Fallout: New Vegas (Character Creation: The Courier)

http://fallout.wikia.com/wiki/Fallout:_New_Vegas_cultural_references

Got two characters going at the moment. Fifteen hours in with my standard Fallout character, here simply called The Courier. I'll post the full stats below, but the emphasis on this character is perception, agility, and intelligence. Basically, I designed the character to play the game effectively. He's great with a gun and the intelligence boost builds up his skills quickly. With the help of a few magazines, which temporarily boost skills, there's little this guy can't do. And if he can't do it, he'll wonder off into the wastes, kill a few things, level up, and come right back to pick that lock he was having trouble with ten minutes before.

I always build this default character as if he's the star of a classic western. Tough, smart, and quick on the trigger. The intention is to play him as a real hardcase, the kind of man that rides into town, does what he needs to do (or, more appropriately, kills what he needs to kill), and rides off again, leaving the town to pick up the pieces.

That never happens. It's just not me. I'm too much of a Boy Scout at heart. I ride -- or walk, since Obsidian/Bethesda still haven't added horses to the game -- into each new town with visions of swift, brutal justice dancing merrily in my head. A half-hour later, I've already helped two old ladies cross the street, organized a pot luck raffle to raise funds for the local ghoul PTA, and cured little Bobby Sue's stutter. And if do get to shoot someone, it's because the locals asked me to... nicely. And that takes all the fun out of it.

After my work in town is done, I refuse any form of payment like the little kiss-ass I am. I regrettably tell the townsfolk -- with profuse apologies -- that it's time for me to leave. Why? Because somewhere out there in the harsh, perilous wastes, some desperate soul needs help getting their groceries in the house.

Typically, I make this default character to look like me, because I find it amusing to have a skinny nerd with glasses and a Fedora wearing Tesla Power Armor and wielding a mini gun by the end of the game. Keeping with the Western emphasis of New Vegas, I made him look like a crazy redneck, rocking a serious mullet and a close-cropped beard which his sister no doubt finds too scratchy in her tender areas. The only thing this guy is missing is a John Deere hat and an anti-Obama tee-shirt.

Also, he likes dynamite more than any one man should.

The Courier (Level 1):

STR: 4
PER: 6
END: 4
CHA: 5
INT: 8
AGI: 7
LUCK: 6

Starting Trained Skills: Guns; Medicine; Repair

Starting Perks: Four Eyes; Trigger Discipline

(Back tomorrow with my second character, who thinks he is Grognak the Barbarian.)