This is a real touchy subject for many people, some are of the belief that they need to arm themselves for a small war and others want very little to do with it. This is one area where your personal location and situation play a huge part in what you may need. I live in a very rural area a long ways from any large population base, so personally I focus on hunting not repelling hordes of raiders or mass migrations of starving desperate people. Regardless of where you live you need to obtain your weapons legally. Here in Canada it can be a real pain and there are many restrictions on what you are able to own and forget being able to carry a handgun or own a assault rifle. A good place to start if you have no firearms right now is a 12ga pump shotgun and a semi-auto .22lr rifle with 200 rounds for the shotgun and 2000-5000 rounds for rifle. A firearm is no good if you are not trained with it so get a membership at a range and learn the ins and outs of your weapons. A high power rifle like a .308 or 30-06 with a 100 rounds minimum are great additions as well. Many people will feel that this is nowhere near enough but you need to decide for yourself what is needed in your situation. For me these are tools to protect and provide for my family but there are many other options.
There are far more options than just firearms, I am a bow hunter so I have my compound bows and also a trio of crossbows with several dozen carbon arrows with razor broadheads for each one. These are great for hunting or defending without giving away your position with the loud report of a firearm as well you can retrieve your arrows or bolts and reuse them many many times. Modern high speed bows and crossbows with broadhead tipped arrows can penetrate through most kevlar vests giving you options. Another option for hunting smaller game is slingshots and air rifles. A high speed pellet rifle is very quite and extremely cheap to shoot. Rabbits, squirrels, and other small game are very easily taken with a air rifle without scaring off future meals. It only costs me about 2 cents per shot with my air rifle making it the easiest long term food getting prep. A good sling shot can be completely deadly in the right set of hands is ultra cheap, easy to carry in a backpack or pocket and ammo is everywhere. I find that I have a lot of practice left before I will be able to call myself proficient with a sling shot but the practice is free.
The options for hand to hand weapons are endless but should be a last resort. Anything at hand can be a weapon when needed so with this in mind I really do not see the point of having special primitive weapons. The big hunting knife hanging on my belt is just as effective as a purpose built fighting knife but has the advantage of me being very comfortable with it because of daily use. Other items that have great practical and tactical uses are tomahawks, machetes, walking sticks, framing hammers etc. etc. etc. The most useful weapons are ones you are comfortable with and feel right in your hands.
The most powerful weapon you can ever have is a clear head. When you are thinking clearly and can confuse your enemy even if they are better armed the balance of power shifts to your side. I believe the more confrontations that can be avoided the better but sometimes it may come to a fight when it does do not hesitate to do as you must to come out on top.
If you are in a more urban setting than me you may have to deal with a lot more people looking to take what you have than I feel that Very rural people will have to. I would say the more urban your surroundings the more thought and effort you will need to put into your defences. One item that is valuable regardless of where you are is high power spotlights especially if you can have them hard mounted on all sides of your home or property and powered off a battery bank. If you can see them and not be seen well you get the idea.
These are just a few of the options for defence and food gathering that are available but regardless of what you have or acquire you need to practice with them for them to be of any use to you when needed. Till next time stay safe and keep on prepping.
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