Making my list has made me realise that even though I bought a TON of games this year, I barely played them or some not even at all. I'd say Mass Effect 2 is the one I am most disappointed about not playing, purely because I couldn't get into the first one, even though I really, really wanted to. The start is way too boring. Ugh. 
 
Anyway, here's my list. Splinter Cell at number 1 was a tough choice, but man. I absolutely loved the new approach to the franchise, it just felt so natural to play. The fluidity of the takedowns/climbing was amazing, playing co-operatively with my friends was a fantastic experience, especially with the Mark & Execute function. I enjoyed every moment. 
 
Some I missed out: Kane & Lynch 2, Crackdown 2, Prince of Persia: The Forgotten Sands, Bioshock 2... and a lot more. 

Best of 2010

Baillie: Best of 2010

	1. Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Conviction
	2. Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood
	3. Limbo
	4. Battlefield: Bad Company 2
	5. Super Street Fighter IV
	6. Red Dead Redemption
	7. FIFA 11
	8. Call of Duty: Black Ops
	9. Halo: Reach
	10. Heavy Rain

Introduction

Hello and welcome to our Mass Effect 2 Megaguide. This will be your companion throughout the game, providing you with anything and everything you need to know, be it skill stats, sidequest help, decision consequences, achievements- we look to cover everything. Naturally, Mass Effect 2 is a large game, and there will be holes in our knowledge- feel free to leave a comment on the relevant section and we'll see if it can't be added. Otherwise, enjoy.

Importing A Save

If you played the first Mass Effect and still have your save on your hard drive, you can import that character into Mass Effect 2. Doing so will carry over your decisions from the first game, as well as give you a bonus for having a high-level character.

Decision Consequences

Mass Effect 2 will carry over a lot of your decisions from Mass Effect 1, and many of them will change certain elements of the game. Here is a catalog, to the best of our ability, of the major choices that carry over.

As it turns out, your decisions from Mass Effect don't make much of an impact either way on how Mass Effect 2 plays out. If you really want to know how they end up, you can check right here.

Ashley/Kaiden Decision

Kaidan/Ashley shows up for a brief scene but nothing serious.

Council Decision

If you let the Council die, there will be some mentions of racial tension due to the new human-led council, and some Turians will be less than amused with you, but either way you aren't dealing with the council a whole lot anyway. Your choice for the council is also fairly irrelevant.

Rachni Decision

If you saved the Rachni, you'll get a message from them but they don't make an appearance. It is hinted they will show up in Mass Effect 3.

Wrex Decision

If you saved Wrex, he's back on the Krogan homeworld united his people, and you'll receive a warm welcome when you visit. If you killed him, the Krogan will be decidedly less happy to see you.

Bonuses

When importing a character, it is possible to get bonuses at the start of the game if you achieved a few milestones in Mass Effect 1. Here's the full list of bonuses.

• Level 50 character:
  - 3000XP (start at level 4)
  - 40000 Credits
  - 5000 Element Zero
  - 5000 Iridium
  - 5000 Platinum
  - 5000 Palladium
• Level 60 character:
  - 4000 XP (start at level 5)
  - 50000 Credits
  - 10000 Element Zero
  - 10000 Iridium
  - 10000 Platinum
  - 10000 Palladium
• Rich Achievement: An additional 100000 credits.
• Long Service (completed 2 runs of ME2 or 1 run of ME1+ME2:
  - 25% Experience Bonus
  - 200000 Credits
  - 50000 Element Zero
  - 50000 Iridium
  - 50000 Platinum
  - 50000 Palladium
• New Game+:
  - Retain your level, all the Heavy Weapons you researched, your bonus weapon talent, and some of the weapons you found. You lose all your research and minerals.
  - You get to choose your bonus skill right from the beginning based on the loyalty achievements you have.

A percentage of your Paragon and Renegade points carry over. A full paragon or renegade meter will net you 190 points for the respective meter- which is almost nothing in ME2's scale, but it still helps.

Insanity Tips

This is just temporarily up here until we find a better way to integrate this into the guide proper/ expand it into a full insanity walkthrough, but seeing as lots of people are having trouble with playing on the Insanity difficulty, we figured it might be nice to put it in an accessible place. Here are some of our tips for playing and surviving on Insanity.

• Go in on a New Game+. Trying to play Insanity starting from level 1 is MADNESS. Finish the game on a lower difficulty, then go in on the NG+. You'll get to keep all your weapons and get hefty element and credit bonuses. Unfortunately, you'll have to research all your tech again. Which brings us to our next tip-
• RESEARCH EVERYTHING. Yeah. mining is a pain in the ass, but the gameplay rewards you get for the research projects are essential to your survival. As soon as you can, go nuts mining, then just build every schematic you see from there on in- ship upgrades are inessential, upgrades that affect gameplay are not.
• Pick a good bonus talent. After earning a companion's loyalty, you can learn their special talent on your Shepard- but you only can have one at a time, so pick well. You can respec in the tech lab for 3000 Element Zero if you end up not liking what you choose. We recommend either Warp Ammo or Reave as your bonus talent. Reave is pretty broken- it damages every type of defense in the game, and incapacitates our enemy to heal you against non-shielded organic targets. Warp ammo is highly effective because almost everything you fight on Insanity has a shield or a barrier or armor, and Warp Ammo will eat away at those quicker than normal bullets. By benefit of Warp Ammo being a passive power, you can use it in addition to your other biotic/ tech skills- with Reave you will probably just be continuously spamming that one power.
• Evolve all your powers to the heavy-hitting versions instead of the area versions. The best combat strategy on Insanity is to focus all your firepower at one target, and eliminate it as quickly as possible. The area effect might seem nice, but enemies don't often gather close enough for it to be effective and you're just weakening your combat ability against strong single targets- you'll need those heavy hitters for boss fights and some of the stronger basic enemies like Scions.
• Matching the correct damage types to the correct enemies and shields will save you a world of trouble. Even on insanity these will hit for massive damage. For instance Heavy Incinerate will take out nearly 75% of an enemies armor. Heavy Overload will destroy between 33% to 50% of an enemies shield and will do about 75% to 90% of synthetic enemies. Here's a small list of what destroys what.
  
  • Overload - Shields / Synthetic enemies
  • Incinerate - Armor / Organic Enemies (also stops Vorcha and Krogan from regenerating)
  • Warp - Barrier
  Using these powers will make fights a whole lot easier.
• Stay in cover AT ALL TIMES. This would seem pretty obvious but often enough you will think, "it's just one enemy i can pop out and kill him!". DON'T. Any enemy on insanity can reduce you to a fine red mist in under 2 seconds. Better to stay in cover and just spam powers on him while your teammates fire away. Which brings us to our next point.
• SPAM POWERS. In general you need to come out of cover for quite a while to do any kind of damage with your weapons. It's much easier to just fire a power like Incinerate or Reave and pop right back into cover while your target burns. This is mostly related to the early game, later on when your shields have improved you can come out of cover without instantly losing all of them.
• THE CAIN. This weapon might be a fun toy on normal but on insanity this bad boy can save your life. Use it to destroy the really dangerous enemies. Double scions, double uber mechs, the preator on horizon. You catch my drift. I'm sure these can all be beaten by regular tactics but why bother with those when you can fire one nuke and be rid of them. And finally...
• LEARN TO KITE. If you've ever played an MMO you'll know what i mean. Whenever you move into a new area a group of enemies will attack you. But they will be in ideal cover and you will not. Instead level the playing field... just walk back the way you came. The enemies will have to come out of cover to come kick your ass. Too bad for them they will all pop around the corner single file. Set up around a nice corner with everyone aiming in the same direction and you can wipe out entire teams one by one while never taking a hit. Too many enemies coming at you at once? Simply move back farther. This wont work everywhere of course, but in most areas this will make insanity a whole lot easier.

Story Walkthrough

This section of the guide covers the main story missions you'll be required to undertake to complete the game. Companion recruitment is covered in this section, but companion loyalty missions (which we recommend you do, as they effect the outcome of the suicide mission) are covered further down, under the "Companions" section. As this is the main story walkthrough, be aware that there will be unmarked spoilers, so try not to read past whatever section you're currently at.

Prologue

The prologue of the game is pretty short, and fairly self-explanatory. You should have no problems finishing it. Enjoy the spectacle.

Lazarus Facility

If you imported a character, you can also hit Start and allocate a few points if you'd like. If not, don't fret. Just follow the instructions Miranda gives you. Follow the linear path to your first enemy and take it out. Continue to listen to Miranda and advance to the next room. Find some cover and take out the next wave of mechs. The small room on the left has some ammo, but so does your path. Grab some from the room if you need it, then continue forward.

Once you have to grenade launcher, you may as well try it out. Once again, follow Miranda's instructions into the next area. Go ahead and enter the room in front of you and view a couple data logs to learn some things about your time here. There's also a Wall Safe to bypass for some [975] credits. The bypass mini-game is a simple match game; highlight one of the circles to see the symbol it hides, and then highlight the others until you find it's match. There are always eight circles and four different symbols. Once you're done in here, go ahead and continue down the path. Hear another log on your left as you see a dude get destroyed (R.I.P.).

Continue through the door to meet up with your first squad mate, Jacob. After your chat, go ahead and take the hint and give Jacob an order to use his Pull ability. Another chat once you destroy the mechs, and once that's over, there's another log to your left on the seats. Also, you can allocate some points for him now, to boost his skills. Continue forward. Make your way around the room, taking out the mechs and go through the door.

Follow the path until you meet Wilson. Do what they say--grab some Medi-Gel and heal Wilson. Your conversation will interrupted by some very rude mechs. Go ahead and use Wilson's Overload on that center group of explosives, and continue. Another conversation and move forward. Hack the Data Pad for [900] credits, then go through the door and follow the path. Head to the room from where the mechs came after you've routed them. Another hackable Data Pad on the ground for [975] credits. There's also a log and a Wall Safe to bypass for [900] credits. Head back to the other end of the hallway now and go through the door.

Talk to Miranda for a bit and then leave to meet the Illusive Man and you're asked a few questions along the way. If you imported a character, these questions will refresh you on your decisions in the first game, whereas if you're starting fresh with Mass Effect 2, they'll bring ou up to speed on the state of the universe.

NOTE: No matter your choice during the first game, whomever you choose now, is the new councillor

Now that you've arrived at Cerberus Minuteman Installation, you can save if you'd like. You can also customize your gear at the station behind Miranda, but there will be plenty of time for that later. Jacob and Miranda don't have anything to say, so when you're ready, continue forward to meet the Illusive Man.

After your conversation, head back out and talk to Miranda and/or Jacob if you like, then head for the door to start the next Mission.

Mission Complete - 1000 XP - 30000 Credits

Freedom's Progress

After the scene, you will land on the colony to investigate what happened to the colonists. Remember that you have some Squad points to dish out, and you're also likely to have more than one weapon. And if you'd like, you can assign one power for each of your squad mates to the D-Pad or drag them to the quickbar at the top on the screen on PC. Once you're situated, continue through the door in front of you.

Nothing's in the next room, so keep going. Once you reach the next area, there will be a door and some Spare Parts to Salvage, so do that before you go through for some credits. Take down the enemy mechs and continue down the path. Med Kit and Wall Safe containing [2000] credits inside. More Spare Parts to Salvage for another [1000] credits and some more enemies. Go through the door in front of you for another scene.

After that, go forth into the next room and take down the couple mechs. Another Wall Safe for [2000] credits. Through the other door and fight some drones. Use overload on them to take them down quickly. Room on your right has another Med Kit. Following room is empty. Down the stairs and take care of the drones. Before you follow their instructions and order them into position, there's another Spare Parts to Salvage to the left of the stairs for [1000] credits. Grab the Med Kit if you'd like and then move your squad mates into cover on each side of the door.

Heavy Mech to fight after that scene. Use Miranda's Overload to take down it's shields. If you have Incendiary Ammo or Incinerate, now would be the time to use it on the Mechs armor once the shield is dispatched. After those defenses are gone, it's health will drop extremely fast. It does possess a LOT of firepower though, so make sure to stay in cover. The mech will target you almost exclusively, so if you can keep it distracted, your teammates can whittle away at it's health.

Once you take it down go to room to the right of the door you entered, there is another Med Kit and Tali fixing up some Quarians. The room opposite has some Power Cells, which are your heavy weapon ammo. Another Wall Safe too for [3000] credits. Scan the big mech outside for some Research Data and grabbed the Refined Iridium [2000]. Through the door for a scene. This will show you how to do an interrupt (paragon or renegade depending on your choices so far), along with ending the mission. The choice you're faced with here has no impact, so your decision should revolve entirely around whether you want to be nice or mean to Tali.

Mission Complete - 1000 XP - 30000 Credits

You'll be back talking to the Illusive Man and after that, meet an old friend. Onto your new vessel.

The Normandy SR2

Ah, home sweet home. After another scene, you'll be introduced to various things on the ship. If you interect with the AI EDI at any terminal on the ship, she'll provide information about whatever area you are in.

• Deck 1: Captains Cabin -- You can go to your Captains Quarters and check out various things, such as your fish tank, or your Achievements. You can customize your gear here as well. You also have a Personal Terminal in your cabin on which you can read messages, see what upgrades you've purchased, see the status of your team, and watch tutorial videos.
• Deck 2: Combat Information Center -- It's the main deck of your ship where you're likely to be spending the most time. Galaxy Map is located here, as well as the Science Lab after you get the Professor. The Science Lab is where you'll be handing your upgrades to your weapons and ship. You can also mess with your weapon loadout in the room Jacob likes to hang out in. A Personal Terminal is also located next to the Galaxy Map- Kelly Chambers will tell you when you have new messages.
• Deck 3: Crew's Quarters -- Much of your crew and squad mates will hang out on this floor. There's not much to do except talk with these various members of your crew/squad. Well, there is the Medical Center in which you can start a quest. For more information on Normandy Quests, please refer to the [Normandy] section of the guide, under Sidequests. Lots of the crew (the chef, engineers etc) have flavor dialogue that changes fairly often, so it's sometimes worth coming down to the Crew Quarters and Engineeringto hear what they have to say about your latest exploits.
• Deck 4: Engineering -- Not much going on down here, a few engineers hang about. Another sidequest can be gained down there as well. For this, also refer to the [Normandy] section of the guide, under Sidequests.

Once you're done checking out the new Normandy, head over to the Galaxy Map on Deck 2.

Recruiting

At this point in the story, the Illusive Man will suggest you build a team to attack the collectors with. He provides you with four dossiers on people who might be of use. You can choose to recruit these four people in any order you wish, and they will join your crew once you have completed their mission. Although you can recruit in any order, we greatly suggest recruiting the Professor first. The sooner you acquire him, the sooner you can start doing upgrades in your tech lab, and you'll want to be doing upgrades.

Whoever you choose to recruit, head off to the Galaxy Map, and the markers will tell you where each mission is. You can fly over to the Mass Relay to get a better picture of where you can go and who you can recruit.

The Professor

Find your way over to Omega and dock your ship. Select the two members for your Squad, allocate some points, and choose what weapons you'll all carry if you can. Continue down the linear path after the brief scene, and go through the door. Keep going straight and through the door with the label of, "Afterlife," above it. You can confront the Batarians on the left of the passageway if you'd like for some Paragon/Renegade action.

Once through the next set of doors, hang a left around the giant pink/purplish screen to the back of the night club. Up the stairs on the right once you see a Turian with an assault rifle, then up another set of stairs. You'll know you've got there when an Asari tells you, "That's close enough," and a scene starts. Ask about Mordin- may as well ask about Archangel to, so you don't have to return. When that's all done, exit the night club.

Go left and you should see two doors. You want the one on the right. Once on the other side of the set of doors, take a right at the "Mad Prophet," who is a Batarian who is preaching to a group of humans how they're a blight on the universe. If you want to just continue the mission, you can take a right like I said and start a scene. But if you'd like to go shopping first, you can do that as well. If you'd like to view the inventory of the stores, you can refer to the [Shop] section of the guide.

Anyway, when you're ready, start the scene with the Turian Guard and Refugee. Use your blue/red Paragon/Renegade option here to speed things along- if you can convince him to let you in, the barricade guards won't attack you. Another set of squad selection and outfitting screens and you'll enter the next area, weapons drawn. Go straight and around some crates for some Element Zero [250] and some ammo. Go back and go down the hallway, following the path. There's a Med Station if you need any Medi Gels, otherwise keep going. Through the door for a small scuffle.

Go ahead and talk to the Batarian Victim if you're a nice dude and do the Paragon interrupt. There's a Hackable terminal for [5000] credits. Go through the door near the terminal and to the left for some Power Cells. Then bypass the door. Examine the body and play the logs if you'd like. Nothing else in here, so go back outside, and past the Batarian Victim.

Another bypass-able door on the right. Down the stairs for another log and a lootable Wall Safe for [4000] credits. Once you're done here, head back up the stairs and continue down the path through the door. Up the stairs on your left for a Med Kit, and Salvage point [1000] credits. You also have a decent vantage point for killing those Blue Sun Mercs below you. Take them out from up here, or head downstairs for the fight. Once it's over, head around the back of the room to around where they were and bypass the door on the right.

Down those stairs now and there's a Med Kit and lootable Wall Safe [4000] credits. Talk to the refugees if you want as well, you can get some Paragon/Renegade points. When you're done head back up and loot the Turian body on the floor for an Assault Rifle upgrade. Then through the door. Up the stairs on the right for some ammo and a vantage point. If you have a Sniper Rifle, now is a pretty good time to use it. You're going to be fighting Vorcha, which regenerate really fast. If Miranda is with you, or you have the ability yourself, Warp is great against these guys because it stops their regeneration.

After the fight, go to the left of the main room through the door. There's some Element Zero [250]. Through another door to find some looters. Not much you can do with these guys, which is sort of a missed opportunity, oh well. Exit back to the room where you fought the Vorcha.

Continue down the path until you reach the clinic. Instead of talking to Mordin right away, go to the room across from his for some [2000] Palladium, a Med Kit, and another [2000] Palladium. Also view the research station for a upgrade. There's some [500] Element Zero and [2000] Iridium in Mordin's room. Also some Power Cells in the back and a Med Kit in the front.

Now talk to Mordin. While he's talking there will first a Renegade interrupt option, and if you ignore it, shortly afterward will be a Paragon. Your choice, although he'll stop talking even if you don't use the interrupt. After that, you'll get a new Pistol ( a handcannon, extremely powerful but limited ammo), which you equip if you want out in the clinic- there's a place to change your loadout. When you're ready, find your way to the door on the left side of the clinic coming out of Mordin's room.

Another battle with Vorcha and a couple Krogan. On the opposite end of the room from where you entered there is a Med Station, and on the left side, a Hackable terminal for [3000] credits. Up the stairs for another Hackable terminal and [5000] more credits. Keep going until you reach two doors, take the one on the left.

There's Daniel, Mordins assistant. Paragon or Renegade once you enter the room. Med Kit and Ammo is all that is left.

Continue to the other room. After the brief fight, go down the stairs for another. Nothing interesting in the room, except ammo and Vorcha. After this room is cleared, continue through the doors. Another short fight and some more stairs. Ah, more shooting.

After that, go to the back wall in front of you and insert the cure. More enemies show up, and I'm sure you know what to do with them by now. Head over to either side of the room and take out more dudes. Then activate the fans at the end. Then the same on the other side. There's a Med Station in each fan activation room. Once the second fan is activated, it will quick jump you back to Mordin. Daniel will be there if you saved him.

Mission Complete - 1000 XP - 30000 Credits

Now that you have Mordin you can start upgrading things. For more information on upgrading see the Upgrades section of the guide, and for information on Resources used for upgrades, refer to the Resources section under [Upgrades].

The Krogan

Travel to the Eagle Nebula and you should enter the Imir system. Fly your ship over to the Korlus planet and land. Select your team, allocate any points you may have and select a weapon loadout. Bringing someone with Warp is a good idea, as there will be lots of regenerating Krogan you need to fight. Select exit to start.

Nothing to do but follow the path until you reach a fight. After that, go a bit farther to find a Wounded Mercenary who you can talk to for some Paragon/Renegade points and some information on the situation. Keep going for another fight. Down the ramp and more enemies appear. Med Kit to left side. Keep going only to find more enemies. Nothing interesting still, just fight until your way to a Krogan fighting mercs. After the fight talk to him once you finish the the conversation the Krogan will make an opening for you. Go forward and examine the dead mercs body for [2000] credits.

Continuing down the path, you'll find your way to more enemies, not much around here except a Med Kit. Once the Krogan are routed, continue down the path for some [2000] Palladium. Up the path until you find a door that you'll need to Bypass. Once in the room, there will be an Upgrade on a dead merc as well as a Med Station and Power Cells. Go through the door.

Fight then up the path. Another fight then a hackable PDA across from the door for [4000] credits. Go through the door. Up the path for another fight. Room on the right contains a Med Kit. Kill the dudes and continue around the corner to loot a dead body for [2000] credits. After another fight continue into another, room for some Power Cells and an accessible Wall Safe that will give [4000] credits. Past the door for another [4000] credits from a hackable PDA. Then through the door.

Up yet another path, and through yet another door, for yet another fight. Keep fighting until you find your way to another door. If you didn't kill the Asari on Virmire in the first Mass Effect, she will be in this room, along with a Med Station and hackable terminal that will yield [4000] credits. Talk to the Asari for some Paragon/Renegade points, then continue through the door.

Bypass the terminal on the opposite side of the room then talk to Okeer. Continue through the door near the terminal on the other side. Down the path and through the door for a fight. The Blue Sun leader will attack you along with a Heavy Mech. Every 30 seconds she will release an armored Krogan. Take out the leader to stop the krogan from spawning, then take out the Heavy Mech. Once you're done head back up and listen to the log.

Mission Complete - 1000XP - 30000 Credits

Now you have your Krogan sitting in your ships Cargo Hold on Deck 4 if you'd like to activate him, and really, there's no reason not to activate him.

The Convict

Fly to the Hourglass Nebula. You should be in the Osun system. Fly your ship over to Prison Ship Purgatory and dock. Select your team, allocate any points you may have and select a weapon loadout. Select exit to start.

Move forward and talk to the guards. After the scenes, follow the path in front of you until you reach a guard watching a cell. Talk to the guard for a chance at some Paragon/Renegade points. Keep going you'll pass by another cell where you can talk to Prisoner 780 if you'd like. Go through the door at the end of the path.

Go straight to the other door across from you, and then head for yet another, albeit larger, door.

After the brief scene, get ready to take down some dudes. Go from where you came but this time take the left and head around the bed, fighting Mercenaries the whole way. And of course go through the door. Idiot enemy technician in this room with some [500] Element Zero and a Med Station. Go forward to the computer the Technician was at and use it when you're ready to continue. Then go through the door after the scene.

Down the path until you find some Power Cells. Keep going to access a dead body for [1500] credits. Across the left bridge for a fight. Scan a dead body near the door for an Upgrade. Go up around instead of going through the door for a hackable PDA that will give you [4500] credits. Then go back through the door to find some more Power Cells and another accessible dead body for [4500] credits. There's also a Med Station. Then through the other door.

Fight your way through this room as well. Once you're on the other side you can get another [1500] credits. Continue through the doorway for another Med Station, Power Cell box and bypass-able Wall Safe containing [3000] credits. Through the other door for a scene, and the final fight.

The warden will be protected by a powerful shield. Destroy the shield in front of you and any opposition you might find. Once the first generator is down head right. First take out any guys there and destroy the second generator. Get into cover at the third generator and make sure nobody is left.

Once you destroy the final generator the shields will drop on the warden and he will start firing missiles at you. Another group of mercenaries will attack you as well so take them out first. The warden is pretty vulnerable to biotics, so spam them if you have them. Once the commander goes down it will be...

Mission Complete - 1000 XP - 30000 Credits

Now that you have Jack, you've added a pretty powerful biotic to your team, as well as a romance option.

The Archangel

Head out to Afterlife and speak with Aria, she will inform you that Archangel is currently being hunted by the Merc groups of Omega and this is the way in. Head over to the nearby private room and speak with the bouncer like guy outside. When you enter you ill talk to the recruiter and sign up to go after Archangel. As you leave the place you will see a kid enter you can stop him for a +7 Paragon boost if you feel so inclined.

After this head over to the transit Hub near the entrance to Omega. When you arrive you will have a nice chat with a Merc telling you that basically they want you to go die and distract Archangel, guess its time to report for duty, we need to find sergeant Cathka but first lets explore the base a little.

After arriving at the main staging grounds head to the right to find a room full of Mercs along with a nice Datapad detailing the Mercs plan to attack Aria, hmm she may be interested in this grab it for later. Next leave this room and head out then take a right immediately, you should find yourself in a room with a heavy Mech, here you can pick up 500 Element Zero and Hack a Datapad for 4000 Credits but the big pull is to change the Friend Foe ID on the Heavy Mech making a later fight much easier. If you botch the hack on the mech you're locked out for good, so make sure to do it right- that mech will fight FOR you later and it's a huge help.

After that head back out and through continue on straight if you want you can talk to the Blood Pack Leader Garm, but there not much to really do there, head to the right to rear main area. First thing to notice is a datapad on the floor- hack it for 6000 Credits and head forward keeping an eye on the right hand wall. You should come across a door you can bypass, once you have done this enter the room and scan the weapons right as you enter, you should get SMG damage bonus upgrade. Next hit the datapad for 4000 credits, no need to hack thankfully, and lastly the Power cells and Med station.

Next head to the front of the room and enter the door on the right hand side, walk down the hallway and collected the med station then double back and enter the doorway about mid way though the hall. You can talk to the leader for a small Paragon boost, only +2 paragon but its something.

Now head back to the main room and cross to the group of Blue Suns next to the gunship and speak with Catka's assistant. During the conversation all the soldiers will leave and you will be given the chance to make some Renegade points, use the interrupt to Renegade (+5 Renegade to be exact) and you will knock out Catka, this also means the gunship is weaker later when you fight it, I would recommend you do this even if you are Paragon since its not to big of a hit and its helps a lot with the fight later.

When the Scene ends you will find yourself on the bridge heading towards archangel, quickly run after the Mercs and shoot them in the back to get rid of them, and head across the bridge to meet up with Archangel. Duder, it's totally Garrus!

After your brief conversation, you'll have the opportunity to help Garrus defend his bridge- pretty easy, as enemies are just funneling through a choke point. Keep killing enemies here until they break through the door on the lower level, at which point Garrus will ask you to go seal the lower entrances. You can choose to leave on squad member with Garrus to help defend him better if you wish- you'll have a little less help, but Garrus will last longer.

Go down stairs, through the door and follow the path to the shutters. Close all three- anything passing under it will reset the countdown, so try and keep enemies at bay while the shutters close. Once all three are closed, head back upstairs to help Garrus kill another merc leader. A brief dialogue interlude will occur, and then you'll be attacked by the gunship. If you used the Renegade interrupt earlier to kill the Batarian engineer, the gunship won't be at full health. It's still an intimidating foe however, and now is a great time to use your heavy weapon ammo, if you have any. Biotic powers like Miranda's Warp or Jacob's Incinerate Ammo work well against the gunship's armor.

Just stay in cover and whittle away at the health. Occasionally mercs will rappel in through the windows and attack you- the gunship usually backs off while they're in the room with you, Just keep at the gunship and eventually it will go down, triggering a cutscene and ending the mission.

Horizon Colony

After landing on Horizon proceed into the colony and begin your first fight with the collectors, after you have cleared out the Collectors head to the center of the battle area to find some Power Cells and the continue forwards, you should see a picnic table with a Datapad on it, hack it for 6000 Credits then continue on towards the colony. When you encounter the next set of boxes be prepared to fight more Collectors and some Husks as well. Once the area is clear head to the right hand side where you entered and enter a small trailer, grab the Datapad for 4200 Credits, after exiting head straight ahead to find the body of a Collector that you can scan for an upgrade.

Continue up the small hill and examine the dead Husk, you can get +2 Paragon for choosing to say that you are going to save the colonists. After that small diversion continue to the next battlefield and clean up the Collectors, thankfully no Husks here and head to the left hand trailer and grab the Med Kit there. Head back outside and into the trailer across from the one you were just in to find a safe you can bypass for 4800 Credits then continue forward.

You will fight another small group of Collectors before continuing forward and examining the colonists who are in stasis. Head up the stairs from the colonists to find a computer you can hack for 3000 Credits. Then head back down the stairs and head towards the collector Pods to pick up the Particle Beam.

Head forward for a scene where the Collector General takes control of one of his soldiers, this gives the soldier a barrier and armor however when the armor goes away the soldier dies. The general will continue to take soldiers for as long as he can so kill these dudes as fast as possible.

After killing all the Collectors go to the back left trailer and collect some Power Cells then head to the right and open the big ass door. After a nice cutscene you can explore the room and grab 200 Platinum, a Med Kit and 6000 Credits from the wall safe, you can also change your weapons loadout.

Head into the next area for some more fighting, you will be fighting more Collectors and Husks, you will also encounter you first Scion here, they are pretty heavily armored but they move slowly so you can use cover effectively against them. After cleaning out the enemies, head over to the left hand side trailer and go to the far end of it, you will find some Power Cells, now move to the right hand side and head up the stair towards the Collectors body. Scan the Body for an upgrade and head up the of stairs and go to the middle to find a computer terminal you can use for 3000 Credits. Now head back to the main door and Bypass it to continue.

When you enter the room head to the left and grab the Med Kit, next head across the area directly to the other side and you should see some Power Cells, grab them and head to a defensible location to hold off the enemies. Clean out the location and then head to the terminal in the center and hack the computer that is there.

Now you need to hold the location now while EDI brings the guns back online. After fighting plenty of the standard enemies you get to fight your first Praetorian, they are heavily armored and use heavy hitting attacks, when he flys up into the air and is surrounded by a field he cannot be damaged. I suggest using a heavy weapon to take him down and to keep your distance, because he has a devastating short range attack. Each time he lands will have a new barrier. Once the Praetorian goes down you get a nice scene and end the mission.

Mission Complete - 1000XP - 30000 Credits

Further Recruiting

After that fiasco, it's clear you really need to do something about these goddamn bugs. But first, you need even more team members. The Illusive Man will send you three more dossiers- same drill as last time, you can go at them in any order. The next story mission will activate when you've recruited two out of the three party members.

The Assassin

Go talk to Liara on illium, she will have information on the Assassin (and the Justicar). She's in an office above the first shop you see. Ask her about Thane, she will tell you to go talk to Seryna at Shipping Cargo (check your map). Talk to Seryna, cycle through all the options and she will give you the option to travel to Thane's location. You'll have little conversation with your driver who then drops you off at Dantius Towers.

As soon as you land you'll see a short cut scene where some salarians are being chased by some mechs. As soon as it ends they'll attack you. Once you dispatch them proceed inside, on your left is a room with a hackable terminal 4800 credits and a med-station. Once you pick this up go to the right. Here you will find a Salarian worker. Talk to him and do the PARAGON QTE to heal him. One of your teammates will open the door and you will be able to proceed.

At the end of the hall will be some mechs and regular mercenaries, reduce them to a fine red paste. Move through the area killing everyone in your path. Nothing here to pick up so go through the door, up the ramp and to the next floor. Here you will find two med-paks. More enemies for you to liquefy. You can camp out right there and wait for the waves to stop, or move farther to the right to flank them. Either way works.

Only one pickup in this area near the elevator which is a med-pak. Ignore the elevator for now and look around a bit. At the end of the hall is a new SNIPER RIFLE, some heavy weapon ammo and a hackable terminal 4000 credits. Bypass the door to rescue the Salarian workers. Talk to them for some information about Thane. There's one medi-gel and 3000 credits in the room with them so grab it. When you've got everything, head for the elevator.

As soon as you hit the button one of your teammates will tell you someone might be in the elevator. So get into cover and wait for the elevator to arrive. On veteran there will be one Krogan Bountyhunter and 2 engineers. so stay in cover until they fire off their powers then unleash HELL. Once you take em down step into the elevator and hit the button.

Once you arrive there will be an eclipse mercenary, talk to him for info and use the RENEGADE QTE to toss him out of the window if you feel like it. Pick up the datapad near the elevator for a side mission (give it to the Salarian in the transport hub). Step through either door to enter the next combat area, once you take down everyone bypass the door there to rescue another Salarian. Choose the paragon or renegade option for bonus points. Hack the PDA on the merc's corp for 6000 credits and grab the med-kit.

Proceed to the end of the hall to grab the heavy ammo and use the comm terminal to harass the assassin's target (hehehe). Then go up the ramp. Clear out the enemies and grab the Refined Element Zero (600), the med-kit and use the weapon locker if you want to change your teams loadout. Once your done, go round the corner.

Ah yes, more enemies! Watch out for the Commando with them these guys can be tough cookies. Once you take them down you'll run into a dead merc with an SMG you can scan to receive SMG Damage Upgrade, Hack the pad for 12000 credits and a med-kit.

Drop down and start moving across the bridge. Watch out for the rocket turrets at the end. Also there is another commando at the end so be careful. Once they're all dead enter the door to see the final cutscene.

Meet Thane!

Mission Complete - 1000 XP - 30000 credits

The Justicar

Go talk to Liara on Illium, she will have information on the Justicar (and the Assassin). She's in an office above the first shop you see. Ask her about Samara, she will tell you to go talk to officer Dara at the Tracking Office (check your map). Talk to Dara, cycle through all the options and she will give you the option to travel to Samara's location.

Talk to detective Anaya inside the police station and ask her about Samara, she will give you access to the crime scene. Go to the crime scene around the corner on the left. When you enter there is a console on the right upload the information for a side mission (return to Illium later and a Krogan will approach you and it will be mission complete). At the end of the hall down the stairs is a container with 3000 credits.

Proceed down the hall and kill the enemies there, then go left through the door. Meet Samara the justicar! Offer to solve the crime and she promises to join your crew. You'll be outside now, talk to the Volus (Pitne) standing closeby. Cycle through the conversation, RENEGADE QTE. He will give you access to the base.

Go into the elevator on the right of the Volus. This area has biotics and mechs, so someone with warp and overload would be nice. As soon as the elevator opens again there will be a mech in front of you. Destroy it. Go left. As soon as the door opens an Asari will attack you and destroy a crate. These crates release a toxic gas that increases your biotic abilities. But if you take too much you will die. Your biotics can get extremely powerful if you stay in the gas for a while- just make sure it doesn't kill you. Keep an eye on the meter.

Destroy the 3 waves of enemies and go through the door on the other end of the area. There is a new Shotgun on the table on the right and a weapons locker if you want to change your setup on the left. Proceed up the stairs and go left at the top. More enemies! Proceed through the area. At the end there will be a med station. Right behind the med station will be a hackable terminal.

Go around the corner and up the stairs and kill the Enemies there. Another med station and terminal. Go up the stairs again, right and then some more stairs.

In this area there are several enemies and a GUNSHIP. The gunship quickly leaves. On the left is a case of platinum (2000). Proceed through the area. Again a med station and heavy weapon ammo on the left. Next to it is a terminal, use it to receive evidence for Anaya. Proceed through the door on the right. Kill the three mechs that are in your way.

Proceed through the area, there is a heavy weapon ammo crate against the back wall. Leave it because you will need it later, instead cross the bridge. As soon as you cross the bridge the gunship returns! Start shooting it. During the fight it will drop 2 Fenris Mechs, take them out quickly because they can take down your shields with one hit. If you run out of heavy weapons ammo during the fight run back and grab the crate while the gunship retreats. Aren't you glad you saved it?

Once you destroy the gunship by-pass the door on the right and pick up the Shipping Manifest on the right. And access the terminal on the left (6000 credits).

Go trough the door on the left and talk to the stoned Volus for information. Do a PARAGON QTE to save the Volus' life, or let him continue and watch the hilarity. Move towards the end of the hall to find a med-kit and a weapons locker. Final fight time!

Take out their leader and some minor dudes. Hackable terminal at the end of the hall. Pick up the data pad on the table to return to the spaceport.

Renegade: Give the evidence to the Volus outside the police station for +5 renegade and 9000 credits.

Talk to Samara and she will swear allegiance to you. Team Member recruited! Tell Samara you need to talk to the detective if you're going paragon with the evidence.

Paragon: Tell the detective about the murder and the Volus smuggling. For 4200 credits and +12 paragon.

Talk to Samara again to return to the ship.

Mission Complete - 1000 XP - 30000 credits

The Quarian

When you land on the planet EDI will tell you the sunlight burns your shields. So stay in the shadows to avoid that.

After the landing head straight ahead run across the sunny spot. Grab the Med Kit and Scan the Geth in the corner then open the main gate and continue to your first fight with the Geth in this area. Head to the higher ground on the right and duck into some cover, now take out the Geth here and advance forward. Mid way down you should find a small alcove on the right hand side with some stairs down, grab the Medicine and head down the stairs, at the bottom is a Heavy Pistol that can be scanned for a Damage upgrade. Move forward cleaning out the last of the Geth here.

A small distance forward you should find two Geth attacking someone else, shoot them in the back and then scan the nearby Geth salvage for 6000 Credits, also grab the new SMG sitting on the ground next to a dead Quarian. After you have all the stuff answer the radio on the dead Quarian.

After the cutscene begin taking down the Geth and heading towards the left hand side of the area, here you will find a large shed like are, inside are several things, first off more Geth, take them down and grab the Demo charge then move past the Demo charge to find a Med Kit, turn around and go up the ramp next to where you found the demo charge for a Medical Station and then head to the front door to hold off some Geth.

Head towards the back of the room and fight some more Geth where you will find another Demo charge along with some Power Cells and a Medical Station.

As you leave you should notice straight ahead a box with 400 Iridium, take out the Geth but DO NOT plant the charges, first head up onto the overpass, you may have to fight some more Geth to get up. After you have made it up, run down the length and duck into cover to allow your shields to regenerate, next grab the stuff from the Medical Station and head down the ramp, now head over to the fallen pillar and plant the Demo charges.

Once the charges have blown head through the door and enter the room, scan the damaged Geth, bypass the safe on the far wall for 6000 Credits, scan another Geth at the far side of the room for 3000 Credits and scan the Geth Sniper Rifle on the table for an upgrade, you can also play Tali's journal if you want to, when you are ready go answer the comms.

When the scene ends, head through the door and use the Medical Station right outside then go down the ramp. When you enter the room you will be confronted by several Drones which will immediately camouflage themselves. Kill them and advance through the room but be careful since more Geth will show up, once they are dead head through the door at the far end of the area.

Lift the Security Lockdown. Head through the door and down the ramp grab the Med-KIt and then speak with Kal'Reegar. During the scene you will get a chance to chose what he should do: you can let him shoot rockets at the Colossus, or you can use the Paragon interrupt to convince him to stay in cover. Rockets will help for sure but he can die, so if you think you can take the Colossus on your own, may as well save his life.

After the scene ends head out and kick some Geth ass, on the left hand side you will find 200 Iridium just next to the ramp and another 200 Iridium on the other side near the next ramp up. On the right hand side there is 200 Near the Bridge across and another 200 right before the ramp to the colossus, in addition if you follow the ramp up past the colossus then you will find a Med Kit.

These are the Items you can grab while the Colossus is alive to get any more I recommend waiting until it is dead. Once it is dead head to the right of the door for some Power Cells along with with another set of Power Cells on the left hand side, once you have the items head through the door. Scan the Damaged Geth as you enter for 9000 Credits and then talk to Tali and welcome her aboard.

The game never really explains wha the deal is with the dying star and why it's so important- maybe in Mass Effect 3?

Mission Complete - 1000XP - 30000 credits.

Derelict Ship

The Illusive Man will contact you after you've recruited two more squad members. He says he's found a deserted Collector ship and wants you to investigate it. Select your team and jump into the ship, you will need to find a uplink where you can connect EDI to the Collector ship so she can get info, since the ship is in a bad way. This being a deserted ship and all, there are no enemies- at least for the first part of the mission.

Follow the path and you come to a pod you can examine, continue onwards and you find a pile of bodies to examine. When you continue onwards you will find a Med Kit and a terminal to examine, get both and after the scene you will get the chance to get some new gear, you will be able to pick a new higher power weapon or a new weapon spec with a more standard weapon, personally I like the higher power stuff but its really about playstyle. Grab your new weapon and continue onward.

Directly after the scene there are two items in front of you Power Cells, and 250 Element Zero, you can also change your weapon loadout at the Weapons Locker. After going a small way you should come to some ledges with a ramp to the right, take the ramp and grab the Collector Technology for 15000 Credits, a little ways head you find a Computer Terminal, examine it for a new upgrade then head up the ramp once you hit the Command Console contact the Normandy and enjoy the scene

To quote Admiral Akbar "It's a trap". In case you couldn't tell they were trying to lure you in and now the Collectors are here to fight, you need to hold the main platform while the Collectors attack- kill all the buggers.

Once all the Collectors are dead head back to the command console and link it with the ship. After the scene head out, as you do, you should pass another salvageable piece of Collector Technology: this one is worth 7500 Credits. Once you have it continue on. You will have to fight several Collectors, keep an eye out since Harbinger will take control of his troops here.

Move forward to the next combat area and clean out the Collectors here as well. Be careful if you are moving forward since the Collectors like to use the higher ground to flank you and that can get you killed very quickly, especially on higher difficulties. After you have cleared the area proceed to the farthest corner and you should find some Power Cells, grab them and then double back to continue on your way.

When you enter the next room EDI will tell you that she is opening a door at the far side of the room but before you can get there you will need to take down the Praetorian. Unfortunately he decided to bring some friends and you will be plagued by Husks during this fight which makes it harder, I suggest whipping out the heavy weapons to take this thing down. Once it has fallen, head across the room for the open door which closes, turn to the right and head down the perfectly placed hallway instead. Going down this hallway you will find more Salvageable Technology, grab it for another 7500 Credits and also examine the Terminal across the way for a Tech Upgrade.

Enter the big room ahead and grab some cover for another big fight, once again there are lots of places for flanking by both parties so keep and eye open, after they are all dealt with continue on. Next we get to fight a hordes of Husks, the thing about husks is that they are weak but the game will send them at you in large groups, try to aim for their legs, if you get a good hit you can get a one shot kill. Biotic powers like Throw Field are also good for crowd control.

Once the Husks are eliminated make your final run to the Normandy and enjoy the scene.

Mission Complete - 1000 XP - 30000 Credits (confirm please)

IFF Transponder

At some point after investigating the Collector Ship, the Illusive Man will contact you, asking you to go investigate a dead Reaper Cerberus discovered. Although not technically the point of no return, if you dally too long after completing this mission there are consequences- we recommend you finish up everything else before doing this mission.

Once you are on the ship follow the hallway and you should immediately find a wall safe with 2000 Credits, a Terminal with 2000 Credits, and another wall safe with 4000 Credits, you can also play the Work Log here after grabbing the items head down the hallway. At the end of the hallway you should find 2 Medical Terminals and another Work Log, continue on through the door and get a nice scene.

After the scene, proceed forward and get the next Work Log then move on. As you move to the end of the platform you will encounter some Husks, once again aim for their legs so you can one shot them or use Shockwave to blast large groups of them out of the way. Moving on we get yet another Work Log and more Husks along with some Abominations (red Husks that explode).

Once they are all gone move ahead and you will see several Husks get sniped down, on the right hand side you can also pick up some Power Cells and 2000 Platinum and a Terminal with 3500 Credits, you can also scan the Rifle for a Sniper Rifle Upgrade, when ready continue to move forward and get ready to fight more Husks. When you are advancing keep you eye on the right hand side to find a small passageway to a door that you can bypass. Ignore it for now and keep moving towards the end of the platform. Once you destroy all the husks and the Scion you'll have little scene here. Act according to your alignment to receive bonus points.

Go through the door and you will get a scene, continuing on you will be fighting TONS of Husks, don't be afraid to move backwards, also keep your allies around since they can really save your ass. Keep an eye on them since they have the annoying habit of walking off to stare at bulkheads while you get torn to shreds- bringing someone with Throw Field along is incredibly helpful, as they can blow away husks that get too close to you.

After cleaning house head up the ramp and turn left grab the Med Kit then turn around and head the other direction, you should see a Terminal, use it for 3500 Credits then head down the ramp and grab the Med Kit. Head down the last ramp and kill the next horde of Husks. Now turn around and find the ramp you came down, go past it and you find some Power Cells and a Shotgun you can scan for an upgrade.

Head up the ramp and turn to the right to find a terminal, access it for 3500 Credits then continue. After you head down the ramp you will be attacked by two Scions and some Husks. After taking care of business here head on and you will find more Power Cells and more Husks with two more Scions. Continue forward and find the door, grab the Med Kit before exiting through said door and grab the IFF and exit through the other door.

Now for the final battle here, you will be attacked by Husks with intermittent periods where the Power Core sphere will open up and you need to shoot it, when it closes kill more Husks and it will open again, it shouldn't take too long to do. Keep an eye on your party member because they WILL get into trouble. Also there is a laptop you can use for 1000 Credits on the left hand side. Once the core goes down the Normandy will pick you up,a long with the geth corpse you dragged out of the ship.

Mission Complete - 1000 XP - 30000 Credits

Suicide Mission

Before starting this mission make sure you have:

• Heavy Armor
• Multi-core Shielding
• Thanix Cannon

Else people will start dying before you even land. And going back is a no-go if your ship has been destroyed. Loyalty of your entire crew is a must if you plan on bringing them all back alive. Also make sure they have every upgrade available to maximize your chances of survival.

Head for the Omega 4 Relay and go into orbit then enter. EDI will ask you to confirm that you want to go to the Omega 4 relay (on the 360 the game will now ask you to insert Disc 1) After the (INCREDIBLY EPIC) scene ends you need to pick a team and you will be sent down to the cargo hold where you will have to fight Oculus.

There is a a Med Kit near the door you started at on the right hand side. Just use heavy weapons to burn down its health, it'll fly out of your cargo hold. Queue another cut-scene. Oculus returns with full health, destroy him with heavy weapons. There is some ammo laying about if you run out. After Oculus goes down you are sent back into the cut-scene.

Once you've landed it will ask you who you want as a tech specialist. Choose either Tali or Legion. For the fire-team select either Garrus or Miranda. Select anyone who's left for your own squad. For this first section your Specialist will be moving through a series of tubes. Their path will be blocked from time to time and it is up to you to hit a switch so they can move on. Keep an eye on the meter at the bottom of the screen. One good suggestion is if you have plenty of time left while the bar is draining kill some more enemies ahead before activating the valve shutoff.

Shoot the collectors blocking your path. After the Collectors are dead move forward and hit the first switch then move on and kill the next group of Collectors then hit the next switch, continue moving forward and taking out the Collectors until you have hit the last Vavle shutoff, since its the final level there are no items for you to collect here. After hitting the last switch you will get another scene.

Time to pick new teams. As your biotics specialist pick either Samara or Jack. Pick your first choice again for the second team leader, although there are some reports of Jacob working, it's best to stick with either Miranda or Garrus. And either have Mordin on your squad or send him to escort the survivors, because he tends to die a lot defending the door regardless of loyalty. If you choose to bring Mordin with you, anyone loyal can escort the crew. You are now in the main chamber. Stay inside the Biotic Bubble, you can leave but the swarm will destroy your shields quickly. Escort your Biotic through the level, taking out any opposition. Once you clear the room you will get another scene.

Final team selection! Anyone not on that team will stay at the current location to hold the door and buy you time. Again, make sure Mordin is NOT defending the door, as he dies quite a lot here.

Once you have your team head out. Much like on the Collector Ship, flying platforms will attach to yours and build a bridge. Kill all the enemies until the last platform attaches. It will have two Scions on it so you'll know when you're almost done. If you stay on the first platform throughout the fight the Scions will not attack you straight away. Use ranged powers like incinerate to take them down easily. Once they're all dead head to the last platform and hit the button.

The Final Boss

Another little scene where EDI tells you to hit the weak points. As soon as the fight starts Armor will cover the weak points and a platform with Collectors approaches. As soon as the Collectors die the armor covering the weak points will disappear and you'll be able to fire on them. This repeats until all weak points are destroyed. If you're a soldier you can use adrenaline rush to take out all the weak points at once, otherwise you should be able to get two each time they uncover.

After the boss goes down you will get a scene and a big decision choosing whether to blow the station or keep it and try to learn form the Reaper tech. Destroying the station is obviously the Paragon choice while keeping it is the renegade. This choice will likely carry over into Mass Effect 3, but has not impact on how the rest of the game plays out.

Once you have made the choice, you find that the boss was more resilient then you thought and he has not gone down. He is back and he is PISSED.

He moves around to 3 preset spots (left - center - right). His mouth will start glowing when he is charging but the sound when he's actually about to fire is very distinctive. Let him cycle through his routine once so you get a feel for when he attacks.

During the fight some collectors will drop in. If you need heavy weapons ammo i suggest you wait for Harbinger to take control of one of the collectors before you kill them. He drops large amounts of heavy weapons ammo.

When you've taken off half the health bar of the boss he will start destroying platforms left and right so make sure you are on the center one.

Once you destroy him it's time for the final cut-scene.

Congratulations you have finished the epic adventure of Mass effect 2

(The game will now ask you if you want to keep playing or do a new game+)

Companions

These sections deal with what to do with your companions once you've got them on the ship (as well as where to find them on the ship). Each of them has a loyalty mission to be undertaken, some can be pursued as love interests, and they're all willing to talk to you about their pasts or the mission. It's worth spending some time talking to people in between missions, and it'sdefinitely worth undertaking the loyalty missions, as those will affect the success of the suicide mission at the end of the game.

After you gain a companion's loyalty, you can also choose to take their loyalty talent (the skill that unlocks for them when they become loyal) for yourself- choose "Advanced Skill Training" (or something similar) from the research terminal, and you can add the loyalty talent from any squad member you have loyal to you. You can change this talent later for some Element Zero if you decide you want a different loyalty talent.

Each of your companions will also offer a unique research project- some will enhance the Normandy, helping you survive the suicide mission, or simply making basic tasks such as mineral scanning more tolerable. Others will enhance the combat abilities of the character. All of these projects are located under the PROTOTYPES section in the research menu.

Be warned that there will be some spoilers in these sections, although we'll try to conceal them as much as possible.

Miranda Lawson

Biography

Born on Earth, Miranda comes from a wealthy background. However, underneath her opulent upbringing lies a woman who is calm, collected and driven to accomplish her mission, at any cost. She is quick to judge and values her assignments and goals over people. Miranda is also a powerful biotic as well as a tech specialist. Her unique combination of talents allows her overload enemy shields, leaving them open for a follow-up biotic attack.

Early in her life she approached Cerberus and the Illusive Man and she is now devoted to their cause. She does what needs to be done in order to achieve Cerberus' goals.

Quick Facts:

• Species: Human
• Gender: Female
• Age: 35

Loyalty Sidequest

Go to the Eternity bar on Illium. Your mission contact is in the room on the left. Cycle through the conversation and the contact will transport you to the location. Watch the cut scene with the mercenaries. Renegade QTE. Destroy any enemies in the area and enter the elevator at the end. Talk to Miranda for more back story.

Enter the area, hackable terminal directly inside on the wall. Destroy any enemies and proceed to the next area. In the small room at the end is a med-kit and a Submachine Gun you can scan for an upgrade. Move down the hall and destroy the mechs. Directly on your left is a locker with 1500 credits. Kill any opposition and move towards the end.

Near the end of this area is a body you can scan for a Medi-gel upgrade. Inside the container is a hackable console (3000 credits). Keep moving and kill more enemies. Towards the end of the area are another hackable console (3000 credits), a case of Element Zero (300) and another terminal with 3000 credits. Move into the next area for another batch of enemies.

Once you destroy everyone the door to the elevator will unlock. Grab the heavy weapons ammo and the medi-gel and step into the elevator. Another Cut scene. Choose what you want according to your alignment. You can interrupt Miranda for paragon points. More combat! After you kill everyone you'll find a medi-gel, a trinket (side quest) and a security terminal (3000 credits). Step into the elevator to head into the next area. Almost done!

You can convince Miranda into talking to her sister. Once the cut scene ends you'll be done.

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 credits

Once you complete both Miranda's and Jack's loyalty missions they will get into a fight. Jokes will tell you to go break it up because they're about to kill each other. You'll have several dialog options available. Choose either the Paragon or the Renegade option to retain both their loyalty. If you don't have either of those you'll have to choose who you keep loyal.

Upgrade

Miranda offers to upgrade the Normandy's mineral scanner SOMETHING YOU SHOULD GO BUY RIGHT THIS VERY INSTANT. You'll be spending so much time scanning for minerals to buy the other upgrades, this one is essential.

Jacob Taylor

Biography

A former Alliance marine, Jacob is one of the few survivors from the attack on Eden Prime. Following those events he worked with Miranda Lawson of Cerberus and foiled a Batarian terrorist plot to release a deadly virus on the Citadel, saving countless lives. In the aftermath Jacob joined Cerberus believing that humanity needed to become stronger and be able to protect itself throughout the galaxy. While he agrees with Cerberus' goals, he can be conflicted over their means.

Jacob is also a powerful biotic capable of lifting and hurling enemies with great force. His extensive combat training also makes him lethal with his firearms.

Quick Facts:

• Species: Human
• Gender: Male
• Age: 28

Loyalty Sidequest

After you land on the planet head towards the big crashed ship, ignore the emergency VI for the moment and head up the ramp onto the sip. As you enter look to the left for a datapad and hack it for 3000 Credits. On the way off the ship you should see some spare parts. Salvage them for 1500 Credits then go examine the beacon. After you are done with the beacon head up the hill where you will be attacked by some hunters. Kill them off and salvage the spare parts at the end for 1500 Credits, then continue up the hill and you will find a small settlement. There is a Med-Kit on the right hand side as you enter.

Continuing long the right side you will find more salvage for another 1500 Credits, and also a PDA worth 2100 Credits towards the middle of the area. After you have the stuff head further up the hill, you will have to fight some more Loki mechs but they are pretty standard. Make sure you scan the spare parts for 1500 Credits and the Heavy Pistol for an Upgrade. Once you have those continue to press forward. As you advance you should see another salvage for 1500 Credits as well as a Medical Station and Power Cells.

You are now hitting the last battle, where you will fight a couple of standard guards and a heavy mech. Nothing much at this point though, plenty of cover here too so it goes by easy. Before you open the door grab the 500 Element Zero and 2400 Credits that are just next to the door then push through for the final scene.

Jacob is less than amused with his father's actions, and you can nudge him into several courses of action- killing his father, abandoning his father on the planet, or reporting him to the alliance.

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits

Upgrade

Jacob will offer to upgrade the Normandy's armor plating, something that will help you survive the suicide mission.

Mordin Solus

Biography

Mordin is a Salarian professor and brilliant scientist. While eccentric at times, Mordin is guided by scientific principles rather than morals. His analytical outlook on life leads him to do what is necessary for the greater good.

His unique genius will be a valuable asset in combating the Collector threat and their unknown technology. In the field, Mordin is a powerful tech specialist capable of disabling enemies and deploying crippling attacks, such as Incinerate.

Quick Facts:

• Species: Salarian
• Gender: Male
• Age: 50

Loyalty Sidequest

Go to tuchanka and head inside to talk with the Chief. Ask him about the Salarian and he will tell you to go talk to the Scout dude. He will tell you the location of the Blood Pack base. Go there now.

When you arrive there is a weapons locker right next to the vehicle if you want to refit your squad, otherwise, head inside. Your first enemies will be some crawlers, then some Varren. Shoot them to bits. Proceed onwards.

More enemies, Blood Pack troopers this time. After you kill them all there will be a case of iridium and a medi-kit. Further down more Blood Pack. Once you hit the door there will be an upside down vehicle next to it which you can salvage for a side mission. Bypass the door to continue. Once inside scan the dead human for backstory. Continue down the stairs. On the right at the bottom of the stairs is a crate of iridium.

Go left into the hospital, and through the door. A cutscene will start where the Clan Weyrloc krogan will explain the situation, you can interrupt him for a RENEGADE QTE. There's really no reason not to use this QTE, as they'll attack anyways and this thins their ranks. Kill all the krogans that attack you. Pick up the iridium on the bottom floor and head up the stairs. Grab the med-kit and continue.

Open the door and grab the circuit board directly in front of you for 3000 credits. Grab the iridium (500) and access the terminal. Examine the dead krogan in the next room for more backstory and hack the research terminal for Krogan Vitality upgrade.

Proceed forward and enter the door on the right. Hack the pad for 1500 credits then talk to the krogan. Help him if you want (sidequest) else leave him. Go to the end of the hall and open the door on the left, kill everyone inside the room. There is a board you can salvage near where you entered, grab it 4500.

Cross the bridge and grab the medpack. A little further ahead a pack of Varren and one Krogan will attack, so shoot them, then grab the power cells at the end of the hall and head down the ramp. Another group of krogan will attack, including their Chief. Waste em! Open the door on the right for a crate with 3000 credits.

Go through the other door and go down the stairs. Hack the terminal there for a bonus I totally missed because I was typing this. :P

Enter the last door and confront Mordin's assistant. Go through the conversation and interrupt Mordin, or don't. You have the choice of destroying the data, convincing mordin he needs to continue the work and cure the Genophage, or just keeping the data in case it will be useful later.

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits

Upgrade

Mordin can upgrade his own Omni-Tool, increasing the tech damage he deals by 20%

Jack

Biography

For every kill she has a tattoo, and she is covered in ink. Subject Zero has been around; ran with gangs, joined a cult, and kept the haircut. A powerful biotic with a mysterious past, not much is known about Subject Zero other than she is drawn to brutality and violence. Her emotional instability doesn't help the fact that she can lift and discard enemies like trash with her biotic powers. She's dangerous, unstable, and extremely violent, exactly what Commander Shepard needs for his suicide mission.

Subject Zero's skills and abilities will be a valuable asset to Shepard's team, that's if he can keep her under control.

Quick Facts:

• Species: Human
• Gender: Female
• Age: ??

Loyalty Sidequest

Head to the planet indicated on your star map and land. You will get a small cutscene as you descend to the planet when you hit the ground you will be on a platform, take the ramps down into the facility and run past the door and to the right. You will see a Terminal, hack it for 3000 Credits now double back and go through the door. Keep pushing forward until you get to a room with high ceiling and trees.

At the far end of the room you will encounter your first enemies, a pack of 4 wild Varren and also a blood stain you can examine to get a scene with Jack. After the conversation head through the door and grab the Med Kit immediately on your left then head down the hallway. You can examine the security for another conversation, when you are finished head through the door behind you.

Head down the stairs, mid way you will see a door you can Bypass, do so and then grab the 500 Element Zero from the room you just opened and continue down the rest of the stairs and through the door. In this room you will find a group of Blood Pack Mercs. Head to the right side and go to the end of the room, there is an alcove that runs the length of the room, inside you will find a datapad worth 3000 Credits.

Once the Blood Pack is eliminated Bypass the door at the end of the room and move on, next time you encounter the Blood Pack is in the cell area, take out the few Mercs and move up, there will be 3 Varren in the hallway so take them out, there is a circuit board you can salvage for 3000 Credits in the second to last room on the right hand side, after you get the cash head through the door.

Continue through the next room and grab the Med Kit past the door. In the next room you find a lot of stuff, first hack the Research Terminal for a Biotic Upgrade then grab the Power Cells and open both the Security Consoles then head through the door for a big fight, clean everyone out of the room then head to the back. Bypass the Secure Container for 3000 Credits. When you have the cash head through the doors to get to Jacks cell and blow it up.

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits.

Once you complete both Miranda's and Jack's loyalty missions they will get into a fight. Jokes will tell you to go break it up because they're about to kill each other. You'll have several dialog options available. Choose either the Paragon or the Renegade option to retain both their loyalty. If you don't have either of those you'll have to choose who you keep loyal.

Upgrade

Jack offers to upgrade her Biotics to new L5 implants which increase the damage she deals with biotic powers by 20%

Grunt

Biography

Believing anything can be resolved by a fight, Grunt is a younger Krogan who is excitable and energetic. His Krogan nature drives him to violence and killing, yet not indiscriminately. With his "might makes right" philosophy, Grunt never shies from confrontation nor would he let Commander Shepard do the same. Like his Krogan brethren, he lives for the glory battle and he is yet to know defeat.

Grunt has a youthful sense of invulnerability, but is cunning beyond his years. He joins Shepard's crew because he believes it will help him fight his own personal battles.

Quick Facts:

• Species: Krogan
• Gender: Male
• Age: 22

Loyalty Sidequest

Grunt's loyalty sidequest takes place on Tuchanka, the Krogan homeworld. Mordin's loyalty quest also takes place there, so it might be wise to get them both at once.

Go Tuchanka and take Grunt with you, as soon as you land the guard at the landing pad will tell you to go talk to the chief. Head inside and go talk to the chief he will tell you that Grunt needs to perform a rite and that you have to go talk to the shaman. Go talk to the shaman. <dunno what happens if you don't save wrex>. Ask him what to do and headbutt Gatatog Uvenk if you feel like it. Travel to the trial.

The Place is littered with medpacks heavy weapons ammo and dead Krogans who give you cash. Save the Heavy Weapons Ammo for the fights and loot everything else. First Wave are Varren, second wave are Crawlers, third wave is a Thresher Maw.

The first 2 waves are pushovers but keep an eye out on your AI buddies since they have a tendency to do stupid things. The Thresher Maw has a crazy powerful attack so make sure you are in cover when it fires. Since it only has armor keep spamming INCINERATE on it and it will die quickly (Provided you have a team member with Incinerate/ Incinerate ammo). If you just really don't think you have what it takes to kill the Thresher Maw, technically you only need to survive for five minutes to pass the trial- if you can stay alive for five minutes though, you can easily kill it in that time. There's also an associated achievement, if that motivates you.

Once you've completed the rite Gatatog Uvenk will show up to ask you to join his clan. Be smarmy about it and ask grunt what he thinks. Fight time. A horde of krogan all with armor so just spam INCINERATE and you'll be fine. Once their down, Chief will show up to say hi. Then a little talk with the Shaman an it will be...

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits

Upgrade

You can get a unique shotgun for Grunt which does more damage than anything else in the game he can use. This shotgun can only be used by Grunt (Or Shepard when he already has the Shotgun proficiency)

Garrus

Biography

Garrus returns from Mass Effect, spending the time Shepard was away eliminating scum on Omega with his trusty sniper rifle.

Loyalty Sidequest

When you touch down at the Citadel make sure that Garrus is in your party then hop off the ship and begin. Head through security and talk to Captain Bailey, he will put you on track to find Fade. He directs you to a warehouse on level 26. When you get there you will meet Fade, or so you think.

After the scene you will have the real location, head to the nearest rapid transit center and go to the Factory District. When you get there you will see a small scene and then you need to fight a lot of Blue Suns Mercs. Take care of the two here and head through the door. Directly in front of you is a Med Kit, grab it and move on. As you make your way through stick to the left hand side and you should find a wall safe. Bypass the safe for 1500 Credits. Now begin sticking to the right hand side of the area, you should hit two circuit boards, wait and make sure that you have killed the enemies and then bypass them. Be careful though, if you get attacked while trying to bypass it counts as failing.

Move forward and kill the remaining Blue Sun Mercs you should arrive at a dead end with the bridge controls. Grab the Med Kit, Power Cells, 2000 Iridium, and Hack the computer for 4500 Credits, then lower the bridge and continue. After taking down the Heavy Mech that shows up continue forward and you should see a Med Kit, grab it, and continue forward. Before you exit through the door there is a circuit board on the right of it you can bypass for 1200 Credits. Enter the next room and grab all the loot inside, including some Power Cells, 2100 Credits from the wall safe, and some forged ID's. Also, right after you leave the room there is a terminal you can hack for a Sniper Rifle upgrade.

Continue onto the next warehouse floor and kill all the bad guys. When you get close to the end your final fight is with two Heavy Mechs. It can be hard but the best advice is make sure they don't flank you and take one out as quick as possible. Once they are down head for your target, but expect a few more light mechs to stand in your way. After the scene you will get to help Garrus kill his traitor. You can chose the Paragon or Renegade, but if you want to keep Sidonis alive you will need at least some Paragon to convince Garrus not to kill him.

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits

Upgrade

Garrus offers to upgrade the Normandy's weapon systems- something that will help you survive the suicide mission at the end.

Thane Krios

Biography

A deadly assassin born of the Drell race, Thane is a warrior-monk. He is stoic, collected, and very spiritual. He ardently believes in his religious path and its accompanying rites and prayers. From Thane's perspective, his body is the weapon wielded by his employers, however he does not believe in killing indiscriminately. Once his services were up to the highest bidder, but something happened; something changed him. Now he has shifted his professional philosophy; he no longer takes contracts for pay, but rather he chooses his targets based on his moral and religious beliefs.

While Thane is lethal with any firearm, he is also a powerful biotic who is able to manipulate foes at will. If Commander Shepard can convince Thane to join his mission, he will have one of the galaxy's most dangerous assassins at his side.

Quick Facts:

• Species: Drell
• Gender: Male
• Age: 39

Loyalty Sidequest

When you land on the Citadel go speak with Captain Bailey. After your chat head up to Darkstar and find Mouse-if you have to use the interrupt to get the information out of him Mouse will be very angry with Thane, so it's better if you can simply talk it out of him. Mouse reluctantly informs you who hired the hit and so it's off to call the cavalry. Return to Captain Bailey and tell him what you know. He will bring in your suspect and you get to interrogate him.

Pick which cop you want to play then head into the interrogation. Once you get the info out of him (I suggest the Bad Cop, its way more fun). Captain Bailey will secure you passage to the area.

You will stalk the catwalks while Thane follows the target, you will need to give him updates on the targets location. Begin by grabbing the Heavy Pistol Upgrade from the Datapad nearby then go through the door at the other side, continue straight until you cannot go any further then turn right and go to the middle of the platform, around now Thane should ask for an update.

Once again head straight staying close to the target. Now turn to the left and follow him through the door. Head straight through the door and keep following, after passing through the next door you will be confronted by a worker, you can use charm or intimidate to get past him. Go to the right to keep following the target.

Thane will confront his son who holds the target hostage, you will get a Paragon interrupt where you shoot the gun out of Kolyat's hands, this is the best way to bring him in.

The quest will end and after a nice heart to heart the father and son will be on the road to rebuilding their relationship.

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits

Upgrade

Thane offers to upgrade the number of probes the Normandy can hold at once, doubling your capacity from max 30 probes to max 60 probes. Very helpful for extended mining sessions, and will likely save you credits on fuel (not that credits are ever much of a problem in the game).

Samara

Biography

Samara is a Justicar, an asari who has forsworn having children and given up all worldly possessions aside from weapons and armor, to wander the galaxy righting wrongs — as defined by their unwavering code of justice. An extremely powerful biotic warrior, Samara is calculating and resolute in her missions. She has no problem with killing as vindicated by the asari Justicar code, but she disapproves of "unjustified" violence.

Her regal and poised demeanor hides something, something from her past that racks her with guilt. What is it that haunts Samara's past, and why does it compel her with such ardent determination?

Quick Facts:

• Species: Asari
• Gender: Female
• Age: Estimated 600 human years

Loyalty Sidequest

It's quite possible to botch this quest by saying the wrong things or not attracting Morinth, so we strongly suggest you save before you take it on because if you blow it and Morinth walks away, there's no second chance and you'll never get Samara's loyalty.

Head Back to Omega to start this quest and go talk with Aria, she will direct you to a young women who was recently killed. Head to the apartments right near the entrance to the slums. Talk to the girls mother, she will let you search her rooms, when you do so read the journal of the desk. This informs you that they met at the VIP section of afterlife. Talk to the bouncer right outside the VIP lounge above the markets.

Talk to the bouncer and tell him Jarrut told you about this place he will let you in. As you enter you will see a guy called Vij leaning against the wall speak with him and then leave. Next move towards the dance floor, you should see a Turian called Meln, interact with him and tell him to leave the dancer alone. You end up kicking his ass and going on your way.

Finally look for a guy called Horftin on the outskirts of the dance floor, tell him you will help and he will ask you to tell his friend some code words to warn her. Now head over to Florit and tell him Terminal then Eternity. She will get the picture and ditch out.

Lastly find and talk to Vertin and convince him not to mug anyone, after you kick the Turians asses as well Morinth will show up and invite you to her table. First thing you want to talk about is Music, tell her about Expel 10, then talk about Hallex. Next talk to her about Art and tell her "I know what I like" then ask her about violent Vids then use the Paragon option and she will invite you to her apartment.

Now that you are in Morinths apartment you need to distract her until Samara arrives, first head over to the wall and scan the Assault Rifle for an Upgrade then go talk to Morinth. When you talk to Morinth, you will need 3 bars of either Paragon or Renegade (check by pausing and going to the squad screen, look for the little notches in the meter) to keep your mind while talking to Morinth. If you do choose the paragon/renegade options, you'll be treated to an extended duel between Samara and Morinth, and given the choice of killing Samara and having Morinth join the team, or killing Morinth and helping Samara end her quest.

If you don't have high enough paragon or renegade, Samara will simply save you by quickly killing Morinth and you won't get the choice.

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits

Upgrade

Samara (or Morinth) offers to upgrade the fuel cells in the Normandy, giving it 500 extra fuel and allowing it to travel farther without having to refuel. Helpful for exploring some larger clusters, but entirely unnecessary.,

Tali'Zorah vas Neema

Biography

Tali, the Quarian machinist returns. Following the Geth assault on the Citadel, Tali returned to the Migrant Fleet and joined the crew of the Neema. Renowned for her technical and engineering abilities, she is an important and respected member of the Quarian fleet. Tali's unique insight allows her to hack mechanized opponents, overload shields, or deploy an automated Combat Drone.

Her resourcefulness and tech skill set will prove to be a useful asset to Commander Shepard against not only the Geth but also the Collectors.

Quick Facts:

• Species: Quarian
• Gender: Female
• Age: 24

Loyalty Sidequest

When you talk with Tali, you'll learn that she has been accused of treason and needs to return to the Migrant Fleet immediately. Of course, "immediately" in Mass Effect terms means whenever you damn well feel like it (Although be careful near the end of the game, that kind of thinking can get you into trouble).

Anyway fly into the fleet to begin the quest, as you enter you will learn the charges that have been leveled against Tali. Continuing along you will meet Tali's aunt and find that you have been made Tali's official ship captain, and therefore you stand for her in the trial- time to try your hand at being a space lawyer.

Walk into the main room to begin the trial and speak on Tali's behalf. You find that the active Geth have overtaken Tali's father's ship- something Tali herself did not know- and you offer to take it back. After this initial trial, you can talk to the admirals and get a feel for their positions, as well as learn some very interesting information about Quarians and their ongoing conflict with the Geth. When you're ready to move on, head to the hanger bay to get your transport. You'll be facing Geth so it's a good idea to bring someone with strong tech abilities- Tali is fairly useless in combat and needs to be babysat, especially on higher difficulties.

Once on board Tali's father's ship, head forward and clear the room of Geth. Once they are all down grab the Med Kit to the left of the entrance, there are two laptops with 1500 and 1800 Credits at the far right hand side and on the far left hand side near the door are some Power Cells. Grab all this and hit the door. Head through the first door on the left and Hack the Terminal for 4200 Credits and the Med Station next to it, you can also examine one of the things in the room for a conversation with Tali.

Next, head through the door at the end of hallway and hack the monitor for the Geth Shield Strength upgrade. Continue through the last door to move on, here you will fight some more Geth. After they are go down, access both laptops at the right hand side of the room for 1800 and 2100 Credits, and as you leave bypass the wall safe for 4200 more Credits.

After you have cleaned the next room out grab 2000 Palladium from the left side and the Med Kit from the far end of the room before leaving you can grab another 3000 Credits from a wall safe behind you. As you leave and check the wall console for another conversation with Tali. Be careful in the next room, the Geth come fast here and if you go down the stairs you are asking for trouble- let them come to you and take them down as they come up the stairs. Once the Geth are dead, head down the stairs and grab 2400 Credits from the laptop. You also get 1800 Credits from the laptop across the room and the Med Kit at the back of the room. Take out all the Geth in the final room and Grab the ship model for your cabin. Use the computer for 3000 Credits and head to the back of the room and grab the evidence.

Return to the Flotilla, where the Admiralty board is busy deciding Tali's fate. You have the option of presenting your evidence and clearing Tali's name but incriminating her father, presenting no evidence and letting Tali be exiled, or using the Paragon/Renegade option (if you pass the check) to convince the Admiralty Board not to exile Tali without having to use your evidence.

Tali expresses her wish that you do not show the evidence that incriminates her father, and if you do show, she will reject your actions and not become loyal. Allowing Tali to be exiled gains her loyalty but may have repercussions in Mass Effect 3, while using the Paragon/Renegade option gains Tali's loyalty AND allows her to remain a member of the Migrant Fleet.

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits

Once you complete both Legion's and Tali's loyalty missions they will get into a fight. Jokes will tell you to go break it up because they're about to kill each other. You'll have several dialog options available. Choose either the Paragon or the Renegade option to retain both their loyalty. If you don't have either of those you'll have to choose who you keep loyal.

Upgrade

Tali will offer to enhance the Normandy's shields, an upgrade that will help you survive the suicide mission.

Zaeed Massani

Biography

Zaeed served in the Alliance military before building a reputation as one of the deadliest bounty hunters in the Terminus Systems. For 20 years he waged war for profit, but now he wishes to step away from his life of bloodshed and mercenary work.

Lacking any real conscience, Zaeed is a well experienced soldier who has battled his way across galaxy. He offers his services to Commander Shepard, but they come at a price...

Quick Facts:

• Species: Human
• Gender: Male
• Age: 40

This character currently is available as downloadable content for those who have access to the Cerberus Network.

Zaeed is on of the easiest characters in the game to recruit. Once the game recognizes our DLC and sends you an in-game message about Zaeed, just head to Omega. Zaeed will literally be impossible to miss once you disembark, as he's straight down the docking hallway. Talk to him and either convince him to spare the Batarian or just let him kill it, then return to your ship.

Loyalty Sidequest

For Zaeed's loyalty sidequest, he'll ask you to help him attack the leader of the Blue Suns mercenary group, who is holding a refinery hostage. When you arrive, you'll discover things aren't so simple- Zaeed has no interest in saving the hostages and only wants revenge on the leader of Blue Suns for personal reasons. You are faced with the choice of helping Zaeed pursue his revenge, or saving the hostages. Helping get revenge will get you renegade points and assure Zaeed's loyalty. If you save the hostages you'll get paragon points but Zaeed will NOT be loyal to you. With a high enough Paragon you can save the hostages and convince Zaeed to become loyal. Either option will get you the achievement, and they both involve lots of fighting, so be prepared.

Head straight offof the landing point and you will find some dead bodies to examine for some lines from Zaeed, continue as he says, when you begin to see the area open out this is where the fight will take place, grab some cover and clean out the Blue Suns Mercs that attack, this is a pretty fortified area and after the first wave goes down they send in reinforcements, near the exit there is a PDA to acess (6000 Credits). Leave this area and advance.

Just before the door to ente the refinery you will find 400 Paladium, colect it and enter, directly after the scene ends there will be 400 Paladium, you will need to clean out the Blue Suns before advancing, as you continue you will see another 400 Paladium on the right hand side.

When you exit this area you wil get a scene and be presented with a choice, save the workers or go after Vido, you can tell which is Paragon and Renegade but the mission goes differantly with what you chose.

Paragon Choice

If you chose to save the workers instead if heading through the door you jump down a level and prepare to find the shutoff for the refinery. Continuing forward you will find several Fuel Control Panels, you ned to hit all of these to redirect the fuel and save the workers. Along the way you should find a Salvage (6000 Credits). As you move forward you will see several workers trapped and they will tell you that the extinguisher system is upstairs, head up the stairs, at the top you will find400 Paladium. In the final room you will find a Research Terminal with a Heavy Weapons Ammo upgrade and the extinguisher system, hit the switch and you will save the workers then head through the now open door.

Renegade Choice

You continue forward and find more Mercs, as you enter the next room you will see some salvage (6000 Credits), and a Terminal with an Assualt Rifle Damage upgrade, grab both and move through the door. After cleaning the next room out and proceed.

Both Choices Meet Here

Here you find 400 more Paladium and a little further yon ou will find a Heavy Weapon. The M-451 Firestorm is a flamethrower just like the ones you have been fighting the whole game. Move forward and you will make it to the center of the complex.

Change your weapons if you want at the Weapons Locker and grab the Power Cells next to it, also the Salvage as you enter (6000 Credits) continue to the next area and prepare for a big fight, Vido really wants to stop you here so he throws a lot of Mercs at you. Near the middle of the room you will find a Med Kit, grab that whenever you want.

Mid way through the fight the fuel tanks on the ceiling will begin to leak and start moving, watch out since the fire will hurt you if it hits you, the posotive is you can shoot the tanks down and they will explode and kill any enemies they hit.

Once the room is cleaned of the rediculous number of Mercs head to the right hand door and go thorugh, grab the Salvage (6000 Credits) ad head for the left hand side door, Grab the Salvage from this side as well (6000 Credits) and then head for the door at the far end of the room

Renegade Ending

When you exit you will get a scene where Zaeed will get his revenge (in a badass way too) and this will make him loyal. THis is by far the easier way to gain his loyalty since rescuing t the workers will make you miss Vido and thus Zaeed will not get his revenge.

Paragon Ending

Turns out Zaeed was right and the time that it took to save the workers costs him his revenge, Vido escapes in his ship and Zaeed accidentally ejects a thermal clip into the flamable liquid. You to have a quick chat and if you have a high Paragon score you can convince him that he should work with you

IF YOUR PARAGON IS NOT HIGH ENOUGH YOU WILL NOT EARN HIS TRUST

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits

Legion

Biography

Legion is a geth squad mate who will join you during the mission to acquire the Reaper IFF. Rather, you'll bring his disabled corpse back to the ship, where you can choose whether to activate him or not, much like Grunt. He is a tech specialist and can use sniper rifles and assault rifles. His unique ability is Geth Shield Boost, a very strong shield modifier.

Loyalty Sidequest

Legion's loyalty sidequest sheds some interesting light on the events of Mass Effect 1, and also provides perhaps one of the larger decisions in the game. Shortly after you activate him, Legion will ask for your help in shutting down a faction of "heretic" geth. As it turns out, before the events of Mass Effect, there was a rift between the Geth, with some wanting to help Sovereign and others who did not. Legion did not wish to aid Sovereign, and considers those who did heretics.

When you begin the mission you will have a small scene, the stuff you say here has no real bearing, just some easy Paragon or Renegade points,head down the hall and grab the Med Kit on the floor then go down the stairs. Here you will see some Green Lines along the floor, walking over these will trigger the enemies, if you can follow the path and find the stations they are at you can stop them before they can attack you. Once the Hub is destroyed head over to it and Salvage it for it (3000 Credits)

Continue through the doorway and you will see two turrets, they can be hacked to become friendly, simply move the reticule over them and press A, continue to the end of the hall and wipe out any enemies still alive. Moving forward you will find yourself in another maze of activation strips, avoid them and hit one of the Hubs, once all the enemies are dead Salvage both hubs for 3000 Credits each.

Head into the next hallway and two enemies will advance down it towards you, mop them up and grab the Med Kit at the end of the hallway then move on up the ramps, in the next hallway two more enemies will advance at you again, same as before, kill them and head through the door at the end of the hallway. In this room you will see two more hackable turrets, hack them and then clean up any enemies while they are distracted by the turrets, once the room is empty exit through the back.

At the end of this next hallway you will find a Med Kit and some Power Cells, grab them and double back tot the door you just passed.after going down the ramps you will come to a T intersection, go right and grab the 2000 Palladium then turn around and head for the door. In the next room there is a Terminal you can override for an upgrade. Upon entering the next big room, you will find more of the trip lines, avoid them as you head down the ramps and then find a good position to attack one of the Hubs, after all the enemies are downed collect the salvage from both Hubs for another 3000 Credits apiece.

Once you are in the main server room you can grab the Med Kit and then activate the Terminal, this will prompt an attack by the enemies, several waves will come, you can hack the turrets on the ground floor as well but the hack will last for several seconds and are useless for the most part. Hold the top floor while the enemies attack, a scene will play when you are finished and you will have to make another moral choice, a fairly serious and well-thought out choice that could easily return in the third game. You will now need to run out of the base and fight a handful of enemies on the way, once you get out the mission is cleared.

Mission Complete - 750xp - 15000 Credits

Notes

Once you complete both Legion's and Tali's loyalty missions they will get into a fight. Joker will tell you to go break it up because they're about to kill each other. You'll have several dialog options available. Choose either the Paragon or the Renegade option to retain both their loyalty. If you don't have either of those you'll have to choose who you keep loyal.

Upgrade

His upgrade is a Custom Sniper Rifle. This is also available to Shepard on the collector ship if he already has the Sniper Rifle proficiency

Romance

In Mass Effect 2 Commander Shepard will encounter several new potential love interests. For a male Shepard these areMiranda Lawson , Subject Zero, Yeoman Kelly Chambers and Tali'Zorah. For a female Shepard, the new potential love interests are Jacob Taylor, Thane Krios, Kelly Chambers and Garrus. You can also romance Morinth as either female or male Shepard, however if you do, Shepard will die.

If you imported a character from the first game, Mass Effect 2 will recognize any relationship you had with some extra dialogue and a picture of your love interest in your cabin. Having a love interest in the first game does not prevent you from having one in Mass Effect 2, although Bioware has said there will be repercussions for "cheating" in Mass Effect 3.

To romance a character in Mass Effect 2, just talk to them a lot and eventually your relationship will move in this direction. The male romance options will get into fights with other crew members- you need to side with your love interest in these fights.

After beating the game, you can invite your love interest up to the captain's cabin and have them rest with you or simply be in your room. Kelly Chambers will dance for you after beating the game.

Assignments (Sidequests)

This section covers uncharted planet quests, mail quests, quests recieved from NPCs, etc. Companion loyalty quests are covered in the companions section.

These side missions usually give you between 50 and 150 XP, a few credits and Upgrades.

-- Not all information and names have been verified.

Normandy

These Assignments are found by exploring the Normandy.

FBA Couplings

Donnelly and Daniels in Engineering need power couplings. These couplings can be purchased at Kenn's Salvage in the markets on Omega. Return to the engineering twins once you have them.

Serrice Ice Brandy

Doctor Chakwas would like a bottle of Serrice Ice Brandy but hasn't been able to find one.

You can obtain a bottle of Serrice Ice Brandy:

• On the bar in Afterlife on Omega
• In Dark Star on level 28 of the Zakera Ward on the Citadel
• From Ratch's kiosk on Tuchanka

Pick up the bottle and deliver it to Dr. Chakwas.

Special Ingredients

Mess Sergeant Gardner needs special provisions. These provisions can be purchased at the Zakera Cafe next to C-Sec on the Citadel. Once the goods are purchased, return to Gardner.

Omega

These Assignments are found by exploring Omega.

Archangel: Datapad Recovered

Found in the room with Jaroth during the mission to recruit Archangel.

Return the datapad to Aria in Afterlife. Unlocks the mission “Eclipse Smuggling Depot.”

Packages for Ish

Ish and his friend Sel are located between the main entrance to Afterlife and the door leading to the Marketplace.

If you agree to Ish’s deal, you will need to pick up two packages for him. The first is datapad outside of Saronis Applications on Level 26 of the Zakera Ward on the Citadel. The other datapad is on a sectional couch at the far end of the Eternity Bar on Illium. When you have both packages, return to Omega and deliver them to Ish.

Struggling Quarian

There are a few ways to complete this task, the easiest being to give Kenn 1000 credits so he can leave Omega. If you choose not to give him he credits, talk to Harrot at his store in the marketplace. Choose between the options given, then return to Kenn.

The Professor: Missing Assistant

After first meeting Mordin Solus in his clinic, he will task you with restoring power to the generators- and finding his missing assistant, Daniel. Do the mission as normal, except immediately before you enter the fan room, the path splits. Right takes you to the fan room and the end of the mission, left to Daniel. Head left to a locked door and bypass it. Daniel is inside being held captive by a group of Batarians. You can either use paragon or intimidate to convince the Batarians to let Daniel go, at which point you can kill the Batarians anyways or let them go as well. Trying to kill the Batarians while Daniel is still held hostage will get him killed. Daniel will automatically return to the clinic once you have freed him.

The Patriarch

Speak with Grizz, and he will tell you to find Patriarch and warn him that there’s a price on his head. Patriarch is in the side room in Lower Afterlife. Once you tell Patriarch he needs to leave, choose one of the dialogue options. If you choose Paragon, go to the back alley, then report back to Aria. If you choose Renegade, just go talk to Aria.

Citadel

These Assignments are found while exploring the Citadel. The CItadel hub has changed quite a bit since Mass Effect 1- probably the most obvious sign of the tonal shift from game to game.

Crime In Progress

A Quarian and a Volus have some sort of dispute on the Citadel, with a C-Sec officer trying to go through the motions and work it out. They can be found on level 26 of the Zakera Ward.

The Volus accuses the Quarian of bumping into him and stealing his "Credit Chit." Question the Volus to see where he was when he last had it. He will tell you he was shopping at Sirta Foundation, the store located behind the arguing pair. Talk to the store's owner and she'll tell you she doesn't remember. Then walk to the store across from Sirta Foundation, called Saronis Applications. Talk to Marab inside the store and he will tell you the Volus left his "chit" there. Collect the chit and return to the Volus. Hit the quicktime event for paragon points.

Interview 2.0

Remember that reporter from the first game that you either punched out made look crazy? Well she's back, and you can think of this as your second chance!

You’ll find Khalisah al-Jilani on level 28 of the Zakera Ward. If you talk to her she’ll request a second interview. During the course of the interview, you are given a Renegade interrupt to end the talk very abruptly. If you chose not to interrupt, pick from one of the dialogue options to end the interview.

Take it from us: PUNCH HER IN THE FACE.

Found Forged ID/False Positives

*This assignment will not appear until after you have done Thane's loyalty mission.*

There are two Asari on level 27 of the Zakera Ward who cannot pass through C-Sec. You can get them through security a few ways:

1. If you picked up the fake IDs on Garrus' loyalty mission, you can just give them to the Asari. The IDs are located at the very end of the segment where you hunt down Harkin, in the room before you fight the two mechs.
2. If you missed/ don't yet have the IDs, talk to the Asari, who will tell you to talk to C-Sec. Talk to the customs officer- a high enough paragon/renegade will allow you to convince C-Sec to let them through, finishing the quest.

Apparently if you convince C-Sec to let them through, then do Garrus' mission and get the fake IDs, the Asari appear again, allowing you to get double XP for this quest.

Krogan Sushi1

On Level 27 of the Zakera Ward you’ll find two Krogan questioning whether there are fish in the lakes of the Presidium. Listen to their conversation until you get the mission pop-up, then head to the Dark Star club on Level 28. Talk to the Presidium Groundskeeper inside the club, then go back and talk to the Krogan again to complete the quest.

Why is this a quest? I have no idea.

Illium

These Assignments are found while either exploring Illium or during missions conducted on Illium.

Blue Rose of Illium

A Krogan named Charr is reciting love poems to his Asari girlfriend. Talk to her about their relationship, then choose either the paragon or renegade dialogue options.

Conrad Verner

The carryover from Mass Effect 1 is bugged/intentionally nonexistent for this quest. Regardless of your actions in the first game, Conrad will always say you put a gun in his face and scared him off.

If you didn't make Conrad Verner (the crazy fan) commit suicide in Mass Effect 1, he can be found in the Eternity club on Illium, threatening a bartender. Apparently, in the intervening two years between your death and now, Conrad has BECOME YOU. Or at least is trying his best- he's wearing an N7 armor replica, and going around trying to "right wrongs". This being Conrad Verner, he's not doing so hot. There are a few options for dealing with Conrad in this situation.

1. You can talk to him and find out that an Asari merchant tricked him into trying to get the deed to the bar for her. This Asari merchant is not on the trading floor, but instead over near the Transportation Hub. Talk to her choose the paragon or renegade option. Talk to Conrad, and choose one of the dialogue options to complete the mission.
2. You can convince Conrad he's not cut out for this line of work by just flat-out telling him so, or by SHOOTING HIM IN THE FOOT.

Indentured Service

After speaking to the Slave Broker, talk to the Synthetic Insights Rep about purchasing the Quarian. You can either choose the paragon/renegade option to sell the Quarian to her, or you can choose the upper right dialogue option to understand her reasoning. If you choose the upper right option, return to the Slave Broker. From there you can choose the paragon/renegade option to free the Quarian.

Gianna Parasini

If you helped Gianna Parasini take down Anolleis on Noveria in Mass Effect 1, she'll show up on Illium trying to take down a corrupt merchant and she'll ask for your help in getting the asari to admit guilt.

Liara: System Hacking

For this mission, Liara wants you hack three terminals around the taxi/shopping area of Illium and upload the data from vulnerable spots nearby. Thankfully, you’re provided with nifty a distance meter that emits a tone that intensifies as you near the target, but since you’re reading this you won’t really need it (unless I’m not specific enough).

The first terminal is along the wall to your right as you enter the area with all of the taxis. Hack the terminal, then walk over and access the valuable data near the Baria Frontiers kiosk. The second terminal is along the wall to your left as you enter the taxi area. Hack the terminal, then walk down past the Memories of Illium store and access the data from the terminal in the corner. The third terminal is on the wall next to Gateway Personal Defense. Once again, hack it, then walk over to the kiosk next to Officer Dara’s office and access the data. Once you have the data, return to Liara for the next phase of the mission.

Liara: The Observer

After you help Liara collect the data in the “System Hacking” mission, she now wants you to hack more terminals. Yeah, just what I wanted. Anyway, there are five terminals you can hack to gather information on the identity of the Observer. You must hack the terminal, and either call Liara immediately or wait until you have all of the data. There’s no need to wander too far, most of the terminals are on the Trading Floor area.

The terminals are located:

1. Next to the stairs leading up to Liara’s office.
2. On the right side large scrolling screen.
3. On the circular terminal next to the left side large scrolling screen.
4. On the circular terminal closest to the path back to the Normandy.
5. Inside the Eternity Bar.

Now to be clear you could only hack one terminal, call Liara, choose who to kill, and report back to her, but then you wouldn’t know who the real Observer is! So, once you hack all five terminals, make the call and tell her something’s not right about this information. Then talk to Liara again to found out who is the real spy. Mission Complete!

Medical Scans

Shiala, the Asari you met on Feros if you played Mass Effect 1, needs you help. Speak with her and then talk to Erinya, who is standing next to the Baria Frontiers kiosk. Get her to talk about her family, then choose either the paragon or renegade dialogue options. Return to Shiala when you’re done. If you killed Shiala but still saved the colony, a random Feros colonist will give you this quest.

The Assassin: Salarian Family Data

This mission is found when you pick up a datapad during the mission to recruit the Assassin.

The datapad is found near the elevator when you get off and deal with the guard by the window. You might miss it if you don’t go back to the elevator. Pick it up and deliver it to the Salarian in the Shipping Cargo area to complete the mission.

The Justicar: Smuggling Evidence

This mission is found during your mission to recruit the Justicar.

Pick up the Shipping Manifest in the room with the door you must bypass after you destroy the gunship. You can either give the manifest to Pitne For or Detective Anaya to complete the mission.

The Justicar: Stolen Goods Found

This mission can be found on your way to the crime scene during your mission to recruit the Justicar.

Read the Shipping Details terminal, and the next time you dock at Illium a Krogan will ask you if you have the information. Speak with him to complete the mission.

The Prodigal: Lost Locket Found

This mission is found during Miranda’s loyalty mission.

The lost locket is labeled “Trinket” and is found on a crate next to the elevator after to take care of Enyala. Pick up the locket and deliver it to the Asari outside of the trading floor on Illium to complete the mission.

Tuchanka

Tuchanka, the Krogan homeworld, is another hub planet you can visit, although it has very few quests. This is one of the areas where your choices in Mass Effect 1 will be the most noticeable- depending on if you saved or killed Wrex on Virmire, the situation on Tuchanka can be extremely different. Tuchanka can only be unlocked to visit by taking on Grunt or Mordin's loyalty quest- both require you to visit the planet.

Combustion Manifold

Talk to the Mechanic working on the large truck and he will tell you he needs a combustion manifold. You can find the Combustion Manifold to the right of the door you must bypass in order to enter Clan Weyrloc’s base. Deliver the manifold to the Mechanic to complete the mission.

Killing Pyjaks

To find the mission, talk to Ratch about the local Pyjak problem. Then head over to the Defense Gun Controls next to the Chief Scout. There are three waves of Pyjaks you must kill to complete the mission. The first wave consists of 12 Pyjaks, with a second wave of 15 Pyjaks and a third wave of 18 Pyjaks.

The launcher only has 20 rounds per wave, so don't spam. Each launcher round has a bit of splash damage, so you don’t have to hit the Pyjak directly to kill it. Also, there is about a 1 second delay between launching a round and hitting the target, so make sure not to aim where the Pyjak is, but where it will be. Complete the three waves and return to Ratch.

Old Blood: Missing Scout

Found in the Clan Weyrloc’s Base during Mordin’s loyalty mission.

You can find the scout behind a door to the right after you examine the dead Krogan female. You can talk him into going back to the Urdnot base, or you could also force a Renegade interrupt. If you manage to save him, return to the Chief Scout.

N7 (Galactic)

These quests are found by scanning, mission rewards or messages from your private terminal. Usually scanning.

Abandoned Mine

This mission is found on Aequitas in the Fortis system of Minos Wasteland.

Scan the planet and launch a probe to land. Before entering the mine, there is a container with some credits next to a corpse. When heading in through the mine entrance, there will be a box of Refined Iridium [440] to the right of the table with the datapad. You will be fighting a lot of Husks and Abominations, so use incendiary ammo or powers to quickly bring them down. Be careful, Abominations will explode before they die. As you head further in to mine there will be another box of Refined Iridium [600], then when you come to a ramp you will find yet another box of Refined Iridium [560].

Go up the ramp and bypass the locker to get some credits. Continue forward and you will find, once again some Refined Iridium [400]. It’s almost as if this were once a mine or something! When you come to a fork in the path there will be a Med Station to the left. Both paths lead to the same place, so fight you way to the room containing the alien device and shoot both bombs to complete the mission. If you can, there is a locker to bypass just outside of that room.

Abandoned Research Station

Found near Antigar in the Strabo system in the Eagle Nebula. This mission is given to you through your private terminal, it cannot be found by searching.

To open the locked door, go into the other room and restore power to the docking area. The room also contains two boxes of Refined Iridium [600/400]. Once that is done, head into the Hub Area with the sealed VI room. You won’t be able to enter the VI room until you restore power to the rest of the station. Along the outer wall of the Hub Area are three doors.

The door to your left is the Research Lab (It will be marked on the wall). Inside the lab you will find two boxes of Refined Iridium [600/400]. Once you restore power to the lab, you must solve the puzzle. Use the computers to rotate the reflectors so the beam will destroy the cylinder on the other side of the room. One way to solve this puzzle is to activate:

1. Computer 1 once.
2. Computer 2 twice.
3. Computer 3 once.
4. Computer 4 three times.

When the cylinder is destroyed head back into the Hub Area.

The door opposite from the entrance to the Hub Area is Engineering. The hallways here are venting gas, and will cause damage when it hits you. Head down the hallway while trying to avoid the gas leaks. On the right will be a room with a Personal Locker containing some credits. Once you reach the end of the path there will be a console to restore power to Engineering. Once power is the store the leaks will stop, so head back into the main room.

The last door, located to the left of the main room entrance, leads to the Living Quarters. Make your way into the room with the console and restore power to the area. Unfortunately, restoring power will lock all of the doors in the area. Oops. To unlock all of the doors, face the three computers on the desk in the room and activate them in this order: Right, middle, left, middle. That will unlock all of the doors in the living quarters, including the one that was locked when you first entered. Inside that room are three Personal Lockers filled with credits. Next, head back to the Hub Area to face the VI.

In front of the VI room is an access panel. Restore power to the Hub Area and enter the newly unlocked doors. Shut down the VI to complete the mission.

Anomalous Weather Detected

This mission is found on Canalus in the Dirada system of the Pylos Nebula.

Scan the planet and launch a probe to land. Visibility is poor on this planet, so use caution. On the other side of the large stone pillar in front of you is some Refined Palladium [100]. Fight your way up the hill and watch you for Geth Hunters. At the top of the hill are three boxes of Refined Palladium [200x2/100]. The area at the bottom of the hill has two more boxes of Refined Palladium [200x2]. When the path narrows, take cover, there will be a Geth Destroyer along with some Hunters and plenty of Troopers. When they are all taken care of, access the Geth Device at the end of the path to complete the mission.

Archeological Dig Site

Found on Joab in the Enoch system of the Rosetta Nebula.

Scan the planet and launch a probe to land. Fight the Blue Suns Mercs and go through the door to enter the dig site. Fight more mercs, and go up the ramps and through the door down the long hallway. In the next room fight your way past the Blue Suns Commander and Captain Locke. Go into the room past where you fought Locke and scan the Prothean Video Log to complete the mission.

Blood Pack Base

Found on Zada Ben in the Xe Cha system of The Shrike Abyssal.

Scan the planet and launch a probe to land. Walk across the land bridge and down the ramp. Cross the next land bridge and go through the door to your right. Take out Kalusk and shoot the Containment cells, and then quickly go back through the door to complete the mission.

Blood Pack Communications Relay

Found on Tarith in the Lusarn system of the Cresent Nebula.

Scan the planet and launch a probe to land. Follow the path and activate the beacons along the way, using the blue beam as a guide to each beacon. Once you reach the end, fight Samaul and bypass the Communications Terminal to end the mission.

Blue Suns Base

This mission takes places on the planet Sanctum, in the Decoris System of the Sigurd’s Cradle star cluster.

Scan the planet to find the landing site. Take cover immediately as many Blue Suns Troopers will pour out of the base entrance. Once they are all dead, head inside, but don’t forget to pick up the box of Refined Iridium [400] wedged in between some crates before you go up the stairs and into the base. Take cover once you’re inside the base, and defeat the Troopers and the Eclipse Commander. The Commander has shields and armor, so remember to use the appropriate ammo types and powers to bring him down. The room to the right contains a Wall Safe.

The room to the left will lead to a cave entrance. Kill the incoming troops and go into the cave. On the left there will be a box of Refined Iridium [400]. Proceed through the cave where you will find two more boxes of Refined Iridium [400x2]. Defeat the two YMIR Mechs, then Captain Narom and some Troopers. In the room to the left of the Bypass Door is a Wall Safe. Bypass the door and overload the distress beacon to complete the mission.

Captured Mining Facility

Found on Helyme in the Zelene system of the Crescent Nebula.

Scan the planet and launch a probe to land. Make your way into the facility and bypass the door. Before you bypass, there is some Refined Palladium [2000] to the left on some crates near a rocky ledge. Once you are inside the facility move forward while fighing the Eclipse Troops. Turn left and fight your way to the Bridge Control panel. Then go to the Mainframe terminal. Hack it and decrypt the Encrypted Data.

Reinforcements with storm in form where you entered so take up positions and hold out until the data is decrypted. Enemies will have barriers, shields and armor so make sure to use everything at your disposal. Once the decryption is complete examine the Mainframe panel. Exit the menu and end the mission when you are ready.

Eclipse Smuggling Depot

Mission given to you as a reward for completing Archangel: Datapad Recovered. Found on Daratar in the Faryar system of the Hourglass Nebula.

To complete this mission, you must destroy the three YMIR Mechs destroying the crates. Make sure to use different ammo types and powers to take them down faster. Here’s a tip: If you have the M-920 Cain, fire it at the center of the area and you will destroy the Mechs with a single shot and not destroy any of the crates. Also, check near Security Systems terminal for a Med Kit and some Refined Element Zero.

Endangered Research Station

This mission is located in the Caleston Rift cluster, the Solveig system, and on the planet Sinmara.

After landing on the station, move forward along the path, making sure to salvage the broken generator for +2000 Palladium. Head towards the control station, and bypass it to unlock. Even if you fail the bypass you won't be locked out. After the walls fold down move forward. Hitting the control button in the center will power up one of the consoles (you can tell because there will be a display screen active on the object). First, activate the cooling system, then activate the shield generator, then bypass the main control console. This will trigger a cutscene of the station's sheilds activating, and the mission is over.

Hahne-Kedar Facility

Found on Capek in the Haskins system of the Titan Nebula. This mission is given to you through your private terminal.

Scan the planet and launch a probe. Fight the Mechs outside and enter the facility. The room across from you as you enter has a Wall Safe and Med Kit. Fight your way through the factory floor, and along the way you’ll find boxes of Refined Element Zero [150/175]. In the stairwell there is a box Refined Element Zero [175]. Head up the stairs and hack the console to complete the mission.

Imminent Ship Crash

This mission is given through your private terminal. The ship is located next to Jonus in the Nariph system of the Pylos Nebula.

This is a timed mission, and you only have 6 minutes to prevent the ship from crashing. Bypass the door in front of you and take down the Geth inside and override the console to open the door. In the next room you have to activate the power couplings on the lower level, then make your way up the ramp and hack the console to restart the engine. There’s also a box of Refined Iridium [800] next to Power Coupling 2 if you can get it.

Javelin Missiles Launched

Found on Franklin, Skepsis system, Sigurd’s Cradle.

Scan the planet. This is a timed mission, so you only have five minutes to stop the launch. Start by killing the Batarians in the hallway and bypassing the door. Defeat all of the enemies and bypass the door at the bottom of the stairs. If there is enough time, grab the Refined Palladium [2000] near where the Batarians were positioned. Kill the Commander and hack the console. Pick one of the options to complete the mission. Before ending the mission, be sure to grab the credits from the Wall Safe.

Lost Operative

The Eclipse base is located on Lorek in the Fathar System of the Omega Nebula.

At the start of the mission there will be a box of Refined Platinum [1200] behind some crates to your right, next to the shuttle. Go up the platform and through the door on the right. Inside there are some Eclipse Troopers and perhaps a few Eclipse Vanguards. Once they are taken care of, more enemies will come in from the room across from you. After all of the enemies are dead, go into that room to find a Wall Safe and a Med Kit. Next, bypass the Holding Cell Access panel.

When that is done, more Eclipse Troopers will enter the room through the doors on the other side of the room, along with Morl and usually an Eclipse Vanguard. Morl has armor and shielding, so make sure to use ammo type and powers accordingly. Up the ramp and through the doorway on the right will be a box of Refined Platinum [800]. Bypass the door at the end of the hallway and access the Data Logs. Choose one of the options to end the mission.

Mining the Canyon

Found on Taitus, in the Talava system, Caleston Rift.

As soon as you land, read the datapad, the bypass the mech to turn it on. What you need to do is find power cells so the mech can operate. There's one right in the courtyard the shuttle lands in, feed it to the mech and he'll blast through the canyon wall. Where there's a rift in the canyon, take the right pth and pick up another power cell, then feed it to the mech to continue. Walk ahead of the mech and down the ramp. To the left are a couple Varren guarding another power cell. Kill them, take the power cell, and feed the mech. As you continue moving up the canyon there is a power cell next to a piece of junk, pick it up and give it to the mech- he'll go forward and blast through another wall, destroying itself but opening the 5000 Platinum for you to take.

MSV Estevanico

Found on Zanethu in the Ploitari system of the Hourglass Nebula.

Scan the planet and launch a probe to land. Once on top of the ship, shoot the piece of the ship that is swaying in front of you. Then, walk down the girder that appears after another piece of the ship falls. On the next platform walk down the girder to you right. Walk up the newly formed ramp and open the box of Refined Iridium [500]. From there, walk up the girders to the walkway with the next box of Refined Iridium [500].

Vault up onto the girder in front of you and vault again onto the platform. Run down the path to where it ends and start to walk across the beam on the right. Then walk across the beam leading down to the next platform and walk onto the stairs. The stairs will fall, then run down path where you see the Refined Iridium and go up the stairs. Continue in the direction until a girder falls and makes a path to the Mainframe panel (with the flashing red light). Access the Mainframe terminal to complete the mission.

MSV Strontium Mule

Found in the Arinlarkan system of the Omega Nebula.

Fight the Blue Suns in the first room and head up the ramps in the adjoining room. Bypass the Hub Security Console at the top to unlock the three doors. Head upstairs and fight your way to a door that needs to be bypassed, then go left to find the controls to bypass it. Once the door is open kill everyone inside and scan the Ship’s Log.

Then immediately take a defensive position inside that room because reinforcements will be coming down the hallway across from you. Once they are all taken care of, go down the hallway where the enemies were appearing and turn left. Go through that door and recover the Payload in the room, then end the mission.

Quarian Crash Site

Found on Gei Hinnom in the Sheol system of the Hades Nexus star cluster.

Scan the planet and launch a probe to land. At the start there is a box of Refined Palladium [2000] to your left, and once you collect that go down the path and stabilize Forzan vas Idenna. Fight off the waves of Varren until the shuttle arrives. Board the shuttle to complete the mission.

Wrecked Merchant Freighter

This mission is found on Neith in the Amun system of the Eagle Nebula.

Scan the planet and launch a probe to land. You won’t encounter any enemies until you make it to opposite side of the area, so make sure to look around for parts to salvage and two boxes of Refined Platimun [420-440]. When you are ready, deactivate the Signal Transmitter and make your way back to the shuttle. You’ll be fighting a lot of LOKI Mechs and a YMIR Mech, so equip Disruptor Ammo and use tech powers. Get back to the shuttle and press the corresponding button to complete the mission.

Classes

These are the classes you can select for Shepard

Adept

The Adept, outfitted with L5x implants, is a biotic specialist, capable of disabling and killing enemies with raw biotic power. With their unique talents, Adepts are the only class able to deploy the Singularity power, a lethal biotic trap capable of snaring multiple enemies. When enemies hide behind cover Adepts are able to Pull them, exposing them for a deadly follow-up attack. Additionally Adepts are able to throw the opposition with their Push ability, making cliffs and ledges lethal opportunities. While they lack advanced combat training, Adepts are the best class at defeating enemies without firing a shot. Abilities: Warp Push Pull Singularity Shockwave

Engineer

They are tech specialists, the only class able to employ combat drones on the battlefield. Summon combat drones to harass enemies, knocking them out of cover and drawing fire away from you. Additionally Engineers can hack mechanized opponents turning deadly enemies into powerful allies. With the ability to use tech powers to manipulate combat, they turn difficult battles into victories.. Upgrade your drones, giving them a powerful energy blast or turn them into a deadly bomb. Additionally Engineers have potent offensive capabilities including Incinerate and Overload. Abilities: Combat Drone Incinerate Overload Cryo Freeze AI Hacking

Infiltrator

Infiltrators are tech and combat specialists and the only class able to cloak themselves from detection. They are deadly at any range, with a wide variety of weapons, equipment, and powers that can take down even the most fortified of defenses. With their training in Sniper Rifles, Infiltrators can eliminate foes from safety before moving in. Additionally, with a combination of ammo types at their disposal Infiltrators can handle both organic and synthetic enemies with ease. When combat gets heated, Infiltrators are able to deploy a Tactical Cloak and evade enemies before rejoining the battle and disposing of any remaining opposition. Abilities: Disruptor Ammo Cryo Ammo Tactical Cloak Incinerate AI Hacking

Sentinel

Sentinels are unique, bringing both tech and biotic abilities to the battlefield. They are versatile and always equipped to deal with any situation. After overloading an enemy shield, Sentinels have no trouble throwing the opponent with their biotic powers. Additionally when battles become too heated, they can Cryo Freeze an enemy buying the Sentinel precious time eliminate foes or take cover. Sentinels are also equipped with the most advanced Tech Armor to keeping them safe in hostile situations. If overloaded, the system discharge and stun all enemies within a short distance. Abilities: Throw Warp Overload Tech Armor Cryo Freeze

Soldier

Soldiers are outfitted with an ocular synaptic processor allowing them to fire with heightened focus at their targets. Whether they are picking off Geth at long range, or disposing of a pack of Vorcha up close with a shotgun, Soldiers can overcome any obstacle with sheer firepower. They are the only class capable of wielding assault rifles, and are masters of all other forms of weaponry and ammunition types. When Soldiers utilize their Adrenaline Rush ability, they seemingly slow down time around them giving them precious moments to eliminate foes with lethal accuracy. Additionally when battles get heated, Soldiers can deploy an explosive concussive shot to knock down multiple enemies. Abilities: Adrenaline Rush Concussive Shot Incendiary Ammo Cryo Ammo Disruptor Ammo

Vanguard

Vanguards are outfitted with a L5n implant giving them powerful biotic capabilities; coupled with their weapons training, they become lethal at close range. Vanguards are capable at closing the distance instantly on an enemy with their unique Charge ability. Gathering immense biotic power, Vanguards will Charge toward an enemy, passing over chasms and through obstacles where upon they collide with their target, sending them flying through the air. Additionally Vanguards are able to release an explosive Shockwave, tossing enemies and knocking them from cover. If Vanguards find themselves in trouble, they are also able to use their Charge ability for a quick escape to safety. Abilities: Inferno Ammo Improved Cryo Ammo Charge Shockwave Pull

Weapons

Weapons in Mass Effect 2 are handled a bit differently than in the first game. There are only about twenty weapons total in the game, and they can only be changed at the start of a mission or at designated weapons lockers. When you finsd a new weapon everyone on your team gets a copy, and the game usually auto-equips your best weapon, so you rarely have to worry about changing them around yourself.

Assault Rifles

• X-8c Avenger - Standard assault rifle.
• X-15c Vindicator - Found on Omega near Archangel.
• M-76 Revenant - Only available to Soldier Shepard on the Collector ship.
• Geth Pulse Rifle - Only available in Recruit Tali mission on Hardcore or Insane Difficulty.
• Collector Assault Rifle - Only available with the Collectors Edition of Mass Effect 2.

Shotguns

• S-23d Katana Shotgun - Standard Shotgun.
• S-27d Scimitar Assault Shotgun - Found during Samara Recruitment Mission
• M-300 Claymore Heavy Shotgun - Only available to Grunt after upgrade.
  (Also available to Shepard on the collector ship if he already has the proficiency)

Submachine Gun

• X-4d Shuriken Machine Pistol - Standard SMG
• X-9d Tempest Submachine Gun - Acquired on the mission to recruit Tali

Heavy Pistols

• X-3c Predator Heavy Pistol - First weapon found in game.
• X-6c Carniflex Handcanon - Received from from Mordin when you first meet him

Sniper Rifles

• S-92c Mantis Sniper Rifle - Standard Sniper Rifle
• S-97c Viper Sniper Rifle - Found during The Assasin recruitment mission.
• M-98 Widow Anti-Material Rifle - Only available to Legion after upgrade.
  (Also available to Shepard on the collector ship if he already has the proficiency)
• M-29 Incisor Sniper Rifle - Only available with Collectors Edition of Mass Effect 2

Heavy Weapons

• M-100 Grenade Launcher - First heavy weapon you find in the tutorial.
• M-622 Avalanche -Researched
• Collector Particle Beam - Found on Horizon.
• ML-77 Missile Launcher - Researched
• M-920 Cain - Researched (this weapon only fires when it is at 100%)
• M-451 Firestorm - Can be found during Zaeed's loyalty quest
• M-490 Blackstorm Projector- Gamestop preorder bonus

Upgrades

One of Mass Effect 2's big features is the new upgrade system, which essentially replaces the loot system from the original game. You discover upgrades on missions by scanning technology, or buying the blueprints in stores. Once you've obtained the upgrade blueprint, return to the tech lab on the Normandy (unlocked after recruiting Mordin) and look at the research terminal. All the upgrades you can research will be listed, with ones you cannot afford grayed out. To actually make these upgrades requires a certain amount of resources, which are obtained by mining planets.

Weapon Upgrades

Assault Rifles:

• Assault Rifle Accuracy
• Assault Rifle Damage (5 levels 50% total) ( 1 extra level if you take the renegade path in the Zaeed loyalty mission)
• Assault Rifle Penetration

Heavy Pistols:

• AP Heavy Pistol
• Heavy Pistol Critical
• Heavy Pistol Damage (5 levels 50% total)

Shotguns:

• Shotgun Damage (5 levels 50% total)
• Shotgun Extra Rounds
• Shotgun Shield Piercing

Sniper Rifles:

• AP Sniper Rifle
• Sniper Headshot Damage
• Sniper Rifle Damage (5 levels 50% total)

Sub Machine Guns:

• SMG Damage (5 levels 50% total)
• SMG Extra Rounds
• SMG Shield Piercing

Heavy Weapons:

• Heavy Weapon Ammo (5 levels 75% total) (1 extra level if you take the paragon path in the Zaeed loyalty mission)
• M-622 Avalanche
• M-920 Cain
• ML-77 Missile Launcher

Squad Upgrades

All these upgrades are for your entire squad unless specified otherwise.

• Biotic Cooldown - 20% faster biotic cooldown
• Biotic Damage - 5 levels 10% biotic damage per level
• Biotic Duration - 20% biotic power duration
• Damage Protection - 5 levels 10% shields, barriers and armor
• Emergency Shielding - Unity restores squad members to full strength
• Medigel Capacity - 5 levels +1 medigel capacity per level
• Tech Cooldowns - 20% faster cooldown on tech abilities
• Tech Damage - 5 levels 10% per level to tech power damage
• Tech Duration - 20% duration for all tech powers
• Trauma Module - Unity heals your squad members to full health

Team Upgrades

Shepard Upgrades

• Bypass Module - Doubles the time limit for bypass
• Hack Module - Doubles the time limit for hack
• Hard Shields - Shepard's shields take 20% less damage
• Heavy Bone Weave - Shepard takes 50% less damage from melee attacks
• Heavy Muscle Weave - Shepard's melee attack is now more powerful
• Heavy Skin Weave - 5 levels 10% health per level for Shepard
• Redundant Field Generator - Randomly regenerate Shepard's shields to full

Legion Upgrades:

• Geth Shield Strength - Increases shield strength (2 levels 50% total)
• Geth Sniper Rifle - Custom Sniper Rifle

Grunt Upgrades:

• Krogan Shotgun - Custom Shotgun
• Krogan Vitality - Increases Health (2 levels 50% total)

Other Upgrades:

• Mordin Omni-tool - Increase Mordin's Tech Damage by 20%
• Subject Zero Biotic Boost - Increase Jack's Biotic Damage by 20%

Ship Upgrades

Talk to the corresponding people and ask for [Normandy Upgrade]

• Advanced Mineral Scanner - Increases the movement speed and size of the mineral scanner (Miranda)
• Extended Fuel Cells - Increases fuel reserves by 500 to 1500 (Samara)
• Heavy Ship Armor - Add armor to the Normandy (Jacob - Suicide Mission)
• Probe Booster - Doubles the number of probes you can carry to 60 (Thane)
• Med-bay Upgrade - Instantly repairs any scars Shepard might have (Talk to the Doctor)
• Multicore Shielding - Add Multicore Shielding to the Normandy (Tali - Suicide Mission)
• Thanix Cannon - Adds a particle cannon to the Normandy (Garrus - Suicide Mission)

Shops

This section covers all the things that you can buy in stores, the original prices are listed along with discounted prices if you can get a discount at the store

Resources

This section is meant to help you in the quest for resources, you need lots of them to get the upgrades for both the Normandy and for your weapons and characters. The problem is it can be a bitch to find out which planets are good for mining, below you will find all the planets listen by Nebula along with there richness in minerals

Just a note to help out, any planets that have an anomaly (N7 side Missions) will be marked with an N7 like so (N7)

Mining Basics

The mining minigame is incredibly simple- rather menial actually, especially in long sessions. The Normandy has a set number of probes to mine planets with (30 originally, 60 with an upgrade); once these probes are depleted you cannot mine any more minerals and must return to a fuel depot to purchase more.

Once you enter the planetary scanner, you can move the cursor around with the joystick or the mouse. To begin scanning, hold down the left trigger or the right mouse button- this will slow down the cursor movement speed, but also activate the mineral graph. Move the cursor around until you see a spike in the graph- this indicates the presence of resources. The higher the spike he more resources your probe will retrieve. On the 360 your controller will rumble as you get closer to mineral deposits, allowing easier location. Once you've found where the mineral is, press RT or left mouse to fire a probe and retrieve the resources. Once you fire a probe all the resources in that spot are gone- you'll never need to fire two probes at the same spot.

Caleston Rift

Crescent Nebula

Eagle Nebula

Far Rim

Hades Nexus

Hawking Eta

Hourglass Nebula

Ismar Frontier

Krogan DMZ

Local Cluster

Shadow Sea

Minos Wastleand

Nubian Expanse

Omega Nebula

Pylos Nebula

Rosetta Nebula

Serpent Nebula

Sigurd's Cradle

The Phoenix Massing

The Shrike Abyssal

Titan Nebula

Vallhallan Threshold

Skills

Below is a breakdown of all available skills/powers in Mass Effect 2 along with tables showing how they progress as you level up. To level up your skills, go to the pause menu and select the "Squad" option. It will be glowing when you have points to allocate. When leveling up, remember that it is possible to respec Commander Shepard (by paying 3000 Element Zero), but it is impossible to respec your companions without starting a new playthrough, so be careful what you spend your points on.

There are a total of 51 obtainable points to spend on Commander Shepard's skills, while there are 30 total points to spend on each squadmember.

Ammo Powers

Ammo powers modify the way your weapon deals basic damage, increasing the harm done to certain types of enemy defenses. Ammo powers have no time limit once activated, but you can't stack ammo power effects on top of each other. At level 4 you can choose between unlocking that ammo ability for your entire squad, or unlocking a much stronger individual version of that ammo power. Usually the squad version is advisable as you multiply the effects thrice over, but the individual upgrades can be pretty nice.

Ammo Powers:

• Incendiary Ammo
• Cryo Ammo
• Disruptor Ammo

Ammo Using Classes:

• Soldier
• Vanguard
• Infiltrator

Incendiary Ammo

Incendiary ammo is useful for taking down enemy armor very quickly. It deals damage over time but bullets only do a percentage of the weapon damage. Very useful against Scions.

Cryo Ammo

The greater your Cryo Ammo rank the higher chance of enemies freezing.

Disruptor Ammo

Disruptor Ammo works well against Synthetics and enemy shields.

Biotic Powers

Biotics function much the same as they did in the first game- they offer new abilities that can change the way combat works by incapacitating an enemy or affecting their defenses. Biotic powers tend to recharge very quickly and only last for short periods of time. When upgrading a biotic power to level 4 the player is given the choice of increasing it's effective radius, allowing it to hit more targets, or creating a stronger version of the power, allowing it to deal more damage. Both are effective, and which you choose depends more on your playstyle than any imperial benefits we can list.

Biotic Powers:

• Shockwave
• Pull
• Warp
• Throw

Biotic Using Classes:

• Adept
• Vanguard
• Sentinel

Shockwave

Shockwave creates a ripple effect that tosses any enemy in it's path into the air.

Pull

Pull forces the target out of their cover, lifting them into the air. Once that it's unprotected you can use other abilities at your leisure.

Throw

Throw knocks your enemies back with a tremendous amount of force.

Warp

Warp is really useful for taking out enemy barriers quickly.

Tech Powers

Tech Powers are very similar to Biotic abilities--they recharge rather quickly, they don't last too long, and the rank 4 upgrade is a choice between area damage or heavier single target damage.

Tech Powers:

• Incinerate
• AI Hacking
• Overload
• Cryo Blast

Tech Using Classes:

• Sentinel
• Infiltrator
• Engineer

Incinerate

Incinerate is a concentrated fire attack that can devastate all enemies, especially those with armor.

AI Hacking

AI Hacking allows the user to hack a synthetic and turn it against it's allies. Hacking past Rank 2 will even generate a shield for your new ally.

Overload

Overload is great at decimating enemy shields and stopping synthetics in their tracks.

Cryo Blast

Cryo Blast deals damage and can potentially freeze your opponents in their place, allowing for you to shatter them into a thousand pieces.

Special Powers

Each class in Mass Effect 2 gets one specific ability that no other class can use. This ability is always mapped to the Y button on the 360 controller.

Charge

Charge is the class specific Vangaurd skill that allows you to zoom across the room and ram into an enemy with a large amount of force.

Adrenaline Rush

The Soldier's specific class power is Adrenaline Rush, which slows time to allow for more precise aiming.

Concussive Shot

The soldier gets a second ability that no on else gets, concussive shot, it releases a single strong round and when leveled it can be devastating.

Tactical Cloak

The Infiltrator's specific class power is Cloak, which allows you to become invisible along with extra damage to the first hit while invisible, great for lining up sniper headshots.

Singularity

The Adept's class-specific power is Singularity, which generates a mini black hole that incapacitates non-shielded enemies and damages shields and kinetic barriers.

Tech Armor

Tech Armor is the Sentinel's Special Power. It allows the user to boost their armor for defensive purposes, and release an energy pulse when depleted.

Combat Drone

The Combat Drone is the Engineers Special Power. A small spherical drone appears to distract and attack your enemies.

Class Modifiers

The Class Modifiers are skills specific to a single class and are designed to boost that classes abilitys. The standard choice for a class 4 evolution will make you chose between a modifier for getting more damage and longer power lengths or quicker cooldown times. They will also have a choice between getting a 75 %or 100% boost to your Paragon and Renegade points.

Combat Mastery

The soldier's class modifer boosts Health, Damage, Storm Speed and your Paragon or Renegade points

Operative

The Infiltrator's special Modifier boosts Health, Weapon Damage, and Power Recharge Time

Biotic Mastery

Biotic Mastery is the Class Modifier for Adepts, pretty much the same as any other.

Tech Mastery

Tech Mastery is the Engineers Class Modifier that can allow someone who is playing the Engineer to lower the price of upgrades, as well as the same things that the other modifiers do.

Assault Mastery

Assault Mastery is the Vanguards Class Modifier, and is pretty much the same as other Class Modifiers.

Defender

Defender is the Sentinel's Class Modifier. Besides doing the usual, the Sentinel's Class Modifier can yield a good sized reduction on your power recharge time.

Bonus Talents

These powers are the skills you can acquire if you do a characters loyalty quest. Once finished, you can go and research Advance Training in The Professors lab, and choose for yourself a bonus power for 5000 Element Zero. And if you get the loyalty quests achievements, you can also choose a bonus power at the beginning of a new playthrough.

Barrier

Barrier allows you to create a fairly powerful shield around your character. It's a great a power if you're having to charge through some strong enemies.

Slam

Slam lifts up a target and then slams them into the ground

Fortifcation

Fortification creates an armor barrier around your character, which can make them into a pretty good tank. It needs to be recast if it's depleted, it doesn't recharge on it's own, even if it's still within the duration time. Chances are it will be depleted before two minutes, so the Improved Fortification evolution might not be as viable to Vanguards or Soldiers who like to get up close and personal.

Geth Shield Boost

Slightly different than Barrier or Fortification, for the one of the evolutions gives a weapon damage bonus.

Reave

Reave stops the target from healing and restores health when used against organics with no armor or shields. It decimates enemy barriers and armor.

Energy Drain

Energy Drain steals from enemy barriers to keep your shields strong.

Neural Shock

Neural Shock stops organic enemies cold in their tracks.

Shredder Ammo

Shredder Ammo tears organics Health apart.

Warp Ammo

Warp Ammo does extra damage to barriers, health and armor. Even does extra health damage to enemies who are currently affected by other biotic abilities.

Inferno Grenade

Inferno Grenade is basically an explosion that causes incendiary damage to everyone in it's impact radius.

DLC

This section covers downloadable content available through the Cerberus Network. This section may not stat up to date past launch, and any material dealing with downloadable companions wll be placed under the above "Companions" section.

Normandy Crash Site

Located on Alchera in the Amada system of the Omega Nebula.

Scan the planet to find the crash site and launch a probe to land. To complete the mission you must find a suitable spot to place a memorial statue and collect the 20 dog tags off lost crewmen. Dog tags are made a bit easier to find by searching for the blue glow they emit. Make sure to also search around for resources and Shepard's old N7 helmet, seen here:

To the best of our ability, here are the locations of the 20 dog tags:

Gallery

While collecting dog tags you can also choose which piece of wreckage to place the memorial in front of.

Once you have collected all 20 tags and placed the monument, return to the shuttle to complete the mission.

Zaeed - The Price of Revenge

Shepards shadowy backers buy the loyalty of Zaeed Massani, the galaxy's most feared bount hunter and mercenary soldier. Once downloaded, go to Omega to recruit Zaeed. See companions section for more detail

Bonus Items

These are the weapons and armor you receive with pre orders or other promotional offers.

Collector's Weapon

"The Collectors' weapon uses the same principles as a human assault rifle, but its organic components clearly set it apart. Its ammunition resembles pellets of metallic enamel that strip shields off enemies with deadly efficiency."

Collector's Armor

"The Collectors' armor is flexible and even tougher than ballistic fibers. Its organic construction allows it to be self-healing."

• Regeneration Bonus +10%
• Storm Speed +10%
• Health +20%

Terminus Armor (GameStop)

"Terminus armor is environmentally sealed with an independent air supply for use in space and extreme planetary conditions."

• Increases storm speed by 10%.
• Increase shields by 15%.
• Increases all weapon's reserve ammo by 10%.

M-490 Blackstorm (GameStop)

"The M-490 Blackstorm Singularity gun encases particles of matter within a high-powered mass-increasing field. This creates a gravitational singularity that draws enemies inward for a short time before exploding."

Inferno Armor

"The Inferno armor has a VI dedicated to recognizing signs of stress and medical trauma. This application helps assess soldiers, but can be useful in any high-risk situations. The Inferno's microframe computer also manages biotic amp and omni-tool power, and microservos help the wearer's movements to counteract the armor's weight."

• Negotiation Bonus +10%
• Tech and Biotic Power Damage +10%
• Storm Speed +10%

Sentry Interface

"This visor works with the Sentry system, a software application that optimizes an armor suit's microframe computer. When the Sentry system is running, more power can be devoted to shield management."

• Increases shield strength by 5%

Umbra Visor

"A next-generation night-vision device that assists targeting. By detecting the focal point of the wearer's eyes and enhancing the image at that location, the visor helps direct a biotic power or a shot from an omni-tool exactly where the wearer is looking."

• Increases power damage by 5%

M-29 Incisor Sniper Rifle

"The M-29 Incisor rifle is one of a new wave of military and police sniper rifles designed to overload active defenses such as shields. Firing three shots with each pull of the trigger, the Incisor's burst is so fast that all three rounds will be in the target by the time the barrel has moved a millimeter, increasing its stopping power without sacrificing accuracy."

Blood Dragon Armor

"Created for Earth's Urban Combat Championship league, this set of armor has undergone more field testing than those of modern militaries. The chest and shoulder piece bears the logo of the Edmonton Blood Dragons, and the inside of the armor bears the signatures of the entire team. When and how the Illusive Man got his hands on the armor is unknown."

• Increases power damage by 15%.
• Increases shield strength by 10%.

Recon Hood

"A hood issued to covert action teams. Ballistic-mesh fabric and composite ceramic plating provide necessary armor, and the integral air filter helps in hostile environments." (Dr. Pepper DLC)

• Weapon damage + 5%

Achievements

The Achievements for Mass Effect 2 are fairly standard, you can get all the achievements in a single playthrough bit I highly recommend against it. The hardest achievement by far is the for running through the whole game on Insanity, this is VERY hard to do on your first playthrough.

The recomended way is two playthroughs, the fist to get the majority of the achievements and the second mostly for the Power Gamer and Insanity achievements.

Mass Effect 2 has 51 Achievements for 1015 Gamerscore

Mission Based

Missing in Action (5G)

Save your crew from an overwhelming attack

Very Elusive (10G)

Return to active duty

The Convict (10G)

Successfully recruit the Convict

The Krogan (10G)

Successfully recruit the Krogan

The Archangel (10G)

Successfully recruit Archangel

The Professor (10G)

Successfully recruit the Professor

The Quarian (10G)

Successfully recruit the quarian

The Justicar (10G)

Successfully recruit the Justicar

The Assassin (10G)

Successfully recruit the Assassin

Friend or Foe (10G)

Obtain geth technology

Colony Defense (25G)

Defend a human colony from attack

The Prodigal (10G)

Gain the loyalty of the Cerberus Officer

Ghost of the Father (10G)

Gain the loyalty of the Cerberus Operative

Catharsis (10G)

Gain the loyalty of the biotic Convict

Battlemaster (10G)

Gain the loyalty of the krogan

Fade Away (10G)

Gain the loyalty of Archangel

The Cure (10G)

Gain the loyalty of the Professor

Treason (10G)

Gain the loyalty of the Quarian

Doppleganger (10G)

Help the Justicar resolve her mission

Cats in the Cradle (10G)

Gain the loyalty of the Assassin

A House Divided (10G)

Hack a geth collective

Revenge! (15G) [DLC]

Gain the loyalty of the mercenary

Ghost Ship (25G)

Complete the investigation of a derelict alien vessel

Suicide Mission (50G)

Use the Omega 4 Relay

Mission Accomplished (125G)

Save humanity throughout the galaxy from certain annihilation

Against all Odds (15G)

Survive suicide mission

No One Left Behind (75G)

Keep your team alive through the suicide mission

This one is a pain- see the suicide mission section above on how to keep everyone alive

Operative (15G)

Complete a mission discovered by scanning an unexplored world

This requires you to complete one N7 mission. See the section above if you need to locate one

Agent (50G)

Complete 5 missions discovered by scanning unexplored worlds

This requires you to do five N7 missions. See the section above to easily locate them

Insanity (75G)

Complete the game on the "Insanity" difficulty level without changing the setting

Insanity is a real challenge, since most every enemy has some sort of protection (Barrier, Shield, Armor) and they do extra damage. HIGHLY recommended to go in on a New Game+ around the level cap. Soldier with Reave is a pretty good class for playing Insanity

Combat Based

Head Hunter (10G)

Perform 30 headshot kills with any weapon on humanoid targets

You can grab this achievement really easily, I would suggest using a charecter that can use a sniper rifle since they are the best weapon for getting headshots, but pistols also work.

Brawler (10G)

Shoot and kill 20 enemies while they're knocked back by a punch

This is a harrder achievement, you need to run up and melee an enemy then quickly finish them off with your gun. this can be hard if you allies are killing all the enemies before you can. Best done on cannon fodder- taake them down to about half health, punch them, then quickly open up with an SMG or Assault Rifle to finish the job.

Master at Arms (15G)

Kill enemies with 5 different heavy weapons during the game

This is easy but time consuming, you need to get a kill with 5 of the heavy weapons, getting the achievement is easy but it takes some time to get all the heavy weapons. Just make sure to acquire them wherever possible, and to actually USE them. Lots of people like to hoard their ammo and never use these things.

Tactician (10G)

Hit 20 different targets with multiple biotic powers to combine the effects

Pretty easy achievement, but easiest done with multiple biotics in the party. Pause the game by opening the radial power menu, target an enemy, then queue up a biotic attack from yourself or a party member (make sure it's one that will be effective e.g. don't use Pull on a shielded enemy). While still paused queue up a different biotic power on the same target from a different party member. When you unpause both biotic attacks will hit the target at the same time and it will count towards your achievement.

Merciless (10G)

Make 20 enemies scream as they fall or are set on fire

Extremely easy achievement, you should get it no problem. If you're having trouble, use Jacob's incendiary ammo and Mordin's incinerate ability.

Warp Specialist (15G)

Warp the barriers of 25 enemies

This is one of the hardest, you need to get the killing blow on the barrier and since barriers do not come back once they have gone down. Best advice is to hit the enemy with a warp right away, note how much barrier it takes down, whittle away the barrier until you're sure the next Warp will kill it, then use Warp. Sometimes your companions will kill the barrier before you can warp it, unfortunately. This achievement will unlock even if you're using a companion's warp ability.

Incineration Specialist (15G)

Incinerate the armor of 25 enemies

Same strategy as the Warp achievement- you'll need to get the killing blow on their armor using Incinerate. When you start fighting Collectors is a good time to get this, as whenever Harbinger possesses one, they gain armor. This achievement will unlock even if you're using a companion's Incinerate ability

Overload Specialist (15G)

Disrupt the shields of 25 enemies

This is the same type of achievement as the Incineration and Warp ones- get the killing blow on an enemy shield with Overload. This is easiest done on the few missions where you fight Geth, as most of them possess shields. This achievement will unlock even if you're using a companion's Overload ability

Big Game Hunter (10G)

Thresher Maw defeated

This achievement comes from Grunt's loyalty quest- for the third and final trial, you'll be asked to survive five minutes against a Thresher Maw- or kill it. It has a ridiculous amount of health, but it's attacks are quite easy to dodge. It only possesses armor, so Incinerate and biotic powers such as Singularity and Warp work well against it. If you're more gun-minded, a properly placed heavy weapons shot can do a nice chunk of damage, as will a normal sniper rifle. Five minutes SHOULD be ample time to defeat it, but you might want to keep a save right before in case you somehow manage not to kill it.

Everything Else

Highly Trained (15G)

View all advanced combat training videos at Shepard's private terminal

This one is super easy, go to your personal terminal (either in the captains quarters or the CIC) and the use the advanced training option to watch the videos, it takes maybe 2 minutes.

Long Service Medal (75G)

Complete Mass Effect 2 twice, or complete it once with a character imported from Mass Effect 1

Paramour (50G)

Successfully pursue a relationship with a teammate

For this you need to speak with your chosen conquest after you have completed missions, there are lots of missions so don't worry to much about missing a chance to talk. The achievement and scene will happen when you enter the Omega 4 relay. For male Shepards, Jack, Miranda, and Tali are romance options. Female Shepards can have a relationship with Garrus, Thane, or Jacob.

Prospector (5G)

Retrieve mineral resources by scanning and probing a planet in the galaxy map

You will get this crazy early, you will need to mine tons of minerals to get all your upgrades, just go to any planet and scan and then launch the probe for your achievement

Explorer (10G)

Visit 100% of the planets in an unexplored cluster

Head over to any of the clusters that you have a 0% in, then go to all the planets and enter orbit, do this to all the unexplored areas and you get the achievement. You do NOT have to scan a planet for it to count as visited, only enter orbit. Just make sure not to run out of fuel for your ship while exploring.

Power Gamer (10G)

Reach Level 30 with one character

30 is the level cap for Mass Effect 2, and can conceivably be reached in one playthrough, but probably only with an imported level 60 from Mass Effect. For everyone that doesn't reach level 30 their first playthrough, just start a new game, choose the "Import ME2 Character" option, and select your save. Your level will carry over, and you can replay the game until you hit level 30. This might be a good opportunity to try and tackle Insanity as well.

Scholar (15G)

Unlock 15 new Mass Effect 2 codex entries

Getting this is nice and easy you wont even need to try, as you play you will be getting new codex entries, even without looking you will get 15 pretty quick

Scientist (10G)

Complete any research project in the Normandy's laboratory

There's a tech lab on your ship that unlocks after you recruit Mordin. From this tech lab you can purchase upgrades using mined resources- something you will need to do a lot throughout the game. This achievement unlocks after you purchase your first upgrade.

Fashionista (5G)

Personalize your armor in your quarters on the Normandy

When you first get the new Normandy go to the Captains Quarters at the top of the ship and go to customize your armour, when you back out after changing your armour you get the achievement

Technician (15G)

Obtain 10 technology upgrades

Research 10 upgrades of any nature to get the achievement, it should not take to long but you will need to mine to get enough to get the ten upgrades

Weapon Specialist (15G)

Fully upgrade a weapon

Over the game you can purchase the upgrades as well as buy them from stores across the universe, it will take a while to get these since all the weapons have 7 or so upgrades. A good rule of thumb is to just buy and research any upgrade you find- they'll come in handy even if they don't work you towards the achievement.

Power Full (15G)

Evolve any power

To evolve any of your powers you need to max out the power, this takes 10 points and when fully upgraded you will have to chose between two forms of the power. You get the achievement after making your choice.

I know, it's 2 days late but this quest has finally pushed me into doing this. I will setting tasks for myself to play (mostly)all my games*. I have way too many to keep track of, and will probably make a list here showing the ones I've completed, starting playing and still sealed. 
 
Anyway. Recently I've been getting back into playing Splinter Cell: Conviction. That game has still got it, it still feels fresh to me and I am finally close to S-Ranking it. I just need a co-op partner who actually wants to do last stand missions with me. That's my biggest problem with this game. I don't understand why they would make a horde like mode for a game like this, it really doesn't fit into the structure of the game. There's no real way to be methodical and plan out your attacks. You just have to be quick and brutal, along with a bunch of mark and executes. Tedious is what I like to call it. 
 
Dead Rising 2 still isn't clicking with me. I really enjoyed the first, and I know it is basically the same but with a knew coating, however it just feels bland. Really bland. I've been playing with people on co-op and I'm not enjoying the characters, the story and even using weapons isn't fun unless it's been taped together. I will persevere and hopefully reach level 50. Having no incentive - unlike the original - is slightly bemusing, in my opinion. 
 
FIFA 11 has been out for nearly two weeks and I must say it's probably the most disappointing game I've played in years. The online is still broken. It's not even a server issue. When I used to get severe delay/lag, I presumed it was a server issue. However, after playing it online with a friend who was sat next to me, I realised that the game I was watching was actually a few seconds behind. It wasn't lag, per se, it was the game on the screen being behind what was actually happening. I could literally play fine watching my friends screen. I just hope this gets fixed soon. 
 
Anyway, enough blogging from me. I'm not good at it. I will be back next week for an update. I will have Medal of Honor in my possession by then and judging from reviews, completed it quickly too.  
 
*I haven't updated my library for a while, I shall get onto that.

Introduction

Welcome to our guide for Fallout 3. We're probably crazy for attempting this.

Obviously, with a project this size and scope, there are bound to be options or quests we missed. Feel free to comment on the guide pointing out things that are not included. Fallout 3 is a behemoth, and we did the best we could, but there are undoubtedly gaps. The guide is a constant work in progress, and all of our editors will be happy to hear your suggestions and make necessary alterations.

Please note that this guide was written by users who (for the most part) all played the Xbox 360 version of Fallout 3. Mentions of Downloadable Content and related subjects are relevant only for people with the 360 or PC versions of the game, but Playstation 3 owners will soon be received the DLC.

Special Thanks to Boyce and DualReaver for taking a bunch of screenshots for us.

Recent Edits

• Table added for Experimental MIRV

• Proofread edits throughout

Wasteland Maps

Since this guide references a lot of locations without explicitly telling you where they are, here are a few maps from other places (Not our work). Feel free to reference them if you need to find a location.

First Gamespy has a great interactive map (Although it's a bit complex)

And then there's this map I found on the internet. The e-mail address is the only credit I could dig up (Right click-view in new tab or window to get the full version)

Character Creation & Spec

Fallout 3 starts off with you creating your character and determining their stats. Since you can't respec after you leave Vault 101, it's probably a good idea to know what you want. This section is a guide to the S.P.E.C.I.A.L system, the skill system, and the perks you get as you level up.

Stat Breakdown

Your character's basic stats in Fallout 3 are broken up into two categories. S.P.E.C.I.A.L attributes, which govern your basic attributes and specializations, and skills, which allow you to customize your character's abilities and increase their effectiveness. The S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes are out of 10, while skills are out of 100.

S.P.E.C.I.A.L

The S.P.E.C.I.A.L system is Fallout 3 determines your character's basic attributes, which affect both their skills and other factors. You can set you attributes during childhood, and tweak them once more before you leave Vault 101. Due to the fact that every major S.P.E.C.I.A.L. skill is able to be augmented by at least 1 point through the Wasteland's assortment of Bobbleheads, it is recommended that no stat is raised above 9. See the Bobblehead section in the Table of Contents for locations. In addition, by using the Intense Training perk, you can add a S.P.E.C.I.A.L point into any attribute any time you level up. Certain quests also grant a permanent boost to S.P.E.C.I.A.L. ratings. Some equipment and medications will also affect your attributes.

• Strength- Strength affects a few skills, only one of which is important.

1. It affects your unarmed skill, which is useless*
2. It affects your melee weapons skill, which is also useless*.
3. It affects how much weight your character can carry, which is an extremely important statistic, because if your character becomes overburdened they cannot run or fast-travel between locations. However, as long as you don't spend too long wandering the Wasteland and remember to make regular trips back to cities to sell off or store your loot, a super-high weight limit isn't necessary. Put this skill anywhere from the 2-5 range, depending on how much weight you want to be able to carry, and how badly you want to pump up the other attributes.

*These skills are entirely useless only for characters focused on guns. For maverick or melee-based characters, they are obviously essential.

• Perception- Perception affects a few skills, as well as an important non-skill ability.

1. Perception affects the starting skill of Lockpick.
2. Perception affects the starting skill of Explosives.
3. Perception affects the starting skill of Energy Weapons.
4. Perception also determines how far away you can detect enemies as red dots on your 2D compass. This ability is quite useful for knowing where your enemies are when you get ambushed (or are the one doing the ambushing) or if you are trying to sneak past somebody out in the Wasteland.

• Endurance- Endurance is a decent enough ability, and important if you're going to be making long treks through hazardous areas, as the rad resistance and increased HP are big bonuses. However, if you're only going to be making small sorties out into the Wasteland before returning to a town, the attribute is of little significance.

1. It affects your maximum hit points.
2. It affects your poison resistance and your radiation resistance.
3. It affects the skill levels of Big Guns and Unarmed.

• Charisma- Charisma directly affects your Speech and you Barter skills. A high Charisma level will grant you special dialogue options in certain cases, allowing you to manipulate people or groups to your liking.

• Intelligence- Intelligence is a very important attribute, one you should consider pumping up right off the bat.

1. Most importantly, the higher your intelligence, the more skill points you get each time you level up. This is important because it allows you to raise your skills much higher much quicker, meaning you get to be a badass sooner.
2. Intelligence affects the starting skill of Repair.
3. Intelligence affects the starting skill of Medicine.
4. Intelligence affects the starting skill of Science.

• Agility- Unlike Oblivion, Fallout does not have a stamina bar- your character won't tire out ever (Although they still can become overencumbered), so Agility is perhaps not as importat as you might think. What agility does do however, is:

1. Increase the number of Action Points available for VATS.
2. Determine the starting skill level for Small Guns.
3. Determine the starting skill level for Sneak.

• Luck- Luck is an odd attribute. It increases your chances of scoring a critical hit on an enemy by 1% for each point in the attribute. Luck also increases the starting value of all your skills by about half a point for each attribute point invested in it. Luck will also increase the chance of Mysterious Stranger visits if you have that perk, or Paralyzing Palm strikes in you have that perk. Overall, this is an entirely ignorable skill, unless it has other affects we are not aware of. Don't pump it above the starting level of 5, and feel free to remove points if you need them elsewhere.

Skills

Skiils go on a scale from 1 to 100 points. Your S.P.E.C.I.A.L attributes determine your starting skills. You also get to mark three skills as your primary skills, which gives you an extra 15-point bonus into those skills at the start of the game. Once you mark your primary skills, you cannot change your mind. It is probably a good idea to take no skill higher than 85-90 just by leveling up, as skill bobbleheads will add 10 points to their respective skils, and many books can be found in the Wasteland which raise skills by 1 point (books give you 2 points to a given skill instead of 1). Once a skill reaches 100, it can no longer be raised.

• Barter - Barter affects the prices you will get from vendors, as well as the prices you will get when selling items to stores. If you're looking to become a Wasteland magnate or something, perhaps this skill could be useful, but by just looting and completing quests, you'll usually always have enough money to get by. Not worth investing many points into unless you're having a really hard time getting caps.
• Big Guns - Big Guns affects your skill with, well, big guns. Stuff like the flamethrower, Fat Man, and mini-guns are all governed by your big guns skill. These are fun to use, but very scarce at the beginning of the game, in addition to being hard to find ammo for, and being quite heavy. Worth investing points in towards the end stages of the game to take down some tougher enemies.
• Energy Weapons - Energy Weapons will determine your skill with laser-based weapons like the laser pistol and plasma rifles. Energy weapons are a bit rare at the beginning of the game, but they're slightly more accurate than small guns. Ammo and weapons will become more commonplace as you proceed with the story, as well as placing more powerful lasers in your hands. You'll want to specialize in either this or Small Guns for certain. Or both.
• Explosives - This skill represents your proficiency with things that explode. Frag grenades and frag mines will do more damage the higher this skill is, and a higher explosives skill makes it easier to disarm mines. A higher explosives skill will also affect your accuracy with grenades in V.A.T.S. This skill is a big help when you start confronting larger enemies, like Super Mutant Behemoths, or when you're taking on large groups of enemies. Explosives also allows you to disable certain special traps, such as explosives-rigged baby carriages, terminals that have been tampered with, and other similar contraptions.
• Lockpick - Lockpick affects your proficiency for... well... picking locks, surprisingly enough. There are innumerable locks to pick in Fallout 3, so this is probably a good skill to invest in. Each lock has a minium lockpick value associated with it, and without having your skill above that number, it is impossible to pick the lock. Most locks have a value of 50, so you'll need to pump some points into lockpick. However, keep in mind that picking locks is an evil act and will lose you Karma if the lock is associated with a living character or residence. Lockpicking in bandit strongholds, abandoned areas (Vaults, towns, buildings, etc.) and other such places is perfectly ok. You should consider tagging this skill, as it makes it much easier to obtain supplies.
• Medicine - The Medicine skill affects how many HP healing items return. Healing items are pretty common, and you can always restore your full health by sleeping in a bed or seeing a doctor, so this skill isn't a prioirty. It may be worth putting some points into if you're going to be doing a lot of exploring and fighting without returning to town, but don't specialize in it.
• Melee Weapons - Does what the name says it does. Determines you skill with Baseball bats, sledgehammers, and the like. You'll almost always be using guns, so this is a skill you can get by without putting any points into.
• Repair - Every usable weapon or armor in Fallout 3 has a condition rating, indicating what shape it's in. The higher the condition rating, the more effective and valuable the item is. A high repair skill allows you to increase an item's condition when repaired, allowing you to make easy money off of dropped weapons and armor, or keep your equipment from breaking. Without a good repair skill, you'll need to pay traders to repair your equipment, which can get expensive. There are no traders in the game with a repair skill high enough to make most of their prices worthwhile. This skill is possibly worth specializing in, depending on your play style. Being able to maximize your weapon's damage capabilities or your armor's damage resistance should be one of your highest priorities. This is a skill worth tagging.
• Science - Your science skill affects how easy it is to hack a computer terminal. This skill works almost exactly like lockpick, with each computer having a minimum science value you need to attempt a hack. Computer's often contain useful information, and backstory, journals, logs, hidden information, or general notes may be found spread across the terminals in the Wasteland. A computer being hacked might not always be as necessary as picking a lock; but oftentimes it is much easier to hack a terminal (and much less wasteful in terms of bobbypins) and unlock a safe or door than it is to lockpick the corresponding door, especially at higher levels.
• Small Guns - Small Guns is probably the most useful skill in the entire game. It determines your damage and ability with the common, standard weapons like Assault Rifles, Pistols, and Shotguns. These are the most common weapons in the game, and you'll also find the most ammo for these types. In general, Small Guns unique weapons are some of the most powerful in terms of damage to range, and damage per ammo per availability, in the game. Specialize in this or energy weapons is fairly essential for basic survival in the Wasteland.
• Sneak - A good sneak skill makes it harder for NPC's to spot you while you're crouched, which makes pickpocketing and stealing from people much easier. In addition, if you can attack an enemy without being spotted, you'll get a huge damage bonus. Worth investing in if you want to be a sneaky bastard, although stealth is barely necessary at all for most play-styles.
• Speech - A skill most people will probably ignore, but speech is actually pretty important. A high speech skill allows you to talk information out of NPCs, and often shortens quests or allows you to convince people to help you when otherwise they would not. It also allows you to convince people to pay you more for doing a certain quest. For example, a quest offering you 200 caps could be raised to 400 caps if you pass a speech check. Think about specializing in this one if you're looking at trying to avoid combat. Specialization in Speech is often not necessary, however, as it is much easier to make a save when you encounter a Speech check and simply re-load the save every time you fail until you succeed. It is a tedious method, but it saves skill points for other, much more practical skills.
• Unarmed - This affects hand-to-hand combat, and weapons like Brass Knuckles that go on your hands. Similar to melee in that you will never use this skill. You can play the entire game without using this skill- don't invest any points here.

Skill Books

As you wander the Wasteland, you'll happen across certain books that will increase your skills by reading them. Each book you read will increase one skill by one point. Here is a listing of the book titles and the skills they correspond to.

Perks

Perks in Fallout 3 are special abilities you can choose each time you level up. You may only select one perk each time you level up. Some perks have multiple ranks and can be chosen multiple times at different levels, while others are one-time uses. You get a new set of available perks every two levels. In addition, some perks cannot be obtained by leveling up, and must be received through quests.

Level 2

• Black Widow/ Lady Killer - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

You do +10% damage against opponents of the opposite sex. You'll sometimes have access to unique dialogue options when dealing with the opposite sex.

• Daddy's Boy/ Daddy's Girl - Ranks: 3, Requirements: INT 4

Just like dear ol' Dad, you've devoted your time to intellectual pursuits. You gain an additional 5 points to both the Science and Medicine skills.

• Gun Nut - Ranks: 3, Requirements: AGL 4 + INT 4

You're obsessed with using and maintaining a wide variety of conventional firearms. With each rank of the Gun Nut perk, you gain an additional 5 points to the Small Guns and Repair skills.

• Intense Training - Ranks: 10, Requirements: None

With the Intense Training perk, you can put a single point into any of your S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes.

• Little Leaguer - Ranks: 3, Requirements: STR 4

Years as the Vault little league MVP have honed your hitting and throwing. With every rank, you gain 5 points of Melee Weapons skill and 5 points of Explosives skill.

• Swift Learner - Ranks: 3, Requirements: INT 4

With each rank in the Swift Learner perk, you gain an additional 10% of total Experience Points whenever Experience Points are earned.

• Thief - Ranks: 3, Requirements: AGL 4 + PER 4

With each rank of the Thief perk, you gain an immediate bonus 5 points to both Sneak and Lockpick skills.

Level 4

• Child At Heart - Ranks: 1, Requirements: CHR 4

The Child at Heart perk greatly improves your interactions with children, usually in the form of unique dialogue choices.

• Comprehension - Ranks: 1, Requirements: INT 4

With the Comprehension perk, you gain one additional skill point whenever a skill book is read.

• Educated - Ranks: 1, Requirements: INT 4

With the Educated perk, you gain three more skill points every time you advance in level. This perk is best taken early on, to maximize its effectiveness.

• Entomologist - Ranks: 1, Requirements: INT 4 + Science 40%

With the Entomologist perk, you do an additional +50% damage every time you attack a mutated insect, like the Radroach, Giant Ant, or Radscorpion.

• Iron Fist - Ranks: 3, Requirements: STR 4

With the Iron Fist perk, you do an additional 5 points of Unarmed damage perk rank.

• Scoundrel - Ranks: 3, Requirements: CHR 4

Take the Scoundrel perk, and you can use your wily charms to influence people -- each rank raises your Speech and Barter skills by 5 points.

Level 6

• Bloody Mess - Ranks: 1. Requirements: None

With the Bloody Mess perk, characters and creatures you kill will often explode into a red, gut-ridden, eyeball-strewn paste. Fun! Oh, and you'll do 5% extra damage with all weapons.

• Demolition Expert - Ranks: 3, Requirements: Explosives 50%

With each rank of this perk, all of your explosive weapons do an additional 20% damage.

• Fortune Finder - Ranks: 1, Requirements: LCK 5

With the Fortune Finder perk, you'll find considerably more Nuka-Cola caps in containers than you normally would.

• Gunslinger - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

While using a pistol (or similar one-handed weapon), your accuracy in V.A.T.S. is significantly increased.

• Lead Belly - Ranks: 1, Requirements: END 5

With the Lead Belly perk, you take 50% less radiation every time you drink from an irradiated water source.

• Toughness - Ranks: 1, Requirements: END 5

With the Toughness perk, you gain +10% to overall Damage Resistance, up to the maximum of 85%.

Level 8

• Commando - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

While using a rifle (or similar two-handed weapon), your accuracy in V.A.T.S.. is significantly increased.

• Impartial Mediation - Ranks: 1, Requirements: CHR 5

You gain an extra 30 points to Speech... so long as you maintain a Neutral Karma level.

• Rad Resistance - Ranks: 1, Requirements: END 5

Allows you to -- what else? -- resist radiation. This perk grants an additional 25% to Radiation Resistance.

• Scrounger - Ranks: 1, Requirements: LCK 5

With the Scrounger perk, you'll find considerably more ammunition in containers than you normally would.

• Size Matters - Ranks: 3, Requirements: END 5

You're obsessed with really big weapons. With each rank of this perk, you gain an additional 15 points to the Big Guns Skill.

• Strong Back - Ranks: 1, Requirements: STR 5 + END 5

With the Strong Back perk, you can carry 50 more pounds of equipment.

Level 10

• Animal Friend - Ranks: 2, Requirements: CHR 6

With the first rank of Animal Friend, animals simply won't attack. With the second rank, they'll assist you in combat (but not against another animal)

• Finesse - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

With the Finesse perk, your chance to score a critical hit on a foe is increased.

• Here And Now - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

With the Here And Now perk, you are immediately pumped with EXP which advances you to the next level, including all of the advantages it brings.

• Mister Sandman - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Sneak 60%

With Mister Sandman, you can instantly kill any sleeping character you come across and gain XP from it.

• Mysterious Stranger - Ranks: 1, Requirements: LCK 6

With the Mysterious Stranger, an unknown man will appear in VATS occasionally and kill your opponent with a fully loaded .44 Magnum.

• Nerd Rage! - Ranks: 1, Requirements: INT 5 + Science 50%

You've been pushed around long enough! With Nerd Rage, your strength is raised to 10 and you gain 50% damage resistance whenever your health drops below 20%

• Night Person - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

When the sun is down, you gain +2 to Intelligence and +2 to Perception (up to a maximum of 10).

Level 12

• Cannibal - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

With the Cannibal perk, you can eat corpses for health. In order to feed, you must be sneaking, and you lose Karma for doing so.

• Fast Metabolism - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

With this perk, you receive 20% more health when using Stimpaks.

• Life Giver - Ranks: 1, Requirements: END 6

With Life Giver, you gain an addition 30 HP.

• Pyromaniac - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Explosives 60%

With Pyromaniac, fire-based weapons will cause 50% more damage.

• Robotics Expert - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Science 50%

With the Robotics perk, you will gain 25% damage against any robot that you are fighting. If you manage to sneak up on a robot, you can shut it down permanently by activating it.

• Silent Running - Ranks: 1, Requirements: AGL 6 + SNK 50

With Silent Running, sneaking won't produce any noise, making it much easier.

• Sniper - Ranks: 1, Requirements: PER 6 + AGL 6

With this perkm your chance to hit an opponents head in VATS is increased by 25%.

Level 14

• Adamantium Skeleton - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

With the Adamantium Skeleton, your limbs will receive only 50% of the damage they normally would.

• Chemist - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Medicine 60%

With this perk, any Chem that you take will last twice as long.

• Contract Killer - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

This perk allows you to take an ear off the corpse of a good character and sell it to an evil vendor for Caps.

• Cyborg - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Medicine 60% + Science 60%

The Cyborg perk instantly adds +10% damage resistance, poison resistance, and radiation resistance, plus Energy Weapons skill.

• Lawbringer - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

Similar to the Contract Killer perk, the Lawbringer allows you to take a finger off an evil characters corpse and sell it to a good vendor for caps.

• Light Step - Ranks: 1, Requirements: AGL 6 + PER 6

When you have this perk, you will never set off enemy Traps or Mines.

• Master Trader - Ranks: 1, Requirements: CHR 6 + Barter 60%

With this perk, prices for items are reduced by 25%.

Level 16

• Action Boy/Girl - Ranks: 1, Requirements: AGL 6

With this perk, you gain an additional 25 points to use in VATS, equivalent to an extra shot or two with your favorite weapon.

• Better Criticals - Ranks: 1, Requirements: PER 6 + LCK 6

With Better Criticals, any critical hit you score on an opponent will do 50% more damage.

• Chem Resistant - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Medicine 60%

With Chem Resistant, you are 50% less likely to get addicted to any Chem you take.

• Tag! - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

By selecting the Tag! perk, you are allowed to select a fourth skill to Tag, which instantly raises it by 15 points.

Level 18

• Computer Whiz - Ranks: 1, Requirements: INT 7 + Science 70%

When you select this perk, you gain the special ability to keep trying to hack a terminal when you've been locked out of it (used up all four guesses)

• Concentrated Fire - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Small Guns 60% + Energy Weapons 60%

With this perk, you gain an automatic +5% chance of hitting a body part in VATS, and when it's targeted again, the chances are once more increased

• Infiltrator - Ranks: 1, Requirements: PER 7 + LCK 7

With this perk, you can attempt to pick a lock even after you've broken it by forcing it and failing

• Paralyzing Palm - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Unarmed 70%

With this perk, a hit with the palm strike paralyzes the enemy for 30 seconds.

Level 20

• Explorer - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

When you have the Explorer perk, all every location in the Wasteland that you haven't discovered is put on the map for you to find (square with line through it)

• Ninja - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Sneak 80% + Melee Weapons 80%

With the Ninja perk, you gain a +15% critical chance on every strike when using a melee weapon or unarmed.

• Grim Reaper's Sprint - Ranks: 1, Requiremets: None

When you have the Grim Reaper's Sprint, your Action Point are instantly restored after exiting VATS, so long as you kill the enemy.

• Solar Powered - Ranks: 1, Requirements: END 7

With Solar Powered, you gain 2 points of Strength when in the sunlight, including the ability to slowly regain health.

Level 22

• Puppies! - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

If Dogmeat dies, you'll be able to get a new canine companion from his litter of puppies.

• Deep Sleep - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

You get the Well Rested benefit of +10 EXP no matter what bed you sleep it.

• Quantum Chemist - Ranks: 1, Requirements: SCI 70+

Every 10 Nuka-Colas in your inventory are automatically turned into Nuka-Cola Quantums.

Level 24

• Devil's Highway - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Karma Higher Than Very Evil

Your Karma is automatically set to Very Evil.

• Karmic Rebalance - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Karma Higher/Lower Than Neutral

Your Karma is automatically set to Neutral.

• Escalator To Heaven - Ranks: 1, Requirements: Karma Lower Than Very Good

You Karma is automatically set to Very Good

• No Weakness - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

All SPECIAL stats lower than 5 are raised to 5

Level 26

• Nerves Of Steel - Ranks: 1, Requirements: AGI 7+

With the Nerves Of Steel perk, your action points regenerate faster than normal.

• Rad Tolerance - Ranks: 1, Requirements: END 7+

Minor radiation poisoning has no effect on you.

• Warmonger - Ranks: 1, Requirements: INT 7+

You gain the ability to create custom weapons without having a schematic for it.

Level 28

• Party Boy/Party Girl - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

You no longer suffer from the "withdrawal" effects of being addicted to alcohol.

• Rad Absorption - Ranks: 1, Requirements: END 7+

You radiation level slowly decreases over time.

Level 30

• Almost Perfect - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

All SPECIAL stats lower than 9 are raised to 9.

• Nuclear Anomoly - Ranks: 1, Requirements: None

Whenever your health drops below 20, you erupt into a nuclear explosion that damages both foes and allies.

Quest-Related

Some perks can only be gained through completing specific quests.

• Wired Reflexes- This perk comes from the Replicated Man Quest- discover the android's identity and then tell Zimmer. He will reward you with the Wired Reflexes perk. It grants a 10% higher chance to hit in VATS.

• Rad Regeneration- This perk comes from the Wasteland Survival Guide- the radiation study, to be specific. Get over 600 rads when Moira asks you to irradiate yourself, then return to her. She'll heal you and you'll get the perk. When you have over 400 rads, crippled limbs will automatically regenerate.
• Hematophage- This comes after you complete the Blood Ties quest, but only if you left Vance alive. Talk to Vance about the ways of the vampire, and he'll teach you this perk. It allows you to regain 20 HP from blood packs, as opposed to 1 HP normally.
• Survival- This perk comes from completing the Wasteland Survival Guide. It varies quite a bit depending on what dialog choices you made with Moira and how many optional objectives you completed. It grants either 2%, 4%, or 6% bonuses to poison and radiation resistance (which one you get depending on how many optional objectives you completed), as well as another bonus determined by your speech choices during the quest.
• Dream Crusher- Talk Moira out of writing the Survival Guide. Enemies get criticals 50% less often
• Power Armor Training- Get Elder Lyons' permission first, then go tak to Paladin Gunney at the Citadel. He can teach you to use Power Armor.
• Barkskin- Kill Harold during the Oasis quest by destroying his heart. This perk provides a 5% bonus to damage resistance.
• Ant Sight- A perk gained from completing the quest Those! without harming the Fire Ant Queen (or by convincing the scientist that killing her and destroying the mutagen was the right thing to do). It grants +1 Perception.
• Ant Might- A perk gained from completing the quest Those! without harming the Fire Ant Queen (or by convincing the scientist that killing her and destroying the mutagen was the right thing to do). It grants +1 Strength.
• Covert Ops [DLC]- This perk is gained in the Operation Anchorage DLC. It is rewarded if the player discovers all ten intel items, and offers +3 to Science, Lockpick, and Small guns skills

Minigames

Below is a short tutorial on the lockpick and hacking minigames in the game.

Lockpicking

Lockpicking is the easiest minigame, and is also the most frequent. You can try to pick locks to many objects found throughout the Wasteland, including doors, ammunition boxes, and more. Your ability to pick locks depends on the Lockpicking skill. The higher it is, the more difficult locks you can attempt to bypass. In order to lockpick, you must have bobby pins in your inventory.

Lockpicking is simple. When you attempt it, the game will pause and an image of the lock will appear along with a bobby pin and a screwdriver (which you always have with you). Using the left stick, you can move the bobby pin around the keyhole. With the right stick, you apply torque to the bobby pin to try and open it. If you are in the right spot, the lock will completely turn. If you are in the wrong spot, the lock will stop and the controller will vibrate. If you continue moving the bobby pin down in the same direction and the lock stops sooner, you are going the wrong way.

For Very Easy locks, all you need to do is spin the lock without moving the bobby pin. For Easy locks, very little positioning is needed. Average locks require more precision, but you can sometimes get lucky and open the lock without having to move the bobby pin at all. Hard locks require lots of precision, and Very Hard locks require you to be spot on in order to have success.

Hacking

Hacking is less frequent than lockpicking and is a bit more difficult. Computers that must be hacked can contain random information about the Fallout universe or important quest related info.

Terminals are much rarer than locked doors, but thankfully hacking is much easier to do and less risky. The hacking minigame is a bit confusing, so here's an explanation: When you choose an incorrect password, you'll see a fraction on the screen like 2/9 correct. This does not mean that you got two of the letters correct. What that means is you have two of the letters in the correct position. For example: The real password is FALLOUT. You choose the ROLLOUT option. You would have 5/7 correct, because the LLOUT is in the same position in both words. For example, if you typed in EFFECTS, you would have 0/7 correct, because even though FALLOUT and EFFECTS share some of the same letters, they're not in the right positions. A handy tip for hacking terminals - when you get down to 1 guess, just exit the terminal and restart the process. You'll never get locked out this way. Also, there are some groups of characters that start with [ and end in ], and some that start in ( and end in ). If you skim through the terminal and the computer highlights these groups, click on those. The result is that they will either remove an incorrect password from the terminal, or they will replenish your amount of picks. By doing this, you can sometimes narrow down the amount of choices to just one word, allowing you to unlock the computer within a minute.

Main Questline

This here will be your guide to the main storyline of Fallout 3- the missions you need to undertake to beat the game. Of course, there are plenty of diversions, but you can find those in the other sections in the table of contents to your right. This will just guide you down the story missions. Keep in mind however, that once you finish the storyline, you cannot play after you've beaten the game- at least not until the release of the Broken Steel DLC in March. So if there's side stuff you want to do, make sure you do it before starting the last mission.

Vault 101

Your journey in Fallout begins as you are born-- the game literally starts with you sliding out of your mother. As you pop out, you will name our character and determine your appearance- neihter of which really matter too much, since you'll only see your name on the pause screen, and you'll be playing from a first person view, so don't sweat these too much. There will also be opportunities to have facial reconstruction surgery and get haircuts later in the game, so even your appearance isn't final.

Early Childhood

You early childhood is simple enough, with little challenge. It's a series of related vignettes, skipping ahead in time, showing important scenes from your childhood. You'll start out being born- all you can do is press A to cry.

Next, you'll be a baby. Your dad will leave and you need to escape the crib- simply walk out through the gate. after you're out, head over to the book on the ground and activate it. This lets you set your S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes (Don't worry, you'll have a chance to respec before the true game really starts if you reconsider your choices). After you set your attributes, your dad will come back and talk to you a bit. Follow him out the door, then the scene ends.

It picks up next at your tenth birthday party. There are a bunch of guests- talk to all of them and be social. Butch will pick a fight with you, but Officer Gomez will break it up before anything serious can happen. Eventually, your dad will approach you and ask if you want your present from him. Follow him out of the room and down to Stanley. They'll reveal their present for you- a BB gun. Go practice with the BB Gun, then shoot the Radroach and go take the picture with your father.

Next scene it's time to take your G.O.A.T. Before you leave your father's office, make sure to snag the Medicine Bobblehead off of his desk. Walk to the classroom, dealing with Butch and his gang on the way if you want. Enter the classroom, then sit in an empty desk. The G.O.A.T test is ten questions or so. After you take it, go talk to your teacher by the door. Talk with him about your test results, and leave when you're satisfied.

ESCAPE!

You're now 19 years old. After being rudely awaken by your best friend Amata, you'll learn about your father's escape from the Vault. Jonas, your dad's assistant, is dead, and Vault 101 has been thrown into chaos. When she offers a 10mm pistol to you, take it. After you're done talking, grab everything from your desk and equip the baseball bat; you'll want to save the pistol and ammo. Also, if you did not take Grognak The Barbarian from Amata during your 10th birthday, it will be in one of your cabinets. Grab it before leaving.

Follow your compass and you should run into Butch. He'll ask you to save his mom from the radroaches. You can either ignore him, give him a weapon, convince him to kill them himself, or go in and do it. If you do save his mom, he'll give you his Tunnel Snakes Jacket. Moving along, follow your compass. You'll run into Officer Gomez. You can either let him live or kill him. Either way, keep moving forward. Eventually, you'll find the Overseer and Officer Mack interrogating Amata. If you didn't take her 10mm, she'll kill Mack herself. Otherwise, you'll have to do it. Talk to the Overseer. Either kill him, much to Amata's dismay, or convince him to give you his password. No matter what you do, keep going. You'll run into Jonas' corspe along the way. Loot it and continue on. When you get to the Overseer's computer, input the password or hack it if you didn't retrieve it. The desk will open up, revealing a hidden passageway. Move through the hallways and you'll come to the Vault 101 entrance. A few guards will come after you, but won't follow. When you get to the wooden door, you have the option of changing anything about your character. When you are done, escape!

Following In His Footsteps

After exiting Vault 101, you'll be confronted with your first view of the Wasteland. It's pretty spectacular. After a bit of observation, your character will ping up to level 2. Upgrade your stats as you wish, then walk forward through the abandoned town. You'll see some signs pointing to Megaton, follow the arrows, and you'll see a large walled area. This is Megaton. At the entrance you'll see a trading caravan near a two-headed cow (Don't bother with them, you have no money), a man on the ground who will ask you for purified water- which you have none of- and a robotic deputy near the entrance. Go past the robot, and enter the Megaton gates.

After entering, you'll be approached by the sheriff of Megaton. He looks kinda like a cowboy. Lucas Simms will tell you about the state of the law in Megaton, and answer any questions you have. He doesn't know anything about your father though, so his usefulness is limited. You can convince him to let you take a look at the bomb in the middle of Megaton though.

The main quest in Megaton has you heading to Moriarty's Saloon. Either go in through the front door and ask Moriarty about your father (it will cost you 100 caps to get the information), or sneak in the back by Moriarty's computer- pick the lock on the door from the outside, or try and sneak around inside. Another way to do it is to agree to do a job for him and get caps from his previous employer named Silver down in Springvale. This is probably the better way to get info, because if you kill her, you can keep a lot of her caps.

Right by the terminal is a cabinet containing Moriarty's password. Log on to his computer, and check out the "visitors" option. From there, select "James (Vault 101)". It contains some information on your father, as well as giving you your next clue.

Apparently he headed off to Galaxy News Radio to get the lay of the (Waste)land. If you ask Nova about Galaxy News Radio, she'll give you some information, and your business in Megaton is finished, for now- although there are plenty of side-quests to take on in this ramshackle town. But if you're after your father, it's time to locate Galaxy News Radio.

*Note: It is recommended at this point (should the player be interested) that you complete the Power of Atomsidequest. This will provide you with a house and storage very early on, allowing you to organize and outfit yourself much better for future Wasteland adventures.*

Galaxy News Radio

If you're in a lazy mood, this portion of the quest can be completely skipped. However, the quest won't count as completed, and you won't receive any related achievements/trophies or EXP. If you want to go on ahead, just head straight to Rivet City without helping Three Dog. If you talk to Dr. Li at Rivet City, then go back and help Three Dog by completing the quest, he will give you the location of a weapons cache of his.

Head back out into the Wasteland from Megaton. Galaxy News Radio is in the ruins of D.C, and quite a trek from Megaton, so make sure you're set on ammo and healing items. If you follow the arrow on your compass, it should lead you to a metro station. Enter the metro station, and keep following your arrow. There are some small pests in the tunnels, but nothing too challenging until you reach the station at the other end of the tunnel. The station is occupied by Super Mutants and Feral Ghouls. This is probably the first time you've run across Super Mutants, and they're beasts. The best way to take on a Super Mutant is to attack from range with a gun, then switch to grenades when they get close, as grenades will take away large chunks of their health, even if you have a low explosives skill. Knocking away their weapon with VATS also greatly helps.

Clear out this station, then head up the stairs and exit out into the D.C ruins. As soon as you leave the metro station, you'll notice a fight is going on. Some Super Mutants are fighting off a Brotherhood of Steel strike squad. Keep your head down and let the Brotherhood do their thing. Once all the Super Mutants are dead, go talk to one of the soldiers. They'll escort you back to the GNR building, but there is heavy resistance on the way, so be ready for a fight. This is the first time you've fought alongside allies, so try not to hit them. The Brotherhood is quite effective, but combat goes quicker with you pitching in as well.

You'll reach the GNR building, but it's locked against the Super Mutants. You and the Brotherhood have to hold your position against a wave of Super Mutants. After you've defeated those guys, a Super Mutant Behemoth will break out and attack you. Stay near the entrance to GNR, up near the sandbag, and the Behemoth should ignore you. This guy has a ton of health, but the combined firepower of you and the Brotherhood soldiers will take him down. Once the Behemoth is dead, go loot his corpse, then enter the GNR building. Be sure to check around for all of the loot and ammo that can be procured from both the Super Mutant's and the Brotherhood soldier's bodies. A Fat Man tactical nuke launcher and a few mini-nukes are found on Initiate Reddin, several sets of power armor are strewn about, and assault rifles/5.56mm rounds should be prevelant in the area too.

Three Dog is upstairs in his studio, waiting for you. Talk to him about your dad, and he'll reveal he knows where he headed off to, but isn't going to straight up tell you. If you have a high enough speech skill, you can talk the information out of him and skip the second part of this quest. Unless you're in a rush, you might as well do it so you can not only discover some more locations in the DC area but you'll also get plenty of EXP from killing Super Mutants. Otherwise, he'll ask you to retrieve a new satellite dish for him to put on the Washington Monument. Note that, if you have already skipped this part of the story and talked to Doctor Li in Rivet City about your father, Three Dog will reward you with a key to a military arms cache in Hamilton's Hideaway instead.

Museum of Technology

After you've had your chat with Three DAWG (Make sure to ask him for the locations of the Museum and the Washington Monument), exit the GNR building. Follow your quest arrow into a nearby metro station. Follow the metro line until you get to the Museum of Technology- don't worry if you get lost, it happens to all of us. Once you get to the Museum station, head up the stairs and out the exit. The route is crawling with enemies, so make sure to come prepared with plenty of ammo and Stimpacks.

Once you're inside the Museum of Technology, you want to locate the Virgo II Lunar Lander. This is located in the West Wing of the building. In order to access this lander, you'll have to go through the Vault-Tec demonstration. The West Wing is crawling with Super Mutants, so be ready for a tough fight. The Virgo II Lunar Lander is guarded fiercely, by a Super Mutant Master and a few other Super Mutants (Sometimes there will be Brutes here as well). Grenades are recommended to take out these guys, as at such a low level, your guns aren't likely to do much damage.

After you've killed all the Super Mutants, walk up to the Lunar Lander and activate it, which allows you to remove the satellite dish. Take the dish and exit the museum. Look around for the towering Washinton Monument, and head towards it. There is a Brotherhood garisson at the base, so you won't have to worr about enemies. Head to the terminal and punch in the passcode (Which you got at the beginning of the quest) to open the gate. Enter the monument, ride the elevator up to the top, then interact with the broken broadcast equipment to mend it. Return to Three Dog at GNR and talk with him to end the quest.

*Note: Be careful when interacting with terminals throughout the Museum- there are 3 terminals that are linked to the unmarked "Hey Jiggs!" Sidequest, which can easily be lost forever if the player chooses a bad option. Refer to the details in the Sidequest sections below for more information.

Scientific Pursuits

Three Dog will tell you to go to Rivet City and talk with Doctor Li there. Rivet City is a beached US Navy aircraft carrier in the South-East corner of your map. It's probably already marked on your map if you asked around on Megaton, as someone there (forget who) will tell you the location. You can either travel through the metro tunnels to get there, or you an travel overland through the DC ruins. Traveling above-ground is much faster, as all you need to do is follow the river down (recommended to be done on the West bank of the river), swim across, dodge the Jefferson Memorial, and walk up to Rivet City. This may not be as safe as taking the Metro Tunnels, but it will probably save you a lot of time, and you can easily run from enemies.

Once you reach Rivet City, head to the Science Lab- the signs within the ship should point the way- and talk to Dr. Li. She will immediately go on about how much you look like your father, which should alert you that you're in the right place. Speak to her about your father a bit, and she'll reveal that he was in Rivet City recently, trying to convince her to start work back up on a "Project Purity". She turned him down, and he set off for his old lab, alone, to resume research. If you inquire further, she'll reveal that he's at the Jefferson Memorial.

The Memorial is really quite close to Rivet City (You should have passed it on the way if you followed the river down.), so you may as well saddle up and get ready to head out again- be warned, it's infested with Super Mutants. Follow your quest arrow and it should lead you straight to the memorial. You'll face some Super Mutants, mostly using Nail Boards, but they're quickly dispatched with a shotgun or assault rifle- if you're still using a pistol at this point, it's time to upgrade. Kill the Super Mutants patrolling outside, and you'll enter through the gift shop.

Inside is a Centaur- hit it from long range where it can't reach you. Luckily only one of those monsters in in here, just a bunch of Super Mutants remain. Move through the Memorial, slowly clearing out the Super Mutants. Your goal is the Rotunda in the center of the Memorial. When you reach it, there are several Super Mutants, including a Brute. Kill them, then head up into the control center. Your dad, obviously, is not here. Look around and you'll find three holotapes on top of a computer. Pick them up, listen to them, and you'll know your destination. Vault 112.

Even if you haven't discovered Vault 112, or Evergreen Mills (The locations your father mentions in his diaries), a destination marker will be automatically placed on your map, pointing to Vault 112. It's quite a trip from anywhere you've been to at this point, depending on whether or not you're progressing through the Main Quest without doing many side-activities. If you haven't been exploring, the closest you can get is probably Vault 101. Fast-travel to Vault 101, then head out towards Vault 112. As usual, make sure you're full up on stimpacks and gear. The Raider camp of Evergreen Mills is between Vault 101 and Vault 112. Unless you're spoiling for a fight, I suggest skirting around it and heading straight for the Vault. Vault 112 is hidden inside Smith Casey's Garage, with the hatch to the vault on the floor. Dispatch the mole rats, hit the switch on the wall near the Vault cover, and head down into 112.

One of our commenters has noted that companion characters tend to vanish when you enter Tranquility Lane for quite a long time before reappearing in their original locations. Even though they are not with you, they still count as a character in your party and prevent you from hiring anyone new. According to Muktor, it takes about 2 in-game weeks for your companion to reappear in their starting area. It may be a good idea to fire your companions before entering Tranquility Lane just as a precaution, or tell him/her to wait somewhere.

You'll see a Robobrain which will greet you. Take the outfit it gives you and equip it, then head down the stairs and through the doors. Clamber into the simulation chair, and get ready to experience Tranquility Lane.

Tranquility Lane

Tranquility Lane is a simulated version of 1950's suburban America, with a dark twist.

Once you enter the pod, you'll find yourself in Tranquility Lane, a virtual-reality simulation in which all the residents of the Vault are living. As soon as you start off, you'll be told to go see Betty, on the playground. Betty seems to know who your father is, and she seems to be in control of the situation. However, to learn about your father, you will have to perform a series of escalatingly terrible tasks for Betty. You can do as Betty asks, which will always result in bad Karma, or you can enter an override code to exit the simulation without dealing with Betty.

Betty's Tasks

The tasks Betty will ask you to do are as follows. Betty will allow you to ask her one question after each task, which she will answer completely truthfully. Her tasks are:

1. Make Timmy Cry: Little Timmy is the kid running the lemonade stand. There are several ways to make him cry. The easiest is to just punch him. You can also speak to him and convince him that his parents are getting a divorce and it's all his fault. Another way is to find the pamphlet for the military school and give it to him, convincing him his parents are sending him away. You can also kill both his parents, then go tell Timmy that they're dead. After you've made Timmy cry, return to Betty.
2. Break up the Rockwells: This part is fairly easy, with several solutions again. Easiest way is to tell Mrs. Rockwell her husband has been cheating on her, which she believes no problem. You can also take the lingerie from the Simpson household and put it on Mr. Rockwell's desk then tell his wife he is a cross-dresser. The final way to do it is to read Mrs. Rockwell's diary, take the rolling pin from the kitchen, then go beat Mrs. Simpson to death with it, then show it to Mr. Rockwell. Once they've broken up, return to Betty.
3. Next, Betty will ask you to arrange a creative death for Mrs. Henderson. You cannot beat her to death, as this is "uncreative" and unsuitable for Betty. There are quite a few fun ways to end Mrs Henderson's life within her house. You can fiddle with the chandelier to drop whenever someone walks beneath it. You can place rollerskates on the stairs, which will make Mrs. Henderson fall down the stairs and die. You can also fiddle with the pilot light on the oven, then ask Mrs. Henderson to make you a pie, which results in her dying a fiery death. The other option is to hack her security terminal and set her own security robot against her. Return to Betty.
4. Finally, Betty wants you become the pint-sized slasher. Go get the gear from the shed, and kill everybody on Tranquility Lane. Once you've completed this task, Betty will reveal your father to you, and allow you to exit the simulation.

Override Code

If you just want to enter the override code, head into the abandoned house. You'll see an assortment of junk which you can "activate". If you hit these in the right order, it will activate the override code. The correct override code is: Radio, Pitcher, Gnome, Pitcher, Cinderblock, Gnome, Bottle. If you put that code in, a security terminal will appear in the house. Go activate it, then activate the Chinese Invasion protocol, which will spawn a bunch of Chinese soldiers in the middle of Tranquility Lane and open the exit from the simulation. Exit through the door next to Betty. However, the stuff Betty asks you to do is pretty fun, although you will lose Karma for following her instructions (and gain Karma for putting the poor citizens of Vault 112 out of their misery).

The Waters of Life

As soon as you pop out of the simulator, you'll get a chance to speak to you father for the first time since he left the Vault. Speak to him about Project Purity, the G.E.C.K, why he left the Vault, whatever you want to know. Your father needs to go back to Rivet City and talk with Dr. Li. He'll ask you to escort him back, but that's absolutely unnecessary, as he can make his way back on his own. Tell him you'll meet him in Rivet City, then go amuse yourself for a while, as he will actually walk in real time back across the Wasteland. If you want to check his location, look at your world map- he'll be marked as a quest arrow (Rivet City is marked as a quest arrow too, when there is only one full quest marker on your map your dad made it). At this point in time, it may be beneficial to explore the entirety of Vault 112 if you haven't already. A supply of weapons, ammo, some extra armor, and a few other supplies can be found in a few of the rooms around the main chamber.

Once your father is back at Rivet City, travel there and head down to the Science Lab. Your dad and Dr. Li are having a conversation, and eventually your dad convinces Dr. Li to help reboot Project Purity. Talk to him, and he'll ask you to meet him and Dr Li's team there. Cowboy up, and travel out to the Jefferson Memorial. The scientists are all outside the gift shop entrance. Your dad will ask you to go inside and clear out the Super Mutants in there, alone. Despite this being a dick move, there is no other way to progress than to do his request.

Likely you already wiped out all the enemies in the Gift Shop and Rotunda on your first visit, so you only need to head to the sub-basement. There are some Super Mutants down there, but not too many. Your quest journal will update when you've eliminated all the Mutants in the facility, so if it doesn't update, there are still Mutants to kill. Return to the scientists and escort them to the control room of Project Purity. If you'd like, you can head to your father's quarters and pick up a bunch of his old Project Purity journals for some nice back-story.

Next, you're apparently expected to act as a janitor. Why did we save this guy again? Your father will ask you to go perform some maintenance.

1. First you need to activate the Flood Pump in the basement- your quest arrow will lead you to it.
2. Return to your father, who will give you some new fuses and tell you to go replace some broken fuses. Your quest arrow will just lead you to a locked door- the generator is BELOW the locked door- take the stairs then follow your arrow again.
3. Head back up through the locked door you just unlocked by powering the fuses, and activate the mainframe in that room. Talk to your dad over the intercom after that, and he'll tell you to go clear some pipes.
4. Head into the pipes, and activate the little valve. As soon as you do that, you'll see an Enclave Helicopter land, and a bunch of soldiers will pile out. Your dad's voice will come over the intercom, and you need to get back to the control room

Head out the opposite side of the pipe you came from, you'll be in the Memorial basement again. Now, however, you'll have to deal with Enclave Soldiers. These guys are no joke, armed with Power Armor more advanced than the Brotherhood's, and Plasma-based weaponry that will fry you rather quickly. Move through the Memorial, back to the control center. Once you reach the control center, you'll see your dad talking to an Enclave officer. You can't do anything, so just watch the scene unfold.

Once your dad does his thing, you need to help Dr. Li and the other scientists escape. Dr. Li will lead you to a secret escape tunnel. However, none of the scientists can fight, and the tunnel is overrun with Feral Ghouls, so you need to take point. You can arm Daniel Agincourt with a gun if he survived, but ghouls kill him pretty quick usually. Plasma Rifles, if you looted one off the Enclave Soldiers, are especially effective against the Ghouls here. At a point, Dr. Li will demand you stop and deal with Garza, who has a heart condition. You can either give her the five stimpacks she demands, convince him to take some Buffout instead, convince Dr. Li to leave him behind, or just flat-out kill him on the spot. After you've dealt with him, keep moving down the tunnels. You'll reach a large door. Unlock it, and there's a Brotherhood soldier behind it. Quickly run behind his little bunker, and get the civilians to follow you- a large ghoul attack is triggered when you open the door. The Brotherhood soldier has a flamethrower, but he won't hesitate to torch you or the scientists if you get in his way.

Loot whatever the Brotherhood soldier has in case he dies (he does so often if you don't help him with the ghouls). There's a ton of ammo and weapons behind the Brotherhood soldier, so loot those, then head topside to finish the quest and gain entrance to the Citadel.

Picking Up The Trail

As soon as you reach the Citadel, your objective is to obtain a G.E.C.K. Your basic Brotherhood soldiers will know nothing of it, and Dr. Li will direct you towards Scribe Rothchild. Scribe Rothchild knows nothing directly of the G.E.C.K., but he can direct you to an old Vault-Tec computer with listings of all the Vaults in the area. The computer is in A-Ring. Activate it, and look through the Vault listings. As it turns out, Vault 87 was issued a G.E.C.K, so that's your next objective. Go talk to Scribe Rothchild again, and investigate about the Vault. He'll take you to a large map, which reveals the locations of all the Vaults in the Capital Wasteland (Useful if you hadn't found Vault 92 for Agatha's Song yet, or gone to the Vault-Tec HQ).

However, despite knowing the location, according to Rothchild the entrance is inaccessible, because of heavy radiation. He'll suggest going through the nearby Lamplight Caverns to try and find a back entrance. Lamplight Caverns will be marked on your map for you to trek to.

Once you enter Lamplight Caverns, you will find that there is a settlement there. Little Lamplight is a town inside the caves, populated solely by children under 16. As you try to enter, the mayor of the town will stop you at the gate. He'll ask what you need in Little Lamplight. At this point, he will refuse to let you in. You have three ways to enter Little Lamplight:

1. Win the speech challenge against the mayor
2. Use the Child at Heart perk dialog option to gain entrance
3. Rescue some Little Lamplighters from Paradise Falls slaving camp (if you haven't already).

If you haven't invested in either speech or Child at Heart, you'll have no choice but to head to Paradise Falls. However, if you do have the speech or Child at Heart, you can entirely skip the Rescue from Paradise.

Rescue From Paradise

This quest is optional, and can be skipped with either the Child at Heart perk, or a speech challenge, either of which will gain you entrance to Little Lamplight. However, if you don't have the Child at Heart perk, and cannot win the speech challenge, you will be forced to do this before you can proceed.

It turns out some Little Lamplighters have been kidnapped by the slavers from Paradise Falls. If you rescue them, you can gain entrance to Little Lamplight. Head off to Paradise Falls. When you arrive, you'll find that you cannot gain entrance diplomatically, unless you can talk Grouse into taking a (rather large) bribe, or by enslaving one of his VIP contracts (Strictly Business quest). If your karma is very bad, you'll be let in for free.

You can always just blast your way in- in the case of Paradise Falls, a complete massacre will actually result in good karma, so keep that in mind. Simply wiping out the whole camp is the easiest way to do the quest, although the slavers do put up fairly heavy resistance.

You have several diplomatic options here after you've gained entrance peacefully. Your first is to simply buy the kids from Eulogy for 2000 caps (1200 with a good enough speech skill). You can set the kids free back to Lamplight, and now you can enter Little Lamplight next time you return.

You can also go talk to the children through the slave pen fence, and they'll ask you to rescue them. They'll first ask you to gun everyone down and let them out. If you balk at that, you can rewire a junction box (Repair 40), or hack Eulogy's computer (Science 50). After doing either of these, you're supposed to go talk to the children again. They'll ask you to distract the guard Forty for them so they can go escape.

Approach Forty and begin talking to him. If you can convince him to see Eulogy Jones about a raise, he'll leave his post. Go back and talk to Sammy and Squirrel and they'll leave through a bathroom drain. However, the other child, Penny, will refuse to go. Talk to her, and she reveals that she won't leave unless you can rescue Rory to, who is locked in the box. At this point, it's possible to convince her to leave without Rory with a high enough speech skill. If you want to rescue Rory, you'll need the key to the Box. You can pickpocket it off either Eulogy or Forty.

If you tried to sneak through without alerting the slavers, at this point you're just fucked. Rory is a grown man, and can't sneak out. Your only option is to blast your way out. All that careful planning and subterfuge, and at the end, you have to go out guns blazing anyways. If you can convince Penny to leave without Rory, or convince the other kids to leave without Penny, you won't piss off Paradise Falls. However, there's no way to rescue Rory without attracting the venom of the slavers.

To complete the quest, talk to the kids outside the gate. They'll thank you and say you're welcome in Little Lamplight anytime, then run off.

Entering Vault 87

After you've gained entrance to Little Lamplight, you need to find your way into Vault 87. You can either convince the mayor to let you in through Murder Pass- which is infested with enemies and is a bit of a struggle, or you can convince Joseph to reconnect a computer, which you can hack to unlock a back door to the Vault. Both options put you in relatively the same place.

Vault 87 marks a bit of a turning point in the story, so it's advisable to clear up any business you want to take care of before you enter it. It's not technically the point of no return, but it is close, and you will be out of action for a bit after entering the Vault.

Finding the Garden of Eden

As soon as you enter Vault 87, Picking Up the Trail will complete, and you'll receive Finding the Garden of Eden. All this quest entails is finding the G.E.C.K. within Vault 87. Whichever entrance you came in, they both put you in the Reactor Chamber.

Vault 87 is swarming with Super Mutants, so it's a good idea to make sure you have a good weapon and armor set- bring a companion with you if possible. Dogmeat generally won't survive unless you babysit him, so it's a smart idea to send him back to Vault 101; however, if you have access to any other followers (Jericho, Charon, Star Paladin Cross, etc.), they are very useful here.

You'll have to fight up from the Reactor Chamber to the Living Quarters. Living Quarters is infested with more Super Mutants, but the G.E.C.K. isn't here so there's little excuse to linger. Fight through living quarters to Test Labs. In Test Labs, you'll see a Super-Mutant locked in an isolation room who asks to talk to you over the intercom. Activate the intercom and you can have a conversation with this unique talking Super Mutant, Fawkes(There's actually another one, called Uncle Leo, who wanders the Wasteland). Fawkes will say she (weird, huh? It's a girl) knows where the G.E.C.K. is, and can retrieve it for you. Releasing Fawkes is optional, as you can reach the G.E.C.K. on your own, using a radiation suit and some Rad-X, but generally releasing him works well. He'll brutalize anyone in her path, and it makes getting the G.E.C.K. much easier.

To release Fawkes, head down the hallway and turn right into the maintenance room. It's full of Super-Mutants who you need to kill. After they're all dead, activate the fire override and all the cells unlock (see note below). This lets out an insane human named Sid, as well as a couple Centaurs. Fight through them and get back to Fawkes. Release him, and he promises to lead you to the G.E.C.K. Just follow him- he'll brutalize anyone in your path and lead you straight to the G.E.C.K. Stop where he tells you to and let him fetch the Garden of Eden Creation Kit. Take it back from him when he returns, and head out of the Vault.

Oh, sorry, you can't. Enclave soldiers will jump you on your way out, and take you to their base, Raven Rock. Any companions you have at this point will automatically return to their starting positions, as if they were fired. They'll also take all the equipment you gave them.

*Note: It may be preferable for you to hack all of the terminals for the cells individually before activating the maintenance terminal, to rack up some hacks for the Achievement/Trophy.*

The American Dream

So now what? What happens next? Now you are in an electric cage, as you can see and Colonel Autumn is now giving you a dumb lecture about why the Enclave is so great. He'll ask for the code to Project Purity. If you play it nice to and give it to him, he'll shoot you. Bummer, huh? Tell him to fuck off instead. President Eden will call up for you to go to his office. You also will have access to get all your stuff back from that locker in your chamber. Go grab your gear and exit the room (make sure to grab all of your gear the first time you open the locker- it only opens once), but don't be startled by the guard that catches you leaving your area. Just keep your ass right there when the President confirms that he let you leave to meet him and you won't get shot by Enclave Soldiers. Make sure he sends the notice to not attack you and then you can waltz right through to the marker on your compass... That is, until Colonel Autumn overrides him and sends all the Enclave soldiers to fight you. What a jerk, right?

At this point, you must fight your way through to get to Eden and you will also get plenty of Laser/Plasma ammo along the way with all the dead Enclave. There are a few useful items that may be lurking in the lockers and crates around you, so be sure to check those out as you keep going. If you haven't already, this is a great time to get yourself some Tesla Armor, which is arguably the best armor in the game in terms of Damage Resistance combined with repair item availability.

The only things that won't be attacking you (besides the Scientists) are the robot guards to Eden's office, which will actually turn on the Enclave soldiers to help you clear a path. Once you get to the President, you will come realize to an odd reality: President John Henry Eden is a damn computer. He will end up going on and on about his plans until he makes a request for you to add a special ingredient to the Purifier at the Jefferson Memorial that would kill all irradiated humanoids (Ghouls, Supermutants, etc.) along with genetically damaged humans, which would destroy most of the dregs of Civilization in the Wasteland. Deciding to do what he says or not will affect your Karma level later on in the next part of the Main Quest, but he won't let you leave without it. Before you escape him, you will also be given the option to ask Eden to shut down the Enclave operation, something very similar to what you could do at the end of the original Fallout. If your speech level is high enough, he will accept your notion and begin to blow up Raven Rock (this will lower the amount of enemies to fight in the final showdown against the Enclave.) Now take the FEV vial that has popped out of Eden's terminal and get the hell out of there!

If you successfully talked the President into destroying the Enclave, the fight back to the surface will be a little easier, as his robots are joining in to help you. Simple objective: just keep fighting and picking up the ammo and/or gear until you get out of Raven Rock. You will also receive a special surprise when looking down to the left outside. Fawkes is here to assist in cleaning up the mess of remaining soldiers, and with his new toy Gatling Laser. If you have a good karma, you can keep him as a companion. If your Karma rating isn't high enough, he'll lounge around with Willow outside the Museum of History. Looks like your job is done here, so go back to the Citadel to initiate the final assault on the Enclave.

Take It Back!

This is the final quest in the game. Be warned however, that there is no continuing after the story finishes. After you accept this quest, you can no longer roam the Wasteland or complete any quests you left undone, short of loading an earlier save. This is the hard stop for the game, at least until the Broken Steel DLC releases in March.

When you get back to the Citadel, you will find Elder Lyons in the laboratory speaking to his daughter about a final assault on the Enclave to retake Project Purity. You have an option now; give the FEV virus to Elder Lyons or not. Giving it to him will keep the virus from entering the Memorial and award you some good Karma (but I'm pretty sure that you have a choice to use it if you keep it). When that conversation over, If you want to keep exploring the Wasteland, I suggest you to hold off on starting to go anywhere and keep the Brotherhood of Steel waiting. If you don't care, then talk to Sarah Lyons and continue.

When you're ready, tell Sentinel Lyons and your final epic mission will begin. Remember that giant robot that you've seen when you go in and out of the Citadel? His programming was meant to destroy the Communist Chinese invaders in the Battle of Anchorage, but the US Government couldn't solve its power-consumption issues. Thanks the geniuses at the Citadel, you're about to finally see him in action. The goal is simply to get to the Jefferson Memorial while following the giant robot without dying. You could just sit back, watch death, big explosions and Mr. Iron Giant take care of mostly everything. If you don't find yourself especially prone for large-scale combat, just follow behind and pick up all of the excellent loot that drops from the dead Enclave suckers. Fawkes and other high-capacity followers are great assets for carrying your extra stuff here*. Because Liberty Prime is a giant ass robot and there are several small cars and rocks around, it's not uncommon for him to get stuck, so consider saving before executing the assault.

Once you arrive at the Jefferson Memorial, your robot will halt and you may notice a significantly larger number of soldiers protecting the area, but don't worry, Liberty Prime will continue to attack the remaining enemies if you are willing to be patient. Head on into the Gift Shop entrance, keep fighting and enter the Rotunda. You will have a very abrupt meeting with Colonel Autumn. You can try to talk things out, but he seems to have made his decision already to kill you. Instead, you should probably kill him and his guards. If you get the chance, pick up Colonel Autumn's Laser Pistol- a modified laser pistol that fires automatic instead of semi-automatic, does 75 damage, and uses cheap Energy Cells*. After the fight, you will make a decision that will determine the ending: either sacrifice yourself to engage Project Purity (good) or tell Sentinel Lyons to go in by herself (bad). The code for Project Purity is 216 (From your mother's favorite bible passage, Revelations 2:16), in case you wanted to know. Neither choice makes much difference in you continuing to play the game because it will end either way without the DLC available in March.

Now you're done, but the fun doesn't end. Open the last save, have some fun, and use our unusually helpful Sidequest guide!

*Note: Although the Main Quest does end at the climax of this quest, the Downloadable Content that is set to arrive in March should allow you to extend your period of play past the ending of the original story, so hoarding all of that high-quality stuff is probably a good idea.*

Sidequests

There's plenty to do off the beaten path in Fallout 3, everything from nuking a town to stealing the Declaration of Independence is available to you. Below is a list of sidequests, sorted by location, as well as instructions on how to complete them and their rewards. If a quest has *Unnamed Quest* at the top, that means it isn't an official quest that will go in your log, but it's still completeable for a reward. Unnamed Quests usually go into your Notes section in your Pip-Boy. Unnamed quests are also denoted with asterisks* in the Table of Contents.

Megaton

Megaton has a plethora of sidequests available, the most notable of which is the option to detonate the nuclear bomb in the middle of the town, completely destroying it- but also eliminating any other sidequests originating from Megaton- except for Wasteland Survival Guide. That quest will survive the nuking of Megaton.

Power of the Atom

This is the most important sidequest in Megaton, and has a huge impact on both your Karma level, and how the game develops as you move on. It deals with the atomic bomb in the middle of Megaton, which you can either disarm or detonate.

First off, ask Lucas Simms about the bomb in the center of town, and ask him about disarming it. He'll let you take a look at it if you want, saying there's 100 caps in it for you if you disarm the bomb. However, if you head to Moriarty's saloon, there's a man in the corner, Mister Burke, who will try and talk you into detonating the bomb, thus eradicating Megaton.

You can try and sell Burke out to Simms, who will attempt to arrest him, but Burke will kill Lucas Simms and flee town, pledging vengeance against you, so this isn't exactly the best choice. Well, if you want to kill Lucas Simms without actually taking the blame, this is probably the best method for doing it. You also get the sweet Sheriff item set and a Chinese Assault Rifle pretty early on in the game, should you choose to have him eliminated.

You'll need an explosives skill of 25 to either disarm the bomb or plant the charge for Burke, so until your skill is high enough, the quest cannot be completed- although mentats can temporarily increase your skill level and push you over the limit if you are lucky. Saving right before you use the mentats is recommended, so that you don't run the risk of getting addicted or wasting them if they don't work well enough.

If you disarm the bomb, Lucas Sims will give you 100 caps (500 if you convinced him via the speech challenge), and the key to a house in Megaton. Mister Burke will vanish.

If you rig the bomb to explode, meet Burke and Tenpenny at Tenpenny Tower, where you can detonate the bomb and watch the fireworks. You'll recieve 500 caps (1000 if you won the speech challenge aganst Burke), your own Tenpenny suite, and loads of bad Karma. Most of Megaton's residents and the entirety of the town are destroyed. Luckily enough for you, Moira Brown was resilient enough to survive the blast, and will take up shop in Rivet City or Underworld. You can resume the Wasteland Survival Guide from there, if you so choose.

Now THAT'S a Giant Bomb! Ba dum psh!

Blood Ties

*READ THIS FIRST*
If you nuke Megaton, this quest is STILL AVAILABLE, but the part involving Lucy's letter is not. Just head straight to Arefu, and they'll still ask for your help against The Family. You can still do the quest, just not do the parts involving Lucy's letter. Head off to Arefu, and the quest starts there.

This quest starts with Lucy West- you can usually find her hanging out in Moriarty's, or in her home. If you talk to her she'll ask you to take a letter to her parents in a town called Arefu, although she says she has no money to pay you with. If you accept the quest and ask for more information, she'll give you the location of Arefu, which marks it on your map. It's a bit of a trek to the north-west of Megaton, so you should stock up on ammo and healing items before you leave.

After you make it to Arefu, you'll find the town is in a state of lockdown, apparently under threat from some gang of ruffians known as The Family. Talk to the sentry (Evan King), and he'll ask you to check on the three other families living on the bridge. Go into each house and talk with the inhabitants. When you enter the West house, you'll see two corpses, Lucy's parents. If you have a medical skill above 30, you can examine the bodies and notice some deep bite marks on their necks.

Go return to King and inform him of the West's fate. He'll blame The Family, but being the pussy he is he won't go after them himself. Instead, he asks you to go find the West's son, who might still be alive. He'll give you three possible locations for the Family. You only need to head to Northwest Seneca Station. There you'll find a bunch of Molerats, and two Ghouls running some sort of lab. Go into the rooms used by the Ghouls, and look for a small door leading to a enclosed passage blocked off with some barrels of nuclear waste. Go up in front of the barrels, look down, and go through the trapdoor.

The cavern you are in has some highly radioactive areas, so watch out. Also in this cavern are two Mirelurks. If you're still at a low level, Mirelurks will be a bit of a challenge- although they can only attack from close range. If you have any frag mines, place them on the ground between you and the Mirelurks, then draw the monster's attention. If they walk over the mines they should take away large portions of health, allowing you to kill them with a normal weapon. Always shoot Mirelurks in the face. Anyways, after you kill the Mireurks, head for the slope which goes upwards. It's rigged to throw a grenade at you though, so make sure to run up the slope as fast as you can to avoid the grenade. This is the first of many traps that you'll find in the Seneca tunnels. The Family seems to be quite paranoid about visitors.

When you climb up into the tunnels, you'll see a crashed train on your left. Head to the train, and turn left down that corridor. There are some more traps, so be careful. When you reach the end on that tunnel, a sentry will approach you. You can either talk him into letting you into the compound, pay him 100 caps to get in, or just blow his brains out, depending on your disposition. He will also let you in if you say you have a letter from Lucy.

Despite the rather tragic amount of talking, this video does a good job of showing how to get into Meresti from Northwest Seneca Station. There's a bit where he's looking at a train then it skips ahead a bit, head to the train and turn left down the tunnel it crashed in.

The Family is inside Meresti Station. If you talk to some of the members, you'll find out that Vance is the guy you need to talk to. Usually you can find him up on the mezzanine, although he does wander off to other places sometimes. Vance will tell you that Ian joined the family of his own accord; he wasn't kidnapped as the citizens of Arefu assumed. Further investigation will reveal more of Ian's tragic story. If you ask to see him, Vance will say Ian is alone meditating and cannot be disturbed.

Almost any Family member can be convinced to give up the password to Ian's room, by a variety of ways. The fastest method might simply be convincing Vance (who you should have just talked to) to let you in. Head up the stairs and through the hallways to reach Ian's room. Enter the code, and you'll have a chance to talk to Ian. You can convince Ian to either stay with the Family, or head back to Arefu. Vance will accept his decision either way. You are then given a chance to end the fued between the Family and Arefu by talking to Vance, although this is not necessary. Ending the feud will involve convincing Arefu to donate some blood for The Family to drink, in return for The Family's protection. Pursuing this course also links the hostility ratings of each group, so killing The Family off will anger Arefu residents, and vice versa.

Return to Arefu and talk to the sentry. He'll congratulate you and the quest will end (unless you are going the extra mile and mediating the truce). If you left Vance alive, at this point you can return to Meresti Station and ask him to teach you the ways of the vampire, which grants you the Hematophage perk. This is a perk that allows you to regain 20 HP from Blood Packs instead of just 1. You can also sell him blood packs for 15 caps a piece.

Wasteland Survival Guide

*READ THIS FIRST*
*If you nuke Megaton, this quest is STILL AVAILABLE. Moira will become a Ghoul and either move to Rivet City or Underworld. Seek her out there and you can STILL DO the quest*

The Wasteland Survival Guide starts with Moira Brown in Craterside Supply. You can agree to help her with her book; or alternatively, if your speech skill is high enough, you can talk her out of writing the book, which counts as completing the quest and grants you a special perk (You'll also get the achievement). The first time she sees you, she'll ask for a statement about Vault life. After you give her one, you will receive Vault 101 armor, and she'll ask if you want to help with the rest of her book. If you accept, she needs help with three chapters, each of which has three parts:

Chapter 1- Basically an introduction to the various dangers of the Capital Wasteland. You will find yourself confronting hidden explosives, occupied buildings, and incremental radiation doses with this chapter.

Radiation Study

She'll require you to irradiate yourself over 200 rads, with an optional objective of getting 600 rads. The asiest way to do this is just to go chill with Confessor Cromwell in the puddle of irradiated water surrounding the bomb in the center of Megaton and drink from the puddle until your rads get high enough. If you go over 600, your genes will mutate to the point where whenever you have heavy radiation poisoning, and crippled limbs will automatically regenerate. This effect is applied when Moira gives you the reward for going above and beyond the call of duty for her objective.

Food Study

She'll ask you to investigate the nearby Super-Duper Mart, which she will mark the location of on your map. Super Duper Mart is overrun with Raiders, who have set up patrols with wooden planks spanning the aisles so that they can walk along the tops of the display racks. On the far right of the entrance is a room with many supplies in it, including what would probably be the player's first Laser Pistol, a Nuka Cola Quantum (collect these for the Nuka Cola Challenge sidequest later on) and ammo supplies.

In the back of Super Duper Mart there is a supply room. In that supply room are many things you would want to collect yourself, along with the optional objective of finding Medicine and other supplies for Moira. It is adviseable to take the Super Duper Mart Employee Tag on top of the terminal, and then set loose the Protectron. The Protectron will help kill raiders who show up while you are in the back room (this is an always-occuring event.) Be sure to fully explore the Mart to find all of the grenade and ammo boxes along with medical supplies that you can. For players just starting out, collecting these supplies is vital to establishing yourself in the Wasteland.

Landmine Study

Moira will ask you to head to Minefield, an abandoned town north-east of Megaton. Head to Minefield and explore a bit. Moira wants you to disarm a mine and bring it back to her for study. To do this, walk very slowly up to a mine, and put your cursor over it. Hit the action button once to disarm it, then once more to pick it up and put it in your inventory. Be careful while exploring Minefield, as there is an NPC named Arkansas who likes shooting nearby cars with his Sniper Rifle. You can dodge Arkansas by finding the broken office building that he patrols, and sneaking up to where he is (disarming all mines along the way). Killing Arkansas will net you a fairly heavily damaged Sniper Rifle and some ammo. Arkansas also has a good supply of ammo crates around him that you will want to open or lockpick. Note that killing Arkansas could possibly have an effect on the Strictly Business quest, although it is not at all necessary to leave him alive.

Picking up the key on Arkansas' body also allows you access into all of the houses in Minefield, so be sure to explore all of those and pick up the various skill books and other items (bobby pins, medical supplies) that you find. The skill books and bobby pins are incredibly rare to come by, so be sure to do your best to collect as many as possible, since they are some of the most useful items in the game. Return to Moira and report about the mines. She'll give you four frag grenades for completing the main objective, and a Bottlecap mine schematic for completing the optional objective of bringing back a mine.

Chapter 2- in this chapter, you will investigate and chronicle several of the Wasteland's basic threats.

Injury Study

Moira will ask you to go injure yourself severely- below 50% health- with the optional objective of returning with a crippled limb. The easiest way to do this is to go outside of the store, and throw a grenade a couple feet from you. The resulting explosion should both cripple a limb and damage you enough to complete the challenge. Be careful not to harm any citizens of Megaton in the process. Go back inside and describe the pain to Moira. She'll patch you up and give you some stimpacks.

Molerat Study

Moira has a new Molerat repellent she needs you to test out before she can put the recipe in her book. She'll ask you to test it out on a couple Molerats, with an optional objective of testing it on more than ten. She'll suggest the Tepid sewers as a place with plenty of Molerats, and mark it on your map for you. The Repellent Stick is a weapon you'll have to equip, it's a mossy, chemical-soaked stick of wood. If you don't want to travel to the Tepid Sewers, there are usually some Molerats hanging out around the walls of Megaton. Just walk the perimeter looking for rats. Whack them once or twice with the stick- it's remarkably efficient*- and the rat should die. Rinse and repeat 3 times for the basic objective, ten times for the optional. Return to Moira and claim your reward- the Mole Rat Repellent stick, and extra chems if you completed the optional objective.

*For some added fun, just whack the Molerats once with the stick, and then run away. They should dawdle for a few seconds, and then their heads will explode.

Mirelurk Study

Next Moira wants you to go research some Mirelurks for her, as they are relatively unknown. She'll ask you to plant an observation module in a Mirelurk nest, with the optional objective of doing it without killing any Mirelurks. The nest she wants you to observe is in the Anchorage War Memorial, which she will mark on your map if you haven't already found it. If you're aiming to complete the secondary objective, it's a good idea to dismiss whatever companion you have currently (if you have one), as they'll automatically attack the Mirelurks.

Head to the south side of the island, where you will see an alternate way in. If you chose the right entrance, there should be a 4-way intersection in front of you, and one Mirelurk in the vicinity. Run past the Mirelurk, head to the right, plant the receiver in the pod very quickly, and run out. This is one of the easiest objectives in the entire quest, yet many people tend to go through the entire memorial because they don't know this trick. Return to Moira. She'll give you a shady hat and five stealth boys if you completed the optional objective. You'll also recieve twenty 10mm rounds for finishing the second chapter.

Chapter 3- this chapter focuses on the recent and not-so-recent history of the Capital Wasteland.

Rivet City Study

Moira wants you to research the true history of Rivet City, to discover how it became so successful. Head off to Rivet City Marketplace, and ask Bannon about the history. He'll give you some info which is obviously wrong, but is still enough for Moira anyways. If you're after the optional objective, ask Seagrave Holmes, who will mention a man named Pinkerton. The optional objective is to learn the real history of Rivet City, which requires a visit to old Pinkerton in the ship's broken bow. If you don't know how to get into the bow, check the "Replicated Man" quest under Rivet City (look slightly under this section in the Table of Contents). Get into the bow and talk with Pinkerton about the city's history. Ask him for evidence, which he will give you, then head back to Moira in Megaton. She'll give you mentats as a reward.

Robot Study

Moira wants you to investigate the old RobCo production plant. You can just tell Moira about the robots if you have the Robotics Expert perk, which allows you to skip this part. Head to the plant marked on your map by Moira, and enter through the front door. All the Robots are deactivated, but the place is infested with Molerats and other vermin. You'll have to fight through to the mainframe, and insert the widget Moira gave you. This will activate all the robots in the area, and make all of them hostile to you. To achieve the secondary objective, you'll need a science skill of 50 or above to hack the terminal near the mainframe and alter the robot's programming- this will also allow you to make them friendly towards you, which causes them to kill all of the remaining pests and greatly eases your escape. Moira will reward you with 3 Pulse grenades and a Big Book of Science, with 2 more Pulse grenades for completing the optional objective.

Library Study

Moira wants you to go investigate a library in the D.C. Ruins. The National Archives are in the Southwest corner of the D.C. Ruins, across the river from Rivet City. The building itself is under the protection of the Brotherhood of Steel, who are clearing out the remaining Raiders when you arrive. To complete the basic goal, you just need to talk to the Brotherhood scribe at the desk, then access the terminal and download the card catalogue. Completing the Optional objective requires you and your Brotherhood comrades to wipe out the rest of the raiders in the vicinity and make your way to the very back of the library. There is a terminal in the center of a very confusingly designed Raider mini-stronghold, which for some odd reason was not erased or destroyed by the Raiders.

Once you've finished everything return to Moira. She'll send the book off to get distributed and give you your rewards. For completing the whole quest, you get:

• A mini-nuke (Which Moira says she was planning on digging a well with)
• A copy of The Wasteland Survival Guide, which has no game effect, but can be displayed in your house. The item description in your inventory will reflect the type and caliber of the information you gave Moira.
• The Survivor perk, which varies quite significantly in effect depending on how you did the quest.

Megaton House*

If you chose to disarm the bomb in the center of Megaton, Lucas Simms will give you the key to the empty house in Megaton. You can now utilize this house as a home base. The house has a bed you can sleep in, several lockers and containers for you to store extra loot it, and a robotic butler named Wadsworth who can give you purified water, cut your hair, or tell you a corny joke on request.

While the basic house is still useful, there are some modifications you can purchase from Moira at Craterside Supply that will improve the place greatly. You can either buy expansions to add new functionality to your house, or buy themes to change the look of your house. In addition to modifying the general aesthetics, all themes will place a number of useful items in your house, which vary depending on the theme.

Expansions

• Workbench: This allows you to make weapon schematics in your house. It's not bad, but there's a workbench in Craterside Supply that is free to use, and only a short walk from your house, so you should probably just use that one and save yourself the caps. Later on in the game, when you have more caps than you know what to do with, you should definitely pick this thing up. It's incredibly convenient.
• Infirmary: This module allows you to restore your HP to full, heal any crippled limbs you may have, and remove all radiation. Wasteland doctors can perform these tasks, but they will charge every time, so this module is pretty useful. It also negates the need to sleep and heal all of your wounds, unless you really want that extra 10% experience gain.
• Laboratory: This module has two functions. First, it will detox you from any chems you have become addicted to instantly, which is a very useful ability, especially if you use chems a lot. The laboratory will also brew you a random chem, but this takes about one in-game day, and you cannot use the lab to detox while it's making a chem. This is very useful for characters that use a lot of chems.
• Jukebox: This will play whatever radio station you last tuned into on your Pip-Boy. There's really no point to this except for looks, as your Pip-Boy will play radio inside your house.
• Nuka-Cola Machine: This adds a sweet looking Nuka-Cola vending Machine to your house, which comes stocked with 8 Ice-Cold Nuka Colas. In addition, you can put any Nuka-Cola's you have in your inventory into the machine and make them ice-cold. Ice-Cold Nuka Cola increases your HP by 20 and your rads by 1, double the healing power and half the rads of a normal Nuka-Cola, so this machine does have an effect on gameplay. You cannot put Nuka-Cola Quantums in the Machine.

Themes

• Vault: This theme reskins your house to look marginally like a Vault-Tec Vault, and comes complete with a large amount of food items
• Raider: The theme for the sadists among us. This theme comes with a large number of weapons, and is accented by the charming corpse hanging from the ceiling.
• Wasteland: The Wasteland theme, if possible, makes your house look even more run down. It features a picnic table in the center room and a motorcycle on the second floor. It comes with a lot of alchohol.
• Science: The science theme makes your house look very much like a laboratory. Lots of computers make up the scenery, and you'll find quite a few chems in your house, in addition to an energy weapons skill book.
• Pre-War: This theme makes your house look like the nuclear apocalypse never happened. Everything looks much neater and cleaner. This also comes with a lot of food.
• Love Machine: This turns your house into a bit of a playboy pad. You'll get the same sculpture that is in Dukov's Place hanging from your ceiling, and a heart-shaped bed. In addition you'll get a lot of Vodka and Jet, and a speech book.

House items cannot be sold back to vendors.

Pipe Repair*

*Unnamed Quest* [Repeatable]

Find Walter, the guy who runs the Water Processing Plant, and talk to him. Ask him if there's anything you can do to help, and he will mention that the water-delivery infrastructure in Megaton is sorely in need of leak repairs. Accept his request. To repair a leak, you will need a repair skill at or above 30. You can spot the leaks by a visible spout of water coming out of the side of a pipe- to repair it, you simply need to locate the leak and press A. There are three leaks in total to repair:

• One next to the steps near the entrance gate
• One on the steps opposite the entrance, leading back up the slope
• One on the roof of the church of atom- you'll need to jump down here from a higher platform

Once you've repaired all three leaks, talk to Walter back at the plant. He'll congratulate you on your work, and offer to buy any scrap metal you have off of you. In addition, you wlll receive 200 caps. Any scrap metal you bring Walter afterwards will fetch you ten caps per piece, which is by far the best trade-for-value option in the entire game, aside from the weightless Pre-War Money that goes for 7 caps, or Brotherhood Holotags, which go for 100 caps in the Citadel.

Leo's Problem*

*Unnamed Quest*

If you talk to Doc Church in the clinic, and ask him about what's going on in town, he'll rebuff you. Then, if have have a high speech skill, a skill challenge will apear in which you can try and talk the information out of him. Also, if you have a high enough medicine skill, a unique dialog option appears which will convince him to give up the information that Leo Stahl is addicted to chems. Church says he goes to the water treatment plant at night to get high. Go confront Leo about his problem. If you can convince him to give it up, he'll give you the key to his stash- in a desk in the water treatment plant- which contains some caps and a bunch of healing items.

Oddly enough, it is still possible to find Leo sitting by his stash every so often in the middle of the night. The stash (if you cleared it out) will be totally empty, but he'll act suspiciously anyway. This is probably a glitch, because he pretends that he never even met you in the first place when you confront him.

Rivet City

Rivet City is the biggest settlement in the Capital Wasteland, and crawling with things to do.

The Replicated Man

This quest sets you on the trail of a runaway android, who is being hunted by a group of people from something called the Collective. Although it's possible you've picked up holotapes referring to this quest earlier in your travels, the quest proper starts in the Rivet City Science lab. As soon as you enter the science lab, you'll see a doctor and a man in a suit arguing about something. Listen to their conversation, and you'll hear it's an escaped android they're talking about.

Talk to Zimmer after he's done arguing with the doctor, and he'll ask if you're interested in helping him hunt down his android. Accept, and the quest is yours. Zimmer tells you to poke around medical and tech offices for clues. More specifically, what you're looking for are holotapes. If you see a holotape, pick it up, as it contains relevant information. Here are the holotape locations, in no particular order (You can talk a lot of this information out of people too, without having to steal holotapes):

1. In Doc Church's offices in Megaton.
2. There's one behind the pulpit in one of Rivet City's churches.
3. There's one on Moira's desk in Megaton's Craterside supply.
4. Dr. Preston in Rivet City will give you a tape if you ask.
5. Red's Clinic in Big Town
6. There's one in Eulogy's Pad in Paradise Falls
7. Nathan and Manya's House in Megaton has one
8. Underworld Outfitters in Underworld has a holotape
9. The Chop Shop in Underworld has one
10. There's one in the clinic in Tenpenny Tower
11. Finally, there is one in the Citadel Labratory.

Eventually, the quest will direct you back to Rivet City, to find a man named Pinkerton. Now, if you ask around, no one seems to have any solid info on Pinkerton. As it turns out, Pinkerton is hiding off in the bow of the ship. There are two ways to reach him. One requires a 100 Lockpick skill, the other for you to swim through quite a lot of irradiated water.

Exit Rivet City and walk back to the shore. If you walk south, following the shore, you'll see a spot where the ship is broken in two. Pinkerton is in the broken bow section (not the city section). There's a bridge leading from the shore to the bow, but it ends in a locked door which requires a 100 lockpick skill to attempt. The other way to gain entrance is to swim to the point where the bow and the main ship seperate, and search around on the Bow side for an underwater door. Make sure you go back up for air before going through the door, as there will be quite a bit of swimming after you go through it.

After swimming through or picking the lock, you will encounter quite a few Mirelurks and booby traps. Make your way past those until you reach a room with a door that cannot be opened. Look around at the walls to find the electrical switch, and activate that to go through the door.

Pinkerton is inside the bow, living alone in his laboratory. He'll be a bit cranky that you're disturbing him, but otherwise not hostile. Talk to him, and ask him about the android. He'll feign ignorance, but after one denial, if you press the subject, he'll reveal that the android's name is now Harkness, the Security Chief of Rivet City, and the first person you met when you arrived at the ship. If you press further, Pinkerton will tell you he didn't remove the android's memories, he just buried them. Hankness still has them, and they can be access via an override code, which Pinkerton will give you. Ask him if he has proof, and he says to check his computer. Check the terminal, download the files, and you're ready to finish up the quest.

Pinkerton has some very valuable loot in his labratory, but try not to let him see you stealing anything. He can perform facial reconstruction on you at any time, which allows you to change your appearance, which is a pretty valuable service for those who don't like how their character came out. In addition, you will be required to return to Pinkerton for an optional objective of the Wasteland Survival Guide if you haven't already. However, the stuff is certainly worth stealing, if you have the ability.

Now you have the choice of either turning Harkness in to Zimmer, or telling Harkness he's an android.

If you turn Harkness in to Zimmer, Zimmer will reclaim Harkness as his property, and give you the Wired Reflexes perk as a reward.

If you tell Harkness (who usually hangs out in the Rivet City entrance, if you're trying to find him) that he is an android by using the override code, he will give you A3-21's Plasma Rifle as a reward, and can be convinced to do several different things, depending on our dialog choices. All of his dialogue options are fairly simple, so the player needs no guidance here, and can choose whichever one they like.

It is possible to get both A3-21's Plasma Rifle and the Wired Reflexes perk by playing your cards right. First go reveal to Harkness he's an android by using the override code. Then ask him what he plans to do with Zimmer. Ask him if you could kill Zimmer, and Harkness will agree to authorize an execution warrant. He'll give you his Plasma Rifle, and you will gain Karma. Head to the Rivet City Science Lab and talk to Zimmer. Reveal that the android is Harkness. You'll lose Karma and Zimmer will thank you and give you the Wired Reflexes perk. Back out of the conversation and kill Zimmer and his bodyguard. You now have both the Wired Reflexes perk and A3-21's Plasma Rifle, and the quest counts as completed.

At a random time during this quest, you are likely to be approached by a woman named Victoria Watts, who is a member of an android-rights network. She wlll give you an android component from A3-21 to give to Zimmer to convince him the andrid is destroyed. Doing so will count as completing the quest. You will recieve good karma and 50 caps from Zimmer.

Stealing Independence

This quest starts off at the Capitol Preservation Society, with Abraham Washington (swell name, huh?). Head into his little museum, and talk to him about his collection. He'll say how nice it is, but then mention how it's almost useless without a certain document. Inquire further and he'll tell you he wants the Declaration of Independence, and he wants you to steal it. It's in the National Archives, which he will mark on your map if you ask him to. Inquire further about the history of the document for some hilariously distorted lectures on America's development as a nation.

Exit Rivet City, and hoof it up through the D.C. ruins until you get to the National Archives. If you've already been to the Mall, just fast travel there and make the journey much easier. Enter through the front door of the Archives, and walk into the main lobby. Sydney, the last merc Abraham Washington hired for this job, is holed up in there. She'll tell you to move over to her. You should probably listen. A Super-Mutant attack will be triggered, and it is in your best interests to help Sydney kill them all. After the first group is all dead, don't relax, a second wave comes. There's plenty of cover in the area, so pick them off one by one. If there are any landmines left in the room, they help stop the muties.

Once every Super-Mutant is dead, talk to Sydney. She'll tell you her story, but the most important information she tells you is about the secret elevator in the area. Sydney will also offer to partner up with you for the remainder of your expedition, which you should probably accept, as another gun is never bad news. When you're done talking, activate the terminal behind her to open up the elevator. A floor panel will lift up. There's also an ammunition box next to the computer. When you are ready, get on the raised platform and "open" it.

Down here in the catacombs there are a lot of still-active robots and turrets, so be ready for a serious fight to the Declaration. There is a broken door nearby which you can repair with a Science skill of 67 or higher. In here are the power generators for some of the defense turrets, and destroying those will take the turrets offline. Down in the Archives sublevels, there are quite a few gas leaks and explosive items, so be careful with Sydney. This isn't exactly helpful, but we don't really have a strategy for avoiding it, except to save often. On your way to the Declaration room, it is possible to find both the Bill of Rights and the Magna Carta (Why isn't that one in England?), both of which can be sold back to Abraham Washington for extra caps.

After you succeed in fighting through to the Declaration room, you'll be faced with an unexpected challenge. A robot wearing a wig stands in front of you, blocking the path to the Declaration. This is a robot that was used for the museum's re-enactment of the signing of the Declaration, but it appears in the centuries since the bombs fell its programming has been corrupted, and now it really believes itself to be Button Gwinnet, second signer of the Declaration of Indpendence. Button Gwinnet won't willingly let you take the Declaration, so you need to find a way past him. As always, you have some options. After you deal with the robot, use the computer to unlock the Declaration. Here's how you can get Button out of your way:

• With a high enough speech skill, you can convince Button that you are Thomas Jefferson, here to reclaim the Declaration. You can also persuade Button to shut down if you convince him into thinking you're Jefferson
• You can blow the robot to pieces, which will give you bad karma
• Shut him down if you have the Robotics Expert perk
• You can take his offer to go find him ink to forge a copy of the Declaration, which will prolong the quest. You need to go retrieve the ink from Arlington Library and bring it back to Button, at which point he will present you a forgery you can bring back to Abraham Washington.

After you deal with Button and get either the real Declaration or a copy, head through the utility door, which will take you back through a room full of a bunch of utility pods for Protectrons, and eventually back to the main entrance. The fight from the utility door can get Sydney killed or heavily maimed, so it might be in your best interests just to retrace the already-clear path back the way you came. Take the Declaration and head back to Rivet City. Hand it off to Abraham Washinton, take his reward, and sell him the Bill of Rights and Magna Carta if you picked either of those up. This counts as completing the quest, and will also unlock the dialogue option about Sydney's father, which allows you to do the unnamed quest "Sydney's Father" (Listed under Underworld in the Table of Contents).

Escaped Slave*

*Unnamed Quest*

You'll run across a woman named Mei Wong on the midship deck, usually wandering the corridors. If you talk to her, it turns out she's an escaped slave, scared because she saw a slaver called Sister on the ship. You can give her 25 caps to buy a gun to protect her with, in which case she gives you the location of the slave hideout Temple of the Union, or you can turn her into Sister. You can also turn her into Sister, then tell her that he knows, in which case she kills herself. Sister gives you nothing for helping him, except bad karma

Paulie's Chem Problem*

*Unnamed Quest*

If you ask around, turns out Paulie Cantelli is addicted to psycho. You find him wandering the ship's corridors, feel free to give him some Psycho. He'll overdose and die. Loot his corpse for profit. Paulie's widow will then proceed to become addicted to chems.

City Council Trouble*

*Unnamed Quest*

If you speak to Bannon in the Rivet City Marketplace, and ask him about the council, he will say he's far more influential than Seagrave Holmes. Inquire further, and Bannon will express a desire to find something incriminating in Holme's room to insure the safety of his council seat.

You can either pick the lock to Holmes' room with a high enough lockpick skill, or you can lift the key from him by pickpocketing. Head into Holmes' room. The incriminating evidence is under his bed, leaning against a footlocker. Pick it up, then go talk to Bannon again- he'll ask you to go turn it in to Lana Danvers, but make sure not to mention he told you to do it. You can either incriminate Holmes and say nothing about Bannon, or tell Danvers that Bannon is attempting blackmail.

If you take Bannon's side, he will give you a schematic for a Deathclaw Gauntlet, and a discount at his store.

If you side with Holmes, he will reward you with a discount, as well as buying your items for higher prices. Bannon will jack his prices up for you.

Diego and Angela*

*Unnamed Quest*

Angela wants Diego the acolyte to notice her. She asks you to get some ant phermones for her to use to seduce Diego. From here you have several options:

1. Lie to Father Clifford and tell him you caught Diego and Angela sleeping together. He'll expel Diego from the priesthood, and Diego and Angela will get engaged.
2. Get some Ant Queen Phermones and give them to Angela. You can buy them from Cindy Cantelli in Rivet City Marketplace, or you can loot them from the dead body of an ant queen. Diego and Angela will get engaged after this.
3. If you keep harassing Diego, he will sever all ties with Angela, ending any possibility of a romance.

If you talk to Angela after the couple get engaged, it's possible to witness their wedding.

Runaways*

*Unnamed Quest*

James Hargrave can be convinced via a speech challenge to run away from home. Doing so will cause him to run away, but he will also take C.J. Young with him, which puts the people of Rivet City into a bit of a nervous state. Multiple people will ask if you can find C.J., although it seems no one is too concerned about James.

The two vagabonds didn't make it far though. They're at Anacosta Crossing, the big plaza right down the stairs from Rivet City. Walk away from the ship and their NPC markers should appear. Talk to James, and he'll ask you to take him back home to his mom. Agree, escort him the short distance back to Rivet City, and you'll be rewarded with good Karma. You can also leave James to his own problems and refuse to escort him home.

Childish Theif*

*Unnmarked Quest* [Repeatable]

If you have the Child at Heart perk, you can ask James Hargrave to steal ammo for you. Every couple of days he'll have some free rounds to give to you that he managed to steal from Flak and Shrapnel.

Tenpenny Tower

Tenpenny Tower

As soon as you arrive at Tenpenny Tower, you should see a Ghoul named Roy Phillips arguing with a guard over an intercom. He tries to bribe the guard with caps in order to get in, but fails. Eventually, he walks off. Talk into the intercom to get a rather rude welcome. There are three ways to get into Tenpenny Tower. If you agreed to blow Megaton up, you'll get in for free. If you pass a speech check, you'll get in for free. If none of these work, you'll have to pay to gain access.

Once inside, talk to Chief Gustavo. It appears that they are having a problem with Roy Phillips and his gang of Ghouls. They want inside, but security is not allowing it. He'll tell you that the Ghouls are holed up in the Warrington Tunnels. Agree to deal with the problem in order to start this quest. There are a few ways of solving this, and each will be explained in this section.

Kill Roy Phillips

The easiest but less friendly way of solving this is to kill Roy Phillips and his gang. This is the method that Chief Gustavo wants you to use. Doing so will result in Karma loss. You can either go into Warrington Tunnels and kill them, or you can take out Roy Phillips the "Todd Howard" way, which means killing Phillips while he's talking on the intercom. For the latter, you still have to talk to Gustavo to start the quest.

Warrington Tunnels is located west of Tenpenny Tower. It's impossible to miss. Head inside and start making your way to the Ghouls. You'll run into a good number of Feral Ghouls along the way, but they aren't hard to eliminate. Eventually, you'll run into a Ghoul named Michael Masters, who will let you up and question you. He lets you in pretty easily. All you have to say is that you are going to see Phillips. Below Masters is a gate. Open it and continue through the tunnels. The route can be a bit confusing at times, so be sure to consult your Pip-Boy if you get lost. When you reach him, he'll begin talking to you immediately. Tell him you are going to kill him, then do it. You'll have to shoot him, Michael Masters, and Bessie. When you're done, leave and talk to Chief Gustavo for your reward.

Help The Ghouls Bust Into Tenpenny Tower (Be Warned! This Method Drops Your Karma Down 600 Points)

Another way to do this quest is to allow the Ghouls into Tenpenny Tower by opening an emergency exit. To do this, you need the key to the generator room. There are two keys that you can get. Chief Gustavo and Herbert "Daring" Dashwood both have a copy. If you can persuade Dashwood to give you his, you're all set. Otherwise, you need to pickpocket or shoot Gustavo for his.

Enter the Generator Room located at the back of the Tower and find the Terminal on the wall. You should see the Ghouls waiting through the glass. You can either hack the terminal or shoot the generator. Either way, the Ghouls will be unleashed into the tower. Head back outside to the entrace. Roy Phillips will give you a Ghoul mask. You must wear it so the Feral's don't attack you. What's awesome about this is that you can wear the Ghoul mask under any helmet that you are wearing. It also has 3 Damage Resistance, so why not wear it all the time?

Anyway, head inside and witness the chaos. You can either join in on the fight or stay back and let the Ghouls handle everything. Be sure to loot the dead bodies. In order to secure the entire building, you have to go through each floor and the Ghouls will follow. Eventually, you'll meet with Roy up at the balcony. He'll thank you and the quest will end. If you return to the tower a few days later, everything will look back to norma

Convince Tenpenny To Let The Ghouls In

To do this, Tenpenny will want you to convince certain people in the tower. You can either convince them through a speech check, kill them, or threaten them so that they leave the tower. Once you have convinced Tenpenny, the Ghouls will be let in. Unfortunately, they still kill everyone in the tower, so if there are humans you want to stay alive (Like certain merchants), your only option is to kill the Ghouls.

Tenpenny Suite*

If you nuked Megaton, you will receive the key to a suite at Tenpenny Tower, where you can live. It is much the same as the Megaton house. You have a bed to sleep in, a robotic butler who can provide jokes, purified water, and haircuts.

While the basic suite is still useful, there are some modifications you can purchase from Lydia Montegnegro or Michael Masters (Depending on if you let the ghouls in or not) in he lobby that will improve the place. You can either buy expansions to add new functionality to your house, or buy themes to change the look of your house. In addition, all themes will place a number of useful items in your house, which vary depending on the theme.

Expansions

• Workbench: This allows you to make weapon schematics in your house. This is a useful modification, especially since there is no workbench in Tenpenny Tower, and you'll likely be storing weapon components in you home. This enables you to quickly construct custom weapons.
• Infirmary: This module allows you to restore your HP to full, heal any crippled limbs you may have, and remove all radiation. This module is practically useless, as you can restore your health and fix crippled limbs by sleeping in any bed found around the Wasteland for an hour. Also, Rad-Aways and RadX's are extremely common in the game, making it hard to run out.
• Laboratory: This module has two functions. First, it will detox you from any chems you have become addicted to instantly, which is a very useful ability, especially if you use chems a lot. The laboratory will also brew you a random chem, but this takes about one in-game day, and you cannot use the lab to detox while it's making a chem. This is very useful for characters that use a lot of chems.
• Jukebox: This will play whatever radio station you last tuned into on your Pip-Boy. There's really no point to this except for looks, as your Pip-Boy will play radio inside your house.
• Nuka-Cola Machine: This adds a sweet looking Nuka-Cola vending Machine to your house, which comes stocked with 8 Ice-Cold Nuka Colas. In addition, you can put any Nuka-Cola's you have in your inventory into the machine and make them ice-cold. Ice-Cold Nuka Cola increases your HP by 20 and your rads by 1, double the healing power and half the rads of a normal Nuka-Cola, so this machine does have an effect on gameplay. You cannot put Nuka-Cola Quantums in the Machine.

Themes

• Vault: This theme reskins your house to look marginally like a Vault-Tec Vault, and comes complete with a large amount of food items. The Tenpenny version includes the Relevations 2:16 passage.
• Raider: The theme for the sadists among us. This theme comes with a large number of weapons, and is accented by the charming corpse hanging from the ceiling.
• Wasteland: The Wasteland theme, if possible, makes your house look even more run down. It comes with some weapons, food, and booze.
• Science: The science theme makes your house look very much like a laboratory. Lots of computers make up the scenery, and you'll find quite a lot of junk in your suite, in addition to an science skill book.
• Pre-War: This theme makes your house look like the nuclear apocalypse never happened. Everything looks much neater and cleaner. This also comes with a lot of food.
• Love Machine: This turns your house into a bit of a playboy pad. You'll get the same sculpture that is in Dukov's Place hanging from your ceiling, and a heart-shaped bed. This comes with a good amount of booze, pre-war outfits, and a speech book.

House items cannot be sold back to vendors.

Dashwood and Argyle*

*Unnamed Quest*

This needs to be done before you deal with the Ghoul situation at Tenpenny Tower, otherwise it is impossible to obtain this quest. Find Dashwood in Tenpenny Tower, and ask him about the ghouls. He'll start reminiscing about Argyle. Go through the conversation, then end it and leave Tenpenny Tower. Head over to Rockopolis- west of Smith Casey's Garage, look for the refrigerator in the middle of nowhere. The entrance to Rockopolis is hidden inside a cliff face, and looks just like a normal rock. If you wait until nightime, you can easily locate the entrance because light is coming out above the entrance. Enter through the secret door. There is only Argyle's corpse, and a bobblehead next to him, as well as a note from some slavers. There's nothing else to see, so pick up the bobblehead, loot Argyle's corpse, and head back to Tenpenny. Tell Dashwood what happened to Argyle, and he'll give you the key to his safe.

Underworld

Underworld is a Ghoul settlement.

Note: If you talk to Carol and get the copy of Paradise Lost, it is actually just a Lying, Congressional Style. If you drop it it looks like a Lying, Congressional Style, and using it increases your speech skill by 1 point.

You Gotta Shoot 'em in the Head

This quest is received from Mr. Crowley in Underworld, and is quite long and detailed. There are an incredible amount of options for what to do and what order to do them in on this quest. First off, talk to Mr. Crowley, who will offer you an assassination contract on four individuals he claims are Ghoul bigots. If you continue talking to residents of Underworld, and the people with the keys asking for information about him, you'll eventually learn that his real objective is the T-51b Power Armor hidden in Fort Constantine. This is (arguably) the best armor in the game, although it is not repairable except by merchants. So why does he need to keys? Only all four keys will gain you access to the armor storage. With this information, you can either keep the keys and get the armor for yourself, or you can turn them into Crowley and let him get the armor. Of course, you could alwas let Crowley get the armor, then kill him... or give him the keys then pickpocket them off of him....

If you're planning on killing the targets for Crowley, you need to use a sniper rifle on the head for it to count as a headshot. This is an odd glitch, but if you blow someone's head off using another weapon, when you talk to Crowley, the only option will be to say that you didn't kill them all with headshots.

Tenpenny

Tenpenny has no key, but Crowley will want him dead anyways. Tenpenny is always alone on his balcony, making killing him an especially easy prospect. However, if you tell Tenpenny Crowley wants him dead, he will make you a counter-offer of 300 caps to go kill Crowley, with 100 up front, 200 when Crowley is dead. If you're planning on just keeping the keys for yourself, accepting Tenpenny's hit on Crowley is a decent way to make some caps.

The Tenpenny hit on Crowley seems a bit buggy

Dukov

Dukov is easy. Like every target, you can presuade him to give up his key without violence and try to trick Mr. Crowley that you shot him in the head. If you have the Black Widow/Lady Killer perk, you can convince one of the girls to lift the key from him. Alternatively, you can pickpocket him or kill him, as he's very weak and vulnerable due to having no armor and a piss poor Sawed-Off Shotgun. There's also an unnamed sidequest here where you can escort Cherry to freedom at Rivet City.

Ted Strayer

Ted resides in Rivet City. Because the place is crawling with guards, killing him is unwise. Instead, you can either pickpocket it, convince him to give it to you, or threaten him.

Dave

You'll find Dave in the Republic Of Dave. Like always, you can kill him or tell him that Mr. Crowley wants him dead, in which he should automatically give you the key. With a high enough speech skill, you can also convince Dave you're an ambassador from the Wasteland, and convince him to give you his key as a show of good faith. Not much to worry about. Killing him isn't difficult, as there are only 4 adults in the whole place.

Tara

The last key is on the corpse of Tara, who is dead behind locked doors in Fort Constantine (imagine that). Use the other three keys to get in and retrieve the key.

If you give Mr. Crowley all 3 of the keys, he will begin his trek to Fort Constantine. Giving him the keys counts as completing the quest, but it won't net you the Power Armor. Crowley is invincible during the trek to Fort Constantine if you let him go alone, but if you run with him he can, and will probably die, which makes getting our keys back quite easy.The easiest way, however, is to open all of the doors in Ft. Constantine with the keys yourself-- but DO NOT take the armor, return to Crowley for your reward, then go back and take the armor before he gets to it.

If you do decide to head to Fort Constantine and go after the armor, it's quite the trek from, well... anywhere really. If you asked around in Underworld and with the people who had the keys, you've probably had the location marked on your map already (If not, check the maps we linked above. It's pretty far North). After you make it to the fort, head into the CO Quarters (which is a seperate building from the actual Fort. It is not inside of it). Head downstairs, loot the safe and grab the Big Guns Bobblehead. There is a door nearby which requires Ted's key to open. Open it and head through. There's another door in there to bunker control. Head through and follow the hallways. The pathway is fairly linear, with only a few robots providing opposition.

You'll want to keep heading down, until you reach a door to Bomb Storage, which you can unlock with one of the keys. Head through the room on the other side of the door- watch out there's a Sentry Bot here. There are two very hard locked doors, which can either be picked or opened through the terminals next to them. There's good loot in both of these, but they're inessential to the quest. On the wall opposite is a locked door, and conveniently, Tara's body right at the base of said door. Loot Tara and take her key, then open the door. Head through the short passage and open the door to the T-51b Power Armor storage. Activate the R&D terminal, deactivate the stasis field, and take the armor to complete the quest. There's also a Fat-Man, two Mini-Nukes, and a D.C. Journal of Internal Medicine on the table, as well as some good loot in the storage lockers nearby.

Reilly's Rangers

There are a couple ways to get this quest, but the easiest is to go see Reilly down in the Chop Shop in Underworld (which you should know is in the Museum of History). Good luck getting her conscious because you either need a really high skill of Medicine to get her out of her coma or a high speech skill to talk the Doctor into waking her up. You're pretty much not going anywhere until you have either of these, but once Reilly is awake, talk to her and she will go crazy about leaving her men behind at the Statesman Hotel where they are hopefully still taking refuge on the roof. She will ask you to help her pull her men out of there (the obvious point is saying yes). She will also ask you to find the ammo stash that was lost with one of her dead comrades, Theo, and let's you have all of it as well as a key to their Ranger Compound in Downtown DC.

Before you go off to the Statesman Hotel, make sure you are well equipped with ammo and Stimpacks (there's a lot in the Ranger Compound) for taking on a ton of Supermutants. That includes the Masters that we all hate fighting. Also, you will need to enter through a sewer if you haven't entered the neck of the woods in Sewerd Square where the hotel is which is also home to Supermutants. If you have good Sneaking and/or Luck, hit those dudes with something quiet, yet powerful (preferably a Supersledge). If not, do what you usually do when fighting them.

The suggested route to avoiding utter death is to travel through Our Lady of Hope Hospital like what Reilly said earlier. As a plus, this gives you a chance to grab a ton of stimpacks lying around and in a locked safe. Go through the final level in the hospital and go outside to cross the bridge to higher floors of the Statesman Hotel. This is a frustrating mission because they really do throw a ton of Supermutants and grenade boobie traps at you (lulz) at you in stairways, so should use those Stimpacks you got! Don't be afraid. Plenty of beds will be found throughout the hotel, too, so whenever your getting low on health and you see on nearby, go sleep on it.... can't imagine what else you'd do with it. On your path out of the mid-level in the starway, the body of Theo will be lying there just waiting for you to retrieve the big box of ammo.

You will know that you are almost to the roof when you get to the room with the elevator. Hop onto that elevator to get to the dudes out of there!... Sorry, that I mislead you on purpose to make an attempt to create ironic comedy. You can't! It doesn't work unless you have a sufficient repair skill, but if you don't, it looks like you're going to have to take a few more steps there via stairs, but it's not very long at all. Get to the Hotel Resturaunt level and you'll enter a big fight with some Muties so get that done. If you go to the Storage Room on the southwest area of this level, you will find a broken Protectron so loot it right now and grab the Fission Battery to lessen the length of this quest a little bit. When you get through the door to the roof, you'll hear some humans yelling and shooting giving you confirmation that they're still alive. Help them out with finishing the Supermutants off on the roof. If you have already fixed the elevator or listened to me before by grabbing that Fission Battery, you can get past doing another stupid part of the quest by giving it to them to fix it themselves. Follow the crew back down the elevator and get ready to fight some more and protect them (kind of vital).

Once you're out of the hotel, you will need to go back to the Ranger Compound to get your award, which is a choice between some Ranger Battle Armor or a unique Minigun. If you want to get some more caps, she gives you an opportunity to receive them when you discover locations in the Wasteland.

Sydney's Father*

*Unnamed Quest*

If you talk to Sydney about her father after completing "Stealing Independence", she'll reveal he went missing. There's nothing you can do immediately. Head off to the Statesman Hotel via Our Lady of Hope Hospital (The same route you have to take for Reiley's Rangers). Sydney's dad is in one of the side rooms. His skeleton is lying on top of a bed, and a holotape is right next to him titled: A Note From Little Moonbeam's Father. Pick up the holotape, then bring it back to Sydney in Underworld. Ask her about her father, then tell her that he didn't desert her and show her the tape. She'll give you her Ultra 10mm SMG as a reward.

There's an exploit that allows you to get infinite copies of her Ultra SMG, see "Sydney's 'Ultra' 10mm SMG" in the unique weapons section below for instructions.

Robot Rampage*

*Unnamed Quest*

If you talk to the robot in Underworld, Cerberus, he will reveal that he hates Ghouls, but has been programmed to protect them. With the Robotics Expert perk, you can reprogram him to go on a killing spree throughout Underworld until he has been destroyed. You will not be held accountable for this by the residents.

Grayditch

Graditch is a small settlement on the outskirts of the D.C ruins. You may hear Three Dog and GNR telling you it's gone dark and stopped communicating. Unsurprisingly, there is trouble.

THOSE!

As you approach Grayditch, a panicking child will run up to you (he's also been known to come up to you while standing outside of Super Duper Mart). Calm him down and ask about his situation- it turns out his town has been attacked by mutated ants. The kid asks you to try and find his father, but this quest will also have you tracking down the source of the killer ants. With a high enough speech, you can get him to give you the key to an ammo stash of his father's.

Beware as you move into Grayditch - the ants can breathe fire. However, if you target an ant's antennae in VATS and inflict enough damage, you can frenzy the ant, meaning it will attack friends as well as foes. If you have Dogmeat with you here, it's recommended to either make him hang back, or send him back to Vault 101, as he has a nasty habit of getting barbecued here.

First you need to check on the boy's father. Head inside the house next to the shed (Your quest marker will lead you to the right one), and you'll find Fred Wilks' dead body. Loot it and take the shed key. Exit the house and go enter the shack right next to it. Read Dr. Lesko's computer, and it will reveal the source of the ants. Check in with Brian Wilks and give him the bad news before heading out to find Dr. Lesko in the Marigold Tunnels.

The tunnels are still swarming with the same ants you encountered above, so don't expect a respite. Lesko is holed up deep inside the tunnels, so prepare for a fight. Bringing a follower with you helps greatly here, as they'll absorb some of the damage for you. Fawkes is great due to her tendency to pretty much never die. Follow your quest marker, and you'll find Dr. Lesko holed up in his laboratory, hiding from his ants. He'll ask you to go deal with the Queen's guardians, but not kill the queen.

It's in your best interests to acquiese to Dr. Lesko's request, as he'll grant you a special perk if you leave the Queen unharmed- Ant Sight (+1 Strength, +25% Fire Resistance), or Ant Might (+1 Perception, +25% Fire Resistance). And you can always go back and kill the queen after Lesko gives you your reward. You can kill Lesko too, for good measure. But that perk is worth keeping him alive and following his instructions for a bit.

Head into the Queen's lair. If you have a companion, make them wait at the door, as they will attack the Queen, regardless of what you're doing. There are five guardian ants protecting the queen. Kill all five of these, then go return to Dr. Lesko and claim your reward. He'll show a complete non-willingness to cease his experiments or take responsibility for the destruction of Grayditch, or for the death of Brayn Wilks' father. You may want to kill him and his queen now that you have your perk. Good karma is gained for killing the queen and destroying the mutagen. Slight bad karma is recieved for killing Lesko.

After you've dealt with the situation down in the tunnels, you still need to find orphan Bryan Wilks a home. You have three options:

1. Talk to Vera Weatherly in Rivet City about letting him stay with her (They're cousins or something)
2. You can convince the mayor of Little Lamplight to let him move in there
3. You can tell Eulogy Jones at Paradise Falls you have a kid for sale, and sell Bryan into slavery for 100 or 300 caps

As soon as you find Bryan a home, the quest should complete.

Big Town

Big Town is where the adults from Little Lamplight go. It's come under siege form both Super Mutants and slavers recently, and is direly in need of your help.

Big Trouble in Big Town

Talk to the residents of Big Town and they'll tell you that in one of the Super Mutant attacks, two of their friends were dragged off. They are being held in Germantown police station, north of Big Town. Head there. You'll notice immediately that it's occupied by Super Mutants. Head to the side of the building and locate the door to the upper level. Take that. Follow the hallways, defeating Super Mutants along the way, until you reach the ground floor and the cell area. Red, Big Town's medic, is located in one of the cells. You can either pick the lock, use the key you pick up from one of the Super Mutants, or use the lockup computer with a password that's found upstairs.

Once she's out, she'll thank you and tell you about her friend Shorty, who's somewhere in the station. Rescuing him is optional and gives you good Karma. Before leaving, it's a good idea to explore the HQ a bit. If your lockpicking skill is high enough, you can gain access to some of the armories, one of which has a Fat Man. When you done, leave the HQ and fast travel to Big Town. Red and Shorty (if you rescued him) will come with you. The citizens will rejoice and consider you their hero. Ask Red about a payment and she'll give you some caps. If you're mean, you can convince her to give you the caps she was saving up for medicine for the town, which is about double the normal payment. After that, you'll learn that a Super Mutant attack is inevitable.

You can either agree to help, or leave, much to their dismay. If you help, you'll have to work extra hard at protecting the residents, as they are weak. Defeat the Mutants if you chose to stay to make the town happy. To make the fight easier, consider reverse-pickpocketing the citizens and give them armor and stimpaks.

There are several ways you can help the town besides just killing the Super Mutants:

• With a small guns skill over 50, you can teach them how to handle guns
• With an explosives skill over 50, you can teach them to lay a minefield
• With a science skill over 50, you should be able to teach them to repair robots to protect them. The option for repairing robots on this quest is bugged. The robots do not exist, and selecting that option will make you unable to complete the quest, as the Super-Mutant attack never triggers.
• With a sneak skill over 50, you can teach them to be stealthy

After the Super Mutants rush the bridge and attack the town, you have to kill them. Once all the Super Mutants are dead, the quest should complete.

Escort to Big Town*

*Unnamed Quest*

When you first arrive in Little Lamplight, you'll see a kid named Sticky who just turned 16 being kicked out. He'll plead to stay, but the other kids won't let him. He'll ask if you want to go to Big Town with him, because he needs an escort. If you accept, he'll join you as a temporary follower, and mark the location of Big Town if you haven't been there yet.

If you have been to Big Town before, just fast-travel and Sticky will come with you

If you haven't been to Big Town yet, it's a bit of a walk, and Sticky will chatter incessantly. If you talk to him, you can get him to shut up. You can also arm Sticky with a weapon to deal with any enemies you run across. When you reach Big Town, Sticky will leave you, and you'll receive Karma and experience.

You can also talk to Sticky and take his birthday hat, if you want to run around looking like a fool.

Reviving Timebomb*

Timebomb is knocked out in Red's clinic. If your medicine skill is above 40, you can heal him (Use mentats if your skill isn't high enough). This revives him and nets you 5 caps. He'll also give you a Lucky 8 Ball (+1 to Luck) if the town survives the Super Mutant attack at the end of the quest, or if you revive him after you finished the quest.

Alternatively, you can "put him out of his misery" which, just like it says, kills him and gives you nothing but negative Karma.

Vault 101

Although you thought you left Vault 101 for good when you escaped after your father, you do have one chance to return. This quest is your only chance to grab the Medicine Bobblehad if you missed when the game first started.

Trouble on the Homefront

After your second trip to the Jefferson Memorial (On the main quest), this quest becomes available to you. Next time your travels take you near Vault 101- just the vicinity, Megaton is close enough- you'll pick up an emergency radio signal from Vault 101. It's directed straight at you, as it seems things have gone downhill quickly since you left.

Head back to Vault 101, and enter. The giant Vault door can now be unlocked with the password form Amata's message. As soon as it opens, you'll be confronted by Officer Gomez. He'll tell you a brief bit about what happened down in the Vault, and offer to escort you to either the Overseer or Amata and the rebels. Make your choice, and follow Gomez.

The rebels want to open the Vault to the outside, in order to have a more varied life, while the Overseer feels that it would conflict with the Vault's mission. To further complicate things, Vault Security on it's own is planning to raid the rebels. However, no one will shoot at you without provocation, unless you go into the sublevels, where Officer Wilkins will try and kill you.

Learn both sides, and make your choice. You can talk either side to the other way of thinking, or you can murder either side. However, murdering both sides will throw the Vault into chaos and fail the quest. You can also just leave and never come back, let the Vault sort out it's own problems. It is also possible to sabotage the Vault's radiator, making it impossible for habitation and forcing all the residents to leave. To sabotage head, head into the sub-levels and mess with the machinery.

It will take a high speech skill to convince either side they're wrong diplomatically. However, if you head to security and hack the computer there, you can learn of a plot by the security chief to raid the rebels. If you reveal the existence of this plot to the Overseer, he will allow the Vault to open. If you can't make the speech challenges or hack the computer, it's time for some shotgun diplomacy.

If you side with Amata and the Rebels, you gain Karma, the Vault will open, but you will never be able to return. In addition, Amata gives you a modified Utility Jumpsuit (Luck + 1, Rad Res +10, Repair +5 DR1 VAL30). Butch will also be available as a companion character later.

If you side with the Overseer, you can take payment in either the form of technology (The same utility jumpsuit Amata gives you), or food and ammo (11 crams and some .44 ammo). The Vault stays closed, but you can't stay, and have to return to the Wasteland.

Temple of the Union

The Temple of the Union is a slave sanctuary up North. You have the location of the Temple marked on your map by helping Mei Wong in Rivet City

Head of State

This quest seems to be notoriously buggy

This quest is received from Hannibal Hamlin, at the Temple of the Union (The location of which you can get from Mei Wong at Rivet City by giving her 25 caps to buy a gun). Hannibal Hamlin will ask you to make sure the Lincoln Memorial is free of Super Mutants so that the slaves can move there, and to also procure a drawing of the Memorial in it's pre-war condition, so they can rebuild it when they occupy it. You can get the location of the Lincoln memorial marked on your map by asking around in Underworld.

Good news: the Memorial is free of Super Mutants. The bad news: it's occupied by slavers. The irony. You'll be approached by a man named Silas when you first arrive at the Lincoln Memorial. He'll ask you to go talk to the slaver leader, Leroy Walker, but warn you not to set foot on the Memorial steps, or the slavers will shoot. It's recommended that you tell any followers you have to stay behind, because they may go on the steps and cause the slavers to shoot, thus ruining any chances of talking to Leroy Walker.

At this point you have a few choices:

1. Massacre the slavers on the steps without warning. This clears out the Memorial for Hannibal's folks to come live in
2. Talk to Leroy Walker and give up the location of the Temple of the Union, which leads to the slavers raiding the Temple
3. Go tell Hannibal the Memorial is occupied by slavers, which will lead to Hannibal's motley crew launching an all-out assault on the Memorial with or without your help (Awesome, but usually kills a lot of the slaves)

In addition to the situation at the Memorial, you will also have to retrieve a drawing of the Memorial for Caleb, or a Lincoln artifact for the slavers to destroy. Lincoln Artifacts are located in the Museum of History (same location as Underworld). Enter the museum, but instead of heading to Underworld, turn left and go through the set of doors over there. You'll have to fight through a buffer area infested with Feral Ghouls before you can get where you want. The area you want to be in is the Museum Offices Area. The item you're looking for is the Lincoln Memorial Poster, which is on the second level near a set of stairs, mounted on the wall. There are several other Lincoln objects in this area, including the powerful Lincoln's Repeater, all of which can be sold for profit to Abraham Washington in Rivet City, Hannibal Hamlin, or Leroy Walker (the slave leader). Lincoln's Repeater is arguably one of the best guns in the game, so it's worth picking up while you're around.

After you choose a side and kill all of the enemy, talk to the leader of whichever faction you sided with. They'll give you a reward, and the quest will end. You can also sell Lincoln Artifacts to this person even after the quest is over.

If you chose to do option 1, you can fast travel to the Temple Of The Union and wait for the slavers. However, because they are amazingly slow, you'll have to wait several days before they even show up. They'll be waiting under the overpass. Talk to them, and they'll assault the hideout. The same goes for option 3, where you'll have to wait a few days before the gang actually arrives out of the metro tunnels.

The Citadel

The Citadel is where the Brotherhood of Steel, D.C. Detachment makes it's headquarters. This Brotherhood stronghold has been built around the ruins of The Pentagon, and is where the Brotherhood of Steel leaders reside. Access to this area will be restricted until you reach a certain point in the main quest.

Gallows' Name*

*Unnamed Quest*

Talk to the members of the Lyon's Pride in the Citadel, and ask them about Gallows. One of the guys will revel that there's a betting pool going to discover his real name. After you find out about the betting pool, you can go try and convince Gallows to tell you his real name. If you succeed, you can claim the pool, which is 1000 caps.

Broken Robot*

*Unnamed Quest*

If you run across the medical robot in the Citadel and ask him to heal you, he'll actually hurt you. With either the Robotics Expert perk, or a high enough science, you can fix the robot to actually heal you, instead of hurting you. He will heal you for free after you fix him.

Fallen Brothers*

*Unnamed Quest* [Repeatable]

Scribe Jameson in the Citadel will buy any Brotherhood holotags you have off of you for 100 caps. You can find Brotherhood holotags by looting the corpses of dead Brotherhood soldiers. There's also a holotag on a table in the Lyon's Den in the Citadel. Jameson can be found in the A Ring. She is usually found standing around in the adjoining room to the room with the Vault Tec terminals.

Power Armor Training*

*Unnamed Quest*

The Citadel is the only place in the Capital Wasteland where you can receive training to wear Power Armor. To learn how to wear Power Armor, you must first talk to Elder Lyons and ask him for permission to get the Power Armor training (While you're talking to him, ask him permission to trade also). He will accept, and tell you to go talk to Paladin Gunney. Gunney can usually be found in the Courtyard, training Brotherhood Initiates. Go talk to him and ask him to give you Power Armor Training. He'll accept, the screen will fade to black, and you'll be able to wear any sort of Power Armor.

Broken Brotherhood*

*Unnamed Quest*

If you ask around the Citadel, you can learn about the Brotherhood Outcasts. A contingent within the Brotherhood of Steel that was unhappy with Elder Lyons' leadership broke off from the main detachment and headed further west, with the goal of attaining more powerful technology- a goal more in line with their original directive.

These Brotherhood Outcasts can be found at Fort Independence, to the West of the Fairfax Ruins. You can either kill them, or trade them technology for supplies. There is no way to reunite them with the main Brotherhood garrison.

Paradise Falls

Paradise Falls is a slaving camp in the Capital Wasteland. Due to the evil nature of it's inhabitants, going on a killing spree will actually earn you good karma here. The place is run by a man named Eulogy Jones, and is generally a hive of scum and villany. Evil characters can pick up Clover as a companion character here by buying her off of Eulogy. There are a few stores and traders here, so be sure to nose around. There are also five Nuka-Cola Quantums in Eulogy's Pad, which are quite useful for completing the Nuka-Cola Challenge.

Strictly Business

This quest is required to gain entrance to the Paradise Falls slaver camp. The sentry at the gate, Grouse will give you four VIP slaving contracts. If you bring back one you gain entrance to Paradise Falls, but it takes all four to complete the quest. The four marks are:

• Arkansas, the sniper in Minefield
• Flak, the owner of Flak and Shrapnel in Rivet City
• Red, the doctor from Big Town
• Susan Lancaster from Tenpenny Tower

This is a quest that can really only be completed one way, which is to bring in the slaves for Grouse. Any of the targets you kill will be automatically removed as someone you need to bring in, but if you kill all four the quest fails. Your only options are to either kill up to three of the targets and enslave the remaining, or just enslave them all. There is no talking anyone out of anything, or any diplomaatic solution for this quest. You can always rescue the captives after you finish the quest, but that will turn all of Paradise Falls hostile against you.

For good characters looking to maintain a high karma who simply want the achievement or trophy, it is recommended you make a save before taking on the quest, complete it by enslaving the targets, unlock the achievement, then reload your save prior to when you took the quest. You have your mark of internet pride, and your character has no adverse karma.

After each slave you take, you'll need to return to Grouse at Paradise Falls to collect you reward and a new slave collar.

Red will present a bit of a challenge, as she is a Super Mutant captive, unless you've already done the "Big Trouble in Big Town" quest. Check that quest for instructions on how to rescue her. You'll be rescuing her just to enslave her again (Then possibly rescuing her again :P). How ironic.

Arkansas is easy enough, as he's all alone, provided you didn't kill him earlier. Just sneak around and make sure to look out for the mines. Also, be sure to disarm or otherwise get rid of most of the mines around the house. When I first enslaved him, he ran out of the house and blew himself up, thus making it impossible to complete the quest.

Susan Lancaster is much more difficult to get alone, as she will almost always alert the Tenpenny Tower guards that you collared her. Using a stealth-boy to get her might be advisable, or you can just blast through the Tenpenny guards, as they don't present much of a challenge.

Flak will be the toughest, because as you know, Rivet City Security is crawling all over that damn boat. Going after him in the marketplace is a very bad idea, as you will always be spotted, and security is really tough there. The suggested way to nab him is to wait in his room, or try and catch him wandering the corridors.

For all of these, it's important to zap the person where no one else can see you, or you'll turn all the nearby NPC's hostile.

Rescue From Paradise

Slaving*

*Unnamed Quest* [Repeatable]

After talking with Grouse at the gate, he will pay you caps for every slave you bring in to him- not just the VIP's. Zap them with the Mesmetron, then slip a collar on. Whenever you return for your payment, Grouse will give you a new collar.

Child Slaving*

After you visit Little Lamplight, you can ask Eulogy about taking a kid from there. He'll agree, and ask you to lure Bumble out of the caves. Get Bumble to follow you outside, where she'll be snatched by a slaver. Return to Eulogy and he'll give you the Boogeyman's hood.

You can also enslave Brayn Wilks at the end of the THOSE! quest for 100 or 300 caps.

NOTE: Kidnapping Bumble will often cause Eulogy Jones and his bodyguards to disappear completely from Paradise Falls, even post-patches (as of 1/17/09). This will make the companion of Clover inaccessible if you have not already acquired her, complicate the Rescue From Paradise quest, and remove the ability to enslave Brian Wilks after THOSE! You also will not receive the Boogyman's hood, because Eulogy is gone forever. If you're playing on PC, he can be revived using console commands, but there is no fix for console players.

Chinese Violence*

*Unnamed Quest* [Repeatable]

Pronto at the Lock and Load isn't happy with his current inventory. He'll ask you to help him expand his inventory by bringing him 20 Chinese Assault Rifles. Once you've brought these to him, you get a 20% discount at his shop, and a vastly expanded inventory.

Canterbury Commons

Canterbury Commons is a mostly destroyed town to the North East of the Capital Wasteland. You might hear Three Dog talking about it on Galaxy News Radio- he says two costumed kooks are battling for control of it. And he's right. Canterbury commons is home to a few other people, but the two most noticeable are the AntAgonizer, and The Mechanist, two "Superheroes" who constantly fight with each other. Uncle Roe, one of the citizens of Canterbury Commons, will ask you to stop their fights somehow. You can also help Uncle Roe, who used to be a caravan trader, organize the trading caravans and set up an empire.

The Superhuman Gambit

As you approach Canterbury commons, you'll see two crazies in costumes in the street, yelling at each other. One is a lady dressed up like an ant, flanked by two ants, while the other is dressed up like a robot, and accompanied by robots. They'll have a small little fight, then both leave. Note that t's possible to kill them both here, saving you a great deal of trouble if you only plan on murdering these guys for the quest.

Following the fight, you'll be approached by Uncle Roe. He'll apologize for the spectacle, and introduce himself. He'll ask if you can put an end to their fights to help the town out. He says that simply dealing with one of them will end the problem, and he promises to pay you caps for your services. He suggests you go talk to a kid in town about the AntAgonizer and the Mechanist, as he should know more. Go talk to Derek Pacion, who will tell you the location of both hideouts (They'll be marked on your map also).

At this point, you have a plethora of options. The first is obviously to decide which super to go after.

• The AntAgonizer's lair has a entrance through a door in the rocks, and an entrance that leads directly to her throne room on top of those same rocks (lockpick 50 required). Go in through the entrance on top of the rocks if possible, as it saves you having to fight through her lair.
• The Mechanist's base is located a bit South of town. It's called the Robot Repair Center. There's an elevator you can ride up to the "throne room", if you can pick the lock (75 lockpick skill). Otherwise, you'll have to fight through his robotic security to reach the Mechanist himself.

The options for talking to each super are roughly the same.

• You can just blow their heads off (No karma change)
• You can talk with one and agree to hep defeat their opponent, which will always result in the opponent bursting into the lair (savingyou some effort) and starting a fight
• You can talk them out of their ways and get them to stop being supers, which results in good karma and their outfit
• If you already got the other's armor, you can give it to their enemy in return for a unique weapon (Ant's Sting [knife] from the AntAgonizer, Protectron's Gaze [laser pistol] from the Mechanist). This results in bad karma
• You can enter a lair wearing their opponent's armor, which will cause them to think you aretheir opponent and attack you.

If you deal with one of them, then return to Roe and end the quest, the other automatically vanishes. Be sure to deal with both of them before talking to Roe, as there are some cool unique weapons and costumes on offer in this quest. To finish the quest, just talk to Roe and tell hiim you've dealt with the situation.

Trading Empire*

Talk with Uncle Roe about organizing the trading caravans. He'll be doubtful at first, but he'll warm up to the idea. After you convince him to start managing the caravans, you can pay him caps for the traders to expand their inventories. For each trader (There are four), you can pay Roe 200 caps to expand their inventory, and then 500 caps to expand it even more. The result of this is that the traders in the caravans have a significantly wider array of items.

Investing will also increase the repair skill of the caravaners, and each will give you a gift if you invest the full 700 caps in their inventories.

Wasteland

There are a bunch of people living out in the Wasteland, or in isolated houses that could use your help. These quests originate in towns or areas that really only have ne thing to do in them, or outside of named areas.

Agatha's Song

This quest is received from an old lady named Agatha living all alone out in the wastes. She wants a new violin, and you need to go get it for her. Only trouble is, there's only one known violin still in existence. Luckily, Agatha knows that it's inside of Vault-Tec Vault 92. Unfortunately, she has no idea where Vault 92 is. She does, however, know where Vault-Tec Headquarters are, a location she will mark on your map for you. Your primary objective for this quest is to retrieve he violin, with a secondary objective of finding Vault-Tec headquarters. You can just head straight to the Vault if you wish, but the visit to Vault-Tec is worth it.

Alternatively, if you wait until a certain point in the main quest, all the Vault locations in the Wasteland will be automatically marked on your map for you, which makes this quest significantly easier. You can also take the Explorer perk after reaching level 20 to reveal all of the undiscovered locations on your Pip-Boy.

Vault 92 is located in the far north of the map, within the slightly lighter box. Vault 92 is infested with Bloatflies and Mirelurks of all sorts, which are a challenge, especially to lower-level characters. Head into Vault 92, and retrieve the Soil Stradavarius from the Sound Testing area of the Vault. It's on a desk in a silver case. Pick it up and exit the Vault, as there's nothing much else notable, besides some backstory on what happened to the citizens.

Return to Agatha with the Stradavarius. Return it to her and you'll recieve good karma and the frequency of her radio station to listen to. You can also lie and say you couldn't find the violin, but the Stradavarius is completely useless and there's no reward for lying to Agatha. The quest also doesn't count as completed if you lie, so you may as well give the old lady her violin. Also, if you've found any sheet music in your travels (there's a sheet in Vault 92 I believe) you can give it to her in exchange for a unique scoped .44 magnum, the Blackhawk. There is also a sheet in Springvale Elementary School (probably the easiest and quickest one to get). You CANNOT, however, kill her to get the Blackhawk without finding any sheet music. I did this and the weapon was nowhere to be found in her house.

Oasis

This quest is activated once you reach Oasis, in the far North center of the map. The Treeminders will ask you to participate in some sort of ceremony. Accept their offer and listen to their humbo-jumbo. Once you pass out, you'll wake up next to a talking tree. It's not every day you get to converse with one of those.

Harold will ask you to find his heart and destroy it, killing him. Exit the area with the tree and walk around Oasis. Make sure to talk to Sapling Yew. Ask her about Harold, and she'll say he tells her what he's afraid of. Now a speech challenge asking her what she's afraid of, and a Child at Heart option (if you have the perk) appear. Successfully asking either of those dialouge options reveals Harold is afraid of fire, and will also make a special reward available later if you choose to not burn Harold down. Also, be sure to walk around until you trigger the conversation between Birch and Laurel. One will ask you to slow Harold's growth, the other will ask you to accelerate it.

At this point, you can either go torch Harold with a flame weapon like the Shikebab or the Flamer. This results in karma loss, turning the Treeminders hostile, and no experience.

The other three options involve going into the tunnels - ask the guard for the key. The tunnels are infested with Mirelurks, and full of irradiated water. Popping a Rad-X and a Med-X before you head into the cavern are good ideas, as you'll be swimming through a lot of irradiated water and fighting a lot of tough Mirelurks.

Fight through to the first circular cavern full of Mirelurks. There is no ground-level exit from this room. Instead, you have to swim through an underwater passage to get to the next area. Head through the door that's past the underwater tunnel. There are more Mirelurks in this next area. Keep fighting through these caverns, until you start hearing a thumping and find Harold's heart. You have to "activate" Harold's heart, and all three options appear.

• You can kill Harold and recieve the Barkskin perk (5% Damage Resistance)
• You can accelerate his growth and recieve Linden's Outcast Power Armor
• You can slow his growth and receive either a Missile Launcher or Maple's garb
• If you won the speech challenge or used the Child at Heart dialog with Sapling Yew earlier, she will give you Yew's Bear Charm, regardless of your choice. It adds +10 to your speech skill, and can be sold for a value of 50

Now head through the door in the cavern (Not the way you came in). There are a couple Mirelurk Kings on the other side, but also some good loot (Including a Nuka-Cola Quantum, which is useful for the Nuka-Cola Challenge). Kill the Mirelurks, then dive into the pool. There's an underwater door which you can go through to return to Harold's grove. Talk to whoever is by Harold, and the quest completes.

The Nuka Cola Challenge

Over in Girdershade in the south west corner of the map, you'll meet a woman named Sierra Petrovita. She lives alone in her house full of old Nuka-Cola merchandise. She'll ask if you want to to the tour. Agree, and when she's done she'll tsart going on about Nuka-Cola Quantum, this special Nuka-Cola variant she really wants. She wants 30 bottles of the stuff, and says she'll pay you caps (40) for each bottle you bring her. The other person living in Girdershade, Ronald Laren, will also buy the bottles from you- at double the price if you can convince him via speech, otherwise for the same amout. Giving the bottles to Ronald results in bad Karma however, whereas giving them to Sierra results in good Karma. Nuka-Cola Quantums are easily recognizable by their bright-bluish, purplish glow. They're quite easily spotted, especially next to regular Nuka-Cola's. If you're playing on a PC with low graphics settings however, you won't see the glow. The bottles are still fairly easy to distinguish however,

Nuka-Cola Quantums are pretty rare, appearing in some set places on the map, and a random chance of appearing in a Nuka-Cola vending machine. However, as long as you don't use any or sell them to someone outside of Girdershade, finding 30 sholdn't be too much of a problem.

The Vault wiki has a complete list of Nuka-Cola Quantum locations if you are having trouble.

Sierra will reward you with a Nuka-grenade schematic when you get her all 30 bottles. Ronald will not give you anything special for completing the quest, but he will pay you double the caps for each Quan,complete the quest (For either side), you can bring Sierra Quantum, Flour, and Vodka, and she'll make you a Mississippi Quantum Pie (+1 STR -1INT +20AP +5RAD)

Sugar Bombing Run*

*Unnamed Quest* [Repeatable]

This quest originates at Northwest Seneca Station, near Arefu. Right near the entrance to the station, you'll find two ghouls. The friendlier of them, Murphy, will tell you about his plan to make Ultra-Jet, a super stim. But before he can finish, he says he needs some Sugar Bombs, which he will pay you to retrieve. For each package of Sugar Bombs you bring back to the ghouls, you'll receive 15 caps, 30 if you won the speech challenge against him.

After you bring Murphy a certain number of Sugar-Bombs, he'll start selling Ultra-Jet, which gives you 50 extra AP instead of 30, like normal Jet. Ultra-Jet is also costlier, sadly.

Helping the Brotherhood*

*Unnamed Quest*

When you emerge from one of the metros in the D.C ruins- near Falls Church, you'll come up into the middle up a fight between Super Mutants and Brotherhood soldiers. Help the Brotherhood wipe out the Super Mutants, then talk to Paladin Hoss, who will tell you they're trying to rescue one of their men who got cut off. He's holed up in a building against some Super Mutants, and they could use your help rescuing him. Agree, and the Brotherhood soldiers will tell you to follow them. Do that, and you'll fight your way up to the building where the Initiate is pinned down. You'll have to go in alone and clear out a couple Super Mutants. The Brotherhood soldier is hiding in a room in the back. Find him, mock him, then escort him out of the building to his comrades and claim your reward.

Geomapping for Reilly*

*Unnamed Quest* [Repeatable]

After you complete the "Reilly's Rangers" quest, Reilly will tell you to return to the HQ for your reward. After you claim her reward, talk to her about helping out with their mapping activities. She'll give you a special Geomapping module, which will automatically offload location data from your Pip-Boy 3000. She promises to pay you for any locations you discover.

Right after you accept the quest, be sure to speak with her again so she logs all the map data you've already collected.

Her price is 30 caps for each location you discover.

Republic of Dave Elections*

*Unnamed Quest*

When you enter the Republic Of Dave, you'll learn that the election is coming up. Talk to Dave and offer some help. He'll pay you 25 caps to tell everyone to go vote. When doing this, ask them if they've ever considered running. Rosie and Bob will vote for themselves when you do so. Once you've told everyone to go vote, tell Dave the votes are all in. He'll walk to the ballot box. At his point, you can rig the election. When he unlocks the ballot box, open it yourself and take out all votes, leaving the one for the person you want to win inside. If you cause Dave to lose, he'll get pissed and leave for Old Olney after giving you your 25 caps (regardless of who won). Talk to the person that you had win and they'll give you a key to Dave's safe. Inside is Ol' Painless, a powerful version of the Hunting Rifle. However, taking it from the safe is considered stealing for an unknown reason and you will lose Karma.

Also, Old Olney is a Deathclaw infested town. When Dave leaves for the place, you can find his dead body there and loot it.

Books for the Brotherhood*

*Unnamed Quest* [Repeatable]

Scribe Yearling in the Arlington Library will buy Pre-War books from you for 100 caps a piece.

Companion Characters

Companion Characters are special followers in Fallout 3 who can be convinced to follow you around and help you survive/kill things if persuaded with the right combination of speech/caps/karma ratings. Companion Characters are split up into Evil, Good, Neutral, and Any ratings based on whether or not they'll follow you if you have a certain Karma rank.

Generally you're only supposed to be able to have one companion+ Dogmeat, but due to the generally buggy nature of Fallout, it's certainly possible to end up with more than one. At least one of us was able to recruit two characters at once, and there are plenty of reports on the internet of other exploits.

These characters all come with their own weapons and armor, which will always have infinite ammo and never degrade. Some items, like Fawkes' Super Sledge and Charon's Shotgun, are unique weapons with special properties that are usually better than their normal counterparts. Companions can be dismissed from duty, and doing so will send them back to their original location to await your return and their subsequent rehiring. Some companions will rejoin you regardless of Karma if you've worked with them already, others will refuse you if you have changed too much.

All Human companions possess Power Armor training, and giving non-robot companions Stimpacks will allow them to heal themselves in the thick of battle. If they survive a battle (which they almost always will), their health regenerates rapidly back to full levels. Companions will not heal themselves from damage taken from traps, and they won't use a stimpack outside battle. They should level alongside you, meaning they're roughly the same level as you are.

Companions are able to change their tactics and follow-distances, allowing you to change between close combat, ranged combat, closely followed and loosely followed options respectively. They can also be made to stand in place and wait while you scout ahead further, and crouching will cause them to crouch and sneak with you.

All Companions have a set carrying capacity, and will transport (and often use) any items stored with them for you. This is incredibly useful for collectors and loot whores. However, this capacity is not visible, making it a bit of a guessing game determining how much a given companion can carry.

Evil Karma Required

Jericho

Location: Megaton

Weapon(s): Chinese Assault Rifle, Nailboard

Requirements: Bad Karma, 1000 caps for "expenses"

Jericho is a former Raider who has found his way into Megaton. He is sarcastic, rude and abrasive, and refuses to join the player unless they possess bad karma. He will also require a full 1000 caps for expenses. After that, he will follow you and primarily attack enemies with his Chinese Assault Rifle, which has unlimited ammunition. He can take incredible amounts of damage (although not as much as someone like Fawkes) and has power armor training.

Clover

Location: Paradise Falls

Weapon(s): Chinese Officer's Sword, Sawed-off Shotgun, Dirty Pre-war Spring Outfit

Requirements: Buy her from Eulogy for 1000 caps (500 with a high barter)

Clover is one of the slaves of Paradise Falls, and must be bought from Eulogy Jones. Clover is unique in that she can wear Power Armor, but will not equip weapons that have a lower damage rating than her default Sawed-Off Shotgun. Because of this, she will not use Hunting Rifles, 10mm Pistols, or Laser Pistols.

Clover will also pick up and use weapons that she comes across. While this may seem cool, if she comes across a Fatman, prepare to get a Mini Nuke to the face. It's a good idea to trade with her and take it away before she kills both of you.

Neutral Karma Required

Butch

Location: The Muddy Rudder, Rivet City

Weapon(s): 10 mm Pistol, Butch's Toothpick

Requirements: Neutral Karma, Open the Vault during the Trouble on the Homefront quest

Butch is your childhood nemesis, the same kid who bullied you at you tenth birthday party. However, after the role you played in opening the Vault, Butch has come to respect you and perhaps even like you a bit. If you meet him down in Rivet City, he'll buy you a drink, and ask if you want to join his gang. Well, his gang is pretty much just him, and he'll follow you wherever you want. Butch is looking for adventure, and eager to tag along with you.

Butch's starting gear is not very good, so it's a smart idea to equip him with something better right away. He can wear Power Armor, so if you have a spare set he can wear it. His default weapon is the 10 mm pistol, which is almost useless against the stronger threats in the Wasteland. Upgrade him to a 10 mm SMG if you don't want to worry about ammo, otherwise give him something stronger.

Butch will not work with you if your karma isn't neutral even if you have worked with him before. However, he won't care if your karma changes while you have him hired.

TUNNEL SNAKES!!!

Sergeant RL-3

Location: RobCo Factory (Tinker Joe)

Weapons: Plasma Rifle, Flamer

Requirements: Purchase from Tinker Joe for 1000 caps, Neutral Karma

Sergeant RL-3 is a Mr. Gusty robot that must be purchased from Tinker Joe outside of RobCo Factory. When at range, he uses a rather weak Plasma Rifle, but switches to a very effective Flamer when up close. He repairs himself after combat, but is vulnerable to Energy Weapons, Big Guns, and melee attacks from Yao Guai's and Deathclaws. Because of this, it's wise to treat him like Dogmeat. When entering heavy combat with tough opponents, it's a good idea to have him hang back.

Sergeant RL-3 can die, which is a big loss considering the fact that he costs 1000 caps. One last negative feature of him is the fact that he can't sneak, so for characters trying to do so, you will be compromised. He is, however, quite amusing.

Good Karma Required

Star Paladin Cross

Location: The Citadel

Weapon(s): Super Sledge, Laser Pistol

Requirements: Good Karma

Star Paladin Cross is a former colleague of your father's, who would like the honor of escorting and protecting you in your quest to save the Wasteland. She will not follow you if your Karma is Evil or Neutral. Also, if you call your father a selfish asshole, she will get pissed at you and refuse to talk to you, making it so you cannot acquire her. Her main weapon is a Super Sledge, which does not do much damage. Her backup, a Laser Pistol, is a better bet- although she will either pick up ammo herself off of things like dead Enclave soldiers, or you'll have to give it to her. Star Paladin Cross can also use any weapon you give her, as long as ammo is provided in some way. She will occasionally pick up weapons and a bit of ammo off of dead enemy bodies, and equip them herself for use.

Cross' Power Armor is only bested by fully-repaired Enclave, Tesla, Brotherhood Outcast, Medic, or T-51b power armors. She does not have a helmet by default, so it is a good idea to give her an Enclave power helmet or any comparable protection item. The Star Paladin is one of the most durable Followers, along with Fawkes and Charon. Like all followers, she regenerates health after battles, and if you give her stimpacks, she can use them in the field during tight situations.

Fawkes

Location: Vault 87, Raven Rock, Museum Of History

Weapons: Super Sledge, Gatling Laser

Requirements: Completion of "Finding The Garden Of Eden", Good Karma

*There is a long going argument over the gender of Fawkes. In this guide, Fawkes will be referred to as a male.*

The first time you meat Fawkes is in Vault 87 while looking for the G.E.C.K. Let him out, and he'll get it for you. After that, you'll be taken to Raven Rock where you meet up with him one more time when you get out. Fawkes will only come with you if you have Good Karma. If you don't, you can find him by the entrance to Underworld in the Museum Of History.

Fawkes is pretty much your reward for staying good for the entire main quest. He's like a humanoid tank. All you need you know is that he is the best companion in the game, and if you already got all the evil status achievements, go good immediately. Like any other companion, Fawkes can trade equipment with you (minus armor). He deals tons of damage with both default weapons and the only downside that was noticed was that he gets stuck in small areas sometimes. If you aren't too prone to combat in the open Wasteland, take him along. You'll be glad you did.

Any Karma Required

Dogmeat

Location: The Scrapyard

Weapon(s): N/A

Requirements: Kill the Raiders in the Scrapyard

Dogmeat can be found in the Scrapyard- once you clear out the Raiders Dogmeat will approach you. The Scrapyard is pretty big, so if he's not coming up to you just walk around for a bit.

Dogmeat will come with you in addition to whatever other companion character you have with you, meaning you can have one human companion and Dogmeat. Dogmeat will fight in combat with you whenever you are attacked, much as any other companion character. However, you can also set Dogmeat to seek out weapons, ammo, or health items for you, which he will lead you to if you follow him. You can also order Dogmeat to return to Vault 101 and wait for you there.

Dogmeat tends to get town up in heavy combat situations, especiall by enemies later in the game. He's best for light exploring and taking on Raiders and Ghouls and the like. If you're planning on assaulting a base and don't want Dogmeat to die, it's a good idea to send him back to Vault 101, or tell him to hang back.

Charon

Location: Underworld (Ninth Circle)

Weapon(s): Charon's Shotgun, combat knife, leather armor

Requirements: Pay Ahzrukhal 2000 caps (1000 with a good enough barter skill), or kill Greta at Ahzrukal's request

Charon is the Ghoul bouncer in the Ninth Circle bar. Initially, he will be very unfriendly to you. If you talk to the propietor, Ahzurkal, he will reveal that Charon is unflinchingly loyal to whoever holds his contract. If you inquire about Charon's contract, it is possible to get it for yourself. You can either buy it for 1000 or 2000 caps (depending on barter skill), or you can kill Greta for Ahzurkal. After you have either payed him or killed Greta, he will hand the contract over to you. Go speak to Charon, and tell him you hold his contract now. He'll go over and blow Azhurkal's brains out, then follow you.

Charon, like all other humanoid companions, has Power Armor training, so feel free to throw a suit on him. His default weapon is a special shotgun, which he's quite proficient with- and you won't be able to take it from him, so may as well let him keep it. Charon's a better ranged fighter than close combat, so don't tell him to fight close quarters. His default armor is quite weak, so make sure to replace it with a set of Power or combat armor right away. Charon will use any stimpacks or grenades you give him in combat, although he's rather lousy with thrown grenades

Possible exploit: I had Butch following me, raised my karma from neutral to good, then got Charon's contract, and they were both following me. Presumably you could also bring Dogmeat with you, for a party of 3. At this point I could fire any one follower, the re-hire another to change the makeup of my party.

Multiple Companion Exploits

There are several ways to end up with more than the set number of companions. Here's a guide on how to acquire multiple followers. It's possible that many of these will get patched out, so we can't make any assurances as to how long they'll continue working.

Dogmeat Exploit

Acquire one companion, then go get Dogmeat from the Scrapyard. Now kill your dog. Now you can hire another follower in addition to the one you have. Quite simple. This also works if Dogmeat is killed in combat, you don't need to do it yourself.

Purchased Exploit

This exploit will work for companions which you need to buy to get- Charon is excepted, so this exploit works for Sergeant RL-3 and Clover. Here is a step-by-step guide to the exploit:

• Get one companion
• Go to either Paradise Falls (Clover), or the RobCo facility near Tenpenny Tower (RL-3)
• Walk up to the person you need to buy the companion off of (Eulogy for Clover, Tinker Joe for RL-3)
• Fire your current companion
• Talk to the seller (Eulogy or Tinker Joe), and buy the companion off of them
• Before you talk to the new companion, go re-hire the one you just fired, who should be walking away
• After re-hiring your old companion, go talk to the companion you just bought. They should join you in addition to your other companion

You can do this exploit with both Clover and RL-3, to get a party of up to 3 extra followers. You can also stack the Dogmeat exploit on top of this to get four followers in addition to yourself, which pretty much gives your your own personal strike team.

Bobbleheads

Here are the locations of all of the Vault-Tec collectible Bobbleheads found within the game:

Stat Bobbleheads:

Stat bobbleheads each give you a permanent bonus of +1 to a S.P.E.C.I.A.L attribute

• Strength - Lucas Simms' House in Megaton (must be grabbed before blowing up Megaton)

• Perception - Museum of Dave in The Republic of Dave

• Endurance - Deathclaw Sanctuary through the entrance

• Charisma - Cloning Lab in Vault 108

• Intelligence - Science Lab in Rivet City

• Agility - The Office in Greener Pastures Disposal

• Luck - Arlington House in Arlington Cemetery

Skill Bobbleheads:

Sklll bobbleheads each give you a permanent bonus of +10 to a skill

• Barter - Market Bazaar in Evergreen Mills

• Big Guns - CO Quarters in Fort Constantine

• Energy Weapons - Raven Rock (must be grabbed when leaving Raven Rock)

• Explosives - Sealed Cistern in the WKML Broadcast Station

• Lockpick - Bethesda Offices East in Bethesda

• Medicine - on Dad's Desk in Vault 101(must be grabbed when escaping the Vault or the return in Trouble On The Homefront. It will be moved to the clinic where Andy is when you return.)

• Melee Weapons - Virulent Underchambers in the Dunwich Building

• Repair - Evan King's House in Arefu

• Science - Living Quarters in Vault 106

• Small Guns - National Guard Armory in the National Guard Depot

• Sneak - the Yao Gui Den in Yao Gui Tunnels

• Speech - Eulogy's Pad in Paradise Falls

• Unarmed - Rockopolis (West of Smith Casey's Garage)

Take care to either grab the Medicine Bobblehead at the very beginning before you leave the Vault, or during the Trouble on the Homefront quest. You'll also have to grab the Energy Weapons Bobblehead before you leave Raven Rock, as you cannot return. The strength one must also be grabbed before nuking Megaton, or it's forever gone.

Weapons Information

Unique Weapons

*SECTION STILL IN PROGRESS*

In addition to the boilerplate weapons found in Fallout 3, there are some one-of-a-kind weapons available too, usually attainable through special quests or exploration. These are generally worth seeking out for some special attribute or another. Here, all the unique weapons are listed, along with their stats, and how to obtain them.

Sorry about the odd tables, GB's table editor is fucked up

A3-21's Plasma Rifle

This weapon is obtained via the Replicated Man quest (See above for instructions on how to complete the quest). To receive A321's Plasma Rifle, you must talk to Harkness and convince him that he is an android. Harkness will give you his rifle in exchange for the information. The rifle is incredibly durable and fairly accurate, which, combined with the ability to turn enemies into glowing green goo quite often, makes A3-21's Plasma Rifle one of the better guns in the game.

The Terrible Shotgun

Kill Smiling Jack in the Evergreen Mills Bazaar and loot his corpse. He has The Terrible Shotgun. In addition, if you sell everything in your inventory to him, then kill him, you can keep the caps and reclaim all your loot. There's great potential to exploit Smiling Jack. Killing Smiling Jack nets you no Bad Karma, so don't be scared.

The Terrible Shotgun degrades very quickly, and its accuracy rating is one of the lowest in the game. Best used as a one- or two-shot-one-kill weapon in very close quarters.

The Kneecapper

Ronald Laren in Girdershade has The Kneecapper. You can either kill him and take it from his corpse, or pickpocket it from him while he is sleeping.

Wazer Wifle

Biwwy in Little Lamplight has this weapon. He can be found towards the back of the Great Chamber. You can buy it from him for 500 caps (250 with good barter). It can be obtained for free using the Child at Heart perk dialog option.

Blackhawk

This weapon is received from giving Agatha music sheet paper after completing "Agatha's Quest". Give her the music sheet paper, then request a reward and she'll give you the Blackhawk.

Sydney's "Ultra" 10mm SMG

This weapon is owned by Sydney the relic hunter from the "Stealing Independence" quest. You can either obtain it by killing Sydney, pickpocketing her, or by completing the unnmarked quest "Sydney's Father" in Underworld if she survived your expedition in the Archives.

It is possible to get duplicate copies of this weapon (via a bug) if you do it via the "Sydney's Father" unnamed quest. After you get the gun, do this dialog tree:

1. Since we're done now, why don't you tell me about yourself
2. Nice gun, I've never seen one like that
3. That's all for now, I guess
4. So whatever happened to your father?
5. Sydney, I found a note from your father

Following those steps should net you a spare copy of the Ultra SMG. It can be repeatedly endlessly for an infinite amount of Ultra SMGs. The Ultra SMG is pretty valuable, so getting dupe copies and selling them is a very easy way to make quick caps.

Smuggler's End

This weapon can be found in Elder Lyons' personal safe in the Citadel B-Ring. You'll need to pick the lock on the safe to take it (Lockpick 100), or you can override the safe using the terminal on the desk. This is the third most powerful Laser Pistol in the game, with the second most powerful being the Protectron's Gaze and the first most powerful being the Colonol Autumn's Laser Pistol. Its durability is fairly standard, and other than slightly boosted damage, this weapon is a run-of-the-mill Laser Pistol.

Alien Blaster

This weapon is found by the crashed alien ship. If you don't know where said ship is, check the maps we linked above. They show the location. The alien blaster is incredibly deadly, and has a huge critical chance. It will 1-hit kill almost any enemy in the game, but the ammo is extremely limited, so use it with discretion.

Lincoln's Repeater

This weapon is in a sealed display case in the Museum of History, on the upper level. Lincoln's Repeater is one of the strongest guns in the game, although ammo is quite scare. It is the only gun in the game that is 100% accurate outside of VATS, meaning it will shoot exactly where you're aiming all the time. You can sell this gun to Hannibal Hamlin, Abraham Washington, or the Slaver Leader at the Lincoln Memorial, but you probably shouldn't, as it's a very powerful weapon.

Ol' Painless

This rifle can be found in the safe in Dave's office in the Republic of Dave. Ol' Painless is a normal hunting rifle with better durability and damage. To open the safe, you'll need Dave's Special Key (Used for the You Gotta Shoot 'em in the Headquest). Another way to obtain it is to help either Bob or Rosie win the elections- you'll receive Ol' Painless as your reward. The rifle must be stolen, so make sure no one sees you opening the safe, even if you do have the key.

Victory Rifle

The victory rifle is hidden inside the locked sniper shack to the West of Rockbreaker's Last Gas. It takes a lockpick skill of 100 to attempt the container in which the Victory Rifle is stored, although some companion have been observed to automatically take it from the safe, regardless of the lock. The Victory Rifle is a unique sniper rifle with great durability, and the special ability to knock foes down with a critical hit.

Experimental MIRV

The Experimental MIRV is a special version of the Fat Man that shoots 8 nukes at one time. No, I'm not even kidding. It's located in the National Guard Depot. To get it, however, you must obtain all of the Keller Family Transcripts located throughout the Wasteland. They aren't that hard to find.

1. Travel to the VAPL-58 Power Station. Inside of it, there's a mini nuke on one of the lights. Why? I don't know. Anyway, head north and follow the power lines. Eventually you'll reach a tower with boards all around it. The first KFT is in there. All of the tapes are from the brother in the family, and this one explains how they are going to try and get into one of the Vaults to "ride the storm out", and if that doesn't work, they have a backup plan, which is the National Guard Depot. Cha ching!

*I've recently learned that this tape is not required for entry to the armory bunker where the MIRV is. However, there is some vaulable loot at this one's location, so get it anyway.

2. Travel to the Hollowed Moors Cemetary (north of Big Town) and enter the church. Expect some resistance if you haven't been here before. There's also a captive here. Anyway, the KFT is inside on top of the podium. You can't miss it. This KFT is from a girl in the family named Tina. She heard from her sister Candace that they couldn't get into any of the Vaults because they were full. However, the brother, Alex (who sent the first transcript) managed to secure the password to an Army bunker and sent each person in the family one of the digits so they would have to be together to get inside. The first digit it "5".

3. Travel to Grisly Diner and head inside. Go out the back and you'll find the KFT on a desk. If you haven't been to Grisly Diner before, prepare to take some damage. The place is littered with traps, hence the name, and Raiders usually attack you when you enter. This KFT is a short one. It's from Candace to the Mom. She can see the mushroom, and says it's "so big". She heads off to one of the Vaults, but not before revealing that her number is "7".

4. Travel to Rockbreaker's Last Gas and look west. There should be a shack on top of the large cliff. Inside is the KFT, as well as the Victory Rifle if you have 100 lockpicking or Dogmeat. This KFT is from the father to the son, Ralphie. They can't get into the Vault without him, so he demands he gets his ass over there. His digit is "4".

5. Your last KFT is North across the river from the Anchorage Memorial. There's an flipped truck and some tents. If this is your first time visiting, there will Super Mutants, Centaurs, and a Wasteland Captive. The KFT is inside one of the tents. This one is from Ralphie. He doesn't care at all for the family. He refuses to go in a Vault, saying he doesn't want to spend "nuclear Armageddon trapped with him in a fucking closet". The "him" is the father. He gives the family his number, which is "6", and leaves to walk into a mushroom. His last words are: "Have a happy Holocaust!" What a nice kid.

Now that you've secured all of the KFT's, it's time to head to the National Guard Depot. Once inside, you will need to get into the Armor by pulling a switch. The location of the switch can be hard the find.* Once your inside, go down the stairs after hitting the switch. You should enter the mother of all supply rooms. There's tons of usefull stuff here, such as armor, ammo, weapons, Chems, and even a Missle Launcher. Hey, what's that on the shelf? Oh, it's a Bobblehead!

Locate the large metal door in the room. Go to the computer and open it using the KFT's. The door should open. Head inside and follow the pathway. You should encounter a Glowing One in here. This is probably the Father, as he often went out in search of supplies. Everyone else in the family died. You should find the Expiremental MIRV on a table with five mini nukes. Congratualtions! You've secured the most powerful weapon in the game!

Vampire's Edge

This unique sword is hidden with the Family, the "vampires" you'll encounter during the "Blood Ties" quest. It's hidden inside Vance's locked sword cabinet in his room. It's locked, requiring a 75 lockpick skill to open. Instead of picking the lock, you can also pickpocket the key off Vance, or kill him and loot the key off his corpse.

Weapons Schematics

Some weapons in Fallout 3 can be built from scratch using a schematic and a workbemch. These schematics are a bit difficult to obtain, so here are all the schematic locations listed. There are several available schematics for each weapon.

Nuka Grenade

1. One can be found in the Raider Cliffside Cavern, inside the Yao Gui nest
2. Doc Hoff in the Trading Caravan sells one
3. If you complete the Nuka-Cola Challenge by collecting Nuka-Cola Quantums, you can get one from Sierra Petrovita

Compnents: Nuka-Cola Quantum, Tin Can, Turpentine, Abraxo Cleaner

Bottlecap Mine

1. Moira will give you a schematic for bringing her back a landmine from Minefield.
2. The kid vendor, Knick Knack, in Little Lamplight sells a schematic
3. Dashwood's safe in Tenpenny Tower hides a Bottlecap Mine schematic- he will give it to you for telling him about Argyle, or you can steal it
4. Jocko's Pop and Gas Stop has a schematic, in addition to a Nuka-Cola Quantum, and a nearby workbench

Components: Lunchbox, 10 caps, Cherry Bomb, Sensor Module

Deathclaw Gauntlet

1. Helping Bannon with the City Council Trouble quest will yield a Deatchclaw Gauntlet as a reward
2. One can be found at F. Scott Key and Campground in the South West corner of the map inside a trailer
3. One is occasionally found on a random Wasteland Settler

Components: Deathclaw Hand, Medical Brace, Leather Belt, Wonderglue

Rock-it Launcher

1. You can buy one of these schematics form Moira at Craterside Supply in Megaton
2. There's one under your mother's favorite bible passage in Vault 101- you can only get this when you return as an adult for the Trouble on the Homefront quest
3. One can be bought from Crazy Wolfgang in the trading caravan
4. One can be found in the Rivet City Armory

Components: Vacuum Cleaner, Firehose Nozzle, Leaf Blower, Conductor

Railway Rifle

1. One can be bought from Tulip in Underworld
2. Complete the Stealing Independence quest and you're rewarded with this schematic from Abraham Washington
3. The MDPL-13 Power Station has one

Components: Crutch, Fission Battery, Pressure Cooker, Steam Gauge Assembly

Shishkebab

1. A Shishkebab schematic is a reward for finishing the Blood Ties quest (From Vance- if you kill him it should be on his corpse)
2. Lucky Harith in the trading caravan sells one

Components: Pilot Light, Motorcycle Gas Tank, Motorcycle Handbrake, Lawnmower Blade

Dart Gun

1. Reward for finishing the "Head of State" Quest
2. Lydia Montenegro in Tenpenny Tower sells one (Human)
3. Michael Masters in Tenpenny Tower sells one (if you let the ghouls take over)
4. At the MDPL-05 Power station there's a schematic

Components: Radscorpion Poison Gland, Paint Gun, Surgical Tubing, Toy Car

Achievements

A good portion of the achievements in Fallout 3 are for completing specific quests. Just look at the quest guide above for those. The ones listed here are the achievements you get outside of quests.

Psychotic Prankster-10G Pickpocket somebody without being detected, go into your inventory and choose a grenade or mine, place it in their inventory and back out. Hilarity ensues. Note that any nearby NPCs will instantly turn hostile.

Keys Are For Cowards-20G Pick 50 locks (The bobby-pin minigame). An easy achievement, because there are a ton of things to pick open in the game and bobby pins are easy to come by.

Silver-Tounged Devil-20G Win 50 speech challenges (A speech challenge is when a dialog option has a percentage next to it. If it says SUCCESS you won it). Pump some points into Speech so you have a much better chance of passing the challenge.

Weaponsmith-30G Make one of every custom weapon schematic (See the Weapons Schematics section above). You don't need to keep the weapon after you make it.

Yes, I play with Dolls-10G Collect 10 Bobbleheads (See Bobblehead section for locations). Be sure to pay attention when Bobblehead hunting, because there are a few that can disappear forever if you don't get them in time.

One Man Scouting Party-20G Discover 100 Locations. This comes naturally from exploring and wandering the Wasteland. In addition, at level 20 you can choose the Explorer perk, which reveals all the locations, although you still need to hike there for it to actually count as "discovered". You can check how many locations you're found in your general stats on the Pip-Boy.

The Bigger They Are..-20G

Kill all five Super Mutant Behemoths. Here's a video showing the locations.

Slayer of Beasts-20G

Killed 300 creatures. Most all of the enemies you'll fight in the Wasteland are classified as creatures, so this one should come to you no problem. Radroaches, Radscorpions, Giant Radscorpions, Deathclaws, Yao Gaui, Feral Ghouls, etc. all count as creatures.

Doesn't Play Well With Others-20G

Killed 300 people. This one is much tougher than Slayer of Beasts. This will come easier to evil characters, as they're more disposed towards murder and mayhem, but it's certainly attainable for good characters too. You'll just need to kill a BUNCH of Raiders and Enclave soldiers on your travels. And, as Three Dog says, (non-Feral) Ghouls are people too, and therefore count towards this achievement.

Vault-Tec C.E.O.-30G

Collect all 20 Bobbleheads. See the Bobblehead section above.

Data Miner-20G

Hack 50 terminals. This one is significantly harder than the lockpick achievement. It's recommended that you create a new character who specializes in Science. Go through the game hacking every terminal you see, and use the tips given above. When I did this, I got the achievement in Vault 87 after meeting Fawkes. There is an extremely helpful guide that gives the locations of enough terminals to give you the achievement. Check it out here.

Karma Achievements

There are achievements for reaching levels 8, 14, and 20 at Evil, Neutral, and Good karma. Now, aside from playing through the game three times, here are some suggestions for obtaining these achievements and changing your karma:

• Keep a save a little bit before you hit 8, 14, and 20 so you can reload and change your karma before hitting the specified level.
• The easiest way to gain bad karma is by simply killing innocents- go into a town and murder everyone. If you are close to leveling, it is a lot easier to simply go into empty houses and steal everything inside, which takes quite a bit longer but will ensure that you do not level up before hitting your desired Karma level.
• The easiest way to gain Good karma is to give purified water to the Beggars outside of towns. There are people asking for purified water outside of Tenpenny Tower, Megaton, and Rivet City.
• Donating to the Church of Atom in Megaton or the Church of Saint Monica in Rivet City will both also give you Good Karma, to the tune of 1 karma point per cap donated.
• Going on a killing spree at Paradise Falls will gain you good karma.
• You can check your current Karma under the general tab in STATS on your PIP-BOY 3000. The Karma ratings are: Very Good, Good, Neutral, Bad, Very Bad. You do not need to reach the very good or very evil extremes to get the achievement, Good, Neutral, and Bad will all do.
• After installing the Broken Steel DLC, the level cap is raised to 30. The Karma achievements for level 30 can be easily obtained by taking the Here and Now perk to boost up the 30, and then taking the Karma perks and reloading.

Soundtrack

So you're really into that 50's music huh? Surprise! All of Fallout 3's music is from 1949 or earlier! Anyway, here's a listing of the licensed soundtrack for Fallout 3, as well as previews for all the songs.

• I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire- The Ink Spots
• Mighty, Mighty Man- Roy Brown
• Anything Goes- Cole Porter
• Let's Go Sunning- Someone
• Butcher Pete, Part 1- Roy Brown
• A Wonderful Guy- Tex Beneke
• Way Back Home- Bob Crosby
• Crazy He Calls Me- Billie Holliday (Cover, only available version on Youtube)
• Civilization- Danny Kaye and the Andrews Sisters
• Happy Times- Bob Crosby
• Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall- The Ink Spots (Cover, original not available on Youtube)
• Maybe- The Ink Spots

Downloadable Content

Downloadable content is out for the Xbox 360 and PC, and is coming soon to the Playstation 3.

Clearly we have not kept on top of updating this. We are sorry :(

Operation Anchorage

Relive the liberation of Alaska from her Communist oppressors via a simulator. Released January 27th 4-5 hours, 800 MSP

Aiding The Outcasts

After downloading and installing Operation: Anchorage, a message will pop up in game telling you about a mysterious radio message that you've picked up. Follow the compass through a metro and you'll come across some Brotherhood soldiers who will engage in a large fight against an army of Super Mutants and Centaurs. Because the soldiers are packing an impressive amount of heat, it's entirely possible to sit back and let them take care of business. Eventually, you'll reach an elevator. Take it and you'll hear some people talking. Once the elevator stops, follow Sibley to Protector McGraw and get some information about your mission. There are several things to loot in this area also. Once you are ready to head out, talk to Odin by the pod and equip your special suit. Jump in the pod to begin the simulation.

The Guns of Anchorage

You'll begin this by talking to your Sergeant who will be your buddy throughout the entire simulation.

Paving the Way

Operation: Anchorage

The Pitt

Head to Pittsburgh. Released March. 800 MSP

Into The Pitt

Unsafe Working Conditions

Free Labo

Mill Worker

Broken Steel

Join the Brotherhood of Steel, raised level cap, continue the main story. Released May. 800 MSP

Death From Above

Shock Value

Who Dares Wins

Point Lookout

Head to the swamps of Maryland and kill some hillbilly mutants. 800 points.

The Local Flavor

After installing the DLC, you'll get a message onscreen as usual after waiting a minute or so. There is a boat docked on the Potomac River that goes to Point Lookout, and you've decided to investigate. Fast travel to Arlington Library and follow the quest marker till you reach the boat called the Duchess Gambit. You'll be approached by a woman named Catherine, who frantically begs you to find her daughter Nadine who ran off somewhere in Point Lookout. (This is an unmarked quest). To get to Point Lookout, you need to talk to a man named Tobar, who owns the boat.

Walking With Spirits

Hearing Voices

Thought Control

A Meeting Of The Minds

Mothership Zeta

The Xbox 360's name came from the idea that it was a revolution in gaming. Having 720 completely defeats the purpose of the name and annoys me when anyone uses it. 
 
Rant over. 
 
What do you think Microsoft's new console should be named? Should it keep the Xbox name or move on to something more... marketable?