Player Information*
Name/Alias: Jayde
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Your Journal: ![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mordoriannazgul*
Age: 26
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Contact Information: e-mail: Jaydepuff@aol.com; aim: Jaydepuff; plurk: Greywolf360
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Characters already in the game: Fracas (OCC), Barricade (CRAU), Swoop (Canon)
Character Information*
Character Name: Strelok, or occasionally “Marked One”
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Character Canon: S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Shadow of Chernobyl
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Age: In his late 30s
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Race: Human
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Timeline/Pull Point: Post-game, “Good” ending
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History: S.T.A.L.K.E.R. wiki entryNothing is known about his life before he entered the Zone – which was likely some time in 2010 or 2009, around when stalkers were noticed in the Zone. Considering his affinity for the firearms available, it is likely he used to work for the military before becoming a stalker.
For the better part of Shadow of Chernobyl, Strelok has no memory of his past, instead trying to track down “the Strelok” because his PDA told him to kill the man. In the process he helps out a lot of his fellow stalkers and even a couple of scientists by finding things or dealing with mutants and bandits. he doesn't make close friends, admittedly, but some of them eventually become friendly with him due to his help. As well, he eventually learns that he
is the Strelok, and whoever sent the message to his PDA was trying to get him to kill himself. He sets out to find the one that did it – still helping those he crosses paths with – and ends up uncovering the greatest secret in all the Zone.
The ending he comes from is the one that is canon and is generally considered the “Good” ending to the game. Strelok passes up the opportunity to use the Wish Granter machine (having learned from Doctor that it’s just a lie) and finds a psychic hive mind called C-Consciousness. After having his questions answered – and learning that C-Consciousness is the reason the Zone is as terrible as it is, and that they came up with the fake Wish Granter as a cover for their existence – he makes the decision to get rid of C-Consciousness once and for all, and maybe heal the Zone in the process. After a long fight against the hive mind’s brainwashed soldiers (called the Monolith), he eventually reaches them and destroys C-Consciousness’s physical bodies. He escapes into a field somewhere outside of the Zone, uncertain if he made the right choice, but thankful that he made the choice anyway.
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Personality: Stalkers, especially those of the 'Loner' faction, often can't be said to have close friends. It's hazardous business to get that close with someone that could end up being killed by a pack of blind dogs or a bloodsucker tomorrow. In spite of this, Strelok had a certain group that he often worked with, primarily older 'legendary' stalkers like Guide, Doctor, Ghost, and Fang. Ghost and Fang in particular were the ones he worked with the most often. Strelok seemed to be the glue that held the group together, even loosely, as when he 'died' Ghost and Fang both went their separate ways, while Doctor returned to one of the group's old hideouts. Strelok got along well with all of them, often leaving notes for them at some of their established stashes as seen in
Call of Pripyat. Even after his amnesia he kept his generally friendly attitude towards other Loners, happy to assist them with finding lost items or clearing areas of mutants. He's willing to help out just about anyone, so long as they refrain from shooting at him... though anyone that looks like a bandit or military will have some difficulty with him.
Strelok is a very curious man, and rather adventurous even in the face of danger. It was, after all, his idea to head into Pripyat with Ghost and Fang, and penetrate into the NPP in spite of extremely dangerous (and brainwashed) Monolith soldiers. It was something he did not once, but three times, suggesting he is very brave, a little reckless, and very interested in finding out the truth... even if it could get him hurt. Telling him that very few people have gone into X area and fewer have survived is probably a bad idea. It's exactly that sort of thing that spurs him on to become one of those few. It's not the glory that he's after - no one recognizes his name in the games until he opens the way into Pripyat for everyone - but the sense of accomplishment. He doesn't care if anyone else knows, because
he'll know. With the opening of Pripyat he hopes that others will remember his name anyway… though he’ll likely keep the secret of the Zone and C-Consciousness to himself.
He is extremely determined, but he is also fairly easy-going. He's one if the stalkers that has been in the Zone the longest, and has seen a lot of people come and go. Sometimes people disappear into the wilderness and never return. Sometimes the pseudodog catches you. Sometimes you walk straight into an anomaly. Such is life in the Zone. He's already accepted the fact that someday, he's going to run out of luck. That hardly means he will go looking for danger (well.
More danger) or throw himself at a Controller... but it does mean that he's at peace with whatever happens. He's also at peace with the same happening to his friends. Be sad for a little while, but once you finish building the memorial, it's time to leave them there and keep going... but always remember them fondly. The only people he tends to have a problem with are military, those in power, and those trying to set or enforce laws. Considering he spends much of the game being shot at by the former and hunted by people in power and their enforcers (namely C-Consciousness and Monolith), it’s easy to guess that he’s not too fond of them.
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Powers/Abilities: Strelok doesn’t possess any powers, but he is a survivor in-canon. Those that have been in the Zone for a while usually are, but he and his group had been there longer than most, dealing with hostile creatures (some of which were invisible or worse, psychic), random and deadly environmental anomalies, bandits, well-armed soldiers, and heavy radiation. He knows how to get out of trouble and to keep himself alive in a hostile environment. He knows his way around basic first aid and the treatment of broken bones, gunshot wounds, and other such injuries.
Of note is the fact that Strelok probably has a cast-iron stomach. He has spent at least two years surviving on dry bread, vodka, sausage made from who knows what (they
say it’s chicken, but who can tell?), canned meat that may or may not have been irradiated, and energy drinks. The fact that his eating and drinking habits haven’t killed him is a miracle.
In addition, he’s skilled in the operation of a great number of firearms, primarily those of Russian and Ukrainian make. His chosen name means Sharpshooter or Gunslinger in Russian, and he’s very good at picking and taking out targets at will. Unfortunately, he’s also used to identifying anything that isn't human as a potential combatant, and if it looks nasty enough, he might end up taking potshots at it just in case.
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Inventory: Strelok can only carry so much… but he carries enough to be prepared for the dangers of the Zone. He wears a lightly-armored
Stalker suit and carries an
AKM-74/2U rifle for which he has about three magazines worth of 5.45x39mm ammo (about 90 rounds), and a
Martha pistol with one clip of 9x19mm ammo (15 rounds), as well as a hunting knife. In his pack he has one loaf of bread, three cans of “tourist’s delight” (basically canned meat left over from Zone evacuations), a bottle of Cossacks vodka (which can be used to diminish radiation slightly, in addition to the usual applications of alcohol), a variety of medical supplies (antiradiation drugs, bandages, and various supplies to deal with wounds, burns, poisons, pain, and infections), a pair of binoculars, a flashlight, his PDA (which is nonfunctional beyond its note-taking and Geiger-counter capacities), and his sleeping bag. He also has a small number of artifacts (items formed in anomalies that carry strange powers; they’re the most valuable items that can be found in the Zone, both scientifically and for survival in the Zone): “Mama’s Beads” which slightly reduces damage from gunshots, “Sparkler” which increases the user’s endurance but makes them susceptible to electricity, “Battery” which increases burn resistance, “Crystal” which reduces radiation and endurance, and “Stone Flower” which reduces damage from gunshots but makes someone more susceptible to radiation. The first four are kept in slots on his belt close to his skin. Strelok keeps the fifth mainly out of curiosity and sentiment. None of the artifacts particularly look like anything special, or even like their names suggest, but the Stone Flower glows faintly, especially when held up to the light of a campfire.
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Starting Polarity: Possibly Nexus Prime for his easy-going nature (and copious amounts of alcohol), or Alpha Trion or Liege Maximo due to his curiosity and habit of exploring.
If AU, how does your character differ from canon?: (Non AU apps may ignore this question. CRAUs and OAUs should get in to specifics here regarding what changes there are from their character's original canon. We'll need at least a paragraph explaining details.)Writing Samples*
First Person Sample: [The video comes on to show… the Junk Pile. Part of which opens up. Wait, that’s in
front of the Junk Pile. Someone has made a small shack out of pieces of wood and corrugating steel, tied together with ropes and sealed with what looks like mud. And the person that made this ramshackle shelter is none other than Strelok, who looks pleased as punch.]
I made it myself. Not too bad, eh? Perhaps some of you would like to stop by for a little… house-warming party?
[He pulls out a pretty good-sized bottle of vodka, wagging it a little.]
I’ll share with anyone that stops by. Though you robots might not like it so well…
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Third Person Sample: He checks and re-checks his supplies before heading out, clambering up the sides of one of the piles of garbage the Junk Pile is named for. Every once in a while he stops on his way up, rooting through if he happens to spot something that might be useful. A half-full box of ammo here, a can of Red Bull with a few swigs left in it there. Strelok shrugs and finishes the can, digging a little more in that spot. Ah! A few shreds of fabric. Now if he could find some thread, he could maybe patch up his hoodie; the elbow has a hole in it…
again. God only knows when that happened. Could have snagged on a piece of metal on the way up sometime.
He rearranges things a little, shuffling the bullets into a box of the same type he’s carrying and shoves the fabric into the bottom of his pack before continuing up the pile. There’s more on his way up that he shoves in: some strips of leather, a piece of metal that might make a good machete for someone… but also dented cans. Probably full of botulism, so he is the only one that would bother eating them. The possibility didn't matter enough to dissuade him either way. He tosses a couple into one of the front pockets on his backpack and moves on.
Finally, he finds what he was looking for about halfway up the pile. Strelok practically crows in triumph. Undented cans of food, and some of them still had their labels! This is exactly what the others had asked him to find. He opens his pack and starts stacking them in, making a mental checklist. Cream of mushroom, chicken broth, corn, baked beans… and three cans of shrimp. And four others that didn’t have enough label to be identified. He’s practically packing a
feast into his backpack. “These bastards don’t know how lucky they are,” he murmurs as he closes his pack. Well, no need to press his luck any further. If he stays to long a bathtub is liable to fall on him from out of the sky. Strelok slings his back over one shoulder and starts picking his way back down, whistling a tune he’d heard on the radio. The trips were appallingly short, but too fruitful to complain about. The other shoe will probably drop eventually, though.
Final Notes: Strelok is an adventurer at heart and probably spent a lot of his time exploring out beyond the Haven, hunting for treasure and secrets and possibly an alternate place for organics to live. He probably would have tried to organize efforts to keep the human population in decent shape, too, though his exploration and anything he learned about the planet would take priority for him.
