Improvised Post-Apocalyptic Weapons and Armor

[Ron Stanley]

I need some ideas for improvised post-apocalyptic weapons and armor. I'm especially looking for cheap, crappy melee weapons people could make out of salvaged parts rather than a shotgun with infinite ammo or solar-powered chainsaw. Here's what I've got so far:

Rock
Broom Handle
Light Metal Pipe
Baseball Bat
Parking Brake Cable Whip
Heavy Metal Pipe
Stop Sign Battle Axe
Hub Cap Shield
Garbage Can Lid Shield
Speed Limit Sign Shield
Car Door Shield
Leather Jacket
Radial Tire Vambraces
Steel-Belted Greaves
Tin Pot Helmet
Oil Drum Plate Mail Vest

[George Austin]

I'm much better at the weapon thing:

A length of chain.
A blackjack or sap-like weapon, maybe consisting of a weight on a spring.
An actual axe. And while I'm on the subject...
Two words, lots of weapons: farm implements.
Spray cans
Awls, ice-picks, screwdrivers

[Ron Stanley]

Cool ideas. Thanks, that helps. Definitely going to add the following:

Rock in a Sock Blackjack
Pruning Tool Polearm (hard to hit, not a lot of damage, but good at keeping attackers away)
Bicycle Chain (critical hit causes entanglement)
Spray Can to Blind (hard to hit, very little damage, but usually blinds the target)
Spray Can Flamethrower (requires 2 hands, easy to hit, decent damage, critical sets victim on fire, fumble causes can to blow up in your face)
Hand Axe (decent all-around weapon, can be thrown)
Fire Axe (lots of damage, requires 2 hands or lots of strength)
Nail-Studded Baseball Bat (just plain evil)
Fire Extinguisher (fire it to blind the target, then beat him over the head with it)

This also reminds me of one of my favorite board games... The Awful Green Things from Outer Space. Crew members grabbed improvised weapons to fight the aliens taking over their ship... weapon effects were randomly generated, and sometimes benefited the aliens.

[George Austin]

I really want to play that game! It's by Tom Wham, right?

[Ron Stanley]

Yep. It's an awesome game. Very simple rules, but every game is different, because you never know if the fire extinguisher or the knife or the acid is going to be the superweapon that does in the aliens. With the right people, it's even fun to lose. That and Dungeon were the two favorite board games in my family when I was a lad. The art is beautifully cheesy.

http://www.sjgames.com/awfulgreen/

[Justin Smith]

Jack Handle
Tire Iron
Crowbar
Trench Club
Kitchen Knives
Machete
Cleaver
Shovel
Entrenching tool
Black Iron Pipe
Spear fasioned from a broomhandle and scrap metal.
And now I'll leave the garage....