Restoring Hope

Restoring Hope is a side quest in Fallout: New Vegas.

Synopsis
The "Forlorn Hope" of Camp Forlorn Hope has earned a new meaning; due to its front-line location casualties are abnormally high, their supplies are stretched to the breaking point, and the camp's morale is staggeringly low, especially with the recently fallen town of Nelson in plain view.

Walkthrough

 * To initiate the quest, the player has to speak to Major Polatli in the command center at Camp Forlorn Hope and ask what he needs help with. The Major will outline his plan, stating that the most pressing concern is the shortage of soldiers and supplies and direct the player to talk to various NCR officers around camp to resolve the problems.

Supply shortage

 * This portion of the quest starts when the player talk to Quartermaster Mayes in the quartermaster's tent south of the command center. He will explain the situation in more detail and say the he has sent a squad of troopers to Helios One to ask for supplies.
 * At Helios, Lieutenant Haggerty will explain that she gave the troopers what she could spare and sent them back to the Camp. She will explain that the crate has a GPS tracker in it, so it's possible to locate it with pin-point precision.
 * The supplies are found northeast of the Southern Nevada Wind Farm. The troopers are dead, slain by the Legion. Once the player takes the supplies, legionaries will spawn in an ambush. The player can avoid losing reputation with the Legion by using a Stealth Boy and sneaking away or letting their companion take care of the assailants.
 * Once returned, Mayes will be jubilant and his tone will improve greatly. He will tell the player to report to Polatli. The Major will appreciate the help, but immediately send the player out to help with the injured at the medical center.

Medical issues

 * Doctor Alex Richards requires aid with the number of patients in his care. There are three patients to take care of and the player needs to have a Medicine of 35 to treat them all successfully. The Medicine check says 30, but anything less than 35 will return in a botched surgery, being thrown out of the tent, and NCR infamy; the quest does not fail otherwise.
 * The first patient has numerous machete wounds and requires a Medicine skill of 35 to be healed. Without it, Med-X, whiskey, and surgical tubing are required. The successful procedure includes cleaning the wounds, applying antibiotics, and stitching the patient up.
 * The second patient has an injured leg and requires a Medicine skill of 50 to be healed. Without it, a Med-X, medical brace and a bonesaw are required. The procedure to save his life includes amputating his leg and a gangrenous right hand.
 * The third patient is gravely wounded due to close-range blast trauma including multiple lacerations and burns. He requires a Medicine skill of 75 to be healed. Without it, Med-X, tweezers, and a super stimpak are required. A successful procedure includes removal of all shrapnel and the application of a super stimpak to stabilize him when he goes into shock due to blood loss.
 * All items necessary to treat the soldiers are found in the tent, except for two super stims and two doses of Med-X. They are helpfully marked as unowned for the duration of this portion of the quest, so the player can easily treat the soldiers.
 * After the soldiers are treated, Doc Richards tells the player to report to Major Polatli and thanks them for their support.

Miscellaneous tasks

 * Although not necessary for completing the quest, the player can also complete the following tasks:
 * Medical Mystery: helping stop medical supply theft that impacts his ability to treat the wounded in the infirmary.
 * Team Spirit: James Sexton will collect Legion ears from the player as part of a morale-boosting challenge. Every ten Legion ears brought to him will grant a +1 bonus to Camp morale, up to a total of +3. This will increase the amount of troopers attacking Nelson in the final part of the quest.
 * Stocking Up: Carl Mayes requests NCR dogtags to assist with his supply issues. Every 5 turned in yields a bonus of 1 to morale, for a maximum of 3.

Assault on Nelson

 * All this footwork culminates in an assault on Nelson. Major Polatli will order the player to report to Sergeant Cooper out in the no man's land. What follows is an attack on the Legion's forward outpost. The player's task is to find and take out Dead Sea, the commander of the Legion garrison at Nelson. Once he's dead, all that's left is to report back to the Major. As a result, Camp Forlorn Hope will be able to support Hoover Dam in the coming battle, rather than merely trying to hold its ground against flanking attacks from Nelson.

Behind the scenes

 * The name of this quest shares its name with Operation: Restore Hope, a US-led United Nations operation in Somalia between 1992 and 1993.

Bugs

 * The quest doesn't update if the player decides to wipe out the Helios One garrison during That Lucky Old Sun. The supplies can still be located without Lt. Haggerty's information to advance the quest.
 * It's possible to get stuck in the quest if the player kills the Nelson garrison on their own. The command forces quest completion.