Shortly after the G-Man imparts his cryptic greeting you
awake to the confines of a sparse train compartment. You're one of a handful
inbound to City-17. This quiet Eastern-European civic centre characterized
by apartment flats, abandoned storefronts, and maze-like canals is your
new playground and battlefield.
The train will come to a stop shortly and its occupants will depart. As you step out of the train a small mechanical contraption will hover towards you and briefly blind you as it makes its observations (these are scanners, although harmless by themselves they will alert the Combine of you presence at later stages in the game). Follow the departing passengers through the fence and to the left towards the turn style. You can take a moment to listen to Dr. Breen as he digresses the current situation of humanity, or harass the Combine guard with flying luggage.
Walk through the turn style and take another left to an improvised waiting station. You can take a moment to talk to the dreary City 17 citizens (walk up to them and press 'E' the default key to use things, pick up small items, talk to people, and pick up small people). Make your way through fenced aisles towards the Combine guards and the security checkpoint, follow their commands or get handled a little rough. Don't worry, right now they won't actually harm you to the point of death (that'll definitely change later but when it does you'll be able to send some pain their way).
After your photo-op follow Combine soldier through the shadowy passage and into the interrogation room as he motions you in. Now prepare to die after you suffer some kind of horrible alien torture like the guy in the other room.
No... wait you're in luck! The normally faceless Combine has a face this time, albeit not a very pretty one, It's Barney Calhoun the lovable security guard from your Black Mesa days. You owe this man more than a beer. You two will have a quick word with Dr. Kleiner before the reunion's over as footsteps outside turn into aggressive knocks on the door, this mean's it's time to make your way to Dr. Kleiner's lab. Follow Barney's orders and go through the back door to the other room. Climb the ladder to the landing above you and get to work making your way to the open window. Pick up the boxes and begin placing them into a simple block staircase ('E' is the default key to pick up objects). Now do the logical thing and jump out the window to the ground that's a nice ways below you. Go through the door to your right and up the staircase, taking a left when you reach the top.
This Combine soldier thinks you're some kind of subservient citizen. Smack this thought out of him with that soda can. Now that you've pissed him off you should run.
After getting smacked up you can continue on your quest against this oppressive alien regime (you're desire to fight back will be satiated in an assortment of automated weapons and heavy thrown things in due time). You should be in a spacious building with glorious rendered light pouring through its ceiling. Admire the sight then take the exit to your left. Open the door and walk out to the pristine open-air courtyard where Dr. Breen waits to greet you. This is City-17, this particularly scenic area will be your gateway to various endeavours at different points in the game, for now though all the checkpoints and doors remain locked to you.
Facing out from the station you just exited, go to the right and walk down the city street until you come to a crossroads. A Strider and Combine checkpoint will fall to your left and to the right, your way to the lab. Go down this alley and climb the ladder to scale over the fence. Now jump to the ground (ground will have a habit of staying a good ways below you) and try to land into the crate to soften your fall with a cushion of splintering wood. Continue down the alley and take a right. You should hear two citizens discussing the finer points of Combine rule, move right along and take a moment to jump on the playground equipment, when you're done go forward and enter the side door to your left.
Walk two flights up the narrow staircase and take a left. Don't even try to interfere with this particular Combine inquest, let them move on, then enter the first apartment on your right. The two citizens are intently watching below because a squad of armed Combine has just pulled up to the apartments. It looks like it's time to stop admiring all the grim city vistas and double time it to somewhere other than here.
There's a glass door on the other side of the room, go through it and make you way up the shadowed corridors of the stairwell. Once you step onto the next floor a citizen will ask that you go inside his apartment, the urgency in his voice is apparent. Waste no time and move through the darkened apartment to the door at the back. Move up the staircase, the Combine are right behind you now and fighting isn't a viable option. Enter the door to your right and make your way up the staircase to the destroyed attic above. Put the wooden rafters behind you by running through the opening in the ceiling and jumping onto of the building below.
Walk up the wooden plank and scale down the side of the tiled roof to your left, follow the edge to an adjacent building with an opened window. Crawl through the window and move down the stairs. The Combine have your path blocked, you turn around and realize you're cornered. There's nothing you can do against these kind of odd but go into one of Gordon's trade mark blackouts.
You should be dead or captured, but Alyx has taken out all the Combine somehow while you've slowly recovered from your brief lapse of consciousness. Follow Alyx to Dr. Kleiner's lab and the beginning of things falling into place.
The train will come to a stop shortly and its occupants will depart. As you step out of the train a small mechanical contraption will hover towards you and briefly blind you as it makes its observations (these are scanners, although harmless by themselves they will alert the Combine of you presence at later stages in the game). Follow the departing passengers through the fence and to the left towards the turn style. You can take a moment to listen to Dr. Breen as he digresses the current situation of humanity, or harass the Combine guard with flying luggage.
Walk through the turn style and take another left to an improvised waiting station. You can take a moment to talk to the dreary City 17 citizens (walk up to them and press 'E' the default key to use things, pick up small items, talk to people, and pick up small people). Make your way through fenced aisles towards the Combine guards and the security checkpoint, follow their commands or get handled a little rough. Don't worry, right now they won't actually harm you to the point of death (that'll definitely change later but when it does you'll be able to send some pain their way).
After your photo-op follow Combine soldier through the shadowy passage and into the interrogation room as he motions you in. Now prepare to die after you suffer some kind of horrible alien torture like the guy in the other room.
No... wait you're in luck! The normally faceless Combine has a face this time, albeit not a very pretty one, It's Barney Calhoun the lovable security guard from your Black Mesa days. You owe this man more than a beer. You two will have a quick word with Dr. Kleiner before the reunion's over as footsteps outside turn into aggressive knocks on the door, this mean's it's time to make your way to Dr. Kleiner's lab. Follow Barney's orders and go through the back door to the other room. Climb the ladder to the landing above you and get to work making your way to the open window. Pick up the boxes and begin placing them into a simple block staircase ('E' is the default key to pick up objects). Now do the logical thing and jump out the window to the ground that's a nice ways below you. Go through the door to your right and up the staircase, taking a left when you reach the top.
This Combine soldier thinks you're some kind of subservient citizen. Smack this thought out of him with that soda can. Now that you've pissed him off you should run.
After getting smacked up you can continue on your quest against this oppressive alien regime (you're desire to fight back will be satiated in an assortment of automated weapons and heavy thrown things in due time). You should be in a spacious building with glorious rendered light pouring through its ceiling. Admire the sight then take the exit to your left. Open the door and walk out to the pristine open-air courtyard where Dr. Breen waits to greet you. This is City-17, this particularly scenic area will be your gateway to various endeavours at different points in the game, for now though all the checkpoints and doors remain locked to you.
Facing out from the station you just exited, go to the right and walk down the city street until you come to a crossroads. A Strider and Combine checkpoint will fall to your left and to the right, your way to the lab. Go down this alley and climb the ladder to scale over the fence. Now jump to the ground (ground will have a habit of staying a good ways below you) and try to land into the crate to soften your fall with a cushion of splintering wood. Continue down the alley and take a right. You should hear two citizens discussing the finer points of Combine rule, move right along and take a moment to jump on the playground equipment, when you're done go forward and enter the side door to your left.
Walk two flights up the narrow staircase and take a left. Don't even try to interfere with this particular Combine inquest, let them move on, then enter the first apartment on your right. The two citizens are intently watching below because a squad of armed Combine has just pulled up to the apartments. It looks like it's time to stop admiring all the grim city vistas and double time it to somewhere other than here.
There's a glass door on the other side of the room, go through it and make you way up the shadowed corridors of the stairwell. Once you step onto the next floor a citizen will ask that you go inside his apartment, the urgency in his voice is apparent. Waste no time and move through the darkened apartment to the door at the back. Move up the staircase, the Combine are right behind you now and fighting isn't a viable option. Enter the door to your right and make your way up the staircase to the destroyed attic above. Put the wooden rafters behind you by running through the opening in the ceiling and jumping onto of the building below.
Walk up the wooden plank and scale down the side of the tiled roof to your left, follow the edge to an adjacent building with an opened window. Crawl through the window and move down the stairs. The Combine have your path blocked, you turn around and realize you're cornered. There's nothing you can do against these kind of odd but go into one of Gordon's trade mark blackouts.
You should be dead or captured, but Alyx has taken out all the Combine somehow while you've slowly recovered from your brief lapse of consciousness. Follow Alyx to Dr. Kleiner's lab and the beginning of things falling into place.
