The Island

The Island, formerly known as Mount Desert Island, is a location within Maine and the setting of the Fallout 4 add-on Far Harbor.

Background
Before the Great War, this island off the coast of Maine in the New England Commonwealth was home to Acadia National Park. The island also hosted an experimental wind farm on the mountainside as a "clean" alternative to nuclear power, but was set to be shut down and dismantled at the end of October 2077 due to the threat that wind power presented to its nuclear-based parent company.

After the War, Mount Desert Island was radically changed. The island is now perpetually blanketed in a thick, radioactive fog; nearly every species on the island has been severely mutated and only a few areas are still left habitable. The denizens of Far Harbor have managed to keep the fog at bay with fog condensers, a technology developed and distributed by Acadia, however there are elements on the island that want to see the condensers turned off and the entire island covered in the radioactive fog.

There are three major factions that inhabit the island: the residents of Far Harbor, the Children of Atom, operating out of The Nucleus, and Acadia, a refuge of runaway synths. The residents of Far Harbor are by and large distrustful of any outsiders. The main conflict sprouts from Far Harbor and the Children of Atom being at odds with each other; the Children of Atom welcome and encourage the radioactive fog to consume the island, believing it to be the will of their god, Atom, which is not in the best interests of the coastal town. Far Harbor has literally been pushed to the edge, with the docks being the only habitable area safe from the fog. In response to this, residents of Far Harbor have killed several Children of Atom missionaries over the years, which only encouraged the Children to spread their gospel with increased fervor.

Acadia is the third wheel in this conflict, having only been established shortly after the hostilities between Far Harbor and the Children of Atom began. The Sole Survivor: "If this thing involves the whole island, then you need help. I can be your problem-solver if you let me in." DiMA: "I suppose there's something to be said about refusing help even when it's offered and you're in need. There's a conflict that's been brewing on this island, shortly after we built Acadia. Between Far Harbor and the Children of Atom." Chase: "Simply put: They want to kill each other, and each side wants us to help them." Faraday: "We've tried to stay neutral, but Far Harbor was going to be wiped out by the Fog, so that's when we built the Condensers for them." DiMA: "And I was friends with the previous leader of the Children of Atom, Confessor Martin. I even gave them their headquarters, the submarine base they named the Nucleus." Chase: "Which was a mistake, because Martin is gone and the new Confessor, Tektus, is completely insane." DiMA: "He's been threatening us, to force us to choose a side. I left behind something very important in that submarine base I gave them." Faraday: "DiMA's earliest memories are stored in the military computer banks in that base. The prewar security systems and Confessor Martin's good will were supposed to keep them safe." Chase: "But now Tektus is in charge, and he's after DiMA's memories. We don't even know what's in them." DiMA: "But we do know that I spent nearly a century on this island, alone. Whatever's in there is too dangerous to allow Tektus to get his hands on them." (DiMA's, Chase's, and Faraday's dialogue) A large portion of Far Harbor residents are suspicious of the synth refuge to the south, even after Acadia provided the town with fog condensers. Because of this, Acadia has been roped into the conflict, despite its efforts to reconcile Far Harbor and the radioactive zealots.

Layout
The Island can be reached from the Commonwealth mainland via a boat that is in the northeast. In an area that is off the edge of the map is the Nakano residence. If the Sole Survivor agrees to help the couple inside, they will be allowed to use their boat to visit Far Harbor.

The Island itself is quite large and features over forty-five marked locations. The climate is cold and wet, dark and dreary, accented by rolling pockets of radioactive fog and frequent radioactive thunderstorms among rugged terrain and menacing woods. These radstorms are especially frequent on the southern end of the Island.

The Sole Survivor arrives in the Island's last remaining real human settlement, Far Harbor, which is located on the far eastern coast of the island. The Island is also home to a group of escaped synth refugees based in a pre-War observatory on a mountaintop towards the center of the Island, called Acadia. Another major faction on the island is the religious cult of the Children of Atom. Their headquarters is a pre-War nuclear submarine base called The Nucleus, which is southwest of Acadia, off an inlet into the central part of the island.

The Island also features a few pre-War factories, a pre-War mill called Echo Lake Lumber, two hotels, some National Park campgrounds and buildings, a drive-in movie-theater called Eden Meadows Cinemas, Beaver Creek Lanes bowling alley, an Oceanarium, a ruined church, Waves Crest Orphanage, and a variety of dilapidated pre-War houses, farms and, structures, many of which are now inhabited by gangs of trappers or super mutants, in addition to feral ghouls and various irradiated creatures.

A semi-completed Vault-Tec vault, Vault 118, is located beneath the Cliff's Edge Hotel just north of Acadia, and can be accessed as part of the Brain Dead quest. There is also Brooke's Head Lighthouse on the southern coast of the island, which features prominently on the picture promoting the Far Harbor add-on. Towards the center of the island is the wreckage of Horizon Flight 1207, presumed to have crashed there during the War.

There are many ruined watercraft and small islands dotting the coastline of the main island. Some of these are inhabited by creatures, trappers or other factions, while others are uninhabited.

Instead of Nuka-Cola, the residents of the island even before the War preferred their own locally-produced soda brand known as Vim! which was native to New England and can still be purchased in Far Harbor and found throughout the island. There remains a Vim! Pop factory on the southern part of the island where the beverage was produced prior to the War, now inhabited by super mutants.

Environment
The Island's hostile environment can be attributed to the radioactive fog that blankets nearly the entire landmass that recedes and expands over the years. These constant doses of radiation are enough to drive a person mad if they linger in the affected area for too long, as seen with the trappers that reside within said affected area.

Appearances
The Island appears only in the Fallout 4 add-on Far Harbor.

Behind the scenes
Many of the roads shown on the map of the Island correspond to the carriage road on the real Mount Desert Island built by Rockefeller when he owned the island.