Willow - A Better Companion Experience

May 2011 File of the Month

-Contrary to what you may have heard Willow is compatible with TTW without patches, but it's better if she's patched.

There is now a patch for Willow and TTW available for download in the Files Tab. It was written by http://www.nexusmods.com/newvegas/mods/79547" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">SpringHeelJon author of the Begin Again Tale of Two Wastelands Wabbajack List. The Big Guy tweak and facegen was done by RedRocketTV

• If you have a question about content that isn't answered in the mod description go look at the Articles I've written about the mod.
• If you have a problem be sure to look at the stickied comments at the top of the thread.
• Please ask questions in the thread

MOD DESCRIPTION: These are the highlights of what she can do:

Willow is a girl companion added to the NV gameworld. She has over 1200 lines of voiced dialogue, written and acted by me. There are other characters involved in the quests in the mod, and they are fully voiced as well, although primarily by game assets. The main purpose of this mod is to provide you with a story driven, complex companion. Willow is mostly meant to be enjoyed as a character who travels with you, however there are a couple of quests to do as well. She has a main questline, composed of two quests, that every player will see. There are two additional side quests and three challenges that every player will have an opportunity to play. Another side quest and challenge may or may not be seen by every player. It depends on choices made by the player.

Willow can be found in an abandoned tent that I've erected on the road South of Primm between the Nevada Highway Patrol Station and the Nipton Road Reststop (see picture in images).

Willow has a backstory that will be revealed to you through conversations, her Idle Chatter and journal entries.

Her tagged skills are Speech, Barter and Survival. Her weapon skill is Small Guns. You will receive a perk automatically when you hire her, the Silver Tongue Perk, which will raise your Charisma by 1. There are opportunities to earn another perk and various other rewards are given to the player throughout the mod (armor, weapons, etc).

FACTION ISSUES:

Willow is not entirely faction neutral. She comes from the NCR and is predisposed to like them, however that doesn't mean she favors them entirely (especially if they are shooting at her and you), but she does talk about them in a positive fashion unless your character is hated by them. IF YOU ARE PLANNING A LEGION PLAYTHROUGH be warned that Willow does not like the legion. However, her main concern is her relationship with the player. So, she follows you around, but she's in a moral quandary about doing so and you'll know it because she's pretty open about what she thinks about them. You'll have at least one opportunity to send her out of your game forever as part of your roleplaying as a legion supporter v. someone who's not so crazy about them.

NOVAC BUNGALOW:

Issue in the Bungalow: DO NOT TALK to Willow in the shower. I cannot update currently, as my NV install has problems, but when I can update I will fix the problem with the shower. If you talk to her in the shower and her weapons disappear go into the thread FAQ for a solution.

I've opened up the third bungalow at the motel in Novac; using it is completely optional. Willow will mention how much she likes Novac and the motel and if you set her house marker there (can't be done until after you've reached Friends with her in her quest) more good things will happen (she does stuff there, I've scripted things to happen there, etc). You have to rent it from Jeannie May, Cliff if she's dead or the key will enable in the planter next to the door if Cliff is dead too.

-without setting her house marker there you can:

manage her clothing so that it is set up into outfits and then changed via a dialogue topic, use the containers and sorting setup, display eligible items in the bungalow, sleep, etc.

• if you set her house marker there she will:
• let you choose if she dances/does not dance before the fade to black scene
• if you set up "Intimate Moments" and "Sleepwear" outfits she will change into them when she sleeps in the bungalow at night and when you ask her to have the fade to black scene in the bungalow
• A controller will enable that allows you to have her sit/get up from the chair at the dining table, cook at the stove (she'll take the ingredients out of the containers in the kitchen, your inventory and her own to do so; this is also available in dialogue when you are in the bungalow), put her on/off sandboxing in the bungalow, set up a meal once you've unlocked the first recipe (see article "Willow 1. 0 Challenges and Quests for specifics)
• The shelves in the bungalow are designed to be used for displaying your items. They are slanted to make it easier to put things onto them.
• If you "lose" the currency after it's been sorted it's in a "secret" safe in the picture over by Willow's wardrobe.

THE ABANDONED TENT:

• Storage there is safe to use.
• Once you've unlocked Willow's campfire cooking you can take her there and ask her to cook at the stove. She will check the three containers next to the stove and the fridge for ingredients.
• Once you've unlocked the first recipe (if you choose to do that), and you have enough to make two batches of it, you can cook it, and set the table with a meal composed of it (you do this at the menu at the pot on the stove where you can campfire craft).

VANILLA COMPANIONS:

If you have Willow's Idle Chatter on she will talk to two of the vanilla companions if they are following you as well: Boone and Veronica. She has a handful of things to say in her journal or in dialogue to you about Raul and Cass.

FEATURES:

Her features become available at different points in her quests. Some things do not become available to you until you have discussed them with her in dialogue even if they should be available per the quest. Talking to her is very important. What she says gives you clues about how to proceed in her main quest as do quest updates and the notes you receive in your Pipboy. I recommend that you check your Pipboy whenever the quest updates if you are feeling lost about what to do next about her.

When you first meet her and she goes with you:

• IMPORTANT: Willow is not "hired" at this point. She has no companion wheel. She does not get the wheel until you return Beauty to her.
• If you give her a melee weapon she will flee during combat. She may pick one up during combat if she runs out of ammo and use it, but the next time combat starts, she will flee. You'll understand why once you hire her, but until then give her ammo for her pistol or another ranged weapon and ammo for it.
• Her idle chatter begins* (see article about what's been done to her chatter if you're interested). This feature can be toggled on/off once she's hired. She only comments once every 5 minutes and will also comment in several locations in the Mojave. You may turn off her singing or ask her to sing more with no consequences to her quest.
• She has an antivenom script so if she is poisoned, and she has Antivenom i

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