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Karma is the reflection of all good and evil choices made during the game and how they are perceived by the inhabitants of the wasteland.

Karma levels[]

KarmaF3

Karma levels in Fallout 3

The Lone Wanderer begins the game with a value of zero, which increases or decreases based on their actions. There are 5 levels of Karma:

  • Very Good: +750 to +1,000.
  • Good: +250 to +749.
  • Neutral: -249 to +249.
  • Evil: -250 to -749.
  • Very Evil: -750 to -1,000.

Karma titles[]

The Karma status is defined by a "Karma title," depending on one's Karma points and level. Karma titles above level 20 can only be reached with the Broken Steel add-on.

Level Good Karma Neutral Karma Bad Karma Achievement/Trophy
1 Vault Guardian Vault Dweller Vault Delinquent -
2 Vault Martyr Vault Renegade Vault Outlaw -
3 Sentinel Seeker Opportunist -
4 Defender Wanderer Plunderer -
5 Dignitary Citizen Fat Cat -
6 Peacekeeper Adventurer Marauder -
7 Ranger of the Wastes Vagabond of the Wastes Pirate of the Wastes -
8 Protector Mercenary Reaver 10 Gamerscore / Bronze Bronze
9 Urban Avenger Urban Ranger Urban Invader -
10 Exemplar Observer Ne'er-do-well -
11 Capital Crusader Capital Councilor Capital Crimelord -
12 Paladin Keeper Defiler -
13 Vault Legend Vault Descendant Vault Boogeyman -
14 Ambassador of Peace Pinnacle of Survival Harbinger of War 20 Gamerscore / Bronze Bronze
15 Urban Legend Urban Myth Urban Superstition -
16 Hero of the Wastes Strider of the Wastes Villain of the Wastes -
17 Paragon Beholder Fiend -
18 Wasteland Savior Wasteland Watcher Wasteland Destroyer -
19 Saint Super-Human Evil Incarnate -
20 Last, Best Hope of Humanity Paradigm of Humanity Scourge of Humanity 30 Gamerscore / Silver Silver
21 Restorer of Faith Soldier of Fortune Architect of Doom -
22 Model of Selflessness Profiteer Bringer of Sorrow -
23 Shepherd Egocentric Deceiver -
24 Friend of the People Loner Consort of Discord -
25 Champion of Justice Hero for Hire Stuff of Nightmares -
26 Symbol of Order Model of Apathy Agent of Chaos -
27 Herald of Tranquility Person of Refinement Instrument of Ruin -
28 Lightbringer Moneygrubber Soultaker -
29 Earthly Angel Gray Stranger Demon's Spawn -
30 Messiah True Mortal Devil 20 Gamerscore / Bronze Bronze

Obtaining Karma points[]

Positive[]

Negative[]

  • Devour a corpse (Cannibal perk required): -1 Karma per corpse.
  • Stealing from a non-evil character or faction: -5 Karma per instance (note that when stealing from owned (red text) containers, such as cabinets or lockers, the Karma change applies once per activation of that container. Meaning, if a container is opened once and two items are stolen, 5 Karma will be lost, but if the same container is opened twice, stealing one item each time, 5 Karma will be lost each time, which means 10 Karma is lost in total). Items can be replaced in owned containers after being stolen, and then stolen again and again with the same Karma loss each time, making for a useful method by which console gamers can decrease their Karma, although repeatedly hacking an owned terminal is a faster way of doing this.
  • Repeatedly hacking an owned (red text) terminal (classified as stealing, but can be done over and over again): -5 Karma per hack attempt. Even accessing the terminal will result in negative Karma.
  • Selling ears taken from the corpses of good characters (one has killed) to Daniel Littlehorn via the Contract Killer perk: -10 Karma per ear.
  • Killing a good creature: -25 Karma
  • Broken Steel Giving away Aqua Pura infected with the modified FEV to water beggar characters like Carlos outside of Rivet City: -50 Karma per item.
  • Performing an evil act in a quest: At least -50 Karma
  • Killing a non-evil character: -100 Karma (although, this can be gotten around by shooting them once, making them hostile, then letting a follower kill them).(note)
  • Giving Psycho to Paulie Cantelli in Rivet City: -100 Karma each time so long as he is alive.
  • Enslaving any character with the Mesmetron: -100 Karma
  • Burning Harold in the quest Oasis: -200 Karma
  • Bringing Bryan Wilks to Paradise Falls during Those!: -400 Karma
  • Causing Mister Lopez to commit suicide (either by pushing him or insulting him): -500 Karma
  • Letting the feral ghouls into Tenpenny Tower in the Tenpenny Tower quest: -600 Karma
  • Blowing up Megaton in The Power of the Atom quest: -1,000 Karma
  • Infecting Project Purity with the modified FEV in the quest Take it Back!: -1,000 Karma
  • Broken Steel Blowing up the Citadel in Who Dares Wins: -1,000 Karma
  • Broken Steel Taking the Devil's Highway perk: -2,000 Karma (essentially, it resets Karma to the minimum -1,000).
  • Lying to Weston Lesko that the fire ant nest guardians are dead during Those!
  • Siding with the slavers during Head of State.
  • Killing Timebomb in Big Town.
  • Upon witnessing the Tunnel Snakes bullying Amata in Vault 101 during Future Imperfect, tell Butch to make fun of her weight.
  • When speaking to Leo Stahl at Megaton, blackmail him into selling drugs.
  • When speaking to Moira Brown at Megaton, pass a Speech check to convince her not to write the Wasteland Survival Guide during the quest of the same name.

Other[]

Effects of Karma levels[]

Good Karma[]

Neutral Karma[]

Evil Karma[]

  • The Regulators will come after the player character.
  • Access to Clover and Jericho, good early to mid-game followers.
  • A slaver in Paradise Falls will reward the player character for their wrong-doings with ammo and other random gifts.

Companions and Karma[]

Some companions have a Karma level requirement that must be met if the player character wishes to enlist them:

  • Clover and Jericho need bad Karma to be recruited. After being hired, they will follow the player character regardless of changes in Karma level, although they will often mention how boring the player character is, should the Lone Wanderer become good. If fired, Jericho will not join the player character again if they stop being evil, but Clover will rejoin the player character after being fired, even if their Karma is no longer evil.
  • Butch DeLoria and Sergeant RL-3, both recruited with neutral Karma, are similar to Clover and Jericho. They will not leave if one's Karma becomes good or evil, but unlike Clover, one cannot get them back with a high or low Karma level after being fired.
  • With high Karma, it is possible to enlist Fawkes or Star Paladin Cross. They are not slaves or servants like Clover and Charon - they will follow the player character of their own free will, without any cost, if asked. Be aware, however, that being good characters, they will leave if one becomes evil after recruiting them, and will refuse to follow until one's Karma is high enough.
  • Dogmeat and Charon will follow the player character regardless of what their Karma level is.

Notes[]

  • PCPC To check one's exact Karma value, PC players can use the following console command: player.getav karma.
  • Some of Three Dog's news will be based on the player character's Karma, which can be odd if they are evil and have done something good or vice versa. For example, he might call the Lone Wanderer a jackass for sending Bryan Wilks to Paradise Falls, and then compliment them for saving Megaton.
  • When the player character's Karma is in either the good or evil end of the spectrum, Talon Company (with good Karma) or Regulator (with evil Karma) hit squads can appear and ambush the player. These hit squads appear as random encounters and as ambushes at specific locations where the player character exits structures that utilize loading screens to return them to the Capital Wasteland.
  • When the player character has neutral Karma, Talon Company/Regulator hit squads do not spawn. However, Talon Company and/or Regulators that spawned previously will not disappear or become friendly to the player character. They will always be hostile upon contact regardless of one's current Karma.
  • A player character that has been both good and evil may sometimes find themselves attacked by Talon Company mercs and Regulators at the same time where their ambushes occur. The two groups will often attack each other if they notice the other group before noticing the player character.
  • The player character will only lose Karma for killing a non-Evil creature or NPC if they are assigned to a faction that is programmed to give the player character a Karma penalty for killing its members; by default, no Karma is lost for killing Good/Very Good characters.
Getting positive Karma points Getting negative Karma points
FO3PositiveKarmaPoints FO3NegativeKarmaPoints
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