S.T.A.L.K.E.R. the alternative

Faction Leaders (Politics and War):

1. General Voronin is the commander-in-chief of the "Duty" group. A strict, principled officer, he maintains strict discipline. He directs all forces toward containing and clearing the Zone.
   Location: Rostok Plant, Dolg headquarters.
2. Lukash is the leader of the "Freedom" group. An anarchist with strong charisma. He fights for the Zone's openness and organizes the Barrier's defense against fanatics.
   Location: Army warehouses, Military base.
3. Charon is the supreme preacher and commander of the Monolith. A fanatic with a completely burned-out mind, he broadcasts the orders of the O-Consciousness to the cult's fighters.
   Location: Pripyat, Energetik Cultural Center / Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant sarcophagus.

Traders and Quest Givers (Zone Economy):

1. Sidorovich is a greedy, cunning pioneer and reseller. He supplies newcomers and buys cheap swag. Location: Cordon, underground bunker near the Newcomers' Village.
2. The bartender is the authoritative, calm owner of the main stalker hub. He knows everything about everyone and offers serious contracts to veterans.
   Location: Rostok Plant, 100 Roentgen Bar.
3. Professor Sakharov is a brilliant, if somewhat absent-minded, scientist. He studies psi-radiation, creates protective helmets, and buys artifacts and mutant parts. Location: Yantar, the environmentalists' mobile bunker.
4. Borov is a bandit leader and former bartender. A cruel but pragmatic crime boss, he controls the shadowy underworld of the southern Zone.
   Location: Dark Valley, abandoned factory.
5. The Forester is a legendary old hermit. He can "talk to the Zone," sees spatial anomalies, and mutants leave him alone. He helps find alternate routes to the north.
   Location: Red Forest, Water Tower.
6. Boroda is a friendly merchant and former stalker. He manages the lives of the Loners in the North and issues orders to find rare artifacts.
   Location: Zaton, dry cargo ship "Skadovsk".
7. Sych is a sullen, distrustful information and weapons dealer. He works with everyone, including Bandits and Mercenaries. Location: Zaton, dry cargo ship "Skadovsk."

Characters can give different tasks: from tasks to search for documents or something else to serious operations: clearing out mutants, protecting checkpoints or bases from enemies, searching for artifacts, researching anomalies or experimental equipment.

Electrical and Thermal Anomalies (Elemental Damage):

1. Electro: Appears as a floating cloud of bluish sparks and static discharges. It crackles quietly all the time. It often accumulates in tunnels or abandoned substations.
   Comeback: When discharging, it strikes with a powerful beam of high-voltage current (lightning effect). Instantly disables PDA, breaks night vision devices, and burns exoskeleton electronics.
   Spawns Artifacts: Bengal Fire, Flare, Moonlight.
2. Burner: In a passive state, it looks like a barely noticeable haze and hot air (like over asphalt in the heat).
   Roleplay: Upon activation, throws out a vertical pillar of flame with a temperature below 1500°C. Melts helmet visors, instantly burns leather jackets, and causes blood to boil. You can only be saved in scientific costumes ("SEVA", "Ecologist").
   Spawns Artifacts: Drops, Fireball, Crystal, Mother's Beads.
   Chemical and Biological Anomalies (Toxins and Corrosiveness):
3. Fruit Punch: Appears as a glowing bright green or swampy slurry oozing from cracks in floors, walls, or swamps.
   Roleplay: Strongest acid. Upon contact, it begins to instantly corrode the fabric of the overalls, the leather and metal of the weapon. It plays out as a chemical burn and gradual damage to equipment.
   Spawns artifacts: Slime, Slug, Mica.
4. Burnt Fuzz: Mutated vegetation hanging from rooftops, branches of Red Forest trees, or iron structures. It looks like a gray hanging tow.
   Wagering: Reacts to fast movement. If the stalker runs past, the fluff throws out a cloud of microscopic spore needles that dig into clothes and skin, causing terrible boils, bleeding and suffocation. If you walk past him, he is passive.

Gravitational Anomalies (Kinetic Damage):

1. Springboard: An invisible or slightly air-distorting anomaly. Comeback: When detonated (if you step on or throw a bolt), it throws out a powerful directional air wave that knocks you off your feet. For a beginner in a jacket - rib fractures, for a veteran in an exoskeleton - a strong blow and concussion. Spawns artifacts: Medusa, Stone Flower, Night Star.
2. Funnel (Whirlgig): It looks like a small swirl of leaves and dust on the ground.
   Wagering: Has a retracting effect. It is dangerous because if the stalker steps over the edge, he begins to be slowly but irresistibly pulled into the epicenter. The bot should give the player a chance to win back resistance (grab a snag, resist).
   Spawns artifacts: Twist, Gravity, Flash.
3. Carousel (Vortex): The most dangerous gravitational anomaly. It looks like a strong haze, under which the ground is strewn with bones.
   Roleplay: Instantly catches the victim in the air, begins to spin furiously at high speed and in the end tears him to pieces (squeezes into a bloody point). Without heavy armor or an exoskeleton, it is impossible to survive inside.
   Gives birth to artifacts: Blood of Stone, Slice of Meat, Soul.
   Mental (Special Damage):
4. Psi-field: An invisible zone (often around Radar, Amber, or in dungeons).
   Roleplay: Directly hits the brain. The bot describes it in NPS as follows: the eyes turn yellow, double, the squeak in the ears grows, the character hears the voices of deceased comrades. Without Psi Blockers or Psi Helmet, long access to the zone turns the Stalker into a zombie.
5. Space Bubble: A translucent floating sphere that distorts the space around it.
   Wagering: Works as an unstable teleporter. He can spit out a stalker at the other end of the Zone, lock him in an endless time loop (where the same minute repeats forever), or throw him straight into the Chimera's lair.
6. Symbiont: A monstrous fusion of several anomalies (Carousels, Frying, and Psi Fields) into one giant zone.

Entry-level detectors (Blind search):

1. Response (Echo): The most primitive and cheapest device. It looks like an old radio with a single flashing light.
   Search: It does not show the location of the artifact. It only begins to beep more often and louder when the stalker approaches the anomaly or artifact. The player has to throw the bolts and walk literally by touch, risking flying into the Carousel. Finds only the simplest artifacts (Medusa, Twist).
2. Bear: A modernized Soviet device with a circular scale with LEDs.
   Search: Shows the direction (azimuth) of the artifact in the form of an illuminated sector on the scale, but does not show the exact distance and number of meters. Much more convenient than the "Response", but still requires the active use of bolts. Sees artifacts of a slightly higher class (Drops, Fireball).
   Advanced Digital Detectors (Professional Search):
3. Veles: A high-tech research-grade instrument with a small LCD screen.
   Search: Displays the exact location of the artifact as a glowing dot on the mini-map of the screen relative to the stalker. With it, it becomes much safer to search for swag. It is able to detect any rare artifacts (Eye, Snowflake, Night Star), except for the most secret ones.
4. Svarog: An elite detector created by scientists on the basis of Veles by adding special software firmware.
   Search: In addition to the artifacts themselves, this device scans and displays the location of all anomalous fields around the stalker. On the screen, you can clearly see where the "Springboard" is and where the "Frying" is, which allows you to literally go through the most difficult anomalous labyrinths with your eyes closed (for example, the Devil's Cemetery in the Red Forest). He sees absolutely all the artifacts of the Zone.
5. Elbrus: An advanced version of Veles with three-dimensional terrain scanning. It doesn't just show a point, but also indicates whether the artifact is on the surface, underground (in a mutant's burrow), or floating in the air inside the anomaly.

New Exoskeleton Generations (Tier High):

1. Nosorog Exoskeleton: The ultimate exoskeleton option for Duty, Monolith, and Military. Tank armor is hung on the hydraulic frame. The character in it becomes almost invulnerable to light and medium small arms, as well as the blows of the pseudo-giant.
2. Prototype Exoskeleton (Makeshift Exoskeleton): A rusty, creaking skeleton assembled by technicians in the Marshes from scrap metal. It gives a bonus to the weight carried, but the servos often wedge, and its protection is at the level of a regular Zarya.
3. Scientists' Exoskeleton (Scientific Exoskeleton): A unique hybrid of "Seva" and an exoskeleton. All hydraulics are protected by insulating casings against acids and electricity. Allows veteran environmentalists to carry heavy scientific instruments into the deepest anomalous zones of the Radar and Generators.
   Arcane and Mystical Vestments:
4. Shroud of Sin: Elite Dark Stalker Vestments. A black cloak that hides the Monolith's charred armor. The fabric is treated with mental insulators, which is why the Brain Burner and the controllers perceive the owner of the suit as "one of their own".
5. Zealot's Robe: Ultralight clothing for the Monolith acolytes. It does not have armor, but has a strange property - due to fanatical faith and Psi influence, stalkers in cassocks do not feel pain from injuries until they die from blood loss (the bot can play them as "unstoppable suicide bombers").

Medium and hybrid overalls (Station wagons):

1. Overalls "Sdobych": A homemade heavy costume for Loners. This is "Zarya", on top of which the stalkers manually sewed thick sheets of rubberized metal and added a thick balaclava. Very wear-resistant, but heavy.
2. PMC Protective Suit (Military Hybrid): Popular with Mercenaries and Syndicate. It is an expensive NATO combat shirt (Combat Shirt) with a 4th class body armor and a bunch of Molle fasteners.
3. An advanced analogue of Beryl.SEVA "Hunter" / "SEVA of Duty" / "SEVA of Freedom": Factional modifications of the cult costume. SEVA of Duty - Reinforced with Kevlar plates on the chest, reduced anomalous protection for bullet resistance. SEVA Svoboda" - breath cylinders were lightened, additional containers for artifacts were built.
4. Wanderer Overalls: A hard-wearing all-weather outfit for Pioneers and Pathfinders. It doesn't have powerful armor, but it perfectly protects against cuts, bites from small mutants, radioactive dust, and moisture.
   Heavy Assault Systems (Without Exoskeleton): Exoskeletons are preceded by a layer of heavy armor that provides excellent protection, but allows you to run in stock:
5. Heavy Rhino Suit (Without Hydraulics): Sometimes called a "Rhino" is a super-heavy assault body armor with full protection of the limbs, groin and neck, combined with the Altyn or Mask helmet. The most protected assault suit, in which you can still make short dashes.
6. Armored suit "Zaslon" / "Chernobyl": Special suits designed for assault groups of military stalkers. Outwardly, they resemble spacesuits, but are covered with heavy titanium and ceramic armor plates. They allow you to storm the Chernobyl nuclear power plant right during radiation hotspots.
7. Punisher Set: Signature Cleaner Armor. A completely black, blank jumpsuit with a sphere helmet without visible glasses (the visor displays the image on the inner screen of the helmet through external cameras). 5.45 and 5.56 caliber bullets simply bounce off it.

Elite Equipment and Heavy Complexes:

1. Heavy Suit "Priboi" / "Bulat": Military armored complexes of premium level. Ultra-dense armor that can withstand hits from large-caliber weapons and grenade fragments.
2. Exoskeleton: The pinnacle of engineering. A hydraulic frame that attaches on top of heavy armor. Limitations: It has absolute protection against bullets and allows you to carry a huge weight (cartridges, machine guns), you cannot run in it (until the technician installs servos).
   Light & Scout Suits (Recon & Stealth):
3. Mercenary / Contract Jumpsuit: A light tactical suit in blue and gray shades. Equipped with built-in knee pads, elbow pads and a convenient unloading system. It has an excellent balance of mobility and bullet resistance for urban combat.
4. Ghillie Robe (Gilly/Leshy): A fabric warp covered with threads that mimic the dry grass and foliage of the Red Forest. Almost no protection against bullets and anomalies, but in RP it gives the character a stealth bonus. The bot must act out that mutants and enemy snipers do not notice the player in Gilly even from a few meters if he is lying motionless.
5. Tactical overalls of the IIG "Scout": Ultralight UN suit. The fabric is impregnated with a composition that reduces visibility in the infrared range (protection against night vision devices and thermal imagers). Equipped with a built-in PDA silencer that hides the stalker's mark on the map.

Entry-Level Costumes (Jacket to Makeshift Armor Protection):

1. Leather Jacket: Basic clothing for beginners. It protects only from minor cuts and light rain. A PM bullet pierces through it, and any anomaly splits the wielder into atoms.
2. Bandit Cloak: An ordinary leather cloak, often modified with Kevlar inserts. It plays back as a stylish, but weak element of clothing. Popular with Bandits and Renegades.
3. Zarya Jumpsuit: Legendary Singles Costume. Thick fabric, a rubberized layer against radiation and a built-in lightweight body armor. A great balance for a mid-level stalker. Easy to customize (hung with pouches, plates).
   Militarized Armor (Emphasis on Bullet Resistance and Assault):
4. Beryl-5M Armored Suit: Army Assault Suit (overalls with titanium plates and a special helmet). It perfectly holds an automatic bullet, but almost does not protect against anomalies and strong radiation. They wear the Military and sometimes "Duty".
5. PSZ-9d "Armor of Duty": Branded red and black overalls. It was created on the basis of army models. It has high strength and protection against tears (claws of mutants) and bullets. Ecological properties are average.
6. Wind of Freedom Jumpsuit: Lightweight green and yellow suit with "Flectarn" camouflage. Sewn-in fabric armor plates. Weaker protection against bullets than the Duty armor, but allows you to run fast, tires the soldier less, and protects better against minor anomalies.
   Scientific and Isolation Suits (Emphasis on Anomalies and Radiation):
7. SEVA Overalls: The most iconic Zone suit with a closed breathing system (a sealed helmet with a semi-circular glass). An absolute favorite for hiking deep into the Zone. It protects against psi radiation, radiation, gases and acid anomalies. Bullet resistance is weak.
8. SSP-99 "Ecologist" (Orange / Green): Full-fledged research spacesuits. Orange is basic protection, green (SSP-99M) is modified, with reinforced armor. In them, scientists go to take measurements directly at the epicenters of anomalies. In close combat, a stalker in such a spacesuit is an easy target.

3. Librarian: A huge, gray-haired, overgrown gorilla with a humanoid face.
   Habits: Possesses tremendous physical strength and phenomenal survivability (withstands a grenade launcher shot). It lives in the ruined buildings of Pripyat or the Dead City. Mechanics: It has a unique behavioral feature - if the stalker looks the Librarian directly in the eye and does not move, the mutant will not attack. He will growl, come close, examine a person, but if you start running, turn his back or open fire, he will tear the character apart in a second.

5. Cat (Mutated Cat): A small, bald, and incredibly fast predator with a ripped mouth.
   Habits: They hunt in small packs. The cat's main weapon is its speed and deafening, heart-rending scream. This cry hits the eardrums, causing stalkers to temporarily disorient, dizziness and ringing in the ears (psi effect). While the fighter is disoriented, the pack pounces and begins to tear the tendons. An easy target for a shotgun, but due to its small size and chaotic jumps, it is difficult to hit. The NPS must make up for the loss of focus from her screaming.
   Super Mutants and Legends of the North:
6. Dwarf: A small humanoid in tattered clothes, a distant relative of the burer, but much more aggressive and agile.
   Habits: Lives in deep caves and dark cellars. Unlike the slow burer, the dwarf runs and hides very quickly. It uses micro-gravity pulses to knock stalkers down and blinds them with flashes of light, after which it runs up and beats the victim with heavy objects or bites. In a confined space, it's a nightmare. Due to his small stature, assault rifles are ineffective, stalkers have to switch to pistols or knives in close combat.
7. Pseudo-giant jumper (or Jumping Giant): A nightmarish modification of a regular pseudo-giant.
   Habits: Retaining its five-ton weight and armored hide, this monster has learned to jump up and forth 10-15 meters. When this carcass lands, the seismic wave not only knocks you down, but literally breaks the bones of everyone in the radius of destruction, and the very ground under the feet of the stalkers shatters into pieces. Played as the boss of the location (e.g. on Generators or Radar). The only way to survive is to keep your distance at all times and use heavy explosives.

Victims of Labs and Experiments:

1. Fracture: This is a former man who has had one arm hypertrophied under the influence of radiation and chemistry – it has become huge, muscular and long (to the ground).
   Habits: Possesses the remnants of human intelligence. He often wears a tattered stalker cloak to hide his ugliness, and from afar he looks like an ordinary tramp or an injured person. He can call stalkers in a hoarse voice, asking for food or a first aid kit. But as soon as you get closer, it delivers a deadly blow with its giant limb, capable of breaking a skull or breaking ribs even through a bulletproof vest. The perfect monster to create tension. It is played out through deception: players see a silhouette by the fire, think that it is an ally, and when approaching, they encounter a cunning and strong predator.
2. Pseudo-human (Zombie stalker with a mind): Unlike ordinary mindless zombies, this mutant retained his intelligence, but completely lost his humanity.
   Habits: Can use cover, coordinate the actions of other zombies, and even speak (although his speech sounds like crazy, repetitive delirium). The worst thing is that he has retained the skills of shooting from firearms, although he does not shoot very accurately. Plays as a terrifying tactical opponent in dungeons. He can shout to stalkers from the darkness phrases like: "Help... I'm cold... check the clip...", at the same time squeezing the squad with bursts from a rusty machine gun.
3. Swamp Thing (Overgrown Bloodsucker): A special subspecies of bloodsucker that lives exclusively in swamps and deep swamps. It is larger than its underground counterpart, and its skin has acquired a greenish-gray hue.
   Habits: Has incredible jumping ability. He does not just walk in invisibility, but attacks stalkers with rapid jumps from the reeds, knocking down several people at once. It can jump on the roofs of abandoned farms. He inflicts huge lacerations with his claws. The presence of the swamp creature is played out through splashes of water and the rustle of reeds. Stalkers must stand back to back in the middle of the swamp as the creature circles around them.

3. Burer: The result of genetic experiments on humans. He looks like a short fat man in a dirty raincoat with hypertrophied facial features.
   Habits: Possesses powerful telekinesis. It can create a gravity shield that stops any bullets (at this moment it is useless to shoot at it). He can snatch the weapon directly from the stalker's hands or throw a piece of concrete slab at him. It stomps loudly and cries like a child, luring the victim. In a fight with a burer, endurance is important. The character quickly gets tired of his psi punches.
4. Controller: The most dangerous humanoid with advanced human intelligence and telepathy. He looks like an old man with a huge deformed head in rags.
   Habits: Does not hit physically. From a distance, it takes control of the stalker's mind. It causes the strongest auditory hallucinations, hits the brain (everything in the eyes swims and turns yellow), forcing the character to point a weapon against his own comrades or commit suicide. Surrounds himself with zombie servants. If the controller catches a stalker with his eyes, it's almost death. The only chance is to shoot from around the corner, without going into the line of sight of the mutant, or throw grenades at him.
   Bosses of the Zone (Super Mutants):
5. Pseudo-giant: A huge five-ton carcass consisting of a drop of muscle and two giant limbs. The head grew right into the body.
   Habits: A real tank. It has a thick skin that can withstand dozens of machine gun bursts. His main attack is a paw strike on the ground, creating a powerful local seismic wave that knocks down and cripples everyone around him at a distance of ten meters. It plays out as a disaster. It is almost impossible to defeat it alone. You need a well-coordinated group, machine guns, RPGs or underbarrel grenade launchers. When the giant hits the ground, stalkers in RP must act out the fall and concussion.
6. Chimera: A two-headed lean predator designed to be the perfect killer program. It has a duplicated organ system (two hearts), which is why it is incredibly tenacious.
   Habits: The most jumpy, fast, and cruel beast in the Zone.

2. Boar: A large beast with a strong skull and huge fangs.
   Habits: Attacks only from acceleration, like a battering ram. Straightforward. If the stalker manages to jump to the side, the boar turns around for a new approach.
3. Snork: Former stalkers (or military men) who have lost their minds and turned into half-human, half-animal. They still wear the remains of their army pants and gas masks (the pipe of which has grown into their throats).
   Habits: They move on all fours, constantly emitting a guttural growl and a hoarse sigh through the filter of a gas mask. They have incredible joints and jump huge distances, knocking the stalker down. They live in anomalies, dungeons, and on the Radar. One of the most terrifying opponents. Their jumps are unpredictable, and point-blank attacks are always accompanied by an attempt to tear their throats with their claws.
   Humanoids and Masters of Stealth (Danger of the highest rank):
4. Bloodsucker: Legendary mutant of the Zone. A tall humanoid creature with tentacles instead of a mouth, with which it grabs the victim to drink their blood to the drop.
   Habits: Possesses the ability to complete invisibility (stealth mimicry). In stealth mode, he is only betrayed by glow-in-the-dark eyes (when angry) and heavy breathing. It likes to attack from behind, strike and disappear into the fog again. It lives in abandoned villages (Bloodsucker) and dungeons.
5. Poltergeist (and Fire Poltergeist): An invisible flying ball of energy born in the dungeons of laboratories.
   Habits: The mutant itself looks like a floating translucent cloud. He throws heavy objects (boxes, barrels, cylinders) at stalkers using telekinesis. Fire sets the air under the player's feet on fire. To defeat a poltergeist, you must first notice it (the air around it is slightly distorted) and open heavy fire. When faced with it, players must constantly maneuver so that a rusty box does not fly into their heads.

Small and Pack Mutants (Lowest Level):

1. Jerboa (Jerboa): Mutated rodents huddled together in huge packs. Alone they are cowardly, but in a group they become insane.
   Habits: They attack en masse, emitting a nasty squeak. They move with lightning speed by jumping, scoring the victim with numbers. Ideal for ambushes in narrow laboratory corridors. They play out as a "living wall". One or two shotgun shots will mow down three people at once, but if they surround the stalker, they will quickly tear the jumpsuit to shreds.
2. Blind Dog and Pseudo-Dog: Ordinary stray dogs that have changed under the influence of radiation. Blind dogs have atrophied their eyesight, but developed a sixth sense (bioradar), and pseudo-dogs are dangerous predators similar to wolves.
   Habits: Blind dogs attack only in packs. If you kill the leader, the pack scatters in panic. Pseudo-dogs attack head-on, they are much stronger and can make huge jumps. A great way to test a beginner at the Cordon. A dog's roar from the bushes is a classic danger marker.
3. Psi Dog: A rare species of pseudo-dog that has mental abilities.
   Habits: During combat, it creates several ghostly doppelgängers around itself, which bite the stalker and deal real damage, but disappear after one hit. The real dog itself stays behind. The player must act out the panic: there is double vision in the eyes, wolves are running from all sides. You need to figure out the original (it usually does not attack first, but directs the copies).
   Medium Mutants (Dwellers of Fields and Forests):
4. Flesh: A mutated domestic pig that has developed a unique eye structure and bony blade paws.
   Habits: A relatively peaceful creature if not provoked. Often makes stupid grunting sounds. Attacks only if hungry or cornered. It is often used for comical situations around the fire ("Again the flesh stole canned food!"). Easy prey for Hunters, but its bony carapace on its head is difficult to penetrate with pistol bullets.

Industrial zone: Which is a huge semi-abandoned defense plant with a developed network of underground communications. Can be used as a base for Military Stalkers or SOF. The ground part is heavily phony and guarded by snipers, but entire floors with secret blueprints and experimental weapons are hidden underground.
Chernobyl-4: A small but incredibly elaborate location, which is an enclosed piece of the Zone, from which it is almost impossible to get out due to dimensional bubbles. A handful of stalkers of different groups (for example, a Dolgovets, a Svoboda member and a mercenary) are locked together on a small patch of land. They have to forget about the enmity, share the last stew and together look for a way out of this anomalous trap.

1. Dead City (Chernobyl-1): An abandoned secret city of Soviet power engineers and scientists that was not on official maps.
   Atmosphere: Reminiscent of a smaller Pripyat, but looks even more gloomy and deserted. The central square with a monument to Lenin, five-story buildings, a school and the city committee of the CPSU are sandwiched between the hills. The Dead City is the main stronghold of the Mercenaries. Here is their headquarters with excellent infrastructure (merchants, mechanics, laundry). For ordinary stalkers, the city is closed - mercenaries strictly guard the perimeter and shoot strangers on the approaches.
2. Generators: The northernmost and most mysterious location, located even further than the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.
   Atmosphere: A gloomy, scorched wasteland, in the middle of which huge spherical metal structures are installed - power generators. The sky here is always an ominous crimson color, and the ground is dotted with deep cracks. This is the heart of the O-Consciousness project. It was from here that the control of the Noosphere and the Brain Squeeze came from. There are practically no ordinary mutants here - the location is inhabited by phantoms, the cult of "Sin" or the elite of the "Monolith". In the center is the secret underground laboratory X-2, where the site was born.
   Darkscape: A long, elongated gut hollow sandwiched between sheer cliffs. It was originally planned for a car chase in "Shadow of Chernobyl".
   Atmosphere: An abandoned highway that passes through ruined bridges, tunnels, and rare sawmills. A wonderful "transit" zone. There are no large bases here, but it is an ideal place for gangs to ambush stalkers returning from the north to the Cordon. Acting out a long, exhausting march under the constant fear of getting a bullet from the bushes.
   Clearing (Cemetery of Equipment): A huge field where tons of radioactive metal from all over the Zone were brought: Mi-24 helicopters, armored personnel carriers, fire trucks and buses.
   Atmosphere: Dozens of rows of rusting equipment that create a real labyrinth of iron. The air is literally crackling with radiation, and from behind the piles of metal, the growl of mutants is constantly heard.

Important locations of the Red Forest location:

1. Bridge to Limansk: A strategic drawbridge across the river separating the Red Forest from the abandoned city of Limansk. This is the most important geopolitical point. Whoever controls the bridge controls the only safe passage to the far north, bypassing the Radar. The bridge can be blocked, raised, mined, or held by a strong faction.
2. Mine and Ventilation Complex: An old abandoned ore mine on the outskirts of the forest. A gloomy multi-level underground structure. Ground buildings are often used by stalkers or bandits as a temporary fortified camp. The underground horizons of the mine are dark, damp, and in the depths there may be burers or poltergeists, guarding rare artifacts born in the depths of the earth.
3. Forester's Parking Lot (Water Tower): An old brick water tower and a small house next to it. This is the only "island of safety" in the entire forest.Forester: A legendary character, an old man who lived here before 1986. The Zone "accepted" him - mutants do not touch his house, and he himself has a unique gift: he knows how to talk to the Zone, feels spatial anomalies and knows safe paths.
   The Jungler is the perfect neutral quest NPC giver for masters. In its tower, players can take shelter from the Surge, heal wounds, repair equipment by the campfire, and get a tip on rare artifacts. It is strictly forbidden to unsheathe weapons on the territory of the Forester - the Zone severely punishes those who bring blood to its doorstep.
4. Dimensional Bubble (Twisted Anomaly): A mysterious anomaly hovering high above the ground in one of the sinkholes or over a tank (in the game, this is a Soviet T-64 tank stuck in space). The Space Bubble is a teleport anomaly. If you jump into it, you can instantly find yourself at the other end of the Zone (for example, right next to the Forester's tower), but if the path is "closed" or unstable, the character can get stuck forever in the confined space between the worlds, going crazy there.

3. Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant and Sarcophagus: The Final Point of the Zone. Radiation levels here are lethal without heavy science suits. The sky above the station is constantly burning with anomalous fire, and emissions occur every few hours.
   Important places:
   Interior (Sarcophagus): Dark, dilapidated corridors of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant. Here, the fighters of the "Monolith" fight to the last bullet.
   Hall of the Wish Fulfiller: The place where the giant glowing crystal Monolith is located. In fact, this is a deadly illusion created by "O-Consciousness" to eliminate the stalkers who have reached.
   Special northern sector:
4. Zaton: A dry riverbed, where stalkers have arranged their life inside the huge dry cargo ship "Skadovsk". There is a fragile peace between Loners and Bandits.
5. Jupiter Environs: A huge industrial zone. The stalkers live at the Yanov railway station, where Dolg and Svoboda are forced to share the same station building, concluding a non-aggression pact.
6. Pripyat (Eastern Microdistrict): A more detailed part of the city, where the surviving remnants of the military have entrenched themselves in the Laundromat building.
   The Red Forest is one of the darkest, creepiest and most atmospheric locations on the outskirts of the center of the Zone, deserving a separate in-depth description for your role-playing game.
   Absolute wilderness: There are no roads here, except for one abandoned asphalt road. You have to move along narrow paths among twisted, unnaturally curved dead trees.Constant twilight: Due to the dense crowns of mutated trees and the eternal leaden fog, an ominous twilight reigns in the forest even during the day. At night, there is nothing to do here without a night vision device (NVG) or a powerful flashlight - the flashlights, by the way, quickly run out due to abnormal fields.
   Radiation and psi-background: The Earth is literally "burning" with radiation. A step to the side from the path and the Geiger counter begins to burst with a crack. Proximity to the Scorcher (which works in your RP) adds a constant oppressive buzz in your ears and slight hallucinations (whispering trees, ghostly silhouettes).

3. Army Depots: A picturesque but extremely dangerous frontline location. Here is the border with the harsh North.
   Important Locations:
   Military Base: A former air defense base that became the official headquarters of the Svoboda Group. The atmosphere here is freer than that of Dolg, but the defense is well organized.
   Bloodsucker (Abandoned Village): A creepy place infested with invisible bloodsuckers. Stalkers go around it for a kilometer, only suicides go there or for the rarest artifacts.
   Barrier: A fortified Svoboda checkpoint on the way to the Radar. Fighters are holding back the breakthroughs of the Monolith fanatics and waves of mutants from the north around the clock. In RP, it is a point of constant hostilities.
4. Dark Valley: A gloomy lowland, forever covered with storm clouds. It is considered a bandit region.
   Important Locations:
   Borow Base: An old factory turned into a fortified bandit camp with underground prisons for hostages by the bandit leader Borow.
   Unfinished building: Mercenary or bandit stronghold. Below it is the entrance to the secret X-18 Lab.
   Northern Locations (Death Zone):
   1.Radar (Brain Burner)A hilly area covered in dead Red Forest. The air here rings from radiation and Psi-radiation of working antennas (ZGRLS "Raduga"). Along the roads there are Psi-antennas made of garbage and corpses, built by sectarians.
   Important Locations:
   Control Bunker: X-10 Underground Laboratory. A gloomy labyrinth where the main switch of the Scorcher is located, guarded by the elite of the Monolith.
5. Pripyat: Dead Ghost Town. This is a zone of urban battles. There are no safe places here, every house is a firing point of the Monoliths, and chimeras and giants roam the squares.

Energetik Palace of Culture: The General Staff Building and the Monolit prayer house in the city. Inside, the cultists built altars from garbage and glowing artifacts.
Avangard Stadium: A vast open space that is completely shot through by snipers and infested with powerful mutants.
Polesie Hotel: A strategic height, for control of which military snipers, mercenaries and fanatics are fighting

Central locations (Heart of Stalker Life): Sprout Factory (Bar and Wild Territory)A large industrial zone divided into two completely different parts.

1. 🍻 Location "Bar"The safest place in the Central Zone, cleared by "Duty" from mutants and bandits. It is customary to keep weapons in a holster here.
   Important places:
   100 Roentgen Bar: A legendary underground establishment run by the Bartender. A meeting place for veterans, mercenaries, informants and loners. Here you can sell the best artifacts and find a serious contract.
   "Dolg" base: A closed military area of the plant, where the headquarters of the group headed by General Voronin is stationed. Stalkers from the outside are not allowed to enter there.
   Arena: Hangar Fight Club. Stalkers, captured bandits and mutants fight to the death here for the entertainment of the public and the sweepstakes.
2. Wild Territory (Factory)A cemetery of unfinished workshops to the west of Bar. The territory is fully controlled by Mercenaries, Bandit ambushes, anomalies and bloodsuckers. Stalkers call it the "corridor of death" on the way to Amber.
3. Amber: A dried-up lake covered in a poisonous yellow mist. The ground here is saturated with radiation, and crowds of zombified stalkers and snorks roam around.
   Points of Interest:
   Mobile Scientist Bunker: Professor Sakharov's pressurized bunker, protected by automatic turrets. A safety island where psi helmets are created and biomaterials are bought.
   Amber Factory: A huge abandoned complex that hides X-16 Lab. On the roof of the factory, there is a Psi Launcher (prototype of the Burner), which drives anyone crazy without a helmet of protection.

Southern Locations (Beginner's Zone):

1. Cordon: Gate to the Zone. It is relatively safe here, anomalies are rare, and the only mutants are blind dogs, jerboas, and rare wild boars.
   Points of interest:
   Newcomers' Village: Several dilapidated brick houses. The main camp for those who have just stepped over the Perimeter. Here the stalkers share rumors, warm themselves by the fires and get used to the Zone.
   Sidorovich's Bunker: An underground shelter near the Village. Sidorovich is the most famous and cunning merchant and reseller in the south, giving newcomers their first dirty work.
   Military checkpoint: Located in the very south, closes the passage to the mainland. Soldiers here are lazy, often take bribes for passage, but during the assault, helicopters are called for reinforcements.
   Ruined Bridge: The forward position of the military (or bandits) who charge the stalkers (vodka or money) for the passage to the northern part of the location.
2. Swamps: A huge, foggy, and swampy area west of Cordon. You can only move on wooden decks - a step to the side threatens either a quagmire or radioactive water.
   Points of Interest:
   Clear Sky Base: Hidden among the reeds, the explorers' camp. It is impossible to get there without a blindfolded guide.
   Pumping Station and Church: Key points in the middle of the swamps, over which stalkers, bandits and renegades are constantly fighting.
3. Landfill: A giant cemetery of radioactive equipment left over from the liquidation of the 1986 accident. Phoning mountains of garbage attract looters.
   Important locations:
   Depot: An old railway depot that has become the main fortification on the location. Depending on the story, it is controlled by either Bandits (as their base) or Loners.
   Duty checkpoint: The border between the "sandbox" and the serious Zone. Stern fighters in red and black camouflage carefully search the stalkers going to the Sprout Plant.

Smoothbore tactical monsters:
Saiga-12K / Vepr-12 "Molot": Semi-automatic shotguns based on the Kalashnikov assault rifle with box magazines. Reload in seconds (unlike the tubular magazines of the original shotguns).
USAS-12: Fully automatic combat shotgun with a 20-round disc magazine. It turns any confined space into a meat grinder, but weighs a tremendous amount.
Large-caliber and anti-material weapons (0.50 BMG / 12.7 mm):
VKS "Vykhlop" (Cutout): A silent large-caliber sniper rifle chambered for 12.7x55 mm. A tool of the Syndicate liquidators.
ASVK "Kord" / OSV-96 (12.7x108 mm): Huge domestic anti-matter rifles. They are fired only from a bipod in a prone position. The shot stuns everyone around, but penetrates the walls of buildings and any exoskeletons.
Barrett M82/M107 (.50 BMG): Legendary American large-caliber rifle. Used by ISG or Mercenary snipers to control key roads on the Radar from great distances.
New Physical Principles Weapons (ONFP):
Gauss Pistol / Gauss Assault Rifle (e.g. "Hostel"): Experimental prototypes of Product No62. The Gauss assault rifle fires in bursts, spending a huge amount of energy, but burns out entire enemy squads.
Flamethrower (RPO-A "Bumblebee" or homemade flamethrowers): Filled with gas or combustible artifact mixture tanks. The most effective remedy against crowds of zombified, jerboas and mutated plants in the dungeons.
Railgun: A heavy stationary or portable weapon that surpasses the Gauss Cannon in kinetic energy. Tears the target to pieces.

Gauss Cannon (Product No62): A high-tech weapon created in the secret laboratories of the Site. Fires pieces of the Flash artifact using an electromagnetic field. It has no recoil, hits instantly, pierces through any armor and exoskeletons. Available only to the highest ranks of the Monolith (and scientists for testing).
Submachine guns (SMG):
H&K MP7A1 / MP9: Ultra-compact, rapid-firing SMGs chambered for specific armor-piercing cartridges. Occupy the pistol slot. Ideal for Medics or Snipers as a "last chance weapon".
FN P90: A futuristic SMG with a 50-round magazine. It has a breakneck rate of fire. It is popular with the Syndicate and IIG.
PP-19-01 "Vityaz" / PP-2000: Domestic submachine guns chambered for 9x19 mm. Reliable, easy to maintain, often found in advanced Bandits or special forces of the SBU.
Assault Rifles & Carbines: AR-15 Family (M4A1, Mk18, HK416): An absolute hit with ISG mercenaries and operatives. In mods, these rifles can be customized beyond recognition (change stocks, handguards, put Picatinny rails). They are incredibly accurate, but require expensive maintenance.
AK-12 / AEK-971: A new generation of domestic assault rifles. The AK-12 is valued by Military Stalkers and SOF for its ergonomics, and the AEK-971 is valued by the Duty fighters for its unique balanced automatics, which almost completely removes recoil when firing in bursts.
FN SCAR-H (NATO 7.62X51 MM CALIBER): Heavy automatic rifle. It combines the lethality of a sniper cartridge and the rate of fire of an assault rifle. Weapons of veteran mercenaries and masters of "Freedom".
AS Val / SR-3M Whirlwind with customization: In mods, they can be equipped with modern sights (for example, EKP Cobra or EOTech) and magazines for 30 rounds, turning them into the ultimate tools for storming laboratories.

NATO family (5.56x45 mm cartridges):
TRs-301 (LR-300): A lightweight, very accurate assault rifle that can be hung with everything: silencer, sight, underbarrel. However, it quickly breaks from the dirt of the Zone. Weapons of "Freedom" and Mercenaries.
IL86 (L85A1): Heavy assault rifle with built-in sight. Not the most reliable, but often found among mercenaries in the Wild Territory.
SIG-5k (SIG SG 550): One of the best machines in the game. Impeccably reliable, accurate and deadly. Weapons of the masters of "Freedom".
GP37 (HK G36): German high-tech assault rifle with built-in 1.5x optics. The dream of any veteran stalker.
FT-200M (FN F2000): Futuristic assault system (assault rifle + computer sight + underbarrel). The rarest slot machine in the game. It is found among the masters of the "Monolith" and the Syndicate in Pripyat.
Sniper Weapon (Ranged):
Vintar-VS (VSS "Vintorez"): Legend of the Zone. A silent sniper rifle under 9x39 mm. Due to the heavy bullet, it shoots along a hinged trajectory, but causes tremendous damage. Weapons of legendary stalkers (like the Shooter) and masters of all factions.
SVUm-MK2 (IED): A shortened bullpup sniper rifle chambered for a powerful 7.62x54 mm cartridge. Used by Svoboda snipers.
SVDm-2 (SVD): The classic "Paddle" is long, heavy, hits through half a map. Weapons of military snipers and monoliths on towers in Pripyat.
Heavy:
RP-74 (PKM Machine Gun): Appears in CN/ZP. Huge firepower, a belt for 100 rounds of 7.62x54 mm. A character with a machine gun becomes clumsy, but can single-handedly stop a wave of mutants or an assault squad. Used by Duty and Monolith.
RG-6 (Bulldog-6): A revolver grenade launcher that fires VOG-25 charges. Weapons of mass destruction. It is stored in the warehouses of "Svoboda" and "Dolg" under lock and key.
RPG-7u: Anti-tank grenade launcher. It is used exclusively to destroy military helicopters or to clear the nests of pseudo-giants.

Smoothbore Weapons (Trapper Weapons)Shotguns are the main weapon against specimens in the Zone due to their massive point-blank damage.
TOZ-34 (Hunting rifle): Classic over-and-under rifle. The long barrel gives good bullet accuracy, but only two shots. Choice of beginners and Hunters.
TOZ-66 sawn-off shotgun: A homemade sawn-off shotgun. Fits in a jacket. It has a wild spread, but at a distance of two steps it turns flesh into minced meat. Bandits' signature weapon.
Chaser-13 (Mossberg 500): Pump-action shotgun. Reliable, holds more cartridges. Popular with mid-level solo stalkers.
SPSA-14 (Franchi SPAS-12): Combat semi-automatic shotgun. Heavy, bulky, but indispensable when clearing dungeons from snorks and bloodsuckers. Used by Duty attack aircraft.
Bump Stop (Protecta): A smoothbore revolver shotgun with a huge drum. It reloads slowly, but creates an unmatched density of fire. A real treasure of the Zone.
Submachine Guns and Light Assault Rifles:
Viper-5 (MP5): Rapid-fire, uses a pistol round, effective against light mutants and jacketed bandits. Weapons of mid-level stalkers.
Assault rifles (Zone Main Caliber)Warsaw Pact Family (5.45x39 mm / 9x39 mm cartridges)
AKM-74/2U (AKS-74U): Short, spit fire, oblique, but very cheap assault rifle. Bandits, the military at the Cordon and advanced beginners are armed.
AKM-74/2 (AK-74): The most massive army assault rifle in the Zone. Reliable, accurate, with average damage. Basic weapons of the Military and fighters of "Duty".AN-94 "Abakan": Assault rifle with a cut-off of two shots. It has excellent accuracy at medium distances. A favorite weapon of Duty veterans.
Self-propelled gun "Avalanche" (AS "Val"): Silent assault rifle chambered for heavy caliber 9x39 mm. Weapons of Special Forces, Duty Masters, and Elite Mercenaries.
Grom-S14 (OTs-14 "Groza"): Bullpup assault rifle with a built-in 9x39 mm grenade launcher.

Knife:
Prototype: Hunting or army knife.
A basic tool for every survivor. It is used not only for self-defense as a last resort, but also for cutting off parts of mutants (hooves, tails) and opening canned food.
Pistols chambered for 9x18 mm (Domestic):
PMm (Makarov): The cheapest, rustiest and most unreliable pistol in the Zone. A weapon of "despair" for newcomers.
Fort-12 (Fora-12): A more accurate and capacious Ukrainian pistol. Popular with military patrol officers and experienced beginners.
PB-1v (PB silent): Pistol with built-in silencer. Favorite weapon of scouts, gangster killers and spies.
Pistols chambered for 9x19 mm (Western):
Volker P9M (Walther P99): A reliable German pistol. Popular with mercenaries and mid-level stalkers.
Cora-919 (Colt M1911): Classic. It has a high stopping effect, appreciated by veterans.
Marta (Beretta 92FS): Precise, with a soft return. A rare guest in the Zone.
HPSS-1m (Browning Hi-Power): A workhorse, often found among gangster "authorities".
Elite Pistols (.45 ACP / 9x39mm Cartridges):
SIG-t M200 (SIG Sauer P220): Sniper-accurate pistol used by professionals.
H&K USP Compact: A very reliable pistol, often used as a backup weapon for mercenaries.
Black Hawk (Desert Eagle): A huge, heavy pistol chambered for a powerful cartridge (.45 ACP in the original). A rare and expensive toy that can knock down a wild boar with one shot.
PB-1s OTs-14-4A (in CN/ZP): In some versions, the PP-2000 or APS (Stechkin) automatic pistol can be played as a pistol slot.

Syndicate (Corporation / Shadows): A top-secret structure that stands a step above the usual Mercenaries. These are direct representatives of transnational corporations and arms magnates of the mainland. If the Mercenaries are soldiers, then the Syndicate are operatives in strict dark tactical suits, using drones, PDA jammers and the latest experimental rifles. They do not take contracts for the usual killing of stalkers - they think globally, kidnapping scientists from bunkers and sabotaging military bases.
Objectives: Capture Gauss Cannon blueprints, O-Consciousness documents, and live specimens of rare mutants for replication and sale on the global arms market.
Ideology: Pure, cynical capitalism. "Everything has a price, even a human life."
Relationships: Use Mercenaries as cannon fodder. Enemies for the Military, Scientists and "Duty". The stalkers themselves are only a resource or a hindrance for them.
Apocalypse: A highly organized, secret, and incredibly powerful army created inside the Zone with the money of unknown oligarchs. They partially use the technologies of the Monolith, but are not subject to religious madness. The perfect final boss for a global story. Apocalypse soldiers wear heavy assault armor of dark gray or steel color without any patches. They are perfectly trained to operate in huge assault groups supported by armored vehicles.
Goals: Establishment of total military control over the entire Zone, destruction of all other groups, seizure of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant to dictate terms to the leaders of the mainland.
Ideology: Pragmatic fascism in the realities of the Zone. Only the strong and disciplined have the right to possess the secrets of the Noosphere.
Relationships: War with everyone without exception.

Rangers (Veterans / Vanguard): The oldest stalkers of the Zone, who went deep north even before the official paths were opened. This is not a fighting clan, but a closed brotherhood of pioneers. Wise, unhurried old men and veterans. They wear worn-out but modified Seva overalls or camouflage gowns in forest shades. They are well aware of the secret paths that bypass any Psi-fields and posts of the Monolith. In a role-playing game, they can act as quest givers, guides or mysterious saviors.
Goals: To maintain balance in the Zone, to map new anomalous fields, to help those who really deserve to survive.
Ideology: "The zone is a living organism, and it must be treated with respect." They despise the power squabbling between Duty and Liberty.
Relationships: Neutrality with everyone except outright thugs (Bandits, Renegades) and fanatics.
Conscious Mutants (Conscious/Kinks): A group of unfortunates who have been subjected to harsh radiation or experiments in "X" labs, but who have managed to keep the human mind inside their mutilated bodies. The most difficult and deepest faction to wager. Characters look like monsters (or wear deaf rags that hide deformities), but communicate telepathically or in hoarse voices. They can have Psi abilities. Stalkers fear and hate them, although the Conscious are often ready to go for a conflict-free exchange of information or rare artifacts.
Goals: Survival in the most dangerous and abandoned territories, revenge on scientists and "O-Consciousness" for their fate.
Ideology: "We are what you are turning this world into." They consider themselves to be the true indigenous inhabitants of the Zone.
Relationships: Mortal enemies of the Military, Scientists, and the Monolith. Singles are treated with caution.

Hunters: Professional trackers, trappers, and taxidermists united in a guild. They are usually based in deep forests (for example, in the Swamps or in the Red Forest). Calm, taciturn taiga dwellers. They wear practical camouflage, leather elements of equipment. Their favorite weapons are powerful shotguns (Spas-12, Saiga, TOZ-34) and huge hunting knives. They can sell rare mutant meat to stalkers or give tips to monster lairs.
Objectives: Hunting rare mutants for valuable body parts (pseudo-giant paws, poltergeist eyes), protecting camps from waves of beasts.
Ideology: "The nature of the Zone is a challenge." They perceive the Zone as a harsh hunting ground. They despise the political wars of the factions.
Relationships: They are friends with Loners, Scientists (they hand over biomaterials to them) and "Freedom". Neutral to Duty. Enemies for Bandits and mutants.
Last Day: A mysterious and sinister faction made up of mad apostate scientists and radical stalkers. Insidious mental enemies. They do not storm checkpoints head-on, but use hidden Psi generators, chemicals and traps. They wear masks that hide their faces and overalls in swamp shades.
Objectives: Study of Psi radiation and zombification to create a controlled army. They want to control the minds of all beings in the Zone.
Ideology: It is believed that the end of the world ("The Last Day") is inevitable, and the only way to save oneself is to transform humanity into a single controlled mind, similar to "O-Consciousness".
Relationships: They are at war with everyone. They can use Bandits or Mercenaries "in the dark".
Cleaners / Wind: A brutal punitive formation created by the shadow structures of the mainland. Robotic, ruthless killers. They are dressed in the same heavy black armor without insignia, their faces are covered by blind helmets with red lenses. They never take prisoners and do not enter into negotiations. Stalkers call their appearance the "Black Death".
Goals: Complete, total cleansing of the Zone from people. They are ordered to destroy not only stalkers, but also scientists, the military and even rats - the Zone should be

ISG (Foreign Research Group / UNISG): Secret special forces and UN (or NATO) researchers who have illegally infiltrated the Perimeter undercover. High-tech, cold-blooded professionals. They wear expensive blue-gray or black futuristic gear with UN patches (or without them for stealth). They use the rarest Western weapons with silencers and thermal imagers. They act covertly, in small groups.
Goals: To conduct independent research, collect samples of the Noosphere and technologies of the Zone for Western governments. Elimination of any witnesses to their presence.
Ideology: "The interests of the world community are above all." They consider the local government and stalkers to be savages, unable to control the Zone.
Relationships: A covert war with the Military of Ukraine (SBU) and "Duty". All other stalkers for them are unwanted witnesses to be eliminated. Can secretly hire Mercenaries.
Special Operations Forces (Special Operations Forces) / SBU: An elite unit of the Security Service of Ukraine operating inside the Zone, unlike ordinary army conscripts. Unlike ordinary soldiers, SOF members cannot be bribed with vodka or money. They are ideological, well-trained officers. They wear black or dark olive assault overalls, balaclava masks. It is difficult to play them as they act as "ghosts".
Objectives: Investigate secret conspiracies, search for secret laboratories, eliminate spies (such as ISG) and clean up especially dangerous mutants.
Ideology: Impeccable execution of orders of national importance, protection of national security.
Relationships: Alliance with Scientists and the Common Military. Enemies for Bandits, Mercenaries, and IIGs. Loners are treated as a necessary evil, but they do not shoot for no reason.
Sin (Dark Stalkers): A religious cult originated from the first stalkers to survive the 2006 Surge Surge, but went insane from radiation and Psi radiation. They consider themselves "flesh of the flesh of the Zone".Goals: Approaching the end of the world, expanding the boundaries of the Zone to the entire globe.They practice dark rituals

Bandits: A rabble of criminals, fugitive convicts, robbers and thugs who came to the Zone for easy money.
Goals: Profit from robbing stalkers, smuggling control, racketeering.
Ideology: They live "according to the concepts". The strong take everything from the weak.
Relationships: Enemies of "Duty", Military and Loners. With Svoboda, they keep a shaky neutrality.
Mercenaries: The most mysterious and professional group consisting of Western and domestic soldiers of fortune, former PMC fighters.
Objectives: To fulfill secret contracts from unknown customers from the mainland (espionage, elimination of leaders, theft of documents).
Ideology: "Nothing personal, just business." There is no ideology, only money is important.
Relationships: Aggressive towards most. Can temporarily cooperate with Svoboda, Bandits, or Scientists, if paid for it.
Monolith: A religious sect that controls the center of the Zone (Radar, Pripyat, Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant). It includes stalkers whose minds have been completely "burned out" by the "O-Consciousness" attitudes.
Objectives: To protect the center of the Zone and the Sarcophagus (where a large blue crystal called the Wish Granter is located) from outsiders.
Ideology: Fanatical worship of the mysterious Crystal (Monolith). They consider all other people to be infidels, desecrating the Shrine.
Relationship: Absolute war with ALL factions without exception.
Clear Sky: A secret research group hiding in the rugged Swamps. It was almost completely destroyed at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in 2011, but some survivors are found as Loners.
Objectives: To study the Zone and find ways to return it to a stable state (coexistence of a person and the Zone).
Ideology: It was believed that the Zone could not be destroyed by force, but it was possible to understand its laws in order to avoid a global catastrophe.
Relationships: Enemies of Bandits, Renegades, and Monoliths. Renegade Neutral to Lone Men
: The most brutal scum of the Zone, expelled even from the Bandits for lawlessness and violation of "concepts". A rabble without honor and a leader.
Objectives: Survive in the Swamps by looting.
Ideology: None.

Loners (Stalkers, Freemen): This is not a single organization, but the most massive community of the Zone. This includes everyone who has not joined other factions.
Goals: Search and sale of artifacts, earnings, survival, exploration of the Zone.
Ideology: Freedom of Choice. Every man for himself, but stalker mutual assistance is developed.
Relationships: Neutral with everyone except Bandits, Mercenaries (often), and Monolith.
Duty: A paramilitary group consisting of former military deserters, career officers and volunteers. They have strict army discipline, regulations and ranks.
Objectives: Containment of the threat to the Zone and its complete destruction. Protection of the Mainland from mutants and infection.
Ideology: "Let's protect the world from the infection of the Zone!" They consider the Zone to be an ulcer on the body of the planet. They are not engaged in the trade of artifacts (everything found is given to scientists).
Relationships: Svoboda's mortal enemies: the Bandits and the Monolith. They cooperate with Scientists and the Military.
FreedomAnarchists, ideological fighters, hippies from the world of the Zone, as well as free shooters united in a powerful clan.
Objectives: To preserve the Zone as a unique reserve, to study its secrets and to have free access to its riches for all mankind.
Ideology: "The zone is a gift, it cannot be destroyed or hidden behind a fence." They oppose any control by the state and the military.
Relationship: Mortal enemies of the Duty and the Monolith. They are friends with Mercenaries (sometimes) and Scientists. Loners are treated warmly.
Military (Army): Regular Ukrainian troops (including Special Forces and Military Stalkers) guarding the Perimeter of the Zone.
Goals: Complete isolation of the Zone, suppression of illegal entry, elimination of stalkers, protection of scientists.
Ideology: Execution of orders from the command and government.
Relationships: Enemies for almost everyone except Scholars and (sometimes) "Duty".
Scientists (Ecologists): Official national and international research expeditions. They work in protected mobile bunkers.Goals: To study the physical, biological and anomalous phenomena of the Zone, to create protection against Psi-radiation.Ideology: Pure science for the sake of human progress.

The Super-Emission and the Great Faction War (2011): A stalker named Strelok and his group (Fang, Ghost, and Doctor) find a way to bypass the Psi-shield and penetrate far to the north. The Zone reacts to this like a living organism to a virus—a Super-Emission occurs, redrawing the map of anomalous fields. Old safe paths disappear, but access to Limansk, the Red Forest, and Zaton opens up. A full-scale war erupts between the factions for new territory and influence. The secret group "Clear Sky," which tried to save the world from cataclysm, appears and disappears. It all ends with a second Super-Emission at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant itself.
Both men and women are present in the exclusion zone, and their numbers are generally equal throughout the zone; they are present in every group. Women often meet.

Pre-Catastrophic Period (1986 – 2005) – "The Origin of the Mystery": After the accident in the city of Pripyat in 1986, the 4th sarcophaq of the Nuclear Power Plant exploded, releasing a large amount of radiation into the atmosphere. The Chernobyl nuclear power plant was not completely abandoned. While the construction of the Shelter (Sarcophagus) was underway, a group of scientists settled in underground bunkers and secret laboratories (index "X"). After that, the "O-Consciousness" (a collective mind of seven scientists) was created. They studied the Noosphere, the information field of the Earth. The goal was good: to remove anger, aggression and envy from humanity. In fact, they turned the Zone into a huge testing ground for Psi weapons, which affects the mind and mind.
Second Explosion (April 12, 2006, 2:33 PM) – "Birth of the Zone": The "O-Consciousness" experiment to connect to the Noosphere failed. There was a critical failure that broke through the fabric of reality. A flash of unprecedented force lit up the sky over the Chernobyl nuclear power plant, the clouds instantly evaporated. There was a terrible rumble, the earth shook. The energy of the Noosphere poured into the physical level, instantly rewriting the laws of nature in an area of 30 kilometers. Almost all government troops guarding the perimeter and the personnel of the station were killed. Those who survived turned into zombified or the first terrible mutants.
Isolation period and the first stalkers (2006 – 2009) – "Gold Rush": The government of Ukraine and the UN are closing the Zone in a panic. The "Perimeter" is being erected - a continuous wall of barbed wire, minefields, machine gun pillboxes and military patrols. Quarantine is declared inside the Zone, fire is carried out without warning. By 2007-2008, the first stalkers penetrated the Zone. People flee here from debts, prison, for adrenaline or for artifacts - mysterious formations with anomalous properties, for which scientists on the mainland are ready to pay millions.Realizing that the Zone cannot be held by force, the government sends mobile laboratories that begin to buy artifacts and hire stalkers for measurements.