Parsons State Insane Asylum

The Parsons State Insane Asylum is a location in the Commonwealth in 2287.

Background
Built by the Cabot family, the Parson State Insane Asylum was home to and cared for Boston area residents deemed mentally ill or insane. Subterranean rooms were constructed in the facility's basement to house the most difficult cases, including Lorenzo Cabot.

In 1894, Lorenzo Cabot returned from an archaeological expedition in the Middle East to find the lost city of Ubar. He brought back a mysterious artifact which bestowed him with supernatural powers. His son Jack Cabot ordered him to be imprisoned in the asylum for the safety of him and his family.

In the years following the Great War, the Cabots hired a security team to protect Lorenzo and the asylum, in order to prevent the archaeologist from being freed and his powers from exploitation by outsiders.

Layout
A multi-level building. There are a number of locked doors and safes to be found.

Inhabitants

 * Captain Maria
 * Lorenzo Cabot
 * Lefty

Notable loot

 * Charisma bobblehead - In the administration area, on the desk in the room with the elevator (Jack Cabot's office).
 * Cell key - In two file cabinets in the administration area: one in the large room near the exit, the other in a corner by Jack's office desk.
 * A Syringer rifle - In the last room on the left at the end of the block of cells in the basement (across from the cell with the collapsed floor through which you must fall to find where Lorenzo is held captive).
 * Mysterious serum - There is one vial of serum next to a raider in the very first room entered. Four syringes are in Lefty's inventory and three more are on a surgical tray on a table in the room containing Lorenzo's cell.
 * 3 overdue books - The first book is inside an open filing cabinet which is on the west side of the very first room you reach after taking the elevator down. The second and third books are both in the control room. Against the east wall of the control room near the door, the player character will find one book inside another filing cabinet drawer, while the final book is in a loose drawer above and to the left of where the second book was. It can be grabbed by jumping up a bit.
 * Massachusetts Surgical Journal issue #1 - On a table in Lorenzo's cell (possibly hidden beneath a vase).
 * Lorenzo's suit - On Lorenzo Cabot's body, if one kills him during The Secret of Cabot House.
 * 2 Vault-Tec lunchboxes - The first is on a bench in the same hallway as the first raiders encountered. The second is on a shelf in the room just before the control room.

Related quests

 * Special Delivery
 * The Secret of Cabot House

Appearances
The Parsons State Insane Asylum appears only in Fallout 4.

Behind the scenes

 * The Parsons State Insane Asylum is based on the real life Danvers State Insane Asylum. This can also be considered another H.P. Lovecraft reference, as Danvers State Insane Asylum is mentioned by name in at least 2 of his works.  Furthermore, H.P. Lovecraft's Arkham Sanitarium was believed to be inspired by Danvers State, which in turn was the inspiration for Batman's Arkham Asylum.  Danvers State has appeared in at least one other video game, it was a level in 2004's Painkiller.
 * The patients records found on Jack's office terminal show that the asylum once held a vigilante named "Nightwar," a woman who only wore black leather and a ten year old murderer who was always laughing. This might be a reference to the characters of Batman, Catwoman and the Joker. The latter may also refer to the Pint-Sized Slasher.
 * The "Abremalin field" imprisoning Lorenzo appears to be a reference to a historical occult work, The Book of Abramelin.

Bugs

 * If the player has not yet taken any quest related to this location, the raider and mercenary corpses will despawn, but new mercenaries will spawn (at specific locations around the exterior of the building, but all within the walled 'courtyard' areas or just outside one gate) every time the location is visited. Some of these enemies may spawn while the player is already within the area, especially at the door to the administration building. This can make the use of stealth much more difficult, and the Sole Survivor can quickly attract multiple enemies if engaged in a firefight, even where it appeared only a few enemies were present. Due to the virtually constant spawning, traveling back and forth between the asylum and a nearby settlement may allow the player to relatively quickly accumulate numerous pieces of leveled gear.
 * Mercenaries in the bug described above may be spawned clipped beneath the grounds or building. They can appear in random orientations, such as inverted or standing horizontally, and some or all parts of their bodies may be totally concealed by the landscape. Though these enemies may not be able to hit the Sole Survivor when firing their weapon if it is concealed by the clipped landscape, they may still be able to detect a sneaking player and alert other nearby enemies. If they are totally concealed, it may be impossible to target the enemy in VATS or attack them at all. This can typically be resolved by quicksaving and reloading or moving far enough away and fast traveling out of the area. Be aware, though, that all enemies will spawn again upon return when taking the latter option.