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Best Ending/88 Day Walkthrough

by Former_Human

=============================================================================
|=                   Fallout Best Ending FAQ/Walkthrough                   =|
|=                Save the Fallout World in 88 Days or Less                =|
|=                version 0.91 - last updated May 05, 2007                 =|
|=                 By Nicholas Marts ([email protected])                 =|
=============================================================================


=============================================================================
 Table of Contents
=============================================================================

 Do a CTRL-F to find each section according to its abbreviation.

 Legal Mumbo Jumbo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LGL
 Why Another Guide to Fallout? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . AGF
 Preface: Using This Guide . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . UTG
 Points to Remember  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PTR
 Walkthrough . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . WLK
 Frequently Asked Questions  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . FAQ
 Endings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . EGS
 Changes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CHN
 Links . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . LNK
 Thanks  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . THK
 Contact . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . CNT



=============================================================================
 Legal                                                                    LGL
=============================================================================
  This guide is copyright (C) Nicholas Marts 2007.  This guide may be re-
 distributed only in its entirety.  The guide should not be sold or
 purchased by anyone.  This guide may not be altered or edited.  This guide
 can be hosted on a website only upon consent of its author.  No unauthor-
 ized use of the content in this guide is permitted.

  In other words, just ask me if you want to use it or post it somewhere
 (other than GameFAQs, which will always have a copy).

  Read the GNU Free Documentation License for specific rules at
 http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html

 Fallout is copyright (C) Interplay 1997.



=============================================================================
 Why another guide for Fallout?                                           AGF
=============================================================================
  It's true, there are quite a few walkthroughs and FAQs for Fallout.  The
 game came out all the way back in 1997, but it's now considered a classic
 and is still enjoyed by many PC gamers today.  There is a strong community
 for the Fallout series and the open-ended design means it can be a differ-
 ent experience each time you play.

  I think this guide is different, because it explains step-by-step what to
 do in order to get the very best ending in the game.  This isn't as
 straightforward as it sounds, because many things have to be completed
 within an 88 day time limit.  Some sequence breaking is required, and due
 to the time limit, leveling up is a rare occurrence.



=============================================================================
 Preface: Using This Guide                                                UTG
=============================================================================
  This text file is meant to be read in a unispace, plaintext reader, 78
 characters per line in a one-character-per-space font, such as Courier.
 Wordpad or other word processors work well.  Notepad is adequate.

  This guide is meant for players who have beaten the game at least once
 before and are familiar with the system and how to interact with the game
 world.  There are no sections here devoted to explaining the use of items or
 weapons or other forms of hand-holding.  If you are looking for an in-depth
 FAQ to explain every in-and-out of the game you can find many guides at
 Gamefaqs.com.

  This guide is mainly to explain the method for beating the game in 88 days
 or less and get the best ending in the process.  The best ending REQUIRES
 that specific quests are completed AND the game is beaten in 88 days.  You
 can get semi-good endings by playing your own way but the best ending is
 pretty strict.

  Some guides claim 90 days is the limit, but for purposes of this guide I
 will say 88 days.  If you follow this guide closely you should be able to
 beat the game in less than 87 days anyway.

  The main body of the walkthrough consists of explaining the objectives in
 each town that are necessary to getting the good ending later.  Optional
 sidequests will be explained at the bottom.  Depending on how quickly you
 are pushing through the game you may or may not have time to do these
 optional things in each town.  I recommend reading the entire section for a
 town before following its guide.

  When traveling the wasteland between towns it helps to know exactly where
 you are going so as to not waste time.  I recommend checking a map online,
 such as one at http://fallout.rpgplanet.gamespy.com/



=============================================================================
 Points to Remember                                                       PTR
=============================================================================

 1) Setting up your beginning character is very important.  Leveling up is a
	rare occurrence.
 2) Save your game often.  You will be playing quickly and at a low level.
	Even a simple mistake or oversight could jeopardize the run.
 3) Don't spend your Skill Points when you level up until you need to use
	a certain skill, at which time you should only increase the Skill
	to the minimum needed to accomplish your goal.  If you don't have
	a high enough Skill and you get stuck somewhere without spare Skill
	Points you won't have the time to go around killing enemies to level
	up and rectify the situation.
 4) Visit every location only once, except Shady Sands.  Do any bartering,
	recruiting, or sidequests in each town the one and only time you are
	there.  No unnecessary traveling is possible.
 5) Don't do anything else that eats up time, such as using First Aid, read-
	ing books, resting for the purpose of healing, or learning skills
	from NPCs.  Level grinding is unnecessary.  Time is precious!
 6) When traveling the overworld screen, use flat land as much as possible.
	Sometimes it is faster to go around mountainous areas than to go
	across them.



=============================================================================
 Walkthrough                                                              WLK
=============================================================================

---------------------------------------
 Creating Your Character
---------------------------------------
  Setting up your character at the beginning is important, because you won't
 have much opportunity to level up and adjust your stats as you play.

  Gender has minor effects on dialogue and interaction with other characters,
 but overall it shouldn't make a difference to choose Male or Female.

  Age has almost no effect on the game, unless you choose a very young or
 very old character.

 -------------
  Traits
 -------------
  Traits are optional details about your character that have both bonuses
 and drawbacks.  You can choose two.

  I chose the Skilled and Gifted combo.

  Gifted gives you a +1 bonus to each primary statistic (Strength,
 Perception, etc.) but you lose 10% on all Skills to start and you receive
 5 less Skill Points per level.

  Skilled gives you a 10% bonus to all Skills but you only gain new Perks
 every four levels instead of every three.

  Personally I like this combination because the drawbacks offset each other
 and your starting character is quite strong.  You won't level up much
 beyond 9 or 10 so I think the Skilled drawback is worth it.  If you want to
 pick something other than Skilled you might have a tougher time, but you
 will be able to choose a Perk sooner.

  If you must, you can skip choosing any Traits at all.
 Note: If you get the Pathfinder Perk at level 6 you should be able to beat
 the game in 74 days at most.

 -------------
  Stats aka the SPECIAL System
 -------------
  You have five Character Points to use for increasing your primary
 statistics.  Don't bother raising your Strength at all.  You will get
 Power Armor early on, which raises your Strength by 3 points when you
 wear it.  A Strength of 4 is good enough.

  Invest your points into Intelligence and Agility.  The higher your
 Intelligence the more Skill Points you get per level, and the higher your
 Agility the more Action Points you have during battle.  Perception and
 Endurance are also fine to add a point.

 -------------
  Skills
 -------------
  You can "Tag" three separate skills, which raises the skill by 20%.   Also
 the skill will increase twice as fast, which means they go up 2% with each
 Skill Point spent on them.  Tagging also affects what items you start with
 in your inventory.  I recommend Tagging Lockpick, Science, and Repair.
 All of these Skills will be necessary during the run.  Tagging Lockpick
 starts you with a set of Lockpicks and Repair gives you a Tool.

  Never waste Skill Points on First Aid or Doctor, because using those Skills
 eats up time.  Stimpaks work instantly and are plentiful.  The only time you
 would have to use Doctor is if you break a limb, which is unlikely.  Barter-
 ing and Gambling are mostly worthless.

  The only weapon skill you will need is Energy Weapons.  Don't bother with
 Small Guns, Big Guns, Unarmed, Melee, or Throwing.  You don't even need to
 fight any enemies until The Boneyards, at which point you get the Turbo
 Plasma Rifle.


---------------------------------------
 Vault 13
---------------------------------------
  You start the game at 07:21AM on December 05, 2161.  After getting your
 debriefing from the Overseer, head south-west out of the cave.  You won't
 be able to get back into the Vault until at least midnight, if you want to
 wait it out.  Otherwise you won't be back to Vault 13 for quite a while,
 if at all.  If you want to rest in the cave or kill time on the map screen
 you can go back inside the Vault and get some weapons and equipment on the
 third floor.  I don't consider it all that helpful so you should skip it to
 save time.

 -/-/-----------
  Optional
 -/-/-----------
  You can pilfer the skeleton laying in front of the big Vault door for some
 items.  Also you can kill all of the Rats in the cave for 500 total exper-
 ience.  Your skills with a Knife or a Handgun (Melee and Small Guns) are
 probably quite low, so you may not want to bother fighting much of anything
 at this point.
 -/-/-----------

  Anyway, head out of the cave towards daylight.  On the map screen, head
 directly west to the Military Base.  It will take 15 days to walk there.

  If you run into a random encounter with a Mutant Patrol just reload your
 game, because you won't be able to stand a chance against them.  If you run
 into Radscorpions you can fight them if you really want, they're easy enough
 to kill.


---------------------------------------
 Military Base  
---------------------------------------
  You should arrive on or around December 20, 2161.

  If you have a weapon out, put it away.  Head to the fence and talk to the
 first Mutant you see.  Tell him you need to see his master.  You will be
 teleported inside the base, on the fourth floor.  The Mutant Lieutenant
 will engage you in dialogue.

  He will ask you to name the location of your Vault.  Tell him that you will
 do it on one condition, your freedom.  He will think you are being funny and
 demand an answer.  Stall by saying "uh... uh..." and he will try to motivate
 you with violence.  The dialogue screen will close and the Lieutenant will
 move to punch you.  Quickly run from him to the top of the screen.  He will
 follow.

  Run past him back to the locker and lockpick it.  Steal the Cathedral Key
 and Electronic Lockpicks.  Always keep these two items until the end of the
 game.  Never store them in a locker or sell them!

  The locker on the right, near the man in the purple robe (member of the
 Children of the Cathedral) is also locked.  It contains two Stimpaks and
 two sets of Dynamite.  Be careful though, because if you get too close
 to the south end of the room a Mutant behind the wall will engage you in
 combat, and you have little-to-no chance of surviving it.

  Now run to the northwest of the screen and through the red/orange force
 field.  You will suffer some damage from the force field, and possibly even
 die, so be prepared to heal with Stimpaks or reload your game.  (Yellow
 force fields are "solid" and must be deactivated before you can pass, but
 red ones just cause damage.)  Beyond the force field is a door to the north.

  Inside are many Children members in a computer room overlooking the Vats
 area.  Use Science (41% skill should be high enough) on the computer at the
 very top of the screen.  It will say "you manage to get an interface
 screen..."  Once you succeed with Science, use the computer normally to
 access its menu.  Use the 31914 option to arm a self-destruct with a 300
 second silent countdown.  Leave this room and head to the elevator due
 south, and take it down to level 3.

  Here comes the tricky part.  You are in an area with three holding cells on
 the left and a mutant guard to the top-right.  Ignore the holding cells,
 they have nothing in them except a mutant sympathizer who has little to say.
 Walk to the edge of the wall on the right and stop before entering the
 square vicinity of the mutant guard.

  Now hit the 'A' key to enter combat (do not use the mouse to enter and exit
 combat, it isn't fast enough).  Walk up towards the doorway near the guard
 while holding the 'A' key.  As soon as you run out of action points you will
 end combat and start it up again.  The mutants will not be able to engage
 you in combat while doing this.  Keep walking and holding 'A' as you get
 through the doorway.

  In the next area there are some traps in the floor.  Sometimes getting hit
 by just one trap can kill you.  Walk to the northwest and reload the game if
 you get hit by a trap.  Keep using the 'A' combat trick while getting
 through this floor.  Walk down the hallway to the left, where there is a
 mutant guard near a red force field.  Keep entering and exiting combat to
 get past him and through the force field.  Use the elevator to go down to
 level 1.  If you need some healing from traps or force fields just use a
 Stimpak.

  On level 1, head down and right.  Walk through the room on the right with
 three computers, and then head down further to exit the building.  Outside 
 the base you may need to use the 'A' combat trick again to get past the
 guards outside, although sometimes you can talk your way past them.  Either 
 way just head west and leave the base entirely.  A cutscene will play show-
 ing the base being destroyed by the self-destruct.

  Click on the map to re-enter the Military Base area and collect 10,000
 experience.  You should be at Level 5.  You can choose one new Perk from a
 short list.  I chose Toughness myself.  DO NOT use any of your skill points
 yet.  Wait to use them at the Brotherhood of Steel.  Now head south-east on
 the overworld map to the Brotherhood of Steel.  It will probably take you
 7-8 days to walk there, leaving you with 65 days to finish the game.

 -/-/-----------
  Optional
 -/-/-----------
  Steal whatever you can from the Children in the computer room (it isn't
 hard, I did it with 28% Steal skill). They should be carrying Laser Pistols.
 Some of them may carry Small Energy Cells and Security Cards.  You will gain
 a small amount of experience for each successful steal (10 points per item).
 If you fail at stealing and they attack you, just reload your game.  It
 works best to stand behind them when attempting Steal.  You can sell the
 Laser Pistols later.
 -/-/-----------


---------------------------------------
 Brotherhood of Steel
---------------------------------------
  You should arrive at the Brotherhood of Steel on or around December 27th.

  Approach the door and stop.  Now save your game.  Use your skill points to
 raise Lockpick to around 65%.  Take your Electronic Lockpicks and use them
 on the door.

  You need to save your game for two reasons.  First of all, you should
 only raise your Lockpick skill to the minimum necessary to get through the
 door.  For me it was 65% and I needed a few tries to get in, but if you have
 higher luck or other stats it may be less.  You can't afford to spend a lot
 of skill points on one skill to the detriment of others.  Secondly,
 sometimes the Electronic Lockpicks break, at which point you will have to
 reload and try again.

  You should be able to pick the door and get inside the Brotherhood, bypass-
 ing the sidequest that is normally required.

  Now head to the elevator in the southwest of the screen.  Go to the third
 floor and talk to Kyle in the repair room.  He will tell you he needs a
 Systolic Motivator in order to fix some Power Armor, and that you can have
 the armor if you get the part.  Head back to the first floor and talk to
 Michael, the man at the desk near the Training Room.  Tell him "it will be
 my ass" if you don't get a Systolic Motivator (you may have to talk to him
 twice before getting the dialogue about the Systolic Motivator).  He will
 reluctantly give you one.  Head back to Kyle and give him the part.  In
 return, he will give you a Dean's Electronics repair manual.  Read the
 manual (reading uses 3-4 hours depending on your character's stats).  Your
 Repair skill should have gone up a few percent, depending on how high it was
 before reading the manual.  Save your game.

  Now use some skill points to raise your Repair skill to around 58% (for you
 it may be more or less).  Use the minimum skill necessary.  Reload your game
 and try lower and lower numbers to save on skill points.  Anyway, using the
 Repair skill on the Power Armor Parts on the table in front of Kyle will fix
 them into a complete suit which will appear on the ground.  The armor weighs
 85 pounds so you may need to empty your inventory to pick it up.  Equip the
 armor and watch your Armor Class soar!  Now your Strength goes up by 3
 points and you can carry more weight than before.

 -/-/-----------
  Optional
 -/-/-----------
  Go to the training room on the first floor and watch the Initiates train-
 ing.  Your Melee and Unarmed skills will go up and you will gain 500
 experience.

  Talk to Talus in the training room about getting some weapons.  He will
 give you authorization for Brotherhood Armor and ammo.  Talk to Michael
 outside the training room to get ammo if you want it, but really there isn't
 anything special.  Don't take the Brotherhood Armor unless you want to carry
 it to the Boneyards later and sell it.  It's worth some good money so take
 it if you're worried about cash flow.

  Head to the fourth floor and talk to Maxson, the old man in the large
 room.  You will get 1500 experience for "scouting the North," (ie discover-
 ing the Military Base, which we did earlier).

  Lastly, Steal everything that isn't nailed down!  Lockpick doors and go
 into the rooms of the Knights and Scribes.  Open their lockers and foot-
 lockers and take whatever you think is worth the most.  Use the Steal skill
 on the Knights and Scribes and take whatever they have.  If you get caught
 stealing just reload your game.  You should get a lot of Desert Eagles and
 Assault Rifles.  The locker near the Doctor on the second floor has some
 good items too.  If you can't carry everything then store some stuff in a
 locker and come back for it once you get the Power Armor.
 -/-/-----------

 -/-/-----------
  Infinite Experience
	Trick
 -/-/-----------
  Enter Rhombus' room and approach him.  He will ask what you are doing in
 there, and reply that you are new and not sure where to go.  He will make
 you leave his quarters and stand in the office area.  Enter his quarters
 again and he will accuse you of being a thief.  When you respond "I can
 explain!" he will kick you out of the Brotherhood altogether.  You will
 be standing back outside the front door.  Now if you have the Electronic
 Lockpicks and high enough Lockpick skill (around 80%) you can still pick
 the door and get back in.  When you pick the door you gain 75 experience.
 Go up to Rhombus again and he will repeat the dialogue and kick you back
 out.  Repeat this over and over for 75 experience each time.
 -/-/-----------

  Go back and retrieve any items you may have left behind or stored in a
 locker.  Take whatever is the most valuable when bartering, since you will
 be selling most (if not all) of it.  Leave the Brotherhood and head far
 south by south-east, to the Boneyards.  It will take about 8 days to get
 there (the fastest way is to head due south quite a few squares along
 flatter land before heading south-east).  This leaves you with at least 57
 days.


---------------------------------------
 Boneyards/Adytum
---------------------------------------
  You should arrive at the Boneyard around Jan 4th 2162, 30 days after
 you started.  Stop in Adytum and head south to a house with Jon Zimmerman.
 Tell him you want the job, and he will ask you to kill the leader of the
 Blades gang.  Head north to leave Adytum and go to the actual Boneyards
 (the areas are contiguous).

  Go west to the Followers Church and talk to Katja.  Say "I don't plan to
 stay in this place too much longer myself" and she will want to join you.
 Recruit her if you want and get 200 experience.  She is good with knives
 and submachineguns, both easily obtained from the Gun Runners to the east.
 She is also handy with a Power Fist if you manage to pick one up later on.
 Head to the room to the left of Katja.  Towards the bottom of this room are
 three Robes.  Take just one of them.  Keep this Robe with you at all times.
 The woman who stands still, just north of Katja, is Nicole, the de facto
 leader of the Followers of the Apocalypse.  If you talk to her, DO NOT
 ask for help defeating the Children of the Cathedral or The Master.  If you
 do, it will complicate things at the end of the game.

  Go through the rest of the building stealing from people and taking items,
 namely Stimpaks, from the Ice Chests and Refrigerator. Go into the basement
 of the Followers Library and steal what you can from there. Supposedly the
 Ghoul in the basement, Talius, can give you a Flamethrower if visit him
 after accomplishing certain things at Necropolis.  It turns out Talius was
 from Vault 13 as well.  Leave this Library/Church area and go back east into
 the Boneyards.

  Head north-east of the Blades building to enter the Warehouse area.  If
 there are any Deathclaw just try to avoid them as you head east.  There will
 be a dead body on the east side of the Warehouse building (possibly obscured
 by the ceiling of the building).  Search it to get the Junk Parts.  Head
 east to the Gun Runners Fortress.

  Talk to the guard at the wooden plank about buying weapons.  He will let
 you pass.  Go into the building and talk to the "well armed man" on the
 left.  Offer to kill the Deathclaw for him.  Then talk to the midget, Zack,
 to buy weapons.  Make sure to ask for a discount.  Trade whatever items you
 don't need for a Plasma Rifle, ammo, and caps.  You can also get a Sub-
 machine Gun and knives to give to Katja.  Unload whatever extra items you
 can here.  If Zack runs out of caps just end the bartering and talk to him
 again, and suddenly he will have about 3000 more caps to trade with.
 Unfortunately he doesn't have any medical supplies, just weapons, but you
 can get more Stimpaks soon.  Equip your new Plasma Rifle and leave.  If you
 still have any skill points you can spend them on Energy Weapons.

  Take the Junk to Smitty in the Boneyards and he will take one hour to fix
 them.  Head south to Miles and give him the fixed parts.  This will fix his
 Hydroponic Farming system.  To show their appreciation Miles can modify
 your Power Armor to be more resistant (Armor Class doesn't seem to change),
 and Smitty can modify your Plasma Rifle to use one less Action Point in
 battle.  Miles also will give you some caps and Stimpaks.  Unfortunately, in
 order for Miles to improve your armor he needs you to retrieve some books
 from The Hub, and that would be a waste of valuable time.  The normal Power
 Armor is plenty strong as it is.  Anyway, go to Smitty to improve your
 Plasma Rifle (it takes him 2 hours).


 -/-/-----------
  Optional
 -/-/-----------
  To raise your Luck:
  Go to Adytum and head to a tent in the south-east.  Talk to the man inside,
 Chuck, and he will tell your fortune with Tarot cards.  Choose the second
 option and then thank him.  Keep doing this until your Luck increases.
 Eventually he won't carry on a conversation with you any longer.

  Blades and Regulators quest:
  Go to the Blades building and go inside.  Talk to Razor (the woman dressed
 in black) and offer to get weapons from the Gun Runners to help her fight
 the Regulators in Adytum.  Make sure to get the Holodisk from her.
  Go talk to Zimmerman and show him the Holodisk that Razor gave you.  He
 will get upset with the Regulators and one of them will kill Zimmerman.
 Now you must fight ALL of the Regulators in Adytum, but with Power Armor and
 the Turbo Plasma Rifle this should be a breeze.  Once all of them are dead
 the townspeople will start saying positive things about their future when
 you're near.  Gather whatever items you want from the dead Regulators
 (namely Stimpaks).  Go back to Razor and you will get 500 experience.  Take
 whatever you can carry from the dead Regulators and sell it to the Gun
 Runners.  Metal Armor is worth decent money but is also heavy, so you will
 need to use Katja to haul a lot of the items.
  Now that the Regulators are gone you can talk to MacRae, the man standing
 guard in front of the Blades building, and he will teach you fighting
 skills.  However, this eats up an entire day, so it's not recommended.

  To spend some time leveling up:
  At the Warehouse, kill the Deathclaw.  Aiming for their eyes with the
 Plasma Rifle is very effective.  When the Warehouse is cleared of Deathclaw
 you need to head into the Boneyards and rest for an hour so that more of
 them will return.  Keep killing them until you reach level 8.  At level 8
 you can choose a new Perk, and you can choose Pathfinder if you have 40%
 Outdoorsman skill and 6 Endurance.  This will cut down travel time in the
 wasteland by 25%, which is helpful to beating the game quickly.  (You can
 get a Perk at level 6 if you didn't take the Skilled trait when creating
 your character.)  Otherwise you can just take Toughness again like I did.
 You do have SOME time to spare in this walkthrough, so if you want to spend
 even more time leveling up on Deathclaw to get more Perks and Skill Points
 you can do so.

  Eliminate the Deathclaw:
  There is a stairway in the floor of the Warehouse towards the north-east
 side of the building.  Go into the basement to fight the Mother Deathclaw.
 Kill her and destroy her eggs.  Killing the Mother Deathclaw earns you 1500
 experience, and the eggs are worth 20 total.

  You should get plenty of ammo for your Plasma Rifle and caps from Zack,
 then talk to Gabriel and tell him that the Deathclaw are permanently dead.
 The Gun Runners will disperse and you will get 1000 experience.  They will
 leave weapons and ammo in the four lockers for you, including heavy weapons,
 energy weapons and grenades.  Take it all and make Katja carry it.  Since
 the Deathclaw will be gone for good you should save this quest for last.
 Wait until you have leveled up to 8+ and are done with everything else in
 town.
 -/-/-----------

  Now you can leave the Boneyards and head north-east to the Necropolis.



---------------------------------------
 Necropolis
---------------------------------------
  It might be easier to head to the Hub first, but it really makes no
 difference.  There aren't any quests at the Hub that affect the ending; you
 just have to visit there at least once.  I went to Necropolis first because
 it's an easy way to gain experience and you have at least one quest there
 that needs completing.

  You should arrive at Necropolis on January 11 2162 at the latest.  The
 Ghouls standing around in the streets are hostile and will attack if you get
 near.  Killing them gets you 60 experience each.  The Ghouls inside the
 buildings are somewhat friendly; they will not attack and can talk to you.
 The desk in the motel contains flares and dynamite if you want them.  Go
 down the sewer via one of the manholes.  Head north through the sewers,
 killing any Rats you come across.  Eventually you will go into the second
 screen of sewers, and a friendly Ghoul will tell you not to shoot.  Go talk
 to him and ask about a water chip.  Offer to fix their water pump so that
 you can take the water chip in Vault 12 (under Necropolis, connected to the
 sewers) without remorse. Then head east and north again, fighting more Rats,
 until you climb up a ladder and come out at the Watershed area.

  There are Super Mutants here just like at the Military Base.  There is a
 large upside-down L-shaped building with a Super Mutant in it named Harry.
 Talk to him and he will identify you as "the one that destroyed the vats."
 Word has obviously gotten around in the Mutant community about the havoc you
 caused at the Military Base.  Reply "yes, and what are you going to do about
 it?"  Harry will let you go and all of the Super Mutants will leave the
 area. You can choose to fight them to gain experience if you want, which
 isn't hard with your Power Armor and Turbo Plasma Rifle.  Also you can fight
 the Ghouls standing around in the buildings, but you don't have to.  The
 bookcase beind Harry to the right contains ammo and the one on the left
 contains an Assault Rifle.  A building to the west houses two Children of
 the Cathedral who can heal you if you're wounded.

  Find a manhole outside and go down it into a new, isolated sewer.  Inside
 there are Rats and a pile of Junk that you need to pick up to fix the water
 pump.  The Junk is hard to see in the darkness of the sewer but it is there.
 Get the Junk and go back topside.

  Head back into the L-shaped building to the south end and Lockpick the cell
 to release the Ghoul if you want.  Otherwise equip the Junk and use it on
 the water pump.  In my game I had 58% Repair skill and only 41% Science but
 eventually the Junk repaired the pump.  For this you get 1000 experience.
 You can leave the area now if you want, or you can continue into Vault 12
 for extra experience points.

 -/-/-----------
  Optional
 -/-/-----------
  Get the Water Chip:
  You shouldn't need any more experience at this point, because the rest of
 the towns in the game are a cakewalk.  But if you really want to get a few
 more experience in order to level up to level 9+ (you should be close at
 this point, depending on how many enemies you chose to kill) then head into
 the room to the right of the Ghoul in the cell.  Go down into the sewer
 here, then down one more level into the Vault.  Fight the Glowing Ghouls,
 then use the Elevator to floor 2.  Kill the Ghouls here and head to floor 3.
 Kill yet more Glowing Ghouls and use the computer on the east side of the
 room.  You will get the Water Chip and 2500 more experience.  If you get hit
 by Glowing Ghouls you will become Radiated, but normally it isn't enough to
 cause noticeable effects.
 -/-/-----------

  When you level up you can assign skill points to whatever you want.  The
 rest of the game is simple.

  Now leave the Necropolis completely and head north-west to Junktown.  It
 will take 4 days to walk there.



---------------------------------------
 Junktown
---------------------------------------
  You arrive at Junktown around January 13-14th.  Put your weapons away if
 you have them out, or the guard at the gate will attack you.  If you arrive
 at night you may need to come back in the morning, depending on your ability
 to talk your way in.

  Head north into the second screen of the town and go into Killian's General
 Store.  Talk to Killian and ask some generic questions about the town.
 Eventually a man, Kenji, will walk into the store and attempt to assassinate
 Killian.  Take part in the battle and kill the assassin.  After the battle
 Killian will want you to use a tape recorder and a electronic bug to set up
 his rival, Gizmo.  Agree to help and leave the store.  You get 400 exper-
 ience for helping fight Kenji and 250 experience for killing him.

  Head north into another screen and go into the Casino.  Equip the tape
 recorder and talk to Gizmo, the fat man behind the desk.  Offer to help him
 get back at Killian by being the new assassin.  After Gizmo confesses, leave
 and go back to Killian and tell him you have the confession.  Say you want
 to help them kill Gizmo and then go to the entrance of the town and talk to
 Lars.  For securing the confession you earn 500 experience.  Tell Lars you
 want to help and you will be teleported right into the battle in the Casino.
 Kill both Gizmo and Izo and you will be teleported back to the entrance of
 the town.
  If you kill both Gizmo and Izo you get 425 experience from combat, and once
 you get back to the entrance with Lars you get 600 experience and 500 caps
 for helping Killian.

 -/-/-----------
  Optional
 -/-/-----------
  If it is evening you can go to the Skum Pitt bar and talk to Tycho so you
 can recruit him (you have to accept the quest to help Killian against Gizmo
 first though).  If you ask about his trips around the wasteland it will
 increase your Outdoorsman skill slightly.

  If you want you can attack the Skulz gangers in the north side of the Crash
 House.  There is a way to disband them, or get a sidequest via Lars to kill
 them, but dealing with the Skulz at all doesn't accomplish much.

  In the first screen of Junktown you can go into the Hospital and go into
 the pit in the floor.  You can attack Doc Morbid and his guards for some
 free experience.
 -/-/-----------

  With Gizmo dead (and Killian alive) you can leave Junktown and head far
 north to Shady Sands.

  Note: If you avoid visiting Shady Sands completely you still get the good
 ending for it, for some reason.  By skipping Shady Sands you can save quite
 a few days on the run.  You still need to eliminate the Raiders, however.  



---------------------------------------
 Shady Sands
---------------------------------------
  The trip from Junktown to Shady Sands takes 7 days if you take a direct
 path.  You arrive around January 21 2162.

  Head into the largest building on this screen and talk to Aradesh, the
 leader of the town.  He will mention the Radscorpion threat.  Now talk to
 the girl in the room behind Aradesh, Tandi.  Tell her that if she is so
 bored with life in Shady Sands she can choose to leave.  Go back to the
 front gate and talk to Seth about the Radscorpions.  He will take you to
 their cave. Defeat all of the Radscorpions in the cave and you will gain
 500 experience (plus 110 experience for each Radscorpion killed during
 combat).  If you have extra capacity (20 pounds) in your inventory you can
 pick up a Scorpion Tail from a Radscorpion corpse to take back to town.
 Leave the cave to be transported back to Shady Sands.  Tell Aradesh that the
 Radscorpion nest has been destroyed.

 -/-/-----------
  Optional
 -/-/-----------
  Talk to Katrina at the front gate as much as possible until you get 250
 experience from her knowledge.  Go into the large building in the north of
 the town and talk to the man in blue jeans and leather jacket, Ian.  Recruit
 him into your party and get 100 experience.  Give Ian a new weapon if you
 have one to spare.  Go to the east and into the farming area of the town.
 Talk with the farmer here and explain crop rotation to gain 500 experience.

  Take the Scorpion Tail to Razlo the doctor and tell him he should make an
 antidote using a Radscorpion sample.  If it is nighttime you will have to
 come back in the morning.  You will gain 250 experience and a free sample of
 antidote.  Go into the room in the back of the house and use the Antidote on
 the man lying there, Jarvis, for 400 more experience.
 -/-/-----------

  In order to trigger the "Tandi has been taken by Raiders" sidequest you
 need to leave the town and kill some time.  You can go to Vault 13 and
 return the Water Chip (if you took it from the Necropolis) to gain 7500
 experience.  Or you can wander the wastes for a few days.



---------------------------------------
 Vault 13 (optional)
---------------------------------------
  Head directly west from Shady Sands.  It will take about 5 days to reach
 Vault 13 (January 27th or early 28th).  Head to floor 3 and go east.  Talk
 to the Overseer (the guy in the round platform) and give him the Water Chip.
 You will get 7500 experience and probably level up.  There isn't much else
 of interest here since your character is already so strong.  There are some
 items in the lockers on floor 3, or you can talk to people on floor 2, but
 it isn't important at this point.  Head to the first floor and walk south to
 leave the Vault.  Head back east to Shady Sands.

 -/-/-----------
  Optional
 -/-/-----------
  Go to the second floor and talk to Theresa, the red haired girl in a
 northern room.  She will complain about the Overseer.  Reply that the
 Overseer just wants to protect everyone and you will earn 750 experience
 for "calming the vault's revolutionary faction."

  Water Thief Quest:
  This quest has to be accomplished past midnight, so you may need to rest to
 kill time.  Talk to Cindy, a red haired girl in a room at the southern end
 of floor 2.  She will mention someone stealing water rations.  Head to the
 third floor and hide in the meeting room.  A moment later a vault dweller
 will come from the elevator and walk around the third floor.  If you
 examine them it will say the person is acting suspiciously.  The person will
 go into the storage room and begin rifling through a footlocker, stealing
 the water.  Confront him and ask what he is doing.  Then say you are looking
 for the water thief and have to search him.  If he backs down you will tele-
 port to a conversation with the vault guard and receive 1000 experience.  If
 the thief attacks you, you will be forced to kill him, and you will earn
 only 500 experience.  If you have a low Speech skill he will attack more
 often than not.
 -/-/-----------



---------------------------------------
 Shady Sands part 2
---------------------------------------
  The trip takes another 5.5 days.  Your game should be on or around January
 30-31st.  Talk to Aradesh and he will cry about Tandi being taken away.
 Leave the town and go south-east two squares to the Khans Raider Camp.



---------------------------------------
 Raiders
---------------------------------------
  The trip from Shady Sands to the Khans Raiders Camp takes only 2 days.
 Head into the main building and go west.  Tandi is in a locked room.  Lock-
 pick the door to open it and start to leave.  The Raiders in the camp will
 gang up on you.  You have to kill all of them, but with your equipment and
 allies this is beyond easy.  Killing ALL of the Khans is necessary to get-
 ting a good ending, and killing the Khans nets you about 1000 experience
 from the combat.  Just make sure Tandi survives.

  It is possible to talk to Garl and negotiate Tandi's release peacefully.
 You can barter with him and offer items worth 600 caps for her.  However, to
 get the good ending you have to kill everyone, or the Khans will continue
 to harass the people in the area.  You can choose to engage Garl in one-on-
 one combat.  If you kill Garl one-on-one you earn 275 experience plus his
 items (Desert Eagle, Ammo, Booze, and Metal Armor).  For freeing Tandi
 peacefully you get 500 experience, or 450 experience fighting Garl.

  If you fight the entire Khans camp the two other captive women in the
 building will start to run away.  With all the Khans dead you earn 200
 experience for each slave woman that escapes.  With the Khans/Garl dead and
 Tandi alive you can leave this area.  Head back to Shady Sands.



---------------------------------------
 Shady Sands part 3
---------------------------------------
  Again the trip takes 2 days.  It should be around February 5th.  Once you
 reach the town you will earn 400 experience for returning Tandi.  Go back to
 Aradesh and he will thank you for the rescue of his daughter and give you
 500 caps.  Leave Shady Sands for good and head south to the Hub.



---------------------------------------
 The Hub
---------------------------------------
  The trip from Shady Sands to the Hub takes 10 days.  The date should be
 around February 15th.  There isn't much to do here in the Hub unless you
 want to kill any spare time with sidequests.

 -/-/-----------
  Optional
 -/-/-----------
  You can kill the people at the FLC and take their money.

  You can do the Thieves sidequest to earn some experience and Electronic
 Lockpicks.

  You can rescue the Brotherhood Initiate on the east side of town.
 -/-/-----------

  I recommend just leaving and heading south-west to the Cathedral to finish
 the game.



--------------------------------------- 
 Cathedral
---------------------------------------
  The Cathedral is directly south of the Boneyards.  It takes 4 days to walk
 there from the Hub.  The date in your game should be February 21st at the
 latest, but possibly as early as the 17th.  With Pathfinder it can be
 even earlier.

  Talk to each of the characters in your party and tell them that you no
 longer need their help.  Enter your inventory screen and put the Turbo
 Plasma Rifle into one of your two active slots.  DROP, yes drop, your
 Power Armor.  Now put on the Children Robes so you can be in disguise.
 Without your Power Armor your Strength will drop and so will your Carry
 Weight.  The minimum Strength for the Plasma Rifle is supposed to be 6
 but I was able to use it with a Strength of 4 IF I had it equipped before
 my Strength dropped.  If you use the Plasma Rifle with low Strength you will
 get a message that "you are not strong enough to use this weapon properly."
 Your accuracy in combat will drop 20% or so.  Otherwise you can use a Plasma
 Pistol if you happen to have one. Enter the Cathedral through the doors in
 the north.  Don't bother talking to anyone.

  If you asked help from Nicole at the Boneyards then Follower Scouts will
 show up and raid the Cathedral.  This may sound helpful, but the best method
 to complete the Cathedral is to sneak through, which is impossible with
 Followers engaging in combat all around you.  Instead you will have to enter
 the Cathedral wearing your Power Armor and fight the Nightkin mutants.

  Head through the doorway to the northeast of the screen and go upstairs.
 You can Lockpick the door or Steal a key from the woman standing nearby.
 Keep going up flights of stairs until you reach the fourth floor.  There
 will be a man in the southeast room in purple robes.  This is Morpheus.
 Enter his room, stand behind him, and use your Steal skill.  If he catches
 you, and he probably will, just reload your game.  Take his Black Key
 (otherwise called a COC Badge) but not the Red Key.  If you kill Morpheus
 you will earn 1000 experience for "killing the leader of the Children of the
 Cathedral".  Now go back downstairs to the first floor.

  Use the Black Key on the door behind the big TV screen.  Inside this room
 is another staircase that leads to the basement.  Go downstairs and head
 to the bookcase in the southeast.  Use your Traps skill on the bookcase
 (your skill doesn't need to be very high, just keep trying) and you will
 find a secret switch.  Examine the bookcase again to use the switch and
 open a secret door nearby.  If this doesn't work you can hang around for
 a while and a member of the Children will open the door from the other
 side.

  Go through the secret doorway into a cave under the Cathedral.  Head north
 to a Vault area where there are two Mutant guards standing post.  One
 of them will ask what you are doing, and just tell him that you have import-
 ant business.  Give him a blessing and you will gain 750 experience.  Go
 inside and take the elevator up to the third floor.  On the third floor head
 south and then west, avoiding the room to the east with all the robots.  Go
 into the large room with all the Mutants standing around and head north to
 the door.  This door is locked but can be picked with Electronic Lockpicks.
 (If you don't have your Electronic Lockpicks you can find a set in a book-
 case on the same floor as Morpheus.)  Behind this is a locked elevator.
 Use regular Lockpicks this time.  Take this elevator up to floor 4.

  Head east to a a locked door.  Lockpick it and equip the Cathedral Key you
 picked up at the Military Base.  Walk over to the computer console connected
 to the nuclear device.  There are two Mutant guards in this room which can
 make this tricky.  Enter combat using the 'A' key and use the Cathedral Key
 on the computer.  A timed self-destruct will begin.  Now run back down the
 hallway, entering and exiting combat like you did at the Military Base.  If
 the Mutants are able to attack, you can switch to your Turbo Plasma Rifle &
 kill them, or keep running.  Or you can kill them both before even using the
 computer.  You should be able to reach the elevator without taking much
 damage, but remember your Armor Class is very low with just the Robes on.
 Take the elevator back to floor 3 and combat will end.

  If you don't have the Cathedral Key you can arm the nuke with a high
 Science skill, around 75%.

  Head back out of the Cathedral the way you came in and re-recruit your
 NPCs outside if you care to save them.  Leave the Cathedral area altogether
 and the cutscene plays of the Cathedral being destroyed and the game is
 over.

  Congratulations, you just got the best ending.

  

=============================================================================
 Endings                                                                  EGS
=============================================================================
  Beating the game only necessitates destroying the Mutants, which technic-
 ally means destroying the vats at the Military Base and killing the Master
 (ie setting the nukes at both locations to self destruct).

  The ending is told in segments, following the final destruction of the
 Mutant threat.  Each segment deals with one location in the game and what
 you accomplished there.  If you accomplish everything explained in this FAQ
 in 88 days or less then you should get the best ending.  The following is
 an explanation of each possible segment in the ending.

 Necropolis
	Good ending: The Ghouls rediscover engineering and start a business
	selling their technology.  You get this ending if you enter the
	town before 88 days and fix their water pump.
	Bad ending: Necropolis is overrun by the Mutants.  This happens if
	you arrive later than 88 days (and find a ghost town) or if you take
	the water chip but do not fix the water pump.

 Shady Sands
	Good ending: Aradesh and Tandi found the New California Republic, a
	hopeful new government in the region.  You get this ending if you
	kill the Radscorpions and save Tandi.
	Bad ending: Shady Sands has a bad start and fails.  This happens if
	you kill Aradesh.
	???: If you do some things in Shady Sands but not everything, ie
	killing the Radscorpions but not returning Tandi, I'm not sure what
	the ending is like.
	Note: You can actually skip visiting Shady Sands altogether and,
	oddly enough, still get the good ending for it.

 Junktown
	Good ending: Killian Darkwater gains strong control over Junktown
	and rules with his own brand of frontier justice.  Life is fair.
	You get this ending if you kill Gizmo but not Killian.  If you don't
	kill the Skulz gang Killian manages to drive them out on his own.
	Bad ending: Gizmo controls Junktown until he chokes on Iguana-on-a-
	Stick.
	No ending: If you kill them both Junktown is not mentioned.
	???: If you visit Junktown but kill neither Gizmo nor Killian I'm
	not sure what the ending is like.

 Brotherhood of Steel
	Good ending: The Brotherhood help drive away the Mutant Army and
	assist the New California Republic through their advanced knowledge
	of technology.	You get this ending for joining the Brotherhood.
	Bad ending: They take over the NCR.  This happens if you kill
	Rhombus.

 Raiders
	Good ending: The Raiders disband upon the death of Garl and their
	remnants are never heard from again.  This happens if you kill
	Garl and all of the other Khans at the camp.
	Bad ending: The Raiders manage to regroup and continue harassment
	of the local people.  This happens if you kill Garl during one-on-
	one combat but the other Khans survive.
	Bad ending 2: The Raiders continue their terror campaign on the local
	people.  This happens if Garl survives.

 Boneyards
	Good ending: The only good ending for the Boneyards/Followers is no
	ending at all.  The Boneyards simply is not mentioned.
	Bad ending: The Followers are overrun by the Mutants if you enter
	the Boneyards after 90 days have passed.

 The Hub
	Good ending: Like the Boneyards, the only good ending is none at all.
	Bad ending: The Hub is overrun by the Mutants.  This happens if you
	enter the Hub after 140(?) days have passed.

 What happens to you?
	You have become a living legend among the people of the wasteland. 
	However, the Overseer of Vault 13 sees fit to exile you for fear
	that the people of the vault will try to emulate you and leave the
	vault for good, resulting in chaos.  The last shot of the game is
	your character in his Vault 13 jumpsuit, walking with his head down
	across the desert.  Don't lose heart, according to Fallout 2 your
	character heads North and establishes a new community.



=============================================================================
 Frequently Asked Questions                                               FAQ
=============================================================================
 Q: Can you explain the combat trick again?
 A: Use the 'A' key to start combat.  Direct your character to move as far as
	you want them to move while holding down the 'A' key.  When your
	character uses up all his Action Points, the 'A' key causes combat to
	end upon the end of his turn (when Action Points run out) and then
	starts combat up again.  In this way you can walk right past enemies
	without them ever getting their own turn to attack you.  This is
	necessary for the Military Base, and quite helpful at the Cathedral.

 Q: What Perks should I choose?
 A: Personally I usually choose Toughness (10% added to damage resistance
	per level) multiple times, because you don't have much opportunity to
	level up and gain Hit Points.  Bonus Rate of Fire is also quite good
	but it requires you to be at least Level 9 and have 7 Agility, 6
	Intelligence, and 4 Perception.  Bonus Rate of Fire with a Turbo
	Plasma Rifle means it takes only 3 Action Points to use in combat,
	which is truly powerful.

 Q: What about Vault 15 and The Glow?
 A: Vault 15 has nothing in it of worth, except for some experience and a
	spare set of dynamite.  It's not worth the trouble.  The Glow is
	too far away to walk there and back again without running out of
	time.  To walk from Necropolis to the Glow and back takes 18 days.
	With a high level Pathfinder Perk it may be possible to go to the
	Glow at some point during the run but I haven't tried it.
	Vault 15 and The Glow have no effect on the ending so it's totally
	unnecessary anyway.

 Q: What does the Pathfinder Perk do?
 A: Pathfinder lets you walk across the wasteland (travel that takes place on
	the map screen) 25% faster.  This is helpful for beating the game
	even faster than usual.

 Q: How do I give weapons and items to characters in my party?
 A: Enter into dialogue with them and use the Barter button on the right
	side of the screen.  Hand over any weapons or items they can use,
	such as Stimpaks, and trade them for free.  During the next battle
	they should automatically equip their best weapon.  Alternately you
	can use the Steal skill on them to move items from your inventory
	to theirs or vice-versa.

 Q: Hey, you can beat the game way faster than 88 days.
 A: You didn't phrase that in the form of a question, but I'll answer it
	anyway.  Yes, it's possible to beat the game by only going to three
	locations: the Military Base, the Boneyards, and the Cathedral.
	However, you get a crappy ending.  This walkthrough is about how to
	get the very best ending, by accomplishing certain necessary quests
	and beating the game in 88 days or less.

 Q: What is the fastest time to beat the game using this run?
 A: I've done it in 74 days, including the Shady Sands quests (ending on the
	morning of February 17th).  If you gain Pathfinder after leveling up
	at the Boneyards it should be possible to beat it in, I think, around
	63 days.



=============================================================================
 Changes                                                                  CHN
=============================================================================
May 05 2007, version 0.91
	Added mention of bypassing Shady Sands

April 27 2007, version 0.9
	Added a large amount of detail to the walkthrough
	Added more Optional quests to the walkthrough
	Recalculated the timing of the run to be more accurate
	Clarified/reworded some parts
	Fixed a few typos

March 08 2006, version 0.8
	First version completed



=============================================================================
 Thanks                                                                   THK
=============================================================================
  Thanks to the following people for insight into Fallout.

  Omkar Namjoshi for his complete guide to Fallout
 http://falloutnext.cjb.net

  Devin 'Mimir' Herron for his speedrun on SpeedDemosArchive
 http://speeddemosarchive.com



=============================================================================
 Links                                                                    LNK
=============================================================================
  Check out these sites for more Fallout information.

  No Mutants Allowed
 http://www.nma-fallout.com/

  Fallout Wastelands
 http://fallout.rpgplanet.gamespy.com/

  The Nearly Ultimate Fallout Guide
 http://user.tninet.se/~jyg699a/fallout.html

  Wikipedia Article on the Fallout Series
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fallout_%28computer_game%29

  GameFAQs page for Fallout 1
 http://www.gamefaqs.com/search/index.html?game=fallout



=============================================================================
 Contact                                                                  CNT
=============================================================================
 Contact me in the following ways:

email: [email protected]
Former Human on the SomethingAwful forums
Hadrian on GameFAQs
Gaimphax on AOL Instant Messenger