I have watched a frankly absurd amount of youtube survival videos. I am reasonably certain i could survive long enough to die of starvation since the foraging aspect of survival never really interested me enough
most of the people listing their skills here are skills that require a functioning civilization in order to use.
I’m really snarky. What everyone really craves in trying times is a relentless stream of inane criticism.
That guy will generally get voted off the island first… Which in event of apocalypse would mean certain death.
My special apocalypse skill is culture and entertainment.
I have a hundred TV series, a thousand curated movies, thousands of E books, and thousands of songs on a private server with 2 run drives in case that happens, encrypted of course, and with a laptop have the ability to play them for others or plug into anything with hdmi or even rgb as I carry an adapter.
Even at the end, there will be communities with solar grids that will want entertainment. I even have children’s series for the kids.
If things are so bad that the prospect of a community movie night between farming and defense watches isn’t an enticement, being shot would probably be a mercy. Plus, given time to scrounge and loot the before-fore times, it’d be pretty easy to offer copies of that entertainment to others in trade to other survivor communities without giving much up.
How much would an old laptop with 100 movies be worth to a community that’s been telling eachother blurry recollections of old fiction around the fire for entertainment for years?
same here.
I know a nutjob that’s collected pallets of guns and ammunition for whatever accelerationist bullshit he believes in. I know others just like him.
I know of others that have stockpiled food or medical supplies.
a veritable goldmine of resources for the end of the world.
and I’m not the only one who knows either.
so when shit actually hits the fan nobody is going to be gunning for me. I have nothing of value to them. but those people who have decades of supplies? yeah, I give them 24 hours before they’re dead.
I’ll be watching across the street while they’re raided and will go collect any scraps. I’ll be sitting in my basement with my technology and knowledge in order to not die from dysentery or a common cold.
a quiet existence is a safe existence.
A lot of those things have expiration dates.
Medicine loses potency or goes bad over time. Ammo can get moisture in it or just become unreliable over time. The lining in food and drink containers from most things in the grocery store will usually break down or begin to in about a year and start to leach into the food. Fuel to power any generator will go bad in six months, unless you use additives for long storage and those can cause an engine to be running lean or richer than it should be. Guns need replacement parts and won’t typically work forever with some TLC and the ability to fabricate or just have parts stockpiled
Basically most accelerationist plans for the apocalypse are not backed up by any sustainability. Things like ethanol production and a good battery bank system would be far more sustainable than the usual type of stuff that I see them preparing for. Not that guns couldn’t help, it’s just that if you don’t know anything else and can’t contribute to keeping yourself alive for longer than a few months or a year then that’s just going to end up with sick and starving gun nuts who are desperate if they survive that long
The thing the gun nuts omit, and I mean the ones that proudly have an apocalypse arsenal, is that they intend to be the marauders stealing other people’s stuff on the freeway. Those types, almost always conservative and thus devoid of empathy, believe they’ll thrive in the wasteland by virtue of having so many guns, when the reality is, seeking out constant armed confrontation as a way of life in a lawless world means you’ll be dead very quickly, because other people have guns too. They just don’t fetishize them or have a ridiculous number of them.
I’m not particularly good at any one thing. I have a PhD, but not in a subject that’s “practical” in the post apocalypse. I’m physically fit enough, but I’m not a paragon of strength or agility. Relatedly, I’m in my mid30s, so not old, but not spry either. I’m handy enough to fix things with instruction and some light jury-rigging, but I’m hardly a Macguyver-type. I’ve never fired a gun before, but I can probably learn to use one.
Assuming I’m not killed instantaneously, or shortly thereafter, I’m an extra set of hands or an additional mouth to feed, depending on your perspective. Charitably, I’m analytically-minded and useful enough in the field, low to middle management type; less charitably, I’m an NPC type that happens to have some amusing dialog.
In a movie or tv show following a group in the post apocalypse, I think I’d be like the 4th to die; dignified enough to have established a minor story arch, but certainly not enough to be a main character. Also not so unimportant that I’m killed off screen (or worse yet, ret-conned).
I’m tasty.
I have an infinite amount of patience, diplomacy and faith in the importance of solidarity
Nice try skynet.
Being naturally avoidant of other people. It’s always other people who pose the greatest danger in these situations.
As I said in another comment. my special skill is preparation and planning.
I have millions of books on subjects ranging from social economics to medical texts. these are stored on my personal servers.
I have hand picked the most essential and placed them on SD cards in case power is hard to come by. I have two e-ink readers that can be used to read the cards.
I also have physical books of immediate needs like FM 21-76. Some medical texts as well as pharmaceutical. I also have textbooks from school so that my kids can continue their education.
I have an insane amount of movies and television. ranging from adult to kid content. I have collected a wide ranging spank bank(6tb!). When shit gets rough, people will give up anything to feel “happy normal” again.
I’m currently in the process teaching myself how to train AI models on content(more of a hobby). I’d like to train some models on the books I have and base them on specific topics like medical, construction, etc…
That’s a fair point too. I grew up very poor. I learned to be resourceful and make due with what you have early on in life. If I can’t source what I need it’s likely I can make it.
I can farm, I can perform minor surgery/field medic, I can build buildings, I can weld, I can shoot/hunt. if there’s something I can’t do, it’s likely in one of the books I have so that I can at least learn how to try.
always lived my life with the constant threat of all my things being taken away from me. It made me accept early on that the only thing that can’t be stolen from me is my knowledge, so in essence I am my best asset for survival.
You sound somewhat useful to whatever gang controls your local area.
Most likely they’ll take the stuff from them. Their abilities might save them, but sometimes those with skills are seen as a threat.
growing up in an abusive household trained me for that.
make yourself small. make yourself not a threat. make them think you’re easy to control.
I think that’s the goal from the beginning. Stay off the radar. Live small, just survive.
GreenKnight23, we need to cook
I’ll gladly join a gang. I’ll be running it in a year 😆
I have a lot of water purification capability. And a couple of guns and a little ammo. Hell yeah I’ll eat whatever critters come my way if I need to. Hunting rules go out the window when all of society is starving. We’ll manage to kill off all of the animals on earth at this rate. Funny thing is, governments are mostly to blame. It wouldn’t be a problem except they’re all greedy as fuck. The people and the earth pay the price.
I’m large. Good for blocking entrances and creating uneven terrain. I’m a nurse too, but all that lets me do is tell you “that’s not normal” and “that’s not compatible with life.”
Woot! I’ve been poor all my life, so I have experience gardening and foraging. I know the difference between poison hemlock and wild carrot, I can identify herbs that can heal, I know how to choose the best trees for food from syrup to bark bread, and I know which fruits and veggies grow best in which area
I’m also a mortician, so went through 4 years of INTENSE medical education, fighting against the students trying to become doctors. (I hate bell curves) I can cleanly dissect a body, know about ailments/diseases/biohazards, I’m not afraid of blood or wounds, can stitch up lacerations, and know which parts of the body to hit and bring an enemy down… probably should have led with that
I’m exceptionally charismatic and can become friends with literally everyone.
That’s a useful talent even pre-apoc.
