The Zone holds many secrets. In this guide, we’ll break down the coordinates of four unique weapons and two extremely rare artifacts in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl. Some of them require solving tricky puzzles, and one artifact can even be lost due to a bug, so be careful.

Unique Weapons

1. Merc Gun

  • Location: Rostock.
  • Where to find it: Head to Rostock’s Depot. The weapon is in a duffel bag inside the room with the power outlet.
  • How to get it: Officially, this location is visited after completing the “Invisible Threat“ quest, but you can come here and pick up the gun much earlier.

2. Trophy Gun

  • Локация: Химзавод (Chemical Plant), район Армейских складов (Army warehouses).
  • How to Obtain (Puzzle): Exit through the western entrance of the location and head toward the hills. You will find two small concrete structures buried in the ground. Throw a grenade inside one of them—the explosion will trigger a chain reaction and destroy the second structure, under which a safe containing the “Trophy” is hidden.

3. “Rat Killer” Shotgun

  • Quest: Only available during the story mission “Act of Mercy.“
  • Where to find it: Once you descend into the dusty tunnels and pick up the regenerator, proceed to the next room. The weapon is lying right on the ground next to the altar.

4. The “Whip” Weapon

  • Quest: “Act of Mercy“ Mission.
  • Where to find it: You can pick up the weapon at the very end of the mission. As soon as you enter the Doctor’s house, look around carefully—the “Whip” will be waiting for you right at the entrance.

Unique Artifacts

5. The “Weird Pot” artifact

  • Location: Burnt Forest.
  • How to get it: You need to find the Mist Anomaly and solve a challenging spatial puzzle to make your way through the foggy maze and reach the center.

6. The “Weird Bolt” artifact

This is one of the hardest artifacts to obtain in the game, requiring perfect timing.

  • Location: Yaniv Region.
  • Where to find it: Look for the Tornado Anomaly—a massive tornado with that bolt flying inside it.
  • How to get it: Climb onto the containers, then use them to get inside the crane arm. You need to let the tornado hit you. At that moment, the artifact will fly right past you—grab the bolt out of the air and immediately use a first-aid kit, or you’ll die from the damage.

⚠️ CRITICAL BUG: The “Strange Bolt” artifact has a tendency to vanish without a trace if you don’t catch it on the first try or if a script error occurs. Be sure to manually save your game before climbing the crane. If something goes wrong, just load your save.