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Survivor's Log - Fallout 4

  • Member
    May 4, 2016

    The Survival update makes a lot of big changes to the game. With requirements to eat, drink and sleep, ammo with weight, and the biggie - only saving when sleeping - and many others, the way you play will obviously need to change!

    This discussion is about sharing some of our own little tips and tricks for Survival mode - a Survivor's Log, if you will. Post and discuss ideas in the comments and I'll add them to the main post. If we get enough tips I'll start putting them in to categories.

    -Collect empty bottles! Fallout 4 has a lot of lesser known game mechanics, and one of them is the ability to fill empty bottles at any water source. While exploring the wasteland or taking chems you will get dehydrated, inflicting some serious penalties and fatigue. Stocking up on clean water is imperative before heading out, and collecting bottles means you can stock up on clean water at a source like your settlement's water pump.(Ponty)

    -Be a Lone Wanderer. The base carrying capacity in Survival is greatly reduced from the vanilla game, so the Lone Wanderer perk is a huge help. As many of you are aware, taking Dogmeat as your companion doesn't interfere with the perk, and in my opinion he's one of the best companions for Survival. He's pretty tough, can sniff out enemies and treasure, hold enemies down, carry stuff, and doesn't interfere too much with stealth.(Ponty)

    -Start and Ally with as many settlements as possible. You'll need these little outposts to save your game (by sleeping), stock up on supplies, and store your loot. The limited carrying capacity in Survival means that it simply isn't viable to carry around a week's supply of food and water if you expect to pick up any loot, and you're not guaranteed to find clean varieties of either on the road. (Ponty)

    -Use Heavy Weapons like power-ups. Now that ammunition has weight, carrying around a heavy weapon as well as its ammo supply is a huge portion of your carrying capacity gone - Missiles weigh 7 points each! Instead, if you find a heavy weapon at say a Super Mutant camp, pick it up and burn through the ammo supply for a few easy kills, and then simply drop it and keep going.(Ponty)

    -Get doctors to cure your radiation sickness and diseases. Using meds like Antibiotics and RadAway (especially for serious cases) can leave you seriously dehydrated, tired, and with a weakened immune system (meaning you have a higher chance of contracting diseases, which need antibiotics to heal). If you go to a doctor however, you just pay some caps and you're good to go! (Ponty & Golden Fool)

    -If you're using Supply Lines, never cook food unless you're going to eat it straight away. Putting raw food in a settlement connected to your supply network means that it is available at any Cooking Station also connected to the network! This becomes increasingly useful the more you spread out across the Commonwealth. (Ponty)

    -Scavenge in and around your settlements. The reduced carrying capacity and lack of fast travel can make it time consuming to reach and bring back salvage from good spots like industrial areas and hospitals. Some settlements, such as Hangman's Alley and Jamaica Plain are situated near potential scavenging sites, allowing for quicker (but somewhat less valuable) hauls. (Ponty)

    -Join up with the Brotherhood of Steel, even if it's only a temporary alliance. The Vertibird Signal Grenades you get from the Show No Mercy quest are basically a fast travel option, allowing you to take to the skies and fly to anywhere you've already been. Plus, the powerful door gun can be used to deal with any enemies at your destination(s), such as a settlement under attack or a previously scouted enemy encampment. (Ponty)

    -Optimise your filling/weight ratio. Foods with a higher healing value (such as the Cooked Softshell meat) fill you up more - in fact such a meal can fill you up for a whole day. When going out exploring, try and take light foods with a high healing value, such as Mirelurk Cakes or the aforementioned Cooked Softshell Meat. Reserve heavier, less efficient foods like Radroach Meat and Mole Rat Chunks for when you're eating at a settlement. Remember to pick up the issue of the Wasteland Survival Guide at Sunshine Tidings Co-op to double your food gain from creatures! (Ponty and Motty Skills)

    -Make use of the Molecular Relay. Once you join up with the Institute, you'll gain access to their teleportation technology. In Survival, this allows you to fast travel to the Institute from anywhere in the Wasteland, but from the Institute you can only travel to the CIT Ruins. Regardless, it's a great way to get back to the center of the Commonwealth, and it's fairly close to Diamond City, Hangman's Alley and Bunker Hill. I recommend using your room in the Institute as a supply cache, containing your excess ammunition, explosives, special weapons and other gear, such as a Hazmat Suit. (Ponty)

    -The Institute has the best doctor in the Commonwealth - Dean Volkert. He's able to fully cure your health, diseases and radiation at once completely free of charge. Considering you can travel to the Institute from anywhere, he's incredibly handy! (Ponty)

    -Use Recon Scopes to, well, do recon. Normally in Survival enemies aren't marked on your compass, greatly reducing your battlefield awareness. Marking targets with a recon sight remedies this any even makes them show up through walls. (Ponty)

    -Get turret and protectron control holotapes from Total Hack magazines. Both can be obtained without a fight - at Wildwood Cemetery and Wattz Consumer Electronics (some ghouls may spawn at the cemetery but you can lure them away and grab the holotape while they're distracted). Those holotapes allow you to turn turrets on your side and make protectrons followers! (Vazgen)

  • Member
    May 4, 2016

    Added a new tip about scavenging.

  • Mr.
    Member
    May 5, 2016

    Very useful, Ponty. I'll be using this once I start a Survival Playthrough.

     But did they increase the time between having to fulfill your hunger/thirst? I remember that in the beta it was a little annoying, and rather extreme.

  • Member
    May 5, 2016

    They definitely reduced the time it takes you get hungry and thirsty, these days I think I really only need 1 good meal and the equivalent of 4 or so Purified Water a day. Probably about 2/3 of what I used to need.

  • Member
    May 6, 2016

    Added a tip regarding the Brotherhood of Steel's Vertibirds.

  • Member
    May 6, 2016

    well I guess it's time to be these to use! survival mode for consoles is here!!!

  • Member
    May 6, 2016
    I shall be playing it when i get home. Me and Chris have been planning a survival build.
  • Member
    May 6, 2016

    wow - so I'm a few levels in and it is no joke. hunger and thirst and fatigue from lack of sleep right off the bat. amazing. i love it

    The filling up water bottle tip is so huge I love that thanks Ponty!

  • Member
    May 6, 2016

    Yeah, it really hits you hard at the beginning. Glad to provide these tips to make it a little easier for you guys!

  • Member
    May 7, 2016

    So you say use doctors to cure radiation... but wouldn't the decontamination arches work better, although more limited because they are only at settlements where as doctors are located in settlements as well as elsewhere, but they are free to use.