Any tips for Fallout New Vegas?

[Texashiker]

A few days ago Direct2Drive had new vegas on sale for something like $12, so I bought a copy. After about 2 hours of gameplay, I think I am getting the hang of it.

Any tips for a new vegas noob?

What are some important skills that I need to put some points into? My first skill points went into stuff like talking, weapons and survival.

How important are points into stuff like lock picking and hacking computer terminals later in the game?

I guess I need a few points into being able to repair weapons?

 

[Kristijonas]

Hello, my best advice would be - take skill/stat points that you will enjoy playing. Any skills are good and valid in this game. For example I enjoy playing a very intelligent and overall perfect guy, who's very lazy, but knows how to handle a handgun and knows science, medicine and talking. And I did pretty well. It's all about role playing - the more you do, the more you enjoy the game, trust me. Pragmatism will only make this game a chore.

 

[spaceman]

max speech

 

[Rakewell]

A few days ago Direct2Drive had new vegas on sale for something like $12, so I bought a copy. After about 2 hours of gameplay, I think I am getting the hang of it.

Any tips for a new vegas noob?

What are some important skills that I need to put some points into? My first skill points went into stuff like talking, weapons and survival.

How important are points into stuff like lock picking and hacking computer terminals later in the game?

I guess I need a few points into being able to repair weapons?

I would level up the following ASAP:

-Lockpick and Science to 30 (you can get magazines + the double magazine perk to bring that up to 50 for some of the harder lockers.

-Guns to at least 30-35 off of the bat. Much easier killing things when your bullets actually do decent damage.

-Speech to 30 as well.

I would concentrate on those four for most of the game, and then when you have them suitably higher (55+, magazines can get you to 75) I would start concentrating on barter.

Depending upon your gameplay style, of course. As I'm not crazy about Melee/Unarmed, I would also start working on Energy Weapons if you are inclined.

Also, if I may, I would recommend a couple of mods that clearly make the game much better than the creators could have made: If any, get the WMX mod. It lets you mod ALL weapons, even specials (something you can't do in the vanilla, which is a shame.)

http://www.newvegasnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=39651

Also,

A perk every level (I don't know why they left this out of FO:NV, they had in in FO3):

http://www.newvegasnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=34707

And if you really want a great mod and would rather it be a shooter with a VATS alternative, I give you Project Nevada:

http://www.newvegasnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=40040

Cheers- and enjoy. :thumbsup:

 

[HumblePie]

Basically the easiest "game" for Fallout New Vegas is like all the others. Especially if you are willing to do the "tricks" to max out your char.

First and foremost realize that you are going to be able to up stats a little bit. Higher your stats, the higher your base skills. The higher your intelligence though, the more skill points you get. Skills are what make the difference in the end, but you need stats as well to open up perks.

Personally this is what I went with. Got Intelligence to 9. While 10 is the max, you can boost intelligence to 10 with an implant. Implants cost about 4K in caps to get. All you have to do is raise 4K in caps and get over to the clinic to get them installed. The clinic is up in the north part of the map. Getting the implant as soon as possible helps a ton.

I also put Endurance to 7. This will allow you, with the perk that allows you to boost it to 8, to get all the implants available.

As far as your other stats, have fun with them. I put my Strength at 4. You only need to have a higher strength if you plan to make a melee char. Which in Fallout New Vegas is a very viable character to play unlike previous incarnations of Fallout where playing melee wasn't exactly easy in later parts of the game. The reason for the lower strength is you will get power armor later to add to it and an implant as well. That will put it up to 8 and that's more than enough for a gunslinger. Also weight isn't a big thing either with fast travel. Once you beat the quests in Good Springs (the starting town) you can just come back at anytime with fast travel and drop off items in a dumpster. The "containers" like dumpsters and such in this game have unlimited item capacity so far as I can tell. This way if you are hoarding tons of items, which you will, this is an easy way to keep it all without having to have tons of strength to tote it all around.

As far as skills go, these are the order of importance I've found for maxing.

Lockpick
Science
Repair
Speech
Stealth

Then your main combat skill be it guns or energy weapons or melee. You can get by in low level combat with dreadful "skills" that you make up for with your own twitch based skill for the most part. Also in this game you can pick up one humanoid companion and one non-humanoid. The first you get is a non-humanoid called Ed. Ed is a floating robot drone. He shoots an energy rifle and will basically kill anything and everything for you at low levels. If you want to, you really don't need to be combat oriented i this game at all. The companions can and will be able to kill everything for you. Still, the companions do have a tougher time against some of the nastier enemies later like Deathclaws. So it is still recommended to get some combat skills by then. But at low levels the companions will wipe out everything for you pretty easily. Boone is also the first humanoid compaion you can get and he's pretty tough. Actually he's probably the best combat companion in the game.

Those the basic tips I would highly suggest for anyone playing this game.

 

[Fallen Kell]

My favourite was energy weapons + Finesse + Commando + Math Wrath + Meltdown + Plasma Spaz + Sniper + Laser Commander + Action Boy + Better Criticals + Concentrated Fire + Grim Reaper's Sprint and you will utterly destroy people with laser/plasma guns Just use VATS and shoot for the head, within 1-2 shots you will almost always critical and kill, and then get splash damage on others nearby, and get +20 action points so you can immediately rinse/repeat on the next....

 

[KIAman]

For some reason, melee or critical sniper is super OP in New Vegas. If you want a super easy game, max out melee skills or max out guns and critical increasing skills/perks. You will eventually wade through 10 enemies 1 shotting each of them with a punch or 1 shotting them from a sniper rifle to the head.

Or get both so you can be prepared for both situations.

Other than that, max out either science or lockpicking. There is always a lockpick or science check for important areas, the rest is fluff.

Pick up the repair perk where you can repair your rare weapon with a common weapon. Repair will also make you rich in general. Kill 20 mobs, pick up 20 guns and repair 5 of them to 100% while reducing your weight load and sell for huge profit.

If you REALLY want an INTERESTING gameplay, go with 1 INT. The dialog is absolutely hilarious. You say something like "The googoo thing smash da whoop de doop?" and the NPC says "ummm... sure ok, go do it." LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!

 

[Rakewell]

If you REALLY want an INTERESTING gameplay, go with 1 INT. The dialog is absolutely hilarious. You say something like "The googoo thing smash da whoop de doop?" and the NPC says "ummm... sure ok, go do it." LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL!

Was NOT aware that this was possible.

Hilarious.

:awe:

 

[wuliheron]

1) Stick to the roads.

Unlike Fallout 3 this game has a very linear path you can follow that allows you to quickly establish lots of place to sell all your stuff, buy weapons, and quick travel everywhere. If you run into deathclaws, you've gone the wrong way.

2) Lock pick and science of up to 50 are great and speech can be even more important eventually depending on how you play.

3) The rest is up to you. Not knowing how you prefer to play and short of giving away a lot of spoilers that's the best advice I could give.

 

[ichy]

I'm a big fan of jury rigging, which allows you to repair rare weapons with common weapons. Great way to make huge amounts of money.

 

[Texashiker]

1) Stick to the roads.

Unlike Fallout 3 this game has a very linear path

I have fallout 3, and kept getting into places where I was dying right and left. After playing fallout 3 for about 7 hours, I finally gave up.

New vegas seem to be a lot more fun then fallout 3 was.

Thanks for the tip guys, I'll keep them in mind on my next level up.

 

[zinfamous]

Was NOT aware that this was possible.

Hilarious.

:awe:

Yeah, FO 1 was like this. Also, sniper with sneak and max criticals was godly.

looks to be the same with NV. I also picked this up with the D2D deal and having a blast with it.

At first, the movement and mechanics seemed very stiff and clunky to me, but I'm getting used to it. The atmosphere, and the "Bethesda gameplay" (which I haven't experienced in some time), are just excellent.

Thanks for posting the mod links earlier, I'll definitely check those out. Anyone have a link to a great mod that fixes the minor, super annoying bugs? Like, constantly getting stuck in windows, trapped in invisible walls, keyboard losing control and somehow toggling auto run that can not be stopped until, magically, the game decides to stop? No crashes for me, yet, just a lot of little annoyances.

For now (I'm currently in the RePCO factory), I've found that repair, guns, sneak, speech are my main categories. Intelligence is also up to 7 or 8. I may have wasted a perk or two by getting two levels of the perk that grants you another skill point for SPECIAL, but I found that it worked really well for me in FO1, so I went with it.

 

[zinfamous]

1) Stick to the roads.

Unlike Fallout 3 this game has a very linear path you can follow that allows you to quickly establish lots of place to sell all your stuff, buy weapons, and quick travel everywhere. If you run into deathclaws, you've gone the wrong way.

2) Lock pick and science of up to 50 are great and speech can be even more important eventually depending on how you play.

3) The rest is up to you. Not knowing how you prefer to play and short of giving away a lot of spoilers that's the best advice I could give.

heh, everyone is saying lockpick, lockpick. I guess I should focus on that some more. I'm still below 25 and am at level 8. There are certainly a few doors and lockers that I have wanted to get into, but it hasn't bothered me too much, yet. The one thing that I really want to increase is Science/Repair so that I can start making junk and fixing my shit with minimal cost, and to help with weight reduction.


so...if I do go back to Goodsprings and start tossing stuff in dumpsters, those remain the same on every login? I assumed that they would reset, and you would lose your loot. What's the point of the Mojave Express boxes, then?

...and it seems that Ed-E has unlimited weight capacity? I've loaded him up with about 8 plasma rifles and laser rifles, and batteries and pressure cookers and crap and he just keeps taking it? wtf.

 

[ichy]

...and it seems that Ed-E has unlimited weight capacity? I've loaded him up with about 8 plasma rifles and laser rifles, and batteries and pressure cookers and crap and he just keeps taking it? wtf.

Not unlimited, but he can carry quite a bit.

 

[wuliheron]

I have fallout 3, and kept getting into places where I was dying right and left. After playing fallout 3 for about 7 hours, I finally gave up.

New vegas seem to be a lot more fun then fallout 3 was.

Thanks for the tip guys, I'll keep them in mind on my next level up.

Yeah, NV is more casual fun, but that also means it has less replay value. There really isn't any viable alternative to running down the road in the beginning and its just too easy to collect serious cash, weapons, and armor with only a few minor side quests to deal with. If you choose the "wild wasteland" option you can even get the alien blaster very early in the game and be practically unstoppable.

 

[Texashiker]

Yeah, NV is more casual fun, but that also means it has less replay value.

After I put some more time into new vegas and learn the system, I might go back and play fallout 3.

Fallout 3 seemed like a massive game, and to be honest it seemed a little overwhelming. I think I got too far off track and ended up in places that I should not have been.

I like how new vegas gets you into the game faster then what fallout 3 did. With 3, it seemed like I spent an hour on plot development.

 

[wuliheron]

After I put some more time into new vegas and learn the system, I might go back and play fallout 3.

Fallout 3 seemed like a massive game, and to be honest it seemed a little overwhelming. I think I got too far off track and ended up in places that I should not have been.

I like how new vegas gets you into the game faster then what fallout 3 did. With 3, it seemed like I spent an hour on plot development.

You can always look up hints and tips or even a guidebook online if you get stuck again in Fallout 3. If you want, people can also give you some advice here. There are definite ways to get off to a good start, but its just not as easy or linear as it is in NV.

 

[shortylickens]

http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Portal:Fallout:_New_Vegas

Look up the console code for carrying more weight.
One of the most tedious tasks is making assloads of trips back and forth to sell loot. Game is a lot smoother and more enjoyable if you dont have to do that a hundred times.

And for reference there is just as much stuff to do in New Vegas as in Fallout 3 but it doesnt feel like it cuz the game world is arranged a little better. Also a lot of stuff is linked to specific factions and in any single game you wont be able to do all of it.

 

[AstroManLuca]

http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Portal:Fallout:_New_Vegas

Look up the console code for carrying more weight.
One of the most tedious tasks is making assloads of trips back and forth to sell loot. Game is a lot smoother and more enjoyable if you dont have to do that a hundred times.

You don't have to make assloads of trips anyway. The only time it's rough is if you have a low strength character early in the game before you get a companion. As soon as you get Boone, ED-E, or anyone else, you're pretty much set. Most loot in the game is junk, not worth carrying around. It's tempting to carry a ton of guns for all your ammo types, but reloading benches have made that unnecessary as well since you can convert a lot of your useless ammo into useful ammo.

 

[frozentundra123456]

My experience with Fallout 3 too. I am not great at shooters/RPGs, but I thought I was decent at least. I just could not get the hang of that game. Seemed like the weapons did so little damage and ammo was always in short supply. Got killed constantly. Not to mention was never sure where I was supposed to be going. Maybe I just gave up too quickly, I dont know.

 

[shortylickens]

My experience with Fallout 3 too. I am not great at shooters/RPGs, but I thought I was decent at least. I just could not get the hang of that game. Seemed like the weapons did so little damage and ammo was always in short supply. Got killed constantly. Not to mention was never sure where I was supposed to be going. Maybe I just gave up too quickly, I dont know.

You gave up too soon.
The first part of the game is supposed to be challenging. You need to pick your fights, scrounge around and be able to retreat if needed.
Also setting up mines and smart use of tossed explosives is good too.

Eventually your gun skill gets high enough that you can kill things quickly. And you can get perks to substantially increase found ammo and caps.
But getting strong later on makes you appreciate how weak and vulnerable you were when you first stepped out of Vault 101. I have rarely seen a game which makes your appreciate your own mortality except for perhaps STALKER and Deus Ex.

Oops. I was thinking of fallout 3. New Vegas is actually easier in a lot of ways. A little more forgiving if you wander into dangerous territory. Also theres a wider variety of perks so if you just wanna go with combat or just negotiating, its much easier. The people who have a hard time are the ones who pick conversation perks and try to shoot everything they see.

 

[shortylickens]

You don't have to make assloads of trips anyway. The only time it's rough is if you have a low strength character early in the game before you get a companion. As soon as you get Boone, ED-E, or anyone else, you're pretty much set. Most loot in the game is junk, not worth carrying around. It's tempting to carry a ton of guns for all your ammo types, but reloading benches have made that unnecessary as well since you can convert a lot of your useless ammo into useful ammo.

You need to sell all that useless junk for extra caps.
Also I added some mods that let me make shit from garbage. Many of the weapon add-ons can be made from scrap metal, scrap electronics, tire irons, switch blades, and binoculars. You can make scrap metal and electronics from LOTS of stuff.

Check out NewVegasNexus. Sign up. Get some mods. Loads of fun. I even got mods for making stimpaks, super stimpaks, and stealth suits.

 

[AstroManLuca]

You need to sell all that useless junk for extra caps.
Also I added some mods that let me make shit from garbage. Many of the weapon add-ons can be made from scrap metal, scrap electronics, tire irons, switch blades, and binoculars. You can make scrap metal and electronics from LOTS of stuff.

Check out NewVegasNexus. Sign up. Get some mods. Loads of fun. I even got mods for making stimpaks, super stimpaks, and stealth suits.

Hmm, caps were never a problem for me. At least, they haven't been yet (still working on my first playthrough, got it during the D2D sale as well). All the junk I could have collected would have been worth about the same to merchants as the handful of plasma rifles I found, repaired, and sold in the REPCONN building.

There appear to be a lot of recipes in the game for making stuff at campfires and workbenches but so far I haven't done much. All the decent ones require too high skills in areas I'm not good at, and I don't always have the random stuff you're supposed to collect. Certainly nowhere close to having the 90 Medicine skill necessary to make Super Stimpacks, and I've encountered maybe two leather belts (a necessary ingredient) so far.

I dunno, crafting just doesn't seem important since there's so much really valuable stuff you can trade for medical supplies or just caps.

Oh and I'm already running mods, so far nothing game-changing, just an extra radio station, MTUI, and a weapon texture pack. Might do Project Nevada on my second playthrough.

 

[shortylickens]

Hmm, caps were never a problem for me. At least, they haven't been yet (still working on my first playthrough, got it during the D2D sale as well). All the junk I could have collected would have been worth about the same to merchants as the handful of plasma rifles I found, repaired, and sold in the REPCONN building.

There appear to be a lot of recipes in the game for making stuff at campfires and workbenches but so far I haven't done much. All the decent ones require too high skills in areas I'm not good at, and I don't always have the random stuff you're supposed to collect. Certainly nowhere close to having the 90 Medicine skill necessary to make Super Stimpacks, and I've encountered maybe two leather belts (a necessary ingredient) so far.

I dunno, crafting just doesn't seem important since there's so much really valuable stuff you can trade for medical supplies or just caps.

Oh and I'm already running mods, so far nothing game-changing, just an extra radio station, MTUI, and a weapon texture pack. Might do Project Nevada on my second playthrough.

Most of the recipes added by mods require no skill, just the junk.

The early game is a little easier when you have a stealth suit and can make steel for AP rounds from almost any metal object.
AP rounds make the game a whole new experience, especially when you get the light machine gun.

 

[PhatoseAlpha]

Comprehension perk. Pick it up ASAP. It's tremendously valuable. While the extra point from skill books isn't amazing, it is helpful. However, in addition to that it also doubles the effectiveness of skill magazines. This means you can keep lockpick, repair, science, barter and speech at 80 instead of 90, and pop a magazine for the few 100 skill required checks.

With a potential of +52 additional skill points from books, plus 50 additional points saved by using boosted magazines for high level skill checks, comprehension ends up being worth 100 or so skill points net value. No other perk even comes close in terms of value in skill points.


Always carry around some AP ammo. You will encounter enemies where you'll need it. If you see the shield icon, switch to your AP ammo.



Do not wander off the roads until you're strong. You'll run into Deathclaws - but since they're eight foot tall lizards with "Death" in their name, you'll probably figure out that you should avoid them.

Then you'll run into Cazadors. And then you'll die, because they're the real terror of the wastes. Vicious, hard to hit, flying, fast, poisonous, attack in groups and they're surprisingly common.