The Mojave Wasteland is so stale. This 'conflict' between the NCR and Legion is nothing more than one major battle and very few skirmishes. Why don't I ever see a great khan and NCR squad at each others throats? Why do I rarely ever see NCR and Legion patrols fighting one another? Why don't I ever see the powder gangers harassing NCR caravans and Legion patrols? I want to see war. This game would be so much better if the factions actually fought one another over supplies, territory etc. Would keep things interesting. I miss Fallout 3 where I would randomly come across Outcast patrols against Enclave squads, or BoS vs. Outcast, super mutants etc. It happened so often and is part of what made the game great.

Am I the only one who feels this way?

It was sweet.

cl and ncr fight in an couple areas

I saw a group of molerats get mauled by some nighstalkers, does that count?

Camp Forlorn Hope being an actual battle, several others being skirmishes.


Boulder City


Southeast part of the map between Ranger Station Charlie and Searchlight


Because Powder Ganger Territory is the I-15. No one is traveling through there due to the Deathclaw issue.




Again, Forlorn Hope.




Ok, seriously? You just made a rather demanding list that Fallout 3 meets even less than New Vegas. The Brotherhood of Steel never ventures out of the Citadel. The Outcast patrols very seldomly run into anyone. No one is fighting over supplies or territory in Fallout 3. The Brotherhood of Steel only actively confronts the Enclave in the final battle and the first quest of Broken Steel.

The ONLY nice battles Fallout 3 had that you'll never find in New Vegas were three-way fights between you, Super Mutants and the Talon Company.

Er, I think the OP is referring to 'random' battles across the map, not player activated quest scenarios..

Ie, things that happen even after you have completed the quests...

How did you misunderstand the meaning of the thread so badly? <_<

So a few areas where the Legion and NCR fight makes the game exciting? When I say war, I mean more than 3-4 skirmish locations.At Boulder City it was a hostage situation, not a skirmish (depending on what you choose ofc), and that is the only time you see a confrontation between the NCR and the Khans.

By the single battle, I mean the dam. The battle at Forlorn hope was a skirmish.. when we retook Nelson we had like 5 guys and the enemy had ~15. Some "battle".

The BoS has patrols in the DC area and a few out in the wastes. The outcasts had multiple patrols in the wasteland and a couple around the DC area. When I go exploring in Fallout 3, I'll come across way more fights between warring factions than I will in New Vegas. Guarantee'd. Whether it be outcasts, BoS, enclave, super mutants, talon company etc. I even come across sentry bots fighting giant radscorpions.

@ Longknife..... Im not sure you really played fo3. Bos are at the Washington Monument, and in front of the remainds of the White House. Bos fights super mutants in those areas. They fight raiders during water deliveries, and the attack they main DC Talon Company base.

Outcast patrols end in there death most of the time. The run into Enclave alot and get slapped. They also run into TC.

Enclave fights raiders, and supermutant in certain areas everytime you go there.

There is without a doubt 1000000 times more fighting between NPCs in fo3


It was sweet too.

The BoS are in the Library fighting Raiders, on Pennsylvania Avenue fighting Super Mutants, downtown DC guarding the Washington monument, guarding the Radio Station against Super Mutants (they respawn), delivering water to the locals in the Wasteland in which they are attacked by Raiders, fighting Super Mutants in Falls Church, and you can also join them in an assault on the Talon Company base as long as you didnt already whipe them out before Broken Steel is activated.

You're forgetting that the NCR-Legion war is in a lull when you arrive; the Legion is massing their forces for a second attempt to re-take the dam, and the only reason that the NCR hasn't done a pre-emptive strike on their camp is because they're dealing with a bunch of problems on their side of the dam.

What we do see are nothing more than scouting parties and the occassional harrassment tactic- the Legion needs to know how thickly (or thinly) NCR forces are spread, what the lay of the land is on that side of the dam, and to put pressure on the weaker areas to even out or redirect NCR troops to make it easier when they do make their second go at the dam. Draining the NCR's resources also help. Because the Legion is doing these tactics, they're not as likely to run accross a NCR patrol.

You're also forgetting that FO3 was virtually lawless with nobody having any claim over the greater wasteland area. That meant that just about anyone with a chip on their shoulder could set themselves up as an independent faction. In New Vegas, most of the Mojave has been under NCR control for years, so anyone who couldn't deal with an army was simply steamrolled over, as well as dangerous wildlife. You can bet that if the NCR wasn't in the Mojave, you'd see levels of violence similar to that in FO3.

You give a good point, but I don't think more skirmishes and firefights between the factions would hurt at all. I'm not saying there should be major battles all over the place. I would, however, like to come across an NCR squad engaging a great khans group out in the wastes somewhere, and I'd also like to see many more skirmishes along the Colorado river and NCR squads venturing into fiend territory to engage them. Once the BoS lockdown is lifted, I'd like to see them engage powder gangers from the NCRCF (this actually does happen, but rarely) and NCR patrols. NCR does control certain strategical points in the Wasteland, but they are spread out and concentrated. The Ranger stations, with the exception of Charlie, rarely have to defend themsleves from aggresors. Camp Golf never has problems with the Deathclaws directly to the north of it. Although Caesar could easily overtake Bitter Springs, which is on the Forts doorstep, he only attempts it once. NCR does not have control of the open wastes.

The OP is right, the lack of random encounters in NV is incredibly disappointing.
That said, what's even more disappointing, is that I thought this thread was stating the game 'War' should be added to casino's.
In which case, yes, yes it should. And I fault the devs for not having the foresight to place it there.
War. War Never Changes. Unless You've Got Money Riding On This Match.

I cant think of a single non quest related building you go into where you have to fight through a [censored] load of foes to get to that special weapon, armor or skill book. Part of the fun of Fallout 3 was having to go on your journey to look for skill books and bobbleheads. It was a really good motivator to get you to go out and explore apart from the fun of exploring itself. In New Vegas you mostly go into caves and Vaults to fight Geckos, feral ghouls, and so forth. There's really no place to get lost. In other words, the game depends soley on it's quests. Free roaming has almost zero replay value.

too bad there are no factions that fight for points of interest as there are alot of factions : super mutatnts , boomers , BoS , NCR , Legion , Securitrons , Bright Followers , Deathclaws , plus alot more i can't think of right now
... oh and don't forget JBF's ( justin beiber fans ) faction

I always see NCR versus the LEGION.

I agree with the sentiments about random events. Special encounters could be left to Wild Wasteland, but adjusted wander radii and some scripts should be thrown in so we can see caravans getting ambushed or getting ambushed/followed ourselves (just an example, more can be done). New Vegas is already a wonderful games with the quests, dialogue, etc. but being able to have something different happen in a different spot while wandering the wastes would give a reason to do so. By far my biggest issue with the game. However, must it be war? The skirmishes and the climactic battle are all I need, personally.

There is more 'War' in New Vegas than any other game other than the first, what you want are skirmishes.

Free roaming never has replay value unless the entire world is randomly generated. Once you've explored something, you cant explore it again. At least with quests there are multiple ways to complete them.

Bah this game does not need war...
War is stale...
We all know war never changes .

Flowers and Obama is needed..