Stalker: Shadow of Chernobyl → Cordon
Exit the bunker, familiarize yourself with the controls, read the basic information, and head to the farmstead where the stalkers have settled. Here you can chat with people, steal some food from the basement, listen to jokes, and finally, talk to a stalker named Wolf.
Past the wreck of a bus, exit onto the main road. To the right is a military checkpoint; you don't need to go there. To the left, next to a train car and some concrete blocks, in front of a small bridge, lies the wounded stalker Tolik.
Now comes the first mission. It's very challenging for a tutorial, so be prepared. Stalkers await you by the road—here you'll have a choice: go on the assault with everyone or try to deal with the bandits alone, Rambo-style. The first option is easier, the second is more challenging.
The bandits are armed with pistols and sawed-off shotguns. Defeat them all and talk to Nimble. I wonder where he kept the drive so the bandits didn't find it? Overjoyed, the freed prisoner will share the location of a valuable stash.
The merchant will reward you with some information about Strelok and what's happening in the Zone. It turns out that the central areas of the Zone, richest in artifacts, are inaccessible due to mysterious, brain-deadening radiation.
A briefcase containing classified documents will help you uncover the secret of the mysterious events. It's hidden on the third floor of the Agroprom Institute. The problem is that the institute is in military hands, making it very difficult to storm. Let's start small: how to infiltrate the northern part of the Cordon, past the military checkpoint under the destroyed bridge?
You'll find notes in the dead stalker's PDA about these anomalies flashing according to a system. Apparently, the PDA owner misread the system. The second option is to go to the right of the bridge through a hole in the fence. It's crucial not to veer right there, to avoid the radiation patch. Finally, you can simply shoot the soldiers.
Checkpoint
Delighted by your success, Sidorovich will contact you and offer to speak with a stalker named Fox – he was just wandering around somewhere, fighting off mutants with varying success. You'll find Fox in one of the dilapidated houses. He's taken down quite a few blind dogs, but he's also taken a beating.
He himself knows nothing about Strelok, but his brother, Gray, who lives in an abandoned factory two kilometers to the north, might. Forward! You need to break through the checkpoint occupied by bandits to reach the Junkyard area.
See also:
Pistols in the Zone (parameters)