Achilles

I plan on doing the least amount possible this playthrough. Everyone dies. I want to get to Point B before I lodge a controller in my tv.

6 headshots with a sniper rifle using Rank 3 incendiary ammo to drop a vorcha. Seriously? I want to meet the person that sat in a boardroom and uttered the words, "I think players will enjoy this".

Insanity mode = Two #$%^ing hours on every goddamn encounter in the game.

Just picked up both appearance packs and the Aegis pack. I had to hurry up and click them because I have a tendency to hem and haw over such decisions. I'm purposely not monitoring the download

P.S. I started my Insanity run with a fully-loaded ME2 Shepard (had all the equipment/levels from previous ME2 game). Even fully prepared Insanity is tough.

Ah. Guess I will be downloading both appearance packs tonight then.

Err...yeah, I'm thinking Vanguard is too "up close" for Insanity Also, I've decided that all my "continuing" Shepards are Soldiers.

I've been pondering the DLC. I like the Garrus armor from 1 and the Tali suit from 2. Do you get to select them like the loyalty appearance or are they replacements?

Probably.

Maybe I'll bite the bullet and fire up ME2 some more. Still a few classes that I haven't played yet.

I hear that. Finding that while GTA:SA is still enjoyable, it doesn't hold my attention as well as it used to. Almost picked RDR last weekend (when it was on sale) but convinced myself to wait and get it used (preferably after another price drop). Part of me thinks that I need a new game and part of me thinks I need to get back to the gym

I was switching back and forth between the two games during my initial runs, hence why I think my feedback for ME2 was so positive. It really is night and day.

(Not that I think ME2 is as great as a lot of other people do, but it's a far cry better than the first game).

Might be cutting it close. Are Virmire and Noveria all you have left? Even if you use the Mako to weaken all the big-baddies then hop out get the XP for the kill on-foot, you might be a little thin. Hate when that happens

Just finished Dead Money. Apparently my source was wrong and you do get to keep everything you pick up. It was entertaining, but I'm sure that I'll be too quick to go back for seconds.

What's your state going to do to make this look mild-mannered and rational by way of comparison?

http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/02/arizona_bill_would_let_state_nullify_federal_laws_at_will.php?ref=fpblg

I would tell you that I miss it, but I'd be mostly lying.

After years and years of being presented with overwhelming amounts of evidence (that should have been plain-as-day to see), I've only recently learned that there are some people that just can't be reasoned with.

Should've known better than to play a DLC written by MCA using a low INT/low CHA character

My primary beef with Dead Money is that it does the things that I hate about DLC/Expansion Packs - kicks you out of the game/takes you someplace completely removed from the game-world, makes you play by a different set of rules, and gives you stuff that doesn't exist anywhere else (just found the only armor that I've liked in FO:NV and it's something that I can't even take back to the Wasteland with me when I'm finished).

I feel like our President should go on the TV and give a speech during which he mentions the importance of addressing our failing infrastructure or something.

We can still blame Enron, right?

And I have to say that the stimpack achievement has been the most difficult one to get so far. Level 22 and I'm still 1900 points away from the 10,000 mark

More unsolicited advice: Build your character in such a way that you can take Vigilant Recycler as soon as it's available. Veronica turns out to be a really great companion for Energy Weapon focused Couriers (though I tend to take ED-E and Arcade since my EW PCs tend to be nerds) since she's a portable workbench (e.g. you can recycle energy ammo via dialog with her).

P.S. Your Legion playthough might a great opportunity for Hardcore mode since you won't have to worry about ammo.

Hehe, which Legion ending?

Yeah, male with specialization in either unarmed or melee. My first was unarmed, my next will be melee. First guy was bar-room brawler type, but I think I'm going to model my next one on Vulpes Inculta (ruthless, sneaky bastard).

However, I am in the process of downloading GTA:SA for the 360 (Rockstar is having a 50% off sale via the Marketplace). I may or may not be taking a break from FO:NV for nostalgic purposes

That depends. The ammo weight isn't that bad and once you've found a place to call home (Novac, Lucky 38, etc), it's easy to store 500 rounds and take 500 with you. If you carry a variety of weapons (more than 3 or 4) with heavy ammo (.308 & .50 & 12.7mm) then yeah it might suck, but realistically, you probably won't use more then 5 pound of ammo in the entire game.

What pisses me off about HCM is that ammo has weight, but stimpacks don't.

EDIT: 10mm ammo = 0.033. 100 rounds is 3.3 pounds. Getting low? Hit up one of the Gun Runner merchants and pick up 150. Oh, and they totally handle sleeping and eating with kid gloves. You can go days (in-game) without food or sleep before you get the first level penalty. Hydration on the other hand is another story.

I tend to play in hardcore mode (I think I did non-hardcore my first time through), so I'm very protective of my pNPCs.

My sniper character typically used the Anti-Material rifle (w/ either hand-load or incendiary rounds) for "big game" kills like deathclaws (sneak attach crit the alpha male for one-shot-one-kill. Oh yeah baby).

Took the Jury Rigging perk once but wasn't impressed. By the time you can take it, you're either so rich paying for repairs isn't worth it, or you have 50 repair kits laying around so all you have to do is use one when your weapon gets to 75%.

I hate to say it but when it comes to perks that aren't either broken or ultimately useless, there aren't many (demolitions expert doesn't cover dynamite, lead belly doesn't do anything, professional is broken on the 360, super slam doesn't work on cazadors, etc).

P.S. Not sure if you already figured this out, but a Deathclaw with a crippled leg is ridiculously easy to fight. Disarm and steal the powder charges around the Powder Ganger camps, then lay a trap in Primm Pass for the Blind Deathclaw there and you can be in Novac in about the same time it would take you to get to Primm.

My interested was finally starting to wane, but then I finally got the DLC and noticed that it came with new perks, so I'm kinda jazzed about a couple more builds I have planned.

I'm sorry to hear about your mother. If it were the flu or something we could both keep our fingers crossed for a speedy recovery, but...

If I may, you're better off taking The Professional and using a silenced 10mm (the 12.7mm looks good on paper, but doesn't have the range - you'll be spotted before you can take the shot if you want to be able to get in close enough for decent accuracy). I just got the explosives perk with a Prospector build that uses dynamite and a sledgehammer exclusively.

And speaking of killing Caesar:

High sneak (or a SB) then reverse-pickpocket C4 into the inventory of strategically placed dudes inside Caesar's tent, then crouch over by his bed and hit the detonator. Good times

Then another SB to get out of the Fort without a prolonged gun battle.