This side quest starts when you approach Black Mountain, and speak with Neil. He will mention that the mountain is dangerous, as it's taken over by Tabitha.
Black mountain can be accessed by heading north from Goodsprings to Sloan, before reaching the two deathclaws patrolling the road.
If you want the good-karma ending, you should avoid bringing Boone with you as he will attack Tabitha.
Most enemies will have a Damage Threshold of 15. Make sure your weapons can do enough damage.
Approaching the Village[edit]
When you speak with Neil, a speech check of 50 convinces him to remove Tabitha. He will head to the village ahead.
Depending on the time, there are one of two possible patrols. During the day, Super Mutants will patrol along the main road, and during the night there will instead be invisible nightkin.
There are a few shortcuts up the mountain that bypass any enemy patrols. The first notable one is an NCR Trooper on the route, where this route is covered by bear traps. There is also an irradiated crater north of Scorpion Gulch, and a ridge to the east leads to a hard locked gate, bypassing everything on the main road.
At the fallen dish, there are a few trunks with several hundred cap. You may also find a Ham Radio, and speak with Tabitha. With a speech check of 75, you can convince Tabitha that the super mutants are rebelling and will cause fighting between them and the nightkin. On either a failed check or the option of saying that you are a fan, Tabitha will send super mutants to the fallen dish. Other dialog options will end conversation.
When Neil is in position to help, he will attract the nightkin to the village. Hide behind the radar dish and out of sight of the main road. When he returns to position, it should be safe for you to pass.
Black Mountain Complex[edit]
There is a nightkin sniper at the radio tower, who will use a missile launcher. After defeating the nightkin, you can pick up his weapon, Annabelle. This unique weapon is more accurate, uses less AP in VATS, and is lighter compared to the standard weapon.
Once you are in the complex, there are a few options to deal with Tabitha.
- The good ending can be found in the storage shed. With a Science skill of 60, you an repair Rhonda. Tabita will be happy her robot is functional. She will give you the equipment room key before departing. The quest will be complete.
- In the broadcast building, an easy locked terminal points to the location of a key, found below the stairs leading to her room. When you enter, you can simply kill Tabitha.
- The prison building has two terminals. The open one, Entry 6, has the password for the other very hard locked terminal. This second terminal will open the door, and you may speak with Raul to set him free. When you leave the building, Tabitha and two nightkin will ambush you, taking one last attempt to prevent Raul from escaping.
Once Tabitha is defeated or sent off, this quest will be completed.