Great War

The Great War was a global thermonuclear war caused by the Sino-American War. It resulted in the destruction of all participating nations and abroad, global disruption of climate and billions of casualties as a result of nuclear blasts, exposure to radiation and subsequent collapse of social and government structures. Mankind was set back several hundred years in the span of just two hours.

Prelude
The nuclear holocaust was a direct result of the Sino-American War, a decade-long conflict that left both the United States and China exhausted. By 2077, a combination of attrition, loss of supply routes and offensives conducted by the United States across the front, left Chinese units in Alaska stranded and cut off from reinforcements. The liberation of Anchorage spearheaded by winterized T-51 power armor units under the command of General Constantine Chase marked the end of the Anchorage Reclamation, after a decade of war. Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition p.43: "Chinese Army (Simulated) U.S. Army (Simulated) With conditions deteriorating between the United States and China, a military presence in Alaska was established to prevent a possible invasion across the Bering Strait. With increasingly scarce oil reserves, a last deep-sea deposit below the Pacific Ocean was claimed by China before allegedly being sabotaged by American special operatives. Strained relationships spiraled downwards into escalated conflict, as China marched on Alaska, and the Sino-American War of 2066—2077 erupted. Under the command of General Jingwei, the Chinese Army usurped control of Alaska's oil pipeline and reserves. In response, the Americans had begun what came to be called "The Alaskan Reclamation Operation" (2067—2077). ''Under the leadership of General Constantine Chase, the U.S. Army battled fiercely to the front lines of the conflict before General Chase deployed specialized power armor units that began pushing the Chinese back. Future power armor suits were further refined as the conflict dragged on, and the Trans-Alaska Pipeline was reclaimed. With resources flowing through Canada, strained diplomatic tensions between Canada and the United States becoming problematic, and as the Canadian forces attacked the pipeline, the country was annexed.'' ''A combination of inclement weather, constant American bombardment and trench warfare, and U.S. powered armor unit attacks sweeping through mainline China, the Chinese supply lines weakened and finally broke down completely. By the beginning of 2077, the city of Anchorage was finally liberated, the Chinese invaders eradicated, and the operation had been deemed a success. A commemorative memorial was erected in Washington, D.C., in honor of the soldiers who fought and perished for the greater American good. Violence between America and pockets of Canadian freedom fighters continued throughout 2077, until the Great War obliterated almost all infrastructure, commerce, and human life."'' (Fallout 3 Official Game Guide faction profiles) General Jingwei, commander of the Alaskan theater, was killed in action.

The campaign in mainland China, which began with the amphibious landings at Shantou in 2074, was reinvigorated by gaining ground in Alaska and the deployment of T-51 units. However, as American soldiers pushed deeper into the mainland, Chinese resistance increased. By October, the situation transitioned from a rout into a stalemate. Despite a decade of war, there was no end in sight. Billions of dollars and thousands of casualties were spent in vain, despite taxes and various wartime revenues ensuring the federal government was able to fund a standing army the likes of which the United States had never seen before. In a desperate attempt to bolster the offensive and break the stalemate, bases across the United States were sealed and troops redeployed to provide more men for the meat grinder.

The situation was made worse by the fact that the oligarchs ruling the United States retreated to remote locations around the globe, expecting a last-ditch nuclear strike from China at any moment. The oil rig off the Californian coast was claimed by the president and key members of the junta, becoming the foundation of the future Enclave. The United States was leaderless, continuing on simply due to inertia. Roger Maxson's rebellion went unnoticed, despite a declaration of secession and open rebellion Nuclear war was inevitable, a fact determined by Robert House back in 2065, who arrived at the conclusion that a nuclear war was inevitable by 2080, at most.

Events
Pressed against the wall with nothing to lose, the Chinese finally launched a nuclear first strike on October 23, 2077, in a last-ditch effort to knock America out of the game. The first Chinese subs were identified by the United States Pacific Fleet at 00:03 EST off the coast of California, moving into position. At 03:37 EST, a squadron of high-altitude bombers was sighted off the Bering Strait. At least one Chinese stealth submarine, the Yangtze, moved close to the American East Coast, launching all warheads, save for one malfunction.

Six hours later, at 09:13 EST, the Integrated Operational Nuclear Detection System detected the first four missile launches and the United States went to DEFCON 2. Four minutes later, NORAD confirmation sealed the fate of the world. At 09:26 EST, the President ordered a retaliatory strike according to scenario MX-CN91. As American weapons were launched, the first Chinese nukes hit in Pennsylvania and New York at 09:42 EST. By 09:47 EST, most American facilities went offline.

The nuclear exchange continued for two hours, until silence fell across the land. Both China and the United States were destroyed. The standard nuclear warhead used in the Great War was that of a strategic nuclear warhead ranging from 200-750 kilotons in explosive yield, with the occasional megaton yield warhead (such as the C-23 Megaton) being the outliers. However, the type of warhead mattered little for the Chinese, as most submarines were still armed with high-yield ICBMs. This was actually far worse for the Earth, as the lower yield warheads deposited more soil and debris into the lower atmosphere, resulting in a much more concentrated fallout that eventually enveloped the environment. The entire world was blanketed with multiple nuclear strikes, most cities being hit multiple times, and the world and its entire ecosystem were irrevocably changed for centuries to come.

Environment
The results of the nuclear war were devastating, as they combined with biological and chemical weapons that saw widespread use during the Sino-American War. The most significant result was a global climate shift, manifesting as extensive desertification, particularly in New California. What was once the richest and important agricultural region saw many aquifers dry up and vast stretches of arable land turning to deserts. The Central Valley, the largest and most fertile valley in California, became a barren wasteland in the wake of the climate change.

The changes in climate led to widespread alterations of the ecosystem. The new climate meant that many plants could no longer grow or be cultivated, ranging from common vegetables to specialized crops, such as coca plants or opium poppies. Due to necessity, crop variants mutated by radiation were adopted by survivors, including mutated cabbage and maize. These cultivars thrived in the warm weather of the Southwest, with similar mutations proliferating across the colder climates of the northern reaches of the continent.

Animals were also adversely affected. The combination of radioactive fallout and various local mutagens, particularly the Forced Evolutionary Virus in New California, led to widespread mutation. By 2080, new species were created almost overnight, replacing animals that died out or were out-competed. The most notable mutated species to emerge from this melting pot of genotypes is the brahmin, a mutated Indian Brahman cattle variant. Once the mutation stabilized, the brahmin turned out to be well suited for the harsh conditions of the wasteland, requiring little water and relatively small grazing areas, while providing plenty in return, including milk, meat, leather, bone, transportation et cetera. As such, it rapidly became the most widespread livestock animal in New California and the backbone of many a wasteland economy.

Humans
The impact on humanity and civilization was severe and traumatic. Although emergency response units and elements of the National Guard were mobilized in the evening of October 22, their ability to provide aid to victims and refugees was hampered by the lack of centralized command and control resulting from electromagnetic pulses disabling most communications equipment. Despite efforts by the military to bolster relief efforts, the shock of the nuclear attack resulted in their morale crumbling and many deserting their posts. By the time radiation sickness began to set in among victims of the attack, the situation was hopeless as they were not receiving any supplies to aid the victims. Whiskey and painkillers were the only care available to most patients.

Those who lived outside of major cities or managed to escape them in the narrow window given by the sirens faced a much better chance of survival. However, one exception of Las Vegas was spared a direct nuclear strike thanks to Robert House, who disabled or destroyed 68 out of 77 warheads heading for the city. Although suffering from the sudden loss of access to water, food and medical care, these survivors went on to found new communities across the newly born wasteland, becoming the founding fathers of a new civilization struggling to rise from the ashes. These include Darkwater, the founder of Junktown, Angus of the Hub, the founders of Megaton and Diamond City, and so on and so forth. Some of the less fortunate survivors on the surface turned into ghouls, a result of their exposure to radioactive fallout and/or thermal radiation from the blasts, with their horrifying appearance leading to prejudice among other human survivors.

A relative few were able to reach safety in underground vaults constructed by the Vault-Tec Corporation at the behest of the federal government, often trading suffering on the surface for suffering in confinement, due to the social experiments initiated by the forebears of the Enclave. Some refused to go into their assigned Vaults, believing it was just another drill and not realizing the truth until it was too late. Vaults that did not fail as a result of their experiment frequently became another source of civilization across the wastelands, such as Vault 15, whose inhabitants founded Shady Sands (and the raider tribes of Khans, Vipers and Jackals), the Los Angeles Vault, which led to the establishment of Adytum, and Vault 8, which led to Vault City.

Behind the scenes
According to the script of the Fallout movie, neither China, India nor North Korea launched the first bomb. It was in fact Vault-Tec Industries' executive of the Vaults. He launched the first bomb to fulfill his own prophecy of nuclear annihilation. This has not been established as canon.