Chicago

Chicago was a city located in the pre-War state of Illinois.

Background
Before the Great War, Detective Nick Valentine together with his fiance Jennifer Lands transferred from the Chicago Police to Boston to assist the Boston Police Department in Operation Winter's End. In addition, the Enclave maintained an outpost in Chicago. In the message Whitley recorded and stored before sending ED-E to Navarro, he requests anyone at the Chicago outpost to give the unit any repairs it needs. that the Brotherhood fought or assimilated. It is also where Tommy recovered ED-E, and after pleading with his father, brought it back to his mother's garage for repairs.

Sometime after the defeat of the Master in 2162, the Brotherhood of Steel dispatched at least one airship east, to track down the remnants of the Unity super mutant threat. The airship crash landed near the ruins of Chicago. The survivors initially organized themselves into a new detachment, but by 2254 they had gone rogue, cutting all contact with the larger Brotherhood.

Another expedition would be sent east by the Brotherhood of Steel in 2254, this time with the destination being Washington D.C. As part of this expedition, contact was to be made with chapters of the Brotherhood in the region. The Midwestern Brotherhood was contacted and confirmed they were still operating out of Chicago, after a recently waged war against a band of super mutants.

Meanwhile, the surviving members of the first expedition thrived outside of Chicago. Far from the elders in Lost Hills, a new Midwestern Brotherhood chapter was formed. It diverged heavily from Brotherhood orthodoxy, incorporating many small towns, protecting the locals from raiders and other threats, and distributing advanced technology. They also began openly recruiting not just wastelanders, but ghouls, super mutants, and even talking deathclaws. By 2197, they had firmly established a neo-feudal society around Chicago. The technology-worshipping Reaver cult, based in Newton is also an organization located here.

The Lone Wanderer can speak with Scribe Jameson or Scribe Rothchild about fighting super mutants. Jameson mentions Chicago when explaining the ongoing super mutant conflict the Brotherhood of Steel has been embroiled in over the last few decades. In the Commonwealth, it is mentioned on the holotape Welcome home!, as well as the source of the Skylanes 1981 flight in Skylanes smuggling manifest.

An Appalachian resident named Shawn Aaronholt wrote a note that mentions Chicago, and that he disagreed with his brother Lowell about moving there, wanting to head south to settle instead. A note titled Last will and testament written by Lowell also mentions Chicago, in that he wishes he would have gone there. The city is also mentioned as where former astronaut and possible ally Sofia Daguerre lived as a child.

Appearances
Chicago appears or is mentioned in Fallout 3, Fallout Tactics, the Fallout: New Vegas add-on Lonesome Road, Fallout 4, and Fallout 76.

Behind the scenes
Chicago is a real world city of the same name, in the Midwestern United States.