R.I.P the inhabitants of Vault 652, who gave their lives while the Overseer was taking notes and had them starve and dehydrate an irradiated death in rooms either dark on on fire

I think we all came to the conclusion that SPECIAL stats have 2 different effects, both on the outside world and inside the vault. Inside the vault it seems that every stat is only related to whatever production you assign the dwellers to (with the exception of LUCK influencing multiple tiny aspects and CHARM influencing breeding, the radio, and I suspect overall happyness in production rooms (needs more testing)). However, outside the vault is a different matter.

I am currently doing some testing, though it's very rough testing, to see if different SPECIAL stats influence interactions outside.

What I am going to test here, is sending numerous lowlevel dwellers (roughly around the same level, but with one special stat being above the rest), and note down what they do outside. They will not be given weapons at the start, nor any sort of outfit., they WILL be given 2 stimpacks and 2 Radaway.

Diana Graham (Strength)

Level 5

S 3 (+3 with gear found)

P 2

E 1

C 2

I 1

A 2

L 1

Notes:

Found a fugitive Slave, patched up the leg

Encountered some Raiders, succesfully hid away from them

Found an Enhanced Sawn-off Shotgun

Found an abandoned Broadcasting Tower, managed to find a door

Found Military Fatigues

30 Minute Mark - 31 caps found, Enhanced Sawed-off Shotgun, Military Fatigues

Found an old abandoned Shack. Found HIDDEN supplies

Found a wounded sheriff, healed him

Found an old refrigerator, managed to pry it open

(ENCOUNTERS)

(sadly anything before the 8 minute mark was already erased, taking from the 8th till 40 minute mark)

*NOTE: DWELLER HAS A WEAPON*

Bloatfly (fought) - 0dmg

Yao Guai (fought) - 1dmg

savage dog (fought) - 1dmg

bloatfly (fought) - 0dmg

bloatfly (fought) - 0dmg

Savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

bloatfly (fought) - 0dmg

savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

molerat (fought) - 0dmg

savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

Savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

Molerat (fought) -1dmg

savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

Yao Guai (fought) - 1dmg

bloatfly (fought) - 0dmg

radroach (fought) - 0dmg

Thomas Graham (Perception)

Level 6

S 1

P 3

E 2

C 2

I 1

A 1

L 2

Notes:

Found a Fugitive Slave, managed to patch him up

Found an old abandoned Broadcasting Tower, found an unlocked door and supplies

Spotted raiders, managed to hide

Found a wounded Sheriff, could not help him

Found an old refrigerator, could not pry it open

Found an abandoned Shack, found HIDDEN supplies

ENCOUNTERS

Yao Guai (fought, then ran) - 2dmg (<<< interesting?)

molerat (fought) - 1dmg

savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

molerat (fought) - 0dmg

radroach (fought, then ran) - 2dmg

molerat (fought) - 0dmg

savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

yao guai (fought, then ran) - 8dmg

molerat (fought) - 0dmg

bloatfly (fought) - 0 dmg

molerat (fought) - 0dmg

Yao guai (fought, then ran) - 2dmg (<<< interesting?)

radroach (fought, then ran) - 2dmg

Yao Guai (fought, then ran) - 2dmg (<<< interesting)

bloatfly (fought) - 0dmg

molerat (fought) - 1dmg

yao guai (fought, then ran) - 8dmg

Keith Clark (endurance)

Level 4

S 1

P 1

E 3

C 2

I 2 (+3 int later)

A 2

L 1

NOTES:

Fugitive slave, could not help

Noticed some raiders, succesfully hid away

Found an abandoned Broadcasting Tower, managed to find an unlocked door (found supplies and a Lab coat)

30 minute mark: 4 caps found, Lab Coat found.

(after lab coat) found a wounded sheriff, helped him

Found an old Refrigerator: could not open it

Found old abandoned shack: found nothing

(encounters up to the 30 minute mark)

Bloatfly (fought, then ran) - 1dmg

radroach (Fought, then ran) - 2dmg

savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

molerat (fought) - 0dmg

savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

radroach (fought, then ran) - 2dmg

Yao Guai (ran) - 8dmg

radroach (ran) - 2dmg

molerat (fought) - 1dmg

Yao Guai (fought then ran) - 2dmg (<<< interesting)

bloatfly (fought then ran) - 1dmg

molerat (fought) - 1dmg

savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

molerat (fought) - 0dmg

bloatfly (fought) - 0dmg

Yao Guai (fought then ran) - 2dmg (<<< interesting)

savage dog (fought) - 0dmg

Paul graham (Charm)

Level 2

S 2

P 1

E 2

C 3

I 1

A 2

L 1

NOTES:

Stumbled on an abandoned broadcasting tower. Could not find a way in

Found fugitive slave, could not help

Spotted some Raiders, Raiders spotted me. Had to run (1dmg)

Found a Wounded Sheriff, could not help

Found an old Refrigerator, could not open it

30 minute Mark - 2 caps found, no gear

ENCOUNTERED: (up to the 30 minute mark)

Bloatfly (ran) - 1 dmg

Radroach (ran) - 2 damage

Savage Dog (fought) - 0 dmg

Mole Rat (fought) - 1dmg

Radroach (ran) - 2 dmg

Mole Rat (ran) - 1dmg

Savage Dog (fought) - 0dmg

Mole Rat (ran) - 1dmg

Radroach (ran) - 2dmg

Molerat (fought) - 0dmg

Raiders spotted me (ran) - 1dmg

Yao Guai (ran) - 8dmg

Mole Rat (fought) - 0dmg

Yao Guai (fought, then ran) - 2 damage (<<< interesting?)

Mole Rat (fought) - 0 dmg

Radiation Damage - 9 dmg

Radroach (ran) - 2dmg

Molerat (fought) - 1dmg

Yao Guai (fought, then ran) - 8dmg

(INT DWELLER MISSING, had no gear to raise int, no intelligent dweller present)

Nicole Price (Agility)

Level 2

S 1

P 2

E 1

C 1

I 2

A 3

L 2

NOTES:

Found fugitive slave, could not help

Located Raiders, managed to hide

Found an old abandoned Broadcasting Tower, managed to get inside

Found an abandonded Shack, nothing inside

30 minute mark - 16 caps found, no gear

Found a wounded Sheriff, could not help him

Found an old refrigerator, could not open it

ENCOUNTERED (up to 30 minute mark)

Molerat (ran) - 1dmg

Yao Guai (ran) - 8 dmg

Molerat (fought) - 1dmg

Yao Guai (ran) - 2 dmg (<<< Interesting?)

Radroach (ran) - 2dmg

Molerat (fought) - 1dmg

radroach (ran) - 2dmg

Savage Dog (fought) - 0dmg

Bloatfly (ran) - 1dmg

Savage Dog (fought) - 0dmg

Savage Dog (fought) - 0dmg

Bloatfly (ran) - 1dmg

Molerat (fought) - 0dmg

Savage Dog (fought) - 0dmg

Molerat (fought) - 0dmg

Radroach (ran) - 0dmg

Molerat (fought) - 1dmg

Yao Guai (fought, then ran) - 2dmg (<<< interesting?)

(additional note: at the 42 and 48 minute mark, 2 more Yao Guais were ran away from, taking 2dmg only. Is this Agility related?)

(LUCK DWELLER MISSING, no gear to raise luck, no luck-specific dweller present).

===========================================

I'm going to note down some comparissons here:

The Wounded Sheriff was found by 5 Dwellers:

Diana (lv5) S6 - P2 - E1 - C2 - I1 - A2 - L1 (HEALED) (*Dweller had gear found)

Thomas (lv6) S1 - P3 - E2 - C2 - I1 - A1 - L2 (DIED)

Keith (lv4) S1 - P1 - E3 - C2 - I5- A2 - L1 (HEALED) (*Dweller had gear found)

Paul (lv2) S2 - P1 - E2 - C3 - I1 - A2 - L1 (DIED)

Nicole (lv2) S1 - P2 - E1 - C1 - I2 - A3 -L2 (DIED)

Level MIGHT be a factor, assuming the math is done by chance, where a higher level gives a higher chance.

Gear MIGHT be a factor, seeing as the 2 Dwellers with gear managed to save the Sheriff.

------ Either that, or TOTAL STATPOINTS may be a factor here.

Strength ---------- not a factor

Perception --------not a factor

Endurance ------- not a factor

Charm ------------ not a factor

Intelligence ------ not a factor. Yes the +5 int Dweller saved the Sheriff, but so did the +1 int Dweller, and a +2 int dweller failed.

Agility ------------- not a factor

Luck ---------------MIGHT be a factor

The Fugitive Slave was found by 5 Dwellers

Diana (lv5) S3 - P2 - E1 - C2 - I1 - A2 - L1 (HEALED) (* Dweller had no gear at this point)

Thomas (lv6) S1 - P3 - E2 - C2 - I1 - A1 - L2 (HEALED)

Keith (lv4) S1 - P1 - E3 - C2 - I2- A2 - L1 (DIED) (*Dweller no had gear at this point)

Paul (lv2) S2 - P1 - E2 - C3 - I1 - A2 - L1 (DIED)

Nicole (lv2) S1 - P2 - E1 - C1 - I2 - A3 -L2 (DIED)

Level MIGHT be a factor here

Gear is NOT a factor here

------ TOTAL STATPOINTS are not a factor here

Strength ---------- not a factor

Perception --------MIGHT be a factor, and it could be Nicole (P2) had bad RNG stacked against her. At least these stats imply Perception might be related to this.

Endurance ------- not a factor

Charm ------------ not a factor

Intelligence ------ not a factor.

Agility ------------- not a factor

Luck ---------------MIGHT be a factor

Encountering Raiders, encountered by 5 Dwellers

Diana (lv5) S3 - P2 - E1 - C2 - I1 - A2 - L1 (HIDDEN)

Thomas (lv6) S1 - P3 - E2 - C2 - I1 - A1 - L2 (HIDDEN)

Keith (lv4) S1 - P1 - E3 - C2 - I2- A2 - L1 (HIDDEN

Paul (lv2) S2 - P1 - E2 - C3 - I1 - A2 - L1 (SPOTTED)

Nicole (lv2) S1 - P2 - E1 - C1 - I2 - A3 -L2 (HIDDEN)

Level MIGHT be a factor here

Gear is NOT a factor here

------ TOTAL STATPOINTS are not a factor here

Strength ---------- not a factor

Perception --------MIGHT be a factor

Endurance ------- not a factor

Charm ------------ not a factor

Intelligence ------ not a factor.

Agility ------------- not a factor

Luck ---------------MIGHT be a factor

(OP's thoughts: It is possible the raiders encounter result is the sum of its totals: the only dweller spotted had a low level, low perception, and low luck may all be related together)

The Abandoned Broadcasting Tower, found by 5 Dwellers

Diana (lv5) S3 - P2 - E1 - C2 - I1 - A2 - L1 (FOUND DOOR)

Thomas (lv6) S1 - P3 - E2 - C2 - I1 - A1 - L2 (FOUND DOOR)

Keith (lv4) S1 - P1 - E3 - C2 - I2- A2 - L1 (FOUND DOOR, FOUND GEAR)

Paul (lv2) S2 - P1 - E2 - C3 - I1 - A2 - L1 (DID NOT FIND DOOR)

Nicole (lv2) S1 - P2 - E1 - C1 - I2 - A3 -L2 (FOUND DOOR)

Level MIGHT be a factor here

Gear is NOT a factor here

------ TOTAL STATPOINTS are not a factor here

Strength ---------- not a factor

Perception --------MIGHT be a factor

Endurance ------- not a factor

Charm ------------ not a factor

Intelligence ------ not a factor.

Agility ------------- not a factor

Luck ---------------MIGHT be a factor

(OP's thoughts: It is possible the raiders encounter result is the sum of its totals: the only dweller spotted had a low level, low perception, and low luck may all be related together)

Abandoned Shack, found by 4 Dwellers

Diana (lv5) S6 - P2 - E1 - C2 - I1 - A2 - L1 (FOUND HIDDEN SUPPLIES) (Dweller found Gear at this point)

Thomas (lv6) S1 - P3 - E2 - C2 - I1 - A1 - L2 (FOUND HIDDEN SUPPLIES)

Keith (lv4) S1 - P1 - E3 - C2 - I5- A2 - L1 (FOUND NOTHING) (Dweller found Gear at this point)

Paul (lv2) S2 - P1 - E2 - C3 - I1 - A2 - L1 (-----------------------)

Nicole (lv2) S1 - P2 - E1 - C1 - I2 - A3 -L2 (FOUND NOTHING)

Level MIGHT be a factor here

Gear is NOT a factor here

------ TOTAL STATPOINTS are not a factor here

Strength ---------- not a factor

Perception --------MIGHT be a factor

Endurance ------- not a factor

Charm ------------ not a factor

Intelligence ------ not a factor.

Agility ------------- not a factor

Luck ---------------MIGHT be a factor

The Old Refrigerator, found by 5 Dwellers

Diana (lv5) S6 - P2 - E1 - C2 - I1 - A2 - L1 (PRIED IT OPEN) (Dweller had gear at this point)

Thomas (lv6) S1 - P3 - E2 - C2 - I1 - A1 - L2 (COULD NOT PRY IT OPEN)

Keith (lv4) S1 - P1 - E3 - C2 - I5- A2 - L1 (COULD NOT PRY IT OPEN) (Dweller had gear at this point)

Paul (lv2) S2 - P1 - E2 - C3 - I1 - A2 - L1 (COULD NOT PRY IT OPEN)

Nicole (lv2) S1 - P2 - E1 - C1 - I2 - A3 -L2 (COULD NOT PRY IT OPEN)

Level does NOT seem to be a factor here

Gear is NOT a factor here

------ TOTAL STATPOINTS are not a factor here

Strength ---------- IS a factor here

Perception --------not a factor

Endurance ------- not a factor

Charm ------------ not a factor

Intelligence ------ not a factor.

Agility ------------- not a factor

Luck -------------- not a factor

I sent 5 more dwellers to explore outside, and after 12 hours and 11 minutes: the results

Ashley left at level 2, and gained 3 levels.

Ashley did NOT survive

Ashley lasted 6 hours, 11 minutes. (Average 1 stimpack per 53 minutes)

Ashley used both Radaways

Ashley had about 50% Radiation Poisoning on revival

Ashley found 6 items, of which ONE was rare (average about 1 item per 62 minutes)

Ashley found 787 caps ( Averaging 2,12 caps/minute)

Ashley Died due to a Barnacle-Encrusted Mirelurk

Tammy left at level 2, and gained 4 levels

Tammy did NOT survive

Tammy lasted 8 hours, 36 minutes (average 1 stimpack per 73,5 minutes)

Tammy did NOT use her Radaways

Tammy had NO radiation poisoning on revival

Tammy found 9 items, no rares (average about 1 item per 57 minutes)

Tammy found 986 caps (Averaging 1,9 caps per minute)

Tammy died due to a Scavengers Dog

Doris left at level 18, and gained 6 levels

Doris did survive, with 20% health left

Doris lasted the full 12 hours 10 minutes with all stimpacks used. (Average 1 stimpack per 91 minutes)

Doris used her Radaways

Doris had 30% Radiation poisoning

Doris found 16 items (average 1 item per 45 minutes)

Doris found 750 caps (averaging 0,97 caps per minute)

It can be assumed that at 20% health she WOULD have used another stimpack, so I will calculate her average as if she used 8 stimpacks instead of 7.

George left at level 5 and gained 3 levels

George did NOT survive

George lasted 6 hours, 21 minutes (averaging 1 stimpack per 54 minutes)

George used his Radaways

george had 50% poisoning radiation on revival

George found 7 items (averaging 1 item per 54 minutes)

George 528 caps (averaging 1,3 caps per minute)

George died due to a Radscorpion

Roy hart left at at level 5 and gained 4 levels

Roy did NOT survive

Roy lasted 7 hours, 30 minutes (averaging 1 stimpack per 64,3 minutes)

Roy used his Radaways

Roy had 50% radiation poisoning on revival

Roy found 8 items (averaging 1 item per 56 minutes)

Roy found 467 caps (averaging at 1 cap per minute)

Roy died due to Fire Ant Warrior

CAPS PER MINUTE and ITEMS PER MINUTE

LV02-05 Ashley had an average of 2,1 caps per minute Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

LV02-06 Tammy had an average of 1,9 caps per minute Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV05-08 George had an average of 1,3 caps per minute George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV05-09 Roy had an average of 1,0 cap per minute) Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV18-24 Doris had an average of 0,97 caps per minute Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV18-24 Doris had an average of about 1 item per 45 minutes Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-08 George had an average of about 1 item per 54 minutes George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV05-09 Roy had an average of about 1 item per 56 minutes Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV02-06 Tammy had an average of about 1 item per 57 minutes Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV02-05 *Ashley had an average of about 1 item per 62 minutes Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

Ashley was the only one with 1 rare item

CAPS: Conclusive evidence that LUCK is related to caps found per minute. I would more or less guess that 1 point of luck increases caps per minute by 0.2, or slightly more. Other stats do NOT increase the amount of caps found.

ITEMS: Items per minute is determined by LEVEL, not by stats. It is impossible to ignore the level-itemfind ratio here, and the stats are simply too diverse to have a consistent relation to the itemfind. HOWEVER, it is possible that LUCK determines the quality of the item, albeit it slightly. I can't be conclusive about this, but the highest LUCK dweller was the only one to find a rare item, despite being the first to die.

STIMPACK AND RAD-X

LV18-24 Doris had an average of 1 stimpack per 91 minutes Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV02-06 Tammy had an average of 1 stimpack per 73 minutes Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV05-09 Roy had an average of 1 stimpack per 64 minutes Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-08 George had an average of 1 stimpack per 54 minutes George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV02-05 Ashley had an average of 1 stimpack per 53 minutes Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

LV02-06 Tammy had about 00% radiation poisoning Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV18-24 Doris had about 30% radiation poisoning Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-09 Roy had about 50% radiation poisoning Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-08 George had about 50% radiation poisoning George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV02-05 Ashley had about 50% radiation poisoning Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

STIMPACKS AND HEALTH: It is already known that Dwellers gain more health as they level. As such it is an obvious conclusion that Dwellers with more health also survive longer. In true fallout fashion one could argue that high int boosts the stimpack healing. However, I have not seen anything that indicates this has been implemented, as a stimpack brings dwellers to full health (as far as the radiation poisoning allows it). However, a note of interest seems to be that Tammy could do 73 minutes before healing, while Ashley, roughly the same level, would heal after 53 minutes. Endurance would then be the logical step to look at, but there is a significant difference between Roy and george as well, who were equal level for the most part. It is possible survivability is determined by, in order of importance: Level, Endurance, Strength. Doris would then be the top survivor because she has the higher level, follower by a low-level Tammy with maxed endurance, followed by Roy who is a higher level, with lower endurance, but superior strength. I believe this makes sense as this correlates with both rumors on endurance boosting health and strength boosting health.

RADIATION POISONING: This is conclusive evidence. Radiation poison eats away at hard hit point and not percentage HP: Doris with the most hitpoints after 12 hours and 2 radaways only had 30% radiation poisoning, while Roy, george, and Ashley all had the max 50% radiation poisoning on death. But more importantly; it seems reaching 13 endurance means explorers do not get Radiation poisoning, ever. Tammy did die yes, but on revival she had no poisoning whatsoever, AND she never used her radaways.

EXP GAIN AVERAGE (Special thanks to Shadow Walker!)

Note: these calculations will be very rough estimates and shouldnt be taken in great detail; for all I know these dwellers only gained 3,5 levels and were close to leveling before being sent out (I forgot to check that). For argument's sakes I will treat these calculations as the level gains minus half the last level requirement to compensate.

Doris: Level 18 to level 24 requires 6 levels of 24,300 EXP. I shall treat this as 5x24300+12150= 133650exp in 730 minutes. Average EXP gain per minute: 183

Tammy: level 02 to level 06 requires 12600+12150+12150+(14580/2= 7290)= 44190exp in 516 minutes Average EXP gain per minute: 085

Roy: Level 05 to level 09 requires 4 levels of 14580 EXP. I shall treat this as 3x14580+ 7290 = 51030exp in 450 minutes Average EXP gain per minute: 113

George: Level 05 to level 08 requires 3 levels of 14580 EXP. I shall treat this as 2x14580+ 7290 = 36450exp in 381 minutes Average EXP gain per mintue: 096

Ashley: level 02 to level 05 requires 12600+12150+(12150/2 = 6075) = 30825exp in 371 minutes Average EXP gain per minute: 083

LV18-24 Doris gained 6 levels in 730 minutes Average 183exp/min Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-09 Roy gained 4 levels in 450 minutes Average 113exp/min Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-08 George gained 3 levels in 381 minutes Average 096exp/min George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV02-06 Tammy gained 4 levels in 516 minutes Average 085exp/min Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV02-05 Ashley gained 3 levels in 371 minutes Average 083exp/min Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

I believe this one didn't really need to be checked, but I did it regardless to see if there MIGHT be a statistics discrepancy. However, I am inclined to not think SPECIAL stats are related here. In fact, I think exp gain per minute is only determined by how long the Dweller has been outside; the farther the Dweller leaves the Vault, the stronger the monsters will be. They start off with bloatflies, radroaches, and scavenger dogs (who are strangely the one type of mob to be consistently present in one shape or form). Then later on you get Molerats, Yao Guai's, mirelurks, etc. All stronger mobs that are worth more exp. Plus, I already noted earlier that I wasnt sure what the exp bars were on my dwellers. It is not impossible for George to have just leveled to level 5 as I sent him off, while Roy might have been closer to level 6. If you take that into consideration, then that 113exp might drop closer to 105, while the 096 might rise up to 105, which brings them about even on average. Or maybe Roy lived on the threshold just long enough to encounter a few higher-level mobs for the slight bit of extra exp before dying. Doris never died, so she could exp farm to her hearts desire. The numbers are not accurate enough for perfect calculations, but I believe exp gain is determined by time outside alone and monsters killed, with the exp not being manipulated by the stats. Unless someone can disprove this, I think I shall keep that as my conclusion regarding EXP gain.

So, this is some fairly conclusive stuff here.

Facts:

Itemfind is determined by level, not luck

caps per minute is determined by luck

Level boosts health

Endurance boosts health (or defense) AND radiation resistance

Strength boosts health (or defense), but significantly less than Endurance

Radiation can be negated completely with maxed endurance, even on low-level dwellers.

EXP gain is directly related to how long a Dweller can both survive AND fight outside. The longer a Dweller roams outside, the stronger the monsters he will fight. So equipping a Dweller with a strong weapon ensures he is able to kill tougher monsters for better EXP gain.

About Level: Simply put higher level Dwellers find more gear per hour compared to lower level dwellers. Higher levels mean more health as well.

About Weapons: A strong weapon will have Dwellers fight monsters more often. Stronger weapons mean shorter battles, with less damage taken.

About Strength: Strength seems to be directly related to survivability. I cannot determine if this is related to dealing damage for shorter battles, or just taking less damage in it's own. In any case strength is related to better survivability, but LESS so than Endurance or Level

About Perception: Perception seems to be related to how well a dweller is able to escape or even take damage in battle. A higher perception does NOT reduce damage taken, but it seems to increase your odds of less damage taken.

About Endurance: Dwellers with higher Endurance are more willing to fight enemies. Endurance DOES boost radiation damage to the point where at 13 dwellers take no damage from radiation at all (this might be at 10, needs more testing). Endurance boosts overal survivability more than Strength does, but less so than Levels do.

About Charm: inconclusive, though I suspect charm might be useful when encountering wild NPC's such as Talon Mercenaries or Outcasts etc.

About Intelligence: Inconclusive, could not do any proper testing

About Agility: This might be related to luck or other stats, but I noticed that the Dweller with better Agility tended to take less damage while escaping from mobs. This was particularely noticable during Yao Guai escapes. This may be a coincidence, but interesting enough to warrant more testing

About Luck: Luck does NOT boost finding more items (I suspect it does slightly increase odds of the quality though). Luck DOES boost your caps found per minute, with roughly 0.2 caps per minute per level of luck. To compare, more or less this means that after 24 hours a 1 luck Dweller (0,8 caps/minute) will find roughly 1150 caps, while a 10-luck dweller (2,6 caps/minute) would find roughly 3740 caps. These are very ROUGH estimates, though they are conclusive enough.

When I have the time for it, I will do some further testing, this time with some higher level dwellers with more specialised statpoints

(to be continued)

Statpoint notes in-vault:

production time is not sped up by having high-level or high-statpoint dwellers working in said room.

production rush % odds are not influenced by characters with luck, nor by level. It seems to be solely influenced by the total amount of related statpoints working in said room.

OP speculation on levels and stat effectiveness:

Is it possible that level determines how effective a statpoint is? Is it possible that a level 30 dweller with 2-2-2-2-2-1-1 is more effective exploring than a lv1 dweller with the same stats, not counting the HP difference? I will attempt to test this further in the future, but if this is the case then leveling has the additional benefit of adding HP AND boosting the stats in an invisible (on screen) way.

S = improves damage and assists with some stat checks (Fail message "Foo was too strong" for example)

P = improves damage and assists with some stat checks (Success message "Mirelurk was armored everywhere but his face" for example)

E = Reduces damage and radiation damage. Radiation damage can go negative with 11+ E

C = Used with some stat checks in timed events (Being recognized as friendly by escaped slaves for example)

I = Used with some stat checks (Fixing up Wounded slave's legs, Sheriff, and in one case, Being smart enough to outsmart a Super Mutant Master)

A = improves damage and assists with some stat checks (Fail message "Rad Roach was too fast for me, I have to run!" for example)

L = Improves item drop chance, but not rarity, and number of caps received.

For combat stat checks it either greatly reduces or eliminates the damage requirement to beat the encounter. It is possible to win the encounter without winning the stat check, in which case you get a Success message that hints at that. Fail messages often hint at what stat you needed to succeed. Too strong for S, too fast for A, not smart idea for I, not sure though for P.

Edit: Note that level plays a part in all of this. I'm not entirely sure how, but at the very least it makes encounters easier to beat without the appropriate stats.

I have seen you post quite a bit on your knowledge of stats around. However, I have already found some of them to be incorrect. I would like you to read through my findings and share your thoughts on them so far. I currently dont have the time (or willpower) to work further on this today, given that I have been writing about this stuff for the past 2,5 hours (switching from phone to pc screen is tiresome on the eyes as well). Tomorrow or the day after I will attempt some more tests.

Things I so far noticed you are incorrect about are:

Endurance reducing damage: it doesn't seem to be the case. I noticed dwellers with more E actually being more willing to attack enemies though.

Charm: Its not related to slaves or the wounded sheriff. (however I do suspect it is used with Talon mercs and possibly other encounters)

Intelligence is seemingly not related to patching up wounded NPC's. I suspect there are other factors that influence that, but it requires more testing.

Agility: So far nothing I have seen shows that agility is related to actually dealing damage. I do suspect it allows you to take less damage when running away from mobs. It seems the only thing related to dealing direct damage while exploring is the weapon.

However, I do require a lot more testing, since what I have done today was with lowlevel dwellers who had statistics that did not differ THAT much from eachother. Once my dwellers from the "main" vault are done training, I will use those (while praying to the spaghettimonster in the sky I wont be attacked by Deathclaws)

For C I did not say it was related to the wounded sheriff or wounded slave. I said it was related to the escaped slaves (plural) This one happens about 2 hours 30 minutes out. If you looked at my notes, the wounded people are I.

As far as the checks are concerned, perhaps it isn't an all or nothing check. For all I know it rolls 1 to 10 on the dice and if it's lower than the stat you win for some of these. In order to test that though, you're going to need hundreds of reports.

Supposedly hiding from the raiders takes P.

Edit: This is where I get my information from. It's proven to at least be moderately correct.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Nai09D_aM2syl3iPP5hkveDcOUwhsoUDR6s1lwC0e8c/htmlview?usp=docslist_api&sle=true#

As far as E not affecting damage, someone with 1 point of E takes 5-6 points of damage from loosing to a Fire Ant Soldier (not Warrior), but if you boost it to 4, they tend to take 3-5 points. It is effective. However it doesn't seem to matter on how much damage you take when you win.

Also, the Yao Gaui encounters. I think there's 2 versions of them. Pay attention to the message when running. One says it was too tough, one says it wasn't smart to mess with him. I think they tell you whether or not it checked E or I for that encounter (being tough enough to fight it off vs. outsmarting it) The penalty damage for each might be different.

This is some impressive statistic collecting. Will you be doing further studies?

Someone has already done a ton of number crunching on Reddit. You should google it.

I dont have any fancy numbers but my empirical experience tells me that what they wear doesnt mean much while exploring, it's been a couple of weeks of testing with diff clothing and I havent seen any mayor patterns to lead to the conclucion that one may be better than the other.

I have sent teams of 10 dwellers with each S.P.E.C.I.A.L of 2nd or even 3rd stage clothing; 10 People with +5 Str, 10 with +5 Perc, 10 with +5 End, etc. Even an extra 10 people with +7 Lucky Formal Wear. They even had the same weapons attack-range wise (between 15 and 18) and they all last relatively the same time (2/3 days MAX) and return with nothing special (I actually sent them ALL in at once on a range of 2 hours cause of stimpack shortage, TWICE, we're talking about 80 dwellers gone for 4/6 days total)

The only legendary item I got from this testing was an Armor Piercing Minigun (19-23) from a girl wearing a +5 Agility suit after 2 days of exploring <- IT DOES NOT GET MORE RANDOM THAN THAT.

Seriously, all testing aside; I've been playing this stuff from day one and the only absolute truth is that the most efficient way to explore is to get Level 1 Dwellers with full specials to explore for you, every level they get their HP regenerates so it's as if they had 75 stimpacks my record is 6 days 18 hours and another 7 that lasted over 6 days, (I know cause I've taken pictures for research purposes), and NONE OF THEM got jack[censored].

Anyway good theorycrafting.

I will once I find the time/will for it. For now I am collecting data whenever I notice something specific.

I cant find it right away, however any numbers crunched beforehand are likely to have been done pre-Android version, which was also updated with the latest patch, so there is a good chance some mechanics were changed. If anyone can link me to a source that shows the mechanics were not changed, I'd appreciate it.

That said, this isn't reddit, and we lack a proper FAQ, with a lot of people asking several questions all the time. I didn't sign up for this forum just to be redirected towards another site (one which I coincidentally also loathe)

I dont think the clothing makes a noticable difference either. But if it's percentage based, then we wouldn't really notice it either, esspecially when it comes to finding items. HOWEVER I have noticed a difference with sending out 2 +10 luck dwellers outside, with one wearing no +luck gear and the other wearing +3 formal wear. The latter found about 200 more caps after being out for 24 hours, though this could also be a coincidence (their other stats were mostly the same).

An interesting note though, is Dwellers with "basic" gear will often change to an improved version of said gear. I sent someone out with the nightwear (+3 charm) and they switched out when they found the improved version (+5 charm). It's safe to say that the game itself believes the stats matter and it's not just a matter of visual display.

I noticed that even with 25 stimpacks, even the strongest dwellers will often not last more than 2-3 days. I had Cromwell and Three Dog, both with significant boosted stats, out with a Fat Man and a Railgun, but even they ran out of stimpacks after that timespan and were in danger of dying. They gained significant levels though, both being sent off around their lv40's and maxing out when they came back. (Three dog in particular with the fatman farmed Super Mutant Overlords like it was going out of style!). Shame I couldnt see your experiment myself though, would have loved noting down that stuff.

Well, there is always the luck of the draw. A 12-stat dweller at level 1 can still find a rare weapon or outfit while the max level, 60-stat dweller will not find one in days. Like any looteRPG, (real) luck is always the main factor. But I have noticed myself with numerous dwellers now, and I believe this can be labelled as a fact, that the LUCK stat does NOT increase finding rare items, only caps. I read somewhere that high perception does influence finding, and to a degree I agree with that. It seems dwellers with high perception notice special areas a lot faster, and thus may be able to find more items (which in turn means more chances of finding improved gear/items).

Interesting... I was going to test this myself next week, since I am currently training a bunch of level 1-5 dwellers on as many stats as possible with the goal of sending them out. Its nice to know people already confirmed it. Thanks for that .

Also people, any tips will always be appreciated. If they are a sure fact, or an uncertain rumor, everything is useful, including personal theories. Its always better to have a specific goal in mind when testing such things because it gives you something to look for. Thanks for the replies so far

I'm kind of hesitant to link this, since sometimes a preconceived notion causes you to only see what you expect to see, but here's some other player's http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1533060-special-what-do-they-really-do/ on stats in the wasteland. It's up to you if you want to peek, or do an independent study.

well this was interesting... a dweller I sent out at level 10 with a 15-16 dmg dealing weapon and 10 energy but 1 luck (and a bunch of stimpaks, though I forgot how many. I think 7 or 8) just got his ass handed to him in the span of half a day. I didn't even think that was possible :/.

[edit]

I looked at the note posted, but other than the timed checks, it wasnt very useful in terms of information. I kind of guessed events would be timed, considering all my dwellers encountered those events around roughly the same time.

- Strength I already determined was used to pry open the refrigerator, so probably other things as well.

- Perception I am still undecided about, but logically it would be related to it.

- Endurance raising health has already been proven to be flatout wrong, though it probably does increase radiation resistance (my high END dwellers take forever to take any sort of radiation poisoning compared to low-END dwellers)

- Charm I also believe it is related to random encounters

- Intelligence has also been established to be (strangely) unreleated to the wounded sheriff and slave, unless this was a case of abnormally strange RNG results.

- Agility I am still in doubt of, as the running away seems to be dependant on a lot of numbers. I do still believe Agility is related to taking less damage while running away (which would make sense if Agility = the dodging mechanic)

- Luck.... I at first thought it was better loot, but it seems to be only a direct influence on caps. I theorise that maybe luck does influence the events you encounter with possibly loot rewards as a result. However this is something I need to test further.

=============================================

Another experiment I shall perform before heading off to bed. I am sending 5 dwellers outside with different stats, with equal weapons, and gear that boosts their strongest stats. They shall all receive 7 stimpacks and 2 radaways. I shall note down my findings tomorrow regarding health, amount of items found, amount of caps found, type of enemies fought etc. Levels are sadly very different, so I will take that into my consideration in regards to health.

Ashley Morgan LV2 - S2 P1 E1 C2 I2 A10(+3) L8 || Has an enhanced Sawn-off Shotgun (6-8dmg)

Tammy Fox LV2 - S1 P2 E10(+3) C2 I1 A3 L7 || has an enhanced Sawn-off Shotgun (6-8dmg)

Doris Bush LV18 - S1 P3 E2 C1 I10(+3) A2 L2 || Has rust laser Pistol (7dmg)

George Hancock LV5 - S3 P7(+2) E3 C6(+5) I3 A3 L3 || has Rusty Sawn-off Shotgun (6-7dmg)

Roy Hart LV5 - S10 (+3) P1 E2 C2 I1 A1 L2 || Has Rusty Sawn-off Shotgun (6-7dmg).

Sending them out at 7:32am my time. Will note down time when I check on their progress once I get back.

=============================================

After 12 hours and 11 minutes: the results

Ashley left at level 2, and gained 3 levels.

Ashley did NOT survive

Ashley lasted 6 hours, 11 minutes. (Average 1 stimpack per 53 minutes)

Ashley used both Radaways

Ashley had about 50% Radiation Poisoning on revival

Ashley found 6 items, of which ONE was rare (average about 1 item per 62 minutes)

Ashley found 787 caps ( Averaging 2,12 caps/minute)

Ashley Died due to a Barnacle-Encrusted Mirelurk

Tammy left at level 2, and gained 4 levels

Tammy did NOT survive

Tammy lasted 8 hours, 36 minutes (average 1 stimpack per 73,5 minutes)

Tammy did NOT use her Radaways

Tammy had NO radiation poisoning on revival

Tammy found 9 items, no rares (average about 1 item per 57 minutes)

Tammy found 986 caps (Averaging 1,9 caps per minute)

Tammy died due to a Scavengers Dog

Doris left at level 18, and gained 6 levels

Doris did survive, with 20% health left

Doris lasted the full 12 hours 10 minutes with all stimpacks used. (Average 1 stimpack per 91 minutes)

Doris used her Radaways

Doris had 30% Radiation poisoning

Doris found 16 items (average 1 item per 45 minutes)

Doris found 750 caps (averaging 0,97 caps per minute)

It can be assumed that at 20% health she WOULD have used another stimpack, so I will calculate her average as if she used 8 stimpacks instead of 7.

George left at level 5 and gained 3 levels

George did NOT survive

George lasted 6 hours, 21 minutes (averaging 1 stimpack per 54 minutes)

George used his Radaways

george had 50% poisoning radiation on revival

George found 7 items (averaging 1 item per 54 minutes)

George 528 caps (averaging 1,3 caps per minute)

George died due to a Radscorpion

Roy hart left at at level 5 and gained 4 levels

Roy did NOT survive

Roy lasted 7 hours, 30 minutes (averaging 1 stimpack per 64,3 minutes)

Roy used his Radaways

Roy had 50% radiation poisoning on revival

Roy found 8 items (averaging 1 item per 56 minutes)

Roy found 467 caps (averaging at 1 cap per minute)

Roy died due to Fire Ant Warrior

CAPS PER MINUTE and ITEMS PER MINUTE

LV02-05 Ashley had an average of 2,1 caps per minute Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

LV02-06 Tammy had an average of 1,9 caps per minute Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV05-08 George had an average of 1,3 caps per minute George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV05-09 Roy had an average of 1,0 cap per minute) Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV18-24 Doris had an average of 0,97 caps per minute Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV18-24 Doris had an average of about 1 item per 45 minutes Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-08 George had an average of about 1 item per 54 minutes George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV05-09 Roy had an average of about 1 item per 56 minutes Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV02-06 Tammy had an average of about 1 item per 57 minutes Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV02-05 *Ashley had an average of about 1 item per 62 minutes Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

Ashley was the only one with 1 rare item

CAPS: Conclusive evidence that LUCK is related to caps found per minute. I would more or less guess that 1 point of luck increases caps per minute by 0.2, or slightly more. Other stats do NOT increase the amount of caps found.

ITEMS: Items per minute is determined by LEVEL, not by stats. It is impossible to ignore the level-itemfind ratio here, and the stats are simply too diverse to have a consistent relation to the itemfind. HOWEVER, it is possible that LUCK determines the quality of the item, albeit it slightly. I can't be conclusive about this, but the highest LUCK dweller was the only one to find a rare item, despite being the first to die.

STIMPACK AND RAD-X

LV18-24 Doris had an average of 1 stimpack per 91 minutes Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV02-06 Tammy had an average of 1 stimpack per 73 minutes Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV05-09 Roy had an average of 1 stimpack per 64 minutes Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-08 George had an average of 1 stimpack per 54 minutes George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV02-05 Ashley had an average of 1 stimpack per 53 minutes Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

LV02-06 Tammy had about 00% radiation poisoning Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV18-24 Doris had about 30% radiation poisoning Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-09 Roy had about 50% radiation poisoning Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-08 George had about 50% radiation poisoning George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV02-05 Ashley had about 50% radiation poisoning Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

STIMPACKS AND HEALTH: It is already known that Dwellers gain more health as they level. As such it is an obvious conclusion that Dwellers with more health also survive longer. In true fallout fashion one could argue that high int boosts the stimpack healing. However, I have not seen anything that indicates this has been implemented, as a stimpack brings dwellers to full health (as far as the radiation poisoning allows it). However, a note of interest seems to be that Tammy could do 73 minutes before healing, while Ashley, roughly the same level, would heal after 53 minutes. Endurance would then be the logical step to look at, but there is a significant difference between Roy and george as well, who were equal level for the most part. It is possible survivability is determined by, in order of importance: Level, Endurance, Strength. Doris would then be the top survivor because she has the higher level, follower by a low-level Tammy with maxed endurance, followed by Roy who is a higher level, with lower endurance, but superior strength. I believe this makes sense as this correlates with both rumors on endurance boosting health and strength boosting health.

RADIATION POISONING: This is conclusive evidence. Radiation poison eats away at hard hit point and not percentage HP: Doris with the most hitpoints after 12 hours and 2 radaways only had 30% radiation poisoning, while Roy, george, and Ashley all had the max 50% radiation poisoning on death. But more importantly; it seems reaching 13 endurance means explorers do not get Radiation poisoning, ever. Tammy did die yes, but on revival she had no poisoning whatsoever, AND she never used her radaways.

So, this is some fairly conclusive stuff here.

Facts:

Itemfind is determined by level, not luck

caps per minute is determined by luck

Level boosts health

Endurance boosts health (or defense) AND radiation resistance

Strength boosts health (or defense), but significantly less than Endurance

Radiation can be negated completely with maxed endurance, even on low-level dwellers.

EXP GAIN AVERAGE (Special thanks to Shadow Walker!)

Note: these calculations will be very rough estimates and shouldnt be taken in great detail; for all I know these dwellers only gained 3,5 levels and were close to leveling before being sent out (I forgot to check that). For argument's sakes I will treat these calculations as the level gains minus half the last level requirement to compensate.

Doris: Level 18 to level 24 requires 6 levels of 24,300 EXP. I shall treat this as 5x24300+12150= 133650exp in 730 minutes. Average EXP gain per minute: 183

Tammy: level 02 to level 06 requires 12600+12150+12150+(14580/2= 7290)= 44190exp in 516 minutes Average EXP gain per minute: 085

Roy: Level 05 to level 09 requires 4 levels of 14580 EXP. I shall treat this as 3x14580+ 7290 = 51030exp in 450 minutes Average EXP gain per minute: 113

George: Level 05 to level 08 requires 3 levels of 14580 EXP. I shall treat this as 2x14580+ 7290 = 36450exp in 381 minutes Average EXP gain per mintue: 096

Ashley: level 02 to level 05 requires 12600+12150+(12150/2 = 6075) = 30825exp in 371 minutes Average EXP gain per minute: 083

LV18-24 Doris gained 6 levels in 730 minutes Average 183exp/min Doris had 01 Strength - 03 Perception - 02 Endurance - 01 Charm - 13 intelligence - 02 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-09 Roy gained 4 levels in 450 minutes Average 113exp/min Roy had 13 Strength - 01 Perception - 02 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 01 Agility - 02 luck

LV05-08 George gained 3 levels in 381 minutes Average 096exp/min George had 03 Strength - 09 Perception - 03 Endurance - 11 Charm - 03 intelligence - 03 Agility - 03 luck

LV02-06 Tammy gained 4 levels in 516 minutes Average 085exp/min Tammy had 01 Strength - 02 Perception - 13 Endurance - 02 Charm - 01 intelligence - 03 Agility - 07 luck

LV02-05 Ashley gained 3 levels in 371 minutes Average 083exp/min Ashley had 02 Strength - 01 Perception - 01 Endurance - 02 Charm - 02 intelligence - 13 Agility - 08 luck

I believe this one didn't really need to be checked, but I did it regardless to see if there MIGHT be a statistics discrepancy. However, I am inclined to not think SPECIAL stats are related here. In fact, I think exp gain per minute is only determined by how long the Dweller has been outside; the farther the Dweller leaves the Vault, the stronger the monsters will be. They start off with bloatflies, radroaches, and scavenger dogs (who are strangely the one type of mob to be consistently present in one shape or form). Then later on you get Molerats, Yao Guai's, mirelurks, etc. All stronger mobs that are worth more exp. Plus, I already noted earlier that I wasnt sure what the exp bars were on my dwellers. It is not impossible for George to have just leveled to level 5 as I sent him off, while Roy might have been closer to level 6. If you take that into consideration, then that 113exp might drop closer to 105, while the 096 might rise up to 105, which brings them about even on average. Or maybe Roy lived on the threshold just long enough to encounter a few higher-level mobs for the slight bit of extra exp before dying. Doris never died, so she could exp farm to her hearts desire. The numbers are not accurate enough for perfect calculations, but I believe exp gain is determined by time outside alone and monsters killed, with the exp not being manipulated by the stats. Unless someone can disprove this, I think I shall keep that as my conclusion regarding EXP gain.

Bumping this since I updated my findings, as well as the latest results (both edited in first post as well as the post where I mentioned starting a new experiment)

I find Doris' item gathering interesting. With all of my dwellers, and 4 out of 5 of yours, they seem to get one item per hour in the wastes(round up to the nearest hour, and it's usually 1:1. I'm counting Ashley as 1:1 since she had only just started the 7th hour, so hadn't had time to find the 7th item yet.). And yet somehow Doris gathered 16 items even though she was only in the 13th hour. She wasn't out long enough to hit any of the loot encounters either, since they start at 20 hours. It's to bad the explorer logs only keep the last couple hour's entries, it would be interesting seeing where the other three items came from. Her intelligence is vastly higher then the others, but no one has ever noticed INT affecting item-find.

Well, I instantly assumed it was level related. If it is int related (which is possible), and I would add Ashley's +1 item as you said, the averages would be roughly the same for all 4 dwellers (not counting Doris). I would have to further test this with multiple dwellers with high int. Actually I think I will send out a bunch of high INT characters of various levels out now, and note down the results tomorrow. If I have a bunch of Dwellers out with the same int, but different levels, it should be apparant if INT is the deciding factor here or LV.

And you know what I would like most? an auto-pause function for whenever you read the logs. Its annoying to deal with supply issues, raids, and accidents when you just want to read your log :/.

Doris Bush: level 25 S01 - P03 - E02 - C03 - I13 - A02 - L02

Megan Hawkins: Level 20 S02 - P03 - E10 - C02 - I13 - A02 - L01

Istvan Clarke: Level 15 S04 - P07 - E06 - C02 - I13 - A03 - L02

Pamela Cox: level 7 S01 - P04 - E06 - C01 - I11 - A03 - L01

I sent out these 4 high Int dwellers to explore. To compensate for the varying END and levels, I gave them a reasonable supply of stimpacks and radaways each to hopefully keep them alive for at least 12 hours. The goal of this test in particular is to see if the itemfind is randomized, if it is level dependant (like I initially thought), or if it is INT dependant. I will compare the average itemfind of these dwellers to the dwellers I sent out in the previous test.

A comment on you guys leaving your dwellers running for more than a day after about 26 hours somewhere between 26 and 29 you're dwellers will fill up their inventory and stop gaining items I have screenshots taken of this so sending them out beyond that amount of time is pointless other than getting experience if you haven't maxed to 50 by the way the comment on the plural slaves helping being related to charisma is true I've had this happen on four of my high charisma characters I have anywhere from 20 to 30 dwellers marching at any time

Its for that reason I am doing these experiments in around 12 hours. It would be pointless doing it for any longer. 12 hours (or so) gives a good indication on the used statistics.

Additionally, I am not sending a lv9 dweller outside, with 13 endurance. 25 stimpacks, and I am going to check how long it takes for her to run out of those stimpacks. equipped a Rusty Missile launcher (20dmg) as well.Name: Tammy Fox

I do know that a higher level player doesn't seem to get any more gear then a lower level one. I've always sent the high END dwellers out wandering, since they don't help in production, and they've all gotten one item per hour regardless of level.

Here's the last dweller I sent out:

Bruce Hutchinson, Level 50.

S:8 P:5+2 E:6 C:6+2 I:3+2 A:4 L:3+1

Exploring for 49 and a half hours, he found 49 items. The last item he found was at the 48 hour and 56 minute mark. He hadn't found a 50th item in the first half of the 50th hour before I called him back.

It's hard to believe that INT would have any effect on finding gear, and it's only one data point so far, but your results with Doris has me interested all the same. I'd love to get three level 50s together, each with the same gear and all stats at 10 except for varying levels of INT(say, 5 10 and 13). Then send all three out at the same time and see if there's any difference. Probably run the same test three to five times to rule out RNG. Unfortunately, it's going to take a long time to train up my explorers to that level. I'll call it a long term goal.

Agreed. I find it hard to believe INT is related as well, at the same time it's difficult to imagine it being level-related as well (though I suppose lore-wise it makes sense; hardened survivors manage to find more useful things?). It could also be that it was just dumb luck and nothing else.. there is always the factor of RNG.

Here are the results of the dwellers. Seems I overestimated their survivability a bit, so they died. Doesn't matter that much though, since they survived past the 12 hour mark, good enough for datagathering. Incidentally I had a dweller out with LOW int, so I'm adding her to my results. Tammy Fox, level 21 on return (1-2-13-2-1-3-8)

Doris Bush died at 15H 50 minutes. Found 17 items, 2 rares. 902 caps. This means 17 items in 950 minutes = 1 item per 56 minutes, and 0,95 caps/minute . (Assuming she had found an item at the 16 hour mark the average would have been 53 minutes)

Megan hawkins died at 17H 48 minutes. Found 19 items, no rares. 747 caps. This means 19 items in 1068 minutes = 1 item per 56 minutes, and 0,7 caps/minutes. (assuming she had found an item at the 18 hour mark the averahe would have been 54 minutes)

Istvan Clarke died at 12H 58 minutes. Found 13 items, no rares. 743 caps. This means 13 items in 778 minutes = 1 item per 60 minutes, and 0,95 caps/minutes. (assuming he found an item at the 13 hour mark the average would have been 56 minutes)

Pamela Cox died at 14h 13 minutes. Found 15 items. No rares. 448 caps. This means 15 items in 853 minutes = 1 item per 57 minutes, and 0,53 caps/minutes.

Tammy Fox alive after 15hr 28 minutes. Found 17 items. No rares. 2200 caps. This means 17 items in 928 minutes = 1 item per 54 minutes, and 2,35 caps/minute

Doris Bush: Level 25 1 item per (53)-56 minutes 0,95 caps/minute S01 - P03 - E02 - C03 - I13 - A02 - L02

Megan Hawkins: Level 20 1 item per (54)-56 minutes 0,70 caps/minute S02 - P03 - E10 - C02 - I13 - A02 - L01

Istvan Clarke: Level 15 1 item per (56)-60 minutes 0,95 caps/minute S04 - P07 - E06 - C02 - I13 - A03 - L02

Pamela Cox: Level 07 1 item per 57 minutes 0,53 caps/minute S01 - P04 - E06 - C01 - I11 - A03 - L01

Tammy Fox: Level 21 1 item per 54 minutes 2,35 caps/minute S01 - P02 - E13 - C02 - I01 - A03 - L08

I decided to send forth a bunch of dwellers with low int, to see if they have (notably) lower items/minute results.

Janice Fox lv46 S03 - P03 - E11 - C03 - I04 - A04 - L10

Walter Dawg lv30 S03 - P05 - E13 - C01 - I02 - A02 - L08

Debra Dawg lv18 S07 - P02 - E12 - C03 - I03 - A09 - L05

Bryan price lv13 S09 - P02 - E12 - C04 - I03 - A03 - L02

Eugene Scott lv01 S02 - P01 - E13 - C02 - I01 - A01 - L10

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I will wait until my newly-sent dwellers will return tomorrow, but I believe we can conclude INT has no relation to items found per minute. For that matter, I can't determine what stat effects the item/minute ratio, assuming it's effected by anything at all and not just purely random. It is also possible loot can only be found after taking down certain monsters (who would otherwise block nearby buildings?). I believe sometimes the RNG might just mess with the numbers as well. I am pretty certain how luck effects caps/minute now, but Pamela had an EXTREMELY low average, even at 1 luck, which makes her the first to actually have a caps/minute average that makes no sense. Just like Doris, who had a ridiculous item find/minute earlier. It is possible I miscalculated too, though that would surprise me.

My current vault is too much of a mashup between various stats, since my secondary vault died out while writing info the first time, so its very difficult for me to come up with different runs. I am currently at 58 dwellers and I want to stick below the 60 dwellers to avoid deathclaws for the time being. At some point once I have properly trained dwellers, I will probably kill off a few dwellers, and have about 10 babies born, and max out their endurance. Then I will work on maxing specific stats (except luck, which I already determined to be caps related only). this is going to be a very, VERY slow process though.

When you start with a sample size of 5 dweller's, your conculsions are most certainly not facts. They're hypotheses at best. But from a statistical point of view these sample sizes are more likely to produce arbitrary false-positives rather than statistically significant "facts".

That being said, there are a number of things that can be inferred without statistics, and some formulas have already been approximated (with much larger sample sizes of course):

the number of items found is most certainly not determined by dweller level. There are a total of 11 fixed-time events that take place within the first 60 hours of exploring. If a dweller successfully passes one of those events there is a certain chance that it will drop an item. SPECIAL stats might or might not affect these events, but due to the additional coincidence factor it's probably impossible to find out.

In addition to those fixed-time events, all explorers will simultaneously get exactly one item every 60 minutes.

Cap events take place every 15 minutes and and the amount of caps you get is a multiple (between 1 and 10) of your luck value. So if your dweller's luck is 6, he will find 6 to 60 caps every 15 minutes. There are also a couple of fixed-time events that produce caps if passed (like the wounded sheriff).

I've also read that dwellers start out with 100hp and get an additional 10hp per level. I don't know if that is correct, but it sounds plausible and as far as I can tell matches my experience.

Agreed. But the numbers CAN indicate certain influences on dwellers, and when both a certain number like caps rises in a similar way to dwellers with luck increases, then you CAN conclude certain facts. I will admit I use the phrase "conclusion" and "fact" a bit too hastily, but fortunately this thread is mostly noting down my findings and is far from finished. So I have plenty of time to adjust my findings .

I'm sure there are. I have seen some people on various sites claim certain facts as well... such as luck being directly related to itemfinding, something which my own findings have already determined to be false. Or that Intelligence is directly related to the events of healing the slaves/sheriff etc, which I have also find to be untrue in almost all the times where my dwellers encountered the sherrifs. The reason I started this thread is to come up with numbers that are actually noted down, and not some random person saying "but X is directly related to X!!! I know cus I said so". And its also the reason I am making all my statistics here public, so that other people can chip in with their own thoughts, and hopefully actually come up with a proper FAQ at the end, seeing as the in-game HELP section is vastly lacking in that department (and also I am sick of people redirecting people to other websites when they ask for questions here... it defeats the purpose of asking for help on the official forums).

That is a lot of "if", "chance", "might", "probably" there. I have been hearing a lot about those 11 fixed time events, but what is the source of this information? Again this is precisely why I started this FAQ; people claim certain things, but do I get a source? Or the information relevant? Or is it hear-say? I don't doubt your intentions are good here, but what can I do with information this vague?

The way I described the caps/minute is quite a bit more accurate than the way you just described it, with each point of luck being 0.2 caps/minute added (with 0.2 being a bit rough, it might be 0.18, but the general idea is 0.2 for easier calculations), with 0.7 being the starting factor at 1 Luck. With the exception of one dweller, any dweller that I noted the caps/minute on seems to prove this theory.

Yeah, they receive a health bonus, but since we dont have numbers on those bars it's pretty difficult to estimate just how much health they have. It's actually an annoyance of mine, because I would prefer to see % mentioned in those health bars so I can note the damage taken from incidents more properly.

With all this being said, I should point out I take no offense with what you said and mean no offense either. I have to say this because I am aware often I come across as stubborn or offensive, it's mostly because English is not my primary language, so please excuse me if I did (unwillingly) offended you

edit: no worries, no offence taken.

The link to the source has already been posted right here in this thread in one of the first posts. Either way, here it is again: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Nai09D_aM2syl3iPP5hkveDcOUwhsoUDR6s1lwC0e8c/htmlview?usp=docslist_api&sle=true#

The data is quite extensive, but just as you expected, not all the information in this sheet is correct. Some information is outdated, other things are mostly speculative. And while I understand your scepticism, the information on wasteland exploration is actually very accurate (tab #7).

And I only brought those pieces of information to this thread that I know to be true, simply by veryfing them.

* For instance, you can send out 10, 20 or even 50 dwellers into the wastes if you like. They will find exactly one item every 60 minutes. And they will all do so simultaneously and regardless of special stats. The log usually says "I've found a locker containing [...]". (I won't do a p-value calculation for this, but I'd say we can agree the chances for this being mere coincidence are basically zero.)

* Next thing: the fixed time events. They are entirely different from the hourly events and do involve some kind of story 'build-up'. All the proof you need is your own observation.

1. Those events will always occur at a specific time into your dwellers exploration trip (give or take a few minutes) - no exceptions. A detailed table of those events and the time they occur is in the linked sheet.


2. You can also easily see that those events trigger a "challenge" which can be passed or failed. (The linked source proposes that this check is tied to SPECIAL stats)


3. If you pass the challenge there is chance that you get a reward.

Now, you may find this information vague, but it (most likely) won't get any more precise than this. You could of course try to verify if there is indeed a SPECIAL stat involved in the second step, but even then there might still be a randomised component to it (i.e. rolling a d10 --> if result is equal or below your SPECIAL stat, you win). And finally, step 3 is most likely entirely random, since even maxed out dwellers who successfully pass the event-check won't always get a reward item.

Either way, there are only 11 documented fixed-time events within 60 hours of exploring. And from my experience items are awarded in less than 10% of cases. This makes fixed-time events almost insignificant for the average number of items collected per hour.

* The same goes for caps. Your cap-calculation is indeed more practical, but it's not more accurate. It's based on the assumption that caps/minute is only determined by one input factor (luck), which might not be true after all. Since there are two types of cap-events as well (again: fixed-time and regular), there might be multiple stats involved.

I didn't go into further detail regarding caps, since it would require countless hours to verify the additional info. But the linked source suggests that the multiplicator for regular cap events averages around 3.33, which roughly equals your calculations.

Since there is one event every 15 minutes, you get: 3.33/15 = 0.222 caps/minute (for each point of luck)

* As for the hitpoints, they can be determined fairly easily - if you are willing to invest the time. just send out a dweller without stimpacs and without equipment and add up the damage he takes until he dies.

In the end, nearly all calculations in the game are at least partially based on an entirely random component, and while you may be able to make an approximation for huge sample sizes, the individual results may hugely vary.

So OP is trying to say that stats mostly don't have any effect when exploring wasteland? Then howcome game hints said something like each SPECIAL value having it's own effect when exploring so I guess they do something.

Absolutely certain some of this isn't true. Levels are entirely correct, that has no effect whatsoever. But stat points do.

I had a 1 min 3 second production rate on water before I dropped a 10 perception dweller with movie fan gear in to exchange for a 3 perception dweller with no gear.

My production time is now 50 seconds.

It does have an effect on production time.

I've heard plenty indicating otherwise.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Nai09D_aM2syl3iPP5hkveDcOUwhsoUDR6s1lwC0e8c/htmlview?usp=docslist_api&sle=true#

The spreadsheet on the wastes has the info.

There are events out to 75 hours into the waste that are supposed to be triggered.

Including the one at 60 hours that if passed guarantees a legendary weapon.

I wonder if you've hit some kind of upward limit on items that the game will allow to be tracked though. Let's see the screenshots.

Well their forums do not allow for it I've tried as images I've tried as links so the only way I can show you this is too heavy go outside I'm going to share my photobucket you will have to look me up on it to find the photos

Forgotton2 I have taken 2 photos one of a character receiving an item and the second one showing their most recent items attained the reason I'm saying there is a limit on individual is because I went through and checked all 30 of my characters who were running only those over the 26 to 29 limit we're not receiving items at the time I had a hundred inventory slots full in my warehouse with available space for another 150 I do this regularly and try to keep 5 of any item I use on my inventory at all times this may be overruled by specific triggered events that I have not tested but as to general item gathering I'm fairly confident in this is I've seen it several times I am on Android OS so that may possibly be part of it

That sounds way more like a bug than a design feature.

It seems to be "designed" to give items out all the way to 75 hours.

I'd recommend making a bug report topic or something. Cause I don't think it is supposed to work like that.

And Yah I don't see that formal wear in the inventory. The only other thing that could happen to clothes is that characters can equip them if they think they are better but I don't think that happened here.