Best skill to have in a post apocalyptic world?

A Forge Owner Operator. With a wife who has a loom and an organic farm. Oh and Martial arts...




Whiskey by the barrel

OK, you folks have some great answers....

I think I'd like to change my original answer.

To rule this new world I would like to be:

A brew master, and be an expert at using duct tape.

Common sense
Ability to make Gunpowder and the means to use it.
Basic medical ability.
Various self defense basics and shooting skills.
Some archery/staff and spear work.
Basic electrical engineering.
Hydrogen peroxide and alcohol creation skill.
Basic psycology and human nature knowledge.
Body language interpretation skills.
Corrective lense and optics creation ability.
Basic Metalurgy.


[edit on 18-9-2008 by Nobody Special]

A really good sense of humor.

I'd have to add boomerang skills too.
Being able to hit a doormouse at thirty paces.

Personally, still having trouble with the 'door' part.

Havent seen this one posted here, and its definately on the top of my list. The ability to teach. Not just others, but yourself as well. In a post WW3 there will be scores of people scattered around with a compendum of information. The ability to harness that and use it for yourself, and the ability for todays survivalists to pass on what we know to those who dont, will go a long way towards a better and stable environment for all.

After that, brewmaster of course, who would want to ring in a new world while being sober?

I'd have to agree 100% there.

We would all have to be able to teach/explain and pass on skills learnt effectively and patiently.
Hopefully a little better than some of my old school teachers too.

Taking advantage of childrens natural curiosity and enthusiasm..NOT flattening it due to a pre-arranged schedule.

Brewmaster?? He/she would be revered as a Messiah in my books.

There are methods that can be learnt in the arts of distillery.. unfortunately,till the fall of 'civilisation' it can't be put into practise without unwanted *cough* 'attention'.

Teaching is a great one it will help you adapt but you just have to make sure you have something worthwhile to teach. If everyone is just struggling to get by people wont really be thinking of teaching their children math and all of those other subjects they will want useful skills. so teaching would have to be in conjunction with other important skills.

I think social skills is one of the more important ones because you could talk down people from a frenzy. Better bartering skills.

self defense skills with and without weapons. Its can be really awkward to carry a weapon with you(depending on the weapon of course). weapons help(especially guns) but if you run out of ammo or become disarmed you will be screwed without hand to hand skills. or being able to run away faster than the other guy.

Good mentality is very important. you cant expect to survive if you keep telling yourself your going to die. Good mentality will probably bring a calm head so you can hopefully make good decisions.

I think one of the most essential skills for post ww3, and everyday life is first aid. this skill is invaluable as it will ensure the continued survival of those around you.

Ok....my thoughts...

Gratitude...that we are still here and can make a new life. Practically speaking, I'm a medical herbalist in training and I stockpile heirloom seeds for food supply...neither much use for surgery, but it should help deal with every day stuff.

My other half is an environmental management student, with a background in forge work, welding, metalwork, construction and as a Michelin star chef...(I kid you not!) I'm also a quallified massage therapist and soon to be aromatherapist, and can make clothes out of old curtains that don't look like the wardrobe from the Sound of Music....between us we should be ok!

Hmmm....and a sense of humour is a must, along with a knack for storytelling....vital for keeping spirits up and creating communities.

Cait

Gunpowder is a simple mixture. Commonly you can mix 75% potassium nitrate, 15% softwood charcoal, and 10% sulfur to make Black Powder. The difficulty lies in getting the ingredients. The Charcoal is easy, but do you know where to find sulfur and potassium nitrate in the wilds of a ruined world? Would you even recognize it if you saw it? Even if you do manage to come up with a secret source that no one else knows about, to avoid deadly competition, there is still a number of problems with black powder. It is highly corrosive and will eat your gun if you don't thoroughly clean it right away. In addition, Black Powder makes a heck of a lot of smoke and the smell is quite strong. If you use it, everyone will know, and then come looking for you. Modern chemical mixtures that avoid these problems are far more difficult to make and require specialized equipment and materials.

Beer is also very easy to make and countless people around the globe home brew. In a post apocalyptic world, making beer has one requirement that might be difficult. Grains. You need a lot of grain to make beer. This means that you would have to live in a stable community where significant resources can be allotted for agriculture. Enough so that after everyone eats, there is enough left over for brewing. This further means that security is not an issue. You would have to be able to protect the harvest from marauders like the above people making black powder. Beer only works in an established civilized society. Distillation of spirits would be far easier although it also has some requirements that might be difficult at first.

Guns and Drinks do not make a safe and happy life. Your best skill to have in a survival situation is a well stocked brain. Knowledge is the key to everything. The more you know, the more options you have, and the better able you are to reason out solutions to problems.

I know where to find Potassium Nitrate as a renewable resource. Do you?

reply to post by Terapin


You and others touch upon something I think is important -- a working knowledge of basic chemistry, math, geometry. I'm not talking about balancing reduction-oxidation equations or figuring out orbital energies (although both might have important applications) but more the basic reactions, figuring angles, soapmaking, fermenting/distilling, etc. Not for the purpose of trying to emulate the system of a pre-apocalyptic world, but for advancing from stone-age existance into a more sustainable one.

Your thought of where to find potassium nitrate is an excellent example. KNO3 (saltpeter) is available in many places naturally (soils/cave crystals), but how to refine it? Gunpowder has many potential uses apart from propelling a projectile. A similar compound that might have great value is cement. It can be made with crude tools, if one understands the process and can create sufficient heat.

____________________

Some excellent responses here.... and I have to mirror DisabledVet's view as well in that medical abilities would be vital both to oneself and as a barterable skill within a community.

To be able to preserve written reference and text..... what a challenge. Perhaps that is the limiting filter, as very few if anyone can remember all formula, equations, etc. If there have been advanced Terran civilizations before ours, perhaps the limiting factor in growth is relative to rediscovery of ideas and processes that we take for granted today.

Effective Prayer!!


Post apocalypse there will be a lot of "Oh God, what now?"

I think that undertakers will be in demand. Figure 99% mortality in the first five years for 65 years and up. 55 to 65 75% in five years. 45 to 55, my group, at least 50 to 65 % mortality in the first 5 years. 0 to 1 year 50% in the first year of life. Child bearing aged women, 25% chance of death for each child born. Men 15 to 20 years 25% mortality due to "risk taking behavior. People with transplants 100% in the first 18 months. People that want to play the bandit 90% mortality in the first year.

Looking at things I think that we will return to pre industrial age population levels in 5 years, or about a 90% reduction from current levels. Has to do with the carrying capacity of an ecosystem. One limiting factor, be it food, water, shelter from the elements or some other to be determined item will drive the equation.

Know how to make KNO3, fox fire books have a good method. Have made Beer! Know how to cast bullets. Have made knives before, truck springs work good. Make my own arrows and bow strings. Master class pistol shooter. Gunsmith on the side for fun. Chemistry is what I do for a day job. We raised and broke horses when I was young. Have butchered everything from rabbits to 1400 pound cattle. Know the local edible wild plants and have used them. Still I think that any thing over 5 years will be gravy for me.

I inadvertently developed a decent survival curriculum vitae

Grew up on a cattle ranch
10 yr paramedic
tactical and wilderness training
fire suppression
welding in high school (ran out of college prep)
BS biology minor chemistry
HAM radio in scouts (still dabble)
working on CompTIA A+ & network certs
ACSM personal trainer (cr0ssfit fanatic)
amateur boxer, BJJ purple belt, Judo BB
avid hunter (deer, elk, hog,) (have hunted bear)
archery fanatic
father in law is a gunsmith and I pay attention
dad was a mechanic, didn't pay enough attention but I can change a tire or alternator
A personal protective course to work for a private contractor years back. (won't name training facility but quite reputable; unfortunate the contractor wasn't)
working spanish language
took several GIS courses as electives
love orienteering

And this is just the basic stuff....oh and I worked for two years as a carpenter and bricklayer.

Originally posted by traderjack
I inadvertently developed a decent survival curriculum vitae

Grew up on a cattle ranch
10 yr paramedic
tactical and wilderness training
fire suppression
welding in high school (ran out of college prep)
BS biology minor chemistry
HAM radio in scouts (still dabble)
working on CompTIA A+ & network certs
ACSM personal trainer (cr0ssfit fanatic)
amateur boxer, BJJ purple belt, Judo BB
avid hunter (deer, elk, hog,) (have hunted bear)
archery fanatic
father in law is a gunsmith and I pay attention
dad was a mechanic, didn't pay enough attention but I can change a tire or alternator
A personal protective course to work for a private contractor years back. (won't name training facility but quite reputable; unfortunate the contractor wasn't)
working spanish language
took several GIS courses as electives
love orienteering

And this is just the basic stuff....oh and I worked for two years as a carpenter and bricklayer.

Oh yeah and I have some farrier knowledge and planning on taking a blacksmithing apprentice course & farrier course

Water and food!

Can you distill water? Can you do it with nothing more than some plastic and a plate of glass? I will give you a hint, it requires digging. Can you use a coke bottle and smooth suface to get clean fresh water? You can if you have an angle. Water is vital. With out clean fresh water you die in 5 days or less. So knowing all you can about water and how to get the liquid is VITAL!

Then there is food! You can eat acorns if you boil off the tannin. Takes to long in my opinion. Heck Humans can eat most anything like goats. Grass, tree bark, ants, the trick is to know what will sustain you.

Know water and know food and your set. Not even a idiot would harm the man that can bring him fresh water and food. If you hold those keys you hold the village.

A person that has the ability and understanding on how to do things by themselves. Sort of like a jack of all trades that some have said.

Social skills will have very, very little to do with survival since it's just a social construct to begin with. Social skills help you when a society is already in place. The little cute social skills one possesses might actually work against you when trying to build a society because of the seriousness of the situation. Actually, how does one have social skills when there is no society in which to socalize? What good are the "social skills" going to do for you when the society you used to polish those "skills" in no longer exists? Questions to ponder about.

Originally posted by titorite
Water and food!

Can you distill water? Can you do it with nothing more than some plastic and a plate of glass? I will give you a hint, it requires digging. Can you use a coke bottle and smooth suface to get clean fresh water? You can if you have an angle. Water is vital. With out clean fresh water you die in 5 days or less. So knowing all you can about water and how to get the liquid is VITAL!

Then there is food! You can eat acorns if you boil off the tannin. Takes to long in my opinion. Heck Humans can eat most anything like goats. Grass, tree bark, ants, the trick is to know what will sustain you.

Know water and know food and your set. Not even a idiot would harm the man that can bring him fresh water and food. If you hold those keys you hold the village.

Oh I suppose I might know a little about SERE too. Maybe

Originally posted by waterdoctor
Know how to make KNO3, fox fire books have a good method. Have made Beer! Know how to cast bullets. Have made knives before, truck springs work good. Make my own arrows and bow strings. Master class pistol shooter. Gunsmith on the side for fun. Chemistry is what I do for a day job. We raised and broke horses when I was young. Have butchered everything from rabbits to 1400 pound cattle. Know the local edible wild plants and have used them. Still I think that any thing over 5 years will be gravy for me.

waterdoctor, I want to be on your team, in your tribe, part of your group, etc...