Fallout 76

[maflynn]

Interesting. At least the plague explains why there were no AI humans in game. With the Wastelanders update, does this result in a new area being introduced or does it just change basic game mechanics across the landscape or both?

Yeah, it does a nice job at providing the background info. In my playing, I came across small bits of data, that stated the people fled the area because of the scorch plague. I was unaware of a lot of the missing pieces though, like how the disease was created in the first place.

The Wastelanders will be a mix of old repurposed areas and new locations, but the question is, will there be scorch beasts and the scorched still around? I suspect that in some form it will, but we'll find out in a short amount of time.

 

[Huntn]

Yeah, it does a nice job at providing the background info. In my playing, I came across small bits of data, that stated the people fled the area because of the scorch plague. I was unaware of a lot of the missing pieces though, like how the disease was created in the first place.

The Wastelanders will be a mix of old repurposed areas and new locations, but the question is, will there be scorch beasts and the scorched still around? I suspect that in some form it will, but we'll find out in a short amount of time.

I’m trying to picture F4 with just critters and no people. Yes, I understand the update will introduce people, maybe settlements, but no settlement building like F3.

 

[maflynn]

I’m trying to picture F4 with just critters and no people. Yes, I understand the update will introduce people, maybe settlements, but no settlement building like F3.

There's settlements in FO76, just no people, super mutants, yes, robots, yes, but no human NPCs. To be honest, that was one reason why I put the game down - it felt too empty. There was a lack of emotional attachment, especially when you were told to do a task by a robot just to get a key

 

[Huntn]

There's settlements in FO76, just no people, super mutants, yes, robots, yes, but no human NPCs. To be honest, that was one reason why I put the game down - it felt too empty. There was a lack of emotional attachment, especially when you were told to do a task by a robot just to get a key

For fun, I looked up some F3 gameplay to see if I could stomach it and it’s looks just too grim for me. The Capital wasteland is just that. One advantage of F76 would be a more pleasing environment.

 

[Huntn]

​

Ok with the Wastelanders update, I’ve finally decided to jump on F76 last night, I don’t know what possessed me, not only that, but went for the Deluxe Edition and plan on subscribing too.
There is a group in my guild playing it on Discord and I’ll dip my toes in, probably tonight.

There seems to be some substantial questions need answering regarding character builds. @maflynn what kind of build did you go with and what research did you do, if any?
As I currently understand it, in F76 (as compared to F4), you can pick any weapon and add stealth components to it in a build. In what little I’ve looked at, for the basis of a build, pistols don’t seem to be as good as they are in F4.

Build links:

FED76

fed76.info

[Top 5] Fallout 76 Best Builds in the Game with Legendary Effects

[Top 5] Fallout 76 Best Builds in the Game with Legendary Effects

www.gamersdecide.com

Fallout 76 Builds and Archetypes Guide - Best Starting Perks and Stats, Level 50 Builds

Roaming the Wasteland is no joke. Danger lurks around every corner and you always have to be prepared and vigilant to tackle any kind of situation. For

segmentnext.com

Fallout 76 Best Characters Build Guide – Best Types of Builds

In this Fallout 76 Best Characters Build Guide, we guide you on how to create the best type of character that will suit your style of play.

www.gameshedge.com

 

[maflynn]

what kind of build did you go with and what research did you do, if any?

I found that melee builds seem to work the best - at least that's what I noticed when I had played. I've not picked it up in a long time.

 

[Huntn]

I got my feet wet last night, with a lot of guild hand holding. The game is pretty. More info soon as I get my orientation.

 

[maflynn]

I got my feet wet last night, with a lot of guild hand holding. The game is pretty. More info soon as I get my orientation.

The thing that really turned me off on the game was the cooperative play requirement. I get that the game was designed/market as such. Todd Howard, basically said the other players were your NPCs, i.e., "“Each of those characters is a real person, because yes, Fallout 76 is entirely online,” but I like many other fallout fans enjoyed it solo. I'm a little annoyed that they moved to co-op when no one really was asking for that

Anyways, I was playing it solo and I was able to progress up to one point in the main quest (I forget where exactly at this point), but I was unable to move forward the super mutants were too strong and I was unable to finish that quest. I then played it to level up, thinking that I just need to be a higher level, but eventually the game lost its allure.

 

[Huntn]

The thing that really turned me off on the game was the cooperative play requirement. I get that the game was designed/market as such. Todd Howard, basically said the other players were your NPCs, i.e., "“Each of those characters is a real person, because yes, Fallout 76 is entirely online,” but I like many other fallout fans enjoyed it solo. I'm a little annoyed that they moved to co-op when no one really was asking for that

Anyways, I was playing it solo and I was able to progress up to one point in the main quest (I forget where exactly at this point), but I was unable to move forward the super mutants were too strong and I was unable to finish that quest. I then played it to level up, thinking that I just need to be a higher level, but eventually the game lost its allure.

As you know there are now NPCs, which feels fairly normal to me as compared to F4. Just outside the vault I talked to a Codsworth like robot, who gave me an Overseers holotape, then down the hill, 2 NPCs wondering about the treasure in the vault. I believe it was the holotape that directed me to Wayfarers, a store, down by the river, where there was 2 NPCs, 1 who was being held up by a third, but when I engaged the bandit in conversation and said I’d join him, a goul (one of the two NPCs) shot him. Then they had quests.

As a hardcore F4 player who has given myself benefits, there is definitely acclimation. ? The most annoying thing so how fast my food and hydration go down.

I decided to subscribe, so I’ve got a portable “tent” with both a stash and a scrape box which is huge for collecting junk, as there is lots of junk around. And as a subscriber you can log into a private world or a friends private world, and there I ran to a guild friends camp who had lots of purified water, corn growing, a lake to gather water, a cooking station to boil the water, and then make corn soup. It was plentiful, but you have to make a lot of corn soup to get your food level up. My guess in real life you would have the runs eating that much.

I stumbled across a farm with 3 feral gouls, except they were shooting guns at me! That’s new compared to F4. I barely escaped there . I‘ve not yet experience what the death penalty is, if there is one.

What else is new is degradation of weapons. Does armor degrade too? Anyway so far, so good.

 

[maflynn]

As you know there are now NPCs

Yes, but that's a specific questline if you will. The main quest of destroying the scorchbeast nest is still part of the game and almost impossible to do it solo

I stumbled across a farm with 3 feral gouls,

ghouls or scorched?

Does armor degrade too?

Yes, and that was one of the major frustration points. Some of my armor that needed to be repaired required ballistic material and at the time of my playing, that was almost impossible to find.

 

[maflynn]

I just got an email that fallout 76 is free to play for this weekend

 

[Huntn]

I just got an email that fallout 76 is free to play for this weekend

...and double xp. But is’nt it always free to play if you don’t care about the subscription?

 

[maflynn]

...and double xp. But is’nt it always free to play if you don’t care about the subscription?

The subscription is intriguing to be sure. I own FO76 on the PS4, maybe I'll play the free to play weekend on my PC and see of the experience is better. I've been enjoying PC playing over console playing. I'm not sure my character will be transferable though, and I'll probably need to start over, which is good and bad

 

[Huntn]

The subscription is intriguing to be sure. I own FO76 on the PS4, maybe I'll play the free to play weekend on my PC and see of the experience is better. I've been enjoying PC playing over console playing. I'm not sure my character will be transferable though, and I'll probably need to start over, which is good and bad

My guess is your character won’t transfer. Console vs PC seem to be different ecosystems. I can think of several games like this. One good example is World of Tanks. I assume World of Warships is the same. As a rule, I prefer PC over Console because I have more flexibility and I prefer keyboad-mouse, even though I am using a Nostromo Comtroller, it’s basically a programmable mini keyboard.

 

[Huntn]

Yes, but that's a specific questline if you will. The main quest of destroying the scorchbeast nest is still part of the game and almost impossible to do it solo


ghouls or scorched?


Yes, and that was one of the major frustration points. Some of my armor that needed to be repaired required ballistic material and at the time of my playing, that was almost impossible to find.

Ok, they were scorched. I thought they were feral ghouls because they moved like ghouls and I was not familiar with scorched at the time, even though I had heard the name, I did not realize scorched were humans.

 

[Huntn]

Fallout76 Perk System
The SPECIAL perk system is odd and not intuitive to anyone who has played F4 because of how the interface is organized. Instead of (F4) having a bulletin board of perks that you apply points to specific skills as you gain levels and can see the big picture, in F76 it’s a two step process.

Due to the lack of the bulletin board perk display in F76, it is advised you research character builds and there are sights on line like: https://www.falloutbuilds.com/fo76/planner/ along with builds so you can formulate the end goal.

You first assign points to a particular SPECIAL category, and then you can assign a card with a skill associated with a particular attribute. There are cards for each SPECIAL category. And there is a max of 50 points (or something close) that can be assigned to SPECIAL categories, with a max of 15 points in each category.

So when get advised you have leveled up, you select T for the perks interface. There you will scroll left or right in the SPECIAL Categories, to select a category and assign the point to it. In this case I’ll say you added your level up point to S (strength). Then you will see Strength cards you have accrued for that category, that you can select and activate.

It might appear and you might assume that assigning the card is tied to leveling up, in other words if you assigned a point to Strength, then you must assign a card to Strengh, which in essence you would do, but the reality is that cards can be reassigned at any time, but the limiting factor is how many points you have assigned to each SPECIAL category.

So if you only have 1 point assigned to Strength, you can only place one card there. Note that depending on the card they can be leveled, depending on the card, up to 5 times. But to level a card skill, 3 times, you’d first have to acquire two more duplicate cards to combine, and have 3 points assigned to Strength (for this example).

In the perk interface, when you are looking at cards, if you look at the bottom of the interface screen, there is a filter setting, and the current filter setting would be Strength, and you can toggle back and forth to select a different attribute SPECIAL category and see cards for the new category you select. Cards you have in your collection, can be swapped around at any time.

Of note, there are many more cards than SPECIAL points so the game forces you to have build sets. Right now, it’s a pain in the butt, but word is this winter Bethesda is going to incorporate an interface to make it easier to change out card sets.

Of note 2, after you have hit level 50 you stop getting new SPECIAL attribute points to assign, but instead you can shift the attribute points you have from one SPECIAL category to another, but just 1 point each time you level.

 

[maflynn]

Question for you @Huntn Did you get Fallout 76 off steam of Bethesda?

 

[Huntn]

Question for you @Huntn Did you get Fallout 76 off steam of Bethesda?

Steam. I looked at both and prices were the same.

 

[maflynn]

Steam. I looked at both and prices were the same.

Yeah, I'm rocking with Steam - thanks for the info

 

[Huntn]

Yeah, I'm rocking with Steam - thanks for the info

Did you subscribe? Just curious.

 

[maflynn]

Did you subscribe? Just curious.

No not yet, first I want to see if its something that I'll like.

I started playing and it took me a couple of times to get out of the vault, just as I was picking up my perk cards, the game crashed - oh fun times.

Edit:
Ok, I got through some of the beginning stages of FO76, I'm at level 6, nothing too crazy. I started and finished the first phase of the Responder's quest, I'm now at the army barracks, mostly to get a different set of apparel.

I'm having some enjoyment, I'll give more time and effort

 

[maflynn]

@Huntn did you buy the base game or the game plus wastelander's DLC? Its free for current owners, but it seems if you want to get the game now, you have to pay for the DLC

I was tempted to buy the subscription but 13 dollars a month is a bit pricey but I really do like the armor that is included, plus caps and of course the private world

 

[Huntn]

@Huntn did you buy the base game or the game plus wastelander's DLC? Its free for current owners, but it seems if you want to get the game now, you have to pay for the DLC

I was tempted to buy the subscription but 13 dollars a month is a bit pricey but I really do like the armor that is included, plus caps and of course the private world

When I bought bought F76, Wastelanders was (and is free if I am not mistaken). This article says it’s free. When I purchased it the game itself was $39. I bought the Wastelanders Deluxe edition ($59) which includes Fallout 76, Fallout 76: Raiders Content Bundle, Fallout 76: Settlers Content Bundle. The content bundles are mostly, if not all skins, aesthetics. When I purchased the game, you got both content packages in the Deluxe version for $20 extra dollars, but if you purchased content packages separately, they were $20 each. I could care less about the Raiders content packages, but since I could get both for the price of one (Deluxe Edition), I said why not?

This weekend you can buy the Game (without the content packages) for $29, which if I had waited till this weekend, I could of saved $10, because I would have purchased the game fir $29, and the Settlers Content bundle for $20, for a total of $49.

Now, are the content bundles with it? Maybe. In hindsight, I have a couple of outfits and some camp item skins, which are not that spectacular imo, and in game I’ve already found a paramedic outfit and a baseball uniform which is just as good as the bundle outfits. Now the power armor skin, if you are into wearing power armor, Might make the bundle worth it.

Of interest, it appears that the aesthetic outfits go on top, and thing like leather armor are attributes that fit under your clothing, are equipped, but not seen as in F4.

As I said I think they are mostly aesthetics, but one significant difference between F76 and F4, is that F4 was awash if FREE content mod, including all sort of clothing items, while in F76, Bethesda is cashing in on aesthetic, making you pay for such things. My understanding is that player made mods are technically not allowed.

Steam Store

Steam is the ultimate destination for playing, discussing, and creating games.

store.steampowered.com

Fallout 76: Settlers Content Bundle on Steam

Celebrate people coming back to West Virginia with Settler-themed cosmetics and C.A.M.P. bonus in-game digital items, including the Settler Vigilante Power Armor Skin, Garden Truckbed Trailer, and more!

store.steampowered.com

Regarding mods, I not 100% sure what the deal is. There are mods at Nexus for Fallout 76, but the Word in my guild is that technically mods are illegal and subject to getting you banned. There is one good mod that allows you to set up card sets to quickly change them out. There is a debate if this mod will get you banned. Then there us this discussion at Nexus Mods, mids will Eventually be allowed on “private servers”: https://forums.nexusmods.com/index.php?/topic/6725397-mods-will-be-allowed-on-fallout-76/.

What does that mean? No clue. Right now in game, I can select a private world and invite up to 7 guests, but I believe I am getting the private world by virtue of my subscription which also gives me 1600 atoms per month, that I‘m paying $12.99 per month for. Right now I’m mulling over buying a 1 year subscription for $99 or going without a subscription.

Regarding camps, camps are the only building allowed to you, but in any particular game world, you might not be able to keep a location. When I logged into a friends private world, there was a camp close by to my camp’s location and I was offered to move my camp to a new location for free. I assume in a online server, you’ll run into this frequently as many people want their camps by water so they can set up water purifiers as part of their camp.

 

[maflynn]

I bought the Wastelanders Deluxe edition ($59) which includes Fallout 76, Fallout 76: Raiders Content Bundle, Fallout 76: Settlers Content Bundle.

Ohh, I thought that was the DLC, so the content bundle is only visuals of some sort.

technically mods are illegal and subject to getting you banned.

Yeah, that's my take, Bethesda doesn't want to lose out on sales, so visual mods are a no-no, because they want you to buy them from the atoms store, game play mods can give an unfair advantage, so that makes sense on that being bad.

The only bans I know of is cheat exploits, even then Bethesda seems rather slow in dropping the ban hammer, there's been only infrequent ban waves.

camps are the only building allowed to you

Yes, but in the private worlds your camp can be larger then on the public servers.

you might not be able to keep a location.

Correct, I'm partial to a certain location south of Flatwoods near the river (because I can easily purify water and I'm near a junk pile. That's popular among other players and so there's a good chance I go into a server that someone already has their camp set up

 

[Huntn]

No not yet, first I want to see if its something that I'll like.

I started playing and it took me a couple of times to get out of the vault, just as I was picking up my perk cards, the game crashed - oh fun times.

Edit:
Ok, I got through some of the beginning stages of FO76, I'm at level 6, nothing too crazy. I started and finished the first phase of the Responder's quest, I'm now at the army barracks, mostly to get a different set of apparel.

I'm having some enjoyment, I'll give more time and effort

The Responders quest got me a paramedic outfit and as mentioned I found a baseball uniform. I do like that I can equip leather armor under an outfit, so it is more of an armor attribute.