Talent Pool

Talent Pool is a side quest in Fallout: New Vegas. In the quest, Tommy Torini asks you to gather some new talent for the The Tops. One of the reasons Tommy may be looking for new acts is because Benny had their previous lounge Singer killed.

Quick Walkthrough

 * 1) Tommy Torini is looking for performers.
 * 2) Recruit Billy Knight, Hadrian, The Lonesome Drifter, and Bruce Isaac.
 * 3) Return to Tommy Torini.

Detailed Walkthrough

 * Talk to Swank at The Tops about earning some more caps. He will suggest you talk to Tommy Torini in the Aces.
 * Tommy Torini at The Aces, located in The Tops casino, needs more performers to get a bigger audience. For each one you bring back, you get 3% of the cut (or 5% with a 50 barter check) and fame within New Vegas Strip.

Important: If you intend to use a magazine to pass the Barter check, make sure you use it BEFORE starting the quest dialogue. If you begin it, then turn it down temporarily to use your magazine, you will be unable pass the check and therefore will not get the extra caps.

Recruit these characters one-by-one and return to Tommy Torini after each successful recruitment. You must recruit:
 * The human Comedian: Billy Knight. He is found just outside The Tops casino by the gate leading to the Lucky 38. You can give Billy some confidence to haggle with a 25 Barter check, netting you 90 caps instead of 45. Alternately, using a 25 Barter check on Tommy Torini (instead of Billy) will get you 90 caps instead of 45. If you do both challenges, you will get 150 caps.
 * The ghoul Comedian: Hadrian. He is found inside Atomic Wrangler Casino, and you must convince James Garrett to release him from his contract. He can be found on the first floor but is sometimes upstairs; you will have to wait around for Hadrian to return to the stage at 2 PM to activate the speech to release him from his contract. You first have the option of a 50 Barter check or a 50 Speech check (allowing you to not pay any caps) when talking to James. If you select to pay him, you can try to pass a 35 Barter check to lower the caps to 100, instead of 150 caps. You could also convince him to lower the price to 75 caps if you have done favors for the Garrets. With the Terrifying Presence perk, you can intimidate him into letting Hadrian go for no cost. You can also just kill Garrett and then talk to Hadrian. Also, if you completed Wang Dang Atomic Tango quest, the option to release him is there.
 * The Musician: The Lonesome Drifter. He is found north of El Dorado Dry Lake next to a Sunset Sarsaparilla billboard. Passing a 50 Barter check will enable the player to get the Mysterious Magnum from him.
 * The Singer: Bruce Isaac. He is found on the second floor of the Dino Dee-lite Motel in Novac.
 * Return to Tommy Torini after recruiting each performer to collect your 3% (or 5%) cut.

Bugs

 * After telling Hadrian you will try and get him out of his contract talk to James Garrett and offer to pay for him, pass a barter check of 35 to reduce the amount for him and then tell him you'll pay later, this barter check never goes away. Keep doing the check and then say you'll pay later.
 * After recruiting any of the performers and talking to Tommy Torini, game will constantly freeze or crash. Reloading earlier save fixes this.
 * Sometimes Billy Knight won't have any conversation options for recruiting him, and you will be unable to complete the quest.
 * After recruiting Isaac, going back to New Vegas may cause the Strip North Gate to become locked. Killing one of the robot guards and looting its key will allow re-entrance.
 * Tommy Torini and his crew may attack Rex if he is in your party, they will undoubtedly win, not a problem on casual as he will be rendered unconscious and the gang won't attack you. Hardcore you can revert to the auto save.
 * If you get Bruce Isaac he will never move from the stage and cause all the other acts to end.
 * Failing the quest midway through will render the promotion sign outside of the Tops incorrect, advertising for acts which you have not successfully hired, or are dead.
 * Occasionally, after recruiting The Lonesome Drifter, the quest will glitch and either allow you to proceed to talk to Tommy Torini prematurely or only require you to recruit one more Entertainer.
 * Prior to the newest patch, you have to recruit each performer individually, and return to Tommy Torini before you can hand out another card.

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