Cornelius has lost his gold pocket watch. Find it and return it to him.

Cornelius has lost his gold pocket watch Find it and return it to him is a side quest in Fallout 2 obtained from Cornelius in Modoc.

Synopsis
Cornelius, the senile old man who helps Rose runs the inn, has recently lost his golden pocket watch. He suspects his long-time friend, Farrel, of having stolen it, but given the reliability of the man's memory, that might just be his impression...

Walkthrough

 * The quest enables the player to talk to a number of characters across Modoc to try and pick up the trail, but few of them are going to be of any help. Rose will just say that Cornelius probably misplaced it on account of his dementia, while Farrel will insist it's probably the work of some thief who has since left town. However, he will also mention losing some tools to the alleged thief.
 * The "thief" is actually in the town's outhouse, hiding behind a pile of rocks. The Chosen One will remark on the concentration of methane in the air (which is a misnomer; methane is odorless, so the smell would belong to any of the other gasses generated by decomposing excrement). The player can use the gas to clear the blockage by dropping any live explosive on the floor (dynamite can be bought from Jo), then leaving through the ladder. The explosion will propel them away from the outhouse, turning it into a crater, and redecorate Modoc with a thick layer of excrement. If any party members are present, they will become hostile and attack for a single round. For this reason, it's better for the player to leave them on the surface before going outhouse diving.
 * Beyond the rocks is a molerat. After disposing of it, the player can recover the watch and a bag from the floor.
 * The watch can be returned to either Farrel or Cornelius, for a reward of 1500 experience points and +10 karma. Alternatively, a petty Chosen One can return it to Cornelius and claim that Farrel did, in fact, steal it, to gain 500 experience points and -5 karma. Finally, the player can attempt to open Farrel's safe and get kicked out by the old man, allowing them to report to Cornelius that Farrel keeps the watch in his safe to earn just -5 karma and no experience.
 * Finishing this quest will also resolve Farrel wants you to find Cornelius's gold pocket watch. Find it and return it to Farrel. Killing Farrel will render it impossible to complete.

Bugs

 * The player can exploit the scripts by placing the watch in the bag recovered from the outhouse. The script only checks the top level inventory for items to remove and so the watch can be returned to both elders for double the experience and karma.