User blog comment:Deathblade 100/Superhuman Slayers: Zombies vs French Foreign Legion/@comment-4661256-20160331022516

El Alamein's Edges:

 Long Range: UMP vs. Moan:  I do agree with Skully's sentiments regarding the profound psychological impact of the zombie's moan that is being somewhat unfairly overlooked--however, it's a passive weapon and can't actually kill someone. It's kind of like comparing a stun grenade to the UMP--yeah, you're doing the nonlethal weapon a disservice by treating it like it should kill and just can't, but the fact remains that it's going up against a tool that is going to be much more to the point in a fight to the death. The UMP is pretty much the FFL's best weapon here thanks to its longer range, which is especially valuable against a slow, shambling horde; its larger magazine size, which gives the soldiers a little bit of wiggle room when it comes to missed shots (as well as the simple-to-swap box magazine instead of a painstaking round-by-round reload), and its rate of fire to create space. The zombies will not brace for impact, so even something like a 9mm will knock the undead back, especially when it's traveling at several hundred meters per second through the air. Multiply that firepower by five and you have a decent wall of fire to hold back the zombies for a while.

Edge: French Foreign Legion

 Mid Range: Benelli M4 vs. Hands:  The Benelli shotgun does offer more stopping power than the UMP, although it does this at the cost of a slower rate of fire, a slower reload time, and a much shorter range. It will definitely be more accurate though and it will disable a zombie a lot easier even if it doesn't kill it (by virtue of blowing off limbs at close range--and yes I know zombies can crawl but a crawler is much slower than a walker). The hands are strong because they're not affected by the human limits of pain, and with decay and the exposure of bones they'd probably be sharper than usual, but they're still melee weapons that the zombies will only be able to utilize if they've already won.

Edge: French Foreign Legion

 Close Range: KA-BAR vs. Teeth:  Now, the zombies get the edge. While in a one-on-one encounter I would trust the trained soldier to be able to avoid a lunging zombie long enough to get the blade right in its forehead, when you have a swarm of zombies coming at you, you'll kill one or two maximum before the knife gets stuck and you get overwhelmed. The teeth are probably even stronger than the hands because of the potential from a zombie's bite force, and it's the most direct way to transfer the virus via bodily fluids. The FFL might be stronger than the average person, but taking a knife up against a swarm of zombies will end only in death for the soldiers unless they've already seriously thinned out the horde.

Edge: Zombies

 Special Weapons: Claymore vs. Horde:  While I still agree that the zombies get the edge, I must echo Skully's sentiment with regards to the moan being underappreciated and apply it to the claymore mine here. Yes, the claymore probably won't score a lot of headshots, but that's okay. The blast will still rip the legs off of those closest to its blast and will knock over and throw around the ones a bit farther away (and it will probably still kill one or two at least--falling down and hitting your head on concrete or slamming into a building can cause severe trauma to the brain). It's about giving the FFL space and possibly causing a distraction with a big, loud bang. Nonetheless, the claymore still loses out because while it's a versatile tool the zombies can simply push through thanks to sheer numbers. Even if the claymore took out twenty zombies the FFL would still be looking at 80 hostiles heading their way--quite disheartening to say the least. The claymore has a big boom but the horde has bigger numbers still.

Edge: Zombies

WINNER: ZOMBIES

The FFL supporters are saying "Guns instantly beat the undead" and the other zombie supporters are saying "The FFL are going to poop themselves and cry like babies and be overwhelmed," and to be honest I think both sides are generalizing quite a bit. In defense of the FFL voters, these are special forces units who are quite well trained and mentally conditioned. This doesn't mean they can survive being torn apart by dozens of undead any more than a normal person could, but it does mean they'll be able to run faster, aim better, and (in general) keep their cool that much longer than a civilian would. And, to be fair, the FFL do have good weapons--heck, even in a one-on-one a knife beats teeth and hands.

That's the thing though. This isn't a one-on-one. It's five men up against a hundred unfeeling, mindless, nearly unstoppable corpses. That's twenty zombies that each soldier has to kill (on average) if they expect to survive. The biggest issue I see here is logistics. The UMP fires way too fast to make every shot count (and this is being generous and assuming the FFL are on top of their game and are aiming for the heads accurately), the Benelli fires too slowly to take out huge chunks of the zombies, and the claymore is horribly situational--effective, yes, but it needs to be set up in advance and detonated by a clicker. The fact that this is in an urban environment doesn't help. The FFL need space to have a chance, and with alleyways, narrow corridors, dead-ends, and other building-based hazards it will be quite easy for the soldiers to make a rash decision in the spur of the moment, panic, and bolt into a room only to realize there's no way out and the zombies are spilling in through the doorway. The numbers of the zombies, coupled with their claustrophobic and restrictive environment, gives them the win here.