For some players, the combat inFallout 4just isn’t quite up to snuff. It could be due to the skill or experience of the player or that they’ve reached such an absurd level in-game that nothing can hurt them. In this state, it’s easy for the game to start to get boring.
Fortunately, there are a number of combat-based mods that can shake things up. Everything from improving enemy damage to making combat realistic is achievable with some of the mods fans have created. Here are some of the best for makingFallout 4just a little more challenging.
Updated July 28, 2025, by Ritwik Mitra:Fallout 4is a game with an inverted difficulty curve, very much like most Bethesda games in the modern era. The world is incredibly unforgiving in the early stages, until players gain a few levels and wear better equipment. By the mid-game, players can take on most threats without too many issues. Even the toughest encounters in the game can become a cakewalk by the time players reach the upper echelon of levels. So, it’s only a given why some people may be disappointed by this and opt for mods that make the combat of this title more challenging and thoughtful. Keep in mind that the next-gen update breaks most mods, so it’s advised to use these tweaks on earlier versions of the game instead.
21Commonwealth Encounter Pack
Downloads: 96,848
A simple way to enhance the difficulty of the game is to add more monsters that can obliterate the player. That is precisely what this mod achieves. It adds a whopping 290 new random encounters to the game, effectively doubling the total number of enemies players fight in their adventure.
Combining this mod with other difficulty adjustments will ensure that players will never have a boring moment as they explore the Commonwealth. Something or the other will be out for blood, and it’s up to the Sole Survivor to ensure that it’s not theirs.
20Forced Evolution - Super Mutant Addons
Downloads: 27,538
Super Mutants are some of the most interesting characters in everyFalloutgame, and some really tough enemies that players can fight if they want to challenge themselves. In the early going, most Super Mutants will destroy the player if they so much as put a foot in the wrong place, but these enemies become rather predictable later on.
Players who want to constantly have fun with the Super Mutants in combat can download a mod that increases the variety of enemies from this class. The most amusing one of the lot is a Suicider, who flies using the bomb that’s strapped to its back, making it an aerial threat that players must be wary of at all times.
19Mojave Cazadores
Downloads: 87,683
The Cazadores are one of the most iconic enemies fromFallout: New Vegas. Taking the wrong path to reach Goodsprings ends up being a painful experience for many Couriers who end up realizing that the short way to New Vegas isn’t necessarily the best approach.
This mod adds the Cazadores fromNew VegasintoFallout 4, which makes for a harrowing experience whenever players encounter these monstrosities. To add to this nightmare fuel, there’s a jumbo version of the Cazadores that players can download if they hate themselves.
18MAIM - Wounds Bleeding Pain Meds And Headshots
Downloads: 286,079
The gunplay inFallout 4is pretty fun, but it’s not as visceral as most people would’ve hoped. So, players who want a more hardcore experience with the combat system should definitely download the MAIM mod.
As stated inthe mod’s heading, it adds wounds, a bleeding system, the capacity to feel pain, the addition of headshots, and a bunch of new medicines to account for all these new stats. Players who want to take a more tactical approach to combat will be well-serviced by this mod.
17NPC Accuracy Revised
Downloads: 166,199
The accuracy of enemies andother NPCs inFallout 4is quite odd at times. Bloatflies and other ranged monsters can hit the Sole Survivor with pinpoint accuracy, while raiders and gun-wielding foes can miss shots even when they have all the time in the world to aim.
The NPC Accuracy Revised mod ensures that any weird occurrences of high and low accuracy are balanced out. While this leads to a few enemies missing more shots at long range, the vast majority of foes — especially the ones wielding guns — can absolutely wreck house and snipe the Sole Survivor at long ranges.
16FGEP - Feral Ghouls Expansion Pack
Downloads: 580,805
Feral Ghouls are some of the most horrifying enemies inFallout 4, but they lose their luster after being recycled over and over again. This is where mods like the Feral Ghouls Expansion Pack come into the picture.
Not only does this mod add several new ghouls to make this enemy type more diverse, but the majority of them hit like a truck and can cause the Sole Survivor their fair share of problems. Players will love these new ghoul models… when they’re not being scared out of their wits, that is.
15The Deadly Commonwealth Expansion
Downloads: 158,356
The Deadly Commonwealth Expansion by Dark Claw Raven is a major combat overhaul for enemy factions. Raiders, Gunners, Super Mutants, Ghouls, and the Children of Atom are now stronger with new variants, weapons, and bosses.
This mod has also tweaked the AI mechanics to make these enemies more capable and unpredictable in combat. The result is a more hostile, aggressive world, where smarter enemies work in tandem with each other. There are also new encounters, as factions will fight with each other and whoever the player is allied with.
14Mornedil’s Combat Rework
Downloads: 6,039
The Mornedil’s Combat Rework mod by Mornedil serves to make the game more difficult and provide faster-paced combat. The health of the player and enemies will no longer scale; instead, the damage has seen a bump, and combat is now more tactical. To take down enemies, players must consider crippling them instead by taking out limbs or disarming them.
Of course, thisFallout 4combat mod also applies these changes to the player. Enemies can severely injure arms, making it impossible to use weapons or take out the legs making it impossible to run. As a result, players must operate carefully and strike decisively to come out of combat intact.
13Search And Destroy
Downloads: 70,356
The Search And Destroy mod by mm137 does only two things: increase how long enemies will hunt for the player and the range in which they’ll search. These seemingly simple changes make stealth a much more perilous affair and retreating from battle a more complicated tactic.
Where enemies would once get up after a few seconds they’ll now exert every effort to find the player. This also means players can’t simply duck into a side room — those enemies will now search the entire floor, if not the entire building. This also means that if the player starts a fight in one area, nearby enemies are more likely to join in.
12Better Locational Damage And Optional Gameplay Overhauls
Downloads: 1,378,339
The Better Locational Damage And Optional Gameplay Overhauls mod by Zzyxzz looks to makeFallout 4combat more realistic. A big change is that headshots are more complicated to achieve. The caliber of the weapon needs to be high enough to penetrate the skull of a Super Mutant. Helmets will also block bullets.
Health no longer scales for anyone, so players will need to make sure to wear armor and play cautiously. Otherwise, they risk suffering a headshot, bleeding, stagger, and more. There have also been adjustments to VATS to provide more targets based on the creature being faced.
