Mod:DUST Survival Simulator/The Alcoholic

This page describes a character build for Fallout: DUST, to survive with ease, taking time to investigate what happened after 2nd Hoover Dam. There was chances to escape, but there should be no hurry at all to do so.

Characteristics
The main characteristic of this build is the running alcohol effect, most likely of four types Vodka, Scotch, Whiskey, or Wine. Thanks to active effect of alcohol, character is buffed in some stats and punished in other. The starting stats are designed to counter said effect, allow a relatively unharmed playing style. Perks also are acquired aiming at this aspect in mind, despite being not very overpowered compared to other ones. Such are Old World Gourmet, Chemist etc... for enjoying life, and Ghost Killer for exploring some hell fortress.

Insane and insanity perks wont fit this build, mostly because of drinking too much alcohols.

Likely fit with Repairer style considering the stat allocation.

Difficulty
Very Hard difficulty, with Hardcore on by default.

Mods used
The following mods were used to test this build:
 * Fallout DUST Tunneler Detection Fix
 * Manan's Tweaks
 * Makeshift Mastery
 * Mods that expand or restore locations, like MoreMojave, Cave Pack, Primm South Uncut, Dust Locations Expanded. They also use default templates, so when setting under Dust, dust-affected creatures behave as they should.
 * Increased Wasteland Spawn IWS because they use more vanilla templates compared to MojaveRaiders. MR use too much mod-specific new template so avoid it to not breaking the lore. Get IWS under Dust will make new spawns affected, though due to high number, sometimes computer/game engine cant produce quick enough that slight changes are not updated. Like NCR troopers not yet changed to Cannibals in Field of Salvation.
 * Harvestable Cave Fungus mod that allow picking two type of fungus in caves. Useful, and not that overpower unless you like farming them every other days.
 * Dust Flora Restora, because lifeless plants annoyed me since Fallout 3. i dont consider it overpowering unless you like to farm Westside every few days.
 * Pre War Cooking mod, that allow a few ways to cook can foods. Though some recipes are strong, limited ingredients nerf that hard.
 * Pythonesque Fiends, allow some tribals to have some real funny dialog~
 * Dust Understone Plus provide a central hub of some traders, useful to resupply some desperately needed bullets. Not overpower because you are too low in Barter and Charisma.

Starting location
Shack (7) and Safehouse (6) and Abandoned House (9) work well enough with town ruins nearby.

S.P.E.C.I.A.L.

 * Strength: 5 (alcohol will buff this up)
 * Perception: 4
 * Endurance: 6
 * Charisma: 1 (alcohol will buff this up)
 * Intelligence: 8 (to be countered with alcohol debuff)
 * Agility: 8 (to be countered with alcohol debuff)
 * Luck: 6

Tag Skills

 * Repair
 * Survival
 * Guns OR Melee Weapons (your choice)

Traits

 * Skilled, because minus exp gain is not that punishing.
 * Makeshift Mastery, or if not, Built to Destroy

Perks

 * Old World Gourmet because it's the entire point
 * Educated because staying longer at Mojave mean more time to level up.
 * Chemist because x2 duration.
 * Sounds of mind because keeping alcohol effect running should bring in enough you can have a good chance to get this at high level of good karma for really good effect.
 * Bloody Mess because with alcohols you can recover easier from its punishment.
 * Jury Rigging waaaaay later because it just break the game economy
 * Handloader because handmade ammo is good and in control, instead of unsteady supply from loots.
 * Comprehension because +20 per mag, and more Sp for books, are good gains.
 * Ghost Hunter because some hell fortress contain reall important lore.
 * Mile in Their Shoes after you have 10 or more Squeezings in hand. bonus sneak and Per is nice but it need several dose to be at it.
 * Sierra Madre Martini only after have about 10 or more Cloud Residue in your hand, otherwise no point.
 * Voracious Reader, late game when have about 50 wonderglue with nothing to do with. Low priority but useful.
 * Just Lucky I am Alive, because you are most likely at near death after a major firefight. This luck buff can raise all skills for a few point in 3 minutes.

Progressing Skill Levels
Revelant to this specific build, so if it go against your grain, you are not liking this build.

Survival because this affect alcohols and foods. Also the point of this build. Repair because staying long mean more things to repair, even for sale. Medicine is not that needed because healing from can foods and alcohol, though Living Anatomy is a worthwhile target.

Lockpick before Science at 50, top. This should open most things.

Guns/Melee/Energy, pick one to focus on for a while first because Makeshift weapons are really good. Explosives and Unarmed is not that equal.

Land Progression
If you're starting at Shack (7), a trip to the Ghost Town is in-order. Stock up on booze and make steaks from the hostile Dogs there. Loot the houses for Plungers and Scrap Metal and forge some Throwing Spears. Assail the Tribals stationed near the town (Sacrificial Altar and north of graveyard) if you feel confident. If either of them has a Makeshift Crossbow, treasure it like a loved one and turn your Spears to Bolts. A crossbow worth the karma hit. After that make way toward Primm then Novac and Mojave Outpost pronto. You still need to stock up on alcohols.

From Safehouse (6), try to lure the Tribals patrolling the edges of the Burned Bulls Camp outward and deal with them and their gear. Alternatively, hoof it to the Jackal checkpoint situated before the Camp and deal with them first. Either way, you want the outer perimeter to be cleared, at the very least before town assault.

Clearing this Camp you have long route ahead: Primm-Ghost Town for really easy loot, then swing by Quarryville Sloan to clean up the cannibal nest there, careful of the deathclaws. then back down to cannibal nest at Mojave Outpost, and finally go to Mo-Tel/Novac, the hard road. Completing this route mean you are finally secure in your alcohol stash.

Freeside is a worthwhile long term target because they contain important info, same as Boulder City (after Ghost hunter)

Abandoned House is interesting, because you are up north near Westside. That town ruins and Monte Carlo Suites should provide some (rich) starting alcohols. Easy loot, and Cloud Victims are killable. After that, avoid the temptation to explore the north (poor picking compared to effort) but visit the south area toward Sunset Sarsaparilla HQ. This should provide enough loot for a long trek toward the north area, skirting wide group of Ghosts, and get to New Vegas Square and Freeside. Sweep through here should provide enough for a long run in Freeside, in particular Atomic Wrangler for drinks.

After Freeside, this should end early stage with enough weapons and armors, plus drinks, to start taking Ghost Hunter and clean them up in nearby places. At longer term, Boulder City and The Dam.

Loadout
Any Melee Weapon will do, but you want to craft/find a Makeshift Scythe as quickly as humanly possible. (Depending on your starting location, Primm, the Burned Bulls Camp or Mo-Tel are the easiest places to find one) If you're crafting one instead, the Ghost Town has most of the ingredients you need inside of what was once Doc Mitchell's house.

For gun, a MS 9mm SMG for the junk 9mm round, MS Rifle for the junk 10mm round, MS Assault Rifle for the junk 5.56mm, MS Shotgun for the junk 12 gauge. You can get lever action shotgun early, but repair it should take all you got, so use normal, or slug ammo, and store the junk 20 gauge for caravan shotguns.

Northern starts can go acquire Never Misses at north of Vegas ruin. Southern start can get Lucky and Ratslayer. These two options are nearly mutual exclusive, because they are too far from each other, so once you get the other, the thing is likely of no use to you by then.

'''The 3.2 update to Manan's Tweaks removes the ability to repair Makeshift melee weapons on-the-fly, replacing the Lawn Mower Blade (Or Bonesaw, if you have an Axe) you'd get with a Dull one that needs a Whet Stone to sharpen first. If you have the Makeshift Mastery mod/perk however, you can ignore this entirely given how easy its associated Repair Kits are to make.'''

Barring outside factors, your early weapon list will look something like this:


 * Makeshift Crossbow for main use due to control on ammo supply
 * Makeshift Rifle, Assault Rifle, Sniper Rifle depend on your rifle ammo.
 * Lucky OR MS 9mm SMG for small guns.
 * Makeshift Scythe or Junk Blade
 * Homemade explosives and molotov cocktail sarsaparilla.

The Pistol/Revolver's mostly for dealing with closeby, weak target. And they are all easily repaired (Lucky with 357 rev)