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I never thought I'd end up running and hiding from my buddies. But that's how things turned out. We were like brothers, and now I'm a dead man to them. My crew had ruled the 'hood since we were teens until just before the war. Then some of us got drafted, like my best friend Leon, others like me volunteered for the militia. It was going to be the ultimate showdown and every single one of us wanted a piece of the action.

–Roman's Description


Overview[]

Roman is one of the many playable characters found in the game. He used to fight for the rebels, but deserted after witnessing their atrocities.

Roman is Trained in Combat. He has the highest combat proficiency and guarding proficiency of all survivors, the former unmatched and the latter of which is only tied with Christo.

Roman-ingame

Roman's in-game appearance

Appearance[]

Roman wears a black hoodie jacket with a peace symbol on the back, over a red shirt. He also wears camouflage pants and a crisscross scarf.

Personality[]

Roman belongs to the egoist archetype. His experience in the militia seems to have scarred him, making him callous and cold-hearted.

Roman is concerned about himself first and foremost. He is barely affected by most crimes like theft or murder, even against civilians, though he will still take issue with killing civilians himself. He is generally reluctant to help others, and won’t easily be content if he does. He also cares little for his group's conditions, but will become sad easily when his own needs are not met. If his mood is negative, he’s likely to argue or fight with other survivors, and to rob the shelter if he leaves.

If traumatized enough, he will permanently shift to the aggressive modifier, which is the most negative modifier in the game. He barely bats an eye to even murdering civilians, as violence becomes second nature to him. He also becomes hot-tempered and often expresses his anger through aggression, sometimes as extremely as wishing to kill. This aggression extends to his own party as well; he's far more likely to fight his fellow survivors verbally or even physically. Outwardly tough as he may seem, Roman can take less trauma than every other survivor before he shifts, hinting at a fragile or delicate side to his character.

Strategy[]

As the most combat capable character, Roman is an obvious candidate to clear hostile locations. While he's in no way necessary for combat due to the relative ease of stealth ambushes, he's arguably the only character who doesn't have any flaws regarding combat (lacking Arica's difficulty luring with sound, Boris' slow speed, and the others' inability to instantly kill with backstabs). Due to his limited inventory, it is advisable to use him to clear all enemies from a location and pick up a few valuable items that might occupy too many slots, and then use a different character on subsequent visits to loot the area clean.

Roman's very high guarding proficiency allows him to guard for two. This should be his primary role when not scavenging to clear locations. If you commit Roman to guarding, he also allows you to potentially skip Board Ups and/or the Reinforced Door for a while, saving the materials for other fittings until you could eventually pay up. However, this strategy has its opportunity costs, as excessive reliance on this will not allow him to maximize his effectiveness in action during scavenging.

Despite Roman's callousness, he can easily enter his unique traumatized state, which is crippling because he will often inflict harm on his own party. This makes him possibly the most volatile and sensitive of all the survivors, and consequently most difficult to manage. Avoid letting him reach this state at all costs by satisfying his needs, improving shelter comfort, and avoiding using him to commit crimes. Even killing bandits and soldiers continuously can eventually wear him down. It’s a good idea to let him do on-site quests (several of which will require his expertise in combat anyway), or help neighbors if you can spare the manpower. It helps that he can also play the guitar just as well as Katia.

Recruitment Speech[]

Thanks for opening the door. I'm looking for a place to hide away for some time. I was drafted by the rebels, but I didn't want to kill my brothers, so I ran away at first opportunity. If they catch me, I'm dead. Let me stay with you!

Death Note[]

Roman was the toughest among us, but that wasn’t enough. What chances do I stand without him?

–Note on dead body

Character Story[]

  1. "I was at the front line since the shit got serious. My unit was always the first to go in and the last to get out. After I lost a quarter of my men, the elders decided we needed some R&R. That's how I wound up in Pogoren, where all was quiet. It was not to last."
  2. "The battle for Pogoren was short and ugly. When the man in the street can turn out to be the enemy, people start... taking precautions. Like shooting anyone who looks at them funny. I'm not saying I did that, but I was the minority."
  3. "After we finished carving up the city between ourselves and the enemy, things got even uglier. Entire groups of civilians were brought in for questioning and much too often shot so as not to leave witnesses behind, I guess. I wanted no part of that. I'm a fighter, not a murderer."
  4. "One night I changed into my old garb and just walked away. My mate was on duty. I told him I was off to get some ass and I'd be back by dawn. I hope he didn't catch too much shit for letting me through."

Traumatized variants:[]

  1. "Ever since the fighting started, I was in the thick of it with my unit. The assholes from the HQ let us rest only when a quarter of my people were dead. And they sent us to Pogoren of all places, where soon the carnage was worse than at the front line."
  2. "The worst thing about the fights in Pogoren was that you never knew if the man whom you passed in the street wasn't working for the enemy. So I told my men to be extra suspicious. Better to shoot one more guy than let the fucker turn around and stab you in the back."
  3. "After the borders between our turf and the enemy's were more or less stable, things got even uglier. Entire groups were rounded up and some people shot after having been interrogated. One day we were ordered to dispose of a bunch of such poor bastards. I recognized one of them. It was Leon, my best childhood buddy. I aimed over their heads. Others didn't."
  4. "After that, I couldn't look my people in the face. I wanted to kill them, or kill myself, or blow up the whole compound, I ended up just running away one night. I have no idea what I'll say if I ever meet them. I don't know if I was too weak, or if they were."

Endings[]

Spoiler Warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Ending
Type
Ending Description
Dead "As so many other tough-as-nails guys, Roman didn't make it. His motivations will remain unknown to his buddies, and some of them still think he betrayed them."
Suicide "Unable to accept the reality in which he had to live, hating himself for not being stronger and more in control of his life, Roman killed himself. He left no notes or goodbye letters."
Abandoned "Roman disappeared from the shelter one night, leaving no note. He survived the war but was soon arrested for murder and sentenced to fifteen years in prison."
Rejected "Roman had to seek shelter elsewhere. His military background was deemed more of a problem than an asset."
Karma "Roman survived the war. Tortured by his past, he started doing hard drugs and a few years later died of drug-related health problems."
Sad "Roman survived the war but avoided his old haunts, anxious to meet his former comrades. He settled in the countryside and tried to start a new life, but remained haunted by his past."
Good "After the war, Roman sought out his former buddies and much to his great relief learnt that most of them admired his courage and the decision he made. He returned to his neighborhood and became a leader of the local community."

Trivia[]

  • Roman is perhaps the only person with military expertise of the characters, from being part of a gang to later joining and ultimately leaving the military.
  • Roman is the only survivor who can drink alcohol when his mood is content or normal. Doing so has no mechanical advantages however; his mood will reset to normal, meaning it either stays unchanged or even drops.
Playable Characters
70px-Anton 70px-Arica 70px-Boris 70px-Bruno 70px-Cveta 70px-Emilia
Anton Arica Boris Bruno Cveta Emilia
70px-Katia 70px-Marin 70px-Marko 70px-Pavle 70px-Roman 70px-Zlata
Katia Marin Marko Pavle Roman Zlata
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