So. A few points to make.

-If I've stolen something infront of someone. They can't just run up to me and have it disapear from my inventory. They need to either put a gun to my head (where I will consider giving things up peacefully) or they will need to tackle me, beat me, and loot me.

-A player with the right social skills should be able to talk their way out of anything.

- It should be a goal of some factions not to kill, but to capture. If I've broken into someone's apartment and the law catch me, the ideal response shouldn't be 'disintergration'.

This also applies to 'evil' factions. Canibals might want to knock you down and cage you for later eating. Slavers will obviously want to bring you in. Raiders might take you in for later sport. A super mutant might want to turn you. They don't have to knock you out, they might just beat you and then either bind you or drag you to their lair by the ankles. Obviously, if you piss them off enough, they're more likely to just kill you outright, but it's the thought that counts, and we could have a great fun of quests where you're put into a fighting pit, playing crazy life-gambling games with raiders,have to escape some vile lair,turned into a mutant... It also gives you plenty of people to rescue (or to assume ownership of after you've killed their original oppressor)

- There should be dozens of raider bands, and they shouldn't all get along. Fighting over grudges, turf, resources, whatever. Group names should be randomized as they're often spliting and reforming, and gang members should wear branding such as matching warpaint, tattoos or peircings that mark them as a member of that gang. Why so intricate? Because the cunning devil of a player should be able to set them against eachother, or feign membership for safer access to a land by matching the markings of a group (it probably won't hold up to much scrutiny) But above all you could be able to join/take over/start a group, or possibly gain renown if you wipe one out (and tell about it)

- The player should be able to form their own faction, get a hideout, and play for good or evil. Though note that being a raider doesn't make you a friend to every other raider, just your own. Though It might give you some dialogue advantages. Anyhow, the game should let you set up camps, recruit people/things, take control of other groups, arm your group, set up lieutenants, organize raids, caravan/patrol routs, where to intercept or set up tolls, who to hide from and who to attack...

(though the game should make it hard for you to form empires. Too loose a control over too large and spread a group and a few might mutiny and split. Which could make for some fun vengance stories) (also, you might have the fun game of managing a group where people hate eachother. Maybe some are freaked out about working with ghouls and supermutants. maybe some honest characters are uncomfortable with you recruiting and slavers. Maybe those slavers are uncomfortable with you recruiting a canibalistic necrophile psycho who tortures puppies and makes everyone else look tame. Maybe someone doesn't like the way you handle spoils or maybe there's just a personality conflict between person A and person B over something.

- Even evil raiders need something to do. Don't just have them stand around halls. A grand list of activities:

talk

brag

Rant

Poker

Dice

Play instruments

1-upping rivals.

whine

complain

Eat

Drink

Pee

Poop

Brawl

repair and maintain equipment

Vandalism

set up defences and traps

six

Chat with prisoners

Torture prisoners

Torture prisoners through the medium of chatting

Prepare food.

sleep

Shoot targets

Release prisoners, and then shoot targets.

I would just prefer that if you attempt to steal something and someone sees you... they could say something like "I wouldn't try that if I were you."

If the item I stole is pretty much worthless, like a pencil or an ashtray.. the person who sees me could make a smart ass remark like "dude you can just have it."

It does svck that if I take something by mistake the hive mind kicks in and I am swarmed. Could just have pretty much all times that are considered garbage not counted as anything. So no matter what you won't get in crap for taking it.

Perhaps if you steal any unique items, you aren't able to sell it in the area you stole it from.

You killed my Brother!Try.

Oh, I don't know. Steal anything from me and I assure you I'll be furious regardless of what it was. If it's not yours, leave it alone. That said, I would like them to give us an opportunity to explain, "Hey, I didn't mean to pick that up, let me put it back." or "Can I possibly buy this from you? I find it facinating."

So yeah, I might shoot you for stealing a cooling pie off my window sill.