#fo4 lore

[pain-of-redemption]

I’m back with another Fallout lore rant because something is just bothering me and I need to rant about it.

And there are some spoilers ahead so don’t read this unless you’re ok with spoilers or already played the game

So I’m replaying fallout 4 for the nth time because I can and I make it to the ‘exploring Kellogg’s memories’ sequence. And I’m watching the very last memory, listening to every single part of the dialogue. And something just hits me like a bat to the face.

It’s the part where Kellogg says “...one of the old man’s pet projects...” and I think it’s pretty well discussed that some people think the Kellogg is referring to Dr. Zimmer. And let me be honest I thought that for a while too but when Shaun says “are you taking me back to my father?” It just feels so off to me.

Granted, yes, Shaun most likely had adoptive parents in the institute and was very well taken care of. But there’s so many dialogue interactions in that single scene that just don’t seem to corroborate the whole Dr. Zimmer theory.

Because number one Dr. Amari states that that memory is the most recent one, yeah it could be ten to twelve years after the vault incident. But that doesn’t feel right at all. It really doesn’t. I mean the radio explicitly has Travis’ voice playing on there but Bethesda could’ve been reusing assets to just put some background noise in there. Yeah, ok, fine.

X6-88 shows up in that scene too, granted we have no idea when he was created. The earliest would be 2229 because that’s when the broken mask incident occurred and there is some speculation that the railroad was operating around that time. Again could still prove the Dr. Zimmer theory.

But X6-88 tells Kellogg he has to track down and eliminate Dr. Brian Virgil. Brian Virgil. BRIAN MOTHERFUCKING VIRGIL. Brian Virgil did not work on the FEV experiment 50 years before the events of Fallout 4. He has only been working in the FEV lab for about 10 years as ordered by Father AKA SHAUN. We have no idea when Brian Virgil left the Institute but it was sometime before you left the vault. Considering the fact that Virgil is still sane when you find him in the glowing sea it has to be around 1-2 years. But Bethesda isn’t really explicit on which super mutants are sane and why they are.

Not to forget the fact that Ellie remembers Kellogg living in Diamond City occasionally seen with a kid. Ellie isn’t exactly 60 years old PEOPLE. And again it could be another kid but I highly doubt it.

So yeah the “old man” that Kellogg was taking about has to be Father. I mean Synth Shaun refers to the real one as father whenever he’s brought up. And the creation of Synth Shaun was practically a pet project for Father.

I just- all the facts are there HOW DID I NOT SEE THIS SOONER??!????!!!

[clickbaitcowboy]

Thinking about my Fo4 lore where the institute builds a synth of Avery (and other key figures) to help manipulate the power struggle in the commonwealth in their favor while simultaneously trapping Avery in a pre war simulation

[atomic-lexa]

Old Longfellow

So, I thoroughly enjoy the fact that Arthur Maxson and his storyline (at least concerning Fallout 4′s events) is based off of King Arthur, and that Paladin Danse originates from the Danse Macabre, so, I figured there are probably quite a few characters and story arcs that are allusions to other stories, characters, and sources. So, what I’ve found is that some of Old Longfellow’s character is an allusion to The Secret of the Sea by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. 

In addition to the fact that he shares a name with the author, the poem itself covers a keen appreciation for the sea, and Old Longfellow lives, well, by the sea. In a shanty harbor town. 

Most of all, the Spanish ballad  Haunts me oft, and tarries long, Of the noble Count Arnaldos  And the sailor's mystic song. 

When Longfellow is idle, he’ll often sing songs to himself, namely things like “Wild Rover” and “Molly Malone”, and though they are of Irish origin, not many other companions share this habit. 

In addition, the author, Henry Wadsworth Longfellow was born in Portland, Maine, when it was still considered to be a part of Massachusetts (where Fallout 4 takes place, of course), and he lived out his senior years, post-retirement in Cambridge, Massachusetts. 

Furthermore, Henry Longfellow’s first wife died after a miscarriage in 1835, drawing parallels to Old Longfellow, who’s wife Hannah had a miscarriage after being brainwashed and indoctrinated by the Children of Atom, and later, also died. And, really, just look. There’s no way Old Longfellow wasn’t based off of Henry W. Longfellow. 

Anyway, enjoy this absolutely useless information, because we like Fallout lore more than actual useful things. 

[pain-of-redemption]

Ok ok ok I neeed to rant about something in Fallout lore because this genuinely makes me upset. (Also this does contain spoilers so please do not read ahead unless you’re ok with that)

So the Institute right? Love it, hate, or you don’t care about it. The Institute has played as the main villain in Fallout 4 and even a small part in Fallout 3. They have made several technological advancements. Such as making synths of Brahmin, birds, and humans. But they have also solved a their major power problem and even counterfeit caps (of course it’s never 100% from my knowledge, and I count this as an advancement because they figured out how to make more of what is essentially a limited resource). They have done many many great things. Granted are they doing those things for the betterment of themselves and not the entire Commonwealth/Wasteland? Yes, but it’s still good in the long run.

So why the heck would the BoS, the Railroad, and the Minutemen want to blow that up? Look I get it guys the institute is a big, bad evil that’s practically been sewing threads of discourse across the wasteland. The Minutemen (and I think the Railroad too) at least tell the sole survivor to initiate an evacuation order to save some lives. But that just seems so wrong to me. I can understand why the Brotherhood would straight up and blow up the institute with no thought. I mainly blame Maxson for being impulsive. But why, why would the Minutemen or even the Railroad want to blow up the institute without thinking about the good it could do.

Think about it, most if not all the scientists work in the institute because it is a safe and clean place to stay. You get three meals a day, a bed to sleep in, steady albeit difficult work, and best of all, your safe from any danger.

Wouldn’t the Minutemen want to use their communication systems? The radio signal is significantly stronger than the one at the castle. And the would have an incredibly easy time moving Minutemen troops to settlements in need of help. Not to mention the institute could become their new base of operations with the castle becoming a training camp or something.

The railroad would probably be able to keep their synths safe in the institute. Tinker Tom would have an absolute blast with the technology. And like the Minutemen, that could become their new base of operations as it’s almost impossible to get into the institute without the use of teleportation or taking the long way through a sewer pipe.

And some of you might say “well the scientists will try to kill (insert faction) if they try to take it for themselves.” Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah, look the scientists run away from the sole survivor. But even then if the Minutemen (or maybe even the railroad) told the scientists that they wouldn’t hurt them and allow them to stay if they helped them the scientists would most likely agree. You either get to agree to live under a new power or disagree and get kicked out/killed. The choice is pretty easy.

Now would the scientists there be allowed to continue their research? Depends on the branch. Bioscience and engineering would be allowed to continue their research. Robotics would likely be allowed as long as they aren’t unnecessarily harming innocent people. SRB would be shut down 100%. Neither the Minutemen nor the railroad would allow that division to continue operation.

I’m not saying the endings were awful. I can understand why each faction would want to blow up the Institute. But I’m just saying there should’ve been a choice to blow up the Institute or allow it continue operation with restirictions. The main reason I didn’t like this is because you’re killing Shaun and it just feels so heartless? Like you barely get an emotional moment with him and I feel like the sole survivor should be allowed to share their final moments with Shaun before he passes away or you blow up the Institute.

[pain-of-redemption]

Anyone else get upset at the Gunners? Not like the whole gameplay aspect (although getting jumped by Gunners out of the blue is pretty aggravating), I’m talking about the fact that they’re essentially just raiders with a better hierarchy system.

Let me explain: The Gunners of Fallout 4 are supposed to be a very well organized mercenary faction, much like the Talon Company in Fallout 3. My understanding of fallout mercs (and feel free to correct me if I’m wrong) is that they are only supposed to go after the target signed on their contract. I’m pretty sure they are allowed to kill anyone who gets in their way but otherwise it’s just the target. It’s even been reiterated multiple times that Gunners will take ANY job if the price is right.

Many sources say that the Gunners will kill those who they believe to be beneath them. Which is just so illogical to me. The Gunners pretty much take anyone who they think can hold their own. Sure some of their recruits may need training and discipline but that’s a given. Why the heck would Gunners wanna kill someone who may be a future recruit?

And every Gunner you encounter in the game (minus the one in Hallucingen Inc.) will shoot you on sight if they spot you. I get it. They’re seen as the equivalent to raiders by many wastelanders. They’re supposed to be vicious and another obstacle for the player. But the fact that they shoot the Sole Survivor on SIGHT, bugs me. Unless you’re fresh out of the vault with only a 10mm and a baton I can see why the Gunners would pick you as an easy target. But by the time you even find Gunners you’re already a raging badass cutting down your enemies. So it really wouldn’t make sense in my mind for the Gunners to go after you since you’re a threat.

UNLESS the sole survivor had a bounty placed on their head. It’s not a new concept in the Fallout universe. The lone wanderer had a bounty placed on them and was a prime target for the Talon company. Granted could the Gunners just be protecting locations controlled by them? Yes, it’s entirely possible. But there was one post I saw with the headcanon that the Gunners would warn anyone who got to close. I love that idea better than Gunners killing everyone and anyone. And not to mention the sole survivor trying to tract down the person who placed a bounty on them would’ve such an awesome quest (kind of like the Dark Brotherhood in Skyrim).

(Sorry if I’m super incoherent in this post, it’s 10 in the morning and I’m in borderline food coma. I’m mainly just venting my frustrations about the Gunner faction and how much better it could’ve been)

[cmishwrites]

Random fo4 moment… traveling with Deacon, went to vault 81, as I was heading to give tools to an npc Deacon says “I miss the old world”

Wait… what??? 😳 I know that Deacon’s history is really shady and mysterious, and a lot of what he says might be a flat out lie, this is unprompted just a random line, but it hints that Deacon is somehow familiar with the pre-war world..

Just a thought.

How could he have survived so long? 🤔

EDITED TO ADD; I’ve been reading some of the companion reacts and now I want to write out little scenes based on some of these reacts. 🤔