Post-Apocalypse: Echoes of the Wasteland

City Ruins: High concentration of Trackers and Shapeshifters, lots of scavengers. Dangerous, but rich in resources, parts, and ammunition. Forests and hills: Listener territory. Silence is recommended, but squad movement with cover is entirely possible. Plenty of game and clean water. Highways and wastelands: Patrolled by Alphas. They're easily shot at, but they boost vehicle speed. Villages: Often become nests of Spreaders or Resonators. The risk of infection is high, but untouched supplies can be found.

Fanatics who consider creatures "higher beings" or instruments of fate. Their bases are old churches, monasteries, and underground crypts. They worship mutagen and perform ritual sacrifices. They hate all non-believers, but are not insane in battle—they are skilled in setting ambushes and traps. An encounter with them promises either death or forced conversion.

Gangs that settle in captured prisons, warehouses, and roadside forts. They make a living by plundering and slave trading, making heavy use of vehicles and loud weapons, heedless of the risk of attracting creatures. They rely on speed and firepower. They often wear terrifying armor made from the remains and bones of monsters.

Closed enclaves housed in former research institutes, laboratories, and observatories. They study creatures, seek defenses, and attempt to understand the nature of the mutagen. They rarely make contact, preferring barter through trusted intermediaries. They value information, medicines, and artifacts. They are moderately armed, but possess unique technological "toys" such as jammers.

Remnants of the regular army, entrenched in bunkers, military camps, and ports, retained heavy weapons, armored vehicles, and discipline. Many slid into authoritarian rule, exploiting prisoner labor and controlling fuel depots. They were predictable in negotiations, if speaking from a position of strength, but ruthless toward violators of order.

The most numerous layer. In some places, these are farming communities behind a palisade, in others, well-armed urban clans controlling several high-rise buildings. They use whatever they can get their hands on: from crossbows and shotguns to refurbished military equipment. They are suspicious of outsiders, but can trade and form temporary alliances. Their bases are converted houses, warehouses, and underground shelters with generators.

Slow-moving biomasses that fill basements, sewers, and caves. They emit low-frequency waves that cause dizziness, nausea, and internal hemorrhaging at a distance. They do not pursue prey, but create "dead zones" that are inaccessible without special protection or fire support.

They retain a humanoid silhouette and can produce sounds similar to human speech. They use this to lure victims. Physically weaker than other species, they are cunning and capable of opening simple mechanisms. They can camouflage themselves among ruins, feigning corpses or wounds. They are relatively easy to eliminate; the key is to recognize them early.

Small, agile creatures that carry a mutagen. Their bite itself is weak, but infection is almost guaranteed. In animals, it causes exhaustion, aggression, and disfiguring mutations. After exposure, a human either dies within a few days or transforms into a "Tall One"—a thin, pale humanoid with long limbs and inhuman strength. Tall Ones hunt alone, posing as much of a threat as a pack.

Rare specimens with highly developed senses. Larger, more massive, and heavily armored. They coordinate Listener packs using low-frequency pulses. The Alpha does not rush into battle, but rather directs the fight. Destroying the Alpha breaks the pack's formation, turning it into a chaotic mob. Encountering one is extremely rare and extremely dangerous.

They navigate primarily by smell. Their vision and hearing are moderately developed, making urban debris and industrial zones their hunting grounds. Bloodhounds can stalk prey for hours, biding their time. They are harder to escape than Listeners, but they lose their scent in strong winds or toxic fumes. They resemble four-legged hyenas with bony growths.

The most common type. Completely blind, their hearing is phenomenal—they can detect heartbeats and footsteps hundreds of meters away. They hide in ruins and dungeons during the day and emerge at night to hunt. However, they are not omnipotent: the sound of rain, a running engine, or an explosion will disorient them, allowing the squad to regroup. They are dangerous because they travel in packs and surround their prey. Experienced groups of survivors often use distracting noise traps to avoid them.

"Guests" is a code name for the many species that infest the planet. Most are dangerous in direct contact, but not invulnerable: concentrated fire and heavy weaponry can kill even a large specimen. The problem lies in their fertility and diversity. Among them are blind hunters attuned to hearing, those who navigate by scent, and extremely rare individuals who act as pack leaders. Some species carry a mutagen that transforms animals and humans into aggressive altered forms. The most insidious branch are the creatures that can disguise themselves as humans.

No one knows the truth. The fall didn't happen overnight, but swiftly. Aliens, mutants, an ancient evil—there are as many theories as there are survivors. All that's certain is that the new fauna surged from everywhere, crushing military cordons. Armies tried burning cities and using heavy equipment, but this only briefly slowed the spread of the creatures. Now the world is a patchwork quilt: here and there, the skeletons of tanks rust, there, generators still rumble and modified SUVs roll out. Factions compete for resources not only with monsters, but also with each other. Manhunting has become commonplace, and silence is as much a weapon as a machine gun bullet.