Thank you so much for your thoughtful and comprehensive feedback. I'll put it all on my Milanote for future improvements.
There are two things already in dev, adressing RNG and battles: Animal companions, in particular dogs, making sure you always have a weapon in hand during battles. And the "Hardcharger" who will be able to defend himself with fist fights. Also planning to add a barricade crafting option, helping players to prepare fights against larger numbers of zombies.
I like to craft sharp sticks in preparation for the next fight. It's a cheap and effective (3 AP) item. For that, I make sure to always keep one knife in inventory, and sharpen all sticks, keeping only one branch for crafting the next axe.
Thanks again for your kind words and for sharing your impressions.