need help in fallout 2

Soapstone

Soapstone

It Wandered In From the Wastes
i am in gecko. i went to vault city to get the part to fix the reactor in gecko, i gave it to the ghoul that states that he is a nuclear power plant genius,and he said he would install it, however nothing has been done yet, the power plant isnt fixed. and i saved my game after the fact. is there something else i need to do? i know i need to get the ore sent up from broken hills still, but that shouldnt be an issue right now.
 
i dont have any options past the long spout-off of festus saying he can do any number of things, and the fact that the ground water has been contaminated which again leads to the same long winded dialogue of which festus thinks i can do anything and everything, the 3rd option talks about festus' horrible smell. and the last option is to just say goodbye. i even went back to vault city to see if i could get another part as well as tried to steal from festus to get the part back, no luck though.

i guess i will play w/ the dialogue options some more.
 
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These being your only 3 posts, it's very hard to gauge who you are and what you experience with the series is. For the sake of an example, being a newcomer to the series, used to games holding his hand, telling him exactly what to do, versus being an oldschool player, still a newcomer to the series, but used to have to think outside the box and constantly try different things to get things done. What your experience with gaming in general and Fallout as well may be has a huge impact on the situation, as well as what we need to tell you.

My guess is that you're both a newcomer as well as used to the pandering, so it's not immediately obvious to you that there are many things you need to consider. For one, you stats have a HUGE impact on your options. If your character is retarded, naturally he/she CANNOT talk anyone into doing ANYTHING... they just don't possess the mental capacity for this task. If your character has no skill with Science, then using the computer to do the job for you will likely prove a difficulty talk. But there is ALWAYS an option available... you just need to figure it out.

It sounds to me like you just do not possess the stats to convince Festus to finish the job. It takes several interactions to get it done, as he tries repeatedly to back out of the task. If your character doesn't know how to gently push Festus in the right directly, then of course you cannot have your character do that. But (depending on what your stats ARE), you MIGHT be able to achieve this- just pop a couple Mentats (that's what they're there for) and see what you can handle. Or, alternatively, just leave Gecko for now and come back later when you're more skilled and versed in various talents.

If all else fails, steal it back, and do it yourself. There's ALWAYS an option.
 
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i tried stealing, it wasnt in his inventory, but my stealing is pretty low right now as well. and i dont think my speech is high enough right now to convince him. and i cant find it under bartering with him either.
 
Soapstone said:
[I don't] think my speech is high enough right now to convince him.
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The Nearly Ultimate Fallout 2 Guide said:
Talk to Festus. He's dubious, so you must make a Speech check to get him to install the part for 4250 xp.
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So basically, yes, your stats are what's preventing you from getting the job done. Just come back later with better stats. Or, like I said, try the chem option, and see if that's enough.
 
i think i will come back later, seems easier to do, i went to redding and i was NOT strong enough to deal with the sidequest to take back the mine there. those monsters are mean! and i am at lvl 5 right now so, i am leaving it for later.
 
The only time I had Festus do that for me, the game reacted right away, I got the XP and left on my merry way. I didn't know there is potential for delay there.

Otherwise, I will always install the part myself, mostly cus Festus just declines, the lazy bum.

Oh, and damn, lvl 5, dude, you need to beef up! D:
Even at lvl 10 the wanamingo mines are a seriously tough battle! Seriously tough!

Actually, on second thought, it's difficult to really farm up all the XP on a first-attempt... at least you got the right idea! If facing seemingly impossible odds, get away from there, and return later. Some locations are really punishing, even to high level characters.
 
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You can give Festus the part, and if your speech isn't high enough he won't install the part. I was trying to avoid spelling out what you needed to do for the quest, but your unwillingness to even look through guides makes starting a thread like this really lazy. Especially with the ready availability of gameplay guides on the net.

This is also the wrong forum for gameplay questions.
 
well i didnt see a fallout 2 forum, and i already looked at an FAQ that was titled complete on gamefaqs.com, all it said was to give festus the part and save the game, and it was too late at that point for me cuz i had saved a bit after that. when i talked to him after giving him the part i got txt above his head instead of conversation options, when i tried to use the machine to put it in manually, it said i didnt have the item needed, and so i left to go back to vault city to see if i could get another part, cuz when i tried to steal the part back from festus, it wasnt in his inventory to steal. i dont know where it is right now.

i posted the question on gamefaqs fallout 2 forum, and no one answered, all the topics there are archived.

i am at lvl 7 now, speech is at 58% now, and stealing is up to 23% i think.
 
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Make a habit of utilizing many save slots, so that you have a little "sequence" of saving points. If you're in bad luck, it is possible to "save yourself into a corner" and not be able to get out, in which case you'd really wish you had a slightly older save
 
i am starting to realize that. also. apparently making your character in the beginning of the game can alter things up, too. the last game i had going i had to restart due to messing up a quest and same thing happened. however that time i was able to sharpen my spear in arroyo, when i started the game this time, i never got that option, and i dont know why.

looks like i get to start another game, again... :S
 
What options you get or do not get depend on your stats.

Imagine it like this:
Stat A at 10, gives you option X
Stat B at 10, gives you option Y instead

At the start of the game, you simply cannot allocate 10 points to both - you will forfeit either option X or Y during gameplay -
however!
Your character will grow, and eventually more options will open up simultaneously

Starting out with an "ideal" character is very difficult, and requires unrealistic precision, especially for a beginner. Just relax, and try to complete the game, with all the charming flaws and fuck-ups that come with it. If you then want to optimize things, you'll likely have much more personal experience with it on a 2nd run. Just don't worry so much about perfection, it's not math homework, it's role playing!
 
Soapstone said:
i am starting to realize that. also. apparently making your character in the beginning of the game can alter things up, too. the last game i had going i had to restart due to messing up a quest and same thing happened. however that time i was able to sharpen my spear in arroyo, when i started the game this time, i never got that option, and i dont know why.

looks like i get to start another game, again... :S
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I don't know how else to say this without coming off as condescending, so I'll dispense with any attempts at trying to. NO SHIT, SHERLOCK!!!

Once again, we come back to my previously stated point that stats make all the difference. That answer didn't just end at the Festus angle of the Gecko quest, and there alone. It applies to the ENTIRE game. How you make your character will DECIDE how you play the entire game. This isn't a shooter where refining your personal 360 no scope reflexes will result in the same performance every time. This isn't an adventure game where memorizing where everything is found will result in the same performance every time. This is a true role playing game, where the character you create and role play as will determine how the game plays out. Yes, personal knowledge will have an impact. Yes, personal skill will have an impact. But no amount of knowledge or skill will matter if a quest** requires you to have 9 PE, 9 IN, and 9 LK, and you don't have that and you possess no means to increase them. Likewise, no amount of knowledge or skill will matter if you tried to play the game identically to a previous character who had 8 IN but this time with a character who has 6 IN- if only in the sense that your permanent pool of Skill Points to spend will never be the same between both.

Stats matter. OF COURSE how you design your character will alter what happens in the game. However, as Red Leg explained it above, you shouldn't be concerning yourself with "perfect" play throughs. I have well over 15 YEARS of experience playing FO2, and yet attempting to beat it with any personal (and totally arbitrary) definition of "perfection" is an extreme challenge. It simply cannot be done. So stop concerning yourself with it. RPGs are games where playing as the character is what matters. Enjoy whoever you created. Create him/her with intentions in mind. The stereotypical starting characters of "the cunning diplomat", "the dimwitted brute", and "the clever sneak" are examples of what you should go for. Make a character with CHARACTERISTICS in mind. Like "He's an amiable doctor, but he's deadly with a pistol" or "She's a wiz with a pair of pliers, and she has a knack for beating people up with a wrench (or any other melee weapons)" or "He has luck on his side and is gifted at everything he does, but he's a sworn pacifist and he won't hurt a fly" for example. Any character archetype (that fits into a science fiction setting, that is) can be created using Fallout's character creation system. Know what you want, and you can make it.

You don't need to know what's ahead to know what character you would like to play as.

** Yes, such a quest DOES exist in FO2. But good luck finding it on your own. Equally, good luck KNOWING about it when creating your character. But as lengthily explained above, that's not the point. You don't make your character to complete every quest; that's physically impossible. Make your character to PLAY the game, not beat it. You'll beat it eventually, but not because you have some sort of "perfect" character.
 
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ok. i got it, so for creating my next character, i noticed that the SPECIAL stats can go up or down of the starting 5 points, as well as allocating the additional base 5 to it. i have no idea how some of these stats will affect me in the long run past action points, hp, etc. i assume having a high intelligence would let me easily take the test in vault city to become a citizen. however i know that combat is part of the game and i dont wanna sacrifice something that might affect that in some way.

do you have any advice at how much i could work with the SPECIAL stats? i know that once you start the game, they tend to be set in stone.
 
Strength is good for melee and unarmed, 4 is enough for pistols and some rifles and the SMG, some pistols require 5 and some rifles require 5 but you can use them with 4 with a manageable penalty. Later in the game your Strength can be increased by as much as 5 points, allowing you to easily use even big guns with base strength 4.

Perception is best for ranged combat as it lowers the to-hit penalty for long range shots, will also let you spot certain things that open up quests etc. 6 required for Bonus Rate of Fire perk, important for ranged characters. Also determines how early you get to act in each round of combat.

Endurance is good for more HP and damage resistance, keeping it low will just mean you'll have to load more often if you're not playing ironman. 6 endurance (and 6 luck) let's you take the Toughness perk that gives 10% base damage resistance.

Charisma let's you recruit more companions. 4 charisma = 2 companions, 6 = 3 and so on.

Intelligence is super important because it directly determines the amount of skill points you get each level. It also influences dialog options available to you among other things. 6 required for bonus ROF perk. Would recommend at least 8 for a Fallout newbie.

Agility determines your Action Points. 6 = 8AP, 8 = 9AP, 10 = 10AP. 7 required for bonus ROF perk. Also affects how hard you are to hit in combat.

Luck determines critical hit chance. Luck 6 is required for some really good perks.

To get some of the best perks without quite having the SPECIAL to get them, you can use chems before going into the character screen to raise your stats enough to take them. Beware of addiction.
 
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The SPECIAL stats directly affect your SKILLS at the start of the game, click on a specific skill, and right below the name of the skill - it says exactly what determins it - for example lockpick I believe is AG times something, plus something, equals: something <---your starting skill.
You don't have to understand exactly how it works, but by quickly checking what skill is governed by what SPECIAL stat, you can get more of an idea of what stats you want. If you plan to do a lot of fist-bashing, put more points into STrength, if you plan to talk and be sciency, put more into CHarisma and INtelligence - and so on.

Now, have in mind that this immediate and direct effect only affects how your skills start out
Other effects are more subtle, for example INtelligence determines how many skill-points you get each time you level up.
AGility determines how many Action Points you get during combat
STrength determines how much carry weight
ENdurance how much HP you get, PErception has an effect in long-distance shooting, not sure exactly how, but it is very noticeable in Fallout Tactics, where you can compare stats side by side.

A very few quests will check your main stats directly, as in, they'll require an exact ammount for you to pass in an ideal manner. You can always pass these quests, but in less than ideal manner, I guess (For example - use drugs to temporarily increase these stats)

In the end, you guess correctly (including with IN. coming in handy in Vault City), you will have to balance - but don't despair, notice what I said above - there's always a way around, even if it's not ideal. You will have to settle on a "favorite" build, make a character that has strengths and weaknesses, you simply cannot escape this. This game is playable, beatable, and even pwnable with any character build, be it a fighter, thinker or sneaker. You can always use in-game drugs (click on them to see their effects, there's one for every stat except Luck)
 
i saw that vault city has a few routes: fake papers, taking the test, resolving the gecko power plant for the first citizen/advisor.

i know that increasing some of the skills affect things like gambling (for luck), and intelligence ups science, repair, doctor and first aid skills.

it is super tough for me to decide exactly what i want to start with, past a little in strength as you tend to start the game either w/ fisticuffs or a spear, if you go the hands you need ac at 9 (3ac), if you use a bigger melee weapon ac should be at 8 to get hammers/crowbars manageable (4ac), i noticed that most guns require 5ac to use, so i imagine it would be good to up that to 10 if you plan to go that route. so many choices makes it hard to choose. and of course if you got low percentage in melee/unarmed/small guns then it makes fighting tough as you miss a lot until you increase the stats later.

then there are people you can talk to: someone to train in that from a skill teacher, if your skill is too high then they wont teach you anything. so many options can really boggle the mind.

i imagine some skill somewhere is preventing me from getting the dialog option to get my spear sharpened, i have only had it happen 1x so far, and i cant seem to replicate it, which is annoying.
 
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