Lou's storyline in Probably Stolen can become one of the most dangerous encounters in the game. What begins as an opportunity to collect a substantial bounty eventually leads to suspicious packages, threats, and decisions that can permanently end your run. Understanding which events are harmless and which require immediate attention is essential if you've already reported her.
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Can You Disarm Lou's Bomb?
What to Do With Lou's Box of Toys
How to Survive Lou's Demands
How Lou's Storyline Starts
Mistakes That Can End Your Run
Should You Report Lou?
Can You Disarm Lou's Bomb in Probably Stolen?
Lou's first bomb is fake and cannot kill you. You can interact with it to discover that it's harmless, or leave it alone. The later bombs are real, and there is no established method of disarming them once Lou has triggered the fatal outcome.
The important distinction is that the real explosives are punishments for earlier decisions. To survive, you need to avoid the conditions that cause Lou to use them.
There are three situations worth understanding:
| Situation | Danger | What Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Lou's first bomb | Harmless | It's a fake and doesn't require disarming. |
| Lou returns for her belongings | Potentially fatal | Her original box and its contents must be intact. |
| Lou collects her demanded payment | Potentially fatal | You need sufficient qualifying goods or Credits. |
If Lou has already placed a real bomb on your counter because you discarded her belongings, the situation is considerably more serious. The explosion can immediately end your run, and a recent autosave may not take you far enough back to reverse the mistake.
Your best protection is understanding what Lou expects before the next encounter occurs.
What to Do With Lou's Box of Toys
When Lou leaves her Box of Toys with you, keep the container and everything originally inside it untouched until she returns.
This isn't ordinary merchandise to sell, dismantle, or use for crafting. Lou expects to recover her belongings, and the game checks whether they're still present.
To avoid problems, follow these precautions:
- Keep the original Box of Toys.
- Don't sell or discard the container.
- Don't remove, consume, or scrap the original items.
- Leave the contents together until Lou returns to collect them.
The contents can vary based on your earlier interaction with Lou. Among the possible items are Old Republic Orders and weapons or tools associated with her first visit.
If her original belongings are missing when she returns, Lou can trigger the real bomb associated with the toy box storyline.
What Happens If You Throw Away Lou's Box?
Discarding the box is one of the most dangerous decisions in Lou's storyline.
She doesn't simply leave or charge you for the missing items. Her subsequent visit can result in a real explosive being placed in your shop, triggering the BOMBED (Lou's Toys) ending.
The danger isn't limited to throwing away the container. Removing an original item can also cause the check to fail.
For that reason, I recommend treating the entire box as a single quest item, regardless of how useful its contents might appear.
Can You Put Extra Items Inside the Box?
Lou's check concerns the belongings she originally entrusted to you. Extra items aren't required to complete this part of the storyline.
There is little reason to mix unrelated inventory into the container. Keeping it unchanged makes it easier to avoid accidentally removing something important before she returns.
How to Survive Lou's 1,500-Credit Demand
Another dangerous encounter involves Lou returning under the appearance of a Security Inspector and demanding payment worth 1,500 Credits.
The demand can be satisfied using eligible merchandise and money rather than requiring the entire amount in cash.
Accepted categories include:
- Weapons and firearms.
- Ammunition.
- Medical supplies.
- Credits to cover the remaining balance.
Once Lou makes her demand, prepare the payment before her collection visit. The storyline allows a seven-day preparation period.
What If You Don't Have 1,500 Credits?
Lou's demand includes a partial-payment option called That's All I Have.
This option has an important minimum requirement: your qualifying goods and available payment must reach at least 500 Credits in value.
If you meet that threshold, Lou can take the remaining money from your register and leave. This is not the same as purchasing a guaranteed escape for only 500 Credits.
If you fall below the required threshold, the encounter can end with a real bomb and the BOMBED (Lou's Debt) ending.
Prepare Goods Before the Collection Visit
Because Lou accepts more than cash, your existing inventory can help satisfy the demand.
Instead of immediately selling every weapon or medical supply, consider how much eligible merchandise you'll need to keep available.
A useful way to plan is to separate your inventory into items you're willing to surrender and items you need for normal shop operations.
If you're approaching the collection deadline, prioritizing a safe payment is more important than maximizing the profit from those particular goods.
How Lou's Storyline Starts in Probably Stolen
Lou becomes eligible to visit after you obtain the Business Permit. Her first appearance depends on your financial situation and how much time has passed since the purchase.
She can appear once your cash falls below 75 Credits, when you cannot cover certain rent obligations, or after approximately two weeks following the permit purchase.
Lou is also a wanted criminal with a 1,500-Credit bounty.
At her first visit, you have the opportunity to let her leave or contact Security. Reporting her triggers the subsequent revenge storyline.
What Happens If You Don't Report Lou?
Allowing Lou to leave avoids the dangerous sequence associated with her arrest.
She doesn't continue returning as an ordinary recurring customer if you simply let her go. That makes ignoring the bounty a viable option for players who want to concentrate on their shop without dealing with her later demands.
Reporting her instead provides the bounty and Security reputation, but also commits you to handling the events that follow.
Can You Report Lou Again?
Once the revenge storyline begins, you cannot repeatedly collect her bounty by calling Security whenever she returns.
Her later appearances are storyline encounters rather than opportunities to claim another arrest reward. Shooting her isn't a reliable alternative either.
Mistakes That Can End Your Run
Lou's storyline is unusually unforgiving because the consequences of a bad decision may arrive several days after you make it.
The most important distinction is between an encounter that appears dangerous and an earlier decision that actually determines whether you survive.
Mistaking the Fake Bomb for the Real Threat
The first bomb is a warning, not the encounter that determines your survival. You can examine it without worrying about a fatal explosion.
Don't confuse surviving this event with completing Lou's storyline. The dangerous checks come later.
Treating Quest Belongings as Ordinary Inventory
Lou's Box of Toys is particularly easy to mishandle because it contains actual items.
The issue isn't whether those items have resale value. It's whether the original collection remains intact when Lou wants it back.
Even one missing item can turn the return visit into a fatal encounter.
Spending the Bounty Before Preparing for Her Demand
Lou's arrest pays a standard 1,500-Credit bounty, which matches the face value of her later demand.
However, the payment doesn't need to consist entirely of the original bounty money. Eligible items can contribute toward what you owe.
The practical risk is spending the reward, depleting your useful inventory, and reaching the collection visit without sufficient qualifying value.
If you intend to finish her storyline, reserve resources for the demand instead of treating the entire bounty as disposable income.
Assuming an Autosave Will Undo Everything
The real bomb can trigger an immediate game-ending result, and an autosave may already be too recent to undo the decision that caused it.
Don't rely on the ability to reverse the final encounter. The safer approach is preserving the box and preparing the required payment before Lou returns.
Should You Report Lou or Let Her Go?
Reporting Lou is worthwhile if you want to experience her full storyline, collect the bounty, and deal with the later challenges.
However, the 1,500-Credit reward comes with serious obligations. Mishandling her belongings or failing to meet her payment requirements can end your run regardless of how successful your shop has become.
Letting her leave avoids those risks, making it the more practical choice if your priority is building your business and eventually purchasing the store.
For more help with that objective, see our Probably Stolen How to Buy the Store Guide.
Ultimately, Lou's most dangerous moments aren't solved through combat or last-second bomb disposal. The outcome depends on whether you've protected what she entrusted to you and prepared enough resources to satisfy her demands.
