Role-players, rejoice! This week’s Xbox Live Deal of the Week covers two of the Xbox 360’s most critically acclaimed RPGs — Fallout 3 and Elder Scrolls IV. As you can see within Major Nelson’s official post, there’s a barrage of Bethesda content available at reduced rates, but with the total for each bit of lower-priced content nearing $40, we want to lighten your DLC budget a tad. So here’s a buying guide for the Deal of the Week, pinpointing which pieces of content are best for the different types of role-playing gamers:

NOT FOR:

Folks expecting deals on Bethesda’s newer games should steer clear. Fallout: New Vegas and Brink are too new to have deals on the cheap, and Skryim’s still a few months out, so even if they did have Avatar items, now wouldn’t be the time to highlight them. Gamers who haven't bought Elder Scrolls IV at all yet should probably save their cash for next month's Elder Scrolls IV Fifth Anniversary Edition, which packs in all of the game's DLC alongside some sweet swag. At $30, it's already a great deal, but the package also includes a $10 coupon for Skyrim and the limited quantity of 200,000 units will likely send the resale value sky-high shortly after release. Last but not least, two Fallout 3 expansions are notable in their absence — The Pitt and Point Lookout, so fans clamoring for the P-flavored Fallout DLC should move along.

BEST BANG FOR THE SPACEBUCK:  

For Fallout 3 players, there’s no contest — with a 15-point higher Metacritic score than the other two add-ons, Broken Steel is an unbroken steal (sorry) at $5. The choice is a little tougher for Elder Scrolls fans. Both expansions earned an average score of 86 on Metacritic, but Knights of the Nine has one-third of the (reduced) price of Shivering Isles (they’re $5 and $15, respectively). Isles does offer much more content for the money, including upwards of 30 hours of content, while Knights will take only about five hours to complete. Using a dollar-per-hour ratio, we’re picking Isles.

THE ACHIEVEMENT SEEKER’S CHOICE:

Easy pick for both games. Knights of the Nine doesn’t add any Achievements to Elder Scrolls IV, while The Shivering Isles adds 250 potential Gamerscore. While each of the three cheap Fallout 3 expansions comes with more Achievements, Broken Steel puts 150 points up for grabs while the others top out at 100.

FOR THE IRONIC GAMER:

Now that we live in the era of $3 R/C Warthogs for your Avatar and purchasable cheats for The Godfather II, the fact that gamers collectively scoffed at an in-game item that provided better stats for your steed is a little quaint. But Elder Scrolls IV’s Horse Armor still has a place in overpriced DLC lore. This week, you can adorn your pony in jewels for $1.50. Still a bit much pricey for something your character won’t bring into battle, but putting it on your mare and seeing how ridiculous your purchase was has a bit of a priceless irony to it.

FOR THE AVATAR DECORATOR:

We classify dressing up as Fallout’s famous Vault Boy mascot as more cheesy than ironic, so the Avatar gear gets its own category. If you’re the type that meticulously crafted your Avatar to have the same facial features as you do in real life, go with the Vault Suit. It’s 50 cents more than the Vault Boy head, but you’ll look more like a soldier than a trick-or-treater. If you’re the kind that makes their Avatar look as outlandish as possible, then it’s hard to go wrong with a smiling blond cartoon head. And, of course, you can combine the two for just $2.50 to pay complete homage to the icon of the franchise.

Have you purchased any of the content already and want to give a recommendation? Do you disagree with any of our choices? Sound off in the comment section below, respond to our Facebook post, or reply to us on Twitter!