Originally hailing from NCR,[1] Jacob Hoff is a natural at chemistry, who used his talents to homebrew detox chems before he became a junkie himself while working for the Garrets.[2] If he can kick his addiction, he has the potential to be a great asset to Freeside, and continue to create medicine and detox chems for the community.[3]
If Jacob dies during the quest High Times the quest can still be completed for partial XP, but Julie Farkas will not start giving free medical supplies to the Courier afterwards. If both Jacob and Bill Ronte die during the quest, the Courier will gain infamy with the Followers upon turning it in. This can sometimes happen accidentally if caught in the crossfire with Freeside Thugs.
↑The Courier: "Are you trying to kill your customers?" Dixon: "Those fools are from NCR. I love seeing those squatters in agony. We were doing just fine before those shits came here and made a mess of things. We don't need NCR eggheads wandering around confusing things." (Dixon's dialogue)
↑The Courier: "Tell me about Jacob." Julie Farkas: "The Garrets hooked Jacob on chems when he was working for them. Ironic, since he used to homebrew detox chems. He's a natural chemist." (Julie Farkas' dialogue)
↑The Courier: "I helped with that addiction problem you mentioned." Julie Farkas: "I saw Jacob, but found Bill dead... His death will be a big loss for Freeside. If you need some medical supplies, come see me. With Jacob working with us, we should be able to spare a stim or fixer once a day." (Julie Farkas' dialogue)
Jacob will continually speak as if he was drunk.