The Protectors questline

[Matveltovitch]

So, I've had an idea as to a new questline in New Vegas, involving the Nevada Highway Patrol Station you most likely will find early on, just before reaching the Mojave Outpost and finding Cass.

 

In essence, this questline allows you to establish a police-esque faction in the Patrol Station, dedicated to helping protect the local settlements from bandits and the like.

 

Initiating the questline

 

The questline begins after you report back to Ranger Ghost following the turning in of Keep Your Eyes on the Prize, the quest where you investigate Nipton. An NPC (Name undecided, for reference sake in this post I shall call him Al) will approach you shortly afterwards, asking if the rumour going around that Nipton had been attacked by the Legion is true. You can tell him that it is true, which initiates the questline, tell him that you are not sure, in which case he will say that he's going to stick around the outpost in case it is true, or lie and tell him that it's false, in which case he will head to Nipton.

 

If you said it was false, going to Nipton will cause Al to approach you again, accuse you of lying and attack you.

 

If you tell Al that it is indeed true, he mentions the convict attack on Primm as well, saying that the NCR seems to be lacking in even basic law enforcement in the area south-west of Vegas, and saying that someone should do something about it. Further dialogue will have Al mention the Patrol Station, saying that pre-war, there was local law enforcement in this area, and that, if the NCR can't protect the locals, then perhaps it was time the locals learnt how to protect themselves. He will disappear after this dialogue.

 

First quest in the line

 

After a day has passed, Al will be back at the Outpost, and will approach the player again. He will mention that since Al last talked to the player, he's been talking to other people at the Outpost, and several of them agreed with the idea of creating their group in order to protect the local settlements. The player is then given the first 'official' quest in the line, Making Your Presence Known (Name TBC)

 

The quest is a short one, and consists of taking Al to the Nevada Highway Patrol Station, clearing out the Mantises and Viper members (if the player has not done so already).

 

The Patrol Station itself would be slightly modified in order to accomodate some parts of the quest, mostly with an extension on the building's right side (when facing the entrance door), and a new door on the right hand side of the main lobby interior (initially marked as [bLOCKED])

 

When Al is taken to the place, he makes several observations about the building, including the lack of living areas (kitchen, bedroom), deducing that the building was not meant for living in (A Survival speech option can be taken here, saying that these are not as essential as Al believes them to be), and that the officers stationed there must have been from the nearby towns. After exploring the building, he will say that the location is a perfect place to base a law enforcement group, even if the building isn't. He will also mention that he will bury the dead Viper members that are inside the building after you leave, so you might want to search them before you go.

 

The new interior location

 

Returning to the Patrol Station after another period will show additional NPCs inside the building, as well as the new door no longer being blocked. Al will greet you when you enter, saying that the other people there want to help protect the local settlements, and that they've found something behind that door that you should see. Going through the door shows a staircase down, and a metal door at the bottom connecting to a new interior location, called Patrol Outpost Equipment Storage.

 

This new interior location uses the same aesthetic style as the REPCONN Launch Site basement, and consists of a main room with a table and several chairs, with additional doors leading to an armoury with several guns on racks and a computer (called Armoury Log), a room with several storage lockers, each one with a new armour set in them (called 'Highway Patrol Armour', Light Armour rating, resembles a police motorcycle jacket and helmet), and potentially Security Shades, another two computers ('Police Chief's Terminal' and 'Personell Logs') and a single large locker (Named 'Police Chief's Locker', only able to be unlocked with the Police Chief's Terminal), and another room off of the main one goes to a room with storage crates and containers with various misc. items in them (coffee mugs, clipboards etc.)

 

Upon entering this location, Al will mention that the people there haven't finished fully identifying everything down there, and they could use some help with it. On the table will be two new weapons, an Assault Rifle and a Shotgun, as well as two weapon mods for each gun. Interacting with the items will bring up options allowing you to either use your Guns or Repair skills to investigate the weapons and items. Using Guns on the Assault Rifle will note that the gun's magazine chambers 10mm rounds, and that due to the size of the barrel and stock, that it is an Assault Rifle. Using Repair will note that the guns' receiver resembles that of the 10mm SMG, however the barrel and stock are longer than those of the SMG and more closely resemble those of assault rifles. Examining the shotgun with either Guns or Repair reveals that the gun resembles the Hunting Shotgun, however the ammo feed is designed for 20 gague rounds, not the 12 gague that the Hunting Shotgun takes (Guns will make this note, Repair only notes that the ammo feed is designed for larger shells), and that the pump appears to be removable (Repair will note this as 'either a maintenance precaution, or some method of customisation').

 

Examining the weapon mods (Low magnification scope and laser sight for the rifle, pump with foregrip and flashlight for the shotgun) with Guns will reveal what they are for, however examining the laser sight and flashlight will show that these parts are actually broken, requiring replacement components (which can be found in the storage area of the location). Having the replacement components in your inventory before initially examining the weapon mods will allow you to bypass the Repair check.

 

After examining the items, talking to Al will allow you to share your findings, and any of the items that you have fully identified will be removed from the table and added to your inventory, with the necessary repairs done by Al.

 

Al will then ask you to take the weapons to the Gun Runners, and negotiate with them for ammo shipments. Going to their location and talking to their robot about it will cause a representative to leave their compound and meet you. They will initially refuse, however a Barter or Speech check will cause them to reconsider (Barter being 'Think about all the customers you could deliver to along the way', Speech being 'You're helping people out, no matter how you slice that that's good PR) and supply ammo to the group. You can also provide an incentive to them in order to lower the check requirements, by showing them the new weapons and saying that if they agree to provide the ammo, they can have these guns in order to learn how they are made and manufacture them themselves. If this option is taken, after a few days the mods and weapons will appear in their shop, and the weapons will start appearing in the hands of bandits and such.

 

This is all I've got fleshed out so-far, any additions or critiques would be appreciated.

[xEasyPete]

I can't see anything to fault, looks great so far. If you need any help or questions I will gladly try and help :)