Hard Knox Life

## Overview

### Location

Knox Bison Ranch (after completing Aspen, and must have either started Head Hunter or killed everyone at the Cannibal Jamboree)

## Technical

### Quest ID

mission\_x4501\_hardknoxlife

**Hard Knox Life** is a quest in *Wasteland 3*.

## Background

*We received a distress call from the Knox Bison Ranch. It's under siege by unknown assailants. The head rancher flagged us down as we entered and explained the situation: Scar Collectors looking to rustle some bison have the place surrounded. We'll need to deal with the gang members one way or another.*

## Walkthrough

* Upon arrival at the Ranch, you'll be flagged down by a ranch leader, who will guide you around the side of the ranch, to where the Scar Collectors are trying to enter. As you approach, you'll be engaged by their leader in dialogue. You can use Animal Whisperer 9 or Kiss Ass 10 to offer to kill the ranchers yourselves, otherwise attack and wipe them out to protect the ranch. It's a reasonably difficult fight early on, with four butchers, three cyclopi, and one leader.
* If you side with the Scar Collectors you'll head around back through a heavily trapped passage (requiring up to Explosives 10 to defuse) and into the barn through a pair of alarmed doors (Sneaky 10 to disarm). You'll be engaged in conversation and can offer again to help the ranchers or attack and kill them all. The fight ends when all nine ranchers are killed, the bison can be ignored. Speak with the Scar Collector Leader again to collect your reward, either a tame bison if you went with the Animal Whisperer 9 option, or the Meat Maker, Bison Bits, and Bison Steak if you went with the Kiss Ass 10 option.
* If you side with the ranchers you'll be rewarded with regular deliveries of bison meat to HQ and can ask for a pet bison with Animal Whisperer 9. Then you'll be asked to circle around the building and clear out the vermin in the back. The "vermin" are rather large frog hoppers to the northwest (you can bypass the trapped passage after the first two level 8 frag mines through the snow pile). Kill them and return to the ranchers for the final reward.

## Raw strings

```
Hard Knox Life
Investigate the Knox Bison Ranch.
Confront the Scar Collectors outside the Knox Bison Ranch.
Clear out the vermin behind the Knox Bison Ranch building.
Enter the Knox Bison Ranch building from the back.
Talk to the Scar Collectors outside Knox Bison Ranch.
Report back to the ranchers at Knox Bison Ranch.
The Knox Bison Ranch is under attack and calling for help.
We received a distress call from the Knox Bison Ranch. It's under siege by unknown assailants.
The head rancher flagged us down as we entered and explained the situation: Scar Collectors looking to rustle some bison have the place surrounded. We'll need to deal with the gang members one way or another.
The Scar Collectors are dead, but during their siege, some kind of vermin have moved in behind the ranch. The ranch leader asked us to exterminate them.
We've saved the Knox Bison Ranch from the Scar Collectors, and removed a vermin infestation so the ranchers can get back to tending to the bison. A delivery of bison meat should arrive at Ranger HQ shortly.
After talking with the Scar Collectors, we've agreed to take out the ranchers by sneaking in the back. The Scar Collector's leader mentioned a scouting team he sent back there never returned, so we'll need to keep our eyes open.
With the ranchers dead, we just need to talk to the Scar Collectors about our reward.
The Knox Bison Ranch is now empty except for a few untended bison.
We killed the ranchers and any chance for a reward died with them.
The Scar Collectors gave us a pet baby bison. They kept their word... this time.
We've killed the vermin. Now, we just need to report back to the head rancher."

```