Still in the Dark: Pipboy Disappears

[Frozenwolf150]

I happened across Hidden Valley while exploring the mountains, and by the way this is my first time playing New Vegas. It's fairly early in the game, but I read on a walkthrough that completing the quests for Hidden Valley will get you Power Armor Training. I didn't have Veronica since I haven't even met her yet, but I did have a very high Lockpicking skill, so I decided to start the quest by picking the lock to the Brotherhood bunker. When I got inside and spoke to the paladin, my gear was confiscated and I spoke to Elder McNamara, agreeing to do the first quest for him. I was told my equipment was in the chest, but when I went to retrieve it, I did not get my Pipboy back. Hitting TAB just showed my blank wrist.

 

Is this supposed to happen? I tried getting rid of the NCR ranger (I talked him out of it) and I got the explosive collar removed, but I still did not get my Pipboy back. The game is impossible to play without the Pipboy working, so what gives?

 

I'm only using two mods, the YUP (unofficial patch) and iAssist. I wouldn't assume either of these would interfere with this quest, let alone remove my Pipboy. I'm also using NVSE (since iAssist requires it) and the 4 GB extender. Could either of these be causing the problem?

 

I've read other bug reports where the Pipboy disappears, but none have described the same problem I have. I ended up having to go to the console, as one of the forum members suggested, and typing:

player.equipitem 15038

 

This worked, but I still have no idea why this happened in the first place.

Edited February 23, 2017 by Frozenwolf150

[dubiousintent]

I would suspect the "iAssist" mod; mostly because it's affecting inventory and is from the early days of the game when less was known. Removal of items is going to be script driven, and the container populated by that script. It could easily be that the Pip-boy was simply overlooked (especially if the "iAssist" mod turned it into a "custom item") because normally only the owner can remove it. If it was turned into a "custom item", you may find that "iAssist" is now flaky because your have replaced it with a vanilla version.

 

Item code 15038 = Pip-Boy 3000.

Item code 25b83 = Pip-Boy Glove. (Believe this is the default 2500 model.)

 

Others have reported unexpected loss of the Pip-boy, though I didn't find any related to the BoS in a quick search. The "additem" or "equipitem" console commands are simplest solutions.

 

-Dubious-

Edited February 23, 2017 by dubiousintent

[Frozenwolf150]

I would suspect the "iAssist" mod; mostly because it's affecting inventory and is from the early days of the game when less was known. Removal of items is going to be script driven, and the container populated by that script. It could easily be that the Pip-boy was simply overlooked (especially if the "iAssist" mod turned it into a "custom item") because normally only the owner can remove it. If it was turned into a "custom item", you may find that "iAssist" is now flaky because your have replaced it with a vanilla version.

 

Item code 15038 = Pip-Boy 3000.

Item code 25b83 = Pip-Boy Glove. (Believe this is the default 2500 model.)

 

Others have reported unexpected loss of the Pip-boy, though I didn't find any related to the BoS in a quick search. The "additem" or "equipitem" console commands are simplest solutions.

 

-Dubious-

I tried uninstalling iAssist in order to rule it out, and then loaded a save from before the event where my items are confiscated, but the same thing still happened. So now I'm not so sure that it's the culprit. The Pipboy itself is what disappeared, not the glove, which was still visible on my character's hand. I didn't have to add it back either, as using the "equipitem" command worked right away.

 

Regardless, I'm considering uninstalling it because it's rather glitchy. Sometimes there's a significant delay in the item sorting scripts, and it overloads my inventory with excess weight even though I know I stashed the items in question.

[dubiousintent]

Inventory systems are (to the best of my knowledge) script based. And uninstalling an inventory system usually results in lost gear. Removing anything script based is usually a reason to start over, especially if the script makes changes to "form lists". Those changes are typically not reversed simply by uninstalling the mod. Which not to say all scripts change "form lists". But the question really comes down to: "how much further time do you want to invest in a game that is much more likely to be fatally corrupted now than normal? What if the problem doesn't show up until 100 hours in?"

 

If you do decide to start over, I highly suggest you start by reading the "FNV General Mod Use Advice" article to get an idea of how to build a more stable game.

 

-Dubious-

Edited February 23, 2017 by dubiousintent

[Frozenwolf150]

Inventory systems are (to the best of my knowledge) script based. And uninstalling an inventory system usually results in lost gear. Removing anything script based is usually a reason to start over, especially if the script makes changes to "form lists". Those changes are typically not reversed simply by uninstalling the mod. Which not to say all scripts change "form lists". But the question really comes down to: "how much further time do you want to invest in a game that is much more likely to be fatally corrupted now than normal? What if the problem doesn't show up until 100 hours in?"

 

If you do decide to start over, I highly suggest you start by reading the "FNV General Mod Use Advice" article to get an idea of how to build a more stable game.

 

-Dubious-

Thanks for the advice. I don't really want to start over unless I have to. I followed the uninstallation instructions on the front page for iAssist, and I'm not running any mods other than YUP and MCM. This is my first time playing NV, although not my first time modding a Bethesda game (I have TES Anthology) so I suppose I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.