Fallout: New Vegas : It's Anti-Materiel. Not Material.

[Ryom]

Finally made my way to the quarry with all the deathclaws. Level 24 + sniper rifle + AP ammo = a lot of dead deathclaws having no idea what just hit them. I think mama deathclaw took 2 or 3 shots. Alpha male took a few more. I did feel kind of bad slaughtering the baby deathclaws, though.

Just a few days ago, I managed to use my tagged sneak + all my points at lvl 2+3 into it, plus a lucky appearance in the general store at goodsprings to get past it to vegas without attracting a horde of deathclaws. well, I did attract one at the end. as soon as I saw one, I stealthboyed and snuck along the opposite side of the pathway all the way to that little train station before one saw me. but I was able to get it to beat up on a group of fiends long enough for me to get away.

On my playthrough I was level 12 or so and I just found spots where I could snipe them without reprisal using a lever-action 357. Used up every bit of ammo I had to bring them down, had to go and restock. Now that I'm level 25+ and have a sniper rifle and anti-materiel rifle they aren't quite so tough.

[EdgarJPublius]

I'm about mid-way through OWB, and I've been kicking myself the whole time for not bringing my anti-materiel rifle and something that eats all the AP 5mm I managed to pick up somewhere. Using the AMrifle in honest hearts almost felt like cheating with all the open spaces and elevation you could use to avoid enemy fire while picking them off from range. I left most of my really powerful weapons behind for OWB to get more of a challenge, and well, it's a bit more of a challenge than I bargained on!

Although, I've found that the automatic rifle from Dead Money chews through most armored opponents rather handily, with or without AP ammo, if you can stay stocked with .308. And I have enough .357 left over from the vending machines (I think I went through that whole dlc with just the police pistol, using most of my chips on ammo from the vending machines) to keep the K9000 fed which also helps.

[SecondTalon]

Honestly... I used the LAER (avaliable in Old World Blues) more than the Anti-Materiel rifle against the heavily armored opponents. If you're respectable with the Energy Weapons, it may be worth your time to use it.

That, and if you haven't.. try the Sonic Emitter - Revelation they give you. Though it does low damage, It seems to crit fairly easily and it's crits Paralyze enemies, which can buy you some time to.. you know, run the hell away and get in a better position.

The Sonic Emitter - Opera Singer will dismember opponents on a crit, but I haven't used it to know how that works against robots. I assume it'd blow them apart, but.. I dunno. It.. also requires a couple more steps.

Spoiler:

First you have to activate the jukebox, and then you have to track down the Opera Singer file so the Jukebox can modify the Sonic Emitter for you.

[EdgarJPublius]

The Laer is great, except it seems to degrade really rapidly. Luckily there's enough junk lying around to craft plenty of weapon repair kits.
The Sonic Emitter is alright for the most part, but the slow fire-rate makes encounters with multiple robotic enemies a bit difficult.

I'm not really complaining about the combat difficulty. It's more than I expected but not so much that it's keeping me from enjoying the game.
After Honest Hearts, it's actually nice to have some combat that's challenging without limiting my equipment.


Also, the stealth suit is adorable :3

[RetSpline]

So after the conclusion of the Fallout: New Vegas Spoiler Warning I was inspired to get back into the game and maybe actually beat it for once. I'd put at least 40 hours into the game, and never even spoken to Benny (I have the same problem with Morrowind, I think maybe I got a few of the Ashlanders to recognize me as the Nerevarine once, and I've definitely put hundreds of hours into that game). The problem I have with New Vegas is that it's just so damn buggy, and I'm playing on the console too, so no mods or unofficial patches for me .

This has caused many problems for me. One bug that I've encountered is that when you take off a faction armor, you sometimes end up still disguised as that faction. I learned this after I put on then took off some legion armor then traveled to the 188 Trading post. The 4 NCR people there started shooting me, and naturally I just killed them all instead of, say, reverting to a previous save and trying to fix the problem. So now I'm villified with the NCR and I really wanted to work with them this playthrough, at least a little bit. I knew that completing the quest to get the boomers to work with the NCR will reset your infamy, but I can't even get the quest because the people in the building with the questgiver all see through my cunning disguise and start hitting me with batons. I can accept the quest, but it immediately fails after I leave the dialogue.

As I see it, I have a few options here: find a stealhboy and try to sneak up to the questgiver. Give up on the NCR all together, even though I was planning on picking up Cass at some point. Also, the Vault Wiki mentions this quest that has something to do with increasing your NCR reputation, but doesn't give any details. Does anyone here know what it entails? Is it an actual quest that you can take with the same effect as the boomers quest that resets your infamy, or is it basically just a general warning that you have to do something to increase your reputation or else?

[SecondTalon]

It looks like it's similar to the bit where Ceasar sends a guy with a medal or whatever to you outside of the Topps. A way of you "Oh Shit" getting back in their graces.

But.. I dunno.

[EdgarJPublius]

This quest should trigger Don't Poke the Bear or something similar.

Otherwise, You might be able to complete the boomer's quest without actually receiving it, just go to the base and pick it up from there.

There may also be some other quests you can take that raise your NCR reputation without needing to directly interact with the NCR.

[Jessica]

Yeah, don't poke the bear isn't a quest to complete, but a quest to not fail. It's the "If you keep going down this path, you will get bad rep with NCR". Same as the one for Caesar.

Also, your evaluations of the DLC sexy (haven't played old world yet) seems very accurate. Loved dead money because it was actually kind of scary in the "oh shit oh shit they get up and there's death and explody" way. It was fun. I wish I could bring any of the npcs into the wasteland, because I want to reunite two npcs (spoiler... but I'm trying to be vague). I wish there was more interaction between them. Oh well. Can't get everything.

Honest hearts was... kind of really fucking offensive. Like, really? You interact with tribals who speak in stereotypical native american accents, are afraid of spooky caves and prewar shit, and are really just cut wholesale out of any native fiction written by white people. They tried to base it on native encounters in our past (something about a slaughter? I don't know american history), but it really was just two (christian/mormon) white guys "saving" the uncivilized natives from the savage natives. Argh. The only good part was the story of the Man in the Cave. I loved that narrative. Hated the NPCs. Hated the quests... really just bad. I completed both endings with little problem, and while usually I try stealth and sniper people, I got to the point where I just didn't care anymore, and ran through my enemies spraying 10mm smg bullets everywhere, because I was a golden god of war.

Looking forward to seeing the continuation of stuff from dead money and b movie fun.

[SecondTalon]

Lonesome Road. Haven't beaten it, not sure what's going on, to be frank. So Far..... Ulysses seems to know a lot about me even though he also admits that we've never met, and it's all Terribly Mysterious and every conversation we have just raises further questions which oh god I hope they answer everything and it's not something terrible as I can see it going terrible really, really fast.

The Red Glare weapon is... well, kinda makes me think they saw the Bolter mod for Fallout 3 and thought "What if we made it.. y'know.. fair and kinda tried to balance it for the rest of the game?" Because it's a ..13? 14? shot fully automatic rocket launcher. The blasts don't seem as powerful as Frag Grenades, but who cares because it's a rapid fire rocket launcher.

The other neat new weapon is the Flare Gun. Because it has special properties, mostly in that it makes abominations run in fear when they're hit. The problem I kinda have with that, though I'm going to exploit the hell out of it is....

Spoiler:

Deathclaws count as abominations. Deathclaws are all up in the Divide. Seeing something that can rip me to pieces in two hits run like a scared baby from a little flare hit when a flamethrower doesn't even slow them down is..... peculiar.

... so yeah, gist is - flare gun scares things, awesome.. but why don't flamethrowers?

Still, I know the game suggests 25+ for your levels to go into the Divide.. I may even suggest higher, just so your skills (and stats) are more likely high or maxed out. Because you learn a lot more interesting bits passing skill and stat checks.. like Ulysses taking his name from a different Ulysses than I expected.

[Jessica]

Argh! I want to play this soooo badly. But, I can't afford it right now. Like really, can't afford a $10 game.

Jess is a sad Jess.

[EdgarJPublius]

I don't understand why I got trapped into being an NCR stooge for Lonesome Road when I've been trying to get the House ending.

I'm interested in how some of the conversations play out if you follow different factions, but I'm not sure how it figures out which faction you are most closely aligned with.

[SecondTalon]

Yeah, I have no idea either. I'll probably cheatspeed a character to Legion Status and run it through a bit here and there just to see if it makes a difference or not.

[eculc]

the tunnelers are sorta like ghouls, I guess. they're annoying, easy to kill, and don't drop good stuff. I wish that there was more rad-away, since it seems like there's radiation every three steps in there.

the laser detonator is fun, but it seems like the whole "blow up nuclear bombs that are more like explosions from cars" is a bit overused later on.

spoilered for talking about the ending.

Spoiler:

At the end, you fight Ulysses (Or I did, anyway). he is a Pain-In-The-Ass to kill. if you know what to do, though, he becomes very easy. the way to beat him is to have 100 science or repair. that way you can disable the eyebots that fly around healing him. if you don't...you're gonna have a tough time. he'll toss a flash-bang grenade at you at the very start of the fight, and then he'll whip out whatever weapon he wants to use. after you take care of him, you'll have to kill about 20 marked men, and then the quest will complete. then, you get to launch off a nuke, and either nuke Caesar, the NCR, or both. Or neither, your choice.

it was...really short. like, about 2 hours short. that may be because I didn't spend half an hour in each of the dialog sessions through ED-E, but that still isn't very substantial.

also...this is the first time I've heard his name pronounced "Eddie". I always thought it was "ee-Dee"

[webgiant]

There are multiple endings. Follow which-ever quest line you feel like.

My point was more that I wasn't really sure which ones actually LEAD to the end of the game.

The three biggest/most powerful players in the game are Mr. House (and his Securitrons), NCR, and Caesar's Legion.

Spoiler:

Which should be a big enough hint.

How's this consul work? Any way to give myself the caps I should have?

Spoiler:

get into console

Code: Select all

player.additem "00000000F" 100000

that should do it.

Change the F to an A to add Bobby Pins.

The Roboscorpions are bloody little bastards - outside of the weapons I found in there (keep in mind that I'm no Melee fighter, but I am an Unarmed one as well as Energy Weapons and Guns) - I used an Anti-Materiel rifle on pretty much everything but the Roboscorpions, and those I used either some energy weapons I found in the DLC or.. a ballistic fist. I still couldn't find a weapon that would one-shot them consistently. Even using Armor Piercing rounds in my Anti-Materiel rifle, shooting the Roboscorpions just seemed to piss them off.

Stealth Suit plus Silenced Sniper Rifle meant I could shoot the Roboscorpions dead (multiple shots) without any of them finding me. Was a bit silly running across giant Roboscorpions in interior locations that only had conventional doors.

[eculc]

Am I the only one who missed the "Gun Runners' Arsenal" DLC? It was 320 MS points, and I only just noticed it because I happened to be looking at the fallout wiki.

[SecondTalon]

They also added the various pre-order bonuses to a DLC, from what I understand.

Gun Runners

Spoiler:

New Weapons and Weapon Mods
It’s time to free up some of that inventory weight. Waiting to be uncovered in the Mojave Wasteland is a plethora of new unique weapons such as the Bozar, an all-powerful 5.56mm Light Machine Gun, the Smitty Special, an overwhelming variant of the Plasma Caster,, the MFC Cluster mine, the Esther, a unique Mini Nuke Launcher, and the ridiculous Nuka Breaker – a new melee weapon made from a Nuka-Cola neon sign. If the 27 new weapons aren’t enough, upgrade your existing weapons with 40 new weapon modifications.
New Ammo Types and Recipes
Try out 18 new recipes and 29 new ammo types such as 12 Ga. Dragon’s Breath, Hive Missiles and 25mm/40mm Plasma Grenades, all of which make choosing diplomacy a less appealing option.
New Challenges
Over twenty new challenges await the most diligent of completionists. If you thought that you’ve done and seen everything New Vegas has to offer, think again!

Courier's Stash

Spoiler:

About the Game

Wake up in the Mojave Wasteland with an edge. Courier’s Stash™ gives players immediate access to four content bundles previously available only through pre-ordering Fallout: New Vegas®. The Caravan Pack, Classic Pack, Mercenary Pack and Tribal Pack each offer unique weapons, apparel and aid advantages that will help you throughout your journey.
INCLUDES:

Caravan Pack
Lightweight Leather Armor, Sturdy Caravan Shotgun, 20 gauge Shotgun Shell (40x), Weapon Repair Kit (4x), Binoculars
Classic Pack
Armored Vault 13 Jumpsuit, Weathered 10mm Pistol, 10mm Round (50x), Vault 13 Canteen, Stimpak (5x)
Mercenary Pack
Lightweight Metal Armor, Mercenary’s Grenade Rifle, 40mm Grenade (20x), Super Stimpak (3x), Doctor’s Bag (3x)
Tribal Pack
Tribal Raiding Armor, Broad Machete, Bleak Venom (5x), Throwing Spear (10x)

[Jessica]

Am I the only person who never uses alternate ammo? I have no idea how to equip it, and most of the time the regular shit is good enough.

[SecondTalon]

Open your Items menu, equip a weapon, go to Ammo, all the ammo but what the gun can use should be darkened, select the nifty new alternate ammo like you'd equip a fancy hat, set things on fire with a sniper rifle 'cause it's awesome.

...................

That said, I.. don't really use alternate ammo that much. Armor Piercing against strong bots and Deathclaws, and that's about it.

[Jessica]

Ah, ok. Makes sense.

I just shoot death claws with my guns until they die. It works most of the time, and when it doesn't, I have to reload and try a new gun.

[EdgarJPublius]

You can also use a hotkey to cycle through all the available ammo for a given weapon. I think it's 2 by default (you can also map weapons to the other number keys by holding down the number and selecting the weapon you want mapped to it from your inventory)

[SecondTalon]

You can also use a hotkey to cycle through all the available ammo for a given weapon. I think it's 2 by default (you can also map weapons to the other number keys by holding down the number and selecting the weapon you want mapped to it from your inventory)

...!

Holy shit!

[Jessica]

Fuck wait, there's a way to cycle through ammo!?!
HOLY SHIT!!

[psion]

...You guys didn't know that?

[Xanthir]

I'm kinda pissed at the ammo-swap hotkey, actually, because I really want all my weapons on 1-5. I don't care that the place where 5 would be is taken up by the center of your silly wheel. I'm not playing on a console anymore.

[SecondTalon]

...You guys didn't know that?

No clue. I also didn't know you could hotkey weapons.

[SurgicalSteel]

Yup, on the 360 it's the D-pad. I like to categorize it, so I have a handgun on the left, a rifle on down and a shotgun on right. Up cycles ammo. I'm pretty sure you can do the four diagonals too (so have a total of 7 weapons hotkeyed) but hitting a positive diagonal on the 360's d-pad is kind of a shot in the dark, so I don't use those.

[SecondTalon]

Yeah, just got through messing around with it. Kinda odd that it's limited to 1-9 with 2 and 5 being unusable for customization, but still interesting.

[psion]

...You guys didn't know that?

No clue. I also didn't know you could hotkey weapons.

Well, at least you didn't have to suffer the pain of having to reset your hotkeys every damn time your weapons are taken from you.

It works the same way in Oblivion and Fallout 3, though.

[Chen]

I'm kinda pissed at the ammo-swap hotkey, actually, because I really want all my weapons on 1-5. I don't care that the place where 5 would be is taken up by the center of your silly wheel. I'm not playing on a console anymore.

Wait I could assign 5 to a weapon without any problems. Only 2 couldn't get re-assigned when I played.

[SecondTalon]

Ah, I was just glancing at the wheel thing that popped up and assumed the middle one was 5 and nonassignable. I am probably mistaken.

[Scallel]

Usually I'd make fun of that, not knowing you could cycle through ammo, If it wasnt for the fact that it wasn't until my sixtieth plus hour that I finally realized why I couldn't hotkey things to my 2 key. And really the only time I do cycle ammo, in an energy weapons person, is when I need to take something really strong down, AKa deathclaws.

Also, how the heck do I get through the couriers path in lonesome road?

Spoiler:

I keep finding the one pack of deathclaws with nine of then all around each other. My sneak is one hundred and it's fairly useless when nine irradiated deathclaws can all smell your fear.

[SecondTalon]

Usually I'd make fun of that, not knowing you could cycle through ammo, If it wasnt for the fact that it wasn't until my sixtieth plus hour that I finally realized why I couldn't hotkey things to my 2 key. And really the only time I do cycle ammo, in an energy weapons person, is when I need to take something really strong down, AKa deathclaws.

Also, how the heck do I get through the couriers path in lonesome road?

Spoiler:

I keep finding the one pack of deathclaws with nine of then all around each other. My sneak is one hundred and it's fairly useless when nine irradiated deathclaws can all smell your fear.

Spoiler:

Flare Gun.

Seriously, Flare Gun and Time. You should be able to kinda pull one or two away from the pack, then keep them tied up with the Flare Gun. If they wander back to the pack, let them go.

But Flare Gun. Use the Flare Gun. The Flare Gun. The Gun that shoots Flares.

[Yakk]

I'm unclear on the subject. What does it shoot?

[SecondTalon]

Kittens and sno-cones.

[Vaniver]

I'm unclear on the subject. What does it shoot?

You're saying that you have insufficient flare-ity?

[pseudoidiot]

[Jessica]

I wonder if flash bangs work.

I should probably try and find another flare gun by the time I get to that point in the game. I keep selling them because they suck.

[SecondTalon]

Thoughts on Gun Runner's Arsenal -

New ammo? Anti-Materiel Explosive Ammunition? Awesome! Mini Nukes can.. just.. be bought? From the Gun Runner's store outside Freeside? Fucking Yes. Holy shit, mods for all sorts of weapons! Sweet, this is... hey, wait.. why are there two Anti-Materiel rifles listed with.. the same stats, but one has GRA behind it... wait, why can't I apply this mod to my gun... the new mods only work on the GRA tagged weapons?

...the fuck?

[Yakk]

Thoughts on Gun Runner's Arsenal -

New ammo? Anti-Materiel Explosive Ammunition? Awesome! Mini Nukes can.. just.. be bought? From the Gun Runner's store outside Freeside? Fucking Yes. Holy shit, mods for all sorts of weapons! Sweet, this is... hey, wait.. why are there two Anti-Materiel rifles listed with.. the same stats, but one has GRA behind it... wait, why can't I apply this mod to my gun... the new mods only work on the GRA tagged weapons?

...the fuck?

GRA was a hack mod released with pre-orders. Maybe for testing purposes, or whatever, they used different items.

Bunch of crappy designers and/or coders, I'm guessing, or a tight budget and not much time.

[eculc]

Thoughts on Gun Runner's Arsenal -

New ammo? Anti-Materiel Explosive Ammunition? Awesome! Mini Nukes can.. just.. be bought? From the Gun Runner's store outside Freeside? Fucking Yes. Holy shit, mods for all sorts of weapons! Sweet, this is... hey, wait.. why are there two Anti-Materiel rifles listed with.. the same stats, but one has GRA behind it... wait, why can't I apply this mod to my gun... the new mods only work on the GRA tagged weapons?

...the fuck?

GRA was a hack mod released with pre-orders. Maybe for testing purposes, or whatever, they used different items.

Bunch of crappy designers and/or coders, I'm guessing, or a tight budget and not much time.

yeah, AFAIK it's because of how the engine works; it's easier to create new items than to modify quite a bit of coding for pre-existing ones.