Crawl Out Through the Fallout
Long, long ago, almost 3 years at this point, Fallout 4 was released. Thought it gets a bit of a bad rap in terms of some of its failing, and some of them are rather rough, it was still a very fun and enjoyable game. Killing super mutants and raiders in the Wasteland is something I just can’t get enough of. But there was something I wasn’t prepared for enjoying: Settlement Building.
There have been other posts I’ve made about the settlement I’ve built, and what I am doing in them, but I’ve been back at building the Super-Fortress I refer to as Fort Sanctuary for a couple of weeks now, so I thought I would talk a bit about what I’ve been doing, a little about how I am doing it, and promise a walkthrough of the building here in the next few weeks, provided I finish the thing. Its come a long, long way.
Head Cannon
First, and I may have gone over this a couple of times before, but this is the first character I’ve really RP’d before. (spoilers inc!) In my head, he’s become the general of the Minutemen in order to save the commonwealth from itself. He’s recruited like-minded people to aid him on his journey, including a number of soldiers at each of his many settlements. Both the Brotherhood of Steel and the Institute posed a risk to the safety he would impose, so he had to eliminate them. Finding out the truth about the Institute simply strengthened his resolve: The Commonwealth must be saved. He infiltrated both and took them down from the inside. He also became tied up with the Railroad, but having eliminated the Institute, saw no reason to destroy them as their main purpose was removed, and they would dissolve and fade away. Now, completely under the sway of the General of the Minutemen, he could settle in and rule the Commonwealth as its most powerful person, with a cadre of elite, well trained and well-equipped soldiers.
So, I decided that standard uniform for the Minutemen Soldiers would be combat armor and fatigues with laser weaponry, the Elite Guard at Fort Sanctuary would wear Shadowed Combat armor and Road Leathers for that all black look and would be equipped with Plasma weapons. Provisioners would have Institute rifles and basic leather armor. I also want robots everywhere, but that was a future DLC. I cannot wait to have Sentry Bots standing guard.
With this in mind, I knew I would have to create a massive, one of a kind fortress that incorporated an absolute ton of space into it. The video within the above link brought back memories, but let me tell you that I have come a long way.
After I was working on that castle for a while, I was able to clip not one, but three whole buildings from Sanctuary into the castle. I turned one into a Hangout, one into a clothing store, and the third I am still trying to work out, but will likely become the armory in the future. It is, at this moment, the only place in the whole castle I don’t have designated out to be something else.
Building the Base
One of the best things I found to motivate me to build the castle were videos on Youtube. They sparked ideas of possible builds and different techniques to make the castle look and feel right. one of the first showed how to snap the Cement Foundations together, and it was all over from that point on – I was off to the races to make a huge and imposing structure, the one seen in the above video, which was completed prior to the first DLC ever coming out, which added, amazingly, Cement walls. This was revolutionary, as it allowed me to regain the space that was being occupied by the entirety of the block of the foundation (which fills the whole tiles) and instead only use the outside of the tile for the walls. It gave me so much more room to work, and work I did.
But, even then, I was a little overwhelmed. I was able to get a lot of cool things done with the Rug Glitch and the Foundation Clipping Glitch, but that was about it. That is when I discovered Paul over at the Skooled Zone and his No Mods Shop Class. As someone who didn’t want to – and wasn’t going to – use mods, this was a great find for me and really opened my eyes to some of the things that could be done with the system. Now, very few things here were parts I didn’t understand before, but seeing them put into practice and him putting two and two together for me was really enjoyable. Among the best of the classes and information was the Underground Wire Glitch (True Wire Glitch) which allows all sorts of power to be placed in all sorts of neat things, and the follow up to that, the Self-Powered Objects. There are a ton more videos, and many of them have great tips and small tricks to make a settlement fantastic.
So, What Did I build?
With the Current DLC’s, the massive Creation Club products, and a bit of hard work and ingenuity, I was able to make something extremely different, and one day I’ll flesh it all out. That said, I can do a small verbal tour.
Lower Level:
Guard Towers: At the edge of the bridge, before the concrete corridor leading to the main walls of the castle.
The Entryway – with Great double doors, vaulted turret towers, and a small holding area.
The Cooler – A small gathering hole with a few drinks, some good food, and a smooth, tiled floor.
The Library – With a collection of books and a small writing area, a great way to relax.
The General Store – Nothing fancy, just a small area where a few people can trade some basic items.
the Office – the generals waiting quarters and small office on the first floor to receive visitors and relax.
The Small Bar – What is better than a place to eat and drink? A second place to also Eat and drink, right near the bosses quarters!
The Pool Shark – A small place to unwind and play a few rounds of pool.
All Clear Clothing – The main clothing store of the Fortress, its a small place, but does the job.
The Farm – Inside the walls of the Fort, a meager crop can be grown. One day, maybe it’ll simply survive on tithes.
The Protective Aura – a wall to wall repository of the best power armor the commonwealth can supply. As well as more than a few trophies from raiders.
The Robot Workshop – Simple and to the point, a small space for constructing robots and making the protectors of the Commonwealth that much more intimidating.
Level 2:
The Foyer – A small lounge for those interested in simply relaxing for a bit
The Armory – the Forts only weapon and armor store, and the place to acquire guns and armor of absolute best quality,
The Barracks – Rows and rows of beds for all of the inhabitants and more. It’s a sparse living, but no one complains when they are safe in a concrete Fort.
The Restrooms – I mean, you have to have them, right? outhouses are a liability in a fortress like this. Have to keep them near the Barracks or the soldiers get upset for some reason.
The Atrium – Someplace has to have sunlight and greenery, so what better place than here!
Level 3
The Great Lounge – This is the larger bar and hangout, with TV’s a pool table, and a small bar to make sure everyone is happy.
The Generals Quarters – Repository for all the best weapons, armor, trophies and other goods that can only be monitored by the general.
The Generals Room – Rest well, savor the good life, and remember – This Land is Your Land
The Arcade – A place to play all the best Nuka Games and Pip-Boy Classics, with a pre-nuclear flair. Also, get snacks and a Nuka Victory while you’re there because video games are hard work.
Gym – Soldiers need to train, and what better place to train than a gym, with Workout bikes, pommel horses, and Weight Benches.
Barber – Gotta keep those soldiers neat and tidy. can’t do it without a barbershop.
Well, that’s it for the picto-tour. Hopefully, I’ll get a video so it makes more sense sometime soon. We’ll see!
Until next time!
