A DLC delay mod, but "expanded"...

[lordvico]

Well, there is some mods, like DLC Adblocker and Delay DLC Plus that remove the annoying spam of DLC mission activatiors right after exiting Vault 101, making Springvale the capital of post-apocalyptic spam... /justkidding

 

Anyway, althrough i like those mods and currently use DLC Adblocker in my installation, i felt reducing the radius of radios and activators of the starting missions... not enough to reduce the "noise" of the flow of the story of the game, tempting players to leave the MQ path to go to entirely separate landmasses instead of looking for James.

 

Different from ordinary quests like Power of Atom, Big Trouble in Big Town or Those (the ones nearest to Megaton in that height of the story), deviate from MQ to make then make LW to be so "distant" from the original purpose of his mission (that is find his father on the vicinity).

 

If DLCs offered a false/ambiguous hint to the LW (lore-wise of course) to search for James in those locations, then would be reasonable to have them to start right after leaving Vault 101. But we know the real reason all DLCs starts at same time is to allow veteran players that freshly bought them to go straight to the missions instead of pass again by the hurdles of vanilla quests to reach each DLC.

 

At that moment that would make sense, but after so many years passed, with DLCs basically being a part of the game (i mean part of the "vanilla environment"), i think its time to think in making changes similar to how DLC Adblocker and Delay DLC does... but also "integrating" seamlessly those trigger quests to the "scheme of things" of the base game.

 

I suggest the following modifications:

 

• Broken Steel: I know mods implementing this concepts already exists, but i never managed to make them work, that's why i'm leaving here again - remove the ridiculous ending move when the player faints restarting the purifier (or Fawkes/Charon/RL-3 did the deed instead). The original purpose of self-sacrifice doesn't make sense anymore after this DLC, so no need to call the player an egocentric stupid to do a rational action to send a radiation-resistant pal to do a mortal for you task to do. After the player wakes up from the coma not force him to be enlisted to BoS and allow the rest of the MQ to be indefinitely delayed. LW's main purpose - follow the legacy of their father - was already achieved with the purifier working, and although LW are in debt with the BoS for all the help, it doesn't mean they bought his freedom with this;
• Point Lookout: Make the boat appear only after the two-weeks span that LW was in coma after reactivating the purifier (Take it Back and start of BS). That would introduce some dynamicism to the unchanging Wasteland. A fricking boat appearing from nowhere during the time LW is knocked out would pass the impression to the player that lots of things changed during that time, stimulating the player to explore more. Maybe adding a line (or note, if VA are a constraint) saying the ferryman came to DC for the "purified water thing" would add a layer of immersion in the surprise visit;
• The Pitt: didn't play this DLC yet, but i think it would benefit from a similar change to PL (making the location where the DLC starts to appear pre-DLC until player completes Take it Back, then revert to the post-DLC to activate the quest - apart to lift the activation like DLC Adblocker and Delay DLC Plus does);
• Operation: Anchorage: I played this DLC once; didn't think this is so much "flow-breaking" that the others, so i don't think this one needs to be changed (apart to lift the activation like DLC Adblocker and Delay DLC Plus does). Some players report completing this DLC during the events of MQ makes the player "too op", i didn't feel this, but if is the case then delaying it in a similar way to both above (or tie the activation of this DLC to the agreement LW can do with the Outcasts in their HQ);
• Mothership Zeta: This is the worst offender IMO. I felt the abduction sequence should only trigger after the very last BS misison (Who dares wins) to be completed. Somewhat i find strange that the player should to follow the BoS in attacking the Enclave new HQ even knowing that Zeta have superior firepower that could destroy the enclave better that their own satellite array. Its totally my opinion, but i think Zeta should happen only after MQ and BS have been completed. Before that the pre-DLC behavior of the alien crash site should be retained (no abduction and the player being able to pick the blaster and the ammo).

What do you guys think?