The Survival Guide quests have been the reason I've managed this level so far. The Minefield quest was difficult, but I managed to pull it off enough to search around the area. I found a power station and this gave me Fisto, which I've been using ever since. It truly has been the best weapon in the game for me.

Which brings me to my question: Why does VATS svck so bad and does it get better?

I thought this thing was supposed to be helpful, but I find it useless. Doing the food/med quest, I ran into some boy who asked me to get rid of "Those". At the time, my strongest weapon was the assault rifle (CND 47%), and VATS let me down in a big way. Despite standing in front of them, my score never hit above 50% for the antennae, so I always pumped the legs to cripple them (90%+). They still moved, even if they were slower. Not sure how those spindly legs can generate 90%+ scores, but that doesn't matter.

It didn't take me long to realize nectar + Fisto = easy win. Even those guardians were a joke with this combination.

I'm about to explore the Wasteland now, but finding the constant fights to be a challenge. If I can get close to my enemies, Fisto saves the day (and saves ammo). The problem is they have better long-range weapons, which takes a beating on my health and supplies. Even if I try dodging to the enemy, their accuracy seems to be 150%.

Here's what I have, arsenal wise:
Small: assault rifles, sawed-off shotgun, combat shotgun, 10mm pistol (silenced), .32 cal, .45 cal (w/scope), sniper rifle, and 10mm sub-machine gun.

Heavy: mingun and rail gun (made this one). I've also the fat man, but that's a bit overkill.

I've also a few melee weapons, and just created the weird-looking Shishkabob.


I'm about 25% away from level 10, so when I get there, should I dump all my exp into small weapons or split 50/50 into small/large?

It seems my only benefit to using firearms is to rank these exp points up ASAP.

PS: They're both at 40 right now. I've been spreading out the exp points by 2 per level since starting, but I think this was a bad idea.

I don't intend to restart, working out my own issues, but either VATS is seriously a screwed-up piece of crap or my exp levels are too low.

I'm getting killed out there, and I need to level the field if I intend to make it to Rivet City one day.

Thanks for your help.

VATS can improve IF you inprove your weapon skill when leveling up.

Personally I ALWAYS go for the head shot, it's the easiest way to kill just about anything in the game, If you can you should look out for these weapons:

Alien Blaster (limited Ammo in Game)
Assault Rifle
Combat Shotgun
Fat man
Flamer
Hunting Rifle
Laser Rifle
Missle Launcher
Reservists Rifle
Vampire's Edge
Zhu-Rong v418 Chinese Pistol

And if you get the opportunity you should build the Railway Rifle.

If you need help finding any of these just Goodle them and you will find detailed instructions far better than I could provide on how to obtain these glorious guns.

So, it is skill dependent. No problem. When I level up, I'll dump all my points into weapons and get them up. In looking at your list, I actually have most of those already. I didn't list them because I don't use them.

I have the energy pistol and rifle, but they're a freaking joke. One's at 8 DMG and the other is 12, I think. Can't recall. My Fisto does 28 and my combat shotgun (backup weapon) does 23.

Alien, reservist, vampire, and Zhu-Rong must come at higher levels, because I've not seen any of these. The furthest in the game I've been is GNR's station (there now, ready to apply the dish) because, as I said, exploring hasn't been in my best interest.

The furthermost point I've done, besides GNR, is Arefu and barely made it there in one piece thanks to that damned "sheriff bot" that's a pain to destroy.

LoL, it's all fun and games, VATS also seems to get better as you level up regardless of where you put your points.

You can get these weapons at ANY level. You just need to know where to look You should get them ASAP because they will just make your game so much easier.

Are you playing on a console of PC?

Playing on the 360. I don't mind the challenge I have right now. I just need to boost my long-range weapons, especially the hunter and sniper rifles. If I can get them to hit distance for 50% damage, I'm okay with that. Right now, they barely make a scratch.

Can't explore if my enemies keep ganging up on me.

LoL try having Talon COmpany after you every twom seconds on level 20 knowing you can't get any more XP

If you have any questions etc feel free to send me a message on xBox LIVE if you have it. I will help anyway I can.

My gamertag is- Nym 146

Your accuracy and damage depend on the condition of your weapons, skill level, strength and perks. You need to keep your weapons at or near 100%, increase small arms and strength. Also, if you go into a crouch, your accuracy will increase. Since you have the sniper rifle, you should keep your distance and go for a first round head shot as much as possible.

Level 20? LOL! They're already showing up. Seems like every major building I leave, they're waiting for me.

Mine is Mesonoxian Eve. I'm not at home right now, so fire off a message to remind me. Once I get home, I'll be on the game.

Thanks. I've been repairing my weapons every chance I get, so that's not a problem. It svcks to get rid of a high-priced item, but CND is more important.

Sniper rifle is used more for scouting than shooting. I've less than 30 rounds of .308, and since my stability is all over the place, I can't risk wasting ammo, especially on a head shot.

Speaking of which: how critical is the head shot in the game? I ask because when I was at the Super Duper mart, I was literally point blank at one of the Raiders and when I pulled the trigger, rather than watch his head go off from the sawed-off shotgun, all I got was "God *darn* it!" and reinforcements quickly took me out. I did get past this quest, but it wasn't easy.