{"id":421,"date":"2025-05-29T13:25:12","date_gmt":"2025-05-29T20:25:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/?page_id=421"},"modified":"2025-05-29T13:25:12","modified_gmt":"2025-05-29T20:25:12","slug":"self-defense","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/self-defense\/","title":{"rendered":"Self Defense"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Before the Break:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

In the face of our ARG’s fictional apocalyptic event, the main “threats” to our current state of <\/span>weapons and self-defense would more or less be the ones that would happen over the span of <\/span>a week or two. For instance, in the case of most firearms, not only would the cost of upkeep and <\/span>ammo shortages become highly apparent, but in the face of the more horrifying beasts in the <\/span>fog, the risk of using such loud defensive measures might not be worth it. To remedy this, I can <\/span>see the logical solution being a mixture of makeshift weapons of scraps and found materials <\/span>combined with influence from weapon-making techniques of some of the local tribes in our area.<\/span><\/p>\n

Within my research, one practice that stood out to me the most was the Makah tribe’s whaling <\/span>techniques and canoes. Especially as many of the waters might be considered a safer means of <\/span>long-term navigation in comparison to the woodland. In addition, I think this could be promising <\/span>for collections of large amounts of food as the technique wouldn’t need to rely on immediately <\/span>overcoming larger creatures of the deep, but wearing them out.<\/span><\/p>\n

“As the back broke the surface, <\/span>the harpooner struck and the crew instantly paddled backward, putting all possible distance <\/span>between the canoe and the wounded prey so as to avoid the thrashing tail flukes. A hit in the <\/span>shoulder blade interfered with use of the flippers and slowed the whale. Floats of sealskin blown <\/span>up like huge balloons were attached to the harpoon line to slow down the whale. Harpoons <\/span>weren\u2019t intended to kill the whale, but to secure the sealskin floats to them until they tired <\/span>themselves and could be fatally lanced.<\/span>“<\/span><\/p>\n

In addition, I think the possibility of learning a mixture of various defensive, protective, and basic <\/span>tool-crafting skills would be a strong benefit to a long-run solution to this scenario for day-to-day <\/span>(non-water-focused) survival. One practice that comes to mind is a technique of rock shaping <\/span>called knapping. This technique involves the shaping of stone with stone to create tools, but can <\/span>mainly be seen in various stone knives and blades. I think using this skill to make various <\/span>shapes could open opportunities for a multitude of tools at the survivor’s fingertips (that can <\/span>even be defined by the character traits they decide to take on!)<\/span><\/p>\n

Source List:<\/span><\/p>\n

::: <\/span>::: American Indians of the Pacific Northwest Collection :::<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>content.lib.washington.edu\/aipnw\/renker.html. Accessed 16 Apr. 2025. <\/span>\u201cMakah Tribe Whale Hunt Info. <\/span>\u201d <\/span>Makah Tribe<\/span><\/i>, 13 June 2024, makah.com\/makah-tribal-info\/whaling\/.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cMastering the Art of Knapping: A Guide to Stone Tools and Wilderness Survival.<\/span>\u201d <\/span>Texas Bushcraft<\/span><\/i>, <\/span>www.texasbushcraft.com\/blogs\/news\/mastering-the-art-of-knapping-a-guide-to-stone-tools-and-wil<\/span>derness-survival?srsltid=Af<\/span><\/p>\n

Since Then:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

After the aftermath of the disaster, it is only a matter of time before many of the common <\/span>weapons used run out of ammo, charge, etc. Leading the world to pivot to not only a sustainable <\/span>solution to craft but one that would thrive in protecting the population from the new threats that <\/span>lurk in the various new zones that have been created. <\/span>I think in the early stages of creating these new tools, many of them would be “Improvised” <\/span>weapons built out of various scraps around wherever someone might be. For instance, a <\/span>student might create a weapon for defense out of materials like chair legs, rulers, etc. While an <\/span>Olympia resident might have a bit less of a visible pattern in comparison. This would also create <\/span>a bit of personalization in tools that could be identifiable\/handy when exploring further into zones <\/span>that might not be familiar to a student.<\/span><\/p>\n

Along with this, as time goes on, I can see the community forming together to highlight its <\/span>various strengths to help train\/guide each other on the creation, handling, and storage of this <\/span>gear. This could be the point where many of the weapons and self-defense items get more <\/span>structured and elaborate as there would have been more time to construct, train, and otherwise <\/span>communally approve of such items being used. This could range from something as elaborate <\/span>as Molotov cocktails constructed by chemistry students to protect campus to growing crops to <\/span>get materials for bows\/arrows. <\/span><\/p>\n

Within the game space, I have a few ideas on how items like this can be used as well. I think in <\/span>conjunction to the trees being alive, that it could perhaps be a quest to befriend\/do a task for a <\/span>tree in exchange for a nonlethal amount of sticks from it. This not only could create an <\/span>interesting NPC, but I feel like it could create a great sense of reward\/assurance that the <\/span>possibility of more tools for puzzles could be possible. In addition, I think it could also be <\/span>interesting as it could open up the possibility of (if techniques\/designs are used\/inspired from <\/span>local tribes) for a bit of a bonus learning experience for players.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Before the Break:\u00a0 In the face of our ARG’s fictional apocalyptic event, the main “threats” to our current state of weapons and self-defense would more or less be the ones that would happen over the span of a week or two. For instance, in the case of most firearms, not only would the cost of … Continue reading Self Defense<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10723,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/421"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10723"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=421"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/421\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":422,"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/421\/revisions\/422"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sites.evergreen.edu\/whatspastcooperpoint\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=421"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}