Mothership

Motherships are large alien ships dedicated to long-term space travel and for the study of other species. They are generally located in space. It houses an entire crew of aliens and is commanded by a captain. The overall shape of the ship resembles a colossal saucer with another small disc-shaped section attached to the bottom.

Background
Sometime in the early 1600's, a mothership named Zeta was sent to or came across Earth, and it began to observe the planet and abduct the Earth's species for experimentation. In 2277, for over 600 years, Zeta is still hovering above Earth, continuing its study of the Earth species. Some time later, it sent a radio signal, the Recon Craft Theta beacon, to the crashed recon craft Theta in the Capital Wasteland, in order to abduct anyone who approaches the ship.

In 2277, the Lone Wanderer was kidnapped and became the subject of an alien experimentation. But before undergoing more experimentation, he/she escaped from the cells with Somah, saved and joined forces with an atypical group of survivors, and took control of the ship. After the Lone Wanderer killed the Zeta's alien captain and captured the ship's bridge, a second mothership came after Zeta and began hostilities. After an exchange of shots with their respective death rays, the second mothership was destroyed and no other motherships arrived, stopping the alien menace for a while.

Layout and technology
 A mothership uses the finest alien technology and possesses both offensive and defensive capabilities. It is protected by shield technology and its main weapon is a powerful raygun cannon named the death ray (this device, when used on Earth, resembles the power of a nuclear warhead), which connects to the lower section and can be used for both orbital strikes on a planet and combat against other space vehicles.

Passages between the various sections can be made faster with teleportation matrices installed in key points of the ship, which can be turned off in case of internal problems by the captain of the ship. It also possesses a large number of healing archways placed in all sections, that will heal and remove all radiation of anyone who walks through them.

A mothership also contains various laboratories for experimentation on living beings and technology such as biological research, experimentation labs and research labs. There are also a vast number of storage facilities in which items retrieved from a planet below are stockpiled, and abducted species are kept alive or are frozen for preservation, used for experimentation or targets for weapons. Many of the subjects (Living specimens) are mutilated in the process of the Zetan's "Research".

Aside from living quarters for the crew and the bridge, the remainder of the vessel is dedicated to the ship's basic functions. The engineering core in the lower part of the ship provides access to most of the maintenance sections like the maintenance level, engine room or waste disposal. In the robot assembly, the various alien drones are produced and repaired. Death ray control and death ray hub are dedicated to controlling the mothership's main weapon. A mothership also features its own hangar in which other smaller alien ships can be stored and maintained.

Appearances
Motherships appear in the Fallout 3 add-on Mothership Zeta.