Designing the Ultimate Doomsday Survival Fortress

Ever wondered what would be the best way to prepare for the end of the world? Whether you’re a seasoned zombie survival planner or just a budding bunker builder, a secure fortress is essential. There are some amazing purpose-made doomsday bunkers out there that will help us design the ultimate survival fortress.

However, to design our doomsday bunker we first need to know what we’re up against. So, what are the top threats to humankind? Here are the most likely doomsday threats, and how a specifically designed fortress will help us prepare for them.

Financial Crisis

Many people believe a financial crisis like we’ve never experienced before will lead to a collapse of the world economy, causing a breakdown of our system of trade and ultimately widescale civil unrest as people battle for food.

In such a scenario, cash would be virtually worthless, so you’d have to be prepared, by hoarding lots of food and supplies. Your fortress would have to be large enough to keep years worth of food and water, and impenetrable to prevent the unprepared from stealing your rations.

Hunger

With the ever-declining population of bees, it’s possible that one day these productive pollinators may die out. If something like that happens, a major shock in the world food supply would lead to social unrest. We’d be unable to produce enough food to feed a fraction of the world's 8 billion hungry mouths, who’d be desperate enough to kill you for that last crumb.

For disasters of this kind, you’ll need a large cache of supplies and a secure, sustainable way of raising and growing food for you and your fellow survivors.

Biological Disasters

Antibiotic-resistant bacteria, as well as extremely infectious and deadly diseases grown in shady labs around the world, are very real threats to our existence. Whether triggered by biowarfare, or as part of the various potential outcomes of chemical warfare, the impacts could be pervasive.

And if infectious diseases or noxious gases lead to an apocalypse, you better be quarantined behind sturdy, sealed, isolated walls, with ample medical supplies.

And of course, there’s the zombie apocalypse. Be it through mind-controlling fungi, or psychic brain worms, when the zombies come for your flesh, your urban apartment isn’t going to do you much good. You’ll need sturdy walls and ample defense supplies, but more on that later.

Nuclear Apocalypse

From their initial, scorching explosions to their long-abiding, carcinogenic fallout, nuclear weapons are a real threat. The largest bomb in the US nuclear arsenal could kill 1.4 million people within 24 hours. Russia’s largest could kill 7.6 million.

But nuclear war wouldn’t be a single-bomb affair; if it happens, and hundreds of warheads are launched, you can say bye-bye to the world as you know it. If doomsday preppers have it right, underground is the place to go, as several meters of soil, rock and reinforced concrete is the best way to shield yourself from nuclear explosions and deadly radiation.

Natural Disasters

Tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and even giant meteors could also pose a threat to the survival of humans in the future. Climate change or a major polar shift may lead to more extreme weather and rising seas. Whether dealing with toxic, post-eruption air, Biblical floods or a devastated surface world, the ultimate fortress is going to have to be well above sea level, watertight and almost indestructible!

So, now we know what we’d potentially be up against. But before we design the ultimate survival fortress, let’s see what’s already out there for us to take inspiration from to withstand doomsday scenarios.

The Oppidum

This is a billionaire bunker so secretive that even the website is protected with a code! It was created by a Czech entrepreneur to survive a nuclear attack. It’s reported to be the largest residential doomsday shelter in the world and is situated in a secret location somewhere in Czechia.

It’s protected by multiple high-security systems complete with a blast door, and can provide accommodation, food and supplies for up to 10 years. The shelter even comes complete with leisure facilities, including a bar, library and cinema.

Similar to the Oppidum is the Adirondacks Missile Silo House, which hides a deep, blast-door-protected vault beneath an unassuming cabin. Though nowhere near as advanced or geared out as the Oppidum, this Cold-War Missile Silo would certainly protect you from the worst of nuclear or biological warfare.

However, these places aren’t the most ideal long-term solution to all doomsday scenarios. Being underground isn’t a long-term solution. Even if you had decades of supplies, eventually you’d need to grow food, trap more water, and keep renewable energy devices up and running to power your house.

The power grid would likely be out, so you’d need to produce your own energy to keep warm and power your devices. Above-ground structures would be necessary, but they should be much better defended against potential zombies or looters.

Spitbank Fort

Spitbank Fort deals with the issue of irradiated land by removing the ‘land’ part altogether. This sea fortress, located near Portsmouth in the UK, was completed in 1878. The fort is armor-plated with reinforced concrete and was once kitted out with searchlights as well as nine 12-inch breechloading guns, capable of taking down steamships and light aircraft.

It’s now a privately-owned hotel and boasts 9 luxury bedroom suites at £700 per night! You’d better start saving now if you want to hide here for the apocalypse! Its isolated location and tough exterior would provide the perfect defense and distance against zombies but if Plymouth was hit by a large nuclear warhead, you’d probably grow an additional ear in no time.

This fort may be prepared for an attack, but falls short in the area of supplies, and would also be vulnerable against an apocalyptic flood.

Safe House

This safe house in Warsaw, Poland, designed by Robert Konieczny, took 4 years to build, with ultimate security in mind. It features automated sliding walls, window shutters, solar energy storage and even has a drawbridge to get to the swimming pool building.

Safe House In Poland Transforms Into A Fortress by Design Insider

The sliding walls and drawbridge are designed to completely close off the house from the outside world. However, this safe house still falls short in many ways. In particular, it lacks the nuclear survival advantages afforded by being underground, has no weapons, no tight-sealed protection or treatment facilities against airborne diseases and no long-term food supplies.

While it may protect you from zombies, it wouldn’t be so great during a nuclear disaster! It's also lacking the vast food reserves necessary to survive most other scenarios.

The Ultimate Doomsday Survival Fortress

Now, drawing on the greatest examples in existence, plus a little creative ingenuity, it’s time to design a survival fortress to rival them all! Assuming you’ve got an unlimited budget, you could create something really cool.

An ideal structure would have both above and below ground living quarters. Underground, you’re protected from nuclear fallout and above ground you have the ability to generate food or energy, should your storage be insufficient.

For both protection and surveillance, a tall structure would be a good idea. Think of something like a tall, wide silo with steel walls, 10 inches thick to protect you from radioactive particles, and reinforced with concrete to protect us from rust.

Inside, you could store a heap of food, enough to feed a community of 10 for a few decades. This will involve non-perishable food with long shelf lives, such as cans, jars, and military ready-to-eat meals. We’ll also need water purification equipment, batteries and medical gear, including medicines like vitamins and antibiotics.

Above ground, there’s an armory stocked full of weapons and ammunition. You could have water tanks on the roof to collect water that feeds into a huge underground reservoir. To protect your roof assets, walls could extend around the edge, with intermittent gaps for you to view the surrounding area and shoot at any potential intruders.

Also on the roof there would be a small garden to grow food, with solar panels and wind turbines to power your house. These could be connected to devices like Tesla’s powerwall, to store excess energy when it's not used. For more land to grow food, you could even construct large curved walls around the structure to prevent any zombie pyramids from getting up and over.

Taking inspiration from the Warsaw safe house, a drawbridge could unfold to a structure housing a ladder, allowing you access to the inner garden. It would also act as your first line of defense against hoards of zombies you can shoot at from the top of your tower.

On that note: guns, and lots of them. It's kill or be killed in a desperate, apocalyptic world. Through the center of the structure is a spiral staircase allowing you to access each floor. Deep below the surface are the living quarters. The inside of the fortress will take inspiration from the Oppidum, with pleasant decorations and a few luxuries.

There should be a radio system in the main chamber, wired to rooftop antennae, just in case news is being transmitted that you need to know about. You’d need a large kitchen and lounge area and a few bedrooms for your family and friends.

A survival team or community of your choosing is vitally important, with medical professionals, firearms experts and a problem solver with technical abilities. If not, you better add a library full of books so you can learn. In fact, we have an article specifically about people who have the skills to survive a zombie apocalypse!

Add a gym, cinema room and games room and you should have at least some entertainment to help you through the tough times. Right at the bottom where the risk of contamination is lower, as is the temperature, you could store all other essential supplies. A fridge stocked with thousands of different varieties of seeds, for example.

But that’s not all. You’ll also need some emergency backpacks for each group member, stocked with food, water and medical supplies, ready for an emergency escape. It may be the safest fortress ever, but if someone somehow gains access, you may need a lifeline as you make your way out.

The only way in and out of the fortress, aside from an emergency rooftop escape hatch, will be via a connecting tunnel leading a mile out from the lowest point of the bunker. This tunnel, eventually ending in a hatch concealed in deep woodland, will be staggered with several steel blast doors to prevent unwelcome company as well as radiation.

Let’s also add in a mechanical security system for all blast doors, with coded locks. No electric keypads here, though – electricity may become a scarce luxury.

Fortress Location

So, where are we going to locate this beauty? Let's assume your survival fort is in North America. It must be far away from cities, to reduce the dangers of people and diseases, and the fact they’re at risk of being hit in a nuclear war. New York is out of the picture.

It must also be far away from natural threats. You’d have to choose somewhere away from fault lines, so you don’t have earthquakes, so California is out, and well above sea levels - bye Florida. The tornado belt and blizzard zone should also be avoided. And stay far away from Yellowstone if that erupts.

Also, as a buffer in case the world heats up, choose somewhere relatively cool but still sunny enough to grow food. Knocking out large areas, possibly the safest state to be is remote Iowa. Specifically, somewhere in Sattre.

It's in the middle of nowhere, about 40 miles from the nearest town, and has enough greenery to survive. The only potential pitfall is that a huge tall silo does look a little suspicious, and may gain some unwanted attention, so you could always disguise it in a natural pillar, such as atop this island in Phuket.

These places are located in relative isolation and far away from most impeding natural threats, so they could be good alternatives. Bring all those strengths together and you have the ultimate doomsday survival fortress.

It's got everything you need, specifically designed to survive any of the world's worst possible apocalyptic scenarios. Now all you have to do is spend millions of dollars to bring this beauty to life! Thanks for reading.