Vending Machine (Fallout 3)

Nuka-Cola vending machines are large containers that dispense Nuka-Cola.

They appear in Fallout and Fallout 2 as a world object and in Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas as a container. It would have also appeared in Van Buren.

Fallout and Fallout 2
Nuka-Cola machines are commonly found throughout the wasteland, and in Fallout 2 they're usable. Just right click on the machine and use 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 PC will get hit by the bottle in the groin area. (With the PC saying Uff! and a small HP loss)

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

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 is randomly set the first time the PC 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 9 bottle caps, 3 Nuka-Cola and a Nuka-Cola Quantum but is an extremely rare occurance. 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 1600 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 PC enters a map cell, it is possible to "roll for Quantums (save, enter cell, check for Quantums, reload)" but it can quickly become a tedious and frustrating endeavour. In a map cell containing 2 vending machines, the odds are 1 in 100. For 3 it is 1 in 1000 and so on.

A pristine Nuka-Cola machine can be bought for your house in Megaton from Moira Brown or suite in Tenpenny Tower from Lydia Montenegro. 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.

Fallout: New Vegas
In Fallout: New Vegas there are 43 located throughout the Mojave Wasteland, in various buildings. The contents of a vending machine is randomly set the first time the PC 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 9 bottle caps and 3 Nuka-Cola. The minimum a vending machine will contain is a single Nuka-Cola with the rest being random.