Fallout New Vegas: ~People let me tell you about my Anti-Material Rifle, he's a big-barreled gun that'll kill Deathclaws to the end~
Because saying, "and then I used my anti-material rifle to reduce the target into its base components" every other day would have gotten tiresome--for you not me--I instead waited until I was done with all the DLCs. Next update will be to the endgame and then back to the Pacifist playthrough to finish stuff there.
So, since the AMR is one of my One True Loves, I rather meticulously planned out my stat build because that's what I want to do with my life. AMR's don't show up until level 16, so I planned everything around that. Little did I know that with GRA installed the GRA AMR acronymfest! is available at level 1(because I ran to the clinic at level 1 again). With the whole of my planning ruined, I went and did some lowbie quests(Primm, killing ants) to earn enough scratch for supplies so I could face Lonesome Road at level 6.
It was... well at 10 Charisma EDE was useless but at level 6 with 1 he isn't! Which was good because I was hitting enemy DT a hell of a lot. The initial Silo stuff was doing that, and all the Marked Men outside were hella dangerous even with weak weapons. And then one of them had an Assault Carbine and my fortunes changed rapidly from there. I cleared out everything in Hopeville that wasn't behind a warhead and headed back to the Mojave because Lonesome Road showers you in way too many caps. I got my AMR at around level 10.
After that I went and grabbed This Machine and All-American. Two guns I've really wanted to use but could never fit them in. This Machine was useful for clearing Vault 34, but when I went back to Lonesome Road, I needed the firepower of my other guns too much so it eventually fell into my Novac Room(also got the First Recon Beret because I need crit). Anyway, High Road Deathclaws felt the righteous power of the Anti-Material Rifle and all was right in the world. I tried Courier's Mile immediately, but everything rushed me at once so I was like NUH-UH after dying three times.
Going further in, I was really impressed with just how robust Ulysses's dialogue trees were. I'm still getting things I've never seen. So, after Anti-Materialing so very many things, including Rawr, I make it to the Temple. Now, this is gonna be an NCR run, so I'm gonna launch the nuke at the Legion, so I don't need to free EDE and having the 10% damage boost would be decently helpful. But this is also the first time on PC I'll be really using companions, so I free him--and hell, might as well see his ending eh? Anyway, as usual I spare Ulysses, this time using the Enclave logs since I had no rep to convince him. I loot everything from the Marked Men rush because I just get teleported next to a commissary anyway and now I get to be heading back with much caps.
Straight into OWB because I need my spine upgrade. Even as low a level as I am the Robo-Scorpions are still obnoxiously bullet spongy when being hit by AMR rounds of all types. I also run out of rounds for nearly all my guns by the end because the Sink so rarely refills its inventory. On the other hand, OBW gave me inspiration for a magic trick.
Now you see the LOBOTOMITE. NOW YOU DON'T!a magician must never reveal their tricks, but can you figure it out? Here's a super-slow mo replay.
Now you see the LOBOTOMITE. Now you don't!Anyway, with the actual abiliity to kkiiiilll things I went through things lickity split. Also I leveled up a ton because cripes do the DLCs vomit EXP on you. The Giant Robo-scorpion went down before Mobius even completed his speech because Turbo is a hell of a drug. And speaking of drugs at this point I was pretty much downing any and all alcohol I got my hands on immediately because letting it all sit in my inventory taking up 30 pounds was a pain. So with Klein's giant stash I was sloshed for the whole of OWB and Dead Money when I got to it.
Which was next! Because I could break down .308 rounds from the vending machine to get hand-load for other rifles. Automatic Rifle is a lot better than I remember it being, but 20 rounds is still an obnoxiously low and I have my Assault Carbine for fast shooting anyway. I also think I might be able to do Dead Money as pacifist if I really abuse saves because Ghost People seeing me immediately when I open a new door is bullshit.
Finally on to Honest Hearts where I can indulge in my
SNEERING IMPERIALIST roots. Shortly thereafter Graham's threat of me not getting a second shot proved prophetic. I only needed one.
And then this guy here jumped off a cliff.So with Honest Hearts ended I lamented not being able to use Light Shining in the Darkness. But got over it. I grabbed Boone and EDE and took my AMR to its destiny of clearing out Quarry Junction. It was almost too easy despite Boone's bizarre insistence of randomly switching to his Machete and me KOing EDE at one point. On my way north I got ambushed by a Legion assassin squad, which sent me over to Forlorn Hope to get the ear quest. I go and clean out the Raid Camp, get ears there. I kill Vulpes, but his group doesn't have ears for some reason. So, that means Searchlight and Cottonwood Cove is next.
Unlike my Explosives/Energy run, this time I get involved in the hunt the last dogtag run.
Seeing this almost made wasting an hour in Searchlight worth it. Eventually I find it on a ghoul that I never killed because Astor and his crew did it. I resist my impulse to kill them with Explosives.
After that it's the Cottonwood Cove shuffle.
During my Recon into Cottonwood Cove, I noticed that the Legion had let one of their captures walk loose. Really, if they can't keep someone locked up they all deserve to die a radiation-based death. And the officers deserve to be reduced into more parts than actual Legionnaires at the cove. It was actually difficult to find Canyon Runner because he'd been blasted into the river. Before I finished up there I ended over to the Nuked spot to clean that out.
Anyway, with things complete I have enough history points for Boone.
But first, I needed to find Manny for Boone's Comp quest. Little did I know that he was entertaining a guest that day.Anyway, over to Bitter Springs. Do the quests there because I can. I also have the perk that allows me to see VATS target HP and DT and the troopers only have 50 HP. Giles is the only one above that at a grand total of 55 HP. And at this point, I'm in my mid-40s of level, so they aren't scaling at all. No wonder they got plastered by the Legion so easily.
And then at the end of Boone's comp quest I noticed a bit of Fire Gecko was chilling out in Bitter Springs. Despite me only using All-American, its head had flown clear over two mountains to get here.
