Fallout 4 - Things The Game Doesn't Tell You Or Explain To New Players Very Well (in Point Form) [UNDER CONSTRUCTION / LIVE UPDATES]

[Note.: This post is 'LIVE' and 'UNDER CONSTRUCTION', as I continue to add more data and Tips and Example Screenshots to it eventually... I decided to make it available now however, to assist those playing Fallout 4; especially those just starting out - seeing as there was a Steam Sale on (Welcome New Players, heh). I will be adding more Text and Tips and Screenshots and More and this post cannot be considered 'finalized' until after I add a 'Final Footer Image' to the posting (see some of my other posts for examples of this type of 'end image' I put in my posts). Please excuse changes as they occur and temporary mistakes and spelling errors, which may show up should you return to this article while it is under development. Enjoy, however - I hope you find something helpful to you - and have fun in Fallout 4!]

At the 3000 Hours Played mark now, I'm having a ton of fun playing Fallout 4 [as I always say, 'spending too much time Working On Settlements and ignoring the Main Storyline'] - but I wanted to share a bunch of things that I had to 'figure out on my own' in the game, or that I saw others had to (in forums, etc)... There is a kind of Tutorial in the first town/area in the game, and when you first start out some things are explained, and when some things are 'unlocked', but not much is explained in detail after that (there are some Instruction Screens the first time you Lockpick or Hack A Terminal). Below then, are a handful of concepts, in point form, that I wanted to share; especially for New Players, that the game doesn't quite cover (or 'cover enough'):

• If it says "You lack the requirements to create this item" ... and you have the requirements and Perks listed... there can actually be more Component requirements (build materials needed), you have to SCROLL DOWN on the Requirements List (labelled "Requires") to see them - for example, on the PC you can place your Mouse Cursor over the item requirements listing and Scroll the Mouse Wheel, to reveal the other Required Materials that are not showing. It should show a downward-facing chevron (looks like << ) to show that there are more of the list to see

• How to Holster your Weapon: Hold R for a moment (on PC, by Default); the same key as you have set for Reload (The game walks you through Aiming and Reloading, but does not seem to cover Holstering)

• Weapons do not need to be Repaired in Fallout 4, but Power Armor can be damaged and need Repairing at a Power Armor Station, which can be found in Towns and Settlements, and can be Crafted in Workshop Mode as well (they require two Perks/Skills; Armorer (Rank 1) and Local Leader (Rank 2))

• How to use the VANS Perk so that it shows the 'Trail to Follow': (See my article on V.A.N.S. ... hold Q for a bit, then put away Pip-Boy right away with TAB and the 'smoke trail to follow' should be left behind)

• You can adjust the Difficulty at any time in the game, even if it is just temporarily (such as if you are ill and can't fight as well for a while). To change your Difficulty, bring up the Menu while playing (Escape on the PC), then go into the Settings, then into the Gameplay category, changing the Difficulty in there, from Very Easy all the way to Survival Mode (where you have to Sleep, Eat and Drink to stay alive and everything is ultra-hard to kill!). The chance for Legendary Items (and the Legendary Enemies that carry them) increases with the Difficulty - but you can also increase the chance of Legendaries by simply going further South and East, increasing the Difficulty of the Area/Mobs/etc - be careful!

• If you TRADE with Dogmeat he can carry Items like all other Companions can (he can also wear Dog Apparel, such as Dog Armor or Dog Collars, if they are found in The Wasteland)

• You can increase how much Robot Companions can Carry, depending on what parts you build them with (need Automatron DLC to build a Robot that can be your Companion [to 'accompany you on your Travels']), watch the "Carry Weight" Amount as you choose parts and put your Automatron together

• It is "ok" to Drink 'the regular Water that is everywhere', it will still heal you a little; it is just Irradiated and causes some Radiation Exposure. If you are playing Survival Mode and have a container such as an Empty Bottle or Milk Bottle, you can also fill these containers at Streams or other bodies of water, to Drink or Cook with

Don't totally ignore Cooking (although you totally can, if you want to). Cooking various icky parts and gooey bits that you find in The Commonwealth not only heals you, most of the Recipes also give you 'Buffs' - temporary increases in various Stats - and things like Breathing Underwater or the ability to Carry More... Cook All The Things!

• The RED Bar in your Health Bar (that is normally GREEN) is the level of Radiation you have acquired. It 'takes up space' in your Health Bar, because you cannot be "100% healthy" with Radiation Exposure, just like IRL, actually (in-game Radiation must be removed with RadAway or by a Doctor at a Clinic (who takes it away for a small fee))

• The Water Pumps that are built at Settlements give 'Pure Water' from underground (it counts as "Purified Water" as it comes from underground where it has been protected/filtered from radiation by the land/ground, similar to how it would be IRL). The Water Pumps can be drunk from directly (like a Water Fountain) or the water can be bottled to drink later (if carrying empty bottles/etc) if you are playing in Survival Mode; you don't have to go all the way back to The Vault to get "Pure Water" [something I was doing in Survival Mode all the time - if you didn't know this, you can always run/travel back to Vault 111 to get "pure water" from the fountains there - I was filling my Bottles there in Survival Mode, heh]

• To Build in a Settlement, go up to the Workshop Bench (always 'mostly red' colour, with 'tools' on it and usually located somewhat Centrally in the Settlement) and Activate/Use it. If you are "Allied with the Settlement" (helping them out or have already helped them out by Completing a Mission for them, sometimes it requires killing all enemies nearby) it will open Workshop Mode, allowing you to Build in the Settlement area

• To Scrap in Workshop Mode (to 'break down an item/weapons/armor into Components you can use for Building Materials), look at it (drop it on the ground if you are carrying it) and hit SCRAP. Walk around a Settlement as soon as you can utilize Workshop Mode, looking for anything that you can Scrap in the area, for use as building materials. The items you Scrap all get 'broken down' into Components, which are the building materials themselves, the 'things you construct other things with' - everything being stored in the Workshop Bench itself as Inventory

You do not have to Scrap everything 'manually'/'one at a time'. Just STORE or put Junk Items in the Workshop Inventory ('trading with the Workshop Bench', called "Transfer") and when you want to Build something, the Workbench calculates if you have enough Junk Items to break down into enough Components to build with. It will show what you want to build as GREEN if you have enough estimated building materials to construct the thing you are trying to build. (You may also need certain Perks to build some things, watch the Requirements list)

• People can 'steal' your Power Armor... Raiders can Steal your Power Armor if they come across it in The Wasteland, for example. Settlers can even take Weapons out of nearby Crates/Containers to use, when attacked. To avoid losing your Power Armor, take out the Fusion Core from the Power Armor ("Transfer") when leaving it, so that it cannot be used by anyone else (it is like 'taking the keys out of your vehicle') [NPCs don't seem to carry/use Fusion Cores on the Armor]. However there have been stories of cases where Settlers will take a Fusion Core out of a container in a Settlement and throw it in a nearby Power Armor Suit and run off with it to Defend the Settlement! Crazy. Although most of the time, the Settler will simply 'get out' of your Power Armor after the Settlement is Defended - still, take out Fusion Cores from your Power Armor when you leave it, so that noone (for the most part) can take your Power Armor and you can always find it where you left it.

• If Items and Containers around you are 'glowing green' or looking like they have 'pip-boy radar on them', this is a result of the Highlighting from the Scrapper Perk. Any items that you 'Tag for Searching' for (eg. when trying to Build something and you didn't have enough materials, you can "Tag the Components for Search") will have this GREEN highlighting when the Pip-Boy detects you are close to an Item in the world that is made up of that type of Component (eg. Steel or Plastic).
  To turn this 'containers glowing thing' OFF, open the Pip-Boy and go to the Junk page in the Inventory tab, and change to component view by clicking on the Component View button at the bottom ('C' on PC).
  Then in this view, go through the Component types and clear the Tag For Search by doing it again on the Component type.
  Then, your 'Highlighted view' from the Scrapper Perk is turned off and Items and Containers will not 'glow green' around you anymore

• Speaking of glowing green, unless you want your vision to be green-ish and REALLY BRIGHT every time you crouch (Sneak), don't get Night Person Rank 2 (Perk). Although the Perk does state that you'll get "Night Vision when you Sneak", unless you really want to be able to see really well (and slightly green-ish) in the dark or when you Sneak, hold off on Rank 2, or watch some videos on it first, to see what it looks like. [To some, the Bonuses are worth it - and they don't mind the way it looks - but personally, I did not like how the Night Vision worked/looked - it 'spoiled' the darkness and tension of nighttime in the game for me, on that character; and since Rank 2 of the Perk and the Vision are tied together (you cannot have one without the other), I personally avoid Rank 2 of the Perk, for now]

• If you Exit the game (in any way except using ALT+F4), the game will Save your progress as an "Exit Save". Then, when you start up the game again and Load the Exit Save, it will [should] Delete that Savegame. Note that if you try to Exit the game with the Pip-Boy up, the game cannot Save your progress when you Exit to the Main Menu or the Desktop (be careful in Survival Mode!)

• Don't forget to periodically see what Upgrades you can perform on your Weapons (to do more Damage) and Armor (to withstand/absorb more Damage) at Weapons Workbenches and Armor Workbenches. Some Modifications require Perks to 'know how to do them'; check the Requirements as you go through your Weapons and Armor, to see what you need to make them better

Tip: If you are having trouble killing things, look for ways to improve your Weapons to do more Damage and your Armor to protect you from it - with Modifications at Armor and Weapon Workbenches! Also, the further South/East you go, the harder (higher level) enemies you will face. Tread slowly, go back over areas you have been, to see if anyone has 'moved in' and left items/money around. Stick to the 'NW' as long as you need to (especially in Survival Mode)...

Speaking of Killing Things, here is how to fully utilize the Suppressor (the Weapon Modification attachment that actually works really well in the game; but it is more 'realistic' than 'silent'...).

Note: Knowing how to attach a Suppressor to your Gun requires the skill/knowledge, represented by needed the "Gun Nut" Perk of different Ranks (needing Rank 2 for attaching a Suppressor to Pistols and needing Rank 4 for attaching a Suppressor to Rifles)


Here are some Tips for shooting enemies (even groups) with a Suppressor on your gun - and staying undetected (silent):

» Shoot from a distance
(the Suppressor reduces sound, but is not "Silent", just like IRL)

» Headshot for instant kills
(most of the time, aim manually to help this, as the chance to miss is always present in V.A.T.S. With good aiming, that single shot can always be spot-on)

» Stop attacking your enemies for a moment
(they will look around at first of course, but if you don't move and don't shoot, they will not know what the hell is going on and if you wait longer, they will eventually even stop looking "thinking it was the wind/rats/etc")

» Repeat, killing the second enemy, and so on...

Try to remember that if you shoot too frequently, they can hear the direction (suppressors aren't silent, just like IRL) or can see the puff of smoke or something, because they eventually figure out where you are BUT ONLY if you keep shooting when they are Cautious and looking for you. If you stop shooting when they are looking for the source of the sound/attack, you will be ok. Remember, "low and slow...".

• Weapon And Armor Attachments (Modifications made to Weapons and Armor at Workstations for each) can be taken off of Weapons and Armor you find and put on your own favourite pieces/items... As an example, take a 'Weapon you found on a Raider' to a Weapons Workbench and choose a lesser attachment/modification than what is present on the item. In this example, if you want a "Hardened Receiver" that is on a Weapon you found, choose one further 'up' the List of Modifications, such as a "Standard Receiver" and 'build' it on the Weapon you found; then you will be changing the Attachment and receive the "Hardened Receiver" Modification in the form of a small box 'kit' in your Inventory that you can then use on your own Weapon! Simply go back to your favourite gun at the same Weapons Workbench and see if you can put the new Weapon Mod ("the Hardened Receiver" with higher damage output) on your favourite gun

• If people around you are glowing (looking, for example, red or green) and look like they have 'lines through them' as well, you may have a helmet of Power Armor that has the "Targeting HUD (Heads-Up Display)" on it as an Attachment/Modification. This effect is visible even if it is only active on a Companion's Power Armor Helmet. Simply remove or change the Targeting HUD Modification of the Helmet at any Power Armor Station, to disable the effect.
  If people around you are glowing red or purple-ish colour (looking like 'smoke' or 'fog' around them), you may have eaten some Food or taken a Drug that has the "Detect Enemies" effect (eg. Berry Mentats). [It is similar to the "Detect Life" effect in Skyrim]
  It will cause anything living to have a red fog or smoke effect around them. This is to aid in your detecting enemies nearby (it even shows through walls). This red effect will go away after a time, on its' own.
  Note that if you have a Companion that has eaten Berry Mentats, or has the Targeting HUD Power Armor modification, this will affect you as well.

[......I am going to add to this post, as I remember things that I already have forgotten and can't seem to bring back up at the moment to throw in here; but I still hope someone finds these concepts and Tips helpful - especially new players to the game..... Have fun with Fallout 4!]