Primitive War: Opiate Undertow, originally released as Primitive War in early editions, is a 2017 self-published debut novel by American writer Ethan Pettus. The novel follows a group of American soldiers who encounter de-extinctdinosaurs in a jungle valley in Vietnam in 1968. It is first book in the Primitive War series, and spawned a 2025 film of the same name.
In 1968, in a jungle valley in Vietnam, a group of Green Berets led by Kendrick Anderson are ambushed, killed and eaten by unknown predators. Elsewhere, a pair of MACV-SOG agents codenamed Bishop and Ibex are alerted to a cache of barrels containing radioactive waste known as Polonium-T. Contacting General Jericho, they are informed that these shipments were what Anderson’s squad were tracking on Jericho's behalf. With Anderson's squad missing, Jericho recommends sending in Vulture Squad, a recon unit that specializes in rescuing war prisoners from Viet Cong and North Vietnamese Army prison camps.
Vulture Squad, consisting of Captain Ryan Baker, second-in-command Xavier Wise, rookie demolitions expert Leon Verne, marines Eli Taylor and Charlie Miller, and snipers Gerald Keyes and Logan Stovall, is called in by Jericho after liberating survivors from their most recent rescue mission. Traveling north to his base at the edge of a primordial jungle valley, the squad is given the mission of finding Anderson's missing platoon, but information on the Green Berets’ mission in the Valley is rendered classified. During their stay at Jericho's base, it is shown that almost every member of the squad is scarred in some form: Ryan wears a balaclava to hide his burn scars and is a former morphine addict; Eli is an alcoholic, and he and Miller have both committed war crimes; and Logan suffers from schizophrenia, with only Gerald being aware of his condition. Simultaneously, at the far end of the valley, USSR General Grigory Borodin, working on a Particle Collider for his country's government, has become aware of the Americans' presence, having been brought the bloody dog-tags of Anderson by his underling, the Viet Cong soldier Con Nhen. To that end, he sends a squad of Spetznaz soldiers known as the Dogs of War, consisting of Tolstoy Asimov, Nikita, Sergei, and Aleksandr, to hunt down and kill the Americans.
After Vulture Squad is dropped off into the Valley via helicopter by their pilot, Ricardo Alvarez, the squad searches for the Green Berets, finding tracks and huge feathers belonging to an unknown animal. As they travel deeper into the jungle, the group is ambushed by the predator in question, which they drive off after it tries to drag Ryan away. The squad presses on, unsure of what attacked them, before bedding down in a clearing for the night. The Soviet soldiers are ambushed by the same creature as they investigate the Americans' gunfire, with Aleksandr being killed and eviscerated. Thinking the Americans are responsible, the Soviets vow revenge.
Meanwhile, Xavier spots predators in the trees while keeping watch, which are driven off by a larger creature that he hides from and recognizes as a Tyrannosaurus rex. The beast encounters Ryan and Leon as they’re patrolling, only to discover and escape from its mate and chicks in their nest. The male Tyrannosaurus chases them but gives up after all three fall off a cliff into a river. Ryan and Leon are rescued by a Soviet scientist, Andrei Wynn, who takes them to his hideout in an abandoned research station, where he survived after Borodin had his fellow scientists murdered for questioning his orders. Andrei, isolated and addicted to morphine, reveals he was responsible for the presence of dinosaurs in the valley, having accidentally brought them there by opening a wormhole through time via the particle collider Borodin is rebuilding. He explains the unseen predators to be Utahraptors, nocturnal ambush predators. Ryan radios for help, having realized that Jericho deceived them, and negotiates an evacuation for his men in exchange for intel on the collider. He, Leon, and Andrei then set out to rescue the rest of Vulture Squad. Meanwhile, the others are caught in a stampede of Stygimoloch being chased by Deinonychus, but manage to fight the predators off. However, Gerald is dragged away and, after chasing off the Deinonychus, is ambushed by a Utahraptor. He is grievously wounded before being rescued by Logan, who jabs a ka-bar knife into the raptor’s eye, and the reunited Vulture Squad. Carrying Gerald, the squad manages to get back to Andrei's research station, where they are attacked by the wounded raptor (now called "the Cyclops") and its pack. During their escape to the helicopter, the raptors attack again, wounding Leon and nearly tearing Gerald in half before Logan mercy-kills him. The Tyrannosaurus returns as they escape in the helicopter, and a near-miss from Con Nhen's rocket launchers knocks Miller and local trainee Nguyen out, where they are promptly captured by the Viet Cong.
Simultaneously, the Soviet squad is also attacked by prehistoric wildlife, with Tolstoy being torn apart by a trio of Quetzalcoatlus. Though they make it to Jericho's base, Nikita is captured while Sergei is forced to retreat after being wounded. Vulture Squad returns to Jericho, where Leon is taken into surgery. Ryan comforts Logan and confronts Jericho, sparing Andrei from continued torture at Jericho's hands, demanding reinforcements to mount a rescue mission and to stop Borodin. Andrei reveals to Ryan and Jericho that the Collider is meant for making antimatter that can be used to create radiation-free nuclear weapons, and its continued use might result in a black hole due to the continued use of polonium and tau particles, which caused the dinosaurs to enter the present in the first place. Jericho grants Ryan the mission and help from his MACV-SOG forces, but warns him of the consequences of provoking him. Vulture Squad sets out to rescue Miller by boat, with Leon remaining behind to recover. En route, they encounter a herd of Triceratops, which are attacked by Kaprosuchus. Logan sacrifices himself to draw the crocodiles away and is eaten alive. Meanwhile, Miller, having been tortured by Con Nhen, escapes, frees Nguyen, kills Con Nhen and his forces, and destroys the Viet Cong base and its Polonium-T shipments in an act of suicidal sacrifice just before Vulture Squad can rescue him.
Back at Jericho's base, a pair of Quetzalcoatlus attack, killing nearly everyone save Leon. Sergei uses the confusion to rescue Nikita and capture Jericho, maliciously killing Leon's doctor, a woman named Susan Wilcott, in the process. Leon vows revenge as Bishop and his team return. Despite Leon's injuries, he and Bishop's squad use Vulture Squad's helicopter to pick up the team and head to the Soviet base. Borodin betrays Sergei and Nikita, killing the latter, before the Soviets are attacked by the Tyrannosaurus parents after their soldiers kill one of their chicks. Borodin flees as his base and men are ravaged by the theropods, who then chase after him.
Ryan rallies his team to rescue Jericho after showing them his scars and telling them his story: the original Vulture Squad was ambushed by Viet Cong during a mission Jericho sent them on, leaving Ryan scarred and fatally injuring the others, forcing him to mercy-kill all of them. When the squad arrive at the Soviet base, they find it destroyed and littered with corpses. Bishop's team is killed by scavenging Utahraptors, including the Cyclops. Sergei, wanting to prevent the collider's further use, helps prime it to explode. The Utahraptors attack and the Cyclops confronts Ryan directly. Ryan dies fighting the Cyclops, giving his men enough time to escape, while a dying Sergei sets off the explosives and destroys the collider. Borodin, running away from the Tyrannosaurus parents, is ambushed by the surviving Utahraptors, and is eaten alive by their chicks.
A year later, Leon has been sent stateside on a college scholarship, Eli is the new Captain of Vulture Squad, and Xavier is now the commander of Stalker Force with a now-sober Andrei joining him. Their goal is to contain the dinosaurs in the Valley, as they are devastating the modern ecosystems and wiping out the native wildlife, and to exterminate the Utahraptors. The other dinosaurs in the valley, including the Tyrannosaurus parents, are contained behind a perimeter of concrete and electric fence. However, Stalker Force find the final Utahraptor nesting ground abandoned, as it's revealed the raptors have found a way to escape.
Sequels
Multiple sequels have thus far been created for the Primitive War franchise, with three published and more on the way according to Ethan Pettus himself. The first sequel, titled The Primitive War Dispatches: The Hunting of Stalker Force, was published in 2019. The next sequel, Primitive War II: Animus Infernal, was published in 2020. A third book, titled The Primitive War Dispatches Volume II: The Psalms of Xipetotec, was released in May 2025. The third book stands as a mid-quel between the events of The Hunting of Stalker Force and Primitive War II.[2][3][4] A Field Guide written by Pettus and illustrated by Bruno Hernandez regarding the creatures of the first book and the first volume of the Primitive War Dispatches, titled The Primitive War Bestiary, was also published.[5]
Film adaptation
In February 2022, it was announced that Sparke Films and its founder, Luke Sparke, had secured the rights to a film adaptation of the novel, with Ethan Pettus helping co-write the film's script.[6][7] Luke Sparke was announced to be directing the film.[7]
First look images and a poster of the film were released by Collider in August 2024.[11] When interviewed on why he chose to adapt the Primitive War novel into a film, Sparke stated, "I was captivated by the imagery surrounding Ethan’s book and the story it told. I’ve worked hard on capturing that essence but also the grittiness, horror aspects and military edge. My vision is to feel like the characters have walked out of the film Platoon and into the jaws of the greatest predators the planet has ever known."[12]
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