>>12173740
Their superior abilities began to show soon enough, however, and once they'd overcome the initial surprise of the ambush, things rapidly moved against us. A grenade launcher first suppressed our fire, then killed Vasilyev with a direct hit. Any intention of fighting back further ended when we heard the whine of what sounded like a diesel engine and decided to break off back towards the gas station. Our instincts proved well-founded as a BMP-2 crashed through the underbrush and laid down cannon fire where we'd been mere seconds before. Moving as quickly and as carefully as we could to avoid being ran down, we made it to the gas station, avoided it in a wide arc, and moved across the road.

Our intention was to trap the soldiers and their IFV in the space anomaly, but what we got instead was a show of how lucky Twitch had been earlier. The BMP-2 moved without regard to structures between us when we fired at it to lure it; it caused the collapse of the main building when it took out a corner and tipped the ZIL-130 over. This spilled the barrel full of VX canisters, and as with us, they cracked. The military stalkers, with their faceplates open, realized their danger too late, dying in suffocating, convulsing agony as the BMP-2 battened down to avoid contamination. We managed to break off after that - the BMP had lost us in the underbrush.

>>12173747
Kuznetsov - Vlad to us now - decided to stick with us while he processed what he'd just went through. After that betrayal, there was no way he was going back to the military. We let him tag along as we finally got to our task for Russkie: tracking down Motor-Mouth. A quick stop at the gun dealer to sell useless items and buy ammunition got us a tip, and we tracked down Motor-Mouth to the "bar." Attempts to intimidate him failed; he'd apparently lost his suit and money gambling besides. However, he showed an interest in Damsel, and his judge of character turned out to be just as bad as his social skills.

After leading her back to his bunk for some fun, Damsel beat him into unconsciousness where no one could interfere, and we cleaned the impudent stalker up before pouring some vodka on him to make him look drunk. The unprofessional gate guard took our cover at our word, and we brought Motor-Mouth back to a familiar shack to ask some questions. When it proved true that he had lost all of his money, we decided to cart him back to Russkie. Russkie, flexible man that he was, didn't mind that we didn't have his money: beating Motor-Mouth to within an inch of his life proved enough.

We were finally able to pay for suits for the three of us - a heavy, medium, and light - though it cost us our detector and almost all of our funds. Now, we've taken a couple of days R&R to wait for Russkie to finish while Motor-Mouth putters around doing menial work to make up for his debt: certainly he doesn't fancy going out into the wild Zone unarmed. However, the time for rest is ending...

>>12173753
Is there any way we can retcon the detector being traded away? It was a point of contension in the earlier thread and never really resolved. And by never really resolved I mean I think it was a terrible idea.

Equipment:
-cold weather clothes (partially worn)
-heavy stalker suit
-moldy Red Army officer's cap
-lead-lined backpack
-flashlight
-utility knife
-night vision goggles
-Soviet scope (shared)
-trail rations
-PDA x1 (ours)
-primitive anomaly detector
-compass
-no bandages (+2 in group)
-no first aid kit (+2 in group)
-m1911
-Mossberg 88
-AKS-74
-3 grenades (+9 in group)
-jellyfish artifact
-24 shells, 19 slugs, 21 .45, 4 30-round 5.45 magazines
-236 RU

>>12173784
By the end, people were overwhelmingly in favor of it; we had a few people change over.

I'd prefer not to retcon that heavily, but if player sentiment is strong, I will.

Team Equipment

Bird
-AKS-74 w/ scope
-Sawn-off pump-action
-Fort-12
-3 grenades

Alexander/Twitch
-AKS-74
-MP-5
-Beretta
-3 grenades

-Katerina/Damsel
-RPK-74
-Skorpion machine pistol
-Fort-12
-3 grenades

Vladimir
-AKS-74
-Fort-12

>>12173801
That makes sense. I'm not saying we shouldn't sacrifice anything, but really, an extra 800 rubles is a hell of a lot easier to find than a shiny detector.

>>12173845
I understand the argument, however, we need the suits now, and Russkie is not willing to take credit.
We'll simply have to ambush another Western Agriprom bandit group that has one.

>>12173875
Those bandits you nailed weren't from the western agroprom, just doing business with them.

>>12173875
Really, what makes me regret it the most is that we used it so sparingly. We found what, 1 artifact with it? I vote from now on we spend more time artifact hunting.

>>12173888
Even better! We ambush bandits, take their stuff, if we're lucky we get a new advanced detector, we all win!

So, does Kuznetsov want to try to hang with Duty (given his military background), Petrov (to stay away from faction bullshit), or does he want to try to get the hell out of the Zone? He was ordered into the Zone, not coming here because he wanted to.

It's the second day spent at Russkie's, waiting for your suits, and as you cook a breakfast over an open fire, you're only slightly surprised when Vlad sits down next to you, warming his hands against the morning cold. You half-expected the soldier to vanish on the first night - certainly, he's on the 'outside' as it is - but then, where would he go? His comrades are dead, his superiors tried to kill him, and his sort are pariahs in the Zone.

You don't envy him.

"So Vlad," you say, "Now that we're out of the major bullshit, what were you planning to do with yourself?" you pause, "What about Duty? They're supposed to be friendly to former military-types."

Taking a swig from his canteen, Vlad wipes his mouth with the back of his hand before answering, "Yeah, I know of 'em - that is, we were briefed on them. Don't know if I trust folks that cozy with the army. Not after the guys," he trails off, shaking his head in disbelief.

"Well, we know another guy," you say, "ex-Soviet army. Chap named Petrov. We're on good terms, we could put in a word for you."

Vlad stares into the fire, not answering for a moment, "I'm just not sure. I never wanted to come to the Zone. It's a big choice to make, you know?"

>>12174014
Suggest he tag along with us for now. We won't screw him over, we're not connected to any of the factions for now, so he is free to make up his mind.

>>12174014
Freedom would give him ample opportunity for payback.

>>12174014
Well, he can stick with us until he decides what he wants to do. We'll do right by him.
And if he wants out, we can escort him to Cordon so he can escape the Zone.
Probably a better fate than any of us will find.

You're not sure how Bird'll take it - the two have been at each others' throats more than once - but so far, Vlad's proven to be a decent guy, and if there's anything you've tried to be consistent on in the Zone, it's not leaving others in the lurch. "Well," you say, "You're free to travel with us until you decide what to do. We don't really roll with the factions, either. After the bullshit we've been through, it only seems right."

Vlad's expression is unreadable, but the relief in his voice can be heard, "I appreciate that. I know how you stalkers feel about the army," he pauses, "Plus, you're pretty much the only folks I've met in the Zone that haven't shot at me or my mates. Least I can do is help throw a little lead at the Zone nasties."

"Well, you're going to need a stalker name if you're coming with us," it's Damsel, who's appeared behind the two of you along with Bird while you were talking, "because Corporal Vladimir Mikhailovich Kuznetsov, sir yes sir, won't do," she gives him a small smile to let him know she's ribbing.

Bird sits down, grunting as his knees pop, "Well, we'll have to make it good. What about Colonel Cosmo?"

Vlad merely looks at the stalker, unsure how to reply, then he speaks, "There's no way you're calling me that, it sounds like an American cartoon," Damsel laughs at his indignant tone, "I mean, you get cool stalker names like Twitch, and...ah, Bird...and," he trails off, "Actually, maybe I should just come up with my own stalker name."

You snort in amusement.

>>12174263
Alright, let's timeskip forward to when the suits are finished.
Are there any bounties or jobs that we were on? We need cash desperately.
If nothing else, we could try bushwacking bandits for equipment and money.

>>12174263
Hmm forgot about the beef between him and Bird. New mission: convert the Corporal from a military grunt into an awesome stalker.

>>12174263
Also, suggestion for a name: Grasshopper. The Russian-speakers will appreciate that one.

>>12174347
You weren't on any jobs, but last you heard the news, a military Hind was missing, the Red Forest expedition wounded were dying (those few left), amd Duty was still offering a contract to clear out the Dark Valley of a mutant influx.

>>12174388
Actually now that I think about it, Forge or Blacksmith would be better.

>>12174402

>>12174394
Ask Kuznetsov if he heard anything about a Hind going missing in the Zone.
Mutant hunting sounds pretty straightforward, but what can we do about the Red Forest survivors?
Explore the Red Forest?

Lets head back to 100 rads and see if barkeep has anything that needs doing. While we head back lets stop around and look for some artifacts to see how lucky we are.

>>12174422
Sure, might as well go there.
We can see if there are any leads concerning the Hind and the Red Forest, as well.

>Playing Stalker, check tg. Find Stalker Quest
>My face

Let's go artifact hunting around Russkie's house. Or mutant hunting. Either one works.

>>12174419
At this point, we'd be murdered. We need better guns. So, more jobs and artifact hunting! Oh boy, if only we had a good detector....OK I'll stop being bitter, I promise.

Oh and on the guns side, see if the recent favor we did to duty will get us a look at their guns.

>>12174451

I was on the camp for keeping the detector. But support for heavy armor (since we're point) was overwhelming. Now we just need a Viking helmet. Or some helms to glue to our hood.

>>12174394
Mutants don't generally have much in the way of valuables so I vote we steer clear of that. It's a duty contract as well even if it's not one against another faction and Vlad wanted to avoid them.

>Ask Kuznetsov if he heard anything about a Hind going missing in the Zone.

You guys actually asked him this; apparently it happened while his squad was isolated in the space anomaly, so he hadn't heard.

>what can we do about the Red Forest survivors?
I don't know; most blowout victims that survive die afterwards.

With your new suits on hand...well, on body...and your little aches and pains rested up, you head back east of Russkie's house, planning to swing back up towards 100 Rads and do some artifact searching on the way. You're damn low on cash and few things in the Zone sell like an artifact, after all.

Of course, that leaves you with a question: which way to go? The basic route will take you through the forests back toward the garbage, though you won't benefit from the lake town's hospitality again...not that you'd ask for it, after what happened. You could also head up through the unoccupied areas of Rostok, though the way'd be longer and new to you. Conferring with Bird, he gives his two roubles, "Frankly, I don't see any need to poke around the Wild Territory, but either way, we're going to be dealing with mutants, anomalies, and long nights. In the Wild Territory, there are at least buildings to shelter in."

>>12174514

Wild territory it is. I don't like the idea of camping in the Zone without a tent.

>Currently stuck in agroprom west building w/ angry grunts during a blowout.

>>12174514
Let's swing through the Wild Territory, then. I don't want to be caught in the open if a blowout occurs.

>>12174514
I'm good for Wild Territory. Underbrush makes it hard to see anomalies and critters coming. Plus more hiding places and looting porspects.

>>12174539
>>12174542
Wildmind. The collective has spoken.

WULD TERRITURIY it is!

While the direct route has its appeal, the thought of camping out in the open Zone does not, "Do you have experience with the Wild Territory, Bird?"

Bird grunts, "Some. It's pseudo-Duty territory, what with Yanov and the Rostok camp right there. Lots of old industrial buildings, lots of anomalies, plenty of mutants."

"Sounds like a charming place," Damsel says dryly.

"Better than waking up to a blowout with nothing for cover but radioactive trees," you say, "and after the VX, I don't think it could get worse."

"See, now that you say that, it will," Twitch grouses.

You move. The forest doesn't give you up willingly - more than a few boars and blind dogs meet their ends on the tip of a 5.45 - but it's child's play after being attacked by an IFV. You eventually find a railroad track and begin following it according to Bird's directions. Ahead, you see a few forlorn warehouses of undecipherable purpose, mostly crumbled. With the edges of evening presenting themselves by this time, you can make out the glow of a fire in the part of one that hasn't tumbled down.

>>12174731
No hits on our anomaly detector?
Anyway, we should have either Twitch or Bird scout out the inhabited building to see if its safe for us to come in.

>>12174731
Standard reaction. Keep low and give the place a once over with the binocs, could be a lure, could be a patrol , or maybe just loners.

>>12174731

Watch out for ambushes. Could be a trap for unsuspecting Stalkers. Either way, approach. Maybe a friendly bonfire.

You're used to the routine by now - keeping low, you scout the place out with your binoculars to try and get a feel for what you might be dealing with. When you've finally positioned yourselves to get a good view, you get a bit of a surprise - around eight motley-looking stalkers carrying various equipment, milling about the fire pit; a couple look like guys right out of the Cordon.

"That's surprisng," Bird says, examining them through his scope, "this is a pretty dead region."

You look more closely; it's hard to tell from here, but they seem to be twitchy or shivering. It is cool out, and this is a dangerous part of the Zone, so you can hardly blame them.

"Maybe they can point us at an anomaly field," Damsel suggests, "further back in Rostok."

"They don't look very well-organized," Vlad says doubtfully, "They don't even seem to have a real watch posted."

"Sun hasn't even set," Twitch says.

Trap, I feel trap

>>12174837
Get send us forward (heavy armor/intimidation factor) and have everyone cover us? The shivering and twitching is giving me shenanigan vibes. Zombies?

>>12174875

Seconded. Ask Bird if he thinks they're genuine Rookies. Circle around to see if there's someone waiting.

>>12174837

Are they standing?

Swap our suit with twitch's and creep forward. We're all about the same size.

>>12174945

No, we're not. Twitch is about 5'5"~'7", we're something along the lines of 6'1"~3", from what I gather.

Have twitch and bird go scout the surrounding area. We can act as a quick response force and damsel can provide cover and/or follow us.

You're not sure you want to move in; you've got misgivings. What's with the shivering?

"Bird," you say, "What're the chances of greenhorns like that getting out here?"

Bird pauses to consider, "Anything's possible; we're not far from greenhorns ourselves. Larger groups make it easier, too. Still, the Wild Territory is dangerous territory and doesn't have the big financial draw of the center of the Zone," he pauses, "Frankly, the twitching and jittering reminds me of zombies."

"What, like Night of the Living Dead?" Twitch asks.

"More-or-less," Bird replies, "except with guns and the brains to use them. Barely."

It makes sense, but being sure never hurt, "Bird? Twitch? You guys mind getting a closer look?"

Neither of them does, and the three of you watch while the lightly-equipped stalkers move forward a good ways to get a better look. You can see Bird gesturing and looking at Twitch, and then they move back.

"Definitely zombies," he says grimly.

>>12174990
If we cover them from 2 sides a crossfire would be more likely to take them down before they find cover if things go south. I say we at least call out and let them prove their normality before we scream and spray them with bullets though.

>>12175046

Well, let's shoot them. If they're anything like the zombies from the game, they're lightly armored, die quick, and can't aim for shit. We'll each pick one (I'd prefer if we load our shotgun with slugs, and pick off as many as we can that way).

How did they get zombified? Controller or something else? Also what is the easiest and cheapest way to kill them.

>>12175064

This. While from cover. With extra man power, we can do a three-way cross fire. Bosse stands alone, seeing as we're probably the biggest guy of our 5 man squad.

>>12175064

Zombies don't take cover; they just moan and shamble at you, firing from the hip all the while.

>>12175080
If I remember correctly, you get zombified from prolonged exposure to psy-radiation, from a controller, or from crazy shit like the brain scorcher.

Guys zombies just don't make themselves, and why are they in such a large group? Why aren't they walking around mindlessly? Why are they all staying in one spot?

>>12175080

Shoot them in the head. No really. Or sneak up on them and then stab them. But that's dangerous.

>>12175115

That's how they act in the games; you can sometimes find camps of them, sitting around and shaking, or maybe walking in a circle.

>>12175115
Might be they were a group of rookies that thought the warehouse was good cover for the emission and, being rookies, guessed wrong.

I still think we should investigate the area more before we go all rambo on the zombies.

>>12175164

Blowout emissions generally just outright kill you. And eat your corpse. Becoming a zombie is the result of excessive exposure to psychich emissions. Which, depending on the area, will turn you into a Monolith Stalker/zombie.

Well, you're not about to leave dangerous mutants in the Zone if you can help it, and some explanation from Bird reveals that they're really quite stupid, shambling towards sounds and movements that catch your attention. You plan to set up a V formation with two stalkers making up each limb; as you and Vlad have the heaviest ballistic armor, you'll be the tips on each side. Damsel will draw them in with a couple of shots from her saw, and the five of you will open up at once after they've come forward into the crossfire.

"Should be easy," Vlad says, cautiously.

"Just make sure you keep shooting," Bird says, "They barely feel pain and will keep coming despite it. Remember that it only takes one hit."

Once in cover, you set your plan into action. Damsel calls out to the stalkers, her voice carrying well in the cold air; you want to be sure. A few of the zombies stir and one starts shambling forward and moaning jibberish, and that's all you need; Damsel sights her RPK and fires, a quick single-shot to get their attention.

Roll 2d20. One for Damsel's shot (easy roll), one for the zombies (determines their response).

rolled 15, 13 = 28

>>12175275

>>12175292

Good roll, although the Zombie stalkers' one is worrisome.

rolled 17, 4 = 21

>>12175307

Could've been worse. At least we'll actually hit them.

>>12175292
The crack of Damsel's RPK-74 definitely gets their attention; the initial shot catches the shambling unfortunate between the eyes and he drops readily. The zombies respond quickly despite their sluggishness, turning and moving toward Damsel's cover while gibbering nonsense. Here and there there's the occasional shot; a TOZ-34 booms, an MP-5 rattles, but it's not well-directed fire. Damsel opens up in earnest with controlled bursts. Damn, but these zombies move slow! You urge them on so that they'll get into the crossfire and you can simply cut them down. Until then, Damsel's facing them alone.


Roll 2d20. One for Damsel's fire, one for the zombies. Damsel is in cover but the focus of any fire until you others open up.

>>12175329
Would've liked this more but you take what you get. Once we deal with these half lobotomized shamblers we should loot and scoot, gunfire usually draws attention.

>>12175356
(Note: obviously their fire was ineffective, the main thing to gather here is that they're ALREADY firing...)

rolled 4, 12 = 16

>>12175356

Could you use my 17 and 4? If not, here's another roll.

FUCK YES TIME TO TUNE IN AND READ THE THREAD

rolled 15, 5 = 20

>>12175372

fgsfds.jpg

>>12175372
Other roll, OTHER ROLL!

>>12175292

Thank GODs that its not another 1, 20.

>>12175379

Seconded. Probably her shots are just going to hit shoulders.

>>12175372

Hopefully translates to a crap round. Where essentially nothing gets done.

>>12175372

WHY?!

Just throwing this post in here before I finish catching up:

We are ex Swedish military, yes? And Captain Cosmo obviously is.

Next time we get some down time in what pass for civilization in the zone, we need to make Bird, Twich and Damsel go through boot camp.
Seriously though, we have two military men in our group, the least we could do is train our friends, colleagues and brothers in arms about how to fight effectively in a small task force. Assign them roles so everyone knows what to do in any given situation. I don't think anyone in our group wants to be a liability and we have the knowledge and ability to teach them.

Bird will obviously need to educate us on the zone, anomalies and mutants.

>>12175372
Maybe Damsel's initial success just flustered her, or maybe she's still not used to the bigger weapon, but her burst fire is less effective than you could have hoped, doing little besides wingi ng a couple of zombies nonlethally. Bird wasn't kidding, though - they simply ignore their wounds and shuffle on. Damsel, for her part, is drawing far more fire now. It's still erratic and badly-placed, but you see her hunch closer to the earth as rounds whine off of her cover, chipping bits away. Twitch, your partner for this ambush, looks over at you anxiously.

The zombies aren't quite in the right position yet, but...

(Decide whether to open up early or hold fire to get your full effect.)

>>12175420

We're ex Swedish military, and yes, Colonel Cosmo is ex Ukrainian military. Although it's never been specified as to exactly WHAT we were doing.

Signal damsel to stop firing and take full cover. We will wait for the zombies.

>>12175445

Throw a grenade. Just toss it at them. If it stuns them, then we pop in and out of cover firing on them. Doubtful if covering fire will work on them.

>>12175461

This.

Also, may I just say that Colonel Cosmo is the single dumbest name I've ever seen, Jesus Christ. How about just Colonel, or Cosmonaut?

>>12175445
Wait for the opportune moment, Damsel is in cover and has their attention, but she can keep her head down and can just pop up once they enter the killzone. The idea here is to catch them in overlapping fields of fire. Hopefully once we spring the trap they'll be confused (no stretch) and mill about for a second or two and give us enough time to wipe them out.

You signal Damsel to drop down; the zombies are really coming on hard now, and once they're in the crossfire, you can open up on them all at once without Damsel risking herself in the meantime. As zombie gunfire smashes uselessly into the concrete rubble protecting Damsel you see her palm a grenade, pop the pin, and throw. Clever girl.

Roll a d20.

rolled 2 = 2

>>12175527
Nobylan and Mitenun

>>12175546
Favor zombies it seems.

>>12175546

You are an awful, awful man.

>>12175546

O UNHAPPY DICE


WHY MUST YOU RAISE OUR HOPES AND DASH THEM 'GAINST THE ROCKS LIKE THE ONCE MIGHTY ARMADA OF SPAIN? IS THERE NO END TO YOUR CRUELTY? IS THERE NAUGHT WE CAN DO TO APPEAL YOUR SAVAGE AND UNSIGHTLY BLOODLUST?

>>12175571
We could threaten to sic Putin on them.

>>12175571
>>12175565
>>12175564

Maybe I should have added "protect Damsel." Suffice to say, I'm not rolling anymore.

At the very least, its not a critical failure with a nade.

>>12175546
The RGD-5 tumbles through the air in a smooth arc, but the blind throw was not quite well-judged for the distance between Damsel and the zombies; the grenade plops to the earth and then fails again, sitting inert in the grass. At least, you reason, the dud grenade wasn't used at a more critical juncture. Now the zombies are finally staggering into your crossfire, still shooting stupidly at Damsel's cover; the din they make with their gibbering is maddening; you think you pick out one saying "spoons" over and over before returning to incoherent grunts and moans.

"Now!" you yell, drawing a bead over a zombie with your mossberg and firing; the others respond immediately, and even Damsel manages to roll over and get back on her gun.

Roll 6d20. Five are for you guys, one for the zombies. They're at a disadvantage because their terrible reflexes and the fact that you ambushed them.

rolled 17, 11, 14, 20, 4, 11 = 77

>>12175614

Noblyan and Mitenum are fags; let's find new gods who care about us. If these are good rolls, Allah is our new patron deity.

>>12175637


ALLAH'S WILL HAS BEEN SHOWN TO US! ALLAH'U ACKBAR!

>>12175637
Well, I'm sold. ALLAHU AKBAR!

>>12175637

Well done, but perhaps you should hold off rolling now. I got a feeling you've exhausted your Nat 20s for the session.

>>12175647
>>12175644
Allahmind. Surely we have been shown the true path.

>>12175637

>Turns out the 20 is for the zombies
Getter never said WHICH dice is for who.

With the advantages of your cover, surprise, formation, and the sluggishness of the zombies, you create an instant slaughter. Your shotgun slug catches a TOZ-wielding zombie in the neck, dropping it immediately. Twitch riddles another with 5.45, the senseless monstrosity still staggering one step closer to Damsel before dropping its sawn-off TOZ-66 and collapsing. Bird manages to nail one of the shamblers carrying an automatic through the torso twice with his AKS-74, finally ending its erratic bursts of fire. If Damsel had flubbed it before, she succeeds superbly now, walking a line of fire across both of the closest zombies; they drop immediately. Only Vlad's shots are ineffective, smacking into one of the zombies Damsel hit a split-second before; he manages to walk the last round into a standing zombie's hip, but it's a shallow wound.

The zombies are only now realizing that they've been ambushed, the last two moving sluggishly to rally against their tormentors. One rattles off a burst at Bird, the other, wounded by Vlad, presses on against Damsel.

Roll 3d20, one for you guys on mop-up, one for each zombie (disadvantage).

rolled 17, 9, 16 = 42

>>12175736
Allah'u Ackbar!

>>12175745

Allah'u Ackbar!

>>12175745
Well someone was likely hit.

>>12175772

At least it wasn't a 20. LIKE WHAT HAPPENED TO TWITCH.

Thankfully we got these new suits!

>>12175745
The zombie attempting to slaughter Bird suddenly loses the ability to fight even ineffectively, your second slug entering where the spine meets the base of the skull and annihilating everything within; even as his attacker is still dropping, Bird has turned his fire on the remaining zombie, catching it in the back several times.

But too late; the zombie manages to rattle off a last round at Damsel, and this one finds its way over cover to smack into her left bicep, albiet at a disadvantageous angle.

Roll a d20 to see how her suit held up.

rolled 16 = 16

>>12175798

>>12175637
We are NOT jihad-ing in the FUCKING ZONE!

And I hope your quiz went well, Getter.

I still say Damsel should have gotten heavy armor to be our I Am Heavy Weapons Woman, and we get the medium armor to get up close and give people shotguns in the face.

But did anyone listen to me? NOOOoOOoooo

>>12175818
Can we keep the zeal and good rolls?

>>12175818

Who is who in that pic? Obviously the person in front is Bosse/Viking, the person with the SAW is Damsel (lol), what about Twitch, Bird, and Vlad?

>>12175818
I like our numbers. A 5 man squad is good.

We should start doing work for Petrov. I'm suspicious of his motives in the zone. Seems like Getter is setting him up to be a benevolent dictator type. But shit, he's still a pretty cool guy.

>Quest pusevens
I don't even know what to make of that.

>>12175839
Yes. Even though it'll make me twitch every goddamn time.

>>12175828
Hey, I agreed with that.

>>12175851

But... he's Putin-incarnate!

>Playing modded SoC atm. Right about to go assrape some bandits in Red Valley. Wish me luck.

>>12175845
Twitch is the shorty between us. Bird is between us and Damsel, and Vlad is in the back checking out DAT ASS.

>>12175868

Ah jeez, I just realized how perfect the faces are for each of them.

>>12175845
The way I look at it, from left to right, it goes Bird, the cherry, Bosse, Twitch, and Damsel.
(It was just a random picture from my "milspec" folder.)

>>12175856
Weasel I am counting on you for >>12175420 because I almost always miss these threads due to loltimezones.

>>12175865
Exactly. I'd rather be on his side. We'd be spending more time around him, the tradeoff is he sees us as useful enough to keep around.

>>12175818
It did, thanks.
>>12175812
You're about to get into motion when Damsel pops up, looking surprised, "I'm okay, I'm okay!"

With the zombies rapidly cooling in the evening air, you're free to crowd around your teammate and check for yourself; indeed, the hit seems to have been marginal enough that even the comparatively thin armor on the arms of the suit were able to ward off the shot, though certainly there's some damage to the body glove. A pity, but better than a bullet in the bicep.

Vlad, with perhaps the least investment in Damsel's well-being, is the first to turn an eye to the surrounding area, "Good," he says, "but now what?"

You know what - time to round up weapons. Prying them from the zombies doesn't take long, and earns you a respectable cache. Two TOZ-34s, a sawn-off T-66, an MP-5 with a broken stock, a badly-worn mossberg, two AKS-74s, and an AKS-74U. Damsel whistles appreciatively once the guns are all together, massaging her arm.

Only one problem: you can't take them all with you.

>>12175915
I can do it, but it would take some planning on my part. Like a day or two, not something to be done tonight. Hell, I could even make a Power Point presentation. But, it depends on Getter, and what Bosse/Viking was in the Swedish military, and saying my knowledge counts as his.

>>12175931
Dump the MP-5, Mossberg, and T-66. How many of the rest can we carry?

Check their pockets as well. Sure to have PDAs and possibly other little nick nacks. Written notes and the like. Keys, etc.

Worry about the guns later, inspect the warehouse they were gathered better. Cautiously though. A controller or some shit might be in there.

>>12175931
Take only the ones in the best condition, and then only two-four. Take all the usable ammo we can. There's no such thing as too many bullets. Even infinite ammo isn't enough bullets.

>>12175931
Pop the magazines out of the ones we don't take. Also check them for other assorted goods and see if they have PDAs.

>>12175931

I'm going to blindly assume we can each take one gun as loot? I can't appraise them off the top of our head, but I'm sure someone in our group/thread can value them.

Did we find anything good in the way of ammo/medical supplies? I know we're a tich low.

>>12175953
I'd be willing to take information if you guys wanna do this (my military knowledge is superficial at best), but consider:

-We haven't set Bosse's experience beyond assaulting a superior officer. (Why? When? Just out of basic?)
-You guys don't know anything about Vlad's experience save that he was a Zone virgin.

While damsel, cosmo, and twitch loot.

Bird and ourself can go any check out the warehouse

>>12175931
Just tie the straps together with rope or tape!

in before no straps.

Let's just grab what's most valuable, and don't forget to go through their pockets and backpacks for food an ammunition.

>>12175931

Then we take the most useful and expensive gear.

Then we do what all stalkers do.

Make a Bloody Cache!

>>12175969
You can each carry - reasonably - one long gun more, but it'll be bulky; Vlad can carry two before he hits bulk-tier.

The TOZ-66, AKS-74U, and MP-5 could all be carried by any one of you without the bulk problem, but the weapon'd be practically inaccessible.

>>12175953
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C3%A4rskilda_Skyddsgruppen

>>12176003
Even though Vlad is a zone cherry, he's probably still got a bit of experience, being he was an NCO. Junior one, but still. And he's either a shit bag or he's damn good at his job to get sent here.

As for Bosse, if we have a link to the very first quest, I'd appreciate it, just to look at it and get a feel for his history.

And he's got to be combat arms, specifically infantry or special forces type. No fucking way a POG or NIF would go to the zone. They're all about their cushy jobs.

>>12176042
Alternatively, you can have a gun mule or two and carry it all, but they won't be fighting or dodging worth dick carrying that.

>>12175931

What's a T-66?

>>12175953
It was established earlier that we are indeed ex-Swedish Military. Although as to why we're ex and in the Zone was never quite fleshed out. Something about bad behavior, although I doubt something of that degree warrants fleeing from your nation.

>>12176055
Sorry, TOZ-66; side-by-side shotgun, only ever seen sawn-off in the games.

>Chavez publem

I dunno captcha, he seems like a bag of hot air to me.

>>12176054
We should find some rubble and bury the excess in some of the zombies clothing to keep it cleanish.

>>12176049
Thank you.

>>12176005
Mod of this. Damsel - security, Twitch and Bosse - check warehouse, Bird and Vlad - loot. With Bird instructing Vlad about what to take and what to leave.

>>12176054
Give the two AK-74S to Vlad. That will still keep him under bulk. Split the rest between the other members of the party.

Also seconding searching the zombies pockets.

Don't head into the warehouse until we are all together. And I swear if we run into another controller I'll be pissed.

>>12176055
Maybe bosse was too ambitious and stressed out/under a lot of pressure which made him snap, then he made a really bad call and felt like getting the fuck out and go on a god damn adventure to cool off.

So being all angry and stressed he went to the god damn zone and now he's here like it or not.

Maybe got cockblocked by a superior so we couldn't join an operation in a hot spot and really wanted to go out and shoot people. Now we're just living in the zone because it's awesome to live on the edge.

>>12176050
Vlad managed to keep his group together through an ambush everyone else, being stuck in the zone, and spending several days trapped in the spatial anomaly. He's at least some balls.

We seem to be kicking ass pretty efficiently ourselves.

>>12176176
Considering our help-everyone behavior so far, I'd say something more like an officer tried sending our squad on a suicide mission, we cold-cocked him (possibly after losing the squad) and he used influence to get us kicked out.

Leaving Damsel on security, you and Twitch head for the warehouse while Bird and Vlad grab what's useful from the corpses; it looks mostly like scattered ammunition, which will come in handy. You'll probably be taking the TOZ-34s, the AKS-74s, the AK-74U, and TOZ-66; it looks as if you will be able to carry either the mossberg or busted-up MP-5 as well, but that'd leave literally all of you bogged-down to some degree, and that might not be wise.

Securing the warehouse, however, is immediately more important. As you approach the silent structure, you begin to feel a pressure in your head build - a familiar feeling now, the feeling of the samaritan, the feeling of the controller; you keep your gun ready and move carefully forward, reasoning that if it was a mutant, it'd have shown itself by now.

Now your detector is beeping, its low-quality components apparently detecting an anomaly of some kind. You stand just before the hole in the wall the zombies came from; the fire within throws shadows on the walls and against rotten boxes and machine hulks.

I'm thinking he was discharged. Going though so many combat operations fucked with his head. Not "I need pills to not kill on site" but more "Life is nothing without adrenaline pounding ALL THE TIME." Probably came time to get out and he did. Tried the private contractor (read: mercenary) circuit, too boring, and came to the Zone.

As for the bad behavior? Probably disobeyed orders to stand by, stand down, or just got fed up with the bullshit and slugged a superior. God, there's been days I know I've wanted to.

>>12176249
Double tap... err, double CHECK that nothing's going to be coming around the corners of the building and harming the group. Then take a peek into the warehouse.

Know what we need? A MIRROR ON A STICK!

>>12176249
Back away, and throw bolts, because that's what you do with anomalies. Also since we have the heavy suit we should have some protection against psy.

Getter can you confirm?

Don't step into the building at all.

Gather the rest of the team, reload, prep grenades, and toss some bolts into the warehouse.

>>12176249
Make with the rusty bolt. Also steer clear of the machine wrecks if we can, they always seem to be irradiated. If the psy buzzing gets to be too much we should retrace our steps and take a breather outside and let one of the others have a go.

>>12176222
>>12176176

I'm going to use the Mafia backstory a little bit, but with slight reversal roles.

So Bosse does some grand-slam awesome shit on a mission, gets some relatively low-level commendation, and for that gets invited to some fancy social dinner party with a lot of top military brass. Meets a girl, do the whole romance dance shit, ends up sleeping with said girl. Unfortunately it turns out she's the daughter of one of the higher ups, and daddy's not too happy. Cue a fistfight later with a superior officer under "orders" from angry dad, we get the hell our, because we realize not only does the dad have power, but he's an overprotective fuck.

>>12176312
Should we even bother exploring? Getter said if it was a mutant it should have shown itself by now. That means some kind of anomaly that creates zombies. Sounds like a great place to not explore. Shouldn't we just walk away?

>>12176340
Sounds good. We need somewhere to hide and we kick ass, why not try our luck getting rich in the Zone?

>>12176347
Artifact possibilities are pretty much the only reason to stick around.

>>12176282
>>12176249

I'm right here with Frosted Weasel on this one. Exercise some extreme caution and get ready to either throw six grenades in a controller's face or stand gloriously in your heavy armor and don't give a fuck when low rolls mean you get hit by attacks. Because Heavy Armor means fuck your rifle rounds and fuck the low rolls.

Hey Frosted- what's room clearing procedure for an unsecured building with an unknown layout and unknown number of targets for a five-man team?

>touton tempo

DANCE GERMANS! DANCE!

You stop; it seems to be an anomaly. Considering for a moment, you pull a handful of rusty bolts from your pocket and toss them into the warehouse; nothing but their soft thump as they hit the ground. Signaling the others to move up, you turn to Twitch, "Do you have a shaving mirror?"

Twitch digs around in his pocket to come up with a pitiful but functional example, and you fasten it to the end of your rifle with a bit of duct tape - something only an idiot would go to the Zone without. You check first one side of the gap, then the other.

There's a man there, a glazed, unfocused look in his eyes. He appears to have a broken ankle and is clutching a sawed-off shotgun; you almost start with surprise, but he doesn't seem to have registered your mirror trick.

>>12176368
No way are we rushing into an anomaly squad style. Bolts, man, bolts!

>>12176368

Right now we're at four men, since Damsel is doing security.

Call over Damsel, time for group huddle. Confirm with everyone else (except Vlad) of psywave emission headache pressure.

Hope it's not a mini-brain scorcher.

>>12175915
I've already got a list of stuff to "teach" to the group, a basic breakdown of a fire team for them, and information for improving that breakdown.

And the check I mentioned was to be around the OUTSIDE of the building. If we're getting funky vibes off of it, and getting closer makes 'em worse, link back in with the main element.

>>12176286
>Also since we have the heavy suit we should have some protection against psy.


Some, yes, but it's harder to come by in this game (good protection) than in the vidya. Heavy stalker armor provides respectable NBC coverage and good protection against bullets, though.

>>12176347
It's prolonged exposure or a fucking high level anomaly that'd be setting off more oshit radar. A quick in and out won't do us any lasting harm, beyond a migraine and some nightmares. Besides we're at a monetary lowpoint right now, an artifact would be damn handy to get our balance up to a level where we can afford to pay for repairs and any unforseen expenses.

>>12176402
(And therefore the best protection from low rolls)

>>macklend cows

>>12176372
Grenade him after doing >>12176393's check.

>>12176402

Don't want to sound like a noob, but what does NBC stand for?

And considering that Strelok has not only once, but TWICE made it past the brain scorcher (and deactivating it the second time), do think the ecologists (Hello, hello guy) have managed to mass produce the psychic emissions blocking equipment yet?

>>12176372
What's the appearance of said man? Clothing? Is he muttering?

If not, I say rescue attempt. Tie a rope around Bosse, hand one end to team. Bosse goes in, if he starts slowing down or stumbling, gets pulled out. Go in carefully, keeping an eye on the mans gun. He thinks about moving it toward us, we shoot to kill.

>>12176368
Center fed or corner? And I mean I could honestly give ALL DAY classes on this shit and have you all doing it at muscle memory in a week.

>>12176372
I say again, back off. Link up with the rest of the team. A good leader knows when to give orders and when to shut up and let his team work and take their advice.

>>12176427
>What NBC stands for
Nuclear
Biological
Chemical

They're types of warfare.

>>12176433
Team's is alread with us.

>>12176427
NBC is either the National Broadcasting Company or Nuclear/Biological/Chemical contamination. Three guesses as to which one it is in this situation. And feel free to ask questions. How else are you gonna learn?

FYI: The new acronym is CBRNE, or Chemical/Biological/Radiological/Nuclear/Explosive. I have no idea what the difference is between radiological and nuclear. Best guess I can venture is between a proper nuke and a dirty bomb.

>>12176472
Radiological will also cover all types of radiation emissions, inculding directed energy weapons like lasers. Though I'm just guessing as well.

>>12176433
I don't know what either center fed or corner means. The information I get on stuff is secondhand through my family- my dad was in the city SWAT team a few years before getting his leg messed up falling down a flight of stairs, and bar one, every male member of my family has been an officer or a soldier. The other one designed the F-117 Nighthawk with a team. Which is appropriate for the situation; center fed or corner?

>>12176428
Honestly, this isn't a bad idea. Just make sure to clear corners and dead space as well as possible. And dude on the ground has a weapon, he is a threat. Deal with the threat and continue on to the point of domination (corner of the room).

>>12176472
I'm guessing by radiological they mean microwaves. I've seen an article in a science magazine about a directed microwave emitter that could be used for crowd control or non-lethal takedown. It basicly covers the target with microwaves for a moment or two. It was described as being hit with pepper spray everywhere and it can affect several people in the direction it is pointed.

>>12176507
Center-fed means the door is in the center of a wall. Corner-fed means the door is where two walls join. And heading for the point of domination like I mentioned, travel along the walls, not through the center of the room.

>>12176507
Guessing that means where the entrance is located, in the center of the place or in one corner.

Looking carefully at the man, you begin to think he might be sleeping - he shares the dishevelled appearance of the other zombies and the same glazed look, but the lack of suddering or bleating seems unusual. Informing the others and moving back to cover the door, you check the external corners of the building in much the same way and find nothing. Linking back with the others, you decide to check the guy before you simply blow him away. A call out to him once, twice, is not answered with words; the second earns a confused bleat but no movement from the crippled figure. You turn to Damsel.

"Nade him."

Damsel's throw manages to land right on the guy; you know this because when you peek around the corner again, the zombie has sprouted a hole in his chest.

"So do we check it out?" Twitch asks anxiously; the head-pressure feeling is making you all nervous.

"If we are, we'd better be careful," Bird says, "Psy-anomalies are unforgiving. There's not healing from a fried brain."

The artifact detector portion of your detector gives a single chirp, as if to mock Bird's caution.

>>12176428
>>12176508

Like these ideas. Also see if we can stick our arm through and throw a rock/bolt at him. Mainly to judge his reaction.

>>12176520
I've seen youtube videos of that thing. Looked painful.

Anyway,
>glazed, unfocused look in his eyes
tells me this guy is zombified like the rest. We can try calling out, but I doubt he'll respond.

>tells me this guy is zombified like the rest.

You ever had an untreated broken ankle?

(but in this case you guys were right, so)

>>12176531

Seeing as the zombie-man is dead, but the psy-emission head pressure is still there, I say we check the other buildings/ruins for some cover. Maybe we can stay there for the night.

In any case, let's not go in. Like Bird said, Zombification is a one way street.

>>12176531
Well shit. I vote we go in, using the rope plan from before. But do a very limited search of the space. Cover ground quickly and leave, though watch out for other anomalies along the way.

Again, Bosse goes in, tied to a rope, others watch him and pull him out if he exhibts any symptoms.

Advance with bolts on point.

Also: Archive this wondrous thread, because I'm gonna pass out soon enough. STALKER time is fun time.

>>12176531
That's enough for you, and besides, you have an idea. After Bird's tied a rope around your waist, you move smoothly around the edge of the hole, hugging the wall and keeping an eye out for lurking threats.

Nothing.

Well, except the building pressure in your head, now accompanied by nausea. Everything seems strangely saturated with color, and that makes you shudder as you remember the controller's sadistic assaults.

Your artifact detector is beeping steadily now, when turned towards one of the iron hulks at the center of the room.

>>12176531
Stop. In STALKER universe, metal provides weak, yet, somewhat of a protection from psy emissions, hell, heavy duty iron grids often repel almost all of it! Look around for scrap metal first

>>12176428
Say we still go for the rope around the waist. Have Boss go in, and if he either gives a pre-arranged signal or just stops moving, yank his ass out. Go in with the 1911 and the detector, slow and easy.

>>12176583
Oh wait, better idea. Before we go in, take our detector, and tie it securely to a rope. Then throw toss it into the room. Repeat until we pinpoint location of artifact.

If necessary, preceed each throw with a toss of a bolt to check for other anomalies.

An idea, take the detector, tie a string to it, slide it across the floor ghost busters style, pull it back, rinse and repeat a few times to get a handle on where an artifact might be without frying brain cells. That way we have a decent idea of where the artifact might be before we run in there

>>12176593
I wonder if there is some idiot stalker out there wearing an old style dive helmet to protect him from controllers.

>>12176607
>>12176621
FUUUUCCK

detector throw mind

>>12176591
Out for a quick break and then back in. Now move quickly but carefully. Slow is smooth, smooth is fast. And, damnit, I don't make my guys do anything I won't do or haven't done, I won't let Bosse not be the same way.

>>12176625
I think you mean genius, not idiot.

>>12176625
Proabably.
Better safe than sorry...

>>12176632
Could it be....
Holy diver?

>>12176627
just send in a bolt first so we don't send our only detector into a gravitaional anomaly hidden by the darkness. idthysit Chokyi wow the psy anomaly is really screwing with capchas head.

everyone knows diving helmets don't work.

Pots, strainers, colanders, do

I think the iron hulk may be channeling some brain scorcher shit...

Either way, let's go away from it. Excessive exposure is probably what got the other stalkers.

>>12176628
Agree with this, exit to recover (as long as it takes, artifact is not going anywhere). On return trip, combine with
>>12176607
>>12176621

>>12176648
So for fucks sake, lets go grab some scrap metal first! back out! time spent is better than going into a drooling freak!

>>12176643
You've been down too long in the midnight sea
Oh what's becoming of me

>>12176665
Getter said a little earlier that psy protection was not as easy in this version of the world.

>>12176686
You know what? As much as it would be worth to get the artifact, it's better to be a live chicken than a dead duck. Leave it be. Unless one of the other team members wants to try. If they do, give them a detailed description of the room. And I don't know about this sliding and flinging of the detector. Yeah we don't NEED it, but it is now our only one and we don't wanna bust it.

Pfft, we all know for a fact that psy problems can be solved with some application of vodka, just like with radiation, or cancer, or bleeding, or alcohol poisoning, or limp dick, or fever, or dysentery, or snake bite, or shock, or coma.

Vodka fixes everything.

>>12176717

second. we got guns. guns are good.
lets peddle those.

Let's see how many more cliches I can bust out before the night is through!

And before I forget, the team breakdown in my head is such:
Bird and Twitch - sniper/spotter and flanking element
Damsel and Bosse - Fire support
Vlad - Swingman can go with either team

If anyone wants my reasoning, I'll gladly give it.

>>12176625
>>12176643
I've got an idea...

Taking a quick break back out in relative safety, you head back into the warehouse once the mind-crushing feeling has withdrawn and move easily to your previous location, advancing slowly towards the machine. Now the anomaly and artifact beepers are chirping at the same rate and your vision and concentration are rapidly degrading; if you're going to grab for it, you'll have to try now. It occurs to you to use a long piece of debris to fish the artifact out, but that could be time-consuming and you're really not sure how much - if any - damage is being done.

>>12176727
It doesn't fix inebriation though, sadly, and I'm sure we'd rather not pass out in a psy field.

>>12176741
GET OUT OF THERE STALKER.

>>12176741
Out. Out NOW!

>>12176741
come on you can do it, don't retard out on us and go zombie!

>>12176735

Damsel might be our resident demo expert, so she would get the equivalent military designation. Considering that she threw a grenade at a guy, which then proceeded to explode on impact, and that she's the only one of us that seems to use grenades, (we used one once, maybe twice) I think she qualifies for that title.

If only we had two lead bags and not just one...

If so, we could stick one lead bag on our head and blindly fish around for the artifact and stick it in the other.

do we get a roll for grabbing this thing or what?

>>12176784

Place lead bag on head, proceed to play hot/colder with our friends.

>>12176800
If you guys want one, but prevailing opinion appears to be to fuck off out.

rolled 19 = 19

>>12176807
I don't afraid of anything. A little psy field is only a problem for little girl stalkers with sandy vaginas.

1 last grab before bugging out.

>>12176741
Yeah. Out. Now. Holy. Shit. The. Psy. Is. Altering. My. Punctuation.

>>12176827
Fuck.
yes.

>>12176827
Nice. My vote would have been for the grab as well. Can we use this one?

>>12176827
My my we may get out of this with something after all.

>>12176827
This is our roll for grabbing the artifact and GTFOing.

>>12176827
We're gonna make it!

>>12176827
ooh! ooh! yeah! what now cowards?

>>12176827
Fuck your diver's helmets.

Bosse has a mind of METAL.

>>mannowa tourism

People FLOCK to see how manly this man of war is!

>>12176872

Can we stick our head in the lead bag? Because that would be rather comical.

>>12176784
>>12176806
THIS.

>>12176827
Well that was manly enough that I'll ignore popular opinion.

This time.

No guts, no glory. You reach into the opening in the machine and every nerve in your body seems to come alive; it's not painful, but it's certainly not pleasurable - it's as if you were a segment in some sort of cable transmitting a tremendous amount of energy. You feel your hands grasp around something light and spherical, about the size of an orange, and pull them back; by this point colors are running together before your eyes and you can't see anything - you stumble for the door, fall, and eventually manage to climb to your feet and stagger out even as your comrades pull you in panic.

Moving out of the anomalous field's range, you examine what you've found more closely; it's radioactive, roughly on-par with the flame, and you examine it cautiously.

Bird seems at a loss for what it is for a while, and you can't discern a purpose; then he snaps his fingers, "It's called a Painkiller," he says.

"Why?" this is Vlad; he's looking at what is probably his first "wild" artifact ever.

Bird flicks you lightly on the wrist, and you drop the artifact in surprise as an immense bolt of pain shoots up your arm, making you see spots.

"That's why," he says, and you give him a glare as you stuff the thing away in a bag pouch, "It magnifies painful sensations by several fold. The longer you're in contact with it, the worse it gets, to the point where even a gentle touch is excrutiating."

"Charming," Damsel says, "I'm sure the military'd order a crateful."

"Actually," Bird says, "Yes."

Vlad shrugs his shoulders, "They don't give that kind of shit to grunts like me."

Well, we're dead.

>>12176906
I wonder how much it will sell for?

>>12176906

Ask Bird what if this thing has any other uses. Aside from being a fun torture tool.

>>12176906
Nice, we've had two interrogations so far, this'll make them easier. Plus unless they pass out it won't do them lasting harm.

>>12176906
This seems like one of those rare, powerful artifacts that are pretty much useless to Stalkers but worth a shitload on the outside.

>>12176949
Well if we ever wanted information out of someone . . .

>>12176942
You ask Bird if the artifact has any other uses, and he shakes his head - then pauses, "Well, I heard a rumor about it being broken down and sold in creams to sexual sadists, but that's probably not true. Probably."

>>12176906
"What's the upside to this Painkiller? And our little ambush got me thinking. When we get back to 'civilization', we're gonna go over some basic movement and hand signals. Nothing major, just some stuff to help us work together better. And it won't cut into the drinking, I promise."

Well then, time to recheck the pockets of the zombies for PDAs and stash locations.

>>12177016

Seconded. Make sure to check broken-ankle guy.

>>12177016
It's dark by now. It's time to find a place to hole up, post a guard roster, and crash out. I'm guessing that Bird and Vlad secured the useful gear from the zombie stalkers?

>>12176992
"So what's the upside to this thing?" you ask, hefting your now-closed bag.

"Well, it sells well," he says, "and there aren't terribly many psy-artifacts, so it's an object of interest for multiple parties."

Fair enough, "By the way guys, once we're back somewhere where we aren't in danger of being immediately killed, I'm going to go over some hand signals and basic movement - nothing major, just stuff to make us work more coherently," Damsel seems about to snark, so you cut her off, "and no, it won't cut into the drinking."

"I'll drink to that," Twitch says laconically.

(As of now, guys, you're leaving the mossberg and MP-5 behind due to heavy damage and a desire to have a "free" person. Tell me if you want to change that.)

>>12177042
Nah, let's move.

>I'm guessing that Bird and Vlad secured the useful gear from the zombie stalkers?

Yep

With a last check of the cooling zombies for further useful equiment or information - they sadly yield none - you make your way to another warehouse; it's smaller and more broken-down than the first, but at least it won't melt your brain. Inside, a tremendous pile of concrete blocks gives your party some elevation - since you don't plan to travel further tonight, this is particularly welcome.

With the Zone temporarily obliging you, you take the time to make a small fire at ground level, cook some rations, and shoot a bit of shit before bed - you need to post a watch, preventing any real relaxation, but it beats getting in gunfights with zombies.

(Chance to either FF or fluff about.)

>>12177042
We'll leave them somewhere inconspicuous and mark that spot (and the anomaly) on our PDA. Also toss the zombies on the campfire before we go find someplace to bed down. The smell of burnt flesh should distract any wildlife.

out of curiosity, what part of wild territory are we nearby, you know the usual landmarks, the burner tunnel, the unfinished building the mercs are always at, the electro tunnel, the cranes by the hind, the fruit punch garage...We near any of those? Or are we in some outer part that doesn't corespond with the SoC gameplay space. Just trying to visualize the area we are at.

A thought occurs. I'm remembering that one unique shotgun from SoC that supposedly had a bit of Flash built into it to give it more power. Now if an artifact can be broken down and put into a gun, what about bullets containing Painkiller fragments...

My vote is for a gear check of what we got from the zombies and then a fast forward to... wherever the hell it was we were going (100 Rads?) and sell this fucker.

>>12177102
How about we ask Vlad (I can't bring myself to call him cosmos) if he's had any more thoughts on where he wants to go from here.

>>12177122
that sounds like the kind of thing you'd need some expert technician to rig up

>>12177122
I like where your head is at. But given the rarity of this thing, it would be rather impractical. And it would only serve to wound enemies, not kill, if I'm reading correctly. Out of the fight for a while is good. Out of the fight permanently is better.

>>12177115
Right around here, south of the burner tunnel. Also note that stalker quest zone is a little less compact than stalker vidya zone.

>>12177139

Seconded. Sadly, we can't open up with, "Hey Cosmo, soy sausage?"

>>12177160
asdf

>>12177158
>>12177122

It is actually a very decent idea. But perhaps for the wrong type of weapon.

Something like this should be a melee weapon.

Imagine hitting someone with a baton made of that shit. The enemy will fall and shit himself.

Still not that practical however

"He is the Painkiller
This is the Painkiller
Wings of steel Painkiller
Deadly wheels Painkiller"

>>chrome supnade

So we're near Yantar? Anyone up for playing with the ecologists?

>>12177209
Well guess who pays top dollar for artifacts? Ecologists. And what do we have? An artifact. And what do we need? Money. And we're pretty close to those guys actually. So yes, my vote is to go say hi in the morning.

>>12177209
Not a bad goddamn idea. He'd probably pay an arm and a leg, from what I don't know, but he'd pay it for the Painkiller. I'd feel bad for the poor little wheel rat, though. You know he's gonna be the guinea pig.

Doesn't Vlad have family out there?

my vote is that we might as well make the most of the wild territory and do some more artifact hunting. I think we should go check out of the burner tunnel for fire type artifacts first chance we get since its the closest thing, assuming the anomalies are still there at this time.

(I wasn't planning on fast forwarding through the Wild Territory, but if you guys want, I will.)

"So Vlad," you say, "had any ideas about what you want to do in the Zone?"

Vlad pokes the fire with a stick for a moment before speaking, "At this point?" he pauses a beat, "Vasilyev. Volkov. Lebedev. The others from my squad and from first squad - even that asshole, Sergeant Baikov. All of them murdered," he pauses, "I can't just wash my hands of it."

"Revenge'll get you killed in the Zone," Bird advises, "You'd better find another reason or you'll regret it."

Vlad seems about to retort, but Bird's tone is actually sympathetic, and that gives the soldier pause, "I'd just like to know why, at the very least."

>>12177240
Lets do this, then ecologists.

While we're in this Wild Territory, we need to look for a place to make into our own Pimp Pad hideout. Couch, dart board, hot tub.

>>12177270
Second.

Lets make it a long term goal to find out why the military tried to kill of Cosmo's squad. Hell i'm even curious now.

>>12177285
Don't worry, I haven't forgotten that. (Actually, the way you guys finished one of the "quests" precluded one potential hideout, but it's a big Zone.)

>>12177239
"You got family outside?" Twitch asks of Vlad, and the man nods, "A sister. Not a drop of military in her, thank merciful God for that."

>>12177268

*Take out a ruble and artifact bag.* "These, Vlad. It's always been about these. Money and power. The artifacts are just a means to both. Hasn't it always been like that everywhere? It's why everyone is here, in some form or another."

>>12177268
ask vlad if, Space anomaly aside, if there was anything in his mission into the zone that was suspicious or if he saw anything that might be considered classified, you know beyond the usual for the zone anyway

>>12177311
The Gas Station could have been cool, I guess. We knew the only way out. Anyone trying to come in and fuck with us would be hard pressed.

>>12177311

Tell him we'll get word out.

Sidorovich probably has outside contacts. Getting a letter posted shouldn't be too much trouble.

we might want to check out the electro saturated areas too, wild territory is CRAZY with artifacts. we just got to watch out cause this place tends to attract a lot of unsavory types.

>>12177311
The military use the zone as a disposal site aswell. If they don't like someone they transfer them to the zone so they can write KIA and not have to do it themselves. They also send in spetsnaz, military stalkers, and taskforces to go after things they really want.

>>12177367

New quest: Contact Vlad's Sister.

>>12177380
This is the reason why I said he was either damn good at his job or a total shitbag, earlier. Now, I'm leaning towards good at what he do.

>>12177419

Who, Bosse? If you don't know, it was explained how we got here in the first quest. Basically we paid a guide to smuggle us in. Amongst our group was Damsel, Twitch, and two brothers, who I don't think we've ever heard from since the first/second quests.

On a note from Twitch: he joined us right off the bat. Guide brought us to Cordon, we chewed the fat with Bird for a bit, went to Sid, realized Twitch was following us. He merely said "I'm coming too." And that was that.

>>12177463
No, no. Vlad.
See >>12176050

>>12177463

Also forgot to mention: on our first mission, we were hired by Sid to convince an often-drunk (more than usual) Stalker to stay away from the military guys (as he had been yelling/pissing them off with his drunken shenanigans). Apparently, we decided to outright kill him, and when we were sneaking up on him (or some shit like that) we tripped on a twig and stabbed his arm.

"Well," you say, "We know a guy, Sidorovich - could probably get a letter to your sister if you'd like. Let her know you aren't dead."

Vlad smiles sadly, "Much as I'd like that, the letter - or email, or whatever - is likely to end up in military hands. I'd rather they just forget Katya existed. If they're willing to murder us for God-knows-what-reason, what about her?"

It's a fair point, but Bird disagrees, "Sidorovich knows how to be subtle, if you ask. He may be a bit cozy with the military - he has to be - but the stalkers are his lifeblood."

"It's worth thinking about, I suppose," Vlad muses.

"I still can't figure out why what happened happened," Twitch says, "I mean, did you see anything secret? You guys, that is?"

Vlad shakes his head, "No. It was just a typical patrol-in-force, not unusual at all. Military regularly runs them, and with Zone virgins too - I guess they figure that it's better to lose an inexperienced soldier than an experienced one."

Topic turns to less grim things - to roubles, vodka, real meals, and lewd jokes - and eventually you bed down. Another careful night spent in the Zone, cool but not unpleasant, even here in a dangerous industrial district.

In the morning, Bird suggests you poke around an anomaly concentration slightly north of there, under a bridge; it's not hard to find, but exploring it takes some significant time. Even with your heavy suit, a jet of flame is nothing that can be shrugged off, and the ambient heat is nearly as dangerous.

Roll a d20 to see if you find anything/what you found.

>>12177541
I remember that guy. When he posts he makes reference to that exact part of the quest, cuz he threw shitty dice.

rolled 7 = 7

>>12177558

Allah, Nobylan, Mitenun, combine your awesome powers for artifacts!

>>12177558

Allah preserve us!

>Not it!

rolled 8 = 8

>>12177558
A prayer, to Allah or whichever god we're trusting our dice rolls to right now.

>>12177576

It's lucky number seven, but still...

Maybe we shouldn't mix deities.

>>12177576
Damnit, we shifted from those dead weight fuckers earlier. Now it's Allah, and as much as I'm loathe to admit it, He's been helpful.

>>12177576
Nobylan & Mitenun have been giving us shit rolls ever since the 12 addition of these quests. No More.

rolled 9 = 9

>>12177558
NO WHAMMIES.

Allah'u Ackbar seems to be where its at

>>12177607

... Fine. But I'm still rolling after the first rolls are done.

rolled 11 = 11

I'm going to roll a nat 20 right now, because fuck you guys and always invoking these bullshit fake gods and shit. It's annoying and tedious every god damn time a roll is called for.

So check this roll out. Fuck bitches. Get paid.

>>12177632
With that roll you'll only get paid, no bitches.

>>12177632

You rolled an 11. You were on New York Avenue. Sorry, landed on GO TO JAIL.

I say from now on. We roll for science

rolled 8 = 8

>>12177700
Science, balls, bravery, and bros.

>>12177576
You don't find shit, dawg.

Unfortunately, for all of your caution and methodical searching, you come up empty-handed and chafing from sweat inside your suit. Not every day in the Zone is glorious, but if you don't die, it can't be said to be a bad one.

Panting in the cooler air outside the tunnel, you address the others, "Forget it - I'm boiling like a lobster in there, and the detector's not finding anything. Let's head to a settlement and drop off this extra gear." The others don't protest.

"Nearest place is Yantar, scientists have a bunker out there," Bird says, "Less of a fixture since the psy-emitter went down, but they're still around. Zombies have been thinned out, thank God, and the snorks too."

"Sounds as good as anything," Damsel ventures, and with that, you're off, avoiding a pair of skulking pseudodogs that apparently don't want to tangle with a group so large. Remembering Damsel's bite, you're glad for that.

Yantar itself presents itself in all of its lack of glory presently; a crumbled factory and an empty lakebed turned to swamp, it's a mournful, dead place, and more than a little creepy. The scientist's bunker itself, surrounded by a wall, appears to be guarded by Duty soldiers.

"Duty's always been close with the Yantar outfit," Bird explains, "They lost control for a while here, but after the psy-emitter went down, they managed to punch through again."

>>12177712

Well, let's go in then. Weapons out and visible, wave at the Duty guards. Want to flag them down. No particular formation; just enough that we have a decent spread. Don't know if some shit might go down.

>>12177712
Let's keep it professional and just do business with Sacharov and move on. No need to start anything with duty.

>pissed at Half-Life
>angry at music for not being loud enough and for not being able to use my speakers due to neighbors
>see STALKER Quest
>mellow

Fuck yeah, STALKER Quest!

>>12177712

Hail the Dutyiers.

Ask for latest news in the area.

>>12177712
"Where can we find yer Gun Dealer sir?"

>>12177766

Don't forget to offer a SOY SAUSAGE! :3

Seriously, everyone drops their guard to the soy sausage! (Or maybe they think we're hitting on them in some obscure way; whatever works).

>>12177796
Butt pirate jokes, ahoy!

>>12177796

I'll offer them a sausage ifkwim.

tell the duty guys that our intent is to do business with the good doctor

>>12177859

I think that's what they figured. I mean, only crazy people would want to go into X-16.

Spread into a shallow wedge to cross the field. From left to right: Twitch, Damsel, Bosse, Vlad, Bird. Hands off of weapons as we approach the Duty guys, but still have them within easy reach. Offer greetings, offer sausage (wink), and state our business.

And there's a reason I keep putting Vlad and Bird next to each other. Bird is the most experienced of all of us from what I've gathered. I'm hoping the FNG will learn by watching him and picking up on what he does.

(Note: CoP bunker used)
The sentries, unsurprisingly, stop you when you reach them, though they're not aggressive about it, "Business?" the one you take to be in charge asks briskly.

"We're here to get rid of some chaff and maybe an artifact we found," you explain, "We heard the science teams'll buy anything of interest."

The Duty guard nods, this is obviously the answer he was expecting. He waves you on with the standard spiel about keeping your gun away. It takes longer to get the five of you through the airlock than through the guards, and Damsel comments on this, "I thought Duty ran a tighter ship."

"Like I said," Bird replies, "Yantar's less important than it used to be."

Coming around the corner in the cramped bunker, you find yourselves before a counter, an elderly man in a teal labcoat standing behind it; an enormous rat is running in a wheel beside him. He peers at you, apparently near-sighted, "Hello, hello?"

"Hi," you say, awkwardly, "We heard that you guys buy up guns and such? Artifacts?"

"Yes, yes," he says, nodding, "Though guns don't command as much of a price out here as they used to, less adventure in these parts. I'm Professor Sakharov, by the way."

Introducing yourselves, you get down to business - selling your guns goes quickly enough and you pocket 2500 roubles, but your more hesitant to part with the artifact.

"A common example of a painkiller," Sakharov lectures, "Useful in research into the nature of psy anomalies. I'm prepared to offer you 3000 roubles for it."

>>12174394
>missing Hind
>We get to meet Major Degtaryev!

>>12177558
I like to call that 'un the Burnt Bridge.

Let's head to Yantar. The Ecologists can probably be trusted with a Painkiller; I don't trust anyone else in the Zone with it.

>>12177924

Inquire as to it's uses.

As a brain he'll have a better idea on its applications.

Nah, keep it for now. Could be useful. Could always sell it some other time.

>>12177924
Sell it. 3k Rubles is a decent fee for StalkerQuest.

Also, go explore X16. More Zombies to kill, maybe some fun stuff down in the depths.

>>12177924
"Oh, no, that won't do! I nearly got my Zone forsaken brain fried retrieving this thing! And I'd be willing to bet Sid would offer me 5000 for it. How about I let you have it for 3750?"

>>12177961
Noone pays better than the scientists for artifacts. Selling them to other buyers is basicly adding a middleman. This is where the most demand is.

>>12177924

I say take it. Although there is the possibility that we can find someone who will pay more, the likelihood of doing so is small. And they're probably some weirdo. Would've liked to use it as a torture implement just once. You know, strap it to a guy's head, then have him eat hard stuff. After awhile, it'd probably hurt something fierce.

>>12177924
Definitely sell, though haggle a bit. Check out his inventory as well. We need med supplies.

"4000ru for what I had to go through to get this baby."

Let's sell it, and get some bigger backpacks. Seriously, one gun each? What is this, LURK?

man sell it and see if he has any nifty detectors for sale. painkiller might be handy, but anything we can buy for 3000 is probably handier

Also: Thread's autosaging. Suggest we get a new one. Will archive if not already.

>>12177960
"What are they used for?" you ask the doctor; you respect Bird, but he's a not exactly a researcher.

"The most obvious use is in inducing pain for the purposes of 'enhanced interrogation,'" Sakharov says dryly, "I'm told the United States purchases them at a premium for these purposes," you're not sure if that's a joke, "It can also be used in basic blunt weapons like police batons for the purpose of incapacitating without injury, or in bullets to make relatively mild injuries unendurable. In terms of research, they're useful in examining what kinds of psy emissions produce what effects and why, and we have a theory that they may be able to be used in extremely small quantities to stimulate nerve growth and repair. Merely a hypothesis at this point."

>>12178049

"Oh, alright. It sounds kind of useful to the right people. Would you be willing to go up to 3500 for it?

FUCK YES STALKER QUEST!
I have been waiting days for this :D

Gents, I'm off to find my bed. I've got to be at work at 0545 in the morning, and it's getting harder and harder for me to get up, lately. I'll save the classes until we can get somewhere more open, like Duty, or Agroprom, or what-have-you. And if we crash somewhere secure tonight, have Bosse give a very rudimentary and quick class on hand signals. Just stop, follow me, I see friendly/unknown/enemy, map check, and gimme a smoke.

New thread: >>12178082

>>12178049
>Nerve growth and repair

Holy fuck.

>exceed dogicurs

what is this, I don't even

And get some more medkits/bandages and maybe some anti-rad. And a new detector, an upgrade, if we can.

>>12178100
Obviously we're supposed to outdo wild dogs.

Preferably by killing 'em.

Fuckers.