Fallout Universe Lore

Part 1: The events leading up to the war

After seeing the influx of video game lore posts on the gallery, I've decided to chip in with one of my favorite video games; the Fallout series.

Part 2: http://imgur.com/gallery/LDCvE

Timeline split

Sometime in the 1900s, most likely inbetween the end of World War 2 and the beginning of the Cold War, the Fallout timeline diverged with our own, creating two different timelines. In the Fallout timeline, the microchip was never invented (or if it was, it was never used widespread), and the technology of the Fallout timeline instead focused around analog and vacuum tubes, instead of moving into the digital age like our own. So, while Fallout is based in the future, its technology is actually more similar to something you would find in the 1950s/60s. Because of this, the technology in the Fallout universe is very energy inefficient.

The Rise of Nuclear Energy and the Resource Wars

As I said before, the analog technology in Fallout is very energy inefficient. Because of this, Nuclear power became one of the most widespread uses of generating electricity. Nuclear power was found everywhere; including in your cars. Mankind was obsessed with harnessing the power of the Atom.

Unfortunately, on the other side of things, America and the other world powers are beginning to use too much oil. The oil fields in many of the world's most prosperous countries begin to shrivel up and die. Because of this, the Resource Wars began. Europe invaded the Middle East, the United Nations collapsed, and the United States increased their military presence in Alaska to make sure no dirty commies could have their oil. Many small nations which were dependent on the oil industry went bankrupt. Later, China invaded Alaska, which started the Anchorage campaign, eventually leading America to annex Canada.

The Beginning of the End

Above, you can see a picture of gas prices in America during the end of the Resource Wars. Inflation was widespread around the world, nations were clashing over the smallest pockets of oil, and things were starting to get heated. The U.S. government saw this. So, in preparation, they commisioned...

The Vault Experiment

Also known as "Project: Safehouse", the Vault Experiment, helmed by Vault-Tec, was commissioned by the U.S. Government to safeguard the future of America in case of inevitable Nuclear War. for Unfortunately, Project: Safehouse soon became a place instead for the U.S. government and Vault-Tec to do unethical experiments on the people who lived within. Out of the 122 vaults constructed, only 17 weren't used for experiments. Only a handful of the vaults actually survived the War.

The End

Through the Resource wars, America's invasion and annexation of Canada, China's invasion in Alaska, and the skyrocketing prices of Nuka-Cola, eventually the world could sustain itself no longer. No one knows who dropped the first bombs or launched the first nukes, but in a mere 2 hours, the world was in nuclear ashes. Many american citizens didn't heed the warnings of the air raid sirens, and perished with the others.

I feel as though I need to clear this up; due to the timeline split I mentioned earlier, the bombs used in the Fallout universe are very different from the nuclear weapons we have in ours. In Fallout, the bombs are designed to have long-lasting radiation in the area, meanwhile ours are simply for devastation.