Survival skills

[weswood]

As I was reading the Gold thread, I was thinking skills would be more valuable than material goods.

Forget being able to shoot a gun, how many people know enough about farming to plant a garden big enough to live on? I sure don't.

Reloading ammo? I know enopugh to reload small arms ammo, but what about when ready made supplies of powder and caps run out? I'm fairly knowledgable, I could make black powder, but fulminate of mercury for the caps? Smokeless or nitro powder? Ha, go fish.

I know how to ride a horse, but I really don't have much of a clue about taking care of one other than feed and water. And cows and other farm type animals? Just an idea about that.

I can hunt, and butcher game, and figure out how to tan the leather, and one of my hobbies is leather working, so at least I could have clothes and shoes.

How about doctors? Chemists? I can see the local hospital being guarded by the local government's troops, not just because of the drugs, but to protect the skilled personnel. There's an adventure idea- having to kidnap the local physician for an operation. Or being guards for a Doc as he makes his rounds.

Any other valuable skills?

[mikeo80]

Originally Posted by weswood

Any other valuable skills?

I can think of one or two. Along with the Doctors being guarded, I would think the pharmicists would be another high priority.

Wood working/carpendry. Repair of exisiting housing is going to be a priority.

As weswood said, hunting, fishing, gleaning, processing any thing found.

Knowledge of water supplies. Where is some clean or at least cleanable water.

[Mohoender]

Originally Posted by mikeo80

I would think the pharmicists would be another high priority.

Not really except if you have a fair supply of chemical medications. Someone knowing curring plants will be better (or a chinese pharmicist).

[natehale1971]

Let's see... Before they reattached my legs, I could do alot of things. And the more I exercise and rehab myself, i'm getting alot better at walking. So hopefully one day I'll be able to do all these things again.

Farming. I grew up learning how to farm from my grandfather.

Fishing. see above. use to go fishing with my grandfather when i spent the summers with my grandparents.

Carpentry. See above. spent the summers with my grandparents, working in my grandfathers carpentry shop in the evenings after working in the garden all day. being 12 and building a birdhouse by yourself is an amazing thing (until you go to school and tell everyone your summer was spent on a farm doing all these things, and they look at you as if you where crazy).

Hunting. My childhood friends in the mountains taught me. even taught me how to butcher deers after the hunt.

Reloading Ammo. I know the basics from watching my dad do it when i was growing up. He even allowed me to load shotgun shells.

First Aid. ex-Corpsman.

Sewing. I have two younger sisters whom I am 9 years older than that I had to babysit, and sawing them doll clothes helped me keep them happy.

General Contracting. My father was a general contractor who built houses on the sides of the mountain, and I grew up helping out around his contruction sites. So i know the bare basics of electical work, pumping, masonry, ect.

[Mohoender]

Originally Posted by natehale1971

Sewing. I have two younger sisters whom I am 9 years older than that I had to babysit, and sawing them doll clothes helped me keep them happy.

That was smart. My sister is 8 years younger than I and should have done that too. Instead I taught her to play with GI joes, tanks and space lego.

As a result, I don't know how to sew and she doesn't know how to start a washing machine or how to make dinner. However, she is good at riding horses, shooting with a rifle and driving at more than 120 mph.

[natehale1971]

Originally Posted by Mohoender

That was smart. My sister is 8 years younger than I and should have done that too. Instead I taught her to play with GI joes, tanks and space lego.

As a result, I don't know how to sew and she doesn't know how to start a washing machine or how to make dinner. However, she is good at riding horses, shooting with a rifle and driving at more than 120 mph.

LOL.

Ironically, my sisters know how to do all that as well!

Growing up in the mountians, and spending summers with our grandparents on a small family farm makes it easy to learn all that. Not to mention having the parents we've got. Dad was a Greenskeeper at a golf course for over 15 years, worked as a volunteer firefighter, a volunteer police officer, an EMT (he and mom worked with our local doctor to build the Hickory Nut Gorge EMS).

Living in the mountains back then you had to wear alot of hats, and you learn alot of things while just growing up. Self-sufficiency is very important when the cloest hospital is an hour helicopter ride away...

[Mohoender]

Originally Posted by weswood

Forget being able to shoot a gun, how many people know enough about farming to plant a garden big enough to live on? I sure don't.

Why forgetting about shooting a gun? I can (Rifle, MG and crossbow) and I can hit a target but that's not that easy and if I know it's because i started practicing when i was less than 10. However, I'm shit with a pistol.
Worse is using a knife, a spear or something like...

For the garden, no problem. I might even know how to care for a garden that is big as a small field (without mechanical machinery).

Originally Posted by weswood

Reloading ammo? I know enopugh to reload small arms ammo, but what about when ready made supplies of powder and caps run out? I'm fairly knowledgable, I could make black powder, but fulminate of mercury for the caps? Smokeless or nitro powder? Ha, go fish.

About the same. However, I can make simple bows and arrows.

Originally Posted by weswood

I know how to ride a horse, but I really don't have much of a clue about taking care of one other than feed and water. And cows and other farm type animals? Just an idea about that.

No problem with that except when it come to cows. Never had to care for any. Horses are not a problem for daily care but problems arrise when it goes down to horseshoes.

Originally Posted by weswood

I can hunt, and butcher game, and figure out how to tan the leather, and one of my hobbies is leather working, so at least I could have clothes and shoes.

I let you hunt. However, I can help you with butchery and I learned how to poach when I was young. I still have memories of that. So we could complementary.

Originally Posted by weswood

How about doctors? Chemists? I can see the local hospital being guarded by the local government's troops, not just because of the drugs, but to protect the skilled personnel. There's an adventure idea- having to kidnap the local physician for an operation. Or being guards for a Doc as he makes his rounds.

Just forget about them and look for the priest or the other local weirdo.
Health taker might be intersting to.

Originally Posted by weswood

Any other valuable skills?

Plantlore: a friend of mine can feed you simply by walking the mountain range and picking plants (I have asked her to teach me). However, this is a local knowledge.

Mushroom lore

Sewing (Yes! I got my wife)

I'm good with wood working (for housecare) but I'm living in a stone house and with that I'm bad, very bad. Need a stone carver.

A plumber can be intersting too and knowing how to make and care for a roof.

You also need someone who knows how to work metal and a glass maker can be useful.

If you don't have the glass maker you need to have some means to carry stuff around: a potter may be or a barrel maker may be.

Something important and widely forgotten is someone capable of caring for your knives and metal tools (don't know the name: someone who knows how to make it sharp without reducing it to the size of a small nail).

I stop here I have to pick up my kids but the list is going to be long, very long.

[headquarters]

interesting to read about everyones backgrounds here .

I am thinking - for a survival game like T2K shouldnt there be more skills available on the PC sheet ?

Bushcraft,animal husbandry,sewing,plantlore etc

Should it be bunched into groups like FORAGING concerns all survival related skills ? HORSEMANSHIP deals with everything from the shodding of a horse to walking a dog ?

your thoughts ?

[Targan]

Originally Posted by headquarters

interesting to read about everyones backgrounds here .

I am thinking - for a survival game like T2K shouldnt there be more skills available on the PC sheet ?

Bushcraft,animal husbandry,sewing,plantlore etc

Should it be bunched into groups like FORAGING concerns all survival related skills ? HORSEMANSHIP deals with everything from the shodding of a horse to walking a dog ?

your thoughts ?

There is a vast plethora of skills available in my campaign. Very rarely has there not been a skill available for a given task in my campaign.

[Mohoender]

I just finish posting on the value of precious stones.

As a result, barter and negotiation are going to be very important skills.

[weswood]

Probably a lot of those kind of skills are covered by house rules. I would think an Animal Handling skill, specific to a chosen animal would cover things like care & feeding of farm animals to training a hunting dog.

I use tracking as a general catch all for hunting related skillsfrom finding the game to butchtering and hide tanning.

[Mohoender]

Could be but I would advise a GM to change that. Caring for a horse, raising a sheep or training a dog have nothing in common. Riding a horse and handling one is even absolutely different.