New Years Raiding - Raids 9 to 15 - Level 9

BSG is running a ton of Christmas/New Years events - more than they ever have before. There are Christmas trees in the hideout, ornaments to loot, Christmas trees on the map with scavs and scav bosses circling them, Santa Claus and Ded Moroz are both wandering around handing out presents and there are air drops from planes!  All of these things, the holiday, and the new wipe with VOIP means two things: tons of new players and the servers are struggling.  Supposedly BSG is having some problems that aren't simply fixed by adding new servers - probably because of the VOIP, which presents several architectural challenges.

I tried to play day before yesterday, but couldn't connect to any real raids. Instead I ran some offline raids, which were a lot of fun. I hunted the various bosses around the Christmas trees.  Yesterday I also had some free time and ran several online raids.

Raid 9 - Delivery From The Past Part I and Supplier

Destination: Customs

Loadout: trusty AK-74M, beaten up Class 4 armor, meds, ears. 

I do not have the key for the Tarcone Director's office, but maybe if I get there later it'll be left open by someone who does.  I spawned in above the railroad tracks. Hmm. I probably should head down to the industrial section and loot there - I need a lot of things for my hideout, it's woefully behind.  But that doesn't sound fun enough. I think I'll go visit the Christmas tree.

Killed the tower sniper scav from over 200 meters.  I circled behind the third story dorms building. I climbed on some boxes and entered the rear window of one of the bedrooms. Then I opened the door to the hall, opened the door from the room across the hall, and backed up to cover in the first room. From here I can lean out and shoot across the hall, across the next bedroom and through the window onto the Christmas tree - it's  a great place for killing Reshala and his boys.  Except they weren't there.  A single scav was circling the tree.  That seems like a rather lonely and dismal celebration. I felt bad for him - killing him was a mercy.   Now what? Loot dorms? Nah, I don't have any keys. I'll go to the industrial section to look for hideout loot.

On the way there, I stopped in that shipping container that has the stash inside. Footsteps approaching. I made sure I was safe from a rear attack and waited. A scav ran right into the container, I blasted him with autofire.  Happy New Year!  That scav had both a Toz shotgun and the white 3M armor I need for the supplier quest.  Awesome.  And change of plans - time to leave.

I crossed the map, and checked the Tarcone Director's office on my way to extract - it was open!! Double Happy New Year!  I scored the package for Prapor and extracted.

Time In Raid: 19:15
Exp: 1727
Ammo used: 29, Hits: 14, Accuracy: 0.38, Damage To body: 359, To Armor: 218
Kills: Kolyan Pogon (Sniper), Fedya Korzh (AI Scav), Egor Zhivchik (AI Scav).  Happy New Year gentlemen!  Thanks for the raid. And thank you Egor for bringing me the armor and the Toz - you rock!

Raid 10 - Delivery from the Past Part 2.

Destination: Factory

Loadout: My worst class 4 armor, meds, and a Grach pistol.  No backpack.

Spawned in the glass hallway. Went to leave but got stuck on the door frame somehow. BAM! someone shot me in the arm. Fuck! I staggered out of the hallway into the big room. I ran up the stairs and got stuck on another doorway trying to get into the little ready room. Has my PMC been drinking?  I deposited the deliverable and ran down the stairs and extracted - getting stuck on one more door frame. 

Time In Raid: 1 minute, 32 seconds
Exp: 769 (not a run through, surprisingly)

Successes

• with both Supplier and Delivery from the Past I made Level 8
• this also means I've survived 6 raids in a row. This is a personal record for me across four different wipes.  

Raid 11 - Double/Quadruple Questing - BP Depot and Extortionist

I have two new quests: mark the four tankers and pick up something from a cabin in the industrial cul-de-sac.  The second quest requires the Unknown Key, but I picked that up several raids ago.

Loadout: my trusty AK-74M, Class 4 armor, meds, ears and snacks! This will likely be a long raid, so I should bring food and drink.

Spawned above the railroad tracks. Made my way over to New Gas.  Jumped over the leaning fence and entered New Gas from behind. Checked it out - it was quiet. I started to round the building when a scav shouted right in my ear and blasted me with a shotgun, nearly killing me. I spun and started dumping ammo into him. He got off another shot before he died.  I staggered behind one of the fences and began healing. Broken arm, bleeds, two blacked arms, every other body part on minimum. I staunched the bleeding, splinted the arm and healed up. I have a CMS kit but I've used up all my cheese so it's useless.  Maybe I'll find a salewa or something

I marked the tanker. Entered the industrial section, unlocked the cabin and got the package for Skier.  As I made my way to Old Gas, another scav shouted - I dodged to cover, he chased me and started firing and landing shots. I sprayed and sprayed but my blacked arms were making the weapon handling impossible. I ran and took new cover - he jumped to cover as well. I scoped him, held my breath, and miraculously landed a shot on his head.  Now my legs are blacked.

I limped into the basement of the warehouse - there is a med case and loose meds down there. Got some augmentin and some hydrogen peroxide.  Awesome.  I ate my lunch, took a painkiller and clambered out.  I resumed my course to Old Gas, going through the underpass, when I heard footsteps above. That's got to be a player.  Did he hear me? He dropped his backpack, answering that question.  He jumped down and entered the underpass. I had a fairly nice keyhole shot lined up - but it did me little good with the blacked arms. I fired and missed, he fired and did not.

Time In Raid: 12 minutes, 39 seconds
Exp: 1215
Ammo Used: 58, Hits: 8, Accuracy: 0.1, Damage to Body: 306, to Armor: 25
Kills: Miha Mayonez and Afanasiy Hryasch (AI Scavs).
Killed By: Head-EyesMePlz   .  GG Head-EyesMePlz  - nice shooting!  But please, don't take my AK-74M. I've grown rather fond of it and I can't easily replace it.

Mistakes

• I half considered using VOIP to beg for clemency and meds.  In retrospect, that probably was the better play.  There was no way I was going to win that fight.  
• Ended my survival streak.

Successes

• Marked one tanker

Raid 12 - Second attempt at Double/Quadruple Questing

Loadout: lightly modded Vityaz SMG with dot sight, Class 4 armor, meds, ears, food and drink.

Once again, into the breach. I spawned near smugglers extract.  My own extract is ZB-1011, so I need to mark the tanker on the far side of the river first.  I took cover and scoped the little junk bridge - a player was crossing it, coming my direction. Far enough away that I couldn't hear him. I waited for him to approach, but he didn't. He ascended directly to the road and started fighting with scavs above.  I took the opportunity to scoot.  

I marked all three tankers, crossed the river twice, fought some scavs at RUAF.  Struggled a bit with the Vityaz. The cabin with Skier's package was already open - I didn't need my key. I got the package. As I exited the cabin I saw a scav in the middle of the yard. He looked at me, but didn't wiggle, didn't shout, didn't fire. Was he trying VOIP? I didn't hear anything. I shot him down.  At first I felt bad about it, but when I arrived to loot I felt less bad.  There were two dead scavs there, not one, and loose loot on the ground. Did that scav trick/betray the other?  I gathered up their loot and extracted.

Time In Raid: 28 minutes, 16 seconds
Exp: 2012
Ammo Used: 88, Hit: 23, Damage to body: 916, to Armor: 66
Kills: Lyova Klim (AI Scav), Petr Etsamoe (AI Scav), Seryy Shustrila (AI Scav), Oleg Student (Player Scav)

Mistakes:

• didn't get the greatest loot, but it was not a priority this raid

Successes

• closed out 2 more quests, plus 2 operational quests (survive Customs, kill scavs).  This raid was a whopping success.
• Achieved Level 9

Raid 13 - Looting

I now have the Bad Rep Evidence quest, but that requires one of the Portable Cabin Keys, and I don't have either.  But I also need lots of things for my hideout. So maybe I'll go looting and just see if the Portable Cabin is open.

Spawned in the passage between the rocks.  I'll carefully swing around Military Checkpoint. Careful is good. A player was approaching, not being careful.  I fired on him, landing shots, but not killing him. He ran towards the military checkpoint. I started moving parallel, hoping to corner him, but keeping the rise of the ground between us. I peeked over. There was green smoke billowing from lower down the hillside. OK - that's an odd choice.  I circled back around.  I never got eyes on him again.  Nor anyone else. I looted, got mostly great loot (but no toilet paper, measuring tape, spark plug or salewas) and extracted.  Wait!! I forgot to check to see if the portable cabin was open!  

Time In Raid: 19 minutes: 47 seconds
Exp: 1366
Ammo Used: 5, Hits: 1, Accuracy: 0.2, Damage to Body: 5, Damage to Armor: 40

Mistakes

• not checking the portable cabin
• apparently I only landed one shot, and it didn't do much damage. I miss my AK-74M.

Successes

• survived

Raid 14 - Bad Rep Evidence and Salewa's

Making another attempt. But this time I want to focus on finding Salewa's.  

Spawned in the trailer parking lot on far side of river. Crossed the river, killed some scavs near RUAF. One of them had a like-new Class 4 rig, for which we agreed to trade. (if he did not think it was a good deal, he made no objection).  If there are scavs here, that might be a good sign that players haven't been through here.  I moved towards crack house.  BAM! someone was shooting me from the windows of Crack House. I ran for cover. BAM! another shot landed, I was stam drained. I popped a pain and miraculously was able to make it to some cover without being shot again.  I staggered over behind the little cabins and esmarched.  I need to heal - and fix my blacked leg, but not here. 

I limped into the garage. Footsteps approached. I quieted down, weapon ready on the open door. Covered by the truck from the other door. The footsteps stomped around - he was looking for me. He had followed the bleed to behind the cabins, but lost the scent there.  If he's following blood trails, then he's dangerous - and my Vityaz hasn't been as fluid as it was last wipe. I waited - not moving a muscle.  He patrolled. I could hear him approaching.  But then a scav shouted and fired and that became a thing. I waited. Threat was gone.

I healed and headed out. Well, crack house has been hit. There's probably no reason to return. I'll start at big skeleton. As I approached I noticed something I wasn't expecting: the portable cabin door was open!  Yes!!  I started moving that direction. But I wasn't the only one in the vicinity. Footsteps stomping in bushes. Is that one of the scavs patrolling the road?  

"You know, I'm just going to go this way, OK?"  - a voice in my head. At first I thought it was a visitation from God. But then I realized it was just another player, using VOIP.

"Fair enough", I replied.  And then stopped my advance. I ascended to the portable cabin and got my package.    Afterwards I regretted that interaction with the other player. My first words in VOIP were "fair enough" ?  How disappointing.  I'm usually better at extemporaneous speaking.

Once I had the package for Prapor, I dropped the Salewa search. I heard one other player fighting with scavs at Old Gas, but I was risk averse. I extracted.

Time In Raid: 26 minutes, 46 seconds
Exp: 1572
Shots Fired: 70, Hits: 8 ,Accuracy: 0.11, Damage to Body: 298, to Armor: 50
Kills (AI Scavs): Miha Korch and Vlad Travmat.   Godspeed gentlemen, and happy new year.  Thanks for the armor Vlad!

Mistakes

• didn't get much loot

Successes

• survived
• another quest down.  I'm not far from Level 10.

Raid 15 - Reserve

I'm getting tired of Customs.  This Vityaz has been giving me a bit of trouble in these mid-range encounters. But it's still a monster in close range ones. I think I'll make a trip to Reserve.  Why not? If I die, I die.  Sounds fun.

Loadout: Vityaz, new Class 4 rig, meds, ears, backpack.

Spawned in one of the garages. Checked the jackets, looted, and moved over to King.  While in the King garages, I heard a player approaching. I took up a well covered position in the server racks.  The player approached the garage doorway, slowed down, but didn't enter. He moved on.  Strange.  

Seconds later, there were more footsteps, these from inside King, just on the other side of the hall from me. Is that the same player? A flashlight shined through the bathroom into the garages. But the player did not enter.  He moved on.  This is very strange.

I moved to the bathrooms. Sounds of combat in the streets. That's my cue. I moved through King and opened the door leading to the basement.  I'm surprised that I would be the first to come this way.  I closed the door behind me and descended. I carefully made my way into the bunker. It was quiet.

Hmm - I really want to fight some raiders. I'd love to get my hands on some of their weapons.  But I checked it over - no one.  Damnit - are we back to the days of no raiders?  The supply crates in the big room each had only two one slot items - the slimmest of pickings.  What's going on?  Is it just me and some guy upstairs in this whole raid?

I pulled the D2 switch.  No noise. I checked for raiders. None.  I extracted via D2, hitting the safe as I went. Lootwise, this was a great raid. I got a spark plug, bolts, nuts, all sorts of things for my hideout. But no raiders.  Huh. 

Time In Raid:  15 minutes, 50 seconds
Exp: 967

Mistakes

• where is everyone?

Successes

• survived
• great loot