There are lots of playstyles in Fallout 76. Some players enjoy creating a sneak build, while others enjoy bursting into a room all guns blazing. Critical hits can be incorporated into almost every build type in the game, and are great for causing extra damage to enemies.
With the right know-how, it's possible to take down enemies with a single well-placed critical hit. The Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System, or VATS, allows players to perform critical hit shots. With the right perks, consumables, and weapons, players can charge up a critical hit in just two or three shots and unleash deadly strikes on their enemies.
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How To Perform A Critical Hit
A Charged VATS Hit
VATS plays a large role in all of Bethesda's Fallout games, allowing the player to target enemies and see the chance they have of hitting their target. Each shot fired in VATS will cost some AP. The cost will depend on the weapon, but each shot partially fills up a bar just below the middle of the screen. This bar is the Crit Meter, and once it's full, players can perform a critical hit.
To perform a critical hit, press Q on PC, triangle on PlayStation, or Y on Xbox. It's worth noting that players don't need to press the button each time they want to perform a critical hit. By holding the button that performs the critical hit, the player will do a critical shot every time the Crit Meter is full. This is particularly useful for those who use automatic weapons.
Perk Cards
Luck and VATS
Luck has a direct impact on critical shots, becuase it affects the speed at which the Crit Meter fills. The higher a player's luck, the more critical hits players are able to perform. The luck category is also where most of the VATS-related perk cards can be found. The list of the perks that affect VATS include the following:
- Better Criticals: VATS Criticals do up to 100% more damage.
- Critical Savvy: Critical hits don't fully drain the player's Critical Meter (up to 45% reduction).
- Four Leaf Clover: Each VATS shot has a chance to fill the Critical Meter.
- Grim Reaper's Sprint: Any kill in VATS has up to a 35% chance to restore all AP.
- Mysterious Stranger: The Mysterious Stranger can appear while using VATS to help the player fight.
- Psychopath: Any kill in VATS has up to a 15% chance to fill the Critical Meter
- Gun Fu: VATS swaps targets on kill, with up to a 60% damage boost for the next 3 kills.
- Awareness: Ability to view a target's specific damage resistances in VATS.
- Concentrated Fire: VATS Can Focus Fire On Certain Body Parts For Increased Accuracy And Damage
There are also a few legendary perk cards that can affect the player's critical hit output. They are:
- Hack and Slash: Up to a 50% chance for melee VATS attacks to do area damage.
- Follow Through: Ranged sneak damage increases damage to target by up to 40% for 10 seconds.
- Taking One For The Team: Enemies take up to 40% more damage when they attack the player, if the player is on a team.
Increase AP (Action Points)
More AP Means More Shots in VATS
Every shot in VATS costs AP. The cost will vary depending on things like the weapon, legendary effects, and perk cards, but it's important for players to try and maximize their AP and AP refresh speed as much as possible. The higher the player's AP and AP refresh speed, the more critical shots they'll be able to perform. Some of the best ways to boost a player's AP can be seen below:
- Company Tea: +10% AP Refresh Speed for 60 minutes.
- Canned Coffee: +12 AP Regeneration for 25 seconds.
- Action Boy Perk: Regenerate AP up to 45% faster.
- Bird Bones Serum: Boosts AP by 20.
- Play An Instrument: +25% AP Refresh Speed for 60 minutes.
- AP Boosting Armor Mods: Up to +5 to AP per piece.
Foods and Drinks
Short-Term But Effective Critical Damage Boosts
There are lots of food and drink options in Fallout 76. While some foods and drinks only boost the player's hunger and thirst bars, there are some that give the player other temporary boosts. Some foods and drinks can even increase a player's critical hit damage for a short while, including the following items:
Item | Boost | Mutation Boost |
|---|---|---|
Firecracker Berry Juice | +25% Crit DMG | Herbivore: +50% Crit DMG |
Sweet Mutfruit Tea | +50% Crit DMG | Herbivore: +100% Crit DMG |
Steeped Thistle Tea | +50% Crit DMG | Herbivore: +100% Crit DMG |
Blight Soup | +50% Crit DMG | Herbivore: +100% Crit DMG |
Megasloth Mushroom Soup | +50% Crit DMG | Herbivore: +100% Crit DMG |
Mutations
Better Criticals With Mutations
As seen in the table in the previous entry, the Herbivore mutation can be used to double the benefits received from consuming fruit and vegetable-based meals and drinks. The Herbivore mutation is a must-have for those wanting to increase their critical damage output.
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From Speed Demon to Twisted Muscles, here are some of the best mutations you can hope to find in Fallout 76.
Another mutation that all critical build users should have is the Eagle Eyes Serum. This mutation increases the player's perception and boosts their critical shot damage in VATS. This mutation will boost the player's critical shot damage by 50%. However, it's possible to increase that further. By using the charisma perk Strange in Numbers, players can increase the boost gained from the Eagle Eyes mutation from 50% to 75% extra critical damage per shot.
Legendary Effects
That One Special Effect
There's one legendary effect that all critical hit builds need: the +50% critical damage effect. This effect stacks with all other critical hit boosters, meaning that it can dramatically increase the player's critical damage output.
Another effect that can help is the 25% VATS cost reduction. This will increase the number of shots that the player can do in VATS, which, in turn, will allow players to perform more critical hits. If the player is fortunate enough to have both of those effects on a bloodied or anti-armor weapon, they will be able to take down some of the toughest enemies in the game easily.
Chems and Other Consumables
A Series Of Small Boosts
Outside of food and drink, there are other consumables that players can use to help give them a temporary boost to their critical hit damage. Chems, magazines, and bobbleheads can be used to give players an extra boost for a short period of time.
It's possible to use one Chem, one magazine, one bobblehead, one food item, and one drink at the same time, meaning that it's possible to perform devastating critical hit shots that can take down most enemies with just a couple of rounds. Some of the best consumables for boosting critical hit damage are:
- Live and Love 3: +75% Crit Damage
- Tesla Science 9: +100% Heavy Gun Crit Damage
- Small Guns Bobbleheads: +20% Ballistic Gun Damage
- Overdrive: 15% More Critical Hit Damage
