DwayneGAnd
Look, Ma! Two Heads!
There are lots of different weapons and armor to choose from in the game. But here I will list what I think are the best choices for endgame builds. I choose these for two reasons:
1.For weapons, go with damage. For armor, with damage resistance. For helmets, if it allows you to wear the Lucky Shades.
2.For both, its maintainability and how common items to repair it are.
I will not list any weapons or amor that can only be repaired by vendors, cause let's face it, nobody in the game, other than that woman in Mothership Zeta can completely repair an item to 100%. Maybe if Fallout 3 had Jury Rigging from New Vegas, this would be different.
Feel free to comment on my opinions or list your own.
Small Guns
Terrible Shotgun-Best shotgun in the game. In terms of damage, it's the best small gun in the game. However, it should only be used in close range and against the heavily armored foes due to its fragility.
Xuanlong Rifle-Good range, good damage, and high durability make this the best automatic weapon in the small guns category. This is probably your weapon of choice that you'll be using most of the time.
Blackhawk/Callahoun's Magnum-Either of these scoped pistols are the sidearm of choice. Blackhawk may be sightly weaker, but it's available much sooner in the game, especially for those who don't want to blow up the citadel.
Reservist's/Victory Rifle-Scoped rifles zoom further than scoped pistols. The Reservist's has a higher critical chance while the Victory has higher durability and the ability to knock down enemies with critical hits.
Perforator-The best silent weapon in the game for stealthy characters. Great all-purpose weapon thanks to the scope for longer range combat and the fact that it is fully automatic.
Big Guns
Eugene-This unique minigun is the Big Gun of choice because ammo is more common and available. Also, spare miniguns to repair it with are easier to come by.
Vengeance/Precision Gatling Laser-Your secondary Big Gun of choice. More useful for armored foes or those who can take more damage.
Rapid Torch/Slo Burn Flamer-For Pyromaniacs, either flamethrower is a great choice for closer range combat. Neither is too durable however so use sparingly.
Heavy Incinerator-Another good pyromaniac weapon. Useful for longer range since the flaming napalm travels further away and you can aim it higher to increase the distance the projectile travels. Better for VATS than the flamer.
Fat Man-Great for taking out the toughest enemies or crowds of tougher enemies such as Feral Reavers. Don't use in close to medium range of course or you will die.
Energy Weapons
A3-21's Plasma Rifle-The long range rifle of choice in this category.
Novasurge-The best sidearm in the game.
Metal Blaster-The best laser rifle. However, the multiple beams make it more useful at close range. The more beams that connect, the better the damage. Sort of like an energy weapon shotgun.
Tri-beam Laser-Same as the Metal Blaster. Best used at close range.
Melee Ranged Weapons
Man Opener-It's ability to ignore Damage Threshold of your foes makes it the top choice in the melee weapons skill category.
Jack-A great choice due to the bonus damage to limbs. It's a great sneak attack weapon and it's also fully automatic.
Shishkabob-For pyromaniacs, it's the melee weapon of choice.
Fisto-Power Fists are quite common, making this the best of the unique variants. For more damage to robots, go with the Shocker.
Deathclaw Gauntlet-Another great choice because it ignores Damage Threshold.
Explosives
Frag Grenades-With all three levels of the Demolition Expert perk, this is a great explosive weapon for taking out crowds of enemies. Good for those who lack the strength and skill to use a Fat Man with effieciency. It's the most common type of grenade.
Plasma Grenades-Better than Frag Grenades. They're also more powerful than Pulse Grenades with all three Demolition Expert levels. Not as common as Frag Grenades though.
Nuka Grenades-The best and most powerful grenade. However it is not affected by Demolition Expert. With the Quantum Chemist perk, you can have an unlimited supply of Nuke Quantum to make them.
Armor
Ranger Battle Armor-Gives bonus to small guns, action points and luck. This is the best choice in my opinion for those who specialize primarily in small guns. Use with either the Ranger Battle Helmet or the Combat Helmet as they seem to be a perfect fit to go with it.
Metal blaster Armor-Like Tesla Armor, it provides a bonus to Energy Weapons, but is easier to maintain and is lighter. Better for Energy Weapon users. Of course take into consideration the penalty to agility, even if it affects sneak skill and small guns skill. Use with either variation of the combat helmet.
Lag Bolt's Combat Armor-The bonus to Big Guns and action points makes this the best choice in my opinion for Big Gun users. Use either variation of the combat helmet.
Chinese Stealth Armor-The best armor for stealth characters. The stealth field when sneaking makes this far more attractive than the New Vegas version. Use with the Recon Helmet.
1.For weapons, go with damage. For armor, with damage resistance. For helmets, if it allows you to wear the Lucky Shades.
2.For both, its maintainability and how common items to repair it are.
I will not list any weapons or amor that can only be repaired by vendors, cause let's face it, nobody in the game, other than that woman in Mothership Zeta can completely repair an item to 100%. Maybe if Fallout 3 had Jury Rigging from New Vegas, this would be different.
Feel free to comment on my opinions or list your own.
Small Guns
Terrible Shotgun-Best shotgun in the game. In terms of damage, it's the best small gun in the game. However, it should only be used in close range and against the heavily armored foes due to its fragility.
Xuanlong Rifle-Good range, good damage, and high durability make this the best automatic weapon in the small guns category. This is probably your weapon of choice that you'll be using most of the time.
Blackhawk/Callahoun's Magnum-Either of these scoped pistols are the sidearm of choice. Blackhawk may be sightly weaker, but it's available much sooner in the game, especially for those who don't want to blow up the citadel.
Reservist's/Victory Rifle-Scoped rifles zoom further than scoped pistols. The Reservist's has a higher critical chance while the Victory has higher durability and the ability to knock down enemies with critical hits.
Perforator-The best silent weapon in the game for stealthy characters. Great all-purpose weapon thanks to the scope for longer range combat and the fact that it is fully automatic.
Big Guns
Eugene-This unique minigun is the Big Gun of choice because ammo is more common and available. Also, spare miniguns to repair it with are easier to come by.
Vengeance/Precision Gatling Laser-Your secondary Big Gun of choice. More useful for armored foes or those who can take more damage.
Rapid Torch/Slo Burn Flamer-For Pyromaniacs, either flamethrower is a great choice for closer range combat. Neither is too durable however so use sparingly.
Heavy Incinerator-Another good pyromaniac weapon. Useful for longer range since the flaming napalm travels further away and you can aim it higher to increase the distance the projectile travels. Better for VATS than the flamer.
Fat Man-Great for taking out the toughest enemies or crowds of tougher enemies such as Feral Reavers. Don't use in close to medium range of course or you will die.
Energy Weapons
A3-21's Plasma Rifle-The long range rifle of choice in this category.
Novasurge-The best sidearm in the game.
Metal Blaster-The best laser rifle. However, the multiple beams make it more useful at close range. The more beams that connect, the better the damage. Sort of like an energy weapon shotgun.
Tri-beam Laser-Same as the Metal Blaster. Best used at close range.
Melee Ranged Weapons
Man Opener-It's ability to ignore Damage Threshold of your foes makes it the top choice in the melee weapons skill category.
Jack-A great choice due to the bonus damage to limbs. It's a great sneak attack weapon and it's also fully automatic.
Shishkabob-For pyromaniacs, it's the melee weapon of choice.
Fisto-Power Fists are quite common, making this the best of the unique variants. For more damage to robots, go with the Shocker.
Deathclaw Gauntlet-Another great choice because it ignores Damage Threshold.
Explosives
Frag Grenades-With all three levels of the Demolition Expert perk, this is a great explosive weapon for taking out crowds of enemies. Good for those who lack the strength and skill to use a Fat Man with effieciency. It's the most common type of grenade.
Plasma Grenades-Better than Frag Grenades. They're also more powerful than Pulse Grenades with all three Demolition Expert levels. Not as common as Frag Grenades though.
Nuka Grenades-The best and most powerful grenade. However it is not affected by Demolition Expert. With the Quantum Chemist perk, you can have an unlimited supply of Nuke Quantum to make them.
Armor
Ranger Battle Armor-Gives bonus to small guns, action points and luck. This is the best choice in my opinion for those who specialize primarily in small guns. Use with either the Ranger Battle Helmet or the Combat Helmet as they seem to be a perfect fit to go with it.
Metal blaster Armor-Like Tesla Armor, it provides a bonus to Energy Weapons, but is easier to maintain and is lighter. Better for Energy Weapon users. Of course take into consideration the penalty to agility, even if it affects sneak skill and small guns skill. Use with either variation of the combat helmet.
Lag Bolt's Combat Armor-The bonus to Big Guns and action points makes this the best choice in my opinion for Big Gun users. Use either variation of the combat helmet.
Chinese Stealth Armor-The best armor for stealth characters. The stealth field when sneaking makes this far more attractive than the New Vegas version. Use with the Recon Helmet.
