Image: Bend Studio / PlayStationNo screenshot of NERO Soldier yet. This one shows NERO Checkpoints (Bend Studio / PlayStation).
NERO Soldier
NERO Soldiers guard the government research teams that reappear in the wilderness two years into the outbreak. In the story you shadow and spy on them rather than fight them, so their jobs are about staying out of sight.
- Threat
- High
- Type
- Human
Found in
NERO CheckpointsNERO Checkpoints are abandoned federal quarantine camps you clear for the World's End storyline. There are 12, and each one you power up gives a NERO Injector, an Intel Recorder and a new fast travel point.- Pioneer CemeteryPioneer Cemetery is an old Cascade graveyard where Deacon digs up Leon's stolen drugs in Out of Nowhere. Later it is worth a return trip for its infestation and the Old Pioneer Cemetery NERO Checkpoint.
Good to know
- They wear full HAZMAT suits and travel by helicopter.
- In Finding NERO you tail their helicopters, plant GPS trackers and listen in on researchers at landing zones.
- Their orders are to avoid survivors, and some open fire on anyone who comes close.
- The Militia fights NERO, and downed NERO helicopters lie around Crater Lake.
- Explosives such as Remote Bombs can kill them indirectly.
- A dead NERO soldier drops a NERO version of the SWAT 10.
- A NERO Soldier is playable in the free Challenges mode.
- Abandoned NERO checkpoints hold NERO Injectors that permanently raise health, stamina or focus.
- Their suits echo the gear in Syphon Filter, an earlier Bend Studio series.
Who they are
NERO is the last arm of the old US government in Oregon. Its soldiers escort field teams studying how the Freakers are changing. They are the best-equipped force in the game, with working helicopters and heavy guns.
How to deal with them
Treat every NERO job as a stealth job. Park away from the landing zone, approach on foot and stay in cover while you listen. O'Brian's missions reward useful recipes, including the Residue Bolt and Poison Bolt.
Easy to miss
NERO checkpoints are abandoned, not guarded. Restore power, fuel the generator and loot the medical unit for an Injector. The first Injector you use earns Better Living through Chemistry, and maxing a stat earns Performance Enhanced.
Role in the storySpoilerShow
In the secret ending, O'Brian takes off his helmet and shows that he is an intelligent Freaker. He hints that many people inside the NERO suits are the same, and that NERO knew far more than it admitted.
They're Not SleepingA NERO helicopter has landed in the Cascade region. You sneak into the landing zone, tail a NERO researcher into a cave and listen in on what they are doing, then get back to your bike.
Making ContactYou have spotted a NERO landing zone and want answers. You sneak in, follow the agent O'Brian away from his team and confront him about the night Sarah left on his helicopter.- There's Nothing You Can DoThe secret ending. After the credits, O'Brian gets in touch and asks to meet you in person at a NERO landing zone by the Pioneer Cemetery. You ride out to hear what he has to say.
ChallengesChallenges is the first free DLC for Days Gone, added in Patch 1.21. It is a separate mode of short score runs built around Horde, Combat and Bike tasks, each with medals, sub-challenges and its own rewards.- Finding NEROFinding NERO is the storyline about the National Emergency Response Organization and what its researchers are still doing in Oregon. Deacon keeps running into NERO scientists, led by James O'Brian, and wants to know why they are out there.
Related enemies
- Human
Anarchists
The Anarchists are a bandit crew who paint the anarchy A on their faces and carry better guns than most Marauders. They have no open-world camps, so you only fight them in certain jobs, and one of their hideouts sits above a sleeping Horde.
- Human
Deschutes County Militia
The Deschutes County Militia is Colonel Garret's army in the south and the best-trained human force you meet. For much of the second half you work for them at Diamond Lake and Wizard Island. Their soldiers are also the toughest humans in the game to kill.
Image: Bend Studio / PlayStationHumanMarauders
Marauders are independent bandit gangs that ambush riders on the main roads and hold many of the Ambush Camps. They look like ordinary survivors, so watch for snipers in trees and wires across the road before you ride into a trap.
Image: Bend Studio / PlayStationHumanRippers
The Rippers are a Freaker-worshipping cult that shaves, scars and drugs its members and hunts anyone who will not join. They hit the northern regions hardest, and with no body armor they go down fast if you hold a choke point.