Atomfall is home to a few side characters – some of them secretly being Soviet agents – trying to figure out what the Windscale disaster was all about. These particular characters are easily missed, but you will likely find traces of their presence across the map, including Ilya’s buried cache found in Skethermoor.
This cache requires Ilya’s Key to unlock, which you’ll only be able to get from the man himself. To help you with doing just that, here’s where to find and use Ilya’s Key in Atomfall.
Where to find and use Ilya’s Key in Atomfall
You’re likely here because you’ve found a locked, buried cache by the Greenhouses in Skethermoor – thanks to your Metal Detector – that cannot be unlocked without Ilya’s Key in Atomfall.
Who is Ilya, exactly? And where is their key? Fortunately, he isn’t too far away. Ilya is found hiding out in a cellar beneath Brinsop Manor Ruins (also in Skethermoor). The entrance to the cellar is found in the small hedge maze in the exterior of the ruins.
If you speak with Ilya in the cellar here, he’ll soon ask that you get him some crafting supplies so he can fix a broken radio. You then need to hand over 10 scrap metal and four glue, which shouldn’t be too troublesome to find scattered around the ruined buildings in Skethermoor if you don’t already have the goods.
After helping Ilya out, you then need to advance Joyce Tanner’s questline if you haven’t already. This is done by restoring power to Data Store Charlie in the Interchange using an Atomic Battery, speaking with Tanner there, and then restoring power to three Radio Towers across the map as per her request.
If you then return to Tanner here after activating all of the Radio Towers, you’ll find Ilya’s corpse in the same room as her. Here, you can loot his rifle and his journal from his body, as well as Ilya’s Key. You can imagine what has happened here, but feel free to speak to Joyce Tanner for more information about how Ilya has wound up dead.
When you’re ready and with Ilya’s Key in your possession, you can return to his cache in Skethermoor and unlock it. Inside, you’ll find a Nail Bomb, some Gunpowder, the Infiltration Report Note, and the Oberon Biology Report – 28th August 1957 Note.
Of course, if you don’t care at all for Ilya’s quest, you can also kill him as soon as you meet him to loot his key from his corpse.
For more on Atomfall, take a look at all Skill Manual locations, where to find the Site Office Key, and where to find the Crane Controls Keycard.