Why do some FO4 enemies seem to have a Perception of 1? I played the whole entire game on Survival mode (no sneak upgraded) and was never killed by a surprise attack from Deathclaws or Yao Guais?

I think enemies sneaking and making stealth attacks would make things interesting. Our Perception can be the kind of counter against it. If its high enough we can get a heads up like normal , the character makes an animation or noise, or dogmeat can sniff it out and bark if you bring him.

Arent there chameleon death claws? Cant remember rofl.....that would be sick

.......can see the "ganked by a deathclaw in stealth" forum posts all over though haha

..Think he/she means like stealth attack bonuses and tactics in the a.I. of the deathclaws or other mobs.

WOW! I must have a different game. I'm posting about Bethesda's Fallout 4.

Not only are they easy to sneak around, they also have shorter aggro range. Anyways, Deathclaws in FO4 stops being a threat at around level 25-30'ish. I wish they would up the various stats on them, including aggro range, speed and give them a formidable forward leap attack that will pound you into the dirt if it hits. Sneaky deathclaws could be a thing, if done right tho. The Mirelurks are sort of a joke regarding sneak attacks. Not only can you target them in VATS while they are "hidden" in the dirt, but also the moment they pop out, they often stand there like rabbits blinded by light, before heading in some direction (I've seen them run in the opposite direction of where I was without sneaking, lol)

Problem isnt just that they don't spot you, its that they become a joke very early on. Now modding in a pack of 3-4 of them per spawn point... and things get ugly fast.

Absolutely 100% right on! Seriously, is this Bethesda thinking that they are making this game more "well rounded" for others? Disappointing.

No Dude, it really is. I have NEVER in 300 hours been "spotted" by one unless I initiate the first blow. This was never the case in FO3 or FNV. I feared them and quaked when going into their known territory. Now I skip and sing at the top of my lungs and they still don't take notice.

They really don't like it when you try to ride them.

Hey! Come back here with my spleen!

LOL! I'll admit, that is AWESOME. Just not awesome enough.

I play on Hard and I'm Level 77.

I've fought quite a lot of Deathclaws and I'd say they're pretty powerful if they catch you.

Which they very rarely do, if ever.

Vampiric Bloodbugs, Stingwing Chasers and Super Mutant Warlords all pose a bigger threat imo. I've fought a Mythic Deathclaw btw, and I killed it in 3 shots (1 Sneak Attack Crit, 1 standard Crit and 1 normal shot to finish it.).

Come think of it, since deathclaws are mutated Jackson Chameleons, why don't they have a long sticky tongue to pull you into a set of razorsharp can-openers of doom? Could be cool, and height advantage was no longer a free pass to rain bullets on them! Camouflage as well.

As for something like Mirelurks, the trap-door mechanism from spiders would be more cool as well, instead of popping straight up from the dirt. That way they would be in your face almost immediatly

Of course you weren't. No one was.

Some genius at Bethesda decided to Jaws 4 this enemy that's supposed to be fierce by giving them the ability to roar.

Fallout players should have instantly realized how Bethesda emasculated this enemy the moment we walk into Concord at level 2 and take one down without any issue.

Let's hope a future update removes this [BLEEPING] roar and puts them back where they belong: the top of the food chain.

oh right I forgot about that roar I've never been in range of, and the sand thing that I haven't been affected by yet even if hit by it directly. At that level Ive had more trouble with the ghouls that you help danse kill and they have taken #1 for my most feared enemy in FO. rofl...

Remove those mechanics and increase damage/DR/health.

Then they'd have to actually make the first one they make you fight stunted or blind if they make em hard. I still don't understand why a random deathclaw has to pop up that early in the game. Would have made more sense to be swarmed by more/harder raiders at that point. I remember if I wandered too far in NV there would be deathclaws to scare the hell out of me.

Now they make you fight one of the supposed hardest and most feared monster of the game, and basically force you to hide inside and cheap shot it......and after that fight theyre not a problem anymore. It should have been blinded or stunted somehow and others made stronger if they did that.

Ghouls are nothing. Cripple a leg and they're done. At least with Synths you have to cripple their right arm and a leg to make them harmless.

It was pretty hilarious when I crippled that Deathskull Radscorpion though. He moved so slowly and held one of his claws in because I was a big meanie and just emptied my maxed out Two Shot 10mm into him (max Perk too).

Such a wimpy critter. I've seen a Deathskull Radscorpion beat the heck out of an Albino Deathclaw though. I ended up killing both of them for the XP, but man, that Deathclaw was getting rinsed.

It might have something to do with how areas are both leveled and can be level locked. If you run through a high level area at a low level you run the risk of locking certain places to their lowest level. The highest level areas can be locked as low as 45. I don't know if all areas can be locked or if it's just certain locations. But if you've never run into any of the top tier deathclaws (Albino, Chameleon, Mythic) chances are you went through an area too early and are now stuck with the lower tier deathclaws.

I don't know.. A good place to check obviously is the glowing sea, since the story takes you there pretty early and most people probably followed the story before exploring.. Take a high level character through there after having been there at a low level and see what level deathclaws you're getting.

The major problems I've had with deathclaws is that they are too big to fit through certain spots, making it easy to 'game' them when going for the kill, and that, as the OP has pointed out, they never do what they are meant to. The game sort of advertised this sneakiness in some loading menu's and when they where releasing so it is a little disappointing that they never act that way. Dominators on the other hand caught me off guard plenty of times due to their camo ability, and I've literally been dragged down into the dirt with an instant death-game over screen by them whilst minding my own business.

Feels like Bethesda need to work them to actually squeeze through small gaps or climb buildings (the tower where you ring a bell and watch them rip raiders apart for example would benefit from this added challenge, and make you really regret you pulled that bell), whilst also genuinely give them a stalker-like ability. Maybe not full on camo like late game assaultrons, but something to attract them to you from places you can't easily see.

I am sure a mod will remove the roar of Deathclaws and make them be able to sneak attack.

It seems Deathclaws have snake tongues if you observe them a bit they seem to randomly pause and stick their tongue out a few times.

Gonna go out on a limb and say they are a jacksons chameleon with Snake and possibly Bull DNA spliced in.

Agreed. This is so needed! Also agree on Dominators. As of my character of level 103, those svckers still bring the pain and surprises.

Dominators? You mean the assaultrons? Think that's what you mean right? Ive never heard them called that...( legitimately confused lol )

Anyways yeah if your talking about the assaultrons then the face laser is always something I stressfully watch out for, even when they are crippled on the ground.

As far as their stealth/camo ive only been attacked once by an invisible one on a main road , near a military checkpoint. It was fun though because it actually was the first/still only one that took me by surprise. Youd expect them to be using it more but in 5-7 plays now its just that one that had used/or been able to use the stealth mechanic.

Like i said somewhere else...

try installing this: http://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/10124/?

it gives you a reason to keep your eyes open when running around

i don't know if their aggro radius is larger... but if you ran into one by mistake (or on purpose) you might keep a bit more distance next time, just to be safe *g*

You'll find Assaultron Dominators, hands down the toughest enemy in FO4...well next to a Deathskull Radscorpion but these Doms have killed me way more than them. Whew! No VATS on them when they cloak.

Yup, as MasterGeeb pointed out there is a 'Dominator' variation. Tough enemies in my opinion. I remember some people on the forum suggesting Bethesda combine them with Cazadores to create flying, pew pew, claws of death enemies... Some people REALLY want a challenge, possibly too much

The lazer eye thing is a one hit kill, but so is their claw if they catch you by surprise (maybe my character was low levelled though). You literally see your character go third person suddenly and on the floor, then you are dead. It's only happened to me twice, once on the bridge to Croup Manor and once near Greentop Nursery, so it's not often they sneak up on you close enough to pull off the insta-kill, but when they do (even though the auto-save being three hours ago might make you scream) it genuinely puts a smile on your face.

Maybe you should bring down your difficulty to Normal. Maybe that's the problem? I died once by a alpha Deathclaw who surprise attacked me. I had no PA on. If you haven't already, go visit the Museum of Witchcraft. You'll be in for a treat.