Fallout Bible 3

Notes: All information from Fallout Bible 1 was later included in Fallout Bible 0''. All notes in italics come from The Vault editors, not from Chris Avellone himself.''

Web guys
For any translators, I have a version highlighted in green that shows all the changes except for the segments that I chopped out (which you'll probably need to check against the old translation).

I would send a warning to any translators that the timeline below can and probably will change again, so they might want to hold off until another draft (and at least until the public can throw their comments in for any errors I may have included).

Fallout Bible update

Feb. 11th 2002



This update contains a lot of answers to questions, a concept sketch of the BOS area map (wikip:Tony Postma), a revised timeline, some discussion of the psykers from Fallout 1, a list of keywords you can ask the talking heads in Fallout 1 about, and a few other bits and pieces of info here and there. Some things:

1. Again, if you guys ever have any movie or book suggestions that you think have interesting material relating to the Fallout genre, don't hesitate to email me. Again, my contact information is:

Cavellone@blackisle.com

Suggestions for material to include in the Bible, questions about Fallout events, and suggestions for good source material are welcome, but I cannot give hints or walkthroughs for the game, provide technical support, answer questions outside of Fallout 1 or 2, or read fan fiction or fan-created material for Fallout. There's nothing more frustrating than getting Fallout fan stories, because I can't read them.

I may not be able to respond to every email you send, but I guarantee I will read them all and try to give you a response when I can.

2. To the above, I would also add any music suggestions for fifties-style tunes... we're running a Fallout Pen and Paper game at work, and I need theme music pretty badly.

3. Some of the information contained within this documentation could ruin some surprises in Fallout 1 and 2, so watch out for spoilers.

4. The next addition will be Monday, February 25th. I don't know what's going to be in yet.

5. And if you ever need to satisfy your Fallout cravings, and you have a few friends with the same craving and some dice, I strongly recommend you check out Jason Mical's pen-and-paper Fallout role-playing game at:

http://www.iamapsycho.com/fallout/index.htm

Don't let the web address fool you, Jason's a nice guy.

6. Included in this Bible submission is also the original concept art for Brotherhood of Steel area map - once again, you have Tony Postma to thank.

7. All the PIP Boy pictures in this document are courtesy of BIS artist Brian Menze, who did work on Fallout 1, Fallout 2, Torment, TORN, Icewind Dale, Heart of Winter, and now Icewind Dale 2.

8. I wanted to add more, but revising the timeline took a lot more out of me than I thought.

9. Translators be warned: the information below may undergo revisions based on feedback, so you might want to wait until the next update to make sure the information below stays solid.

Thanks for supporting Fallout,

Chris Avellone down here at Black Isle Studios

Questions, questions
This submission we answer a few questions, the first one from Albert:

1. Here's a question that everyone would like to have answered. Why is Lynette such a bitch? Is she a jet baby? Was she abused as a youngster? Did she have a series of sordid love affairs that all went horribly wrong and warped her into a domineering cynic? Or she just acting like a typical Vault City citizen? - Albert.

Answer: Yes, Lynette is a bitch if you're not a Citizen. As the figurehead for Vault City, she was supposed to embody the worst arrogance and condescension that Vault City has to offer (traits that are not present in all the citizens, as McClure and others prove). Furthermore, I suspect that she was made a black character to add an additional edge to her hypocrisy over slavery, but I guess you'd have to ask the original designers about that - Mark O'Green and I wrote Lynette's dialogue, but we were working off of an older design that (I think) Jason Anderson had written.

As for why Lynette's a bitch... well, Lynette does have an extreme managerial, economic, and efficient soul, and she's used to getting her way. She wasn't abused, tortured, or twisted in any way when she was young, she just got a certain privileged and superiority complex hardwired into her head around five or six years old, and she's never been the same. She's always known that she was destined to lead the Vault 8 Citizens, and that power has gone to her head.

She's been the leader of Vault City for many, many years, and she's seen the worst that the wasteland has to offer - but rather than taking sympathy on the poor souls that have come to Vault City for protection, she has instead taken the view that these "outlanders" were simply not strong or smart enough to achieve what Vault City has, and thus, are inferior. She tends to work too much and too hard, and she sees all her time as precious, so she has little patience for socializing without a purpose (i.e., if it doesn't involve politicking, she's going to be working late at the office instead) or for people dropping in and wasting her time.

As expected, Lynette has had no positive romantic relationships up until her potential relationship with Westin from NCR in the endgame of Fallout 2. She's had little time for anything other than her job, and that's her focus - if anyone throws her job or decisions into question, buckle up, because she takes it as the worst sort of personal attack.

Lynette uses any negative situation involving outlanders to reinforce her beliefs and disregards or ignores any positive aspects - she's single-minded and set in her ways. The fact that she (and Vault City) had an "environmental welcome mat" stretched out for them (with the GECK) when they emerged from Vault 8 meant they suffered little hardship in comparison to other struggling communities, but this simply doesn't factor into her thinking. She believes that Vault City and the Vault citizens have survived and thrived because they are a superior breed of human - smarter, better, and more capable than the human trash that prowls the wasteland.

Anyway, there you go.

And three questions from Deadlus:

'''2. Is military base part of enclave or something? (sorry i'am not good at english :) but I think that you know what i wanted to say) - Deadlus'''

Unknown. The Mariposa Military Base was constructed for the purposes of FEV experimentation on human beings, and considering the nature of the "volunteers" (military prisoners who didn't have their brains scooped for use in brain bots) and the lack of any shred of ethics in the experimentation procedures, it is possible the Enclave had something to do with the experiments at Mariposa. In Mariposa records, however, the Military Base is never mentioned as under the direction of any organization called the "Enclave," and Colonel Spindel, head of the military squad stationed at the base, never indicated any Enclave allegiance... nor did Chief Scientist Anderson in the last few minutes before Maxson put a bullet through his skull.

Still, the existence of the Mariposa Military Base was listed in Enclave records, and this enabled the Enclave to find the base and begin their excavations, so it is possible that some elements of the Pre-War Enclave had their fingers in the horrors taking place at Mariposa. They held the site for many years, but abandoned it after obtaining the FEV samples... and noting the high incidence of mutation among the worker slaves and some of their soldiers, including Frank Horrigan.

'''3. The boss (richard grey or someone) in f1 was in the vault, which vault is it? - Deadlus'''

The Vault "Grey" (originally Moreau) started out in before his mutation into the Master was Vault 8 and the Vault you find him in in Fallout 1 was a test/demonstration Vault constructed by Vault-Tec and has no number (according to Chris Taylor - thanks to Nick Garrott for letting me know about Vault 13's stash on this stuff). Relevant quote:

Saint_Proverbius: Which vault number was the Master's base?

Chris Taylor: The Master was in the Vault-Tec private vault. This was the demonstration model built for the federal government, it was also very close to the Vault-Tec headquarters

'''4. So richard grey was the first vault dweller not the main character in FO1, and why did he left his vault??? - Deadlus'''

According to Lynette in Fallout 2, Richard was exiled from Vault 8 for murder. The details of the murder are unknown and judging from the hypocrisy filling Vault City, the entire incident is questionable.

One question is from Peeyack, sent via Kreegle of Vault 13 fame:

'''5. Why in the final scene in Fallout 1 and 2 nothing is said about players friendly NPCs ? I'd love to know what happened to Marcus, Tycho, Ian, Cassidy or Vic afterwards. - Kreegle'''

Fallout 1: I don't know why. Tim and the Troika crew apparently ended up doing this for the NPCs in Arcanum, though.

Well, according to the manual in Fallout 2 (written by Chris Taylor), Ian bit the bullet in Necropolis, and Dogmeat died in the Mariposa Military Base. Tycho and Katja are not mentioned, so it's assumed they didn't join the Vault Dweller. Still, even though it's mentioned in the manual, I'd substitute your own experiences with them and let that be the true history... even though Dogmeat's pretty likely to bite it in the Military Base because of those damn force fields and because you can't tell him to park his doggie ass in a safe place (without locking him in a force field cage).

In any event, I'll try to include alternate endings for these characters depending on what you did in the game. Your actions should make a difference.

As for Fallout 2, Matt Norton and I wrote end text for all of the ones in Fallout 2 using the narrator's perspective (and occasionally the appropriate voice actors), so here's the sections I was able to dig up (and it's not all the NPC allies, but the talking heads of everyone). They just didn't make it into the game, and as I understand it, Ron Perlman already had 5 billion lines to do in 2 hours. It's possible we decided not to do them because we ran out of time... or because Ron Perlman is an extremely muscle-bound fellow who looks like he can crush bricks in his hands.

In any event, here you go - note that some are personalized for the actor, others are not:

Lynette
The Vault City that I helped establish was to outlast me and continue on for many more years. In the elections that occurred after the destruction of the remnants of the United States government, Senior Council Member McClure was appointed First Citizen and I retired to honorary council member status. With my new free time, I traveled south to NCR and met the NCR President.

I was responsible for much of the legislation that followed in the years between NCR and our City.

Marcus
Inspired by the example set by the Chosen One, Marcus eventually traveled across the great mountains to the east, searching for other refugees from the Master's army. You never heard from him again.

President Richardson
The destruction of the Enclave erased all trace of President Richardson from history. Now the title of "President" is used simply a bogeyman used to frighten children.

Harold
You still hear mention of Harold from time to time. Apparently, the tree growing from his head has gotten larger, and if rumors are to be believed, fruit is growing from it. The seeds are said to remarkably tough, and several of them have taken root even in the most barren stretches of the wasteland.

The Elder
The Arroyo elder lived for many years after the destruction of the Enclave. She seemed pleased that the ancient separation between Vault 13 and the Vault Dweller had been reconciled, and many were the times she told you she wished the Vault Dweller were alive to have seen the reconciliation take place.

Certain that the safety of the new village had been secured and the new community was flourishing, the Elder passed away a few months later in her sleep. Many of the older Arroyo residents believe that she now lives in the vault of the sky, telling the Vault Dweller of your brave deeds.

The Elder, 2
[Matt Norton's comments] The end movie is just finishing - the tanker sailing toward the view at full speed. In the distance is a massive explosion of the Enclave oil platform. The tanker draws closer as the screen fades to black. The Elder, the player character, and all the tribesmen are escaping on the tanker, though we do not see them. The Elder speaks in voiceover. She is pleased, even a little mischievous.


 * Oh, did you see that? That was a good explosion!


 * Chosen One, you are worthy of your name. I am alive, the tribe is saved, and the evil ones are dead. By the Vault Dweller, you are a hero indeed!


 * All the village will honor you when we get home - even your Aunt Morliss. We will roast a gecko and feast. There will be a shrine to you in the temple. Children will be taught your name. With you to protect us, we will certainly grow and prosper.


 * (Fade)


 * That was a good explosion, wasn't it? I think I would like to see more explosions.

I may include an MP3 of Ron Perlman personally wishing me dead for the end narration sequences in Fallout 2 - it is both funny and frightening at the same time.

And the last two questions are from Richard Grey from Vault 13 via his neurolink to the Cathedral computers:

'''6. According to Chris A., the ghouls in V12 were exposed to radiation and FEV. I know Harold said the Vault door opened early or something, so the radiation bit makes sense. My question is, how were the ghouls of Vault 12 exposed to FEV? Harold was a special case, since he went to the Vats with... er... someone, whose shall remain nameless... and got dipped. How do you account for the others? - Richard Grey'''

When the West Tek research facility was hit, it shattered the FEV storage tanks on levels four and five and released the FEV into the atmosphere. Through some means, perhaps propelled by the explosion, the virus was able to reach the ghouls quickly and the mutation process began even as the radiation was rotting away their bodies. How the virus was able to survive the blast without being sterilized is unknown... it would depend on what type of warhead cracked the West Tek facility like an egg.

Actually, Harold never said he got dipped (although it's possible). He was exposed, however - being in close proximity to FEV is enough to cause mutations, as the Enclave slaves mining Mariposa discovered. I imagine the shield between the vats and the control room in Mariposa was meant to keep the virus contained.

'''7. What the heck was Frank Horrigan? A supermutant in powered armor? A cybernetically enhanced human? A robot? A cybernetically enhanced robotic super mutant in powered armor? Also, if he was mutated, why did the Enclave put up with him? Did they make a distinction between FEV induced mutation and radiation induced mutation? - Richard Grey'''

Frank Horrigan is a munchkin's worse nightmare: as far as I can find in the documentation, he's a mutant in Power Armor (whether he's technically a super mutant is debatable, since the scientists operated on him so much and tweaked his DNA and physiology it's hard to tell what the final result would have been if he had been left to change on his own).

As for being a mutant, here's an excerpt from the last update:


 * "It's important to note that Horrigan has never considered himself a mutant; only the scientists at the Enclave would consider him one, but they mostly referred to him as an "experiment," and even then, not to his face. Most soldiers considered Horrigan a walking nuke, something the tech boys built, and they were not generally aware of his mutant status. Most did consider him a freak, however, and there were few soldiers who wanted to accompany him on missions."

They didn't make a distinction as much as an exception. Not many people were aware of his mutant status or could recognize him as a mutant... and those people saw him as more of an altered human experiment than a mutant. It's all semantics. And selective bigotry.

For fan fiction purposes, it's also possible he was just a genetically engineered monster whipped up by the Enclave... and that's what Segeant Granite assumes about him:


 * "He's some genetically engineered freak is what he is. Used to be the President's bodyguard. Secret Service Agent Frank Horrigan. Now he's more than half machine."

Question for you guys
This is a question since BIS is going to keep making RPGs, but some questions I've always been curious about for any of you who still play pen-and-paper games when you have access to computer ones - why? Are there any special qualities about pen-and-paper that make you keep playing them over a computer game or a massively online multiplayer game?

Just curious - we have a dedicated pen-and-paper (and boardgame) base at Black Isle, and we have our opinions, but I'd like to hear yours. If you've got some thoughts on it, feel free to email me at:

Cavellone@blackisle.com

Thanks.

Fun links
If you guys ever need some war posters to throw some spice into a Fallout campaign or just for some window dressing, here's two good links for old war posters, courtesy of JE Sawyer:

http://digital.lib.umn.edu/warposters/browse.html

http://www.library.northwestern.edu/govpub/collections/wwii-posters/

The first site says updates are on the way, so I still check it every once in a while to see what they've got up this week.

If you guys know any other cool Fallout-related links, let me know.

Fallout 1 archeology
I'm going to try and start including all the key words you can ask the talking heads in Fallout 1 with the "Tell Me Abouts." This may not be a complete list, but these are all the ones listed in the design documentation. There is no documentation I can find for the non-talking heads, but if you happen to know any or find any other talking head key words I miss, let me know.

Let's start with the Overseer:
 * Chip/Water Chip/Water Purifier/Controller Chip
 * Vault
 * War
 * Outside
 * Overseer/Library

(I think these last two give new responses, but it could be a generic "I don't know" response).

And because the Overseer is boring, let's move on to Aradesh who's got a little more spice:
 * Aradesh
 * Dharma
 * Tandi
 * Razlo
 * Seth
 * Raiders
 * Vipers
 * Khans
 * Junktown
 * Spear
 * Guard Tower
 * Guard Station

Psykers
For Fallout fan-fiction purposes, you are welcome to make use of the psykers and their potential from Fallout 1, but I'd be careful - the psykers in Fallout 1 show some pretty over-the-top mutations that could take the world to Childhood's End faster than you can say "uh, his eyes are glowing?"

In any event, of the four psykers in the Master's lair, Wiggum was electrokinetic-dominant, Lucy was telekinetic-dominant and a minor photokinetic, Moore was pyrokinetic-dominant, and Gideon was a receiving-telepathic-dominant (without the ability to control his telepathy, requiring the psychic nullifier to block incoming thoughts) with minor photokinetic abilities.

In the Fallout Bible, all psykers were officially wiped from the genre when the Cathedral was vaporized in nuclear fire. It is most likely the Master was able to somehow bring forth psychic abilities in certain humans after they were injected with FEV, but most of the experiments were failures (resulting in insanity) or used to line the corridor of revulsion.

Brotherhood of Steel disk
I'm trying to finalize information on the Brotherhood of Steel, and annoyingly enough, I can't seem to find the following excerpt from the .msg files anywhere in Fallout 1. If anyone can tell me how to get it, or, as a bonus, give me a screenshot of the contents, I'd appreciate it. It's quickly becoming a source of frustration.


 * 1) *** Brotherhood of Steel Honor Code ***


 * 1) *** Maxson's History ***

{7000}{}{My father was a security guard at a secret military base}

{7001}{}{in the desert of southern California. A typical MP, I}

{7002}{}{remember mostly his strength. When it came time for}

{7003}{}{the revolution, I respected his convictions. He stayed}

{7004}{}{behind, to help those who were disabled and wounded,}

{7005}{}{even the scis. He put the well being of myself and my}

{7006}{}{mother into the hands of his best friend, and ordered}

{7007}{}{us into the desert with the other rebels.}

{7008}{}{**END-PAR**}

# -

{7009}{}{We, very few, marched into the wastes. The only thought}

{7010}{}{on my mind was that I would never see my father again.}

{7011}{}{He knew that to stay behind was death. And still, he}

{7012}{}{stayed. He respected the flag, the CIC and the badge}

{7013}{}{that he wore.}

{7014}{}{**END-PAR**}

# -

{7015}{}{What an idiot.}

{7016}{}{**END-PAR**}

# -

{7017}{}{He died for the sins of others. That will never happen}

{7018}{}{again to us. We will become self-sufficient. We will}

{7019}{}{become keepers of knowledge and lore. We will survive}

{7020}{}{the end of civilization. We will take responsibility}

{7021}{}{for our actions, and we will hold accountable the}

{7022}{}{actions of others.}

{7023}{}{**END-PAR**}

# -

{7024}{}{This I pledge to you, Maxson, my son. The Brotherhood}

{7025}{}{of Steel is justly named. We are a Brotherhood. Unlike}

{7026}{}{my father, we will stand back to back with those that}

{7027}{}{share our convictions and beliefs. We are Steel. We are}

{7028}{}{hard. We have been sharpened to and edge.}

{7029}{}{**END-PAR**}

# -

{7030}{}{Always remember the fires that we were forged in.}

{7031}{}{Never forget. }

{7032}{}{The motto from a previous time, and our motto now.}

{7033}{}{**END-DISK**}

Timeline repair - second strike
Aside from my comments about Horrigan and the Wannamingoes last update, here's a repaired timeline based on your feedback (thanks again to everyone who sent msg files and screenshots - all of it was extremely helpful). There are heavy revisions to when the Enclave discovered the Military Base, when Melchior was captured, the true Exodus of the BOS and the events surrounding the FEV research at the West Tek Research Facility and Mariposa.

All the factual changes are highlighted in green. Any year events that were removed or switched around have not had their omissions highlighted, however.

Again, this is not a final draft, since I imagine I will find more problems in it later on and as I get feedback from you guys. Thanks again for looking it over.

BTW, even though information is included on the Vault Dweller's journey in Fallout 1 below, you don't have to use it - it was included in the F2 manual, and it does tell you what happened to Ian and Dogmeat. (Granted, the Dogmeat in the F2 special encounter technically was "Dogmeat," but it was a special encounter, so he shouldn't be considered as the real Dogmeat from Fallout 1, if that makes any sense.)