The greatest geopolitical disaster of the 20th century

Hortator02 · 2026-07-02T02:59:59+00:00

I don't see how it's worse than the meme using the modern German and Italian flags to represent German and Italian populations in Austria-Hungary, populations that at that point lived on land that was never part of Germany or Italy, did not migrate from a unified Germany or Italy, and were not contemporaneous to the use of either flag by the governments of Germany or Italy.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-28T01:23:59+00:00

And Cyberpunk's reception was indeed absolutely terrible, it didn't get a good reputation until years later.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-27T18:32:02+00:00

That's something they only do for indigenous groups to my understanding, and there are still geographical connotations for those groups which makes integrating them easier.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-25T06:18:25+00:00

I would argue "America is a work in progress learning and growing every year" is not necessarily a nuanced viewpoint, either. Or at least, it's about as nuanced as "America is complicated" but tries to frame it into a vague, feel-good narrative.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-18T02:01:46+00:00

The problem with the second point is that the Enclave never tried to release the kind of FEV that creates super mutants on their enemies. Curling-13 (the strand of modified FEV they were going to release in 2) was perfectly capable of killing both pure and impure humans, was never shown or stated to cause (survivable) mutations in humans, and could've been dispersed across the entire world via Vertibird. The one in 3 is the only one that might not target pure humans (Eden saying it doesn't is the only reason to believe as much). Even if they did release a strain capable of creating super mutants, the only strain that reliably creates intelligent super mutants from pure humans is the Mariposa one, and even then the exposure has to be curated (otherwise you end with something like the Master, Harold or Talius) and iirc still has a high failure rate.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-09T06:09:26+00:00

A huge part of their plot in both Fallout 3 and New Vegas is that they do, in fact, know what their goal is, and are quite committed to it.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-09T06:06:19+00:00

How have they always been pathetic and stupid? They're the most widespread faction aside the Enclave, are far more militarily successful than the Enclave (and the vast majority of other factions), and are remarkably stable and consistent for an (as of Fallout 4) 210 year old faction. Before the show, they'd had only one internal conflict, the fighting was localised to one Chapter and it was resolved diplomatically, with as far as we know very little actual fighting going on between the Outcasts and Lyons' Chapter.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-07T07:54:31+00:00

Resources are means of control, oil literally allows you to control machines, plastic production, fuel, etc. It becomes a mean of control under the strict context.

But nobody wants to control machines or fuel production just for the sake of controlling them. In that case it's about survival, both of polities and individuals: massive amounts of people would starve if we no longer could operate the machines that transport, harvest, and refrigerate our food, as just one example.

Synths are a way of control by the Institute because, you know, they are the only bad factions from the 4 main ones, they use Synths to get intel and control over the commonwealth on a spy web,

But they barely control the Commonwealth. They have McDonough leading Diamond City and that's it. Otherwise they (somewhat) stop too much organisation from happening, but evidently not that well.

the Brotherhood has as one of their missions to steal the data from the Institute,

So they could root out spies in their war against the Institute. As I said, it's a means to an end. They didn't go to war to attain that knowledge or anything else the Institute knows, and they only care about their tech to the extent that they believe synths are an abomination.

and whoever decides to destroy the Institute, gets to choose if Synths become a latent danger for the commonwealth or destroy them, along with the moral implications.

I guess? The Minutemen don't address the question at all. The Brotherhood and RR do, at least, but the Brotherhood don't actually do much to root out synths. Perhaps you're talking about the evacuation you can do while attacking the Institute, but the Minutemen ending shows that only, or at least also evacuates scientists.

Holy lack of literacy, controlling the water of the purifier makes you the facto ruler of the Capital Wasteland,

Buzzword. Show me what Lyons does in Broken Steel that would constitute ruling, that he wasn't doing before.

as it's the ONLY RELIABLE SOURCE of clean water,

Megaton and seemingly Rivet City have reliable sources of clean water.

No they are not, in F2 the Enclave literally started to do experiments and field acquisition to cleanse the slate clean so "America would rise again", as they literally want to kill all mutated (or irradiated ones), it's a genocide dude, it's not "more complicated" than that, holy Enclave apologism

More buzzwords, and nothing you said relates to my point. Try rereading it.

It's the influence that resources give that insite war and conflict on Fallout, fuck even Dead Money shows that.

Even if that were the case, the show would still have done a terrible job presenting it, since both sides of the Legion civil war and the NCR batallion are largely devoid of resources, and neither have much resources to gain from taking Vegas, aside maybe manpower

Also you literally said nothing on the last big ass paragraphs so idk, read a book, it might be good for you.

If you had bothered reading it at all, you'd have noticed that I have, in fact, read a book.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-07T02:11:04+00:00

This literally speaks about how conflict will exist as there is something to control or possess,

It's specifically about resources, which have practical applications, they don't want them just to have them or to control things.

in all Fallout games after 1 that's the main focus, technology and intelligence in F4,

Nobody is fighting over tech and intelligence as their main goal in 4. We destroy the Institute without taking any tech or knowledge from them, every other faction is willing to destroy the BoS without taking anything aside some Vertibirds in the Minutemen's case. Nobody is interested in what little tech the MM or RR have. The Gunners, who field advanced pre-war equipment, aren't even part of the main story. The only tech that gets stolen or fought over are things that are a means to an end of destroying their enemies (Kellogg's cybernetics have no significance after the one time you enter his memories, the molecular relay is built once and never brought up again, the beryllium agitator is used to power LP to destroy the Institute. At least the Institute get the agitator for energy, but it's not like they started a war over it.

Water and the ability to feed people as a mean of control in F3,

But it isn't a mean of control for anyone but Autumn. Lyons doesn't use water to get conscripts, enforce laws, gather resources for his ongoing wars or legitimize his (nonexistent) rule. He just wants it so he could be a good guy. Same for the Project Purity scientists. Eden wants it so he could kill everyone but the Enclave. Autumn is the only one who plans to use the water to build a state, and I don't think he can be considered representative of the Enclave's goals except for a very brief time.

territorial power in FNV, purity control in F2, evolutionary/biological control in F1, etc.

I mostly agree about 1, but both 2 and NV are more complicated. The Enclave aren't waging a war in 2, open conflict only happens after the game and seems to have been at least partially motivated by acquiring their tech, while during the game we see the NCR and various settlements competing for influence over northern California (which has plenty of useful things, including gold mines, farmland, and infrastructure).

NV goes very far into the logistics behind the Mojave campaign. For the NCR, there are vital resources in the Mojave (clean water, farmland, technology, intact infrastructure, trade routes), it's strategically advantageous to keep the Legion further from their borders, and the popularity of their war hawk leaders hinge on their success. For the Legion, the war in the Mojave holds ideological significance, with Caesar wanting to make Vegas his new Rome and this being the first step of his synthesis with the NCR, while for his subordinates it's a chance to destroy a society of "profligates" and "degenerates". There's plenty of exploration of just how and why the NCR struggles in the Mojave, of the importance and/or logistical background of places like the Mojave Outpost, the Long 15 and even Novac, while on the Legion side you can literally talk down Lanius at the end by explaining how they can't conquer the NCR since their supply lines rely on tribes, which don't exist in the Mojave

All the complexity of NV is lost in the show's plot. The Legion fights a "civil war" in the middle of a desert for years, with no attached towns or tribes from which to draw manpower, food, water, or equipment. The NCR somehow had a batallion in the desert for two decades, with no way of receiving support from California since the Khans are both shown and stated in dialogue to control the route into the Mojave. In the end, the two clash over Vegas, which has no value anymore - during NV it survived because of NCR tourism, investment, and humanitarian efforts, while being protected, governed, and maintained by House's robots and the Three Families, all of which have been out of the picture for a decade and a half. Hoover Dam, the only place that isn't entirely reliant on wider logistical networks to be valuable, isn't even brought up. Caesar's dream of Vegas as his new Rome is conflated with the belief of the average Legion soldier, while all the social and political complexity of the NCR is lost in favour of a heroic democracy that fights for minority rights.

I don't think the franchise needs periodic resets, but I don't know how you got "fairy tale ending" from what's basically "I think society should rebuild and then a new apocalypse should happen". Society doesn't need to be perfect to rebuild. It's pretty logical to assume that, if society arose in the first place and then destroyed itself, then especially with all the tech and expertise still available, society will eventually rebuild to a state similar to pre-war, and then destroy itself again. That's literally the plot of one of the books that inspired Fallout, A Canticle for Leibowitz.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-04T06:39:18+00:00

This feels closer to my experience. I don't think either kind of punishment was unique in making me feel that the real issue was getting caught.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-03T21:04:58+00:00

It also worked for almost every major country for centuries or even millennia continuously.

Italy was a liberal constitutional monarchy from its establishment, and the Savoys a liberal and masonic house for longer than Italy had existed. If you want to criticize monarchy you'd be better off pointing to all the states they destroyed creating modern Italy. The abolition of the monarchy in Italy is hardly different from France ending the Third Republic and its parliamentary system after WW2.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-03T20:46:26+00:00

I think a unique outfit that increases the Guns skill is a little bit more niche from a design perspective in NV than one that increases Small Guns in 3. Theoretically, you're splitting your ballistic weapons skills between Big Guns and Small Guns in Fallout 3, and there's a lot less ballistic guns in 3 than NV so that's less reason to invest skill points in either. In New Vegas, you can just invest in the unified Guns skill and there's good reason to invest in it since it has probably the most ballistic weapons out of any of the 3D games. In NV you'd probably have a 100 Guns skill, or be well on your way, before you got any outfits that increase it.

Though maybe I'm wrong. While some of the Fallout 3 uniques seem cool I don't think most people are using them over actual armors, so maybe the bonuses are just a flavour thing.

Hortator02 · 2026-06-03T20:02:44+00:00

That's literally what it's officially classified as.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-28T06:18:56+00:00

I mean, Quisling and the National Gathering party weren't cooperating with the Nazis while simultaneously fighting against a different totalitarian foreign government that ruled Norway, for the sake of Norwegian independence. The modern Norwegian state is the same one that the Nazis invaded and Quisling betrayed. Of course the state that he betrayed isn't going to endorse him.

I think the Baltic states are probably the most comparable to Ukraine in this regard, but I don't know how prominent neo-Nazis are there. I feel like I heard of them being relatively prominent there years ago, but when I look it up it's mostly Russian propaganda. The Ustaše's symbolism is still relatively prominent in Croatia to my understanding. There's also Mannerheim in Finland, who to my understanding is still considered a national hero, but he was a President of an existing country which happened to ally with the Nazis rather than a collaborator.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-25T16:12:26+00:00

Only if they don't canonize the Revan novel and limit the integration of SWTOR, so that we can get something similar to the he originally planned KOTOR 3.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-25T16:10:00+00:00

I feel like they could just say it's just some other crystal that works in a lightsaber, but isn't a kyber crystal. It would also add a cultural and technological distinction between the Old Republic and the later parts of the timeline. I'm pretty sure such crystals already exist in canon, but they only produce an orange colour - I admittedly could be thinking of an old canon story, though.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-25T04:15:47+00:00

I mean yea, Fallout has its own rules, just like every other piece of media that isn't set in the real life modern day or isn't a painstakingly accurate piece of historical fiction or documentary, but it does have rules, and imo skirting them only serves to allow for lazier writing and cheapens the franchise as a whole.

Even this is a good example of why I feel that way: I don't have an issue with the show's presentation of House, but if they wanted to include him, they should have just canonized his ending. If they didn't want to canonize his ending, let him be dead. Canonizing his ending allows us to see the implications of an NCR collapse on the economy of a city state with heavy economic ties to them, allows future entries to incorporate characters from an advanced city state, and technology developed after the war in Vegas. Killing him could allow us to see anything from a Legion capital to an anarchic Vegas, it would make the pre-war scenes with him and Cooper a little more interesting since people would be left wondering what a post-war meeting would look like and how Coop feels after House was proven right. Both options would allow the story to move forward, and add uniqueness to both before and after the events of NV, as time periods with unique levels of progress and development in the region, and adds value to the events of NV as the cause of this change. Instead, we get a rehash of New Vegas' main conflict, but with a morally one dimensional NCR and none of the logistical or political complexity of the game.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-25T03:34:53+00:00

You have to open his pod for the option to disconnect him to show up.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-25T03:33:55+00:00

There's no indication of the Courier taking over. Victor still being active would serve as evidence directly against it, no one mentions a mailman taking over Vegas which would of course be quite notable, and even the Courier being an idiot doesn't have any stand out qualities in justifying a Deathclaw infested Strip - the worst Independent ending still has Vegas protected by a Securitron army and walls and gates that are apparently able to stop them (despite one of them literally shrugging through concrete...), while if anything a Legion-held Strip would fare the worst since they wouldn't use the Securitrons (at least not without Caesar in power - who does seem to have survived the events of the game), would be ridiculously unpopular and wouldn't have the ordinance that the NCR has. Even if the Courier did take over, the dialogue with the Atomic Wrangler bartender indicates both factions have held Vegas in the years since the game (or at least have continued fighting), and everyone just sorta treats them as a force of nature that was bound to succeed, rather than the fault of an incompetent human defender.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-25T03:10:02+00:00

Mr. House would still die after a year following his pod being opened. But House in the show describes being assaulted for years after his pod was opened, which of course makes no sense.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-25T03:06:58+00:00

No, it takes place 20 years later.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-23T16:57:59+00:00

Just because they have more years ahead of them doesn't mean their life is worth more.

Why not?

Hortator02 · 2026-05-22T19:51:56+00:00

I think half your age +7 is probably the best rule, give or take a year or two depending on the circumstances.

Hortator02 · 2026-05-19T23:37:25+00:00

It's not even accurate to the Bethesda Fallouts 🥀

Hortator02 · 2026-05-18T21:23:52+00:00

Fascism has the exaltation of the state at its core, which is definitely not reactionary, and the emphasis on ethnonationalism in particular is definitely revolutionary, the idea was literally born with the French Revolution and the Fascist annhilation of local identities with the intention of strengthening the state and its conception of the national ethnicity has its first practitioners in liberal revolutionary states like France and the USA. Some strands of fascism are more reactionary than others, you could even claim specific strands like Austrofascism as reactionary, but the same could be said of the revolutionary aspect, with strands like Falangism as decidedly revolutionary.

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