Fallout 76 Characters Guide: The Guys, Gals, and Ghouls of Appalachia

Appalachia is Teeming with Life

Settlers, Raiders, vault dwellers, and technology-obsessed knights all have their differences, to say the least, but they all have one thing in common they are survivors, and Appalachia is filled with them. There are hundreds of characters in Fallout 76 to meet, and I’m not just talking about the normies on your server.

Emerging from Vault 76 for the first time in 2018 felt odd; Fallout 76 was designed to be a social game, the first title in the Fallout series to include multiplayer instead; Bethesda created the loneliest feeling game in the series.

Exploring the world was the most depressing yet (and I’m not just talking about the bugs). West Virginia was absent of human life. However, seasons come and go, and life has returned to Appalachia.

Fallout 76 was originally released without NPCs (a crime if you ask me). Instead, Bethesda focused on mementos and more holotapes than a Brotherhood of Steel library to offer an insight into the remnants of human civilization.

Ultimately it was depressing, and I know while Fallout takes place in a post-apocalypse world, theres always been a hint of optimism for civilization and life. The shanty towns and cities crafted from rusted remnants of the past were a light in the dark, showing that humanity will endure.

So without further ado, let’s kick off our Fallout 76 Characters guide and gather around the campfire and meet the survivors of Appalachia.

The Redemption of Fallout 76

Fallout 76 was released in 2018, and despite being the most controversial Fallout release ever! Fallout 76 has survived. To this day, Bethesda continues to support the game by adding free new expansions and events to keep the community engaged.

In fact, Bethesda plan to support the game for years to come, so there has never been a better time to explore West Virginia.

Four major expansions for Fallout 76 introduce many characters with backgrounds from The Pitt, Brotherhood of Steel, Responders, Raiders, and just regular folk that aim to make Appalachia their home.

  • Wastelanders
  • Steel Dawn
  • Steel Reign
  • The Pitt

But hang on a minute; I thought Fallout 76 was meant to be an online multiplayer game.

Well, you’re right; however, since the release of Fallout 4 in 2015, fans have been up in arms demanding the original dialogue system be brought back.

Bethesda finally caved and added all the bells and whistles of good fun Fallout dialogue, and now Fallout 76 tops Fallout 4 in writing and characters. Bethesda didn’t stop at major expansion to add characters to the game.

West Virginia Survivors

There are hundreds of NPCs to talk to and interact with in West Virginia all with their own factions’ agendas. As a result, you’ll meet many different types of NPCs throughout the game. So here is a breakdown of what you can expect from the folk of Appalachia.

Allies

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Commander Sofia Daguerre – Image by Alex Maksymiw

Added in the Wastelanders expansion, Allies are NPCs you can recruit into your C.A.M.P. At present, there are fourteen Allies that can be added to your C.A.M.P.

The list will likely grow as Bethesda releases more updates and expansions to Fallout 76. All allies are interactable and even can be used as vendors in your C.A.M.P. Howfever, while all will give you quests, only two feature a substantial quest line and can be romanced.

There are major differences between allies and companions featured in previous Fallout titles. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to take your campmates out exploring Appalachia.

However, they will help you defend your camp from unwanted trespassers. That may come as a blow for some Fallout fans hoping to relive the surreal followers of Fallout 3, 4, and Fallout: New Vegas.

Although only Commander Sofia Daguerre and Beckett have lengthy quest lines, each ally grants the player unique buffs and benefits for letting them live in your C.A.M.P.

This can be anything from Radiant Quests to perks like Xerxo’s ability to decrease the cost of fast traveling. Ultimately the ally you establish in your C.A.M.P. will be tied to your character’s build. But more on that later! Let’s take a look at the fallen astronaut Sofia and shady bartender Beckett.

Sofia Daguerre

Commander Sofia Daguerre is a former U.S.S.A. astronaut with the most unique post-apocalyptic story I’ve ever heard from any Fallout game. It only gets weirder as the story is revealed during her quests. I’ll spare you the spoilers, but while your character was locked away underground, Sofia was floating in Earth’s orbit in cryo sleep.

Her spaceship crash-landed in Appalachia 25 years later. Dazed and confused about the world around her, Sofia crawled to an abandoned bunker and broadcasted a distress call.

Sofia will be available to become your ally once you’ve learned how to craft the U.S.S.A. Console during Crash Landing introduction quest to her character but buckle up. You’ll have just under twenty quests to complete!

Beckett

A former Blood Eagles gang member is seeking revenge on his old crew. Beckett is a bartender, and you can add him to your C.A.M.P. by placing the Beckett’s Bar Workshop Object in your base. This will allow you to trade with him. He has 13 missions in total.

To add an ally to your C.A.M.P. you must unlock each of the Ally’s Workshop Objects and place them into your C.A.M.P. Bear in mind that a C.A.M.P. by default, only has one ally slot. So if you want to acquire quests of your allies, you will need to remove their workshop object and place a different one in your C.A.M.P.

Lite Allies

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Raider Ally – Image by Alex Maksymiw

There is a plethora of Lite Allies to acquire in Fallout 76. Bethesda will only add more to the roster as they typically release a new ally each season, but before you freak out thinking you’ve missed out on obtaining the number one Super Mutant Grognak fan, every ally that has been locked behind the Scoreboard from the previous seasons is obtainable by purchasing their corresponding Workshop Object.

Just trade with Samual, the Gold Bullion Vendor in Foundation.

However, you will need the Ally Reputation Level with the Settlers before each workshop object becomes available to purchase. So acquiring these allies will take longer if you sided with the Raiders.

Each workshop object will set you back at 4,000 Gold Bullion! Giving you plenty of time to improve your Settlers Reputation Level if you haven’t already done so.

Suppose you’re a character-driven gamer and rank narrative above all else. In that case, you’ll love getting to know each of these characters, as they all come with their own backstories, granted the expansion characters have more elaborate stories than the original lite Wastelanders allies.

Ally Workshop Object
Settler Wanderer Wanderer’s Guitar
Settler Forager Forager’s Chair
Raider Punk Raider Punk Radio
Sam Nguyen Sam’s Workbench
Solomon Hardy Solomon’s Medic Station
Maul Maul’s Cauldron
Katherine Swan Katherine’s Research Desk
Xerxo Xerxo’s Spaceship
Leo Petrov Leo’s Desk
Steven Scarberry Scarberry’s Shrine
Yasmin Chowdhury Yasmin’s Cooking Stove
Daphne Daphne’s Toy Box

Fallout 76 Players

As a multiplayer survival RPG, I have to include the players of Fallout 76; you will be working alongside or against them in Appalachia, after all.

If you want a Fallout game that immerses you in a surreal post-apocalyptic world, then Fallout 76 may not be the game for you.

You see, while Bethesda has put in the work to add fantastic quests and characters to flesh out West Virginia, watching a player wearing bulky pink power armor and vault boy mask fly through the air on a jetpack is not what I call immersive.

However, in Fallout 76, you are encouraged to join public groups and work together to complete public events. Believe me; you will struggle to solo these events on your own! It’s always a good idea to stick around after completing a public event in case other players drop equipment or want to trade.

Vendors

As an online multiplayer RPG, Fallout 76 features many different kinds of currency that can be used to purchase items from specific vendors:

  • Gold Bullion
  • Caps
  • Stamps
  • Legendary Scrip

There are many more; however, the currencies highlighted here are the only ones used to purchase items from actual NPCs rather than mechanical vendors or through the game’s menus.

If you’ve played Fallout, then you’ll be familiar with Caps. Nuka Cola bottle caps are the wasteland’s main currency. Almost all transactions between survivors in the wasteland are made with caps. However, if it’s rare items and plans that you are looking for, then, Gold bullion is what you seek.

This rare currency can only be acquired after completing the Wastelanders main quest and is used to purchase rare end-game plans and recipes from a few specific vendors:

  • Mortimer: The Crater Gold Bullion vendor.
  • Regs Stone: The Vault 79 Gold Bullion vendor.
  • Samual: The Foundation Gold Bullion vendor.
  • MinervaThe caravan Gold Bullion vendor.

Minerva is by far the best Gold Bullion vendor in the game, as she stocks rare plans at discounted prices. Minerva travels between the major settlements of Appalachia. Check out my guide on locating her shop and what she sells.

Factions

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Reputation increase Icon in Fallout 76 – Image by Alex Maksymiw

West Virginia is the biggest map to date in the Fallout series, and all that land has got to be used by someone. Well, the land thats not been taken over by Super Mutants, Scorchbeasts, and all manner of horrors that have made Appalachia their home.

Many different factions have built a strong foothold in Appalachia, and it wouldn’t be Fallout without the fan favorites like the Brotherhood of Steel and iconic evil Enclave.

One of my favorite aspects of Fallout 76 is that you will find remnants of factions that have been wiped out, like the West Virginian Brotherhood of Steel Chapter and the Free States faction.

Fallout 76 doesn’t just reuse old factions. It also introduces new factions, like the Responders, a group of united pre-war emergency services and post-war volunteers. Naturally, you can join many of these factions and build your reputation amongst them. However, this is where Fallout 76 fails to hit the mark.

In the Wastelanders main quest, you must contact the Raiders of The Crater and Settlers of Foundation. Both factions are at each other’s throats due to different ideals. Typical video game stuff, you get it. However, siding with either faction in the main quest has no real weight and repercussions.

The Settlers will continue to allow you into Foundation despite being best pals with the Raiders. This is far from the reputation systems I experienced in Fallout: New Vegas, where your actions and relationships will determine how factions interact with you.

It’s a shame as there is a big opportunity to tie in Faction Reputation into multiplayer gameplay functions like faction wars.

Your Faction Reputation is broken down into seven tiers:

  • Hostile
  • Cautious
  • Neutral
  • Cooperative
  • Friendly 
  • Neighborly
  • Ally

At the hostile reputation level, NPCs from the corresponding faction will shoot at you on sight. You don’t gain anything other than access to rarer plans and dialogue changes for advancing up the tiers.

To increase your reputation with a faction, you must complete faction quests, dailies, events, and random encounters. You don’t lose your reputation from being allies with other factions so. Naturally, your reputation will increase with all factions as you play the game.

Brotherhood of Steel

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Fort Atlas the Brotherhood of Steel’s base – Image by Alex Maksymiw

It wouldn’t be Fallout without the Brotherhood of Steel, thats right. The technology safeguarding paladins is back; this time, they’ve sent a branch of the Brotherhood of Steel to link up with the remnants of the West Virginia Chapter.

Repurposing an old prewar observatory into their base of operations, Fort Atlas sits on the top of the Savage Divide mountain range. A couple hundred strong, the Brotherhood of Steel is always looking for recruits to secure its foothold in Appalachia.

Like many of the good aspects of Fallout 76, the Brotherhood of Steel was not added until years after reclamation day and has featured as the major faction in the Steel Dawn expansion, where the introductory expansion for the Brotherhood of Steel and the Steel Reign expansion was the story focuses on the ever-growing fracture in leadership between Leila Rahmani and Daniel Shin.

Fallout 76 takes place only twenty-five years after the great war. As a result, we get to see the Brotherhood of Steel in the early days of its creation, revealing information on Roger Maxson, the faction founding member who has been mentioned since the original Fallout game!

While revealing new pivotal characters like Elizabeth Taggerdy, the founding member of the West Virginian Brotherhood of Steel Chapter!

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Paladin

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Scribe Valdez during the Mother of Invention quest – Image by Alex Maksymiw

During the Steel Dawn and Steel Reign quests, you will get to know some of the Brotherhood of Steel personnel and leaders:

  • Paladin Leila Rahmani: Leila Rahmani is in charge of the Brotherhood of Steel expedition to Appalachia and accepts you into the order bestowing you the Initiate rank. As the commander of the BoS in the area, she is a major character throughout the Steel Dawn and Steel Reign expansions. Whether Leila remains in the leadership of the BoS depends on the player’s decisions.
  • Knight Daniel Shin: Second in command of the BoS expedition, Knight Daniel Shin cares only about the mission and, as a result, is short-sighted when it comes to solving the problems for the people of Appalachia. He lacks the care that Paladin Rahmani has but has devoted every fiber of his being to the BoS order. He gives you a recommendation to Paladin Leila after completing the “Forging Trust” Brotherhood of Steel quest.
  • Scribe Odessa Valdez: The player first runs into Scribe Valdez during the “Mother of Invention” quest. She tasks the vault dweller to investigate the prewar technology of Fort Atlas as part of the joining process into the Brotherhood of Steel; Scribe Valdez is a temporary companion and plays a major role in the BoS quest line.
  • Vernon Dodge: My favorite of the BoS characters. Vernon Dodge has an epic backstory and long history with the BoS order. Vernon Dodge, the only surviving West Virginian BoS Chapter member, fought alongside Elizabeth Taggerdy. He was captured by slavers and spent the last ten years enslaved before finally escaping and taking refuge in Watoga Tower. Interestingly Vernon Dodge was added to Fallout 76 in the One Wasteland for All update that introduced Daily Operations to the game. However, since the release of Steel Dawn, it’s possible to convince Vernon to rejoin the BoS.
  • Colin/Marty Putnam: Either Colin or Marty can be recruited into the Brotherhood of Steel during the Field Testing Brotherhood of Steel quest. Whoever you recommend can later be found at Fort Atlas.

The Crater Raiders

At first, I found the Crater Raiders to be stuck up and, for lack of a better term, dicks. However, the Wastelanders expansion gives the Crater Raiders character and purpose that distinguishes them from the usual raider rabble that you encounter in the Fallout series.

It’s fun to learn how the Crater Raiders came to be, and you feel a better sense of growing relationships as you move up the reputation ranks and work for them.

For example, when you first visit the Crater as an early-level character, you won’t even be able to interact with them; however, as the story progresses, the raiders will open up to you.

In my opinion, the Raiders are one of the most interesting factions in the game, thanks to their history being rooted in Appalachia and the fun characters you meet there.

The Crater settlement can be found in the Toxic Valley biome in the map’s northern part.

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  • Meg Groberg: The leader of the Crater Raiders, Meg helps the vault dweller break into Vault 79 during the Wastelanders main quest. Many raiders perceive Meg as a weak leader as she is forgiving and reasonable. This leads to tension within the Raider faction. You won’t be able to interact with Meg until you’ve reached level twenty and completed the “Strange Bedfellows” main Wastelanders quest.
  • Gail: Supermutant and protector of Ra-Ra; Gail is one of the few friendly Supermutants that can be found in Appalachia. She helps the vault dweller break into vault 79, but not before the vault dweller rescues Ra-Ra from Grafton Steel Underground during the “Fun and Games” Wastelanders quests.
  • Ra-Ra: Ra-Ra is the glue that helps keep the characters of the Crater together. Little is known about Ra-Ra’s past; despite being a kid, she can handle herself in a fight. She helps the vault dweller break into Vault 79.
  • Lucky Lou: A ghoul terrified of becoming feral, Lou attempts to seal himself in Carleton Mine to commit suicide during the Cheating Death quest. However, with help from the vault dweller, Lou changes his mind and returns to the Crater. He helps the player break into Vault 79.
  • Weasel: Weasel is a minor character introduced during the Cheating Death quest and becomes a temporary companion—my favorite of the Raiders characters. Weasel is a former Blood Eagle gang member (a worse Raider faction) who burned out her throat with a hot poker; she wears a collar that allows her to communicate with a robotic voice.
  • Johnny Weston: A slippery smooth criminal that takes no quarter for those who betray him. Johnny works alongside you to break into Vault 79. He has a great redemption story and can either become your friend or your enemy.

Settlers

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Foundation the Settlers Base – Image by Alex Maksymiw

The Settlers is a group of peaceful survivors that come from all over America, but mostly Pennslyvania; you can acquire valuable Plans from the Settlers for improving your Reputation level with them. The people of the Foundation are friendly and play a vital role in the Wastelanders main storyline.

  • Paige: The official leader of Foundation, Paige is a former construction worker who can be found within the interior of Foundation working to improve the plumbing of the settlement. He plays a pivotal role in the main Wastelanders quest, and although he hates the Raiders, he doesn’t mind if you work with them.
  • Ward: The most interesting of the characters in Foundation, Ward is second in command; however, many of the residents of Foundation claim Ward to be the real leader of the settlement. Ward provides the player with the “Vital Equipment” Daily quest.
  • Maggie Williams: A settler who moved from the small mining town of Monongah to live in Foundation after the bombs fell. She will offer you the “Something Sentimental” quest, where she will task you with finding out what happened to her father in Monongah.
  • Samual: Like the player, Samual is a vault dweller and claims that he can’t remember where the vault that he came from is. Samual is the Gold Bullion Vendor of Foundation and is the only character in the game to sell you ally workshop object plans. However, you must have an “Ally” reputation with Settlers to access them.
  • Aubrie Willem: Foundation’s top doc, and co-founder of Foundation, Aubrie is the only survivor of a Scorched attack and is first found by the player in the Secluded Cave during the “Here to Stay” main Wastelanders quest. It’s possible that Aubrie will commit Suicide depending on the player’s chosen dialogue option. As a result, if you save Aubrie, he has a minor dialogue and impact on Foundation despite being a co-founder.
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Samual the Gold Bullion Vendor in Foundation – Image by Alex Maksymiw

Responders

The Responders are an interesting faction that resides in the Whitespring Resort to the east. The Responders are a group made up of prewar emergency services members and postwar volunteers. What makes them so interesting is learning about the hardships the factions have had to endure.

We learn from the Wastelanders main quest that the Scorched completely destroyed the Responder’s main base located in Morgantown Airport, the main antagonists of Fallout 76.

  • Sophie Wagoner: In charge of the Responder’s donations and supplies. Sophie provides the player with the Daily Refuge: “Mutal Aid” quest and, as a result, is an essential character for acquiring Ultracells to fuel expeditions to the Pitt.
  • Skippy Roerich: Originally from the Pitt, Skippy works alongside the Responders as an engineer in the Whitespring Refuge. Skippy will give you the Daily Refuge: “A Refuge’s Guide” quest.
  • Esme Rousseau: Whitespring Resort’s star chef. Esme Rousseau grew up in France and will give you the Daily Refuge: “Recipe for Success” quest, where the player is tasked with helping Esme cook. It may seem like an odd daily quest; however, at the end of the quest, you can serve the food with either the Raiders, Settlers, or Brotherhood of Steel, increasing your reputation with the chosen faction.
  • Rucker: Leader of the Responders and a former soldier before the bombs fell. Rucker will give the player the Daily Refuge: “Code Blue” quest as part of the final steps in starting an expedition to the Pitt.
  • Lennox: Lennox is my favorite of the Responders bunch. She’s your stereotypical pilot who will fly you to the Pitt on expeditions. She flies a Vertibird and claims to have seen UFOs before the war.
  • Orlando: Orlando is the manager of Whitespring Resort and is the first character to introduce you to the Responders crew at the refuge.

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My Best Fallout 76 Characters Tips

Speech Checks

The characters of Fallout 76 are my favorite aspect of the game. I love how Bethesda has returned to the original dialogue system from previous Fallout games. Gone is the voice acting of the main protagonist of Fallout 4; the combination of delivery and poor writing gave Fallout 4 an identity crisis. It didn’t know what it wanted to be.

Was Bethesda going for the Mass Effect angle of RPGs? Or are they merely trying to make Fallout more linear? Who can say?

Thats why I was over the moon to have the dialogue system back; let me tell you, folks, if you’re new to how this works, then let me fill you in on some tips and essential information on how it works.

When you interact with an NPC in Fallout 76, you will sometimes be given extra dialogue options that reflect your character’s S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes.

Nine times of ten, if you have these options available, you should select them unless you are roleplaying. Choosing these dialogue options can reward you with better rewards for completing quests or improve your affinity with the character.

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Speech Checks in Fallout 76 – Image by Alex Maksymiw

FAQs

Question: What’s the Fastest Way to Acquire Weapon Mods in Fallout 76?

Answer: Like Fallout 4, players can customize their weapons at a Weapons workbench. At the same time, finding weapon modifications while exploring Appalachia or purchasing mods from vendors is possible.

I suggest you save your caps and learn how to craft the weapon instead, as scrapping a weapon at a weapons workbench has a high chance of yielding you a weapons modification even if the weapon is in its basic state.

I used this method to customize my Lever Action Rifle. It cost me a lot fewer caps and time to build a bunch of these rifles and then scrap them. As a result, I recommend that you always loot weapons while you explore to scrap them later. It doesn’t matter if you are over-encumbered as you are never too far from a weapons workbench.

Question: What Happens if a Nuke Hits your C.A.M.P. in Fallout 76?

Answer: Don’t get too attached to your C.A.M.P. in Fallout 76, as all your hard work can be destroyed in a matter of minutes. You will be warned to evacuate from the blast radius when a Nuke is launched, giving you enough time to pack your base up and get the hell out of there. If a nuke hits a C.A.M.P., it will be destroyed.

Question: How Can I Tame Pets in Fallout 76?

Answer: Players can tame the wild irradiated Appalachian animals by using the Animal Friend Charisma Perk at max rank. Once you’ve tamed the creature, you can send it to a C.A.M.P. It will have to travel across the map to get your base, so it’s best to stay away from your pet as your presence is more likely to spawn enemies.

The Return of Civilization

I’ve had an absolute blast exploring West Virginia and meeting all the survivors of the Great War. While I believe Fallout 76 still has a long way to go before it’s fixed, and the creeping multiplayer live service events are beginning to deviate from the Fallout series tone—the characters are the game’s saving grave.

I can’t say I would have picked up Fallout 76 without the Wastelanders expansion.

But meeting the people who survived the Great War and learning how they survived the horrific civilization-ending event gives us Fallout fans something that we’ve never experienced.

In addition, the return of the silent protagonist and intensive dialogue options gives the player freedom to tailor their conversations to their liking to receive a more extensive response from the characters of West Virginia.

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