so i just left freeside and outside i saw 1 fiend with a laser rcw and a dead fiend(hunting rifle) crimson caravan guard(caravam shotgun and leather armour),crimson caravan merchant(lether armour and 10mm pistol) and a guy who guards it (metal armour and 10mm pistol) my question is why are guards so underarmed if two fiends can do that

Well, I geuss the feinds are some well armed crack heads. :gun:

The Laser RCW will pwn anything light to medium armoured.

Normally those 10mm's will eat anything.
The caravan shotgun is worthless without shotgun surgeon, or at least slugs ( and it's my go to gun, so not biased. )

Fiends have as high a DT as leather armour, are vey quick and good health.
Caravaneers are just one spur short in that fight.

the caravan guard was ashes to and he was in metal armour

Just look at Gangsters in the 20-30's.
They heavily outgunned the cops until the cops finally caught up in the arms race.

Whether it's prohibition, or the chems business; business, is apparently good.

Medium armour, as in under 20 DT.
Metal is only DT 12.
ECC gives -2 DT

Base damage of a RCW 15, DPS is 135.

That's still 5 damage per beam not counting a critical.
Roughly 13.5 per second, on a foe with most likely 50 - 75 HP max.

Not counting the accurate, heavier but slower hunting rifle damage.

Also, merchants are merchants. They seem to be designed to be able to battle off a few stray legion raiders or bandits or animal life but they're not supposed to be armored caravans of dooommmm.... (edit - most of the time I see merchants with 1 guard left, and that 1 guard is limping...hehe)

....and yeah, metal armor isn't quite as impressive as it looks, plus the change to energy weapon ammo with the -DT doesn't hurt.

The Caravan might not have access to the same weapons the Fiends do. Keep in mind, the Fiends often ransack places and loot them, which includes guns.

Is it ever really explained why the Fiends have a ton of energy weapons? Over here I see crazed junkies living out of a ruined vault, and over there I see the Van Graff family, ambitious and unscrupulous and-- oh, hey, they sell energy weapons. Hmmm... <_<

I'm guessing they either looted a lot in Vault 3, or they buy them from Van Graff.

Obisidian must have a DLC planed like The Piit, which explains that the Fiends actually are the energy weapon version of the Gun Runners?! :mohawk:

Pfffft. The Fiends should be supplying the Van Graffs. Silver Rush inventory is pathetic. Fiends have far superior condition weapons, and a whole bunch of 'em.