The Enclave was once the shadow government of the United States and is one of the few old world organizations to survive the Great War. Members of the Enclave were hardliners who both embraced the idea of a nuclear war and knew that the common man could not survive it. They believed that as long as the "important people" of the United States survived, they could regroup quickly and wipe out communism once and for all. Though not technically part of the Enclave, many powerful corporations benefited from the Enclave's actions and their research facilities were protected during the firestorm of 2077. Come 2077, with total nuclear war rapidly arriving at America's doorstep, the President of the United States and a number of other United States government officials leave their posts to take refuge in a number of secret locations around the world. Among them was the Poseidon Oil Rig. Here, the President himself set up a secret base from which the U.S.A. could continue to exist and wage war on China, with the eventual goal of retaking the continental United States.

Vault 13 (or V13) is one of the Vault series of fallout shelters developed by Vault-Tec. Specifically, it is the home of the Vault Dweller. V13 also played a major role in the Master's plan, as it is one of the few remaining untouched Vaults when Fallout begins. Vault 13 was probably located under Mt. Whitney, as it roughly matches the location of the mountain. The total number of occupants (at maximum capacity) was 1000, and the Vault was meant to stay closed for ten years. However, due to the Enclave's Vault experiments, V13 stayed locked up for a lot longer. The Enclave intended it to stay closed for 200 years as a study of prolonged isolation. In 2161, V13's only functioning water chip breaks (the spares were mistakenly sent to Vault 8). The Vault Dweller was randomly selected by the Overseer to be sent out into the wasteland to find a replacement chip.

The Boneyard is what remains of Los Angeles. The headquarters of Vault-Tec was located somewhere in the LA area, and a VT demonstration Vault, which was not part of the Vault Experiment, was built there. it is called the Boneyard because of the skeletal skyscrapers still standing in the ruins of this once huge city. LA was pretty much decimated during the Great War. The majority of people in LA are people who came to the city after the destruction. Most to scavenge what they could, be it equipment, food or people. Los Angeles houses gunrunners, gangs, and various people with delusions of grandeur. The largest concentration of people live in a "suburb" called Adytum.

Frank Horrigan is the Enclave's finest instrument of warfare. Originally a Secret Service Agent for the President of the Enclave, Frank is sent out with several other teams to search for slaves to use for excavating the remains of Mariposa in 2236, sometime between July and August. In September, scientists unearth the F.E.V. virus and mutations begin to occur amongst those who come in contact with it. Horrigan is one of these unfortunate souls. He is quickly shuttled back to the Enclave for further research. The timeline is unknown, but between 2236 and 2238 Frank Horrigan undergoes his transformation into a Super Mutant. He is kept under heavy sedation and is operated on by Enclave technicians. In January of 2239, tests are starting to show negative results. It is then decided that Frank should be activated for field operations.

Caesar's Legion is an autocratic, ultra-reactionary, utilitarian society, based on that of the old Roman Empire, co-founded and led by Caesar (a former Follower of the Apocalypse). The legionaries are a well-organized, culturally insular fighting force that, as of 2281, mainly operate west of the Grand Canyon and in Arizona, where its capital, Flagstaff, is located. The Legion is comprised mostly of reconditioned tribals and their descendants. The Legion's symbol is a golden bull on a red field which is derived from Julius Caesar's standard for the Tenth Twin Legion.

Marcus is the elderly super mutant sheriff of Broken Hills. A survivor of the Master's army, his once fervent dedication to the Master's cause has since softened into a more tolerant attitude. After the Master's defeat, Marcus wandered aimlessly until in Summer of 2185, at high noon, he encountered a Brotherhood of Steel knight in power armor named Jacob who had pledged himself to the extermination of all mutants. Marcus and Jacob fought for a day or two, but they soon realized the futility of their battle and became friends (though Marcus always thought that Jacob would have been improved by a dip in the FEV vats, while Jacob disagreed, which was always a bone of contention between the two). As they wandered through the wastes, they attracted a following of other refugees from the war, who believed that Marcus's strength and Jacob's power armor gave them the closest thing available to safety. Eventually, Marcus and Jacob lead the refugees to settling in Broken Hills to exploit the uranium mine there.

Easily the most powerful energy conglomerate in the world prior to the Great War, Poseidon Energy had its fingers in virtually all forms of renewable and non-renewable power sources. Though most of the public knew that Poseidon was a huge corporation and didn’t particularly trust them, very few people were aware that several companies owned by Poseidon were given lucrative defense contracts by the U.S. government – or rather, by Enclave members working as lobbyists for their contracts. Most of Poseidon’s most promising projects never reached their final stages. In their paranoid dreams for a coup against the real U.S. government, the Enclave kept their special toys out of military consciousness until it was too late to actually use them. Now, Poseidon does not exist as a "real" force in the world. However, tech scavengers like the Brotherhood of Steel and Enclave still try in vain to decipher Poseidon plans and either confiscate them or turn them into working models, respectively.

Rhombus was the Head Paladin of the Brotherhood of Steel in 2161. He assumed this position when the previous Head Paladin, John Maxson, became the new High Elder after his father was killed by the Vipers. The Paladins, now led by Rhombus, began a full scale campaign against the Vipers, tracking them down and wiping out almost all of their members within the span of a month. He's not one for conversations and if angered him, Rhombus would kick the Vault Dweller out of the Brotherhood of Steel. He promises to train the Vault Dweller once the super mutant threat is removed, we don't know if he ever does.

Scott Everts is a designer who worked on Fallout and Fallout 2 at Interplay/Black Isle and is currently working on Fallout: New Vegas at Obsidian Entertainment. He designed all the maps for Fallout, and about a third for Fallout 2. Aside from Fallout and Fallout 2, he has worked on over 20 different games, including Star Trek: 25th Anniversary, Star Trek: Judgment Rites, Stonekeep, Planescape: Torment, Icewind Dale, Icewind Dale 2 and Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance 2 at Interplay, and Star Wars Knight of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords, Neverwinter Nights 2, Neverwinter Nights 2: Mask of the Betrayer at Obsidian.

Jet is a powerful methamphetamine that stimulates the central nervous system. The initial euphoric rush rarely lasts more than a few minutes, but during that time, the user is filled with a rush of energy and strength. The drug was synthesized by Myron, and is extracted from Brahmin dung. The process for manufacturing jet was founded by Myron as he noticed that brahmin farmers were getting "high" with no reason. Further investigations led Myron knowing that the euphoric states experienced by the farmers were due to gas emissions coming from brahmin dung created by a healthy brahmin diet consisting of "magical shrooms". Gaseous emissions from the brahmin, after they were collected, are then further purified and canned, presenting the all clean, odourless Jet. Thanks to Myron and the Jet, the Mordino family built their drug empire.

Tandi is the daughter of Aradesh, the leader of Shady Sands, born in 2145. A feisty, albeit naive, young woman pining for some excitement - which she gets when she is kidnapped by raiders and then rescued by the Vault Dweller. Afterwards, both the Vault Dweller and the Khans' leader, Garl, disappear, the first mysteriously, leaving only word of a Vault 13 to the west, and the latter violently, dead by the Vault Dweller's hand. Aradesh and Seth decide to go west to search for this so-called vault themselves together with some militia members, but they never return. This is when Tandi decides to settle down and become the president of Shady Sands. The name of the town gets changed to New California Republic.

Wanamingos are strange mutant animals. Although they are of terran origin, they are often called "aliens" due to their similarity to the xenomorph from the Alien movies. Word is they were designed as FEV-tailored weapons for waging war on other countries... and they got loose. They do live a long time, but they are dying out at the time of Fallout 2. They hatch from eggs laid by the queen, which is larger than the other wanamingos and grey in color. The only known queen lives in the Wanamingo Mine in Redding, owned by Ascorti. All wanamingos living in that mine are killed by the Chosen One in 2242. Some others can be found in the desert, and in the San Francisco tanker.

Some people in Shady Sands say that they are the followers of Dharma. In Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism, Dharma (sanskrit, roughly law or way) is the way of the higher Truths. Beings that live in harmony with Dharma proceed quicker towards moksha, or personal liberation. For practicing Buddhists, references to "dharma" or dhamma in the singular, particularly as "the" Dharma, is used to mean the teachings of the Buddha, and is sometimes referred to as the Buddha-Dharma. (see the Wikipedia article on Dharma for more). Aradesh says that Dharma was a great, religious man. It is unknown whether he means Buddha or some other, pre-war or post-war religious leader of some new dharmic religion. Characters who reference Dharma in the game are Aradesh, Agatha, Seth and Katrina, although other people of Shady Sands (and outside of it) might also be dharmists.

General Simon Barnaky is a Brotherhood of Steel paladin and one of the rebellious young paladins who disagreed with the Brotherhood's ways, instead wanting to bring BOS technology to the outside world. By 2198 he is the leader of the Eastern Brotherhood of Steel, until he is taken prisoner by Gammorin's (Paladin Latham's) super mutant forces in St. Louis. Then he is abducted by the Calculator's robots and taken to Vault 0, where his brain is extracted and put into a humanoid brain bot. He is succeeeded by General Dekker.

The .223 Pistol is a weapon in Fallout and Fallout 2. It resembles a .223 rifle modified and cut down for use as a pistol. This is a one-of-a-kind firearm, obviously made with love and skill.

In Fallout, it can be gifted as a reward for the quest, Help Irwin in the Hub. In Fallout 2, it is buy-able in NCR, New Reno (special stock in New Reno Arms), San Francisco or you can get it from the random encounter "A gang" in the New Reno area.

The pistol's appearance is a reference to Deckard's handgun in the movie Blade Runner.

The Childkiller reputation is bestowed upon your character for killing a child, even if it's an accident. However if one of your party members does the deed instead, you won't be penalized for it. If you have killed 3 or more children in Fallout or 2 or more children in Fallout 2 yourself, bounty hunters will eventually find you in random encounters. heir equipment depends on your level, ranging from leather jackets and hunting rifles to power armor and Avenger miniguns.

Super Stimpak is a chem in Fallout, Fallout 2 and Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel.

An advanced healing chem. Very powerful. Superstims will cause a small amount of damage after a period of time due to the powerful nature of the chemicals used. Myron can make these for you if you give him the proper ingredients.

Superstims also have a nefarious purpose. They can be used to assassinate friendly NPC's in populated areas.

New Reno is a large city in Fallout 2, known for its casinos such as the Shark Club and the Desperado. It is home to, among many other things, the Golden Globes studio, the Jungle Gym, prizefighter ring, and the Cat's Paw brothel. There is also a substantial weapons outfit called New Reno Arms. The town is currently run by four different families, the Mordinos, the Bishops, the Wrights, and the Salvatores, all of which are willing to make the Chosen One a Made Man in exchange for a little help. Reno was spared the atomic fire of the Great War, but with the destruction of the rest of the United States, law and order broke down as mobster families ascended to power. To this day, New Reno has no official government or police force. However, aside from their internecine conflicts, the families generally keep order and make the city safe for tourists from the wastes, sending any troublemakers who disrupt the tourist trade to Golgotha, a burial site near New Reno. The tourists are glad to partake of the gambling, prostitution and drugs (particularly Jet) offered by the city's mobsters.

Shady Sands is a town founded in 2142 by one of the groups that left Vault 15, led by the father of Aradesh. It's located between Vault 13 to the west and Vault 15 to the east. In 2161 it was small but self-sufficient farming community (they have their own irrigation system used to grow their own food), led by Aradesh. They had trouble with radscorpions and the three groups of raiders formed by other Vault 15 residents - Khans, Vipers and Jackals. They were eventually helped by a stranger called the Vault Dweller, who rescued Tandi, Aradesh's daughter when she was kidnapped by the Khans. Shady Sands is a very peaceful town, shown by a Pillar in the city center with the shape of an Obelisk, written on it are the Words "In Remind of Hope and Peace"

According to Fallout Tactics, Gammorin was one of the leaders of the faction of super mutants who fled to the East after the death of the Master and the destruction of Mariposa Military Base. Some time after their departure, Gammorin's mutants was pursued by Brotherhood of Steel airships. While most of them ended up in the vincinity of Chicago, far from Gammorin's forces, one of the zeppelins crashed north of the mutant encampment. The leader, Paladin Latham, challenged Gammorin to a single unarmed combat and, to surprise of everyone, killed the mighty mutant. As he defeated the previous chieftain, the super mutants expected him to become the new leader of their army and he assumed Gammorin's name. Latham suffered a head injury during the combat, and throughout the years, he grew more and more insane, even though he managed to organize the mutant forces into an army nearly as powerful as they had been during the Master's reign.

Nuka-Cola was the most popular flavored soft drink in the United States before the Great War. Aside from the original version, the company also created Cherry Nuka-Cola, but unfortunately nobody liked the taste. After the marketing disaster that was Cherry, Nuka-Cola attempted to save the brand by introducing the Classic Nuka-Cola. It tasted exactly the same as the original but came in a new bottle. Nowadays, Nuka-Cola is also the most popular soft drink of the post-nuclear world, as much of it was preserved in fairly good state. Unfortunately, it's mostly warm and flat.

The Chryslus Motors Highwayman is the only working vehicle usable by the player in Fallout 2.

The Highwayman has got a full analog system, 800+ Horsepower, 0 to 60 in less than a second, a sizeable trunk and spacious interior, able to accomodate the entire party of the Chosen One, from Marcus to Skynet. That particular Highwayman could be found in the Den. Its missing part, the fuel cell controller, could be found in Gecko.

The battery can be charged with either microfusion cells or small energy cells.

Point Lookout is the fourth Fallout 3 add-on and was released on June 23, 2009 for Xbox Live and Games for Windows Live. In this add-on, the Lone Wanderer travels to Point Lookout to explore the Fallout equivalent of Point Lookout State Park, a swampland area outside the Capital Wasteland which, although not having been hit directly by the bombs, the world has left behind.

Bottle Caps are the standard currency in the first Fallout game. In Fallout 2 regular money has been introduced and bottlecaps have been rendered useless and can only be found in Broken Hills.

Bottle caps are backed by The Hub merchants. The reasoning for their support is that the technology to manufacture bottle caps and paint the surface has been lost in the Great War, which would greatly limit any counterfeiting efforts. Secondly, there is a limited number of bottle caps, which would serve to preserve their value to some degree.

The issue of some concern is that with time, number of bottle caps will decrease due to wear.

The New Plague or Limit 115 is a socially transmitted plague which arose in 2053, killing approximately twenty thousand human beings in the United States. The United States closed its borders and the first-ever national quarantine was declared. The source of the plague is unknown, but rumors persisted that it was a genetically engineered weapon. The West Tek viral research and close ties to the federal government eventually lead to them being chosen for the Pan-Immunity Virion Project in 2073, a project later known as Forced Evolutionary Virus.

Alaska has been the Northern-most state of the United States of America since its admittance in 1959. It was cut off from the rest of the country by Canada until Canada was annexed either on February 14, 2075 or in January 2076. Alaska was one of the major sites of fighting during the war with China, noteably around the Anchorage Front Line. It was very important during the War because of the Trans Alaska pipeline.

Living in the Boneyard just to the north of Adytum in a pre-war nightclub, the Blades are a group of survivalists lead by a beautiful woman who goes by the name of Razor. While a peaceful group, overall, they are persecuted by the Regulators, who both coerce into doing their bidding and frame them for crimes against the people of Adytum to make it appear that it is seriously threatened by the Blades as an excuse for the Regulators own repressive policies there.

The Grand Canyon was a location in Van Buren, the canceled Fallout 3 by Black Isle. Due to uranium demand shortly before The War, the U.S. government removed the Grand Canyon's status as a national park and allowed private mining companies to exploit its supply of uranium. The resulting mess was an environmental disaster. As a result, the Canyon has become one of the deadliest places in the wasteland, home to hideous mutants seen nowhere else. Sane people avoid it.

Mister Handy is a robot model with several mechanical arms. It was designed as an allround house helper but it can also defend itself. It’s tough, and it can leave you broken and bruised. The Mr. Handy robot was developed by General Atomics International.

The Soviet Union still existed in the 21st century in the Fallout world, as Natalia, one of the Fallout pre-made characters, is a grandchild of a Russian diplomat who worked at the Soviet Consulate in Los Angeles. It is, however, most likely that it lost its position of the dominant communist country to China, as it is not mentioned at all in other parts of the background, especially in background concerning the Great War.