First time poster on the Fallout page of the Beth forums (I sometimes frequent the ES or brink forums).

I was wondering how the community feels about melee weapons in this game?

I was like most people I know for a long time: ignored melee weapons, and scoffed at my own brain when the thought crossed my mind to use them.

Until I made my new favorite fallout 3 character archetype: melee weapons, explosives, heavy weapons. I fell in love with melee weapons on the spot. They are perfect to pair with heavy weapons (I'm miffed that they got rid of this weapon group btw, but that's another thread).

Fast forward to FNV. After borking around with a generic guns character I moved on to my fallout 3 archetype of melee and explosives (no heavy weapons this time D: ). I think they are even more powerful in this game than they were in fallout 3! I've combined heavy handed, super slam, power armor, and a whole mess of defensive perks to create one heck of a melee berserker! Making him even more powerful by supplementing his melee with explosive weapons, and corresponding perks.

So how do you all feel about melee weapons? Ready to try them now that I've talked them up?

Yea

I use melee all the time - it's my primary weapon on all playthroughs.

I used them at the beginning more so than I do now. I have a high melee skill right now. I'm gonna use melee more.

One of these days I'm going to try a pure Melee/Unarmed playthrough. Every Gun, Energy Weapon and Explosive device I pick up will be immediately sold without a single use.

A Melee/Unarmed build is incredibly fun, but I think unarmed is better than melee for one reason - Ranger Takedown.

Yea - nothing better than a ripper or chainsaw for taking down anything with high DT or anything else that gets in your way

Yea I use it as a secondary weapon for if my weapon breaks down or im outa bullets, Or if i just killed a pack of raider and there is only one left with a tire iron i go all schwarzenegger commando on him.

Yea, but not until I reach the later levels, 30 onwards.
I'm not a big fan of melee combat, it doesn't feel good to me.
However, it is hard to deny how effective it is, especially in DLCs like Dead Money, OWB and LR.
For that reason, i start ramping up Melee before douing these DLCs.

Not a fan of the ripper / chainsaw. I prefer melee weapons that swing (currently Oh Baby! and machete gladuis). The way the ripper / chainsaw handle really throw me off.
But they do certainly look and sound cool.

I want to use melee weapons, but it annoys me that for all the good Melee perks, you need unarmed. I don't have enough points to level them both.

Dunno about you guys, but the Proton Axe and variants from Old World Blues kinda got me hooked on melee. Instead of being some back-to-the-stone-age raider wielding a pipe, I can be a power-armored futuristic knight of death. Plus the sound effect is awesome, for some reason. I feel like it would be especially appropriate to be a BOS player who used these melee weapons, since they're sort of a knight order. I don't like them, personally, but it could add some interesting role play.

I tend to carry about a Bowie/combat knife as backup just in case I run out of ammo, other than that I've never really been a fan.

Can't get through a character without a super sledge or chainsaw

On my first FNV character(Which was the first time I played Fallout) I carried a Combat Knife around in case I ran out of bullets.

Fast forward to now.

I've got two pure Unarmed/Melee DID characters going, one is powerful enough to 1HKO a deathclaw(and killed X-42 with Proton Throwing Axes), the other is just starting out. And both take advantage of the incredible power of the Survival skill & its potent synergy with Melee/Unarmed, especially after Honest Hearts.

In short, Yes all the way. I can't do without melee/Unarmed anymore. Even my EWeps character has Unarmed as his secondary combat skill.

The only downside? I started a revolver-based character for fun, and I can't hit the broadside of a barn anymore

-Nukeknockout

Melee/Unarmed is immensely powerful with the right perks and tactical approach. I'm playing an assassin, high sneak, Melee/Unarmed, and Science. It's great, and really suits Dead Money, which I'm doing right now.

The only downside is lack of ranged attack, since throwing weapons are quite rare. Most enemies are reachable, one way or another, but some aren't.

Like the OP, I was sceptical about Melee weapons, considering them only useful in conjunction with a primary ranged combat class. I still hold that view, but much less so than before.

I only use melee when im out of ammo. And i always tend to keep more then 100 rounds on every raid, but i would always keep a good melee weapon as a secondary weapon.

I've always liked melee/ unarmed - currently using Bladed Gauntlet, and previously in Fallout 3 used Jingwei's Shocksword. Think it's because I used to play Morrowind/ Oblivion so used to fighting up close, also because I'm a great fan of the samurai in real life. It's annoying running at people shooting at me, but in close is so much easier.

Still carry a pistol just for back up though, just in case I can't reach some enemies.

I've done melee playthroughs in both Fo3 and NV and enjoyed them a lot, but overall I still prefer using guns.

On my first FO3 playthrough, I used a Shishkebab with Pyromaniac, and it's freaking good.

But not as good as my unarmed character with a Deathclaw Gauntlet.

Wish they had kill cams for every way to kill someone. The next Fallout will for sure surpass Skyrim in "popularity." Not sure I want that.

What I don't like about melee weapons is that the perks for melee weapons require unarmed skill to get. And vice versa. That kinda irritates me but w/e. They are both good methods of killing.

Nay, guns, energy weapons, and explosives can do more damage, and from a distance. I personally hate melee and unarmed.

Actually I was really surprised with how effective the Embrace of the Mantis King! can be. I was once attacked by a Ranger Hit squad with no companions, on Normal/hardcoe and 100 in Unarmed. I semi-panicked and ran at them...all four of them were dead in less then 5 seconds. I just stood there for a couple minutes later with my heart pounding and my jaw dropped.

I still don't like them, I will always take a gun, energy weapon, or explosive.

Also that story, for no reason, reminded me of a time in Point Lookout where I fast traveled to a campfire or something and there were 4 or 5 of those hill billy guys. I pull out a fatman and shoot right at my feet, they all die and I just stand there with some health left. I felt indestructible.

I do prefer Guns overall, but I'm doing a Great Khan scout playthrough on Hard/hardcoe right now and I am rediscovering the merits of Chance's Knife.