Vault City Vault City is a high - tech settlement in western Nevada , established by the dwellers of Vault 8 after the Great War . Background . Vault City sprang from a vault that opened , as planned , several decades after the bombs dropped . The inhabitants used their G . E . C . K . and soon it became a prosperous city . Unfortunately , the citizens have turned inwards and revel in ethnocentric elitism , rather than expanding their horizons . Vault City is like a well - crafted plastic apple - pretty to look at , but unchanging and hollow . It is unknown whether or not this has changed following the annexation of Vault City by the NCR as a border territory or not . According to Chris Avellone , the vault opened in 2091 after receiving its all - clear signal . This is supported somewhat by dialogue with Joanne Lynette where the Chosen One claims Vault City opened 70 years before the Vault Dweller stopped the Master in 2162 , or 2092 . Joanne Lynette herself claims Vault City received its signal 2 years after it was sealed , but opened 120 years before the events of Fallout 2 ( 2241 - 2242 ) , within the years 2121 - 2122 . According to Lynette , surface sensors monitored by staff was the source of the all - clear . Due to the lack of confirmation from dialogue with Vault 8 ' s central computer that Lynette defers the Chosen One to , it is entirely possible that the all - clear signal came from the Enclave The city was subsequently built around the Vault , using its fusion generator as a power source , as well as knowledge contained in the G . E . C . K . to establish the first of their structures . The city population in 2241 was 103 citizens , and an unknown number of non - citizen servants and courtyard residents . In the elections that occurred after the destruction of the remnants of the United States government , Senior Council Member McClure was appointed First Citizen . Under his rule Vault City joined the NCR . Location . Vault City can be found twenty - one squares east and four squares south of Arroyo . Layout . Vault City is a very small , but high - tech settlement . The citizen population ( in all departments ) was 103 in 2241 , with an unspecified number of outsiders residing in the courtyard area . It was small compared to the hundreds of residents that lived in Redding or Broken Hills . Despite its small size , the city boasts sophisticated technology , they ' re one of the most advanced factions in the wasteland , possessing cutting edge medical technology , allowing it to mass produce medical supplies and chems ( such as stimpaks ) as well as perform radiation removal and sophisticated surgical procedures , including replacement of lost limbs and organs via cloning and grafting armor plating to one ' s skeleton . Aside from medical technology , it ' s also an advanced military force , with all guards and patrolmen rigorously trained and equipped with advanced weapons and armor . As of before NCR annexation the city is ruled by a Council , led by the First Citizen , established in 2101 , after the vault overseer retired . The council rules in a completely authoritarian way , controlling every aspect of life within the city . Their regulations are strict and enforced to the full extent of the law . For instance , no drugs , real alcohol ( artificial imitations are legal ) , prostitution , gambling or any other vices are allowed within the inner city . All citizens found breaching any regulations , be it even badmouthing the First Citizen , are usually swiftly incarcerated and reeducated . Non - Citizens , who are servants , are forbidden to even look at the city and must stare upon the ground or be punished for setting their impure eyes upon their city . Those possessing day pass es are allowed a daylight tourist proceeding . The Citizens are no better , as most are extremely bigoted , hypocritical and arrogant , treating outsiders questionably and leading mostly conformist lives , content with their state of affairs . Although healthy and very well educated , they are uncaring of the outside world . Many do not even venture beyond the protective walls of the City proper . Courtyard . The courtyard is the place where outsiders ( wastelanders ) are settled . It isn ' t much , as people are disorganized , some even are locked in jail . Downtown . Downtown is the area where vault citizens trade for supplies . Wasteland merchants can trade here if they have a Day pass , but even then they are not to be trusted , according to the citizens . Council . This is home for the vault citizens . Here is the Council building where important decisions are made for Vault City . One can apply for a citizenship test , but only if they have the skills to do it . Vault 8 . Vault 8 was designed as the control group for the vault experiments . It remained in pristine condition by 2241 . Every element of the vault is still intact , from the overseer ' s chair to the entry door . It is thanks to the vault ' s nuclear energy production that Vault City ' s power is supplied , though its capacity has severely limited the expansion prospects of Vault City . The majority of the vault is now unoccupied and used for storage . Interestingly , the vault had two sets of doors - massive external blast doors and a regular , round Vault - entry door . Relations with the outside . The city is very apathetic towards outsiders , generally considering them thieves and blackguards , however , if an outsider is able to pay the rent , they can live in the " Courtyard " of the Vault City , protected by its walls and heavy laser turrets , but with no access to other city services , like the amenities office or the vault medical lab , as those are reserved for full citizens . The courtyard is kept peaceful and protected from the raiders of the wastes by Vault City , but its denizens are subjected to harsh rules and regulations and taxed heavily . Denizens of the courtyard feel squeezed between the desolate horror of the wastes outside and the suffocating repression of Vault City : they hold both new arrivals from the wasteland and the Citizens of Vault City in contempt . Outsiders can enjoy the benefits of the city if they become servants , which unofficially means becoming slaves . Vault City residents claim that it is just because they give the servants shelter , food and protection , but people like Thomas Moore object to this heavily , and call it hypocrisy since they frown at those who openly call it slavery and do slaving ( the Den , for instance ) . Despite their antipathy to the outside , the city maintains regular caravan routes with other cities , trading its superior medical technology for raw materials , fuel , mechanical equipment and other items . Day passes . Day pass es are issued to non - citizens able to provide a " bona fide " reason for entering Vault City . ( Examples : slaves , uranium , gold , or gecko pelt traders , diplomats , and non - citizen agents of Vault City . ) Day passes allow a non - citizen access to Vault City proper during daylight hours ( 8 . 00am until 6 . 00pm ) but not the original Vault 8 itself . While the customs office is nominally strict in its rules regarding the issuance of day passes , there are some corrupt elements willing to sell false citizenship papers . Perhaps the easiest approach to gain one is to remove one ' s armor to reveal their jumpsuit before talking to Wallace , who will grant immediate access and advise going to see First Citizen Lynette immediately . Gecko . Gecko , the settlement of ghouls in the north - east has been more trouble for Vault City . Apparently , they wanted some medicine and supplies for their health , but considering their appearance , Vault City objected , so Gecko ghouls do not trust them , calling them foul and poisoning the water supplies , so Vault City needs to shut down their power plant . Redding . Although Redding may appear unassuming , it has great economic clout . Redding is northern California ' s primary producer and distributor of gold . Being the center of gold mining several larger political factions have volleyed for control of Redding to gain dominance in the gold trade . Vault City advocates claim it ' s the only city that can fully utilize Redding ' s potential and dismiss any worries that they might turn it into a slave labor camp . Doc Johnson is a staunch supporter of Vault City , turning a blind eye to the obvious mistreatment of non - citizens within its walls . He is one of the potential candidates for the office of mayor , and wants to put an end to the miners ' dependence on jet . There is an active trade route between Redding and Vault City trading gold for medical supplies New California Republic . The expanding Republic considered Vault City a fantastic candidate for inclusion into its growing organism , however , offers of joining were repeatedly declined , with Vault City preferring to stay independent . With no progress being made on the diplomatic side , the NCR Congress approved a secret initiative intended to force Vault City to join . Broken Hills . Despite being warned to " avoid Broken Hills at ALL costs " , Vault City and Broken Hills maintain trade relations , trading uranium for medical supplies ( in particular Rad - X and RadAway ) . Military Forces . The Vault City guard is the direct descendant of the vault security team - a vault police force . Vault City guards act as a universal military force , enforcing the law within town , defending it and securing Vault City ' s perimeter . While small , it is extremely well trained and equipped , able to deal with any threats when supported by laser turrets of the city , save for an all - out siege . Captain of the Guard is a title granted by the First Citizen of Vault City to exemplary citizens that have gone above and beyond the call of duty to protect the city ' s interest and independence . In essence , it is the highest military rank one can hold , giving them full authority over the military might of Vault City . As well as this , the NCR sent a large occupational force during the events following the dissolution of the Enclave in Fallout 2 . Citizenship . Generally , the only normal way to become a Citizen of Vault City is to be born into it . Personal intervention by the Senior Councilor ( in 2241 McClure ) or the First Citizen ( in 2241 Lynette ) can grant a non - citizen citizenship ( though this is never done lightly ) . In addition , non - citizens can take a citizenship test ( administered by the Proconsul , Gregory in 2241 ) , which is intentionally designed to be so difficult as to be virtually impossible by someone not of extraordinary intelligence , perception , and luck . The test is so difficult that the majority of born citizens would fail it were they to take it . Some of the subjects covered by it include advanced mathematics , spatial relations , deductive reasoning and language comprehension . A thorough physical exam is also included . Full Citizens have access to all of Vault City , including the original Vault 8 itself , although few people still use it much , except for its medical bay , and it is mostly used for storage ( including a huge number of water chip s , which were accidentally shipped to Vault 8 instead of Vault 13 , while Vault 8 ' s second G . E . C . K was shipped to Vault 13 instead of Vault 8 ) . Inhabitants . Citizens . See also : Vault City citizen s Canon endings . There are two possible canon endings for Vault City , both of which involve the occupation and then absorption of Vault City by the NCR . The first is as follows : " In the years to come , Vault City suffered greatly from raider attacks . Eventually , the situation grew so desperate the Citizens were forced to request aid from NCR . Within a month , a large detachment of the NCR ' s military was stationed in Vault City . The military presence quickly became an occupation force , and Vault City became the first of NCR ' s border territories . " The second of which is : " In the years following the destruction of the Enclave , Vault City continued to stagnate , choking on its own isolationism . Its Vault 8 generator , which was never intended to support such a large population , prevented Vault City ' s necessary expansion . Eventually , the city was absorbed by NCR , which had spread steadily northwards since its founding . " Both endings have very similar results , with the one involving raider attacks possibly leading to the Absorption of Vault City into the NCR slightly more rapidly . Appearances . Vault City appears only in " Fallout 2 " and is mentioned in " " and its " Lonesome Road " .