Tag Archives: squad

The Five Fundamental Roles of a Zombie Apocalypse Team

Posted in Lifestyle by

Every role is important.

Picture this: some maniac created a virus that turns people into zombies, and before you know it, your entire city has become infested with zombies. Sure, surviving alone is possible, but you know that there is always strength in numbers, so it’s probably best to round up a group of people so your chances of survival are maximised, ranging from the fearless leader who happens to be super fit and adept with guns, to the sweet peacemaker of the team.

Beat his ass, squad! (Photo from David Shifflett’s Flickr photostream)

We’ve told you how to survive a zombie apocalypse before, but now we’re going to tell you the key members and roles that any zombie apocalypse team needs (and the secondary roles that they could potentially play).

The Fearless Leader

What would any team of any kind be without a leader? Now I’ve seen so many zombie movies and read so much literature where a breakdown between who is the leader segues into chaos, so it’s important that this role is fleshed out from the very beginning, while not placing too much emphasis on the “leading” part. Any good leader should guide their team, not dictate.

The leader needs to make the hard decisions for the team that some others may not want the responsibility of; this includes where to go, whom to trust, and most importantly, whether to leave someone behind or kill their team member if they’ve been bitten (depending if these zombies are that type of zombie). The leader also needs to be adept on how to take out zombies in the smartest way possible. Leaders tend to be really good with guns and melee weapons, very physically fit, and have the ability to physically and metaphorically carry their team on their back. While it is implied already with their primary role, the Leader’s secondary role would be the Marksman.

The Medic

Let’s face it: if you’re in a zombie apocalypse, there is going to be high chance that you’re going to get physically hurt somewhere doing something, and you’re going to want someone with the medical know how to safely patch you up and have you up and running in no time.

Hopefully with a medical background pre-apocalypse, the Medic may very well be the second most important role of the team after the Leader. They care for their team and know how to quickly bandage in a live-or-die situation, and also know how to make the smart decisions when it comes to someone’s physical wellbeing. The Medic will also be the go to if someone is suffering mentally also, therefore they should be well trained in how to connect with people and empathise when needed. The Medic may also play the secondary role of Advisor to the Leader.

The Gatherer

When all hell breaks loose, resources become scarce, so you’re going to need someone to safely get you all the resources you can. Enter The Gatherer.

The Gatherer is someone on your team who needs to be as quick as lightning, and should have the ability to get places without attracting too much attention. The Gatherer is in charge of – you guessed it – gathering resources like food, water, medical needs, guns, and other assortments of weapons. Most importantly, they need to be stealthy, and should know when to run and how to escape a bad situation: if there is gunfire, it’s probably best not to grab that last bag of rice. The Gatherer may also play the secondary role of Enforcer to the Leader.

The Peacemaker

Shit is bound to hit the fan during a zombie apocalypse, and you’re going to need someone who can appeal to your softer side and possibly sweet talk potential enemies into becoming potential allies. This is where The Peacemaker comes in handy.

While not necessarily being great with a gun or a bandage, The Peacemaker has the ability to talk their way into a situation, and out of one as well; they have a way with words and know how to use them and any other resources to their advantage. The Peacemaker needs to keep team morale high in a world where there is little to no hope, and needs to make sure that the team are always on the same path. The Peacemaker should also have a secondary ability to assist with the team, like being an expert driver, or a cook.

The Survivalist

While the Leader may have the know all for the team, the Survivalist will know how to do exactly that: survive.

It is up to the Survivalist to implement safe tactics to stay alive, while also knowing how to navigate the country and live in the woods where there is no shelter available. The Survivalist can make anything from nothing, and is a key role for the team’s ability to succeed in this apocalypse. The Survivalist should also be pretty handy with a knife and a crossbow should the occasion arise. With their skills in survival, the Survivalist may also play the secondary role of marksman for the team where the Leader is unable to.

Now that you know how to assemble a team, and we’ve already covered you on how to survive the apocalypse, you should be very well equipped should hell take over the world and everyone has turned into flesh-eating zombies. Safe travels!

– by The Black Widow

Game 2 Maroons Squad: Under the Eye of the Raven

Posted in Sports by

As I sit here consuming two blocks of Caramello chocolate selfishly to myself in a pre-meal of sorts to the array of pizzas my family and I traditionally have on Origin night, I wanted to write a personal analysis of the team, yet still remain a fun piece on the Queensland Maroons squad for Game 2 in the State of Origin – seeing as I’m a Queensland supporter and have little interest in the Blues side.

We’ve seen several changes within the squad from Game One: Ashley Harrison has been completely dropped, Chris McQueen is making his Origin starting debut and my beloved Corey Parker has been moved to the starting lineup, just to name a few. These changes have put me in the state of mind that we will be victorious in game two and move onto a nail biting game three later on. If we don’t win, well… I have made it apparent on the Queensland Maroons Facebook page that they will all feel and taste my nefarious wrath if they lose.

Image

(Coach Mal Meninga, on the left, at the official Game Two team announcement. Source: QRL.com.au)

1. Billy Slater – a very disappointing performance from him in Game One. Seeya Later Slater was apparently day dreaming in game one with 2 missed tackles  and only 5 tackles, one less than Blues counterpart and one of my most hated league players, Hayne Hayne. The usually outstanding fullback didn’t live up to my (maybe unrealistic) high expectations but that doesn’t mean I’m going to lose faith. Hopefully Slater can get his head in the game and perform better in game two, up to the standard that I know he is capable of.

2. Darius Boyd – Darius “Unimpressed” Boyd (personal joke), being the only Maroon to score a try in pretty impeccable form in game one, I must say that I have no real expectations from him in game two… except to play better. Not a knock on Boyd but I can safely say that some if not most of the squad in Game One were frollicking on the field instead of playing some good footy. Nevertheless, I was pleased with Boyd’s efforts in game one and hope he can keep it going in game two.

3. Greg Inglis – I am usually wowed – underline the word wowed – with Inglis’ origin performances. The man is a rugby league machine. That being said, his game one performance was absolutely mediocre. Nothing outstanding from GI although I will applaud his 16 tackles. No incredible “GI Runs” like I was expecting so needless to say, I was a bit disappointed, but I am hopeful that GI can tune it up for game two and be the extraordinary player I know he can be.

4. Justin Hodges – being a Broncos supporter, I have high expectations from my Broncos players. And if they don’t meet those expectations? Nefarious wrath. In saying that, Hodges played very exceptional football in game one, orchestrating some terrific plays and being, in my opinion, the MVP of the team in game one. My brother is a Storm supporter so I enjoyed rubbing it in his face that my Broncos boys did way better than his Storm boys. Keep up the good work, Hodgo.

5. Brent Tate – Tate didn’t wow me in game one nor did he let me down. He was just kind of there, which isn’t bad but it isn’t good either. With 7 tackles and no other feats worth mentioning, Tate kind of just chilled. In game two, where a win is MUCH NEEDED, I would expect better work from the Cowboy.

6. Johnathan Thurston – speaking of Cowboys, Thurston… I understand that during game one, his wife was in labour with his first child so I will cut him some slack seeing as his head clearly wasn’t in the game, but that’s just it – his head wasn’t in the game. Our very own Laughing Kookaburra clocked up 5 missed tackles and didn’t play outstanding footy like I know he can, especially since they made a huge deal about Thurston being “the” State of Origin player. Now that his family is set, I hope he can get back to playing the game.

7. Cooper Cronk – Oh So Serious Cooper Cronk, part of Melbourne’s “Big 3” was, if I may be so bold to say so, not too great in game one. Just like I said for GI, Cronk is capable of outstanding play but wasn’t in good form at all during game one. If he can play as half as good as I know he can, we will be in the capable hands of the Maroons halfback.

8. Matt Scott – now here’s a Cowboy us Queenslanders should have been proud of in game one. While it seemed some players on our side were scared of running the ball, Scott grabbed the ball, looked at the oncoming players, thought “F DA POLICE” and just charged through them like an unstoppable force. His offense was excellent and his defense was also great with 36 tackles. This underrated player is a great force the Queensland squad possesses and hopefully he can continue his great form in game two.

9. Cameron Smith – our fearless leader had a good game defense wise but not so much in the offense category. He racked up an impressive amount of tackles in defense but his offense left much to be desired – maybe this is just me having unrealistic expectations of great players, in which case, I apologise, but I know Cam is capable of much better. His play with the Melbourne Storm throughout the season has been a thing of beauty so hopefully he can bring that to game two and lead us to victory against the Blues.

10. Nate Myles – Paul Gallen. Yes, now that is THE LAST time I want to hear about that scrap. Nate Myles was a bit of a let down in my humble opinion, so moving him into the front row is going to be interesting to watch. With a pretty impressive amount of meters ran, I’d like to think that Myles can keep the momentum going in game two.

11. Chris McQueen – I had a chance to have a brief chat with this Bunny at the Maroons Fan Appreciation day and he is quite lovely, if I say so myself. Seeing as my personal opinions on people have absolutely nothing to do with footy form… eh hem. McQueen here is making his starting debut on the Maroons squad after being a benchy in game one and playing only a fair bit in game one, although he made every minute count as he played some impressive footy in game one. His promotion to starting lineup should be the fire underneath his arse to keep him going and impress not only the Queensland fans but the Blues fans alike.

12. Sam Thaiday – my Broncos captain was playing such great footy in game one… until he dropped the ball near the end. Ouch! Nevertheless, he played pretty well before that “drop”, racking up 37 tackles during his performance. Keep up the good work, Sammy!

13. Corey Parker – my favourite, as made apparent by my Gravatar. All I have to say is: it’s about damn time Parker was put in the starting lineup. While my brother insists that Ashley Harrison is “an Origin player”, Corey Parker is an excellent player, period. Whether that be in season footy or Origin footy, the man’s an underrated genius. Genius may be taking it too far, but what the heck? His performance in game one was outstanding and his offloads are as good if not better than that of SBW. I’m glad his terrific form has been rewarded with a starting position.

14. Daly Cherry-Evans – DCE, but literally, his signature is DCE. This cheery young chap from Manly Sea Eagles unfortunately didn’t get any game time in game one and I hope to see this change for game two. He is pretty good if I say so myself and if his play is as great as his personality is, then he is definitely an asset to the Maroons squad.

15. Ben Te’o – this former Bronco played some great footy in game one so it’s good to see he has remained in the squad, even if it’s a bench position. Now, if random girls would stop accusing him of crimes, that’d be great.

16. Matt Gillett – Matty Gillett, a dear Bronco of mine, played well during game one and I was quite happy about that. That’s all I can really ask for. Nothing more really to add to that.

17. Josh Papali’i – this soft spoken gentle giant was an absolute delight to chat to at the Fan Appreciation Day. His defense for the Raiders is great and some of the big hits he puts on the oncoming players are quite cringeworthy so I want him to bring that hard-hitting game to Game Two so we can take this win. He is definitely the wildcard of the squad, the ace up the sleeve, if you will.


18. Jacob Lillyman – unfortuantely Martin Kennedy from the Chooks was injured so Jacob Lillyman from the Warriors has stepped up on his behalf. My best friend Rebecca must be cheering to see one of her boys play, even if she’s a Blues supporter. I’ve heard and seen good things from Lillyman so hopefully he can wow me.

Being a home game from the greatest NRL stadium in the world, Suncorp Stadium, I believe my boys can seize the win and keep the momentum rolling to game three for what is sure to be an edge-of-the-seat nail biting game final. Come on Queensland! Let’s make this 8 in a row!

– by The Black Widow