Monday, 22 July 2013

Lets Play New Vegas Part 22B: Let's go Shopping!!

Another month-long delay....I don't have much excuse for this, other than being generally and generically busy. But still, sitting around complaining won't help, we have to get going with another mini-update.

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The robot said 10, probably AM, and its 6.25 right now, so, about 4 hours to kill. Guess I'll just explore the area?

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Hello, friendly travelling merchant, show me your wares.

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But first, take all these spare drugs and food items, I'm carrying way too much 'acquired' stuff.

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Also, please don't ask why I drained all this blood from those misshapen monstrosities. Just....I'm sure you'll find someone who wants it. Sell it as a Male Enhancement Chemical.

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Ah, high-grade penetrating ammo. I'll be needing this.

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And you might like to take these Plasma Rifles to sell. Enjoy!!

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Hmmm, looks like a couple of tents up ahead. Some kind of outpost?

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Oh, more traders, handy.

This is a place I kept meaning to go to, its really close to Boulder City, but I forgot at the time and thus screwed myself out of a useful set of traders until now. So, to make up for that, I'm going to explore their item lists and then decide if we're going to be doing any major equipment upgrades.

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Something like that. You NCR?

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Eh? What's that?

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....Wow, that explains so much. So, you went all anti-authority, and now you're staying here as a weapons merchant?

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Yes, yes I can.

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Wait....So, the NCR can't afford to equip its own troops? It needs free merchants like you to give the troops stuff?

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Hmm....Thanks for the chat. Well, better check your wares.

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As one of the Gun Runner Merchants, Miss 188 here has access to a subset of the Gun Runner Arsenal weapons, gun mods and special ammo types. An example is the nifty GRA 5.56mm pistol...but since we already got the superior version from the merchant in Novac, and the GRA version doesn't have any mods to improve it over that version, there's not much point in getting it.

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The Battle Rifle is quite similar: A high-powered mid-range weapon, which is actually a non-unique version of an existing special weapon from the base game. In this case, however, getting the unique version would require going out of our way and doing favors for some NCR people, so I'm not sure we'd have a good chance to get it, making the Battle Rifle handier. However, it uses the same ammo as our sniper rifle, which makes it a lot less appealling.

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A note for later: Unlike other explosives which could be very dangerous to our skinny-limbed protagonist, Pulse grenades barely damage living targets but can wreck the shit of both robot enemies and Brotherhood Paladins. The ability to just drop them at your feet when robots get up in your grill is very handy, but supplies are probably limited.

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Remember how I said the Hunting Rifle was similar to the Sniper Rifle, with higher damage per bullet but lousy DPS? Well, mods can help equalise the two, such as adding this scope to the Hunting Rifle for additional long-range ability. Expensive when we already have the sniper rifle, though. Do we really want both weapons?

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We might want some of these. Just FYI. Hollow Points might be useful for some sniping missions, but in general we're past the point in the game where unarmored, high HP enemies are a threat, or even that common.

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Ok, what other merchants are here....And who's this woman in the wierd outfit?

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Eh....Not entirely sure.

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...Really?

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(She got me to ask about her personal life, so I guess it works.)

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Er...You just leave them in there?

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Uh, Su-

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...Huh. Now that you mention it, I did recently meet a bunch of them in a....bunker, to the west. I'm...reserving judgement, for now.

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I like to think I go where I'm needed. Or where common sense and bullets are needed, since those are about the same thing.

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I'm not surprised in the least.

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Oh? What do I get out of this arrangement? I've already got a sniper who looks awesome in a tux, what do you offer?

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And where would you want to go, anyway?

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...What about your 'hungry family' in the Bunker?

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I guess it is. Well, its far from the worst offer I've gotten in the Mojave, but I'd really have to consult with Boone before I can make a call on that. Sorry.

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As you might have guessed, Veronica (voiced by Felicia Day) is a Brotherhood of Steel member and one of the possible human companions in the game. Compared to Boone who acts mostly like us as a long-range combatant, she's an up-close fighter skilled in Unarmed and Energy Weapons. However, the game only allows you to have one humanoid companion (and one of the two robot companions) at any one time, so if we wanted to bring her along, we'd have to send Boone to the Lucky 28 or back to Novac.
One advantage of having Veronica instead of Boone would be that her sidequest is much easier to activate: All it takes is visiting certain locations on the map until she's 'seen enough', whereas Boone requires you to do so many NCR quests that going non-NCR afterwards is basically impossible. However, Veronica is BoS even if she's conflicted about it, so taking her and then backstabbing the BoS would result in possibly having to fight her.
Also, since we're on Hardcore Mode, a character who has to punch things is going to be a lot less survivable than a sniper once we start running into Deathclaws and Cazadores. Just something to consider.

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What's your deal?

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Ah, Primm. You're not missing out. But, why pick this bin, as you called it?

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Oh, Legion raids, I saw one of those. What have you heard about it?

8B0A148AD44125EDBABB1C9E9FA8F27F1EBE5244 (1280×720)

I guess. Lemme talk to your dad a bit...

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I like you. You're secure in your own mediocrity.

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Sam here does repairs, and his skill is high enough to get a decent chunk of the sniper rifle repaired, but dang, I'd forgotten how expensive repairs can be in these games. At this price it might be cheaper to buy a new sniper rifle and combine the two together for a similar effect, even with our crappy repair skill. Still, he can fix up Bennys suit for cheap, which is wierd but semi-useful.

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I don't think the people in Primm miss Primm.

Michelle and Sam have slightly different inventories, but they're mostly food and a little ammo and junk, nothing really to worry over.

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This NCR guy is wearing the same stuff as you, Boone....But his doesn't make those wierd electric noises. Huh. If it has no power, it must be hella heavy, and hot without the AC. Dunno how he can sleep.

Once NCR troopers in Ranger Armor or this Salvaged Power Armor (which doesn't require Power Armor Training) show up, you know you've gone a fair ways towards the end of the game. I believe that better Legionnaires show up in Caesars Territory as well, but we haven't seen that.

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Well, that should be obvious, but I guess I'm keeping it a secret so far....So, from the smell of cordite coming off you, I'm guessing you're one of the Gun Runners?

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That's not something I'd brag about....What's your deal specifically?

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So you organise all the caravans that come up from California then? Gimme the lowdown.

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Hey, they're a big family, lotta laser rifles to feed. Anyway, its an impressive enough sales pitch that I'll give you my custom.

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If you don't have a high enough Guns skills, Alex will just send you north to the main Gun Runners booth with that robot. But luckily, we're an expert in guns, so we can impress him.

Listen, I might be subtle, unassuming, and always show up where I'm least expected, but I am NOT smalltime. I can tell from a glance at you that you've got tons of special equipment packed away here, and I am willing to pay premium for them. So, lose the attitude, and let me see the goods.

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The GRA version of the Assault Carbine is essentially the same as the one we've got, but has more modding options available to it, to decrease degradation and increase the rate of fire. It could mean the investment we made in the first mod would be lost, but potentially we'd end up with a more powerful weapon, if we invested the money and time tracking down all the mods.

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If we're serious about anti-robot action, then it might pay to consider these babies: Pulse Slugs allow shotguns to do a lot more damage to these targets, much like Pulse Grenades, though this is somewhat countered by armor soaking shotgun shells quite well. While perhaps not the ideal choice, buying a mid-tier shotgun and loading up on pulse ammo is an option.

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We'd probably want these. Just FYI. Though, even a hundred rounds might not last too long...

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....Huh, wonder what this wierd kid's selling.

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I'm dandy. Are you watching the stall for your parents, or going solo?

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....Ok. So, what are you selling?

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....But what about all this junk?

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Riiiiight, so your thoughts are a precious commodity then.

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Yeah, I'm sure this place is reeeal stimulating.

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Sorry, can't hear you over the sound of me leaving.

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Still another hour and a half until its safe to go back to Repconn. Hmmm......

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So, quite an assortment of things to see and do there. The 188 might not be the hub of the gameworld but its a useful place to go if the Gun Runners can't provide what you want. So, gentle viewers, lets make some decisions:

1) Do we ditch Boone for now and take Veronica with us as our new companion? If so, will we try to do her sidequest, redundant though it might be as we've already met the Brotherhood?
2) Do we load up on Armor-Piercing Ammo?
3) Do we get Pulse Grenades?
4) Do we get a shotgun with Pulse Slugs for close-quarters fighting?
5) Do we buy a bunch of new weapons, or mods for our existing weapons
6) Do we ignore the start time of the tour and take the time to visit other stores we've been to for more potential kit?
7) Do we buy some thoughts from the wierd kid with a vice on his head?

Also, mental note to myself: Check if Sam and Michelle have any Pressure Cookers, either for sale or lying around unsupervised.

3 comments:

  1. 1) Keep Boone. Veronica seems a pleasant companion, but Boone is competent and Veronica is BoS who must perish in several large and fiery explosions.

    2) See aforementioned comment about BoS

    3) BoS. Death. Yay!

    4) Eh, not sure how necessary it is.

    5) Couldn't really say.

    6)Nope. Let's go on the tour when it starts.

    7) Sure, why not.

    ReplyDelete
  2. 1) Do we ditch Boone for now and take Veronica with us as our new companion? If so, will we try to do her sidequest, redundant though it might be as we've already met the Brotherhood?
    Ditch Boone for Veronica to go visit Caesar. You can always ditch her later, but it's worth checking out what this Caesar guy is about. Also, he's set up his base on top of the place you need to fix to get your big robot army from. You could fight your way in, but this Caesar Guy probably has some chunky bodyguards. Let your robot army handle them later!

    2) Do we load up on Armor-Piercing Ammo?
    Probably. You're going to be fighting a lot of heavily armoured guys shortly.

    3) Do we get Pulse Grenades?
    Robots and BoS are potential enemies. A couple of them might be useful.

    4) Do we get a shotgun with Pulse Slugs for close-quarters fighting?
    Sounds highly specialised

    5) Do we buy a bunch of new weapons, or mods for our existing weapons
    Can Lat handle an AMR? Probably not, and if not, stick to upgrading the Sniper Rifle.

    6) Do we ignore the start time of the tour and take the time to visit other stores we've been to for more potential kit?
    Sounds like a bit of effort.

    7) Do we buy some thoughts from the wierd kid with a vice on his head?
    Paying crazies for their crazy... no.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Ditch Boothe for now
    Dont get the special ammo, but DO get the nades
    And sure, buy stuff from the kid

    ReplyDelete