Fallout 3 was Bethesda's first entry in the Fallout series. The development and publisher had to ensure that they didn't let fans of the original series down while also appealing to new fans. They wanted to create a series that could bring both console and PC gamers together. Their efforts worked, and Fallout has become a popular series.
The game starred the Lone Wanderer, a 19-year-old who stepped out into the Capital Wasteland for the first time as an adult. The Wanderer was looking for their father, James. He was more concerned with completing Project Purity and bringing clean water to the settlers.
The Lone Wanderer's path begins to stray from the primary plot quickly. For most gamers, they first travel to Megaton. While asking if anyone has seen their father, side plots and quests rapidly begin to unravel. You play the lead hero (or villain, depending on your karma), but life has continued for most people.
While the Lone Wanderer was locked away in Vault 101, several side stories were going on in the background. Gamers have the opportunity to explore these stories further. They can either help NPCs achieve their goals or put an end to their evil ways. The Fallout series was meant to be a role-playing game, and it's up to you to discover the lost stories of the Capital Wasteland.
We've compiled a list of some of the easy-to-miss plotlines that you may have missed on your journey to find James. Just remember: If you don't have the Broken Steel DLC installed, your game will end before you have a chance to find these hidden treasures.
25 Hidden Things Among Friends
At first glance, the Brotherhood of Steel may appear to be a hardened group of soldiers. Once the Lone Wander speaks to them in the Citadel, you'll realize they're all friends. Some friends still keep secrets.
Stealth expert Knight Captain Gallows has kept his first name from the rest of the Lyons' Pride for years.
This secret has made his brothers and sisters curious about his true identity. In "Gallows Humor," if your Speech is high enough, you can finally put the mystery to rest. He'll tell you his first name and you'll win 1000 caps.
24 Sabotage A Republic’s Election
After the Great War, settlers have had to rebuild civilization. Many moved to private homes, while others created communities. You'll discover the Republic of Dave in the northeast corner of the Capital Wasteland. Dave will ask the Lone Wanderer to help persuade the other residents to re-elect him. If he gets the majority of votes, Dave will again be declared the winner. If you're fast enough, you can take all of the ballots and elect someone new. The settlement's name won't change, so you can always visit when you're in the area.
23 Give Someone A New Purpose
It's not easy to survive in the Capital Wasteland. Some try their best but still feel hopeless. The Lone Wanderer will meet Mister Lopez in Rivet City. His family was destroyed by raiders. Lopez climbs to the top of the bridge tower and considers jumping. He doesn't believe anyone will remember him. The Lone Wanderer can help Lopez realize that there is someone who needs him, a young man named Ted Strayer. If successful, Lopez will thank the Wanderer for giving him a new purpose in life.
22 Stop Or Encourage A Bad Act
Slavers are ruthless in the Capital Wasteland. They'll pick up any lost soul from the road or even from their beds. After visiting Little Lamplight, you can choose to help the Slavers in their sick ways or stop them.
Eulogy Jones asks you to convince one of the children, Bumble, to walk into the arms of a Slaver waiting outside of Little Lamplight.
Agree to help him, and Bumble is taken to the Slaver refuge, Paradise Falls. If you're disgusted with the offer, you can agree, but also lead the nearby Super Mutants to take out the kid stealer instead.
21 Plungers Don’t Work Like That
East of Farragut West Metro station, you can find an interesting little shelter. A poor survivor was stuck inside a room with nothing but plungers and a feral ghoul. The survivor tried to use the plungers to escape from the ghoul. Unfortunately, real-life plungers don't have the same physics as cartoons. The survivor fell to the Ghoul. Once inside, you'll find over 45 plungers around the room with the surviving Ghoul. At least they left you plenty of loot to take.
20 A Building Filled With The Supernatural
The Capital Wasteland contains several abandoned buildings. Few are as dangerous as the abandoned Dunwich Building. Many will tell you to stay away, but the curiosity may be too strong. Once you enter the building, you'll discover several Feral Ghouls. The deeper you venture forth into the building, the darker the interior becomes. You'll soon be in the Dunwich Ruins, where you'll have a hallucination about the building during pre-war days. Along with Jaime's Personal Journal entries, you'll learn about her painful transformation from human into a Feral Ghoul.
19 Curiosity Got The Best Of Her
After the bombs fell, the radiation levels were too dangerous for most to survive. Though 200 years have passed, many regions of the country have higher radiation levels than others. While many passed after being exposed to radiation, others transformed into either docile or Feral Ghouls.
Isabella Proud wanted to know more about mutated humans.
She discovered a Glowing One named Samuel and wanted to know more about him. Unfortunately, the radiation levels were too high. She was never able to make content.
18 A Refuge For Ghouls
Settlements aren't just havens for humans. Other non-humans also band together to escape the dangers of the Wasteland. Wasteland gypsy village is a small settlement with four small shacks. Feral Ghouls now populate the abandoned town. They now live in the small city, as if they were still human. They may have once lived there and mutated into irradiated creatures. Once you spot the village, try not to get too close. They'll immediately turn hostile once they detect the Lone Wanderer.
17 Who Needs That Many Spoons?
Raven Rock is the main base for the Enclave. It was formerly a pre-war military base equipped with a fallout shelter inside. There are three levels inside of the base. On the third, you'll find an unusual sight. There are over 130 forks, knives, and spoons. There's no explanation of why the Enclave would need so many utensils on Level 3. They may have begun preparations for the success of Project Purity, or one of the soldiers has a utensil hoarding issue.
16 A Shrine To A Former President
The Arlington Cemetery contains several interesting sights. On some of the tombstones are flowers growing in the dirt. Flowers are a rare sight in the Capital Wasteland. If you travel further inside the cemetery, you'll find the Arlington House. Inside the house are a Bobblehead, Big Book of Science, and a secret in the basement.
There is a shrine for Abraham Lincoln that is surrounded by flowers and bottles.
Someone in the Capital Wasteland is a big fan of the former president.
15 Help Or Stop A Man With Bad Intentions
Girdershade is home to only two residents: Ronald and Sierra. Ronald only has one thing in mind for Sierra, while the only thing she cares for is Nuka-Cola. In the meantime, he protects her from harm but expects payment in the future. The Lone Wanderer can help him or stop him in his tracks. You can choose to eliminate Ronald before he moves forward with Sierra or send him off to his doom. Either way, Sierra is more concerned with her Nuka-Cola obsession to take notice.
14 Help A Merchant Restock Their Goods
If your Lone Wanderer doesn't care who they hurt, they have agreed to help out the slaver refuge Paradise Falls. Luckily, not everyone will request your help in enslaving Wastelanders. Pronto, the merchant, will complain he doesn't have any items to sell. The Lone Wanderer can help him out by bringing him 20 Chinese assault rifles. After completing the quest, Pronto's store will have more equipment and more caps. He will be better equipped to help other Slavers in the Capital Wasteland.
13 The King Of Mutant Bugs
The Capital Wasteland has taken its toll on many Wastelanders. Not everyone the Lone Wanderer meets will be happy to greet them.
The Roach King is a hostile settler north of the Regulator HQ.
He has a throne made of a fake rocket, tires, clocks, and a single chair. If you decide to take out the King, make sure you're prepared for the consequences. His passing will make all of the surrounding Radroaches hostile. They'll want vengeance for their king.
12 A Battle Between Monsters
Old Olney is one of the Capital Wasteland's decaying settlements. If you dare enter this peaceful-looking settlement, beware to do whatever it takes to survive. Once you enter, you may not make it out. Hostile Deathclaws have overrun the settlement. They have taken control of the streets. Two Ghouls, Kidd and Wint, will tell you more about Old Olney. Both Ghouls and Deathclaws formerly inhabited the settlement. They fought for control over the Old Olney. The Deathclaws were the clear winner.
11 Reunite The Rangers
The Brotherhood of Steel isn't the only faction the Lone Wanderer can join. Near Seward Square is a small group of mercenaries called Reilly's Rangers. They map out the Wasteland along with helping others in need. They're the opposite of the Talon Company, which only acts in their own interests. After finding Reilly, you can help her back home. If you help her recover the missing members of her group, or what's left of them, she'll offer you a place on her team.
10 Find Out Their Mystery
The Capital Wasteland has a severe lack of clean drinking water and farmland. Some settlers have had to resort to desperate measures to stay alive.
In the settlement of Andale, traders and Wastelanders have gone missing.
You'll quickly discover that something unusual happening. Investigate the basement and storage shed, and you'll find "strange meat." With some detective work, you'll find out that Andale has been feasting on forbidden meat to stay alive. You have the choice to run away or take out everyone.
9 Access A New Radio Station
The radio choices in the Capital Wasteland are slim. At first, you can only tune into President Eden's speeches or Galaxy News Radio. A woman named Agatha wants to help bring violin music to the new world. Though her current violin is satisfactory, she wants to reclaim a piece of history. In "Agatha's Song," the Lone Wanderer is asked to retrieve a rare Soil Stradivarius from Vault 92. Bring the violin back to Agatha, and you'll now have access to Agatha's Station on your Pip-Boy.
8 Everyone Who Enters Suffers The Same Fate
Most of the Vaults in the Fallout series have a horrible history. Vault 106 contains a terrible secret. A mere ten days after the vault door was sealed, psychoactive chemicals were released through the air vents. The Vault Dwellers were used as guinea pigs for Vault-Tec's experiments. The chemicals made the Dwellers violent, and they eliminated everyone inside. Anyone who dared enter the Vault was later affected by the chemicals. The Lone Wanderer can visit the vault and speak to the "Insane survivors" to learn more about what happened.
7 Put An End To A Superhuman Battle
Canterbury Commons has an unusual problem. Two super-powered humans are fighting in the middle of town. The Mechanist is a hero trying to defeat the AntAgonizer.
The superhuman battle is putting the settlers of Canterbury Commons in danger.
The Lone Wanderer can put an end to the battle. You can either destroy one or both of the fighters. The best choice may be to have them both agree to stop their fighting. No matter what you choose to do, the settlers will be thankful the fighting has stopped.
6 Help Out DC’s Railroad
Many fans don't realize that the Institute and Synths were introduced in Fallout 3. In "The Replicated Man," Dr. Zimmer asks the Lone Wanderer to bring back a missing android. It will take some detective work to find him. You'll be introduced to the Capital Wasteland's Railroad, which wants to help androids. After you finally find the missing Android, you can help him continue life as a human, bring him back to the doctor, or pretend that the robot has been destroyed.