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Obadiah Blackhall is one of the inhabitants of Point Lookout in the year 2277.

Background[]

Obadiah is the last descendant of the Blackhalls, a both famous and infamous family of wealth inextricably tied to the history of Point Lookout. Obadiah is a stubborn curmudgeon and still entranced by an old tome his family once lost decades ago, the Krivbeknih. The Blackhall family was deeply involved in the commercialization of Point Lookout in the early twenty-first century. Constance Blackhall, head of the estate after the New Plague made her an unexpected widow in 2058, cooperated with entrepreneurs from the Isla Negra Realty Company, who had been trying to acquire family real estate unsuccessfully for years. Despite overwhelming local cultural resistance, Isla Negra persistently attempted to bring tourism and modernization to Point Lookout and St. Mary's County.[Non-game 1]

When Obadiah first meets the Lone Wanderer, he is polite, and asks the player to sit down and chat. Obadiah sits in a wheelchair, next to a pair of oxygen canisters and crutches, signaling that he is disabled. His family was one of the first to settle in Point Lookout, starting with Constance Blackhall, his great, great, great grandmother. He currently resides in Blackhall Manor to keep his family's legacy safe.

He despises other inhabitants of Point Lookout to varying degrees, either because he considers them uncivilized or simply unintelligent and possibly because of the theft of the Krivbeknih. However, it seems he is aware of their belief of the powers of the book as well, and wants the power all to himself.

Interactions with the player character[]

Interactions overview[]

Interactions
Icon quest starter
This character starts quests.

Quests[]

The Dark Heart of Blackhall: Blackhall wants the Lone Wanderer to bring back an old family heirloom that was stolen from him by the swampfolk.

Effects of player's actions[]

  • When Obadiah first meets the player character, he is polite and asks the player character to sit down and chat. It is here where one activates the quest The Dark Heart of Blackhall wherein they are requested by him to retrieve The Krivbeknih.
  • Obadiah can be seen praying, in his basement, in front of a dead creeper, after completing The Dark Heart of Blackhall. The player character is then given the option to engage in conversation after his initial disapproval and he will request that they leave his home. From here, there are three unique choice options:
    • When the player character states he hides bodies in rivers, he responds by saying he and the player character are more different than they can comprehend.
    • Telling him that one thought that he was above "this occult nonsense" will cause him to tell the Lone Wanderer that they misunderstood and demean them.
    • A third option will cause the Lone Wanderer to tell him that they will leave and he tells them to make haste.

Inventory[]

Apparel Weapon Other items On death
Dirty pre-War casualwear The Krivbeknih *

* After completing The Dark Heart of Blackhall if the player returned the book to Obadiah.

Notes[]

  • The gas canisters next to Blackhall's wheelchair are labeled "nitrous oxide," a painkiller commonly known as "laughing gas."
  • As mentioned above, Obadiah Blackhall sits in a wheelchair, suggesting he is disabled, but in reality, he can walk perfectly fine.
  • While in the basement, Obadiah may sometimes chant "Ug-Qualtoth is returned. Be afraid, worms." This same name is mentioned in the Dunwich Building terminal entries.

Notable quotes[]

Appearances[]

Obadiah Blackhall appears only in the Fallout 3 add-on Point Lookout.

Behind the scenes[]

  • The Blackhall family is a reference to the Whateley family from the H. P. Lovecraft story The Dunwich Horror. This is shown as the player can alternately end the quest at the Dunwich Building's altar.
  • There are also similarities to the central family in The Lurker at the Threshold, a novel Lovecraft co-wrote with August Derleth, who published it after the former's death. As with there, an aristocratic man inherits his family's dark legacies.

References[]

Non-game

  1. Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition p.87: "Obadiah Blackhall
    The last descendant of the Blackhalls, a famous (some say infamous) family of wealth in the history of Point Lookout, Obadiah is stubborn and is still entranced by an old book his family once lost. The Blackhall family was deeply involved in the commercialization of Point Lookout in the early 21st century. Constance Blackhall, head of the estate after the New Plague made her an unexpected widow in 2058, cooperated with entrepreneurs from the Isla Negra Realty Company, who had been trying to acquire family real estate unsuccessfully for years. Despite overwhelming local cultural resistance, Isla Negra persistently attempted to bring tourism and modernization to Point Lookout and St. Mary's County."
    (Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition Wasteland Census)
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