Our intrepid explorers found their investigation cut short when the door at the top of the stairs was slammed shut, and we could hear something closing in from the tunnels. Acting quickly, we personally stormed the top of the stairs, shooting one bandit through the door and blind-firing through the doorframe at the others, successfully killing another.

While the bandits had been driven off, we had other problems - snorks, and lots of them. They were simply too many and too fast for our rearguard - Bird and Twitch - and overwhelmed the pair as they made their retreat up the stairs. Things were looking bad as we tried to extricate our friends from the mass of stinking sub-humans and Twitch was nearly dragged down to the bottom, but weight of fire and a little luck allowed us to get our friends free, nade the basement, and barricade the basement door.

While Twitch lost his MP-5 in the melee, one of the bandits killed had an AKS-74U. We were about to shake down the other corpse and hit the road when we found something out - the guy we'd shot through the door wasn't dead yet.

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 x2 (ours; spetsnaz)
-primitive anomaly detector; good anomaly detector
-compass
-8 bandages (+2 in group)
-1 first aid kit (+2 in group)
-2 scientific aid kit
-m1911
-Mossberg 88
-AKS-74
-2x Akaban

-no grenades (+3 in group)
-jellyfish artifact
-30 shells, 30 slugs, 12 flech, 14 .45, 4 30-round 5.45 magazines
-8064 RU

Blowout soon!

>>16436142
Do you know what model backpack that is?
I quite fancy it.

Wasn't everyone fapping over this?

Wish I didn't missed this, used to love STALKER. Now just waiting for STALKER 2 news to get exicted.

>>16436175
I either google searched it or saved it off of here. But that was like a year ago.

>>16436192
You're welcome to jump in if you'd like. New posters are always welcome. We're set soon after the events of Call of Pripyat.

You might even have better luck with the dice roller.

Sling the bandit over our shoulder and head back to the Bar.

Hang him by his shoulders over one of the Zone's MANY campfires and have any STALKER who's lost buddies to bandits come over to discuss what we do with him.

Once he spills his guts, sell him to the Arena.

WOOHOO! I've been waiting all week. However, I will wait for others to weigh in before I put up any ideas.

Kick the survivor in his hip and gently ask him to tell us where his friends went.

It's safer to just shoot him and be done with it, but we should get everyone's opinion first.

AHH FUCK YEAR, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. quest!

I suggest that we interrogate the wounded bandit. Find out what they were doing there.

>>16436221
We shot him with a shotgun slug at close range, probably through the midsection.

He's not living long enough to do that.

I'm siding with >>16436258. We have a general idea of what they were doing, but it wouldn't be a bad idea to find out their numbers, armament, where they're based out of, etc. This would be good intel to pass to barkeep and any Duty/Freedom/Loner folks we come across.

A group of loners walked through Agroprom Research Institute; a somber, desolate place, abandoned by all except the Ukrainian Spetsnaz, feral Snorks, and the occasional Bloodsucker. Before reaching the center; Dimitri, the group’s leader, chose the small time of peace to have his group of loner’s within the Zone to check on their supplies. They plan on leaving for Pripyat, the town which leads to the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, the Sarcophagus. Ivan, the team’s scout, was told by Dimitri to check the area for and hostilities. Peeking out from the third-story window with his binoculars, he looked into the vast distance of the Zone. A grey, monochrome overcast of dark clouds hung themselves in the sky, the few trees there were are sickly and can only grow a fraction of leaves that they normally would. The grass was weakened and ill, many patches of grass showed a diseased, brown appearance. Several roars and shrieks can be heard from the distance, the cries of the horribly disfigured mutants which inhabit the zone.

>>16436316
Ivan, who saw nothing out of the ordinary, reported his findings to Dimitri. Dimitri made final preparations and gave a headcount. Within the group was Dimitri, Ivan, Bores, Vasili, and Vulture, each had his own specialization. Dimitri was the de facto leader; He coordinated the jobs, split the rewards fairly and evenly, and kept tensions in the group at a minimum; he was tall and had dark hair, his jaw was squared and his muscles showed themselves, even through his armor. Ivan was the scout; he went ahead of the group, kept an eye on bandit and military patrols, and made a special consideration to gather information; he was a short, thin man with messy hair and a scar beneath his chin. Bores was the group’s demolition man and reloader; his eye for explosive devices made him the perfect man for clearing pathways, scaring off mutants, ruining a bandit’s day, and reloading ammunition by replacing the primers and lead while filling the round with new powder; he was a stocky, grumpy-looking man with a thick beard and an eye-patch where his left eye used to be. Vasili was the cartographer of the group; he mapped the locations they have been to, he makes new maps for new areas they discover, and uses the maps to discover new locations to explore; he had an average build and was characterized by a large scar that ran down the right side of his face. Vulture was the team’s designated marksman; he was most effective at longer ranges, he can use his binoculars to approximate the range between him and his target, and shoot an apple out of a child’s hand from 750 meters away; he was barrel-chested and jaw littered with stubble, he was the eldest in the group and most experienced

>>16436263
Well, you never know. He might be (un)lucky.

>>16436327
>Fuck the canon, Agroprom underground leads to Pripyat!
Together, these men made up one of many groups of S.T.A.L.K.E.R.s, or loners, within the Zone. After strange objects known only as “Artifacts” started appearing within the Zone of Alienation surrounding Chernobyl, many men from all over eastern Europe, from Poland to Georgia, began flooding within the zone to seek their fortune in the radiation pool, searching for the abundant artifacts that it had to offer. These men were usually stateless, criminals, exiles, military, mercenaries, those with wanderlust, or any mixture of the above. Within the zone, they made their livings; they found artifacts and sold them at merchants who stationed themselves near encampments. Not before long, these loners started to band together and form artifact-hunting groups known as “S.T.A.L.K.E.R.s”, an acronym for “Scavengers, Trespassers, Adventurers, Loners, Killers, Explorers, and Robbers”, who would search for artifacts within large groups. Together, these S.T.A.L.K.E.R.s opened up passages into the deepest reaches into the Zone, to the Sarcophagus and Pripyat.
Dimitri and his team descended into the Agroprom Underground, which has a path that would lead them to Pripyat. The Underground was damp, humid, and dark. Grey, glowing ooze seeped from the radioactive pipes which ran along the tunnels. The ground was padded with some sort of padded, moldy dirt. The air, albeit odorous and disgusting, could not pass the filters within the team’s gas masks. The only sources of light came from the manhole entrance and the rancid slime, which shone dimly in the corridors of the Underground.

>>16436316
>>16436327
Don't care. Not here for your shit, here for the quest.

>>16436355
Okay. I'll post this another time, then.

>>16436353
>>16436327
You. Shut up. The thread will become a STALKER General once the quest is over in about five hours.

Until then, shut your yap or get out of here, STALKER.

>>16436399
Hey, don't go away mad. It seems like some good stuff. This is just not the place for it. No reason not to open your own thread and post it.

>"This one's alive."

You look up in surprise at Twitch's declaration, and your first thought is, "Well, not for long."

You clomp over to the wounded bandit and see that your first thought is right. The door had been solid wood, but the slug had still passed right through it, carrying dirty wooden shrapnel along for the ride. The bandit isn't wearing any armor, just a leather jacket and a couple of sweaters (you assume to deflect bites and knives). Such meager protection hasn't availed the bandit at all.

After what you just went through, you want some goddamn answers. Twitch steps aside and you straddle the man, putting your .45 in his face - for effect, he'll probably die anyway.

"Who are you?" you ask, "Why did you attack us? Who do you work for?"

Roll a d20 to see if a guy with a shotgun slug in his chest is feeling up to a chat.

>Pic related is from the last thread, by a kindly drawfriend. Thanks, drawfriend, this is awesome and good.

rolled 14 = 14

>>16436424
I don't care if he's up for a chat.

Press out boot against his wound and make him talk.

rolled 5 = 5

>>16436424
"Who do you work for. How did you get into the Zone. Tell us and we'll make your death quick. Lie-or mouth off-and we'll throw you to the Snorks."

>>16436399
I actually don't mind if you post it. It's not like we're sharing a name or anything here.

rolled 10 = 10

>>16436424
Rolling. I agree with
>>16436435
though. Try to make him talk any way possible

>>16436424
No, don't put the .45 in his face. Stick fingers into his wound and wiggle them around. THAT shit hurts.

>>16436462
Nah, i'll see if i'm still awake when the quest is over and i'll try again.
I'm patient.

>Get home
>Plan to do homework
>See Stalkerquest

Damn it man, if I didn't actually want to pass my classes I would be playing too.

>>16436435
"You sh-" the bandit replies, "You shot," he pauses, "Son of a bitch, you shot me!"

"You're in no position to complain," Vlad says icily, somewhere over your shoulder.

"Fuck you!" the bandit manages, coughing thickly.

Wrong answer, you decide. Standing, you dig one bootheel against the wound - carefully, you don't want to rupture anything or make the guy pass out - the bandit rewards your efforts with an agonized scream, fruitlessly trying to remove your boot from his midsection with gloved hands.

Out of the corner of your eye, you see Twitch wince and shuffle off around the corner.

"I asked you some questions," you say, once the bandit has had a chance to catch his breath, "It's good manners to answer. And watch your language around the lady."

"You're a dick, Boose," Damsel says.

The bandit seems to consider more defiance, gulps, then speaks up, "My-my name is Fedir. We...scouted you out back at Rostok, saw you had an artifact bag. Figured...easy mark," the bandit winces, expecting another dig with your heel, but you let the man finish, "I...we work for Pirate."

>>16436545
By the way, here is the previous drawfriend's take on Bird. Looking forward to your takes on Twitch, Bosse, and Vlad, should you still-feel so inclined.

rolled 6 = 6

>>16436545
"You saw five heavily armed stalkers in combat armor and figured we'd be easy marks? Are you retarded? Do you not know who I am? I'm the godddamn Viking."

Kick him in the leg. "Now who's this pirate faggot and where is he."

rolled 18 = 18

>>16436545
"Go on. Where can we find this Pirate? And how do you Bandits get into the zone anyway?

Every question you answer is another minute you live. If you answer them all, we'll even give you a choice-death, or you can bleed out in peace."

rolled 18 = 18

>>16436545
I'm ashamed to admit that I'm here without reading the previous threads. Is Pirate a recurring character, or is he new?

Either way, let's pump this guy for as much information as possible.
I want to know who Pirate is, where Pirate is, and who Pirate works for.

>>16436545
He's seen the stick, now show him the carrot. Show him an ampule of morphine out of one of the kits. "Well, tell us where you're based out of, what gear your group has generally, and how many personnel you have, and I'll give you some comfort before you give up the ghost."

Afterwards, apologize to Twitch. Profusely. Adrenaline, and heat of the moment.

rolled 18 = 18

>>16436640
This, in addition to what ever else we ask / do to him.

>>16436637
(Pirate is a character that got mentioned in passing once a VERY long time ago.)

-

"And who in the Zone's name is that?" you ask, annoyed.

"Who is Pirate?" the bandit actually starts to laugh, "Who is PIRATE?" the laugh peters out into a bloody cough. The four of you watch with annoyance, waiting to see if the bandit will need further encouragement. He doesn't.

"Only the big swinging dick around the whole southern Zone, that's who!" You assume that means that he's in charge.

"Where can we find this Pirate character?" you ask, "I'd like a word with him about the behavior of his employees."

The bandit shakes his head sadly, "Oh man, you r...really don't know," he pauses, panting, "He operates out of Dark Valley. Go ahead, pay a visit, though do...do your girlfriend there a favor and leave her in the kitchen," the bandit gives a small ha-ha-ha laugh at this, not wanting to provoke another coughing fit. You can feel Damsel grinding her teeth somewhere behind you.

Roll a d20 again as the bandit's condition worsens.

rolled 7 = 7

>>16436750
Rolling. I vote that we ask him how big, and how well armed his group is, then give him the morphine like Weasel suggested.

>>16436804
Damn, he's probably bleeding out quicker than we want.

>>16436750
try to antagonize him by insulting Pirate.

"So he makes his fortunes by praying on newbies, eh? He can't possibly be what I'd call a threat."

>>16436804
"Where are you based from?" you ask, "How are your numbers? Your gear?"

The bandit doesn't say anything, staring off at a point over your shoulder and breathing in a series of shallow pants. It's Bird that breaks the silence, "He's dying, Bosse, save your breath."

"Bullshit," Damsel says, "He's just clamming up. Wave a carrot in front of his nose and he'll speak right back up."

"What does a carr...oh, I get it," Vlad says, shifting his weight from one foot to the other and looking embarassed.

You understand what Damsel is suggesting, too, though you doubt if this bastard is faking death from internal bleeding. You fish one hand into your bag, retrieving a medkit and an ampule of morphine. You wave the delicate glass cylinder slowly in front of the bandit's eyes, and his gaze picks up some focus again, "Answer me and I can make this less painful for you. You might even have a chance not to die here in this place," this last part is, you suspect, a dirty lie, but you doubt if a cooling corpse will care much about being promised some false hope.

The bandit's condition has worsened severely. Roll a d20 to see if your guys' attempt to get more cooperation through application of 'carrot' is successful, or if he's too far gone to care.

rolled 3 = 3

>>16436955

rolled 9 = 9

>>16436955
Here's hoping

rolled 13 = 13

>>16436955

Well, if this doesn't work, I say we put one into his head.

Then search his body for anything useful, and dump his body in a ditch, or do whatever it is that stalkers do to dispose bodies.

Well, no more dice for me today. Such is life in the Zone. Finish him quickly. Have everyone else, especially Twitch, exit and secure the area. Draw our knife and put him out quickly and painlessly.

>>16436992
He's not the worth the extra round. And if we're disposing of him, dump him in the basement. Other than that, bodies are probably just left out to be eaten by animals.

>>16436974
You're about to speak again when you notice the bandit's no longer panting. That faraway gaze has returned. Permanently.

Sighing, you return the morphine to its proper place. It would have been nice to get additional information, but you'll take making it out of the day alive as good enough. You pat the bandit down, looking for useful items. You find a grenade in one internal jacket pocket, and a fairly good-condition sawn-off double-barrel in a crude hip holster, along with 10 shells.

Your knees pop as you stand up, dusting your hands off and rolling your shoulders. Unbidden, Bird speaks up, "I can't speak to this guy," he says, "But the Dark Valley bandits base themselves out of the factory complex there. They took some old military lab from the military, too, though they didn't fight hard for it," he pauses, "Last I was out that way, the place was fairly swarming and you had a fair mix of gear. I've heard of this Pirate, though. Supposedly he's an experienced deep Zone bandit - took his gang back south again."

Aw shit yeah it's Stalker Quest. Lemme read the thread so far and see what we're up to

rolled 15 = 15

well if he dies, take his stuff and just go, no need to stick around there any longer

rolled 8 = 8

well if he dies, take his stuff and just go, no need to stick around there any longer

rolled 9 = 9

>>16437124
Yeah, this is probably the best option.

rolled 20 = 20

Well, shit.

Let's ask the rest of the team if they think they can fight a Chimera and win. If so, once we have the data idented, we're going Chimera hunting.

Always wondered what those mutant fucks tasted like.

>>16437181
Maybe we could lure the Chimera into the bandit base.

>>16437181
not feeling suicidal today, lets just go to freedom's base

>>16437237
I approve heartily of this

>-2x Akaban
Didn't we sell those to the Barkeep?
In any case, we need more first aid kits, and more nades after that fight with the snorks.
6 'nades so that every man (and woman) has two each, 5 more aids so we have a total of 10 first aid kits.
Also, is that Jellyfish the ShoC jelly that makes you MORE radiated, or the CoP/Clear sky jelly that makes you LESS radiated? If it's the kind that makes you MORE radiated, we need Vodka. Lots of Vodka.

>>16437181
What posts was this Chimera mentioned in? Or is it just a metaphor for a Dark Valley bandit?
I don't wanna try taking on Dark Valley with only 5 of us. This isn't a video game, and if we try to storm the Dark Valley complex we'll just die. Only Strelok can walk into a complex of 40 people and kill them all.

WIP for vlad

>>16437265
CoP/CS that reduces radiation. We sold one Akaban. Vlad has the other.

>>16437280
No, the Chimera is a critter. It's a nocturnal hunter, and it is one bad mother fucker.

>>16437265
Yup, my mistake, those abakan have been sold - well, one has. The other you gave to Bird.

As to the Jellyfish, it's the CoP. I generally use CoP artifact effects, unless I like another one better. Or decide to make one up. It's not been too relevant yet - you guys have personally found a total of 4 artifacts. They're rare.

Even if the u jelly fish were radioactive, though, you have a backpack with a lead-lined area for safe artifact transportation.

Couple more minutes for you guys to hash out stuff you wanna do, then I'm proasting. Prevalent course right now seems to be head to Army Warehouses, drop off the PDA, then head to Dark Valley.

>>16437181
It's more likely to find out what Viking tastes like. Head to the military warehouses and look into getting this PDA cracked. We can offer them some cash and share the data with them.

>>16437090

We don't want to dump him in the basement, seeing as that would mean we would have to open it up and deal with the snorks in there.

Just leave him at the door, leave a note that says "snorks in the basement."

Let's get back on the road, maybe head for the closest friendly stalker area and tell people that Pirate and his boys are out this far, or something.

>>16437181
Unless we're getting paid to the tune of at least 2000 RU then I'm not going anywhere near a Chimera.
As for mutant hunting: Well, we have a basement of Dead Snork here. Are any Snork bits valuable?
On our way out, we should take the time to scratch or paint "Snork lair in basement" near the gas station to warn anyone who comes by.

Chimeras make bloodsuckers look harmless by comparison.

A chimera has 2 heads, thick bullet resistant hide, claws, an angry disposition, and is best taken out with RPG7s

you don't fuck with them on a whim.

rolled 10 = 10

>>16437326
You got the first part right, but we shouldn't go near Dark Valley. That'd be suicide.

>>16437372
Sometimes the research base out near the Red forest pays for snork ligaments. Something about being mutated for crazy tensile strength, thus the leaping and shit. Not always though, depends on the project they're working on.

>>16437326
My vote:
Head to the Army Warehouses. Follow up leads on the PDA.
While at the Army Warehouses, shoot the shit with the Freedom guys and see if anyone has any jobs for us.
If there aren't any jobs, then I'd like to find a convenient excuse to check out some Electrical anomalies at around 1am-3am (Meta: Electro artefacts are only visible during the cold weather of night).

>>16437373
No, no, a mag of Armsel Striker 12-gauge to the face does 'em pretty well too.

I really do like the idea of luring the Chimera into the Bandits' base, though. It kills a bunch of them, they kill it, we mop them up; it kills them, we kill it while it's wounded; they kill it, we go to the bar and tell the guys whose friend got et by it that it's dead.

Wins all around. Except for the bandits and/or the Chimera.

>>16437438
Chimaera are intelligent, it won't want to be Lured anywhere. If we try, it'll probably flank us.

>>16437425
I'm siding with this.

>>16437438
We'll do this one later.

>>16437454
Plus they have crazy speed and know how to use terrain to avoid line of sight. In the Dark Valley it's mostly bog and urban wreck. Perfect hunting grounds for something that knows the area.

lets just go check out them freedom dudes first before we go luring anything to anyone.

>>16437509
There's another option, though:
Chimaera are smart
Bandits are stupid
If we can start rumors of "Artefact in the middle of an anomaly at {chimaera_location}", or "A stalker carrying some military armor died at {chimaera_location}", then we can lure the Bandits to the Chimaera. :)

rolled 17 = 17

>>16437583
Now that's the sort of plan that I can get behind.

>>16437281
fukken saved

-
You decide you've had enough of this gas station. You're not going to waste time burying this bandit asshole, not with daylight burning, and not after he tried to kill you all. You will leave warning to your fellow stalkers about this place, though.

Whipping out some crumpled paper and a stub of a pencil, you begin to write a note when Damsel cuts you off, "They'll probably just tear that off when they come back, Bosse."

"Carve it in the door," Vlad suggests. A fair one, and you take it. You doubt if the bandits could or would port over a door and change it, even if they do have a fairly good system worked out here.

A few minutes later, you emerge from the side hall; Twitch falls silently into step and the five of you emerge back onto the road, the rest of Fedir's party nowhere in evidence. Guy shoulda found better friends.

"Sorry about that back there, Twitch" you say, addressing Twitch, "Got a bit carried away."

Twitch nods, "It's fine, Bosse. Just don't have much stomach for watching that kind of thing."

>>16437583
While a delightful possibility, we can't be sure some rookie stalker won't get baited and nommed instead of the bandits. Also, we don't have any way of taking credit for the chimaera's death if they do best it.

>>16437627
"Harden up, Alex," Damsel says, somewhat roughly, "He'd do the same to you or any of us."

"Yeah, well, I'm not him."

Damsel snorts. Twitch grins crookedly. Presently, the five of you move on.

The way ahead is fairly clear, for a change, and you welcome it. Sure, you're not finding adventure at the moment, but neither are you finding a bullet in your brainpan. Bird seems to notice the calm and speaks up on it, "This route's heavily travelled, faction wars or no. Mutants and bandits tend to end up dead, so the smarter ones shy away."

"Or set up honey traps," Vlad interjects.

Time passes and so do the woods. You find yourself in a divot, hills rising on either side. To their credit, the group doesn't have to be told to watch the hills for signs of ambush. Working together without a sound - now that's group dynamics. Ahead, to your right, you can make out the roofs of a cluster of buildings. There seems to be something odd about it, though.

>>16437627
"It's not fine, Twitch. I know you don't care for that stuff, and I should be taking care to keep you out of it. I went too far, and, again, I'm sorry."

>>16437638
Examine buildings from the road, by way of binocs.

>>16437638
Strange.
Get Bird and us to go check it out, while Twitch/Vlad/Damsel cover our asses. Stay low, stay stealthy. Any group of houses is a good place for a bandit attack.

>>16437638

Ask Bird what he knows of the place.

If it's supposed to be like this, then we move on.

If not, or he knows nothing, then we approach slowly and work our way around the perimeter to get a good look at the "town."

rolled 5 = 5

>>16437676
Safest option.

binocs like a mo'fuckka

You tilt your head at the oddity, not sure what it is, and hold up your hand for the others to stop. They do, taking covering positions and watching their surroundings warily. "Bird," you say, "Come here for a second." The older stalker complies as you look through your binocs at the rooftops.

You don't see anyone and you wonder for a moment if you are just being jumpy, but then you notice what'd caught your eye - you can just barely see the slope of some sort of metal dome among the roofs, like a grain silo, though far too short.

You blink, then look again. Yes, you were right. The mysterious arc of metal seems to be swaying, albiet very, very gently. You go to hand your binocs to Bird, but he's already looking through his scope.

"Bird, you were Freedom, what is that over there?"

There's a brief pause, then the seasoned stalker speaks up, "I'm not sure. I don't remember that the last time I was here. All that's up that way are a few broken-down houses before the warehouses and the Freedom base," he pauses, trying to recall something, "Some Duty assholes holed up there once and tried to raid us. Didn't go off. Heard they got kicked out of Duty after that, but that was rumor mill stuff."

Sneak up, but stay way back, binos and scope, Bosse and Bird. Damsel, Twitch, and Vlad post up in a secure spot on the other side of the road in an operational rally point. This way, if either group comes into contact, the other can beat feet to them and lay down fire.

>>16437773
Good plan, I support that.

rolled 16 = 16

>>16437773
>That Picture
I giggled.

Also, agreed.

rolled 7 = 7

>>16437753

Dice for some insight on the swaying of the metal dome.

Also, we go around it, but close enough that we can get a good look at it.

While we throw bolts/rocks in our path.

>>16437753
Could it be the freedom dudes have found themselves a missile?! Or maybe this is just some freedom wackiness like that dick measuring contest they had over the intercom.

carefully approach the buildings, with damsel and twitch and bird covering Bird and Bosse, and vlad keeping an eye out for any interlopers. Have our detector ready as well, and check the path to the strange buildings with bolts.

>>16437816
woops, ignore the first use of Bird in that statement

Also, move below the full crest of the hill at what is called the "military crest" and use the top of the hill for cover. Once in a good position, put glass (scope and binos) on the object again to see what can be seen.

GODDAMN. Slow ass internet, making me post after a bulk post from SOoGH.

We don't have one of pic related do we? One can always hope.

You decide to take no chances after the near-debacle at the gas station. You advance some ways, then split the group - Twitch, Damsel, and Vlad take up station on the opposite side of the road, at a relative high point. You and Bird advance carefully on the abandoned structures. It's difficult to be stealthy in your heavy stalker suit, but Bird helps by leading you through areas where you make the least noise, experienced scout and hunter that he is. Around you, there are only the sounds of the Zone - the occasional animal yelp or crow caw.

Once you've gotten as close as you're comfortable getting, you and Bird both take another look. The hump of metal seems to be behind one of the larger houses, though near to it, and...hey. Wait. What's that on top? A hatch?

You look again. Definitely. And a mount for a machine gun next to it, though no gun is in evidence.

"A tank?" Bird says, quietly, "How the hell-"

Good question. What's the tank resting on? Why is it swaying?

>>16437859
I call for closer examination, and tell the others about it

rolled 4 = 4

>>16437859

Head back to the group, report findings.

Find the person with the best throwing arm.

Throw a good-sized rock at it or towards it's general direction.

If it moves in a way that's contrary to regular physics, then we avoid the place like the plague.

If it hits it and it topples, then maybe it won't be a problem anymore.

If the tank is a rockin', don't come a knockin'. Give it a wide berth and head on into the warehouses.

>>16437859
Call Vlad in. Hand him the Binocs. Ask him what type of Tank it is and how many Crew typically serve one.

>>16437859
HAHA!


is it those assholes in the VX soaked tank? Did they drive into a grav anomaly?

rolled 3 = 3

>>16437859
Chuck a rock at it. See if this is some freaky Zone shit, or just some weird guy building something weird.

>>16437888
Or they managed to make it a lowrider. Oh Freedom, you equal parts awesome and crazy.

>>16437893
Well if that wasn't the case BEFORE...

>>16437893
Sadly, probably not. That was a BMP, this is more than likely a tank tank. Meta: Probably a T-90.

I'm gonna be gone for a bit. Don't get us killed please!

Keep binoccing. I want to find out what the balls is up with this thing.

Also, not even Freedom is dim enough to make a lowrider from a TANK.

>>16437930
No we will not take away their metal boxes. Freedom are neither cowards nor fools (well some of them are).

You decide to double back and get Vlad - now that you know there's a tank resting on...something...you'd like to know just what kind of tank that is. Bird changes places with Vlad on overwatch, and as you and the ex-soldier get close again, you hand over your binoculars.

"So what are we looking at here?" you ask.

Vlad shakes his head, "All I can see is the top arc of the turret, and it's beat to shit. I'd guess a T-72? Maybe?"

You pause to consider that, then get an idea. It's a dangerous idea, and when you let Vlad know, he seems dubious. Nevertheless, he gets into cover while you get into position. Reaching into your "junk" bag, you retrieve a large, corroded bolt. Flexing and rotating your throwing arm, you finally let go with a pretty impressive throw.

Roll a d20.

go around the house for a clearer view?

rolled 4 = 4

>>16437943
Rolling!

rolled 9 = 9

boltan

>>16437957
Welp, it would seem that I am not in the favour of the goddess with 20 faces tonight. I'm laying down my dice for now.

rolled 18 = 18

>>16437943
For the boltperor!

rolled 8 = 8

Rollin'

dammit, we must throw MORE bolts

BOLTS EVERYWHERE

>>16437957
Your bolt tumbles through mid-air towards the thin arc of metal, and you mentally congratulate yourself on the throw. You always did have a hell of an arm, you and your brother used-

Hang on a tick.

You blink as the bolt stops arcing downward and suddenly sails up in a parabolic arc, curving back through the air towards you like some sort of bizarre boomerang.

Roll a d20.

rolled 2 = 2

>>16438012
CATCH IT!

rolled 4 = 4

>>16438012
Chill out I got this. Have a 20.

rolled 5 = 5

>>16438012
Chill out lads, I got this.

rolled 6 = 6

>>16438024
>>16438025
>>16438039
You guys seriously

>>16438024
>>16438025
>>16438039

rolled 1 = 1

IF I ROLL A 3 WE GET A STRAIGHT

>>16438024
>>16438025
>>16438039
Well, let's just hope we don't end up with brain damage from the bolt that wedged in our face.

rolled 4 = 4

WHOA WHOA!
I GOT THIS

>>16438041
>>16438024
>>16438025
>>16438039
This is going to be good

>>16438059

rolled 8 = 8

>>16438024
>>16438025
>>16438039
>>16438041
>>16438054
Good job lads

rolled 11 = 11

REROLL
THIS TIME FOR SRS!

>>16438024
>>16438025
>>16438039
>>16438041
>>16438054
>>16438068
I can tell you guys are professionals.

rolled 13 = 13

I wanna say something, but I'm gonna wait until SOOGH's post because I don't want worse shit to happen. Also, we should GET THE FUCK DOWN!

(I just realized I have small, STALKER-like caches throughout my house of booze, ammo, guns, and some non-perishable foods.)

rolled 17 = 17

I sense that Nobylan and Mitenun have left us.

BONK

>>16438024
The bolt hits your head at a speed that would probably have cracked your skull open if you'd been wearing much less than your heavy stalker suit. Instead, it merely bowls you over in the weedy Ukranian terrain, white spots bursting before your eyes and your ears ringing painfully.

You come close to passing out, wavering on the gray line between consciousness and unconsciousness, but then Vlad's by your side, removing your helmet and checking you for injuries. His concern fades as it becomes clear that you've not been seriously injured, and he helps you to an unsteady sitting position.

"You're probably concussed after that," Vlad cautions, waving an it's-okay to the others, "We should see about finding a doctor - or whatever passes for such - when we get a chance.

You don't disagree with that. Examining your helmet, you feel a chill down your spine; had the bolt been travelling just a little bit lower, it would've buried itself in your face, possibly killing but definitely maiming you. That concern turns to anger when you notice the front of your helmet is sporting fresh damage; a considerable crack down the front.

Vlad sees what you're looking at and comments, "Hey, money we can get. A new skull, not so much."

True enough. Replacing your helmet, you peer towards the arc of metal, "What the hell sends bolts on a homicidal return-to-sender flight?"

"You're the stalker," Vlad says, "You tell me." He sounds unnerved.

>>16438116
Get the Detector out, walk forward and wave it around.
No artefact?
Then we get the fuck out.
Artefact?
Then it's gotta be pretty fuckin' powerful.

note, in the future, when checking for anomalies, we use nerf darts and ketchup packets

rolled 4 = 4

>>16438097

>Say gods left us
>Get 17

:|

>>16438140
+1

rolled 10 = 10

>>16438140
As much as I don't want to agree with this, it's the STALKER thing to do. Very gently and with all caution, poke it with a stick, figuratively.

Do you guys want to leave the others in position? If you move towards the building cluster, they won't be covering you.

seems like a vortex or whirligig anomaly

>>16438181
probably get them to reposition in a better spot relative to us, if none available, than just hold a perimeter around our vicinity

>>16438181
I'd say have them follow us, so far nothing much.. cept for the lethal bolt
Oh and get a long branch or something to check the anomaly, throwing things seems like a bad idea

rolled 8 = 8

>>16438181
Before moving in, return to the others and collaborate. Get their opinions. If they're for checking it out, find a good covered and concealed over-watch position for Damsel and Bird. Then push in towards the anomaly slowly and carefully with Twitch and Vlad.

I'm torn between leaving Bird back and taking him with, he's got the scope and the range, but he's also the vet. Decisions, decisions.

rolled 11 = 11

Leave? What are we, bandits?

We're Stalkers. Lets fucking Stalk.

Get our detector out and check for delicious artifacts! Use Moar Bolts to map the anomaly!

STALK DAMN YOU, STALK!

rolled 13 = 13

>>16438235
Agreed. Let's detector the shit out of it.

>>16438235

But in this situation, his skills are his ability to shoot, since he's not too familiar with the place.

Then again, I don't know if shooting is a good idea, considering the nature of this anomaly.

Should we try throwing the old hat and see if it returns to us?

Maybe we should walk slowly towards it? It might be it only throws fast things back.

>>16438266

no you fool, you want us to have caved in heads?

throw handfuls of dirt or mud, or spit. or plastic bottles, i.e. stuff that won't kill us if it rebounds

>>16438285
I bet the anomaly would find a way to kill us with dirt somehow.

rolled 12 = 12

What I was going to say before was, "I hope this bolt doesn't pop Twitch in the face. That would be just his, and our luck."

>>16438321
such is life in the zone

"An anomaly of some kind," you say, responding to Vlad's question.

"I gathered," he says mildly.

Signaling to the others, you call them over to collaborate. It doesn't seem there's much threat here outside of the anomaly. As the others get close and notice what happened to your helmet, Damsel speaks up, "Christ, Bosse," she says, eyebrows raising in a startled arc, "What is it with you and brain-smashing things? First the controller..."

"Controller?" Vlad asks.

"Bit of a story," Bird says, "Gist of it is that we crossed paths with a mutant that can fuck with your head."

The ex-soldier looks disturbed at this idea, but remains silent.

Once the others have gathered around, you explain your plan - you'd like to investigate the anomaly, maybe score a valuable artifact, "I figure Bird and Damsel cover us - you've got a scope and some heavy firepower to work with if something follows us in - and myself, Twitch, and Vlad will check out the anomaly. We can use a stick or something to see where it begins."

>>16438344
I'm sure if Twitch were there, he would've been the one hit.

>>16438399
Your assembled crew nods - hesitantly - and Bird speaks up, "Be careful, Bosse. Powerful gravity anomalies can shift rapidly and are unstable - one wrong move and we'd be able to put what's left in a coat pocket."

Not even Damsel makes a joke at this grisly thought. You nod, hash out the last details, and get to work. As Twitch, Vlad, and you advance on the cluster of buildings, your brandished anomaly detector slowly starts beeping - in sporadic, lonely chips at first, then steadily, then more rapidly. You step around the building that the tank's behind and the detector goes crazy. For the moment, though, you don't notice.

Floating in mid-air in front of you is a tank. Gently swaying - not in the wind, but under the swirling forces of the anomaly. It is indeed a T-72, and a part of you is impressed with Vlad's estimation.

Edging closer to the impossible sight, your anomaly detector's beeps eventually become a single, shrill note; you feel the long stick in your hand gently lift from the other end, and there's a strange, and you feel light headed and slightly nauseous.

You exchange glances with the others and see they're in the same boat. Twitch looks positively green, and noticing your look, speaks up, "I have a weak stomach," he says apologetically. You can sympathize, anyway.

Switching your detector over to artifact search, you pan it around; the steady beeps tell you there's one here somewhere, though you don't - wait.

You angle the detector up, at the tank. The detector responds.

rolled 14 = 14

>>16438407
...artifact TANK? :D

>>16438407
We need a long metal or wooden pole.
Put one end up against the tank.
Push on the other end.
Tanks may be incredibly fucking heavy to the tune of 65 tonnes, but if it's in mid-air we might be able to move it.

Don't throw anything at the anomaly
Don't walk towards the anomaly without AT LEAST a 2 meter pole in front of you.

i pocket the tank,

this one is gonna need a lot of antirad artifacts to even out

rolled 10 = 10

>>16438407
What's the longest pole/stick we can find that can support the force of 3 people pushing on it?
Rolling d20 to search.

>>16438445

This, but tell Twitch to back up.

And if he feels like it, to puke towards the tank, because it is a totally legitimate scientific experiment to determine if it only reflects bolts or is a miniature gravity well.

Ignore the fact that it might result in someone being covered in puke.

it might be that there is an artifact inside the tank or maybe part of it has turned into an artifact

are there any spots on the tank that happen to be glowing or looking weird?... or at least as weirder than the fact that a t72 is floating like a party balloon

rolled 2 = 2

Ask everyone else if they're seeing what you're seeing.

I just had a crazy idea-what if it's an artifact that appears as whatever you want?

Why push the tank out?

If you loot the ground it's on, and put that in a cart of a truck or something, you've just got your self an anti grav tank that fires at faster than light speeds.

>>16438536
Bahaha. As soon as anyone works out how to tame an anomaly then there'll be no less than 40 homemade Anomaly Looting Kits in Rostok by the next afternoon, and some idiot will have left a whirligig somewhere inconvenient.

>>16438486
It is, as far as you can see, a badly-battered piece of glorious people's engineering. Besides being pride of Soviet socialist workers, there is nothing glowing about it.

-
Thinking for a moment, you get an idea. Searching around with Twitch, you manage to find some old piping and, with the aid of some duct tape (without which no sane man would enter the Zone, even the rookie you once were), construct a very long pole with which to reach the tank itself.

"Here, Twitch," you say, "Stand back and spare your stomach." Your friend complies readily, and you slowly penetrate the anomaly field with your unwieldly rod, guiding it through the gravity currents towards the tank's hull. Making contact, you begin to push.

Roll a d20.

rolled 2 = 2

>>16438525
The dice disagree with you.

Rolling for plan 'find big stick and push tank out of anomaly.'

here's a thought: removing the artifact might make the tank stop floating. gonna have to be careful with this one.

rolled 1 = 1

>>16438567
>>16438568
Looks like the pipe is going to fly out and hit Twitch in the face.
Don't worry, I'll save him with a natural 18.

rolled 4 = 4

>>16438568
>>16438578
Guys I think I found out what this Anomaly does
it makes us roll below 10

rolled 11 = 11

>>16438568
>>16438578
HERE COMES THE ONE
HERE COMES THE ONE
AND I SAY
WE'RE ALL FUCKED

rolled 8 = 8

such is life, in the zone.

Rolling for success!

rolled 13 = 13

>>16438568
>>16438578
>>16438585
Goddamn Zone bullshit. Not only can it fuck with your mind it can also fuck with your dice rolls.

rolled 3, 13, 17, 11, 13, 2 = 59

nobylan
mitenun
allah

rolled 20 = 20

Loot the anomaly anon here, doubt my dice can make it much worse~

>>16438585
We have to loot this anomaly now!

Imagine all the money we could make shooting craps?

>>16438578

how intact is the tank looking?

cause i'm wondering, if this is a run of the mill vortex anomaly, or maybe just some passive anti gravity area.

If the tank is relatively intact it might mean that the anomaly might simply not have the "tear shit to shreds" feature.... well, either that or the tank is resilient enough to not get torn up

TL-DR i'm wondering if going in carefully might simply lead to floating harmlessly up to the tank, rather than getting gibbed

>>16438613
GOD DAMMIT WHY DID YOU NOT ROLL SOONER?

WE COULD HAVE LOOTED IT AND SOLD IT TO VEGAS.

>>16438626
Such is life in the zone~

I know better than to roll again.

>>16438616

Can we take

>>16438613

Instead?

Or have them both occur simultaneously?

>>16438578
You're just beginning to apply pressure when the situation suddenly changes. Drastically.

Bird had mentioned that powerful gravity anomalies could shift rapidly, be unstable. You got what he was saying - your throbbing head wouldn't let you forget the danger - but no amount of intellectualizing could prepare you for the force that you suddenly feel.

In less time than it takes you to blink, the pole is pulled from your considerable grasp in a manner so effortless that your brain actually takes a second to catch up to the fact that you're no longer holding anything. It's a good thing you were wearing gloves, or your hands wouldn't be wearing skin at the moment.

The pole hurls up through the air in a parabolic arc not unlike the bolt, being twisted and warped under the unspeakable energies fuelling the anomaly. It shoots out of the field at breakneck speed, but you don't have time to worry about that.

Because you're falling into the field.

Roll 2d20

can we use like a fate point or some shit?

its not our fault that...

SOME PEOPLE HAVE NO BUSINESS TOUCHING THE DICE!!!

>>16438617
That's actually quite possible. Neither the bolt or the tank have been visibly deformed. Of course the pole has, but, well, Bird DID say that powerful gravity anomalies can shift and be unpredictable.

rolled 12, 6 = 18

>>16438665
nobylan
mitenun

>>16438678
You guys have 2 fate points left. You spent one on Twitch back during the VX Incident.

rolled 15, 4 = 19

>>16438665
ROLLING TO NOT DIE.

poor poor twitch, he's gonna get a core sample taken from his brain courtesy of that pipe

rolled 14, 19 = 33

At least your odds of rolling below 10 on -2- d20 are fantastically low. So fuck you, anomaly. Have a 30.

rolled 12, 18 = 30

>>16438665
here goes

rolled 10, 9 = 19

>>16438665
Land on tank, stand up, strike surfer pose, impress and amaze freedom and duty alike!

rolled 3 = 3

>>16438748
Strike Charles Atlas pose, keep all fucks for self.

>>16438691
Somewhere behind you, you hear Twitch give something between a yelp of surprise and a scream of terror before a tremendous sound like a car crash assaults your ears. As you lose your balance and fall into the anomaly field, you twist around and see that Twitch successfully managed to drop to the deck before the warped mass of the pole could hit him. The building behind him didn't have the same luck, and it takes a moment for you to register that it's half-collapsed on itself; a rotted-out civilian car behind it has been tipped on its side and nearly bisected by the combination of building shrapnel and the pole's remnants.

You don't have much time to consider this, though, because you're suddenly weightless, tumbling deeper into the anomaly field.

Roll 2d20. One for whether the field stays stable, one for whether you can control your movement somehow.

rolled 19, 4 = 23

>>16438770
Stand on the tank proudly.
It's antigrav but it doesn't shred you. :D

rolled 4, 15 = 19

>>16438770
Flail desperately like a little bitch and scream incoherently about castration.

rolled 7, 3 = 10

>>16438770
CALM AS A BREEZE, AGILE AS A FUCKING CAT

rolled 18, 14 = 32

>>16438796
Nope.

>>16438796
>calm as a hurricane, agile as a brick

rolled 3, 4 = 7

>>16438770
Rollan for maximum fuck. Either fuckyeah awesome or fuckno fucked.

rolled 16, 13 = 29

>>16438829
You were successful.

>>16438781

Stable, but as elegant as a flying brick.

rolled 20, 3 = 23

>>16438770
In ex-soviet russia, STALKER controls anomoly!

rolled 17, 6 = 23

>>16438852
Looks like we're in Ukraine.

rolled 10, 15 = 25

>>16438852
this could be good, depends which roll controls anomoly stability though D:

>>16438781
You struggle to pull yourself out of the anomaly, kicking and beating at the air, but to no effect - if anything, your flailings are making the problem worse. You close your eyes tightly, waiting for that lurch that will see you break the air speed record and introduce yourself to a tree a kilometer or so from here, but it doesn't come.

You open one eye, then the other, your strugglings ceasing. You're floating serenly through the air, much like the tank itself. After a moment, you bump into the thing and scramble onto the hull, standing unsteadily on its surface; you don't want to push yourself away.

You look down at Twitch with your arms folded. He peers up at you from the ground. Twitch snorts. Then bursts into laughter, pounding the turf with one balled fist and gasping for air. Soon, you join in, albiet more carefully - you're afraid to jinx it.

On your belt, your anomaly detector - still in artifact search mode - beeps stridently, as if offended at your amusement. It can fuck right off, you're alive.

rolled 1, 4 = 5

>>16438781
>>16438852
>>16438860
23 it is then. Go for it, Stalk Out of Here Getter

>>16438781
awkward as fuck, but at least you ain't dead

rolled 6, 18 = 24

>>16438866
Hop in the hatch and see what's going on! :D

>>16438866
HEEEEELL YEAH MOTHERFUCKERS.

Is the artifact inside the tank? Let's see if we can loot it! The safest place to be around a tank- is inside of it. Check and see if it's radioactive inside first, then look for dem delishus artifacts.

>>16438866
Grab the artefact, then slowly crawl along the ground until you're out of the field.
When that's done, Vodka, and a trip to the Army warehouses.

>>16438866
Open the hatch, and try to track down the artifact.

>>16438867
you there, stop rollan

rolled 18, 16 = 34

>>16438951
Relax bro, I'll do better this time

>>16438903

This, so much this.

Also watch the geiger counter.

look around on the tank for artifacts, but first,

SOMEONE TAKE A DAMN PICTURE

Once you've had your laugh, you get back to business. Amazing as it is to be weightless, Bird's words hang in your mind in letters twenty feet high. "Unstable." "Shifts rapidly."

"I'll be right down," you say to Twitch, which provokes him to more laughter. You pull at the hatch - fortunately, it's unlocked and not totally corroded shut - and climb inside. The interior of the tank is cramped and the air is stale, but it sure as hell beats being impaled on a beam or tossed a hundred feet in the air.

Crawling through the cramped tank takes time - the Soviets used smaller men for their tank crews, and you are not a small man. While normally this is advantageous, it's not that useful for crawling through a derelict communist tank in a nuclear disaster exclusion zone while under the effects of a gravitational anomaly that defy known models of physics.

The artifact itself, nestled under the driver's chair, is a bit of an anticlimax. Slightly smaller than a hand grenade, it's a curious shade of orange and made up of a lattice of unknown materials - stone, metal, maybe even plastic; you can't tell. It feels as if it should be fragile and light, but as you stuff it into your lead-lined bag - geiger counter clicking crossly - you are surprised by its heft and rigidity; even through your gloves, it is cool to the touch.

Your goal accomplished, you climb out the way you came in and, bracing yourself, push off from the tank. Swimming through thin air, you send Twitch laughing again, and this becomes worse when you suddenly reach the end of the anomaly's influence and drop to the ground. Painfully.

"Laugh it up, baldy," you say, "You weren't the one praying to god that you didn't get chucked to Kiev."

Twitch calms himself down, then speaks, "So - was it worth it? What'd you find?"

You show him the artifact, "I...don't know."

>>16438990
It's beautiful.

>>16439035
Show it to the rest of the group. See if they have any idea.
Then head on to our destination.

>>16438990
very yes

(let's say Twitch took a picture)

>>16439035
Hooray!

Never mind the Dark Valley, once we're done talking to the Freedomers about our PDA, we're headed to Yantar to get this shit ID'd!

>>16439035

Mark this spot on our PDA, then head back to the others to show them our find.

From what happened earlier, my guess is this thing might deflect bullets.

>>16439035
It's an artefact orange?
Dare we eat it?
Probably after drinking large amounts of Vodka.

"Twitch, since you're obviously feeling so much better now, why don't you go round everyone up and meet up 200 paces that way, I'm going to take a little breather here, then we'll decide whats next."

>>16439035
Damned if I know what it is. Maybe the lads at Freedom can tell us.

Fuck yeah, we survived. Let's get with the gang and head on to Freedom!

>>16439114

yes, eating it, that will surely let us know what the artifact does!

"Since you've got the energy to yuk it up without yakking it up," you say to a still snickering Twitch, "How about you go get the others? I...I'm going to take a breather."

Your fellow-stalker gives you a crooked smile and a nod, then heads off to retrieve your comrades. A moment later he returns; he appears to be showing them all something on his PDA; Damsel is staring at it slack-jawed.

"Bosse," she says, in awe, "You are a magnificent idiot. Whatever you do for luck, give me some."

"I took a picture of that pose you did," Twitch says, "I mean, how many times do you see something like that?"

"Mostly never, Bird says, walking up with Vlad in tow; the latter man is keeping a wide and wary distance between himself and the anomaly field, "I heard you found an artifact after all."

"You better've, for all that," Damsel chimes in.

You fish into your bag, retrieving it - and the jellyfish, to neutralize the radiation for the less-protected Vlad - and showing it to the more experienced veteran.

Roll 1d2.

rolled 2 = 2

>>16439178
IT IS A FUCKING NIGHT STAR

CALLING IT NOW

rolled 1 = 1

>>16439178
Don't kill us all!~

>>16439189
Oh hey yeah.
Night Stars are orange
They're radioactive
They repel boolet

might be a Soul or mama's beads too

rolled 1 = 1

>>16439249
Mama's Beads are red, and Souls...well, it MIGHT be a Soul.

well, he said it was a lattice of materials, so that kinda precludes the solid crystal appearance of night stars

>>16439284
Nah, Night Stars have a bit of a lattice to them too. Look carefully at the in-game model.

Bird's eyebrows arch in surprise at the artifact, and he puts out a hand to take it from you. Turning it over, he studies it carefully, then lapses into silence while tossing it from hand to hand.

"Well?" Vlad asks.

"Shut up, I'm thinking," Bird replies.

Finally, the veteran stalker stops and gives a nod, "Yes, I'm sure of it. It's a Bender."

"No it's not, I haven't even had anything to drink," Damsel says.

Bird ignores her, "Bender artifacts come in two types - crushers and bouncers; it's hard to tell the difference between the two just by looking, though," he hands it back to you, "A bouncer artifact acts a little bit like that anomaly itself; sometimes it'll just chuck things hurled near or at it right back at the sender. No one can figure out how to get them to activate reliably, though they almost never bounce something moving slowly."

"And what's a crusher?" Vlad says, sounding interesting.

"Ah, well...a crusher's basically the opposite. Instead of bouncing things away, it crushes and compacts them - very dangerous. They can be reliably activated, too."

"Well how?" Twitch asks impatiently. Bird smiles grimly.

"Introduction of high energy - lots of heat, lots of kinetic force, electrical - pretty much anything works."

"So we just shoot it and find out, right?" you ask, sensing there's a catch.

"Well here's the thing," Bird says, "A crusher will take gunshots, grenades, even blast furnace temperatures without damage. For a while, anyway. A bouncer? Hit it with what it'd take to activate a crusher, and it'll just shatter."

>>16439326
...let's not risk testing it.

The Yantarites can probably identify it better than we can. Let's bung it in the bag and head on to Freedom's base.

>>16439348
I have to agree.

>>16439326
Obvious way to find out
Game of Frisbee at Freedom Base.

>>16439326

"Well, I guess all we need to do to determine if it's a bouncer is just throw stuff at it while wearing a nice metal helmet."

"In any case, I say we sell it to the Yantar guys, unless one of you feels lucky and wants to carry it around."

>Considering our rolls tonight, I feel that we are not that lucky.

>>16439386
seems too handy to just sell

i think its very important we find a way to ID it one way or another.

If its a crusher, we could use it to set traps or to act like a sort of grenade.

If its a bender, it could save our bacon vs incoming RPGs or bullets or whatever.

>>16439420
First thing, we take it to Yantar.

If they offer us less than 3k for it, we keep it. If they offer more than 3k, well...we can get quite a bit for that much.

I want to find out what's on that PDA, though.

>>16439386
considering our rolls tonight it's a crusher and is on the verge of activation where the friction of the bag against cause by it's slight motion during our journey will make it activate in our bag.

I say let twich carry it.

>>16439420
oh wait, shit, how dumb of me

guys, for lack of positive IDing, we can just carry that thing around until bandits inevitably try and kill us again, like they always try to. All we got to do is pay attention to any of them keeling over dead from their own bullets.

If that doesn't happen at all, then we probably have a crusher. In which case we should rig up some disposable cameras and their flash capacitors, and some duct tape to make the crusher a reusable anomaly on demand.

This door giving us trouble? slap the camera and the electrodes to the crusher, press the button and run away. 5 seconds later, VOIP, one warped door frame for easy busting. The camera would be destroyed, but we could always just buy the cheapest ones and keep a few handy.

"Well, I guess all we need to do to determine if it's a bouncer is just throw stuff at it while wearing a nice metal helmet," you say.

"You've got a good arm, Bosse," Bird says mildly, "But you don't throw fast enough to set a bouncer off. Or a crusher, for that matter. Besides, bouncer activation can be sporadic; it won't always reflect things thrown at it."

"Maybe we should wait until we can get someone more experienced to look at it, then," Twitch says, "No offense, Bird."

"None taken," Bird returns, "I just don't have the equipment. The guys at Yantar almost certainly do. Or maybe Freedom's got someone about these days who could."

You stash the radioactive artifact back in its new lead-lined home, "I suppose we'll find out eventually. It's not going to grow legs and walk away in the meantime."

"Don't be so sure about that," Damsel jokes, and with this said, the five of you move on, making your way back to the road. Little catches your eye this time around, save some skulking pseudodogs and blind dogs. A few rounds from Bird's rifle sends them on their way, probably to stalk something without a gun. Good riddance.

In time, you make your way to what must be - and what Bird confirms is - the Army Warehouses. Walled in, the entrance to the facility is a bridge flanked by two watchtowers. Mindful guards in either look down on you dubiously, cradling sharpshooter's rifles.

A guard on foot, dressed in a light stalker suit done in what you recognize to be Freedom livery, approaches you.

"Hey bros. What brings you t'these parts? Whose your female friend?"

The difference between Freedom and Duty's take on things can be seen in their sentries. You're beginning to understand - faintly - why these people shoot at each other.

>>16439531
"We have something your hacker may want to have a look at. We want a look at it too, which is why we brought it. Care to let us in?

Oh, and don't flirt with Damsel. She's touchy about that."

>>16439531

Just tell him we're looking for a PDA cracker, and maybe a good bottle of booze.

And that our female friend is "the Damsel in distress who is fond of violence" or an equally witty title that's more of a warning for his own good than a warning to back off.

Or we let Bird handle it.

also we totally have this sick ass picture of this guy right here standing inside a bender anomaly

>>16439639
This. Freedom respect craziness and pendulous balls.

It's Bird that takes the lead, "Just lookin' for a little computer expertise, maybe some work, booze, weed. Not necessarily in that order," the guard laughs and nods.

"As for the girl - Damsel - well, that's a sarcastic name."

Damsel smiles thinly. The guard makes an exaggerated my-bad gesture, holding his hands up and giving you a wide-eyed look. Satisfied with his clowning, he gives the lot of you a nod, "You seem cool. Basic rules, bros - no shooting each other, no brawling, and if you must brawl - keep it out of the bar. People still bitch about that one time Ashot and Yar...anyway. Go ahead," he waves you through.

The five of you file past, giving polite smiles and nods, and when you're out of earshot, Twitch speaks up, "Damn Bird, you sounded...different."

"Freedomers have their ways like everyone else," he says, a small smile crossing his face.

The five of you are standing at a crossroads in the base - here and there Freedomers are roaming about, along with not a few loners. One well-armored guard leading a leashed, muzzled, and hopefully tame pseudodog marches alongside the road, giving the rowdier pedestrians the stinkeye.

"Where from here?" you ask.

"Well," Bird says, "We'll go see Screw. Great with a wrench. Not so much with computers, but he knows folks. And I know him."

>>16439837
You let Bird lead the way to a large shanty that seems to have been built over an old helipad; outside a sloppily-uniformed Freedomer is smoking a joing and leaning against a wall. Seeing you approach, he gives a nod and a smirk and gets back to your business.

The interior of the shanty is lit with bare bulbs strung across the slipshod roof, and filled with half-finished devices of various descriptions. Here's a motorcycle. There's a tractor engine. Over in that corner is a pile of what appear to be partially-disassembled rifles. A man is bent over a table, examining a some papers you can't identify, "Don't distract me," he gripes, "I'm thinking."

"Screw!" Bird says, "When did you learn to read?"

The man at the table turns around, a look of surprise on his face, "Bird? Shit man, it's been forever! Thought you might've bought it after the Brain Scorcher went down!"

"Eh, so far so good, knock on wood," Bird says, knocking on a cracked engine block on a pile of bricks.

Screw barks a laugh, "So, so...what can I do for you? Who're the tag-alongs?"

Bird introduces you in turn, then you give him the PDA, "We were actually hoping you could get one of your friends to crack this open for us. Military PDA."

"Cool, cool. Where'd you get it?"

>>16439849

Tell him we got it off a dead military guy, who incidentally was trying to kill us at the time.

That enough information?

>Anyway, I'm off to pass out fellas. Good hunting, stalkers.

I can leave off for the night if you'd like, guys. My schedule is wonkier than most.

>>16439919
Might be for the best. Most everyone else is gone, and I'm not comfortable making the decisions by myself.
Just say when you'll start up again.

found it on some bodies, looked military *shrug*

>>16439919
Finish this bit first. I want to know what the balls is on that PDA.

You exchange glances with Bird and he continues to speak, "Found it on a dead soldier. Didn't get much time to poke around on account of bandits shooting at us, so we don't know much about it."

Roll a d20.

rolled 5 = 5

>>16439967
Rolling like tumbleweeds.

rolled 15 = 15

>>16439967
Please, d20, be higher than my previous rolls!

rolled 8 = 8

Why is it the first roll is always the worst roll?

rolled 8 = 8

>>16439997
I wonder why.

>>16439980
Screw seems too enthused to see his old comrade to really care about the origin of the PDA. Either that or he simply intends to mind his own business, "Well give it here, then. I can get a guy to crack it, though he doesn't work for free. Friend's discount, 2000 roubles. Any less than that and I'll be eating cat food for a month."

Bird snorts at this image, and you consider as a group. Sidorovich had mentioned cracking prices of 3000 roubles or even more for military encryption.

Right guys, I'm going to call it here for the night, since most of our players had to retire due to the hour and day.

It's possible I will run another go tomorrow (Tuesday), but if not, expect to see Stalker Quest Saturday, wherein the dice will continue to try and murder Twitch.

>>16440098
>thumbnail

>>16436126
Why why must my most favorite RPG experience in the world start while I am at work.

>>16440112
Long story short, someone posted a picture of okuu as a zone mutant a year ago, people were asking for it, this thumb was all I could find.

>>16440098
Goodnight!

So, as long as the quest is over, anyone have any ideas on how to mechanically track and use radiation effects and anomalies for Ops & Tactics?

I really want to run a game that's STALKER + Fallout. Not sure where to set it, though.

>>16440098
And end after I get home T_T

Atleast I can make Saturday STALKER :(

>>16440130
>Not sure where to set it, though.

Post apocalyptic Italy

Mutant cannibal chefs who obsess over making spaghetti and human meatballs.... also they are controllers.....

>>16440151
France.

Posting STALKER comic.

>>16440151
>not america

Nope. I need an American setting that would be fun to do or rehash. I might just do Mexico/Texas border with a simple Fistful of Dollars plot between rival Chem-Cartels, with NCR rangers showing up from time to time.

>>16440192

>>16440207
Anyways, my question is less about setting right now but more about the mechanics--namely, radiation and anomalies. How do I track radiation without it becoming a chore but still be a serious threat?

>>16440247

>>16440478

>>16440577
Shall I keep posting this? There are three more to go.

>>16440590
might as well finish it. Also, preeetty stupid talking about double crossing your partner while he's in ear shot

>>16440590
Didn't write it, broseph.

>>16440881
>frulov recognition

That'd be an interesting plot point, Captcha.

>>16440885

>>16441113
>blowout soon, stalker
>when?

Someone put this on suptg

>>16440125
Wasn't all I could find.

Strangely, this seems to be the full size of the original.

>>16441113
NOW.

>>16443452
Two more to go.

>>16443583
...or one.

Son I am derp.

>>16443803
>outside during a blowout

WELP

Crap in a Hat, I missed Stalker Quest.

I had a question too; I've been working on a BRP Stalker homebrew for a long time, would you diehard Stalkers prefer a simulationist combat, or more cinematic in nature?

Current system has conditional-modified damage for ammo, action/reaction points so its less "I go, you go" and more "Everyone goes at the same time" 50+ weapons statted for range, ammo type and upgrade points and a mental stability system akin to Sanity, but passing a roll gives you 'hardened points' which are a mechanic for you becoming used to the Zone, and emotionally detached from the horrors you encounter, basically a psychopath.

Thoughts? Too much, too little, or just right?

>>16445174
Hopeful Bump for help

>>16445174
>>16445251
Cinematic high-lethality is my preference. But I'm biased.

GASP

S-Stalker Quest? You're back? I missed you so! I think I might have the portraits of the characters someone drew a long time ago on my hard drive somewhere, lemme look...

>>16445274
Yeah, I tend to lean that way myself, but I've spent so long working with simulationist stuff that now Im torn between them. I've run a few test combats, and they work well, but that could be because I know the system.

More important question; would you play a Stalker game that was semi-simulationist in terms of combat? Ideally it would involve miniatures, but could work without. Its fairly lethal, standing in the open and taking a direct shot from even a pistol could outright kill you.

>>16445174
Add damage zones. Being winged shouldn't kill you unless you're dim (or unlucky) enough to bleed out.

>>16445300
I'd give it a go, at least. Actually, a big part of why I started Stalker Quest to begin was out of a desire for a PnP Stalker game and no outlet for that desire.

>>16445311
Damage locations are in (Forgot to mention them) also Im using a kind of abstract 'health pool' in terms of HP, damage a shot does is ranked in comparison to your HP;

>> less that 1/4 HP - just a scratch, untreated probably wont kill you
>> less that 1/2 HP - Minor wound, untreated, about 1d20 days till death
>>less than 3/4 HP - Serious wound, 1d6 days till death
>>greater than HP - mortal wound 1d100 minutes till you bleed out

thats not it exactly (typing from memory), but you get the idea, most wounds untreated will kill you. more serious wounds will kill you quicker. Wounds stack too, so several 'just a scratch is a minor, two to three minor is a major, that kind of thing.

>>16445371
I could enjoy that.

When would the game be, and could I use my Cosmic Bumfights books for the system?

>>16445401
>>When would the game be, and could I use my Cosmic Bumfights books for the system?

Not really planning a game, as its still incomplete in terms of transfering everything from my hastily scrawled notes into legible english. Also, it is its own book/system (Well, Im basing it on the BRP D100 system, because I love it)

Pic related, trhe main thing holding me back is I cannot into Adobe InDesign as easily as I would have hoped.

>>16445251
>02-18: Bloodsucker Nest
Would this be "a few" or "CoP gas their sub-basement lair FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU" levels of shit going down? Because that's 16% right there, and only a few other parts of the encounters table break 5%.

>>16445545
Generally up to the GM, its not the greatest random table, I threw it together one evening for a playtest with friends where I need random combat scenarios fast.

>>16445545
hmm what mod is this?

>>16445687
No clue, got it off 4chan.

bump

According to SooHG, we get STALKER Quest tomorrow and Saturday.