I'm not sure if this is modable, but I'd like to have the ability to blow safes and locked doors open as an alternative to lock picking.

In FO2 you could use explosives to open doors etc... I think it would be a great way to utilize the currently (almost) useless explosives skill.








PS

needs more two-headed grizzlies.

Problem is that opening safes and locked doors is the only use for lockpicking. If explosives could do it, too, alongside being a weapon skill and a few scenario solutions, then it would be better than lockpicking in every regard.

You could get downsides to it, I guess. Harder DCs (meaning you can never blow a Very Hard lock) and requiring mats for each attempt, but it would still overshadow lockpicking.

Heck, it already got a good portion of Big Guns.

you have a good point, but lock picking would always be more stealthy...

Also, there should be a risk of destroying the contents of a safe or caving in a room if your explosive skill was too low.

It's moddable; FOOK adds it. At least FO3's FOOK adds it; not sure if FOOK for NV has that feature yet. I believe that feature used FOSE.

There is already a built in alternative to Picking a Lock. Forcing it.

... which requires you to have a high Lockpicking skill.

No, I'm inclined to agree that having just one skill to open locks is a little silly. Explosives would be cool as an alternative, or it would be neat if high Strength gave a substantial bonus to forcing locks (i.e., kicking in a door). But I don't think Explosives needs anything else to be useful in and of itself: Explosive weapons themselves are pretty potent, the skill also determines the delay before mines go off, and the perks that require high Explosives are pretty good both offensively and defensively.

I want the modders who make the explosives can open doors thing to see about also adding in bashing.

In FO1/2 if you had a crowbar (and I think it was possible with a sledge hammer/supersledge; not sure) you could attack doors and break them down if your STR was high enough.

I tried starting with Explosives tagged, and I don't know if it's just the way Dynamite is or the fact that 30 is not a very high skill level, but I could not throw the stuff any distance nor get it to not bounce all over the place after it landed.

That said, you can get a (crappy CND) Grenade Rifle in Nipton with a decent Lockpicking skill, and with a high STR you can use the Grenade Machine Gun (obtainable from Mick if you convince him to show you his special items and have a large wad of caps on hand) for mass explosive death. Ammo for both is a bit scarce at first, but then you don't need all that many shots for most targets.

I, too, have often wished for the return of the ability to use things like C-4 to blow up doors, however I cannot see using it on containers unless there is a high chance of blowing up the container (and thus whatever is in it) entirely. After all, a C-4 charge would turn a safe into shrapnel or pretty much vaporize a metal footlocker since there's no way to make a small shaped charge...

There are a number of Safes/Doors that are also tied to a Computer Terminal so Science can get you into a lot of locks in the game.

If you want a Second Skill just to open locks, then it would have to be Lock Bashing. Could have tools to help, like a slide hammer or a drill or a chisel for different levels of skill modification.

However none of the other ingame skills seems to be right.