Highway to the Danger Zone[1] is an unmarked quest in Fallout: New Vegas.
Quick walkthrough[]
| Unmarked Quest: Highway to the Danger Zone | |||||||||||||
| Reach Nellis Air Force Base northeast of the New Vegas medical clinic and speak with George on the road slightly to the southwest. | |||||||||||||
| Agree to his 300-caps wager to reach the Nellis perimeter without dying; pass a 40 Bsrter skill check to lower the wager to 200 caps | |||||||||||||
| Reach the Nellis chainlink fence perimeter without being killed by the Boomers' artillery fire and speak with the Boomer guard and Raquel. | |||||||||||||
| Return to George to collect the earned caps; pass a 60 Speech check to intimidate him into giving an additional 100 caps. | |||||||||||||
| Reward: 300-600 caps (skill-dependant) Access to inner areas of Nellis AFB. | |||||||||||||
| Leads to: Volare! | |||||||||||||
Detailed walkthrough[]
When traveling to Nellis Air Force Base, either independently or being sent by a major faction during their quest arcs, one will encounter the prospector, George idling on the road leading towards the destroyed town outside the base perimeter. He will initially warn about crossing further into the territory of the Boomers, then offers to make their trip interesting by holding a wager of 300 caps (for a total of 600 on success) that the player character can make it into the base without getting blown up by the tribe's defensive howitzers. One can pass a 40 Barter skill check to lower the wager amount to 200 caps, for a total of 400 caps on success.
Once the terms of the wager are set, George will provide the Nellis artillery timing details note to give them some assistance in figuring out a strategy, shown below:
One thing to note is that the Boomers' artillery will always fire on the player character with great accuracy, regardless of one's Sneak skill level or using Stealth Boys, so it is advisable to keep moving at all times during the barrage to get to the nearest cover quickly. On Hardcore mode, companions are likely to die if they follow the player character and get hit by the artillery, so it is advisable to have them wait outside the perimeter until after making it through.
From the road leading into the destroyed town, there are several methods one can utilize to reach the gates of Nellis:
- The ideal way is to abide by the instructions in George's note and closely follow the rock wall on the left after going into the artillery field, and to not stop moving. When approaching the corner where the fence meets the rock wall, the shelling will stop. From there, the fence should be followed to the entrance.
- Turbo can be used as well, in order to move faster than the artillery shells. The downside is that the player character will need to have several hits of Turbo, and of course, there is the risk of addiction.
- Another way to easily get through is to hug the right rock wall while entering from the road, and running as fast as possible towards the Very Hard-locked railroad doors. Once the doors are reached, turn around and continue hugging the right rock wall up the railroad tracks. This will eventually lead to the fence. Turn left and hug the fence until reaching the main gate.
- The aforementioned railroad doors lead out from the underground tracks which can be accessed from a Very Hard-locked entrance outside the perimeter, south-east of Raul's shack.
- A simpler, but more expensive way is possible with high enough DT or HP. This involves stocking up on stimpaks and using the hotkey wheel for easy access. Start by sprinting straight towards the fence upon leaving the small canyon, and use the stimpaks whenever hit.
- Wait out the bombardment method: A recess along the left side wall of rock cannot be hit by the shells. Run straight to it while staying close to the wall, then crouch and wait till the bombardment finishes.
After reaching the front gate, one will speak with the Boomer guard and then Raquel who takes them into Nellis to speak with Pearl, starting the side quest Volare! Afterward, one will be able to freely enter and exit the base without being bombarded again, allowing for returning to George. He will congratulate their success, to which one can demand their wagered caps or simply thank him for the compliment, where he will promptly agree and neglect to pay the caps. One can also pass a 60 Speech check to intimidate him into paying an additional 100 caps on threat of direct artillery fire. (If you chose to give him 200 caps and then intimidated him into giving you an additional 100 caps, you'll be rewarded with 700 caps.)
Behind the scenes[]
The quest name, "Highway To The Danger Zone" is a reference to a line from the chorus of the rock song "Danger Zone" featured on the soundtrack to the 1986 American motion picture Top Gun, composed by Giorgio Moroder and Tom Whitlock, and performed by Kenny Loggins.
References[]
- ↑ Quest name from Fallout: New Vegas Official Game Guide
