They're great if you are playing without VATS. I highly recommend Blackhawk (the unique) if you are going to use them. They don't hold up very well, though.

The Blackhawk is pretty sweet. The other night I free-hand one shotted a charging super mutant master, not in sneak mode. As for the sniper rifles, I find it better to aim for the upper chest if I want a head shot.

Scoped Magnums, I just about managed to keep one in high repair, they are not that plentiful, investing in wandering traders that visit Megaton may have made a slight difference, other trader locations occasionally had one, I tried different traders when I had stuff to sell and bought more ammo as well. (Sold quite a lot of Assault Rifle ammo along with the gun to Wastelanders and others, good to see them not-dead later).

One thing that bugs me about Magnums is, that I'll never get the most powerfull of them (Callahan's magnum), as I never destroy the BOS Citadel in Broken Steel.


Today, I've trained with the Sniper Rifle a bit. I've placed some bottles and tins on a table and tried to hit them.
My Sniper skill without VATS is getting better.


I've collected every Magnum from the start, so I've many in reserve.
In my next playthrough I'll also have an eye on them.
Btw: I don't know if it's a bug, but the merchant Haley in Point Lookout can fully repair items.

In my first playthrough 2 traders died, too bad as they are a good resource for additional items and weapons. In my second I reverse-pickpocket Hellfire armor and Plasmaguns. That seem to keep them alive.

OMG! You have to do it at least once! I had so much fun playing a crazy, tech obssessed scientist type who came to the conclusion that the Enclave had to be better because they had the best tech. Shooting Sarah Lyons in the back was one of my best/most fun moments ever (and I've had a lot of great moments in this game)! Taking out Elder Lyons wasn't so bad either. I didn't think Callahan's was that much better than Blackhawk, and I wouldn't routinely do the deed to get it, but doing it once (going after the BOS) to see what it was like was mandatory for me. I had a save to go back to if I hated it.

I did try once, but it was too much for me seeing the Citadel in flames and all the BoS members dead. hmy:
I have taken them to my heart.

I did get a bit annoyed when a trader died, the robot trader I sold him an Assault Rifle and 200 rounds of ammo and he immediately had the rifle slung on his back, minutes later he was blasting away at a giant scorpion with it. I wondered since, if I just drop a weapon at their feet and walk away, would they pick it up and keep it.

Have you tried messing about on the rooftops jumping to other lines of rooftops, Faifax Buildings and Greyditch are the best ones, I'm not sure there are others ... makes a bit of a change.

http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j68/sitruc2006/Fallout/snap103do.jpg

You are looking for this kind of sloping wall to the roof that you can see on the right.
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j68/sitruc2006/Fallout/snap059do.jpg

NPC's won't pick up weapons unless they are in combat and only if there is ammo for it. What happened with the trader was different. You put it into his inventory by selling it to him. In that case the trader equipped that weapon (he could only do so because you only sold him the ammo) because it was better than whatever weapon he had previously equipped.

Yeah, I thought that was a pretty remote chance that they would pick up a dropped weapon instead of having to trade it to them.

Another game-play option which I expect most know about is setting different types against each other, such as Ghouls against Raiders. I was getting away from Raiders by running into a Metro, right into loads of Ghouls, ran out chased by the Ghouls, and the Ghouls and Raiders ended up sorting out each other. Didn't plan it but it showed it could be done.

Not really a tactic I would recommend, it could very well have backfired on you with both factions going after you and ignoring each other. If you're going to try to pit one side against the other, you need to do it in such as way that you can keep out of everyone's path.

Was that in Bethesda Ruins? I like to do that too sometimes.

That's the one, smile. I was running about all over the place any direction I could until they got stuck into each other, then I more or less stood back and watched.

I have to try this Benny Hill tactic I can just hear the music now....

Whichever way you can introduce them to each other, grin.

For those that want location to roofs.

Fairfax Buildings ... Need to neutralise thedefense gun turret ....
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j68/sitruc2006/Fallout/snap089do-1.jpg

... like here.
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j68/sitruc2006/Fallout/ScreenShot76-1.jpg

Greyditch has the same type of wall to the roofs.
http://i77.photobucket.com/albums/j68/sitruc2006/Fallout/snap076do-1.jpg

Have fun ... good views ... and can jump to lots of other areas, quicksave first, but I soon got the hang of it.