Boulder design document / 1 This is part 1 of the Boulder design document for " Van Buren " , the canceled " Fallout 3 " by Black Isle Studios . Overview . Boulder Dome is a scientific research facility designed to withstand a nuclear attack . All around it is the blasted remains of the city of Boulder , poisoned by radiation and toxic waste . Inside the dome is a desperate team of scientists infected with a strange disease and trying to keep their ZAX unit from cannibalizing it memory to such an extent that it stops working . Beset by glowing ghoul s and a large pack of cannibal primitives , the dome faces extinction . History . Boulder was long a place where advanced scientific research took place . The University of Colorado , IBM , and Ball Aerospace were located here . Supported by money from Denver ' s industry and an active military presence , Boulder scientists made advances in medicine ( bio - med gel was invented here ) , alternate energy sources , robot ics , and even developed a power armor prototype . Unfortunately , leakage from the Rocky Mountain Arsenal ( a nearby toxic waste dump / weapons storage location ) caused a poisonous cloud that killed a lot of people in Denver . As an apology , the military funded a program to create a self - sustaining research dome , capable of withstanding a nuclear attack . This " city of the future " was to be a prototype for settlements on the moon and other planets . Then the war with China began . The USA annexed Canada . Boulder became a hotbed of political activity , as most of the scientists were naturally suspect of the military , and they , their families , and friends staged public protests about the situation , which got much of the city population up in arms . Some of the protests turned into riots , and the riot police were called in to suppress the riots . That squelched it but left everyone at a low simmer . When reports of plague outbreaks in Denver surfaced , many in Boulder feared that an exodus from that city would come here and infect them ; they fled north . When the bombs fell , Cheyenne Mountain ( a military facility , home of NORAD ) was a primary target . A huge section of the mountains became a great radioactive smoking crater . Coupled with attacks on Denver and the Rocky Mountain Arsenal , Boulder became the center of a triangle of hellish death . Fast forward 170 years . An NCR scientist named Goddard and his military escort travels through the region , establishing power generators and noting the locations of old - world power facilities . His report to NCR is noticed by Presper , who sends him out again to investigate certain areas in the old America ' s southwest . After Goddard returns , Presper and a small team of soldiers investigate Boulder dome , finding it in need of repair but containing excellent labs and a fully - functioning ZAX unit . Over the next few years Presper invites or sends scientists and students to the Boulder Dome , where he explains his idea to remake civilization . Those who refuse are put in cold sleep , using technology the original Dome scientists developed to aid space travel . Presper knows he can use the CODE ( Challenge , Opportunity , Discipline , Ethics ) technology developed there to convince them to help him when the time is right . Four years ago , when things start to fall apart out in NCR , Presper sent out his last team of scientists and grad students . Agnes , a fellow NCR scientist and frequent diplomat from the scientific community to the government , is the leader of the expedition . Using her skills and a " diplomatic immunity " pass she carried , she makes her way to Hoover Dam . Two days later , the NCR Congress building is destroyed , presumably in a conflict with the BOS . The destruction of the congressional building is a severe upset to NCR and travel becomes difficult . Only by circuitous routes and careful display of her pass is Agnes ' expedition able to reach Hoover Dam a year later . She runs into Goddard , a former colleague ( they were both scientific advisors to NCR at one point ) . Goddard knows Eddie Galenski , a long - haul trucker with an armored vehicle , and together the large group makes its way to Boulder Dome . The group includes Agnes and the grad students , Goddard and his military escort , Galenski , his wife Helen , and their children . Though they lose a few students along the way , they eventually reach Boulder Dome and enter using the passcodes Presper gave them . In a strange accident the scientists and grad students are infected with a form of the New Plague and are forced to quarantine themselves from Goddard ' s soldiers and the trucker family ; after two months trying to fight the disease , the scientists realize that they ' re stuck with it for now and have to live in protective suits whenever they want to interact with the rest of the Dome population . As of two years ago , things had stabilized . Everyone had a routine , mainly around constantly repairing problems with the dome ( mainly from wear and neglect ) . There ' s enough to do that it keeps everyone from going crazy . The scientists worry that the soldiers and truckers might leave them , and if that happens , they ' re probably doomed . One of the grad students ( Paul ) discovers the Sleeper s in a deep level of the facility – the scientists Presper sent here and put to sleep to help with his new world order . Xian starts her " hikes " and discovers ZAX . A year ago , the first glowing ghoul showed up on the north end of town , collapses , and dies . The scientists mark the body with radioactive warnings , debate how to dispose of it ( like dumping cement on it ) . Paul finds that ZAX is almost out of storage space at the rate he ' s going . With no storage space , ZAX won ' t be able to run the dome and will start doing damage . They need to get other storage media to hold info . ( Holodisk s / holotapes / holodisk tapes , all the same thing ) . If no solution , ZAX will have to start cannibalizing his own memory storage , eating Boulder research as he does so . They start hearing some broadcasts from Denver , but don ' t answer because they fear being attacked ( esp . from diseased people ) . 8 months before the PC arrives : Two glowing ghouls show up within a three - day period . The soldiers start getting paranoid , thinking they ' re in ghoul territory . Sgt Larsen , going stir - crazy , wants to take some Rad - Away , find the ghoul colony , and kill them all . Goddard says no , but Agnes suggests he consider it to let them " let off some steam . " 6 months ago : Galenski is told they need storage ( by now they basically need a " datacan " , though holodisks will help stave it off ) . He makes a run west to find some but fails . While out he runs into a pack of Jackals , kills all but one , and heads home . The lone Jackal runs to his tribe and tells them about the truck , the man , and where he went . The Jackals stop fighting among their own tribes and move out in search of this new food source . Jimmy T the super mutant ( found later at Denver ) is with them . Another glowbug shows up . Larsen ' s team is given RadAway and start doing patrols . Agnes says taking RadAway for too long is dangerous . Larsen realizes that means they won ' t be giving it to them any more , so he starts exaggerating how many ghouls they find so they can justify getting more RadAway to deal with them . Jimmy T leaves the Jackals because he knows the Daughter of Hecate probably doesn ' t want him around and he doesn ' t want to be a sacrifice . 5 months ago : Jimmy T asks Helen and Galenski and asks them to ship him south . The soldiers say no , but Helen and Galenski allow it because Jimmy once healed one of their kids when he was sick . Wagner ( the ghoul from Denver ) shows up in Boulder , scouting around the outskirts , but is driven off by shots from the soldiers who assume he ' s a glowbug . Wagner realizes things are hostile toward ghouls here . He scouts further south ( and checks out Rocky Mountain Arsenal on the way to Boulder ) . A few more Jackals start showing up . 4 months ago : Galenski makes a run to Denver in response to the radio transmissions . Surprised , he finds the salvager s have a lot of good stuff . He trades them ammo , minor tools , and medical supplies in exchange for dog meat , computer chip s , and holodisk s . On the way back he faces some Jackals but fails to kill any of them . Problems continue between the scientists and the soldiers . Larsen and his men succumb to addiction and their addiction is apparent . 3 months ago : Jackals organize in strength in this region . Though they originally try attacking the dome , they quickly realize the truck is an easier target . 2 months ago : Problems with the soldiers get worse . Patrols become erratic . Larsen becomes paranoid . When another ghoul wanders in , the scientists accuse the soldiers of not doing enough , or anything at all . Larsen pulls a gun on a scientist and tells them to surrender their med supplies for " one last patrol . " Goddard aggress , and secretly decides to close them outside to starve and die . He only tells Agnes about this " exile " . . . the others just think they haven ' t returned . 1 month ago : The soldiers return to find the dome sealed up . At first they think it ' s a mistake , then they realize it ' s not . They pull out of Boulder to avoid the Jackals , and end up in a guerrilla state in the nearby mountains , looking for tunnels into the Dome . After two weeks the soldiers are starving . One of them freaks out , and Larsen shoots him , then offers the body to the Jackals . The soldiers and the tribes became allies , both wanting to get into the dome . Soon after , the soldiers use the last of their RadAway , and by the time the PC shows up they ' re in their 7th day of withdrawal . 5 days ago : Presper and his men arrive , shoot some jackals , hide in the truck , slip into the Quarantine Center , and sieze Helen , Galenski , and the kids . There ' s a big fight with Pierce and Helen , as they recognize each other ( they used to be lovers , and he ' s the father of at least one of her kids ) . 4 days ago : Presper realizes his datacan is of the wrong type , or can ' t be used to save ZAX without destroying all the data on it , which he ' s not ready to do yet . He starts to run some other calculations and waits around for those to finish . It ' s during this time ( in Part 1 ) that the PC would arrive ; if the PC doesn ' t arrive until Part 2 , Presper & Co . are gone and things are sorta back to normal , at least normal for here . When the inner dome got shut down , Xian was trapped outside . The scientists are pissed because they don ' t know how to get her back in . When the PCs meet her , she ' s almost out of oxygen but she won ' t open her suit . Why ? Because she doesn ' t want to contaminate the PC . Coleridge agreed to come here ( 1 ) because Presper told him it was a safehouse just in case NCR & BOS went to war , and ( 2 ) he needed the satellite if he wanted to wage war on NCR . The NCR guys spotted Galenski ' s truck , used it as a Trojan Horse , used it to enter the quarantine center and capture Galenski . Helen thought they were going to kill Galenski so she pretended to throw in with them . Once inside they took control of the outer perimeter , and Presper was able to talk everyone into a conference via video monitor . Presper finds out that some scientists didn ' t make it to Boulder and realizes he ' s short on the number of people he needs . Goddard is keeping stuff secret from Presper : the research , the presence of Larsen outside . He knows Presper wants the PCs dead He doesn ' t trust Presper and suspects that Coleridge may have been responsible for the attack on NCR congress . In the Near Future . If it ' s part 1 and you ' re wandering around , ZAX is also trying to shield himself / you from ODYSSEUS ' signals to direct the robobrain to attack you . He ' s also trying to stop ODYSSEUS from getting access to the control center of Denver . If the robobrains are activated , many try to do their old programs from before the war , but many are rewritten to combat mode . If they capture you , they try to extract your brain . They may already be trying it on the scientists they capture . If the attack occurs , Presper and his guys make their escape . If they escape on their own timeline . ZAX finishes the calculation that Presper needed , reports to Presper , who deletes it , then makes his exit . A hacker can track down some of what he was looking for and maybe the coordinates of where he ' s going ( a pointer toward Bloomfield ) . When Coleridge leaves , he points out that for about 24 hours after they leave , the Jackals will be distracted by the NCR train leaving , which might make it easier for the PC to leave . When Presper leaves , he makes sure to take as many stimpacks as he can , plus food and nutrient paste . 48 hours after Presper leaves , his reprogrammed robobrain s attack the PCs and Goddard ( because Presper considers Goddard responsible for Random quests : Truck in Denver . The stuff below is information on the truck when it arrives in Denver . The truck ' s exterior is covered with bullet holes - ( Small Arms check ) 10mm shell s , . 223 ammo shell s , crossbow bolts ( Alkaya [ sic ] may find it ) . It looks like she had a hell of a time getting here . Mechanics : Ben : The vehicles , designed and tested at Sandia labs , are mobile vault s . They are built to withstand head - on collisions at 60 miles per hour without their cargoes so much as shifting , and to endure an 1 , 850 degree fire for half an hour ( the equivalent of a crash with a gasoline tanker ) without raising the temperature inside . Their metal linings are designed to resist drills , blow torches , and explosive charges . Purpose of this Area . Army of the sleepers . Presper ' s scientists he wants to preserve for his new world order . ZAX : Here to answer questions , show initially that ODYSSEUS ' purpose is not just a prison and not entirely benign . Information on CODE : Explains how CODE works so you understand it better in other parts of the game where it is used . Location of several PipBoy games . Knowledge that the Nursery will be safe from the nuclear attack , in theory because of Presper ' s desire to use it but in actuality because Diana won ' t let the satellite ' s be launched at it . Playground for ScienceBoy characters . Brain - extractor tech info for the robobrain s . NCR soldiers are here and they ' re not nice ; hints at their role in the endgame . Jackals , and show how degenerate they have become , like many wastelanders Danger from the glowing ghoul s coming in from the north Hints on the US space program Nutrient paste and how it keeps plague victims alive and their symptoms dormant . Keeps the PC from infecting new areas if it ' s taken at regular intervals . Timeline once the PCs arrive . Get in If in Part 1 If in Part 2 Monsters In This Area . Glowing ghoul s ( glowbug s ) Robobrain s NCR soldiers ( Presper ' s team ) NCR soldiers ( Larsen ' s team ) Jackals 1 : Boulder Dome Level 1 : A huge cement / concrete geodesic dome submerged mostly in the ground . Within it is a scientific research facility . Exterior will be handled by 3 metatiles representing the entrances to the dome ( the entire surface of the dome is probably never displayed in - game , or at least I ' m setting it up that way ) . Interiors are standard tiled maps . 2 : Boulder Dome Level 2 : More of the dome interior . Research and living quarters . 3 : Boulder Dome Level 3 : More of the dome interior . Research and living quarters . This may be consolidated into Boulder Dome Lev 2 if space permits . 4 : Train Station : A wrecked train station with an intact line of tracks leading to the south . There may or may not be a one - car military train here ( it ' ll have to be a dynamic object ) . 5 : Jackals Camp : An open plain with pits dug in the ground where the Jackals live . These guys live like animals . 6 : Baggers Camp : A typical military campsite on an open field , though the military guys that made it are deserters , drug addicts , and guys with radiation sickness , so things are kinda haphazard . 7 : Secret Tunnel Entrance : A secret , non - quarantined tunnel access point into the tunnels under boulder . Basically a heavy manhole in the ground in the middle of a blasted open field . 8 : Dead Ghoul Graveyard : An open plain that has a number of dead glowing ghoul bodies on it . 9 : Dome Tunnels : A series of hot , muggy tunnels deep under the dome , patrolled by robobrain s . Connects to some secret labs and eventually the ZAX mainframe . 10 : ZAX Mainframe : Rows and rows of computer memory banks , deep underground , with the ZAX mainframe computer at the center .