The world has gone crazy! Turn on the evening news and you will be bombarded with stories of innocent people being attacked, robbed, and killed on a daily basis. Now throw in an emergency situation or natural disaster, and the lunatics of the world will be swarming the streets like roaches looking for innocent victims to target.

One of the biggest dangers that you’ll face in an urban survival situation is an attack from multiple people. Anyone who’s serious about survival needs to be able to defend themselves and their loved ones from all types of violent attacks. While having a firearm can certainly level the playing field, and is something I think everyone should be trained to use, there are certain times and situations where you might be without one.

So what can you do when attacked by multiple people?

Facing an attack from one crazed lunatic can be a serious, even life-threatening situation; throw in a couple more psychopaths, and chaos doesn’t even begin to describe what you’re going to face.

Sadly, in today’s world, this scenario has become an increasingly real possibility. Even an innocent trip to the local grocery store can quickly go bad if not prepared to face the very real threats that are out there. When confronted with this type of attack, there are a couple of things you need to do.

Access the situation:

Do you have an escape route? This isn’t about looking cool, and it’s not the time to be Mr. Tough Guy.

Survival does not mean fighting; if you have an escape route take it now.

Can you talk your way out of the situation? Talking your way out of an attack is more art than science, and takes a considerable amount of street smarts to pull off. But there are a couple of things that you should keep in mind.

Telling a group that’s ready to attack to F off does nothing to defuse the situation. That may sound like common sense, but during a stressful situation people tend to either panic or let their ego take over and they overreact.

Remember you are probably dealing with people who are borderline insane and have nothing to lose. Stay calm & don’t show any fear. These types of people can smell fear, the moment they see it you’ve already lost the battle.

Apologize. Sometimes these morons are just trying to look cool in front of the group. Apologizing will allow them to look like the big tough guy, without having to pound in your skull.

If you must fight, then here are some tips that may help.

If you have no other options, and your life is in jeopardy, then you need to know how to protect yourself. The following actions should only be taken if your life is in immediate danger.

Watch the group’s body language – Watching the group’s body language will give you a clue to when they’re ready to attack. The following actions may be signs that they are getting ready to attack.

Watch for the assailant to do something like removing a hat or shirt.

Your attacker may start to make erratic movements such as rubbing his nose, pushing his hair back or clenching his teeth.

Watch the group’s eyes; they may start to glance at each other for cues on when to attack.

Watch the attackers fists; often times they will instinctively tighten them right before they’re ready to attack you.

Weapons – If you’re not carrying one, quickly scan your surroundings. Beer bottles, tree branches, garbage cans, bricks, and even the pen in your pocket can be used as improvised weapons during an emergency situation.

Psychology – Fighting a group does not always mean having to fight the whole group. In fact, your goal is to fight as few of them as possible. Instead of defeating each of their bodies, you must instead destroy their minds.

Your first strike must be spectacular, and very visible to the group.

The more visible the injury is the greater physiological effect it will have on the rest of the group.

The first few seconds of the fight are critical; if you can psychologically defeat the group now, many of them will scatter without ever throwing a punch.

Identify the leader – Who is the strongest link? This person is your main threat, and must be taken out first. Taking out the leader can destroy the group’s willingness to fight, and is the first step to surviving an attack. Remember, you want to create a strong visible injury that will make the group rethink its attack.

Where to Attack – In a life or death situation, there are no rules. Take out their eyes, break their kneecaps, jab them in the throat; do anything you can to win the battle. Your goal is to immobilize the attackers by any means available.

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