In Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl, Dr. Shcherba's request for help initiates the side quest "In the Name of Science," a multi-part mission involving mutant electronic collars and moral choices.
Collecting the Electronic Collars:
This mission begins with locating five electronic collars from various mutants across the Zone. These locations are pre-marked on your map. If any are missing, it's possible you've already acquired them during other missions or exploration. The locations are:
| Region | Collar Location | Mutant |
|---|---|---|
| Garbage | The Brood | Snork |
| Wild Island | Boathouse | Psy Bayun |
| Zaton | Hydrodynamics Lab | Controller |
| Malachite | Brain Scorcher | |
| Red Forest | Containers | Pseudogiant |
After collecting all five, return to Shcherba at the Roofed Warehouse in the Chemical Plant. If the quest becomes bugged due to previously collected collars, use the console command "XEndQuestNodeBySID E08_SQ01_S2_SetJournal_WaitForSherbaCall_Finish_Pin_0" to proceed.
The Jamming Device:
Shcherba discovers a signal jamming the collars. He sends Skif to a Storage on the Hill (west of the Roofed Warehouse) to investigate. Inside, players encounter various enemies before finding the jamming device. The choice here is crucial:
- Destroy/Disable the Jammer (Recommended): This advances the quest, rewards you with coupons, and leads to a confrontation with bloodsuckers and another critical choice.
- Recalibrate the Jammer: This ends the quest with coupons from Dvupalov.
The Final Confrontation:
Disabling the jammer leads to a call from Shcherba, more coupons, and a wait (or use the console command "XStartQuestNodeBySID E08_SQ01_S3_Technical_SherbaInvitedToLab" to skip the wait). You'll then receive Magic Vodka from Dvupalov, encounter bloodsuckers, and face Shcherba. The final choice is whether to kill Shcherba or let him go. Both yield the same rewards (a Gauss Gun and the "On a Leash" trophy), but sparing Shcherba maintains better relations with scientists.
