How good is a Cross Bow for killing Zombies?

The title says it all really.

Got an idea for a Zombie Short story for a class I'm taking, and I'm planning to have the humans make use of Cross bows. At the time, I assumed they were slightly quieter than and guns, and had the advantages of still being able to kill an enemy.

I know they have longer loading times, but they are meant mainly for when they are few zombies around (plus, the cross bow users are flanked at all times by melee fighters, and have melee weapons of their own for when enemies get too close).

What I want to know is how effective a weapon it would be?

How quiet is it compared to a gun? And would the bolt pierce the head effectively?

A bolt most definitively can pierce a skull, unless it's too far away (don't know how much that would be). Don't know about loudness.

I'm pretty sure the Walking Dead series has a character or two who uses a crossbow pretty effectively against zombies.

Doesn't the answer to this question really depend on how the zombies in your setting work?

Crossbows were proud accomplishers of armor piercing when they were first used in Middle Ages/Renessance(not entirely sure. And yes, yes, I know of China. I'm talking about when they first showed up in Europe.). They made armor meaningless even before the firearms did. In fact, they were banned by Pope from use against Christian soldiers for exactly this reason, nobody was ready for the Armor Is Useless trope.

So yeah, a zombie skull is of no problem to these bad boys.

edited 3rd Feb '14 11:58:45 AM by Luminosity

They're both classic shamblers and faster running types.

Both types have good hearing, but also seem to smell people as well, so keeping your scent obscured is good. Like I said, the sniping types will also be flanked by melee fighters with Riot shields (or trash can lids as make shift shields) and any weapon they can find, among other things to protect themselves.

RE: Noise;

Crossbows are much quieter than guns, since there's no bang and no sonic boom (since crossbow bolts are generally subsonic). The string/limbs springing back still makes some noise (and there's some creaking/clicking as the string's drawn back and locked into place) and generally more noise than a bow (although compound bows are still pretty loud).

The actual amount of noise a crossbow makes can vary depending on its efficiency. Apparently the quietest ones can manage to be as low as 60db (normal ambient noise in a public building, like a restaurant), compared to at least 140db (normal ambient noise on a busy runway) for a firearm.

Are the zombies rotting husks? About as durable as a person? Abnormally strong?

I plan to have them vary:

When first turned, they are no faster or stronger than normal humans, just that they don't grow tired.

Some will start to rot and slow down like basic Zombies —the classic shamblers— while others will retain their speed and not really rot (and fall more in line with 28Dayslater type infection Zombies. I haven't decided why yet.

So while I'm here I got another question:

I plan on giving some of the characters portable motion sensors to detect Zombie movement for situations where they can't see them (I've checked and such devices are apparently being made, or have been made). However, I want to have something as a back up or supplement. I mentioned before that my Zombies will be a mix of Classic Zombie Gait types, along with the regular Fast zombies; the latter in particular will be different in that they are still kinda be alive, so I wanted an alternate way to detect them, since being able to tell the difference between the two is important for what I'm writing:

• I'm thinking of some kind of portable infrared sensor, but I'm not sure. I might try it and say that the military developed it (their more on the ball here than in most Zombie Apocalypse stories).

• Another option is a Heart beat sensor (also portable), for the same reasons.

I'm wondering if you guys have any other suggestions for what I could use(specifically, something that could allow them to see through walls, and detect body heat or motion), or if you think that sticking with the motion detector is best.

edited 5th Feb '14 6:48:29 PM by HandsomeRob

How do you kill a zombie?

Because, I personally never saw a reason as to why hitting a zombie in the head would harm them.

I'm not sure heartbeat sensors exist outside Call of Duty

The main appeal to a crossbow would probably be ammo and maintenance. Granted, it's not like you can recover ammo indefinitely and making your own bolts would be something of a learning process, but it still beats bullets.

As for detecting the zombies...well, realistically speaking, motion sensors would work best. Or humans observing things from a distance, with plenty of communication. That'd be cheaper, I suppose.

edited 5th Feb '14 10:48:15 PM by Rem

@Matues Hurting the lower part of the brain, that serves motor functions, which means movement. Hitting the part that knows how to walk, basically.

The problem with crossbows is that reloading them is a bitch. Your rate of fire would really not be impressive, which is a problem if you're up against a traditional zombie horde. Longbows actually have more range, dakka, and killing power - the problem is that they need far more specialist training. This is the real reason why the Pope banned crossbows - any peasant schlub could pick one up and use it, creating a disturbing democratisation of murder capability and fuelling more than a few peasant rebellions.

For specialists, then, a longbow might be the better option (though a crossbow may have an ease-of-carry advantage, depending on the design - they're typically more compact but heavier for their size), but for your rank-and-file, that suggests you're not so worried about stealth, so you can just open up with traditional guns.

Any reasons why not to slap dynamite or other explosives onto the bolts Dukes Of Hazzard style?

I feel like that'd screw with the aerodynamics a bit.

If it's zombie Classic, which is to say a moving corpse, why does it need that part of it's brain when it doesn't need any of it's other organs in working condition to be unliving.

I understand a technically living zombie needing a brain, but not one that's just a dead guy walking.

^^ But overkill!

But flight behavior

It just means you're not close enough!

Which is kind of the point, no?

If you need greater range than a dynamite arrow against zombies you're looking at longbow territory or good old fashioned firearms like rifles.

Honestly depending on the setting a gun might be better anyway

I know a hell of a lot of people with guns but only 2 people with crossbows.

x4 False.

It just means the blast radius is too small.

edited 6th Feb '14 3:03:32 PM by Rem