While war rages between the good ol’ U.S. of A. and the “red” Chinese menace over earth’s dwindling resources, a happy family starts their day on the east coast. War is far away now from this young army veteran and his wife, fresh out of law school, and they’ve got more important concerns; like raising their infant son, Shaun. This idyllic late-21st century American morning is interrupted by a most fortuitious visit, and shortly afterwards the war stops being such a distant threat.

Over 200 years later you awaken after witnessing a myriad of tragedies: the loss of your country, your spouse, your son… the entire world as you knew it. You must brave this strange new world, this radioactive mockery of what used to be America, and scour the Commonwealth on a mission that’s equal parts rescue and revenge.

Fallout 4 is Bethesda’s second entry into the Fallout universe, a massive, open-world RPG where you must create a character capable of surviving the threats of post-apocalyptic America, from irradiated mutants, robots running amok after 200 years of neglect, ambient radiation that still permeats the land, water, and food, and perhaps most of all, from the other humanoids trying to scrape out a meager existence in this ruined world.

Various factions vie for power - and your allegiance - including the idealistic Minutemen and Railroad who attempt to make the Commonwealth safe for man, both real and, perhaps, synthetic. The quasi-feudalistic Brotherhood of Steel wants to conquer all technology it can control, and destroy all it can’t, lest technology run amok succeed at destroying what’s left of humanity, meanwhile the shadowy Institute seems on the verge of creating that exact doomsday technology.

How will you survive these threats? Who will you ally with, and who will you betray? These are major considerations in the quest to find a proverbial needle-in-the-haystack that is your missing family. This guide will help you answer those questions, containing detailed character creation information and a walkthrough covering every area, quest, and faction. And who better to help you find that most precious pin but the authors of this guide; Bkstunt ( Skyrim ) and Haeravon ( Fallout 3 , Fallout: New Vegas )?

-Nathan “Haeravon” Garvin