Charisma in Fallout 4 is a crowd controller's dream. Players that put together the right build will be able to pacify, convert, and bamboozle enemies across the vast expanses of the map. With a canine companion, users will be able to create their own personal army of attackers.
Using a Charisma-heavy class is not for everyone, but it can be a lot of fun watching Raiders sabotage themselves without even firing a bullet. Obviously, gamers will want to max out the Charisma skill points. This guide will cover everything else people need to make a pure Charisma build in Fallout 4.
Updated on September 23, 2021 by Payton Lott: This updated guide includes even more information about maximizing the number of Charisma points on each character. There are a few different ways to boost Charisma, including items and consumables. Players will want to read the sections at the bottom of this list, which include the locations of the Charisma Bottlehead and the You're SPECIAL book. Having a high Charisma character provides several other lesser-known benefits to the player. With these tips, gamers will know everything about Charisma in Fallout 4.
Creating A Character
A new player should have 10 Charisma. Gamers will also want to have 9 Intelligence, which can be maxed as soon as the bonus point is unlocked. Charisma and Intelligence go hand in hand, so having the two trees set to ten will be very powerful in the early game. The other skills are not quite as important. Luck, Strength, and Endurance are the other three skills that should have at least 2-3 points to start the game.
Charisma Perks
Perception will be important in the early game because people will need the Rifleman perk. Gamers will need to find the bobblehead in Concord just after leaving the vault to unlock the Rifleman perk in the tree. Due to the limited number of points available to increase strength and health, Life Giver is another early game perk that is essential when using this build. The perk provides 20 additional health at the cost of a slower regeneration speed.
Apart from Rifleman and Life Giver, people will have some leeway with the non-charisma perks. Hacker and Locksmith are two other extremely useful perks for any build, and users will usually want to have at least one of the two. In the Charisma tree there are a few perks everyone will need to unlock.
Attack Dog
Because the build will include a four-legged companion, the Attack Dog Perk is important. While the canine may not do the most attack damage, bleeding enemies will go down eventually. The dog will be able to hold onto enemies as well, increasing the chance of hitting a target in V.A.T.S.
Party Boy
Party Boy increases luck chances by three if a character is under the influence of alcohol. The perk makes it impossible to get addicted to alcohol and will give gamers the opportunity to claim additional action points. While Party Boy is active, the effects of alcohol are doubled.
Wasteland Whisperer
The Wasteland Whisperer perk is one that most people will want to unlock after just a few hours into the game. Players will be able to pacify any creatures in the Wasteland and give them commands. One of the primary strengths of a Charisma build in Fallout 4 are conversion and crowd control. Wasteland Whisperer helps with both.
Intimidation
Intimidation has the same effects as Wasteland Whisperer, but it allows players to control human AI in-game. With Wasteland Whisperer, Intimidation, and Attack Dog, up to five threats can be occupied at once. The Attack Dog will hold one enemy in place while the control/conversion perks turn two enemies which will attack two more targets. When these exceptional character perks are used together correctly, managing hordes of enemies is extremely simple.
Nerd Rage
People will not have a lot of points for Agility, Strength, and Endurance when using this build. To make up for the lack of strength and movement, Nerd Rage can be used when necessary. The perk boosts damage resistance by 40% and increases damage by 40% while the perk is active. Additionally, kills restore health when a character is enraged.
Charisma Strengths And Weaknesses
The main selling point for a charisma-heavy build is the ability to pacify and control most of the enemies in Fallout 4. Instead of fighting battles, why not let a German Shepard, irradiated monster, and raider do all the heavy lifting. Controlling crowds and occupying AI will free up users to aim carefully and kill groups of enemies with ease. Add battles can be boring in any game, but with Charisma, they are over before they begin.
Putting a majority of the perks in one category does have consequences. High Charisma means low strength, low health, and atrocious mobility. Life Giver and Nerd Rage put a band-aid over the problem, not Flex Tape. Health can be a recurring issue because it will be low and Life Giver reduces health regen.
Likewise, if gamers are unable to use their abilities to control enemies it will be tough to survive for very long. Nerd Rage will provide a temporary safety net, but when it runs out, users will be in trouble. Low agility means that there is no running away from a gunfight either. Ultimately, the benefits outweigh the negatives of using the class, but they are important to understand as a Charisma main.
How To Get 48 Charisma
The maximum Charisma stat in Fallout 4 is 48. Players will need to do a few things to get the add ons and reach the max number. In general, the base maximum Charisma without other items is 10. However, gamers can lower their Charisma and use the You're SPECIAL book to permanently increase the stat.
Forcing an addiction withdrawal or taking Daddy-O will temporarily reduce Charisma below 10. By using the book, people can get the stat to 11 once the effects of the withdrawal or Daddy-O wear off. Use the same method with the Charisma bottlehead to reach 12. From there, gamers will need to equip items and gear with a Charisma boost to reach 48.
- SPECIAL Books: In the Wanderer's Playroom in Vault 101 and in Shaun's room during the House of Tomorrow
- Charisma Bottlehead: On the desk in the Parson's Insane Asylum
Other Charisma Benefits
Having a high Charisma stat allows gamers to create larger settlements. The maximum population of a settlement is 10 plus the amount of Charisma a character has. Theoretically, a settlement can contain 58 people with everything maxed out.
Another notable benefit of Charisma is the ability to barter more effectively. Each charisma point reduces the price of items by a small amount. It will also increase the price of sold items. While these changes are not extremely apparent at the beginning of the game, with high Charisma, the prices of different items will be drastically reduced.