“This utopia is free from crimes and other sociological ills that inflict the other communities in Northern California. It has existed independent since its emergence from Vault 8, and maintains a thriving economy based on exporting medical technology to Outsider communities in Northern California.”— Vault City travel log
Vault City is a location established by the inhabitants of Vault 8 after the Great War.[1] Vault City can be found twenty-one squares east and four squares south of Arroyo.
Background[edit]
Vault 8 was one of the few control Vaults that lacked a specific experiment designed for its residents and was one of the first to reopen after the Great War.[Pub 2] Vault-Tec initially planned to provide two G.E.C.K.s for Vault 8.[2] However, due to logistical errors by the government, Vault 8 received a shipment of Water Chips intended for Vault 13 and Vault 13 received an additional G.E.C.K.[2][3] The Vault was intended to stay sealed for two years and wait for an "all-clear" signal depending on surface sensor monitoring.[4]
After emerging from Vault 8, Vault City was developed into an independent city through the hard work and sacrifices of its people and currently has 108 citizens.[1][5][6] The G.E.C.K. made the land suitable for agriculture and the city derives its electricity from a power generator. The city has grown to the point that the existing power generator is struggling to keep up with the demand and will fail in the next 15 years.[7][8]
Menial tasks in the city are assigned via the Servant Assignment Center, where refugees and contractual prisoners are given daily tasks to complete for citizens.[9] Non-citizens may obtain a Day Pass, granting them limited access to Vault City during daylight hours. Day Passes are issued to various individuals, including traders, diplomats, and non-citizen agents, but they do not permit access to Vault 8 itself. Another method of gaining access is by removing one's armor to reveal a jumpsuit before speaking to Wallace, who will grant immediate entry and recommend visiting First Citizen Lynette.
By 2280 Vault City had come under the control of the New California Republic, and soldiers from Vault City pass through New Reno on the way to garrison Hoover Dam.[Pub 1][Pub 3]
Leadership[edit]
The city is ruled by the Council of Citizens, led by the First Citizen, established after the original Vault 8 Overseer retired.[6] Members include the Proconsul who runs the Citizenship Test. Regulations in Vault City include laws against real alcohol or addictive drugs and all visitors are searched at the entrance.[10] Esztablishments inside the city allow synthetic alcohol to be served.[11] Families are planned in cycles scheduled by the Council, using Auto-Doc to facilitate pregnancies.[12] The Vault City Guard functions as the police force within the city. The guard enforces law and order, defends the city, and secures its perimeter. The title of Captain of the Guard is granted by the First Citizen to those who have demonstrated exceptional service in safeguarding the city's interests and independence.[13]
The leadership of Vault City are dedicated to maintaining their independence, avoiding being consolidated as a border territory of the neighboring New California Republic.[14][15] The Council expresses their disinterest in turning the city into a democracy.[16][17]
Citizenship[edit]
Individuals who are born in Vault City are automatically granted citizenship.[18] It is possible for non-citizens to be granted citizenship by a Senior Council Member or the First Citizen. Non-citizens may attempt to pass a Citizenship Test administered by the Proconsul, which is deliberately designed to be difficult and requires a 9 in Perception, Intelligence, and Luck.[19] The test covers subjects such as advanced mathematics, spatial reasoning, deductive logic, and language comprehension, and includes a physical examination.[20][21] Full citizens have access to all areas of Vault City, including the original Vault 8 which is used for storage and houses the medical facilities.
Trade[edit]
The vault and community thrive with an economy based on exporting medical technology to other locations in Northern California.[1] The city mass produces medical supplies and provides access to surgical procedures, including the cloning of organs such as spleens and limbs for transplantation.[22][23] Medical technology from Vault City is a valuable commodity, used to trade with nearby settlement Gecko for excess power from their reactor and their technical expertise.[8] Vault City trades medical supplies with Redding and New Reno in exchange for gold ore and with Broken Hills for uranium ore.[24][25][26][27] The New California Republic is another trading partner of Vault City, exchanging mechanical equipment, gold, and various surplus products in exchange for medical technology.[14]
Vault City trades with merchants traveling the Big Circle caravan trail.[28] The city is willing to trade with neighbors if it is in their own self interest, such as parts from neighboring settlement Gecko to improve the groundwater quality.[29]
Layout[edit]
Sections[edit]
| Sections | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Image | Description |
| Vault City Courtyard |  |
The courtyard is the area where non-citizens (outsiders) reside. |
| Vault City Downtown |  |
The downtown area is where Vault citizens and visitors with a Day Pass can barter. In this area one will also find most goverment services that are not provided in the Central Council area. |
| Central Council |  |
The area that houses the Council Building and the Parlor Room. The Council Building is where the First Citizen and other important govermental figures can be found.
, |
| Vault 8 |  |
Designed as the control group for the Vault experiments and still remains accessible to citizens of Vault City. |
Buildings[edit]
Inhabitants[edit]
Endings[edit]
Population Driven to NCR by Radiation[edit]
| Condition(s) | Narrative | File |
|---|---|---|
| Don't fix the power plant. | “Over the next few years, the background radiation from Gecko's power plant began to cause mutations in the Vault City population, forcing the Citizens to relocate to NCR. NCR, however, recalling past animosity, relegated the Vault City refugees to the status of second class citizens.”
|
 NAR VC2.txt  |
Vault City Independent, Westin and Lynette Marry[edit]
| Condition(s) | Narrative | File |
|---|---|---|
| Fix the power plant, kill the raiders, expose Bishop's plan, and deliver the two holodisks but do not collect the final reward from Randal, and both Roger Westin and Joanne Lynette are alive. | “The correspondence between NCR and Vault City continued, and a few years after the destruction of the Enclave, Roger Westin assumed the head of the NCR council. He immediately set limits for NCR's expansion north, and in a landmark settlement, passed an amendment that formally recognized Vault City's independence. Shortly after this settlement, Westin suffered a heart attack and retired from politics. He moved north to Vault City for medical treatment and eventually married Joann Lynette in the following year.”
|
 NAR VC3.txt |
Vault City Occupied by NCR[edit]
| Condition(s) | Narrative | File |
|---|---|---|
| Fix the power plant, don't bring the account book or Bishop's holodisk to Lynette. | “In the years to come, Vault City suffered greatly from raider attacks. Eventually, the situation grew so desperate the Citizens were forced to request aid from NCR. Within a month, a large detachment of the NCR's military was stationed in Vault City. The military presence quickly became an occupation force, and Vault City became the first of NCR's border territories.”
|
NAR VC4.txt |
Vault City Joins the NCR[edit]
| Condition(s) | Narrative | File |
|---|---|---|
| Fix the power plant, kill the raiders, and bring the account book or Bishop's holodisk to Lynette. (This ending is given if not getting two for any reason, e.g. Westin is dead or the reward picked up. | “In the years following the destruction of the Enclave, Vault City continued to stagnate, choking on its own isolationism. Its Vault 8 generator, which was never intended to support such a large population, prevented Vault City's necessary expansion. Eventually, the city was absorbed by NCR, which had spread steadily northwards since its founding.”
|
NAR VC5.txt |
Vault City Destroyed[edit]
| Condition(s) | Narrative | File |
|---|---|---|
| Turn Vault City hostile. | “The slaughter of Vault City has become the stuff of legend. One day it was a thriving community, and the next, the bodies of its Citizens lay strewn throughout the streets. It looked as if raiders had sacked the city, but no bodies of the attackers were ever found. Their Vault was plundered of all its technology, and refugees from Gecko soon moved into the broken walls of the city.”
|
NAR VC1A.txt |
Vault City Destroyed, Rebuilt by Ghouls[edit]
| Condition(s) | Narrative | File |
|---|---|---|
| Fix the power plant, turn Vault City hostile. | “The slaughter of Vault City has become the stuff of legend. One day it was a thriving community, and the next, the bodies of its Citizens lay strewn throughout the streets. It looked as if raiders had sacked the city, but no bodies of the attackers were ever found. Their Vault was plundered of all its technology, and the inhabitants of Gecko soon moved into the broken walls of the city. In a few short months, they had rebuilt the city and restored much of the systems that had been damaged by the raiders.”
|
NAR VC1B.txt |
Related Quests[edit]
Notes[edit]
- Vault City is the only location to set a starting reputation to "Antipathy."
- The city is mentioned by Cass and Ulysses in Fallout: New Vegas.[30][31][32]
- The location is referenced in the Fallout Pen and Paper d20 intro.
- The Fallout: The Roleplaying Game Rulebook mentions the location.[Pub 2]
Appearances[edit]
Vault City appears in Fallout 2 and is mentioned in Fallout: New Vegas.
Behind the Scenes[edit]
- The developers involved with the creation of Vault City are mentioned on a holodisk found in a terminal in Vault 8.[33]
- Chris Avellone stated that for Van Buren, Vault City would have undergone radiation dumps by ghouls attempting to create more of themselves, due to Vault City's shaky relationship with Gecko in Fallout 2.[Dev 1]
- Vault City was one of the eight possible targets planned for the Ballistic Orbital Missile Base 001 in Van Buren.[Doc 1]
| Fallout Bible | ||
|---|---|---|
| Version | Page | Quote |
| Fallout Bible 0 | 23 | 2091: Vault 8 opens, and they use their GECK to create fertile ground for their city. This eventually becomes Vault City. |
| Fallout Bible 4 | 34-35 | Q: When the bombs dropped, all communication between the vaults where severed, so if their was no way to communicate with the vaults how did the Enclave send a massage to Vault 13 telling the people its time to go? A: Communication between Vaults was never in place (it might ruin the experiments), but communication with the government/Enclave/Vault-Tec was a different story... they needed some way of monitoring the vaults. The Enclave, having access to the Vault-Tec construction plans (not too surprising, considering the fact that the Vaults were funded by the government) had a way of monitoring events taking place within the Vaults... not only could they access their computers and systems remotely, (including PIPBoys and the personal logs of the Vault Dwellers), but the early Overseers of most of the Vaults knew of the ties to the government, and it was part of their duties to download information on the citizens and the Vault into an computer archive that the government could easily access. |
| Fallout Bible 5 | 47 | Q: Hi, In the last "Fallout Bible" update there was a question about Richard Grey and why he was exiled from Vault City. I remember that there was another person exiled from the VC - Leonard Boyarski. He also was exiled for a murder but I'm curious how did he die? I've found his grave on the Golgotha and it's quite surprising. A: Boyarsky was an in-joke to Leonard Boyarsky who originally worked on F1 and parts of F2 (one of the five billion developer references in Fallout 1 and 2). I think the name was originally Jason Anderson in the text, but I don't remember. Boyarsky was exiled for murder and unauthorized research (the research allegations revolved around some tampering with the pregnancy cycles in the Auto-Doc that apparently put all of Vault 8 in danger, but the details were deleted from the Vault 8 computer). His crime occurred many years after Grey's alleged crime, but Boyarsky only got as far as Reno with a traveling caravan before he was robbed and killed by Reno toughs who saw him as an easy mark (which pretty much is true for everyone traveling from Vault City). His reasons for traveling south were unknown, but it is rumored his original destination was east of Reno - even though explorers report there is nothing out there except desert and deathclaws. |
| Fallout Bible 0 | 28 | 2241 February: Vault City rejects offers of an alliance with both the Bishop family of New Reno and NCR. |
| Fallout Bible 0 | 28 | 2241 March: Raider attacks on caravans to Vault City begin. |
Gallery[edit]
Talking Head background
Ending slide
MTG Card
References[edit]
|
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Royal Flush p. 63:
" If the PCs head to Vault City (which is not covered in this book.) or another NCR settlement, when they arrive and find an NCR officer, they’re told (with some embarrassment) that the NCR entrusted this letter to a Mojave Express courier because they provide fast correspondence, and it needs to get into the hands of Mr. Bishop, quickly. " - ↑ 2.0 2.1 Fallout: The Roleplaying Game Rulebook p.251: "In 2091, the all-clear signal rang through Vault-Tec’s communication network, in response to reports from radiation sensors on the surface. The first vaults to reopen were Vault 8, and the original Los Angeles demo vault. They formed the cores of Vault City and Adytum, respectively, and life in the Wasteland began in earnest."
- ↑ Royal Flush p. 63:
" The NCR is currently heavily engaged along the southeastern front. All of the troops that you have seen moving through New Reno from Redding and Vault City are scheduled for deployment to Hoover Dam, and the Ranger outposts outside of the dam. Further support for New Reno is both strategically unnecessary and unavailable."
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