Part 19: Ranger Up

Update 19: Ranger Up



Our first stop was to drop Vic off for some awkward family time with his daughter. They had a lot of catching up to do, and we needed the extra room in the car.



While we were in town, I went down to help myself to a few more things from the Vault. I still couldn't open the stuck doors, but that didn't mean the locked doors were safe.



Unfortunately most of it was crap, with the exception of a few pieces of Vault technology.



Downstairs there was a medical stockpile full of stims, radiation medicine, and the like. Considering that I'd fixed their radiation problems in Vault City I figured I would need it more than they would.



They also had a small armory, but it was actually fairly pathetic. They'd only wanted a couple of weapons in case of trouble, and hadn't packed anything heavy duty… although for some reason they did have some grenades and flamethrower fuel.



Once we were done in Vault City we headed back into Broken Hills to pick Marcus up. He didn't say anything about Vic being gone, and we didn't volunteer anything.



Marcus, as you can see, is about as tough and strong as they come. He's got a ton of HP, and he can wreck enemies with his Big Guns skill. He can also use Energy Weapons, which some people like because it lessens the collateral damage. I've found him to be pretty good about not hitting allies most of the time. The one thing you don't want to do is give him anything that's throwable, because he'll burn through it and a lot of those items are area of effect. Marcus can't use armor, but he's got some damage resistance built in and his high HP help him survive a lot of attacks. Oh, and you also get 1000 XP for recruiting him, so that's a nice bonus.



New Reno beckoned with its bright lights, but my main goal was still the GECK and Vault 15 near the New California Republic. Naturally, we paid a visit to the city before the Vault.



They had a small village outside the walls that protected an inner city, but it didn't look quite as squalid as the one out front of Vault City. I was a bit dubious about the iguana on a stick, though.



"Deal. $5, you watch the car. Maybe this won't end with me killing an entire car theft ring."

"…I really shouldn't ask many questions about what you did in Broken Hills, should I?"

"Don't worry about it, we didn't murder anybody in your town."

"''cept that scorpion. Not sure if he count as a body or not."



Once the car was safe we started asking around town to find out the story of the place. I had to have a talk with everyone about their weapons, but I didn't think we should have any trouble as long as nobody started trouble with us.



The name Shady Sands filled in some blanks… its name was well known in Arroyo, although before me none of us could have pointed it out on a map. It was a bit strange, though, since most empires tend to spread in a roughly circular fashion rather than just going in a single direction. Then again, if the NCR was founded by people who knew my ancestor and who knew that he'd headed north they might have just not wanted trouble.



New California was cleaner and better set up than anywhere outside of Vault City, and in some ways it just looked more welcoming. There wasn't quite as much green space, but they got along without it.



There was also a policeman on every corner, none of whom were doing anything for the woman I could hear screaming for help as soon as I walked in to town. Somehow it all ended up with me being drafted as a crisis negotiator.



Turns out that the reason the police didn't want to get involved was because it was one of their own holding a bomb to the power plant controls. I had no idea what I was doing, that's for sure, but that might have helped.



Jack wasn't a bad guy… he just wanted someone to listen to him about his homicidal ex-wife and agree that what was happening to him was bullshit. I think he'd already read enough self-help books that the last thing he wanted was platitudes and empty reassurances.



Eventually he agreed to put down the bomb and some of the rest of the guys from the police came and took him home. I hoped he would get the help he needed, but I didn't think that anything bad would happen to him considering his job.



The girl who ran the place, Dorothy, gave me a pile of manuals in thanks for keeping her from exploding. Turns out her robot friend was named Toto, because I think she couldn't help herself.



There's a sizable reward for talking Jack out of his explosive suicide in addition to the books. It's enough to boost us up to level 12, where some of the better perks in the game are located. The most obvious one is Tag, which allows us to add another tag skill. There's some bugs with this one that I'll discuss later. Other standouts include Living Anatomy (+5 damage, bonus to Doctor), Action Boy (1 additional AP), the ability to gain a point in any stat, and the one we go with: Lifegiver. Lifegiver can be taken twice, and each level gives you +4 HP per level. Skill points for this level go to Small Guns, a bit more Lockpicking (just to be sure), and Energy Weapons.



Around the corner from the power station I ran into the local sheriff, who was considerably less imposing that Marcus. He was just as suspicious, but didn't think I'd have any trouble finding work with the instant reputation I'd gained from talking Jack down.



I figured there was no point in starting small, so off to the president's office I went. Brahmin drives were out as well, since I didn't think they'd like me taking my car.



Just down the street I spotted a building that looked like the church I'd seen in Modoc. There was a guard stationed right out front of the building, which made it seem more than a bit suspicious to me.



After five minutes of being lectured about my neurodynes, enlightenment, and how my mind was being oppressed by the psi-energies of the people who died in the War I could kind of see why they wanted to discourage people from visiting. I came out of it with the idea that I was mentally constipated and needed a spiritual laxative.



The spiritual laxative came in the form of hooking me up to a machine for a few minutes.

"Umm… guys, did I just join a cult?"

"Yep."

"Yep."

"Mebbe just a little bit."

"Why didn't you guys stop me!?"

"Wanted to see what was going to happen when he hooked you up to that machine, mostly."



Getting your neurodynes purged can either raise your LK by 2 or drop it by 1. If you save right before hand there's no risk, so it's an easy boost. There's another site where you can get this done where it'll actually raise your IN and LK by 1, but we need 8 LK for a perk later.



Another building nearby housed the New California Rangers, who were trying to take a stand against slavery in the wastes. They offered to let me join… if I'd be so willing as to go out and free some slaves outside the gate. I agreed, since it wasn't like they said I had to do it immediately.



I guess I was kind of nervous about meeting the president of the NCR, so I was pretty much going from house to house. One odd old doctor mumbled something about the Vault Behavioral Project but refused to elaborate any further.



"There's something kind of familiar about this statue…"

"It's a good thing you don't have your Vault Suit on, or people would be trying to get your autograph."



The Congress House was a lot smaller than I expected, although I had to get buzzed in through both the front door and through the President's office to see her. Then again, considering her age I can imagine they were a bit protective.



"All kinds of things, really. Just let me know what you want me to do and I'll figure out a way to do it."

"You sound like just what's needed. No simple jobs here!"

"Excellent, how can I help you?"



The job took me where I wanted to go anyway, so I agreed and let myself out. I didn't think clearing out a couple of thugs would be too much of a problem, and I'd have first claim on anything in the Vault since all they wanted was the computer parts.



On the way out we stopped by the slaver's compound. To save time I just asked them who was in charge and then shot him in the face. There was a moment of shocked silence immediately afterward...



And then all hell broke loose. I used the counter for cover and took shots, while Marcus and Cassidy hosed down the building with bullets. They winged Sulik a bit but he was alright, and some of the slavers were literally blown into pieces.



There were a few more out in the courtyard, but in a few minutes we had the slaves released. They took off running for the hills in case more slavers were going to show up, and I couldn't blame them.

As a note, you can use either Lockpick or Science skill to open the gates. Whichever one is easier, which in this case was Lockpick.



And that was how I became an NCR Ranger… I think I've still got the badge somewhere around here, for that matter. Getting shot up by those slavers showed me that I couldn't take the people down south lightly… I knew I was going to need some heavier firepower.



Luckily there was a place I knew of nearby where anything you could imagine was for sale. Not that the trip was exactly safe.