What Happens If You Disable Mr. House in Fallout: New Vegas

Disabling Mr. House traps him in a vegetative state within his Lucky 38 chamber while allowing you to continue pursuing other questlines without his interference. However, there are significant consequences to cutting him off that fundamentally impact reputations, quest access, and the fate of New Vegas.

As a passionate Fallout player, I‘ve extensively analyzed the outcomes of not just disabling, but also killing or ignoring Mr. House across various playstyles. In this definitive guide, I‘ll provide an in-depth look at what happens if you betray New Vegas‘ enigmatic overlord to inform your decisions in any faction path.

Immediate Effects of Disabling Mr. House

First, disabling Mr. House leads to immediate hostility from his Securitron allies and reputation/quest impacts including:

• Become permanent "Villain" to Mr. House and Securitrons
• -50 Karma penalty (comparable to destroying memorial or gravely insulting NCR troops)
• "Failed" for active The House Always Wins quest
• Attacking Mr. House also provokes nearby Securitrons into combat

As the reports from numerous players can attest, open aggression towards Mr. House ends any cooperation with him or the Lucky 38. Tread carefully if you still need to access services there before betraying him!

Comparative Karma Impacts From Fallout Wikis

As we can see, the karma loss puts disabling Mr. House on par with defacing beloved NCR memorials – considered quite unethical by the game!

Long-term Consequences for Quests and Endings

Looking past immediate effects, betraying Mr. House also has dramatic consequences for subsequent quest access and New Vegas‘ ultimate fate:

• Mr. House trapped in chamber indefinitely, eventually dies
• Lose Platinum Chip‘s use if already given to him
• Endings supporting House (NCR alignment) get locked out
• Lose Jane as buyer for snow globes after House overthrown

In particular, direct cooperation with NCR and its victory ends up off the table due to hostility with Mr. House that disables associated quest branches. And without the Platinum Chip in hand, you lose opportunities to broker partnerships with factions holding the key.

Impact Comparison Table

As we can observe, while disabling Mr. House avoids directly murdering him, it cuts off more endings and options than targeted assassination!

Alternatives to Purely Disabling

Now, there are more nuanced approaches to removing Mr. House from power than pure disablement if you wish to keep additional roads open:

Kill Mr. House

Straight-up murder by firing a weapon/explosive at his pod kills Mr. House instantly rather than indefinite bedridden suffering. This grants full main quest access outside his exclusive ending. It also provides unique rewards…

Steal Back the Platinum Chip

If you already gave up the Platinum Chip to upgrade Securitrons at The Fort or Lucky 38, sneakily pickpocketing it back from Mr. House unlocks options to broker it between factions WITHOUT cutting questlines.

Side with Yes Man

Yes Man presents an alternative pathway to wield control over New Vegas and its Securitron army by infiltrating Mr. House‘s network. Allying with Yes Man allows you to lock out Mr. House‘s victory conditions without destroying other opportunities.

As Yes Man himself says – "No one can stop me, unless they blow up the entire Securitron army underneath Fortification Hill". So use that resource wisely!

Gamer Recommendations on Managing Mr. House

Based on my passion for morally ambiguous playthroughs plus obsession with unlocking every weapon/perk, here is my boutique approach:

• Get on House‘s good side long enough to receive suite access and Platinum Chip triggers
• Once all endings open, reverse-pickpocket the Chip to broaden influence
• Assassinate Mr. House for immediate death and unique loot
• Ally with Yes Man for independence over hordes of Securitrons!

This pathway maximizes leverage from House‘s tools before ruthlessly removing him from the equation with a calculated murder. The Copper Wires can link to hidden bunker quests for unmatched gear and Yes Man‘s machine army caps off Vegas‘ uncontrolled new order!

While certainly ethically gray for the Mojave, this build perfectly suits a high-chaos-value Courier with an emphasis on skill potency over morality. Or perhaps you just really love Yes Man‘s goofy personality like I do!

In closing, I hope this deep dive on disabling vs. killing vs. ignoring Mr. House gives you insight into navigating his tricky nexus of power! Tread carefully when crossing New Vegas‘ reclusive benefactor and analyze all potential impacts first on your roleplayed priorities before acting.

Let me know what unique experiences you had in undermining – or overthrowing! – Mr. House across repeated playthroughs! Perhaps you‘ve discovered even more intricate methods for hijacking New Vegas I haven‘t covered.