Dad

James, the father of the Player Character in Fallout 3 is the cause of many events within Fallout 3. His exact place of birth is unknown. Indeed, the earliest known fact in his life is him working on Project Purity with his wife, Catherine. They conceive a child together, but she dies during childbirth. Mourning his wife, James abandons Project Purity and leaves under the protection of Star Paladin Cross to Vault 101. Somehow gaining entrance, he becomes the Vault physician, but still, continues his work on the Project.

After nearly twenty years, he abruptly escapes the Vault, sealing the fate of his friend Jonas as the Vault 101 Overseer decides that he, James and the latter's child must die to preserve the secret of the Vault. James left because he learned of the GECK's creator, Dr Stanislaus Braun, and was determined to locate him. In his travel, he sought out Three Dog of GNR and returned to Rivet City, finally ending back where it all began, in Project Purity at the Jefferson Memorial. Going over his gathered information, he was able to deduce the location of Braun's Vault 112 and make his way there.

Confronting Braun in his virtual reality, he annoyed the good doctor and was turned into a mutt for the madman to play with. He was rescued by his progeny, who managed to defeat Tranquility Lane programming. Surprised by his offspring's presence (though not ungrateful for the rescue), he brings the former up to speed. Meeting again at Rivet City, he requests help in rebuilding Project Purity. His child obliges, and after several errands (including Commando Pest Eradication, Fed-Ex fixing and pipe-plumbing) they manage to bring Project Purity back to operational status.

At this point, Enclave verti-assault squads arrive on location and secure the perimeter, headed by colonel Autumn himself. The colonel confronts James and demands control of the purifier. After witnessing the death of Janice Kaplinski, shot by the Enclave commander, James begrudgingly agrees to activate the purifier... but what he really does is activate a devastating radiation blast, severely radiating everyone in the room, the very amount of radiation knocking them all unconscious. James dies afterwards, while colonel Autumn, having injected himself with a special drug, is rushed to Raven Rock and resuscitated.

Behind the scenes
The father's voice is provided by actor Liam Neeson.

"This role was written with Liam in mind, and provides the dramatic tone for the entire game", said Todd Howard, Executive Producer of Fallout 3. "Liam is absolutely amazing to work with".

"It’s been a pleasure bringing the father to life and working with the wonderfully talented people at Bethesda on Fallout 3", said Neeson. “I hope the fans of the franchise and the game will be excited by the results".

Appearances
The father appears only in Fallout 3. Your father's facial features and race will vary based on the ones you choose for your character.

- For PC users, Dad can even take the appearance of mod-added races or mods that unlock otherwise unplayable races (such as ghouls or child races) if the player chooses them.

Items
There actually is a way of getting Dad's items. During the Waters of Life quest after Colonel Autumn supposedly "dies", you can grab your fathers belongings as long as he falls near the door. You must face directly towards the body with the cursor directly on the body in first person view. Once this is done, hold down the button that changes the perspective and you should be able to rotate the camera. Rotate the camera half-way and you should see a "Search Dad" message. Voila! You can also search Colonel Autumn and possibly everyone in the room if they fall close enough to the wall.

Alternatively, you can pickpocket him while working with him at Project Purity. If his .32 pistol runs out of ammunition while escorting him to Rivet City, he'll unequip it. Another method would be to place items on him while pickpocketing, leave the area, then return. If the items have better rating (DAM or DR), he will equip them instead. This will allow you to lift his items the next time you pickpocket him. Note that you will lose karma every time an item moves while pickpocketing.


 * Dad's Wasteland Outfit
 * .32 Pistol

Related quests

 * Following in His Footsteps
 * Scientific Pursuits
 * The Waters of Life