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Paralyzing Palm is a Fallout 3 and a Fallout: New Vegas Perk.

With Paralyzing Palm, you will sometimes perform a special V.A.T.S. palm strike that paralyzes your opponent for 30 seconds. Note that in order to perform the Paralyzing Palm, you must be using bare hands or an Unarmed class weapon such as the deathclaw gauntlet, spiked knuckles, power fist, etc. The chance of paralysis is 30%.

Strategy

  • The Paralyzing Palm is a chance event that may occur during a V.A.T.S. sequence. It will replace one of the player's Unarmed strikes in V.A.T.S. with a Paralyzing Palm. The V.A.T.S. sequence is not interrupted, and the player will continue to attack the paralyzed enemy if there are more attacks queued. It does not cost any AP, or do any more or less damage than what it would have done if it were a normal strike. It has a unique look when the player is actually unarmed (the "striking" hand is an open palm with curled fingers while the other hand is held open) but appears as a normal strike with unarmed weapons.
  • This perk is extremely useful for Unarmed users because it allows them to fight two or more enemies at the same time with slightly lowered risk. Paralyzing one enemy, and concentrating on the other is an effective strategy. Unfortunately, any of the player's followers will not recognize an enemy as paralyzed and switch to a higher-priority target unless they are attacked, and deem the new attacker a greater threat. The follower's combat AI will not change when attacking a paralyzed target: for example, Sergeant RL-3 will continue evasive manuevers and attacks rather than all-out attack the helpless foe.
File:PPBehemoth.png

A paralyzed Super Mutant Behemoth.

  • Killing Super Mutant Behemoths is ridiculously easy using this perk. 5 unarmed V.A.T.S strikes to start will have an 84% chance of inflicting the whopping 30 second stun, at which point the player can beat the immobilized Behemoth to death.
  • Paralyzed bodies can be moved, albeit with difficulty. A missile launcher can be used to blow the once-threat off a cliff.
  • Never use the brief respite from battle to drop mines on the enemy's body, hoping to catch the enemy in a blast when they regain their mobility. Mines in Fallout 3 are not motion-sensing, they are detonated by proximity. Mines dropped on a paralyzed body will instantly detonate.
  • If the player is outmatched and has AP left, he or she may try for a last-ditch attempt at a Paralyzing Palm, using bare fists to maximize the amount of V.A.T.S. strikes and subsequently, the chance of a Paralyzing Palm. If successful, the player can try to flee battle.
  • This perk is usable in Operation: Anchorage to great effect, see "Bugs" below.

Notes

  • You can use Paralyzing Palm to pick pocket human NPCs, just like you could pick pocket with 100% success in Oblivion on unconscious NPCs. To do this without upsetting factions, save and attack the desired target in V.A.T.S. with an unarmed weapon, reloading until you paralyze them. When you do, quickly holster your fists. Items can now be taken out of their inventory without fear of getting caught. This can be combined with reverse-pickpocketing techniques, like stealing ammo to get NPCs to put weapons into their inventory, or giving them superior armor, making their former attire pickpocket ready.
  • The Status screen that tracks the number of Paralyzing Palms performed calls them 'Paralyzing Punches'
File:PPDeathclaw.png

A completely rigid Deathclaw propped up against a wall.

  • This is not to be confused with knock-out hits which can be done without this perk; if the player causes a knock-out with any unarmed weapon or outside of V.A.T.S., it will not count toward the Paralyzing Palm total.
  • Beware mistaking a Paralyzing Palm for a killer blow. It is sometimes easy to mistake a paralyzed enemy as dead if the enemy is paralyzed in a natural death position. Paralyzed enemies can be pickpocketed (if they are capable of being pickpocketed) as well. This being said, a player can 'kill' an enemy and 'loot' the corpse, only to have it rise up again thirty seconds later, grab a nearby weapon and resume attack! For this reason, players that like to loot corpses in the heat of battle should always watch the foe's HP bar in V.A.T.S. to make sure it is permanently dead. Always check if the crosshair is red before looting a body.
  • The Paralyzing Palm will render an enemy mostly rigid and immobile when struck, leading to often comical results. Paralyzing a Deathclaw in its leaping attack animation will leave it stuck in a 'bear hug' position, for example. An enemy paralyzed in the right position with the right center of gravity will sometimes remain standing until struck. Probably the most spectacular result from this perk would be paralyzing a Yao Guai with the last strike of a V.A.T.S. sequence during its leaping attack, turning the mutated bear into a living missile that will rocket sometimes hundreds of meters past its intended target.
  • Though the perk says you must be completely unarmed to benefit, this works with any unarmed skill weapon.
  • You may also use the reverse paralyzed pick pocketing to plant a live grenade or mine, thus killing stronger foes with ease.

Bugs

  • Attacking a paralyzed enemy with an Unarmed weapon can be difficult at times. The hitbox that determines where the target can be attacked for damage can sometimes disappear altogether. Attacking such a bugged creature will result in specks of dust coming off it with a dull thud sound, as if the player were attacking a wall.
  • This perk can potentially be the most useful in the game by being able to stack thousands of pounds on companions. Just go into V.A.T.S unarmed and punch your companion till they fall over and then put any amount of weight on them. This works on all companions. This can also be done to Casdin at Fort Independence for unlimited stimpaks by taking all the given tech back.
  • Occasionally an enemy struck by a Paralyzing strike will take no damage, but will be paralyzed as normal. This can be useful when attempting to loot the inventories of NPCs who you do not want to kill or damage.
  • Using Paralyzing Palm on an enemy in Operation: Anchorage will allow you to pick-pocket their body, provided said NPC isn't dead. The first successful strike will net a secondary weapon (like a Chinese Pistol) or ammo, the second is likely to allow access to the weapon being used by the NPC. Used to supplant the Gary 23 glitch, otherwise unabtainable weapons in the "Anchorage" world can be used in the Capital Wasteland!

Template:FO3 perks Template:FNV perks

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