Survival StuffSurvival is a key aspect to winning any combat against the enemy; often times, enemies are holed up in arduous or hard to reach places, such as jungles or mountains, both to avoid being caught by society, to have clear open spaces to practice, and to make themselves more difficult targets in a defensive position. Going through harsh terrain to throw off the enemy or through open areas is also a possibility, but it can be extremely difficult, and even require some basic survival skills as an institutionalized method of advancing. As your average soldier can only carry about 3 days worth of food and water with no assistance, and this is still a heavy, 75 pound back, traveling any kind of distance, say a week or so, will require, more or less, finding food or water along the way assuming that it's available, will be necessary. While urban areas, traditionally devoid of life and replaced by concrete, is harder to survive in, stores or other areas make it possible to buy food and water, and thus advance in territories that are otherwise difficult to pass through.
Some special forces may utilize these techniques extensively, as long drawn out operations in harsh terrain will practically require that they live off the land or territory. While I do not claim to be a survival expert, I do know quite a bit about the subject. With that in mind, actual, real survival books are definitely encouraged, and basic knowledge about the subject can be read up upon. General concepts are that getting ahold of water and food, and starting a fire can be incredibly important for survival; keeping warm or cool is also very important, and some of it is equipment based. While equipment is very nice for specialized areas, general equipment for many scenarios is also available for a lot of things. Knives, wires or string, tarps, sleeping bags, water repellent materials, containers (capable of being cooked in or collecting water), firestarters, compasses and maps (navigation tools), needles, handkerchief and other materials, and first aid kits, are all useful in many areas. Tarps can both protect you from the weather and collect water, both in terms of condensation, dew collection, and water collection, while fire can cook and sterilize food and water, as well as warm you up. Thus easy to establish procedures are preferable. Things that are hard to replicate in nature, such as sharp knives (over blunt objects), string or wire, plastic waterproof tarps, lighters or other firestarters, needles, compasses, correct clothing, and other strong materials that can be cooked or hold on to materials. Inert materials, not effected by nature, and that are clean (I.E. free or dirt or other contagions) are also hard to find, so cleansing materials such as alcohol or hydrogen peroxide, soap, and other materials, are generally hard to find or make in a short time, in an emergency, allow for certain capabilities that can extend your time in harsh environments and tend to be multiple purpose tools that can greatly extend your capabilities beyond that of materials found in nature, or help you to obtain tools from nature much easier.
Legitimate survival guides can be expensive, however, several open sources documents, due to copyright laws regarding U.S. and other military's laws, allow for some available documents on the issue. The U.S.
Army Survival guide is completely free, and the
SAS survival guide is also available. Information from
Bear Grylls or
Les Stroud, on
Survivorman and
Man vs. Wild respectively, are also generally considered useful or adequate for survival. While there are plenty of options available, these are general ideas to help you survive in arduous conditions, be it far behind enemy lines on a mission, or just because you get lost or left behind.
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