Insurgent Roles

It takes many types to make an insurgency cell successful. And let's be clear; a role is not an identity. You can have multiple roles, and multiple people can share a role. In fact, it's important to have every role covered by somebody who is the primary responsible for the role and at least one protege to continue their work when otherwise unavailable. So let's dive in and consider who we need in our circle to be successful.

The Makers

• The Stitcher: The person in charge of making high quality basic clothing, necessities, and repairs. They might not be a fasion designer; that's ok. This person is more about keeping you clothed or keeping your backpack in working order.

• The Builder: This is the handyman of the group. While it's true they are also extremely necessary for maintenance, the fact that their ability to build new is so important makes them one of the most important Makers.

• The Machinist: This might be a bit of a misnomer. Sure, they probably have a 3D printer. And a CNC machine. And a laser cutter. And other machines of the trades. But this person should also be able to forge with hands-on tools. This is the person that turns raw material into parts or tools that the other members turn into solutions.

The Feeders

• The Gardener: This is the person who turns soil, water, and sweat into produce. They might be limited in effectiveness by the space they have available but with the right support and community space they will keep the group well fed.

• The Processor: This is the person that can turn the garden produce into shelf stable or pre-packaged edible goodness. Anything from preservation to preparation, this person makes sure you arent just fed; you're enjoying your meal. Milk becomes cheese, grain becomes beer, these are the alchemists of the kitchen.

• The Baker: This is the person in charge of the pantry stables. The yeast wranglers and grain grinders, they turn dry goods into long lived sustenance and tasty treats. Working in tandem with The Gardner and The Processor, they pad your diet to make sure you're full as well as nourished.

The Responders

• The Medic: Not much needs said about the life-saving work of a medic. Whether it's just a quick bandage or the group's trauma response, The Medic's job is to get to the emergency fast and stabilize while the group figures out next steps.

• The Guard: The role nobody wants to need, The Guard is the person that handles when things get violent or dangerous. They teach the self defense, they establish the safety protocols. They keep you alive when the world takes a turn for trying to make you less so.

• The Helper: This is a general role that everybody should have a bit of and at worst should be the minimum role to join the cell. The Helper isn't necessary specialized aside from answering the call when somebody needs a hand. Maybe the gardener needs help with the harvest or the builder needs somebody to move some equipment. Sure, we all chip in when we can, but somebody being the first to call when you need something makes the whole group run smoother.

The Glue

• The Teacher: This is the person who watches the kids while we work. Maybe they teach a curriculum or maybe it's just a summer daycare, they allow the cell to focus on tasks at hand and ensure the next generation has a head start.

• The Dealer: At some point, every cell is going to realize they have the capacity to provide more than they need. And we live in a world where some are without, and others would just simply rather pay for more. The Dealer is the person talking to City Officials or running a booth at an art fair to raise funds for the group. We still have to work with the central system, and their job is to be our representative and open new doors.

The Maintainers

• The Technician: Lets face it, we live in a modern world with modern convenience. Which also makes for modern headaches. After you try turning it off and on again, you need somebody to take a look. Some things every technician should consider: More than computers go bad. The more you can repair, the less the group has to spend.

• The Mechanic: The person least likely to trust this system because everyone wants their car worked on for free, you need to go well out of your way to take care of the mechanic. They are the backbone of your transportation, which is likely going to be one of the biggest sources of your cost and headache.

This is but the short version of what will eventually be a bit more systematized. At the end of the day, even with all roles filled a cell will still have needs outside themselves. But every role filled is going to be a significant weight off the shoulders of everybody involved.