Excavator Power Armor

The EX-17 Excavator suit, commonly referred to as the Excavator power armor, is a set of power armor in Fallout 76. The armor requires the player character to be level 25 to equip or craft.

Background
Developed by Garrahan Mining Co. in collaboration with West Tek, the Excavator-class power armor was designed to protect miners from rockfalls and airborne contaminants while increasing the speed at which they could work. Despite being heavily advertised in Appalachia as the future of mining, the unit never entered full production and only five suits were known to have been made.

Created under the EX-17 Excavator Project, the armor's development was headed by Harold Frost, a service member for the United States Army Research Corps hired into the company by Vivian Garrahan in early 2075. The project made considerable progress at first, convincing Frost that he could potentially deliver a prototype within months.

The suit soon ran into durability issues, with the arm units taking extra stress when mining bedrock, causing micro-stress fractures and sheared gear assemblies. By September 2075, the research team settled on using black titanium as an alternative material, being a strong ore native to Appalachia and having the necessary tensile strength to keep the arm components from damaging themselves. Although too expensive for the T-45 power armor due to the expense of the mining process, it was considered an acceptable choice for a corporate design.

While using titanium solved the durability issues, the suit's extra weight made a more efficient reactor necessary. The team continued to experiment with new solutions as late as May 2076, but were already past specifications on the repurposed T-45 reactor, causing overheating and stability issues.

The company eventually settled on developing an ultracite reactor, having the necessary power output and radiation signature for the project. In exchange for the patented ore's usage, Garrahan Mining Co. was required to make a decade-long commitment to Atomic Mining Services. After further experimentation and a near meltdown, the team managed to power the armor with the ore. Pressured by AMS' reveal of Watoga and Hornwright Industrial Mining Company launching the auto-miner industrial robot line, the research team was forced to work around the clock for almost a month straight. By February 2077, the team was able to complete the project and unveil the suit to the press three months ahead of schedule.

By April 3rd, three complete Excavator units were operational and proved the model to be a capable tool. A single suit operated by Bryce Garrahan was able to break the company's record for the amount of ore extracted in a single day, all without suffering maintenance issues. Much to the research team's surprise, Vivian challenged Hornwright Mining's auto-miners to a "man versus machine" ore-mining competition with the suits. The challenge was a calculated risk, aiming to raise the profile of the company and the project while securing lucrative contracts in the increasingly automation-oriented Appalachia. Vivian was convinced the Excavator suits distinguished themselves with revolutionary mineral sensors and the "human drive" to win, despite uncertainty from a majority of the company.

The event started on October 18, lasting the next 24 hours. Due to interference from Hornwright-hired mercenaries, the auto-miners won by a margin of 1.85 tons (less than a single truckload) and were declared winners by the media. Hornwright capitalized on this tenuous victory and claimed it as an example of machine's superiority to man.

Hornwright Industry's Auto-miners quickly became popular in Appalachia as the "talk of the region." Meanwhile, Garrahan's stock price drastically declined, allowing for a hostile takeover by Hornwright. Although Penelope Hornwright saw the Excavator armor as a "black titanium coffin," the company planned to apply the suit's mineral detection technology to their own auto-miners.

The Great War ended the company's ambitions, leaving the Excavator Power Armor for various wasteland factions to recover, namely the Responders' Fire Breathers Unit and the residents of Vault 76.

Design
Led by by a member of the T-45 development team, Harold Frost, the Excavator armor borrowed elements of the T-45 power armor, notably repurposing the model's reactor.

The suit's parts were cast in black titanium to increase durability, as the extra punishment the arm units took when mining bedrock caused damage to the suit. The increased weight from the titanium caused overheating and stability issues with the suit's T-45 reactor. To develop a more efficient power source, Atomic Mining Services were contracted to obtain their patented ultracite ore for use in an ultracite-based reactor.

The Excavator power armor's arm technology increased mining yields, while the helmet provided protection from hazardous mining conditions. The helmet was also bolstered by Garrahan's patented "Ore Sniffing" technology used in the helmet sensors. Sensor calibration protocols were jealously guarded proprietary information and required registration interface with Garrahan's Mainframe at their headquarters.

Characteristics
Registering the helmet is required to complete the Miner Miracles quest but has no effect on the use of the power armor. Excavator power armor has good Radiation Resistance. It has the poorest Damage and Energy Resistances of any power armor model at the same level but wearing a full set of Excavator power armor increases carry weight by 100. Wearing a partial set has no carry bonus. If a piece wears completely out, it is removed from the chassis, removing the carry bonus. When mining ore veins of some metals while wearing an Excavator armor torso, mining will produce four times the ore per attempt. This does not alter the number of attempts made, so this produces four times the ore per vein. The specific metals with this bonus are listed in the table to the right. This does not work on ore deposits.

Armor parts

 * Level 25


 * Level 35


 * Level 45

Locations
There were supposed to be five suits made, but there are no locations with existing Excavator power armor. The Excavator power armor can be crafted during the quest Miner Miracles after downloading its schematics from a terminal in Garrahan Mining Headquarters R&D section, which is on the left after coming through the main door. The terminal is located in a large room on a center table, where there are two power armor stations. Once crafted, pieces cannot be upgraded to a higher level. To obtain a higher level set, the player character must craft it. This can be done at any power armor station.

Plans for crafting mods can be purchased from vendor bot Greg in Grafton, vendor bot Chad in Camden Park or the Responders vendor in The Whitespring Resort.