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Default So I'm finally replaying Fallout 3….

September 16th, 2010, 12:33
I haven't played it in nearly 2 years. I bought it on Day 1, played for about a week, and then got sidetracked and never finished it.

Just a few things I'm curious about.

1.) I plan on playing all the DLC, and probably using a few mods. Does it matter what order I install everything? Should I update FO3 first, then install DLC, followed by whatever mods I'm going to use?

For that matter, is there any reason not to have all the DLC installed from the very beginning?

2.) Anyone know what the difference is between difficulty levels? The manual says very little about it, only that the setting will adjust how hard combat is. Does it affect anything else? I found the game to be far too easy during my original playthrough on "normal" difficulty.

The manual also states that the harder you make the game, the more XP you will receive from combat. Um… doesn't that sort of defeat the purpose?

3.) Feel free to suggest mods. I'm only looking for things that improve gameplay though, nothing that adds items or characters to the world. So far the only one I've downloaded is the Iron Sights mod.
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September 16th, 2010, 12:56
1. Install it all from the beginning. There's no reason not to, and you can get some great gear from some of the packs. I can't remember what the patching procedure is, though. I think it's install the game, then the DLC, then patch it, then add your mods in.

3. Hmm… There's the Unofficial Fallout 3 Patch, which is almost necessary. I used Project Beauty (For better looking characters), Fallout 3 Reanimated (Better poses etc) but nothing that really added to the gameplay itself.
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September 16th, 2010, 13:25
I considered replaying it myself, but with New Vegas out next month I don't want to get burnt out on similar gameplay.

I recommended the Slower Levelling mod so you don't end up reaching the level cap half way through the game. It should help keep things challenging for much longer.

Apparently this is what the difficulty settings do:

Very Easy: Enemy Damage 50% Player Damage 200%
Easy: Enemy Damage 75% Player Damage 150%
Normal: Enemy Damage 100% Player Damage 100%
Hard: Enemy Damage 150% Player Damage 75%
Very Hard: Enemy Damage 200% Player Damage 50%

It sounds like all the harder difficulties do is make battles endurance tests.
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September 16th, 2010, 13:30
1. Not really. To the contrary Broken Steel should be installed before playing the vanilla game as far as I concern, and definitely before playing the other DLC's. BS increase the level cap and add more variety to random encounters. The rest can be installed whenever you like. I do not think it matters whether you patch your game first or after. I finished the main quest and reached level 20 before the DLC's came. I went back to the game and played it after the ending at level 20. With the increased levelcap I managed to get to level 30 with the DLC's.

Personally, Point Lookout was my favorite DLC for the game. It was non-linear, it added a completely new environment, new foes, rewards for exploration etc. But it can easily be done after beating the main quest.

2. F3 have a strong problem with balance, which is my largest complaint about the game. You earned XP fast, but one level in F3 doesn't give you much. Earning levels often might be neccessary to keep it fun. Slower leveling is not a route I would like. At least it's better with 30 levels in BS than 20. With broken steel, random encounters also gives somewhat harder encounters since it add new beefed up opponents.

That said, even if F3 is radically better than Oblivion and much more fun to just go round and explore, the balance issues is rooted in the games core design. It's almost unfixable without a complete revamp. Unlike Gothic or Risen, or games like the Final Fantasy series, there's really no challenge for high-level characters. There are no challenging areas you do not dare to enter at low level, there are no huge boss fights that you can visit at high level, there are no achievements or rewards that require high level and maxed out equipment etc. The game is simply not made with a rewarding leveling system in mind.

3. I particulary enjoyed those who removed the limit of the numbers of companions, since it allowed me to have a "party". This might have had an impact on balance in the game, but I was fine with that. Since there was so few recruitable people though, I used a couple of mods that made general NPC's into companions and some that added completely new ones (Bittercup, Lucy, Jessi, Kelsey etc). When you run around with four companions with assault weapons, you get the feel that you are leading a squad, which creates a very different feel to the game, one that I had hoped to be in the vanilla game but was sad to see wasn't implemented as well as I had hoped for.

Unfortunatelly, most if not all DLC blocks your companions from going with you. For Anchorage, Pitt and that UFO one it's ok by me, but I believe there are mods that makes sure you can use companions in Point Lookout and Broken Steel.
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September 16th, 2010, 13:59
Thanks for all the suggestions so far. I might give that Slower Levelling mod a try.

I just found a very cool mod called "Delay DLC" that I'm going to use. It basically does exactly what the name says, so you don't get all the DLC activating at once.



Normally, the moment you leave the Vault, you get popups for the DLC you've installed. That's a little immersion breaking - why would you care about an outcast distress call when you've got more than enough of your own problems? How are they broadcasting across the entire wastelands anyway? It annoyed me, so I decided to fix it.

Now, the 'Aiding the Outcasts', 'Into the Pitt' and 'Not of This World' quests work more like 'Reilly's Rangers' or 'Trouble on the Homefront' - the distress calls only cover a small area, and you only get the quest once you actually listen to them.

I've also removed the annoying "Level cap increased" message from Broken Steel, and the note that magically appears in your inventory from Point Lookout.
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September 17th, 2010, 03:29
Mart's Mutant Mod is a very good one.
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September 17th, 2010, 05:42
I have revisited games before. I actually just recently revisited Ryzom and am still really happy with the game. Especially now that they have added more to the game so I can learn new trades that weren't around when I first joined. I think you always get something new out of a game with each new play through. Good for you for playing FO3 again.
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September 17th, 2010, 06:29
Originally Posted by Zloth View Post
Mart's Mutant Mod is a very good one.
That does look like a very interesting mod, however, I want to avoid mods that add a lot of fan-made items and creatures. Thanks for bringing it to my attention though.


@slessman, Yep, I'm hoping the DLC and several select mods will make it more interesting this time.
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September 17th, 2010, 06:43
Anyone know of a mod that gets rid of the +10 skill boost from the Bobbleheads? I enjoy looking for them, but that boost is way overpowered imo.
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September 17th, 2010, 07:40
Originally Posted by JDR13 View Post
Anyone know of a mod that gets rid of the +10 skill boost from the Bobbleheads? I enjoy looking for them, but that boost is way overpowered imo.
Doubt it. I would suggest swallowing the game as it is, then move on. You will never get through the game if you look for mods to fix every unbalancing aspect of the game. Hopefully New Vegas will be more balanced.
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September 17th, 2010, 09:03
If there isn't a bobble head mod, why don't you make one with the construction set. I wouldn't think it would too hard.
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September 17th, 2010, 09:35
Found one…. Bobbleheads-No Boost.

Almost ready to start my real run.
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September 22nd, 2010, 15:41
Anyone else here play Fallout 3 on Windows 7 64bit?

If so, how did it run for you? I'm experiencing random freezes, usually during combat. Very frustrating….

Fwiw, it's the only game I've had problems with under Win 7 so far.
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September 22nd, 2010, 23:47
I played it on Vista 64 with no problems.
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September 29th, 2010, 08:23
Personally I wouldn't install Broken Steel until you're ready to play it, mainly because it causes Enclave troopers to spawn here and there around the wasteland so you can get an infinite supply of power armour and plasma rifles. There's a plasma rifle in the game that you get as a reward for a quest that is very powerful, but the balance to it is it costs hundreds to repair, and you can't repair it yourself because plasma rifles don't become available until you start the main quest… unless of course you install Broken Steel. You might not care about that of course, or not use energy weapons but just thought I'd mention it. Also, if you install Broken Steel (this is on the 360 anyway) it makes your companions unkillable.

It adds some super tough enemies to the level tables though.

If you play the first addon, Operation Anchorage, don't let that put you off the others. It's by far the worst, no quests or role playing of any kind. Just combat.

The difficulty settings only pertain to combat difficulty, damage ect. It IS totally stupid that you get more XP for kills but it's worth it. I play on Hard on my 360 and that's about right for me, and I don't even use heavy armour.

I envy you playing on a PC and can use mods. I would heartily recommend anything that slows the rate you level. Also, some kind of low loot mod, because there is tons of ammo and health supplies in the game. It's aimed at people who do the bare minimal exploring and scavaging.

Also, depending on how hardcore you like it, something that limits the ways you can restore health. In the vanilla game you can restore it by eating, drinking water, and resting as well as stimpaks and doctors. I play with my own self imposed hardcore style where I only use stimpaks and doctors to heal. I also don't pick locks (or keep it to a minimum anyway) or hack terminals to gain access to more loot, I only wear a mercs light armour, and I play on hard… and it's still only challenging for the first ten levels. But I've played it like four times, that might not bother you your first proper go.

Also try to spread the quests out with exploration. The game is mostly exploration, there aren't many quests. If you do all the quests too early there'll be nothing but exploration left and that will get boring.

I hope you enjoy it, it's a great game. I'm playing it now while I wait for Vegas. That might not be such a good idea as DPB said, I might get burned out. But I have nothing else to play and it's either this or read a book.

… or get one of those girlfriend things I've heard so much about. I hear they're good at eating up time.
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September 29th, 2010, 09:02
Originally Posted by human_male View Post
Personally I wouldn't install Broken Steel until you're ready to play it, mainly because it causes Enclave troopers to spawn here and there around the wasteland so you can get an infinite supply of power armour and plasma rifles. There's a plasma rifle in the game that you get as a reward for a quest that is very powerful, but the balance to it is it costs hundreds to repair, and you can't repair it yourself because plasma rifles don't become available until you start the main quest… unless of course you install Broken Steel. You might not care about that of course, or not use energy weapons but just thought I'd mention it. Also, if you install Broken Steel (this is on the 360 anyway) it makes your companions unkillable.
I wish someone had told me that before I started. One of the mods I'm using delays each of the the DLCs until you get to a certain point. I activated it for all of the DLCs except Broken Steel, because I didn't think BS made any changes to the wasteland.

I was wondering why I saw an Enclave Trooper on the way to the Super Duper Mart, when I didn't recall him being there on my previous playthrough. Oh well, I'm just going to avoid them until much later.



Originally Posted by human_male View Post
I envy you playing on a PC and can use mods. I would heartily recommend anything that slows the rate you level. Also, some kind of low loot mod, because there is tons of ammo and health supplies in the game. It's aimed at people who do the bare minimal exploring and scavaging.
I'm using a mod that reduces XP gained from combat, lockpicking/hacking, and speech by more than 60%. I'm also playing on "very hard" difficulty.

Concerning loot, one thing that I find very annoying is that an enemy will often drop his weapon upon death, but still have a duplicate weapon in his inventory.
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September 29th, 2010, 11:20
My character went the energy weapons route, and I used the Plasma Rifle human_male refer to. I did this without Broken Steel installed, but never had problems getting plasma rifles and I had a whole sea of caps early on. You do not need to get very far into the main quest before Enclave personnel begins to spawn.

F3 ain't Borderlands. F3 have very little variety in equipment. Only near the beginning will one mix weapons back and forth, but if one keeps looting you soon have a ton of caps and zero weight ammo. Once you find a good weapon for whatever skill you have, you are likely to swap it to something better a just a few times throughout the entire game. I used the same single weapon for 90% of the game (that plasma rifle).

Looting and shops in F3 are simply meaningless. You have most likely bought every single item you want to buy just a few % into the main campaign and there's usually one named weapon out of each type that does more damage than regular ones, but damage is the only stat that really sets weapons apart. The only need for me to use different weapons was the lack of ammo early on.

I personally see delaying levels or equipment masochistic. "Getting better" simply isn't rewarding. Much of this issue comes from encounters being computer generated from a spawn table rather than placed. This is the same issue as Oblivion. The only real progress comes from questing and the only reward comes from exploring and finding new and funny areas. Leveling and looting isn't rewarding.
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September 29th, 2010, 12:22
Originally Posted by JDR13 View Post
Anyone else here play Fallout 3 on Windows 7 64bit?

If so, how did it run for you? I'm experiencing random freezes, usually during combat. Very frustrating….

Fwiw, it's the only game I've had problems with under Win 7 so far.
It runs fine on my W7 64 system after tweaking it a little….well a lot actually. I loaded a bunch of mods as well that caused a few headaches in the beginning.

I went to a few places to make sure it wasn't just the mods messing around with the game. First I got rid of ffdshow. Go here for instructions on ffdshow.

Next was a quad core based problem. Here's the fix for that.

Lastly, I installed K-lite codecs just to be on the safe side. I couldn't find the site where I found out about the fix, but here is a post that has the same info that I used.

After that and messing around with the load order on my mods the game ran perfectly….well almost. I still get the random crash every now and then. I know that is related to the mods and it really doesn't happen that often now.

I think there may be one more thing I did, but for the life of me I can't think of it. I think it was a mod I loaded that helped solve some problem. More than likely it was a mod to help my mods Anyways, the above fixes should be enough to get it running.
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September 29th, 2010, 12:26
Originally Posted by skavenhorde View Post
Next was a quad core based problem. Here's the fix for that.
I found that over the weekend, and it turns out that was my problem. Not a single freeze since I did that.
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September 30th, 2010, 08:19
Originally Posted by JDR13 View Post

I'm using a mod that reduces XP gained from combat, lockpicking/hacking, and speech by more than 60%. I'm also playing on "very hard" difficulty.

Concerning loot, one thing that I find very annoying is that an enemy will often drop his weapon upon death, but still have a duplicate weapon in his inventory.
That level mod sounds perfect, I would love that. I actually go out of my way to avoid getting XP. With a mod like that I would be happy when I got some, which is how it should be. It's supposed to be a reward after all. Will there ever be a game like Fallout 2 and Gothic 2 where I actually went out and tried to gain XP because I was so keen to level up? Probably not because of the modern trend to level you up as quickly as possible, and also because of level scaling like JemyM mentioned.

The duplicate weapons you mentioned, there should only be one. The weapon is linked to the NPCs inventory so when they drop it you don't lose it, you can just take it from their corpse. If there's literally two in your game (one on the corpse and another one on the ground) then that must be a bug.

So how are you liking the game so far?
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