Fallout is a post-apocalyptic universe, one that has the player live in a world completely changed by nuclear war. Radiation is everywhere, most settlements are just scraping by, crime is abundant, and survival is difficult. How all this happened was from an event called the Great War, which ended the Sino-American War through nuclear annihilation of the United States.
To understand the Great War, fans must also know about the Resource Wars and Sino-American War. The Great War was merely the conclusion to a long-running battle between China and the United States for resources. These wars actually began in 2052, 25 years before the bombs fell on the United States, and it was all due to an unstable economy that depended on petroleum and uranium.
Pre-War Events
A lot happened leading up to the war that would eventually end the American world as people knew it. The global economy became unstable as of 2052, which prompted countries to attack each other for the finite resources of fossil fuels. This led to the United States annexing Canada, and the European Commonwealth attacking the Middle East. The United Nations also disbanded.
To make matters worse, in 2053, the New Plague spread across the United States. It killed tens of thousands and made the country close its borders. No cure was ever found, despite a ton of research. However, the research did pave the way for the FEV that would become a big part of the Fallout universe. In 2054, fallout shelters were built under Project Safehouse, a contract won by the iconic Vault-Tec company. As fossil fuel resources shortened all the more, the United States prepared for war by establishing a defense in Anchorage, Alaska, where its fuel reserves were stored.
The Sino-American War
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It was in 2066 that the Sino-American war began in earnest, six years after fuel became too valuable for automobiles, and one year after the military began to develop power armor. China was on the brink of collapse due to the scarcity of fossil fuels. Due to the shortage, the United States refused to export its own oil reserves to China, and China grew more and more aggressive. Eventually, China began to invade Alaska under the command of General Jingwei.
The American military was forced to retreat. They create T-45 power armor and deploy the new armor in 2067, and puts the war in a stalemate. The United States drew upon Canada's resources for the war, destroying timberland and much of the country's wealth. To United States citizens, Canada became known as "Little America," despite the protests from Canadians. In fact, Canada rioted, and the United States began to annex the country.
It was around this time that the military commissioned the development of the superweapon, Liberty Prime. The project had many resources poured in, but never produced results. China turned to biological weapons, making the American government push for research to defend against biological attacks. This research unveiled the Force Evolution Virus Project, which would later make super mutants.
In 2074, the American infantry did a counter-invasion of China through the Philippines at Shantou. By 2076, both China and the United States were falling apart in terms of resources, as they used them all up to try to constantly outdo each other in the war. The United States began to kill any protestors onsite in Canada. T-51 power armor models were made, and were quite successful in battle. Americans took back Alaska and killed General Jingwei. China's troops began to surrender when American armies faced them in T-51 power armor. With newfound confidence, American armies pushed deeper into China, but then a stalemate resumed.
The United States had its own issues back home, with riots increasing due to food and energy resources being scarce. Taxes were at an all-time high to fund a war that had no end in sight. Important government officials left the country to hidden remote areas, as they prepared for a nuclear strike from China. The president stayed on an oil rig with an inner circle that would eventually become the Enclave. At this point, the United States was basically leaderless.
The Nuclear Strike Of The Great War
All these events lead up to the Great War, which was the conclusion of the stalemate of the Sino-American War. The nuclear event took place on Saturday, October 23, 2077. Bombers were seen at 3:37 A.M. at high altitude, and suspicious submarines were identified off the coast of California three hours earlier. The first nukes to go off hit New York and Pennsylvania at 9:42 A.M. and five minutes after, facilities went offline.
Nuclear hits on the United States went on for two hours. Certain places were spared, such as Las Vegas due to characters like Mr. House preparing for the nuclear strike. Only a fraction of the assigned vault dwellers made it to their vaults, with some listening to the sirens too late they thought it was a drill and not reality. The National Guard was powerless due to all their communications and equipment being disabled by electromagnetic pulses.
The Great War started and ended incredibly fast in its two hours. It killed off most of the American population and made society, as everyone knew it, collapse. Those few who survived are the ones that began the many settlements that players intimately know in the games. As the game says its famous line, "War never changes," it may be reflecting on the dire consequences. The Great War is over in just one day, but the consequences have lasted for more than 200 years. Water is irradiated, dogs eat dogs, every car is rusted, and most people still struggle to survive in the aftermath of an America they ended up inheriting rather than earning.
Fallout 76 is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.