Observation One

Wednesday, September 5, 2014

Bethesdas Fallout New Vegas

Figured World: A figured world is a realm ofmychoosing that can be anything that I find
interesting. In this world, it will have its own set of rules and normal behaviors. It is a world
thatIwill observe and take notes on.

My figured world will be about a game series called "Fallout. Fallout is a post-apocalyptic
world where the nation was destroyed in a war with China. Eventually the war went nuclear and
now the world is a giant wasteland filled with mutated creatures, raiders, and small pockets of
civilization that are trying to survive. The player, known as a courier, will traverse the vast and
desolate wasteland that is the remnants of the pre-war era. By traveling through the wasteland,
the courier can run into anything. The main rule of this world is to survive. Survive by using
any means necessary. That could mean anything from trying to join a town and survive together
by sharing food and shelter. Alternatively, you could attack the town and take everything for
yourself. Another convention for this game is information. Information means everything. By
gaining information, the player can make better decisions along his quests, and he can upgrade
most of his equipment in the game. One major rule for this figured world is shoot first and talks
second. The person who can kill his opponent first will survive and live on. If any person is
traveling between towns or locations, anything can happen. Most things that do happen need to
be dealt with by force and shooting. Only on very rare occasions such as finding a new city or
discovering a friend will the player not have to use his weapon while traveling. This world is
full of danger and every encounter can mean you last.

Actors: Are the people in the community, they are the ones that do the talking and they keep the
community together. Every person is an actor.
The Courier: Is the main character of the game. He was given a package
(The Platinum Chip) to deliver to Mr. House who is the Mysterious leader of New Vegas
Caesar: Is the dictator of Caesars Legion. He wants to conquer all the land
possible and enslave everyone.
Judy: Is the owner of the saloon in Goodsprings. In addition, she acts like mayor
of the town. Everyone in the town look towards her as governor.
General Lee Oliver: He is the commanding officer of all NCR forces in the
Mojave Desert area.
Legate Lanius: Is the second in command of Caesars Legion, directly under
Caesar himself. He controls all military personal in the Legion.
Mr. House: He is the ruler of New Vegas, technically New Vegas does not have
a rule but Mr. House is the one who restore it after the apocalypses happened, so
everyone there greatly respects his mysterious decisions. No one has ever seen Mr.
House in person.

Artifacts:are things or objects that are found in the community, forexample,a gamer community
would have lots of gamer gear or emblems around them.Ora town would have a statue of their
first Mayor in the center of town. An artifact is an object that can identify that community.
The Platinum Chip: Is a casino chip that has stored in it, information that can
unlock a hidden power in the Mojave Desert. Near the end of the game, the Courier can
choose to use this power to help him in the Battle of Hoover Dam, or he can destroy it.
The Colorado River: The River that splits the territory of the NCR and Caesars
Legion. This river runs through the Hoover Dam that is a major location throughout the
game.

Communities: Communities are a group of people who share similar interests or ideas. They
communicate with each other and all have a common thread that links every person in the
community together.
Northern California Republic (NCR): They are the protectors of the land. They
have expanded from California and are trying to restore peace to any territory they can
take over.
Caesars Legion: A large military group that only wants to control everything in
the west. They want to enslave everyone in the Mojave Desert and kill all NCR
personnel.
Fiends: Are a large group of drug addicts who attack anyone who enters their
territory.
Goodsprings: Is the starting town for my figured world. It is mainly a peaceful
town and not too many quests go through the town.
The Boomers: Are a group of explosive experts who have made their base at the
Nelis Air force Base. It is an old-world military airport and it houses many planes and
bombers, most of which are unable to fly.

Domain: Domain is the background of the figured world; it is the scenery or the setting of the
figured world.
Mojave Desert/Wasteland: Throughout my observations, I mention these two
places. They are the one in the same. It is an area that is almost uninhabitable but
somehow small pockets of humanity manage to survive even though there are extremely
limited provisions, and much of the area is rubble or desert. It is the main setting for my
figured world and everyone I talk about in my observations. The Mojave Desert is east
of California and west of the Caesars Legions area.

Practices of the Community:Are things that the community does. For example, a certain
community might have a pumpkin eating contest every year, and it is a huge event. The
practices of the community are also the way that people handle themselves around each other.
Some communities are very plain and friendly, while others are very serious and secretive.
Shooting: If a person cannot use a gun, then they are probably going to die. The
very first quest of the game teaches the player how to shoot anything in the game
Survival: Is the underlying theme of the game. Everyone is struggling to survive
in a very limited environment.

Literacy Practices: Are the basictalking, reading, and writing of the community. They
contribute to the overall literacy of the community. How does the community communicate to
each other and to the other communities around them?
Slander: All throughout the game, characters commonly use inappropriate words
in their normal speech. Even in high society areas of my figured world slander is used.
Stranger: Anywhere that the player travels the people of the area will call by
stranger as a greeting.


Observation One:
Start-5:00mins: The game starts with a slowly moving scene of a picture on a wall that slowly
expands to perceive an empty old casino in New Vegas. As the scene continues,
the slowly backing image reveals a crowded city street full of citizens that are having fun on the
strip. They are drinking, playing cards, and enjoying the comforts of the old Las Vegas
Strip. As the scene continues backward and ever expanding, we see a couple of securitrons in
pursuit of drunkard. The scene continues backward and shows a bigger picture of New Vegas,
not as a place of enjoyment, but as a place surrounded and intertwined by evil and
mystery. Then a member of the Brotherhood of Steel comes into focus, he is holding a rifle that
is pointed towards a raider who is trying to get into the strip. The brother shoots and a new scene
appears, one of a battle between the inhabitants of the area surrounding The Strip. The bullet
pierces the raiders skull, and the scene once again continues outward away from the lights of the
strip to a location that is on a mountain peak behind the strip. There we see
a group of Caesars Legionaries preparing for the inevitable war with the NCR. Now the
scene changes to a picture of a Vault-Tec Vault, which was a shelter for the people of the old
world against the atomic bombs. A Narrator begins to talk saying, War. War never
changes. When atomic fire consumed the earth, those who survived did so in great,
underground vaults. When they opened, their inhabitants set out across ruins of the old world to
build new societies, establish new villages, and form new tribes. As decades passed, what had
been the American southwest united beneath the flag of the New California Republic, dedicated
to old-world values of democracy and the rule of law. As the Republic grew, so did its needs.
Scouts spread east, seeking territory and wealth, in the dry and merciless expanse of the Mojave
Desert. They returned with tales of a city untouched by the warheads that had scorched the rest
of the world, and a great wall spanning the Colorado River. The NCR mobilized its army and set
it east to occupy the Hoover Dam, and restore it to working condition. However, across the
Colorado, another society had arisen under a different flag. A vast army of slaves, forged in the
conquest of 86 tribes: Caesar's Legion. Four years have passed since the Republic held the Dam
- just barely - against the Legion's onslaught. The Legion did not retreat. Across the river, they
gathered strength. Campfires burned, training drums beat. Through it all, the New Vegas Strip
has stayed open for business under the control of its mysterious overseer, Mr. House, and his
army of rehabilitated Tribals and police robots. You are a courier, hired by the Mojave Express,
to deliver a package to the New Vegas Strip. What seemed like a simple delivery job has taken a
turnfor the worse.
5:00-15:00mins
Here is where the game actually starts. I wake up and see a ceiling fan gently blowing down on
me. As I try to get up a doctor talks to me telling me that, I have been out cold for a couple of
days. He tells me to take it east, and that he is a friend. He asks me for my name in a very polite
manner. I tell him my name is Rich. The doctor tells me that he had to operate on my brain and
that these questions are just to make sure that I am "all there. He hands me a Robco Reflectron,
which I use to alter my appearance in the game to my liking. I continue talking with the
doctor. He asks me more questions about anything I remember before the accident. I tell him
no, and we continue talking, this will give me my starting perks and abilities for the game. My
starting perks focused around intellect and strength, meaning that my character will greater
strength and knowledge then most people in the Mojave. I had the option to choose many
different perks that all shape how the game is played. After a couple more questions, Doc
Mitchell releases me to the world.
As I open the door to the outside for the first time, the sun begins to pierce the sky, and I am
momentarily blinded by it. After a few seconds, I can fully see again, and I notice that I am in a
small town called "Goodsprings," which is the starting point for the game. Shortly after
leaving Doc Michelle's house, I am greeted by a friendly robot named Victor. He tells me that it
was he who saved me after I was shot in the head by a group of thugs. He tells me that if I want
any more information that I should head over to the saloon.
As I approach the saloon, the town begins to change a little from my initial observation of it
being a quiet, peaceful, easygoing town that did not have any problems, to a town with one
growing problem, the Powder Gangers. The Powder Gangers are a group of escaped convicts
from a nearby prison that have organized and started to attack the nearby towns. Upon entering
the Saloon, I over hear a harsh conversation between a Powder Gang leader and the owner of the
saloon. The Powder Gang leader demands that Judy, the owner of the saloon, "hand over Ringo
or else we will sack this town. The leader said this along with very harsh language and actions,
such that Judy immediately kicked him not only out of the saloon but he also ordered never to
return to Goodsprings.
15:00-30:00mins
After this encounter, I talk with Judy and she says that Ringo is a trader who has some bad
people chasing him, the town promised to hide him there until the Powder Gangers stopped
looking for him. But it seems that somehow the Gangers know that Goodsprings is hiding
Ringo. I continue talking to Judy and discover some more menial facts about the town and the
surrounding areas. I leave the saloon and begin searching the town for supplies that I can use to
survive. As I am searching, the Powder Gang leader runs to me and tells me that if the town
doesn't hand over Ringo within the next hour, the Powder Gangers will attack and burn down all
of Goodsprings. Afterwards, I stop searching and tell Judy everything that just happened. She
comes up with a plan to counter-attack the gangers by ambushing them while they are preparing
for the battle. She tells me that she will need some supplies from the general store if this plan is
to work. I go to the store and pick up some ammo and weapons for the ambush. I also go talk to
some of the towns folk and request that they help with the battle. While talking to the towns
people, I stumble upon an old gas station and walk inside. I find Ringo and ask him if he wants
to join in on the upcoming fight. He says that he is tired of running and will fight with the town
to protect the town.
It is time for the assault to begin, so I go around and get everyone to meet in the middle of
town. Judy tells me to hand out supplies so that we can be as effective as possible; a person
name crazy pet brought his dynamite collection. As we head towards the Powder Gangers
outpost, we encounter the scout group for the gangers. We quickly kill them but a few escape
and run to the outpost. We slowly walk down the road and see a group of Powder Gangers
staring right back at us whit guns and frag grenades in the ready position. Crazy pet starts the
battle by throwing his dynamite into one of the gangers bunkers. Now everyone on both sides
are firing and people start to fall or run away. It was a close battle with many casualties on each
side, but Goodsprings is the victor. The Powder Ganger threat has been taken care of
and Goodsprings goes back to its normal peaceful ways.
Observation 2:
This observation will take place halfway through the main story on the game. During this
time, the player (The Courier) has been exploring new lands and area throughout the figured
world. His influence and reputation have been growing and some people are begging to fear or
admire him.

0:00-10:00mins
I started this in Novac, which is a small town far east of Goodsprings. The town offers a
small house that I use as a base of operations for my figured world. It has the essentials of a bed
and a few storage cabinets for my gear that I have collected through my journey. Today I will be
headed to the NCR Mojave Outpost, which is in the far bottom left corner of the world. It is not
a long journey but is does have a few hostile locations along the way. Such as along the highway
there can be ambushes set up by raiders to take supplies of wary travelers. I start my journey by
walking south down highway 188, after a couple minutes of walking I get ambushed by a group
of Viper Gunslingers, they are a smaller less organized group of raiders. Their main weaponry
contains grenades and grenade launchers or various size and shape. I quickly take shelter behind
a nearby-exploded car that is positioned on the other side of the Vipers. They step down from
their position on top of a nearby hill so that they can surround me. With my quick thinking, I
decide I have to fight and cannot run away, due to there not being any other place for me to take
cover nearby. I pull out my service rifle and begin to pick them off one by one, starting from the
closets as to decrease the proximity of them and their grenades. After a couple kills there, gang
begins to retreat. I follow them and discover there hidden base in the cellar of a ruined house. I
sneak along the backside of the house I carefully place down frag mines as I sneakily approach
the cellar door. I place a mass of my frag mines right outside the door as to surprise them later.
I begin my counter attack by calling in my companions who help me throughout the
game, Boone and Rex. Boone is an ex-NCR sniper who quit his post due to the legion taking his
wife hostage during a battle long ago. Rex is Boones military dog who helps Boone adjust to
normal life in the Mojave. With the help of Boone and Rex, I begin the counter-attack. I start by
sending Rex in to act like a defenseless dog in need of help. The remaining Vipers come out of
the cellar to see what is going on above ground; they see Rex and begin to walk towards him
with swords and grenades in hand. The Vipers most likely want to eat Rex for food instead of
helping him recover. Boone yells at Rex to run towards him a few seconds before the frag mines
go off. After the initial explosion there, hideout has been caved in and no Vipers remain alive.
Boone, Rex and I start again on our journey to the NCR Mojave Outpost.

10:00-15:00mins
During this time Boone, Rex and I are walking towards the Mojave Outpost and for the
most part nothing of great significance occurs. A couple of times Rex goes dashing off into the
distance only to bring back a few pieces of ammo or a weapon. Most of this time is spent by us
walking further toward the Outpost while being on guard for any kind of attack from anything
the wasteland has to give us.
15:00-25:00mins
The only place left between the Mojave Outpost and us is the town of Nipton. For a
couple days, no one has heard anything from Nipton, and there has been a constant stream of
black smoke coming from towns center. We approach Nipton very cautiously. Boone and I
circle the outskirts of the town while Rex uses his doggy ways to scout some of the insides of the
buildings. We find nothing and decide to proceed further into town. In the middle of the town
square was a pile of burning tires with skeletons on them, from our educated guess they were the
bones of the towns citizens and the attackers had long been gone. The only clue to who the
attackers were was a small medallion that had the image of Caesar on it. This meant that the
attackers were from the Caesars Legion and had raided the whole town and took all valuable
supplies. Boone and I put out most of the fires and bury the bones that we could find in one
grave.
25:00-30:00mins
We now approach the Mojave Outpost that has been our destination since we started this
journey. We tell the leaders at the Outpost what has become of the Vipers and the town of
Nipton, and they send out patrols to confirm our findings. They decide to increase the number of
patrols and personnel in the area so that the Legion will not be able to do this again. This is
where I begin to side with the NCR more than any other group in the NCR. The NCR want to
protect and govern the people of the Mojave, while the Legion wants to dominate and enslave all
that oppose them.


Observation 3:
For this observation, I will being playing the final quest in my figured world of Fallout
New Vegas. My traveling through the Mojave Wasteland and visiting countless towns and
people I have decided to fight alongside the NCR in the second battle of the Hoover dam.

0:00-10:00
I start the quest with a quest box appearing before me stating, You are committing to
fight with the NCR at the battle for Hoover Dam which will determine the fate of New Vegas for
decades to come. If theres anything you want to do before you enter the battle, do it now
before you cross the point of no return. I click accept, and the mission begins.
The mission begins by me having a conversion with General Lee Oliver, the commanding
officer of all NCR forces in the region. We begin to plan a surprise attack on the Legion
encampment. Nothing is being held back even myself. The NCR plans to attack the Legion
head on using my special abilities and the aid of other groups to help the assault. Mid-way into
the planning and NCR personnel rushes in to tell us that the Legion have launched a surprise
attack on the Hoover Dam in efforts to thwart our plan. Both sides of the fight are trying to
undermine the strength of each other. The Legion is trying to push off the NCR attack by
damaging the power generators in the Dam. While the NCR are trying to attack as soon as
possible. The solider also tells of a new Legion camp on the eastern bank of the Colorado River,
the commander of the camp is Caesars highest-ranking officer, the Legate. General Oliver
instructs me to attack this encampment.
First, I have to start the generators to get a flow of water running through the Dam. Next,
I have to turn on the manual override for the pressure release valves so that the Legion can no
longer enter the dam using the old pipes. I storm down into the dam, fighting back the waves of
Legion that have already made their way into the Hoover Dam. Alongside me are NCR allies
and the Brotherhood of Steele who I have convinced to help the NCR in attacking the Legion.
We make our way towards the generator control panel, to find that the old switches no longer
work. The only other way to activate the pressure control valve is to manually turn them on for
each generator. Our group continues through the dam turning on the pressure release valves and
eradicating the Legions immediate threat on the Dam.

10:00-15:00mins
Now that the Hoover Dam is cleared of most Legionaries, we can make our way towards
Legate Lanius encampment on the other side of the river. We move on top of the Dam to find
that the NCR units there are endanger of being overrun by the endless onslaught of the Legion
units. We rush to assist the soldiers in their fight against the Legion units. We begin to slowly
progress towards their lines. In the distance, an old world bomber can be seen flying low over
the legion side of the Dam. The boomers who I befriended early in the game are flying the
bomber. The boomers are a group of explosive experts whose base is at a nearby airfield. It
begins to drop bombs on the Legion troops, and nearly wipes all of them out. Only a few
remaining soldiers are left fighting for the legion on the dam. The Legion units left do not retreat
but continue fighting to the very last man, not one of them gives up or surrenders. The battle is
only half way over, and the casualties are mounting on both sides.

15:00-20:00mins
The NCR commander supplies my units with a fresh elite squad who are ordered to
follow my orders no matter how drastic they seem. I order them to help us advance on the
Legates positon on the eastern bank of the river. They tell me that it is a suicide mission but they
will be honored to fight alongside a NCR hero. Now newly reinforced and supplies, we easily
make our way across the Dam intact. We reach the camp and begin our assault. Once inside the
walls of the camp. We are met with heavy resistance and we almost do not succeed. At the last
moment possible, a group of Brotherhood of Steel members valiantly gives up their lives, in an
effort to delay the counter-attack of the Legion. Because of them, our group manages to push
further into the Legions territory, and we meet face-to-face with Legate Lanius.

20:00-30:00mins
The legate approaches me and demands that no one interferes with our battle. He wishes
to have a battle between legends, me vs him. I agree and we move into an area that was
previously cleared out by my groups attacks. During this fight we are allowed to use anything
as a weapon, the fight for New Vegas begins. I start the fight by trying to talk him into
surrendering so that no more bloodshed were to happen. He does not listen and the fighting
really beings. He rushes me with his almighty Blade of the East which is a special sword
made specifically for himself. I dodge the first series of swings and nearly am cut in two, but I
deflect the blow with the grip of my assault rifle. I once again try to talk him out of fighting me,
as it will only lead to his demise. Again, he does not listen and we fight. This time I take the
offensive and our weapons clash and ting. Multiple times we strike each other thinking that we
have won only to see that the opponent has used another object to deflect the would be killing
blow. For the last time I try to get Legate Lanius to realize that he has lost and he needs to
surrender if he wants his men to live. He replys Save your speeches, we will take Hoover Dam
and move forward until our feet crush the setting sun beneath them. With these words, he
orders his men to reengage the fighting between the NCR and the Legion. My group of
comrades quickly disposes of his remaining forces and I kill Legate Lanius on top of the hill at
his encampment on the east side of the Colorado River. Caesar recognizes his defeat once his
second in command has fallen, and he surrenders the remaining Legion forces to the NCR.
Interview with General Lee Oliver
Q. Explain how the NCR (Northern California Resistance) and Caesars Legion became
enemies fighting over the Mojave?
A. The NCR is a group that was originally from California that wants to maintain the old worlds
values. However the Legion want to eradicate any trace of the old world, they believe that it is
because of them that we our suffering now. Eventually the two groups kept growing in size and
territory until they met at the banks of the Colorado River, and ever since they have been at war
with each other.

Q. Tell me about the goals of the NCR, long term and short-term goals?
A. Some of the long-term goals of the NCR are to control New Vegas, and the Hoover Dam. To
do this we need to accomplish some of our smaller goals first. We need to straighten up our
economy. Right now, we are stretched too thin, if any group attacked us at any moment, we
would be hard pressed to respond to the attack with adequate forces. In addition, right now we
are going through a change in president so our political side is also failing a little. So some of
our smaller goals are to become more stable in both economy and politics.

Q. How does the NCR plan to win the war with the Legion?
A. Right now we are closely watching a certain courier (the player) who has caught our interests.
For now, he has gone against the Legion and aided us in a few raids. He is the key to winning
this war. Whoever controls that courier will win the war no matter what. We want to persuade
that courier to join us when we deiced we have the strength to take out the Legion once and for
all.

Q. Tell me about the other groups that are in conflict with the NCR?
A. Right now there are the Boomers in the north and the Fiends. The Boomers are a group of
explosive experts who have found a large battery of bombers and large-scale weapons. Although
instead of using them to attack us. They only worry about keeping outsiders away from their
small pocket of territory. Lately they have only allowed one outsider to enter and leave there
territory and is the Courier as mentioned before. The Fiends are the real problem on our hands.
They are a group of drug addicted human sacks. They all have lost their minds and only want to
cause trouble. Every now and again, a group of them will attack an outpost and be defeated, but
for now, they are just an annoying group that does not know what they are doing.

Q. In the event that the NCR defeats Caesars Legion, how will life in the Mojave change?
A. When we win the war with Caesars Legion, life in the Mojave will change greatly. At first,
everything will be the same, but once we start using the land and supplies we will gain from the
Legion, we will begin restoring New Vegas back to its original glory. We will also lend a hand
to the smaller towns that need some starting help. After that, we will take care of the Fiends and
clean them up. Then life should be easy for the Mojave.

Interview with Caesar, the leader of Caesars Legion
Q. Explain how Caesars Legion and the NCR became enemies fighting over the Mojave?
A. My legion is the only force that has the power and will to hold control of the west. I have
defeated 86 tribes in the east, and I plan to assimilate all of the NCR into my domain. And crush
any semblance of resistance against my army.

Q. Tell me about the goals of Caesars Legion, long term and short-term goals?
A. Some of the long-term goals of my Legion are to take control of New Vegas and rob it of its
riches. Then we will burn it down for its un-pure business. But before we can do that we must
defeat the NCR at the Hoover Dam. Whomever controls that dam will control all of the Mojave.
Once we defeat the NCR all of the west will be open to our armies to sack and plunder. For now
we will wait and build our strength from the east side of the dam, we will hold our ground until
we crush the NCR under the mighty fist that is Caesars Legion.

Q. How does Caesars Legion plan to win the war with the NCR?
A. After the first battle of Hoover Dam, we didnt retreat from our position. I have since gotten
rid of my previous general who failed me that day. My new general Legate Lanius, has
restricted our massive army, and is currently training and preparing for our invasion of the NCR
territory that stops our advance. We are also closely watching a courier that could prove useful
to us. We can use him to infiltrate and kill off some of the NCRs top leaders.

Q. Tell me about the other groups that are in conflict with your Legion?
A. There are no other groups that are in conflict with my Legion. When we defeated the other
86tribes, we crushed them with such might that they do not dare to rise up against me. We are
only at war with the NCR.

Q. In the event that Caesars Legion defeats the NCR, how will life in the Mojave change?
A. When we win the war with the NCR, life in the Mojave will change greatly. I will move my
mighty army west and destroy everything that stands in front of it. We will burn all of the
Mojave for their opposition to me. Everything and everyone will tremble at the might that is my
Legion. Once the Mojave is dealt with we will continue conquering until we meet the end that is
the Pacific Ocean.