Thoughts on quest order for Fallout 3 (non-DLC)

[Griezz]

After going through the quests listed for the main game (not the DLC addons) at the Fallout Wikia site, I went through the list to try and get an idea of which quests had to proceed which others, as well as what might be done at which points of the main questline. I've managed to come up with a list of quests, and I thought I would post it for comment. Basically, the list is as follows:

- After the opening quests, ending with "Escape!", head directly to Megaton to get the fast travel point, then immediately exit again without talking to Sherriff Lucas Simms. Instead, make your way to the south border of the Wasteland, avoiding fight where possible; you should be able to pick up the travel point for the Nuka-Cola factory. Once you have it, head south around the factory, then head east until you get to Arlington Library. Circle it clockwise, then jump into the water and swim across the river. Head to Rivet City, go to the Science Lab and grab the bobblehead. Leave before doing anything else. Fast-travel back to Megaton.

- Do all the Megaton quests, except for the Survival Guide. Make sure that you get the subquest to get chems (in order to handle the city's bomb) and the quest from Moriarty to talk to Silver, in return for the info on your Dad.

- Head to Arefu for "Blood Ties" and do the quest. This will open up the collection quests in the train station and the Sugar Bombs one for the ghoul. Once that is done, hit Big Town for the quest (don't forget the subquest that nets you the Lucky 8 Ball!); also head to the Jury St. Station for a minor quest allowing you to transform mole meat. Once done, fast travel (FT) to the Cola Factory, then run west to Andale to do their quest.

- Now is when you can start the Wasteland Survival Guide quests; going to the Super Duper Mart then should lead to "Those!", which leads to "Grady's Package" and an opportunity to grab "The Lost Initiates" quest. You might also do "Jiggs' Loot" if you're in the area. Turning in "Grady's" is a good opportunity to do the "Cola Challenge".

- About this time, you should consider whether to do the GNR quest now or to go later, and get the cache info. Head next to Rivet City and do the local quests. That leads to the Temple of the Union and to the Museum of History. That leads naturally to Underworld and its quests. When doing "You Shoot 'Em...", head to Rockopolis first to get an unnamed quest, then do Tenpenny Tower & Republic of Dave to get the "Shoot 'Em" targets.
Do any remaning Underworld quests, which should include "Reilly's Rangers".

You should have a decent handle on what to do next by following the main questline. When you get to the Citadel, do Citadel quests; that also applies to Little Lamplight & Paradise Falls. Once you're done there, do Oasis. With that, finish up the main game and then do the DLC content.

Well? Thoughts on this quest plan?

[aerundel]

You don't need to game the system with the bobblehead. There are plenty of skill points from books and perks to max out your skills. Moreover, if you have Broken Steel DLC, you DON'T want to touch the bobbleheads until you get the perk which raises all your stats to 9 (Almost Perfect).

You also don't need to start the collection quests so early. Just collect the stuff and you'll get around the area(s) eventually. Megaton house has plenty of space for hording everything.

What's the point of a quest "plan" anyway? Just spoils the game. The only thing I would say is make sure one doesn't pass up the opportunity for the GNR cache. If you progress in the quest past that point, the conversation never comes up again (and you'll have to use a console command or tedious grenade physics to get items out of that cache).

[Griezz]

That's okay. Yes, I did want to get the INT bobblehead immediately because I already start the game with INT 9; as such, waiting to get that particular bobblehead wouldn't do anything for me. That's why I get it immediately to max out how many skill points I get per level. Also, yes, I know that I could get the Comprehension and Educated perks, but this way, I don't need the Educated one as well. All I need is the Comprehension perk and about half the magazines and I max out the skills.

As for the plan itself, the reason that I have one is not to micromanage everything, but simply to make sure that I'm not missing anything. Just as an example, if I don't go to Rockopolis before doing the Tenpenny Tower quest, then I miss out on a schematic; similarly, if I don't turn in "Grady's" before taking the Cola Challenge, then (considering how I start it) I can't turn it in in the future.

All I'm doing is trying to point out how to make questing a little more efficient.

[Truncheon]

you DON'T want to touch the bobbleheads until you get the perk which raises all your stats to 9 (Almost Perfect).

Since the only stats that matter much are Int and Agi, I have to disagree. The simplest way to max your skill points is to leave Vault 101 with 9 int and quickly obtain the Int Bobble.

Of course I wouldn't go to all the trouble the OP is suggesting, it would just be silly. You end up at Rivet City around level five or six if you do the Wasteland Survival Guide quests, and that's a fine time to get the Int Bobble. The dozen skill points you might lose are easily outweighed by the convenience, and you'll have more skill points than you can use anyway by level 20 or so.

For those who thinks the only good way to play is having perfect 10's and perfect 100's, I'd recommend loosening up and maybe finding a girlfriend or something to make you less retentive. I find little difference in game difficulty and progression with my main skills at 75 than I do with them at 100.

So I raise them to 75 and forget them, until I have everything I use up to 75, which is speech, science, small guns, medicine, repair. Due to bobbles, books, gear, perks, what have you those always end up at 100 anyway.