The Outer Worlds: Spacer's Choice Edition

The achievement unlocks after killing the 20th enemy afflicted with the N-ray-diated status effect. To inflict the N-ray-diated effect, you must use a melee or ranged N-ray weapon. These are denoted with a purple icon in the upper right hand corner of their info panel. N-ray weapons always inflict half the damage of their non-N-ray counterparts but bypass armor so they should not be considered to be 'weaker' weapons. N-ray damage type weapons are rare. Thus, the easiest way to acquire an N-ray weapon is to modify a melee weapon with the Mr. N modification or a ranged weapon with the Mag-2-Ray mod.

To count towards the achievement, the target must first be afflicted with the N-ray status effect and then killed either by N-ray damage or by any other type of attack. Note that auto-mechanicals cannot be infected so one must target biological enemies.

The earliest plasma weapon you are likely to come across is the unique, named heavy weapon Purpleberry Launch. It is in Cascadia behind a locked door (lockpick skill check around 60). It is in the general vicinity of the Ersatz Sweetheart Cake, a quest item you must find for Parvati's Don't Bite The Sun Companion Quest. Look for a locked door near a bottling plant sign. Lockpick it and loot the room for the Purpleberry launch.

The Purpleberry launch is not available until one is well into the game. Moreover, it is not a very good weapon for the achievement. It is not precise and its effective range is only 25 meters. You, the shooter, are likely to be afflicted with the N-rays as well as your targets. I prefer to convert the long range hunting rifle to an N-ray weapon with the Mag-2-Ray mod. The hunting rifle is found at the beginning of the game as a common enemy drop in Emerald Vale.

The Mag-2-Ray mod can also be acquired early in the game provided the player-character has a hack skill of at least 40. This unlocks the restricted items in vending machines. Although the availability is subject to some randomness, the Mag-2-Ray mod is usually available in the T&L or one of the two Spacer’s Choice vending machines at the Edgewater landing pad. One of the vending machines on Groundbreaker, just before the security check point, also, usually carries the item as well. The only drawback is that it is expensive and sells for 8000 bits if no discounts are available.

Modify the hunting rifle with the Mag-2-Ray. Unlike the Purpleberry launch, the N-Ray hunting rifle has a very long effective range and is very precise. It deals significant damage per round and has a very high probability of inflicting the N-ray-diated status effect. For convenience, turn on the achievement tracker. Designate this achievement as a favorite so you can track its progress.

If you shoot the target under TTD, a panel on the lower left side of the screen will reveal any status effects the enemy has acquired. Continue to shoot the enemy with the N-ray hunting rifle until you kill it. If you are shooting into a crowd, the target has a good probability of infecting other enemies. They, too, when killed, count towards the achievement. The achievement pops when you kill your 20th enemy infected by N-rays.

You might have more powerful long-range weapons at your disposal for N-ray modding like the Deadeye Mark II or III. However, too powerful a weapon is a disadvantage. The Deadeye, for example, has the execute special effect that could easily kill the enemy before it is infected. The Hunting Rifle or Hunting Rifle Ultra are better choices because they are far more likely to inflict the N-ray status effect before killing the target.

Whereas the Purpleberry launch is not the best choice for this achievement, there are special N-ray weapons that are very effective. Nova Burst—a unique, named N-ray long gun—is acquired by looting the remains after killing the boss in Murder on Eridanos. Eureka—a unique, named handgun—can be found a little earlier on Eridanos in a safe in the Rizzo's Distillation Station. Phin’s Force is a unique, named N-ray assault rifle found when you gain access to the interior of Phineas’s Lab late in the game.

The achievement can also be unlocked with melee N-ray weapons. However, N-ray damage tends to be indiscriminate and it is risky to be too close to the fray. Interestingly, companions have less of a problem with N-ray weapons. One approach would be to equip companions with melee N-ray weapons. They would flail about with the melee weapons infecting the enemies while you could stand back and deliver the coup de grace with a conventional rapid fire ranged weapon.

The bottom line is there are many approaches to unlocking the achievement. My preference is to hide a fair distance away and pick the enemies off one at a time with a hunting rifle modded with the Mag-2-Ray. When the kill count reaches 20, the achievement pops.