After each battle or conflict zone, there are calm moments. These are times when you should take five minutes to check your ammunition and supplies. Reloading most non-upgraded weapons takes time and so does crafting. So, it is too risky to do these things while surrounded by enemies. To avoid falling into an ambush unprepared, take advantage of the down time.

Avoid direct conflicts

The element of surprise is essential when you are outnumbered. In most cases, facing your enemies head-on is a sure way to die. Enemies become much more harmful when they can see you, as they are more precise and behave much more aggressively. There are many elements that support guerrilla warfare and the stealth, so you’ll have to use them to beat your enemies.

In the TLOU2 inventory, resources are anything but abundant. So you’ll always be short on bullets, equipment and medication. Killing enemies hardly ever gets you anything and many times you won’t see a clear chance to finish off all your enemies without them seeing you. But you don’t have to kill the enemies to advance. If you are short on resources or outnumbered, use stealth to get by the enemy or run.

Use distractions to your advantage

While you’re using stealth, there are many things you can do to draw your enemy’s attention to something other than your head. You can throw bottles or bricks to create a distraction and open up a path or make one of the NPCs change routes. With enough skill, you can create an ambush with explosives, without being seen, to create even more confusion. You can even convince an infected to go after human enemies.

Don’t make too much noise when you are walking, always crawl or creep. On top of giving you a lower profile, you can also make your footsteps as quiet as possible, so you go unnoticed. This will give you a bit of extra time if you need to use a health kit or take a breather.