Fallout:Ashfall is an upcoming mod based on the bones of Fallout:NewVegas. Fallout: Ashfall was kickstarted in 2021 and has been in the works ever since, with members of its development team working to perfect the mod before release. In a recent interview, several members of the team including Project Lead Ashfall Dude, Level Design Lead Cellblock Psycho, Level Designer Fresh, and 3D Artist Doc Peppers spoke to Game ZXC about some of the newest features in the Fallout: New Vegas mod.
Some of those features include new locations and factions, while other features focus more on gameplay stats. Fallout:Ashfall is set on the eastern shore of Hawaii island and mainly focuses on the Puna region of the area. Players will have to survive the rough elements of the ruins of a post-nuclear civilization blanketed in radioactive fallout and volcanic ash. The game follows the main character as they explore the island, battle enemies, and build up their stats. During the interview, the team revealed that there will be various enhancements made to Fallout: New Vegas' SPECIAL stats.
Fallout SPECIAL Stats in Ashfall - Charisma
One of the primary goals of Fallout:Ashfall is to buff New Vegas' SPECIAL stats. In the original game, SPECIAL stats (Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck) play a critical role in determining the player's abilities and effectiveness in combat. Special stats can increase a player’s likelihood of shooting a target or winning over a conversation to gain more information to help them complete a quest.
In Fallout:Ashfall, players can expect a range of enhancements to these stats, which will make for a more dynamic and engaging gameplay experience. According to Ashfall Dude, the team is designing the Fallout:New Vegas mod with a variety of extra buffs for the SPECIAL stats that won’t simply be the typical seven traits. Ashfall Dude explained that his primary goal is to make character-building more impactful in the mod, forcing players to be more strategic when designing their characters. He also stated that the purpose of designing this feature was to create a mod that average players could benefit from with Fallout: New Vegas’ Hardcore Mode enabled.
For example, Ashfall Dude stated that he plans on giving Charisma a buff, so players must first pass a Charisma check in order to have access to Speech checks. This would not only make gameplay more complex, but it would also add a layer of difficulty that would keep things interesting. It would also make encounters more realistic and improve the experience of those who build their character with Charisma in mind. As Ashfall Dude explained,
“It doesn’t matter how convincing or true your character is. Nobody is going to listen to them if they aren’t likable.”
Fallout Special Stats in Ashfall - Perception and Intelligence
Ashfall Dude also revealed the team is considering giving certain special stats an extra utility in dialogue. For example, he suggested having Fallout's Perception stat used in “lore checks” where the player character would notice things about the environment the player might have overlooked. This feature would assist players by helping them complete quests more quickly and easily, while also adding a range of humanness to the mod.
Not only is the Ashfall team talking about adding more dialogue options, but they are also discussing the aspect of developing a version of the mod with a low intelligence run that would have a more “comedic focus.” Ashfall Dude explained that this version of Ashfall would create a main character that is more “tone-deaf,” allowing for more creative freedom for the writers on the team and having more hilarious Fallout dialogue that is, in nature, absentminded.
We are considering having Ashfall’s version of a low intelligence run have a more comedic focus, where the player’s character is more tone-deaf. It gives the writers more to work with than making the player grunt and groan like in Fallout 2 .
Fallout: Ashfall is a Large DLC-Sized Mod
Of course, for players to properly exercise stats like Charisma, Intelligence, Perception, and so on, the Fallout: Ashfall mod has to match these changes with plenty of content. The inspiration for Ashfall was initially prompted by Fallout 2, with a specific focus on new locations, factions, and quests. It grew from there and it has since developed into an open-world mod that is nearly the size of a proper DLC. This mod was compared to Honest Hearts, a fan-favorite 3-to-6-hour DLC that not only expands the location but also the intricacy of the story, adding to the emerging showdown between the Fallout: New Vegas courier and Ulysses in Lonesome Road. As Ashfall Dude said,
“ Ashfall is planned to be as large as Honest Hearts, both in terms of how much brand new content is added to New Vegas along with the scale of the stories told within the mod."
According to Ashfall Dude, his vision for Ashfall is “a Fallout:NewVegas quest mod that leans into as many of New Vegas’ strengths as possible,” which also places a great deal of emphasis on role-playing and character development. Size is understandably needed to accomodate that, and the emphasis placed on buffing SPECIAL stats' role in the gameplay and story of Fallout: Ashfall will no doubt go a long way. Ideally, Ashfall Dude said,
"[Fallout: Ashfall] should be a mod which benefits from a playthrough on hardcore mode and at least gives the player a practical reason to invest in Charisma."
Fallout: New Vegas is available now for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.