Hidden throughout the Capital Wasteland are 20 Vault Boy Bobblehead dolls. Seven of those bobbleheads will raise a S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stat by one point, while the rest will raise a specific stat by 10 points.
All 20 bobbleheads are located on shelves or on desks. None are stored in storage containers. Also, you must pick up the bobblehead to get the stat increase; if you use the console to add a bobblehead to your inventory you won't get anything from it.
Collecting all 20 is a rewarding challenge; they make your character better, and unlock some of the perks that have high stat prerequisites. Seventeen of them can be acquired at any time in the game; however, there are three that you must acquire at very specific times, or else you will not be able to go back and get them later. These are noted below.
In addition, collecting ten bobbleheads grants you the "Yes, I Play With Dolls" achievement/trophy in all versions of the game, while collecting all of them grants you the "Vault-Tec C.E.O." achievement/trophy.
After completing The Power of the Atom you can store your collected bobbleheads on the collector's shelf inside your home. Simply activate the shelf to place all your bobbleheads onto it. Bobbleheads placed on the shelf can't be removed, but the bonus will remain in effect.
S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Bobbleheads[edit]
These Bobbleheads permanently raise a S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attribute by one point.
Strength[edit]
This Bobblehead can be missed if you decide to solve The Power of the Atom by blowing up Megaton.
Location: Megaton - Lucas Simms' House.
The bobblehead is in plain sight on a desk. The door is locked. You can pick the average strength lock, or kill or pickpocket Lucas and steal the key from him. Another way is to listen to Mr. Burke's request, report Mr. Burke to Lucas, and then let Mr. Burke kill Lucas. If Lucas dies, you can still be rewarded if you choose to solve The Power of the Atom by disabling the bomb, by talking to his son, Harden Simms, after disabling it.
You may sometimes find the door to Lucas Simms' house to be unlocked - in those cases, you can enter the house and take the bobblehead without any difficulty.
Perception[edit]
Location: Republic of Dave - Museum of Dave.
If you haven't been to the Republic of Dave before, it's in the northeast corner of the map. The easiest way to locate it is to take the You Gotta Shoot 'Em in the Head... quest from Mr. Crowley in the Museum of History. The bobblehead itself is in plain sight on a shelf.
Endurance[edit]
Location: Deathclaw Sanctuary
The Deathclaw Sanctuary is located close to the northwest corner of the Capital Wasteland, between Broadcast Tower KB5 and Dickerson Tabernacle Chapel. The bobblehead itself is located close to the entrance.
Charisma[edit]
Location: Vault 108 - Cloning Lab.
The location of Vault 108 will be added to your map automatically at one point during the game's main quest, although it is not actually related to the main quest. In the center of the area is a big lab chamber; the bobblehead is in plain sight on a desk.
Intelligence[edit]
Location: Rivet City - Science Lab.
You'll bump into this one during the main quest, though it is not in plain sight and is easy to miss due to the clutter on the desks. It is located on a desk near a locker on the ground floor of the lab.
Agility[edit]
Location: Greener Pastures Disposal Site - Office.
This area is directly east of the unmarked Alien Crash Site (home of the Alien Blaster), which itself is located directly southwest of Vault 92 near Old Olney in the upper right corner of the map. It's sitting in plain sight on a desk near a locked terminal.
Luck[edit]
Location: Arlington House, in plain sight within Arlington National Cemetery.
If you haven't been there before, you can reach it by taking the Marigold Metro Station near Grayditch to Falls Church, then entering the Arlington/Falls Church Metro and going straight north. The bobblehead itself is in the house's basement, on a shelf, in plain sight.
Skill Bobbleheads[edit]
These bobbleheads permanently raise a skill by 10 points.
Barter[edit]
Location: Evergreen Mills - Market Bazaar.
Sierra Petrovia, who gives you the The Nuka-Cola Challenge quest in Girdershade, will tell you about this place. It's filled with raiders, but if you make it inside the main building, you'll find a door to the bazaar somewhere inside. The bobblehead is in the far back of the bazaar, sitting on a shelf near Smiling Jack, the only non-raider in the building.
Big Guns[edit]
Location: Fort Constatine - CQ Quarters.
You'll run into this bobblehead if you do You Gotta Shoot 'Em in the Head.... It's in an open safe in the basement, near the door leading onward to the bomb storage.
Energy Weapons[edit]
This Bobblehead can be missed if you leave the area without collecting it.
Location: Raven Rock - Sector 2.
Of all of the bobbleheads in the game, this one has to be the most elusive. At a certain point during the game's main quest, you will wind up on the bottom level of Raven Rock. After exiting the first area (there are two exits, and it doesn't matter which one you take), you'll find it in Colonel Autumn's bedroom, which is located on the west side of the second area, close to the door leading to the third area. It's on a desk in the room.
Don't leave the second area without it! Once you've left the second area, the door locks behind you, and there's no way to open it or otherwise pass through it without cheating.
Explosives[edit]
Location: WKML Broadcast Station - Sealed Cistern.
This place is located south of Fort Constatine (where the Big Guns bobblehead is located). You may receive a new radio frequency when you get near the station, and you can then tune to that channel to determine how close you are. The bobblehead itself is not in the main building, but is in a small manhole-covered area surrounded by rocks just outside. The bobblehead itself is on the first desk you'll see once inside.
Lockpick[edit]
Location: Bethesda Ruins - Bethesda Offices East. Bethesda is located directly south of scrap yard. In these offices, there are two desks with working lamps; the bobblehead is on the one on your right.
Medicine[edit]
This bobblehead can be missed. You get three chances; after that you cannot get it without cheating.
Location: Vault 101 - Living Quarters.
This bobblehead is in the medical room in the northern part of the quarters, which is also Dad's office. The bobblehead is sitting in plain sight on a desk.
You can first get this bobblehead prior to taking the G.O.A.T. test at the beginning of the game. The second point is during Escape!, also at the beginning of the game. Your last chance is during Trouble on the Homefront, which becomes available during the main quest.
If you have the Windows version you can acquire this bobblehead after you have missed it through a simple bit of cheating. To do this, go into Vault 101's entrance area and press (or whatever key is to the left of the on your keyboard), then type tcl, hit , and press again. You can now pass through the vault door and collect the bobblehead. When you're done, head back through the vault door and repeat these steps to turn clipping back on.
Melee Weapons[edit]
Location: Dunwich Building - Virulent Underchamber.
The Dunwich Building is located directly south of Girdershade, and is the southwestern most marked point on the map. When you reach the end of the Virulent Underchamber, you'll find it sitting on the ground near the middle of its room.
Repair[edit]
Location: Arefu - Evan King's House.
If you haven't found Arefu before, then talk to Lucy West in Megaton and agree to help her, which launches the Blood Ties quest, and puts Arefu on your map. Evan's house is always locked, so you'll need to pick the lock or steal the key and take a karma hit. Once inside, it's in plain sight on the white desk.
Science[edit]
Location: Vault 106 - Living Quarters.
Vault 106 is located near Vault 101, and you might have already found it if you've run between Arefu and Megaton, but if you haven't found it, then just play the main quest until you get to the point where all of the vault locations are revealed. This bobblehead is located fairly deep inside the vault, but once you get to the quarters, you'll find it in plain sight on a shelf.
Small Guns[edit]
Location: National Guard Depot - National Guard Armory.
This is a bonus area of the game, unconnected to any quests. And of all of the bobbleheads in the game, this one is the biggest pain to acquire. First of all, the Depot is located in the Friendship area of downtown DC, but the in-game metro map gives you the wrong directions to reach the area; you actually have to go through Chevy Chase, the station you went through to reach GNR during the main quest, and not through Central as the map suggests. Secondly, when you reach the depot, you're going to have to jump through a few hoops to reach the Armory. From the Depot Offices, go through the Training Wing, which will eventually take you back to an area of the Depot Offices where you can flick a switch that opens the Armory door. Inside is the entrance to the depot's bunker, which is password-protected and an even bigger pain to open, but you don't need to open it; the bobblehead itself is on the shelf to the right of the terminal that controls access to the bunker.
Sneak[edit]
Location: Yao Guai Tunnels - Yao Guai Den.
More bonus area goodness. Inside the tunnels is a crescent-shaped lake; the bobblehead is sitting on a metal box near some wastelander bodies at one corner of the lake.
Speech[edit]
Location: Paradise Falls - Eulogy's Pad.
You'll most likely encounter this bobblehead during the Rescue from Paradise quest. You can't miss it, since it's in plain sight on a desk.
Unarmed[edit]
Location: The Capital Wasteland, in the unmarked "Rockopolis" area.
If you talk to Herbert Dashwood in Tenpenny Tower before letting any ghouls into the tower, he'll tell you about a servant he once had named Argyle. (If you let the ghouls into the tower, then you can still get this bobblehead, but you won't get any reward for finding Argyle for Herbert.) Argyle's body can be found directly west of Smith Casey's Garage, a place you'll visit during the main quest. The bobblehead is right next to Argyle's body.