Raids 75 - 79 -- Punisher 2 Completed -- Level 18

I really like the Scar-L, though I wish I could get some decent ammo for it. FMJ is fine for scavs, and it has the advantage that it's quite a fast round, so it works well at long range.  Regardless, the problem with the Scar-L is the same problem I always have: rubles.  The Scar-L costs about 60K, plus 20k for foregrip and a laser, plus another 30K for the suppressor and another 30K for the Monstrum 2x scope I love.  Oh - and I really prefer the 14" barrel, so there's that too (though I have a trick for getting that barrel for super cheap).  

But for scav hunting, do I really need the Scar-L ?  I do not. I know I promised myself no more low-level weapons now that I've reached the flea, but I do like the ADAR and haven't run it at all this wipe. So I switched to that.  I still have to pay for the suppressor and the scope, but with some trades and tricks I can keep the cost of everything else pretty low.  I tried it out offline (as I still don't have a shooting range) and it's working well. I like it.

Raid 75 - Snipers

Loadout: My ADAR and no armor (can't afford it).  Meds, ears, food and drink.

I spawned on the north edge of the map, behind the resort.  Made my way over to the rear military crossing - there was a sniper on the rock - I took him out.  A bit later, a second one appeared and I took him out too. Nice. I heard some bait shots coming from the resort - from a low rise I peeked into the rear grounds but no sign of any scavs or any activity.  

I began working my way around the resort, on the west side, hoping to head to the bus depot.  WHIZZ! Suppressed sniper fire. Pretty sure it's a DVL-10 Sabateur, which is a bolt-action.  I think it's coming from the northwest. I immediately started running to the north east, just a few steps and I should be in the lee of that big rock and out of view.  BAM! A hit! (right arm) Fuck. Worse, I think the shooter is behind me, to the southwest. This isn't good - I don't have hard cover to leap behind - I started zig-zagging heading toward the water, planning to drop behind a bush.  But I was dropped before the bush, shot through the stomach with M80.  If I were wearing a class 4 armor set would I have survived that shot?  Don't know.

Time In Raid: 9 minutes, 30 seconds
Exp: 474
Shots: 5, Hits: 3, Accuracy: 0.6, Body: 119
Kills: Petro Rakolov (sniper), Miha Russkiy (sniper)
Killed By: ZoobieJr .  Good shooting ZoobieJr !!  Please don't take my weapon.

Mistakes

• misplacing the sniper, running wrong direction.  A bolt-action is not a fast firing weapon - if I had identified that first shot correctly I would have fled back the way I came and likely would have gotten cover.
• would armor have given me a bit more time?  I was using the MMAC recently which does not cover the stomach, IIRC. So, in this particular case, it would have not made any difference.

Successes

• killed two scavs

Raid 76 - Loot Run on Shoreline

I took a suppressed pistol just in case I encountered scavs - might as well move the quest along. But I encountered no one. I did, however, score a class 6 hex grid armor set.    Yes!!

Time In Raid: 14:24
Exp: 761

Raid 77 - Slow Progress

My ADAR did not come back on insurance. I spent the money from my last loot run building two ADARs with suppressors and scopes.  Got to get this quest done.

Loadout: ADAR and no armor. Food, drink, meds, ears.

Spawned at road to customs. Made my way to the weather station, just as I started to scope it out, a scav ran out the front gate, away from me, into the trees. I didn't realize they patrolled outside.  There were two others. I fired on one, hitting him, but not killing him.  That sent all of them aflutter - one ran around the building, another to ran to the shed.  I don't want the shed one behind me. I went around and ran into the shed, firing as I approached, and killed him. Stepped into the shelter of the shed just as the other started firing on me.  Then I circled around and took him out too.  Checked the building - it's been looted. I bet that was a player scav I saw leaving, not a patrol scav.  

Made my way to the power station. The stash on the way was hit already - I must be following that player scav.   It was quiet at the power station. Entered it from the rear - two dead scavs at the roadway entrance. I wonder if either of them is the player scav I'm tailing? I didn't loot them - they were too exposed.  I circled back around the station and crossed the river on the little catwalk bridge.  Just as I was about to depart the area I heard a scav voiceline behind me. Turned and the sniper scav had just spawned in. Brought him down.  I waited a bit to see if more voices would join, but no.  

Where to now? Up to bus station or down to gas?  How about the gas station? I haven't tried that on this quest yet.  Gas seemed empty. But just as I was about to give up I caught movement in the corner of my eye.  Is that a scav? Or a player? I cautiously approached.  Someone mumbled something in Russian - I scoped in, could barely make out a form through the bushes, and killed myself a scav.  

I circled around the gas station looking for other scavs, but there were none. I scoped the pier from a variety of angles and listened. No way am I heading down there unless I know for sure there are scavs. But no clues were given. 

I moved on. Checked scav island. Nothing. Tunnel and the little guard house? Nobody. I was on my way to village when in-real-life interruption happened, causing me to turn around and extract at tunnel.

Time In Raid: 37 minutes, 18 seconds
Exp: 2291
Shots: 24, Hits: 14, Accuracy: 0.42, Body: 408, Armor: 158
Kills: Mstislav Filolog, Trifon Krutoy, Afanasiy Shnek (sniper), Vasya Upakovschik

Mistakes

• not much loot

Successes

• killed four scavs. I could easily have gotten more had I encountered any

Raid 78 - Same Mistake As Ever

I need three more scav kills to complete this quest. How many raids will that require? Four?

Spawned down near construction area on the water. Looked for the scav who sometimes haunts that area, but he was off duty.  Where to next? How about the weather station?  I crossed the road and made my way there. I was working my around the hill the station sits atop, approaching it from the east. I heard footsteps and saw the faintest of blurs in the grass ahead. I kneeled to scope ahead and was immediately headshot for my trouble.

Time In Raid: 4 minutes, 12 seconds
Exp: 82
Killed By: SlayerB-rye with 7.62x54mm (suppressed SVDS I believe).  Good shot SlayerB-rye!

Mistakes

• the minute I thought there was a player in that direction, I should have taken hard cover. Stopping and scoping is absolutely the wrong play. Why do I keep doing that?
• I was assuming that I saw him before he saw me, and that was a mistake.

Successes

• had the foresight to build two ADARs, so I can jump straight into the next raid.

Raid 79 - Quest Completed

Spawned outside CCCP Terminal. Made my way into the construction area. Hit the stash, and while looting it heard footsteps approaching.  The scav who haunts construction is up! Yes.  I bailed on the stash and circled around a container and killed him.  That's one.  Returned to the stash and crossed the road. Let's bear towards gas this time.

No one at gas. Seemingly no one at pier. Went up to the power station. The sniper was up. I brought him down.  I turned on the aiming laser and flashlight (for the windows) and entered the area - two scavs were there, behind the station. I killed both of them, but I have to say the 855 and FMJ was struggling.  One of them had a class 4 armored rig, which I had now mostly ruined, but it's better than what I'm wearing, which is nothing. So I put on the rig.  I circled the station and jumped into one of the power closets near the entrance. A scav shouted from the front.  I bet that's a sniper scav on the roof. I carefully leaned and scoped the roof. No one.  A scav shouted and fired. Oof, that hurt!  I ran back out the back of the station, fled behind a hill and medded. I medded a lot, I was in bad shape. Whoever hit me hit me with something hard. I bet that's a sniper scav.  Was he in the building again?  Maybe.

I carefully went up the hill and scoped the roof. It was clear. I crept closer. I scoped the roofline again, it's definitely empty. I started scoping the yard - I don't see anyone. A scav shouted and fired - through my scope I saw the weapon flash from atop the roof!  I'm looking right at the spot where the weapon just discharged and there is no one there. I need to go. I started running down the hill, but wasn't quick enough. Invisible sniper scav shot me dead.

Time In Raid: 19 minutes, 2 seconds
Exp: 1265
Shots: 47, Hits: 18, Accuracy: 0.34, Body: 549, Armor: 256
Kills: Danila Pingvin, Petro Spartakovskiy (sniper), Sozon Mers, Fedya Predatel.  Godspeed gentlemen.

Killed By: Ivan Botan (sniper).  Nice camouflage, Ivan!

Mistakes

• going up that hill? Technically, I made sure the roof was clear before going up there, so as a mistake this is arguable.  But probably game-wise I should just avoid it.
• died

Successes

• finished the quest
• gathering the half-masks since the beginning of the wipe was smart

PostScript

It took me five raids to finish Punisher Part 1, and six to finish Punisher Part 2 ( I'm not counting the two loot runs). To me that seems really slow. For Punisher Part 1 I barely encountered any other players and neither killed any nor was killed by any in those five raids. Died twice to the sniper scav at the power station and survived the other three raids. 

For Punisher Part 2, I died four times to other players and once to that same sniper scav. I survived only one raid of the six.  In three of those four deaths to players I did not see the player who killed me. In two of them I neither saw nor heard (excepting the weapon fire) the player who killed me.  

Annoyingly, I am still 10,000 XP short of level 19, so I can't even get started on Punisher 3.