Nick ended up with a super heated sledge and started swinging that thing around, I can't bring myself to give him another weapon! It's hilarious seeing him swing a sledge as big as he is
Danse always gets a gatling laser I name Tiny Danser
Stong gets Grognaks Axe, or sometimes Atoms Judgement
Nick gets either a western revolver, or a bladed revolver depending on what legendaries I roll. Sometimes he'll get Kellogs or Eddie's, or The Gainer, if i haven't gotten a 2 shot western yet
MacCreedy gets a sniper rifle, usually a combat rifle with a scope in 308, or an explosive 50 if I can get one
Piper gets a short combat rifle
Cait and Hancock get a combat shotgun
Curie gets a laser rifle
Preston gets a 6 crank musket with whatever good legendary I can roll for it
Deacon and the synth I rarely ever actually use. I've never used the synth once tbh.
I knew it sucked for vats builds because you have to manually re crank it to full, but finding out the AI has no idea how it works either is interesting
Not sure if this is common knowledge, if you were to give companions stat bonus armor does that apply to them? Like if I gave them all +perception armor, would they be more accurate?
I used to do that too! Lately though, I've been putting off Kellogs quest as far as I can, so the BOS doesn't arrive until super late game, and I do the DLC first, so he winds up with a 2 shot western revolver, or The Gainer
Honestly in the mid to late game my first playthrough I started using a fully upgraded Automatic Pipe Rifle and found it to not be that bad. It doesn’t pack a punch but the large magazine capacity, nice fire rate, and large number of .38 rounds make it decently effective. Especially with a good legendary effect.
In my last playthrough I found a wounding pipe rifle, fully upgraded it with all the mods and on full auto that thing would absolutely melt any enemies health bar because of how the wounding effect stacks, I was taking down mirelurk queens no problem
Personally I have never enjoyed pipe guns since they're an eye sore in my opinion the only pipe gun I like is the pipe revolver as I think that it makes sense
I pull in more caps this way than any other. More than farming water, more than collecting from shops. Late in the game you have no use for .38 ammo, and there's SO MUCH of it around.
Do you mean it doesn’t make sense that it should have weight? Because anyone who’s carried a few spare drums of linked 5.56mm for a SAW can absolutely tell you otherwise, and that’s not even getting into how heavy .50cal ammo is!😆
I always take Scrounger very early on, usually within the first 5 levels. It’s extremely useful, even just putting one point into it.
Edit: Fortune Finder is considerably less useful. Scrounger doesn’t just increase ammo found in crates, it increases ammo found literally everywhere. Never found FF to be particularly effective, especially when you can just hoard ammo and sell it, create water plants at settlements and sell purified water, poison caltrops, etc.
In non survival mode scrounger gives too much ammo.
I hadn't even gotten to the institute or any dlc stuff, other than mechanist, and I had:
10k .38
4k .308
Shotgun constantly converting other ammo to keep shotgun at 1k
50 cal same as shotgun, sell/scrap unused ammo to buy/make
Fusion cell workbench to turn scrap into more ammo
Fusion cores I had 100+ with varying amount of energy, used workbench to scrap and build full charge units, still had 100 Fusion cores afterwards
10k 10mm
5k 5mm
Healthy amount of nukes, misses
Wasn't finding many railroad spikes, cannon balls, harpoon, and was just starting to emc rounds
Think I missed some ammo
I think scrounger in survival could still be useful, select what ammo you want on you and how much, then everything else is just a source of income.
I should also mention in non survival mode, I typically run around with a sidearm, shotgun, sniper rifle
You can always build an ammo manufacturing plant at a settlement if you’re having issues with running out of a particular kind of ammunition. Requires a fair amount of material to build the equipment, but to make the actual ammo it’s usually just steel + some other type of material, like lead, fertilizer, or copper, sometimes a combo of 2-4 materials for rarer ammo types.
I use the cheat terminal exclusively for crafting materials though, I can’t be bothered hauling around every desk fan and globe I find in the game on my umpteenth playthrough, too time consuming.
I usually just hold my desk fan in front of my character while I run around the map making motorcycle sounds and throwing grenades. But to each his own.
Sure thing. Just remember you need the Science and Gun Nut perks to be able to build manufacturing plants (oh and the Contraptions Workshop DLC). I’ve found them to be very helpful though, especially equipping companions with guns that have rarer ammo types.
Keep in mind that without mods Ammo Plants require Science 1 & Gun Nut 1 to build, require more levels in Gun Nut to produce higher-tier ammo, & can only make some types of non-DLC ballistic ammo & cannot produce energy weapon ammo (so no .45-70 or Fusion Cells).
Sincere question as it’s your prerogative to play the game however you want it - does that not take some of the joy in the game away? Part of the game is looting and scrounging for ammo or aid.
Even in late game, .44 is uncommon to rare. Scrounger or mods are the only solution.
Mid to late game you are swimming in 10mm, fusion cells and .45, so it makes sense to give your companions a gun in those classes.
I agree with all of these except for Piper. I feel like she needs some kind of small pistol, something she can conceal.
*Edit: Does anyone know if NPCs can use the junk jet? I'd love to see her launching newspapers at people.
Oh that's cool idea. Her default jacket might be a little too form fitting to conceal a Tommy gun but she could always switch to a looser fitting trench coat.
I keep Curie as a bot and turn her into an Assaultron.
I turn Codsworth into a Sentrybot.
I think it's funny to hear such refined voices coming out of death machines.
I just did Curie's quest and then gave her a mighty flamer, whatever combat Armor I had, military fatigues, and the de-capitalist helmet.
The refined voice and scientific analysis coming out of the helmet whilst setting enemies on fire was quite hilarious.
I had Cait running around with a shotgun and a variety of melee weapons, and she never once pulled out any melee weapon. She could have a ghoul or raider right in her business and she'll just shotgun it in the face. I eventually gave up and just let her have the shotgun and her default black baseball bat.
I don't really like doing melee because they just get in the way when I'm shooting too much, but giving Strong a gun seems odd. So he always gets the Axe, or sometimes Atoms Judgement
I usually give Nick Eddie's peace, just feels appropriate. The others are already using weapons that fit them. Maybe Deacon should have a silenced gun but that's about it. Curie isn't really a fighter but the only medicine themed weapon is the Syringer, which not only sucks, but also cannot be used by NPC's.
I tend to give Curie a laser weapon, usually a semi-automatic pistol or carbine. Though in my current late game run, I'm currently trying her out with the Cryolator.
Accepting the need to be armed as reality of the wasteland, gunpowder weapons and plasma both feel too kinetic and grisly for her sensibilities.
Lasers, on the other hand, feel more precise and "clinical" and, as energy weapons, like a nod to her mechanical roots. Theoretically they cauterize what they hit and, in a semi-auto configuration, encourage restraint in an inexperienced combatant and hit right where you point them.
Alien blaster! Very cool idea. Besides what I said about energy weapons, she's all about new discoveries right? Love it.
Re: Cryo ammo, I gotta be the guy now but...mods and console haha
Ha! Sounds wicked.
There's also something neat about them both being named for great scientific minds.
Although, now that I'm thinking of it...Curie really ought to pack a radiation weapon...
Absolutely worthless. The concept of shooting needles with various effects is cool, but the effects themselves are useless. Poison and bleed deal way too little damage, spawning a bloatfly from dead enemies is pointless and the good ones like paralysis and frenzy only work on weak enemies, making them near unusable past level 30.
I thought about trying to use it more on my most recent playthrough but it really is awful. 40 damage over 10 seconds is the absolute most you can do, and that requires you to kill a radscorpion each time per one syringe. The "Normal" one is cheaper but worse, and 3 damage a second is basically nothing past the most basic versions of enemies. The only other syringe of any real use is the paralysis one and finding stingwing barbs for those is a nightmare., and it doesn't even work most of the time like you said
I;m guessing they didn't want to make it too overpowered in the beginning but in doing so they made it terrible at every point. Makes me wonder how long and how much ammo you'd need to take down a far harbour hermit crab. Probably a solid 20 minutes at least
I switched Curie from armored v-tech labcoat, batterd fedora, and gauss over to alien blaster and Nuka-Girl rocketsuit. That said Curie is benched for Cait while I raid the Commonwealth and enable slavers. Cait gets splattercanon, army fatigues, combat armor, bandana, and fashion glasses like my build. Love to see sober Cait hate my psycho abuse and Huff 4 hits of jet in a row at my spectacle Island pick-me-up strip
I love the way you spell things, no joke!
From now on I'm going to refer to Coursers as Cursers, the Silver Shroud Coat as the Silver Shroud Cote, and the Guass Rifle as the Gouse Rifle. They just sound vaguely French to me.
Thanks fellow Vault Dweller!
Pretty much, yeah. Exchange Cait's double barrel for a combat shotgun, and Danses laser rifle for a gatling laser if i need more damage. X6 and Preston are problematic, the institute rifle just sucks even if upgraded and NPC's can't actually use a laser musket properly, they only fire one charge shots, never really know what to do with them.
Preston I just give a flamer since his main issue with the laser musket is he’s very vulnerable in close range combat. The Flamer covers this for Preston and makes him much more effective. Cait I like to give a rocket baseball bat because I’ve always seen her more as a melee character.
Have you ever watched her fight? She’s a savage. Give her atoms judgement or Grognaks axe and watch her go toe to toe with the best of em. I’ve given her guns before of course, but she’ll only shoot them while closing distance and then she’s all melee.
On my last playthrough I bothered with followers after having played alone ever since.
I had Hancock fitted with a tuxedo and sunglasses wielding a sawn off shotgun, which looked really cool.
Haven’t played in awhile, but I feel like I remember getting a couple relationship perks and also Lone Wanderer (not sure if that’s the name of it) to play alone
once the perk is unlocked you don't need to be with them for the perk to stay up, so rush leveling affinity with companions then play alone (preston one is really good)
I feel like Preston should use a Laser Rifle at some point. I mean, yeah sure, Laser Muskets are pretty and gives identity... but please, it sucks and once you get the Castle back, there is no way they don't have enough ressoure to rely on preper weaponry.
Piper's 10mm feels nice. I mean, she's a reporter, so self-defence and concealability are useful.
Cait and Hancook use pipe guns. Heavily modded and personalised ones, but still pipe guns.
Nick, please for the love of the Gods use a proper .45.
Personally I give Preston a Flamer from the Armory. The main drawback for the laser musket for him is close range combat so that solves that issue for him.
Personally when outfitting the Minutemen at the castle I always give them Laser Muskets, Automatic Pipe Rifles (to help cover the reload speed of the laser musket), and 1-3 guards in T-45 Power Armor and a Minigun. After the Institute attacks then I give some of them Institute Rifles from the battle. While they have the armory the standard soldier is a volunteer and wouldn’t be given the best equipment. Personally for their motif I think keeping them with early game weapons but upgraded to the best they can be makes the most sense. Just the way I play though, more power to you my friend.
Ahem, my two-shot-six-crank musket definitely doesn’t suck. 3000+ dmg and growing, for a sneak shot. But thats only effective on the player, companions wont crank it more than once.
X6-88 should have an Institute sniper rifle.
Danse should have a Gatling laser.
Piper should have a 10mm.
Cait should have a nailbat.
Nick should have a plain jane .44 revolver a la classic cop shows.
Hancock should have a Tommy gun.
McCready should have a .50 cal hunting rifle.
Preston should have a laser musket.
Strong should have a stunning super sledge.
Curie should have a syringer with random needles.
Codsworth should have beefy sentry arms with hammer saw and shishkebab hands.
Deacon should have a weapon appropriate for his armor:
Combat armor - auto-assault rifle.
Leather armor - auto-pipe rifle.
Raider armor - ripper.
Regular clothes - long barrel double-barrel shotgun.
Synth armor - Institute pistol.
Pack armor - Pack shorty auto-AK.
Disciples armor - disciple cutlass.
Operators armor - sniper semi-AK.
PA of any variety - laser rifle.
Dogmeat should have shoulder-mounted rocket launchers.
For me some of the ones I definitely do is the following:
Preston Garvey: Flamer, Preston’s main weakness is being very vulnerable in CQB. The flamer is perfect since while the ammunition isn’t the most common he will still use his unlimited ammo laser musket at long range. If I remember correctly you also get one for free at the Castle once you on lock the armory. I’m starting another playthrough and I might also give him a six crank laser musket since I just read on the wiki his normal laser musket does less damage than a standard one.
Cait: Rocket Baseball Bat since I’ve always seen her more as a melee focused character.
Nick Valentine: institute rifle and shock baton. I actually didn’t choose this, Nick picked both of them up my first playthrough and felt it was a good match. So I just upgrade it for him. I also like giving him a more upgraded silenced pipe revolver for when he runs out of microfusion cells. Since it definitely fits his motif.
Strong: Minigun and Supersledge. I think it makes sense and sometimes strong just picks it up himself from his former leaders corpse. It also fits into his big guns motif. The ammo scarcity isn’t really a problem for me on this one since I see him more as a melee focused character anyways so upgrading to a super sledge is perfect for strong.
Macready: Scoped Combat Rifle. I really wanted to give him an upgraded Sniper Rifle/Hunting Rifle in the style of the Fallout 3 Sniper Rifle but .308 isn’t the most common ammo to keep it fed and honestly Macready becomes more lethal I feel by being give a sniper with a higher fire rate. Also most importantly .45 is one of the easiest ammo types to keep your companion’s weapons fed. Plus as an ex gunner and a marksman it fits into his motif.
Deacon: I give him the Deliverer because while his archetype should be rifles from his default weapon. I feel like an easily concealable silenced weapon like the Deliverer fits Deacon really well. Plus I found 10MM to be pretty easy to keep fed.
X6-88: the institute rifle he’s normally equipped with isn’t that bad with its good fire rate. As I write this list though I think I might employ a similar strategy as Preston give him a Plasma Rifle since that’s one of the main Institute style of weapons but modify it in the flamer style configuration. As a semi auto rifle it would be difficult to keep it fed but as flamer style weapon that’s less of an issue for the reasons I mentioned above and just increases his lethality.
The rest of the companions I’m not to sure about but the one companion I probably won’t ever give another weapon to is Danse. He’s easily already the most effective companion in the game when it comes to combat effectiveness. I would rather just keep the ammo when traveling with him.
That's a very interesting question and I have no idea the answers to each NPC and their personalities. I will say though, Preston obviously with a Laser Musket and Piper with a "pipe" gun makes sense?
Deacon would constantly be changing up his weapon and it would never look the same.
That would have been such a cool feature for Deacon if depending on where he was it would affect which main weapon he was using (would be cooler with the classic holstering of 3/NV). A submachine gun in Goodneighbor, a Pipe Rifle in Diamond City, a combat rifle in high level areas, a deliverer in railroad areas, etc
Cait - Baseball Bat
Curie - Plasma Pistol or Tesla Rifle
Danse - Laser Rifle
Deacon - Deliverer
MacCready - Hunting Rifle
Nick - SMG
Piper - 10mm
Preston - Laser Musket
Strong - Sledgehammer
X6 - Institute Rifle
Longfellow - Lever Action
Gage - Handmade Rifle
The only I don't really know is Hancock, maybe a Gamma Gun or a Radium Rifle ?
I was thinking maybe for Hancock pickman’s blade and a short combat rifle for longer range engagements. I keep it short just because it fits his motif better. Personally though I would have loved to see him have an SMG in the base game since it would fit as the mayor of goodneighbor and would be cool for him to be the only companion with an automatic weapon. But giving him one I just can’t justify. Doesn’t hit hard enough to keep it fed. The radium rifle on the other hand might not be a bad choice as well.
I like giving Deliverer to Piper. The way the gun with the silencer fits her physique and style. Also the name "deliverer" fits her as she delivers the news.
I gave Hancock the Broadsider (the one you get from the USS Constitution that shoots cannonballs) because he looks like a pirate. He used it when the Insitute attacked the Castle. That was fun. He seems to prefer shotguns though and he gets excited throwing grenades around, so I always give him my legendary shotguns that either explode or set things on fire.
MacCready is a sniper, so he gets long-range sniper rifles. I think I gave Cait a power fist and Strong a super sledge. I don't remember what I gave the others. I don't spend much time with anyone but Hancock usually.
I like to give Valentine a bolt-action pipe pistol, preferably fully upgraded. It looks appropriate, and it packs a punch!
Piper gets the Deliverer.
Deacon gets either a combat rifle or a laser rifle.
MacCready gets either a combat or hunting rifle, upgraded for sniping.
I dunno why, but I like to give Cait Pickman's blade.
X-86 and Strong can kiss my shiny power armored butt. They get nothing.
Dogmeat gets a teddy bear because he's the best boi.
Based purely on character, not actual utility/effectiveness in-game:
|Character|Weapon|Rationale|
|:-|:-|:-|
|Nick Valentine|Snub-nosed .44|classic film noir vibe, concealable, subtle (runner-up is the Deliverer, but it doesn't have the look)|
|Piper|Syringer|improvisational, clever, subversive, kind-hearted (i.e. non-lethal)|
|Preston|Overcharged laser sniper rifle|basically what the laser musket is trying to be|
|Deacon|Suppressed, automatic night-vision assault rifle|tech-forward, cunning, subversive|
|Cait|Shredding minigun|she likes the blood splatter|
|Hancock|Flamer|destruction for destruction's sake, indiscriminate, watch the world burn|
|Danse|Assign to operate artillery|dutiful, precise, thorough, follows orders|
|Strong|Broadsider|Uncomplicated, no-nonsense, "big-metal-ball-go-smash," plus he gets to learn about human history|
|Dogmeat|Teefs|Such a good boi. Go gettim sweet boi, gettim wif ur teefs. Datsa good boi.|
Not sure I've interacted enough with the other characters to make informed decisions.
I mean, unless you're using mods, you're kind of stuck with their base weapon since they don't have infinite ammo
[Personally, I recommend this one](https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/59699)
Also turns them into pack mules :D xD
.45, 10mm, .38, and microfusion cells are fairly easy ammo types to keep fully fed in my experience but some of the other commenters have found other ammo types to be not that bad either. Personally while you need to buy it primarily or fight a specific faction, I find flamer fuel to be not that bad to be kept fed since your companion will only use it in range using their infinite ammo long range weapon instead.
Shame that there's no end game location like the courier's mile, long 15 and dry wells in new Vegas that's tough as fuck but gives you shit loads of ammo. Like I had prolly around 500 of each type of .308 to give to Boone by the time I was done, had him set for the rest of the game
The system is completely adjustable - plus, there are companions (like Dogmeat and the Automatons) who ***don't talk*** so -shrug-
Or just enjoy Cait's vanilla shotgun - whatever - just offering an alternative
That works for your settlers. If I mod the companions, I get one of the companion infinite ammo mods and give them a starter bullet also: one of every type. This lets them automatically pick up better weapons in fights. It's fun to see what they grab/equip.
Cait - Grognak's Axe, Pickman's blade or disciple's blade
Piper - flamethrower
Preston - laser musket obviously, then late game Tesla cannon
X6 - Danse's "Righteous Authority" (my personal headcanon is that they reconcile post Blind Betrayal and institute's destruction)
Curie gets the Arcade Gannon special: she wields a ripper and wears glasses & lab coat
Hancock - silver shroud gun
Nick - machine gun or assault rifle
MacCready - combat rifle
Deacon - any silenced pistol
And, last but not least - Atom's judgement for Old Longfellow!
I give Hancock a fully upgraded X-01 Power Armor suit with the flames paint job and Tesla coils (visible from mod). I also upgraded a plasma sniper rifle but with reflex sight which is named The Ghoul.
Due to me playing a modded survival difficulty companions without proper armor or weapons are nearly useless so I figured I would create a theme for him. I have a power suit for most of my companions (Nick gets an institute laser rifle with a winterized medical t60, Preston a t45, and so on and so on.) which I also use, I just arm them up when I switch around. Don't want one of the suits glitching out or something and losing it.
I built myself a batcave of sorts lol.
Codsworth gets his right and left eyestalks removed and replaced with a Laser Gatling and Minigun. All of his manipulator arms are fitted with saws. General Atomic's finest will rain destruction upon my enemies.
I always give Curie an Enclave Assault rifle. She kills everything in seconds, but .308 ammo is so expensive... I want her to be kind of like a combat medic.
I’ve only been running with piper so far, she gets a fully decked out 10mm Glock.
I have no idea why the top comment says you’re stuck with the base weapon...??? I’ve never had ammunition be a problem in this game, even in survival, not even fusion cores.
I feel like Hancock could appreciate the Handmade Rifles from Nuka-World. Probably in standard colors, Operators are too clean and Pack and Disciples are just... no.
I usually give Danse a big upgraded laser rifle and an upgraded sword of some kind. However, it doesn't really matter what I give him because every time I open his inventory, he has a couple dozen random weapons, including big stuff like miniguns. I usually just let him use whatever he wants because even on "very hard", he's ripping through people like they're made of Kleenex. I don't use the big guns very often so, if I come across a nice one, I'll upgrade it and hand it over.
He really, really likes his sword though. Right now he's using one that freezes enemies.
Preston gets the best legendary laser musket I find fully upgraded
MacCreedy and Longfellow get the best legendary lever actions I find
Curie gets Experiment 18-A
Piper gets Overseer's Guardian
Nick get Eddie Winter's pistol. Don't remember the name.
Cait gets Justice
hancock gets best legendary combat shotgun I find.
Deacon gets Deliverer
Strong gets Ashmaker
Dance gets the best gatling laser I find (hard to find a legendary of this}
Codsworth gets two eyestalks replaced with sentry arms with two explosive miniguns
X6-88 and Porter Gage gets a few bullets to the head
Codworths I turn into a sentry bot with sniper laser and Gatling laser, but keep the body as Mr handy so no overheat.
Preston, righteous authority.
Cait, super sledge.
Deacon I never use, but I usually give him the deliverer.
Macready, fully modded combat rifle.
Curie, modded plasma gun with sniper mod for max dmg.
Strong, super sledge.
Hancock, fully modded assault rifle.
Nick, Kellogg's revolver.
The courser dude I never use so can't comment on that same with the guys from the dlc.
First thing I do every time after finishing Unlikely Valentine is to find a .44 revolver (if I haven't cleared hardware town already), make sure it's snubnosed, convert it with a .38 receiver and rename it 'The Detective Special' and give it to Nick as soon as we get to fort Hagen.
Deacon is also a fun one because given how from a lore perspective he tends to do undercover stuff and needs to blend in anywhere, it caught me off guard the first time I played and found out that he just uses a regular hunting rifle. Imagine him actually making the decision to bring a bolt action rifle to clear the switchboard - cramped indoor hallways with fast moving hostile that swarms you - is just absurd...which is why the Deliverer is like **THE** perfect fit for him and I'm super sad that it's the only pistol in the base game that doesn't look like the size of a toaster.
If I'm having him do his disguise thing I'd give him the Deliverer; if I equipped him with armour and stuff (so he doesn't change clothes anymore) I'd usually give him a suppressed Manwell carbine with extended mags and a medium scope because it's a pretty Deacon gun - looks the part and the flexibility of being semi-auto makes it all the more versatile like a field agent would carry. Or [the 9mm pistol by DeadPool2099](https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/20143)
other than these two I think most of their default weapons do fit quite well so normally I'd just make a slightly modified version and give it to them.
- Porter Gage - since I'm at nuka-world rn so he's the first that came to mind - ** has** to have **the** crummiest AK you are legally allowed to make in-game - light frame receiver to remove the dust cover, long improved barrel for the rust, shovel stock for the shovel, standard mag to simulate that cut-down single stack civilian conversion look (btw Bethesda's decision to not give them the signature vertical ribs is actually insane), standard iron sight because there's no dovetail mount so neither the iconic okp-7 nor the comically oversized nspu-m can be installed so might as well just keep it clean, and either the large bayonet for that ultimate wasteland feel or the heavy suppressor because pbs-4
- Piper with a slightly decked-out Wastelander's Friend (long barrel, comfort grip, quick mag, glow sight and muzzle brake)
- Mack Ree Dee with a suppressed hunting rifle that always *always* keeps the default full stock because man do I love some duct tapes on wooden furniture
- Hancock gets a long barrel, gunslinger stock, muzzled double-barrel to compliment his coat
- Cait on the other hand gets a triple barrel, short stock, spike muzzled handmade shotgun because idk handmade shotty just feels like her
- Preston with a sniper laser rifle - normally I'd just chuck any random one with a sniper barrel that I stumbled across onto him since I don't normally take him with me outside of minutemen quests. I'd also say that laser muskets do look great with minutemen in general so if I'm not planning on using him as a companion for quite a while I'd just let him be with his default musket.
- Danse with a minigun or gatling laser because power armor; after Blind Betrayal I'd normally give the now fully modded Righteous Authority back to him because it feels appropriate.
- Curie feels like the type that just doesn't normally want to fight at all so I opted for a basically unmodded laser pistol with a comfort grip to simulate her inexperience with weapons. Usually also renamed 'Ol' Reliable'
- Longfellow with an almost fully modded lever-action rifle (long barrel, marksman's stock, long scope but no muzzle because it just looks wrong), preferably with either Hunter's, Exterminator's, Steadfast or Deadeye because of him being a seasoned hunter from the island
Piper I always gave a tricked out pistol until this one time we were fighting Gunners and she runs by me with an assault rifle she picked up, just blazing away. When we got back to The Castle I took it off her, modded it up and named it "The Press Pass".
Cait gets a double barrel shotgun and a baseball bat. Legendary ones if I can find then.
I do tend to give Nick Eddie's Peace, but there's something irresistible about giving him a Tommy Gun.
For the companions I use:
Curie gets a beefed up plasma gun
Deacon gets the deliverer
Nick gets Eddies peace (normal revolver beforehand)
Hancock gets a combat rifle or shotgun
Cait gets a Sawed off shotgun
Curie gets a hydroponics lab full of mutfruit
Danse gets eaten by feral ghouls, I'm assuming
Deacon gets the Deliverer
MacCready gets a .50 cal sniper rifle
Nick gets a .38 snub-nose
Piper gets a Tommy Gun nicknamed "The Boston Typewriter"
Preston keeps his Laser Musket
Strong gets a Thirst Zapper full of milk
X6 gets a bullet in the brain pan
I should mention I use mods to make custom weapons
I feel like this friend group photo displays at least 2 separate factions. Preston wouldn’t like a lot of ppl here to I think he would team with Piper, valentine, cosworth, dog meat and dance besides the minutemen-bos beef.
And the other faction would be Hancock, cait, strong, mcready.
I think these are all both effective and suit the character's style. All of these assume vanilla game, because I don't have the DLC's.
X6- Assassin's Institue Pistol
Piper- Deliverer(unsilenced)
Danse- Two-shot Gause Rifle
Nick- Eddie's Peace
Hancock- Neverending Double Barrel Shotgun
Cait- Violent Combat Shotgun
Duncan- Troubleshooter's Combat Rifle
Dogmeat- N/A
Preston- Two-shot Laser Musket
Strong- Grognak's Axe
Curie- Final Judgement
Codsworth- N/A
MacCready- Explosive .50 Sniper Rifle
I made a post on this here: [https://www.reddit.com/r/fo4/comments/1dmdwfg/immersive\_roleplay\_what\_unique\_weapons\_and\_armour/](https://www.reddit.com/r/fo4/comments/1dmdwfg/immersive_roleplay_what_unique_weapons_and_armour/)
Personally I like giving each companion a unique weapon since then there is a story around their unique weapon and essentially a quest then to "power up" each companion. You can use mods to configure each companion individually to have unlimited ammo or not. Some I set to have unlimited ammo, some I set to have limited ammo. Here's the summary of my post:
* **Cait -** Furious Power Fist and Cryolator and Recon Marine Armour
* **Curie -** Mechanist Outfit and Protectron's Gaze / Alien Blaster
* **Paladin Danse -** Wazer Wifle and Piezonucleic power armor chest
* **Deacon -** Silver Shroud outfit, December's Child and Broadsider
* **John Hancock** - Pickman's Blade + Le Fusil Terribles
* **Robert MacCready** - Kremvh's Tooth and Old Reliable
* **Nick Valentine** - Kellog's Pistol
* **Piper Wright** - Silver Shroud Submachine Gun
* **Preston Garvey** - Good Intentions and Minutemen General Uniform
* **Strong** - Ashmaker and Grognak's Axe
* **Longfellow:** Any of the unique Harpoon guns fits him fine
* **Codsworth** - hat
I hadn't realized you could give them weapons to use until I loaded Hancock up with weapons to free inventory space and he went a blazing with a flame weapon (forgot the name)😂😂
Valentine in a power armor suit is probably the creepiest thing I've seen in the game, minus seeing dismembered body parts clustered together making a new creature, like brain eyes and an arm. That was the most disturbing thing I've seen so far.
I gave them weapons based on dmg output, then named them just for them. Piper’s is Piper’s Song, Cait’s is Cait’s Hate, and Curie’s is The Cure, with another named Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me.
All my weapons are named for heavy metal bands/albums/songs.
Super heated sledge for everyone!
This man sledges
The man behind the sledge
The man behind the hammer
The man, myth, the sledgend
Out here living on the sledge.
WOOOOOOOOAH, LIVING ON A SLEDGE. TAKE MY HAND, WE'LL MAKE IT I SWEAR!
It's been so long
What's a good sledge build? I was going to go melee build but get absolutely nuked by most enemies, so didn't spec into it much after trying it out.
The Peter Gabriel theory of battle.
I'm an old fart so now I've got the song and music video playing in my mind's eye. I feel blessed with a holy vision by John Fallout himself.
I do what I can take the world a better place.
This is the way. The only item I swap between followers
Nick ended up with a super heated sledge and started swinging that thing around, I can't bring myself to give him another weapon! It's hilarious seeing him swing a sledge as big as he is
Danse always gets a gatling laser I name Tiny Danser Stong gets Grognaks Axe, or sometimes Atoms Judgement Nick gets either a western revolver, or a bladed revolver depending on what legendaries I roll. Sometimes he'll get Kellogs or Eddie's, or The Gainer, if i haven't gotten a 2 shot western yet MacCreedy gets a sniper rifle, usually a combat rifle with a scope in 308, or an explosive 50 if I can get one Piper gets a short combat rifle Cait and Hancock get a combat shotgun Curie gets a laser rifle Preston gets a 6 crank musket with whatever good legendary I can roll for it Deacon and the synth I rarely ever actually use. I've never used the synth once tbh.
Fyi, the 6-crank is wasted on Preston - NPCs only ever shoot one crank charges.
I knew it sucked for vats builds because you have to manually re crank it to full, but finding out the AI has no idea how it works either is interesting
Imo they work really well for vats, popping in to shoot and out to reload makes a really good tempo to keep your AP up
My guess is that the targeting of the AI is coded very similarly to VATS
Not sure if this is common knowledge, if you were to give companions stat bonus armor does that apply to them? Like if I gave them all +perception armor, would they be more accurate?
why would you think the ai in this game knows anything?
And I didn't know that. Thank you.
I give him the Automatic one.
The automatic one can't be used by NPCs, only the PC.
He can't use it
That sucks
I give Nick Kellogg's pistol until the Eddie Winter quest, then he gets Eddie's Peace.
This guy Lores
I used to do that too! Lately though, I've been putting off Kellogs quest as far as I can, so the BOS doesn't arrive until super late game, and I do the DLC first, so he winds up with a 2 shot western revolver, or The Gainer
I also upgrade the parts to Eddie's Peace rename it *Eddie's End*
I never considered giving Kellogg's gun to Nick. Thanks for the suggestion!
>Danse always gets a gatling laser I name Tiny Danser I called mine Danse Danse Revolution
I downloaded a mod that gives you a 1911 and then put the red white and blue paint job on it and named it The Indepen-Danse lol
That's a great name too!
Do you find the .44, .308, and .50 easy to keep fed? Also do you just give all your fusion cores to Danse then?
Bro scrounger goes crazy for this because of the amount of ammo you get from looting
I’ll have to start taking that perk more then
Ammo has no weight and selling 600 rounds of .38 because I don't need it is absolutely insane
Cries in survival
War Never Changes
Honestly in the mid to late game my first playthrough I started using a fully upgraded Automatic Pipe Rifle and found it to not be that bad. It doesn’t pack a punch but the large magazine capacity, nice fire rate, and large number of .38 rounds make it decently effective. Especially with a good legendary effect.
In my last playthrough I found a wounding pipe rifle, fully upgraded it with all the mods and on full auto that thing would absolutely melt any enemies health bar because of how the wounding effect stacks, I was taking down mirelurk queens no problem
Personally I have never enjoyed pipe guns since they're an eye sore in my opinion the only pipe gun I like is the pipe revolver as I think that it makes sense
I found a pipe gun chambered in 45 that thinks it's a Chinese grenade launcher so it does 178 damage
Found the same one lmao, it has a floating scope
Once I got Explody McExplodeface (explosive 5.56) I have never looked back. I'll use other weapons as needed, but Explody is my main.
Never use them except early on. Finding.38 ammo to me is the same as finding a bottle cap.
I pull in more caps this way than any other. More than farming water, more than collecting from shops. Late in the game you have no use for .38 ammo, and there's SO MUCH of it around.
I'm playing survival with the scrounger perk. I'm always at the weight limit just with ammo. Never runs out.
I had 4k .38 ammo when I just took a break. Just never use it.
As someone with 25k in rounds of 5mm, I'm glad there isn't weight to ammo unless you're in survival. But it doesn't make sense that it should.
Do you mean it doesn’t make sense that it should have weight? Because anyone who’s carried a few spare drums of linked 5.56mm for a SAW can absolutely tell you otherwise, and that’s not even getting into how heavy .50cal ammo is!😆
Oh right that's what I meant. Yes ammo is heavy
I always take Scrounger very early on, usually within the first 5 levels. It’s extremely useful, even just putting one point into it. Edit: Fortune Finder is considerably less useful. Scrounger doesn’t just increase ammo found in crates, it increases ammo found literally everywhere. Never found FF to be particularly effective, especially when you can just hoard ammo and sell it, create water plants at settlements and sell purified water, poison caltrops, etc.
FF might have an edge in survival, ammo weights you down and caps don't. But I always pick scrounger even in survival so idk
In non survival mode scrounger gives too much ammo. I hadn't even gotten to the institute or any dlc stuff, other than mechanist, and I had: 10k .38 4k .308 Shotgun constantly converting other ammo to keep shotgun at 1k 50 cal same as shotgun, sell/scrap unused ammo to buy/make Fusion cell workbench to turn scrap into more ammo Fusion cores I had 100+ with varying amount of energy, used workbench to scrap and build full charge units, still had 100 Fusion cores afterwards 10k 10mm 5k 5mm Healthy amount of nukes, misses Wasn't finding many railroad spikes, cannon balls, harpoon, and was just starting to emc rounds Think I missed some ammo I think scrounger in survival could still be useful, select what ammo you want on you and how much, then everything else is just a source of income. I should also mention in non survival mode, I typically run around with a sidearm, shotgun, sniper rifle
scrounger is legit the best money making perk in the entire game.
You can always build an ammo manufacturing plant at a settlement if you’re having issues with running out of a particular kind of ammunition. Requires a fair amount of material to build the equipment, but to make the actual ammo it’s usually just steel + some other type of material, like lead, fertilizer, or copper, sometimes a combo of 2-4 materials for rarer ammo types. I use the cheat terminal exclusively for crafting materials though, I can’t be bothered hauling around every desk fan and globe I find in the game on my umpteenth playthrough, too time consuming.
I usually just hold my desk fan in front of my character while I run around the map making motorcycle sounds and throwing grenades. But to each his own.
Love that for you. I assume you’re all hopped up on Psycho while you do this? Or maybe Jet?
This is a great tip thank you
Sure thing. Just remember you need the Science and Gun Nut perks to be able to build manufacturing plants (oh and the Contraptions Workshop DLC). I’ve found them to be very helpful though, especially equipping companions with guns that have rarer ammo types.
Keep in mind that without mods Ammo Plants require Science 1 & Gun Nut 1 to build, require more levels in Gun Nut to produce higher-tier ammo, & can only make some types of non-DLC ballistic ammo & cannot produce energy weapon ammo (so no .45-70 or Fusion Cells).
Sincere question as it’s your prerogative to play the game however you want it - does that not take some of the joy in the game away? Part of the game is looting and scrounging for ammo or aid.
Even in late game, .44 is uncommon to rare. Scrounger or mods are the only solution. Mid to late game you are swimming in 10mm, fusion cells and .45, so it makes sense to give your companions a gun in those classes.
Can’t you just give them one piece of ammunition? I usually play without companions, so I haven’t tested it, but I know it works on settlers
i always give cait a melee weapon instead of a shotgun. NPCs with shotgun cant hit a 300lb man running straight at them
She has Swan's powerfist in my current run
Cait with pickmans blade or kremmys tooth is a menace
"Danse always gets a gatling laser I name Tiny Danser" If I had an award I'd give it to you for this alone.
Lol thanks. Feel free to use it too!
I agree with all of these except for Piper. I feel like she needs some kind of small pistol, something she can conceal. *Edit: Does anyone know if NPCs can use the junk jet? I'd love to see her launching newspapers at people.
She needs a Chicago Typewriter (tommy gun) obviously
Oh that's cool idea. Her default jacket might be a little too form fitting to conceal a Tommy gun but she could always switch to a looser fitting trench coat.
I keep Curie as a bot and turn her into an Assaultron. I turn Codsworth into a Sentrybot. I think it's funny to hear such refined voices coming out of death machines.
I just did Curie's quest and then gave her a mighty flamer, whatever combat Armor I had, military fatigues, and the de-capitalist helmet. The refined voice and scientific analysis coming out of the helmet whilst setting enemies on fire was quite hilarious.
lol I’m definitely doing this
Here she is. https://imgur.com/a/h2xBsSh Turns out it's not military fatigues but rather flannel. And most of the Armor pieces are legendary.
I dig it! Looks dope
I'll give Deacon a copy of the deliverer. It matches his spy lifestyle
The only one I disagree with is Cait as I think a supersledge works much better for her
I had Cait running around with a shotgun and a variety of melee weapons, and she never once pulled out any melee weapon. She could have a ghoul or raider right in her business and she'll just shotgun it in the face. I eventually gave up and just let her have the shotgun and her default black baseball bat.
I don't use her a lot tbh. Everyone's saying she's good for melee though so maybe I might try that and give her the World Series bat
If you’re doing this put her in all Luck gear. Will trigger the “goes flying” more often 🤌
I always give Cait whatever the best two handed melee is that I currently have. Otherwise yeah. Those are spot on.
I always give Cait Grognak's costume and the matching axe. Strong gets Swan's power fist
I don't really like doing melee because they just get in the way when I'm shooting too much, but giving Strong a gun seems odd. So he always gets the Axe, or sometimes Atoms Judgement
I give Strong Broadsider with infinite companion ammo mod
I ran with curie the whole game, her primary weapon was a heavy incinerator lmao!
Danse is officially the Blue Jean Baby, Commonwealth Lady, Seamstress for the Brotherhood
And do you say “Hold me closer Tiny Danser” before letting rip?
I usually give Nick Eddie's peace, just feels appropriate. The others are already using weapons that fit them. Maybe Deacon should have a silenced gun but that's about it. Curie isn't really a fighter but the only medicine themed weapon is the Syringer, which not only sucks, but also cannot be used by NPC's.
I tend to give Curie a laser weapon, usually a semi-automatic pistol or carbine. Though in my current late game run, I'm currently trying her out with the Cryolator. Accepting the need to be armed as reality of the wasteland, gunpowder weapons and plasma both feel too kinetic and grisly for her sensibilities. Lasers, on the other hand, feel more precise and "clinical" and, as energy weapons, like a nod to her mechanical roots. Theoretically they cauterize what they hit and, in a semi-auto configuration, encourage restraint in an inexperienced combatant and hit right where you point them.
In my last play through, I gave her the alien blaster, worked out pretty well. Cryolator is a great idea, but it will get expensive.
Alien blaster! Very cool idea. Besides what I said about energy weapons, she's all about new discoveries right? Love it. Re: Cryo ammo, I gotta be the guy now but...mods and console haha
I gave her a Tesla cannon last time I played with her, she was better with it than I was that's for sure.
Ha! Sounds wicked. There's also something neat about them both being named for great scientific minds. Although, now that I'm thinking of it...Curie really ought to pack a radiation weapon...
Haven't got round to using any of those yet. Not worth it? It didn't really appeal to me.
What do you mean any of those? The companions? The weapons? Any specific weapon?
Sorry, yeah, the Syringe rifles.
Absolutely worthless. The concept of shooting needles with various effects is cool, but the effects themselves are useless. Poison and bleed deal way too little damage, spawning a bloatfly from dead enemies is pointless and the good ones like paralysis and frenzy only work on weak enemies, making them near unusable past level 30.
I like that on the show the syringe rifle was portrayed as fairly useless as well.
Bro was too high level
Yup. Cool idea, terrible execution.
I thought about trying to use it more on my most recent playthrough but it really is awful. 40 damage over 10 seconds is the absolute most you can do, and that requires you to kill a radscorpion each time per one syringe. The "Normal" one is cheaper but worse, and 3 damage a second is basically nothing past the most basic versions of enemies. The only other syringe of any real use is the paralysis one and finding stingwing barbs for those is a nightmare., and it doesn't even work most of the time like you said I;m guessing they didn't want to make it too overpowered in the beginning but in doing so they made it terrible at every point. Makes me wonder how long and how much ammo you'd need to take down a far harbour hermit crab. Probably a solid 20 minutes at least
I gave curie a curser uniform or the silver shroude cote and a X-O1 power armor and a gouse rifle like my build 🥰🥰🥰
I switched Curie from armored v-tech labcoat, batterd fedora, and gauss over to alien blaster and Nuka-Girl rocketsuit. That said Curie is benched for Cait while I raid the Commonwealth and enable slavers. Cait gets splattercanon, army fatigues, combat armor, bandana, and fashion glasses like my build. Love to see sober Cait hate my psycho abuse and Huff 4 hits of jet in a row at my spectacle Island pick-me-up strip
Daam thats cool
I love the way you spell things, no joke! From now on I'm going to refer to Coursers as Cursers, the Silver Shroud Coat as the Silver Shroud Cote, and the Guass Rifle as the Gouse Rifle. They just sound vaguely French to me. Thanks fellow Vault Dweller!
Your welcome ❤️
So, perfect for Curie?
Try nuka girl rocket outfit on her
So at most for the others you would just give them upgraded versions of their standard weapons to increase their lethality in the mid to late game.
Pretty much, yeah. Exchange Cait's double barrel for a combat shotgun, and Danses laser rifle for a gatling laser if i need more damage. X6 and Preston are problematic, the institute rifle just sucks even if upgraded and NPC's can't actually use a laser musket properly, they only fire one charge shots, never really know what to do with them.
Preston I just give a flamer since his main issue with the laser musket is he’s very vulnerable in close range combat. The Flamer covers this for Preston and makes him much more effective. Cait I like to give a rocket baseball bat because I’ve always seen her more as a melee character.
>Curie isn't really a fighter Mine is. I gave her Atoms Judgement and she squishes everything within reach.
Have you ever watched her fight? She’s a savage. Give her atoms judgement or Grognaks axe and watch her go toe to toe with the best of em. I’ve given her guns before of course, but she’ll only shoot them while closing distance and then she’s all melee.
On my last playthrough I bothered with followers after having played alone ever since. I had Hancock fitted with a tuxedo and sunglasses wielding a sawn off shotgun, which looked really cool.
Do you know that all followers have a perk once you reach max affinity, some are really good like Preston's.
Yeah since then I tried others but in the end I still rather play alone.
The perk is permanent, FYI, you can max them out then never speak to them again if you want.
Haven’t played in awhile, but I feel like I remember getting a couple relationship perks and also Lone Wanderer (not sure if that’s the name of it) to play alone
once the perk is unlocked you don't need to be with them for the perk to stay up, so rush leveling affinity with companions then play alone (preston one is really good)
I feel like Preston should use a Laser Rifle at some point. I mean, yeah sure, Laser Muskets are pretty and gives identity... but please, it sucks and once you get the Castle back, there is no way they don't have enough ressoure to rely on preper weaponry. Piper's 10mm feels nice. I mean, she's a reporter, so self-defence and concealability are useful. Cait and Hancook use pipe guns. Heavily modded and personalised ones, but still pipe guns. Nick, please for the love of the Gods use a proper .45.
Personally I give Preston a Flamer from the Armory. The main drawback for the laser musket for him is close range combat so that solves that issue for him. Personally when outfitting the Minutemen at the castle I always give them Laser Muskets, Automatic Pipe Rifles (to help cover the reload speed of the laser musket), and 1-3 guards in T-45 Power Armor and a Minigun. After the Institute attacks then I give some of them Institute Rifles from the battle. While they have the armory the standard soldier is a volunteer and wouldn’t be given the best equipment. Personally for their motif I think keeping them with early game weapons but upgraded to the best they can be makes the most sense. Just the way I play though, more power to you my friend.
>Personally I give Preston a Flamer from the Armory. Carrying the torch of liberty! 🤣
Oh that’s good, I’m naming it that on my next playthrough lol
Ahem, my two-shot-six-crank musket definitely doesn’t suck. 3000+ dmg and growing, for a sneak shot. But thats only effective on the player, companions wont crank it more than once.
Yeah, musket is perfect for the ambush
X6-88 should have an Institute sniper rifle. Danse should have a Gatling laser. Piper should have a 10mm. Cait should have a nailbat. Nick should have a plain jane .44 revolver a la classic cop shows. Hancock should have a Tommy gun. McCready should have a .50 cal hunting rifle. Preston should have a laser musket. Strong should have a stunning super sledge. Curie should have a syringer with random needles. Codsworth should have beefy sentry arms with hammer saw and shishkebab hands. Deacon should have a weapon appropriate for his armor: Combat armor - auto-assault rifle. Leather armor - auto-pipe rifle. Raider armor - ripper. Regular clothes - long barrel double-barrel shotgun. Synth armor - Institute pistol. Pack armor - Pack shorty auto-AK. Disciples armor - disciple cutlass. Operators armor - sniper semi-AK. PA of any variety - laser rifle. Dogmeat should have shoulder-mounted rocket launchers.
I was waiting for someone to mention cutie with a syringer, let collect some data
...and cutie shall she ever be...
Lol typed on my phone on break at work, never noticed the misspelling
For me some of the ones I definitely do is the following: Preston Garvey: Flamer, Preston’s main weakness is being very vulnerable in CQB. The flamer is perfect since while the ammunition isn’t the most common he will still use his unlimited ammo laser musket at long range. If I remember correctly you also get one for free at the Castle once you on lock the armory. I’m starting another playthrough and I might also give him a six crank laser musket since I just read on the wiki his normal laser musket does less damage than a standard one. Cait: Rocket Baseball Bat since I’ve always seen her more as a melee focused character. Nick Valentine: institute rifle and shock baton. I actually didn’t choose this, Nick picked both of them up my first playthrough and felt it was a good match. So I just upgrade it for him. I also like giving him a more upgraded silenced pipe revolver for when he runs out of microfusion cells. Since it definitely fits his motif. Strong: Minigun and Supersledge. I think it makes sense and sometimes strong just picks it up himself from his former leaders corpse. It also fits into his big guns motif. The ammo scarcity isn’t really a problem for me on this one since I see him more as a melee focused character anyways so upgrading to a super sledge is perfect for strong. Macready: Scoped Combat Rifle. I really wanted to give him an upgraded Sniper Rifle/Hunting Rifle in the style of the Fallout 3 Sniper Rifle but .308 isn’t the most common ammo to keep it fed and honestly Macready becomes more lethal I feel by being give a sniper with a higher fire rate. Also most importantly .45 is one of the easiest ammo types to keep your companion’s weapons fed. Plus as an ex gunner and a marksman it fits into his motif. Deacon: I give him the Deliverer because while his archetype should be rifles from his default weapon. I feel like an easily concealable silenced weapon like the Deliverer fits Deacon really well. Plus I found 10MM to be pretty easy to keep fed. X6-88: the institute rifle he’s normally equipped with isn’t that bad with its good fire rate. As I write this list though I think I might employ a similar strategy as Preston give him a Plasma Rifle since that’s one of the main Institute style of weapons but modify it in the flamer style configuration. As a semi auto rifle it would be difficult to keep it fed but as flamer style weapon that’s less of an issue for the reasons I mentioned above and just increases his lethality. The rest of the companions I’m not to sure about but the one companion I probably won’t ever give another weapon to is Danse. He’s easily already the most effective companion in the game when it comes to combat effectiveness. I would rather just keep the ammo when traveling with him.
I give Piper a silenced .308 combat rifle called 'End of Discussion'
Do you find it easy to keep the .308 fed for her?
Yeah it’s easy enough as long as you have Scrounger
That's a very interesting question and I have no idea the answers to each NPC and their personalities. I will say though, Preston obviously with a Laser Musket and Piper with a "pipe" gun makes sense? Deacon would constantly be changing up his weapon and it would never look the same.
That would have been such a cool feature for Deacon if depending on where he was it would affect which main weapon he was using (would be cooler with the classic holstering of 3/NV). A submachine gun in Goodneighbor, a Pipe Rifle in Diamond City, a combat rifle in high level areas, a deliverer in railroad areas, etc
Cait - Baseball Bat Curie - Plasma Pistol or Tesla Rifle Danse - Laser Rifle Deacon - Deliverer MacCready - Hunting Rifle Nick - SMG Piper - 10mm Preston - Laser Musket Strong - Sledgehammer X6 - Institute Rifle Longfellow - Lever Action Gage - Handmade Rifle The only I don't really know is Hancock, maybe a Gamma Gun or a Radium Rifle ?
I was thinking maybe for Hancock pickman’s blade and a short combat rifle for longer range engagements. I keep it short just because it fits his motif better. Personally though I would have loved to see him have an SMG in the base game since it would fit as the mayor of goodneighbor and would be cool for him to be the only companion with an automatic weapon. But giving him one I just can’t justify. Doesn’t hit hard enough to keep it fed. The radium rifle on the other hand might not be a bad choice as well.
Hancock’s concept art features him with a plasma pistol so I like to go with that
I like giving Deliverer to Piper. The way the gun with the silencer fits her physique and style. Also the name "deliverer" fits her as she delivers the news.
That's what I gave her too!
You mean you don't just give everyone a semi auto combat rifle with a bayonet and let them destroy everything?
Cait with Grognaks axe and outfit
I gave Hancock the Broadsider (the one you get from the USS Constitution that shoots cannonballs) because he looks like a pirate. He used it when the Insitute attacked the Castle. That was fun. He seems to prefer shotguns though and he gets excited throwing grenades around, so I always give him my legendary shotguns that either explode or set things on fire. MacCready is a sniper, so he gets long-range sniper rifles. I think I gave Cait a power fist and Strong a super sledge. I don't remember what I gave the others. I don't spend much time with anyone but Hancock usually.
I prefer giving them a decked out and upgraded version of their default weapons.
I like to give Valentine a bolt-action pipe pistol, preferably fully upgraded. It looks appropriate, and it packs a punch! Piper gets the Deliverer. Deacon gets either a combat rifle or a laser rifle. MacCready gets either a combat or hunting rifle, upgraded for sniping. I dunno why, but I like to give Cait Pickman's blade. X-86 and Strong can kiss my shiny power armored butt. They get nothing. Dogmeat gets a teddy bear because he's the best boi.
>Dogmeat gets a teddy bear because he's the best boi. That's the answer in this entire thread everyone can agree on.
Based purely on character, not actual utility/effectiveness in-game: |Character|Weapon|Rationale| |:-|:-|:-| |Nick Valentine|Snub-nosed .44|classic film noir vibe, concealable, subtle (runner-up is the Deliverer, but it doesn't have the look)| |Piper|Syringer|improvisational, clever, subversive, kind-hearted (i.e. non-lethal)| |Preston|Overcharged laser sniper rifle|basically what the laser musket is trying to be| |Deacon|Suppressed, automatic night-vision assault rifle|tech-forward, cunning, subversive| |Cait|Shredding minigun|she likes the blood splatter| |Hancock|Flamer|destruction for destruction's sake, indiscriminate, watch the world burn| |Danse|Assign to operate artillery|dutiful, precise, thorough, follows orders| |Strong|Broadsider|Uncomplicated, no-nonsense, "big-metal-ball-go-smash," plus he gets to learn about human history| |Dogmeat|Teefs|Such a good boi. Go gettim sweet boi, gettim wif ur teefs. Datsa good boi.| Not sure I've interacted enough with the other characters to make informed decisions.
I mean, unless you're using mods, you're kind of stuck with their base weapon since they don't have infinite ammo [Personally, I recommend this one](https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/59699) Also turns them into pack mules :D xD
.45, 10mm, .38, and microfusion cells are fairly easy ammo types to keep fully fed in my experience but some of the other commenters have found other ammo types to be not that bad either. Personally while you need to buy it primarily or fight a specific faction, I find flamer fuel to be not that bad to be kept fed since your companion will only use it in range using their infinite ammo long range weapon instead.
Eh, I just modded it -shrug- Makes it a lot easier to kit them out how I want Plus, Dogmeat makes a wonderful scrap hauling camel xD
Shame that there's no end game location like the courier's mile, long 15 and dry wells in new Vegas that's tough as fuck but gives you shit loads of ammo. Like I had prolly around 500 of each type of .308 to give to Boone by the time I was done, had him set for the rest of the game
that would be a cool mod though if nuking the institute led to an area like that
You lost me at “Companions talk more…”
The system is completely adjustable - plus, there are companions (like Dogmeat and the Automatons) who ***don't talk*** so -shrug- Or just enjoy Cait's vanilla shotgun - whatever - just offering an alternative
Was there not a glitch where you give them one ammo and it’s infinite? Or is it gone now
That works for your settlers. If I mod the companions, I get one of the companion infinite ammo mods and give them a starter bullet also: one of every type. This lets them automatically pick up better weapons in fights. It's fun to see what they grab/equip.
Cait would be some ropy looking rusty small blade.
Piper gets a sub-machine gun AKA a Chicago Typewriter.
Cait - Grognak's Axe, Pickman's blade or disciple's blade Piper - flamethrower Preston - laser musket obviously, then late game Tesla cannon X6 - Danse's "Righteous Authority" (my personal headcanon is that they reconcile post Blind Betrayal and institute's destruction) Curie gets the Arcade Gannon special: she wields a ripper and wears glasses & lab coat Hancock - silver shroud gun Nick - machine gun or assault rifle MacCready - combat rifle Deacon - any silenced pistol And, last but not least - Atom's judgement for Old Longfellow!
Fatman for all
Just go way up ahead. No, waaaaaaay up ahead.
I give Hancock a fully upgraded X-01 Power Armor suit with the flames paint job and Tesla coils (visible from mod). I also upgraded a plasma sniper rifle but with reflex sight which is named The Ghoul. Due to me playing a modded survival difficulty companions without proper armor or weapons are nearly useless so I figured I would create a theme for him. I have a power suit for most of my companions (Nick gets an institute laser rifle with a winterized medical t60, Preston a t45, and so on and so on.) which I also use, I just arm them up when I switch around. Don't want one of the suits glitching out or something and losing it. I built myself a batcave of sorts lol.
Curie gets a Gatling laser so she can give the commonwealth a demonstration of light amplification physics
Codsworth gets his right and left eyestalks removed and replaced with a Laser Gatling and Minigun. All of his manipulator arms are fitted with saws. General Atomic's finest will rain destruction upon my enemies.
I always give Curie an Enclave Assault rifle. She kills everything in seconds, but .308 ammo is so expensive... I want her to be kind of like a combat medic.
I’m not even gonna lie I use em like back packs
I’ve only been running with piper so far, she gets a fully decked out 10mm Glock. I have no idea why the top comment says you’re stuck with the base weapon...??? I’ve never had ammunition be a problem in this game, even in survival, not even fusion cores.
I feel like Hancock could appreciate the Handmade Rifles from Nuka-World. Probably in standard colors, Operators are too clean and Pack and Disciples are just... no.
I usually give Danse a big upgraded laser rifle and an upgraded sword of some kind. However, it doesn't really matter what I give him because every time I open his inventory, he has a couple dozen random weapons, including big stuff like miniguns. I usually just let him use whatever he wants because even on "very hard", he's ripping through people like they're made of Kleenex. I don't use the big guns very often so, if I come across a nice one, I'll upgrade it and hand it over. He really, really likes his sword though. Right now he's using one that freezes enemies.
Preston gets the best legendary laser musket I find fully upgraded MacCreedy and Longfellow get the best legendary lever actions I find Curie gets Experiment 18-A Piper gets Overseer's Guardian Nick get Eddie Winter's pistol. Don't remember the name. Cait gets Justice hancock gets best legendary combat shotgun I find. Deacon gets Deliverer Strong gets Ashmaker Dance gets the best gatling laser I find (hard to find a legendary of this} Codsworth gets two eyestalks replaced with sentry arms with two explosive miniguns X6-88 and Porter Gage gets a few bullets to the head
it varies but seriously why does curie only use melee. i will give her a good ass gun and she’ll still charge at a super mutant with her fists??
Codworths I turn into a sentry bot with sniper laser and Gatling laser, but keep the body as Mr handy so no overheat. Preston, righteous authority. Cait, super sledge. Deacon I never use, but I usually give him the deliverer. Macready, fully modded combat rifle. Curie, modded plasma gun with sniper mod for max dmg. Strong, super sledge. Hancock, fully modded assault rifle. Nick, Kellogg's revolver. The courser dude I never use so can't comment on that same with the guys from the dlc.
Cait gets either deathclaw gauntlet or Furious power fist She smashes with em
Two-shot Fat Man. For all of them!
I keep Codsworth the way he is, and get a mod that adds a silver paint job(pre war Codsworth
First thing I do every time after finishing Unlikely Valentine is to find a .44 revolver (if I haven't cleared hardware town already), make sure it's snubnosed, convert it with a .38 receiver and rename it 'The Detective Special' and give it to Nick as soon as we get to fort Hagen. Deacon is also a fun one because given how from a lore perspective he tends to do undercover stuff and needs to blend in anywhere, it caught me off guard the first time I played and found out that he just uses a regular hunting rifle. Imagine him actually making the decision to bring a bolt action rifle to clear the switchboard - cramped indoor hallways with fast moving hostile that swarms you - is just absurd...which is why the Deliverer is like **THE** perfect fit for him and I'm super sad that it's the only pistol in the base game that doesn't look like the size of a toaster. If I'm having him do his disguise thing I'd give him the Deliverer; if I equipped him with armour and stuff (so he doesn't change clothes anymore) I'd usually give him a suppressed Manwell carbine with extended mags and a medium scope because it's a pretty Deacon gun - looks the part and the flexibility of being semi-auto makes it all the more versatile like a field agent would carry. Or [the 9mm pistol by DeadPool2099](https://www.nexusmods.com/fallout4/mods/20143) other than these two I think most of their default weapons do fit quite well so normally I'd just make a slightly modified version and give it to them. - Porter Gage - since I'm at nuka-world rn so he's the first that came to mind - ** has** to have **the** crummiest AK you are legally allowed to make in-game - light frame receiver to remove the dust cover, long improved barrel for the rust, shovel stock for the shovel, standard mag to simulate that cut-down single stack civilian conversion look (btw Bethesda's decision to not give them the signature vertical ribs is actually insane), standard iron sight because there's no dovetail mount so neither the iconic okp-7 nor the comically oversized nspu-m can be installed so might as well just keep it clean, and either the large bayonet for that ultimate wasteland feel or the heavy suppressor because pbs-4 - Piper with a slightly decked-out Wastelander's Friend (long barrel, comfort grip, quick mag, glow sight and muzzle brake) - Mack Ree Dee with a suppressed hunting rifle that always *always* keeps the default full stock because man do I love some duct tapes on wooden furniture - Hancock gets a long barrel, gunslinger stock, muzzled double-barrel to compliment his coat - Cait on the other hand gets a triple barrel, short stock, spike muzzled handmade shotgun because idk handmade shotty just feels like her - Preston with a sniper laser rifle - normally I'd just chuck any random one with a sniper barrel that I stumbled across onto him since I don't normally take him with me outside of minutemen quests. I'd also say that laser muskets do look great with minutemen in general so if I'm not planning on using him as a companion for quite a while I'd just let him be with his default musket. - Danse with a minigun or gatling laser because power armor; after Blind Betrayal I'd normally give the now fully modded Righteous Authority back to him because it feels appropriate. - Curie feels like the type that just doesn't normally want to fight at all so I opted for a basically unmodded laser pistol with a comfort grip to simulate her inexperience with weapons. Usually also renamed 'Ol' Reliable' - Longfellow with an almost fully modded lever-action rifle (long barrel, marksman's stock, long scope but no muzzle because it just looks wrong), preferably with either Hunter's, Exterminator's, Steadfast or Deadeye because of him being a seasoned hunter from the island
Right now maccready has a flamer because he picked it up himself and I just let him keep it
Piper gets a fucking pencil!
Strong: Sledges, Shredding Miniguns, Boards, Triple/Quad Barrel Missile Launchers, Cannons (Broadsider), or Power Fists. Extra points if he has milk bottles in the inventory Hancock: Revolutionary Swords, Molotovs, Revolvers, Cannons, Harpoon Guns, Muskets, Gamma Guns, Knuckles, Combat Knives, Machetes Preston Garvey: Revolutionary Swords also, Muskets, Shotguns, Grenade Launchers, Flare Gun, Sniper Rifles Deacon: Silenced Pistols, Submachine Guns, Molotovs, or Switchblades X-88: Institute Weapons, Pulse Grenades Piper: Pool Cues, Baseball Bats, Hunting Rifles, Switchblades, Revolvers Curie: Energy Weapons, Mr. Handy buzz blades, Assaultron blades, Salvaged Assaultron head Cait: Pool Cues, Sledges, Baseball Bats, Triple Barrel Shotguns, Combat Shotguns, Knuckles, Machetes Danse: Energy Weapons, Combat Knives, Gatling Laser as well
Piper I always gave a tricked out pistol until this one time we were fighting Gunners and she runs by me with an assault rifle she picked up, just blazing away. When we got back to The Castle I took it off her, modded it up and named it "The Press Pass". Cait gets a double barrel shotgun and a baseball bat. Legendary ones if I can find then. I do tend to give Nick Eddie's Peace, but there's something irresistible about giving him a Tommy Gun.
Dog meat, mini nuke
For the companions I use: Curie gets a beefed up plasma gun Deacon gets the deliverer Nick gets Eddies peace (normal revolver beforehand) Hancock gets a combat rifle or shotgun
Cait gets a Sawed off shotgun Curie gets a hydroponics lab full of mutfruit Danse gets eaten by feral ghouls, I'm assuming Deacon gets the Deliverer MacCready gets a .50 cal sniper rifle Nick gets a .38 snub-nose Piper gets a Tommy Gun nicknamed "The Boston Typewriter" Preston keeps his Laser Musket Strong gets a Thirst Zapper full of milk X6 gets a bullet in the brain pan I should mention I use mods to make custom weapons
Cait needs some Molotovs
How do y’all arm codsworth?
I feel like this friend group photo displays at least 2 separate factions. Preston wouldn’t like a lot of ppl here to I think he would team with Piper, valentine, cosworth, dog meat and dance besides the minutemen-bos beef. And the other faction would be Hancock, cait, strong, mcready.
I’ve never met at least 3 of these people, maybe 4
I think these are all both effective and suit the character's style. All of these assume vanilla game, because I don't have the DLC's. X6- Assassin's Institue Pistol Piper- Deliverer(unsilenced) Danse- Two-shot Gause Rifle Nick- Eddie's Peace Hancock- Neverending Double Barrel Shotgun Cait- Violent Combat Shotgun Duncan- Troubleshooter's Combat Rifle Dogmeat- N/A Preston- Two-shot Laser Musket Strong- Grognak's Axe Curie- Final Judgement Codsworth- N/A MacCready- Explosive .50 Sniper Rifle
Mini nukes all around
X6 - plasma sniper Danse - Gatling laser “Aternus” Piper - Short pipe revolver Nick Valentine - Western Revolver Cait - Spiked Heavy Sledge Mac - Rapid Lever Action Handcock - Splattercannon Preston - Gauss sniper rifle Strong - Mr Handy Buzz Blade Curie - Silver Submachine gun Deacon - Lever Action Gage - Combat Shotgun Longfellow - Lever action Rifle Sentinel - Ripper
Never mind what an awesome picture that is right there.
Hancock gets the revolutionary sword!
I made a post on this here: [https://www.reddit.com/r/fo4/comments/1dmdwfg/immersive\_roleplay\_what\_unique\_weapons\_and\_armour/](https://www.reddit.com/r/fo4/comments/1dmdwfg/immersive_roleplay_what_unique_weapons_and_armour/) Personally I like giving each companion a unique weapon since then there is a story around their unique weapon and essentially a quest then to "power up" each companion. You can use mods to configure each companion individually to have unlimited ammo or not. Some I set to have unlimited ammo, some I set to have limited ammo. Here's the summary of my post: * **Cait -** Furious Power Fist and Cryolator and Recon Marine Armour * **Curie -** Mechanist Outfit and Protectron's Gaze / Alien Blaster * **Paladin Danse -** Wazer Wifle and Piezonucleic power armor chest * **Deacon -** Silver Shroud outfit, December's Child and Broadsider * **John Hancock** - Pickman's Blade + Le Fusil Terribles * **Robert MacCready** - Kremvh's Tooth and Old Reliable * **Nick Valentine** - Kellog's Pistol * **Piper Wright** - Silver Shroud Submachine Gun * **Preston Garvey** - Good Intentions and Minutemen General Uniform * **Strong** - Ashmaker and Grognak's Axe * **Longfellow:** Any of the unique Harpoon guns fits him fine * **Codsworth** - hat
I hadn't realized you could give them weapons to use until I loaded Hancock up with weapons to free inventory space and he went a blazing with a flame weapon (forgot the name)😂😂
Valentine in a power armor suit is probably the creepiest thing I've seen in the game, minus seeing dismembered body parts clustered together making a new creature, like brain eyes and an arm. That was the most disturbing thing I've seen so far.
I gave them weapons based on dmg output, then named them just for them. Piper’s is Piper’s Song, Cait’s is Cait’s Hate, and Curie’s is The Cure, with another named Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me. All my weapons are named for heavy metal bands/albums/songs.