Jack Reynolds
First time out of the vault
(Disclaimer: This post, while its topic still does apply to the vanilla game, will also be mentioning mod-added weaponry; I apologize, in advance, if that's not allowed on this board. If there's a rule against it, I haven't spotted said rule yet.)
For the longest time, and for the majority of my New Vegas playthroughs, I was all about the more "modern" weaponry loadout; not so much out of any kind of, "brand loyalty" but, rather, because of what I imagine to be a 20th/21st century person's idea of, "the more lead you throw downrange, the better."
And then... I realized something. I realized just why it is that Rangers tend to come strapped with cowboy repeaters, rather than service rifles.
I also (after developing a solid proficiency with FNVEdit) realized something else:
All of the game's weaponry, in its unmodified state, is hilariously inaccurate. To the point where there are "gunfights" where the participants would have a better chance at actually hitting their targets by throwing rocks at them.
Except for... the Mysterious Stranger. So I opened up the .44 Magnum's weapon "info card" in FNVEdit and discovered just why that was.
Then I replicated the thing which makes the Mysterious Magnum so special... to every other weapon in the game. (That is, set their "Min. Spread" values to 0.0 Except for shotguns, because shotguns are actually supposed to have a spread, firing multiple projectiles with each shot.)
And now... now I get why revolvers, cowboy repeaters, brush guns, and trail carbines are Boss. Because now that they actually hit what I aim them at, good god, do they ever lay a weight of hurt on the target.
Of course, as with any modification to the weaponry of the game, the gift you give yourself is also the gift you give all the NPCs, friends and enemies alike. Gunfights are fast, bloody, and brutal, and it's usually the first to shoot that survives. Stealth, effective use of cover, and marksmanship become way more important, while magazine capacity and rate of fire tend to take a backseat.
As you can probably imagine, this also changes the balance of usefulness for companions; melee-centric characters like Veronica and Lily become quite a bit less effective (except, perhaps, as decoys / bullet sponges) while Boone and Raoul sit solidly in the God Tier.
My personal "Do Everything" gun is the Marlin 1894 Tactical:
(I'm not sure whether or not links to mod sites are permitted here; if they are, I'll drop the link to where you can get that weapon, if you want it.)
Summing up, though: I would never have thought I'd find myself using the game's more "western" style gear; now, after a little fiddling, I can't imagine ever going back.
For the longest time, and for the majority of my New Vegas playthroughs, I was all about the more "modern" weaponry loadout; not so much out of any kind of, "brand loyalty" but, rather, because of what I imagine to be a 20th/21st century person's idea of, "the more lead you throw downrange, the better."
And then... I realized something. I realized just why it is that Rangers tend to come strapped with cowboy repeaters, rather than service rifles.
I also (after developing a solid proficiency with FNVEdit) realized something else:
All of the game's weaponry, in its unmodified state, is hilariously inaccurate. To the point where there are "gunfights" where the participants would have a better chance at actually hitting their targets by throwing rocks at them.
Except for... the Mysterious Stranger. So I opened up the .44 Magnum's weapon "info card" in FNVEdit and discovered just why that was.
Then I replicated the thing which makes the Mysterious Magnum so special... to every other weapon in the game. (That is, set their "Min. Spread" values to 0.0 Except for shotguns, because shotguns are actually supposed to have a spread, firing multiple projectiles with each shot.)
And now... now I get why revolvers, cowboy repeaters, brush guns, and trail carbines are Boss. Because now that they actually hit what I aim them at, good god, do they ever lay a weight of hurt on the target.
Of course, as with any modification to the weaponry of the game, the gift you give yourself is also the gift you give all the NPCs, friends and enemies alike. Gunfights are fast, bloody, and brutal, and it's usually the first to shoot that survives. Stealth, effective use of cover, and marksmanship become way more important, while magazine capacity and rate of fire tend to take a backseat.
As you can probably imagine, this also changes the balance of usefulness for companions; melee-centric characters like Veronica and Lily become quite a bit less effective (except, perhaps, as decoys / bullet sponges) while Boone and Raoul sit solidly in the God Tier.
My personal "Do Everything" gun is the Marlin 1894 Tactical:
(I'm not sure whether or not links to mod sites are permitted here; if they are, I'll drop the link to where you can get that weapon, if you want it.)
Summing up, though: I would never have thought I'd find myself using the game's more "western" style gear; now, after a little fiddling, I can't imagine ever going back.