So, last update we saved Primm from a group of convicts and decided to help them recruit a new sheriff for their town.
So you're probably wondering why we are in a Powder Ganger outfit. Well, one of the new additions to New Vegas are faction disguises.
Faction disguises allow you to disguise yourself as a member of a certain faction as long as you are wearing it. So you can sneak past factions that are hostile towards without any fighting. You can't sneak by everyone however, some faction leaders or guard dogs will see past your disguise and attack you.
Also, you have to be careful to remove your disguise after you're done wearing it. Walking near an NCR outpost in a Legion disguise is not the smartest idea.
The NCRCF is off in the distance.
So now we can walk right into it without getting shot by the guys in the guard towers, even though they can't aim worth shit anyways.
But here is the problem - this guy can see through our disguise.
Let's reload and try again.
Hrm. I have an idea...
I didn't manage to catch a screenshot, but I tossed a stick of dynamite over the fence. It managed to do some damage.
He is down, but the tower guards are hostile now. Let's try to back off and head back in after they forget about us.
Again, these guys can't aim worth shit. They manage to hit us every 5 shots or so.
And there is even more Powder Gangers on the other side of the hill.
Some of them ran out of the prison to attack us.
After taking out those other Powder Gangers and a quick wait till nighttime, we're ready to go into the prison. They're not hostile towards us anymore, I'd say we were pretty damn stealthy. Even though we killed like 5 guards getting in there...
Shut up.
I'm a master of disguise...
Helped you out? How?
Let's chat with Meyers.
Well, even at this early point in the game, our story is rather complicated.
"What did you do before you ended up incarcerated?"
"I was a sheriff, believe it or not, for a small town far to the west of here. The short version is that sometimes justice is a little slow, and I helped speed it up one too many times. I'm not sorry for anything I did, but I will do the time. Fair enough trade, if you ask me."
So Meyers isn't affilated with the Powder Gangers at all. He was doing his time in prison when the Powder Gangers took over, and I guess he decided to stay there anyway.
"How would you feel about becoming Primm's new sheriff?"
"Assuming an NCR pardon comes with the job - and it had better - I'll also need to be able to do things my own way. Due process has its place, but sometimes it's just a waste of time. I'll need to know that I'm not going to end up right back in prison."
"You have a deal."
This seems to be the most independent choice for this sidequest, though it's arguable with Primm Slim and all. Don't worry, I'll show the other two options in seperate playthroughs.
"All right, then. Guess I'll just make a quiet exit - no need for a goodbye party or anything."
Welp, I assume you aren't too attached to these guys, right?
Alright, Meyers is gone, good.
Good.
Seriously, fuck the Powder Gangers. They have been nothing but a nusiance to us.
Let's just sneak this stick of dynamite into this guys pocket and stand back a bit...
Why are you guys shooting at me? It could have been anyone who put that dynamite in that guys pants, honest.
The stick of dynamite I'm currently holding has no relevance.
Heheh, this should help a bit.
What.
Looks like the mine was a dud.
So much for getting any use out of mines...
Before we go, I loot the soda machines. We're not wiping out the entire prison yet, saving that for later.
And this star bottle cap too.
So now we travel towards the Mojave Outpost.
It's not that long of a journey to get there though, honestly.
Some Powder Gangers on the road to keep us busy. After this little encounter, the Powder Gangers aren't really a presence in the Mojave anymore. They hang around the road from Goodsprings to Primm and maybe the road towards Sloan but that is about it.
I've been using dynamite an awful lot lately, haven't I?
Well we got a ton of it, it's good money and some decent damage as well.
Let's check out this building real fast-
So the Powder Gangers aren't the only thugs in town. Basically, the Jackals and the Vipers, who we will encounter later, serve as the games "Raiders", just assholes with minimal backstory. At least they're actually a faction though, I still find the "All the raiders are on the same side" thing from Fallout 3 was extremely stupid.
No, I'm not putting points into explosives. This is a temporary thing.
Classy.
More jackals.
These guys aren't even that much stronger than Powder Gangers. The game is pretty fucking easy, unless you decide to go Deathclaw suicide route. Still more difficult than Fallout 3 with the DT system, but a far cry from the older games. I'd probably rate them this, default difficulty wise:
Fallout 2>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Fallout 1>>>>>>>>Fallout: New Vegas>>>Fallout 3
Fallout 2 still kicks my ass, seriously.
We got a skill book from a table.
There are a ton of little mantises on the ground. They can be stepped on and killed.
There is Hydra on this table. It's a new drug in New Vegas, and like Fallout 3, I almost never use them while playing.
Another star bottle cap.
Time to take a nap.
Back on the road now. Closer to the Mojave Outpost.
There is a big statue up there.
Okay, explain to me the purpose of building 50 foot tall statue out of scrap metal? I mean, the NCR has a decent amount of control over this area and things aren't nearly as dire here than in the Capital Wasteland but it still doesn't exactly make sense for the NCR to be comissioning a sculptor to build it.
At the end of this outpost is a chain link fence. It's blocked off because this area is the westernmost point of the map. It leads back to California, so traders go through the Mojave Outpost to get into the Mojave and to leave the place.
We enter one of the buildings to talk to this guy.
"Courier."
"Just need something for the log book, keeping tabs on traffic through the Outpost... although mostly just in, not out these days."
There are a few traders currently stranded at Mojave Outpost. We will check them out later when we actually finish our business in Primm and need to head this way.
"If you're looking for the commanding officer, he's in the back. Although... he's got a lot on his plate, so if you speak with him... keep it short. Also, you need any gear checked, we can get you up and running again... once you fill out the work orders, and sign for the parts, of course."
He can repair your stuff to full, for a price of course though. Usually not worth the money, especially with a high repair and jury rigging, but since we have neither of those right now, we'll have to use him for a bit. (The Armored Vault 21 Suit degrades pretty fast, but on it's pretty cheap to repair)
"I'd like to talk to you about Primm."
"Primm? Hayes' unit is stationed up there, were having problems with some of the NCRCF convicts. What can I help you with?"
"One of the convicts from NCRCF is looking for a pardon so he can protect Primm."
Okay, this line sounds rather stupid. It should probably specify that he is not a Powder Ganger first.
"One of the Powder Gangers? They've been nothing but trouble for us - why would we want one of them anywhere in an offical capacity?"
"[Speech 30] His sentence was almost up, and he isn't tied to the Powder Gangers."
"[SUCCEEDED] Hmm. All right. If his sentence was closing up I can see about getting him pardoned. Primm is important to our trade up from California, so having someone there who owes us a favor... that couldn't hurt."
Back to Primm!
First we repair our Vault jumpsuit.
So that's it for this particular sidequest.
"Tell me more about what happened in the prison."
"I understand that Cooke was behind it all. I kept my head down the whole time. Didn't want any part of it. I stuck around, figuring the NCR would show up and put things back the way they were. No sense in making myself look guilty, right?"
So the Powder Gangers didn't have any problem with you hanging around.
"Who's Cooke?"
"Some kind of anti-NCR rebel. Some people just don't like being pushed around and told what to do."
"Where can I find Cooke?"
"He went north with some of the other guys. Didn't say where, didn't say why. All I know is he's got some kind of score to settle with the NCR."
We'll meet Cooke in a sidequest much later on in the game.
We level up after completing that sidequest.
We ignore repair in order to give a bigger boost to guns and lockpick. Those are rather important.
We aren't quite done with Primm yet, however. There are still a few things to do here, not least of which is to talk to Deputy Beagle about the people who shot us.
I shouldn't have been so lazy lol.
