Fast-travel to the Grub n’ Gulp Rest Stop and follow the nearby route 95 north, retracing the path you may have taken during the New Vegas Medical Clinic Run. The road continues along an elevated highway to the east and eventually leads to some wooden bridges spanning a dried river bed. Between the two bridges you’ll find Durable Dunn’s Sacked Caravan, which you should have looted a long time ago. If not… well, quickly loot the dead bodies to score some Combat Armor, energy weapons, and some other random (but less valuable) goodies.

From the northern end of the northern bridge your goal is north-east, but if you want to follow a more identifiable route, follow the road beyond the bridge to the west. When this road bisects another road north of another bridge, follow the new road north. When you run out of north, turn west, then go north again at a three-way intersection and follow the road as it runs between the Crimson Caravan compound and the New Vegas Medical Clinic.

Mole Rat Ranch¶

North-east of the New Vegas Medical Clinic you can find the Mole Rat Ranch area, but aside from a hostile Brahmin and some neutral Mole Rats, there’s not much to see here. Get the map marker if you wish, then continue east from the Mole Rat ranch, following some rail road tracks until you find a somewhat intact building to the south. Open the north-facing door, then examine the entrance to find a Grenade Bouquet rigged to a Tripwire. Inviting. In the room to the south there’s a Frag Mine near the other door, but this one likes to hide beneath the floor, making it impossible to disarm. Grab some minor loot (including a copy of Locksmith Reader) off the bookshelf by the southern door, then head back into the northern room. To the east - near a broken refrigerator - you can find a locked door [Hard] beyond which is a small (but generous) supply closet. Loot the metal shelves for some crafting components, chems, magazines, a Doctor’s Bag and a First Aid Box, then grab the Sniper Rifle and .308 Rounds from the wooden shelf.

Fields Shack¶

Leave the house and head north onto the train tracks, which run more or less parallel with an elevated highway to the north. Follow the train tracks until you come to some electrical towers to the south, and Field’s Shack to the north. On the back of the truck near Field’s Shack you’ll find an Ammo Box and a Sunset Sarsaparilla Crate. Loot them, then head inside the shack where you can find three more Ammo Boxes and, on a metal shelf near them, the Abilene Kid LE BB Gun .

Leave the shack and continue east to find a road, which you should follow uphill to the north-east. Along the road you’ll encounter George, who will give you the good advice to avoid the Boomers, who dwell beyond. Ask him about the Boomers and he’ll make a little wager with you; pay him 300 Caps (200 Caps with a [Barter 40] check) and he’ll double your money… if you survive. Not like you’re going to need the Caps if you don’t, eh? It does raise the question about how valid his advice is, given that he’s betting on your demise… If that seems risky, just succeed at a [Speech 30] check to intimidate the info out of him. Either way he’ll give you the note “Nellis Artillery Timing Details”, which details two ways to get to Nellis; either make the run through artillery fire, or use an abandoned train tunnel. Either way, your odds don’t look good. The artillery run will be covered under the “Hot Foot” header, while the train tunnel approach will be covered under the uninspiring headers “Raul’s Shack” and “Train Tunnel” . Even if you plan to take the more sensible “Hot Foot” approach, it’s worth making your way down to Raul’s Shack to loot it.

Hot Foot¶

First, make some preparations; you’ll want to be fast, so don’t have any weapons out. Lighter armor is better, but you’ll take more damage if you do get hit. Disband any companions, as they’ll likely just die in Hardcore Mode, or get in the way. Also hotkey whatever healing you have… you may need it. Once done… well, there’s an easy enough way through the artillery field. Continue up the road until you see a ruined village. It might be tempting to run through the ruins and seek cover between bombardment, but it’s simpler to follow the cliffs to the north as they run north, north-east. Keep moving, don’t stop, and make your way to the fence around Nellis Air Force Base. The Boomers won’t fire when you get too close to their fence and you’ll be able to follow the fence east, south-east to reach the gate to the base. No chems or perks are required for this, just light armor. You might take some glancing blows, but if you just run loosely along the clips you shouldn’t take much damage at all. Anyways, skip ahead to “Volare!” once you reach the gate.

Rauls Shack¶

If you want to try your luck with the train tunnel (or if you just want to loot Raul’s Shack), follow the southern cliffs to the south. Cross some train tracks and keep following the cliffs south, south-east, then east until you find Raul’s Shack. Who is Raul? Who cares, his house is vacant and full of loot to steal! Outside his shack you’ll find a few plants to harvest. Inside you’ll find crafting components lying on a table and a Workbench, two Ammo Boxes (near which are also three Frag Grenades), some chems, food and a Doctor’s Bag near a Sunset Sarsaparilla Crate and, best of all, an issue of Guns and Bullets in a wooden crate by the door.

Train Tunnel¶

Leave the shack and keep heading east to find the unmarked Train Tunnel. Why has nobody gone through here? Well, for starters the door is locked [Very Hard]. The Deathclaws that lurk south of the tunnel might also have something to do with the Boomers being unmolested. How do you kill a foe like a Deathclaw? Well, by now you should be strong enough, especially if you have the Gobi. A sneak attack critical with the Gobi firing .308 JSP rounds should be capable of killing a Deathclaw in one hit. After the initial shot, do as much damage as you can at range, and when the Deathclaw approaches, aim for the head in VATS. With any luck there will only be two of the beasts here, and one of them may be a weaker Young Deathclaw. If this doesn’t deter you, pick the lock and head inside.

Loot some containers on some metal shelves then head through a doorway and into a train tunnel. Kill some Ghouls and continue west, stopping to loot a Wastelander… be careful, though, as there’s a Frag Mine nearby. Continue following the tunnel, being wary of the odd Ghoul and the not-so-uncommon Frag Mine. Eventually you’ll find a doorway to the south-east, beyond which is a small room with some minor loot on some metal shelves, and some more junk on table including some Energy Cells. Return to the train tunnel and continue following it. More Frag Mines and Ghouls await you along the way, and, near the end of the tunnel, some Bear Traps lurk. Pick another locked door [Very Hard] to exit the train tunnel near Nellis Air Force Base.

If you thought you were out of the fire… well, you’re not. You’ll still have to run through artillery fire, but this route is more protected. From the far end of the train tunnel head north-west, then, when the track splits, follow the track running east. The Boomers will fire at you as you run along the train track, but the cliffs nearby should protect you from the indirect fire of the howitzers if you stay near the cliffs to the north-west and keep running. When you reach a fence the Boomers will stop firing, and you’ll be able to follow the fence west to reach the gate to Nellis Air Force Base. Proceed to the next section of the guide; “Volare!” once you reach the gate.