The second area I had my eyes opened on was Internal Security. Defending yourself against home invasion. TimeLord’s presentation and demonstration of medieval weaponry was a bit of a surprise. You could tell he was an expert in this area and his advice well worth listening too.
He demonstrated the use of various old style stabbing and bludgeoning tools as well as various items of protective gear, in particular a small shield. He described their use in an urban situation and how best to utilise them in a home invasion. Contrary to my perception that these tools were of limited use I see them now as a valued addon to my existing security and coupled with some minor additions they will be the ultimate long term solution.
TimeLord suggested that as well as a shield and a hammer or axe we also prepare the battleground by;
- Limiting access.
- We make passage difficult.
- We maximise our attack.
We use chocks to limit how far doors can open and seal off windows and doors.
We place boards with spikes in just inside the door and around other entrances. We also put spikes on stairs.
We have one person at the front with a shield and a weapon to engage the intruder. We have one or two people behind with long, 8ft ish, spears to stab at them without crowding the shield holder. This would work particularly well on the stairs.
We would also use powerful lights to disorientate them at night.
Of course that doesn’t stop them setting fire to the place and waiting for us to come out or just for spite. For that we need to have perimeter defences, such as covers, on the entry points. Metal covers, preferably, but at least wooden ones that will keep them or their projectiles out. It isn’t 100% but nothing ever is and it should stop or at least slow attacks from all but a determined group. Place some fire fighting kit there for when it is safe to use, buckets of water or sand are handy.
Remember that if a large group decides to target you then it is unlikely you will make it.
My original plans were using a shotgun, limiting access by covering the doors and windows and using bright lights in faces, obviously for night attacks. To this end I have wood for the doors and windows as well as some wedges and limiters for the doors and a couple of high intensity lamps with strobes.
I’ve also looked at sandbags as a flood defence but now I have revisited them under a security heading. I’m going to buy plenty of empty sandbags and a ton of sand which will be placed up my drive. This should slow down intruders and I can also use the sandbags for flood or intruder defence. A few sandbags behind doors will ensure they won’t open properly.
I already have several cutting and penetration weapons I could use but no real bludgeoning weapons and no spears. So I need to add those to my prepping list.
The biggest issue I believe will be the shield. There were several models shown ranging from a simple disk as per Captain America to a modified version with curves and points designed to trap and deflect anyone trying to stab you onto sharp edges and points. I am after one of them and am looking at what is needed to make one. A shield, or at least the materials, also need to be added to my list.
This coupled with the blackout curtains, the window covers, door strengthening and blocking aids like sandbags or even a simple wedge should reduce the areas for attack down to something that we can manage with our simple weapons.
Remember the point is to survive an attack. Depending on what goes on we may have to relocate after this attack especially if there are survivors that are likely to try again, after a failed attempt you plan a little bit more and that could be a problem for us.
An area you really want to avoid if you can by any means possible but must plan for anyway. Just in case.
Edited to correct spear length after comments – SD