This section contains descriptions of all the different factions that can be found in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl, as well as information regarding key persons and contacts - these may be giving out missions, trade weapons, armor and equipment, or other play a more active part in the game. Alot of "anonymous" stalkers has been left out because they don't provide missions nor crucial information. If I have missed something or someone, please do not hesitate to contact me.
| Note | Although I have previously stated that there is no way you can actually join a faction, there may actually be (obscure) ways to do so - but since being a member of a faction doesn't really seem to offer any benefits - except displaying the faction name in your PDA - I've decided not to indulge into that matter at this point. Sorry. |
Show individual persons in the table of content
| Major Kuznetsov can be found at the control point beneath the railroad bridge in the center of Cordon. Although he and his fellow soldiers appear as enemies, you may actually approach them and bribe them for a safe passage past the bridge. Major Kuznetsov carries the unique Fort-15 pistol. |
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| Barin will not offer any missions but he has been included here because he carries the "Tunder" 5.45 assault rifle. Barin can usually be found wandering the Bar area, although I've also come upon him in the Dark Valley where he's part of the squad guarding the area near the entrance to Garbage. |
| You'll first come upon Bullet near the exit to Garbage in the Dark Valley where he'll be interrogating a wounded bandit. He asks for your help in freeing another Duty member called Vasko Magnate. You can more information about this particular mission here. |
| Petrenko functions as a trader and he can be found to the south of the Duty headquarters in the Bar area; however, you wont be able to reach him until after you've been to X16. He can give you one optional mission, Destroy the stalker from Freedom, which requires you to eliminate one of the guards near the initial control point at the Freedom HQ in Army Warehouses. This mission will obviously not go down well with Freedom so if you decide to do it, consider also picking up the optional mission from Skull that has the ultimate goal of killing Lukash. Petrenko will reward you with a PSZ-9Md Universal Protection armor if you complete the mission. |
| Voronin can be found at the Duty headquarters in the Bar area; however you wont be able to access the HQ until after you've been to X16 and talked to the Barkeep. He has a number of optional missions available, most notably a mission requiring you to steal a Bulldog 6 grenade launcher from Freedom, and a mission that requires you to bring him the enhanced rifle. Voronin will reward you with a PSZ-9Md Universal Protection suit for the Bulldog and a Vintar BC along with 60 9x39 mm SP-5 rounds for the enhanced rifle. He can also give you a mission that requires you to eliminate a pack of dogs at Garbage for which he will give you 2000 RU, 60 9x39 mm SP-6 rounds and a VOG-25 grenade. For a complete list of the missions that Voronin can provide, please refer to this page. |
| Kitsenko can be found at the initial control point you'll reach after coming from Garbage into the Bar area. He can provide an optional mission, Purge the dog lair, that requires you to kill all the dogs in the vicinity; he'll give you a Meat Chunk artifact as a reward. |
| Skull can be found at the Duty outpost in the Army Warehouses area. He has an optional mission with the ultimate goal of eliminating the leader of the Freedom faction. Although your reward for the mission is a somewhat disappointing 8000 RU, the entire Freedom base will now be yours to loot, including the armory which has some nice weapons and armors in it. |
| Vasko Magnate is being held prisoner in the Dark Valley and you can get a mission from Bullet to free him. Once he's been rescued he and Bullet will usually wander off to the Duty control point to the far north in Garbage. Vasko can provide one optional mission: Free the Dutyer from prison - unfortunately the mission does not give any rewards as such. |
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| Cap the commander of a group of Freedom members located to the north-east part of Army Warehouses, an area often referred to as "barrier" or "border". The first time you approach the area, you'll be given a mission that requires you to fend off a wave of Monolith soldiers moving in from the Red Forest. |
| Chef is located in a building at the north-western part of the Freedom headquarters in the Army Warehouses area. He's an optional part of an optional mission given by General Voronin that requires you to steal a Bulldog 6 from Freedom. You don't need to talk to Chef to obtain it, but if you bring him enough Vodka he can tell you about a Bulldog located in the nearby Bloodsucker village. You can also simply refer to this page for the location and save yourself some Vodka. |
| Lukash is the leader of the Freedom faction and he can be found on the top floor of the main building at the Freedom HQ in the Army Warehouses area. He can provide you with a number of optional missions. The most notable mission is Destroy the Duty company that requires you, with the help of some Freedom members, to take down all the Duty members at the nearby outpost; the mission is followed up with Deal with the snitch, and completing them both with provide you with 7000 RU - and, as a side bonus, Skinflint will be selling more and better equipment. For a list of all the missions that Lukash can provide, please refer to this page. |
| Murk can be found in the Bloodsucker village in the Army Warehouses area. He'll be able to provide you with an optional mission that requires you to eliminate the Bloodsuckers in the village. Skinflint will reward you with a Crystal for completing the mission. |
| Although Screw indicates that he can fix things, I haven't actually found a way for him to do so - perhaps he was meant to be able to repair weapons and/or armor, but the feature never made it into the final game. He has a very small optional mission in the sense that he'll give you a PSO-1 Scope if you bring him a bottle of vodka. Usually you can buy vodka from Skinflint who is very close by. |
Skinflint is the trader that can be found in the main building of the Freedom faction headquarters. The first time you talk to him he'll give a mission that requires you to eliminate the Bloodsuckers in the nearby village (unless you already picked up the same mission from Murk. Skinflint will be selling items dependant on your "status" with Freedom - if you have done missions for them he's very likely to sell better and more expensive equipment (such as the SVUmk2 sniper rifle and the Exoskeleton armor). | | I believe that Skinflint is in fact modeled after Max R. Popenker, the author of the website world.guns.ru possibly because he provided information about weapons, or possibly because the developers simply used the website as a reference. You can see a photo of the author on this page. It seems that after the 1.0003 patch Skinflint will now also sell you 7.62x54 mm ammunition for the SVDm2 and the SVUmk2 sniper rifles. |
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| Arnie can be found in the Bar area where he runs the Arena - a place where you can earn money by fighting different opponents. For more information about the Arena, the matches and their rewards, please refer to this page. |
| Baldy is located at the 100 Rads bar in the Bar area. He can provide an optional mission that requires you to kill a traitor stalker who can be found in the Army Warehouses area; Baldy will reward you with a Night Star artifact for completing it. |
| Barkeep is not only a trader but will also provide optional missions and the majority of storyline missions in the game. He can be found at the 100 Rads Bar in the Bar area. For a list of the different mission that the Barkeep can provide, please refer to this page. |
| Bes can be found at the vehicle scrapyard in Garbage. The first time you enter Garbage you'll get an optional mission (Respond to the call for help and Repel the bandit raid) that requires you to help Bes and his men take down a number of bandits. If you succeed, and Bes survives the attack, you'll be rewarded with 2000 RU. Bes can also provide some information about himself (his sad tale of how he ended up in the Zone) as well as the Garbage area. Due to the large presence of bandits in Garbage and the fact that the vehicle scrapyard is almost constantly under attack by bandits, Bes will not last long; this is handy in case you're looking for a unique weapon - he is carrying the Akm 74/2U Special.Since bandits are nowhere near as dominant in version 1.0004 you'd expect Bes to survive longer - but now the scrapyard will often become the home of about 6 Pseudodogs that is more than the lone stalkers can handle. |
| Although not a person you'll get a chance to talk to, per se, you will get a chance meet Doctor (aka. Doc) at one point in the game. After you've completed your goals inside X16, you'll get an optional mission that requires you to seek out Guide - he'll lead you to Doc who provides some essential information regarding the story of the game. This information is not required to reach some of the different game endings, but to reach the best ones, you'll need to see Doc. Once you've talked to Guide, you can find Doc in Streloks stash in the Agroprom Underground. |
| Fanatic appears in the rookie camp in Cordon after you've been to X18, where he will have taken the place of Wolf as the leader. He'll be able to give you a mission that requires you to help him and the other rookie stalkers setup an ambush against a group of Mercs. He'll give you 2500 RU as thanks for your assistance. |
| Father Diodor can be found at the stalker camp in Army Warehouses and he carries a unique shotgun, the Combat Chaser. He does not give out any missions, nor is direct part of any himself; he will usually, though, turn hostile if you do the Kill master stalker mission given by Snitch. |
| Fox can be found in a abandoned house in Cordon once you've completed the initial mission given by Sidorovich. He's in a poor state the first time you meet him, but once he's patched up he will provide some information about Strelok - and inform you that his brother, Seriy can provide more information. Fox will stay in the building but don't be surprised if he turns up dead when you later visit Cordon. |
| Guide is apparently one of the first stalkers that breached into the Zone. Unfortunately he doesn't provide any missions nor act as a trader, but he does have some crucial information regarding the story. Once you've been to X16, Guide can be found at the same house where you met Fox in Cordon. If you wish to explore the best endings the game has to offer, be sure to pay this guy a visit. |
| Hunter hangs out at the 100 Rads in the Bar area where he can provide two optional missions: Find the family rifle and Destroy the lair of the bloodsucker. The first mission requires you to fetch him a double-barreled shotgun that is located in a tunnel below ground in the Wild Territory area; he'll reward you with 4000 RU for his rifle. The second mission takes you to a tower at the Bloodsucker village found in the Army Warehouses area, and will net you a Battery artifact. |
| You can meet Mole the first time you are at the Agroprom Research Institute where you initially need to rescue him from the military; once you've done that he'll take you to the entrance leading down to the Agroprom Underground. You wont meet Mole again after that. Mole carries a unique pistol - the Walker 9x18. |
| Nimble is part of your first mission - he's been taken hostage by bandits and Sidorovich needs a flash drive he is carrying. Once you've rescued Nimble he'll also be able to give you an optional mission that requires you to Find the perfected suit for which he'll give you a Stone Flower artifact. |
| Oleg carries the Sniper Obokan; he can usually be found at the stalker camp in Dark Valley, although I've only been able to find him there in the later stages of the game. Where he can be found before that I am not entirely sure.After 1.0004, I've come upon Oleg a number of times in the Bar area, and in later stages at the vehicle scrapyard in Garbage. |
Kuzyakin is - or rather was - part of a military recon unit that's used to clear the catacombs beneath Agroprom Research Institute. However, he's gone AWOL and is now hiding from the military. If you feel sorry for the guy, you'll feel even worse knowing that he's the target of an optional mission provided by the Barkeep. | | The name of this person may be random - at least in an earlier game, with a different patch, I noticed he was actually called Private Kontradenko. Perhaps this is just a cunning scheme of his, a way to stay undercover. I guess we'll never know. |
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| Scarecrow can usually be found at the stalker camp in Army Warehouses and he carries the Balance IL 86. After the release of the 1.0004 patch, I've also come upon him in Wild Territory. He does not provide any missions. |
| Seriy is located in Garbage where he'll initially be in the hangar near the middle of the area. Before he'll tell you more about Strelok you'll need to help him and his friends defend the hangar against some bandits. |
| Sidorovich is the first person you'll talk to in the game, and he functions not only as a trader but will also provide the initial storyline missions as well as optional missions. He will also be your initial guide and can explain a few things about the game. Once you've been to X18 he can provide a special mission (which is also optional) that requires you to steal a briefcase from the nearby military control point; the reward for this mission is 2000 RU. One of his optional missions require you to bring him a Night Star artifact for which he'll give you the Tourist Suit in return; this armor allows you to carry more weight so giving up a Night Star may be worth it. For a list of the different missions Sidorovich can provide, please refer to this page. |
| Snitch can also be found at the 100 Rads bar in the Bar area. He can sell you some (expensive) information and provide an optional mission: Kill master stalker. The mission requires you to kill a stalker called Master who can be found in the Army Warehouses area; Snitch will give you a Mama's Beads artifact for completing it. |
| Sparrow usually hangs out near the Bar area and will often move to the stalker camp in Yantar once the psi-emitter there has been disabled. Sparrow carries the Noiseless Kora. Sparrow doesn't give out any missions. Sparrow is the target for a mission given by Barkeep. |
| The first time you meet Tolik, outside of the rookie village in Cordon, he'll be in need of some medical attention. You can rescue him by giving him a medkit but besides becoming your friend, he's not of much use; he doesn't provide any missions nor any really interesting information. |
| Wolf can be found at the rookie camp in Cordon during the early stages of the game. He's part of your first mission that requires you to obtain a flash drive carried by Nimble. Wolf will reward you with a Jellyfish artifact for getting Nimble out in one piece. |
| The first time you enter Garbage you'll notice a group of "neutrals" on your minimap. Three of these are in fact bandits, and the fourth is Yurik who's being held at gunpoint. If you manage to save Yurik, he'll not only become friendly, but he'll also help you out in the upcoming mission involving Bes at the scrapyard. |
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| You'll only be able to encounter Ara once you've picked up the mission Deal with the snitch from Lukash. Apparently, Pavlik of the Freedom faction is relaying information to the Mercs with Ara being his main contact. When you have picked up the mission from Lukash you'll be tasked to find Pavlik at the farmstead to the north in Army Warehouses. Once there, Ara along with 3 or 4 other Mercs will approach shortly after. |
| Wolfhound is the leader of the group of Mercs that you'll come upon the first time you're in Wild Territory. The group is supposedly after some information carried by Kruglov and they have no qualms about killing him to obtain it. |
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| Professor Kruglov is initially located in the Wild Territory where you'll need to save him from the attacking Mercs. If you do manage to save and escort him to Yantar he can be found inside the mobile lab in that area. If you manage to rescue Kruglov you'll be given a SSP-99 Ecologist suit when you talk to Sakharov. Kruglov is also part of the Take radiation measurements mission given by Sakharov.If Kruglov dies in Wild Territory he'll be replaced by a random scientist in Yantar who will take his part of the mission, Take radiation measurements. |
| Professor Sakharov is located in the mobile lab in Yantar where he acts as a key person in relation to the main storyline, but also as a trader, and he can also provide you with optional missions. He'll give you the storyline missions Take radiation measurements and Get inside the lab. Most notable of his optional missions are one that requires you to bring him a Fireball artifact for which he'll give you a Pellicle. He also wants you to find the unique bodysuit, the armor worn by Ghost; he'll reward you with a SSP-99M Suit for completing this mission. For a complete list of all the missions that are provided by Sakharov, please refer to this page. |
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| | Although they may be zombies, they are actually quite capable with weapons and can pose a threat, even when you're just facing a couple of them. They also seem to be tougher than their normal, human counterparts and can take quite a number of bullets before going down. Furthermore, they haven't forgotten the dangers of grenades, and if you toss one in their direction they may sprint away as if they were still sane - I personally consider this behaviour a bug. |
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Army
- @dawnrazor73