Ghosts, also called
Spirits, are incorporeal entities who have unfinished business on or bound to the mortal plane. The word Ghost is a common term for a soul that did not move on to an afterlife after they perished. However there are many different variations of them, making them one of the more diverse members of the spectral family next to demons. For some reason or another, a
Ghost becomes a spirit when the person who has become deceased, is unable to pass on to the next life, or has had their final rest disturbed. As such, Ghosts are neither good
nor evil, as their behavior is ultimately dictated by who they were in life and how they died.
Normally, a Ghost will start out confused and disoriented before realizing they are dead in which case they can decide to move on or not. In some cases, the trauma of sudden death can be so great that the Ghost will think that they are still alive and continue on a routine from their lives, oblivious to the fact they are dead.
However staying on earth has its downside, as ghosts can become so angry and upset that all they can do is lash out at anyone who crosses their paths, innocent or not. Ghosts tend to have skewed views of existence, leading many a hunter to deduce that “
ghosts only see what they want to see.”. A Spirits appearance varies very greatly depending on a lot of matters. Normally ghosts appear in the form of the physical body which they had when they were still alive. These forms will often appear be pale in comparison to the bodies of the living, or take on a almost “ghostly” blueish or whitish hue, often showing the physical effects of the way that they died.
Types
As they are often products of their situations, Ghosts often come in various forms, leading them to be a relatively diverse group, next to demons. These types can include:
Poltergeists are a type of spirit that will seek actively recognition and attention, doing anything to receive it, usually in violent, disruptive ways. They are one of the more unique types of spirit because generally speaking a Poltergeist is not a human spirit; it is a separate being of its own. Leading certain Conventional methods of dispersing them ineffective. When in a state of distress, they’re strong enough to bench press a piano. They can also be quite powerful, able to perform multiple telekinetic attacks, in different areas at once, and when concentrated can display very powerful telekinetic displays of power, able to throw grown men around like rag dolls.
Specters are a type of ghosts that possess the living and causes them to act on any grudges they may hold, no matter how small or old they may be. Their death usually involves some type of betrayal, such as being killed by a family member or a lover.
A Death Omen is a ghost that is used as an indicator that the person who is visited by it is going to die. While they appear violent and intimidating, they’re not dangerous ghosts but rather are trying to warn people who may be murdered by the person who killed them, or give warning to those who are close to death. A majority of the People who have encountered death omens often comment that the apparition takes the form of deceased family members, while a slim majority account that they look like total strangers.
Vengeful spirits are a dangerous type of ghost, and since after the war, one of the most common to encounter throughout the lands of New America. To put it simply, a Vengeful spirit is one who has had some great wrong done to them in their lives, normally what has killed them. This often causes them to remain after death, to try and avenge what they believe has wronged them. Over time they slowly become obsessed with this until it is the only thing they can think of, an “itch that you just can’t scratch“ if you will. As such they act violently, their obsession with revenge often leading to them too harming innocent people.
Many locations throughout the Commonwealth and beyond tend to be full with Vengeful Spirits who died in the war or during/after the nuking. Because of this locations such as
Abandoned Bunkers, Military Outposts, Abandoned Hospitals, and often times
Graveyards can be filled with them. Often times these Vengeful Spirits will not have one specific target, but will lash out at anyone, leading to such a high kill count that they may actually be capable of driving out entire settlements.
Abilities
Please note: Being supernatural creatures, Ghost Powers can vary greatly between creatures. Below lists just a few notable powers of the many that they can have
Ghosts can remain invisible to the living, but they may appear as a blur or faint light. However, when they want, they can appear as they were in life though it takes a while to gain that level of strength. They appear in wispy, distorted, flickering forms
Being incorporeal Ghosts able to generate great amounts of force without discomfort. Many have demonstrated being strong enough to easily beat down, lift, toss, maul or mutilate even the strongest of humans, as well as overpowering some monsters. Vengeful, angry ghosts, have proven to be strong enough to fight with much higher beings, such as Higher-tier Demons.
After death, ghosts can see beings that are naturally invisible to the naked eye.
Certain Ghosts can latch their essence to any object that had been very close to them in their life. Until these objects are destroyed, the ghost could continue to manifest itself and haunt. Other ghosts can relocate the objects, allowing them to move around and away from their original haunting location. Though this is rare.
Ectoplasm, also referred to as Ghost Slime and Ectoplasmic Residue, is a substance that comes from ghosts and otherworldly beings. It usually appears in a form of a slimy, sticky substance, but has been known to come in different forms and colors.
A thick, viscous tar like substance, ectoplasm is formed when ghosts interact with the physical world though it is often rare to see. Usually seen as a viscous, mucus like slime, ectoplasm has also been encountered in mist like and even crystalline forms. Ectoplasm is a rare thing to find, and finding it is often a good indicator to the entity you’re about to deal with. Vengeful/Angry Spirits are known to Produce Thick-Black Tar like Ectoplasm, while weaker ghosts are known to produce offwhite Ectoplasm.
A rare ability, a ghost can possess humans like demons do, but only a really angry ghost could do it.
- Hydrokinesis/Biokinesis/Pyrokinesis
Depending on how a certain ghost has died, they can have the power over the element that caused their Demise. For example, ghosts of people who have Drowned have the ability to manifest water seemingly out of nowhere. While ghosts who died due to heat/fire can manifest fire or take traits of fire, and so forth. Biokinesis is generally rarer then all the other ‘kinesis’ and range from two types. The first type involves the spirit being able to inflict wounds on a victim similar to what they had sustained in real life (stronger ghosts are able to do it without having to suffer the wounds themselves).The second type Involves Illness. While Rare, ghosts with this power are able to infect victims with various illness’. Similar to wound Biokinesis, certain ghosts don’t have to suffer from the illness to inflict it.
Ghosts in Fallout
Ghosts can be found throughout the world of FHOTW as either NPC’s or Enemies. Both often vary appearance, and although they are usually poorly equipped to deal with the living, they may prove to be a threat to adventurers early on due to their resistance to “earthly” weapons. Both can be killed however when the right weapon is required, and NPC Ghosts will become hostile should they be attacked. Most Ghosts will occasionally make comments indicating gratefulness for release from their undeath upon defeat. However until the player garners weapons to make this possible, this undeath is only temporary, as they will respawn shortly after death should the player go back to an area or linger for too long.
Ghosts, both evil and NPC both have a wide range of attacks. Although they do not possess a material body, these spirits should not be underestimated in combat. They can deal significant damage with their hands at close combat but also possess a wide range of other attacks such as variations of
Draining which can not only drain health, but also stamina, with some having enough power to
Cut the total amount of health or stamina you have in half permanently with certain attacks, thus forcing the player to once again build up the total amount you have of either.
While ghosts can
not be killed right away when first encountered, they CAN however be dealt with in defensive methods until the proper weapons can be obtained to put them down permanently. An old method dating back generations,
Salt is often used as a barrier against the supernatural and ghosts are no exception. Protection appears as certain force field barrier that inhibits the spirit’s movement as long the spirit is not powerful enough to break through the barrier.
When salt is thrown, the ghost will be enveloped within a reddish orange barrier.
Salt barriers have a increasingly difficult time confining Angry/Vengeful Spirits, who may require more salt or
Holy Salt to be thrown in order for the initial resistance to break down. Salt comes in handy when stopping charges or getting some extra hits in, so it’s always a good idea to bring some on your next hunt. However be warned for a Ghosts resistance to salt grows with every throw. When using salt against a ghost, the barrier will come up. When this happens successfully, the targeted ghost temporarily loses its spectral appearance, becoming nothing more then a mist with blueish red eyes. no matter enemy or NPC.
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