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Event Build FO4: Shamrock

Tags: #Event:Comic Books 
  • Member
    February 18, 2017

    Shamrock

    “You never know what worse luck your bad luck has saved you from.”

    Cormac McCarthy, No country for Old Men

     

    Top o’ the morning to you! Welcome to Shamrock, an Irish-themed build with a nod in the direction of the Marvel comics superhero of the same name.

    It’s always been a source of puzzlement to me that the Boston portrayed in Fallout 4 seems to be almost entirely devoid of Irish people. In 2014 more than 16% of the population of Boston were officially of Irish heritage (Source: Wikipedia) so it’s hardly a stretch to think that there’d be plenty of Irish people rumbling around The Commonwealth. The Comic Books Event gave me the push to – finally – finish and write up a build that I’ve been playing off and on for the past year.

    And so with great pleasure, please give a warm Irish welcome to Shamrock...

     

    Comic Book Background

    Shamrock is a minor character in the Marvel Comics Universe, first appearing 1982. She is an Irish girl, the daughter of an IRA militant, and her real name is Molly Fitzgerald. She is possessed by the souls of victims of war who manifest themselves by her possessing unnatural luck in anyone who encounters her. Truly, she is blessed with ‘the luck of the Irish’.

     

    Four Leaf Clover Perk? Don't mind if I do...

     

    Character Background

    NOTE: This build plays into a number of stereotypes about Irish people which, in many cases, are not actually true. This build is not meant to imply that ALL Irish people are stupid, drunken bums or believe in leprechauns. Take this build as a bit of fun, and don’t be offended.

    So, let’s take a closer at look at Shamrock’s background

    It’s not for nothing that the phrase ‘the luck of the Irish’ has come into popular speech. Shamrock is an incredibly lucky individual, who somehow manages to escape from potentially fatal situations with barely a scratch. Even she doesn’t quite know how most of the time!

    The incredible synergy of the luck perks means that she’ll be blasting through a room full of Raiders or Synths without taking a scratch. Even when things get a bit dicey, she’ll get help from her very own leprechaun (in the post-apocalyptic guise of a Mysterious Stranger).

    Like a lot of Irish people, Shamrock is – as the saying goes – ‘as thick as two short planks’. With low intelligence, she’ll be relying on the Idiot Savant perk for a smooth progress through the game. But, whilst no Einstein, like most of her countrymen she loves her food and, even more so, her drink. She’ll be foraging meat from the Commonwealth and stopping regularly at cooking stations to cook tasty Irish stews for her travels. And she’ll take any opportunity to grab – and consume - any of her favourite alcoholic beverages that she might find laying around.

     

    Specials

    Here are your SPECIALS. Go big on Luck, Agilty and Perception. Once you find some glasses and pick up the Perception bobblehead early then Perception is at 8. The Special Book in Sanctuary goes into Agilty, giving you 9 from virtually the start. You don't need Strength because you're picking off enemies before they get close enough to hurt you - the eventual 3 in Strength (with the bobblehead) is for the Ballistic Weave clothes from the Railroad.

     

    Factions 

    Shamrock encounters the Minutemen early on. She’s happy to run quests for them to familiarise herself with the vastly different world that she finds outside Vault 111. But she resists all attempts by Preston Garvey to take up the role of leader. Their fight isn’t her fight…

    After making her way to Diamond City she hears about the Railroad. Curious, she seeks them out and immediately feels attracted to them. Shamrock is the daughter of an IRA militant, and finding an underground movement fighting against all odds greatly attracts her. The Railroad soon become ‘family’ to her, and they become her core faction. Being gifted ‘The Deliverer’ early on plays into her ‘lucky’ fight style, and the Ballistic Weave options allow her to craft military clothing that remind her of what she has heard about her forebears in the IRA.

    Over time, Shamrock will gradually lose any real hope of finding her son. When she later discovers that her ‘son’ is responsible for the oppression of Synths she is horrified. She cannot believe that her own flesh and blood has become gripped by such selfishness and evil. She rejects him as her son and, as many Irish militants before her, puts the values of the movement before her biological family.

    Shamrock – aside from Railroad duties – will seek and help those in need. If there are people who need help, then – being the soft-hearted person she is – will usually be willing to lend a hand. The desire to promote freedom is deeply ingrained within her, and she will rationalise killing for those ends. But, by the same token, she won’t engage in quests that appear to her to be motivated by selfishness, greed or power.

     

    Perks

    Shamrock is going to be grabbing perks from the Luck tree as soon as they become available. Gunslinger assists with fighting off the many hostile forces in The Commonwealth. Later, Armorer is grabbed to take advantage of Ballistic Weave. By Level 50 the Luck tree is essentially maxed out and any perk points beyond there can be spent on supplementary skills such as Lockpicking or Demolition.

    Perk Spread

    Gear

    Early on Shamrock is grabbing whatever she can from fallen enemies simply to survive. Once safely into the bosom of The Railroad, she discovers the possibilities of being able to wear her favourite casual clothes enhanced by Ballistic Weave. From that point she mostly wears her ‘lucky’ leather ‘greaser’ outfit and favourite Fedora hat. By the time she picks up the Luck Bobblehead she is rocking the Commonwealth with Luck 13 (definitely NOT unlucky in this case) whilst feeling comfortable in her favourite gear.

     

    Follower

    It won’t be any surprise to hear about the choice of companion for an Irish build. Early on, Shamrock hears about the Combat Zone and decides to check it out. Horrified that the Raiders there appear to be keeping a young girl as a fight slave, she is amazed to find a compatriot. She feels justified in slaughtering every Raider and freeing Cait, who then becomes a permanent friend and helpmate.

    The Raider HQ becomes a second home for Shamrock and Cait, albeit there isn’t really a lot of privacy around that confined space. And, besides, Doc Carrington is such a pain in the ass! Shamrock and Cait decide to play house in ‘Home Plate’ – finally, a place they can chill and relax, and just a few steps from the bright lights of Diamond City

     

    Weapon

    As she is fully embraced by the Railroad, she is given ‘The Deliverer’. It’s the perfect weapon, with bonuses to her VATs combat style, and with plenty of 10mm armour from any merchant. By picking up every bullet from fallen enemies, there is no need to bother with the Cap Collector perk – since the amount of non-10mm bullets always far outstrips the cost of buying all available 10mm. By Level 50, she always had more than 1000 bullets whilst also carrying around at least 10K in caps!

     

     

    Gameplay Notes 

    • This is a build for those who struggle with intense real-time combat, since most of the combat is going to happen in VATS. By taking the Luck-based perks early, and having a decent Agility and Perception, everything is pointing to VATS being the way to go. 
    • Shamrock is NOT a confident combatant. Being thrust into the post-Apocalyptic world is a total shock and she has no idea how she’ll survive. To her surprise, she ‘gets lucky’ with weapons – bullets seem to hit opponents, and she seems to be able to ‘dodge the bullet’ in return.
    • In terms of strategy, Shamrock gets into sneak mode upon entering a dangerous situation. She carefully scopes out the situation and carefully makes strategic decisions. Only when she feels that she knows what she’s up against does she begin…
    • A shot from the shadows often accounts for the first couple of enemies (SNEAK), once the Critical meter fills (FOUR LEAF CLOVER), hit the stronger enemies (BETTER CRITICALS). Use regular shots to take out common enemies, and hold back crits for mini-bosses and bosses (CRITICAL BANKER). As Action points pour in. (GRIM REAPER SPRINT, ACTION GIRL) just ‘rinse and repeat’
    • By the time you get to about Level 30, the synergy of the perks means that a room full of enemies can be cleared within one VATs session – any stragglers usually being mopped up by the other perks (MYSTERIOUS STRANGER, RICOCHET). By Level 50, it’s possible to stand in front of Mirelurk Kings or Gatorclaws and wreck them within VATS before they even notice that you are there!

     

     

    Two Irish lasses ready to hit the bright lights of Diamond City

    Roleplay

    Here are some of the roleplay facets that make this build fun.

    1. Shamrock has inherited the Irish penchant for comedy – always use the sarcastic options in speech 

    2. Shamrock enjoys her booze. Grab all alcohol and glug it as you make your way around. You’re NOT taking the Party Girl perk, so get used to asking the doctor in The Railroad HQ or Diamond City to fix your addiction. You help Cait to cure her drug addiction and don’t take drugs yourself, but you continue to enjoy a tipple with your new drinking buddy. 

    3. Shamrock does as many quests as are offered by The Railroad – anything to help her new family. She completes the Main Quest with The Railroad ending, even though it goes against her own ‘son’. I took Shamrock to Far Harbor at Level 28 and Nuka World at Level 37, but that’s up to you… 

    4. Shamrock and Cait buy Home Plate, clear it out and then furnish it to their personal taste. That’s as close as she goes to settlement building apart from Sanctuary. It’s up to you whether you pursue a romance with Cait.

    5. Shamrock knows that she is lucky and does everything possible to enhance and strengthen that lucky combat style. Here is my list:

    • Collect all relevant Bobbleheads – Perception at the start; Luck, Agility and Strength by Level 15
    • Max out affinity with Cait for Trigger Rush perk
    • Only use ‘The Deliverer’ in combat once it is offered
    • Upgrade Deliverer with mods sold by Tinker Tom
    • Collect all editions of US Covert Operations Manual for better sneak
    • Collect ‘Life and Love #5’ for permanent +1 Luck boost
    • Wear Greaser outfit and Fedora for +3 Luck

     

    I couldn’t even begin to do the math on how all those synergise with the high Luck, Agility and Perception levels – but, trust me, once you get a few levels under your belt you’re going to be spamming Critical Hits against any enemy you meet. 

     

     

    I had an absolute blast with this build. Smooth levelling with Idiot Savant; potent combat with Critical Banker, Better Criticals, Grim Reaper Sprint, Action Girl and Four Leaf Clover; great RP and quests with The Railroad and a ton of fun cruising and boozing with Cait...

  • Member
    February 18, 2017
    I love the overall concept. I was not familiar with this character so I went to do some reading. Really cool port over into FO4. Luck is definitely one of my favorite stats and I think FO4 does it justice. Some of the most fun perks in the game and SO much synergy it is ridiculous. A new build since 2011 and it's like you never stopped doing it. Concise, great visuals, easy to read, and great write up. Makes me want to jump into FO4 again and as you say ... "cruise and booze"
  • Member
    February 18, 2017

    Correct me if I'm wrong but... this is your first ever posted build on the vault isn't it? :D Well, in any case, congratulations on doing it and know that I will fully read it and photoshop your comic book cover tommorow. :)

  • Member
    February 18, 2017

    Henson said: I love the overall concept. I was not familiar with this character so I went to do some reading. Really cool port over into FO4. Luck is definitely one of my favorite stats and I think FO4 does it justice. Some of the most fun perks in the game and SO much synergy it is ridiculous. A new build since 2011 and it's like you never stopped doing it. Concise, great visuals, easy to read, and great write up. Makes me want to jump into FO4 again and as you say ... "cruise and booze"

    Thanks Henson. means a lot coming from one of vets of the CB group

  • Member
    February 18, 2017

    Noodles said:

    Correct me if I'm wrong but... this is your first ever posted build on the vault isn't it? :D Well, in any case, congratulations on doing it and know that I will fully read it and photoshop your comic book cover tommorow. :)

    Not quite, I posted a pretty generic Mage build when the Skyrim Character Build group first started and CB hadn't really taken off. It was (deservedly) culled in one of the (many) cullings inistigated by Mason and Ben lol

    But, yeah, certainly the first build since then, and certainly first build on the Vault-incarnation of the site

  • Member
    February 18, 2017

    As someone who 1: has yet to try a VATS build and 2: has never used luck, I must say this is rather fantastic! Especially cool to have someone who really just isn't great at fighting yet somehow makes it by off of pure good luck. Very well done Paul, you got my thumbs up! Excellent contribution for the event

  • Member
    February 18, 2017

    Nice luck based build! I remember ages ago you teased this out and I'm so happy the Comic Book event got it out of you :D

  • Member
    February 19, 2017
    Hey Paul, what publisher name do you want on your cover?
  • February 20, 2017

    Heh, it´s damn nice to see Paul finally putting the debate to an end. "Can he build?" Hell damn yes, he can! Seriously, it´s great that you´ve done this, Paul, it looks awesome, also based on a superhero I never heard about. VATS weren´t never my thing, it was slowing the game down too much for me, so I can´t really appreciate it, but the concept of a Luck based character always interested me and this one looks great! :)

  • Member
    February 20, 2017

    Noodles said: Hey Paul, what publisher name do you want on your cover?

    I'm not exactly sure what this means Noodles?