombie's pelvis will drop it in its tracks. It won't eliminate the zombie, but it WILL slow it down enough to maintain distance. The crippled zombie can then be dispatched much more efficiently, without panic, and with relatively little risk. Buckshot has a much greater chance of doing catastrophic damage to the pelvis than a single projectile from a rifle or pistol, and smaller buckshot sizes (1-4) increase the probability of a solid hit by having more pellets per shell. Anything smaller than buckshot may not have the penetration or destructive power for the task at hand. The idea is to shatter the zombie's pelvis with one quickly-taken shot.

In this application, a short-barreled (i.e. 'sawed off") shotgun is ideal for the task at hand. I still maintain that a more appropriate primary weapon is preferred, but in a scenario such as the one described above, the short-barrel shotgun really shines. As a back-up "special purpose" weapon, only a small number of shells need be carried.

If working in a group of 3 -5 (as in a hunter-killer team), then one of the group's primary weapons should be a combat shotgun (with two 50-round bandoliers of shells). That individual could (and should) augment the shotgun with a scoped handgun of appropriate caliber, to augment the team's total "ranged" firepower. The shotgunner should be placed centrally in the group, to allow support in any direction, and to stop any zombies that may "leak" through the efforts of the others.

Any other thoughts along these lines?