Fallout 76's Steel Dawn update is one of the most substantial the game has had for a long time, and in addition to weapons, armour, and items, there are also some precious story quests for you to dive into with everyone's favourite questionably-dressed crew, the Brotherhood of Steel.
We're continuing our look at Brotherhood of Steel quests in this guide, in which we go over the entirety of the Steel Dawn quest Mother of Invention. Make sure to take a look at how to start the Brotherhood of Steel quests in Fallout 76 if you haven't already.
Updated April 8, 2023, by Sean Murray: We've added a few tips and warnings to make sure you're better prepared for the Mother of Invention quest.
Fallout 76 Mother of Invention Quest Stages Walkthrough
Speak to Scribe Valdez
The set-up here is simple: Valdez wants to inspect the lower levels of Fort Atlas, but there could be all manner of foul creatures down there, so she enlists your help, as all NPCs are want to do.
Enter the Fort Atlas substructure
Jump down to the lower level of Fort Atlas and make your way to the entrance of the Atlas Substructure.
Wait for Scribe Valdez
Scribe Valdez will take a second to come inside. She doesn't walk down with you--she just eventually pops into place, mysteriously.
Doubly mysterious, there is also a minor bug here, which will render you unable to speak with Valdez. To solve this problem just exit and enter the Atlas Substructure again.
Speak to Scribe Valdez
A quick chat will get you onto the next part of the mission.
Learn about the ATLAS Project - Collect ATLAS documentation
So it's time to figure out what happened down here. What you need to do is find three documents that talk about the history of the ATLAS substructure.
Watch out though, you'll find several Cave Crickets and other nasty bugs that will attempt to take you by surprise.
Luckily these documents are each given their own waypoint, so searching for them won't be too difficult.
Speak to Scribe Valdez
If you read the documents you collected, you'll know whatever happened here went badly, and Valdez will now know it too. Still, that has no bearing on the present, and it's time to run some diagnostics so the Fort can be fully operational.
Run a diagnostics check
It's a simple process to run the diagnostics check - there's a terminal that'll be highlighted by a waypoint, and you can easily run it from there.
Test the release valve
The release valve will be downstairs along with the wiring you're supposed to check - testing it will make it explode. It's probably supposed to do that.
Examine the wiring
The wiring is in the same room as the valve, and it's been chewed up by creatures.
On that note, watch out for bugs down here…
Speak to Scribe Valdez
Upon returning to Valdez it's time to report everything you've learned from the diagnostics terminal, the release valve, and the wiring. The Ion Focus is misaligned, the release valve exploded, and the wires were chewed.
Extract components from the ATLAS machines
You'll go through a series of skill checks while removing the components from the various machines.
The ion focus can be removed with Agility 8+, the pressure gauge can use Strength 4+, and finally, the CPU removal asks for Intelligence 8+ - though you won't fail any of these if you do lack the necessary skills.
Extract the induction coil from the ATLAS machine core
Finally, we're removing the induction coil from the large ATLAS machine, and you can do this by cutting one or both of the wires.
You might get a small bit of HP damage here, so make sure you're not on the verge of death before attempting this.
Also, try swapping the part out with a heavy bag of dirt, Indiana Jones style.
Defeat the security robots
There are a lot of security robots that can get summoned now, so take them all down. Hope you are prepared…
Speak to Scribe Valdez
Finally, you can speak with Scribe Valdez, and your Atlas Substructure adventure is complete. Though that won't be the last time you head down there…
Now that's all done, time to complete the next quest, Field Testing.