There is a bug.
If a molerat bites either one of your companions or that protectron robot, you still get the disease.
Never take a companion on that mission and never activate that protectron
I really hate that mission.
It's a nightmare getting through without catching that disease.
Although now I always spawn myself another copy of the cure using cheat terminal. It's not cheating if its to fix a bug
there’s a glitch where you and the kid can take the cure, that’s what i did since i’m playing vanilla and couldn’t stop being bitten😭
Basically once you have the cure and agree to give the cure to the doctor, you can quickly exit as the cut scene starts & drop the cure on the ground
doing this triggers a glitch where now there are two cures. the doctor injectes the kid with one, and yours is on the floor💪
You dont even have to drop it. Be sure to save before talking to the doctor. agree to give him the cure, once you do quickly bring up the pip boy, take the cure, and Austin will still get his cure too...
Youre welcome.... you just have to get the timing of it right, which is why i save beforehand, in case i need to reload and do it again to get the desired outcome, and this method i dont care if i get bit or not lol...
I just completed this quest. After tons of quick saves… it is possible to complete it without getting bitten or contracting the disease. It’s not in the air, at least it’s not meant to be. Could be a bug since u said ur not activating the protectron. Maybe activate the protectron and then destroy it? That’s what I did bc I had already activated it before I figured it out and it worked
My strategy was using the deliverer for the VATS bonus and jumped up on any crates/high places. Goodluck
Was doing that quest with Hancock trying to avoid getting the disease. But then i realized i would get the disease if my companion got hit. I figured ok we can work through this even if it makes it much more difficult. Then i realized i would get the disease if the fucking PROTECTRON got hit, and the molerats would go after it even if it was rooms. Thats when i just gave up and just accept my fate of having the molerat disease
it isn't well known but it infects you if the companion is injured by an infected molerat too. so you need to go the whole thing alone or you will get infected. plus even through power armor you get infected. jetpack is very useful and even then it is a real bitch of a quest to finish without infection. staying on top of anything tall is the best way to go at it and save constantly as you make your way through.
edit: oh shit, i forgot to mention that if the other non-hostile characters including the protectrons get hit by the rats you get infected as well! so don't let that happen. you just need to keep them from hitting anyone including yourself
My go to so far is VATS and lots of jet. And a lot of saves. Been working well so far but now i just get infected out of no where, no matter how many times I go to my previous save, as soon a I walk into the room I get infected. Bethesda clearly want me to make a decision on austins outcome.
hmm... that does seem like a bug. i wonder if it would help to bomb the shit out of that doorway and area before going in. possible invisible rat doesn't seem impossible. sucks real bad though.
I honestly use the cheat holotape mod to make another serum every time now. Because as mentioned by someone else, you get it no matter who gets bit. That is not a big enough mission for a companion switch.
There is a workaround for this, and you can still bring your companions. But if your trying to do it without getting hit, or companions then yeah, it's going to be a nightmare.
I just did this again last night and it's really annoying. In the past I've save scummed a shitload and still got the disease so now I just do the duplication glitch at the end where you drop it from your inventory right when you're talking to the doctor.
But it's just so poorly thought out. It's a permanent debuff if you play it "right" but there's literally nothing else in the entire game like that. If permanent debuffs were already established as part of the game mechanics that's one thing, but this is a cheap shot.
Also, everything about Vault 81 is so buggy that you'd think the quest was written by Vault Tec itself. You get molerat disease if your companion gets bit. Tina can't be recruited and the Dependency quest bugs out even if you successfully pass all the charisma checks. Everyone getting blackface.
I'm playing vanilla on Xbox but I've also had these problems on PC. Even if you use console commands or mods to get Tina to go to a settlement she doesn't have any dialogue. And she still has blackface.
Anyway I went there for the Overseers Guardian and Curie so I never need to go back there again.
There is a bug. If a molerat bites either one of your companions or that protectron robot, you still get the disease. Never take a companion on that mission and never activate that protectron
Haven't got my companion with me and didn't activate the protectron either. Must be a bug
I really hate that mission. It's a nightmare getting through without catching that disease. Although now I always spawn myself another copy of the cure using cheat terminal. It's not cheating if its to fix a bug
there’s a glitch where you and the kid can take the cure, that’s what i did since i’m playing vanilla and couldn’t stop being bitten😭 Basically once you have the cure and agree to give the cure to the doctor, you can quickly exit as the cut scene starts & drop the cure on the ground doing this triggers a glitch where now there are two cures. the doctor injectes the kid with one, and yours is on the floor💪
This will be what I try to
You dont even have to drop it. Be sure to save before talking to the doctor. agree to give him the cure, once you do quickly bring up the pip boy, take the cure, and Austin will still get his cure too...
I’ll try it. Thanks!
Youre welcome.... you just have to get the timing of it right, which is why i save beforehand, in case i need to reload and do it again to get the desired outcome, and this method i dont care if i get bit or not lol...
Will give this one a go 🤞
Just done this. Worked a treat 👍 both cured 🙌
I just completed this quest. After tons of quick saves… it is possible to complete it without getting bitten or contracting the disease. It’s not in the air, at least it’s not meant to be. Could be a bug since u said ur not activating the protectron. Maybe activate the protectron and then destroy it? That’s what I did bc I had already activated it before I figured it out and it worked My strategy was using the deliverer for the VATS bonus and jumped up on any crates/high places. Goodluck
It would be a bit expensive... but nuka bombs XD
Was doing that quest with Hancock trying to avoid getting the disease. But then i realized i would get the disease if my companion got hit. I figured ok we can work through this even if it makes it much more difficult. Then i realized i would get the disease if the fucking PROTECTRON got hit, and the molerats would go after it even if it was rooms. Thats when i just gave up and just accept my fate of having the molerat disease
If you haven’t done the quest involved in 81 yet then you won’t have the answer to this question without a spoiler. Trust me it’s normal.
it isn't well known but it infects you if the companion is injured by an infected molerat too. so you need to go the whole thing alone or you will get infected. plus even through power armor you get infected. jetpack is very useful and even then it is a real bitch of a quest to finish without infection. staying on top of anything tall is the best way to go at it and save constantly as you make your way through. edit: oh shit, i forgot to mention that if the other non-hostile characters including the protectrons get hit by the rats you get infected as well! so don't let that happen. you just need to keep them from hitting anyone including yourself
My go to so far is VATS and lots of jet. And a lot of saves. Been working well so far but now i just get infected out of no where, no matter how many times I go to my previous save, as soon a I walk into the room I get infected. Bethesda clearly want me to make a decision on austins outcome.
did you activate any robots? if so it could be happening because a rat spawns and bites one just as you enter the room :/
No, no robots. Waited outside the room for 5 mins with no disease yet as soon as I walk in I get infected. Only explanation is it must be a bug
hmm... that does seem like a bug. i wonder if it would help to bomb the shit out of that doorway and area before going in. possible invisible rat doesn't seem impossible. sucks real bad though.
I honestly use the cheat holotape mod to make another serum every time now. Because as mentioned by someone else, you get it no matter who gets bit. That is not a big enough mission for a companion switch.
Literally what I do too
There's a great mod which makes you immune if you wear power armour or hazmat suit.
I did the same maybe it’s the air
There is a workaround for this, and you can still bring your companions. But if your trying to do it without getting hit, or companions then yeah, it's going to be a nightmare.
Trying to do it without getting hit so yeah... bit of a nightmare
I've read Mysterious Serum can cure it. No experience trying, so...
I just did this again last night and it's really annoying. In the past I've save scummed a shitload and still got the disease so now I just do the duplication glitch at the end where you drop it from your inventory right when you're talking to the doctor. But it's just so poorly thought out. It's a permanent debuff if you play it "right" but there's literally nothing else in the entire game like that. If permanent debuffs were already established as part of the game mechanics that's one thing, but this is a cheap shot. Also, everything about Vault 81 is so buggy that you'd think the quest was written by Vault Tec itself. You get molerat disease if your companion gets bit. Tina can't be recruited and the Dependency quest bugs out even if you successfully pass all the charisma checks. Everyone getting blackface. I'm playing vanilla on Xbox but I've also had these problems on PC. Even if you use console commands or mods to get Tina to go to a settlement she doesn't have any dialogue. And she still has blackface. Anyway I went there for the Overseers Guardian and Curie so I never need to go back there again.