Fallout Together

The year is 2287. It is two centuries since the Great War between the USA and China that turned the world into irradiated, chemically polluted Wastelands. The Commonwealth is no different, in part overrun by feral ghouls, raiders, and super mutants, whilst in the background the remnants of pre-war corporations and institutes plot to dominate the region. Not all is lost, for the survivors, whether descendants of those who survived the great war, intelligent ghouls and super mutants, and former dwellers of the vaults established by Vault-Tec who have begun to leave the refuges that have protected them for centuries, are working to rebuild. Yet there remain many threats to face and secrets to uncover if the Commonwealth is to be safe and able to prosper. This setting may well, unsurprisingly, be familiar to many. This is because it is that of Fallout 4, the award-winning action roleplaying game published by Bethesda Softworks in 2015 and updated in 2025 for its tenth year anniversary with Fallout 4: Anniversary Edition, which depicts a post-apocalyptic future that is heavily influenced by American culture and kitsch of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. And it is also that of the Fallout television series available on Amazon Prime Video. Arguably, it is one of the most well-known post-apocalyptic settings and either playing Fallout 4 or watching Fallout is not the only way in which to explore and enjoy this world.

Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – The Post Nuclear Tabletop Role Playing Game is published by Modiphius Entertainment and what it provides is the means for a group of players to explore the Commonwealth and uncover its secrets together. The core rules are set specifically at the start of the computer game, Fallout 4, so that the characters—if not the players—will have no idea as to the machinations of Vault-Tec or the Institute, or other factions, although they will be aware of the broad geography of the Commonwealth and the location of Diamond City. Where in Fallout 4 the only choice is to play the ‘Sole Survivor’ of Vault 111, Fallout: The Roleplaying Game, the players have the option to play an Initiate of the Brotherhood of Steel, an intelligent Ghoul, an intelligent Super Mutant, a Mister Handy robot, or Survivor, as well as a Vault Dweller. As with Fallout 4, there is a strong emphasis in play in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game upon the environmental dangers of the Commonwealth, on scavenging, and on crafting. The rules for latter mean that a Player Character can use things found in and under the wastelands of the Commonwealth to cook food and drink, concoct healing stimpaks and other drugs or chems, and construct and modify both weapons and armour, including modifying power armour. What the latter means is that players new to Fallout: The Roleplaying Game can have fun exploring what their characters can make, but players familiar to Fallout 4 can create in the roleplaying game, what their ‘Sole Survivor’ created or modified in the computer game. So, if a Player Character wants to turn that standard pipe gun into a .38 Pipe Rifle with Powerful Receiver, Ported Barrel, Sharpshooter’s Grip, Recoil-Compensating Stock, Large Quick-Eject Magazine, Short Scope, and Suppressor, then he can—if he has the right parts, modifications, Perks, and access to a Weapons Bench. This is just one of the ways in which Fallout: The Roleplaying Game emulates Fallout 4.

That emulation beings with the Player Character and Player Character creation. This is because a Player Character in the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game will look more familiar to anyone who has played Fallout 4 than anyone who has played a 2d20 System roleplaying game. A Player Character has seven ‘S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Attributes’. These are Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck. Of these, Luck is the default attribute when the outcome of a situation depends on chance rather than Player Character skill or knowledge. The seven attributes are rated between four and ten and will be familiar to anyone who has played Fallout 4. A Player Character has ratings in skills including Athletics, Barter, Big Guns, Energy Weapons, Explosives, Lockpick, Medicine, Melee Weapons, Pilot, Repair, Science, Small Guns, Sneak, Speech, Survival, Throwing, and Unarmed. Of these, Athletics, Survival, Throwing, and Pilot are additions to the other thirteen which are taken from Fallout 4. Skills are ranked between zero and six. Some skills are marked as Tag skills, indicating expertise or talent. A Player Character will also have several Perks and Traits, essentially the equivalent of advantages and disadvantages, and he will have Luck Points equal to his Luck Attribute. The list of Perks is extensive and players of Fallout 4 will again recognise them as they include ‘Aquaboy/Aquagirl’, ‘Armourer’, ‘Bloody mess’, ‘Cap Collector’, ‘Commando’, ‘Dogmeat’, and many, many more.

To create a character, a player first selects an Origin—either, ‘Brotherhood of Steel’, ‘Ghoul’, ‘Super Mutant’, ‘Mister Handy’, ‘Survivor’, or ‘Vault Dweller’. This provides him with a Trait and an equipment pack. The ‘Survivor’ has choice of Traits and equipment packs. He assigns five points to his ‘S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Attributes’; selects three Tag Skills to receive a bonus and distributes ranks equal to character’s Intelligence plus six to his skills; and picks his first Perk from those he qualifies for. As he gains each new Level, he can puck another Perk. Lastly, the player picks an equipment pack based on his character’s Origin, a trinket, and adds the equipment gained from his Tag Skills. The process is simple and straightforward.

Name: Trader Joe
Origin: Survivor
Level: 1
Traits: Gifted, Fast Shot
Perks: Junktown Jerky Vendor
Luck: 4
Carry Weight: 190 lbs Damage Resistance: 0 Defence 1
Initiative: 11 Health Points: 12 Melee Damage: 0

S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Attributes
Strength 4 Perception 7 Endurance 7 Charisma 8 Intelligence 7 Agility 4 Luck 5

Skills
Athletics 0 Barter 4 (Tag) Big Guns 0 Energy Weapons 0 Explosives 0 Lockpick 2 Medicine 1 Melee Weapons 0 Pilot 0 Repair 2 Science 1 Small Guns 2 Sneak 0 Speech 4 (Tag) Survival 2 (Tag) Throwing 0 Unarmed 2

Equipment
Tough clothing, leather armour chest piece, pipe gun (ten .38 calibre rounds of ammunition), brightly coloured bandanna, trading wares (eleven.308 ammo, five missiles, nine .50 ammo, Radaway, Healing Salve, Dirty Water, two Holotape Players, eight bobby pins), pack brahmin, formal hat and clothing, 83 caps

Mechanically, Fallout: The Roleplaying Game uses the 2d20 System seen in many of the roleplaying games published by Modiphius Entertainment, such as Achtung! Cthulhu 2d20 or Dune – Adventures in the Imperium. To undertake an action in the 2d20 System in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game, a character’s player rolls two twenty-sided dice, aiming to have both roll under the total of an Attribute and a Skill to generate successes. Each roll under this total counts as a success, an average task requiring two successes, the aim being to generate a number of successes equal to, or greater, than the Difficulty Value, which typically ranges between zero and five. Rolls of one count as a critical success and create two successes, as does rolling under the value of the Skill when it is a Tagged Skill. A roll of twenty adds a Complication to the situation, such as making noise when a Player Character is trying to be stealthy or breaking a bobby pin when picking the lock of a safe.

Successes generated above the Difficulty Value are turned into Action Points. These are another change from traditional 2d20 System roleplaying games in which the players generate and have Momentum to use for their characters, whilst the Game Master has Threat to make the lives of the Player Characters more challenging and give his NPCs advantages in play. Action Points replace both Momentum and Threat and are a shared resource of which a group can have up to six. They can be used to purchase more dice for a Skill test, to Obtain Information from the Game Master, Reduce Time spent on a test, or to take an Additional Minor Action or Additional Major Action.

In addition, a player can also spend Luck Points (the total based on his Luck attribute) to gain an advantage in a situation. With Luck of the Draw, a player can spend his character’s Luck Points to add a fact or detail or item to the area he is in that would benefit him. Other uses include Stacked Deck, which enables a player to substitute his character’s Luck Attribute instead of another, Lucky Timing, which lets a survivor interrupt the Initiative order, and Miss Fortune to reroll dice.

Combat in the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game is quite detailed in comparison to other 2d20 System roleplaying games. A Player Character can attempt one Minor Action and one Major Action per round, but Action Points can be spent to take one more of each. Minor Actions include Aim, Draw Item, Move, Take Chem, and more, whilst Major Actions include Attack, Command an NPC, Defend, Rally, Sprint, and others. During combat, Action Points can be expended to purchase more dice for a Skill test, to Obtain Information from the Overseer, to take an Additional Minor Action or Additional Major Action, or to add extra Combat Dice.

One noticeable difference in combat between Fallout: The Roleplaying Game and other 2d20 System roleplaying games is that the Player Characters have hit locations. Again, this reflects the nature of the computer game with its PIP Boy and VATS system. Damage is inflicted per random Hit Location and it is possible to target a particular Hit Location. The number of Combat Dice rolled to determine damage is based on the weapon, Action Points spent to purchase more Combat Dice, Perks, and other factors. Combat Dice determine not only the number of points of damage inflicted, but the ‘Damage Effects Trigger’ of the weapon used. This has an extra effect, such as Piercing, which ignores a point of Damage Resistance or Spread, which means an additional target is hit. Both damage inflicted and Damage Resistance can be physical, energy, radiation, or poison. Armour is rated for its Damage Resistance against physical, energy or radiation damage and because armour is handled as both suits of armour worn and individual locations, it means unless a character is wearing a complete suit of armour, the player or Game Master has to keep track of what armour is worn where and what resistances it has. As much as this emulates armour in Fallout 4 it also adds a layer of detail and potential complexity to the game. If five or more points of damage is inflicted to a single Hit Location, then a critical hit is scored. Ammunition is tracked.

Radiation damage is handled differently. It reduces the Maximum Health Points of a Player Character rather than his current Health Points. Until cured, this reduces both his Maximum Health Points and the number of Health Points which can be cured. The rules also cover other environmental dangers, scavenging, and loot. The scavenging rules define whether a location has been searched before, the difficulty of searching the location, its size, and so on, followed by rolls on the different loot tables. Scavenging plays a big role in the play of Fallout 4 and so it does here, far more so than many other post-apocalyptic roleplaying games in comparison, to the point where it can overwhelm the players as much as it can the player in Fallout 4.

Fallout: The Roleplaying Game includes an extensive equipment list which takes up a fifth of the whole book and so supports the scavenging rules. It includes all of the weapons, armour, modifications, recipes, trinkets, junk, and more to be found in the Commonwealth of Fallout 4. Players of Fallout 4 will recognise all of these, whether it is globes of the world, packs of Salisbury Steaks, the Powerfist, Deathclaw Gauntlet, Super Sledge, Gatling Laser, Fat Man, Laster Musket, T-45 Power Armour, Nuka-Cola in all flavours, Mentats, and more. Notable amongst them are the various books, magazines, and comics, each of which provides its own Perk. For example, issues of Wasteland Survival Guide might ‘Coupon Spectacular’ shifts the price of food and drink in the reader’s favour, whilst ‘Water Aerobics for Ghouls’ reduces the difficulty of Athletics tests for swimming. Of course, there are issues too, of Grognak The Barbarian to found and read, granting Perks like ‘Blood on the Harp’ which increases melee damage and ‘Jungle of the Bat-Babies’ which increases resistance to poison.

Mechanically, Fallout: The Roleplaying Game is not as streamlined as more recent 2d20 System roleplaying games. This is because it has to emulate its source material, Fallout 4, so there are more attributes, more skills, there are rules for crafting, hit locations in combat, and so on. Yet the end result is the rules to the roleplaying game are not necessarily overly complex, but rather overly detailed, especially when it comes to the recipes and the modifications of weapons, armour, and so on. To some players, it may be too much, the play of Fallout 4 warrants it and so Fallout: The Roleplaying Game has to include it because it reflects the source material and it provides a means by which the Player Characters can improve themselves—by building and modifying better gear.

Roughly half of Fallout: The Roleplaying Game is dedicated to detailing aspects of its background. This includes histories of the Commonwealth’s corporations, pre-war and post-war, and suggestions as what role they might play in the Commonwealth of 2287. For example, the distinctive architecture of the Red Rocket shops always stands out and indicate somewhere that is generally safe and defensible. Manufacturers and big tech companies are also detailed and this includes some of their secrets, which ordinarily would only be discovered in the course of play of Fallout 4. Particular attention is paid to Vault-Tec and its activities within the vaults it established, including a table of possible wacky quests that Player Characters might trigger upon exploring a random vault. Again, these will need developing by the Game Master. This is in addition to several vault-related plots, plot seeds, and side quests. The Commonwealth is given a similar treatment with an extensive gazetteer describing many familiar locations such as Concord and its Museum of Freedom where the Minuteman, Preston Garvey has holed up against besieging raiders, one of the first encounters in Fallout 4. Diamond City is given particular attention as it will likely form a base of operations for the Player Characters. These are all accompanied by descriptions of generic locations and Commonwealth plots.

The advice for the Game Master on running Fallout: The Roleplaying Game is sound, focusing on managing the rules as well as safety guidelines as tentatively exploring the idea of running the roleplaying game in the wasteland of the former USA away from the Commonwealth. The advice highlights how the biggest danger in the wasteland is actually other people and suggests ways in which the dark humour of Fallout 4 can be brought into play. A bestiary gives descriptions and stats for a vast array of animals, monsters, mutated humanoids, and NPCs, from Bloodbugs, Bloatflies, and the two-headed pack beasts known as Brahmin to Synths, Turrets, and Raiders, via Ghouls, Glowing Ones, members of the Brotherhood of Steel, Railroad Agents, and Wastelanders.

The final support for the Game Master is the scenario, ‘With A Bang, Or A Whimper’. This can be played as is, or as a sequel to ‘Starter Set Quest: Machine’, the scenario in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set, and is set before the start of Fallout 4. The quest begins in a recently created town—which the players are encouraged to flesh out the details of—that is celebrating its first anniversary. A murder-mystery leads to a pattern of other strange behaviour by other townsfolk, and manipulation by one of the major factions in the Commonwealth. This is a solid scenario, though it does work better as a sequel to ‘Starter Set Quest: Machine’.

Physically, Fallout: The Roleplaying Game is a well written and engaging book illustrated with good, but clashing art styles. On the one side there is kitsch of Fallout 4, but on the other hand, there is the excellent depiction of the ruin that Commonwealth has been reduced to.

If you are a fan of the Fallout series of computer games, but not necessarily Fallout 4, then Fallout: The Roleplaying Game is not going to be as flexible as you might want a Fallout roleplaying game to be, since its focus is very much Fallout 4. As an emulation of Fallout 4, the only thing that is missing, are the rules for communities and building and improving them. Those rules are to be found in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game Settler’s Guide Book. Everything else that you would want in a Fallout 4 roleplaying game is included in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game and in such comprehensive fashion that it also works as a good sourcebook for Fallout 4. Of course, a player who has played Fallout 4 will get more out of Fallout: The Roleplaying Game than if they have not, but there is sufficient background and information in the book that a player definitely does not need to have played it to understand the basic aspects of the Commonwealth setting or the genre. Overall, Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – The Post Nuclear Tabletop Role Playing Game is a really good adaption of Fallout 4 that enables a gaming group to explore the setting of the Commonwealth and its plots and factions together.

Your Fallout Starter

It is the year 2287 and life is far from easy in the remains of New England, including Boston, an area called ‘The Commonwealth’. Two centuries after a nuclear holocaust that ended a war between the United States and China, there are plenty of pools of radiation hanging around, feral ghouls lurk in tunnels and caves, mirelurks hunt the banks of rivers and shores of lakes, and raiders are a constant threat. Yet there are survivors to protect and old Vaults to explore and even loot. It is a dangerous world out there, but when there is shooting and screaming, it probably means that somebody is in trouble. This is how ‘Machine Machinery’ opens, the mini-campaign in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set. Designed for two to seven players, aged fourteen and over, the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set is introductory boxed for Fallout: The Roleplaying Game, which is based upon the Fallout series of post apocalyptic computer games from Bethesda Game Studios. In particular, Fallout 4, which depicts a post-apocalyptic future that is heavily influenced by American culture of the 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s. In fact, the events of ‘Starter Set Quest: Machine Machinery’ are set before those of Fallout 4. Published by Modiphius Entertainment, Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set is an attractive looking boxed set.

Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set includes a fifty-six-page ‘Starter Set Rulebook’, a sixty-page ‘Starter Set Quest: Machine Machinery’, six pre-generated Player Characters, two twenty-sided dice, one twenty-sided hit location die, four six-sided Fallout game dice, and fifty-six Nuka-Cola cap tokens. The ‘Starter Set Rulebook’ covers the basics of characters, the mechanics and combat, and equipment, whilst the quest book gives the campaign. The Nuka-Cola cap tokens can be used as Action Points in the game or as in the computer game, as currency. The six pre-generated Player Characters include a Vault Dweller who is good at hacking; a Survivor who hits hard and can lie well; a Ghoul who heals fast and is immune to radiation; a Brotherhood Initiate good at repairing and healing; and a Mister Handy with a pincer arm attachment that can stab and even inflict critical hits! All six of the pre-generated Player Characters are presented on double-sided card sheets complete with a biography. The dice are actually nice and chunky and done in the blue of Vault dweller uniforms.

A Player Character in the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set—and thus the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game—will look more familiar to anyone who has played Fallout 4 than anyone who has played a 2d20 System roleplaying game. A Player Character has seven ‘S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Attributes’. These are Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck. These are rated between four and ten and will be familiar to anyone who has played Fallout 4. He will ratings in skills including Athletics, Barter, Big Guns, Energy Weapons, Explosives, Lockpick, Medicine, Melee Weapons, Pilot, Repair, Science, Small Guns, Sneak, Speech, Survival, Throwing, and Unarmed. Skills are ranked between zero and six. Some skills are marked as Tag skills, indicating expertise or talent. Tag skills improve a Player Character’s chances of a critical success. Each twenty-sided die rolled for a Tag skill that gives a result equal to or under the skill rank is a critical success, counting as two successes rather than one.

One noticeable difference between Fallout: The Roleplaying Game and other 2d20 System roleplaying games is that the Player Characters have hit locations. This reflects the nature of the computer game. A Player Character will also have several Perks and Traits, essentially the equivalent of advantages and disadvantages, and he will have Luck Points equal to his Luck Attribute. The ‘Starter Set Rulebook’ includes a long list of Perks, many of which the players will recognise from the computer game. For example, ‘Commando’, ‘Gunslinger’, ‘Hacker’, ‘Infiltrator’, ‘Iron First’, ‘Mysterious Stranger’, ‘Ninja’, and more. A Player Character does have a biography and a list of gear as well.

Mechanically, the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set—and thus the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game—uses the 2d20 System seen in many of the roleplaying games published by Modiphius Entertainment, such as Achtung! Cthulhu 2d20 or Dune – Adventures in the Imperium. To undertake an action in the 2d20 System in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game, a character’s player rolls two twenty-sided dice, aiming to have both roll under the total of an Attribute and a Skill to generate successes. Each roll under this total counts as a success, an average task requiring two successes, the aim being to generate a number of successes equal to, or greater, than the Difficulty Value, which typically ranges between zero and five. Rolls of one count as a critical success and create two successes, as does rolling under the value of the Skill when it is a Tagged Skill. A roll of twenty adds a Complication to the situation, such as making noise when a Player Character is trying to be stealthy or breaking a lock pick when opening a safe.

Successes generated above the Difficulty Value are turned into Action Points. Action Points are a shared resource and a group can have up to six. They can be used to purchase more dice for a Skill test, to Obtain Information from the Overseer, Reduce Time spent on a test, or to take an Additional Minor Action or Additional Major Action.

With Luck of the Draw, a player can spend his character’s Luck Points to add a fact or detail or item to the area he is in that would benefit him. Other uses include Stacked Deck, which enables a player to substitute his character’s Luck Attribute instead of another, Lucky Timing, which lets a survivor interrupt the Initiative order, and Miss Fortune to reroll dice. The Overseer—as the Game Master is known—has her own supply of Action Points to use with her NPCs.

Combat in the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set and thus Fallout: The Roleplaying Game, is quite detailed in comparison to other 2d20 System roleplaying games. A Player Character can attempt one Minor Action and one Major Action per round, but Action Points can be spent to take one more of each. Minor Actions include Aim, Draw Item, Move, Take Chem, and more, whilst Major Actions include Attack, Command an NPC, Defend, Rally, Sprint, and others. During combat, Action Points can be expended to purchase more dice for a Skill test, to Obtain Information from the Overseer, to take an Additional Minor Action or Additional Major Action, or to add extra Combat Dice.

Damage is inflicted per random Hit Location and it is possible to target a particular Hit Location. The number of Combat Dice rolled to determine damage is based on the weapon, Action Points spent to purchase more Combat Dice, Perks, and other factors. Combat Dice determine not only the number of points of damage inflicted, but the ‘Damage Effects Trigger’ of the weapon used. This has an extra effect, such as Piercing, which ignores a point of Damage Resistance or Spread, which means an additional target is hit. Both damage inflicted and Damage Resistance can be physical, energy, radiation, or poison. If five or more points of damage is inflicted to a single Hit Location, then a critical hit is scored. Ammunition is tracked.

Radiation damage is handled differently. It reduces the Maximum Health Points of a Player Character rather than his current Health Points. Until cured, this reduces both his Maximum Health Points and the number of Health Points which can be cured.

One aspect of the Fallout computer games that the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set does not cover is crafting. In Fallout 4 and the other games, the Player Character can craft almost everything—arms, armour, food and beverages, and so on. This falls outside of the remit of the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set, but the ‘Starter Set Rulebook’ does include a lengthy list of equipment which includes plenty of the various items seen in the computer game. It also covers Junk—if not necessarily what to do with it—and also Magazines, for example, Astoundingly Awesome Tales, Massachusetts Medical Journal, and Tumblers Today. When read, these provide a single one-time bonus or Perk that can also be made permanent if the Player Character uses the Perk and learns it when he next gains a level.

The ‘Starter Set Quest: Machine ’ presents a three-part mini-campaign that begins with an investigation of a vault and continues with a trek across and under the dangerous lands of the Commonwealth to Diamond City—Boston that was—and discovery of secrets about the setting. Each chapter should take a session or two to play through. It begins in a slight awkward fashion, with all of the Player Characters facing each other in a circle, in a potential stand-off outside the entrance to Vault 95. Each heard screams and the sound of gunfire and decided to investigate. However, the scenario uses this situation to get the players to talk about their characters by getting the Game Master to ask each of them a question. In the process, the players get an idea of who the other characters are and the characters are pushed towards co-operating with each other, potentially a problem given that they are such a diverse lot. This is only the beginning of the staging advice in ‘Starter Set Quest: Machine Machinery’, which does not overwhelm the Game Master with the rules, but eases both her and her players into the 2d20 System step-by-step.

The scenario also has some nice nods to the computer game, such as being able to befriend a canine companion and the Player Characters get to explore several of the signature location types found in the computer game—a vault, some sewers, a lone warehouse, and of course, Diamond City. There are moments too, for each of the Player Character types to shine, such as the Super Mutant interacting with fellow Super Mutants in order to avoid a fight or the Ghoul holding off some Feral Ghouls that will not attack him. The initial scenes are more action and combat-based, but later on, the players have plenty of room for roleplay and interaction, especially in Diamond City. There are also opportunities for the Player Characters to improve as well. The campaign only has the one side quest, and it is possible to complete that before accepting it from the NPC, but by the end, the Player Characters will either have established themselves in the Commonwealth or be left a challenging villain they still have to track down and defeat. The latter though, lies beyond of the scope of ‘Starter Set Quest: Machine Machinery’, and the Game Master will need to develop that herself. Although there are notes on possible sequels, the scenario stands alone and complete by itself.

Physically, the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set is decently presented. The dice are nice and chunky, the character sheets well done, and both of the ‘Starter Set Rulebook’ and ‘Starter Set Quest: Machine Machinery’ are easy to read and come with plenty of illustrations. The only thing lacking physically, is a map or two.

There is a lot in The Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set that fans of the Fallout 4 and the other computer games will recognise and enjoy engaging with, whilst the rules are easily explained and staged to make both learning and teaching them an easy process, all backed up with a solid scenario. The result is that the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Starter Set is a very good introduction to both the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game and the post-apocalyptic setting of the Commonwealth.

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Modiphius Entertainment will be at UK Games Expo which takes place on Friday, May 30th to Sunday June 1st, 2025.

Quick-Start Saturday: Fallout

Quick-starts are a means of trying out a roleplaying game before you buy. Each should provide a Game Master with sufficient background to introduce and explain the setting to her players, the rules to run the scenario included, and a set of ready-to-play, pre-generated characters that the players can pick up and understand almost as soon as they have sat down to play. The scenario itself should provide an introduction to the setting for the players as well as to the type of adventures that their characters will have and just an idea of some of the things their characters will be doing on said adventures. All of which should be packaged up in an easy-to-understand booklet whose contents, with a minimum of preparation upon the part of the Game Master, can be brought to the table and run for her gaming group in a single evening’s session—or perhaps two. And at the end of it, Game Master and players alike should ideally know whether they want to play the game again, perhaps purchasing another adventure or even the full rules for the roleplaying game.

Alternatively, if the Game Master already has the full rules for the roleplaying game the quick-start is for, then what it provides is a sample scenario that she still run as an introduction or even as part of her campaign for the roleplaying game. The ideal quick-start should entice and intrigue a playing group, but above all effectively introduce and teach the roleplaying game, as well as showcase both rules and setting.

—oOo—

What is it?
The Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide is the quick-start for Fallout: The Roleplaying Game, the post-apocalyptic roleplaying game based on the computer game, Fallout 4, developed by Bethesda Game Studios. It is set in the year 2287, two centuries after a nuclear holocaust that ended a war between the United States and China, in the remains of New England, including Boston, an area called ‘The Commonwealth’.

It is a sixty-four-page, 119.56 MB full colour PDF.

The quick-start is very nicely illustrated with artwork taken from the computer game that captures the retrofuturism of the Fallout 4 setting. The rules are clearly explained and are a moderately complex version of the 2d20 System.

How long will it take to play?
The Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide and its adventure, ‘Machine Frequency’, is designed to be played through in one session, two at most.

What else do you need to play?
The Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide requires at least two twenty-sided dice per player, four six-sided dice, and tokens to keep track of Action Points.

Who do you play?
The six Player Characters in the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide consist of a Vault Dweller skilled in computers, a charismatic Survivor with gambling debts, a Ghoul who fears mental degeneration, a Super Mutant bibliophile with long history, a Brotherhood Initiate with medical training, and a Mister Handy with personality problems.

How is a Player Character defined?
A Player Character in the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide—and thus the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game—will look more familiar to anyone who has played Fallout 4 than anyone who has played a 2d20 System roleplaying game. A Player Character has seven ‘S.P.E.C.I.A.L. Attributes’. These are Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck. These are rated between four and ten and will be familiar to anyone who has played Fallout 4. He will ratings in skills including Athletics, Barter, Big Guns, Energy Weapons, Explosives, Lockpick, Medicine, Melee Weapons, Pilot, Repair, Science, Small Guns, Sneak, Speech, Survival, Throwing, and Unarmed. Skills are ranked between zero and six. Some skills are marked as Tag skills, indicating expertise or talent. Tag skills improve a Player Character’s chances of a critical success. Each twenty-sided die rolled for a Tag skill that gives a result equal to or under the skill rank is a critical success, counting as two successes rather than one.

One noticeable difference between Fallout: The Roleplaying Game and other 2d20 System roleplaying games is that the Player Characters have hit locations. This reflects the nature of the computer game. A Player Character will also have several Perks and Traits, essentially the equivalent of advantages and disadvantages, and he will have Luck Points equal to his Luck Attribute. He does have a biography and a list of gear as well.

How do the mechanics work?
Mechanically, the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide—and thus the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide—uses the 2d20 System seen in many of the roleplaying games published by Modiphius Entertainment, such as Achtung! Cthulhu 2d20 or Dune – Adventures in the Imperium. To undertake an action in the 2d20 System in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game, a character’s player rolls two twenty-sided dice, aiming to have both roll under the total of an Attribute and a Skill to generate successes. Each roll under this total counts as a success, an average task requiring two successes, the aim being to generate a number of successes equal to, or greater, than the Difficulty Value, which typically ranges between zero and five. Rolls of one count as a critical success and create two successes, as does rolling under the value of the Skill when it is a Tagged Skill. A roll of twenty adds a Complication to the situation, such as making noise when a Player Character is trying to be stealthy or breaking a lock pick when opening a safe.

Successes generated above the Difficulty Value are turned into Action Points. Action Points are a shared resource and a group can have up to six. They can be used to purchase more dice for a Skill test, to Obtain Information from the Overseer, Reduce Time spent on a test, or to take an Additional Minor Action or Additional Major Action.

With Luck of the Draw, a player can spend his character’s Luck Points to add a fact or detail or item to the area he is in that would benefit him. Other uses include Stacked Deck, which enables a player to substitute his character’s Luck Attribute instead of another, Lucky Timing, which lets a survivor interrupt the Initiative order, and Miss Fortune to reroll dice.

The Overseer—as the Game Master is known—has her own supply of Action Points to use with her NPCs.

How does combat work?

Combat in the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide is quite detailed in comparison to other 2d20 System roleplaying games. A Player Character can attempt one Minor Action and one Major Action per round, but Action Points can be spent to take one more of each. Minor Actions include Aim, Draw Item, Move, Take Chem, and more, whilst Major Actions include Attack, Command an NPC, Defend, Rally, Sprint, and others. During combat, Action Points can be expended to purchase more dice for a Skill test, to Obtain Information from the Overseer, to take an Additional Minor Action or Additional Major Action, or to add extra Combat Dice.

Damage is inflicted per random Hit Location and it is possible to target a particular Hit Location. The number of Combat Dice rolled to determine damage is based on the weapon, Action Points spent to purchase more Combat Dice, Perks, and other factors. Combat Dice determine not only the number of points of damage inflicted, but the ‘Damage Effects Trigger’ of the weapon used. This has an extra effect, such as Piercing, which ignores a point of Damage Resistance or Spread, which means an additional target is hit. Both damage inflicted and Damage Resistance can be physical, energy, radiation, or poison. If five or more points of damage is inflicted to a single Hit Location, then a critical hit is scored. Ammunition is tracked.

Radiation damage is handled differently. It reduces the Maximum Health Points of a Player Character rather than his current Health Points. Until cured, this reduces both his Maximum Health Points and the number of Health Points which can be cured.

What do you play?

‘Machine Frequency’ assumes that the Player Characters are travelling when they encounter Scribe Galen Portno, an elderly member of the Brotherhood of Steel. he operates a listening post and recently monitored a distress call from a Brotherhood Vertibird which crashed. He is awaiting reinforcements, but asks the Player Characters to go to the rescue of the downed crew. They have a chance to conduct some scavenging before reach the Vertibird where they find it being attacked by robots. Further clues will lead them to the controller of the robots as well as provide opportunities to explore and scavenge.

‘Machine Frequency’ is a good mix of exploration, scavenging, and combat. Players who have played Fallout 4 will feel right at home.

Is there anything missing?
No. The Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide includes everything that the Overseer and six players need to play through it.

Is it easy to prepare?
The core rules presented in the Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide are not too difficult to prepare. A Overseer who has already run a 2d20 System roleplaying game will need to adjust for the extra complexities and details of the system used in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game, but will otherwise have no problem with this.

Is it worth it?
Yes. The rules and the scenario presented in Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide really do feel like you are playing a tabletop version of Fallout 4. It is grim and gritty, with a little bit of knowing humour. Fans of both the computer game, the post apocalypse genre, and the Fallout television series will enjoy the chance to play this.

Where can you get it?
The Fallout: The Roleplaying Game – Quickstart Guide is available to download here.