Going to play Fallout: New Vegas for the first time, requesting sage 'dex advice.

[Gnidrologist]

SPECIALs certainly don't have as big effect as they should, so everyone should install this very small but very effective mod, unless they already use a bigger overhaul that includes such changes.

The fuck? If this really works like advertised, then why in fucking hell it wasn't vanilla by default? I mean, it basically reverts everything back to how it worked in fallouts. It seems fishy that there are so little endorsements, though.

 

[Somberlain]

SPECIALs certainly don't have as big effect as they should, so everyone should install this very small but very effective mod, unless they already use a bigger overhaul that includes such changes.

The fuck? If this really works like advertised, then why in fucking hell it wasn't vanilla by default? I mean, it basically reverts everything back to how it worked in fallouts. It seems fishy that there are so little endorsements, though.

It works perfectly, as far as I've seen. The low amount of endorsements is probably because some extremely popular mods, like Project Nevada, include changes to SPECIAL already. None of the mods that only change SPECIAL seem to have that many endorsements.

 

[T. Reich]

How does it interact with JSawyer mod specifically?
I'm asking because Sawyer implemented some changes to how stats work, so I;m wondering if there are compatibility conflicts.
If there are none, then it's a pretty good mod in my eyes.

 

[Somberlain]

How does it interact with JSawyer mod specifically?
I'm asking because Sawyer implemented some changes to how stats work, so I;m wondering if there are compatibility conflicts.
If there are none, then it's a pretty good mod in my eyes.

Install both but load jsawyer after SPECIAL overhaul. That way you get all the stuff from jsawyer and SPECIAL overhaul changes to stats that jsawyer doesn't touch.

 

[Snorkack]

But is there any mod that adds more theme-fitting songs?
.

This is a fairly popular mod. I haven't tested it myself though, since I don't usually listen to the radio.

Thanks, that's _exactly_ what I was looking for. Will try out.

Also I actually miss 3 dog...

He's imo the only F3 character for who the devs actually made some effort to give him a personality. I can see why one would dislike him, tho.

 

[Sheepherder]

PER of 6 is required for a lot of very powerful crit-related perks, so are AGI 6 and LCK 6. If you want to be a decent sniper, you want those three stats at 6 or sometimes higher. You totally want to max out AGI eventually if you rely on VATS. AGI is very important for VATS.
END of 7 is required to install all 7 stat-increasing implants available in the game, which is recommended. But you could go with 6 here and skip CHA implant.
STR of 4-5 is generally enough for all, and later on there are bonuses to STR as it is, plus the power armor.
INT is totally important to be able to raise skills quickly and a lot.
CHA is good for boosting companions, true, but why rely on companions' AI when you can kill stuf more reliably yourself? Plus, the difference between, say, 4 CHA and 10 CHA is not that big.

None of the pretty armors I use give a str bonus, so STR @ 5 or 6, because there's a +1/2 bonus from OWB +an implant. There are like 2 weapons that need more than 8 STR and carry weight is a non issue for me.
Apart from perk requirements and a few dialogue checks, PER is absolutely useless. Leave it at 5 and get an implant.
Yeah, END is good.
Agree on CHA, it's a dump stat.
6 INT. Because you'll max whatever you want by level 30. Moreso at lvl 50. And you don't need to raise combat skill early, as they give a percentile raise to your damage. +% more damage ain't gonna help you when your weapon dmg is like 18.
I like agility. Reload, holster speed, action points.
Luck means more crits. I like using crit weapons.

 

[AW8]

PER of 6 is required for a lot of very powerful crit-related perks, so are AGI 6 and LCK 6. If you want to be a decent sniper, you want those three stats at 6 or sometimes higher.

True, I forgot about those perks. But apart from those, the attribute is still garbage. The mod Somberlain linked to gives it a much needed secondary effect, determining gun accuracy.

You totally want to max out AGI eventually if you rely on VATS. AGI is very important for VATS.

The Action Point difference is small though. 68 AP for AGI 1 compared to 95 AP for AGI 10. And even then, you have to use VATS in the first place. Compared to Fallout, where AP is useful for every character once combat starts.

Making the AP difference steeper and adding more uses for AP like the Sprint and Bullet Time mods help a lot.

STR of 4-5 is generally enough for all, and later on there are bonuses to STR as it is, plus the power armor.

The Anti-Material Rifle - objectively the coolest rifle in the game - requires 8 STR. My first character had 4 STR and never dabbled in Power Armor. I had to get the Strength Implant, Weapon Handling and, gods forgive me, Intense Training (Strength) in order to wield it precisely.

Never again.

CHA is good for boosting companions, true, but why rely on companions' AI when you can kill stuf more reliably yourself? Plus, the difference between, say, 4 CHA and 10 CHA is not that big.

It also makes them harder to kill, increasing the time window for saving Boone from getting his head torn off by a Deathclaw. But if you don't play with companions... it has no effect. A rare attribute check here and there, and maybe the Animal Friend perk. Who doesn't want to waste not only one perk point to make low to mid-level critters passive, but another perk point to make them come to your aid in combat? You know, for those times when you're crippled, almost dead, hunted by a hit squad and happens upons a group of Geckos.

I think all attributes should have multiple effects and the player should suffer penalties for dumping an attribute. Charisma has always had very small use outside of companions though, I don't know what it could affect that the Speech/Barter skills and reputations doesn't already cover.

 

[Clockwork Knight]

True, but I consider that to be even more of a "technical pacifist" than the guy who orders his companions to kill everything while he watches from afar with a faint smile.

Spoiler

 

[Carrion]

I did an iron man pacifist run without firing a single shot or using any companions, and it was surprising how easy it actually was. It made the game very short, as I barely even touched any side quests and avoided exploration of all sorts, but it was definitely viable and didn't require any exploits or other cheese. I think I technically killed a few ants in the Boomers base by activating the sonic device, but even that could've been easily avoided as it's not a mandatory quest.

There are a ton of side quests that require you to kill stuff, though, and you also need a bit of meta knowledge to pass the right skill checks in the main quest, so there's not much point in attempting a full pacifist run on the first playthrough. It's a better idea to just go with a classic "Speech + Small Guns" build instead.

 

[Gnidrologist]

A high strength is completely unnecessary if you don't want to melee. At the beginning of the game I was hoarding everything, but over time you come to realize that 99% of the stuff you're squirreling away is cack. All the crafting is completely unnecessary, although I guess some people are into that sort of thing.

Crafting of wepaon repair kits IS necessary, if you're repair guy like my protag and all the scrap metal, wonderglues, wrenches n shit are heavy combo.

For a sniper gunner, there is also another gem available in Novac

DA FAK? I never saw it. Does it require DLC to be there?
edit: ah yes, need GRA

I'm gay for the modded anti-mat rifle.

Never saw any mod for it. Same question - do i need DLC for it?

Also, how come Cass can wear power helmet, but not armor?

 

[Volrath]

It's sad to realize that Obsidian will never be able to top New Vegas.

 

[T. Reich]

For a sniper gunner, there is also another gem available in Novac

DA FAK? I never saw it. Does it require DLC to be there?
edit: ah yes, need GRA

Sorry 'bout that. I kinda assumed that since the Ultimate edition (which has all the DLCs) has been available for 3 years for throwaway price by now, most people would've bought (or pirated) that.

Also, the modded AMR needs GRA as well, yeah.

Also, how come Cass can wear power helmet, but not armor?

"Power armor helmet on vault suit" bobbleheads should totally be a thing.

 

[naossano]

Volrath >

Well, it depends what you like.

I enjoy a lot of things the team brought into the table and i totally recognize the quality of their work, but the 1st/3rd person perspective, the ammount of fillers, fast-travel, the use of quest marker, the loot system, amongs other things, prevent the game from being as enjoyable as it should be. Instead of an uncut version you find on the Nexus, they should release a cut-the-fillers-and-all-unecessary-stuff version.

 

[Gnidrologist]

I intentionally play without DLCs. Wanted to experience the game the way it came out. And tbh, it has way too much content for my slow playing style already. With dlcs i will probably need a year to finish the run.

 

[WhiteGuts]

The Gun Runners Arsenal and Dead Money are the mandatory DLCs I'd say. They add so much to the game, each in their own way.

 

[Gnidrologist]

I will get to them eventually. Not even few years will pass.

 

[AW8]

Also, how come Cass can wear power helmet, but not armor?

Your companions can wear Power Armor, but they will refuse if you're giving them a faction Power Armor (Brotherhood of Steel Power Armor) from a faction that they are against. In that case, you need to find a non-faction Power Armor.

Helmets are not considered faction disguises, and can be worn by everyone.

 

[naossano]

IMO, Dead Money and Honest Heart have a good ratio of Content/Filler while having good meat.
Old World Blues also have good meat, but contain way too much filler.
About Lonesome Road, well, it depends on how much you love the content...

Courier Stash & Gunn Runner are just item/perk DLC. They bring no new content.

 

[AW8]

Install both but load jsawyer after SPECIAL overhaul. That way you get all the stuff from jsawyer and SPECIAL overhaul changes to stats that jsawyer doesn't touch.

I loaded jsawyer after SPECIAL Overhaul, and I still get the increased HP and carry weight from SPECIAL Overhaul, even on a new game. Hmhmmhmh. What gives?

 

[Gnidrologist]

Your companions can wear Power Armor, but they will refuse if you're giving them a faction Power Armor (Brotherhood of Steel Power Armor) from a faction that they are against. In that case, you need to find a non-faction Power Armor.

Helmets are not considered faction disguises, and can be worn by everyone.

K, i get it. So T45 doesn't count as faction armor? Because i found out that she can wear it. Guess i also can wear it near NCR people without them getting hostile?

I found the good ol' enclave helmet in some cave. Is there also enclave PA somewhere?

One more question - how are DLCs integrated into game? Like NoTR was to Gothic, where you enter an entirely different area?

 

[WhiteGuts]

Yeah, there are some Enclave remnants. Get Arcade Gannon.

The four main DLCs all take place in different areas.

 

[AW8]

K, i get it. So T45 doesn't count as faction armor? Because i found out that she can wear it. Guess i also can wear it near NCR people without them getting hostile?

The faction Power Armors have a "Brotherhood"-prefix, and also give you a message box when you equip them, "You are now disguised as a member of the Brotherhood of Steel".

Non-Brotherhood Power Armor does not disguise you, and does not make NCR members hostile.

I found the good ol' enclave helmet in some cave. Is there also enclave PA somewhere?

There is, so keep on exploring!

One more question - how are DLCs integrated into game? Like NoTR was to Gothic, where you enter an entirely different area?

The new perks, crafting items and higher level cap become available to you the moment you install the DLC's. The new landmasses, quests and characters however, are sealed off in entirely new areas.

 

[Somberlain]

Install both but load jsawyer after SPECIAL overhaul. That way you get all the stuff from jsawyer and SPECIAL overhaul changes to stats that jsawyer doesn't touch.

I loaded jsawyer after SPECIAL Overhaul, and I still get the increased HP and carry weight from SPECIAL Overhaul, even on a new game. Hmhmmhmh. What gives?

That's weird, it shouldn't happen. Are you sure you don't have other mods that might mess things up?

EDIT: If nothing else helps, the same author has individual mods for intelligence, endurance and perception.

 

[AW8]

That's weird, it shouldn't happen. Are you sure you don't have other mods that might mess things up?

EDIT: If nothing else helps, the same author has individual mods for intelligence, endurance and perception.

Looking in NVEdit, it seems like SPECIAL Overhaul modifes a few variables that jsawyer doesn't touch, namely multipliers. I think those are the culprits. I'm gonna try to identify all of them and figure out how to remove them in GECK, see if that works.

 

[Snorkack]

Finished the game after 44 hours with the Yes Man arc. During the ending scene I realized how much branches I didn't even touch. I think I just reload the last pre-Hooverdam save and get some more work done. I haven't started any DLCs, haven't found 4 companions at all, still have huge empty spots on the map, and who the heck are the Kings?
Just wondering? I managed to always stay on good terms with the NCR. Is it still possible to side with them if I already finished all except the last Yes Man quest?
Had a really great time overall, best rpg I played the last few years. Its a shame that it stood on my shelf for 5 years collecting dust. Can't wait to be utterly disappointed by F4!