Cornelius has lost his gold pocket watch. Find it and return it to him

'''Cornelius has lost his gold pocket watch. Find it and return it to him' is a side quest in Fallout 2'' obtained from Cornelius in Modoc.

Obtaining the watch
When asked about his watch, Cornelius will mention that Farrel has a safe. However, Farrel will not allow the Chosen One to open it. If the safe is opened anyway, the watch will not be inside, and all of Modoc will turn hostile.

In the outhouse outside of Rose's Bed and Breakfast, should the Chosen One open the "toilet" and climb down, they will find a huge cavern with a pile of rocks blocking the passage to the north. Methane gas is present here, so the smallest spark would trigger a massive explosion.

At this point, the Chosen One should obtain dynamite or plastic explosives to plant at the blockade. As soon as they exit the cavern, the explosion will go off, turning the outhouse into a crater. It is possible to die in the explosion. It is also possible to survive the explosion in the cavern if the Chosen One hides in the farthest corner, but they must still leave and return for the debris to be cleared. Setting off the explosion will earn the player character 500 XP.

Proceeding into the cleared blockade, the Chosen One will find a mole rat defending its lair. The watch, a bag and a fruit can be found within the lair, near the lair there's also a shovel (left of lair) and at least two rocks.

Returning the watch
Give the watch to Farrel, or give the watch to Cornelius and say the rat had it for a reward of 1500 XP and +10 Karma.

Additionally, you may return the watch to Cornelius and claim that Farrel stole it for a reward of 500 XP and -5 Karma instead.

Finishing the quest without returning the watch
Attempt to open the safe in Farrel's house once so that Farrel only yells at the Chosen. The player character may then tell Cornelius that Farrel is keeping the watch in his safe. Doing so will earn the player character negative Karma and no XP.

Behind the scenes
Methane is a non-odorous gas. It is therefore impossible to smell methane in its natural state.

Bugs

 * If the watch is below a bag in your inventory when you give it away it won't be removed from the inventory, so you can give it to both Cornelius and Farrel for additional XP.
 * The toilet explosion cutscene is only triggered if the explosive's timer is set to the default one minute.