A Word On RPG’S

With Part Two of Geronimo’s New Reno experience on the way (but slightly delayed due to the fact that getting through the city is proving very difficult), I’ve decided to take the day to write about my general thoughts on this project so far. This was suggested by a reader in the comments yesterday, and I thought it was an excellent idea.

As most of you that have visited this blog are already aware of, I’m only writing these entries and playing this game because  my cousin forced me into it. I can’t pretend Fallout 2 would ever have graced my computer otherwise, but I must say, I’m glad it has at this point. As I mentioned previously, it’s not that I don’t consider myself a big fan of games. Quite the opposite, actually, and some of the games I’ve loved would even fall into a respectable category for even the most elitist fans of the industry. That said, I’ve dabbled in more than a few games places like the RPG Codex would hunt me down for playing. Several weeks into Fallout 2, I can honestly admit that it’s made a lasting impact on me.

The transition is far from over, and I still find myself frustrated at times. There were moments the first several play sessions that I wished I had never accepted the project, ie wandering around aimlessly in Klamath without any idea how the hell to complete a quest in the open-ended world I found myself in. It didn’t help that I had absolutely no idea what most of the items or weapons I came across were useful for, or how to shape my character as I gradually accumulated more experience points. Without a doubt, the journey has been a rough one, and I’ve never been able to accomplish much without a hint or push here and there. I’ll admit I find it a challenging game, more so because I view it from a storyteller’s perspective. I have two jobs when I play Fallout: 1) Play the game and 2) Remember each important detail so I can share it with the readers. When I’m wandering around a city (like New Reno, which is by far the biggest offender at this point) forever with seemingly no grasp on what I’m actually doing, it proves very frustrating for me. Sometimes, an hour of play can be so unproductive I could condense the occurences in one paragraph.

But without a doubt, my experience has been more enjoyable than anything else. My eyes have been opened to the role-playing genre, and I am absolutely willing to play others like Fallout 2 after I (God willing) beat this game. I think my biggest misconception about the genre comes from my extremely limited experiences with games like Final Fantasy, which I played briefly when I was much younger. I didn’t like the fact that an RPG put the viewer in a world that basically seemed ripe for exploring (like an adventure game, something my tastes have historically been much more suited for) only to interrupt this seamless experience by thrusting the character into combat with some creature he/she came across. I understand this may seem like an ignorant viewpoint, but bear in mind Iwas much younger and much more impatient.

Another stigma (in my mind) of role-playing games involved the concept of turn-based combat. That was always a turn-off to me. I realize that may sound blasphemous to RPG lovers, but it’s just not what I’m accustomed to. I wasn’t big on the idea of having to cast spells, fight monstrous creatures, or count hit points either. I’m much more comfortable when combat happens in real-time. Is that such an unforgivable thing? At any rate, I’ve gotten over my aversion to hit points, and the turn-based combat system in FO2 actually makes sense now that I’ve seen how skills/perks have an impact on it. I still have concerns going forward about the fantasy nature of RPG’s; the setting in Fallout 2 is perfectly appealing to me, but I’m worried games styled more in the mould of Dungeons and Dragons might bore me.

Having said all this, I’m very willing to give anything a try. My cousin and I have been discussing future games that I can play (and blog about, of course), and have pretty much settled on Planescape: Torment for the next one, although it’s not locked up just yet. I’ve done a little reading about the game, and it seems very fascinating. The idea of playing an evil character who is immortal will be a welcome change after controlling Geronimo all this time, a do-gooder who sometimes proves a little too mortal.

As far as what keeps me playing now, it’s definitely the appeal of the game, not just this project and bet with my cousin. I’m a spiteful person who can be motivated by being told I can’t do something, but I honestly doubt I’d have made it this far through a game I didn’t enjoy. To be more succint, I am hooked. I’m hooked on the character I’ve created and nurtured through over a dozen levels of experience. I’m hooked on the concept of helping all the cities I’ve come through, and in bringing the Garden of Eden Creation Kit back to Arroyo. I’m hooked on the concept of continuing to improve so I can enjoy the sight of Geronimo dominating enemies that once dominated him. It’s this aspect of RPG’s, the “character development” aspect, that I think addicts me the most. You feel a lot of attachment to the person you made after you’ve steered them through so many battles. What I’m trying to say is that I love Geronimo like a son; got a problem with that?

All things considered, I won’t hesitate to admit that I was wrong about RPG’s at this point. Or perhaps it’s more accurate to admit that I was wrong about at least one of them.

The Nuances Of New Reno (Part One)

With a few days having passed since my last entry, let’s get right into the action before my audience loses interest, shall we? What can I say? New Reno is a big place. I shared my concerns about it to my cousin and he offered a predictably small amount of sympathy, choosing to respond with lashings instead of words of comfort. With the fresh wounds still bleeding, I forged ahead in New Reno, learning what I could about the cold, hard city.

So after a little investigation, I discovered New Reno is actually run by four mafia families. At the time of this writing, I’ve successfully completed the missions for the first two families, which I will cover in Part One. Part Two is sure to follow soon, however; now that I’ve learned my way around the city, finishing things off won’t prove quite so difficult.

Geronimo’s first stop was at the Cat’s Paw, but seeing as how purchasing sex is against his code of ethics, he left quickly and moved on to the next building, a large bar/casino called The Desperado. Inside I run into a man that calls himself Little Jesus. He explains to Geronimo that anyone seeking a job should contact his father upstairs, Big Jesus. It appears I’ve run into my first family, the Mordinos. Little Jesus claims that the Mordinos run New Reno, and will soon run Redding. He also mentions that they employ a kid named Myron who invented the addictive drug Jet. Doesn’t sound like much of a family; immediately Geronimo senses danger and the need to step in. But he’s not a mindless warrior, so he decides to get them from the inside. Upstairs to Big Jesus he goes.

Big Jesus, who appears to be in very poor health (making a mental note about that…) has a very simple first request: deliver a package to Ramirez in the Stables. Easy enough. Geronimo asks few questions and does the task professionally so as to impress the Mordino clan. Once in the Stables, Geronimo’s inquisitive nature takes over, and he does a little exploring, but isn’t able to get far. I come across Myron’s lab, but the guards don’t allow me entrance, and I decide now’s not the time to push it. Geronimo departs and heads back to Big Jesus.

Big Jesus isn't doing too well. A pity.

BJ is pleased the mission was completed successfully, and he’s quick to offer more work. This time, I’m to play the role of payment collector. Geronimo is supposed to seek out the Corsican Brothers and make sure they’re current on their bills. Fair enough, he says, and wanders to the north in search of them. They aren’t that easy to find, however, and since my clue from Big Jesus was to check near the gym, Geronimo actually goes into the gym and mistakes the two big brutes boxing each other for the Corsican Brothers. When he’s unable to talk to them, he tries the little midget in front of the ring, hoping for information.

I get momentarily sidetracked, as the midget turns out to be a Stuart Little, the self-proclaimed biggest agent in New Reno. Before I know what I’m doing, I’ve entered myself into a boxing match, which thankfully proves very easy. My opponent is unable to do any damage with his blows, and after a few swift punches to the head, Geronimo wins by knockout. The result is a few dollars and 500 experience points, so that’s not so bad, I guess. Still, not what I’m looking for. I leave the gym and head across the street to the porn studio I found the rubber doll for Typhon in back during my Gecko days.

Marcus stood faithfully by the ring with his minigun in case the match wasn't successful for Geronimo.

Sure enough, there are the Corsican Brothers. Big Jesus instructed me to hurt them if they refused payment, but they don’t cause any trouble, and I collect the money easily. I ask them a little about their business, and they offer Geronimo a job as a fluffer. He declines, his cheeks burning red with outrage. What a filthy, horrid city this is! On the way back to Big Jesus, I come across a dealer who calls himself Jagged Jimmy J. We speak for a moment, but as he doesn’t seem to have anything useful to offer me, I move on quickly.

The Mordinos have one more job for Geronimo, and it’s a big one. Another local family, the Salvatores, are headed by Louis Salvatore. Big Jesus wants him dead. Naturally, this is a little bit of a questionable mission for our hero, but he accepts, knowing that the Mordinos can’t be taken on directly. I order Geronimo to leave, but then proceed in the opposite direction I should go; at this point, I’m still not to familiar with New Reno. My path takes me to the location I arrived at, where my car used to be. I speak to another drug dealer, this one a man named Jules, and he leads me to the people who stole the car. This is where I’m introduced to T-Ray, a local criminal who’s looking to fix up Geronimo’s car in order to sell it to the head of the Bishops, yet another local mafia family. Naturally, there’s going to be a point where I’m going to need to get my car back, but now’s not the time to be picking additional fights. I make a note to come back, and continue my search for Salvatore.

T-Ray's decided my brand new car would be better off with someone else. Someone's gonna pay for this.

After finding his bar (pretty damn close to The Desperado as it turns out), I make my way upstairs and introduce myself to Mason, the guard at the door who really doesn’t want to let me in. I have no interest in starting a gunfight to get to the old man, especially considering I’m not going to kill him on sight just because a thug like Big Jesus has asked me to. Geronimo converses with the cranky guard until he allows him to pass unharmed, and then I’m face to face with the boss of the Salvatore family. He’s old, withering away and gasping for air; apparently the heads of these two families aren’t long for this world.

Rather than going through with Big Jesus’s mission, Geronimo decides to work for Salvatore too and decide between the two of them. It doesn’t long, however, for me to realize that neither one of these families is up to any good. My first assignment from Salvatore is a murder mission. I’m to find Pretty Boy Lloyd, recover the money he stole from Salvatore, and then make an example of him.

Pretty Boy Lloyd is hiding in the downstairs of The Desperado, a location I searched endlessly before realizing there was a stairway leading down. After picking the lock on the door, Geronimo engages Pretty Boy in a pretty unpleasant conversation in which he takes on the role of the menacing enforcer Salvatore has hired him to be. Lloyd leads him to the hole he’s hidden the money (in a graveyard, of all places), and then climbs in ahead of Geronimo. When I enter the hole, Lloyd draws a gun, which proves to be an unforunate move for him. Marcus guns him down instantly, and after collecting the $100, I return to Salvatore for another mission.

Back at Salvatore’s, I hand over all the money despite the options to try and shortchange the old man, and am rewarded with half of the loot. My next mission is to collect money from Renesco, the man at the pharmacy I visited in my first trip into New Reno. After finding him quickly and conversing with him for a while, Renesco admits he simply doesn’t have the required money. Geronimo agrees to cover his share this time, and this time only, and Salvatore doesn’t know the difference when I pay him upon returning. It’s a job well done in his book, and the resulting 750 points earns me another level. At Level 12, I’m supposed to pick another perk, and I go with Gain Agility, which bumps my AG to an even 8, earning me an extra AP and AC.

With Level 12, I picked Gain Agility and worked on my Traps skill; I'm trying to make sure I'm well-rounded in all areas I might need some ability in.

My third assignment is the easiest of all, at least the way I played it. I accompany some of the guards on a trade mission, and then simply leave the screen when it’s over. Did I miss something here? Oh, well. Returning to Salvatore earns me a congratulations and an offer to join the Salvatore family as a made man. Knowing it won’t look good if I decline, I accept the offer even though I have no intention of standing by this criminal family. I take a peek through the old man’s pockets, where I come across a great deal of money and an oxygen tank. I steal both, hoping the oxygen tank kills him and takes care of my final task for the Mordino family. On the way out, I talk to Mason, who rewards me with a laser pistol. I figure that will make me some good money when I sell it later, considering my Energy Weapons skill is still below 30 % and it won’t do me much good currently.

A few things happen after I depart Salvatore’s. One, Louis dies and the game gives me 500 experience points for killing him. Unfortunately, the Mordino clan shoots at me when I try to give them the news in The Desperado. I reload, figuring it might benefit me if I make a more obvious attempt to kill a member of the Salvatore family. Geronimo heads downstairs after repeating the same actions with Louis and Mason, and then takes out everyone in the room, leaving the three guards upstairs. The battle leaves my party relatively unscathed and earns me 860 points in the process. Plus it gets rid of the Salvatore clan, and allows me entrance into The Desperado again.

Big Jesus is pleased with the news of Salvatore’s death, and promptly offers me membership in his dirty family, which I accept even though I fully intend to kill them all immediately. Geronimo will have no part of a family that involves itself in murder and drugs. He just wants the damn GECK, for Christ’s sake. The decision to take out the Mordino family and effectively end my tenure as a made man is a big one, as it results in the biggest blood bath I’ve ever been a part of in Fallout 2. I’ll have all the details as well as the remaining adventures in New Reno with the other two families in the entry tomorrow. Don’t go anywhere in the meantime; just stay on this page and click your refresh button repeatedly. It’ll be worth it, trust me.

Mental Health Day

Just a quick note today; I’ve already begun my adventures in New Reno, and… wow! Everyone made fun of me for being overwhelmed by Klamath, but would I get the same taunts and jeers for saying New Reno is pretty daunting? There really is a lot to explore, and a lot going on. It’s not just me and my amateur gaming ways this time, right? So anyhow, New Reno is most likely going to be a two-part entry, and I’ve still got some playing to do before I’m able to organize some form of coherent narration. Right now, with my poor understanding of the city, no one would want to read my Mongoloid interpretations at this point. (THERE WAS A GANGSTER AND THEN HE SAID THAT HE WAS BIG JESUS AND HIS HEART WAS BAD SO I HELPED HIM I LIKE HELPING PEOPLE BUT HIS WIFE WASN’T AS NICE AS THE BISHOP MAN’S WIFE SHE GOT IN BED WITH ME SHE’S MY FRIEND.) You get the idea. Anyway, I’ll be out of town for part of the day tomorrow, but I may still be able to get Part One up in the evening sometime. If not, Sunday for sure. Stay tuned, ya’ll.

Another note: I think I’ve finally had my moment of arrival as an RPG’er. I saw a car commercial for some kind of forgettable model with fine print at the bottom mentioning it was equipped with 150 hp. So the first thing I thought? “Holy shit, 150 hit points? That’s a tough fucking car!”

Return To Redding

With the respective fates of Broken Hills and Gecko looking promising, it seems to me there’s only one major loose end to tie up at this point in the game: the quests in Redding I had to abandon several posts back. Sure, I haven’t really taken advantage of my newfound freedom to explore Vault City completely, but then again, that was the point of visiting all these side cities, right? I first decided to travel to them to get more experience and find the Raider camp in order to gain entrance into the city. Over the course of the ensuing quests, I now find myself a full citizen of Vault City.

I need better weapons and armor to truly finish off my duties in Redding; the wanamingos made that perfectly clear earlier in the game. Our protagonist’s fate as a diplomat first, a warrior second is cemented firmly in place, but I’ve got to prepare him for the many parts in the game where speech alone isn’t going to prevail. Furthermore, he’s somewhat limited as a warrior, due to his pesky one-hander trait that I now regret picking back when this project began. What I didn’t realize is that this trait really made him more suited for unarmed/melee combat, but since I tagged small guns in the beginning, I’m in awkward position now. My strength is small guns, and if they require two hands, the added power is going to be wasted anyway. My only hope is to try to keep bumping the small guns skill up, way above 100 % in addition to finding the most powerful one-handed guns I can. Alternatively, I can also improve my energy weapon skill a little and find a devastating one-handed energy gun. Which route I take (possibly both?) remains to be seen, but that’s my thought process going forward.

So I’ve got a plan, readers. It’s a plan I’m making up as I go implementing numerous suggestions from far superior players, so bear with me. I will return to Redding and take on Sheriff Marion’s quests, and then return back to Vault City, because all of the locations I visited after first being denied entry have essentially been taken care of, with the exception of the hated wanamingos. Here’s the outline of my next steps, just because it feels good to organize my thought process in this manner: 1) Assist Sheriff Marion in Redding. 2) Visit New Reno, explore fully, upgrade weapons/armor, complete quests as possible. 3) Return to Vault City, explore fully, complete as many quests as possible. 4) Take another crack at the wanamingos in Redding. 5) Figure out next destination.

Back to Redding... but not to fight the wanamingos just yet.

All of this is subject to change, except of course the trip into Redding, which I’ve already done at the time of this post. With the elaborate introduction out of the way, that’s where we’ll rejoin Geronimo and his party now.

In Redding, Sheriff Marion confirms my suspicions and allows me to assist him now that I’ve become much more experienced since we last spoke. The first job he gives me is a quick one: find the Widow Rooney and evict her for falling behind her rent unless she has the money to pay. When Geronimo locates the Widow Rooney, naturally she doesn’t have the money, and naturally he sympathizes with her plight and pays it for her. This kind gesture results in 1,500 experience points and some kind words from the Widow Rooney and Sheriff Marion.

In an unusual display of arrogance, Geronimo informs Widow Rooney he "has no use for money because he is The Chosen One."

On to the next quest. There’s a fight breaking out between the miners from the two local mines in town at the Malamute Saloon, and I’m ordered to help break it up. Upon arrival, the words are flying back and forth, but no fighting has started yet, so I approach one of the women yelling and ask her for details. She’s a worker for McGrew’s Morningstar Mine, and she’s unhappy in particular with Caminetto, a member of the Kokoweef Mine. Geronimo attempts to defuse the situation as peacefully as possible by explaining to the angry woman that he has to keep the peace for the sheriff, and while that seems to work, Sheriff Marion disagrees when I check in with him. So I give it another try and make a mild threat of violence, which stops the fight for good. That’s worth another 1,500 experience points, and I report back to the sheriff for a new quest.

After warning me that jailing the Morningstar miners will upset McGrew, Sheriff Marion gives me a new task: finding out who cut the whore at the Malamute Saloon. So it’s a little detective work this time, is it? Geronimo puts on his best trench coat and treks back to Lou at the saloon. Lou is helpful with the details; although she isn’t sure who exactly did it, she was able to ascertain that it was a member of the Morningstar Mine. Good enough. With this clue, I head over to Dan McGrew’s mine headquarters and talk to the first person I see. The gentleman makes a quick confession, explaining that the whore made fun of his mother. Tactfully, Geronimo allows that the whore shouldn’t have gone so far, but insists upon the man being brought to justice. After all, it’s not right to let a man who assaulted someone with a knife to run free, right? Geronimo certainly doesn’t think so, and that’s good enough to the tune of 1,250 experience points.

Once again, Geronimo's diplomatic tendencies keep things from getting ugly.

The fourth and final task from Sheriff Marion is the assignment of hunting down a gangster named Frog Morton. He’s taken up residence at the area outside of the Wanamingo Mine Geronimo is all too familiar with. This job is especially high paying, as the sheriff promises $1,000 for Morton’s death. Badge in hand, Sheriff Geronimo heads west to hunt him down.

Of course, Frog Morton is far from alone. Still armed with leather combat armor and only an SMG, the fighting isn’t easy, but it goes okay anyway; the first few men are cut down quickly with burst fire. In the building to the far north, I peek in the doorway and spot a larger group of men, including the notoriously evil Frog Morton, who wears a different outfit than the rest of his gang. Knowing he’s the most important target, I fire a long-range shot to the head with the SMG, and hit him with a glancing blow worth 34 hit points. Then I use the rest of my action points to get the hell out of there, back to the building I came from.

Thankfully, the group comes after me in a poorly organized fashion, and using the winding interior corridors as cover, I’m able to take out one at a time with crippling blows to the eyes and legs. This is the first time I’ve really aimed for anything besides the head or body, and I can see the benefit. A couple of gang members had me cornered in a room at one point, and they likely would have done a lot more damage had I not blinded them both with consecutive shots, allowing myself a couple of free turns to finish them off. I still consider myself an extreme novice when it comes to combat, but some of the finer strategy is starting to come to me.

There should have been an option to drive Frog Morton and his buddies into the mine where they can battle the wanamingos. Two birds, one stone.

When the last gang member is shot execution style (I had knocked him unconscious with a blow to the head first), I’m given 3,000 experience points, and then $1,000 when I return to Sheriff Marion with the job complete. The sheriff warns me Frog’s brothers (fittingly named Toad, Snake, and Newt) will now be after me, but Geronimo isn’t especially worried about it for the time being.

With Geronimo finished up in Redding for the time being, there’s just one more trip that needs to be made before visiting New Reno, and that’s The Den. It’s time to make that trade with Smitty and pay the $2,000 to get the car. On the way over, I’m given another random encounter interruption, but the game prompts me by asking if I want to avoid it. As saying no would place me on a screen with a bunch of robbers, I gladly instruct the game to skip the encounter, and am rewarded with 41 experience points upon arriving at The Den for utilizing outdoorsman skill. Now I can see why a player might be inclined to tag that skill. Anyhow, the trade goes smoothly, and after shelling out $2,000, I’ve acquired my first car, and a hopefully much more efficient method of travel. After all, next time I’ll be breaking it in during the trip to New Reno.

Ghouls In Gecko

Immediately upon arriving in Gecko, a surprisingly friendly little town full of altered life forms known as ghouls, I run into the infamous Harold, who quickly informs me of the town’s greatest plight: the power plant is working very inefficiently, and the quality of life is set to go downhill quickly if things can’t be improved. Apparently it’s in dire need of a Hydroelectric Magnetosphere Regulator, and about the only place that would have such a part is the wicked Vault City.

Now, it just so happens that Vault City is not fond of ghouls; in fact, they’re allowed within the city gates. This isn’t surprising, given the exclusive nature of VC. Furthermore, Harold believes the only way they would assist Gecko is if they believed the arrangement would benefit Vault City as well. But if the part isn’t obtained soon, Gecko’s power plant will be shut down by Vault City, and the town will likely be destroyed. Tough situation. Geronimo has already aided the mutants in Broken Hills; it would be some odd form of discrimination to refuse the same help to the ghouls of Gecko. He makes a point to get the city its needed part. After briefly talking to a healer ghoul named Lenny who personally came into contact with The Vault Dweller many years ago, we move on to explore the rest of Gecko.

It was a little weirder being called smoothskin at first, but I could tell Harold didn't mean anything by it.

After a bit of wandering, I come across a mechanically gifted ghoul by the name of Skeeter. Skeeter turns out to have the car part I’ve been in search of since my days of roaming The Den, but he isn’t willing to part with it unless I can obtain a Super Tool Kit for him. I make a mental note to go visit Smity later, as it seems likely he would have such a thing available for barter. For now, on with the exploration.

Things get very interesting when Geronimo comes across Gordon Gecko (nice tribute to Wall Street; the resemblance to Michael Douglas is uncanny, too). Gecko has a plan to save Gecko, see. Since Vault City does not have power to support the ever-expanding population in its city, it may find itself in need of help. If Gecko were to get its reactor running properly, it would find itself with far more power than it needs for its population, making it an ideal trading candidate with Vault City. This would allow Gecko to trade excess power for medical supplies from Vault City. Now, Gordon may be a little power-hungry, but his idea is definitely worth considering, as it would give Vault City the benefit they’d be looking for to help Gecko out.

Copyright infringement?

Treading carefully, Geronimo coaxes Gordon to hand over the data that proves his theories, promising to show it to someone of authority in Vault City. Gordon claims he got these ideas from a voice from beyond the reactor pit… Perhaps that area needs some special investigation. Searching the region results in an underground discovery, where I’m greeted by Zomak, who promptly demands for Geronimo to “renew.” In a quick couple of clever dialogue lines, I (using Geronimo’s superior intelligence) trick Zomak into giving away that this underground area is where the Brain’s lair is. The Brain, huh? Geronimo again tricks Zomak afterwards, this time into allowing the poor ghoul to let him pass by unquestioned, further into the tunnels.

After a few winding corridors, I find myself directly in front of a very large rat, who basically repeats everything Gordon Gecko has just told me above. One helpful thing the Brain mentions is that Geronimo should specifically seek out Council Member McClure to present the data to. Apparently few others in Vault City are to be trusted with this information. After speaking with the Brain, Geronimo is ready to get going on his quest, fully on board with the ghouls’ plan to save Gecko. The Brain mentions something about taking over the world, and I mouse over a dialogue option that involves killing him, but decide to dismiss his words as mere talk. Geronimo’s moral system has not given him the green light to start a fight over empty words.

Hopefully the day never comes when this... thing rules the world.

So the group departs from Gecko temporarily, with the knowledge that Vault City will have to be visited once again. Knowing there’s no way to get through the gates without a day pass or full citizenship, I explore the world map until I find another city marked “Unknown” on the map. Considering its proximity to Vault City, I assume it must be the Raiders camp, and confirming that would ensure a day pass from Wallace. We stop in, getting 500 experience points for doing so. Apparently this is the camp, after all. I’ll mention briefly that I attempted to infiltrate said camp, but it invariably ended with Marcus triggering all the raised plate traps and then cutting down everyone in sight with his minigun — including his own men. How the hell can I get him in front of everyone else? The warnings I got about that gun were dead on. Anyway, just finding the camp was enough for the time being; I’ll come back later and hopefully wipe it out.

With the camp location figured out, I head to Vault City only to find that it’s dark, and Wallace isn’t even in his office. So I have Geronimo pick the locker in his office, and what do I find? A day pass, of course. I went through all that trouble when the day pass was right there the whole time? Granted, that doesn’t help me get in the city, not now, since the guards at the gate are kind enough to remind me it’s a day pass. I use the time wisely, heading back to Gecko to get healed up by Lenny, and then return when it’s light.

Finally, my first trip through the gates of Vault City itself! I’m certain there’s much to explore inside this area, but for now I’m on a mission from Gecko, so I bypass all the buildings and make a beeline for the Central Council building. Inside, I search for McClure, unsuccessfully engaging a few people before finding my intended target. Geronimo gets right down to business, introducing himself and then divulging the information that could save Gecko and benefit Vault City as well. McClure is intrigued, and he expresses a concern for stopping the radiation poisoning in Gecko. In the process of giving him the disk, I gain 750 experience points and another level, which I use to upgrade small guns (taking reader advice once again) and a little speech. McClure advises me to visit Randal in the Amenities Office for the part, and I depart quickly. After a quick conversation with Randal, I’m on my way again. Before returning to Gecko, though, I stop in at The Den to talk to Smitty, and sure enough, he’s got the Super Tool Kit on hand.  I make a quick trade and then leave.

Small guns it is, fans. No Alien Blaster for Geronimo after all.

What’s this? A random encounter on the way back to Gecko! I never thought I’d see the day! It turns out to be easy enough, as the encounter is with a mantises. I take them out individually, gladly accept the experience points, and then continue to my destination. So this is what I’ve been missing out on the whole game. I always wondered what that one scene was about where the robots gun down the helpless family towards the beginning of the game.

Now it’s time to solve this power plant problem once and for all. Navigating the plant proves easy, especially considering I’ve already come across one of the appropriate pass keys earlier during my original search through the city. The red pass key is only slightly more difficult, as simply stealing it from the guard outside the last door takes care of the problem. Now I’m in the room next to the reactor core, and I stop to talk to Hank before entering.

Hank tells me I can manipulate the robot in order to get the part installed, but after tinkering for a while, Geronimo gets impatient and runs through the excessive heat, taking hits along the way. However, installing the part myself is relatively easy, and I’m back to safety having lost just 20 hit points in the process, and I’ve got another 4,000 experience points to call my own. Power plant problem solved. Well, mostly. While talking to McClure in Vault City earlier, he’d mentioned that it would also need to be optimized after its running properly. On the way out of the plant, I try to locate someone that can give me information on that subject, and run into Festus, a grateful ghoul who hands me another data disk with the instructions to use it on a Vault City computer to finish the job. Back to Vault City I go.

Screw the computer terminal. What kind of terminal is that difficult to operate? I'd rather take my chances with the thousand degree temperatures.

Back in front of McClure again, I give him news of my success in Gecko, and he rewards me with full citizenship to Vault City. I have to admit, that feels pretty good. Plus, it’s looking like I’ve got a friend on the inside of the city, which could prove useless later. After informing McClure of the need for additional data, I’m given permission to use the disk on the Vault computer on the third floor. As a full citizen, getting to that spot is no problem, and I’m met with no resistance whatsoever. Quickly, I make the trip to Gecko again and return triumphantly to Festus, who tells me to finish the job by inserting the disk into the robot control terminal. Done, and another 2,500 points to my name. The last task in Gecko is a quick one, small compared to the power plant mission. I find Skeeter, make the trade for the required car part, and gain another 250 experience points.

With another city (apparently) saved, and at Level 10 now, it may be time for Geronimo to revisit some of the unfinished business from before. There’s also a few new cities available on the map, such as New Reno and the New California Republic. I’ll likely start with Redding and see if Sheriff Marion is interested in my help this time around, but who knows where the adventures of tomorrow will take us? I just hope I’m not screwing this up.

Leaving Broken Hills

Struggles and apparent bugs shoved aside, I return to the world of Fallout 2 with a clear head today, and that means picking up where we left off in Broken Hills. There’s still a lot to do, although the game insists I’ve done more than I’ve actually done. The next character I run into is Typhon, a nasty little ghoul who wants a Cat’s Paw Magazine. I remember coming across them in several bartering trips, but I don’t have one on me currently, so I’ll have to get back to him if I want a crack at his so-called treasure.

Doubling back toward the mine area, I also come across Seymour, a talking plant (another experiment from the mad scientist who created a chess-playing scorpion) who requests to be moved to a different area. Seeing as I don’t have a shovel any longer, I add that to my list, along with a Cat’s Paw magazine and a mine purifier in New Reno. I decide there’s nothing more in Broken Hills I can do without a little traveling, so I make my way towards New Reno first in an attempt to locate Renesco and get the mine part. Because Geronimo has no interest in starting up new quests in New Reno while Broken Hills remains unfinished, I make a point not to stop and talk to anyone, and not to wander into every building I see as I’ll no doubt do at a later point. It just so happens that after a few screens of exploration, I come across a building with a big sign on it that says “Renesco’s Pharmacy”. Figuring that’s the place I’m looking for, I enter and engage the man I suspect to be Renesco. After a little back and forth banter with the not-very-friendly pharmacist, I give him the secret phrase Zaius educated me about back in Broken Hills, and he obliges, handing over  the mine part. I thank him and leave; most likely Geronimo will be visiting him again in the future when it becomes time to explore New Reno fully.

New Reno doesn't look very inviting...

For now, though, I have other places to visit before returning to Broken Hills. I stop in at The Den, remembering Flick’s little barter shop. But on the way in I’m accosted by a man wearing a business suit, who turns out to be Fred, the man I assisted earlier in the game with his debt. Although he owed $200 to Rebecca, I paid half of it for him because he was strapped for cash at the time. Now, it seems Fred has made it big, and he wants to repay me. He offers me $2,000, 5 fusion cells, and 5 energy cells. Geronimo thanks him very much and then proceeds to Flick. Flick proves to be very helpful, as he has the Cat’s Paw magazine I’m looking for. To the west, I visit Tubby, who has the shovel I need. Perfect. Back to the task at hand.

Back in Broken Hills, I start by replanting Seymour, who is so grateful he teaches me a move that will defeat the scorpion in the chess match. The resulting 1,000 experience points also gives me another level, which I research before acting on. As I’m now at Level 9, it’s time to pick another perk, and the only one that seems to be useful (again, after researching) is Quick Pockets, which will allow me to access my inventory during combat using less action points. I also decide to begin working on energy guns, which was sitting at a mere 14 % prior to improving it. Being a one hander, Geronimo will never be very good with big guns, so I’ll ignore that skill, but when the game develops to the point where it’s offering me one-hander energy guns, I want to be ready to take advantage.

Just wait until Geronimo gets his hands on a nice Alien Blaster.

Next, I head back into the power station hoping I can have some luck with Eric’s mission. I’m indeed fortunate, as Brian’s awake this time, and Geronimo is able to request the extra power instead of trying to work his middling science skill on the computer. Brian resists the request at first, but Geronimo insists using a lengthy dialogue sequence that essentially accuses the worker of being lazy. Brian caves and gives Eric the extra power he needed. That nets me another 1,000 experience points. When I stop in to see Eric, he thanks me and offers a reward, but I politely refuse.

Now it’s time to hit the mine and repair the machine. I have nothing against the mutants, and Geronimo isn’t the type to destroy a machine out of unwarranted spite, so despite what my status says in the journal, I’m going to fix the machine, not sabotage it. Seeing as how none of my group has the proper armor to defend against the gas, I leave everyone behind at the entrance to the mine and go in alone; I’ll conserve more stimpacks that way.

As it turns out, the radon gas is far more dangerous than the enemies in the mine, which turn out to be more of the giant ants. They’re easily disposed of, and the path to the machine is an easy one. I notice that there are certain areas infested with huge scorpions and some monstrous creature called a Deathclaw (heeding a warning from a reader’s comment, I stay far, far away), but I’m able to avoid them in the process of putting the part on the machine and getting everything back in working order. There’s another 1,500 points for Geronimo. Back on the surface, Zaius thanks me with a combat shotgun. That’ll fetch a nice haul later on.

Bugs or not, Geronimo isn't going to go out of his way to hurt anyone. Not even the mutants. What wrong have they done him?

There doesn’t appear to be much left to do in this town (thank God), so I have two things left on my list before I move on to other cities. Perhaps I’m almost ready to return to Redding and take on the wanamingos. For now, though, I stop back in at the professor’s location and beat the scorpion at chess. Seymour’s advice works, and I get 500 points and a mad scorpion out of the deal. Next, I have to deliver Typhon his dirty magazine, and he requests an hour alone with it. When I return, he’s ready for the next item his perverted sequence of requests: a rubber doll. Excellent. Back to New Reno, this time in search of a porn shop that has the doll. Thankfully, it’s a quick find, and Typhon needs two hours this time. After I give him enough time to properly violate the doll, he’s exhausted and ready for some rotgut, which thankfully won’t require nearly as much travel. Phil the bartender sets me up with the rotgut, and upon giving it to him, I’m rewarded another 2,000 points and the location of his so-called treasure, which he actually gives only vague details about. Doesn’t seem terribly important, to be honest.

On the way out of town now, there’s only one last thing I wanted to accomplish, and that’s getting Marcus to join my group. I’ve prepared for this by dropping Vic off in Klamath a while back; he should be safe at the Bucker place, right? Although Marcus refused to join while there were still quests in Broken Hills to be attended to, he’s more than happy to come along now that Broken Hills is more or less at peace. Yes! My first mutant NPC! I can’t wait to see him unleash some rage on those damn wanamingos.

Marcus is a pretty cool guy. Plus, he looks rather skilled in combat.

But that’s not where I’ll be traveling just yet, dear readers. I’ve decided I’m still not likely to be ready for Redding, seeing as how I’m still equipped with the same leather combat armor and SMG I was the last time I tried facing the wanamingos. Also, it’s doubtful the sheriff is ready to let me serve as his deputy; I’ve only leveled up a few times since I left. There’s been a city marked “Unknown” that I’ve wanted to explore for quite some time on my map, and I decide to give that one a shot before saving and exiting. Turns out to be a city called Gecko. I recall being warned in an earlier blog comment that it was too buggy to play, so I suppose this could turn into an aborted attempt, but… it’s time to find out. Back with more tomorrow. I’m definitely in need of general tips and help as much as ever, so please feel free to offer expertise.

Can Broken Hills Be Mended?

Well, I’ve got to admit that I’m not much of a fan of these mining towns. I’m referring to both Redding and Broken Hills, of course, as Broken Hills specializes in mining uranium. The town is an interesting mix of humans, mutants, and ghouls and the different races manage to coexist — just barely. I found myself exploring endlessly through the city, which seemed to contain a lot more buildings than most of the previous locations I’ve been to. Ultimately, I was able to take on a few more quests, but it’s clear that I’ll need a little more time in Broken Hills before I can completely conquer it, if indeed I’m even able to at this point in the game.

Geronimo was introduced to Broken Hills in a conversation with Bill the Outfitter, who was kind enough to offer a few menial jobs for money. I accept the brahmin dung shoveling assignment, which pays $100 for one day’s work, and then quickly decide after that point that I don’t need to do any more business with Bill, who pays very little for a lot of work.

"Hi, I'm Bill. You wanna shovel shit for a whole day and get almost no money? C'mon!"

Next I run into Marcus, an enormous mutant who just so happens to be the sheriff in Broken Hills. Marcus tells many stories about the state of peace between humans and mutants, a big back story about The Master and Jacob, and then quickly offers a run down of the goings-on in town. He mentions the mine needs fixing and some people have gone missing. I’m directed to Zaius if I want to discuss the mine, but Marcus offers me $500 on the spot to search for the missing people. Geronimo, of course, offers his services for free instead, and is off on his first quest in Broken Hills.

Geronimo then wanders into a bar (one in every city, isn’t there?) and talks to Francis, a mutant who specializes in arm wrestling. Afterwards, I order a drink and chat with Phil, the bartender, who informs me there’s a few crazy fellows who were recently locked up for spreading hate propaganda. He also reminds me about the broken mine situation. Many potential quests, but no answers at this point.

Further exploration leads Geronimo to a ghoul named Eric who can’t seem to stop attracting flies. He asks me to help him generate some more power so he can run a bath and get rid of the flies, and I accept, although doubling back and finding the power station results in a harsh reminder that “unscientifically fiddling with the controls won’t give Eric his extra power.” So apparently I’m going to need to make science a little priority when leveling up the next few times if I want to complete this mission.

Being a hero rarely gets more glamorous than assisting a ghoul rid himself of flies.

And speaking of skills, I’m again reminded that they may not be up to par when Geronimo runs into a professor who owns a highly trained scorpion that seems capable of out doing our hero in every test the two take together. Geronimo enters into a test of perception, dexterity, and intelligence with the genius scorpion, and loses on all three counts. Stealing from the bastard doesn’t help, although it does yield a pair of glasses and some tools. Those should be worth something in a future bartering session.

Defeated and increasingly dissatisfied with Broken Hills, Geronimo ventures on, coming into contact with a man named Dan who has lost his wife. Since I’ve already accepted a mission to look for a missing person, I figure it doesn’t hurt to offer my services to Dan; the two quests likely overlap anyway. Now, about this broken mine…

Sure, I'll find your dead wife for you. What? Oh, I didn't mean that. I'm sure she's... fine.

I finally run into Zaius near a group of miners, and he confirms what the rest of the town has already told me: the mine isn’t working because the purifier is broken. The area will be dangerous due to the presence of radon gas, and I’ll have to make a stop in New Reno to get the proper tools, but that doesn’t stop Geronimo from accepting the mission. Seeing as things don’t feel at all complete in Broken Hills yet, though, it’s not proper to up and leave for New Reno at the moment. We need to make more progress first.

The next stop involves going underground to the sewer through an outhouse entrance. There’s not much in sight except giant ants, which just so happens to be the first opponent Geronimo ever faced way back in the Temple of Trials. Armed with a gun this time around, they’re even easier than before, which is good, because there’s a whole hell of a lot of them. We navigate through the tunnels wiping out the ants without taking any damage, and finally come across a group of bodies that I suppose will have to count as the reward for our troubles. In the process of all this ant killing, Geronimo also gets another level, which I quickly use to increase the science skill from 32 % to 53 % in hopes that it will allow me to help Eric. Searching through the bodies, I find a revealing note involving problems between the humans and mutants, and one of the remains seems suspiciously similar to the description Dan gave me of his wife.

Back on the surface, I inform Marcus of the dead bodies, and he rewards me with a scope rifle. Geronimo feels it’s best not to talk to Marcus just yet about the note, so instead we confront Zaius. Zaius wants nothing to do with the ordeal, referring me back to Francis, the arm wrestling mutant. After speaking with Francis, it turns out the bodies were actually his murder victims. When Geronimo accuses him of murdering innocent people, Francis denies it, claiming he killed them only in self-defense, and that he only wanted their deaths to “serve a purpose that might further the cause of peace.” Apparently there’s a conspiracy in town against the mutants, and Francis wanted to make it right. After his conversation with Geronimo, he leaves town, resulting in 1,000 experience points. And I never even got to beat him in arm wrestling.

This town ain't big enough for the both of us, Francis. And quite frankly, you're a lot bigger than I am, so... you should probably be the one to leave.

So the story’s not done in Broken Hills, not even close, but it seems that we’re so far away from that point that it’s best to end things here for now unless I want to write another 2,000 word Modoc entry, which I think no one wants. From a personal standpoint, I admit to feeling a little frustrated with the last two towns, but I guess that’s what happens in an open-ended game such as this. You may end up in a few areas that your character isn’t really prepared for. I think it’s best to take a little breather, recharge, and hit it hard again tomorrow. Anyone have any idea why my status section tells me I’m supposed to both fix and destroy the mine, although it claims I’ve already accomplished the task that involves destroying it? I haven’t even been to the mines yet! Tomorrow, perhaps. Until next time, readers.

The Streets Run Red(ding) With Blood

I apologize for the break in updating, as I’ve been out of town for a few days. I’ve now returned and am ready to unleash the untamed gamer inside me; there will be daily updates for the next several days, I can assure you. Now, with that disclaimer/plea for forgiveness out of the way, let’s rejoin Geronimo.

Oh, the joys of Fallout 2. It doesn’t care where the hell you direct your character next. As others have been kind to point out already, there is no hand holding to be done in this gaming world. There is never any one path that simply must be traveled, in a specific order. So naturally, as a first time gamer, I’m destined to make a few missteps. Let the record show that venturing into Redding this early in the game is one of those missteps.

Not that Geronimo and Co fared particularly poorly, but little was accomplished, as it appears that this city was in need of a much more… accomplished hero. My first clue of that nature came when I stopped in at the local sheriff’s office and offered a hand to the hobbled Earl Marion, whose sole job it is to ensure law and order in Redding, another mining city caught up in the throes of the post apocalyptic chaos. Sheriff Marion had no interest in allowing me to serve as his deputy, informing me that the job was too tough for me, and that I should return when I had more experience. Fair enough, Sheriff, but Geronimo doesn’t give up so easily! Onto other locations in the fine city of Redding.

Geronimo's confidence is shattered when the crippled sheriff turns down his offer for assistance.

Next I run into Madame Modjeska, who turns out to be quite the local gossip. Madame is very useful in helping me understand the role Redding plays in Fallout 2, explaining that the city is currently in the middle of a power struggle. As the story goes, Redding is actually quite a valuable little town in that it has access to gold, which it in turn ships out to Vault City, New Reno, and the NCR (New California Republic). All three of these cities want a bigger piece of the golden pie, or more aptly, they want the entire pie, and it’s just a matter of time before one of them succeeds and overtakes Redding. The local population is divided in regards to which faction Redding’s loyalties should lie. The plot thickens, and things could get very interesting here. Madame also talks about the major influences on the city politics: there’s Marge LeBarge, owner of the Kokoweef Mine; “Dangerous” Dan McGrew, owner of the Morningstar Mine; “Painless” Doc Johnson, the town’s local doctor; lastly, there’s Mayor Ascorti, who’s described as a shady man mostly out for his own interests.

Geronimo sets off deeper into Redding in search of some of these characters so that he may gather more information and hopefully come across a quest or two. After all, how else is he ever going to be able to work for Sheriff Marion? The next stop is at Doc Johnson’s medical building, and the doc isn’t very helpful at the moment. He mentions the citywide drug problem (Jet, of course) and confirms his allegiance lies with Vault City when it comes to who should take over Redding. He also admits to supplying his patients with Jet, purely as a “service.” I trade the doc a useless small gun I came across for $80 and four stimpacks, as I’m attempting to hoard up on them, and then depart.

I'm not sure why a doctor would be inclined to barter medical equipment for a gun...

Next I stop in at the Malamute Saloon, owned by Lou. We talk for a bit, and she gives some more details about the nature of Redding’s trade partners, what goes where, etc. After picking through her pockets, I move on and run into Athabaska Dick. Dick reiterates the town seems to running purely on Jet and then talks a little about The Wanamingo Mine, which was once a prosperous mine but has since been shut down due to the presence of the wanamingos, dangerous creatures to say the least. Dick tells me I could easily buy the mine from the mayor while the value is low and then clean out the creatures. This would apparently be a very smart move business wise, as the mine would be quite valuable and also happens to house a control chip a few people in Redding would pay big money for. I’ll have to investigate this further…

But first, more exploration. Next I wander over into Ascorti’s Casino, where I meet the mayor face to face and talk to him about the town he oversees. He tells me little I don’t know, but helps to confirm a few things. When asked about finding work in Redding, he mentions that Marge LeBarge and Dan McGrew are both in search of a part for their mining machines (the chip Dick mentioned), the Sheriff is in need of some help (which I’m not experienced enough to offer), and that he’s got a deed for sale at the low price of $1,000. Geronimo listens carefully, as the mayor offers to buy the deed back for more than double the money if I can take care of the wanamingos. Considering I’ll have to wipe out the creatures to get to the prized chip anyway, it seems like an offer worth accepting. I order Geronimo to part with the $1,000 and the deed is his. Before leaving, I visit the casino cashier and trade out a bunch of extra weapons and ammo I’ve picked up for nearly $5,000 in cash just to ensure my money supply is healthy.

Only $1,000 for a mine infested by monstrous creatures? What a steal!

Next I run into the oft-mentioned Marge LeBarge at the Kokowest Mine. Marge quickly puts in a request for the control chip she’s seeking, offering a handsome $1,000 reward for the part so she can expand her mining operations. She warns me that “Dangerous” Dan McGrew would likely offer just as much, but if I sell the part to him, it’s likely New Reno will be the city that overtakes Redding, and Marge isn’t a fan of New Reno due to their violent and drug pushing ways. I tell her I’ll think it over and then immediately search out Dan McGrew, who I find quickly and discuss the exact same topic with. McGrew is in favor of New Reno because of their drug supplying abilities; he’s of the belief that’s all his miners will work for, and keeping them drugged up is the equivalent of keeping them happy. Predictably, he makes the same offer for the chip Marge made me, and issues a warning that helping Marge out instead of him will increase the chances that the NCR will be the one to overtake Redding. McGrew believes the NCR to be too controlling, and that the town will lose all personal freedom. Needless to say, when Geronimo does acquire the controller chip, he’ll have a big decision to make.

For now, though, it’s time to search out this mine. After finding the correct exit point, the group appears at the exterior of the Great Wanamingo Mine. We have a few successful battles with a few mutated creatures, but nothing serious happens in the process. Geronimo gains several hundred experience points after destroying all the creatures wandering around outside, and then enters the mine building, riding the elevator shaft to the first floor to meet the wanamingos.

Things actually start out rather favorably, as the first wanamingo that appears to be waiting for us takes a lethal SMG burst point-blank for 228 hit points, killing it instantly. It had only managed one swipe for 10 hit points to Geronimo before dying. Emboldened, our group waits patiently as the next few creatures close in on us quickly. This time, things don’t go so well, and all I can say is it’s a good thing I saved before the second round of combat began. Although I tried several, several times to repeat my success against the first creature, I simply had no luck. The duo of wanamingos is devastating to my cornered group, repeatedly knocking everyone off their feet and shrugging off the countering attack of bullets as if they were made of paper. After many near death attempts, I reload to the point right after the first creature was killed, and then retreat back up the elevator shaft relatively unharmed. Holy shit! Those bastards are tougher than I expected.

Eat lead, you wanamingo fuck. Why are your brothers so much harder to kill?!

So needless to say, readers, there’s nothing more I can accomplish in Redding for the time being. Until I can help out the Sheriff and lay waste to the wanamingos, I might as well stay away. It’s time to move on to some other (hopefully easier) unexplored areas. With just a few destinations on my map that I haven’t already been to, I select Broken Hills before saving the game and exiting my play session. Please, for the love of God, don’t let there be any more wanamingos in Broken Hills.

Meanderings In Modoc

As mentioned previously, Geronimo and Co will be departing on a widespread tour of Fallout world in an effort to open up new possibilities within Vault City, the ultimate destination. We begin in Modoc, a town the game describes as a quaint farming village. We shall see how the citizens of simple Modoc respond to Geronimo and his three comrades.

My first stop is a slaughterhouse operated by Grisham. He’s a friendly enough guy, and brags to no end about the jerky he produces himself. I have yet to find any use for jerky in this game, so I decline the offer for the time being. But just as I end the conversation in an attempt to find something worthwhile to do in Modoc (discussing the merits of jerky is not productive enough for our worthy hero), Grisham stops me and offers me a job. It seems his brahmin have been under attack by a group of unruly wild dogs. Eager to get the quests started, I accept.

The wild dogs prove to be a handful, and it doesn’t help that Geronimo is basically forced to all the work himself, with only his Desert Eagle to count on for support. He dispatches the dogs gradually with head shots, while Vic takes the time to slowly inch away from the action each turn he gets. By the time the dogs are beaten, my character is left with just two hit points. But the end justifies the means as it turns out; Grisham rewards us with $1,000, the most I can remember getting for any quest so far.

Way to earn your $1,000 price tag, coward.

Next I head to the local general store, where I meet Jo. Jo tells me the store’s closed for the time being due to the drought, He is nice enough to give me a brief rundown about the town, though, so we chitchat for a moment until I ask him about GECK. It’s at this point that Jo lights up, as he just so happens to have information on that subject. Information that isn’t available for free, of course, but that’s never been a problem for Geronimo. Jo tells the story of a nearby ghost farm that has inexplicably managed to survive through the drought, but is, unfortunately, haunted (see: ghosts). A local named Karl had been staying at the farm, and then one day he disappeared. If I can visit the farm and get rid of the threat, Jo will reward me with new information on GECK. Time to investigate!

But first, I’ve got more of Modoc to visit. The next stop is the tannery, where I’m greeted by the owner, Balthas. Balthas isn’t quite as friendly as the other locals so far, but it doesn’t take long to find out why. It seems his son Jonny was last seen playing with his dog and hasn’t been back since. Geronimo recognizes the desperation in the poor man’s eyes and predictably offers his assistance. Our group is temporarily given another member in the form of Laddie, Jonny’s faithful dog. If anyone can lead us to Jonny, it’s Laddie.

How flattering; my reputation precedes me!

On pure instinct, Geronimo immediately heads to the nearby well and talks to Laddie, who through a series of barks is able to communicate that it was indeed the well Jonny fell down. Now if only we can obtain a rope, the rescue mission can begin.

But there’s only place I remember seeing a rope, and that’s in Maida’s inventory in Klamath at the beginning of the game. Klamath is quite a trip, so I figure it’s better to finish exploring Modoc first. Sorry, Jonny. Up north is Rose’s Bed and Breakfast, which I stop in at to sample the world-famous omelet of health, which fills me up and fully heals me for the mere cost of $25. Money well spent. While exploring the restaurant, I come across a man who seems to be living in one of the rooms. Conversation with him proves very disjointed, but he is helpful despite being crazy, giving me what appears to be several tips about the area. When he mentions a huge dog coming out of the toilet in a nearby outhouse, I decide to give it a look myself.

Turns out there’s definitely something to the story, as Geronimo’s travels take him down into an underground area with a clear path to something unknown. Sadly, there’s a pile of rocks blocking the path for now, although the game tips me off that dynamite would clear it out nicely. Right now, though, I have no dynamite, so I leave and head to Klamath to find my old friend Maida, who sells me a rope for $38. That’s a pretty expensive piece of rope.

The last time I saw you, Maida, I needed an online map just to figure out where I was. Now, I regularly bring the RPG genre to its knees.

Back in Modoc, Geronimo heads immediately for the well and poor, stranded Jonny. Using the rope to climb down, our search party finds nothing but bones, coin bags, and Jonny’s BB gun. It appears part of the well caved in, pitting the odds against Jonny’s survival just a bit. With nothing left to find in the well, I depart and decide there’s not much left to do but take on the ghost farm, something I’ve been bracing myself for.

Upon arrival, I’m effectively creeped out by the haunting atmosphere. For a game made in 1998, the environment does a fine job of making the player feel like something bad is going to happen. Bravely, the quartet proceeds forward anyway, eventually entering the farm and falling into the floor. Below, we’re greeted by a couple of guards, who inform us they have instructions to bring all surfacers directly to Vegeir. Geronimo complies without putting up a fight, all the while hoping that his visions of Vegeir being some sort of grotesque man-eating creature are inaccurate.

We’re in luck; Vegeir actually turns out to be a polite, well-spoken individual, and a fair one at that. Although he immediately asks our group for a favor, he is willing enough to explain a little about his group of underground dwellers (who can no longer survive above ground due to years of living in the dark) first. Geronimo hears enough to accept the request, and we return to Modoc to share the news to Jo.

I wasn't expecting an underground dweller named Vegeir to use the phrase "Fair enough."

Jo is not quite as pleased as I expected him to be when Geronimo informs him the farm is not haunted after all. Apparently, slags are no better than ghosts, at least to Jo. He reminds Geronimo that they still aren’t to be trusted after what happened to Karl. It’s at this point that Geronimo remembers running into Karl back during the days of exploring The Den. He explains that Karl is actually quite safe, but that doesn’t change Jo’s mind. He informs us that he will be attacking the slags in 31 days if we don’t find some reason to deter him from this course of action.

Since Geronimo has spoken directly with the slags and recognizes what a foolish war that would be for both sides, he sets off quickly to keep things peaceful. The first visit is to Mom’s Diner in The Den, and the passing along of Jo’s message for Karl to come back home. Karl, relieved, does exactly that, but it makes no difference to Jo, who insists that he’ll be attacking in seven days regardless. Still, I gain 500 experience points for helping Karl return to his home.

Acting quickly, I return to the slags to inform Vegeir how Jo reacted to the message relayed from underground. Geronimo gets right the point, recognizing time is short, and asks Vegeir bluntly what’s going on with all the dead bodies on stakes outside the farm. Vegeir has a good answer; he claims the slags are a peaceful people and use mere props to scare off people who try to steal their crops. The bodies outside aren’t bodies at all as it turns out.

With this helpful knowledge, Geronimo races back to Modoc and gets back to Jo just in time; he was now only four days away from attacking. When I inform Jo that the bodies are actually fake, he sputters for a moment, and then admits that he didn’t look closely, as he was too busy running for his life. Satisfied, Jo calls off the imminent war with the slags, deciding that they can instead come to a mutually beneficial arrangement that will save the town. Geronimo is branded a hero within Modoc and awarded a whopping 3,500 experience points for the trouble. Although it turns out Jo was lying when he said he knew something about GECK, the barrage of points proves worthwhile in itself, as it pushes Geronimo up to Level 6, and the game wants me to pick another perk. After doing a little research, I decide Bonus Move is a good option. I then use the points to improve lockpicking to 75 % and doctor to 40 %, two categories that could stand to be improved still.

Geronimo's peaceful nature is rewarded kindly; 3,500 points simply for averting war.

After all the hero-worship ends, I decide to make a trade with Jo. Jonny’s BB gun gets quite a decent haul, and combined with the shotgun I came across earlier in Modoc, I’m able to trade for some dynamite. Armed with the explosives I was looking for earlier, I revisit the ground underneath the outhouse and blow through the rocks. It’s worth mentioning that I had to reload after the first attempt, as I accidentally killed everyone in the process. Vic took quite a blow in particular, losing something along the lines of 4,000 hit points in the explosion. I figure that killed him, what, ten times?

Anyway, with the path cleared and everyone alive, I come across a mole rat (who’s easily destroyed) and a gold watch that apparently belongs to the crazy guy inside Rose’s Bed and Breakfast. I also get 500 points for my trouble.

Returning the watch to Cornelius proves helpful, as the game tells me I ended a feud between he and Farrel I didn’t know existed, and I get another 1,500 points in the process. This sets me off on a journey to locate Farrel, since I apparently missed him on my first travels through the city. Farrel talks to me for a bit, and then assigns me to his garden to clear out the rat problem. Geronimo is successful (of course), has another local worshipper, and gains another 300 experience points. Modoc sure has been helpful.

Another successful peacekeeping mission for our favorite diplomat. Geronimo could have been the president in a world not destroyed by nuclear warfare.

With most of the quests taken care of, there’s just one thing that remains: finding Jonny’s whereabouts. As I’ve already been through all of Modoc and met all the inhabitants, I decide to try back at the ghost farm. Considering it’s underground and that’s where Jonny disappeared to, it seems possible he might be there.

Before hunting for Jonny, I briefly stop and talk to Vegeir, who is also appreciative of the peace agreement Geronimo helped the slags and the people of Modoc come to. He tells me I’m always welcome and rewards me with an assault rifle.

After heading north a few screens, Geronimo finds his target amongst a group of small children. Laddie gives his presence away by running directly to him, and a quick conversation with the boy reveals that he’s been treated well but not allowed to return home without an escort. All’s well that ends well when Geronimo offers to take him back to the surface, and Jonny is reunited with his family. More hero-worship for the deserving Geronimo in the form of spoken gratitude, 2,500 experience points (resulting in another level), and a leather combat jacket, which I immediately put to use in place of the former leather armor.

The city of Modoc crowns my character King Geronimo The Great after doing yet another good deed for the citizens.

After upgrading lockpicking and doctor with the points, I make a big trade with Balthas in preparation for the next unknown town that might not prove as friendly as Modoc. I notice Balthas has an SMG on him, and I’ve been longing for an automatic weapon capable of burst fire for some time, so I put together an impressive collection of goods to exchange. After parting with a stimpack, a first aid kit, a crowbar, my old leather armor, the Desert Eagle, and $569, I’m able to acquire the SMG and some ammo for it.

I take one last look at my inventory on the edge of town with my group close behind: an SMG, an assault rifle, leather combat jacket for armor, and full health, which now includes 53 hit points. Yes indeed, Geronimo is getting there, readers. With faithful followers ready for the next trip, we bid farewell to adoring Modoc. Next stop? How does Redding sound?

Vault City, Citizenship, And Plows

Still chasing GECK and searching for the whereabouts of the holy Vault 13, the well traveled trio of Geronimo, Sulik, and Vic arrive at Vault City together, eager for action. I’m not sure what to expect from this new area. Violence? A warm welcome? A quick F7 and the subsequent process of forgetting I ever tried to go there at this point in the game?

As it turns out, none of the above. Vault City is certainly not what I expected, but the area does not prove to be dangerous, at least not yet. Geronimo quickly learns the entry area is not actually Vault City itself, but rather just the Courtyard, which is a heavily guarded location that only true citizens of Vault City can get past without wearing a few bullets in the process.

What better way to welcome guests to a city than with armed guards sternly patrolling the area?

I speak with Melinda first, the Chief Greeting Officer who gives me the above information, and then break into a few lockers right in front of her, looting a Geiger Counter and a First Aid Kit in the process. My three characters then proceed to the north, stopping in a few tents along the way, the first of which is inhabited by a nearly hysterical woman who has a husband named Joshua she may not see again for quite some time. Apparently he got into trouble in a bar and is now being held inside the Servant Allocation Center past the guard gates. Geronimo, who has made a habit out of offering assistance to complete strangers over the course of his journey, quickly lives up to his reputation and offers assistance to this complete stranger. Of course, we’ll have to infiltrate the gate into Vault City to make good on that quest, but that can be dealt with later.

In the next tent, we run into Ed, the self-described local brahmin dealer. Ed’s old and practically useless, so he’s unable to offer any details about the part of his life that involved giving water flasks to Vic, but he is kind enough to add a few locations to my map. Ed describes what is apparently referred to as “The Big Circle”, which consists of a series of cities including Broken Hills, New Reno, Redding, The Den, Modoc, and our very own Vault City. Interesting. Before leaving Ed to his senile ways, I notice he’s got a bit of pocket change that could be put to better use if it were in the hands of a saner man, bless his heart.

Next we stop in at a bar and meet Cassidy, the grouchy proprietor who comes across as very disenchanted regarding his present location. Quite frankly, he’s had about enough of Vault City. He and Geronimo hit it off rather well, so he agrees to join the band, ballooning the total to four now. We are now a quartet, which should make combat even more fun in the future, if indeed there are anymore battles to be fought in this game. I’m just saying, it’s been a while; not that Geronimo minds, of course. Speaking of battle, Cassidy naturally comes equipped as a bad ass. He’s got armor and a shotgun on him to start with, which indicates he could do some serious damage in times of reckoning.

Generally, disgruntled barkeeps with a bad heart and a functioning shotgun don't make the best company. Oh, well.

Our next conversation comes with a man named Smith, who just so happens to be down on his luck and in need of a plow. Geronimo’s heart aches for the poor would be farmer, and he promises he’ll locate him one at once. Smith unwillingly loans our hero $25 in the process, because as it stands I’ve only got $425 on me, and those plows are mighty expensive. I like to justify Geronimo’s rare moral mishaps, if you hadn’t noticed. I hope my karma isn’t going down each time I steal.

It doesn’t take us long to find Happy Harry’s shop, which is exactly where Smith advised us to go in order to obtain a plow for him. Sure enough, Harry’s got one in stock for the total of $800. Although Geronimo tries to get him to lower the price to $600, Harry doesn’t budge. I’ll admit that sheer curiosity overtook me at this point, and although I never had any intention of saving the resulting progress, I decided to blow Harry away (it proved to be very easy) and see if I could just help myself. No luck as it turned out, so even if that was Geronimo’s style, there would have been no point. But again, kudos to Fallout for being so flexible in how one can handle these things. Anyway, even with the money I’ve stolen since arriving at Vault City, I’m still $341 short of the plow. That means I’m going to have to barter, and against my better judgement, I part with my recently acquired Geiger Counter for $350 and some Desert Eagle bullets. After that trade, I’m able to buy the plow with $9 left over. Harry is kind enough to deliver it to Smith for me after the transaction is complete. See, he’s much more useful alive than dead. Does anyone actually go around killing everyone in this game?

Harry may not be too generous with his prices, but at least he offers free delivery.

We go and catch up with Smith again, who’s so grateful he gives me a 10 mm pistol as a reward. I immediately return to Harry and barter it away for its face value ($820), which essentially means the quest netted me 250 experience points and profited me about $20 at the cost of a Geiger Counter. Not too bad, I hope.

With nothing left to accomplish in the Courtyard at this point, Geronimo and Co approach the gates, predictably finding themselves denied entry. We talk to the guards about the process of gaining access to the city, and are again directed to Wallace, Head of Customs located in the building to the immediate right. Before heading that way, I instead enter the building to the left and steal a few things from the guards standing in the station. This is the one group of people Geronimo has absolutely no qualms about stealing from; they’re rude, condescending hired guns with no real concern for anything, if you ask him.

Then it’s time to visit Wallace at last. The first man we speak with upon entering the Customs Office is not Wallace, but rather a nameless, pretentious man who suggests that gaining full citizenship or even a day pass to Vault City is a fruitless endeavor. He then reveals his true colors by offering fake papers for the mere price of $200. Though tempting, Geronimo would prefer to gain access in a more ethical manner. He also resists the urge to blackmail the man, which is a clear option in the dialogue. Instead, Geronimo predictably takes the high road and opens the next door to see Wallace.

A lesser man than Geronimo might be inclined to take this offer...

It turns out Wallace is no friendlier than the other man, as he shows clear disdain for Geronimo and his Outsider kind, making several implications that they’re nothing more than low-life thieves. Just as the crooked man in the first room warned, Wallace is not interested in granting us access to the city, even for the day. He does take the time to regale us with stories of the surrounding cities that trade with Vault City, and indicates they’ve had a raider problem of late. Reluctantly, Wallace does agree that if we can locate the raider base, he will give us a day pass into Vault City, where perhaps we can go about the process of settling the more important quests.

You sure you want to call a guy with a Desert Eagle and three loyal followers Outsider scum?

It appears there’s little more our group can do in Vault City at this time, at least before locating the raider base. There’s always the option of purchasing the forged documents to get in, but at this time, Geronimo has a yearning to do some exploring. So the plan for now, kind readers, is to have a look at some of those surrounding cities that have been referred to in recent conversations. Thanks to a comment from one of SGD’s (doubtlessly loyal) readers, my plans are to take on Modoc first, and then pop in at the others along the way, just to familiarize myself with the cities I’m eligible to travel to.

So it’s at this point we’ll leave things for now. As a closing comment, I really do appreciate all the participation I’ve found on this blog so far. This started out as a mere challenge between my cousin and I, and I never thought that a) I’d like the game so much or b) people would genuinely enjoy reading about my first play through. I’m pleasantly surprised to note that both of those things appear to have happened. I do expect that I’ll go about this adventure in an order that you wiser players will question, and miss some important things along the way, but I guess that’s part of the fun, isn’t it? The next several entries will be covering a trek into several unknown cities and my initial observations about them before returning to the primary quest of infiltrating Vault City, which I believe to be the real linchpin to advancing the plot. That’s my theory, anyway. So again, I want to thank everyone for taking the time to read about Geronimo and the inexperienced person guiding him, and remind you that all tips, suggestions, or general thoughts are most welcome and will be given my full attention.