NCR Ranger hit squads, referred to in-game as NCR Rangers, are teams of New California Republic Rangers operating in the Mojave Wasteland in Fallout: New Vegas.
Background[]
Should the Courier gain a bad reputation with the NCR, through violence, theft, or by aiding the Republic's enemies, Rangers will be dispatched to deal with the situation.
The first encounter will be non-hostile, with the Rangers instead giving the Courier an ultimatum and three days to improve their standing. If this warning is ignored, on their next appearance the Rangers will shoot on sight.
Characteristics[]
NCR hit squads usually consist of four Rangers, whose equipment is dependent on the Courier's level. They appear at various locations in the wasteland, from where they will move towards the Courier, fighting any other enemies they encounter on the way.
Interactions with the player character[]
Interactions overview[]
| Interactions | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
This character is involved in quests. | |
Inventory[]
Ranger 1[]
| Apparel | Weapon | Other items | On death |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authority glasses, Ranger hat Player level: <9 Ranger red scarf outfit or Ranger vest outfit or Ranger casual outfit or NCR Ranger patrol armor |
Player level: <8 .357 Magnum revolver Player level: 8-14 Hunting revolver |
Stimpak (1-3), $5 NCR (1-5), $20 NCR (1-3), $100 NCR (1) |
Ranger 2[]
| Apparel | Weapon | Other items | On death |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authority glasses, Ranger hat Player level: <8 NCR Ranger combat armor |
Player level: <8 .357 Magnum revolver, Tier 1 Explosives Player level: 8-14 Anti-materiel rifle, Tier 3 Explosives |
NCR dogtag, Super stimpak (1-3), Stimpak (1-3), $5 NCR (1-5), $20 NCR (1-3), $100 NCR (1) |
Ranger 3[]
| Apparel | Weapon | Other items | On death |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ranger helmet Player level: <8 NCR salvaged power armor, Salvaged power helmet |
Player level: <8 .44 Magnum revolver, Tier 1 Explosives Player level: 8-14 Minigun, Tier 3 Explosives |
NCR dogtag, Super stimpak (1-3), Stimpak (1-3), $5 NCR (1-5), $20 NCR (1-3), $100 NCR (1) |
Ranger leader[]
| Apparel | Weapon | Other items | On death |
|---|---|---|---|
| Authority glasses, Ranger patrol armor, Ranger hat | Player level: <8 Cowboy repeater Player level: 8-14 Brush gun |
Super stimpak (1-3), Stimpak (1-3), $5 NCR (1-5), $20 NCR (1-3), $100 NCR (1) |
Spawn points[]
There are twenty-five possible spawn points for NCR Ranger hit squads. These spawn point locations are also shared with legionary assassins.
- Along the road south of Ranger Station Charlie and northwest of the Legion raid camp.
- In the field northeast of the legion raid camp and northwest of the broc flower cave.
- Along Highway 95, north of the Snyder prospector camp and east of the wrecked Highwayman.
- Along Highway 95, north of Camp Searchlight and south of the Snyder prospector camp.
- Along Nevada State Route 164, north of the raided farmstead.
- Along the Nevada 164 roadway, west of Wolfhorn ranch.
- On the railroad tracks north of the coyote den.
- East of the Nipton Road pit stop, behind a rock.
- At the Ivanpah underpass near the Nipton Road reststop, up top and near the middle of the overpass.
- West of Ivanpah Dry Lake and east of Jack Rabbit Springs.
- Between Powder Ganger camp east and the emergency service railyard.
- Right outside Ranger Station Charlie, near the radioactive barrels.
- East of Clark Field, near the ridge. The spawn point radius covers the entire ridge, so approaching from the opposite end may also trigger a hitsquad spawn.
- South of Nelson and north of Techatticup Mine.
- In the flatlands between Lucky Jim Mine, Ranger Station Echo, and the cliffside prospector camp.
- At the highway overpass southwest of the Grub n' Gulp rest stop and east of the Cassidy Caravans wreckage.
- Amid the rocky paths northeast of the NCR Ranger safehouse and south of the REPCONN headquarters.
- Behind (to the northeast of) El Dorado Gas & Service.
- On the highway northeast of the Gibson scrap yard and west of the Southern Nevada wind farm.
- At the edge of the mountain between the El Dorado Dry Lake, Vault 11, and the El Dorado substation.
- Along the road northwest of the Gypsum train yard and southeast of Raul's shack.
- Near the ridge along the road west of Raul's shack, a distance south from Fields' shack.
- Along the road south of Hunter's farm and west of the Junction 15 railway station, behind a rock.
- Between Chance's map and the road mouth leading into Red Rock Canyon.
- At the foot of the road leading up into Mount Charleston (spawn point radius also reaches the Followers safehouse.)
Notes[]
- NCR Ranger hit squads use their own internal technical faction, which is allied with the main NCR faction but is separate from it. This means that if other NCR members such as regular NCR troopers see the hitsquad in combat with the player character, they will also turn hostile against the player character. However, this also means that the NCR ranger hit squads can be killed without reducing NCR faction reputation.
- If the Courier has a bad reputation with both Caesar's Legion and the NCR, both Rangers and legionary assassins may appear in the same place and fight each other.
- Ranger hit squads may be attacked by other creatures at their spawn point or when tracking the player character.
- Ranger hit squads can occasionally end up in terrain impassable to non-player characters, such as on mountains or in valleys, in which case they can turn non-hostile as if the player had hidden from them. This can also be due to the lead dialogue-speaking assassin being unable to initiate dialogue, as the assassins are nonhostile until their dialogue is spoken.
- If the player character's reputation with the NCR is Vilified, and the player is at a high level, assassins appear more frequently, at about one group per in-game day.
- Assassins will not spawn while the player is wearing faction armor that affects NCR reputation, such as NCR ranger patrol armor or Legion recruit armor.
- Ranger hit squad attacks are not random, and occur based on vicinity to the listed spawn points above, as well as a timer of at minimum one day between spawns.
- Should the Courier run away and break their line of sight after they spawn, they will continue to track the general direction of the Courier and pause until a new direction is chosen, but will not know their exact location until they spot the Courier. They may also break formation and spread out instead of traveling in one group.
- If at least one of the four add-ons is installed, reaching level 35 or above may result in the Ranger group that shows up being composed of one patrol Ranger, two Veteran Rangers, and one NCR heavy trooper.
Notable quotes[]
- "See, the NCR sends us when they want terrible things done to terrible people."
- "Since you haven't pissed yourself I'll assume that you don't know who we are - next time I'll bring my sickle and wear my black cloak."
- "You've got three days to improve your reputation with the NCR or we come for you... without all of this pleasant conversation."
- "Crap, you don't even want to live a few more days? Go. Get laid one more time or something - we're walking away. Three days."
- "You've crossed the NCR one time too many, now you die!"
Behind the scenes[]
- All the NCR Rangers and legionary assassins can be found in the Dummy Cell VES VEFR Encounters test cell, where they are contained when not spawned to attack the player character in the Mojave.
- An unused fifth NCR Ranger hit squad member is present in the game files. This Ranger only wears NCR salvaged power armor, at any level, and wields a super sledge. This character is also placed in the test cell alongside the other Rangers, but the code lines related to this character are commented out in the relevant hit squad control script. Similarly, there is an unused fifth legionary assassin.
Appearances[]
NCR Ranger hit squads only appear in Fallout: New Vegas.
Bugs[]
After delivering the warning, the initial Ranger group will wait in place where you meet them. The lead Ranger cannot be spoken to again; the screen will zoom in and out with no dialogue box. The other Rangers can be spoken to, but with only the option to say goodbye. [verified]
Ranger Hit Squads may never spawn, despite having poor reputation with the New California Republic. [verified]
