Van Buren timeline

The following timeline contains unique events split from the canonical timeline, that were meant to play a role in Van Buren, Black Isle's aborted Fallout 3.

1895[]

• The Tibbets Prison, or United States Penitentiary (USP) Tibbets is founded through an act of Congress.^[1]

1919[]

• The United States government establishes the Grand Canyon as a National Park.^[2]

1943[]

• The Los Alamos Nuclear Research and Development facility, codename the Reservation, completes construction. Los Alamos becomes part of the research team for the Manhattan Project.^[3]

2040[]

• The Tibbets Prison is commandeered by the United States government in association with Vault-Tec and Poseidon Oil to tie into their Project Safehouse. On April 5, 2040, the Secretary of the Army makes the decision to build a new Disciplinary Barracks, with a capacity for 456 inmates. A cost ceiling of $363 million in allocated construction dollars is set. The target budget year for funding this project is fiscal year 2041. Construction begins in fall of 2042, with completion projected for fall of the year 2045.^[1]

2057[]

• February: United States government removes the Grand Canyon's protected status as a national park.^[2]
• May: Uranium mining begins in the Grand Canyon. The Grand Canyon is closed indefinitely.^[2]

2062[]

• Many Mormon congregations come together to purchase places in Vault 70, located in Salt Lake City.^[4]

2063[]

• Dr. Willem Clark, a top nuclear physicist in his day, is put in charge of all scientific endeavors at the Reservation. Colonel Green, a career soldier in the U.S. army, is put in charge of security.^[3]

2064[]

• A photograph of Dr. Clark, Dr. Sebastian, and the Maniac AI surfaces during the lull between the remobilization of Los Alamos and the arrival of its new mission orders.^[3]

2065[]

• The Reservation is given orders to research and produce nuclear missiles that can be fired from an orbiting space platform.^[3]

2066[]

• Resource rationing in Denver results in Food Riots, after the midwestern parts of the United States and Mexico cannot supply enough food for the population. National Guard units are called in to deal with the situation.^[5]
• Poseidon Energy shuts down the Eagle Rock mining complex due to the danger and expense. The installation is sold to the government.^[6]

2067[]

• Senator Todd Peterson decides to build a secret bunker to house himself and his family should war break out. Senator Peterson is a wealthy man in his own right, but lacks the funds necessary for such a project. Through secret dealings with Poseidon Oil and a covert branch of the government known as the Enclave, the final funding for the project is attained. A construction site is chosen in southern Colorado and work begins.^[7]

2072[]

• Completed B.O.M.B. missiles are sent to different space centers around the U.S. so they can be carried into space and installed into the B.O.M.B. satellites. The process is slow, but it is being carried out fairly regularly.^[3]

2073[]

• August: The Ballistic Orbital Missile Base, or B.O.M.B.-001, is completed and partially functional (for security and maintenance bots) using a temporary onboard generator. The only thing the base needs are the manually input final launch instructions and codes, and the main power reactor.^[8][9]

2074[]

• The government turns the lower levels of Eagle Rock into a radioactive waste dump. Future founders of the Enclave help Poseidon Energy secure a contract for the operation, leading to the development of Agricola robots and the installation of a bunker on site.^[6]

2076[]

• November: Enclave personnel seize control of Bloomfield Space Center and begin researching and developing a way to convert Hermes XIII and 14 into a personnel transports to transport important individuals off-planet.^[8][9]

2077[]

• New Plague hits Denver. Rioters burned down large parts of the city in their fear of contamination and anger at their treatment. Many panicked and fled the city by car, clogging the freeways when they ran out of gas and trapping everyone behind them.^[5]

2078[]

• John Bloch's military group makes a peace-protection pact with local ranchers.^[10]

2087[]

• December: After most of the initial survivors in the Reservation succumb to radiation, those "fortunate" enough to not die have turned into ghouls. And after spending ten years underground, they finally come back to the surface. Twelve ghouls, including Dr. Willem Clark, volunteer to search the wastes in the hopes of finding other survivors.^[3]

2088[]

• The computer in Mesa Verde fails. The scientists resort to carving their most important schematics into the kiva walls.^[11]
• December: Of the twelve volunteers to explore the wastes, only one comes back to the Reservation; Dr. Willem Clark. However, he has brought back a few dozen fellow ghouls to seek shelter at the Reservation.^[3]

2089[]

• Scientists in Mesa Verde begin to drill the village children in the ways of mathematics and science so that knowledge is not forgotten. They hope that their descendants will one day help bring civilization back to the wasteland.^[11]
• January: After explaining the hardships and prejudices placed against ghouls by smoothskin humans, the ghouls of the Reservation proclaim Dr. Willem Clark as their leader. Willem further solidifies his place as leader by explaining his plans to one day make the ghouls the rightful and true heirs to the Promised Earth and that becoming a ghoul was the next, logical step in the evolutionary process.^[12]

2180[]

• With their village having outgrown available space and resources, many Ciphers adopt a nomadic lifestyle, returning to the village only occasionally to resupply or raise children until they're old enough to walk on their own.^[11]

2190[]

• Vault 70 opens and its residents use their three G.E.C.K.s to found the city of New Jerusalem in the ruins of Salt Lake City.^[4]

2198[]

• After years of trying the "natural" way, the ghouls of the Reservation discovered they were indeed sterile. Dr. Willem Clark and Dr. Sebastian begin to devise a plan to create a viable way for ghouls to procreate.^[3]

2200[]

• B.O.M.B.-002 is knocked out of orbit and crashes in the Grand Canyon.^[9]

2220[]

• The Reservation begins to purchase human slaves from the various tribes around the region. The ghouls trade what weapons they make in their underground smithies for healthy humans. The healthiest are used for the ghoul procreation experiments, while the rest work until they die from exhaustion and disease.^[3]
• New Jerusalem's intolerant prophet and apostles repeatedly vote to have no commerce with outsiders from other, failed communities, refugees, or tribals.^[4]

2227[]

• July: After years of research and experimentation, Dr. Sebastian successfully creates a born ghoul through procreation in the Reservation. The human host, like all the ones preceding him, dies during childbirth (evidently hosts can be male or female).^[3]
• August: The first successful Born ghoul. Due to the radioactive chemistry of the ghouls, the first Born ghoul rapidly grows into adulthood within a month. The Born ghoul is named Measles due to his large, swollen glands in his jaw. Only three other Born ghouls will be birthed between this year and 2253. The procreation experiment only has a 2% success rate.^[3]

2231[]

• High Elder Jeremy Maxson sends an expedition under Andrea Brixley east, to find Peterson's bunker. Brixley's team renovates the bunker and establishes their base within. For ten years, the Paladins explore the eastern fringes and form relations with neighboring tribes.^[7]

2233[]

• New Jerusalem is sacked by a large group of tribals, raiders, and other disgruntled folk. A large number of Mormons perish in the attack.^[4]

2235[]

• The new Mormon living prophet, Judah Black, leads most of the remnants of the Mormon community north to Ogden, Utah. They establish the town of New Canaan.^[4][13]

2236[]

• Working with some squatters, the Mormons get the Jericho water plant running fresh water into New Canaan.^[4]

2238[]

• NCR explorers discover Eagle Rock and quickly realize that it is a source of energy and some water—albeit a dangerous source. Within the year, NCR miners are there, and more come shortly thereafter. Many of them are dregs/outcasts from other communities. The town of Burham Springs is established by Trent Burham, a wealthy NCR mine merchant.^[6]

2242[]

• Nuclear Nellie, a howitzer style gun capable of firing a nuclear shell, is made functional at the Reservation. A "dirty" shell is created to use on Willem’s enemies. However, since the heavy lift cable is broken, there is no way to bring the gun from its underground lair.^[3]
• Jeremy Maxson renames Todd Peterson's bunker after his famous ancestor, Roger Maxson. He then sends a full complement of troops for occupation. Andrea Brixley is promoted to Elder, given the rank of General, and placed in charge. The remainder of her exploratory team is given the title of Elder as well.^[7]

2244[]

• Refugees begin arriving in New Canaan in large numbers, telling stories about a war in the west.^[13]

2245[]

• Judah Black dies of old age.^[4]
• NCR halts production on the railroad lines. The need for coal diminishes and the powder gangs rise up.

2247[]

• 5th Engineering Company blows up Burham Mines, causing incredible fires to break out all over the area, even in veins of coal encased in rock. Many die. Many become gehennas. NCR abandons Burham Springs.^[6]
• After coming out of a strange and powerful fever, Jeremiah Rigdon claims that an angel appeared to him in a vision, calling him to be the living prophet of god.^[4]

2248[]

• Almost half of the residents of New Canaan leave because they believe Jeremiah Rigdon is not the true living prophet. They leave with Bishop Mordecai.^[4]
• Twelve daring people drift into Burham Springs to start salvaging. Two years after the end of this influx, all are dead except Phil, Sparky, and Frank LaFrancis.^[6]
• Sulik's sister Kurisu becomes leader of Blackfoot tribe.^[10]

2249[]

• Members from Porter's team escape many times though there's nowhere to run and they are caught or surrender. At least one escape was planned by NCR Lt. Gov Dodge (Dodge hoped that Porter will loop back to pick up the money from the blown Vault, but the escape he arranged only resulted in the 308th getting free, not the 370th, and since Porter didn't steal the Vault money anyway he wouldn't know where to find it).^[5]
• A lucrative slave trade is established with Caesar’s Legions and the Blackfoot tribe.^[10]

2250[]

• Porter's gang (the 370th) and the 308th put on work-release to Denver. The work-release also made more room in the prison for some more dangerous prisoners, as the place was getting overcrowded. The prisoners travel with hobos, dodge tribals, lose about half their numbers (from clashes with slavers, tribals, radscorpions, and other monsters).^[5]
• Daniel goes to find his six cattle in a storm and is captured by robots from the prison. Also, Bishop Mordecai and five others return to New Canaan as the sole survivors of their attempt to resettle New Jerusalem. They do not acknowledge Jeremiah Rigdon as the living prophet.^[4]

2251[]

• Porter's gang reaches Denver. Goals: Once there, they were to see about scavenging as many building supplies as possible, establishing a track outpost, and pave the way for NCR occupation. They make camp.^[5]
• Dogs overrun the old salvager camp.^[5]
• May 10: Jillian McKinley is apprehended by ULYSSES' robots. The Rusty Hooks lose their best and only mechanic/weapons smith. Sid is "volunteered" to take her place.^[8]

2252[]

• June 15: Kyle "the Hook" and his Rusty Hooks discover Bloomfield Space Center and declare it their home.^[8][9]
• June 30: Sid figures out how to fire up the sub-reactor. Bloomfield has power once more, but sub-reactor is only operating at 45% efficiency.^[8][9]

2253[]

• October 23: The Prisoner escapes from Tibbets Prison, dooming the world and creating a holocaust of epic proportions.^[3][13]
• October 23: Sentry robots at Bloomfield become semi-active – not moving, but the optical lenses and sensors turn on and start surveying for escaped prisoners from the Big MT. The robots ignore the Rusty Hooks.^[8][9]
• October: Dr. Victor Presper and his NCR followers find security overrides for the turrets and security bots at Bloomfield, as well as the space rockets' launch codes. They invade Kyle's beloved Bloomfield – Kyle and his men do not resist Dr. Presper and his technically more advanced brigade – and launch themselves into space to dock with B.O.M.B.-001. Four NCR soldiers stay behind with the remaining rocket to prevent anyone from launching the second rocket. The Rusty Hooks keep clear of the launch pad and form an "understanding" with the NCR guards.^[8][9]

References[]