Here's a tip I saw during a recent load screen (paraphrased):

"If you start a fight that you can't finish, try putting away your weapon. There's a chance that the enemy might forgive you."

Has anyone tried this? Based on Charisma?

I've tried it in FO3....and got shredded..havent tried it on FO4..if it's based on CHA, I'd expect the same since my CHA is 3..

I try this every now and then just to test if it works and it NEVER works. I think it worked once on Fallout 3 for me but, considering how many times I try this that is a a feeble success rate. They could make it a bit more common.

I understand things like Supermutants and other big bad enemies aren't going to stop their attack but, other humans could and should. Maybe not raiders but, thre are definietly types that should do it more often.

I think it's meant more for people who would otherwise be neutral/unhostile towards you, not against enemies automatically hostile the moment they see you...but yea it's never worked for me in FO3...and it should be worked in better..

I find it only works if I accidentally shoot a neutral person in combat (A caravan guard gets in my line of sight for example.) Occasionally if I put my gun down, they'll go back to fighting who we were originally fighting. Doesn't happen often though.

Yeah, i undrerstand that yet, it still never works on them. Why? It seems a little strange, especially because they give you that little tip and it doesn't even work! lol

The tip says "a chance", I imagine charisma, possibly luck, and possibly how much damage you cause play a part in the calculation.

I have the vented mod on my power armor legs, and a jetpack, and the aoe causes people to agro a LOT because it has to hit everything in range whether they are hostile or not, diamond security, brotherhood, and the people of various settlements like goodneighbor turn hostile because of it, but as long as you don't outright kill anyone you can holster your weapon and they will turn neutral again, most of the time.

It worked in Skyrim with guards, so long as you didn't kill anyone...haven't ever seen if work in FO4.

This doesn't work with raiders or Gunners or anything like that. It'll work sometimes if you get caught stealing though.

I will not work in the cases here it matters. There was a fight at the place before you reach DC, DC guards and merchant guards versus Supermutants. Happens often there. I began shooting (precise single shots with a rifle) at a mutant standing on the first floor and a merchant guard ran into my line of fire. I hit him once. After all the Supermutants were dead he attacked me. I did not shoot back but put away my weapon and waited (he could not hurt me much anyway). No luck. It just does not work...

People who attack you on sight anyway, will not stop the fight because you sheathe your weapons, why should they?

So long as you didn't kill someone, holstering your weapon in New Vegas would usually stop the fight, obviously it only works for people that weren't hostile to begin with. I.E you punched someone in goodsprings. Not sure it works anymore in FO4 though.

As far as I can tell it doesn't work with foes and it's there if you accidentally get in a fight with Diamond City guards or whatever "neutral" NPC along the road.

No it isn't. It does not work. See my post above. A merchant guard is not an enemy. When I hit him accidentally during a fight against Supermutants, he became aggressive. I did not shoot at him again, but put away my weapon. It did not work. And I did hit him only once. The mechanism does not work correctly, because it should work exactly in such cases, when a friendly NPC runs into your line of fire.

Since I save often, I could reload. Was the only solution apart from killing the guard, which I did not want to do because of role playing and because I do not know if it is only this guard, or the guard plus the merchant or even the entire merchant faction. Beth does not always think deeply about such things...

perhaps as the OP says Charisma plays a part in this

Merchant guards turned hostile will stay hostile until they are reloaded, but only if you did not kill anything between when they turned hostile and the loading happened, so if you accidentally hit one and kill a raider after that counts as a kill and makes those guards hostile forever.

If you injure one walk far enough away for the cell to unload (which is really far), and return and they won't be hostile if you or your companions didn't kill anything, but it is such a pain it is easier to reload and bite the bullet.

At this time I have 6 charisma (base, more with clothing, but I did not wear it). Maybe this is not enough - no idea.

Thanks for this hint - since there was a fight I did kill several super mutants after hitting the guard by accident. So it works but not really. Why am I not surprised?

Just to confirm though, I saw this tip in a FO4 load screen.

This is my experience in past games. If you are in a fight and lay a few hits the wrong person, after the primary hostile is dead those friendlies are now hostile and will only stop if you "surrender". Or if you can't possibly escape guards, you surrender and go to jail or pay the fine.


That's what I feel the mechanic is there for.

Wouldn't it make more sense for supermutant to capture and keep you alive until they want to eat you? Your meat stays longer fresh this way