Vending Machine (Fallout 3)

Nuka-Cola vending machines are stationary elements of furniture designed to sell Nuka-Cola Corporation's beverages. They appear in almost every Fallout game to date, in one form or another.

Overview
The Nuka-Cola Corporation aggressively marketed their flagship product ever since its introduction in 2044. Low-maintenance vending machines were a crucial part of the strategy, and the corporation's generous investment eventually led to a vending machine on almost every street in the United States by 2067, available in a broad variety of types.

Old model
A simple, free-standing vending machine. The coin-operated machine would deposit a bottle down the chute, and required periodic refills of coolant to keep the contents fresh. Old machines were prone to malfunctioning and instead of gently depositing the bottle could launch it violently at the buyer. Of course, each bore advertising on its side promoting the cola.

New model
A large, imposing machine with a built-in monochrome monitor at the top for playing advertisements. The machine has been modified from the previous model to allow new bottles to slide into the trays, rather than being deposited mechanically and risking injury. As with the previous model, it's coin-operated with coin-changing functionality.

Variant

 * Pristine vending machine

Fallout and Fallout 2
Nuka-Cola machines are commonly found throughout the wasteland and are usable. Just right click on the machine and put money into it. This will initiate a Luck and a Agility test which will see if:
 * Your character catches the bottle.
 * If you can't catch it, he/she will be able to dodge it with the bottle flying a few yards away. If you aren't able to dodge it, the player will get hit by the bottle in the groin area (With the player saying "Uff!" and a small HP loss).

Each bottle costs only $1 each from a machine, but are worth $3 when sold to a merchant. Since the bottles are weightless, this can be used as a (very slow) way of making money. Each machine holds about 10-20 bottles, and (oddly) restocks every 2–3 weeks.

Locations

 * Fallout






 * Fallout 2





Fallout 3
In Fallout 3 there are 152 of them located throughout the Capital Wasteland, in Metro stations and various buildings. The contents of a vending machine are randomly set the first time the player character enters a map cell and remain that way for the rest of the game. In all other respects, it is a standard container and can be used for long term storage throughout the game.

A fully stocked vending machine contains nine bottle caps, three Nuka-Colas and a Nuka-Cola Quantum, but it is an extremely rare occurrence. The minimum a vending machine will contain is a single Nuka-Cola with the rest being random. There are two chances (75%) for an additional Nuka-Cola. There is a chance (10%) for bottle caps (probably 11% for 9) and a chance (10%) for a Nuka-Cola Quantum. The odds (based on the above figures) for a fully stocked machine are 1 in 1,600 or 0.0625%. That works out to 1 fully stocked machine in 10 1/2 complete games (visiting every machine on the map).

Since the contents of a vending machine are set the first time the player enters a map cell, it is possible to "roll" for Quantums (save, enter the cell, check for Quantums, reload). In a map cell containing two vending machines, the odds are 1 in 100 of finding a Quantum in both of them. For three machines, it is 1 in 1,000 and so on.

A pristine Nuka-Cola machine can be bought for the house in Megaton or the suite in Tenpenny Tower from Moira Brown and Lydia Montenegro, respectively. Putting a regular Nuka-Cola into the pristine vending machine converts it into an ice cold Nuka-Cola, improving the health benefits (+20HP/+1RAD vs. +10HP/+2RAD). Once converted, they are no longer available for the Quantum Chemist perk. As with all other vending machines, the one in the house/suite is a regular container and can be used to store anything else in the game.

According to Ronald Laren, Nuka-Cola vending machines have a label on them reading "Warning: If you tamper with this unit you will have to answer to the Nuka-Cola Corporation."

Fallout: New Vegas
In Fallout: New Vegas there are 43 located throughout the Mojave Wasteland, in various buildings. The contents of a vending machine are randomly set the first time the player character enters a map cell and remain that way for the rest of the game. In all other respects, it is a standard container and can be used for long term storage throughout the game.

A fully stocked vending machine contains nine bottle caps and three Nuka-Cola. The minimum a vending machine will contain is a single Nuka-Cola with the rest being random.

Van Buren
It would have also appeared in the canceled Van Buren, but whether it would have been usable to the player character is unknown.