Now, I'm sure we've all seen those Magazine Vending Machines in lines across the Vegas strip, doing nothing in particular except for opening and closing. They should do something, but they don't. All they are are some fancy decorations to the landscape. So here's where my idea comes in:

Once FONVSE (Fallout: New Vegas Script Extender) is ready, why not add a use to them? Here's the pitch, you click on one, it opens a menu and shows you a list of magazines to rent, and their price in caps, probably standardizing around 30 caps. After selecting one and paying up, you get in your inventory 'magazine name [RENTED]' as the object, rather than the normal magazine. Read it, and it replaces with 'magazine name [RETURN]', and is now unusable. Once you return it, you get a refund of your deposit of 20 caps (Part of the 30 caps), thereby adding a use to these machines and making quick skill boosts for those situations easy and possible.

So how about it?

Why not make it just open up a vendor menu that only sells random (and limited) numbers of magazines? Your provision gives you a temporary boost of up to 20 skills points for a very small fee....why would any merchant do that? Just sell you the mags they've found (and at closer to 100-250 caps a pop, IMO).

How about making them readable too. Find some non-copyrighted magazines from the 50's and 60's and make something that can read them in-game. Too ambitious? Maybe, yes. But would be nice. :woot:

If you wanted to make them realistic then you'd have to stock them with depraved personals and thinly masked solicitations for "Escort Services", because that's what all those dispense in Las Vegas. You might find the odd one for the paper, but most are porm/personals. Single White Raider, enjoys bdsn, cross dressing and thrill killing. Heh.

I like the idea of making them into half-assed vending machines though, chems, stims, cigs and booze, etc.

I think a few could be like this, but only those owned by someone to make money, and had the means to rebuild them to accept caps.
But mostly you would probably just smash the thing to pieces if you found one in post apocalyptica.

Found something very cool:
Guns Magazine - example: http://www.gunsmagazine.com/G0556.pdf

Or just use some real covers, like this one: http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/dl/free/0072424354/45338/ben24354_ch38.pdf

"Single resident of Freeside looking for partner. Enjoys six, caps and getting drunk with hopefully a special someone." : D