1W - Anatomy and Physiology

All documents and information on the anatomy and physiology of various creatures shall be recorded here. New information will be added as new creatures are encountered.
Key
Non-Hostile These creatures will not attack, even if they are attacked first.
Defensive These creatures will only attack if provoked.
Hostile These creatures will always be hostiles to all other forms of life.
Situational These creatures may be friendly, neutral, or hostile.
* Click on terms with this to be directed to the Glossary.

Bloatflies


The Bloatfly is a mutated insect found all throughout the Wasteland. These pests, while weak, can deliver nasty, stinging blows from it's abdomen.

Bloatflies attack at long range by peppering their prey with spine-bedecked larva launched from its abdomen.

Not much is known about these disgusting abominations, however, Enclave research documents recovered at Adams Airforce Base suggests that these bloatflies are mutated from the tabanus horse fly.

Brahmins


The Brahmin is a stable source of food and milk in the Wasteland. It is commonly used as cattle, but can also be found transporting goods of all kinds. According to Pre-War records, Brahmin may have mutated from a creature known as a 'Cow'. We believe that these cows served the same purpose as the Brahmins do today.

Brahmins, unlike other animals, have attained a second head, and have abnormal growths. They also have eight stomach compartments and two hearts. Brahmin bulls have four testicles, and the udders of female brahmin have increased in size. They are of a toasted brown/orange color, and attack by head-butting or trying to gore someone with their horns.

There has been several reports indicating that some Brahmins have been born with only a single head. These mutants are usually killed for fears of problems in the production of it's milk. No studies have shown conclusive results.

Centaur


Centaurs are the prime example of mutant abominations in the entirety of the Wasteland. These creatures are the most vial, disgusting, and disturbed mutants known to man. These mutants are the results of failed experiments with the FEV Virus, they primarily are created at *Vault 87.

The creation process involved tossing a varied mix of humans, dogs, and other types of animals into a Forced Evolutionary Virus (FEV) vat to be infected by the virus, and then seeing what mutant chimera emerged as the virus produced rapid and unpredictable mutations. The resultant centaurs can differ quite radically in physical appearance from one another. However, all known centaurs are somewhat humanoid in appearance.

These abominations have been reported in the West Coast, the East Coast, and have been found in large numbers in the Capital Wasteland.

Deathclaws


The Deathclaws are the most feared, powerful, and most terrifying creatures of the Wasteland. Deathclaws are a large, agile and strong species of mutant Jackson's Chameleon, created through genetic engineering, with the addition of DNA of various other species.However, due to mutation, they have lost their color-changing ability.

Deathclaws have a hunchbacked, bipedal reptilian build with long humanoid arms. They stand roughly nine to ten feet tall, with a thick and resilient hide, powerful muscles, and twelve-inch-long, razor-sharp claws that can kill almost any other creature in only a few swipes; hence their name. They have an excellent sense of smell and hearing, though their eyesight is poor. Their build gives them incredible speed, agility and strength in close combat, making them an extreme threat. Though they were originally mutated chameleons, they have lost the ability to camouflage themselves.

Deathclaws are very aggressive, territorial, and carnivorous. They typically live in small packs of around eight to twenty members led by an alpha male, who is the only one allowed to mate with the females. Deathclaws are oviparous, with the eggs typically laid in dark, sheltered locations and fiercely guarded by their mother. Young deathclaws reach maturity under the care of their parents, following them closely until they are old enough to fend for themselves.

Although they do not have vocal cords, they can growl and shout, and some seem to be able to mimic human speech much the same as a parrot does. However, normal deathclaws aren't intelligent enough to be capable of real speech.

Interestingly, deathclaws do not sharpen their claws on nearby objects, instead preferring their own nails to do the sharpening.

Deathclaws can be found throughout the whole of the United States. These creatures are thought to have originated from Southern California, however this has not been proven.

There are several variants of the Deathclaw, from a Alpha Males to Blind Deathclaws.

The Enclave were found mind-controlling Deathclaws during *Project Purity

These creatures pose a threat to any and every human of the Wasteland. The dogs that survived the Great War are a larger, and tougher, breed - now almost wolf-sized.

Most dogs can be domesticated for the use of personal pets, guard dogs, scouts, or even trackers.

Though most breeds of dogs remain largely unaffected by radiation exposure, some modified or mutant varieties do exist. The centaurs are mutants created by mixing dog, human, and brahmin DNA in FEV vats. Dogs were also subject to Enclave experiments, which resulted in cyberdogs.

Dogs


Dogs, like humans, are one of the species that were able to survive relatively unchanged throughout the war.

Some dogs have remained domesticated pets, but many more have turned feral and hunt the dusty wasteland in packs. The dogs that survived the Great War are a larger, and tougher, breed - now almost wolf-sized. Though most breeds of dogs remain largely unaffected by radiation exposure, some modified or mutant varieties do exist. The centaurs are mutants created by mixing dog, human, and brahmin DNA in FEV vats. Dogs were also subject to Enclave experiments, which resulted in cyberdogs.

New breeds of dogs have emerged since the Great War, such as the Mongrels used by Caesar in the West.

Feral Ghouls


Feral Ghouls are ghouls that have lost their ability to reason and have become aggressive.

The brain structure of a feral ghoul indicates that the regenerative ability of the neurological system that affords "normal" necrotic post-humans their longevity does not extend into the higher reasoning functions of the brain itself.

As the reasoning and critical thinking portions of a ghoul's brain deteriorate, the ghoul subject becomes increasingly hostile, giving in to a carnal need to feed. It remains unclear exactly what precipitates this change in neurobiology and psychology, but anecdotal evidence seems to indicate that non-social ghouls, or those in isolation, are more prone to the condition.

It is possible that this is a gradual process, meaning that eventually all ghouls will succumb to this condition. However, considering the existence of ghouls that have been born prior to the Great War two centuries ago, it is quite possible that this theory is inaccurate, or that the rate of degeneration is dependent on the individual affected and surrounding environmental factors.

As with normal ghouls, ferals are not only extremely resistant to radiation, they are actually healed by it, as can be seen when a glowing one uses its radiation blast nearby other ghouls.

Ghouls


When a person receives enough radiation, but not enough to die, they will become a Ghoul. Ghouls or necrotic post-humans, are decrepit, rotting, zombie-like mutants. They are recipients of intense and prolonged radiation sickness which decays their skin, and in some case their ligaments. Paradoxically, they also have greatly extended overall lifespans and are, allegedly, immune to and even regenerate health by the hazards of background radiation and/or nuclear fallout.

All ghouls live considerably longer than normal humans, though they are sterile. The reason for this longevity has to do with differences on the cellular level, and the ability of ghoul DNA to regenerate at a rate unmatched by normal human nucleic acids. Occasionally, in a ghoul, additional genetic material is added as a result of the mutation.[7] The unnaturally long lifespan of a ghoul is also due to a mutation within the autonomic nervous system of certain individuals following exposure to specific combinations of ionizing radiation with wavelengths below ten picometers. Radiation that has such a short wavelength, less than ten picometers, is known as gamma radiation and is normally lethal to healthy humans in even moderate doses. The mutation in response to gamma radiation that produces ghouls disrupts the normal process of decay in the neurotransmitters along the spinal cord.

Ghouls were not created immediately after the Great War in 2077; the process took months or years for some. After a few weeks, their skin slowly started to flake off and crack, as well as partial or complete hair loss.

In physical appearance, a ghoul's flesh is constantly rotting off, appearing very raw and discolored from necrosis. Lips and eyelids are sometimes absent, and noses are in almost every case completely rotted off. Feral ghouls are typically heavily emaciated and hunched over (possibly due to malnutrition and lack of sunlight), while non-ferals typically have a healthier, more human-like build and posture. Another major difference between ferals and non-ferals is dress: while non-ferals dress like normal humans, feral ghouls wear little clothing other than tattered pants or sections of old armor, having long ago lost the mental capacity to mend or replace their clothes.

Mirelurks


Mirelurks are creatures that, according to records, resembles a creature known as a 'crab' before the War. These massive creatures are covered in a hard shell, and often lurk in waterways in the Wasteland.

Their posture is generally crouched down to make their vulnerable faces harder to hit. Their shells also possess a mild reflective quality, as lasers are often seen ricocheting off them.

Radroaches


Radroaches are usually found in underground areas and sewers across North America, which can cause them to be a pest in certain Vaults, where they can often be found in fairly large groups. Radroaches feed on dead organisms, but they will attack living creatures if isolated. Their numbers are their greatest advantage. Radroaches live mostly in the areas east of California.

It is said that radroach innards are useful in the treatment of radiation poisoning, and are widely used by tribals for this purpose.

Radscorpions


Radscorpions are large, mutated scorpions commonly found in and around abandoned structures. They originated from the North American Emperor scorpion, which were prolific in many pet stores at the time of the Great War. They have since mutated to become much larger, faster and more venomous than ever before. Despite this, various antidotes have been derived from their mutated, stronger venom. Common radscorpions share a similar appearance, with one variant type. However, many sub-populations of unique radscorpions exist.

Super Mutants


Super Mutants are the biggest threat to the entirety of the Capital Wasteland, the East Coast, and possibly every survivor in the United States.

Super mutants are mutated humans, products of infection by the Forced Evolutionary Virus (FEV). They are much taller, bulkier and muscular than pure strain humans, have (mostly) green, gray, or yellowish skin, are immune to disease and radiation, and are gifted with superhuman strength and endurance. Although they are completely sterile, the rapid regeneration of their cells caused by FEV makes them virtually biologically immortal (but not immune to death from injury).

Average super mutants stand approximately 10.4 feet tall (although they typically stand with hunched backs that reduce them to about 7.8 feet) and weigh around 800 pounds, possibly even more. Their skin color is predominately grayish green in case of Mariposa mutants and yellow with tints of red and green in the case of Vault 87 ones, although some mutants with other skin colors also exist. Their skin is extremely tough, and their muscle and bone structure are enhanced well beyond the human norm.

Super mutant cells undergo cellular division at a greatly increased rate. Mitosis occurs at a rate 15% quicker than that found in pure strain humans. A super mutant's cellular structure is said to be highly similar to normal humans. Super mutant DNA strands are nearly flawless, with all of the recessive genes that produce many of the most common ailments like diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular disease eradicated from the genome. Those recessive genes which are commonly found in humans have been manipulated in such a way by the infection of the FEV virus as to bring about the best possible combination of genetic traits. A super mutant's RNA structure was also altered by the virus to produce more rapid transcription, resulting in the enhanced regenerative capacities of the mutated form.

The mutation produced by the FEV in this case has some severe side effects. Chief among them is sterility. As the gametes of the reproductive system consist of 'half-cells' comprising only 23 of the normal 46 chromosomes, they are perceived as 'damaged' cells by the FEV's integrated genetic sequences, which "repairs" them by restoring the missing chromosomes, which essentially renders the mutants sterile since their gametes lose the ability to recombine with other sex cells in sexual reproduction. Other side effects of this form of FEV infection include an alteration of the pigment cells of the epidermis. While the super mutants originating from Mariposa are sterile, they do not lose their sexual organs, but they do lose their secondary sexual characteristics, such as breasts; Similarly East Coast mutants are said to lose most sexual characteristics.

While they will not normally die due to the normal effects of aging, super mutants are prone to senility, leading to tendencies to engage in near-psychotic, aggressive attacks against other humans and other creatures. As super mutants created by the modified strain of FEV as part of the Evolutionary Experimentation Program in the Capital Wasteland age, they grow consistently larger and stronger, eventually reaching heights of up to 2 stories.

During exploration of Vault 87, information from a computer terminal reveals more about the process of mutation that super mutants go through, at least when it comes to the specific modified strain of FEV found in the super mutants of the Capital Wasteland. As a human mutates, its muscular and skeletal systems develop rapidly, while their mental faculties diminish. Most secondary sexual characteristics are eliminated, transforming the subject into an almost asexual state.

Despite their general lack of intelligence , they are somehow able to organize themselves into a coordinated army, as evidenced by their numerous raids and the attempt to reinforce their positions at the Capital which led to the attack on Galaxy News Radio, they also procure large amounts of advanced weapons, ammunition, and equipment, and even maintain the biomedical infrastructure necessary to infect humans with the FEV and increase the numbers of super mutants in the region.

Super Mutants must be destroyed.