Pripyat 1 underpass

Pripyat Underground

The Pripyat Underground is a level that appears only in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat. It is the third level in the game.

Description

The Pripyat Underground can be accessed from the Jupiter Factory, which is located in Yanov. Before entering the Pripyat Underground, the player must acquire the Underpass Schematics and then assemble a team of at least one, maximum of four other Stalkers. A suit with a closed cycle respiratory module is a necessity due to the harsh conditions of the Pripyat Underground.

Unlike previous underground levels, the Pripyat Underground is rather large but straightforward. It contains several large rooms with very high ceilings, as well as a few tight corridors. It is home to several different anomalies, including Vortex anomalies. you will not ever see the level after getting to pripyat again.

Enemies

The Pripyat Underground is a rather difficult level, especially if you wish to keep your squad players alive, which is a necessity in order to get more positive endings. There are a large number of Snorks in several rooms and a handful of Rodents, as well as a few hordes of Zombified Stalkers. On your way out of the underground, you'll be ambushed by a Monolith squad.

Walk-through

Before you leave with Zulu and whatever other squad members you have, it is highly recommended you ensure you have at least some of these items:

• SPSA-14 or Eliminator with lots of 12x70 Buckshot rounds
• Upgraded, scoped assault rifle with lots of ammo (armor piercing rounds suggested)
• SEVA Suit (required)

If you're able to bring a sniper rifle and an extra armored suit (Guardian of Freedom Suit, PSZ-9d Duty Armor, CHN-3a Battle Armour, SKAT-9M Military Armored Suit, or Exoskeleton), by all means do so.

After Nitro lowers the elevator, it loses power - you can't go back until you reach Pripyat itself and complete a quest there. The initial resistance in the level isn't too terribly difficult, but the more party members you bring, the more hectic and more likely you are to suffer from friendly fire incidents.

The first few sections of tunnels are patrolled by Rodents and Snorks, which usually attack in pairs. If the player hasn't brought a back-up suit, their flash-light will be the only way of seeing anything - and due to the short range, one will have to rely on their teammates' flashlights in order to spot most threats at a distance. It is important to quick save after every encounter - the snorks get progressively stronger and more numerous until they can tear you or one of your partners apart in seconds.

Eventually, after the first long staircase, the snorks will begin coming from behind, lunging from behind piles of rubble and ventilation shafts to try and get the drop on the team. If Strider and Zulu have survived to this point, they are their normal targets. The large blast doors the player comes across further on marks the last of the mutant threat - upon nearing it, three snorks will leap from behind, and once the door opens, another five come scrambling through it - if the player panics and hits the switch too soon, his squad can be quickly overwhelmed by the sheer onslaught.

After they breach the main chamber of the underground, the player's free to switch out the SEVA Suit for a more rugged suit if they brought one - the carbon monoxide and chemical compound dissipate. By searching around, a Jellyfish can be found near the only lit building, inside a cargo container. The goal is to now turn on the power and open the last door leading to the Pripyat sewer system. Climbing onto the generator and throwing the switch triggers an ambush - Monolith units were prepared for such an event, and come pouring out from behind the cargo containers behind the player, led by an Exoskeleton-clad expert. After putting them down, the player can investigate their hideout for a silencer, before returning to the lit building.

A sniper rifle or a very accurate assault rifle is a must for this next part, as the moment the player approaches the top floor of this building, Monolith snipers appear on catwalks, and begin firing on either him or his surviving squad. One appears high on the left, and another on the right, while more troops move in from one of the tunnels on the right side. The snipers are the first priority as they can easily kill the player with a single shot from each of them. However, Strider does a good job killing the snipers but don't rely on him or any of your teammates.

Once this ambush is put down, the most difficult part of the trip is done. Up ahead are numerous Zombified Stalkers, and a few more snorks, but they're relatively easy to put down with little trouble. Push through a couple chambers of these, and you'll have made your way to Pripyat.

If any of your teammates die at any time, the ending of your campaign suffers. It is recommended that you restart from a previous save game if you suffer a casualty. Make lots of saves.

Notes

• The Pripyat Underground is the first way to get to Pripyat. After finishing this level and grabbing the Mysterious Weapon following the fight in Pripyat Hospital, Garik can escort the player from Pripyat to Yanov and vice versa.

• Up to four people can accompany you in the Pripyat Underground. Those people include Zulu, Lt. Sokolov, Vano, and Rogue. Other than providing much needed firepower, Vano will also show the player safe route through anomaly fields (using a Svarog Detector. How he acquired it is unknown) and Rogue will take care of enemy snipers during the Monolith ambush. All four must be kept alive in order to achieve the best ending slideshows.

• A suit with a closed cycle breathing module is needed to get into the Pripyat Underground. SEVA Suit is the only one that qualifies.

• Inside the underground the Carbon monoxide gas is only chemical damage and it is not totally necessary to use a SEVA suit to survive in the underground, but must be brought to commence the trip. Note however that the CO is capable of eating away armor durability at a frighting pace, even an Exoskeleton without a Meat Chunk or a PSZ-9d Duty armour won't last more than 5 minutes when exposed to the gas. A Meat Chunk artifact must be worn in-tandem to ensure that the gas doesn't kill the player due to compromised armor.

• In case of severely damaged armor, it is advised to bring some Antidote for protection against chemical damage. Though note that this will not protect armor durability.

• The player should check for supplies in the tunnels as they progress, as there are often piles of ammunition, medical supplies, and grenades in corners or in vehicles. The most valuable items are a Desert Eagle on the seat of a jeep early in the tunnels, two RPG warheads on top of a container near the first Monolith soldiers, a jellyfish artifact in a shipping container near the anomalies in the trainyard, and a SEVA suit in a room behind the stairs leading to the trainyard control room (behind several vortex anomalies).

• After opening the final blast door into the main chamber, the "Carbon Monoxide" safely dissipates and protection is no longer required.

• The Pripyat Underground was going to be featured in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Clear Sky and is playable in Build 3120, where it is nearly identical to the model in S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat. Unfortunately the level cut from the game but Lebedev still mentions it in the Limansk Hospital.