Fallout New Vegas

About this mod

ACE Lets you craft and breakdown every ammo type in the game. Also has several MCM togglable features such as more ammo types, case/hull crafting, ammo effects rebalance, explosives crafting, new crafting materials, reloading supplies as loot, ammo name formatting, and some more.

Requirements
Permissions and credits
Changelogs
Out of the box, ACE adds breakdown recipes to every ammo variant of every caliber in the game, from .38 Special to Pulse and Bean Bag ammo, and crafting recipes for some others like AP and HP, along with downgrading recipes for higher-level energy ammo. With the TTW patch, ACE blends with its .22LR recipes, and any optional features will affect TTW's own recipes as well as the Ammo Press system, and some ACE's recipes will adjust to maintain a consistent experience.

Crafting & Breakdown Recipes: Literally every single vanilla cartridge has a breakdown recipe (Surplus breakdown is disabled by default, however), and every single cartridge has a crafting recipe other than .38/.44 Special, .223, and Plinking/Surplus. Max Charge and Over Charge energy ammo can be downgraded to regular cells/cores/packs. To make .22LR and Bean Bag recipes (and rubber ammo, if enabled), I've added some new items: Case, .22LR; Case Box, .22LR; and Rubber. You can get all these from vendors and by breaking down ammo. The TTW patch covers .32 ammo as well.

Balance & Consistency Changes: Several crafting recipes have had their required skill level tweaked, and most breakdown recipes now require a 25 skill level, with special ammo like Pulse or Incendiary requiring a higher skill level. For consistency, all ammo types have been changed to follow a unique naming convention, and all perk tags are consistent through all ammo types. You can optionally remove GRA tags, perk tags, and choose an expanded name instead of an abbreviated one using MCM or the .INI file.

This is all ACE does without further tweaking, you can leave it as is if you're after some QoL features for a vanilla-like experience. However, ACE as an Overhaul can do much more by editing the .INI file or using MCM. The following features are disabled by default.


♠ Ammunition Features ♠
1.- Ammunition Expanded: Implements more ammo variants such as 10mm AP, 12 Gauge Slug Magnum, .357 Magnum Surplus, and the non-lethal 5.56mm/9mm, Rubber rounds, among several others that you can find listed below. All of them with crafting and breakdown recipes. All new ammo variants will use vanilla JSP/JHP/JFP/AP/HP/Surplus effects if Ammo Effects Rebalance is disabled.

List of new ammo types added:
Spoiler:  
Show
9mm: AP, JFP, Surplus, Rubber.
10mm: AP, JFP, JSP.
12.7mm: JFP, JSP.
357 Mag.: JHP, SWC, Surplus.
44 Mag.: JHP, JFP.
5.56mm: JFP, JHP, JSP, Rubber.
5mm: JFP, JHP.
.308: JFP, JHP.
.45-70 Gov't: JFP, JHP.
.50 MG: JHP.
12 Ga.: Mag. Slug, HE Slug.
20 Ga.: Mag. Slug.
- Honest Hearts
.45 Auto: AP, JHP.
- TTW
.32: JHP.


2.- Ammunition Expanded +: Implements more "special" ammo variants such as 5.56mm Incendiary, 45-70 Gov't Pulse, and .308 Explosive, as well as the new Depleted Uranium variants.
  • .308, .45-70 Gov't, .50 MG Pulse.
  • .308, 5.56mm Incendiary.
  • .308 Explosive. (Requires the "Crafting Expanded" feature enabled).
  • .308 & .50 MG Depleted Uranium. (Only obtainable from vendors).
  • .22LR & .357 Mag. Snake Shot. Requires regular ingredients. Releases 8 projectiles instead of 1. Temporarily removed for balance tweaking.

3.- Ammo Effects Rebalance: To better reflect the properties of ammo variants and keep the balance between vanilla and new ACE ammo variants, this feature will replace the ammo effects of almost every ammo type excluding only some HP/JHP rounds.
If this feature is disabled but "Ammunition Expanded" is enabled, the new ammo types will use vanilla ammo effects instead, but I strongly advise using both features together.


4.- Ammo Variants to NPCs: Most NPCs across the wasteland will have a chance to spawn with improved ammo variants. However, they may not use it against you if they have regular rounds in their inventory at the same time due to how the game works. While this rarely happens as almost every NPC will have only one ammo variant in its inventory at any given time, you can fix it by using NAWEMO by Miguick, on top of adding even more functionality like real-time ammo swapping for NPCs.

♠ Crafting Features ♠

5.- Crafting Expanded:

New Crafting Materials: To add crafting and breakdown recipes for explosives, cases, hulls, etc. ACE adds several new crafting materials. Some, like Case Box, 25mm G. are seamlessly integrated into vendors. Others, such as Brass or Steel can be obtained by breaking down cases, missiles, mines, scrap metal, etc.

This feature replaces ingredients in some recipes to take full advantage of the new materials. For example,  you'll need RDX instead of Cherry Bombs to craft .50 MG, Explosive rounds. The new 12 Ga. High Explosive Slug recipe will also be enabled if "Ammunition Expanded" is enabled.

Case and Hull Crafting: You'll need either the book An Introduction to Case Makingguide or the Hand Loader perk. There's also an alternative to this as a separate feature explained further below (which disables this part of Crafting Expanded if both are enabled).
With or without the book or the Hand Loader perk (and whether the alternative feature is enabled or not) you'll always be able to scrap hulls and cases to get Brass (9mm, .50 MG, etc.), Plastic (12/20 Gauge), or Aluminum (25mm/40mm).


Craft and Breakdown Explosives: You'll be able to craft and breakdown all varieties (if any) of Hand Grenades, Mines, Missiles, 25mm/40mm Grenades, C4, and Rockets.
To craft Missiles and 40mm/25mm Grenades you'll need the Mad Bomber perk (this requirement can be disabled), and advanced variants such as HE or HV will also require the Hand Loader perk.


6.- Surplus Breakdown Recipes: Enables breakdown recipes for Surplus and Plinking ammo. These can only be broken down by 10 rounds at a time, don't yield primers, and yield fewer resources overall in comparison to regular rounds.

7.- Buy Cases from the Gun Runners: Enables a dialogue option for case/hull boxes with Isaac at the Gun Runners HQ. This will open up a crafting menu where you'll be able to "buy" a minimum of 50 cases at a time of any caliber in exchange for caps, this requires 25 Barter. If "Crafting Expanded" is enabled, you can choose to pay only a third of the cost in caps plus the Brass/Aluminum required for the cases/hulls (and it requires only 15 Barter). Of course, since this is pretty much a "special order" this is more expensive than waiting for the boxes to be in stock.

Do note that, with "Crafting Expanded" enabled, the book for crafting cases will be removed from the vendors' inventories, but it'll remain in your notes if you already had it. So, if this feature is disabled, you'll still be able to craft cases on reloading benches again without having to buy another book.


8.- Breakdown Perk Requirement: Breakdown recipes of all Hand Loader ammo variants won't require the Hand Loader perk anymore. If "Crafting Expanded" is enabled, breakdown recipes for all 25mm/40mm Grenades and Missiles will not require neither Hand Loader or the Mad Bomber perks.

9.- Mad Bomber Perk Requirement: 25mm/40mm Grenades and Missile crafting recipes will not require the Mad Bomber perk. However, improved variants such as HE, HV, Plasma, etc. will keep the Hand Loader perk requirement.

10.- Satchel Charge Recipes: Makes the vanilla recipe more expensive and enables one more recipe with Dynamite as the explosive ingredient instead of Powder as well as increasing the recipe's required skill level to 40.
If "Crafting Expanded" is enabled two more recipes are added, each replacing Powder, one with RDX and the other with Composition B.


♠ Misc Features ♠

11.- Reloading Supplies as Loot: Distributes chanced reloading supplies across the Mojave such as Primer Boxes inside containers where you could also find ammo other than ammunition boxes.

12.- Ammo Name Formatting: You can choose between 4 name formats for almost every ammo type, including 25mm/40mm Grenades, Missiles, and Mini Nukes (these ones are mostly for the GRA tags removal).
  • Vanilla names: This will keep vanilla names with consistency fixes (parens, commas, and the like). i.e. 9mm, JHP (Hand Loader) (GRA)
  • Abbreviated without GRA tags: This removes GRA tags and leaves perk tags (Hand Loader/Vigilant Recycler). i.e. 9mm, JHP (Hand Loader)
  • Abbreviated without any tags: This removes all tags. i.e. 9mm, JHP
  • Non-abbreviated without any tags: This expands the ammo variant names. i.e. 9mm, Jacketed Hollow Point


12+1.- Hide Junk Perk and Recipes: Hides the Junk Rounds perk from the level-up menu and all related recipes from the crafting menu.

14.- Remove ACE Items from Inventory: Only available with MCM. If enabled, all items related to any disabled feature will be removed permanently from your inventory. For example, if you have both "Ammunition Expanded" and "Crafting Expanded" enabled, then you disable "Crafting Expanded" and use this feature, any Brass or Composition B in your inventory will be removed, but new ammo variants will remain.

Patch.- TTW: ACE will use TTW's .22LR cases and Case Boxes instead. In addition, all Ammo Press Brass recipes are adjusted to ACE's case/hull cost values. With Ammunition Expanded and Ammunition Expanded Plus, all new ammo can be melted in the Ammo Press and all non Incendiary/Pulse/Explosive/DU rounds can be crafted. In Crafting Expanded, ACE will use TTW's Brass and Plastic and will make the appropriate adjustments to TTW's explosive recipes. Also, since TTW .22 LR ammo uses primers, the primer requirement is removed from the ammo crafting/breakdown recipes and added to the case's recipe instead.

♠ INSTALLATION:
xNVSE and JIP LN NVSE PLUGIN REQUIRED
Use any mod manager of your preference, or just drop the archive contents in your data folder.


ISSUES & COMPATIBILITY

If using Gun Runners' Arsenal Merged by slippyguy (recommended), set to 0 the settings bHandLoaderFix, bVigilantRecyclerFix, and bMadBomberFix.
Avoid using ACE with other mods that change ammo recipes to avoid inconsistencies.
ACE is compatible with any other mod that changes things addressed in ACE's optional features, just leave the respective feature disabled and you're good to go (for example, leave Reloading Supplies as Loot disabled to use ACE alongside Qolore's Ammo Ingredients Loot if you prefer it.)

Mods that alter ammo names might get overridden if ACE's naming script runs after theirs, but since I included 4 name formats to choose from I doubt this is a significant issue.

Recommended Mods:

NAWEMO by miguick. Supported. Distributes ammo variants to NPCs all over the Mojave. The best way to take full advantage of those new ammo types is by putting them at anyone's disposal!
JIP Improved Recipe Menu by jazzisparis. Greatly streamlines the crafting process. It's a must, more so if you use ACE.
lStewieAl's Tweaks by lStewieAl. An immense amount of engine and gameplay fixes and tweaks. Its CTRL + F searching feature helps alleviate crafting menu browsing.
Ammo Boxes by PushTheWinButton. Helps a lot in balancing the Mojave's economy!
JSawyer Ultimate Edition by PushTheWinButton
. Numerous tweaks, changes, and additions. Based on the mod of FNV's Project Director.

♠ Some of my other mods
Novac Bungalow - Upgradeable Player Home. Cozy and practical.
SIG P226 Pistol. Implements a new pistol to the game, and optionally a new ammo caliber.
Hardcore Customization INI. Provides several ini configuration options for hardcore aspects of the game.
ePath's Mods Stash. A simple mod page where I stash my personal tweak/survival/weapon mods and links to mods I use.


THANK YOU
This was my first mod ever. It started very, very small as a QoL mod that just added all the missing recipes. Soon I found myself lost in the GECK and learning how to script to add more and more to it. It's still my biggest mod yet, and a lot of people have helped me along the way.
Dubiousintent, Madmongo, and LStewieAL for being so helpful on the Nexus Forums.
RoyBatty for answering questions about script functions.
Marcurios for answering questions about script functions, and even helping me a lot more afterward.
CleanerBot who kindly offered to work with the TTW Patch v1 creation and testing, the patch finally got made thanks to him.
CptChain and ajsrevenge, who provided the files necessary for me to create future TTW patch versions.
hman101for pointing me in the right direction to re-implement the "Ammo Variants to NPCs" feature.
Big thanks to the xNVSE team and several modders in the xNVSE discord for reading my stupid questions and for giving me precious advice on innumerable opportunities.