The year is 2054. In a 50s-stylized futuristic America, life is fairly good for the average American person. However, the constant threat of a nuclear war does hang heavy over the minds of the people, and one company has capitalized on this fear. In ads on billboards and flashy TV commercials, a cartoon character advertises “Vault Life”, encouraging you to purchase spots in the nuclear protection vaults designed by Vault-Tec so if something does happen, you won’t be caught in the blast. When the Great War did happen in 2077, those who had coveted Vault spots were protected from the radiation. This is where the popular video game series, and much anticipated TV show Fallout starts. Set in the aftermath of the Great War, following those who lived in the Vaults (aptly named Vault Dwellers) and their experiences exploring a desolate wasteland after nuclear devastation. While wildly popular in the gaming community, the upcoming Amazon TV series has brought the game series to a more mainstream audience, one who may not be familiar with the darkly comedic series. So, if you are interested in watching the show and are unsure of where to start with the franchise, need an update on the current lore, or are just interested in what the end of the world looks like, welcome to the Wasteland.
The Great War
In Fallout, the Great War happened on October 23rd 2077, starting at 12:03 AM on that day. Over the course of the next nine hours, those who were lucky enough to get to their Vaults were protected from the blasts, and the rest of civilization was annihilated. Those who miraculously survived the blasts were transformed from an average human to the unsettling Ghouls, warped by radiation to live forever. Those who became Ghouls weren’t even guaranteed the protection of their own minds and sanity, however, as some were unfortunate enough to turn into Feral Ghouls. These were those who were unfortunate enough to get caught in the blast, and whose brains suffered irreparable irradiation and turned them into incredibly hostile zombie-like creatures. In the aftermath of the Great War, society began to rebuild itself out, turning into the Wasteland, a violent, lawless land that operates very much in an “everybody for themselves” fashion.
The Vaults:
Hallmarked by the iconic Vault-Boy character and the recognizable bright blue and yellow jumpsuits, the Vaults were propped up to be humanity’s relief from the threat of a nuclear fallout. Designed to have every luxury that humanity has above ground, these Vaults were the perfect escape from the radiation, allowing a large human population to survive until they were able to go out and restore the world. Vault-Tec had everything designed in order to support the Vault-Dwellers (those who took up residence in the Vault) outside in the radiated world. This involved systems familiar to the players, such as the Vault-Tech Assisted Targeting Services (V.A.T.S.), and the providing of the Personal Informational Processor systems, also known as the Pip-Boys. V.A.T.S. is utilized for protection outside of the Wasteland, helping identify a target’s weak points in order to help a Vault-Dweller protect themselves from the violence in the Wasteland. This is used in conjunction with the Pip-Boy, a system worn on the user’s wrist and helping provide them with information in order to help them survive. However, Vault-Tec did not design the Vaults for purely altruistic means. Warning, however, this may be a spoiler for the show (I don’t know), but is definitely a spoiler for the games, so if you have plans to play the games or don’t want to potentially be show-spoiled, I would skip to the next segment.
*POTENTIAL SPOILERS*
The Vaults were designed to be human experiments. These experiments were designed to see how the human population would react when put in unknown specialized circumstances, as the population would not be able to leave without the threat of entering an unknown wasteland. The most notable Vaults include the ones depicted in the games that the player directly encounters, but there are many more disturbing Vaults tucked away within the various aspects of the Fallout lore. Some of these “noteworthy” Vaults are Vault 111, which was a human cryogenics experiment; Vault 92, an experiment on how constant white noise would affect the psyche of some of the world’s best musicians; Vault 12, equipped with a faulty door in order to explore the effects of slow radiation exposure; and Vault 34, an experiment of overcrowding, overpopulation, and what those inhabitants would do. I again want to reaffirm that I don’t know if there will be a Vault experiment or if Vault 33 (the Vault featured in the TV show) will be a control Vault, and therefore have nothing twisted in the Vault for experimentation.
Nuclear Energy System:
Nuclear energy is much more ever-present in the Fallout universe than in our current day-to-day life. Clearly, the existence of nuclear warfare is present, and the threat of nuclear warfare, otherwise we wouldn’t have this wildly popular video game series. However, nuclear energy was a common, non-threatening presence in the Fallout day-to-day life. Homes in this world are powered by nuclear energy, with many homes having their own nuclear fission reactors to power their lives. Nuclear energy was also harnessed for everyday robotics and tools, such as the freeform “Mr. Handy” robots, designed to help the owner of the robot in their daily life. This familiarity of nuclear power and longevity of it is part of what makes the Wasteland so dangerous. Because everyone understands how nuclear power is utilized and harnessed, they can use it much easier to power things such as using nuclear power cores to power weapons like the Power Armor favored by the Brotherhood of Steel. Nuclear energy for Wastelanders is just as common as fossil fuel power for us, which is a frightening concept when you remember how this world ended.
Wasteland Social Hierarchy:
The Wasteland is home to many terrifying creatures such as large, irradiated cockroaches (aptly named RadRoaches), as well as many threatening factions and organizations of people. Based on where we believe the Fallout TV series to take place, these are the organizations of people that I believe will be players in the series.
The Brotherhood of Steel: The Brotherhood of Steel has already been confirmed to be in the TV show, making it important to understand who they are. The Brotherhood is one of the unofficial governing bodies of the Wasteland, having been formed by a former US Army Officer who survived the Great War. The Brotherhood tasks itself with regulating the usage of weapons, technology, and power throughout the Wasteland, but no one knows just how influential and impactful they are in the workings of the Wasteland.
Wastelanders: The Wastelanders are ordinary people that have found ways to survive in this volatile climate. These people have formed civilizations, and many have formed businesses trying to mimic the ones in a pre-war scenario, such as offering questionable doctor services and haircuts. Many of these individuals in the games aren’t too hostile to the Vault Dweller, instead acting as shopkeepers willing to barter caps (bottle caps used as currency) or other materials for things the Vault Dweller may need.
New California Republic: The New California Republic is exactly what it sounds like. The New California Republic is the closest thing the remainder of the West Coast has to a government, trying its hardest to uphold and enforce pre-war laws and culture. This Republic is incredibly reminiscent of its own version of the United States, upholding things such as military and criminal law and dealing with issues such as immigration from other settlements and territories from around the Wasteland.
Raiders: Raiders are the most commonly encountered enemy in the Wasteland. These are individuals who, as the name suggests, are those who go around to other settlements in the Wasteland and attack, stealing their resources. These are some of the most volatile groups of individuals in the Wasteland, often attacking without rhyme or reason, which makes me confident that we’ll see the heroine in the Fallout TV show encounter her fair share of these individuals.
Nuka-Cola:
Nuka-Cola is the Fallout equivalent of Coca-Cola. Nuka-Cola is one of the most recognizable icons from the series, almost more so than Vault-Boy himself. The embodiment of capitalism, Nuka-Cola billboards and advertisements can be seen throughout the Wasteland even after the Great War. Nuka-Cola was the embodiment of capitalism in the Fallout world, having branded itself over theme parks, various merchandise, and even having its hand in politics. Even in the Wasteland, Nuka-Cola still has its hand in the general workings of the world, as the bottlecaps from these drinks are used in place of pre-war money as currency.
https://fallout.fandom.com/wiki/Fallout_Wiki
https://gamerant.com/fallout-vault-tec-disturbing-experiments/#vault-12