Malcolm Holmes is a retired trader living in the Mojave Wasteland in 2281.
Background[]
Malcolm Holmes was a collector of star bottle caps to get the treasure that's hidden in the Sunset Sarsaparilla headquarters building. He claims to have retired from collecting the caps, but if the Courier pickpockets him (or kills him), they will find up to six star bottle caps in his inventory. Holmes also warns that there are people willing to kill for the blue star caps, including someone named Allen Marks.
Interactions with the player character[]
Interactions overview[]
| Interactions | ||
|---|---|---|
  |
This character starts quests. | |
  |
This character is a merchant. | Sells: weapons, apparel, aid |
Quests[]
The Legend of the Star: Sometime after the player character has picked up their first star bottle cap, they will encounter a man who claims he has been following them. Holmes approaches and introduces himself as a retired trader who noticed they had the same interest in the bottle caps that he collected long ago. He also mentions that if enough caps are collected, the treasure can be claimed from someone named Festus.
Inventory[]
| Apparel | Weapon | Other items | On death |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roving trader outfit Roving trader hat |
.308 round x24 Bottle cap x54 Sunset Sarsaparilla star bottle cap x6 |
Notes[]
- Malcolm may potentially be killed by hostile enemies before he can reach the Courier.
- Malcolm will approach the Courier to initiate dialogue regardless of them being in combat or not.
- Malcolm appears on Highway 95 almost due northwest of the Southern Nevada wind farm as soon as the Courier obtains their first Sunset Sarsaparilla star bottle cap. Once he appears, he will run towards the Courier until he reaches them, pausing only if the Courier leaves the Mojave Wasteland for an interior cell, like a building or a cave, or another region, such as DLC areas.
- Malcolm will not enter Freeside or the New Vegas Strip, as these are considered by the game to be separate worldspaces from the Mojave Wasteland. This applies to any other open area accessed via loading screen as well, such as Camp McCarran or The Fort.
- Malcolm can reach the Courier in any location within the Mojave Wasteland, even those that would be inconvenient, such as on the scavenger platform. After talking to the Courier he swims off, no matter if the water has been cleared of lakelurks or not.
- If one chooses to start a second dialogue with him, the option to trade with him will appear. He will have other items to trade that will not drop when he is killed and are not available to be pickpocketed.
- After speaking with the Courier, Malcolm Holmes will walk directly to the Mojave Outpost barracks. He will disappear from the game once he arrives there.
- If the Courier encounters Malcolm in the barracks interior, he will walk outside of the building. If one follows him outside, Malcolm will approach the door to the barracks and then despawn.
- Malcolm is a member of the "Void Critters Faction," causing almost all Mojave Wasteland wildlife to consider him friendly, as well as super mutants (including those at Black Mountain) and members of the Vipers and Jackals.
- If one trades with Malcolm, the caps dropped after killing him will not increase. However, if the Courier purchases his .308 rounds, they will no longer be available when he is killed.
Notable quotes[]
- "Hello there. It's good to see a friendly face. Almost took you for a raider, I did. Name's Malcolm. Malcolm Holmes."
- "Nah, I gave it up years ago. Too dangerous. And even if I did still collect them, I'd tell you the same. There's people out there so mad with the idea of treasure that they'll attack strangers just on the suspicion that they have some of those caps."
- "There's an old wasteland legend that says somewhere out there is a fabulous treasure from before the war. Those caps with the blue star on them, the tale goes, are the key to that treasure. They're called Sunset Sarsaparilla Stars."
Appearances[]
Malcolm Holmes appears only in Fallout: New Vegas.
Bugs[]
Malcolm's chest will sometimes be invisible when he initially approaches you. Simply loading from the last save fixes this.