Vault 40 was an underground survival bunker located near the ruins of Columbia, Missouri. The vault is still inhabited, and hosts a celebrated medical school. It is the birthplace of
Lex Garridan.
History
In 2077, as the bombs were dropping, Vault 40 was filled with pre-approved survivors, mostly academics from the University of Missouri.
The community was entirely cut of from the outside world for 207 years. Very little is known about what occurred during this time, as the citizens of the vault purged all documents and have remained secretive, even among their close friends and family. Given the Vault-Tec corporation's over-arching mission to use the vaults as elaborate social experiments, it can be assumed that the inhabitants of the bunker were subject to unusual long-term conditions. But the details have been intentionally erased from history.
In 2284, some kind of coup occurred within the vault. The title of Overseer was abolished and the great vault door was forcibly opened. Many citizens of Vault 40 left, forming the village of
Emancipation. The facilities and resources of the vault were kept in use, but the survivors were eager to drop the structure and traditions of vault life. Those who stayed in the vault are generally sheltered and cut-off from the outside world, rarely traveling to Emancipation fore supplies, but never interacting with the broader world.
Vault 40 is equipped with quarters, water and self-sustaining agriculture to support up to 1000 citizens, though less than 300 people live in the bunker today. The products of the vault's high tech workshops are prized throughout the wasteland, especially their ballistic weave fabrics for use in lightweight armour. The vault's educational facilities are still in use, particularly its medical school, which draws students from around the area, especially from the
Midwest Brotherhood of Steel.
In her travels, Lex Garridan has discovered many disturbing truths about Vault 40 that have not become public. She has found documentation that shows that Vault 40's Vault-Tec experiment was the genetic manipulation of helpless subjects. This genetic manipulation has entered the gene pool of many of the descendants of 40's vault dwellers, including Lex herself. This state often results in a gruesome and lethal condition called Genetic Disarray Syndrome. To offset the symptoms (including death), people with the altered DNA require regular injections of strange substance. Even more disturbingly, these injections seem to be controlled by The
Enclave.
Vault 40 Facilities
Vault Door: In tact heavy metal hatch capable of sealing the bunker in air-tight isolation. Capable of enduring a direct nuclear strike.
Water Works: Three functioning water chips are able to purify and recycle enough water to service a 1000 citizen community.
Fusion Reactor: A tritium power plant rated to provide power to the vault for the next 1200 years. In recent times, the reactor has been extended to provide Emancipation with electricity for 12 hours a day. This has caused significant strain to the reactor and is shortening its lifespan.
Living Quarters: The vault houses 307 apartments on five levels. Each level is serviced by a commissary, cafeteria, recreational area and gymnasium. Many of these rooms are unoccupied and currently used for storage or the vault's expanded educational services.
Workshops: Robot-assisted workshops are equipped with a wide array of high tech tools, measurement and quality control machines. The workshops specialize in textiles and fabrics, but can also accommodate the engineering and construction of almost anything. As of the Vault 40 Coup in 2284, the construction of weapons in the workshops has been banned, although weapon accessories like ammunition, scopes, silencers and magazines are produced regularly.
Vault 40 Academy: The classroom facilities of the vault have been greatly improved and expanded to provide higher education to students who can pass an aptitude test and pay a hefty tuition. Basic education for the children of Emancipation is provided in the village, the vault's resources are reserved entirely for the academy. The vault's professors offer classes in medicine, engineering, robotics, history and psychology.
Notable Vault 40 Vault Dwellers
John Giscala: Mayor of Emancipation, medical doctor and chair of medicine of the Vault 40 Academy. Born in the vault during its isolation. He currently lives in the village, entering the vault only to conduct his duties with the Academy.
Mother Sage: Leader of the Emancipation Altar of Atom. A vault dweller born in the vault and present for the coup who converted to the Children of Atom after the vault opened. She no longer lives in the vault and only enters to deliver counselling or last rites to people within.
Professor Adabo: Dean of the Vault 40 Academy. She was born in the vault and present for the coup. She lives in the vault and teaches history.
Professor Gritch: Chair of engineering of the Vault 40 Academy, he also oversees the operation of the vault's workshops. A 250 year old ghoul, Gritch's extensive knowledge of textile engineering is unmatched. Gritch came to the village as a refugee from The Rustlands eleven years ago, and his been a valued member of the community ever since. Gritch has traveled to the Kentucky Dam within Dixie in order to repair the hydroelectric plant there.
Giles: A Mr. Handy robot issued to perform custodial duties throughout the vault. He still manages a staff of Mr. Handys who clean and maintain the vault.
Alexa Garridan: Only four years old when the vault opened, Alexa spent many years as a sheriff's deputy in Emancipation. At some point, her feelings about the community changed, and she led a contingent of villagers to live in the ruins of Columbia Regional Airport. She forswears any product of the vault and will not set foot in it.
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