Sneak Attack Critical

A Sneak Attack Critical occurs in Fallout 3 when attacking while. Successfully hitting the target will result in a guaranteed critical-strike. This sneak attack bonus is similar to the classic Dungeons & Dragons stealth move "Backstab".

(Loud) Silent Kills

 * It is possible to kill an enemy without alerting those around them if the "sneak" critical is also a one-hit-kill, even with loud weapons like the Assault Rifle. Additional attacks after the first, queued in V.A.T.S., will not be treated as sneak attacks and will reveal the player's location to the target and possibly other enemies, presumably because the target then alerts their friends. This happens with all weapons except silent weapons like the 10mm Silenced Pistol or Dart Gun which have reduced chance to alert opponents.

(Silent) Silent Kills

 * It has been reported that all melee attacks are considered silent. However one should note the intimate proximity the player needs to be in to deliver a melee attack, the transition to almost instantly proceeds to  as the opponent is programmed to turn around and start moving in the direction of where the attack came from, looking for the enemy in  mode. The instant the enemy spots the player, it goes directly into  mode which alerts all nearby creatures, even its own enemies. Occasionally, this will result in the enemy that spotted the player being attacked by another that was formerly unaware of the first enemy's presence.


 * Still, it is possible to get in 2-3 melee attacks without alerting the whole room. If the player sneaks up in back of one of the more lumbering creatures, it is possible it will not turn around fast enough. Note: It will take either a Stealth Boy or the Silent Running perk with maxed skill to get that close.


 * This is quite unlike sneak attacks with a Dart Gun, with which a player can dart an enemy three times in one use of V.A.T.S. and then just sit still, hiding in the dark a good distance away, only under a temporary while the enemy searches (slowly, with crippled legs) and then hopefully drops dead from poison, its death setting the player's status back to . Note: Enemies shot with a silent weapon still have some clue as to what direction the shot came from, and will search for the player.

Sneak Criticals & Slow projectiles
Certain weapons like the Plasma Rifle have relatively slow projectiles. Sometimes this may cause an enemy to detect your presence before the shot reaches him, nullifying the Sneak Attack Critical bonus. For that reason, make sure you are close to your foe before trying to Sneak Attack Critical him, if you are using these weapons.

Choice Weapons
The best weapons for sneak attacks are the ones with the highest critical damage bonus (affected by +50% damage Better Criticals perk). Here's a number of common weapons with big bonuses. The number marked in bold is the critical damage when the Better Criticals perk is taken.


 * Hunting Rifle +25/37.5
 * Combat Shotgun +27/40,5
 * Scoped .44 Magnum +35/52,5
 * Sniper Rifle +40/60
 * Plasma Rifle +44/66
 * Blackhawk +45/67,5
 * Lincoln's Repeater +50/75
 * A3-21's Plasma Rifle +50/75
 * Gauss Rifle +50/75
 * Dart Gun +12/18 (+64 poison)

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