Arizona Scavenger[Non-game 1] is an unmarked quest in Fallout: New Vegas.
Quick walkthrough[]
| Unmarked Quest: Arizona Scavenger | |||||
| Reach Cottonwood Cove and speak with Aurelius of Phoenix at or in the HQ building; agree to collect proof of NCR kills to aid the Legion. | |||||
| Pickpocket/collect NCR dogtags from NCR troopers and Rangers and return them to Aurelius; pass a 35 Barter skill check to persuade him to allow Decanus Severus to trade dogtags for ammo and supplies. | |||||
| Reward: Legion fame Caps or assorted ammunition and items | |||||
Detailed walkthrough[]
The quest is started by first traveling to Cottonwood Cove east of Camp Searchlight and speaking with Aurelius of Phoenix, the centurion in charge of the Legion outpost. Speaking with him, run down every available non-quest dialogue option with him until one can choose the option to take up his offer of a bounty on the lives of NCR soldiers. At this, Aurelius will demand proof of the kill(s) in the form of the enemy's NCR dogtags to be brought to him. One can then pass a 35 Barter skill check to negotiate a reward of ammo and supplies instead of caps, for which Aurelius will allow them to exchange collected tags with Decanus Severus.
Sources of NCR dogtags are essentially wherever one will find members of the NCR military such as the Army and its troopers or members of the Rangers. Such locations include Camp McCarran, Camp Forlorn Hope, Camp Golf, Hoover Dam and the Mojave Outpost, as well as the various Ranger Stations around the Mojave. Unlike collecting Legion ears for Pvt. Sexton during An Ear to the Ground, dogtags can be pickpocketed from those they spawn on and let them live, though it is still possible to kill them and take the dogtag as well.
Once one or more tags are acquired and brought to the cove, Aurelius of Phoenix will reward an amount of 10 caps per dogtag, with the amount of Legion fame gained relevant to the amount of tags given as shown below:
- 1 NCR dogtag → +1 Legion fame
- 2 NCR dogtags → +1 Legion fame
- 3 NCR dogtags → +2 Legion fame
- 5 NCR dogtags → +4 Legion fame
If one chooses the option "Here, take all the dog tags I've got":
- 6-7 NCR dogtags → +4 Legion fame
- 8-9 NCR dogtags → +7 Legion fame
- 10-14 NCR dogtags → +12 Legion fame
- 15-19 NCR dogtags → +24 Legion fame
- 20-24 NCR dogtags → +36 Legion fame
- 25-29 NCR dogtags → +48 Legion fame
- 30+ NCR dogtags → +60 Legion fame
If the Barter check was passed with Aurelius at the beginning,
Decanus Severus, located outside the tent immediately north of the HQ building, will trade dogtags in varying amounts in exchange for certain items and differing amounts of Legion fame (see bugs). The rewards he can give and the dogtag amount required for each is as follows:
Weapons: (Note: asking to redeem for weapons immediately removes five dogtags from the player's inventory)
- 20-25 NCR dogtags → 9mm SMG, +1 Legion fame
- 25 NCR dogtags → laser pistol, +1 Legion fame
- 30 (25) NCR dogtags → 10mm SMG, +1 Legion fame
- 50 NCR dogtags → laser rifle, +1 Legion fame
Armor: (Note: asking to redeem for armor immediately removes five dogtags from the player's inventory)
- 15 NCR dogtags → leather armor, +1 Legion fame
- 20 NCR dogtags → Leather armor, reinforced, +1 Legion fame
Explosives:
- 3 NCR dogtags → frag grenade or dynamite, +1 Legion fame
Ammunition:
Food:
- 1 NCR dogtag → 1 random food item, +1 Legion fame
- 3 NCR dogtags → 1 random food item, +4 Legion fame
- 5 NCR dogtags → 1 random food item, +12 Legion fame
- 10 NCR dogtags → 1 random food item, no Legion Fame
Notes[]
- The NCR troopers found at some associated locations (such as Camp Golf) are known to respawn every 3-4 game days, allowing one to theoretically collect infinite NCR dogtags, Legion fame, and ammo and supplies (if trading with Severus) through this quest.
- NCR dogtags can be pickpocketed from the drunk troopers found wandering around the Strip.
- Prior to being patched, one could kill the injured soldiers scattered throughout the no-man's-land between Nelson and Camp Forlorn Hope and retrieve their dogtags to gain Legion fame without a Karma or NCR reputation loss. Beware of frag mines placed near or under their bodies as traps. Injured soldiers will respawn every three in-game days.
- Mister Sandman kills can also be performed without a Karma or NCR reputation loss.
- When trading with Severus, the most profitable item to gain from him is the 10mm SMG, having a dogtag-to-cap ratio of 1:79.
- Due to several bugs with Decanus Severus' dialog, the fastest way to accumulate Legion fame is to turn in tags for food, five at a time. This nets +12 to Legion fame for every 5 tags turned in, with 100 fame granting the highest possible positive reputation.
- If one is Vilified with the Legion, but not yet started Render Unto Caesar by receiving the Mark of Caesar, it is still possible to start this quest. Initially, if one asks for supplies in trade for dogtags, they won't be able to get them, as Decanus Severus will not engage in dialogue; in this case, one can still trade in dogtags to Aurelius for caps and Legion fame. One will be required to wear faction armor in order to engage Severus in conversation and access his rewards.
Bugs[]
Many of Severus' rewards for handing in dog tags are coded incorrectly, using the addreputation function instead of the addreputationexact function, and most of those passing the value of the reward to the wrong variable. This means that several of the expected fame rewards trigger in unexpected amounts that do not match the intended "one tag, one fame point" exchange rate, such as the option to redeem explosives granting only a +1 to fame rather than the intended +3, or all of the weapon and armor exchange options granting only one point of fame. Conversely, two of the food redemption options grant too much fame, with the three-tag option granting +4 to Legion fame and the five-tag option granting a staggering +12 to Legion fame. The ten-tag redemption option grants no fame at all. [verified]- In addition to the above bugs, Severus' food redemption options do not give out the correct number of food items if the player turns in any more than one tag at a time. [verified]
- Simply asking to trade dogtags for weapons or armor will immediately remove 5 dogtags from the player's inventory, effectively raising the price of all weapon and armor rewards by 5. This can even leave the player in a situation where there are no dialog options available other than "I want to trade for something else" if their dogtag count falls below the minimum necessary for any reward after the 5 are removed. [verified]
- The option to trade for a 9mm submachine gun will become visible if the player has at least 20 NCR dogtags, but if chosen will attempt to remove 25 dogtags from their inventory. Similarly, the option to trade for a 10mm submachine gun becomes visible if the player has at least 30 NCR dogtags, but only removes 25 dogtags if the option is chosen. [verified]
References[]
Non-game
- ↑ Fallout: New Vegas Official Game Guide Collector's Edition p.424: "Free Quest: Arizona Scavenger
Speak with Aurelius of Phoenix at his headquarters, and after exchanging pleasantries, he lets you know about his killing prowess. At this point, you can ask him if he pays a bounty for NCR troops that you kill. He confirms this. You can:
Change the money reward to something more tangible; ammo and supplies. He tells you to speak to Denacus Severus, who sets up a trade for every Dogtag you bring him. The more Dogtags, the better the Food. Each ammo type requires one tag. Explosives require three.
Or agree to kill NCR troops in return for Caps.
• Trader: Decanus Severus [32/33]
• Dynamite [3 tags]
• Grenades [3 tags]
Or you can stick to Caps, and return to Aurelius, and you’re rewarded 10 Caps per Dogtag.
The type of Dogtag is important; Irradiated Dogtags from the Ghouls in Camp Searchlight do not count. For the locations of Dogtags; simply head over to locations with a heavy NCR presence. You can Pickpocket Dogtags too, if you want to be sneaky.
• Quest Item: Legion Notes
• Caps
• Food
• Ammo and Explosives"
