Fallout 3 companions Permanent companions . There are 8 permanent companions available to the player in " Fallout 3 " . All companions except for Dogmeat and Charon have a Karma requirement that must be met if the player wishes to enlist that companion ( listed in parentheses ) . Pictured , left to right : If the player ever tells a companion to wait , but forgets where they did this , they should travel to any add - on location . This will send the companion home . Sometimes this does not seem to work with the add - on Point Lookout . The player can have up to two companions in their party , which consists of Dogmeat plus any other companion , barring certain companion exploits . XP . Unlike in previous " Fallout " games , companions don ' t gain experience and notoriety independently but are scaled to the level of the player . The player earns full XP if able to deal at least 30 % of the damage necessary to kill an opponent , otherwise an enemy killed with the help of followers earns zero XP . Delivering the killing blow yourself is neither necessary nor replaces the minimum damage requirement . Combat . Companions come with their default weapons and armor and will use these , depending on what role you ask them to play ( melee or ranged ) . They will also wear any weapons or armor they are given that is superior to their standard equipment . All human and ghoul non - player character s ( so all except Fawkes , RL - 3 , and Dogmeat ) are capable of wearing power armor . Armor and weapons worn by companions never degrade with use . Companions have unlimited ammunition for their standard weapon ( with the exception of Butch ) , but you ' ll have to supply them with the appropriate ammunition for any other non - default ranged weapon . If a companion is given several weapons and the appropriate ammunition , they will generally choose a weapon based on the range of the projectile , then on either damage per round ( DPR ) or damage per second ( DPS ) but not by the in - game interface ' s DMG stat . For example , if you equip Star Paladin Cross with a flamer , she will first attack with her default laser pistol because her target is out of the flamer ' s range . She will move towards the target to get into the flamer ' s range and then switch to it . There are exceptions , however . For example , Charon will always use Protectron ' s Gaze ( a unique laser pistol ) over the laser rifle , despite its reduced range AND damage per round rating . Some companions will use any weapon if you give it to them ( provided they have appropriate ammunition for it ) . There are some exceptions however , for example companions cannot use the Gauss rifle rewarded upon completion of the " Operation : Anchorage " add - on , but can utilize the sim - only version obtainable through glitching or console . Companions have significantly more health than other non - player characters . Enemies are able to shoot your companion ' s weapons out of his or her hands ( except their default weapons ) , so take care if you give them any unique weapon . Companions are restored to full health at the end of combat , after all nearby enemies are dead . However , if you zone out during a fight and they follow while injured , or if they are injured outside of combat ( e . g . a booby - trap ) , they do not heal ( until after the next combat ) . They can also use stimpaks in their inventory in the middle of battle , if you gave some to them earlier . Dogmeat can ' t carry stimpaks , but you can speak to him in the middle of combat to heal him manually . You can check companions ' health by viewing them in V . A . T . S . mode , or moving far enough from them to see their HP bar . Companions are not considered " essential " non - player characters , so they will die if their health is fully depleted . There is no way of reviving them , unless using the ' resurrect ' command via console , targeted on their corpse . Some companions will enter sneak mode when you enter sneak mode , and end it when you do . They may also randomly enter sneak mode during combat , presumably to avoid enemy fire or to gain better aiming . Firing permanent companions . In most cases , companions can be dismissed / fired , and can later be found and rehired . In most cases , when fired they always travel to a specific spot , usually not the same spot they were hired . In some cases , they can always be rehired by simply finding them and asking them to rejoin you . Also in some cases , there will be Karma or other requirements . For example : Temporary companions . Temporary companions are companions that will join you during a quest . Most of them will follow you indefinitely until you complete their related quest , but not all . Unlike permanent companions , they do not heal automatically at the end of a battle but must be given stimpak s through reverse pickpocketing or healed through dialogue ( still requiring a stimpak from your inventory ) . Most of them can use weapons and armors . And because they are non - player characters , they can use weapons forever with only one bullet . There are some hostile non - player characters which could become friendly to the player and permanent companions , but they will still attack temporary companions , like Arkansas or the protectrons in the RobCo Facility . The traps or mines of allies , like the frag mines laid by the citizens of Big Town , will still be hostile to temporary companions . Of the listed temporary companions , only Red , Shorty , and Sticky have dialogue options which allow the player to give them weapons or other inventory items . James is scripted as though he were a permanent companion ; for example , he uses up ammunition on playable weapons , something only permanent companions do . However , his package is " escort " instead of " follow " , so he can ' t be taken places like a normal companion can be .