Fawkes

Fawkes is a Vault 87 super mutant and possible companion for the Lone Wanderer in 2277. He is an outsider among his kin, having regained his civility and intelligence following the rigors of his mutation.

Life in the vault
Fawkes was one of the original residents of Vault 87. Not long after the vault dwellers moved into Vault 87, the vault overseer and security guards began testing with the FEV. Several vault dwellers were changed into super mutants, and they forcibly mutated the other normal humans. Thus, all the members of Vault 87 were changed into super mutants and centaurs, or killed.

It was not long before the Mutants began to overrun the Capital Wasteland, searching for new sources of the Forced Evolutionary Virus. Despite being infused with FEV, Fawkes's mind was not affected as badly as the other mutants when they went through the transformation; the cause, however, is not clearly given. Even though he forgot his past and who he was, Fawkes still possessed a sense of morality and showed remarkable intelligence. As stated in dialogue with the Lone Wanderer, this "ironically" made Fawkes a mutant in comparison to other super mutants (or "Meta humans," as Fawkes calls them). As a result, he received the same treatment as other failed FEV experiments, and was confined in a medical observation cell in the Vault 87 lab area as a "curiosity."

When Fawkes meets the Lone Wanderer, he states that he has been trapped in that cell for a long time and cannot recall how long he was in there - he states that he has been "in this cage...all my life." He also explains how he was able to keep himself from going crazy, as well as keeping his intelligence up. He did so by using a terminal that linked to the Vault 87 mainframe, containing a large amount of information about the outside world.

In isolation
His fellow mutants had failed to realize that the chamber Fawkes was locked in had a working terminal. Here he read about the past for at least a century, learning about the history of the world. One piece of history he took a liking to was the 'Gunpowder Plot' which involved a group of rebels, trying to assassinate King James I, the current British monarch at the time, by blowing up the House of Lords. Guy Fawkes was a member of this rebellion, and despite the fact his failure is celebrated throughout the pre-War United Kingdom, Fawkes took a liking to him. Since he had forgotten his own name long ago, he renamed himself Fawkes.

Residing as a prisoner in Vault 87, Fawkes is one of two known "humanized" super mutants in the Capital Wasteland, the other being Uncle Leo. In 2277 he is confined to Isolation Room 5 in Vault 87, where he has resided for as long as memory permits. Fawkes claims that he was able to attain literacy and a civilized personality (things most East Coast super mutants, and super mutants in general, sorely lack) by gleaning as much information as possible from the vault's immense on-line database (or at least until recently as the terminal that he used was destroyed by the other super mutants as a way of tormenting him).

Fawkes credits his intimate knowledge of Vault 87 to being a resident there before being transformed into a super mutant, additionally he wears the tattered remnants of a male Vault 87 jumpsuit, possibly due to him outgrowing it while mutating. Fawkes has knowledge of the Garden of Eden Creation Kit, one of which is located inside Vault 87. He waits patiently inside his small isolation chamber, waiting for someone to come along, in search of the G.E.C.K, and give him his freedom.

Identity before mutation
A series of unused holotapes that were meant to be found in Vault 87 shed possible light on the identity of Fawkes.

The holotapes are part of a daily diary Shelton started to record, detailing his "life in one of Vault-Tec's newer vaults." The first tape is primarily an introduction, but the later tapes concern some bizarre sounds Shelton hears while on shift, and later something disturbing he witnessed.

Shelton's next recording reveals that his previous holotapes eventually came to the attention of the wrong people. The recording is made as Shelton is hiding in the reactor room. Before the recording abruptly ended, a door can be heard opening.

The fifth and final holotape reveals what eventually happened to Shelton after his capture.

It is important to note that, although Fawkes shares the same voice as most of the Capital Wasteland's super mutants, he is explicitly defined within the game's dialogue files as being the speaker in the final recording.

Though nothing is left to document why these recordings were not included in the final version of the game, Fawkes' demonstrated intelligence does not appear to be present in the fifth holotape recording; this is consistent with his statement that he had to work to become as intelligent and well-spoken again as he was at the time of meeting the Lone Wanderer.

Daily schedule
Fawkes lives in Isolation Room 05, a cell in Vault 87. Should he find a way out, he will be at the Museum of History inside the lobby and right outside of Raven Rock after the quest The American Dream. If Broken Steel is installed, after activating Project Purity, he can generally be found either in the room with Sawbones or in the Jefferson Memorial.

Quests

 * Finding the Garden of Eden: Fawkes pleads to be released from his cell. In exchange for release, Fawkes retrieves the Garden of Eden Creation Kit device from a radioactive section of the Vault, and then bids the Lone Wanderer farewell.
 * The American Dream: After the player character is incapacitated and taken to Raven Rock, home of the Enclave, Fawkes appears as the Lone Wanderer emerges from the base. He repels any Enclave soldiers with an acquired Gatling laser to aid the player character's escape. Any items given to Fawkes before the trip to Raven Rock will be gone when he is encountered yet again. If the Lone Wanderer's Karma is high enough, they have the choice to add Fawkes as a companion.
 * Take it Back!: When the player character is faced with the climactic decision at the conclusion of the game, Fawkes politely declines to enter the radioactive room in lieu of the Lone Wanderer (even though he is immune to radiation), stating that the decision is the player character's destiny and not his. However, if the player character has the Broken Steel add-on installed, the option to send Fawkes in will appear, allowing them to opt-out of entering themselves or Sentinel Sarah Lyons. When this option is used, he states that although he was going to tell the player character that their destiny lies in that chamber, he has already altered his own.

Other interactions

 * Recruiting Fawkes: Depending on the player character's Karma, Fawkes may agree to accompany them on future travels as a companion.
 * If the player character's Karma is too low, or if they fire him at any time, Fawkes can be later found wandering around the entrance to Underworld, located in the Museum of History. Fawkes may also return if left on his own for a significant length of time. By maintaining positive Karma, the option of recruiting him again will be available.
 * Equipment: The player character cannot equip Fawkes with different clothing, though his staggeringly large health bar and damage rate are more than enough for almost any situation. He can carry a total of 229 pounds of equipment.
 * Combat: Fawkes is extremely resilient thanks to the inherent thick skin natural to super mutants. Fawkes is highly skilled in all weapon categories (Small Guns, Big Guns, Energy Weapons, Explosives, Melee Weapons, and Unarmed).

Inventory

 * ¹Fawkes no longer carries this weapon once he appears at the conclusion of The American Dream

Fawkes is limited in the weapons he can use, and will only equip weapons from the following list. He will not equip any unique versions of the weapons below, including:

Notable quotes
Fawkes shares many sentences with the regular Vault 87 super mutants but also features many unique quotes of his own, often referring to his and Uncle Leo's possible Zen philosophy.

Appearances
Fawkes appears only in Fallout 3.

Behind the scenes

 * Contrary to comment about Fawkes' gender made by his voice actor, lead designer Emil Pagliarulo has confirmed, "No, Fawkes was absolutely a male. This was a mistake. Wes gave an interview and he was mistaken. Trust me, Fawkes is and was male."
 * Much of the random dialogue heard from Fawkes as one wanders around with him can be heard as simple wasteland survival advice. However, there are also references to Zen philosophy, examples being, "Be aware of the present moment" and "There is safety in mindfulness."
 * Fawkes' battle cry of "Wake up... Time to die!" mirrors a quote from Leon to Deckard in the film Blade Runner.
 * When asked about his name, Fawkes answers that it was taken from a historical entry on his terminal, "The name comes from a man who was willing to fight and die for what he believed in." This refers to Guy Fawkes, an English Catholic who participated in the Gunpowder Plot, a failed assassination attempt on King James I of England.
 * Even though he is one of the two companions recruited with "Good" Karma, the other being Cross, Fawkes' Karma is "Neutral."
 * In Alan Moore's V for Vendetta, the protagonist "V" was also locked in cell number five, and wears an iconic Guy Fawkes mask.

Bugs

 * Fawkes is unable to use any unique weapons, including unique versions of weapons he is otherwise able to use (e.g. Eugene vs. the Minigun). This is caused by the list determining what weapons Fawkes is able to use missing the entries for these unique weapons.
 * If you do not free Fawkes and instead take the G.E.C.K. yourself then return after escaping Raven Rock and talk to him the speech options will be the same as if he had come to rescue you from Raven Rock, ("Fawkes, what are you doing out here?").
 * If you kill Fawkes after entering Broken Steel his body may follow you to Adams Air Force Base and back to the Citadel after being taken back via the Vertibird.
 * When Fawkes kills something, his Gatling laser may continue to play the sounds, even after he has holstered it. This can be fixed by saving and then loading the saved game.
 * Other fixes include engaging him in conversation and getting him to fire the weapon again or fast traveling to another location.
 * Fawkes will "not speak" to the player. Conversation dialogue initiates but he doesn't say anything. Pressing the "Activate" button doesn't help, making it impossible to trade equipment, fire him, etc. This forces the player to kill Fawkes to obtain the equipment given to him.
 * Fawkes will not be in the Museum of History after you fire him. He will sometimes be waiting for you at the entrance to The Pitt DLC.
 * Fawkes may have two super sledges in his inventory.
 * Upon freeing Fawkes, if you choose to retrieve the G.E.C.K. yourself and do not talk to Fawkes after doing so, he will not appear outside of Raven Rock. He will instead be waiting in Vault 87. and will react in the same manner that he would as if he were standing outside of Raven Rock.
 * When fired right before turning on the purifier, Fawkes will sometimes wait in the inaccessible area above the entrance to the Jefferson Memorial. Firing Fawkes anywhere in the Jefferson Memorial will result in this happening.
 * He may just die randomly (after having infinite health) possibly by a door or in the Museum of History.
 * While in the Satellite Relay Station during the Death From Above quest, if told to wait, then follow, Fawkes will not move, nor will he move if told he is "fired."
 * Fawkes may not appear at Raven Rock during your escape in The American Dream. This may happen if you decided to pick up the G.E.C.K. yourself.
 * When the player character escapes Raven Rock with low karma, Fawkes will not be recruitable and will instead just wander. He may become unusable as a companion and will freeze in places such as Underworld, Wilhelm's Wharf, etc.