Fallout: Difference between revisions
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* [[Action Girl]]: Any female PC can choose to be an [[Action Girl]]. There's even a Perk with this name for female characters (and Action Boy for male).
* [[Action Pet]]: The dog companions.
* [[After the End]]: Nobody knew who fired the first missile that triggered the apocalypse, and by the end of the day, nobody cared. It was considered the end of the world. But still, humanity survived (mutated, blood thirsty, and completely shattered), and the world moved on. The Great War wasn't the end, simply one more sad chapter.
* [[A.I. Is a Crapshoot]]: Varies quite a bit. Artificial intelligences are rare, bulky, immobile machines in ''Fallout'' (with the exception of the "androids" developed at post-war MIT). Some intelligences are sane and helpful, others are unstable but relatively harmless, and a few are villains.
** A Brotherhood of Steel computer in the second game implies that a fully self-aware AI is just as capable of going insane as humans are. This causes problems when for example you have one running in complete isolation for years...
* [[All Crimes Are Equal]]: Insofar as the idea of "crime" can exist in a society with no more centralized legal structure. Any sort of wrongdoing will typically be met with the same sort of response: everyone in the settlement attacks you. Take a step into a place you aren't allowed, steal a bottle of Nuka-Cola, or simply act like a [[Jerkass]] to the wrong person, and you can expect violence. Subverted in some settlements with jails and order, in these places you can actually be imprisoned. ''Fallout: New Vegas'' gives a [[Hand Wave]] that NCR's troops are miserable due to the state of the Mojave and this is why they're so on-edge and don't care to punish crimes fairly, but it's still silly that a dozen armored troops will open fire on you just for taking a tin can off the floor that was marked as owned.
* [[The Alleged Car|The Alleged Everything]]: 80% of the tech you find is literally falling apart, broken, or [[A.I. Is a Crapshoot|trying to kill you]]. However, [[I Love Nuclear Power|that]] [[Invisibility Cloak|doesn't]] [[Robot Buddy|mean]] [[Humongous Mecha|that]] [[Frickin' Laser Beams|technology]] [[Powered Armor|is]] [[Kill Sat|useless]].
** There's also an actual [[Alleged Car]] that doubles as a [[Cool Car]], the Fallout 2 Highwayman.
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* [[Aluminium Christmas Trees]]: The picture of Uncle Sam with a huge sack of loot from the ''Fallout 1'' opening movie is based on an actual, real-life [[WW 2]] U.S. propaganda poster, and not originally made for the game to parody U.S. imperialism. Of course, the image had a much different context back in [[WW 2]] than in the modern era.
** If you look closely you can see Uncle Sam is in fact carrying a flag and pole, but the way it's bunched up makes it look like a sack with stars and stripes.
* [[Ammunition Backpack]]: The Minigun, Grenade Machine-gun, Flamer, and Gatling laser from Fallout3 onwards.
* [[An Aesop]]:
** The tentative aesop of the series is being able to let go of the past, both the glories and the hardships, because clinging to old values and methods when they don't work anymore harms the world of the present. Several major antagonists are [[Well-Intentioned Extremist]]s who either seek the power of the old world for nefarious ends, and/or want to rebuid society in their own way to try and recapture the "glory" of the pre-war world.
** Another aesop is the impact one person can make on the world, if they have the will to make a difference, and how their actions can ripple out and change the world in ways they never intended. Throughout the series the various player characters become famed as [[Messianic Archetype]]s to the generations that come after, when often their adventures at the time were comparatively small-scale simple good deeds — protecting a village from raiders allowed that village to become a regional government, and smashing some alcohol stills turned a [[Wretched Hive]] into a civilized community. ''Fallout: New Vegas'' in particular has a reveal in which what your character thought was just another delivery turned out to be the doom of an entire region of the wasteland, and they never even knew it until coming back years later to see what was left of it.
* [[Ancient Conspiracy]]: The Vaults were never meant to ''save'' anybody. {{spoiler|The Enclave, a cabal of members of the government and some powerful [[Mega Corp|MegaCorps]], were considering colonizing an entirely new world once Earth got nuked to hell and back, but wanted to know if people could handle [[Generation Ship|generation ships]]. So the Vault Experiment was hatched: except for a handful of "control" Vaults, every supposed shelter would have a flaw that would test the population inside. One was deliberately overcrowded, one's door would never close all the way, one was inhabited by a thousand men and one woman (another had the same setup, but flipped the roles), one would pump hallucinogenic gas in the air systems, one was a test to see how an all-powerful Overseer would behave, and so forth, with cameras and uplinks sending all the data to a secret command and control Vault.}}
* [[Apocalypse How]]: [[World War III|The Great War]] caused a Planetwide Class 2. Fortunately, by the time of [[Fallout: New Vegas]], the less scorched and anarchic areas of the world have small but functioning cultures.
* [[Apocalyptic Log]]: Many can be found throughout the series.
* [[Arc Words]]: "War. War never changes."
* [[Artificial Stupidity]]:
** In the first two games they will liberally use burst weapons and grenades if they have them and are able to use them, the former is very likely to kill you if you're in the way, and the latter, no companion has the Throwing skill needed to use grenades without them blowing up in their own faces most of the time. Not even the companions who are ''supposed'' to be good at it. On the plus side, enemies with burst weapons and explosives will gladly tear their own allies to shreds trying to hit you (one can sometimes even get characters with rocket launchers to use them at point blank range!)
** In the first game, your NPC companions will not use any armor you give them, meaning they will go through the whole game with the leather jackets or leather armor they start with. This makes them extremely vulnerable to death late in the game when you take on enemies armed with rocket launchers, plasma rifles, and miniguns.
** In the more recent games, companions cannot jump over any obstacle. If you jump up or down a cliffside, they will take the long way around. Better hope there aren't enemies in their way as they do it, too, because they're liable to get themselves delayed - or killed - off-screen in a pointless fight.
** In Fallout 3 and New Vegas, "stealth" is not in ''any'' companion's vocabulary. They ''will'' enter Sneak mode and sneak with you, but the second they spot an enemy they charge in guns blazing. The only way out is to have them wait for you in an out-of-the-way area and go it alone.
*** Fallout 4 fixes this a bit, as companions will stay stealthed and hold fire until you've been fully spotted, making it possible to stealth kill multiple enemies without your companion going ham on them and exposing your position. It's even possible for companions to draw aggro separately from you, but they will almost always retreat to your side and draw enemy fire, even when using a stealth boy.
** NPCs universally suffer from [[Suicidal Overconfidence]] and will eagerly run into combat with a dozen enemies, even if at a glance the player could tell they wouldn't survive to see their next turn for it.
** Due to some glitchy programming with how enemies handle aggro, it's possible to accidentally hit a friendly NPC while trying to shoot an enemy, and as a result your companions will presume you see them as an enemy and attack them, or the hit NPC will turn their attention to fighting you. Fight in towns with allies and enemies scattered between innocent bystanders, a single stray bullet hitting a civilian because they ran between you and the enemy could result in you having to massacre the town in self-defense.
** In Fallout 2, if your stats are high enough, some enemies will flee combat from you. Then when you end combat, they will slowly walk back to where they were at the start of combat, likely triggering combat again. No choice to break the loop but shoot them dead.
** NPCs have no sense of moderation at all when it comes to combat, and will always use the most powerful weapon you gave them that has ammo. This is particularly annoying when giving your companions grenades or mines (so that you don't have to haul them around yourself) and they wind of throwing them at one-hit-point nuisances like radroaches.
* [[Art Major Biology]]: Somewhat justified since the ''Fallout'' laws of physics are literal interpretations of 1950s pulp comic "''SCIENCE!''"
** Super Mutants are mentioned to have a quadruple DNA helix; they are formed by [[Lego Genetics|exposing adult humans to a virus]]. Radiation (and exposure to trace amounts of Forced Evolutionary Virus in the air) turns those heavily exposed into zombie-like Ghouls, or gives them odd mutations, such as regeneration or harmless DNA screwups. These absurdities [[It Makes Sense in Context|are entirely intentional]], though. Quadruple DNA helices are real and known to happen in nature, even in humans. However, unlike in Fallout, this doesn't cause fantastic mutation; rather, these quadruplexes are generally found at the ends of chromosomes to protect them from damage.
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* [[Authority Equals Asskicking]]: Seen in ''Fallout 1'' with the Lieutenant and the Master. Averted in ''Fallout 2'' with President Richardson, who's a standard unarmed civilian, and in ''Fallout 3'' with Colonel Autumn, who is only slightly tougher than a normal enemy soldier. Played straight in ''Fallout 3'' with [[Bonus Boss]] Commander Jabsco of Talon Company (who has a rocket launcher and more health than almost any other character in the game), and Chinese General Jingwei in the ''Operation: Anchorage'' DLC expansion (who has an ''insane'' amount of health which, combined with his body armor, makes him the 2nd toughest enemy in the entire game next to the 15-foot tall Super Mutant Behemoth, possibly to encourage the player to [[Talking the Monster to Death|convince him to surrender instead]], or maybe just an example of [[Executive Meddling]] on the part of General Chase). Both seen and averted in ''New Vegas''. The NCR President and General are both bog-standard humans, while Caesar himself is only about as tough as an [[Elite Mooks|Elite Mook]]. Legate Lanius, however, is a frickin murder machine (for reference, the guy can take multiple anti-tank rounds to the face and still have more than 3/4ths of his health left).
* [[Auto Doc]]: The [[Trope Namer]]. For the most part, they seem to work pretty well, but [[A.I. Is a Crapshoot]] is still in full affect here.
* [[Badass Bookworm]]: Virtually any character build in any of the games that relies heavily on intelligence. The intelligence attribute contributes to skill points granted per level. As a result, high level intelligent characters will almost certainly have mastered a wide variety of skills, including ones related to direct combat. In order to even get access to [[Hollywood Cyborg|cybernetic combat implants]], one must first have substantial skill as a medical doctor.
* [[Badass Normal]]: The Vault Dwellers and the Chosen One all perform some pretty amazing feats.
** The Lone Wanderer and their Dad, especially Dad, are quite amazing for {{spoiler|wastelanders}}.
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** The Courier. Getting {{spoiler|shot in the head ''almost at point-blank range,'' twice, and buried while still alive?}} Meh, some sleep, a tiny scar and he/she's good.
** Arguably, ''Dogmeat'' from ''[[Fallout 3]]''; he has absurd amounts of regenerating health and a very powerful melee attack. For a [[Non-Human Sidekick]], he's a veritable [[Disc One Nuke]], since he can be obtained very early on and will ''f*ck up'' every single enemy low- and mid-level enemy without any help. Band of Raiders? No problem. Horde of Mirelurks? Enjoy the show. Brigade of Super Mutants? They'll be ''running scared''. He's either a seriously mutated canine or the [[Chuck Norris]] of dogs. Honestly, ''you're his'' sidekick.
* [[Ballistic Discount]]: You can kill pretty much anyone and take their stuff, shopkeeper or not, which includes killing them with a gun they just sold you and taking back your cash. Be aware that eyewitnesses (aside from your ludicrously loyal companions) will open fire.
* [[Before the Dark Times]]: Pre-War United States. While it was better than the Wasteland, in reality, it was really a [[Crap Saccharine World]], and an [[Eagle Land]] type 2.
* [[Berserk Button]]: Set from the first game has a ''very'' short fuse, and tends to act violently when it's out.
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** [[Knight Templar|Rhombus]] is ''slightly'' better than Set, as he at-least forgives you, albeit still as harshly.
* [[BFG]]: The "Big Guns" skill determines how well you can use them. Without question, any given game in the ''Fallout'' series has many more [[BFG]]s than any other video [[RPG]].
* [[Big Brother Is Watching]]: Thanks to its endless Commie witch-hunt, pre-War America saw this as a ''good'' thing. Actual quote from the museum of technology Vault tour: "Concerned about security? Our eye-on camera allows the Overseer to watch your every move. You'll never be alone again!" [[Sarcasm Mode|Yay?]]
* [[Bittersweet Ending]]: ''Fallout'' ends with the {{spoiler|player banished from the Vault forever despite saving most of West Coast humanity}}. Depending on the choices you made in ''Fallout 2'', a lot of places can end up badly despite your best efforts (or more likely, because of them). In ''Fallout 3'', {{spoiler|Lyons' [[Heroic Sacrifice]]}} ending probably falls here, {{spoiler|as it's your ally sacrificing herself to activate Project Purity to provide clean, fresh water to the Wasteland. It doesn't solve everything, but it's a start. Of course, you're a cowardly bastard for not doing it yourself.}} The Corrupt and Coward Endings are [[Downer Ending|even worse]]. Finally, one of the third game's optional sidequests is a setup for a [[Shout-Out]] to the ending of the first (and it hurts just as much). Pretty much every ending for New Vegas has some negative consequence to it.
* [[Bloody Hilarious]]: The main purpose of the Bloody Mess trait, which causes your enemies to die in the most horrific ways from even the lightest of death blows. At its best, your enemy may spontaneously be reduced to ''[[Ludicrous Gibs|bloody chunks]]'' from being hit by a ''[[Improvised Weapon|teddy bear]]''. ''Fallout 3'' made it both amusing and helpful by tacking on a + 5% damage bonus. Even without Bloody Mess, you still get this effect from rare, good crits.
* [[Blown Across the Room]]: Most guns simply poke holes in enemies until they fall down, but the Gauss Rifle from ''Operation Anchorage'' will send enemies flying on a critical hit. It's a good idea to knock the particularly tough enemies down to render them temporarily out of action. Plus, sending giant scorpions flying around ass over teakettle is hilarious. In the original two games, certain critical hits with most weapons will blow enemies (or you!) right off their feet and send them tumbling across the room, sometimes knocking them unconscious. In ''Fallout 4'', if you're [[Too Dumb to Live]] and try to fire a weapon like a Fat Boy without power armor, you'll end up [[Blown Across the Room]] in [[Ludicrous Gibs]].
* [[Body Horror]]: Several, but none come close to {{spoiler|[[The Master (trope)|The Master]]}}.
* [[Boring but Practical]]: In all games, Small Guns is the combat skill that will get you through with the least fuss. A hunting rifle acquired fairly early on will serve you well for a very long time.
* [[Boss in Mook Clothing]]: Deathclaws are the Devil. In all five games.
* [[Bragging Rights Reward]]
* [[Brain In a Jar]]: Appears repeatedly throughout the series, most notably the "robobrain" enemy.
* [[Canine Companion]]: A dog is a staple companion character in all the ''Fallout'' games. Dogmeat serves as one for the player in the first two ''Fallout'' games. His desendent with the same name serves as the canine companion in ''Fallout 3''. ''New Vegas'' has cyber-dog Rex. Dogs are a recruitable race in ''Tactics''. A dog can be obtained in ''Brotherhood of Steel'' with a perk. Non-player characters such as merchants and raiders occasionally have a canine by their side as well. The NCR and Caesar's Legion also join in with the puppy love.
* [[Canon Discontinuity]]: Despite having almost no inconsistencies with previous games, ''Brotherhood of Steel'' isn't considered canon by Bethesda, likely due to the negative fan opinion of the game. ''Fallout Tactics'' is considered [[Broad Strokes]] canon due to design inconsistencies with the rest of the series.
* [[Captain Ersatz]]: Say "hi" to Riddick in ''Tactics''.
* [[Cartography Sidequest]]: In ''Fallout 3'', you can map out the Wasteland for Reilly after you've saved her squad in exchange for caps. Two smaller ones appear in ''Fallout 2''. Vault City asks you to map the grid squares surrounding Gecko and to find a route to NCR. Technically, you just have to get to NCR. It doesn't matter if you go by way of New Reno and San Francisco.
* [[Chainsaw Good]]: The 'Ripper' weapon is, quite literally, a chainsaw stuck on a one-handed sword hilt.
* [[The Chosen Zero]]: When you have a character with low intelligence, pay a visit to your Vault or your native village and the locals will all express various levels of horror that your drooling moron of a character is the only thing standing between them and total destruction.
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* [[Cluster F-Bomb]]: Used quite a bit. In ''Fallout Tactics'' there is an option so that the offensive words are bleeped out and/or replaced with less offending words.
{{quote|ALARM! Intruders in the camp! Wake up you piss ant sons of bitches! I'll swear I'll cut the balls of anyone I don't see fighting! Get up you curs! If they escape, God help me, I'll burn you motherfucking still to the ground!}}
* [[Cool Shades]]:
* [[Corrupt Politician]]: There aren't many elected officials, but for those there are, this trope is usually in full effect.
* [[Crapsack World]]: The world is a ruined, post-apocalyptic wasteland, and that's just the tip of the iceberg. It only gets worse, folks. There are giant radioactive insects and arachnids, really unsociable mutants, proto-zombies of every flavor and variety, mass starvation, dehydration, radiation sickness, rampant slavery, murder on a scale that can potentially reach genocide, and generally life itself only continues to remind the human race of how royally they screwed up the planet. Sure, there are examples of civilization trying to rebuild itself, but that results in places like the den of vice New Reno and fascist communities like Vault City. Still, the player can - should they so choose - leave the gameworld a little better than they found it. Or just make it massively worse, of course...
* [[Critical Existence Failure]]: Played straight in general: everything, whether animal, vegetable, or mineral, fights just as well at 1 HP as at 100. However, critical hits to a specific location (usually eyes or a limb) can cripple that part and reduce stats or fighting ability.
* [[Critical Failure]]: You can drop your weapon, lose your ammo, lose your turn, injure yourself, and so on. At the extreme end, energy weapons can blow up in your hands. This can also apply to non-combat skills, jamming locks and triggering traps. Oh, and the Jinxed trait in the first two games made it happen to everyone around you, which could make the early game very very challenging since every miss had a good chance of being a critical miss. You could, however, make up for most of the negative effects of the trait by having a high [[Luck Stat]], and you furthermore chose [[Good Old Fisticuffs|Unarmed]], which does not have very harsh punishments for failures, as your primary combat skill, you suddenly have a very effective character build.
* [[Critical Hit]]: Each game has its own [[Critical Hit]] mechanics
** In ''Fallout 1'', ''Fallout 2'' and ''Fallout Tactics'', called shots to specific body parts (especially the eyes) had a higher chance of being critical hits. Critical hits were resolved by rolling on a table that included results like triple damage, bypassing armour, and instant death. Infamously, it was possible to roll an instant death result that did not ignore armour, generating the "[Target] was critically hit for 0 damage and died from the pain" message.
**
** ''Fallout 4'' downplays its [[Critical Hit]]s to merely double-damage attacks that can't be triggered during regular combat, but instead are manually triggered during V.A.T.S. attacks where they guarantee that an attack will hit its target. Certain weapon mods can increase Critical damage and a number of perks allow the player to store more criticals or even gain criticals outright on a V.A.T.S. kill.
* [[Cursed with Awesome]]: Arguably the ghouls are. Sure, they make third degree burn victims look pretty, but they are immune to radiation and can't apparently die from old age. In fact, if they were able to breed they might be considered an improvement over humanity.
** Super Mutants were specifically designed to be superior to humans in coping with the harsh Wasteland, but it came at the cost of them being sterile and not very bright (with a few exceptions).
*** These exceptions are much more common on the West Coast, especially with the Nightkin, who are generally intelligent, stronger than the average Super Mutant, and are invisible thanks to Stealth Boys. However, due to overuse of Stealth Boys, most Nightkin have gone insane
* [[Deadpan Snarker]]:
* [[Deconstruction]]:
*
** The entire series is a deconstruction of the supposed "moral purity" of [[The Fifties]], showing [[After the End|exactly what would happen]] if the [[Moral Guardians]] who say this had their way and the ''actual'' 1950's continued forever.
* [[Defector From Decadence]]:
** The talking Deathclaws in ''Fallout 2'': somehow they built a moral and social structure, though their creators certainly wouldn't have encouraged it.
** The Capital Wasteland branch of the Brotherhood of Steel deviated from their original mission (gathering up old technology) to helping the inhabitants of the wasteland. This change lead to a significant number of BoS members claiming Lyons was a defector. So the Defectors from the Defector from Decadence became the Outcasts, who are a lot less altruistic, especially if they see you handling any piece of technology more sophisticated than a gun.
** This is actually the origin story for the original Brotherhood too, they started out as U.S. soldiers that discovered the horrific FEV experiments happening in the Mariposa Military base which they were set to guard. They executed the scientists and defected from the military, however as this was happening the bombs were dropped and news of their defection was never received by the Government.
* [[Desert Skull]]: The series loves this trope.
* [[Dirty Communists]]: Going by Pre-War propaganda, the entire nation of China. You get to fight a simulation of them in the ''Operation: Anchorage'' DLC. Likewise, [[Humongous Mecha|Liberty Prime]] figures anyone who gets the receiving end of one of his nuclear footballs is a communist, regardless of what he's actually fighting. Then again, that just [[Rule of Funny|makes it better]].
* [[Disaster Democracy]]: The Enclave, a descendant from the pre-war American government claims to be this, but they're really not much better than a tyrannical dictatorship trying to enforce their rule over the wasteland. The NCR is a better, more noble example, especially by the time of ''Fallout: New Vegas''. However, they're generally handicapped by the bureaucracy and red tape that plague most democracies while their overambitious expansionist policies leave them with a lot of enemies.
* [[The Ditz]]: Harry, who is easily the dumbest Super Mutant in the ''entire series''.
* [[Doomed Hometown]]: The first two games start out with the player having to stop their hometown's impending destruction.
* [[Downer Ending]]: They're available if you ''really'' go out of your way to achieve them. Bear in mind that since even 'good' endings tend to be bittersweet, the "bad" endings can be ''hugely'' depressing.
** The Pre-War world struggled with resource shortages, oppressive governments, and brutal warfare for twenty-five years before it all ended in a blaze of nuclear fire. Whats worse is that most of their problems could easily have been fixed as the technology for renewable energy and resources already existed before the War broke out, but the surviving nations had been fighting the same war for so long they were incapable of changing. Ironically, many of these technologies survived the war, hidden away in protected goverment bunkers, and can be found and revived by the player.
* [[The Dragon]]: Lieutenant to the {{spoiler|Master}} in ''1'', Horrigan to Richardson in ''2'', and Colonel Autumn to Eden in ''3''. In ''Vegas'', Caesar's right hand is Legate Lanius, while President Kimball's number two is General Lee Oliver. {{spoiler|Benny}} was this to Mr. House (and you can take his place), and {{spoiler|Yes Man is this to you, if you choose the Independent path}}.
* [[Dragon Their Feet]]: In ''Fallout 2'' and ''3'', you don't confront Enclave superweapon {{spoiler|Frank Horrigan}} or Enclave military commander {{spoiler|Colonel Autumn, who will "spare" you with a successful speech check}} until ''after'' you've ''already'' killed the [[Big Bad]] President and wiped out the Enclave's main base. Likewise, in ''Fallout'', the final two missions are to kill the [[Big Bad]] and to destroy the Super Mutant vats (guarded by [[The Dragon]]), and you can tackle them in any order you want (Although canonically [[The Dragon]] and the vats were destroyed after the Master's death).
* [[Drive-In Theater]]: You find a few in ''3'' and ''New Vegas''. In the latter, it's where you start off the Old World Blues DLC.
* [[Drop the Hammer]]: Sledgehammers and Super Sledgehammers.
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* [[Every Car Is a Pinto]]: And not just regular Pintos, ''nuclear-powered'' Pintos. Broken down, nuclear powered Pintos. That produce a mini-nuclear explosion, complete with ''mushroom cloud'', when you shoot them.
** It's mentioned at some point that the vehicles' tendency to explode is the result of volatile, radioactive fuel elements having leaked out over centuries of neglect, so it would probably have taken more than a fender-bender to set one off when they were in active use. Then again, maybe not ''much'' more, given the cavalier attitude to Health & Safety issues hinted at in some of the old corporate records you come across...
* [[Exclusively Evil]]: The majority of the Vault 87 Super Mutants in the third game (likely Justified by the FEV there having different properties). Averted with the Super Mutants created elsewhere in the first and arguably more the second, as well as ''New Vegas''.
** The nameless Raider factions in DC definitely count, as well as the Fiends and Jackals and Vipers of New Vegas.
*** The Great Khans also qualify during the time of Fallout 1 and 2, but by New Vegas they have suffered significant [[Villain Decay]] to hardly qualify for this trope anymore, and can even be convinced to make a full on [[Heel Face Turn]].
* [[Expansion Pack]]: Bethesda Software added a lot to the main questline of ''Fallout 3'' with the downloadable addons, including one module that revisits a key battle in the background of the ''Fallout'' world (the Battle of Anchorage), another that allows players to visit a city mentioned in passing by another NPC, and one that promises to address the brevity of the main questline by allowing players to continue the game [[Retcon|after the controversial ending]].
* [[Extremity Extremist]]: It is possible to play this way in all games.
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** ''New Vegas'' takes this and runs with it all the way to the finish line, down to their being a Perk called "Cowboy."
* [[Nice Job Breaking It, Hero]]: In ''Fallout 2'' a special random encounter sends you back in time to Vault 13 shortly before the beginning of the first game... where you do a nice job [[Stable Time Loop|breaking their water chip]]. You cannot return to your own time without doing so. You can drop a (entirely useless) replacement water chip if you happen to have it, but the game doesn't recognize this.
* [[Nice Job Guiding Us Hero]]: If the Vault Dweller recruits water merchants to send supplies to Vault 13, they will extend the water chip deadline with 100 days, but it allows the Master's super mutants to find the Vault earlier.
* [[Night of the Living Mooks]]: Subverted. Ghouls are actually the most ''peaceful'' "race" in the ''Fallout'' universe - implied to be because while they may be tough, they're ''really'' not good fighters - although you do very rarely have random encounters with Ghoul bandits and psychotics. They're also immortal unless they die by violence, which provides a strong incentive to avoid it.
** Also, Roy Phillips and his crew and how they subvert the "good" ending of the Tenpenny Towers quest. Just because you're an oppressed minority DOESN'T mean you're not also ungrateful, murderous assholes. In fact, if you complete the quest for him, {{spoiler|he suggests to any ghoul who got his letter to kill any human who knows about Tenpenny}}. And for some reason, blowing him away gets you bad karma.
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* [[Shown Their Work]]: ''Fallout 1'' featured a detailed description of cell division, and how a mutagenic artificial virus interfered at the anaphase stage. In many ways, the result of this interference is the single most ''fantastic'' element of the story; everything else follows.
** Myron's explanation for how Jet was discovered, although somewhat fantastical, is quite complex.
* [[Sickly Green Glow]]: Nuclear waste in general, but also the Glowing Ones: Feral Ghouls who have adapted to ''extremely'' radiated areas.
* [[Skippable Boss]]: {{spoiler|The Lieutenant and the Master in the first game, General Jing-Wei and Colonel Autumn in the third. All of them could be skipped by either a stealthy or a diplomatic approach - and only diplomatic for the last two. New Vegas brings in Legate Lanius, capable of surviving multiple antitank rounds to the forehead, who can be convinced to step down with a maxed-out Speech skill.}}
** Potentially everyone in the second game, with the partial exception of the [[Final Boss]]. You can't avoid entering combat mode, but you can get others to do some or all of the fighting for you. {{spoiler|Specifically, you can turn an Enclave team against him by pointing out he's blocking ''their'' escape too, and you can potentially use the counterinsurgency auto-turrets too.}}
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