Vault 108 of Fallout 3 is one of the strangest locations in the game, primarily because of its inhabitants. In it, the player can find multiple clones of the same man: Gary. The vault was to be the location for another one of Vault-Tec’s experiments, but of course things didn’t go as planned.
Should the player journey far east of the map in Fallout 3 and head south of Canterbury Commons, they’ll find Vault 108. Exploring it and other data sources will uncover a few clues as to what happened to the vault and its former residents.
Cloning Wasn’t Part of Vault 108's Initial Plan
There isn’t much information left on Vault 108’s goals or history to be uncovered when players find it. However, they can find a terminal in the Citadel that lists some of the vault’s basic information. Vault-Tec began constructing the facility in 206,1 but put a stop to it in 2069 for reasons not specified. Despite this, the vault would be able to house a total of 475 residents for up to 38 years.
The Citadel terminal also reveals that Vault-Tec had purposefully sabotaged the vault’s energy supply. Its primary source of electricity was to be nuclear power, but this was rigged to fail after 20 years. Vault 108 had a backup energy source in the form of a mini geothermal plant, but this was built specifically so that it wouldn’t be able to power the entirety of the vault.
This could be why construction was halted, hinting Vault-Tec did so purposefully. This is further corroborated by a note in the terminal entry, citing that the admin is aware the geothermal backup can only power the facility partially. Finally, Vault 108 was assigned a huge arsenal of defensive weaponry, three times what other vaults would receive. However, it wouldn’t be outfitted with entertainment facilities. This suggests that Vault-Tec wanted to nudge Vault 108’s residents to take up arms, and the vault’s assigned Overseer may provide an answer as to what they take up arms against.
Vault 108’s Overseer was a man named Brody Jones. According to the Citadel terminal entry, he was genetically predisposed to develop a terminal strain of cancer that should “ideally cause him to expire within 40 months of the project's inception.” As Overseer, Jones was also in charge of assigning roles to the other vault residents. According to Vault-Tec, these two actions would serve as a sufficient catalyst that would allow the project to proceed as planned.
The terminal entry on Vault 108’s goals is corrupted, leaving the player to draw their own conclusions. Perhaps Vault-Tec wanted to see whether the Overseer’s death would push the other vault residents to violence, especially given that they have an extensive arsenal of weaponry at their disposal. This would only be further exacerbated when the power supply inevitably failed, forcing the inhabitants to distribute electricity or try to steal it. All this seems probable given Vault-Tec’s track record of unethical human experimentation, but doesn't explain where cloning comes in.
The Proliferation of Gary Clones
Cloning is never once mentioned in the Citadel terminal entry on Vault 108. Despite this, it’s clear that cloning experiments went on in the facility. Apart from the many Gary clones, the player can also find a holotape next to a bloody skeleton. Its unnamed author documents that the observation rooms are growing full of Gary clones, all of whom are hostile to non-clones. Each successive clone is said to be more hostile than the last.
Based on the holotape’s data, Vault 108 produced at least 54 Gary clones. Gary 54 reportedly injured a staff member named Dr. Peterson, prompting the personnel to “dispose of” some Gary clones. This is where the holotape ends. As such, it’s unclear whether the staff managed to purge the Gary clones. Equally unclear is what happened to the other residents of the vault, as by the time the Lone Wanderer arrives, only Gary clones remain.
Vault 108 in Fallout 3
When the Lone Wanderer happens across Vault 108, they’ll find the place in shambles. The vault door has been blown open and is no longer functional. Further inside the entryway, the player can also find skeletons - whether these are former residents or wastelanders looking for a place to stay is unknown, but it’s no doubt they’ve been there a while.
In the vault’s living quarters, the player will find more hostile Gary clones. This area of the vault is a mess, with many of the furniture upended and junk items strewn about. There’s also a Female Dorm area, but this is inaccessible. A somewhat fresh wastelander corpse can be found on one of the staircases, suggesting some drifters have attempted to enter the vault in search of resources or loot, only to be killed by the clones.
In the lab level, the player can find the holotape as well as the last few living Gary clones. The Charisma Bobblehead is also in this area. There’s one room where another wastelander corpse can be found lying atop a medical bed, which suggests that perhaps the Gary clones were conducting unethical experiments of their own, or perhaps they were cannibals.
There is no information in the game on why the cloning experiments in Vault 108 were undertaken. Maybe it was always part of the plan and Vault-Tec simply didn’t divulge their intentions to lower-ranking staff. On the other hand, perhaps it truly wasn’t part of the plan, and the scientists of Vault 108 simply wanted to test their own personal experiments. Whatever the case, there’s still no explanation as to how the Gary clones managed to live for so long. There are hundreds of years between the Great War and the Lone Wanderer’s arrival in Vault 108, but it doesn’t seem like the Gary clones have aged.
Regardless of these details, Vault 108 makes for an interesting set piece. Its absurd inhabitants are a welcome contrast to the Capital Wasteland’s more serious enemies. The side quest also gave the Fallout community quotes to carry forward like “Gary!” and “Gaaaaarrryyyy!”
Fallout 3 is available now on PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360.
