History Characters / VideoGameStalker

* DummiedOut: Originally planned to be in ''Shadow of Chernobyl'', their presence was mentioned in some of the leaked builds, but they were cut from the game entirely and their role was filled by Monolith. They're restored in ''[[VideoGame/LostAlpha S.T.A.L.K.E.R: - Lost Alpha]]'' [[GameMod remake]], however.

* DummiedOut: They were originally going to be present in an in-engine intro level/cutscene in ''Clear Sky'', where Scar would lead them before they get killed by an emission. It is unclear if they would play any role in this story beyond the intro, but a faction logo exists in the game files, suggesting that they might have taken place in the game's Faction Wars.

* DummiedOut: Cut from ''Shadow of Chernobyl'', the Izlom would make its way into several [[{{GameMod}} mods]], as most of its assets had already been created.

* DummiedOut: Originally going to be in ''Shadow of Chernobyl'', the cat was cut late enough into development that almost all of its assets and scripts remained in the game, and it was easily added back in by [[{{GameMod}} modders.]]

* ZeroPercentApprovalRating: Not even the Ecologists are neutral with them.

* SerialKiller: [[spoiler: Turns out the kind and altruistic Tremor has been killing other Loners to satiate his craving for human blood.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: At first he seems to be another ordinary [=NPC=] in the first map, until you find out later that he isn't as innocent as he looks.

* TheSociopath: Unlike other depictions of the disorder in fiction, Yoga's sociopathy is actually a [[RealityEnsues disadvantage to the Bandits]].

* TragicMonster: Zombies are just stalkers who were unfortunate enough to be hit with one too many psychic attacks and are extremely tragic when you [[BilingualBonus manage translate their dialogue]]

* OrderVersusChaos: Duty prefers order and control to Freedom's chaotic, carefree lifestyle.

* MildlyMilitary: Freedom operates with a rather loose command structure for a military organization but they can still go toe-to-toe with the best equipped factions if pressured. Best illustrated by their base in ''Clear Sky'', where the recruitment messages the diffuse are very lax (when [[ThoseTwoGuys Ashot and Yar]] don't hijack the system to roast each other) and their barman openly consumes and sells weed, but they're second only to Duty in faction strength.

* EmptyShell: They are not even animalistic. Their minds have been so damaged they can only wobble around and fire their guns at you, reacting only if shot at, and speak like they're drunk or have a behavior of that to a caveman.

[[caption-width-right:171:''"[[MemeticMutation A nu cheeki breeki iv damke!]]"''[[labelnote:Translation]]One, two - You're on top![[/labelnote]]]]

* LargeHam: They shout various phrases while in combat. [[ClusterFBomb It's mostly]] [[ForeignCussWord cussing in Russian.]]

* BadassNormal: And ''how''. He wakes up with amnesia and nothing but the clothes on his back after a truck crash, which essentially makes him a day one rookie with no stalking experience. Despite this, his first big mission is to infiltrate a heavily fortified military base and steal some classified documents, which he succeeds at with flying colors (either by sneaking in at night or going in guns blazing). [[spoiler: From then on, the story sees him wiping out several groups of bandits (including the entirety of Borov's 30-man gang in the Dark Valley), exploring a series of increasingly dangerous labs, decimating at least two platoons of mercenaries, surviving an emission with nothing but a fainting spell, pacifying the zombie-infested Lake Yantar so it's inhabitable outside the mobile science bunker, surviving an explosive booby trap, going toe to toe with the Ukrainian Spetsnaz, chewing through so much of the [[EliteMooks extremely resilient Monolith faction]] [[DwindlingParty that very little of it is left by the time Degtyarev fights them]], opening the path to the previously inaccessible Pripyat by shutting down the legendary Brain Scorcher, infiltrating the Chernobyl Power Plant and slaughtering the [[BigBad C-Consciousness, controller of Monolith and, essentially, the Zone itself]]. And it's not the first time he achieved this many feats: he did it in the past, right before his mind wipe, and only failed to reach the C-Consciousness because [[PlayerCharacter Scar]] stopped him]]. All of this is done ([[OneManArmy for the most part single-handedly]]) by a guy that is, by all intents and purposes, physically nothing more than an average stalker. He isn't credited as being the most influential man in the whole Zone for nothing. And ''you'' can back up his reputation by making Marked One go from the lowest ranking Stalker when you wake up in Sidorovich's bunker to number 1 by the time you reach [[spoiler:the Brain Scorcher]].

* {{Jerk with a Heart of Gold}}: He's notably curt and stern in comparison to the other two protagonists, although he voluntarily helps out many other stalkers during his quest for knowledge. One of the tasks he may undertake consists of recovering the lost family rifle of a rookie stalker. He also used to have a band of TrueCompanions with whom he got along well.

* InTheHood: His original outfit as seen in the opening movie is a hooded trenchcoat of the sort typically worn by Bandit experts and veterans.

* HelmetsAreHardlyHeroic: Unlike Strelok and Scar, who ''at least'' wear hoods, the Major always appear bareheaded in cutscenes, even in areas where not wearing a helmet or a mask would be deadly. One of the first mods for the game, making Degtyarev wear his current helmet in cutscenes, was literaly called in Russian "Wear your goddamn helmet, man!"

* MalevolentMaskedMen: The Leather Jacket or Trenchcoat-wearing Bandits wear three-hole balaclavas as well as hood, in addition to the face wraps worn by almost every non-plot important stalker.

Originally comprised of Ukrainian soldiers and special forces officers sent to the Zone to secure it from unauthorized personnel who were left to fend for themselves after a communications breakout, Duty sees the Zone as both a lawless hellhole and a great danger for the world, being fully committed to preventing it from spreading out to the world and anyone who lets out their horrors [[spoiler:in the official version of the events they tell, at least]]. They are at odds with both the Bandits for their preying on innocent stalkers and (especially) [[ArchEnemy Freedom]] for their anarchic lifestyle and views towards the Zone, while Freedom sees them as stuck-up posers. True to their Eastern military roots, they have a very structured command ladder and mainly use Warsaw Pact weaponry.

* MildlyMilitary: Freedom operates with a rather loose command structure for a military organization but they can still go toe-to-toe with the best equipped factions if pressured. Best illustrated by their base in ''Clear Sky'', where the recruitement messages the diffuse are very lax (when [[ThoseTwoGuys Ashot and Yar]] don't hijack the system to roast eachother) and their barman openly consumes and sells weed, but they're second only to Duty in faction strength.
* NewAgeRetroHippie: They become this in ''Clear Sky''; playing reggae music, smoking marijuana, and speaking in a TotallyRadical lingo.

--->'''Wolfhound''': I've had enough. Looks like this is going to get ugly.
--->'''Kruglov''': [[BringIt As you wish.]]

* ForScience: Unlike the other Stalkers who are in the zone for money, power, or just excitement, the Ecologists are just here to research the scientific phenomenons of the Zone and learn from it.

* FaceHeelRevolvingDoor: Their attitude towards the player character varies wildly between games. In ''Shadow of Chernobyl'', they're always hostile and basically serve as intermediate opponents between early game Bandits and late game Monolith. In ''Clear Sky'' they're much rarer, don't participate in the Faction Wars, and generally appear as allies during specific missions; justified as Scar is a gun for hire like them. In ''Call of Pripyat'' they're also much rarer and only fought in a few specific missions; a friendly group of Mercs can also be hired to serve as bodyguards for the Ecologists.

* ATeamFiring: Those who still hold weapons will spray and pray in your direction, but rarely (if ever) hitting you.
* EmptyShell: They are not even animalistic. Their minds have been so damaged they can only wobble around and fire their guns at you, reacting only if shot at, and speak like they're drunk.
* RemovingTheHeadOrDestroyingTheBrain: If hit with enough firepower to kill a human anywere but the head, Zombies will simply fall down and flail around, then get back up and keep shooting unless attacked while down.

* ArtificialStupidity: After you complete Sidorovich's missions in Cordon, Wolf will leave Fanatic in charge of the rookie village and travel north to the Army Warehouses seeking his fortune. There, due to an A.I. bug that was never fixed, he'll walk into a campfire and burn to death. The [=ZRP=] unofficial community bugfix fixes this brainfart of his.

* FatBastard: Is this when you initially encounter him in ''Shadow of Chernobyl''. In ''Clear Sky'', he is of average build just like any other bandit.

* EverybodyCallsHimBarkeep: It's literally his name.

* WeHaveReserves: They are easily the largest faction in the Zone and they make full use of this numbers advantage in battles. They have no qualms about sending 20 men assault groups to suicide missions on a regular basis against Freedom's barrier in ''Shadow of Chernobyl''.

* WeHaveReserves: They are easily the largest faction in the Zone and they make full use of this numbers advantage in battles. They have no qualms about sending 20 men assault groups to suicide missions on regular basis against the Freedom's barrier in ''Shadow of Chernobyl''.

* WeHaveReserves: They are easily the largest faction in the zone and they make full use of this numbers advantage in battles. They have no qualms about sending 20 men assault groups to suicide missions on regular basis against the Freedom's barrier in ''Shadow of Chernobyl''.

* AttackItsWeakpoint: Despite its impressive psychic powers, it lacks the deadliness a Controller brings to the table, though they should not be underestimated too much. They are usually often '''very weak''' to melee strikes from knives and as such, if a Stalker decides to rush at them with their knife instead of a firearm, they usually find their knife is a '''LOT''' more effective than a firearm so that it gets past its inherent bullet deflection, which is able to kill them easier with concentrated knife strikes.

* PsychicPowers: Their main attack is mentionned above, as well as generate shockwaves and raise an energy shield to stop bullets and knife strikes.

* HellIsThatNoise: It's voice is [[EvilSoundsDeep very deep]], in untranslated Russian and ''loud'', as well as reverbering. [[spoiler:Alert players will also notice it has the same "psi emission" background noise than the Brain Scorcher and Lab X-16's psi emitter, hinting at what it really is]].

--> ''"[[BadassBoast We are protecting you from the Zone, not the Zone from you!]]"''

--> ''"[[spoiler:Our main goal was to make small adjustments to the noosphere, allowing us to remove things like anger, cruelty, greed and other negative factors from the planet. [...] [[GoneHorriblyWrong Unfortunately we made a mistake and our interference spawned the Zone.]]]]"''

* DummiedOut: Originally planned to be in ''Shadow of Chernobyl'', their presence was mentioned in some of the leaked builds, but they were cut from the game entirely and their role was filled by Monolith.

--> ''"Such is life in the Zone."''

--> ''"[[MemeticMutation A NUU CHEEKI BREEKI I V DAMKE!!!]]"''

--> ''"[[DeathWorld Deadly anomalies, dangerous mutants]], [[ArchEnemy anarchists and bandits]]... None of them will stop Duty on its triumphant march towards saving the planet!"''

--> ''"Do you want to earn the respect of fellow stalkers? [[TrueCompanions Do you want to build a team of loyal friends who will stick up for you in times of trouble?]] [[ArchEnemy Do you dream of kicking some Duty ass?]] All this and many other opportunities awaits you if you join Freedom!"''

-->"We thank you, oh Monolith, for revealing the cunning plans of your enemies to us. May your light shine down on the souls of the brave soldiers who gave their lives in service to your will. Onward warriors of the Monolith, avenge your fallen brothers, blessed as they are in their eternal union with the Monolith. Bring death to those who spurned the holy power of the Monolith."

* VillainousWidowsPeak: Averted. He has a ''massive'' widow's peak, but is hardly evil. Just too curious for his own good.

* NeverFoundTheBody: After the events of ''Clear Sky'', he is either killed or turned into a zombie by the emission, or inducted into a Monolith soldier. Fans speculate that if the latter case is true, [[spoiler:he became Charon, the new leader of said faction and the only character in ''Shadow of Chernobyl'' to use the Vintorez, Scar's WeaponOfChoice]]. Either way, his fate remains unknown.

[[/folder]]


[[folder: Notable Zone inhabitants]]
!!Sidorovich
-->''"[[ArcWords Good hunting, stalker.]]"''
A black market trader that acts as the contact between the outside world and the Zone, selling artifacts to outside buyers and supplies to stalkers.

* EveryoneHasStandards: While he cares only about filling up his ledgers, Sidorovich makes it clear that he'll '''never''' alter a deal or double-cross his customers, as doing so is a surefire way of getting killed.
* FatBastard: He's quite portly and doesn't give a shit about anything but his profit margin. His introduction in ''Shadow of Chernobyl'' has him munching on a chicken thigh and telling off Red about how a dead stalker isn't worth squat.
* HeroOfAnotherStory: '''Yes.''' Before and during the events of ''Clear Sky'', Sidorovich was the one trader that started pushing for deeper stalking into the Zone, rallying the other traders behind him to get gear and money to do so, until they bumped into the Brain Scorcher. Without leaving his bunker.
* JustBusiness: His relationship with Marked One and Scar. He helped the former get back in shape only because he needed some jobs done and because he had a hunch that [[spoiler:Strelok/Marked One could find a way to reach the Sarcophagus.]] The latter is just a means to an end to conclude a lucrative deal.
* LordBritishPostulate: Sidorovich is an essential character and is normally unkillable since he's holed up in an underground bunker accessible only to the player and you're forced to put your weapon away every time you enter. However, it's possible to kill him with a grenade at the end of the game when you're briefly teleported inside his bunker during the final mission.
* NonActionGuy: Sidorovich stays holed up in his bunker, stating he would get killed as soon as he leaves since he's not cut for action.

!!Wolf
Leader of the Rookie Village Loners.

* ArtificialStupidity: After you complete Sidorovich's missions in Cordon, Wolf will leave Fanatic in charge of the rookie village and travel north to the Army Warehouses seeking his fortune. There, due to an A.I. bug that was never fixed, he'll walk into a campfire and burn to death. The [=ZRP=] unofficial community bugfix fixes this brainfart of his.
* TheMentor: He'll give Marked One a pistol, an armor and some pointers when talking to him after leaving Sidorovich's bunker.
* MightMakesRight: He's the Loners' boss because he is meaner and tougher than them. Unlike most examples of this trope, Wolf is actually a decent guy, if a bit stern.

!!Borov
Leader of the Dark Valley Bandits in ''Shadow of Chernobyl''. Initially started off as a barman for Yoga's Bandits in ''Clear Sky''.

* CoolOldGuy

* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: His fate after ''Clear Sky'' is unknown, but it's very likely that he's dead, zombified or joined Monolith [[spoiler:following the second emission]].

* CoolOldGuy

* BigBad: Not officially in ''Call of Pripyat'' but the closest one outside of the Preachers of the Monolith faction, since he is the highest ranking superior of the Mercenaries in the game.

* ArcVillain: Ostensibly hired by the Ecologists to guard their bunker in the Jupiter map, he and his team later go after the player character for retrieving documents about how to get to Pripyat. The player character eventually eliminates him and his team for their troubles and is forced to hire a new group of guards for the Ecologists' bunker as a result.

* ArcVillain: He is a major villain of the Pripyat arc as he collaborated with a group of rogue Ecologists led by Serbin who are interested in the whereabouts of Lab X8 and retrieving anything of major value there despite the lab and its corresponding building above it infested with zombies, Monolith stalkers, and mutants. Killing him and the rogue Ecologist leader will have them cease to be a threat in the Pripyat map and having a major thorn in the Ukrainian military's side removed.

* MeaningfulName: He lives in a forest. A very dangerous forest. The Russian language version of the game has him named "Leshy", after a Slavic forest deity.