Deathclaw

Deathclaws are an enormously large, agile, and strong species of mutant chameleons created through genetic engineering. They are substantially larger than a human, and have large and dangerous claws. However, due to mutation, they have lost their camouflage ability.

Biology
Deathclaws are reptiles that stand roughly 10 feet tall, with an extremely resistant thick skin, powerful muscle and bone structure as well as razor-sharp claws, that deal a large amount of damage to the player character and his/her followers, resulting in their moniker. Their build gives them incredible speed, resiliency and strength in close combat, making them an extreme threat at all times.

They are aggressive, territorial, and carnivorous. Typically, they live in small packs, rarely alone (although it's not unheard of), with an alpha male who is the only one allowed to mate with the females. Deathclaws are oviparous, with the eggs typically laid in dark, sheltered locations and fiercely guarded by their mother. Young deathclaws reach maturity under the care of their parents.

Although they do not have vocal cords, the deathclaws seem to be able to mimic human speech much the same as a parrot does. However, normal deathclaws aren't intelligent enough to be capable of real speech.

History
The deathclaws were originally created before the Great War by the United States Military in order to replace humans during high-risk close-combat search-and-destroy missions. They were Jackson's Chameleons genetically modified with the DNA of various other species.

The Master also experimented on the deathclaws early on, but his experiments were not very successful, and eventually they were not used in his army. However, some of the modifications he made to their genome refined them into even more dangerous beasts.

Around 2161, deathclaws were still a mystery and a legendary creature to many inhabitants of Southern California. In Fallout, a deathclaw first appeared in a mission to find missing caravans: while the deathclaw was not responsible for the caravan disappearances, as some had believed, evidence in its lair did lead to the correct solution. Deathclaws had also established a nest in the abandoned warehouse district of the Boneyard, obstructing traffic between the Gun Runners and potential trading partners and making any scavenging in the area very hazardous. As the deathclaw population grew, the deathclaws stopped being perceived as legendary beasts, and started to be seen simply as just another dangerous animal.

Deathclaw
The regular kind of deathclaw, as described above. Note in Fallout New Vegas deathclaws have high DT and shotguns are defacto choices against such creatures.

Mother deathclaw
Female deathclaws, also called Mothers and Matriarchs, are stronger and tougher than males, as well as fewer in numbers. Only one female is the pack mother at a given time, with another female taking its place when it dies. A pack is led by an 'alpha male'.

It's possible that the deathclaw variety with no spikes on the back and smaller, backward horns is in fact meant to represent the female deathclaw. Also, they are almost always much larger than males, if not the same size. .

Baby deathclaw
Baby deathclaws are infantile deathclaw offspring, found all around the West Coast. They are similar in appearance to an adult, although their skin tone, the sounds they make, and their behavior may differ.

Young deathclaw
Not a baby anymore, but still not an adult deathclaw.

Talking deathclaw
In 2235, the Enclave captured many deathclaws and exposed them to FEV. This boosted their intelligence, giving them the ability to talk with varying degrees of erudition and articulation. This subspecies was highly intelligent, about the equivalent of an eight-year-old, with some even being on par with average adult humans. Their learning capacity was very high and they were capable of abstract thought and reasoning. Although they did not have vocal cords, the deathclaws seemed to mimic human speech the same as a parrot does. Socially, they had rigidly hierarchical, peaceful, pack-based ethical code. They were extremely loyal to the pack as a whole, treating it as a family unit rather than having individual families. Fights within a pack are unheard of, and the pack's leader controls many aspects of life, such as choosing and matching female and male deathclaws for reproduction. Oddly enough, Deathclaws are not subject to sterility from FEV exposure; this trait is not explained.

Hairy deathclaw
A deathclaw subspecies living in the area of the former states of Illinois, Missouri and Kansas developed patches of fur to better cope with the colder climate. Furthermore, some of them were noted to be capable of speech as early as in 2197, which means that they probably developed speech through spontaneous mutation, or were experimented on by someone other than the Enclave. Another possibility that they were designed to have an intellect and ability to speak before the Great War. They were also more matriarchal than their Western counterparts, with packs being led by a Matriarch. As infants, these deathclaws are less hairy and seem to be absolutely unintelligent, behaving like an animal or simply following the adults. They presumably become self-aware when they grow up.

Experimental deathclaw
In the Secret Vault, a Vault-Tec installation which served as the company's ticket to a life after the apocalypse, aside from many scientific projects that were to insure the company's power, some research with radioactive materials and FEV took place. When the Brotherhood of Steel Initiate visited the Vault, he encountered unique variants of the beast known all over the wastes.

The Vault-Tec scientists apparently obtained a sample of the deathclaw bioweapon and tried to improve it, using FEV, radiation, and technology. The new species became larger, stronger, gaining extra muscle mass and a type of exoskeleton with many protruding spikes. However, the mutation led them to become blind, leaving the deathclaws to rely on their other senses. The longer they live, the bigger they become, so their mutation and the FEV effect could be very similar to that of Capital Wasteland super mutants. The eggs of these deathclaws are also unique, as they appear more like a pile of flesh nearly the same size as a human.

Deathclaws in Fallout

 * Deathclaws are not affected by the Animal Friend perk.
 * The Deathclaw located in the Deathclaw's Lair has 250 HP and grants 1000 XP.
 * The Mother Deathclaw located in the basement of the Deathclaw Warehouse in the Boneyard has 320 HP and grants 1500 XP.

Deathclaws in Fallout 2
There are two varieties of Deathclaw in Fallout 2. They are the regular variety, like those found in Fallout. These are found in random encounters across the wasteland, often in groups of two to five, sometimes including Young and Baby Deathclaws.

The other variety of Deathclaw are the intelligent Deathclaws occupying Vault 13, the experiments of the Enclave, mentioned above.

Deathclaws in Fallout Tactics
In Fallout Tactics patched to 1.27, deathclaws are deadly. They are highly resistant to regular ammo. The NPC's in each bunker often say "I have some AP ammo for those deathclaws." but they will not trade it. Even an Anti-Vehicle mine does only medium damage.

In the first mission, a player is confronted with 2 Deathclaws and around 5 Baby Deathclaws. However, they can be seen in a Random Encounter before that mission.

Notable quotes

 * "The Deathclaw is the most evil thing to rise out of the ashes after the War. Some say it's a powerful ghost from the war that haunts the land. It's no ghost, it's as real as you and me. It's 20 feet tall with teeth as big as your arm. It's some kind of demon that found its way here when the world was engulfed in fire." - Beth (Beth's dialogue file)
 * "The Deathclaws are all over in the Boneyard. I'd rather not even think about them. Huge and aptly named." - Katja (Katja's dialogue file)
 * "Okay. Well, it's like a damn big man, is what it is. Got spikes and claws that can cut through the heaviest armor. But don't let the size fool ya, it's quick." - Harold (Harold's dialogue file)
 * "You can't look at 'em! It is said the Death Claw can hypnotize just by lookin'. Then it walks up and "boom", you're et!" - Harold (Harold's dialogue file)
 * "Heard some tales about something faster, bigger, and meaner than any living creature has a right to be. Not too many, though, which means that it doesn't leave many survivors. Big claws, ferocious disposition." - Tycho (Tycho's dialogue file)
 * "The Death Claw? Oh, that's a bedtime story. Drinks blood and howls at the full moon." - Killian Darkwater (Killian's dialogue file)
 * "I heard a tale from a traveller up from the south. He said the Death Claw was a creature that killed people at night. He said no one can catch it, because it can disappear like smoke. Not that I believe it, of course." - Tandi (Tandi's dialogue file)
 * "Oh. Just another stupid rumor. Some people say it's a huge fanged monster and others say it's a vampire." -Maxson (Maxson's dialogue file)
 * Protectrons humorously say that Deathclaws are critters of unusual size.

Behind the scenes
The deathclaws are a reference to the Shadowclaws in Wasteland. In Scott Campbell's original concept art (see: gallery), deathclaws were mammals covered with fur. The reason it lost the hair from concept to production was a technical limitation of the rendering software, which couldn't get all the hair to move properly. The hairy Deathclaw in Fallout Tactics was inspired by the original concept.

According to the Fallout Bible, after a Dungeons &amp; Dragons computer game made by Interplay was cancelled, deathclaws were modelled (visually) on the Tarrasques of the D&D canon, as a Tarrasque clay model was already made. However, according to Chris Taylor, while they do look Tarrasque-like, it was not intentional and the clay model was supposed to be a deathclaw from the start.