Fallout 4

[Grifman]

After watching a few episodes of the series I started another playthrough of Fallout 4. Since I’m playing on a PS5 I’m excited about a native PS5 version coming out but more excited about an Enclave storyline being added. Looking forward to killing them and farming their gear along with whatever associated quests that may come my way.

Kinda nice playing on the console. It had its share of bugs but no mods to complicate things and my first run through the Boston area went relatively smoothly. Fallout Lexington is sure different from my town of Lexington. I guess our town council decided to support development after all with the urban development and huge car manufacturing plant next to the town.

The Enclave addition is unlikely to be much. However, there is very large Enclave mod on Nexus if you really want the Enclave.

[Grifman]

Wabberjack ftw. I may just load it up again, but I've been playout fallout 76 and it's been pretty fun without having to mess with anything, but I also make poor choices.

+1. If you don't want to mess with modding, Wabbajack is the way to go.

And even if you're not interested in modding, I'd still suggest the unofficial patch:

Unofficial Patch

You might also want the achievement re-enabler:

Achievements

And if you're shopping for mods, I strongly advise against any variant of 'Scrap Anything' (anything that allows you to scrap various bits of trash/empty buildings, etc.) They are game-breakers, and have been since day one.

If you want some recommendations for a few great mods, here:

Armorsmith Extended

Full Dialogue Interface

This series: FallUI Series

Armorsmith is outdated and obsolete, the last update was 2019, and it requires patches to work with many mods. ECO Redux is much better IMO.

[waitingtoconnect]

Looking forward to the ps5 remaster. I switched to a digital console for ps5 and my fallout 4 save from the disc version of the game wouldn’t transfer to the digital version. Hopefully that’s fixed so I can resume my save. I was about 80% through….

[Fardaza]

I just reached level 30 in my current playthrough. Magnum Opus is a catch-all Wabbajack mod pack. I love it! I'm doing a sneaky, sniper, pistoleer, type.

One of the mods let me have a .308 rifle that does about 150 damage. I keep crafting ammo (also in the modpack) for it and use it almost exclusively. It fires about 5 rounds in "VATS" or whatever it's called before using all the APs. Definitely a "Superman" feel to it.

[Fardaza]

I just reached level 30 in my current playthrough. Magnum Opus is a catch-all Wabbajack mod pack. I love it! I'm doing a sneaky, sniper, pistoleer, type.

One of the mods let me have a .308 rifle that does about 150 damage. I keep crafting ammo (also in the modpack) for it and use it almost exclusively. It fires about 5 rounds in "VATS" or whatever it's called before using all the APs. Definitely a "Superman" feel to it.

Right after posting this I fired up the game again. I had about 3 or 4 CTDs in about 10 minutes. What the???

So, I opened Wabbajack and redownloaded all the files asking it to overwrite the existing ones. Oh no... The download took almost an hour. When I loaded it up this morning, a whole bunch of new mods activated. It then gave me a warning that I should not continue with this save game!

Turns out that the creator, Lively, had just updated the whole Magnum Opus list over the last 2 days! (My .308 now only does 74 damage.) There goes about 60 hours worth of gameplay. I was just really getting into the Far Harbor expansion that I'd never done before. Drat!!

I'm too bummed to start a new game right now. I have to grieve the loss for awhile. Goodbye Bremen. RIP

[Blackhawk]

Any time you change any mods at all, Bethesda will warn you not to continue. It doesn't mean that anything is wrong - it's just them trying to minimize support requests.

Look at the update page for the Wabbajack. See what it says about save compatibility, and go by that.

[TheMix]

You also may be able to revert to the version of the modlist that you were previously using. Of course, that wouldn't help with the reason that you went and updated it.

[Fardaza]

I could load any save I wanted and even look at my gear in the PipBoy. But as soon as I tried to point one of my guns, it crashed. Before that it crashed when all I did was fast travel to another site. Official support page says old saves are not supported. Oh well.

[Skinypupy]

Like a bazillion other people, I've been thinking about giving this another look after watching the show. I'd be playing it on PS5 and I know there's a big "next gen" update that's coming out next week. Would really love to jump in today but, oddly, no one seems to know if current save files will transfer over to this new version or not...and Bethesda ain't saying one way or the other. I don't really want to get 10 hours in over this weekend, then have to restart for the new version next week.

Also, anyone got a good recommended build for a first timer(ish. Played for a few hours when it was originally released) that's NOT either pure stealth or pure melee? Pretty much every build guide I read this morning recommends one of those or the other, but neither option appeals to me much.

[TheMix]

Personally, I would assume that your saves will be toast. That's always the safe bet with any Bethesda update.

But you could still play some just to get a feel, then start over. 10 hours isn't much to lose in one of these games.

I generally end up putting some points in stealth. It's just too useful. But more stealth + sniping (though that could mean any rifle/pistol used at a bit of distance). I'm assuming that when you talk about guides referring to 'pure stealth', that they are relying completely on it. I've never bothered with that. As for melee... I'm kind of surprised that it's recommended. I've played around with melee, but I never found it particularly easy.

I'd say just go with whatever makes you happy. There are so many options. I generally stay away from automatic weapons simply because of ammo requirements. But with the way you can mod weapons, you should be fine with pistols or rifles. And having a melee weapon isn't a bad idea. I just wouldn't recommend focusing solely on it.

Early on is generally going to be a bit challenging. You won't have the points and perks to really make anything shine. But some stealth will help you potentially avoid fights or flee from them. Ranged is also good for that since you can engage and then flee, picking off targets a little at a time. Any of the early indoor fights are likely to be challenging if you are trying for pure stealth; as soon as you get seen, you are probably hosed.

Also, once you start playing, you are going to start needing/wanting other perks - to find more loot, break down weapons, build things, carry more, etc.

Honestly, I've played it through a couple of times and don't think I've ever used a "pre-made" build. And I've never felt like it affected my enjoyment.

[TheMix]

Oh. I didn't mention power armor and heavy weapon related builds. They can be fun. But they are challenging early on. I probably would stay away from focusing on them for a first playthrough. A good pistol/rifle and VATS, with some stealth/mobility to help you flee from difficult fights, should let you enjoy the game just fine.

[Blackhawk]

Generally patches don't affect saves, but there's no guarantee with Bethesda.

Fallout is usually pretty build friendly. It's got a range of different activities, so rather than getting a single build, it's usually better to consider what you want to do in the game, then pick portions of a build based on that. Stats themselves aren't nearly as important as the perks the stats give you access to. Familiarize yourself with this if you're new to the series. Now, as to gameplay elements:

Exploring?
Building? (the game has a rudimentary 'city management' mechanic with fairly elaborate base building that some love, but others don't care about.)
Crafting (you're likely going to be doing some crafting to optimize your gear, like improving your weapons and armor, so it's more of a question of how heavily you'll be doing it.)
Fighting? Well, obviously fighting.

If you're going to be building, you'll want to invest a bit in Charisma - at least 6 for Local Leader, plus you'll want some Science to give you access to certain options (you'll need Science 4 for the best generators, but 1 is a must and 3 gives you heavy laser turrets.) You'll likely also want 1 or 2 (or more) in Gun Nut, Cap Collector 2 (for shops), and Medic 1 (for clinics.) For building, this is a partial build. If you just want a little building, I'd say Local Leader 2, Science 1, and Gun Nut 1 would be enough, but you wouldn't have access to a lot of the more advanced structures.

For fighting, it's a good idea to pick a style. Shortly put, these are the options:

Melee weapons (everything from baseball bats to chainsaw knives)

Unarmed (melee with no weapon, although there are a few, like the deathclaw gauntlet and power fist that are considered unarmed.)

Pistols

Shotguns

Rifles, automatic

Rifles, semi-automatic (other rifles, sniping)

Explosives (mines, bombs, grenades, etc)

Heavy weapons (gatling guns, gatling lasers, launchers, flamers, junk jets, etc.)

Each weapon type has perks related to them (commando for automatic rifles, rifleman for semi-automatic, demolition expert for explosives, etc.) Pick your preferred weapons and find the perks that support that weapon type. Some have a couple. My recommendation is to pick a couple of weapon types to specialize in, although you can still carry - and even invest some points into - others. Any are viable, although you'll have a harder time finding energy weapons and ammo early on, or finding and feeding heavy weapons until the midgame. If you want these weapon types, plan a second type for support until they become more available. Energy weapons are no longer a separate type of skill - laser pistols are just pistols, etc, although there are some other things that specify one or the other (energy weapons, ballistic weapons.) But make sure you check out the crafting section below - improving energy weapons and ballistic weapons uses different skills, so you may still want to specialize.

Other decisions:

Armor type (power armor vs non-power-armor) (If you want to use power armor for more than the occasional boss fight, you need to put some points into it, especially Nuclear Physicist in the Intelligence branch, which requires a significant investment.) Note: Power armor sets your strength to 10. If you're planning on being in power armor most of the time, having a high strength can be a waste.

VATS or no VATS (how often you want to use the auto-targeting feature/critical hits.) VATS can be very, very powerful, allowing you to hit a button that sends you into a slow-mo targeting system in which you can target individual body parts. Everyone will want to use it occasionally (Fallout 3/4's shooting mechanics are mediocre at best), but if you want to use it a lot, look at Action Boy/Girl and other perks that affect VATS and action points (action points are your timer/meter for VATS.) Also, anything related to critical hits applies only to VATS. If you're not using it, stay away from crit perks.

Chems or no chems (whether you're a very big bucket of drugs.) If you want to hit the Jet for fights and Mentats for hacking (and so on) more than occasionally, it's worth looking for perks that boost chems - and reduce the effects of addiction.

Lockpicking or hacking You should have one or the other, and invest somewhat in it, but both usually aren't necessary. I'd pick this last - see which stats you want for other stuff, then get one that you already have the stat for (Int for hacking, Per for lockpicking)

Charismatic or non-charismatic (you can go all-in on a build that is all about persuasion, manipulation, and control - either finding your way around combat, or forcing your enemies to fight for you.)
If you're going this route, you probably want to go deep into it - although a point or two in Cap Collector, Attack Dog, Lone Wanderer (if you don't want companions at all) will help anyone.

Crafting This is the process for making items, but also for modifying and improving your gear. Find a laser pistol. Modify it with a stock - now it's a laser rifle. Modify it with a scope, and now it's a laser sniper rifle. Up the damage, or the rate of fire, or accuracy - you get the idea. Make your own bombs. Make your armor tougher, lighter, or more resistant to radiation. I'm listing this last, as you can't really decide what you need until you decide what you're going to be using. Pick the appropriate perks (armorer for armor, blacksmith for melee, gun nut for ballistic weapons, science for energy weapons, chemist for chems, maybe some others.) At the very least you'll probably want a couple of points into armorer and the skill related to your primary weapon type.

So, pick what you want to be doing in the game first, then go to that link I gave earlier and choose the perks that best fit your needs for those choices. Those perks will determine where you need your stats.

Part of coming up with a build is finding some synchronicity in your skills. You'll note, for instance, that a chem-addicted, energy weapon using, city building, power armor-wearing vault dweller will find skills for all four in Intelligence. That means that he has more points available for other things.

SPECIALS (ie - stats): You can also increase your stats as you level up, and multiple ways. Bobbleheads will give them +1 each, and you can always invest points later. It is not necessary to get a stat up to the level you'll need for perks related to things you won't be doing until later (like heavy weapons) just as you start - if you think you'll need an 8 strength late in the game, you can start out at 6, find the strength bobblehead, and invest a point before you get to that part of the game. Note: Unless you're specifically doing something that's related to luck (like a critical hit build), you're better off keeping it low. If you don't need high luck, you don't need much luck at all.

[Blackhawk]

I will add that unless you make no attempt to 'build' and just throw points around, Fallout 4 isn't all that hard of a game. Anything is viable. If you're bad at shooters, more VATS will help offset that.

[Fardaza]

Blackhawk just laid it out pretty thoroughly! There is one minor thing I would suggest differently though. I almost always take my first perk in lockpicking. Unless you don't mind leaving LOTS of safes unopened as you work the beginning areas. I can't stand doing that.

The counter-argument would be that most of the safes don't have anything you just absolutely have to have, so why bother with lockpicking. Just grab the stuff you can easily get.

I can't go that route. I just can't ignore a locked safe.

[Daehawk]

Same.

[Smoove_B]

I tried looking through my Fallout 4 achievements to see if I could remember how I played during my last attempt, but they weren't nearly as helpful as the Fallout 3 and New Vegas achievement names.

I'll confirm everything Blackhawk said as being great as well. I think I've tried just about every combination he's mentioned above, but I always seem to go back to pistol/rifle/stealth build. I'll try to mix it up (maybe) this next time, but apparently stealth archer is my archetype.

I can say that a no-weapons melee fighter eventually becomes insanely fun. But for a long time...not so much.

[dbt1949]

As in Skyrim I start out playing something different things that always end up stealth/archer(sniper)/lockpicker/tank.
In Fallout I go for ballistic weave as soon as I can.

[Blackhawk]

Blackhawk just laid it out pretty thoroughly! There is one minor thing I would suggest differently though. I almost always take my first perk in lockpicking. Unless you don't mind leaving LOTS of safes unopened as you work the beginning areas. I can't stand doing that.

The counter-argument would be that most of the safes don't have anything you just absolutely have to have, so why bother with lockpicking. Just grab the stuff you can easily get.

I can't go that route. I just can't ignore a locked safe.

I agree, with the caveat that most (not all) of the locked safes in the world can also be opened by computer, and most (but not all) of the computer locked doors can be opened by lockpicking. You can get by with one or the other, and either will be leaving a few (easily replaced) goodies behind. Unless you're planning on being an absolute completionist, it's generally sufficient to pick one or the other unless you have skill points to burn.

I think I've tried just about every combination he's mentioned above, but I always seem to go back to pistol/rifle/stealth build.

So do I. I've made myself play other ways (except melee), but I just enjoy the experience of moving around the perimeter, lining up the perfect shot, and *fwaaap!*, then moving to the next target. It feels nice.

As in Skyrim I start out playing something different things that always end up stealth/archer(sniper)/lockpicker/tank.

I did mix it up once and play a summoner/archer. That one would summon several allies, then move around shooting the targets that were focused on the summons. Of course, the gameplay leading up to that was pure stealth archer.

[Blackhawk]

Oh, one more FO4 character tip: You'll gain one free stat point to a SPECIAL of your choice very, very early in the game.

You should find it through normal play, but if not, here's a hint:

Spoiler:

Go home.

[Max Peck]

My F4 playthrough is on hold until after the upcoming patch (and also because I've fallen down the F76 rabbit hole in the mean time).

High on my wishlist for a post-patch mod would be an option to play as a ghoul. There are some older mods that do that, but none of the ones I found have been maintained for years now, so I doubt they'll be updated for the new version. All I really need is one that lets me look like a ghoul. You can get close in the standard character generation by layering on a lot of appearance options, but there's no way to get the nose right. The rest of the ghoul characteristics can be approximated by picking the right perks: Ghoulish (duh), Cannibal (ass jerky, anyone?), and basically a lot Endurance-based perks.

[Blackhawk]

If any of you FO76ers need anything, let me know and I'll reinstall and see if I can remember how anything works.

[Max Peck]

Fallout 4 Next Gen – Update Notes

[Smoove_B]

Can confirm that there's a 14.5 GB patch that's now available...

There are also people in the discussion group saying it's unplayable now, it crashes after the first minute, won't load, etc... so pace yourselves.

[Max Peck]

There's also a small update to the Creation Kit on Steam.

[Blackhawk]

Those notes fit my earlier comments - this was not a necessary patch. This was them going and finding a handful of minor, easily fixed bugs from years ago and releasing an update to cash in on the show, at the cost of every modded game, and likely ending many mods forever because the authors have moved on. Many Wabbajack packages will have to be rewritten from scratch.

Practically everything on the list was fixed years ago, most in the unofficial patch.

If you want to avoid updating, see my post from a couple of weeks ago.

[Max Peck]

That may be true on the PC side, but updating the game to run natively on current generation consoles is not nothing. That's why it's called the "Next Gen Update"...

[Blackhawk]

That may be true on the PC side, but updating the game to run natively on current generation consoles is not nothing. That's why it's called the "Next Gen Update"...

There's nothing wrong with them releasing a current-generation update. The problem is forcing that update onto other platforms that didn't need it in order to generate sales, while at the same time curb-stomping the existing owners (whose money they already have.)

[dbt1949]

Can confirm that there's a 14.5 GB patch that's now available...

There are also people in the discussion group saying it's unplayable now, it crashes after the first minute, won't load, etc... so pace yourselves.

Me

[dbt1949]

Worked the second time altho it took a long time to load. Fantastic graphics compared to my olde game.

[Max Peck]

Can confirm that there's a 14.5 GB patch that's now available...

There are also people in the discussion group saying it's unplayable now, it crashes after the first minute, won't load, etc... so pace yourselves.

I gave it a quick spin after patching and didn't run into any issues. I wonder if there is any correlation between whether or not the game is stable after the patch and whether or not the pre-patch game was modded.

[Smoove_B]

That's possible. Seems like a lot of them having issues are playing on widescreen monitors and trying to go max FPS. I was going to give it a try myself as I have a clean install with no mods on a regular monitor.

[Blackhawk]

Can confirm that there's a 14.5 GB patch that's now available...

There are also people in the discussion group saying it's unplayable now, it crashes after the first minute, won't load, etc... so pace yourselves.

I gave it a quick spin after patching and didn't run into any issues. I wonder if there is any correlation between whether or not the game is stable after the patch and whether or not the pre-patch game was modded.

If people are trying to launch games modded using the script extender, then this is absolutely a cause. Just like with Starfield or Skyrim, modded installs either need to wait for the updated F4SE to release, or use the older .exe file until it is. That's standard with any Bethesda game. Be aware that the F4SE team has already said that the Epic version may or may not ever get updated, depending on how Bethesda builds it. Since F4SE is at the core of practically every modded setup, that would effectively end mod support for Epic.

Also, Bethesda updated it to support ultra widescreen resolutions.

Except that I'm seeing reports that they didn't scale the HUD, which causes it to be distorted and stretched, and pushes parts of it completely off the screen. They also didn't add an FOV option, which is mandatory for ultra wide resolutions. They made minor, straightforward changes... and still Bethesda'd it up.

I don't run an ultra-wide, but even I know that you have to scale the HUD along with the resolution.

[dbt1949]

I just had a few Nexus mods.I just played a few minutes but everything seemed to be working well. And no, no wide monitor here.

[Blackhawk]

Probably nothing that used the script extender, then. The patch notes were mostly obscure and rare things - many mods won't be affected once F4SE is updated.

[Reemul]

https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods ... escription - Revert Fallout 4

https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods ... ?tab=files - Skip Next Gen Update

I am trying this now as I only started playing 2 days ago and I am not waiting a week or 2 to play again.

I will let you know how it goes

[Max Peck]

On GOG, it's super easy, barely a problem...

I'm sorry, but this is just no way to live. On GOG, through the service's Galaxy launcher, it's extremely easy:

• Go to the game's settings menu up top, near the play button
• Click: Manage Installation - Configure - Installation
• Uncheck "Automatically Update to Latest Version" and select your desired rollback patch from the list below.

So, technically, the issue with being forced to update on Steam is a Steam problem, not a Fallout 4 problem per se...

[Blackhawk]

And remember, if you go into Steam, tell it not the update automatically (only on launch), and then only launch through F4SE (the script extender, which is how modded copies are normally launched.)

And, as with all Bethesda games, always make a backup copy of the .exe file, as it's usually the thing that breaks the mods. It's rarely an issue to run with the older .exe on an otherwise updated game, as all they usually change is the version number in the .exe - which causes the script extender to not recognize it.

From what I've read, this time they did more with the .exe and underlying tech to make the PC version match the current gen console version, so expect it to take longer for F4SE to be updated, and expect more mods to break than usual.

All to fix the most obscure issues that only ever affected one player in thousands, and to implement ultra widescreen support that doesn't work. Thanks, Uncle Todd.

[Smoove_B]

I'm having the issue where the game takes forever to load between indoor and outdoor transitions; apparently it's been a known issue for 5+ years and was eventually fixed with a mod. The solution is to hit the Windows key on the keyboard (minimizing the game) and then re-enter, at which point it loads right into the indoor or outdoor area.

This feels like...maybe it shouldn't still be happening.