So I've really gotten into Fallout, and although I've cheated (by looking up how to solve quests online) to save time just wandering about.

I'm not at the computer that has my game, so I can't screenshot/post my stats right now. I currently have big-@$$ weaponry (combat shotgun, rocket launcher, plasma rifle, etc.) and fresh combat armor from The Brotherhood, and I want to help out the Razors by destroying the Deathclaws. I got one, but the other two are so near to each other that whenever I try to take them, I get shredded.

I tried to get Power Armor (which I assume is like those robot suits the Brotherhood use), but besides needing to get a Systolic Motivator (which can probably do via more cheating), I need to get my repair skill up to 75 (which is at 59 or so right now, iirc), which means having to upgrade at least 2 more times, which means I probably need another 10,000 XP or so, which means doing a ton more caravan rounds unless there are easier ways to do this.

Any suggestions? I'd like to be able to continue...

http://www.gog.com/forum/fallout_series/deathclaw_help_minor_spoilers

You're welcome... :>

The usual : use plasma rifle or sniper rifle (whichever have the best accuracy for you) and aim for the eyes. If they get too close, you can swap for the combat shotgun for a last stand...

Forget about the Power Armor, the idea is to kill them before they reach you, so your armor shouldn't matter too much - if they start hitting you, you're probably dead anyway.

You could try to criple their legs too to give you a little more time...

If that doesn't work, just come back later when you have better combat skills. Deathclaws are badass, not for low levels. Happy hunting :).

edit: ninja'ed. Well. Answers are out there :p

Well I'd use a sniper rife and aim at specific parts, but I still only have 6 action points and I need 7 to aim for the eyes. And plasma rifle aiming from a distance is pretty bad. I've tried doing the rocket launcher at a distance and that works very well (for 60-ish hp), but then they close the distance right away and I can't get away.

How can I raise my combat skills? Get XP by doing caravan jobs and raise it after a while? What should I invest my "17%" in?

I just replayed Fallout 1 as a pure unarmed character. 4 aimed punches to the eyes with a power fist was all it ever seemed to take, as they would crit on most hits. I just spaced the distance so that the Deathclaw would spend all their APs getting to me, toe-to-toe... then I had first swat.

Is your unarmed skill high enough to make hash with that approach?

I'm not sure right now (I'm away from my computer). I have to be honest, though; when I got percentages to level up certain abilities (the "17%" level up and what not), I wasn't trying to level up a few items. I've been spreading it out amongst everything, including Doctor, Outdoorsman, Etc. Probably not the best idea, but I'm not familiar with RPGs; I probably should have been trying to bring a few specific things into the 80% or 90% range, eh?

Generally it's best to focus on one fight skill (small weapons is the easiest to find/use, but unarmed or melee can do the trick. Energy too, but you don't have energy weapon at first). And after the weapon skill is at 90-120%, choose other skills to raise (doctor, science, repair, lockpick, outdoorsman, etc...). You can focus differently, but your life will be easier once you have a good weapon skill first.

Anyway, the deathclaws are tough. They are supposed to be. And if your fighting skill is behind, well... good luck :).

Okay, so it looks like I need to upgrade a few more levels; I do have energy weapons (I have a plasma rifle), but I'm only at about 60% with that, so I guess I'll need to earn more XP via caravan quest and such. (Too bad you can't buy XP, as I have 11,000 bottle caps and nothing to spend it on, lol.)

Yes, dividing the points on every skill is not helpful.
You can play the game with different settings like diplomat, brawler
thief, tank etc. In the end there are only a very few good skills left because
in this game you must fight. And with your 6 AP....better try to gain
some levels and a nice perk that boost your AP.

AP is a key factor in this game, if you only have 6 then you may have inadvertently created a pacifist build.

To help with your skills a bit go buy some books. The shop the Hub has an unlimited supply.

For deathclaws you may want to comeback when you have better perks and equipment. Since you have already cheated a bit why not look at getting the turbo plasma rifle upgrade, that might give you a little better edge. Unfortunately deathclaws are supposed to be a fairly tough fight so if you didn't create a combatcentric character you may have to skip this mission and try again with your next playthrough.

I don't believe I did. I can get more AP, can't I? Which shop? I'll probably try to work my way up to being able to easily fight them. Caravan XP-building missions, ho...

Just so you aware, I have a combat shotgun, plasma rifle, rocket launcher, combat armor, and 11,000 caps right now...

You should be able to get brotherhood armor which is slightly better than combat armor.

AP is directly related to your Agility. You can permanently raise your Agility by 1 during the course of the game but that is it. You can get the Action Boy perks to add more AP, up to 3 more but you will use up valuable perks to get them.


Beth in the Hub get replenished up to 5 of each skill book when she restocks.


If your Luck and Outdoorsman skill are high enough you could try wandering the wastes for a bit and hope to find the crashed alien ship. The alien blaster found there is both powerful and fast. You could also try to get a minigun.

Thanks everyone. I was able to kill several deathclaws via my plasma rifle, flamethrower, and saving whenever I got a good hit/loading when I failed. :P

But the Momma is still too tough for me. When I get a weapon from the Brotherhood, what one do you suggest I should get for her? (I played through that part, but "gave up" on it, loaded an earlier game without my new weapon, and went to focus on other things.) The Ripper is apparently good for tearing up limbs; what do you all think?