Character page for the Metro novels and video games.

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Introduced in Metro 2033

Artyom

Artyom Chyornyj

Voiced by:

English: Christopher L. Parson (2033 Redux, Last Light, Exodus)

Japanese: Masaki Terasoma

Russian: Alexander Vilkov (2033), Vladimir Plakhov (2033 Redux, Last Light), Daniel Eldarov (Exodus)

The Player Character of Metro 2033, Last Light and Exodus, Artyom has lived most of his life in the underground Metro tunnels. He is soon called to adventure, however, to warn the rest of the Metro of the mysterious Dark Ones.

10-Minute Retirement: Between Last Light and Exodus he, along with Anna, resigns from the Rangers and moves back to Exhibition to search the radiowaves for outside survivors. This doesn't stick as fate isn't done with him and he finds himself back with the Rangers by the end of the first chapter of Exodus. While neither he nor Anna are "formally" reenlisted into the Order, no one treats him any differently than as if he had never left and he even follows Miller's orders like before. In the good ending, he is even promoted to the rank of Commander and chosen as the de facto commanding officer of the entire order.
AB Negative: Artyom's blood type is mentioned to be AB Positive in Exodus, which becomes critical later when he suffers lethal radiation poisoning. Since he can receive any type of blood, all of his fellow Rangers donate their own blood to him to replace his irradiated blood.
Adaptational Badass: In the Metro 2033 book, Artyom is an Action Survivor who has almost no fighting experience when leaving the VDNKh station (Exhibition in the games) and is only able to survive because he's a good shot, is relatively unaffected by psychic phenomena, has much more experienced companions helping him along the way and The Dark Ones are watching over him. In the game, though many of these weaknesses still apply to Artyom, he's a One-Man Army from the get go, who is able to mow down hundreds of men and mutants on his own, though he still gets his ass kicked a few times.
The Atoner: In Last Light, after most of the Dark Ones are killed.
Badass in Distress: Constantly, though always by Cutscene Incompetence. He gets captured or imperiled so often that its surprising he isn't considered The Load by everyone. To list, he has been: Knocked off a trolley and forced to run from mutants (rescued by Riga station guards), spotted sneaking into a bandit camp and is almost shot by their leader (rescue by Bourbon), captured by Nazis (rescued by the Rangers: Ulman and Pavel), almost falls off the Ostankino Tower (rescued by Miller), captured by Nazis again (rescued by a Communist soldier named Pavel), captured by Communists (rescued by the Communist Leader's son), on the verge of having to blow himself up (rescued by the Dark Ones), near fatally irradiated and dogpiled by mutants (rescued by a Ranger team), captured by cannibals and almost butchered for food (rescued by Sam and Idiot), falls into a river and almost drowns (rescued by Olga), gets the hell knocked out of him by a Blind One and falls several floors into an irradiated hellhole (rescued by Miller), due to exposure to said irradiated hellhole he gets lethally irradiated again (possibly rescued by the crew of the Aurora depending on the ending).
Born Lucky: Zigzagged. He is unlucky enough that things tend to happen at just the wrong time (someone looks his way when sneaking, a floorboard give away, etc.), putting him in life endangering situations. Yet Artyom is lucky enough that, afterwards, things always happen at just the right time to save him and get him out of the jam.
Miller: ''Lucky as always, Artyom!''
Butt-Monkey: Suffers quite a bit of abuse in the games, being captured several times (often involving his face quickly getting acquainted with someone's rifle stock), attacked by mutants, falling or getting knocked off railcarts, and having platforms/stairs giving way beneath him.
- The Metro 2035 book consists mostly of Artyom getting beaten, shot, irradiated, betrayed and laughed at until he is near to becoming insane.
Cassandra Truth: In 2035 and Exodus nobody believes his claims that there is life outside the metro and most people instead believe that he has gone completely insane. Many people around him are aware that he is right, but they are part of the conspiracy that tries to hide the existence of outside world.
The Chosen One: He finds out in Last Light that he was chosen by the Dark Ones to help them communicate with humanity, after one of them saves his life when he was younger. Too bad they ended up choosing their Chosen One very poorly.
Chronic Hero Syndrome: Discussed it to himself when he is on his way to save Bourbon from bandits, his adopted father once told him that when you save someone once you feel obligated to keep looking after them. Artyom therefore can't leave people behind despite his better judgement.
Curious Qualms of Conscience: He carries out his orders faithfully and skillfully in order to save his home station, but as he watches the missiles incinerate the Dark One's nest in the (canon) bad ending of 2033, he feels like he has only made a horrendous mistake.
Dirty Business: Artyoms narration, at least in the first game, is mournful. He doesn't enjoy the sheer amount of killing that is forced upon him, even if he ends up being really really good at it.
The Dreaded: For soldiers that don't know him but sees him either sneaking or killing through their rank he is pretty scary. The children of the Forest and the Red Line notes he is a different threat than the usual danger.
Dude, Where's My Respect?: Played with. In Last Light, he's viewed by everyone as the savior of the Metro, but everyone acknowledges that he's still inexperienced, since he's only been a Ranger for several months. This ends after the Battle of D6, wherein he is universally recognized as one of the biggest badasses, and a legend, in the Metro.
Failure Hero: In Metro 2035 he suffers one failure after another and ultimately fails to achieve his overarching goals. He exhibits shades of this in other installments as well, but his failures generally bring him closer to his goals.
The Faceless: We never see Artyom's face without a gas mask or something covering it. The book also invokes this by giving only very few details about his appearance.
Friend to All Children: Artyom has made befriended with many children throughout the series, even helping two children to find their lost teddy bears. Extends to the child Dark One, where Artyom defends him with Papa Wolf levels of determination.
Happily Adopted: For a given value of "happily" — it is a Crapsack World after all — but Artyom had a healthy relationship with his foster father.
Happily Married: To Anna after 2034 and Last Light.
The Hero Dies: In the bad ending of Last Light, he blows up D6 to stop the Red Army. In the bad ending of Exodus, he dies of radiation poisoning.
Heroic Mime: In the games and the book Metro 2035, but averted in the book Metro 2033. Outside of the beginning-of-level narrations and verbal sounds, he never says anything in-game. Strangely, while some characters comment on his strange silence, others react as if Artyom is talking to them. Also averted/subverted in the book Metro 2034 because the "Artyom" from that book is Artyom Popov, thus he never was a Heroic Mime to begin with!.
Historical Hero Upgrade: In-Universe. Homer promises to immortalise Artyom in his writings by portraying him as a classical hero and glossing over his shortcomings and failures.
Hurting Hero: The weight of responsibility on his shoulders and the guilt from failing to live up to said resposibility make Artyom pretty miserable.
Knight in Sour Armor: After the end of 2033, Artyom becomes deeply regretful of his actions in massacring the Dark Ones, leading him to try and find a way to atone for it. Then later, in the time between Last Light and Exodus, Artyom has become disillusioned with life inside the Metro due to all of the corruption, politics, and infighting between the factions. As a result, he quits the Rangers and instead makes risky expeditions to the surface to prove life exists outside of Moscow.
Made a Slave: Twice, in fact. In the Metro 2033 novel he loses a bet and is forced to work as a janitor for a year, though he does manage to break out early. The second time, in Metro 2035 he gets captured by the Fourth Reich and is forced to perform hard labor, until he gets lucky and breaks out once again.
Made of Iron: Survives multiple falls, getting beat up several times, and occasionally even shot...in cutscenes. Yet, any ill effects aren't felt for long and he is back at 100% within seconds or minutes. Special mention goes to the truly amazing number of concussions and head injuries he's managed to survive, which has become a running joke among the playerbase. It takes getting hit with an UNGODLY amount of radiation to put him down for any extended period of time. And in the bad ending of Exodus, it puts him down for good.
Meaningful Name:
- Artyom is the Russian masculine form of the Greek name Artemisios, relating to Artemis, the Greek goddess of the hunt. She obviously had to have excellent aim, as Artyom himself is said to have by Hunter.
- Two of the possible Greek cognate words for "Artemis" can also be read as "safe" or "butcher". This reflects the two choices he has in dealing with the Dark Ones. In the end of 2033, Artyom chooses to become a "butcher", but immediately regrets it and starts to embody the "safe" aspect of his name.
- His name being associated with a deity of hunting makes his name a synonymic meaning with the name of his mentor: Hunter. And the canon ending of 2033 shows he initially chooses to act similarly to Hunter, just as his name implies. This doesn't sit well him with him in later games.
- In the novel Metro 2035, Artyom also selects his last name, Chyornyj ("black") based on his actions in 2033.
Messianic Archetype: Artyom has been compared to Moses on several occassions by his friends in Exodus. Aside from being chosen by the Dark Ones to help them communicate with humanity, Artyom's main role in Exodus is to bring the people of Moscow out of the Metro and into a land where they can leave in peace.
Mistaken for Badass: During 2033. Well, he is a badass, just not the kind of badass people think he is. He is often mistaken for being a Ranger. This ends after finding and securing D6, when Miller recognizes his badassery and inducts him into the Rangers on the spot, completely bypassing the normally years long training and evaluation process.
My God, What Have I Done?: Realizes that the Dark Ones were actually peaceful after most of them are killed at the end of 2033. His Heel Realization drives him to go through hell and back, back into hell, back out again, repeatedly to protect what he thinks is the last Dark One.
No-Sell: Thanks to being contacted by the Dark Ones when he was a child, Artyom isn't affected by psychic phenomenon the same way that other humans are. This frequently proves to be a vital skill for him on his journey and is the reason that he became the Chosen One for The Dark Ones, as he was the only person who didn't get unintentionally mind raped when trying to communicate with them.
One-Man Army: While all Rangers are this by nature, Artyom is this even before he was inducted into the order. You can over hear conversations between NPCs who mistake Artyom's feats for those of some unknown Ranger.
Only One Name: Only Artyom's first name is used in the games. The novel Metro 2035 gives his full name as Artyom Alekseyevich Chyornyj, which Artyom adopted himself.
Orphan's Ordeal: Even when he was Happily Adopted, having to live without real parents has never been easy for Artyom. He practically worships his dead mother and admits in Last Light that he would sell his soul if it could make him just remember his mother's face and the reason he went to botanical gardens the day he let The Dark Ones inside the metro was that he wanted to remember the moment he spent with his mother there before the war. The Dark Ones saw the pain that Artyom was in and took pity upon him, becoming the closest thing to family he has besides Alex.
The Paragon: After his Heel Realization upon massacring the Dark Ones in the end of 2033, Artyom vows to make amends. By the end of Last Light, Artyom's heroics and mercy cause the Baby Dark One to view him as this.
The Poorly Chosen One: Unfortunately, he does not have a good track record as a savior, even though many people in the metro view him as such.
- He is initially seen as a savior by the Dark Ones, as he's the only one who can communicate with them is able to unite them with humanity, but he ends up bringing about the downfall of their species. He fares a little better in the Redemption ending of Last Light where he is finally able to redeem his previous actions against them by liberating the remaining members of their species from D6.
- In the book, he also winds up as this when The Polis Council falsely believes he is their chosen one who can magically find and retrieve them a mystical book of great power. As it quickly turns out, this is nothing but their religious mambo jambo and the task turns into a Suicide Mission that Artyom barely survives.
Ranger: Officially becomes one by the time Last Light rolls in.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: At the end of Metro 2035, after discovering the truth about the rest of the world, and seeing that the Metro residents are too complacent to care, he and Anna leave Moscow, setting up the plot for Metro Exodus.
Secular Hero: He doesn't believe in any kind of gods or afterlife and is very skeptical of every religion he learns about. His justification is that if there were such a thing as gods (benevolent or otherwise) would have never allowed the horrors he has witnessed to have occurred. Granted he is aware of the "paranormal", such as the ghostly shadows of those who have died in the metro, but does not dwell long on their implications.
Spell My Name with an S: In the English dub, his name is Romanized as Artyom, since the Cyrillic ё letter contained in his name has a yo sound in it. However in German and Finnish versions of the book, his name is instead Romanized as Artjom since his pronunciation sounds closet to jo in those languages, while the Swedish language version turns his name into Artiom.
Tap on the Head: This is his and his enemies' favorite method of knocking each other out in the games. Seriously, almost everybody does that, to the point where it gets downright miraculous that Artyom hasn't acquired some kind of brain damage yet.
Took a Level in Badass: As you play through the first game, Artyom goes from getting his ass kicked in almost every encounter to fighting on an even level with the resident Badass Normals. He eventually becomes a Ranger in Last Light and replaces Miller as the leader of the Spartan Order in Exodus. Granted, he still often gets his ass kicked, but now he either has to be ambushed out of left field or overwhelmed by sheer weight of numbers.
Took a Level in Jerkass: He is much more unpleasant in Metro 2035 than in any of his previous appearances. Not that this is surprising after all he's been through.
Touched by Vorlons: The reason he can understand the Dark Ones. He accidentally allowed them to enter the Metro as a child, and they communicated him with when his mind was young thus not resistant to them.
Turn in Your Badge: Artyom is implied to have turned in his Ranger dogtag upon resigning from the order, though he apparently kept Hunter's tag as a keepsake. Good thing he did.
Unwitting Instigator of Doom: Kind of. When he was young, he and two of his friends opened a sealed door leading to the Botanical Gardens, allowing the Dark Ones to enter the Metro.
Villain Protagonist: Downplayed. During 2033, Artyom is doing what he thinks is protecting his home and the Metro from nigh unstoppable mutants capable of pulping a human's mind by so much as looking at them. But in reality, he massacres a group of innocent people who were just trying to talk. Realizing this pushed him to try and make amends with the world.
Was It Really Worth It?:
- After the missile strike on the Botanical Gardens, he begins to have second thoughts, wondering if the Dark Ones were actually trying to make peace. He's grown to regret his actions by the second game.
- Miller asks him this after his search for radio signals from anyone outside the Metro eventually lead to him and Anna almost getting killed, critically damaging part of the radio jammer system keeping the Metro hidden from any outside hostile forces, killing several Hansa troops who were just doing what they thought was protecting the Metro survivors; all on top of getting him, Anna, and the remaining Rangers branded as traitors and forced into exile from the Metro under threat of execution.
What the Hell, Hero?: A few times.
- In 2033,the Dark Ones when they realize that Artyom has misunderstood them and is now to kill them all, after they had hoped he would be able to understand them and bring peace between their species.
- In Last Light, Miller freaks out and calls Artyom out when he discovers Artyom had been knowingly protecting a Dark One.
- In Exodus, Exhibition's doctor, Miller, and Anna call him out for his constant ventures to the surface that repeatedly end with him getting irradiated and using up the clinic's blood supplies to save him.
- Again in Exodus, by Miller when Artyom, along with Anna, inadvertently sabotage the radio jammer shielding Moscow from any hostile forces, which leads to them, Miller, and the remaining Rangers being branded traitors and forced into exile under threat of execution.
- Possibly in Exodus, NPCs will call Artyom out if the player attacks/kills groups just trying to (what they think is) defend themselves.
You Are in Command Now: Miller passes the torch to Artyom in the good ending of Exodus, making him the next leader of the Aurora crew.
Your Days Are Numbered:
- In Metro 2035 he gets struck with a bad case of radiation sickness which slowly, but surely brings him closer to death. The Invisible Watchers manage to at least postpone his demise, though nobody knows for how long.
- Similarly in the Alternate Universe of the video games, specifically Exodus, he gets heavily irradiated and saved by an emergency transfusion to save his life. After Artyom regains consciousness, the doctor states that he is not confident that he can save Artyom the next time he gets irradiated.

Hunter

"If it's hostile, you kill it."

Voiced by:

English: Steve Blum (Metro 2033)

Japanese: Kenji Nomura

Russian: Alexander Vilkov (Metro 2033)

A friend of Artyom's stepfather, whom Artyom sees as a mentor figure. He's also a member of the Rangers. While the game canon leaves his ultimate fate ambiguous, he returns in the Metro 2034 book.

The Ace: Several characters state that he is the best soldier the Rangers, and by extension, the entire metro has to offer.
Ax-Crazy: He's an highly unstable alcoholic by the time of Metro 2034 after The Dark Ones awakened the bloodlust he had been hiding.
Badass Longcoat: In the books, he wears a brown leather trench coat produced in metro.
Battle in the Center of the Mind: He's desperately trying to keep the murderous instincts The Dark Ones awakened in him at bay. The hallucination that he has in Polyanka station clearly showcases that he is loosing this battle
Sasha: I know that Hunter can be stopped. He has two sides... I've seen both. One wants blood, the other to protect people!(...) Simply the one inside, who kills people, is deceiving the other one. It tells him, that he has no other choice. One is tormented by hunger the other by longing... That's why Hunter is so eager to get to Tulska — both of his sides are! We have to separate one from another. We have to show him there is a choice...
Blood Knight: It's heavily implied in the Metro 2034 novel that he joined the Rangers to satisfy his bloodlust.
Breakout Character: He received much more focus in Metro 2034 thanks to his popularity.
Catchphrase: If it's hostile, you kill it. He presents it as if its the motto of the Rangers, atleast Artyom mistakes it for the Rangers' motto. This reveals that, in actuality, Hunter is just a Sociopathic Hero who likes to kill things while lying to himself that it had to be done.
Day in the Limelight: In Metro 2034, where he serves as the Deuteragonist of the story.
Death by Adaptation: In the novels, he is revealed to have survived his encounter with the Dark Ones. In the 2033 game, he appears to be dead, or at least missing.
Do Not Go Gentle: Even if the Dark Ones really are superior to humanity, he very much intends to die fighting them.
The Ghost: He's mentioned to have survived The Battle of D6 in Metro 2035 and is mentioned several times by Artyom and Sasha in their conversation, but never makes an appearance in the book.
Gratuitous English: Hunter uses the English word "Hunter" as his name. Artyom notes at their first meeting that it isn't Russian, and comments that it is very strange.
If I Do Not Return: He tells Artyom to head for Polis station and look for a man named Miller if he doesn't come back. He doesn't, and Artyom decides to fulfill Hunter's wishes, driving the main plot.
Meaningful Name:
- His name "Hunter" is synonymical with Artyom's name (which is the Russian verion of "Artemis" the Greek goddess of hunting). Fittingly Artyom initially seeks to emulate him.
- His name is also fitting as he came to Exhibition to hunt the Dark Ones (as well as any other non-human threat to the Metro). This is symbolic of his true nature, as deep down he does not care about protecting the Metro as much as he enjoys tracking down and killing dangerous things, as he finds out rather jarringly. This is reflected in his personal motto: "If it's hostile, you kill it.", which he prefers over the Rangers' more defensive/selfless motto.
The Mentor: The first of several to Artyom and also probably the most influential one of them all. It's implied that he's the one who taught him on how to properly handle firearms and aim. Artyom even mentions in Metro 2035 that he owes everything in his current life to Hunter and his teachings.
Mentor Occupational Hazard: He never returns from his mission to hunt down and deal with the Dark Ones. In the games, its heavily implied he died on his mission to hunt down the Dark Ones, as he is never seen or heard from again for the rest of the entire series. In the books it is realized he survived, but the experience broke him completely and he decided to secretly leave his old life behind.
Never Found the Body: If he died, we never know it. In the books this is because he had actually survived, but as an utterly broken shell of himself who decided to flee his old life.
One-Man Army:
- Not only is he a member of an entire Order where being a One-Man Army is an entry requirement, he is known as Miller's "Right Hand Man" aka he is the Second in Command of said badass order.
- In Metro 2034 he frequently ends up fighting and winning against overwhelming numbers of enemies and is mentioned to be capable of defending entire sections of a metro station that would regularly take 15 men to guard properly.
Shell-Shocked Veteran: Becomes one in the Metro 2034 novel after his encounter with the Dark Ones.
Small Role, Big Impact: His disappearance early in the first game drives the rest of the plot.
Tragic Keepsake: Artyom keeps Hunter's Spartan tags as this after the latter's disappearance. They ended up taking the bullet meant to kill him during the encounter with hostile Hansa soldiers at the beginning of Exodus.
Uncertain Doom: He heads off to search the area after the Dark Ones attack Exhibition at the start of 2033, but never returns.
Well-Intentioned Extremist: He shares Miller's view of eliminating any potential threats to metro's survival as quickly and swiftly as possible, even if there is a potentially better solution available.

Alex

Alex/Sukhoi

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20160821225947_1.jpg

Voiced by:

English: Kirk Thornton (Metro 2033)

Russian: Eugene Maluha (Metro 2033)

Artyom's stepfather, and the head of Exhibition station.

Authority Equals Asskicking: The head of Exhibition station, who happens to be really good at handling an assault rifle and killing a few dozen Nosalises.
Fantasy-Forbidding Father: Tries to discourage Artyom from joining the Rangers, seeing their lifestyle as dangerous.
Honorary Uncle: Artyom only ever refers to him as "uncle".
Parental Substitute: Adopted Artyom after his mother's death.

Eugine

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mr_vdnkh_eugene_1.png

Voiced by:

English: Mark Ivanir (Metro 2033)

Russian: Igor Melnikov (Metro 2033)

One of Artyom's childhood friends. He accompanies him to Riga station as part of a supply caravan.

Bus Crash: The last Artyom sees of him is in Riga. By the time of Last Light, Artyom states that he died sometime after parting ways with him.
Childhood Friends: With Artyom. He was even one of two people that accompanied him to the surface back when they were kids.
The Cameo: He appears in Last Light's prologue as one of two children accompanying the young Artyom. He also makes a voice-only appearance in Metro Exodus's bad ending.
Dropped a Bridge on Him: He's just killed off unceremoniously between the events of 2033 and Last Light, with no explanation. In the book, he was killed by the dark ones while Artyom was on his way to Polis.
Killed Offscreen: It's mentioned in Last Light's prologue that he died sometime after arriving at Riga with Artyom.
Shotguns Are Just Better: He initially uses a duplet, which he later gives to Artyom when nosalises attack their caravan.

Bourbon

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/burbon_2_m33r.jpg

Some people call these demons, I call them bitches!

Voiced by:

English: Sven Holmberg (2033, Exodus)

Japanese: Shinya Fukumatsu

Russian: Grigory Herman (2033), Mikhail Sushkov (Exodus)

The first of Artyom's companions. An explorer who knows the ins and outs of the Metro, who also happens to get into trouble often.

Adaptational Heroism: In the novel, Bourbon had no plans to pay Artyom, and in fact, planned to off him once they made it through the tunnels. The game Bourbon is grumpy, but nonetheless honest and supportive of Artyom.
Cool Guns: He has in his possession an AK-74 assault rifle, which, along with a hefty pay of MGRs, he promises to hand to Artyom if he accompanies him to Dry Station.
Deadpan Snarker: He's constantly cracking sarcastic comments.
Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep": "Bourbon" is just a moniker. We never learn his real name.
Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite his cynical and sarcastic demeanor, he is genuinely helpful and cares for Artyom. It comes to the point that he risks his own life to save him.
The Mentor: Teaches Artyom several important basic lessons on Metro survival during their travels from Riga all the way to Dry.
Mutual Kill: He and the bandit leader both shoot each other at the same time when Artyom arrives at the end of Dry.
Not Quite Dead: Last Light reveals he survived his injuries, only to be captured by bandits and sent off to become a slave labourer in Venice.
Reformed Criminal: Implied by his demeanor, and the fact that the bandits at Dry station are familiar with him.
Spared by the Adaptation: He lives longer in the games (making it up to at least Dry Station), while he is truly dead in the original novels; the "Great Gate" kills him.
Wisdom from the Gutter: Bourbon may be a smuggler, a con-man and crooked as a dog's hind leg, but his advice on dealing with everything from Hansa patrols to mutants to radiation is good.
You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: Artyom discovers in the novel that Bourbon wasn't planning to pay him, and would likely have killed him once they'd made it past danger.

Khan

Khan Aitmatov

You reap what you sow, Artyom. Force answers force. War breeds war. And death only brings death. To break this vicious circle one must do more than just act without any thought or doubt.

Voiced by:

English: Graham McTavish (2033), JB Blanc (Last Light, Exodus)

Japanese: Akimitsu Takase

Russian: Oleg Stalchuk (2033, Last Light), Mikhail Georgiou (Exodus)

The second of Artyom's companions. An associate of the Rangers who helps stations in peril such as Cursed. He is also known for his extensive knowledge of supernatural and mysterious events in the Metro.

Ambiguously Human: It's not clear what he is. He seems to understand a lot of supernatural phenomena that no one else does, and his origins are rather murky. Artyom puts it best in one of his diary entries:
"...I don't even really know what he is. A traveling philosopher? A wizard? A guest from a parallel dimension? How does he earn his living — by saving people or by killing them? He always makes me feel like I don't understand anything about life and world I'm living in. He shows me things I can't explain — and will never be able to. He makes the obvious seem absurd, while the absurd becomes logical and natural..."
Ascended Extra: He has a far smaller role in the novels than in the games, only appearing in the Metro 2033 novel, and never again. In the games proper, he's a significant mentor figure to Artyom, and one of the key people involved in finding a way to prevent D6 from falling into the Red Line's hands.
Dead Person Conversation: In Exodus, when Artyom dies in the bad ending, he finds himself in a sort of purgatory realm where he meets Khan. Khan is genuinely surprised to see Artyom there and gives Artyom some sage advice before returning to the realm of the living.
First-Name Basis: In the novel, he gives his last name, but everyone primarily refers to him by his first name.
Flanderization: In regards to his attitude towards the Dark Ones. In the first game, Khan never fully voices his thoughts regarding Artyom's mission and only makes vague comments about how violence may perpetuate and how everything deserves a right to live. In Last Light, he vehemently argues that wiping out the Dark Ones was a mistake and that Miller is wrong in seeking to finish their race off.
The Mentor: Teaches Artyom about the unexplainable and supernatural phenomena on their way to Cursed Station, and advises him not to assume that everything is hostile.
Never Found the Body: He just disappears after the final battle in Last Light.
The Paragon: He encourages everyone to be more open-minded, especially in regards to the Dark Ones.
Past-Life Memories: He claims to remember being Genghis Khan, among others.
Promoted to Playable: In part of his namesake chapter of the Chronicles Pack Downloadable Content.
Respected by the Respected: Artyom writes down in his notes that most Rangers show reverence toward him and while Miller might have disagreement with Khan he lets him in their base (possibly because they can't keep him out).
Seen It All: He's completely unfazed by most supernatural phenomena when passing through the Ghost and Anomaly-filled tunnels.
Sole Survivor: He's the sole surviving member of a group of Metro defenders, as he explains in 2033, and seen (and playable) in a flashback in Last Light.
The Stoic: Remains calm and composed in most of his appearances in 2033.
- Not So Stoic: In Last Light, shows emotions such as concern and joy, especially with regards to The Baby Dark One. He also angrily yells "You are a liar!" at Comrade Moskvin near the end of the game.
Weirdness Magnet: While not only a strange man in general, being very well-versed in the darker side of the metro, he also tends to be subject to paranormal activity significantly more than any other character in the series.
Zombie Advocate: Apparently the only person in Last Light (sans Artyom) who thinks that the Dark One can save humanity rather than destroy it.

Andrew/Andrei the Blacksmith

Andrew/Andrei

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/20160831104540_1.jpg

Voiced by:

English: Alex Veadov (2033), Matt Riedy (Last Light)

Japanese: Manabu Sakamaki

Russian: Vladimir Tereshchuk (2033), Eugene Pashin (Last Light)

An associate and friend of Khan, who also happens to be a weapons-making expert. He's also revealed to be smuggling refugees out of Red Line-controlled stations.

Age Lift: Downplayed. In the original version of 2033, he looks like he's in his late 50s, with greying hair. In the Redux version of 2033, as well as both versions of Last Light, he is shown to be balding and appears to be in his mid-60s.
Big Damn Heroes: Saves you from the Reds when they have you surrounded.
The Blacksmith: As his name implies, he's skilled in building things, like weapons and railcars.
The Engineer: He's one of the most skilled engineers in the Metro.
Gadgeteer Genius: Created the Heavy Automatic Shotgun/Abzats, the Volt Driver/Hellbreath, and a powered railcar you can use in Last Light.
Screw This, I'm Outta Here: By Last Light, he's revealed to have fled Armory Station, having been fed up with the way the Red Line began subverting the place.

Ulman

Voiced by:

English: Dave B. Mitchell

Japanese: Keijin Okuda

Russian: Grigory Herman

A member of the Rangers, who saves Artyom after he's captured by members of the Fourth Reich.

Big Damn Heroes: Twice. He first saves Artyom by killing two Nazis threatening him, then later kills another one who finds Artyom inside Black Station, preventing him from alerting the entire base.
- Subverted in Last Light's Chronicles DLC, where, after helping to derail the train The Dark One and Artyom are on, is prevented from helping them due to debris blocking access to the rest of the tunnel.
Character Development: Goes from joking all the time in the first game to being bitter and cynical in the second game, though his original joking personality still shines through occasionally.
Deadpan Snarker: All the damn time.
(After rescuing Artyom from the Nazis) You know, one thing I like about the bad guys is that there's always a lot of discussion before they get around to pulling the trigger.
Demoted to Extra: In Last Light, he only appears in the prologue and final level, although he does get A Day in the Limelight in the Chronicles DLC.
Killed Off for Real: He dies in both endings of Last Light, either from the self-destruct of the D6 base or being executed by the Communists.
Nice Job Breaking It, Hero: The "Khan" level of the Chronicles DLC pack reveals that he was the reason the train The Dark One was on blew up. Thanks to him, Khan couldn't reunite with Artyom until much later, while the latter was forced to take a very risky detour involving Red Line soldiers and mutants.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: He doesn't joke as much in Last Light, emphasizing the seriousness of the situation.
Promoted to Playable: In the Chronicles DLC, you get to play as him during part of Khan's chapter.
Race Lift: Overlaps with Age Lift: he's Caucasian and around the same age than Artyom in the books, but is older and has Asian features in the games.
Took a Level in Jerkass: He's much less friendly in Last Light.
Voice with an Internet Connection: Alongside Vladimir, he aids Artyom and Miller this way during the final levels of the first game.

Pavel

Voiced by:

English: Sven Holmberg (2033)

Japanese: Shinya Fukumatsu

Russian: Alexander Vilkov

A member of the Rangers of the Order. He is part of a two-man squad with Ulman when they save Artyom from execution by vengeful Nazis. The former tasks him with helping Artyom get to Polis to deliver Hunter's message to Miller.

The Faceless: Only in the original version. Redux shows him without his gas mask on.
Sacrificial Lion: Gets dragged off the trolley you're riding by nosalises, then blows himself up.
Taking You with Me: Blows himself up with a grenade when he gets dragged off by nosalises.
We Hardly Knew Ye: Only shows up in a couple of levels before being killed.

Miller

Colonel Sviatoslav Konstantinovich "Miller" Mel'nikov

Voiced by:

English: Mark Ivanir (2033, Redux), Jamieson Price (Last Light, Exodus)

Japanese: Yasuhiro Mamiya

Russian: Eugene Pashin (2033, Redux, Last Light), Vladimir Antonik (Exodus)

Head of the Order of the Rangers. He decides to help Artyom destroy the Dark Ones even when the Polis council refuses to help. To this end, he becomes the leader of an expedition to find the D6 bunkers, which are said to house a control center for WMDs said to be still operational.

Adaptational Nice Guy: In Exodus, he joins Artyom on his journey eastward, unlike in 2035, when he opposed most of Artyom's actions.
An Arm and a Leg: In the good ending of Last Light, he loses both of his feet, and is confined to a wheelchair. In 2034, he also loses one of his arms while searching for Hunter.
Artificial Limbs: After the events of Last Light which resulted in him losing both his legs, Miller is given artificial legs. Some grade-A artificial legs, too, given that they articulate like the real deal and Miller's knees are gone.
Authority Equals Asskicking: To be expected of someone who leads a group that requires you to already be a badass before you are even allowed to join.
Colonel Badass: Played Straight. His given rank is "Colonel" and he is head of the Sparta Order of Rangers. Despite his age, still a badass soldier who is able to kick as much, if not outright more, ass that even his top subordinates.
Domestic Abuse: He used to frequently beat his wife when Anna was a child, to the point that she eventually committed suicide. Miller's subsequent guilt over this lead to him becoming overprotective towards Anna.
Dub Name Change: The English dub of the games calls him "Miller", which is the literal translation of Melnik^note. There is only a single reference to his real name in the English dub of Metro Exodus when he identifies himself as "Colonel Sviatoslav Melnikov" as the Aurora is approaching the Yamantau mountain bunker and the presumed remains of the Russian government. This makes it likely that "Miller" is just a codename or nickname, like his subordinate "Idiot".
Fatal Flaw: His My Country, Right or Wrong tendencies cause a lot of trouble over the course of Metro Exodus.
Handicapped Badass: Losing both his legs didn't slow him down considerably. If anything, he gets more badass in "Exodus".
Heroic BSoD: the revelation that there was no government in Yamantau, just cannibals, combined with months of unfounded paranoia about NATO forces in Russia, in addition to losing his power and prestige in the Moscow Metro, breaks Miller, and he eventually beats one of his captors in Yamantau to death. He gets better.
Hypocrite: Miller follows the Invisible Watchers' orders of keeping Moscow hidden to the outside world to prevent anymore bombs dropping from the sky. In the first game, Miller himself has no qualm in launching missiles at the Dark Ones' lair.
Irony: He is extremely paranoid about NATO forces occupying Russia and thinks the war may still be going on. His personal bodyguard in Exodus is a former US Marine and the only member of NATO seen in the main storyline of the games so far.
Killed Off for Real: He dies in the non-canon bad ending of Last Light when Artyom destroys D6. And in Exodus, he canonically dies of radiation poisoning while retrieving medicine for Anna in both endings.
The Knights Who Say "Squee!": He is all nervous when he is about to meet the Minister of Defense at the Ark.To the point he ignores the blatant red flags that something is wrong and has to be told to his face the government is not there by the cannibals. He flies in an Unstoppable Rage over it.
Like a Son to Me: He admits in Exodus's good ending that he sees a lot of himself in Artyom, and has always wanted a son like him.
The Leader: Of the Rangers as a whole, as well as the expedition in search of D6.
My Country, Right or Wrong: One of his main character flaws. Being an Old Soldier of the former Soviet military, he seems to still hold a lot of pride and patriotism which shows through from time to time despite Russia having been blasted to bits like the rest of the world. For example, during his "take back the world with fire and sword" speech in D6 upon seeing the preserved tanks and war machines stored there, one gets the impression he isn't talking about taking back the world from the mutants only.
My God, What Have I Done?: Twice.
- The first happened before the series' story even started. He negelected Anna and abused his wife, until his wife killed herself. The shock of the Heel Realization turning him into an Overprotective Dad and Papa Wolf towards Anna.
- The second is after leading the Aurora crew into the Ark, despite several warning signs, against the advise of several of his team who suspected something was off, and in opposition to Anna and Artyom's wise to go settle on a beach somewhere. Miller again realizes he was putting his own desires first and again endangering those close to him. After the team escapes the ambush, Miller doesn't raise a single word opposed to Anna and Artyom's plan from there and does everything he can to make it happen.
Old Soldier: Served in the Soviet military, heavily implied to have been Spetznaz, many years ago. Now serves as the head of his own special forces military order, the Sparta Order of Rangers, to protect the survivors within the Metro from each other and the mutants that lurk in the darkness.
Overprotective Dad: So much so that he didn't let Anna go to shower alone until she was thirteen. Even after she has proven herself a capable Special Forces-class soldier, he still acts like she is a vulnerable child. This is because he feels guilty for neglecting Anna when she was a child, as well as causing his wife to commit suicide through his constant Domestic Abuse.
- Crosses over with Papa Wolf, as he is willing to even "technically" turn on allies (if you can call Hansa allies) to protect his daughter. God have mercy on you if you threaten Anna, for Miller will not.
Ranger: He's the leader of an entire order of them.
Reasonable Authority Figure: When Polis refuses to help Exhibition Station in 2033, making your entire journey through the game pointless, he decides to help you take down the Dark Ones regardless. In Exodus, while he is stern, everything he does is what he believes is the best of his men, based on his understanding of the situation, and he is never unreasonable. He even overlooks minor infractions of standard operations, such as Damir smuggling vodka onto missions in his canteen; even having Damir share it with the rest of the team as they celebrate.
Shell-Shocked Veteran: Miller... changed after the Battle of D6. He hasn't been able to get over the sorrow of losing half of his comrades and has become a paranoid wreck who refuses to accept his crippled state and helps hunt down anyone who is suspected to have come from outside the metro in the fear of NATO retaliation.
Still Wearing the Old Colors: Justified through most of the games as the Metro's ability to produce new uniforms is limited at best, so he and his order just use modified Spetznaz uniforms and equipment. In Exodus he dons a blue Spetsnaz beret with the USSR era Order of the Red Star emblem after revealing that WWIII never ended and that Russia was still at war with the NATO countries. This is to signify his belief that Russia, as a nation, still exists and that he is still part of its military.
Took a Level in Jerkass: Is much more hostile to Artyom in Metro 2035, seeing the latter's actions and beliefs as reckless.
Unwitting Instigator of Doom: As mentioned under Fatal Flaw, Miller's blind, near-quixotic patriotism is the cause of a lot of trouble in Metro Exodus up until Caspian.
- His patriotism makes it easy for the Invisible Watchers to manipulate him to help with deceiving the entire Metro into believing that nobody but they had survived the war. All they had to do was tell him that the orders came from the Minister of Defense. The lack of a real answer is also responsible, in part, for stoking Artyom's curiosity.
- His paranoia about finding NATO troops in Russia leads to Anna investigating the bunker and contracting a deadly disease.
- His extreme patriotism almost gets him and the rest of the Aurora crew killed and eaten by cannibals when it blinds him to the warning signs that the Ark was NOT actually housing the remnants of the former Russian government.
Walking Spoiler: A literal example in Metro Exodus, where he firstly confronts Artyom after nearly getting killed by lethal radiation above the surface. For new players of the series who start off with Exodus, Miller's prosthetic legs is already a major spoiler: Exodus follows the canon Redemption ending of Metro: Last Light.
Well-Intentioned Extremist: Firmly believes in killing all the Dark Ones, regardless of their intentions.
- In Metro 2035, it's revealed that he's helping hide the fact that people in the rest of the world survived the apocalypse, believing that if the West found out, they'd come and finish them off.
Windmill Crusader: His devotion to Russian government - or rather, anything resembling it, such as the Invisible Watchers and the cannibals - is downright quixotic, leading him to expect occupying NATO troops behind every corner after leaving the Metro.
You Don't Look Like You: In a franchise where character designs evolve as improvements are made to the engine, Miller is perhaps hit the hardest by this. Whereas other characters are simply fine-tuned as they appear in the sequels, Miller's three appearances across 2033, Last Light and Exodus look like three completely different people.

Vladimir

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/wadimir_m33r.jpg

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mll_vladamir.png

Top: Vladimir in Metro 2033 Redux; Below: Vladimir in Metro: Last Light

Voiced by:

English: Alex Veadov (2033), Boris Kievsky (Last Light)

Japanese: Naomi Kusumi

Russian: Oleg Stalchuk

A Ranger who specializes in weaponry and old technology. He's also one of the Rangers who accompanies Artyom in the search for D6.

The Cameo: Appears in the first level of Last Light, as the one in charge of the armory in D6.
Demoted to Extra: In Last Light, he only gets a cameo appearance in the first level.
The Engineer: Of Miller's team.
Gadgeteer Genius: An expert at handling electric locks, and Miller's go-to guy when dealing with military computers.
Old Soldier: Implied to have served in the Russian Army alongside Miller.
What Happened to the Mouse?: Vladimir's fate after the Battle of D6 is unknown.
Voice with an Internet Connection: Once the Rangers manage to reach the control room, he fills this role for Artyom and Miller alongside Ulman.

Boris and Stepan

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/borys_m33r.jpg

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/stiepan_28m33r29_5.jpg

Top: Boris; Below: Stepan

Voiced by:

English: Yuri Lowenthal (Boris), Boris Kievsky (Stepan)

Russian: Oleg Stalchuk (Boris), Vladimir Tereshchuk (Stepan)

Two Rangers that accompany Artyom in search of D6.

Killed Offscreen: When you meet up with the team again after Boris' death, Stepan is gone, apparently killed by mutants.
Red Shirt: Both of them get killed, one after the other, in D6.
Those Two Guys: Neither of them really stand out in terms of character traits, and both get killed off pretty quickly.

Introduced in Metro 2034

Homer

I want to write down my story: from the end of the World to the end of my life.

Protagonist of Metro 2034. Homer is a former Metro technician now living in Sevastopolskaya Station. He named himself Homer after the author of The Iliad because of his wish to write in his style and he has made it his life goal to chronicle the events and history of the post-apocalyptic Metro. He returns in Metro 2035 as one of Artyom's companions.

Love Cannot Overcome: His wife left him between 2034 and 2035 because she couldn't handle constantly having to worry over his safety whenever he left his home station to chronicle the events around Metro.
Morality Pet: Hunter is much nicer to him than he is to most other people, because he sees the part of himself he lost after getting Mind Raped by the Dark Ones in Homer.
Parental Substitute: He ends up becoming something of a surrogate parent to Sasha after her father dies.
Supporting Protagonist: Metro 2034 is really story about Sasha and Hunter, but Homer serves as the point of view character who chronicles their story.

Sasha

Daughter of the former leader of Avtozavodskaya Station who was banished after a Trotskyist revolution. She joins Homer and Hunter in their travels and the relationship between her and Hunter becomes the main focus of the story. Not to be confused with a similarly named character from Metro 2033 video game.

Break the Cutie: The cynical world of Moscow metro does not end up treating poor Sasha well.
The Exile: She and her father were exiled from Avtozavodskaya, and are forced to work as scavengers, living in an abandoned station.
May�December Romance: She ends up falling in love with Hunter who is much older than her.
Morality Chain: She is the only one who can keep Hunter's bloodthirst in check to some extent.
Never Found the Body: Last time we see her in the book, she is left in the flooding Tulskaya station as its hermetic doors are shut. Her body isn't found afterwards and she is presumed dead. Metro 2035 reveals that she and three others managed to escape the station.
Womanchild: She's 17 years old, but since she has spent the entirety of her life inside her home without meeting anyone but her father, she acts like a child and isn't aware of social norms.

SPOILER CHARACTER

Artyom Popov

Heroic Mime: Averted, because he's a different Artyom from the one in the rest of the series.
Walking Spoiler: His very existence is a spoiler, as he's easily confused with the hero Artyom.

Introduced in Last Light

Anna

Anna Sviatoslavovna Mel'nikova

Voiced by:

English: Anna Graves (Last Light, Exodus)

Japanese: Atsuko Tanaka

Russian: Ekaterina Savenkova (Last Light), Varvara Chaban (Exodus)

Miller's daughter, and the Rangers' best sniper.

10-Minute Retirement: Between Last Light and Exodus she, along with Artyom, resigns from the Rangers and moves to Exhibition. This doesn't stick as fate isn't done with her and she finds herself back with the Rangers by the end of the first chapter of Exodus. While neither she nor Artyom are "formally" reenlisted into the Order, noone treats her any differently than as if she had never left and she even follows Miller's orders like before.
Babies Ever After: With Artyom in both endings, although it's not explicitly shown in the good one.
- He still ends up with her in the good ending, as the menu of Redux is set by the time Artyom himself is in his 50s.
- Subverted by both Word of God and the events of Metro 2035 / Metro Exodus, which reveal the baby to be non-canon.
Battle Couple: With her husband, Artyom, in Metro Exodus. The two always have each other's backs and make up a good team to boot.
Boyish Short Hair: Dons practically short hair in all of her appearances.
Broken Bird: Combination of her father's Domestic Abuse, subsequent overprotectiveness and the time she spent in the Order have served as Anna's Cynicism Catalyst.
Chickification: In Exodus, Anna loses all her Ice Queen personality from the previous game and most of her interactions with Artyom are to the point of Sickeningly Sweethearts.
Cold Sniper: The best one among the Rangers, and isn't too friendly with Artyom at first.
Crippling Overspecialization: While she is undoubtedly the best sniper for the Rangers, she isn't exactly the best at close-range combat, as proven when Lesnitsky manages to subdue her with ease during the Reds' raid on the Ranger outpost.
Damsel in Distress: She ends up captured more often than she likes. In Last Light, she's captured and held hostage by Lesnitsky after the attack on the church. And in Exodus, she gets trapped underground, and captured by cannibals.
Defrosting Ice Queen: She initially isn't very friendly to Artyom, only caring about killing the last Dark One. She apologizes to you when you meet her again at the Church.
Dude Magnet: Played for Drama; Due to being an attractive looking woman in a highly male centric environment, Anna mentions in Metro 2035 that she has been frequently sexually harassed by other Rangers throughout the years.
Early-Bird Cameo: The woman shown in the menu of the Redux version of 2033 is her.
Faux Action Girl: Subverted. The main game makes it seem that she's this, but as shown in her level of the Chronicles DLC, she can easily wipe out a pack of Watchmen and a platoon of Nazi stalkers, provided they're at range. In Exodus while still having moments of Damsel in Distress she also does more action and saves Artyom twice.
Anna: (through radio) Artyom, your head is in the way.
Irony: In the second game, she warns Artyom not to stare at her butt while climbing a ladder, claiming he is not worthy of her.
Happily Married: With Artyom in Exodus.
Military Brat: She is Miller's daughter, who became really overprotective of her after her mother died.
Never a Self-Made Woman: She's the only female Ranger, and she's Colonel Miller's daughter.
Official Couple: With Artyom.
Progressively Prettier: Compare her appearance in Last Light to what she looks like in Exodus.
Promoted to Playable: In her namesake level of the Chronicles Pack.
Sickeningly Sweethearts: She is deep in the "honeymoon phase" of her marriage to Arytom by the time of Exodus.
Single Woman Seeks Good Man: The reason she fell for Artyom was that he was the only relatively normal man who she could found a family with among a group of hardened killers.
The Smurfette Principle: She is the only female Ranger, the only female main character (besides perhaps Artyom's mother), and beyond that she is the only female shown to go about armed (either as a soldier, or as someone who needs to defend against mutants), which seems a bit odd in a setting this dangerous.
Someone to Remember Him By: In the bad ending of Last Light.
Spell My Name with an S: Her name is pronounced as "Anya" in the Russian dub, which is the diminutive of "Anna" in her native language. Both are equally-correct names for Russian women, however.
Token Romance: Last Light doesn't spend much time developing her and Artyom's relationship and it feels like the two of them just kind of suddenly decide to have sex and fall in love with each other after meeting about three times. This is, however, averted in Metro 2035 where their relationship problems are one of the central plot elements.
Took a Level in Kindness: In Exodus, she is completely enamored with Artyom and also shows more morals than her Cold Sniper attitude she showed in Last Light let on.
Undying Loyalty: She is, alongside Letyaga, the only one of Artyom's companions who doesn't betray or abandon him in Metro 2035.
Violently Protective Girlfriend: She is not above using her father as a threat if Artyom is attacked or put a bullet in the enemy's head herself.

Pavel Morozov

Pavel Igorevich Morozov

Voiced by:

English: Mark Ivanir

Japanese: Hiroki Goto

Russian: Grigory Herman

A Red Line soldier who helps Artyom escape from the Nazi camp early in Last Light. He turns out to be more than just a simple soldier, however...

Affably Evil: Very friendly towards Artyom, even after betraying him. He's later revealed to actually be very reluctant in betraying and later trying to kill Artyom, as the Baby Dark One reveals.
Bald of Evil: Drugs and gives Artyom to his superiors for interrogation, later trying to ambush and kill Artyom. He also knowingly serves the Red Line in carrying out virus attacks against innocent people.
The Casanova: The dancers in Theatre are familiar with him, and you find him in the brothel in Venice.
Co-Dragons: With Lesnitsky.
Chummy Commies: In comparison to a lot of his comrades, he comes off as a genuinely nice and likable person. It's even revealed late in the game by the Baby Dark One that he was in fact reluctant to betray Artyom.
Commissar Cap: He wears one after Artyom is captured and being dragged around Revolution Station.
Defiant to the End: He goads Artyom into finishing him, refusing to surrender even after multiple shots.
Dragged Off to Hell: Probably not a literal example, but the vision Artyom has while deciding Pavel's fate features him being dragged into darkness by disembodied hands amongst hellish screams.
Even Evil Has Standards: Willing to kill many innocents in the Metro for the sake of the Red Line but he won't shoot someone that surrenders even telling Artyom to disregard the drop your weapons instruction since he is to be killed on sight by Korbut's orders. He is also disgusted by Artyom seemingly siccing the baby Dark One on him while he was fine with being stabbed to death.
Exact Words: He promises Artyom that he'd allow him through Revolution Station. He does keep his promise, albeit by having to betray him and hand him over to his superior Korbut for interrogation.
Face�Heel Turn: Once you reach Theatre station, he has Artyom captured and brought to Revolution Station.
Flunky Boss: Starts by sending troops after you during the battle in Red Square, only confronting you directly after they're all dead.
Foil: To Bourbon in the first game. Both of them are your first major companion who functions as a guide to get to your destination. While Bourbon is a shiftless, grumpy drunkard who almost sacrifices himself to save Artyom, Pavel is a cheerful and consistently helpful man who nonetheless reluctantly betrays Artyom out of blind loyalty to the Red line.
Friendly Enemy: His biggest character trait. While he betrays Artyom, Pavel didn't expect his superiors to try and execute him, and in fact had hoped Artyom would join the communists. When Artyom confronts him again later, Pavel expresses genuine joy that Artyom survived the interrogation and defeated his ambush, yet still attempts to kill him due to putting his duty above personal relationships. When beaten, he's also happy to die at Artyom's hands, as that means that Artyom survives. The baby Dark One even confirms that Pavel genuinely considers Artyom a true friend.
Good Scars, Evil Scars: He has a large scar near his left eye.
Hanging Around: One mission before his betrayal requires you to save him from being hanged by the Fourth Reich.
Just Following Orders: He is this to a T, willing to help with committing horrible atrocities and turning on his friends if so ordered. He makes it clear that he does not enjoy the things he is ordered to do in the slightest, but orders are orders.
Majorly Awesome: Turns out to be a high-ranking Red Line officer upon Artyom's capture in Revolution Station.
Meaningful Name: He's named after Pavel "Pavlik" Morozov, a devout Communist boy who reported his father to the Soviet government for illegal activities. Said boy was then murdered by his own family in retaliation. It's a huge red flag for anybody who knows Russian history, since the real Pavel Morozov's story was partly made up and embellished by Communist leaders of the time.
My Country, Right or Wrong: To the point that he's willing to cooperate in Korbut's plan in using bioweapons in order to bring order and peace to the whole Metro.
Precision F-Strike: "Suka/сука!", whenever something goes south. Which, being in a Metro game, things often do, a lot.
Promoted to Playable: In his respective level of the Chronicles Pack.
Stepford Smiler: He isn't as happy as he shows, the Dark One even feels sadness when he has to fight Artyom despite spending the whole segment taunting as usual. His bonus chapter's intro has him summing up how bad of a day he is having.
Verbal Tic: Has quite a few. He tends to drop "Tak-tak-tak-tak-tak!" and "Opa!" constantly in his speech.

Führer

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mll_fuher_profile.jpg

Voiced by:

English: Robin Atkin Downes

Russian: Vladimir Tereshchuk

The unnamed Führer of the Fourth Reich.

Advertised Extra: In much of the pre-release material, he's depicted as a significant threat to the Rangers and looks to be after the D6 bunker. In the final game, he only plays a part in the beginning and towards the end, both times addressing a crowd of his followers.
Hypocrite: He preaches racial purity and despises genetic mutations, but it's rumored that his only child is a mutant, and that he's been hiding evidence about that from the public. This rumor is confirmed to be true in Metro 2035.
No Name Given: Unlike Moskvin, we never learn his name. Metro 2035 reveals his name is Yevgeniy Petrovich.
Those Wacky Nazis: He's the leader of an entire station of them.

Korbut

General Czeslav Andreyevich Korbut

Voiced by:

English: Andr� Sogliuzzo

Japanese: Tōru Ōkawa

Russian: Anatoly Zinovenko

A Red Line General who's in charge of their army's intelligence bureau.

Admiring the Abomination: He knows about the surviving Dark One, and he plans on capturing it and raising it to use on his enemies. Bonus points for that same Dark One killing him in the good ending.
Big Bad: He's the one really in charge of the Red Line, with Moskvin as nothing more than a pawn in his grander scheme.
The Chessmaster: He skillfully manipulates Moskvin into killing his brother, then uses this as leverage to gain political power. He later has Lesnitsky steal a bioweapon from D6, planning to use it to wipe out most of the Metro's population, then forces Moskvin to go to the Polis Peace Conference as a distraction, while the Reds attack D6.
Commissar Cap: Wears one in both endings.
Dirty Communists: Definitely. When you're willing to use biological weapons and force in order to bring order to the whole Metro, it definitely counts.
Dragon-in-Chief: He's the one who arranged Maxim Moskvin into power, and is pretty much running the Red Army through blackmailing the former.
Eviler than Thou: Most officers in the Red Line are Punch-Clock Villain of a sort, and would appear to be more civilized, or at the very least less cruel, when compared to the likes of the Reich. But not Korbut. He is pretty much unambiguously evil in his ways, and his schemes put the Fourth Reich to shame.
Exact Words: Tells Moskvin that his plan involves no bloodshed. Instead, he decides to use biological weapons at his disposal in order to cause fear and eventual capitulation in the Metro.
Faux Affably Evil: Korbut puts up a constant air of pleasantry while addressing Artyom or his men, but he makes no attempt to hide his seething contempt for the Reich or Spartans. He is the kind of evil that smiles happily while he tells you what diabolical scheme he has in stores for you, while you could do nothing about it. One of his favourite hobbies is to casually sneer at his helpless foes, as Artyom and Miller could attest to.
Good Scars, Evil Scars: Has a pair of large scratch marks on the left side of his face.
Killed Off for Real: He dies in both endings of Last Light. Either from the self-destruct sequence of D6 or from the Baby Dark One.
Mad Scientist: One of his intentions is to capture the Baby Dark One, study it, and then raise it so that he can use it against the enemies of the Red Line.
Manipulative Bastard: He convinced Moskvin to off his brother, and then uses his knowledge of this to blackmail him into having more power than he should.
Non-Action Big Bad: As mentioned above, Korbut is more content with pulling strings and having his men do the dirty work for him than actually picking up a Kalash to shoot enemies with.
Oh, Crap!: In both endings, where he either realizes Artyom is about to blow up D6, or that the Baby Dark One he wanted to capture and use on his enemies is now about to kill him.
Omnicidal Maniac: His ultimate goal is to kill off most of the Metro population.
Red Right Hand: His right eye is redded out.
Take Over the World: Or at least, the entire Metro.
"The Reason You Suck" Speech: Gives one to Miller just before he's killed in both endings.
Token Minority: Korbut is heavily implied to be Polish or Czech, as Czeslav/Чеслав is a very rare name in Russia; it is much more common in Poland (Czesław) and the Czech Republic (Česlav).
Walking Spoiler: Knowing too much about him reveals that he's the Big Bad and the real one in charge of the Red Line.

Lesnitsky

Voiced by:

Japanese: Junpei Morita

A Red Line officer under Korbut who's spying on the Rangers.

Bald of Evil: Not an inch of hair on his head, and serves under a ruthless regime.
Co-Dragons: He and Pavel are this to Korbut.
Double Agent: A Ranger who's secretly providing information to the Red Line.
The Mole: He's actually providing information on the Rangers to the Reds.
Rogue Soldier: A rogue Ranger.
Villains Never Lie: Never once when you meet him does he ever deny his true allegiance.

Maxim Moskvin

Maxim Leonidovich Moskvin

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mll_moskovin.jpg

Voiced by:

English: Dmitri Diatchenko

Japanese: Yōsuke Akimoto

Russian: Anatoly Zinovenko

Secretary General of the Red Line and head of the Communist Party.

Abusive Parents: From his son Leonid's attitude towards him, Moskvin isn't the best father.
Bald of Evil: Has not an inch of hair on his head, and is the leader of an oppressive regime.
Cain and Abel: He and his brother Andrey, the previous leader of the Red Line. Turns out Korbut arranged the whole dispute between them, and Maxim clearly regrets doing the deed, as seen during the reveal sequence in his mind.
Engineered Public Confession: The Baby Dark One, with Artyom's help, makes him reveal Korbut's plans in front of the leaders of Polis, Hanza, and Reich, as well as his status as a pawn.
Fat Bastard: Is noticeably more portly than most other people in the Metro.
The Ghost: He is mentioned several times in Metro 2035, but never makes an appearance.
Good Hair, Evil Hair: Has a Hitler mustache, appropriately enough.
Good Old Fisticuffs: Unlike Korbut, he believes in the "beat the shit out of them" method of interrogating prisoners.
Heel Realization: After the Baby Dark One enters his mind, he confesses that he poisoned his brother, the previous Secretary General. He also comes clean with Korbut's plans, and the Red Army's true intentions.
Irony: He's the head of the communist party, yet he has a Hitler mustache. Probably also used to remind the audience that the Red Line and the Reich aren't all that different from each other.
Puppet King: While it initially appears that he's the one in charge of the Red Line, Korbut starts blackmailing him and persuades Moskvin into allowing him to continue his top-secret operation.
Unwitting Pawn: To Korbut. Downplayed in while he does agree with the unification of the Metro, and approves of Korbut's plan, he doesn't know the true extent of how far his General is willing to go until it's too late.

The Baby Dark One

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dark_one_mll.jpg

A baby Dark One found by Khan just before the events of the second game.

Adapted Out: Is not mentioned and does not appear to exist in the Metro 2035 novel, which is a direct sequel to Last Light.
Aura Vision: Like all Dark Ones, he's capable of sensing hostile individuals. He can temporarily give you this ability.
Big Damn Heroes: In the good ending of Last Light, he and his fellow Dark Ones save Artyom and Miller from the Reds by causing them to fight each other.
But Now I Must Go: In both endings, he and the other Dark Ones leave, promising to eventually return.
Intrigued by Humanity: He's curious about how humans act and live.
Last of His Kind: Presumably of his entire race, until he, Artyom, and Khan find out about the existence of a handful more in the D6 bunker.
Living MacGuffin: He is sought after by both Artyom/Khan and the Red Line, and becomes central in helping find a solution to the conflict late in the game.
Morality Pet: He notes and questions your actions, particularly if you choose to kill everything you come across.
Sole Survivor: Of the missile attack on the Dark One Hive in the Moscow Botanical Garden.

Red Line Sniper

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ss_bfbf749302d1999215c760da64c3d13b49f9b4031920x1080.jpg

Promotional pre-release image of the Red Line Sniper.

A unnamed Red Line sniper, who is the protagonist of the Faction Pack DLC mission "Sniper Team". His mission is to infiltrate the now-reinforced Black Station and kill all Nazi troops standing in his way.

Cold Sniper: One of the best in the Red Line, who never speaks a single line during his respective mission, and who manages to kill an impressive number of Reich stalkers.
The Faceless: His face is never shown, and even if it was shown, it's obscured by a gas mask.
Hollywood Silencer: The VSSK Vychlop he uses has a built-in silencer that makes almost no noise whatsoever.
One-Man Army: He manages to wipe out an entire base of heavily-armed Reich troopers with just a handful of weapons. Bonus points for doing all of this silently.
The Quiet One: Outside of his mission's introductory cutscene, he is never heard speaking.
Sniper Rifle: He prefers using a modified VSSK Vychlop, a prewar sniper rifle with an integrated silencer.
Stealth Expert: He has to be, since his mission involves sneaking into a heavily-guarded Nazi base without alerting any of them.
Villain Protagonist: Played with. He's a member of the Red Line, the main antagonists of the main story of Last Light. However, he isn�t seen actually doing anything explicitly villainous, just fighting an opposing antagonistic group instead of the Rangers.

Hans

A Shock trooper of the Fourth Reich, and the protagonist of the Faction Pack DLC mission "Heavy Squad". He and a handful of other Reich Shock troopers are tasked with reinforcing the Frontline and repelling a massive Red Line attack.

BFG: Both the Gatling he starts with and the Hellbreath he uses later in the mission count, as they can kill even Heavy troopers in one hit.
The Faceless: He's shown wearing a gasmask in the ending cutscene of his mission, so we never manage to get a glimpse of it.
Gatling Good: One of his weapons is a Gatling, a minigun made from scraps, which he uses to devastating effect on the attacking Red Line soldiers.
More Dakka: His job is to lay down as much firepower as possible in order to buy time for Nazi reinforcements to arrive.
One-Man Army: He manages to repel an entire Red Line offensive, including a tank, with the weapons at his disposal.
Villain Protagonist: Played with. He's a member of the Fourth Reich, arguably one of the most hostile, if not the most hostile faction, in the Metro. However, he isn�t seen actually doing anything villainous, and is actually fighting the main villains of the game itself.
The Voiceless: Unlike the Red Line sniper, he's never heard speaking, even in the introduction of his respective mission.

Ranger Trainee

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/metrodlcranger.png

A Ranger recruit assigned to the Kshatriya Team, who are tasked with retrieving artifacts from the Great Library.

Armor Is Useless: Averted. The Heavy Armor that he can purchase protects him from all kinds of damage, even allowing him to tank an attack from a Librarian.
The Faceless: Unlike Hans nor the Red Line sniper, who at least get shown in third-person, we never get to see this guy looks like.
New Meat: He's a new recruit aspiring to be part of the Polis Kshatriya.
Ranger: What he's aspiring to be.
Took a Level in Badass: During the start of his level, he's merely a raw recruit using subpar equipment. By the end of it, he can wield far more powerful weapons, possess much better suits for exploring the library, and possibly have killed a few dozen librarians.

Spider Lair Stalker

The Stalker

Voiced by: Daniel Gamburg

An unnamed Stalker who, as part of a 3-man team, strives to look for abandoned military bases scattered throughout the Metro.

Bolivian Army Ending: His respective level ends just as a Watchman is about to pounce on him.
The Faceless: We never get to see his face during the Spider Lair level.
Kill It with Fire: His arsenal includes a lighter, incendiary grenades and a flamethrower, all of which he uses to fight back against the spiderbugs infesting the base he's trapped in.
No Name Given: We never learn his name.
Out of the Frying Pan: While he manages to successfully escape the spider-infested missile base, once he's on the surface, he's cornered by a pack of Watchmen. It's unknown if he survives.
Sole Survivor: Of the Stalker team he was part of.
Uncertain Doom: The last we see of him is when he finally makes it to the surface, just as a Watchman is about to pounce on him.

Introduced in Metro 2035

SPOILER CHARACTER

Aleksei Bessolov

The leader of the Invisible Watchers and the overarching antagonist of the series. He is the puppet master behind the creations of the main Metro factions, controlling them within the shadows, all for the sake of control.

Adapted Out: In Metro Exodus, Bessolov is barely even referenced at all, despite being the main contributor to the infamous reveal of Metro 2035.
The Bad Guy Wins: In Metro 2035, he and the Invisible Watchers are able to propagandise the citizens of Moscow Metro, leading to all of them but Anna to no longer believe Artyom's truth regarding life above the surface.
Big Bad: Bessolov is the main antagonist of the entire Metro series, who is the true wirepuller of the main conflicts that have transpired, including the Battle for D6. It just happens so often that anything regarding the Invisible Watchers is incomplete without Bessolov into the picture, due to his status as a Walking Spoiler.
- In Metro 2035, Bessolov serves as the biggest threat to Artyom, even more so than the rest of his rogues gallery including Lesnitsky, Führer and Korbut. He is responsible for Lyokha's betrayal and his ascension into being his number two. His actions would directly result in the Moscow Metro's inhabitants and Homer ultimately betraying Artyom at the end, who would call out and mock his attempts of looking for survivors above the surface.
- In any of the main works in the series besides 2035, he serves as the unseen Greater-Scope Villain.
Blatant Lies: Literally his primary MO as the propagandist leader of the Invisible Watchers.
The Chessmaster: Being the creator of the Fourth Reich, Hanza, Spartan Rangers and the Red Line, Bessolov is notoriously known for his infamy of controlling these factions through putting them into wars within each other, all for the sake of his twisted attempts of population control.
Corrupt Politician: Despite being somewhat of a Well-Intentioned Extremist, Bessolov is the extremely corrupt leader of the Invisible Watchers, as he is the mastermind of all the main factions in the Moscow Metro. He shows clearly no hesitation of abusing his power to brainwash the gullible residents of the Moscow Metro with his venomous, conspiratorial propaganda, which is just used as an excuse to keep everyone in the Metro in the dark.
The Man Behind the Man: He is as manipulative as he is, having been able to manipulate the leaders of the four main Moscow Metro factions as his Unwitting Pawns in his schemes, given that he virtually created them in the first place. Everything about the events in the series including the Battle for D6 is mostly his doing.
Manipulative Bastard: His modus operandi is to force feed the citizens of Moscow Metro propaganda by "warning" them with more Blatant Lies, in an attempt to force them to stay underground. This later becomes a successful tactic, as he was able to completely convince the residents via his propaganda in a whim, leading them to turn against both Artyom and Anna.
Propaganda Machine: A clear-cut example. Bessolov uses (or rather abuses) his position of authority to endlessly feed lies and propaganda to the residents of the Moscow Metro in an attempt to put them on line.
Walking Spoiler: Especially more pronounced for those who haven't read Metro 2035, as The Reveal pretty much reveals that he is the main orchestrator of the events that transpired throughout the entire series.

Lyokha

Lyokha/Aleksei Zvonariov

A young man living in Riga station who joins Artyom and Homer as an Intermediary in their trip to Theatre station. As the story progresses, he becomes Artyom's sidekick and protege.

Amusing Injuries: While the severity of his injuries is never downplayed, they are much more commonly Played for Laughs with him, than they are with Artyom.
Butt-Monkey: He shares Artyom's terrible luck and quite possibly even surpasses it. However, it is seemingly subverted, when he later betrays his friend after working with Bessolov and the Invisible Watchers, where he is played more seriously.
The Dragon: He later betrays Artyom after their imprisonment, who is revealed to have been working with Aleksei Bessolov, the leader of the Invisible Watchers, as his second-in-command.
Game Changer: His act of betrayal to Artyom by becoming Bessolov's number two is considerably played more seriously in Lyokha's run as a character, who is often a Butt-Monkey. This catalyses the betrayal of the Moscow Metro's residents, including Homer, towards Artyom and Anna.
Humiliation Conga: His visit to the Mendeleyevskaya station. First, he gets hungry and decides to go eat, but it turns out that the only food he can get from the station is a raw egg covered in feces that he has to drink through a straw. Then he drops his bullets in water and when trying to look for them underwater, his hand gets cut by shattered glass and then he almost gets shot by Hanza guards when he's looking for help to his injury and he very nearly bleeds to death due to his injury before he arrives to Tsvetnoi Boulevard.
The Lancer: He serves as Artyom's sidekick. That is, until his betrayal to Artyom began, when he becomes The Dragon to Bessolov.
The Pig-Pen: He's described to smell absolutely terrible because of his job in the Riga station, which involves him carrying pig feces over to Exhibition.
The Tooth Hurts: His teeth get shattered during his and Artyom's assault on the Hanza's radio jammers above ground and he has much trouble speaking for the rest of the novel.
You Are What You Hate: He ends up joining the Fourth Reich's Iron Legion after Letyaga manages to convince him about their anti-mutant agenda. Only it turns out that he has a tumor that ends up sending him straight into a concentration camp.

Letyaga

A veteran ranger who fought alongside Artyom in the Battle of D6. Two of them have been loyal friends ever since.

AB Negative: He shares Artyom's blood type, which saved his life in the Battle of D6 after he was wounded.
Heterosexual Life-Partners: He is clearly a very close comrade of Artyom and they virtually consider each other Blood Brothers after the above mentioned blood transfusion in D6.
Taking the Bullet: He saved Artyom this way during the Battle of D6.
Undying Loyalty: He is willing to protect Artyom even in spite of his orders and ends up dying for this.

Dietmar

Nazi officer who Lyokha and Artyom meet in Tsvetnoy Bulvar and who recruits both of them to the Iron Legion.

The Chessmaster: He's the one who orchestrated Reich's invasion of Theater station.
Do Unto Others Before They Do Unto Us: He justifies his plan to invade Theater station by claiming that Red Line is planning to take the station in a few days anyways and the Reich thus has the right to protect the station from communism. Of course this is just a flimsy excuse and after Artyom tells him that the Red Line is having a severe famine due to a mold epidemic in their mushrooms and is not in the condition to invade the Theater, he has no intentions of calling the attack off since he was already aware of the mold epidemic and it was even part of his plan.
Even Evil Has Standards: He is very critical of the Fourth Reich's former racial policies against non-whites and states that it is stupid to judge people simply based on their ethnicity.
Faux Affably Evil: He's very polite and friendly to Artyom, even when he's forcing him to accept a Suicide Mission at gunpoint or sending him into a concentration camp.
Killed Offscreen: He dies fighting against the reds in Theatre station while Artyom is enslaved in Pushkinskaya.

Duke

Igor Dukov

Voiced by:

English: Dimitry Rozental

Russian: Alexander Gavrilin

One of Artyom's companions in 2035 and Exodus. In 2035, he is one of the older rangers who survived the Battle of D6 with Artyom. In Exodus, he's a fresh recruit and is the youngest ranger aboard the Aurora.

AB Negative: He points out that he and Artyom share the same AB+ blood type. This foreshadows that he is one of the key people needed to save Artyom's life later.
Ascended Extra: He has a larger role in Exodus than he did in 2035
Blood Knight: Being the youngest and least experienced in the group, he's the most prone to take risks during missions, much to Miller's concern.
Canon Immigrant: He was originally the protagonist of one of the Expanded Universe novels, but entered the main Metro universe in 2035.
Composite Character: His personality and background in Exodus combines aspects of Lyokha and Letyaga from 2035.
Dub Name Change: Only known as Duke in the English dub with his real name never being used.
Heroic Sacrifice: In the bad ending of the Volga chapter, Duke is shot and wounded. Rather than try and escape, he willingly stays behind to lower the bridge and allow Artyom to return to the train.
Hero-Worshipper: He looks up to Artyom according to Miller and Anna. He is a bit envious that Artyom gets all the adventures.
The Lost Lenore: Duke has a fiancée back in Moscow that he wanted to return to. He will be denied that chance if Artyom fails to defuse the situation with Silantius' cult.
New Meat: Downplayed; while he's considered a rookie by the other rangers, he has served in the order for at least a year since he survived the Battle of D6.

Sam

Lance Corporal Samuel Taylor

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/samexodus.jpg

Voiced by:

English: Steve Blum

Japanese: Kazumasa Nakamura

Russian: Mikhail Georgiou

A California-born US Marine who was a member of the security detail at the US embassy when the nukes hit. During the chaos, he fled to the safety of the Metro, where an angry mob nearly killed him for being a "soldier of the enemy". He was saved by Miller, and returned the favor by joining the Spartan Rangers as the Colonel's personal bodyguard. He serves as one of Artyom's companions in 2035 and Exodus, and as the protagonist of the Sam's Story DLC.

Abusive Parents: Though he laughs it off, Sam makes it clear he had a poor relationship with his dad before he enlisted. That said, apparently Sam still promised his father that guarding the embassy would be his last tour.
Ascended Extra: He goes from a minor character in 2035 to one of the main characters in Exodus and later having his own playable DLC.
Big Damn Heroes: When Artyom, Anna, and Miller had been captured by cannibals, Sam and Idiot manage to sneak up on and ambush the enemy to rescue the rest of the crew.
Bodyguarding a Badass: He is Miller's personal bodyguard, pledging himself after Miller saved him from a lynch mob. Reminder that Miller is the leader of the biggest badasses in the Metro. He shows he is more than capable of doing this job, as Miller gets captured and almost eaten, had it not been for Sam (and Idiot) rescuing him.
But Now I Must Go: After the events of Exodus, Sam bids farewell to his fellow Rangers and set out to Vladivostok, to (hopefully) find a way to return to his homeland, which sets up the events for his personal DLC, Sam's Story.
Deadpan Snarker: Much of his dialogues have him snarking at something or someone.
Eagleland: A Type-1 Beautiful example in a Russian work. Sam himself is a loyal and experienced Ranger despite his nationality. Unlike Miller, he had doubts on the invasion of NATO and the claims of "official" war with them after the apocalypse.
Foil: To Idiot. Like Idiot, Sam is close to Miller. If Idiot is Miller's Right-Hand-Man, then Sam is his Left, serving as Miller's personal bodyguard. Between the two, Sam is the brawn, using his combat prowess to support Miller and leaving the tactical planning to Idiot. Their preference in weapons are also directly opposite, with Sam preferring More Dakka and Stuff Blowing Up, while Idiot prefers to be a Friendly Sniper and make his shots count. Both are also thoughtful individuals, but where Idiot habitually speaks in riddles and references, rarely getting to the point or stating what he really means, Sam is much more direct, and will tell you exactly what's on his mind.
Going Native: He is teased by the other Rangers that if he does go back to California they are gonna mistake him for a Russian. Sam agrees, questioning if he even remembers how to speak English.
Gratuitous English: Normally averted, and with good reason, but if the game is played with Russian audio on, Sam will often pepper his speech with heavily-accented English. About one in five lines will be spoken like this, most commonly when he's taunting or cursing at his enemies.
The Homeward Journey: TheSam's Story DLC basically involve Sam trying to find a way to get back to the United States.
I Owe You My Life: Miller kept Sam from getting lynched immediately after the bombs fell. An angry mob realized that Sam was an American, one of the countries that had just nuked them, and attacked him in a misplaced sense of revenge. Sam, just as horrified by the bombardment, couldn't bring himself to blame them nor defend himself. It was only Miller showing up, restoring order, and saving/protecting Sam, that Sam survived. Sam has been loyally guarding Miller since that time.
I Should Write a Book About This: After parting ways with the Aurora crew, Sam contemplates writing about his adventures after he's made his way home.
Jack of All Stats: Artyom notes him as this in his journal entry. Sam isn't the fastest, strongest, smartest, or best marksman of the Rangers, but he is competent enough in all of those categories to hold his own against the best.
"Join the Army," They Said: His dad convinced him to enlist in the Marines by telling him they would shape him up. He got send to the Middle East as soon as he got out of boot camp.
Just a Stupid Accent: Mixed with Translation Convention - Sam is an American, but is speaking Russian just like all the other characters, and even mentions he may not remember how to speak English anymore. The end effect (in the English version of the game, at least) is everyone from Moscow has a Russian accent except for him, who speaks with an American accent.
Last of His Kind: As far as Sam knows, he's probably the last American left on Earth, at least until the revelation that triggers the plot of Exodus. Discovering that he's actually not eventually leads him to head out on his own in search of a way home at the end of the main game.
Meta Guy: Plays this role a bit in the Volga chapter. As the only American, he's the most likely to point out holes in Miller's cover story of Russia being occupied by NATO forces. He also sarcastically notes that asking him what a NATO base looks like after twenty years out of the American military was at best a fool's errand. Notably, unlike much of the crew - such as Damir and Anna - this brings him almost to Only Sane Man status, as he doesn't seem to have ever believed he'd find other Americans in the first place.
More Dakka: He tends to prefer maximum firepower in Exodus:
- When rescuing Artyom and Anna and escaping on the Aurora during the prologue, he carries a Shambler with a drum magazine and a silencer, suited for the close quarters of the Metro and fighting mutants.
- During the early Volga mission, he carries his AK decked out with: a heavy stock, long barrel, reflex sight, and drum magazine (this modification not even available to the player until much later). Essentially this makes his AK more like an RPK.
- During the escape from the Ark, he apparently managed to acquire a Gatling gun. He puts it to good use too.
Nonchalant Dodge: A cannibal thinks he has a chance to kill Sam, while Sam was looking away and backing up. Que Sam effortlessly spinning off the guy, knocking him to the ground, and executing him with a couple of bullets to the head. All in one smooth move, with Sam looking like he isn't even putting in any effort.
Promoted to Playable: Sam is the playable character in the second story expansion, aptly named Sam's Story.
Remember the New Guy?: Downplayed - he's not mentioned or seen in 2033 or Last Light, but is said to have known and worked with Miller for twenty years. He was benched with a severe wound during the battle for D6, explaining his absence there, but no such explanation for why he didn't make the trip to the Library or Ostankino Tower with Miller.
Shout-Out: When asked about the post-war NATO military forces, Sam makes a less than subtle reference to Fallout 3. Specially Liberty Prime.
- Considering the bombs fell in 2013, but Fallout 3 came out in 2008, it's likely Sam has played it and realizes the similarities between that game and his situation.
Stuff Blowing Up: While rescuing the crew in Exodus, Sam throws a grenade into an elevator to pulp the hostiles inside. After a few second, he realizes that the team REALLY could have used that elevator. How American can you get?
Team Chef: Seems to be the main cook aboard the Aurora since he is often seen there.
Token Heroic Orc: From the Russian perspective, he's an ex-member of the foreign military that nuked Russia, but the Rangers nor anyone else really hold any enmity against him.
Token Minority: The only non-Eurasian character in the cast.
What the Hell, Hero?: In the Volga, if Artyom chooses to kill the river traders to seize their boat, Sam will bitterly and sarcastically congratulate him for needlessly killing a bunch of innocent traders. He gets one himself earlier in the chapter, sneaking up on Damir and pretending to be a NATO soldier as a prank. Damir remarks that his finger was on the trigger and he nearly shot Sam out of reflex, and although Sam brushes it off mentions he should tell Miller about the stupid stunt Sam just pulled.
Would Not Shoot a Civilian: Sam eventually admits that when the mob of people tried to kill him as a representative of America immediately after the bombs fell, he didn't even try to fight them off because most of them were scared and angry women and children and he couldn't bring himself to even raise his fists to them. This also comes into play in the Volga chapter, as mentioned above — Sam treats you with unbridled disgust for shooting defenseless traders.
You Can't Go Home Again: Being one of the few Americans who are unlucky enough to be in Russia at the time when the bombs fell, Sam dread he will never be able to return home but still dreams about it for twenty years. After the conclusion of the main story in Exodus, he attempts to try his luck and journey east to the Pacific Ocean, hoping he can find a way home to meet his father again.

Stepan

Voiced by:

English: Brad Grusnick

Japanese: Kosuke Goto

Russian: Mikhail Belyakovich

One of Artyom's companions in 2035 and Exodus. He is a survivor of the Battle Of D6 and the Spartan Rangers' heavy weapons specialist, later joining Artyom's crew aboard the armoured train Aurora.

Didn't Think This Through: Stepan is selfless to a fault. When he willingly offers his bedroll to Katya and Nastya and volunteers to sleep on the soot, Miller shuts him down by saying he'll just die on his first watch duty because he would never properly rest. He is also out of commission during the Caspian chapter due to him giving his water ration to them, resulting in a heat stroke.
Gentle Giant: Argues with Commander Miller in favor of letting a hapless wasteland mother Katya and her daughter Nastya join them aboard the Aurora. He also skipped his rations of water in secret so the others would have more.
Happily Married: After recovering from heat stroke in the Caspian Desert, Stepan and Katya tie the knot.
Hidden Depths: In spite of his big and rough appearance, he is a remarkably gentle and romantic man. He is also able to play a guitar well.
Informed Attribute: Despite being listed as the Aurora crew's Heavy Weapons Specialist, he is only ever seen using the AK. Sam is the one who tends to find and use the BFGs.
The Big Guy: Taller than the rest of the Spartans and crew of the Aurora.

Introduced in Metro Exodus

Aurora Crew

Yermak

Voiced by:

English: JB Blanc

Japanese: Kento Fujinuma

Russian: Boris Bystrov

One of the few surviving Moscow Metro personnel from before the war, he is the permanent helmsman of the Aurora.

Badass Normal: As a member of the Aurora crew, he becomes essentially an honorary Ranger. Still, he is just a normal, untrained locomotive engineer. Even when helping you escape Hansa, he doesn't do more than offer guidance as well as distract the guards.

Defector from Decadence: After discovering Hansa had been killing innocent people, calling them spies, he is utterly horrified and readily assists Arytom and Anna to sabotage the radio jammer and escape the metro.
Gadgeteer Genius: He while not as mechanically gifted in adhoc repair as Krest, he still knows more than anyone about how the Aurora operates.
Outliving One's Offspring: His wife and son died during the bomb, then his daughter died of tuberculosis a few years later. Even the Hansa soldiers feel bad for him.

Idiot

Voiced by:

English: Boris Kievsky

Japanese: Tomoyuki Maruyama

Russian: Alexey Myasnikov

The team's philosopher

Big Damn Heroes: When Artyom, Anna, and Miller had been captured by cannibals, Sam and Idiot manage to sneak up on and ambush the enemy to rescue the rest of the crew.
Both Sides Have a Point: Idiot always brings both sides of the argument in any conversation and his philosophy is that the only way to not be wrong is to not say anything.
Cultured Warrior: A Spartan like the rest and the most educated of them. His nickname is partly a reference to a Dostoevsky novel of the same name.
Foil: To Sam. Idiot is Miller's Right-Hand-Man, while Sam is his Left. Idiot supports Miller via his more analytical thinking, opposed to Sam who focuses on more direct/violent means of support. Their preference in weapons are also directly opposite, with Sam preferring More Dakka and Stuff Blowing Up, while Idiot prefers to be a Friendly Sniper and make his shots count.
Friendly Sniper: He carries a Valve rifle, the game's sniper rifle, complete with a sniper scope; and an Ak set up as a DMR. Like the rest of the Rangers, he is also very friendly.
Ironic Nickname: He's actually the most well-educated member of the group. He speaks rarely but is very eloquent when he does so. He apparently adopted the moniker out of a sense of humble humor.
The Lancer: He is ranked only under Miller in the command chain. After Miller's death, he becomes this to Artyom.
Motor Mouth: Idiot speaks rarely but when he does he can talk someone's ear off. Artyom lampshades it in his diary.
The Smart Guy: Idiot can best be described as a tactician, long-term planner, and something of a philosopher. He's also very well-versed with technology and military intelligence, being able to single-handedly extract all of the vital intelligence from the Yamantau bunker's database and crippling the system so the cannibals can no longer use it.

Alyosha

Voiced by:

English: Ari Rubin

Japanese: Sôichi Abe

Russian: Ilya Isaev

The Aurora crew's Scout specialist. Served as a Polis guard, then joined the Rangers sometime before the Battle of D6.

Amazon Chaser: While he definitely has an eye for the ladies, the one that he falls in head-over-heels, schoolboy, flowers-and-chocolate love with is Olga, the hard-ass, no nonsense Child of the Forest.
Badass in Distress: Averted. During the Taiga mission, he is captured by the less than friendly Pirates. By the time Artyom catches up to where they should have been holding him, he had already escaped and moved ahead towards the dam.
The Casanova: He claims to be one anyway, boasting that the ladies find him irresistible and looking forward to making the acquaintance of many that they might meet along the way. He shows this off, if the player doesn't kill any Pioneers during the Taiga mission. He falls for, and likewise swoons Olga, promising to return for her after completing his mission to find a good place to settle.
Chivalrous Pervert: Admits he wants short romance which is why he never gets with the women of the Metro, they want a husband and provider. He also doesn't make a move on Katya because Stepan already has a thing for her. While crude he is a romantic at heart.
Facial Markings: He has a tribal tattoo above his left eye - to the side of his head.
Handicapped Badass: During the escape from the metro, Alyosha is shot in the shoulder by Hansa's troops. He seems to recover quickly, but during the mission in Volga, Anna mentions that he seems to have an issue with his hand. This is likely an indicator of nerve damage from the earlier wound. Luckily it doesn't seem to affect his combat effectiveness.
What the Hell, Hero?: Alyosha chews Artyom out if he killed any of the Pioneers, pointing out that they're just innocent kids trying to defend themselves.

Damir

Voiced by:

English: Leonid Mendel

Japanese: Masaaki Itatori

Russian: Radik Mukhametzyanov

A Ranger of Kazakh descent.

Big Damn Heroes: Artyom is attacked by several Humanimal mutants while trying to commandeer a bandit's car, que Damir showing up out out of left field and tearing into the beasts to save Artyom.
But Now I Must Go: If Artyom didn't rescue enough slaves or kill a lot of them, Damir will stay behind to help his people.
Combat Medic: He's a medic by specialty and, as a Spartan Ranger, he is quite proficient in combat.
The Smart Guy: Damir fills this role along with Idiot. Damir's focus is more scientific, being the Combat Medic of the team.
- Beyond this, he displays his intelligence via accurate observations of the post-nuclear world. Such as when he correctly deduced that the Tsar-Fish was a catfish, and that its mutations were greater due to the nuclear fallout washing off the shores into the surrounding water, settling into/collecting in the sediment, causing the bottom-feeding catfish to absorb more radiation than the other local fauna.
- Most helpfully, he figures out that the Tsar-fish is attracted to noise, so staying quiet will keep it from attacking you.
Token Minority: Damir is the only Asian among the Rangers. In fact, his ethnicity comes into play as his motive of boarding the Aurora is to see if his relatives in Kazakhstan survived the apocalypse.

Tokarev

Voiced by:

English: Matt Riedy

Japanese: Kissei Kumamoto

Russian: Nikita Prozorovsky

A weaponsmith and a maintenance specialist. Responsible for the keeping the crew's gear in check.

Awesome, but Impractical: He tells a story to Artyom about how he made the most powerful gun he ever made, however the gun could only hold six bullets which turned out to not be enough when a band of bandits showed up and he failed to protect all the civilians.
Dub Name Change: He's referred to as "Тэтэшник" (Teteshnik) in the Russian dub of the game, which is a slang name for the Tokarev pistol. Not once does anyone actually call him "Tokarev".
Expy: Of Andrew the Blacksmith, having the same voice actor and being a brilliant gunsmith who personally designed/maintains several of the iconic weapons and vehicles used in the game. To an extent, he's one of Vladimir as well, being an older fellow who serves as the Rangers' armourer.
Gadgeteer Genius: Makes a Tikhar rifle for Artyom and regularly upgrades it as he develops new designs. He also repairs and maintains all the Ranger's wargear.
Meaningful Name: The resident gunsmith who happens to share a name with one of the most famous Russian gun designers to ever live. Justified as it turns out "Tokarev" is just the name he gave himself after the war, in reference to his favorite pistol.
Only Known by Their Nickname: Almost everybody refers to him by his nickname only. In the Russian dub of the game, Miller refers to him as "Kolya" just before arriving at Novosibirsk, however, which implies his full given name is "Nikolai".
Out of Focus: He is the only member of the Aurora who doesn't have his own focus chapter at any point in the game.

Wastelanders

Volga River

Silantius

Voiced by:

English: Andrew Morgado

Japanese: Kazumasa Katsura

Russian: Alexander Novikov

The leader of the Church of the Water Tsar.

Affably Evil: He has the charm and charisma to lead a group of Evil Luddites.
Cloud Cuckoo Lander: One of the locals, who knew Silantius before the war, comments that Silantius was crazy even before the war and often had to stay in a mental hospital.
Dirty Old Man: Katya mentions that Silantius tried to force her to marry him. Both she and Nastya treat this with clear disgust.
Expy: His appearance calls to mind Rasputin, helped by his Dirty Old Man tendencies and the fact that he's apparently charismatic enough to establish a cult of fanatical followers despite being clearly batshit insane. And like the Mad Monk, his dogma is a bizarre twist on Christianity (though Silantius goes for the Evil Luddite focus, where Rasputin's was all about Hookers and Blow) that's definitely not endorsed by any real church.
Reasonable Authority Figure: He wants nothing more than to be rid of the Rangers and take care of his followers, and if you don't kill utoo many of them he will allow the Aurora to travel across his bridge peacefully and tells his followers to hold their fire, even giving advice on how to cross safely.
Sinister Minister: He's the leader of the Church of the Water Tsar, which he preached to his congregation about the evils of technology—more specifically the use of electronics.
- If you are suspected of breaking his rules, or speak out against him, you are sent to "fight" the electrical anomalies...with no way of actually destroying one. Or sent to fish in dangerous waters, without a weapon.
Well-Intentioned Extremist: His hatred and prosecution of technology is simply to protect his people. And this fear is not without merit. In his eyes, man's love of technology lead to the war. Had we forsaken technology, we would have never even learned how to make nuclear missiles. The fear of electricity specifically is due to the electricaly Anomalies that appear at night and will flash-fry anyone that gets near it.

Krest

Voiced by:

English: Mark Ivanir

Japanese: Hiroki Goto

Russian: Sergey Chikhachev

A train engineer living out by the river.

Badass Normal: By comparison to the Metro-hardened Rangers. Krest lacks their training and doesn't typically go far from the Aurora, but he's no slouch with an AK and survived on his own on the surface.
Crazy-Prepared: He's the one who set up the network of safehouses in the Volga region, and also has a traincar carriage stashed away in a warehouse at the far side of town.
Gadgeteer Genius: He bread and butter is working on vehicles and repairing them from random junk that can be readily found in the wasteland. Its telling that he knew how to fix a steam engine locomotive, a type of vehicle he may have only ready about in the history books, when even its chief engineer was at a loss for how to get her going again.
Nice Guy: Nothing seems to faze him until Yamantau and immediately after meeting Artyom is nothing but friendly to him, offering shelter, supplies, and his services.

Katya and Nastya

Voiced by:

English: Anastasia Baranova (Katya), Sofia Prokhorova (Nastya)

Japanese: Iori Nomizu (Katya), Natsumi Yamada (Nastya)

Russian: Irina Kireeva (Katya), Vasilisa Savkina (Nastya)

A woman and her child who have been captured by the Church.

Disappeared Dad: Nastya's father and Katya's husband was killed by the Church a year ago.
The Medic: Katya has formal medical training, which turns out to be crucial in the last act of the game when Anna's lung condition becomes uncurable, and she also sets up the blood transfusion that Artyom needs after venturing into Novosibirsk.

Caspian Desert

Giul

Giulnara Khakimova

Voiced by:

English: Cindy Robinson

Japanese: Chieko Miyazaki

Russian: Ramilya Iskander

A woman in her twenties living in Caspian Desert, a region surrounding Caspian Sea before the nuclear attack vaporized the sea and terraformed the region into desert. She had been fending off against raider group known as Munai Bailer, who had enslaved her people.

Action Girl: A capable woman who have to survive on her own in the Caspian Desert for at least two decades.
Friendly Sniper: She uses a Bulldog kitted out more like a designated marksman's rifle, but she's quite personable. Provided you're not a Munai-bailer.
Last of Her Kind: The Munai-bailer note that there were originally many resistance fighters besides Giul, but between reprisals against their sympathizers and betrayals, she's the only one still standing.
Military Brat: She is the daughter of a military officer, whose station in Caspian bunker allowed Giul and her mother to survive the war.
Rugged Scar: She's got a pretty serious burn scar on her left cheek.
Token Minority: Among the mostly-Russian Rangers, except Damir, she is one of the few Central Asians who aided the group.

The Baron

Voiced by:

English: Andr� Sogliuzzo first Baron

Russian: Boris Tokarev

The leader of Munai-bailer, who had enough vehicles and weapons to take over the population of Caspian region. Currently, the recent coming of Rangers had caught his attention to take it over while still hunting down Giul.

Aristocrats Are Evil: His title, "The Baron", further emphasized his cruelty and tyrannical rule in the Caspian Desert.
Bad Boss: He spends most of his time belittling his men on the radio and promises them death if they fail him.
Bald of Evil: His clean-shaven hair compliments his tyrannical rule.
Body Double: There are actually two Barons, the one currently leading the Munai-bailer whom you primarily interact with, and another stashed away in a small outpost in the middle of nowhere, seemingly suffering from dementia. The hidden Baron claims to be the real Baron, and the one you fought was a body double installed by Saul. However, the fact the hidden Baron's scars are fresh (implying they were recently inflicted to match those on the other Baron) implies that he is the body double and confirms it if you have him under your mercy, with Saul was keeping this addled man hidden and planning to use him as a Puppet Leader after secretly disposing of the real Baron. Somewhat realistically, when examined side-by-side the fake Baron and the real one are clearly different people, both being middle-aged white Eastern Europeans who only somewhat look alike largely due to being bald. They even have completely different voices.
Boom, Headshot!: Anna snipes him when he is pinning Artyom.
Dead Person Impersonation: The current "Baron" might his body double, who assumed his role as a way to see the Munai-bailer's longevity after the death of the real one. At least, that's what he's supposed to be, though it's heavily implied, if not confirmed, that it is the other way around, see Body Double above.
Dystopia Justifies the Means: He believes the slaves are too weak and need to be beaten into submission, that his whole cult of personality and mistreatment of people is how they can make a new empire. One of his radio calls is directed at Artyom and to this effect, talking about how without the Munai-Bailer to keep things in order, the slaves would tear each other apart.
Properly Paranoid: Took the Rangers' arrival as suspicious since his position is particularly weak right now and so doubled his security. That ruined Giul and Saul's plan to kill him using said vulnerability.
Slavery Is a Special Kind of Evil: He enslaved the local population and enforced his control through fear and his own brand of religion that workship his group as "fire gods".
Social Darwinism: Tells Giul that caring for the weak has no place in the post-apocalyptic world and they are only a ressource for the strong.
Surrounded by Idiots: The slaves are purposefully kept stupid but even his men can't stop themselves from doing something stupid like pissing on the holy flame when drunk, which the Baron explains ruin the whole dogma they try to indoctrinate in the slaves.

Saul

The first Munai-bailer the Rangers meet, Artyom either kills or knocks him out to steal his car.

Affably Evil: All around polite and reasonable for a backstabbing thug.
Almighty Janitor: His rank is a bit nebulous, he seems to just be in charge of the ruins outpost, but he has the Baron's ears and his trusted men are loyal to him first.
Dragon with an Agenda: Saul serves as one of the Baron's high ranking office where Saul plots an uprising with Giul to have her kill The Baron for the revolution, allowing him to establish a body double during they power vacuum where the body double would be a Puppet King while Saul would become the true leader of the Munai-bailer.
Inn Security: Subverted, if you sleep in one specific safe house he'll appear with his goons as Artyom wakes up, but he is only there to give you a revolver as a thanks for sparing him.
Minor Major Character: Saul is apparently a big deal among the Munai-bailer, being the one behind the plot to replace the real Baron with a body double after Giul kills the former in order to install his Puppet King as the despot of the Caspian region while Saul pulls his strings. Despite this, it's incredibly easy to miss or remove him from the picture, as he can be killed in a scripted encounter five minutes into the chapter, and will only pay Artyom a visit if he sleeps in a very specific bed on the map. It's also of no consequence if he's missed, as the Caspian Golden Ending doesn't require his presence.
Precision F-Strike: When his call for help gets no response and the humanimals are closing in he ends his radio communication with "well fuck you, base".
The Starscream: He plans on having The Baron kill so that he can be replaced by a body double for him to control. If you spare him and meet him later he'll tell you he planned on killing the Baron with the help of Giul and will promise you that if you kill the Baron he'll facilitate your escape.

The Taiga

The Admiral

Voiced by:

English: Crispin Freeman

Japanese: Hiroki Eto

Russian: Alexander Kovrizhnykh

A former leader in the Pirate faction, who Olga claims to be one of the very few Pirates she still respects. Unfortunately, he doesn't live up to expectations.

Cloud Cuckoo Lander: A rather jarring example, even in the crazy world of Metro. The Admiral maybe the single most detached-from-reality individual seen. Besides acting like a sailor, he apparently killed his two best friends who had planned to leave the crazy bastard to his own devices. He then starts using their corpses as puppets, and completely forgetting that they are dead.
Did We Just Have Tea with Cthulhu?: When the player finally enters his hide out, they may have expected some kind of fight or otherwise dangerous encounter. Instead its just a crazy cripple who just wants someone (alive) to talk to and have a cup of tea with.
Distinguished Gentleman's Pipe: Seems he managed to find a tobacco pipe somewhere and cheerfully has a smoke with the player. Conversation indicates that he is smoking the same blend of local and insanely radioactive herbs he uses for tea.
Dumbass Has a Point: If the player shoots around the mill with an unsuppressed weapon, they will hear the Admiral speak pretty much the only sane words that will come out of his mouth. He will tell Artyom (via yelling from his room) that shooting will attract more mutant creatures and to cut it out.
Expy: Of Jack from Lord of the Flies. A slight inversion in that very few chose to follow him to try and establish a base at the lumber mill, with those who did quickly leaving and rejoining Roman's group (except for 2...).
Go Mad from the Isolation: Has lost his mind from being alone for so long. Smoking a pipe filled with/drinking tea made from the local radioactive flora (and possibly fauna) probably has not done much to help his mental stability either.
Handicapped Badass: Averted. While Olga seems to think he is this, seems she hasn't checked up on him in a long time...
Mummies at the Dinner Table: He has the two desiccated corpses of his friends propped up at his table, often crudely puppeteering them with his cane while making voices to speak for them.
Pirate Parrot: Going with his Pirate captain schtick, he has a pet talking crow.
Talk Like a Pirate: While the whole group speaks in a strange mix of Russian / children's tale version accent, The Admiral speaks the most like one, with constant use of cliche pirate slang.
Video Game Caring Potential: When the Admiral asks one of his "friends" to play guitar to lighten the mood, the player can take the guitar from the corpses arms and play for the Admiral, helping the sad bastard drift off to sleep.
Yandere: He implies he killed the two "friends" at his table, via poisoned tea, to keep them from leaving him alone like the rest. Granted, its just as implied that the poisoning was unintentional, with the realization that he accidentally murdered his best friends being what sent him off the deep end.

Olga

Voiced by:

English: Marina Dyakonenko

Japanese: Kazusa Amagai

Russian: Natalia Gracheva

An instructor of the Pioneers.

Big Damn Heroes: She saves Artyom from the river after his railcar was derailed.
The Conscience: To the Pirates after the Teacher's suicide, she was able to have them talk and live with the Pioneers but has problem outright stopping them from attacking anyone that comes in their territory.
Only Sane Woman: One of the only Children Of The Forest that seems to realize how destructive the isolationist, xenophobic attitudes of both Pioneers and Pirates are.
What the Hell, Hero?: If the player killed too many pioneers, Olga will be hostile towards both Artyom and Alyosha and will fire upon them while they are returning to the Aurora.
Women Are Wiser: She is well respected by both Pioneers and Pirates on top of being the only one willing to listen to reason.

Roman

The leader of the Pirates. One of the oldest students and responsible for the split in the Children of the Forest.

Asskicking Leads to Leadership: Is the only Pirates Olga can't beat in a fair fight which is why he remain the leader.
Expy: Of Ralph from Lord of the Flies. Between him and The Admiral, he is apparently the more level headed. After the disagreement on where to set up a base, most of the Children followed Roman.
The Ghost: Olga and The Admiral reference him as the overall leader of the Children of the Forest, but he is never seen or heard.
Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: After his first rampage on bandits he founded the Pirates, used mutilated corpse of any intruders as scarecrows they call masts and tried to force the other children to kill prisoners. Those that refused where ostracized and became the Pioneers.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: After a severe bandit raid he took the oldest boys with him to track down the bandits and killed them in their sleep, Olga says he came back with only his teeth and eyes uncovered with blood.
Teens Are Monsters: Implied to have been in his teenage years when he started the Pirates.
Villain Respect: Respects Olga for giving him a black eye during one of their fight.

Novosibirsk

Kirill

Kirill Khlebnikov

Voiced by:

English: Kyle Arem

Russian: Grigory Sereda

Child Soldier: His father taught him about military training out of necessity, their metro descended into a huge civil war followed by a mutant invasion.
Sole Survivor: By the time the Spartan Rangers arrive at Novosibirsk, Kirill is the only human left in the entire city.
Wise Beyond Their Years: Due to growing up around Novosibirsk Civil War and the depopulated aftermath with his soldier father, he had been more mature than an average pre-pubscent children.

Slava

Colonel Slava Khlebnikov

Voiced by:

English: Sven Holmberg

Russian: Artyom Kretov

100% Adoration Rating: He seems to be very popular among the OSKOM troops and civilian residents of Novosibirsk for his conduct and hard work keeping them all safe. Depending on how he handled the situation with Petrovitch, however, he may end up being a Broken Pedestal.
A Father to His Men: Combined with Benevolent Boss. Khlebnikov seems to care for and is respected by many of his men, to whom he even personally game commendations for doing their job.
Colonel Badass: Technically, he was a Lieutenant-Colonel. Miller considers them equals in terms of badassery, however.
The Faceless: He got it even worse than Artyom, whose eyes and back of the head are at least seen on-screen several times. The one time where we actually get to see Khlebnikov from a third-person perspective, he's still confined in his radiation suit.
Kill It with Fire: His signature weapon in the DLC is a flamethrower. While he does get to use an Ashot and a Kalash during the uprising, the flamethrower will be his staple throughout the chapter.
Only Known by Their Nickname: His full given name is still unknown. Several characters address him affectionately as "Slava", which is the diminutive of several different male Slavic names, such as Vyacheslav, Stanislav, or, given his comparisons to Miller, Sviatoslav.
Posthumous Character: He's been dead for a month by the time the Aurora arrives in Novosibirsk. Miller finds his corpse, and promises he'll get Kirill out alive.
Shadow Archetype: Miller sees Slava as this, and he's not wrong to think so - both were high-ranking and well-respected, both struggled between being fathers and officers, both of them were privy to conspiracies about the true situation of their respective Metros, and both found themselves forced to do increasingly horrible things to uphold said conspiracies. And both were lied to and ultimately disposable to the real power structure of their Metro. The difference is, Artyom and the eponymous journey in Metro Exodus forced Miller to confront what he'd really become.
To Be Lawful or Good: His main conflict.
Tragic Keepsake: His watch ended up being this.

General Tolya

General Anatoly Semyonovich "Tolya" Vinogradov

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/anatoly_two_colonels.jpg

Voiced by:

English: Peter Jessop

Russian: Igor Staroseltsev

The General of the OSKOM unit, serving as Slava's trusted superior.

Big Bad: Of the DLC The Two Colonels. While he starts out as an ally to Slava, he later betrays him near the end of the DLC, when he shows his true colours after Novosobirsk's fall. He is ultimately the biggest threat to Slava, but is not fought as a final boss.
The Dog Bites Back: Once he discover that he is being left behind by the high command, he ordered one of his men to destroy their train.
Driven to Suicide: Due to combination of death of his son and abandonment by his superiors, he then bid farewell to Slava before shooting himself.
Even Evil Has Loved Ones: He clearly loved his son, Seryoga, who is serving as a Captain. He was clearly distraught when he heard the news of his son's demise as the station fall into chaos.
General Ripper: Became a ruthless variant once the Novosibrisk fell into chaos.
Jumping Off the Slippery Slope: After the Novosibirsk Metro goes into the brink of utter collapse, Tolya becomes far more pragmatic and ruthless in his pursuit to put order into the Metro, even going so far in using chlorine gas to kill both the rioters and his men.
Laser-Guided Karma: When he gasses the Metro killing both the rioting citizens and his own OSKOM soldiers to safeguard the evacuation of himself and his superiors, it's revealed the leadership already left in a train and abandoned him. In return, he orders a subordinate to use a RPG to prevent their escape.
Moral Pragmatist: While he started out as a capable leader to the OSKOM, the Novosibirsk riots was what pushed Tolya into Pragmatic Villainy, in a desperate attempt to save the Metro from the brink of an utter societal collapse, largely thanks to the shortage of anti-rads. Even if he goes so far in mass-murdering his own men and the Novosibirsk residents with a chlorine gas.
Non-Action Big Bad: Despite being the biggest threat to Slava and to the Novosibirsk residents, as a whole, he is not encountered as a boss in the DLC. That spot is mostly taken for the Blind Ones in the DLC's finale.
Reasonable Authority Figure: Unlike his politically corrupt superiors, Tolya is mostly the Voice of Reason for the OSKOM, being supportive towards his men including Slava and Kirill. He completely subverts it near the end, however, when he descends into genocidal villainy, thanks to the Novosibirsk riots and Seryoga's death.
Roaring Rampage of Revenge: When the High Command soon turned on him, Tolya completely throws what left of his sanity out of the window and orders one of his subordinates to destroy their train with an RPG as soon as possible.

OSKOM High Command

The unnamed, unseen high-ranking leaders of OSKOM, who serve as Tolya's superior, being in-charge of giving orders.

Abusive Precursors: The OSKOM High Command is more politically corrupt than Tolya, in general, as they are responsible for the creation of the "Dirty" and "Clean" stations, which is just a code word for the poor and rich areas of the Novosibirsk Metro, respectively. Unfortunately, they seemed to be focused more on making things infinitely worse for the residents, which led to the riots. Adding insult to the injury is them escaping the Metro via a train, in an attempt to watch the rest of the inhabitants die from the riots, gaining the ire of Tolya when they were later subsequently killed by an RPG.
The Faceless: Not much is known about what they looked like. They're only mentioned that they were escaping through a train.
Greater-Scope Villain: They are mostly responsible for the chaos that transpired within The Two Colonels, which included them dividing both the Novosibirsk Metro into "Dirty" and "Clean" stations, as well as their harmful policies that directly started the riots.
- They are also this in Exodus, as Artyom and Miller trekked through the ruins of Novosibirsk Metro after its collapse, detailing more of the problems they caused including the existence of the hecatomb.
Hate Sink: The High Command are shown to be self-serving, spiteful Corrupt Bureaucrats, who only care for themselves, as they are the primary culprit behind Novosibirsk Metro's collapse, thanks to their divisive, rigid policies that caused more harm than good. They go so far in abandoning Tolya and the dying residents of Novosibirsk Metro in order to save their skin, instead of taking responsibility for the damage they caused throughout their tenure as leaders.
It's All About Me: They are the truly evil leaders of OSKOM, who only care for themselves, attempting to abandon the Novosibirsk Metro via a train in an attempt to run away from the problems they have caused in the first place, while the riots went on. But Tolya did not hesitate to kill them off with an RPG by ordering one of his subordinates for their treachery.
Too Dumb to Live: Their rather egocentric idea of escaping the Novosibirsk Metro by abandoning Tolya completely blow up right to their faces, as soon as their petty act came under his attention, when he retaliated against them.
Took a Level in Jerkass: Not only they flat-out abandon the residents of Novosibirsk Metro, they also decided to betray Tolya out of pettiness to save their own skin. Needless to say, it did not go very well at their end.

Vladivostok

The Captain

Captain Eduard Baranov

Voiced by:

English: Victor Brandt

Russian: Alexander Gruzdev

A former submarine Captain in the Russian Navy and the former leader of Vladivostok. When a group of bandits began harassing his settlement, he made a protection deal with Tom, only to find himself usurped as the leader. Increasingly angry over Tom's decisions and plans, he and a few others fled into the wilderness to prevent Tom from taking control of their sub's nuclear weapons.

Big Good: He serves as the most important ally of Sam in Sam's Story, and it later becomes an Invoked Trope, starting from the second half of the DLC. He even once committed Heroic Sacrifice when Sam blows up the sub, to stop Tom's possible plans of inciting another nuclear war via launching the nukes inside the sub.
Cool Old Guy: A sixty-something former submarine captain who likes to get drunk and party the night away.
Deuteragonist: He serves as the secondary protagonist of the DLC.
Gargle Blaster: His home-made brew is strong enough to double as molotov cocktails. He and Sam both became heavily slurry and inebriated after just a few shots.
Handicapped Badass: By the time Sam met him, the Captain's quite old and has a bad knee. This does nothing to stop him from kicking a lot of asses, bandit or mutant alike. Even when he's drunk off his rocks, ol' Cap still has enough in him to single-handedly defeat a Humanimal that's sneaking up on him, and kicking the shit out of the poor thing for fun.
Heroic Sacrifice: At the end of the story, he pulls one by trying to detonate a bomb in the sub, sinking it with him inside so that nobody can use its nukes. If he entrusts the detonator to Sam, this can backfire on him...
Old Soldier: He's pushing at least sixty by the time Sam meets him, but still takes his duties as a Captain seriously and can kick ass with the best of them.
Properly Paranoid: Played with. He is thoroughly convinced that Tom is out to get him, and believes that his talk of "reuniting the world" with the sub's nukes is just an excuse to become a nuclear-armed pirate. While the latter turns out to be true, his assessment of Tom is otherwise completely off — Tom is a man of his word who is genuinely willing to let bygones be bygones, and thoroughly believes that he'll never have to actually use the nukes.
Small Role, Big Impact: His sudden departure from Tom's crew, prior to the events of Sam's Story, was triggered due to a disagreement between the two, regarding the nukes. Later on, in the game, however, when Sam and him return back to the sub with the nukes, he unwittingly kickstarted the events of Klim's betrayal to Tom.
Uncertain Doom: If Sam does not blow up the sub, the Captain is never mentioned again, although it's heavily implied that Tom had him executed for the attempted betrayal.

Tom

Tom "the Cat"

Voiced by:

English: Ben Lepley

Russian: Valery Storozhik

An American arms dealer from Seattle who, like Sam, was stranded in Russia by the war. Alongside his business partner Klim, he established a large gang armed from his own stock, eventually finding himself as the protector and de facto leader of Vladivostok. Still, he dreams of becoming much more, and the nuclear submarine he's sitting on is the key to those dreams being realized.

Anti-Villain: Tom is a ruthless criminal and has dreams of becoming more, but he's ultimately an okay guy who puts business before personal grudges and always keeps his word.
A Lighter Shade of Black: Admittedly, Tom is a ruthless criminal with dreams of gunboat diplomacy, but in the end, he seems fairly sincere in his desire to only use them as a Weapon for Intimidation - And it puts him miles and miles above Klim and his rampant brutality.
Arms Dealer: His profession before the war, which helped him arm his gang in the aftermath. It's unclear whether or not he was a legal arms dealer, though his methods and demeanor throughout the story heavily imply that it was an illegal, black market operation.
Benevolent Boss: If his men's reaction to him is any indication, Tom is fairly well-liked. Even though his goals are somewhat less than noble, he treats his men well and gives them all the armaments they need to survive the wasteland, and then some. A few overheard lines indicate that some of them have families living safely in Tom's base on the docks.
Big Bad Ensemble: Alongside his right-hand man Klim and the Trapper gang leader Korzh. While Korzh serves as a penultimate but serious threat to Sam and Baranov, and with Klim desiring the U.S.S. Mayflower to his genocidal ends, going so far in attempting to murder Tom, Tom's approach for the submarine in Klim's case is to intimidate any surviving civilisations with the nukes and restart human civilisation, which is something that Baranov is way too sceptical to begin with. After Sam kills both of them in separate occasions over the course of the DLC, Tom reneges on him, who becomes the Final Boss. While not as murderous as the Ax-Crazy Klim, Tom is certainly no better than Klim, as he is now bent on completing his main goal to restart civilisation to his own ends with the U.S.S. Mayflower's nuclear weapons.
The Don: Is essentially this. He leads a large and well-equipped gang with cutting-edge weapons, ruling over Vladivostok with a fair but heavy hand.
Easily Forgiven: If Sam doesn't blow up the sub, Tom easily forgives him for being complicit in the Captain's plot to betray him.
From Russia with Nukes: Tom's headquarters is a still-operational Typhoon-class ballistic missile submarine (Ed's old boat, to be exact), which can't leave port until both of its reactors get new fuel rods. Although Ed cryptically mentioned having participated in the nuclear war, he either didn't launch his sub's ICBMs or at least didn't launch all of them, as there are still some missiles aboard.
Greater-Scope Villain: While the Big Bad of Sam's Story, Klim, is on full genocide mode into launching the sub's nuclear weapons in the finale of the DLC, in a twisted sense of Irony, Tom, despite not as Ax-Crazy as Klim does, will be able to unleash another nuclear war, should you choose Tom's ending. Ed fears he will do exactly that, though whether he does or not is not shown.
I Want Them Alive!: He insists on taking the Captain and his fellow defectors in alive, partially because they're the only ones who can get the sub started and partially out of genuine respect for the Captain.
Laser-Guided Karma: Only applicable in the Captain's ending. Once Sam bombs the U.S.S. Mayflower under Captain's orders, this kills Tom and the Captain who committed Heroic Sacrifice to put an end to his possibly genocidal plans of restarting human civilisation with force. Even if it means losing Sam's home to the U.S., stopping Tom's agenda from coming to fruition was a viable option to begin with, which was the same plan Klim would do, except without the Well-Intentioned Extremist (or rather Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist) part.
Pragmatic Villainy: He's a businessman first and a criminal second, and thus fully believes in this. After taking over Vladivostok, he did his level best to run the town properly and drive away the bandits, and only intends to use the sub's nukes as a Weapon for Intimidation.
Spot the Impostor: When meeting Sam for the first time, Tom is cautious about taking the other "American" at face value, and makes some slightly cryptic small talk about Major League Baseball. Sam correctly identifies the San Diego Padres (his own hometown team) and the Seattle Mariners, convincing Tom that he is who he says he is.
Token Minority: He's the only non-Russian member of his crew and one of only two American characters in the main franchise.
Villain Respect: Despite all the animosity between them, he genuinely admires the Captain's strong convictions and leadership abilities. This doesn't mean he'll tolerate a betrayal, however.
Villains Never Lie: His talk of respecting the Captain is genuine, and he really is willing to let the man live and return control of Vladivostok to him. In addition, his vow to not actually fire the nukes is genuine, and if spared he keeps his promise to bring Sam back to America.
Visionary Villain: He introduces his plan to reactivate the sub and regain control of its nukes with a speech about how he'll use them to forge a peaceful new society. This is heavily implied to be a load of bunk, and that his real goal is to rob people with threats of nuclear attack. Whether or not he has actually been able to bypass the failsafe lockouts of the strategic missiles is unclear, but Captain Baranov would rather not take that chance.
Weapon for Intimidation: How he intends to use the sub's nukes. He claims that his goal is to force other groups to cooperate with him in rebuilding society, though the Captain believes that he's just angling to become a nuclear-armed pirate. The fact that he flies a Jolly Roger over the sub in his ending heavily implies that the latter is true, though he does genuinely intend not to use the weapons.
We Can Rule Together: Upon reuniting with the Captain, he comments that he'd genuinely enjoy working together with him. The Captain naturally turns him down, due to their extreme differences in opinion and years of shared animosity, and Tom admits that it was a long shot.

Klim

Voiced by:

English: Dave B. Mitchell

Russian: Arthur Ivanov

Tom's business partner from before the war and right hand man in Vladivostok.

Ax-Crazy: Not only is he willing to murder his own business partner and anyone in the organization who opposes him, but he openly boasts about his intention to fire the sub's nuclear weapons at people and places he dislikes.
Big Bad: Klim becomes Sam, Eduard, and Tom's most dangerous foe in the final part of Sam's Story, when he later betrays the latter and sends his bandit army to attack Tom, the rest of Tom's loyal crewmembers, and the rest of Tom's companions, including Sam. His true colours are revealed, once he reveals his true intentions of firing the nuclear weapons inside the sub.
Disney Villain Death: He is last seen tumbling out of a window and into the sea, albeit with a large shard of glass in his neck.
The Dragon: Served as Tom's right-hand man before the war, and continues to do so afterwards. However, his loyalty towards Tom is nothing more than a façade, as he is never loyal towards him to begin with, who has plans to depose him as the leader and usurp his leader title for his ulterior motives.
Dragon with an Agenda: Despite Tom's insistence that the Captain be brought in alive, Klim instructs his men to shoot him if they have to, mainly out of frustration with the hunt and the losses he's sustained in the course of it. It's also shown that despite Tom's harsh stance against the local bandits, Klim maintains business ties with them on the side and has recruited them in the hunt for the Captain. Not to mention his conflicting opinions about the nukes...
Jerkass: Combining it with Ax-Crazy and Nuke 'em, Klim doesn't hesitate to be one, where he has no qualms on planning to bomb cities and people he despises using the sub's nuclear weapons, not just his enemies, for the sake of him disliking them.
The Man Behind the Man: In Sam's Story, it is revealed that Klim and his fellow bandit members are behind the murders of the Captain's crew, when you later discover their remains in the foggy swamp in Vladivostok, during a side quest with the Captain. Klim's plans suddenly go into full swing, with him and his bandit army inciting an insurrection against Tom, the Captain, Sam, and Tom's comrades, once the Captain and you have arrived in the sub, triggering Klim's betrayal with Tom.
Nuke 'em: Fully intends to use the sub's nuclear weapons against his enemies, and anyone else he doesn't like.
Psycho Supporter: On the one hand, his brutality is shown to have done a good job keeping the various other bandits of Vladivostok out of Tom's territory. On the other hand, it's revealed that he killed submarine crewmembers loyal to the captain, and soldiers working with Tom seem to be even more afraid of Klim's retribution than attacks from bandits.
The Starscream: In the finale, he rallies his men in a rebellion against Tom, whose refusal to actually use the nukes has convinced Klim that he's gone soft. That, and because he knew of Tom's plan to have him killed. This becomes one of the major reasons of his sudden ascension into becoming the Big Bad of Sam's Story.

Korzh

Zhora Yakovlevich Korzhov

The leader of a shrimp Trapper gang in Vladivostok, who have become a bandit. He is extremely territorial, who will shoot any trespassers with their boats' wrong colours on sight with his sniper rifle.

Big Bad Ensemble: Alongside Klim and Tom. Even though Korzh's threat is unrelated to both Klim and Tom, who both wanted to use the U.S.S. Mayflower's submarine for their own purposes, he primarily serves as a penultimate obstacle to both Sam and Baranov's primary goal. Despite that, however, Korzh and his crew of Trappers are still present as a serious threat to the duo, planning to kill them for trespassing within their territory.
Cold Sniper: Korzh is non-hesitant in targetting any trespassers with his sniper rifle from afar, as such with the case of Sam and Baranov, whom he deemed them as such, despite only passing by to reach the Captain's auxiliary base.
King of Thieves: He is the leader of the Trapper gang, which made a lucrative investment by catching Shrimps for their oil.
Last of His Kind: Implied that he and his own bandit crew are the last that exist in Vladivostok, due to Klim's brutal methods of dealing with them.

Major Factions

The Spartan Rangers

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/spartalogo.jpg

If not us, then who?
Based in Polis Station, The Rangers of the "SPARTA" Order ("Spartans", as they often call themselves, or just "Rangers" as most other metro-dwellers call them) are an elite military organization dedicated to protecting the people of the Metro. Acting as a rapid response force to combat the threat of bandits, maniacs, and mutants, wherever they appear in the Metro. They maintain as a neutral entity in the Metro, willing to help any station in trouble free of charge, regardless of faction. This all gives them pretty free roam of the Metro, even through the territory of other factions (assuming said faction even realizes they are there). In actuality they are the the Joint Special Operations Forces Squadron of Moscow. A Spetznaz unit started by Miller to maintain an effective Special Forces unit ready the absolute SECOND that Russia Central Command gives the order to storm from the Metro to fight back against the NATO forces.

Adaptation Expansion: In the first book, they are simply referred to as stalkers and the organization itself doesn't receive that much attention. In the video game, they receive much more attention, the organizations MO is explored in dept and they are the central focus of the plot along.
Badass Army: All are well-trained and equipped with the best gear the Metro has available, with many implied to be former members of the Soviet/Russian military. Being a badass itself is a requirement just to get in the door.
Badass Creed: They have a good one, which sums up why they defend the Metro:
If not us, then who?
Band of Brothers: Then entire order is this, as they know the only ones who really has a chance of handling the same crap they do is each other. Except Letsnisky
Blood Knight: A lot of their members prefer killing enemies rather than taking them prisoner.
Elites Are More Glamorous: Most of them are said to be or implied to be former Russian Spetsnaz. Those recruited after the war either have to go through an extensive training and evaluation that lasts around 2 years or have to pull off a feat so badass that it proves they are already on the Rangers' level.
Former Regime Personnel: As stated above, a lot of their members are heavily implied to be former Russian Army soldiers, particularly Spetsnaz. Subverted, they are secretly still a part of Spetznaz, even if Miller is the only one who knows this. Double subverted. Except no they aren't as the Russia government, thus it's military, no longer exists thus Miller only believes they are Spetznaz.
Heroic Neutral: They seek to help any station in need or in danger, whether it be a horde of mutants, bandit attack, a Reich or Communist takeover, etc.
Mildly Military: "Mild" in the sense that their equipment is less uniform than it once was and their organization had to become more flexible. However, most of them are military personal from before the bombs fell and several of them are Spetsnaz. They still maintain the highest training standards and the greatest self-discipline among the Metro.
One-Man Army: Every single Ranger is trained to be this. It takes ALOT to bring even a single Ranger down, and that's assuming they don't kill you as they die.
The Order: They're also known as this.
Proud Warrior Race Guy: They really like to make it a point on how badass they are, especially in the beginning of Last Light.
Ranger: Obviously.
The Remnant: In more ways that one.
- Secretly, they are the remnant of Spetznaz itself, formed in order to maintain an active Special Operations unit for the Russian Army for when the Russian government gives the all clear to retaliate against NATO.
- After the Battle of D6, the Order is absolutely devastated, despite having won the battle and fought back the Red Line (with the help of the Dark Ones). There are only a handful that survive the battle (roughly 10). While they had started to rebuild thanks to an alliance with Hansa, the surviving Rangers are branded traitors due to a misunderstanding, quickly labeled for execution, thus forced to flee from the Metro.
Training from Hell: Its heavily implied that the Rangers put its recruits through this. Justified as they are expected to take on the worst shit that the Metro has lurking in its shadows, even solo if they must. In a larger sense, everything they do in the Metro is really primarily meant to keep the unit tough and prepared for war in preparation for the orders to mobilize against NATO.

Polis

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/67987532245805317073.png

Polis (or Sparta) is a collection of four interconnected stations located in the center of the metro: Arbatskaya, Alexandrovsky Sad, Biblioteka Lenina and Borovitskaya, located below what used to be the Moscow Library as well as the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation building. They are one of the most powerful factions in the whole metro in terms of military power as well as prosperity, and they are completely unsurpassed by any faction in terms of knowledge and education, which is why many metro dwellers consider them humanity's last hope. As its name suggests, Polis is built on the ideals of Greek city states and is governed by a platonic style semi-religious class society where people are divided according to their occupation.

Badass Army: Their army, The Polis Kshatriya, is one of the most powerful in the metro and many of their members are part of the Rangers.
All-Powerful Bystander: Despite their military prowess and and plentiful resources, Polis prefers not to interfere with the affairs of other stations, even if those affairs are something that can threaten the entire metro.
Crapsack Only by Comparison: Polis is a class society, yes, but compared to everything else in the metro, it's practically a Utopia.
Demoted to Extra: They only have a very small role in the game adaptions.
Magic Versus Science: Played With; their society is largely formed around pre-war scientists and intellectuals, yet their society is very religious, likely because they can't rationally explain all of the phenomenon in the metro anymore.
Shining City: They are the last remaining bastion of knowledge in the entire metro and are viewed by other stations with either envy or admiration because of this and their high living standards. While they aren't quite as rich as Hanza, their wealth is much more equally distributed, allowing even their lower classes to enjoy luxuries that no other station in the metro can provide, such as proper housing, electronic computers, 24/7 lighting and plentiful food.

The Red Line

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/redlinelogo.jpg

A Communist faction residing in the Metro, consisting of the Sokolnicheskaya (Red) Line stations. Built on Communist ideals, they have the largest population of all the Metro factions, and frequently antagonize the other factions.

Adaptational Badass: In the original version of 2033, Red Line soldiers at the Frontline had no body armor, wore ragtag and non-standard uniforms, and were generally poorly equipped compared to the Nazis. In Redux however, regular soldiers now have access to body armor, have generally better equipment, proper uniforms, and now have Heavy troopers guarding the barricades.
Ascended Extra: In the original 2033, the Red Line only appeared in two levels. By Last Light they take center stage from the Nazis early on, when it's revealed that they plan on capturing D6's arsenal of bioweapons, as well as attempting to procure the surviving Dark One.
Big Bad: Of the second game.
Big Brother Is Watching: The Red government is known to pay citizens to watch their neighbors.
Conscription: How they get many of their soldiers.
Dirty Communists: Obviously. Life under them really sucks. It's really telling when you have entire trains of refugees who want out coming through on a regular basis.
Elite Mooks: Their equivalent to the Nazi stalkers and Rangers, and are just as heavily armed and competent as them. They're encountered late in Last Light, on orders from Korbut to hunt down Artyom and capture The Dark One.
Hated by All: They are just as hated among the metro dwellers for their actions as the Fourth Reich is and the only group who is willing to work with them at any capacity are the Trotskyists who only seem to work with them because they both hate fascists.
Police State: The Communist government keeps a close eye on its citizens, paying them to keep an eye on their neighbors.
The Political Officer: Their Commissars definitely count. They'll shoot anyone suspicious at first sight, friend or foe.
Punch-Clock Villain: Like the Nazis, some of the Red soldiers aren't particularly interested in the conflict, only in it for the money or benefits.
Tank Goodness: They get their own armored trolleys in the second game, based on old steam locomotives.
Took a Level in Badass: In Last Light, their soldiers are much better equipped and trained, even possessing a number of armored vehicles like the Nazis.
- This also turned up in Metro 2035 as the Red Line launched a counter offensive into the Reich's home stations after repulsing their invasion successfully despite suffering from a famine resulting from a blight on their mushroom crops..
We Have Reserves: Many of their troops are poorly-trained conscripts, used as cannon fodder to swarm enemy positions. They have the largest population in the entire Metro, so they have plenty of new recruits to spare.

The Fourth Reich

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/fourthreichtexture1.png

Metro for the pure race!
A Neo-Nazi fascist faction within the Metro, having taken up residence in Tverskaya, Chekhovskaya, and Pushkinskaya stations. Basing their society on Nazi ideals, they are often at odds with the Communist Red Line.

A Nazi by Any Other Name: Their members, being descendants of real life Russian Neo-Nazis, despise anyone who isn't a "pure" Slav. This translates to having them killed on the spot.
Big Bad Wannabe: They have plans of cleansing the entire Metro of "undesirables", but they posses neither the resources nor the manpower to achieve anything on that scale. Throughout the series they assume the role of secondary villains at best and end up destroying their own faction with no outside help.
Boomerang Bigot: They are a group of Russians who support an ideology that explicitly calls death for the "subhuman" Slavs. This gets lampshaded in the first novel.
Crapsaccharine World: Their stations in a nutshell. They're relatively nice places to live...if you meet their requirements for "genetic purity". Those who don't get sent to concentration camps or worked to death as slave laborers.
Demoted to Extra: In Last Light, other than capturing Artyom and the Baby Dark One at the beginning, they have no significant involvement in the plot.
Doom Troops: Their soldiers.
Dystopia Is Hard: In the novels, their xenophobic militant attitude toward all those they don't consider "pure" and harsh punishments for those who don't follow their strict laws has left their population small and horribly unbalanced.
Final Solution: Pretty much their MO on handling any and all enemies, whether they be Reds or anyone considered "subhuman". Of course, they orchestrate these through concentration camps.
Gas Mask Mooks: All Nazi soldiers wear gas masks unique to their faction.
Gratuitous German: They throw many German words into their speech.
Hated by All: Their actions are considered absolutely deplorable by everyone in the metro and no faction is willing to work with them.
Hellhole Prison: Pushkinskaya a.k.a. Schiller station which serves as a concentration camp for the undesirables.
Killed Off for Real: In Metro 2035, all of their stations are taken out by a massive flood they accidentally caused, leaving the chances of the faction surviving very unlikely.
Laser-Guided Karma: Their attempts to expand Pushkinskaya through slave labor end up with nearly all their territories getting flooded and the entire faction effectively ceasing to exist.
Legion of Lost Souls: Due to the Reich's low manpower, they attract people from other stations to join their foreign volunteer army known as the Iron Legion. This also serves as a steady supply of slaves, as anyone who is detected to have either mutations or tumors gets immediately sent into a concentration camp after the initial medical examination.
No Swastikas: Despite the Nazi imagery, they don't actually use the swastika in game, instead using the Moscow Metro "C" (Stop) sign or a gothic capital "R". In the novel and beta, they use a Triskelion-style Nazi flag (a swastika with three branches instead of four), roughly similar to the symbol used by Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging.
Police State: They're constantly patrolling their citizens for mutations, or checking that they meet their standards (in height, physical features, etc.).
Pragmatic Villainy: By the events of Metro 2035, they have significantly loosened up their tight racial standards to attract more fighters from other stations into the Iron Legion and the focus of their ideology has shifted from white supremacy to the extermination of all mutated humans.
Punch-Clock Villain: If you listen to their conversations, you can find that some of the soldiers have doubts about fighting for them, and many talk about their families or escaping somewhere better.
Putting on the Reich: They have adopted Nazi ideals and apparel, though their salutes and addresses are a bit different (i.e. they have a closed fist salute instead of the standard Hitler salute).
The Social Darwinist: They value genetic purity, culling off any citizens with deformities.
Spared by the Adaptation: Due to the drastically different sequence of events in the games' canon, the whole fatal flood situation at Theatre Station never happens. Furthermore, in the first chapter of Exodus, a Hanza soldier speaks of the Reich as a possible future enemy to war against, indicating that they're still very much around.
Trailers Always Lie: They were heavily featured in the pre-release marketing material for Last Light, giving the impression that they would be the main villains, even though they actually got Demoted to Extra in the game.
Tank Goodness: They have at least two "Panzers" (armored trolleys with large guns mounted on top).
Those Wacky Nazis: A post-apocalyptic Russian Neo-Nazi movement, engaged in their own little version of WWII's Eastern Front.
Utopia Justifies the Means: They believe that by conquering the entire Metro, they will bring unity to its population.

Hanza

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/hansa.png

The Hanseatic League, or "Hanza", is a faction composed of the Koltsevaya, or Ring-Line stations of the Moscow Metro. They are considered the richest of the Metro factions, with an economy focused mostly on trading with the other factions, as the Ring Line serves as one of the few relatively-safe routes in the post-apocalyptic Metro.

Capitalism Is Bad: Zigzagged Trope. While a lot of their members are known to be corrupt and/or are fueled by greed, they are also shown to be one of the most well-off, stable, and secure factions in the series. Also, a lot of their merchants will gladly provide Artyom with additional supplies, provided they get paid a hefty amount. In Last Light they provide some measure of medical relief to the Oktyabrskaya station affected by the Red Line plague, but that's because they don't want it to spread to the rest of the metro.
Crapsaccharine World: Their stations are some of the nicer places to live, but with their capitalist mindset, it is difficult to get in, and even if you do get in, there's no guarantee life will be great.
Eagleland: Their society heavily resembles Gilded Age/Interwar period United States; a rich land of opportunity where people flock in the hopes of earning a better life, but also a land of wide scale economic inequality where many aren't able to reach their dreams of a better life.
Greed: The primary MO of most soldiers and merchants seen, although how much it affects them varies between individuals.
Indentured Servitude: They are shown practicing this in Metro 2033 novel.
Leave No Witnesses: In Metro 2035 and Exodus, it's shown that they're partly responsible for ensuring that no news about the outside world still being intact gets into the Metro, to the point of killing any outsiders.
Merchant City: Most of the stations they control are this. Market Station is called this for a reason, with most of the station composed of stands selling an array of goods.
Proud Merchant Race: So much, that they won't allow outsiders to enter the other Ring Stations sans Market.
Only in It for the Money: A lot of their citizen's motives revolve around earning as much money and making a good buck as much as possible.
O.O.C. Is Serious Business: Khan points out how generous they are with their goods when a plague hit a few stations in Last Light. Khan thinks it's because they expect the Order to share D6's secrets with them in return. Exodus also has them refilling the devastated Spartans both in recruits and equipment Miller explains it was the Invisible Watchers' doing as they wanted someone like him to train their troops.
Sudden Sequel Heel Syndrome: From the very start of Metro Exodus.
The Man Behind the Man: Subverted. They seem to be the ones pulling Miller's strings at first, feeding him information that the outside world is inhospitable, and manipulating him to keep the Metro closed off. But - as the numerous holes in the cover story of the Invisible Watchers become apparent, the more clear it is that they're as in the dark as Miller is.

SPOILER FACTION

Invisible Watchers

A secret group that controls all major factions of the metro behind the shadows and keeps the existence of the outside world a secret.

Aristocrats Are Evil: They aren't nobles per say, but they are former members and descendants of Russia's ruling elite and oligarchy, who keep living conditions in the metro miserable for the sake of keeping onto their power and ensuring relatively good living conditions for themselves.
Ascended Extra: They go from a mere story mentioned by some Nazis in 2033 to being a very much real full-blown faction in 2035.
The Conspiracy: For years, they have been the true rulers of the metro who decide what the population should and shouldn't know.
Demoted to Extra: In Exodus, the Watchers are only vaguely mentioned by Miller; most of the coverup is perpetuated by the Hanza and the crew permanently leaves the Metro before they're able to encounter them.
Despotism Justifies the Means: Above all, actions of the Invisible Watchers are motivated by their desire to hold onto their power.
Epiphanic Prison: They have effectively turned the entire Metro into one of these. Even as the mutant populations and the radiation levels have drastically dropped above ground, they manage to keep the population under control through their fear of the outside world, and only Artyom and Anna show willingness to leave the metro behind.
Greater-Scope Villain: If not for their conspiracy, the Red Line and the Fourth Reich likely wouldn't even exist and they certainly wouldn't be waging conflicts as readily as they do.
Hidden Elf Village: They live in the assumed to be a legend Metro-2.
Man Behind the Man: They secretly control Polis, Hanza, Fourth Reich, Red Line and the Rangers.
Leave No Witnesses: They run a very tight no witness policy when it comes to the outside world and anyone who is known or suspected to have knowledge about it will quickly find themselves as a political prisoner of the Red Line.
The Remnant: They are what remains of the Russian government and military high command in the metro.
Walking Spoiler: Everything about the faction is a massive spoiler for those who haven't read Metro 2035.
War for Fun and Profit: "Fun" may not be the right word, but their hands seem to be in most major conflicts within the Metro - perhaps even the events of Metro: Last Light - for the sake of population control and strengthening their own grip on the factions.
Well-Intentioned Extremist: In Metro Exodus, Miller and Artyom visit and explore the Metro tunnels of another city. Here they realize that the Invisible Watchers had actually manipulated the population of the Moscow Metro in order for it to survive. Novosibirsk did not have such a group, and tore itself apart, resulting in the complete annihilation of its human population.

Church of the Water Tsar

A techno-phobic cult that worships a giant-mutated catfish.

Anti-Villain: Silantius is a nasty piece of work, but the rest of the community are just scared. They are quite fine with, albeit skeptical of, outsiders such as Artyom, as long as they be courteous in return. They are also open to trade and as long as the "heretics" don't shove a light in their faces they'll be reasonable.
Cult: They worship the Water Tsar, a giant mutated fish. Strictly speaking, they don't actually worship the fish, as reading their documents and listening to their conversation reveals them to be sort of Christian-ish, but rather believe that it's the personification of God's wrath against a sinful world. Regardless, they feed their dead to the thing, and also occasionally sacrifice "heretics" (i.e. anybody who gets caught with a flashlight) to it.
Evil Luddite: The Church of the Water Tsar believe that the apocalypse was caused by technology, a belief reflected in their lifestyles, in which they rely on torches and fire for lighting. They shun anything and everything that runs on an electric current�guns are okay, but lightbulbs are heresy.
Mirroring Factions: From the Metro dwellers themselves, such as Artyom only a few months back. Their isolationist attitude and hatred of electricity isn't quite different from the idea of humanity's remnants living exclusively in the Metro, while the Dark Ones and the remains of the old world are dangerous and out to destroy them. Both are manipulated by higher-ups with actual knowledge of the outside world, and would be content with living out their existence this way unless somebody exposes the truth to them.

SPOILER FACTION

The Ark

A bunker located under Mount Yamantau where supposingly the last of the Russian government have been hiding. The Order first pick up their radio transmission after leaving Moscow and head there to meet up with them for shelter. Much to their horror, the people beneath there are cannibals who lure survivors all over the country to their doom. The Russian government never arrived at Yamantau, which was still under construction when the war broke out in 2013. The only people staffing the bunker were the construction crews and soldiers, and thus their supplies were not at operational levels when the missiles rained down.

Always Chaotic Evil: There are no penalties for killing them (You even get an achievement for doing it, just so you don't feel bad!) and aside from the doctor and the "generals," all of them went mad to prion disease to the point they are just shouting "meat" as they attack.
Cannibal Tribe: They were once the soldiers and workers tasked with manning the bunker. Due to their isolation and lack of supplies, they devolved to cannibalism.
Go Mad from the Isolation: Because of their dwindling supplies, the survivors of the bunker resorted to cannibalism in order to survive. In addition, they appear to be suffering from kuru due to prolonged consumption of human meat.
Laser-Guided Karma: They are ultimately rendered terminally defunct by their former captives, who proceed to wipe out the group to the last man upon breaking free.
Mad Doctor: The leader of the group is a former doctor who implied to be the one who suggests that they indulge into cannibalism.
Polite Villains, Rude Heroes: The Doctor and other sane members are Faux Affably Evil while the Spartans have nothing but disgust for them.
Underestimating Badassery: The leaders clearly think they can capture and subdue the Spartans the same way they've done with countless others in the past. While they do initially overcome Miller, Artoym and Anna, they are quickly released by Sam and the others, following which the Spartans proceed to buzzsaw their way through the entire complex.
Villains Want Mercy: Both the Doctor and the people impersonating command staff do not shy away from begging for their lives when the tables are turned on them. Disgusted as they are, the Spartans do not oblige.
Wham Line: How they reveal their true colors:
"Commander": "Women and children? Hahaha! Good! Haven't had those in a while."
Would Hit a Girl: Aside from attempting to kill and eat Anna, dialogue from the "commander" clearly suggests that they ate women before.
Would Hurt a Child: Dialogue from the "commander" clearly suggests that they ate children before.
Zerg Rush: As the Order are escaping, the surviving cannibals charge at the railcar in numbers.

Munai-bailer

A group of raiders composed of former mobsters and oil rig workers that operate in the now-dry Caspian Sea. Their monopoly on the region's oil supply has let them establish a small but powerful slave empire, ruthlessly oppressing the native Kazakhs with their vast arsenal of guns and cars.

Desert Punk: They are Mad Max-style drivers who style themselves as biker thugs.
Hell-Bent for Leather: Fitting their Mad Max aesthetic, they wear lots of leather.
Kill It with Fire: Complete with the worship of fire deities, incendiary weapons, and a fuel monopoly.
The Mafiya: Many of them are stated to have been mobsters before the apocalypse.
Slavery Is a Special Kind of Evil: They have indoctrinated the locals into servitude; Miller cut off negotiations with them after the Baron demanded women as tribute.
We Have Reserves: In Exodus, it's revealed that they have an army over 700 strong, which is why the Baron isn't particularly distressed at losing a few guards to the Rangers. That said, the Rangers manage to not be immediately annihilated since most of their numbers are away on a raid in foreign territory.

The Children of the Forest

A group of children who were stranded at the Solnechnyj Children's Summer Camp when the bombs hit. They were raised by their camp master who they revere as the "Teacher". They are divided into the Pioneers and Pirates.

Anti-Villain: They are just defending their territory, be it from bandits or from "drifters".
Expy: Of the lost-boys from Peter Pan and the children from Lord of the Flies. They are portrayed as essentially the lost-boys just grown up. The Pirates— their name and motif in particular— seem to take a few cues from Captain Hook and his crew as well. That the "Lost Boys" here are actually turning into Pirates serves to illustrate the deep divide between the two sub factions. This division is where the similarities to Lord of the Flies begins.
Motive Decay: The group eventually suffers from a schism based on this trope. One group—known as Pioneers—felt that the lessons of "Teacher" were meant to teach them to survive on their own without interfering "strangers" so long as they leave them alone, while the others—known as Pirates—believe slaughtering and looting "strangers" to be justifiable.
Parental Abandonment: Some notes you can find around state this. If any of their parents had survived the bombings, unlikely as that is, they never made it to Taiga to find their kid(s).
Teenage Wasteland: They began as a group of children who were left to be raised by the camp master known as "Teacher" at a summer camp during World War III. As a result, their society is based on reverence towards him as a deity. Their "Teacher" died not too long after the war, leaving the children to grow up without any adults around. The result is that, despite now being full grown adults themselves, they still very much act like this trope in effect.

Pirates

A faction of the Children Of The Forest who believe that to uphold the Teacher's tenets, they have to attack anyone who comes near them for the sake of survival. They split off from the main children of the forest due to a schism, caused after they snuck into a camp of bandits that had attacked them, and murdered every last one of them.

Affably Evil: While they can be cruel enough to make bloodthirsty bandits afraid, they all still act like a bunch of schoolyard friends towards one another, and they give Artyom very fair warning to stay out of their territory.
Bullying a Dragon: They were planning on attacking the Aurora. This is despite knowing the Rangers are pretty evasive and well-armed.
Children Forced to Kill: Their leader forced them to kill captured bandits as part of their initiation.
Cycle of Revenge: It's made clear that, bad as the bandits they've fought are, their violent tendencies have had consequences. Consequences which, as it happens, have splashed onto the Pioneers and leave them at the mercy of bandits.
Dead Guy on Display: They use a lot of bandits and drifters as scarecrows to warn off potential intruders. Sometimes they kill them, sometimes they wait for the wolves to do it instead.
Even Evil Has Standards: For a given value of "evil", since they are still children at heart, who split off from the Pioneers due to differences in perspective. Despite their rather liberal interpretation of self defense, and strained relations with the Children of the Forest, they seem to be generally okay people. One of their core rules is not to pick on the girls, in a world where sex slavery and rape are more than everyday occurrences.
Heel Realization: At least two pirates are known to have become utterly disgusted at what they've become.
He Who Fights Monsters: A common In-Universe view of the Pirate faction, with one journal entry mentioning them killing even the surrendering bandits and others, leaving them to die on poles. For once, it's hard to blame the bandits for their treatment of them. The Teacher was Driven to Suicide at the realization that the kids he taught became monsters.
Kids Are Cruel: Subverted as they are not kids anymore, but otherwise play this straight. They grew up without adults around and have retained many child-like mannerisms, including a more childish sense of cruelty.
Not-So-Harmless Villain: Don't let their child-like ideals and antics fool you, these are still full grown adults who have grown up while under constant attack (or attacking) bloodthirsty bandit gangs. If they detect an outsider (you) in their territory, they will open up with crossbows, shotguns, and AK-74s.
Psychopathic Manchild: It can create a some Mood Whiplash when you are almost shot by an arrow with a warning to leave, find some bandits who had been strung up to be eaten by wolves, only to find the "hostiles" awkwardly swing down from a tree while using cliche pirate speak. The player can also overhear a Pirate trying to see if a tumbleweed will suffice as a replacement for the kickball he accidentally kicked into the river, which the others are still giving him flak about.
Schoolyard Bully All Grown Up: The Pirates' attitude toward the Pioneers is pretty much them bullying their brethren for being too soft on intruders. That, or because they are jealous most of the girls are with the Pioneers.

Pioneers

An isolationist faction of the Children of The Forest, who — while not much more accepting than the Pirates — still maintain some unease towards the more violent tendencies of the Pirates.

Manchild: They are acting and talking like they are in elementary school, as they almost deified their Teacher that taught them how to survive in the wild.
Wouldn't Hit a Girl: The Teacher taught the boys to be nice with the girls, like his other teachings it escalated to a dogma.

OSKOM

OSKOM, or the Osobiy Komitet, are the peacekeeping force of the Novosibirsk Metro situated in Krasniy Prospekt. They govern the Metro and its residents from any possible threats, both internally and externally.

Big Bad Ensemble: Alongside the Novosibirsk rioters in The Two Colonels.
Corrupt Bureaucrat: Specifically the OSKOM High Command, its leaders.
Hazy-Feel Turn: While not inherently villainous in their own right, the societal collapse in Novosibirsk Metro is what slowly gives them the impression of being villainous, largely thanks to their actions. The only truly evil members of the organisation are its corrupt leaders, who are the catalysts of Novosibirsk Metro's downfall. The DLC's Big Bad Tolya, meanwhile, is more of the Pragmatic Villainy scale, as he was pushed further into villainy, thanks to the screw-up done by his superiors.
Police State: After the peak of anti-rad shortage escalated to alarming levels, OSKOM become more pragmatic in their efforts to stop the Novosibirsk Metro residents from hoarding cases of the drug by implementing rationing. Those who don't comply, however, are immediately on the grounds for arrest.
The Remnant: Invoked much more in Metro Exodus. By the time Artyom and Miller reached Novosibirsk, OSKOM is anything but a remnant organisation of its former self, with key members like Tolya and Slava being dead, and with Kirill being the only member alive.

Mutants

Giant Amoebas

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/giantamoebae.jpg

Strange spherical amoeba-like creatures found inhabiting the D6 bunker. They are spawned from strange "pores", pulsating creatures that stick to walls and floors.

Action Bomb: The Amoebas themselves run up to you and explode.
Blob Monster: As the name implies.
Mook Maker: The amoeba pores.

Demons

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/mlldemon.png

Winged bat-like creatures found on the surface. They are extremely aggressive, attacking humans and other mutants alike.

Always a Bigger Fish: Happens twice in the first two games while you're being attacked by other Mutants. While at the Library in Metro 2033, a Librarian charges Artyom and nearly has him done for when a Demon takes notice and swoops into the window to steal an easy meal - the ensuing battle between it and the Librarian gives Artyom a chance to escape to the basement.
- In Last Light, Artyom is pitted against a Bog Shrimp AKA a massive and angry Alpha Male Shrimp when a Demon catches its attention during the fight. The two roar at each other and both flee from the scene when it's clear they don't want to fight each other - the Demon back to the skies, and the Shrimp back into the waters.
Badass Decay: In 2033 and Last Light, the Demons are a serious threat that, unless eliminated quickly in very specific circumstances, can be a danger for the majority of a level. In Exodus, once the Caspian level is started and the player has access to incendiary rounds for his Tikhar, they are easily sniped out of the sky with a couple well-aimed shots of said ammunition.
Death from Above: Frequently attack humans on the surface. They're really tough and really dangerous.
Falling Damage: One of their favored damaging techniques against Artyom is to swoop in to grab him, fly him into the air and then drop him for high damage, or to outright kill him. Because of how deadly this is, Demons should always be fought where you can duck and cover when they fly in for the kill.
Giant Flyer: Large and winged.
Lightning Bruiser: They move quickly, and can soak up a lot of damage.
Mama Bear: In Last Light in the level The Dead City, you have to scale a building to reach its roof. There a Demon tries to knock you off, and when you finally get up you can see that the Demon is backed up against its nest with both it and its children hissing and roaring at you to back off. There's a corpse with ammo and a diary entry in the nest, so provoking its wrath for both those rewards is something to consider.
Super-Persistent Predator: Two particular Demons — one in the Library, and another on the Tower — will relentlessly pursue you until killed or driven off.

Librarians

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/metrolastlightlibrarian2.png

Giant humanoid creatures encountered in the Moscow State Library. They are extremely intelligent and extremely dangerous, but it is possible to avoid fighting them by staring them down. They come in two variations: regular Librarians, and Black Librarians.

Artistic License � Biology: If they are mutated gorillas, staring them down would be an act of provocation that would get you beaten, like with real life gorillas.
Badass Bookworm: It is implied in Last Light that they are capable of reading the books found in the library.
Berserk Button: Don't turn your back on them or shoot them, or they'll attack immediately.
It Can Think: Librarians are highly intelligent, even capable of setting up traps. At one section in the library, there is a bullet on a hole on the wall and if the player attempted to pick it up, a Librarian will attempt to pull the player from the other side. If the player can avoid this by picking up the bullet from the other side of the wall.
Killer Gorilla: Their faces and posture imply they are mutated gorillas.
Lightning Bruiser: Really large, really fast, really strong.
Made of Iron: Can take a large number of bullets before going down. You're advised to avoid pissing them off.
Savage Setpiece: Unlike the other mutants, they aren't interested in killing you unless provoked, and even then, you can successfully stare them down without violence.
Staring Down Cthulhu: Stare them down long enough and you can avoid fighting them. Display any submissive behavior (crouching or turning your back), and they will kill you.
Underground Monkey: Black Librarians are only found in the library's basement.
Was Once a Man: It's implied they may have once been people. Or they're mutated gorillas. It's theorized in-universe the reason you can stare them into compliance is that looking into human eyes reminds them of the humanity they lost.

Nosalises

Nosalises are the most common mutants encountered in the underground. Man-sized, bipedal creatures that resemble heavily mutated moles, they are often encountered in large numbers. They come in several different variations.

Blinded by the Light: Due to their adaptations to see in the dark, Plated Nosalises are blinded by Artyom's flashlight.
Our Ghouls Are Creepier: These ghouls are mutated moles.
Underground Monkey: Comes in several variations.
- Dark Nosalises: Can take and deal more damage than regular nosalises. Encountered in the levels near the end of 2033.
- Winged Nosalises: Can jump further and move faster, and possesses a sonic attack that can stun the player, but can't take as much damage.
- Albino Nosalises: Only encountered in the Dungeon level in 2033.
- Plated Nosalises: Only encountered in the Caves level in 2033. They are much stronger and can take way more damage than standard nosalises, but don't attack in groups and are blinded by your flashlight.
- Novosibirsk nosalises are encountered in that city's tunnels in the final level of Exodus. They look slightly different from their Moscow cousins, with a vaguely trunk-like snout, but are every bit as aggressive.
Weaksauce Weakness: Plated Nosalises are scared away by Artyom's flashlight.
Zerg Rush: Often attack in large groups.

Lurkers

Quadrupedal mutants that resemble giant naked mole rats or dogs. They are mostly encountered within the Metro, where they reside in holes within the tunnels.

Fragile Speedster: They're really fast, but can't take much damage.
Rodents of Unusual Size: They look like giant mutated rodents.
Tunnel King: They like to hide in and pop out of tunnels and holes.

Liana

Mutated plant-like creatures found inhabiting the surface.

Combat Tentacles: They use their tentacles to whip at passersby.
Invincible Minor Minion: You can't truly kill them. If you shoot them they curl up for a few seconds but then get better. Since they're immobile, it's hardly a problem.
Planimal: Implied, they bleed red when shot.
Plant Mooks: Mutated plants.
When Trees Attack: They appear to be heavily mutated vines or trees.

Shrimp

Mutated crustaceans. They are often found in or near bodies of water. Female shrimps look like regular non-mutated shrimp, except with no eyes and a giant sucker mouth, while male shrimp look a lot like plate-armored creatures with toothed mouths. A handful of Bog Shrimps are also encountered as boss creatures.

Attack Its Weak Point: Male Shrimps are heavily armored, making it less than ideal to shoot them in the carapace. Their underbellies are softer and more vulnerable to damage, but while advancing on you they make sure to cover their weak spot with their armored claws unless they're winding up to attack.
Bizarre Sexual Dimorphism: Female shrimp have giant mouths and no eyes, but otherwise, look just like oversized regular shrimp. Male shrimp look like a cross between a praying mantis and a xenomorph.
Eyeless Face: Female shrimps have no visible eyes, with just a huge sucker-like mouth.
Foreign Queasine: They apparently taste delicious when eaten with beer.
Giant Enemy Crab: Mutated shrimp.
Lamprey Mouth: Female shrimps have this.
Underground Monkey: Comes in several variations.
- Hatchlings: Juvenile Shrimp. They scavenge dead bodies, but are otherwise harmless.
- Amphibians: Larger, heavily armored shrimp. Only found on the surface.
- Bog Shrimp: Giant armored shrimps found on the surface. You only fight one alive, but it is much more dangerous than the other Shrimp variants.

Watchmen

Quadrupedal mutants that resemble dogs. They are often encountered on the surface.

Howling to the Night: They howl when they spot you, signaling an imminent attack.
Savage Wolves: They certainly resemble wolves in appearance and behavior.
Zerg Rush: They often attack in packs.

Spiderbugs

Giant mutated arachnid-like creatures that inhabit dark and abandoned underground areas.

Animalistic Abomination: Artyom theorizes they may not be mutants created by radiation, but rather a race of underground monsters that existed since times immemorial and used to shun humanity, but now that they sense humanity is dying, they grow bolder and seek to reclaim the surface.
Attack Its Weak Point: Are only vulnerable when flipped onto their backs.
Beware My Stinger Tail: Male spiders have stingers.
Big Creepy-Crawlies: Giant mutated spiders, with traits of Scorpions.
Cobweb Jungle: Cobwebs can be found everywhere in tunnels where they've taken up residence.
The Dreaded: To the Nazi's in the facility where Artyom and Pavel were imprisoned. They walled off the infested sections of the tunnel, and soldiers talking about it are sure that whoever enters that place is a dead man walking.
Giant Spider: Not gigantic, but much larger than a normal spider.
Immune to Bullets: Their armored upper sides cannot be damaged by bullets.
Shock and Awe: Sam's Story adds an electrically-charged "Zap Spider" variant, found only in extreme radiation zones and capable of interfering with electrical equipment in addition to shocking foes.
Super Spit: In Exodus, the female Spiders gain the ability to attack at range by spitting webbing. Besides blinding you temporarily, it hits hard enough to damage your gas mask.
Weakened by the Light: Light actually hurts them.
Weaksauce Weakness: Like the plated nosalises in the original game, they are weak to light, except this time, it can even kill them when exposed to long enough.

Biomass

A giant mass of...biomass that has taken up residence on D6's nuclear reactor.

Blob Monster: Its incarnation in Redux especially, due to attacking you with the same biomass it's made of.
Brown Note: The biomass is heavily implied to have been responsible for a phenomenon where anyone who looked at the stars in Kremlin would mindlessly begin to run towards them. Presumably this was a luring tactic used by the Biomass to catch prey. Notably, after the biomass is killed and the Rangers take over D6, the Kremlin stars stop having their psychic effect and players can look at them in Last Light without any harmful effects. The biomass' psychic abilities are further demonstrated in the novel, where anyone near it is compelled to walk towards it and be consumed. It manages to kill three people this way before Miller, Artyom and the others wake up from its psychic effects after it consumes a child.
Combat Tentacles: Uses its tentacles to try and knock down the crane you're riding in. In Redux, this is averted, due to the tentacles being replaced in favor of a radioactive slime attack.
It Can Think: It's apparently quite intelligent, and will attempt to destroy the crane Artyom is operating, as if it knows how the reactor operates and that Artyom can hurt it this way.
Killed Offscreen: When you defeat it in 2033, it's not dead, just weakened. The Rangers have managed to kill it by the events of Last Light, after taking over D6.
Meat Moss: A meaty creature that thrives on radiation.
Mook Maker: Has several amoeba pores that spawn Amoebas.
Psychic Powers: In the novel, the biomass has some kind of psychic power that attracts people and compels them to throw themselves in the biomass where they're swallowed and digested. It's heavily implied that this is the reason why looking at the stars on top of the Kremlin makes you run inside the building, never to be seen again.
Nuclear Mutant: It appears to live off the reactor's radiation.
Was Once a Man: It's implied to be the after product of the biological weapons that were used against Kremlin. This is the reason why D6, which theoretically should have housed remnants of the Russian military and government, is deserted, with the occasional pile of empty shells. NATO biological weapons turned some of the survivors into Biomass, which then devoured the rest even as they tried putting up a fight.

Nosalis Rhino

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rhino2.png

A huge female nosalis that attacks you in Last Light.

Attack Its Weak Point: Its back and head are vulnerable.
Bullfight Boss: As its name implies. You can trick it into smashing into support beams.
Flunky Boss: Attacks with the support of regular nosalises.
King Mook: A nosalis brood mother.
Tactical Suicide Boss: It'll just keep charging into the walls and pillars without regard for its own welfare.

Bear

A mutated bear that resides on the surface.

Attack Its Weak Point: Her back is vulnerable when she's being attacked by Watchers.
Bears Are Bad News: Obviously. The mother bear is extremely resistant to gunfire.
Body Horror: Like all mutants, but most notable is the bear's seemingly-exposed spine.
Mama Bear: A literal example. She's trying to protect her cubs from Watchers. After beating her, she'll be wounded and the Watchers will go for the kill. You can choose to help her, or let them kill her.
Mighty Glacier: Really strong, but really slow.
Non-Malicious Monster: As the baby Dark One notes, she's just trying to defend her cubs.
Set a Mook to Kill a Mook: Part of the fight against her involves getting the Watchers to swarm her so her weak point will be exposed.

The Dark Ones

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/metrolastlightdarkone1.png

A strange species of humanoid mutants residing in the Moscow Botanical Gardens. They are feared by the Metro citizens for their unusual psychic powers. They are possibly descended from humans who evolved to adapt to the post-apocalyptic surface world.

Ambiguous Situation: Are they a "natural" mutation of humanity, or are they genetically-modified humans created by the Russian military before the war?
Adaptational Heroism: The first book leaves it more ambiguous whether the Dark Ones are indeed intending to live in symbiosis with humanity or if they are just planning to use their psychic powers to turn humanity into a Slave Race. This is best seen when Artyom asks them if humanity would really live with them as equals or would their coexistence be just a form of forced servitude for humanity. The Dark Ones instead deflect the question, leaving it up to the audience to decide what their true intentions are. In the game they are no doubts behind their benevolence.
Big Damn Heroes: In the good ending to Metro: Last Light they intervene in the battle for D6 at the last minute to save the Rangers from an overwhelming Red Line assault.
Bioweapon Beast: There are hints such as a cache of them hibernating inside D6 that they originated as a secret military project before the war.
Brown Note: Their psychic powers can drive humans insane, intentionally or unintentionally, by mere proximity.
Clash of Evolutionary Levels: Brought up in both the novel and the game by Hunter and Alex/Sukhoi. The Dark Ones are referred to as Homo Novus, the next step in evolution that will make humanity obsolete and eventually extinct. Unlike several examples where this is Hollywood Evolution, it's Justified: for starters, the Dark Ones are actually able to thrive on the surface, whereas humans can only (barely) survive in the metro, and the Dark Ones utterly wipe the floor with human soldiers in combat. They are simply more adapted to survival than humanity.
Curb-Stomp Battle:
- Anytime they fight humans it's this due to their Psychic Powers and sheer toughness. It's a good thing they don't actually want to destroy or enslave humanity and want peace.
- They inflict this on the Red Line army at the end of Metro: Last Light if you have enough morality points to get the good ending.
Dark Is Not Evil: Despite their freakish appearance and powers, they just want peace with humanity.
Empty Shell: This is what they do to humans if they come in contact with them. It's not actually malicious.
Endangered Species: In Last Light, after most of them were killed in the missile strike at the end of 2033.
Humanoid Abomination: They are humanoid creatures with incomprehensible powers and they're actually peaceful.
Humans Are Psychic in the Future: They (may have) evolved from heavily mutated humans, and have psychic powers strong enough to drive people mad.
I Am Not a Gun: If they originated as a Russian experiment to create super soldiers then their behavior and mindset would mean they moved behind their original purpose and they chose their own destiny.
Made of Iron: Even without the psychic powers making them extremely dangerous foes, they're apparently very though to gun down.
Mind Rape: Their psychic attacks which are actually an attempt to communicate [[{{Telepathy telepathically]] destroy the mind of most people, leading to a painful death.
Obliviously Evil: All they want to do is make peace with humanity, but their powers are strong enough to drive most normal people insane. They do not seem to understand the traumatic effect their telepathy has on humans.
Only Fatal to Adults: Children are unaffected by the psychic influence of Dark Ones. In a twist, they will inherit this resistance when they grow up if they have interacted with a Dark One in their youth.
Otherworldly Communication Failure: The Dark Ones are universally feared by the denizens of the Metro as terrifying boogeymen that can fry the brains of humans simply by approaching them. As Artyom learns, however, none of this is intentional on the Dark Ones' part. They mean no harm: in fact, they want to coexist with humanity, but unfortunately their Psychic Powers are so potent that human minds can't handle it. Each time the Dark Ones reach out to try to telepathically communicate with a human, it drives the human to madness. It doesn't help that they are only able to communicate vague concepts to Artyom, with the occasional disjointed word thrown in here and there. They really don�t know any more about humans than humans know about them, despite their efforts to bridge the gap.
Poor Communication Kills: Their well-intentioned attempts at communicating with humans causes Mind Rape, and the humans understandably interpret this as hostile, starting the events of the first game and (canonically) ending with their near-total genocide.
Psychic Powers: Have the ability to psychically influence humans. Even their ghosts have strange powers.
Remember the New Guy?: Inverted. In Metro 2035 barely anyone mentions the Dark Ones and those who do view them as largely unimportant. Artyom himself seems to be under the impression that the Dark Ones had been all killed by his hand, seemingly forgetting how they saved him in Last Light.
- When Artyom returns to the surface in Novosibirsk in Exodus, shortly before his first encounter with a Blind One, a Dark One can briefly be seen watching him from a nearby rooftop, then it vanishes. It is unclear if it's really there or just another radiation-induced hallucination. If it is real, it begs the question of whether Artyom hears the Blind Ones' thoughts due to the Dark One trying to help him again.
Super Soldier: They may or may not have been created by the Russian military before the war to be this.
Touched by Vorlons: Artyom met a Dark One in his childhood during a trip to the surface. This encounter meant that he's highly resistant to paranormal phenomenon and he can communicate with or resist the Dark Ones, whereas normal adults have their mind destroyed.
The Unfought: They are never encountered as gameplay enemies.
Was Once a Man: Maybe. They may have evolved from humans who remained on the surface after the nuclear apocalypse or they may have been the result of scientific experimentation before the war which would explain why there is a bunch of them locked up inside D6.

Tsar Fish

A large aquatic mutant living in the Volga river that is worshipped by the Church of the Water Tsar.

Giant Animal Worship: Silantius and his cult are roughly Christian in dogma, but venerate the giant mutant catfish as a divine messenger/instrument of God, or a personification of His wrath. The fact that it seems to be attracted to electronics also informs their rejection of technology.
Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Artyom can kill the fish at the end of the flooded terminal by luring it with a bell or corpses and then dropping a pile of metal debris onto it.
It Can Think: The fish surprisingly intelligent as it tries to knock Artyom off a platform by slamming into pillars and walls.
Monster Whale: Despite it is identified as a catfish, it displays behaviours similar to that of a whale; being making whale-like calls, being able to attack preys on the shore by sliding in and out of the water and displays a degree of intelligence.
Nuclear Mutant: Zigzagged. Pre-war documents and audio logs Artyom can find indicate that a study was being conducted on some kind of chemical spill in the Volga River before the bombs dropped, and that whatever was released into the water was causing some of the fish to grow substantially larger than normal, though they do not indicate anything on the massive scale of the Tsar Fish. It's possible that the effects of the nuclear, chemical, and bioweapons amplified the artificial growth, or maybe it just got that big after twenty-odd years. Eavesdropping on the boat crew's conversation reveals that this one is not unique. Others like it can be found elsewhere on the river, and one of them almost caught one using a dead dog for bait (almost, that is, the fish capsized his boat and almost ate him instead).
Sea Monster: More like river monster. It is likely that it was a catfish (or possibly a sturgeon) that was mutated as a result of consuming radioactive waste at the bottom of the river.
Super-Persistent Predator: It can be seen chasing after Artyom throughout the Volga chapter, be it on land, water or even in a flooded terminal.

Humanimals

Feral mutated humans encountered on the surface.

Body Horror: Their bodies have been heavily mutated by the radiation; they most notably posses digitigrade feet.
Our Zombies Are Different: These "zombies" are feral mutants descended from humans.
Technically Living Zombie: They're living humans that have been mutated and devolved.
Was Once a Man: They are descended from feral humans left on the surface and mutated by radiation.

The Master of the Forest

Another giant bear, this one found inhabiting a river valley in Metro Exodus.

Arc Villain: Of the Taiga level in Exodus.
Bears Are Bad News: For obvious reasons.
Disney Villain Death: how Artyom manages to beat it.
The Dreaded: The pioneers and pirates fear it so much surviving an encounter with it impresses them.
Guide Dang It!: The way to beat it during the second encounter requires the player to stand in a specific spot while tossing molotovs at it to trigger a cutscene. During the fight itself, there is no indication that this is what the player needs to do aside from a bonfire near where the player needs to stand and a cluster of molotovs for them to use nearby.
The Juggernaut: Will go through any obstacles and barely fazed by explosives.

Blind Ones

Gorilla-like, blind mutants living in the Institute in Novosibirsk.

Ambiguously Human: The Librarians brought a few doubts about being simply gorilla with their ability to read and their weakness to being stared down reflecting their humanity. The Blind Ones take it a step further as you can hear their thoughts and they are human-like.
Expy: Of the Librarians.
Eyeless Face: They have no eyes at all. To be precise, their heads seem to have thick folds of skin grown over where their eyes should be.
Final Boss:
- During Artyom's trek to the Akademgorodok institute in Novosibirsk, the chasing Blind One near the finale served as the final hostile threat to Artyom.
- The Blind Ones also act as the final, biggest threat to Slava during the finale of The Two Colonels, serving as the DLC's de facto Big Bad.
Handicapped Badass: Being blind doesn't stop them from murdering Artyom if they manage to catch his scent.
Killer Gorilla: Similarly to the Librarians, they are mutated gorillas.
Psychic Powers: Given that you can hear their voices in your head as they hunt you, they almost certainly possess some kind of them, although the Dark One that Artyom momentarily glimpses in Novosibirsk may also have something to do with it, assuming it's not a hallucination.
Sense-Impaired Monster: They're blind, and make up for this deficiency by having Super Strength, being Nigh-Invulnerable and taking a ton of ammo to take down, having limited Psychic Powers capable of causing a Mind Rape to anyone nearby, and being rather smart for mutants.

Worms

Huge, mutated leech-like creatures found in the Metro of Novosibirsk.

Always a Bigger Fish: Their appearance is foreshadowed when Artyom enters the Putrid Tunnel and sees the Nosalises that had been chasing him attacked and devoured by the large Worms.
Instant Leech: Just Fall in Water!: Falling into the murky waters of their lair results in Artyom getting tiny, immature Worms stuck to his armour and mask. This can also happen if he gets hit by the larger ones' spit, implying that they reproduce asexually...in their stomachs apparently?
Meat Moss: Their lair is covered in a viscous organic film that reacts to light and movement, and occasionally extends worm-like tendrils, but it seems to be distinct from the Worms themselves.
Non-Indicative Name: They're called Worms, but they look much more like giant leeches. The larger ones resemble oversized bobbit worms with their fanged maws.
Organ Drops: The bodies of the smaller ones can actually be salvaged for use as crafting materials.
Super Spit: Both the large and small Worms attack by spitting acidic mucous at Artyom.
Your Size May Vary: Comes in two varieties: a smaller, dog-sized version that clings to walls and spits acid, and a MUCH larger one that swims through the water and can either spit or attack directly.

Paranormal Phenomena

Ghosts

The ghosts of those who lost their lives. They are usually only visible if one shines a flashlight at them or from the corner of your eyes.

And I Must Scream: Their entire existence seems to be this.
Barred from the Afterlife: According to Khan, the apocalypse destroyed both heaven and hell, leaving the ghosts nowhere to go but to haunt the places where they died.
Doing In the Wizard: Exodus implies that ghosts are actually radiation-induced hallucinations, as all ghosts are encountered near radiation hotspots. On the other hand, the ones seen in the Volga have no such excuse.
Interface Screw: Their nearby presence in Last Light and Exodus is indicated by colors becoming desaturated and slightly blurry.
Living Memory: They are forced to repeat their final moments forever.
Living Shadow: They take this form in 2033, and are only visible when light is shined on them, or out of the corner of your eyes. In Last Light and Exodus, they appear as either this or gory, semi-transparent silhouettes.
Non-Malicious Monster: As the baby Dark One notes in Last Light, many ghosts are just lonely and scared, latching on to anyone living who passes by.
NPC Roadblock: In 2033, some of them block Artyom's way. The first time, Khan makes them clear the way by praying; the second time, they will block the exit of the level until Artyom helps Metro dwellers repel a mutant attack.
Our Ghosts Are Different: Living shadows that relive their last moments repeatedly. Touching one will seriously injure, if not kill, you. Ghosts can even be of mutants or inanimate objects, like trains.
Tomato in the Mirror: According to the Baby Dark One in Metro: Last Light, they don't even know they're dead.
Whispering Ghosts: Another sign that they're nearby is inaudible whispering that grows louder and louder the more you stay near them. Until it brutally stops and they vanish.

Anomalies

Anomalies are strange orbs of electricity. Little is known about them, except that they are extremely dangerous, shocking anyone who gets near.

Big Damn Heroes: Each time they show up, they helpfully electrocute a number of mutants attacking you. Played With in that it doesn't care about rescuing Artyom, it just moves around randomly killing everything that moves.
The Dreaded: Feared by mutants and humans alike. Even your Ranger companions are afraid of them.
Living Motion Detector: Well, for a given value of "living". Khan advises Artyom not to move when the Anomaly is around, and this saves their lives. It apparently only kills things that move.
Electromagnetic Ghosts: They seem to be attracted to large amounts of electricity, as Khan notes in the Last Light DLC. In Exodus, Silanius uses this to convince his cultists to swear off electric equipment.
Shock and Awe: They periodically release large bursts of electricity.
Will-o'-the-Wisp: They certainly resemble them.

"The Great Door"

An unusual phenomenon that attacks Artyom and Bourbon when they fall into a drainage room at the beginning of the Lost Catacombs level of Metro 2033. It takes the form of a giant shadowy "door" that tries to draw people in.

Eldritch Abomination: We have no idea what it is, except that it tries to kill anyone who falls into its room.
Genius Loci: A possible example, considering it has led a number of other explorers to their deaths in the same room. It may be actively malevolent, or else completely detached from human morality.
Hell Gate: It may be a reference to one, seeing as it kills anyone who falls victim to it.
Hell Is That Noise: We don't actually hear it, but Bourbon claims that it "sings" and says he wouldn't wish it on his worst enemy.
Intoxication Ensues: Falling into the Great Gate's room causes you to suffer hallucinations, and in Bourbon's case, he starts ranting about the door "singing".
Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: Is it a malevolent spirit, or just a hallucination caused by the toxic gas in the room?
Nothing Is Scarier: Its "singing" is unheard but is apparently extremely unpleasant to listen to. And we never get any idea what the hell it is. The room it's in is just a place where reality stopped functioning normally.

"The River of Fate"

Another anomaly of the post-apocalyptic Metro system introduced in the Khan level of Metro Last Light. It's apparently dangerous to most people, but it helps Artyom on its journey by granting his wish to "undo his fate" and atone for the destruction of the Dark Ones..

Blue-and-Orange Morality: It's described as amoral despite its massive influence on reality around it.
Dem Bones: Skeletons in the vicinity can somehow move thanks to its power.
Eldritch Abomination: A relatively benevolent one by Metro standards, it's not dangerous (to Artyom and Khan at least) and even helps the former on his quest.
Evil Phone: Not quite evil, but Artyom can pick up a ringing phone in a nearby tunnel and hear the voice of his long dead mother.
Genius Loci: It has the power to grant wishes. According to Khan it's somehow dangerous to most people.
Make a Wish: Grants those, as long as they're related to fate or forgiveness.
Reality Is Out to Lunch: Diving in the river can take you to a different place and time, and help you "change" your fate. The area around the river is similarly anomalous, with phones where one can hear the voices of the dead, and skeletons that move.
Rock of Limitless Water: Where the water comes from and where it goes isn't clear, but considering the general weirdness of the place this is fairly minor.
You Can't Fight Fate: Subverted. It actually helps Artyom somehow change his future.

"The Darkness"

"The Darkness" is a strange phenomenon in some areas that prevents you from using any electronic light sources, hence the name.

The Corrupter: A bandit in Last Light, who allegedly lost his former crew to the Darkness, claims it can do this. Weak-minded humans can fall under it's influence, manifesting as a desire to stay in it, black tentacles pouring out of their mouths and eyes and going berserk when somebody turns on a light near them.
Demonic Possession: If the bandit telling the story above is true, then the Darkness can take control of people that lack the mental fortitude to resist its influence.
Electromagnetic Ghosts: Its presence disables your flashlight and night vision goggles. Somehow it doesn't affect your night vision ''scopes'' or your Laser Sight.
Nothing Is Scarier: It has no visible presence except its interference with your electronics, manifesting when you enter and exit it in the form of electric crackling sounds and static flickering.
Tentative Light: Its presence in the game is to create a creepier atmosphere by disabling your stronger lights, forcing you to advance slowly by the flame of your lighter and pay attention to the environment.

"The Master"

"The Master" is a psychic phenomenon that compels people to go wander in Metro tunnels, never coming back.

Ambiguous Situation: Is there really a "Master" somewhere in the tunnels? Or is it just a (sub)urban legend?
Brainwashed and Crazy: The Master seems to have this effect on those unlucky enough to fall prey to it, with the person in particular becoming enthralled to the point of resisting and escaping any attempts to capture or restrain them, then directed to walk off into the nearest tunnel and to their doom.
Cosmic Horror Story: If it really exists, then it means that at any time anyone in the Metro may just be brainwashed into wandering into a dark, uncharted tunnel and never being seen again. Nobody knows why people are chosen or what happens to them.
Eldritch Abomination: There's something out there compelling people to enter abandoned tunnels and never being seen again.
Nothing Is Scarier: It's never encountered, only heard about in conversations.
Psychic Powers: How it seems to work. Individuals affected will stop their activities all of a sudden and walk in the nearest tunnel, only saying "I've been summoned by the Master" over and over. Trying to stop somebody "summoned" will only result in the affected breaking off his holders or, if somehow restrained, chew through their bindings or crawl away.
Unseen Evil: The only thing that�s known about the Master is the effect it has on its victims. Everything else about it, including appearance, motives, and even the ultimate fate of those who fall under its sway, just raises more questions than answers.

Characters / Metro

Edit Locked

Introduced in Metro 2033

Artyom Chyornyj

Hunter

Alex/Sukhoi

Eugine

Bourbon

Khan Aitmatov

Andrew/Andrei

Ulman

Pavel

Colonel Sviatoslav Konstantinovich "Miller" Mel'nikov

Vladimir

Boris and Stepan

Introduced in Metro 2034

Homer

Sasha

Artyom Popov

Introduced in Last Light

Anna Sviatoslavovna Mel'nikova

Pavel Igorevich Morozov

Führer

General Czeslav Andreyevich Korbut

Lesnitsky

Maxim Leonidovich Moskvin

The Baby Dark One

Red Line Sniper

Hans

Ranger Trainee

The Stalker

Introduced in Metro 2035

Aleksei Bessolov

Lyokha/Aleksei Zvonariov

Letyaga

Dietmar

Igor Dukov

Lance Corporal Samuel Taylor

Introduced in Metro Exodus

Aurora Crew

Yermak

Idiot

Alyosha

Damir

Tokarev

Wastelanders

Volga River

Caspian Desert

Giulnara Khakimova

The Taiga

The Admiral

Olga

Roman

Novosibirsk

Kirill Khlebnikov

Colonel Slava Khlebnikov

General Anatoly Semyonovich "Tolya" Vinogradov

Vladivostok

Captain Eduard Baranov

Tom "the Cat"

Klim

Zhora Yakovlevich Korzhov

Major Factions

Invisible Watchers

The Ark

Munai-bailer

Mutants

Paranormal Phenomena

Alternative Title(s): Metro Last Light, Metro Exodus, Metro 2033

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