View source for Build Advice: SPECIAL

{{Guide
| name = Build Advice
| image = AWikiEditor.gif
| description = Forget the builds you used in Fallout 2. The builds in this game are different.
| status = Will add a Builds Template
| complete = 90%
| authors = [[User:Henry|Henry]]
| chapter = SPECIAL Points
| chapters = [[Build Advice|Build Advice: Title Page]]<br>[[Build Advice: SPECIAL]]<br>[[Build Advice: Traits]]<br>[[Build Advice: Perks]]<br>[[Build Advice: Skills]]<br>[[Builds: Strong Explorer]]<br>[[Builds: Universal Soldier]]<br>[[Builds: Turbo Miner]]<br>[[Builds: A Leveling Build]]
}}

==STRENGTH==
Except to qualify for certain perks, the [[Strength]] requirement for weapons can mostly be ignored in this game. That's because the penalty is easily offset by a higher gun skill, and any character can eventually get their weapon skill to 300 since there is no level cap. A sniper might intend to use a [[Laser Rifle]], which has a ST requirement of 6. But experienced players will usually choose ST 1, even though they will suffer a 100-point penalty to [[Hit Chance]]. They simply keep leveling, and raise their Energy Weapons skill 100 points more to get the equivalent of 4 ST points that way. Those points are needed in [[Luck]] anyway, for all snipers. Extreme snipers will get maximum gun skill, and benefit from a ST [[Implants|implant]]. Some use [[Buffout]], and others even use [[Psycho]].

Main Points About Strength:
* ST 5 for standard explorers to allow the [[Adrenaline Rush]] perk.
* ST 6 if you want to get the [[Stonewall]] perk.
* Low ST does have [[Hit Chance]] penalty but this is offset by higher weapon skill (no level cap).
* ST 1 for true snipers is not uncommon.
* ST 10 is considered overkill even for HtH since [[Drugs]] are easily obtainable.
* ST 7 is more standard for HtH characters, who then get ST 10 from using both [[Buffout]] and [[Psycho]].

==PERCEPTION==
High [[Perception]] is mandatory on a sniper, but for most general explorers, any lower PE works fine. Even PE 1 is okay on a non-sniper [[PvE]] explorer. There are some advantages to a PE 1 character:
* Suffers no [[PE]] penalty from using [[Psycho]] and/or [[beer]].
* Is dropped into random encounters very close to NPCs, which is convenient for leveling.
* Suffers no [[PE]] penalty from using [[Weak Healing Powder]]s which he can craft on-the-fly while leveling.

==ENDURANCE==
[[Endurance]] is always 10. The competition between players forces a high priority on [[Hit Points]], so any characters with lower than 10 are truly anomalous.

==CHARISMA==
[[Charisma]] is generally always 1 in this game. Exceptions include:
* A taxi character whose intention is to travel with unusually large parties on the map.
* Enough [[CH]] to meet some quest or dialogue requirement, of which there are few.
* [[CH]] 3 in order to get 4 Companion followers, which is the maximum.

Even with CH 1, most characters can get 2 companion followers, or 3 with [[Good Natured]]. If you do want to recruit and lead companion followers though, avoid the [[Loner]] trait.

==INTELLIGENCE==
A high [[Intelligence]] is rarely needed in this game, mainly since there is no [[Levels|level]] cap. IN 4 allows you to get most [[PvE]] quests and enables some dialogue options, but [[Mentats]] can fix that if your IN is lower. When choosing a character's Intelligence, it's best to choose all of the other SPECIALs first, and see what's left over. Exceptions include:
* IN 6 to get [[Swift Learner]] on a leveling character.
* IN 10 combined with the [[Dismantler]] perk on a leveling build, might yield back the most resources.

==AGILITY==
A high [[Agility]] is important for all characters. As you likely know, AG directly effects how many [[AP]] you have. Now consider this: however many AP you have, it recharges to full from zero in the exact same time (supposed to always be 4 seconds) as everyone else's AP recharges to full from zero. Let that sink in. That means if you have 6 AP and your opponent has 12 AP, and you both burst each other using 6 AP each, then the following applies:
* First, he can burst you again immediately.
* Second, while you recharged 6 AP to burst again, he recharged 12 AP and can burst you twice again!
Thus AP is effectively your character's speed. For this reason, the veteran players here rarely register AG below 8. Here are a few hints about that:
* AG 8 usually means it's planned for an AG [[Implants|implant]] and forever use of [[Nuka-Cola]] for AG 10.
* AG 9 might mean it's planned for an AG implant, and to use both [[Buffout]] and [[Nuka-Cola]] (or neither).
* AG 9 might also mean it's planned for no AG implant, but to use only [[Nuka-Cola]] only and skip [[Buffout]].
* AG 10 means it's not planned for an AG implant at all, but maybe [[Nuka-Cola]] if [[Buffout]] will be used.

The target AG is always 10. If you're just starting out as an all-round explorer, it is advised to register AG 10. Implants are tough to get, and their extremely high value likely means you will want to only implant extreme combat characters later anyway. Your lead-in character will usually not need them.

==LUCK==
The effects of [[Luck]] are meant to be somewhat of a mystery. The easy part: max [[Luck]] 10 is very important for snipers. When deciding what Luck your characters will have, consider which perks he will have. Some are crit-related, so high Luck is usually important. However, some builds make use of a more "sure thing" with crits, which is effective even with low Luck. The harder part: there are sometimes situations when the engine rolls against Luck more than once related to a single action. Your leg-shot specialist sniper, for example, will only be optimal with Luck 10. Depending on his role though, your Luck 1 character might seem to function just fine for a whole season. However, be advised that the lower your Luck, the worse and more frequent will be your critical weapons malfunctions. Your guns can explode, and that's a lot more likely to happen with very low [[Luck]] (and is based also on weapon condition). Your success and failure with [[First Aid]] is also tied to your Luck; you will suffer far more critical failures with First Aid with low Luck, and see far fewer critical successes.

[[Category:Guides]]