Speech (Fallout: New Vegas)

Speech is a skill in Fallout: New Vegas. It determines the amount to succeed in a Speech challenge.

Math[]

${\displaystyle \text{Initial level}=2+(2\times\text{Charisma})+\left\lceil\frac{\text{Luck}}{2}\right\rceil}$

Example: A starting Charisma of 5 and Luck of 5.

${\displaystyle 2+(2\times5)+\left\lceil\frac{5}{2}\right\rceil=15}$

Speech no longer has a '%' chance of working as in Fallout 3. It now works 100% of the time if one has the right Speech skill, which makes it impossible to save and load to bypass Speech challenges. A Speech challenge beyond the player's ability will usually have one dialogue option, and another when it is within the player's ability. Speech is an extremely useful skill in New Vegas, since it can frequently allow the player to avoid fights or accomplish quests more easily.

Speech in quests and exploration[]

• 15, 30 and 45 Speech in lieu of Benny's evidence to convince Swank to give the Courier their weapons back at the Tops during Ring-a-Ding-Ding!.
• 20 Speech
  • to get Joe Cobb to tell the player what he did to land himself in prison.
  • to get Pearl to reveal a small bit of info upon greeting.
• 25, 50 and 75 Speech to trick Karl into losing his cool in front of Papa Khan during the quest Oh My Papa.
• 25 Speech:
  • to convince Trudy to join the fight in Ghost Town Gunfight.
  • to convince Deputy Beagle in Primm to stay and fight with the player after releasing him.
  • to convince Angela Williams to tell the player her opinion about Thomas Hildern.
  • to convince Private Ortega to tell the player about the "ungrateful" farmers at the NCR sharecropper farms.
  • to convince Motor-Runner to reveal what happened to the Vault 3 inhabitants.
  • to convince Milo to start the mission Back in Your Own Backyard. Failing this initial check will make subsequent attempts require 45 Speech.
• 30 Speech:
  • to convince Thomas Hildern to reveal that he wanted something more during his time with the Followers of the Apocalypse.
  • to convince Cannibal Johnson to reveal how he got his nickname.
  • or 30 Medicine to convince Doc Mitchell to give the Courier three stimpaks before initially leaving his house. Passing both will result in five stimpaks rather than three, Speech will always be the second choice (worth two).
  • to convince Bitter-Root to tell where he got his name.
  • to convince Chavez to move on in I Fought the Law.
  • to convince Ranger Andy to teach the Courier the Ranger Takedown.
  • to convince Comm Officer Lenk to share her story.
  • or 6 Intelligence to convince the suspicious merchant at Jean Sky Diving to reveal himself for I Fought the Law.
  • to convince the suspicious merchant to leave after trying to get toll from him, by telling him Powder Gangers are already onto him during I Fought the Law.
  • to convince Johnson Nash to give up information for I Fought the Law for free.
  • or pay 200 caps to convince Major Knight at the Mojave Outpost to pardon Meyers for the quest My Kind of Town.
  • to convince Mick to sell the player his special weapons at Mick & Ralph's.
  • to convince George to tell who he is and what he is doing.
  • to convince Lt. Haggerty to allow the Courier into HELIOS One.
• 35 Speech:
  • to convince Jack to talk about the girl he likes, allowing receipt of the quest Young Hearts.
  • to convince (lie) Argyll that one has medical knowledge about insect bites.
  • to convince Dixon to stop supplying Bill Ronte and Jacob Hoff.
  • to convince Legion soldiers to allow the Courier into Cottonwood Cove.
  • to convince Ignacio Rivas to tell who he works for in HELIOS One.
  • to convince Ralph to make the holotape for 100 caps instead of 150 caps in Wang Dang Atomic Tango.
  • to convince Ted Gunderson that it was not the White Gloves that captured him in Beyond the Beef.
  • to convince Caleb McCaffery to give his hat during Debt Collector.
  • to convince Deputy Beagle in Primm to give the player the information about the Great Khans before releasing him.
  • to convince each of the Misfits to be more of a "team player" in Flags of Our Foul-Ups.
  • to convince Lady Jane in Freeside to give something else of value towards her debt in the quest Debt Collector.
  • to convince Philip Lem to join the Great Khans during Why Can't We Be Friends?.
  • to convince Thomas Hildern to improve the offered reward in There Stands the Grass. (available after talking to Dr. Williams and returning to confront Hildern)
  • or 40 Barter to convince James Garret to pay more when recruited Fisto in Wang Dang Atomic Tango.
• 40 Speech:
  • to tell Pete, a child Boomer, something that will get you Boomer fame.
  • to convince Grecks to pay up more during the quest Debt Collector.
  • to convince Beagle to give info before cutting him loose in They Went That-a-Way.
• 41 Speech to convince Boone to tell the player who he's on the lookout for.
• 45 Speech:
  • to convince Jessup to release the hostages in Boulder City.
  • to convince Carlyle St. Clair III that the White Glove Society can clean his name in Beyond the Beef.
  • to convince Crandon to give the information which begins Someone to Watch Over Me.
  • to convince Squatter Bill and his group to leave in Someone to Watch Over Me.
  • or Black Widow to trick Clanden into leading the Courier to his murder room in the Gomorrah suites during How Little We Know; only available if Clanden's snuff tapes were collected and shown to Cachino, but Clanden is not dealt with until after destroying the weapons shipments and reaching the objective to meet with Big Sal and Nero but telling Cachino to wait.
• 50 Speech:
  • to convince Mr. House to talk a bit more about the platinum chip.
  • to convince Neil to help the Courier kill Tabitha in Crazy, Crazy, Crazy.
  • to hint to Ricky about telling Jed Masterson of Ricky's possibly faulty Pip-Boy.
  • to convince Tomas to get rid of his star bottle cap necklace.
  • to convince Joana the player character has what it takes to have sex with her, which follows into another Speech challenge of 75 in order for her to lead them to her room and commit the deed.
  • or Black Widow to convince Chris Haversam that he's human in Come Fly With Me. (No caps req. with the perk)
  • to obtain the thrust controllers for a 50% discount (250 caps) from Old Lady Gibson for Come Fly With Me.
  • to convince Oscar Velasco to stop taking revenge on Bitter Springs refugees during Climb Ev'ry Mountain.
  • to convince Ralph to craft the Courier a counterfeit passport for the Strip at a cost of 500 caps.
  • to get away with killing Caesar with the Auto-Doc during Et Tumor, Brute? (as an alternative to 50 Medicine or positive Legion reputation)
  • to convince Pearl to give Janet a free pass into Nellis Air Force Base in Young Hearts.
  • to get Loyal to give the Courier the sonic emitter in Ant Misbehavin'.
  • to convince Loyal to tell about the pods in the mess hall.
  • to convince Logan to give a better reward in Wheel of Fortune.
  • to convince Jacob Hoff and Bill Ronte to get over their addictions with the support of his friends.
  • to convince Old Ben to work for the Garrets in Wang Dang Atomic Tango.
• 53 Speech to convince Big Sal to release Troike from his contract.
• 55 Speech:
  • to tell Pete, a child Boomer, something that will get you Boomer fame.
  • to get the think tanks to realize that the player is aware of their conversation.
  • to gain entrance to the Ultra-Luxe kitchen area without requiring honorary White Glove Society membership or a White Glove Society disguise.
  • to get a human flesh alternative from Philippe in Beyond the Beef.
  • to lie to Raquel about clearing out the ants in Ant Misbehavin'.
• 60 Speech:
  • or 40 Medicine to successfully convince Corporal Betsy to seek psychiatric help.
  • to convince Grecks to give up his clothes during Debt Collector. This requires a preceding Speech check of 40 to be successful.
  • to convince Keith to show the player how he's cheating at Caravan.
  • to lie to Ranger Andy during the quest Andy and Charlie.
  • to convince Pacer to let the player see the King for free.
  • to convince Private Stone to turn himself in during the Medical Mystery quest.
  • to convince Benny to head immediately to the Tops presidential suite without his bodyguards.
  • to lie and convince Private Edwards to leave the Camp Searchlight house he is holding out in by saying that all the radscorpions are gone.
  • to gain Jack's trust in Oh My Papa.
• 62 Speech to convince Mortimer to choose the cannibal side in Beyond the Beef.
• 64 Speech to convince all Fiends inside of Vault 3 that the Courier is a Great Khan carrier so they will not attack them.
• 65 Speech to convince the gambler to a weapons check while guarding the front of the Silver Rush during Birds of a Feather.
• 65 Speech to convince Norton outside of Jacobstown to leave the mutants alone in the quest Unfriendly Persuasion.
• 65 Speech or 45 Medicine to convince Caesar to let the Courier operate him in "Et Tumor, Brute?"
• 65 Speech to ask Dog and God "Why did you put emphasis on the word "Master" before?" after freeing him from the jail.
• 65 Speech to convince Carlyle St. Clair III to go to the Ultra-Luxe in Beyond the Beef.
• 65 Speech to talk Greasy Johnny out of starting trouble in Someone to Watch Over Me.
• 66 Speech to convince Jack in the Red Rock drug lab to make medicinal chems.
• 70 Speech to make Troike plant the thermite in the Gomorrah himself in How Little We Know, giving one bad Karma.
• 75 Speech to make Dog or God take over in the Put the Beast Down.
• 75 Speech to convince the Strange Man during the Birds of a Feather quest to pay the Courier for running chems.
• 75 Speech or the Confirmed Bachelor perk to convince Arcade Gannon to be the player character's companion.
• 75 Speech to convince Alice McLafferty to give Janet her wages.
• 75 Speech to cause Tabitha to order the nightkin under her command to attack the super mutants at Black Mountain when activating a radio during Crazy, Crazy, Crazy.
• 80 Speech to convince Keene not to take the Stealth Boy Mk2 in the quest Guess Who I Saw Today.
• 80 Speech to convince Isaac that the Gun Runners can use refurbished weapons while Dealing with Contreras.
• 80 Speech to convince Orion Moreno to stay with the Remnants and fight for the NCR during the quest For Auld Lang Syne.
• 80 Speech or good Karma to convince Legate Lanius to fight the Courier one-on-one.
• 80 Speech in order to convince Hector to tell the player what he knows about Corporal White during the quest The White Wash.
• 80 Speech to convince Cachino to take care of Big Sal and Nero in How Little We Know.
• 80 Speech to lie to Troike about telling the NCR of his dealing in the Gomorrah in How Little We Know, giving one bad Karma.
• 80 to convince Big Sal that Nero was plotting against him in How Little We Know.
• 85 Speech to avoid combat at the conclusion of Bye Bye Love by convincing one's pursuers that Joana's escape is part of a secret deal between Carlitos and the Omertas.
• 85 Speech to say to Dog/God "You want to protect Dog..." after freeing him from the jail.
• 85 Speech to convince Dog/God to merge personalities in the quest Put the Beast Down.
• 90 Speech to convince Joshua Graham not to kill Salt-Upon-Wounds during the end of Crush the White Legs.
• 95 Speech to talk one's way out of combat after bringing back the objective in I Could Make You Care and then leaving the Brotherhood of Steel base.
• 100 Speech to convince Lee Oliver to leave Hoover Dam without fighting the Courier during the quest Veni, Vidi, Vici.
• 100 Speech to convince Legate Lanius to leave Hoover Dam without fighting the Courier.
• 100 Speech (or 90 with high NCR / Legion / Strip reputation) to convince Ulysses to fight with (instead of against) the player in the conclusion of The Courier.

Ways to increase Speech[]

Permanent

• Leveling up (+15 or +17 with Educated)
• Lying, Congressional Style (+3 or 4 with Comprehension)
• Empathy Synthesizer (+2 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit.)
• Tag! (+15)
• Good Natured (+5)
• Skilled (+5)
• Complete the Lonesome Road DLC.

Temporary

• Meeting People (+10 or 20 with Comprehension)
• Mentats (+2 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit.)
• Party Time Mentats (+2-10 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit, can be stacked with Mentats)
• Light Switch 02 Upgrade: "Mood Lights" (+5 up to +9 depending on current Charisma)
• Absinthe/Beer/Irradiated beer/Jake Juice/Scotch/Irradiated Scotch/Vodka/Whiskey/Irradiated whiskey/Wine (+2 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit.)
• Eating an NPC after the perk Meat of Champions is acquired using the Cannibal perk (+2 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit; potentially +3 if current Luck is even and not 10.)
• Sexy sleepwear (+2 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit.)
• T-51b power armor helmet (+2 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit.)
• Daniel's hat (+5)
• Sheriff's duster (+2 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit.)
• Bounty hunter duster (+2 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit.)
• Regulator duster (+2 depending on current Charisma, a perfect Charisma of 10 will see no benefit.)
• Vault jumpsuit (+2)
• Benny's suit (+5)
• Caesar's armor (+5)
• Dean's tuxedo (+5)
• President Kimball's suit (+5)
• Pre-War businesswear (+5)
• Vera's outfit (+5)
• Naughty nightwear (+10) (potentially +11 if current Luck is even and not 10)
• US Army General outfit (+10)

Speech-based perks[]

Behind the scenes[]

According to game director Joshua Sawyer, the change in Speech from a percentage in Fallout 3 to a set number in Fallout: New Vegas was because the percentage feels more random than it does realistic. He said that "it does not feel good to invest in a skill [...] and then have the game say 'actually, you suck at that.'"^[1]

References[]

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