Part 71: Vault 0, Part 1: In The Future, There Will Be Robots

Post 71: Vault 0, Part 1: No Roaches This Time



It was surprisingly easy to get into Vault 0, especially considering the nuclear devastation that had just hit it.

The squad received a radio message just before they descended into the depths. The robots were launching an all-out assault. The Calculator must have felt threatened, what with the nuke going off at its doorstep.

On the other hand, it might just have been fortunate timing. After all, its not like the Calculator could just mysteriously divine the location of the bunker and transport a concentration of forces there all in the time it took the squad to breach Vault 0. No, this assault must have been in the works for some time, and the squad was there to stop it before the robots crushed everyone.



Warning klaxons blared and a voice on the loudspeakers read off various warnings. They were meant for the living occupants of the Vault, yet the only living breathing beings around were the Brotherhood soldiers.



Brotherhood soldiers that were prepared to kick some ass!



Yet somehow, an another squad had managed to get into the Vault before Flashman's warriors and was now occupying the lobby on the floor with the generators.



The squad would hold the area and guard the back of Flashman's advance. They were also willing to exchange supplies.









They were well stocked on ammo and medicine – clearly these soldiers knew that they were in for a fight.

I would drop those frag grenades. They haven't impressed me for a long time, and the robots care even less.

The warrior shrugged and murmured something about raiders.



The squad took positions in front of the only door leading deeper into the Vault. Whatever would be waiting behind those doors, they wanted to be ready for it. Flashman took one last look at their positions, felt satisfied with the locations of his troops and nodded to Stitch.

Power the terminal. We're going in!



The terminal uploaded a map of the floor into the PipBoys. Stitch also managed to restore lighting and begin door opening sequence



The squad was waiting for the door to open. They were expecting more corridor-to-corridor fighting, something that the squad was all too familiar with due to all the robot facilities they had assaulted before.

The door finally hissed open.



Madness.

The corridor was filled with humanoid and security robots just waiting to expell the human invaders. Shoulder to shoulder, they were crowding the door. A row upon row of deadly metal.

A perfect target rich environment.

Mandy send a magnetically-propelled rod through a robot's chest even before the door had completely opened. The combined firepower of two Brotherhood squads shredded the first line of robots, cutting hydraulics, cracking optics and destroying rugged, battlefield-grade electronics. Sparks flew and the walls were shrapnel pockmarked the walls.



Only the robots deeper in the tunnel, the ones that were hiding in cover, remained.

I'm going in!



His rocket launcher was out of ammo, but his power fist was at the ready, and his blood sang for the chance at combat. Flashman's skills had been honed to perfection and he moved with power armor like it was his own skin.

The robots did not stand a chance.



Well then, that was fast!


Flashman poked a dead robot. Much like ones before, it didn't carry anything interesting to loot.



The squad went down the tunnel and soon reached a crossroad. The PipBoy map showed that the security station was to the right. The squad needed to access it to unlock the way to Cryo section, which would (hopefully) offer a way to open the way to the generator area.



Flashman hugged the wall as he pushed a button on a panel and the door slid open.

Nothing.

There was a large room past the door, but no obvious robots. An actually skilled ambush? That would be unexpected, considering that the apex of robot guile so far was spreading scurry bots everywhere.

Flashman gave the sign and Peta silently moved forward along the wall opposite from the squad leader.

Suddenly, she stoped and raised her rifle. A security robot!



Flashman ran into the room to take care of it. Almost immediately, he skid to a stop (power armor does add certain momentum to movement): a bunch of robots were waiting in an another corridor. The weight of their fire momentarily threw him off his feet.



Flashman managed to get his footing back, and by the time he retreated back to his own lines, Peta had bagged herself another robot.

Ordering Stitch to be nearby in case he needed more medical attention, Flashman thought about what to do next. Getting the robots out of the corridor wouldn't be easy, and he couldn't risk bringing in anyone without power armor.

Baiting it was.



Flashman ran into the room, robots revealed their positions, and Peta fired upon them. It worked like a charm.



Slowly, uncovering more of the enemy as they went, the power armored warriors cleared the opening of all robots. None of them had managed to reach what looked like an alarm pannel.



Flashman was surprised to find a sophisticated electronic lockpicking tool among the assorted wreckage. Had he killed a maintenance robot? What use could the machinas had had with it? In any case, the lockpick went to Ice.



Pushing the robots down the corridor meant fighting for every inch. At least the machines had not wised up to set up ambushes in the empty rooms adjoining the corridor. Flashman would slip into them to catch a breather.



But the robots kept on coming, taking cover behind bumps in the well and generally being a nuisance.



Flashman wondered what the rooms had been meant for before the war. Certainly the robots weren't using them for anything. Maybe they didn't care for human security measures, feeling secure in their underground depots and garages with no fleshbags to mess things up.



To the squad's surprise, the next bit of the tunnel seemed undefended.



But it only looked that way as a tank bot charged the group! Peta, Mandy, Ice – all opened fire on the flail-armed monstrosity.



Finally, even Flashman braved the flails to land a few blow on the chasis.



All the firepower and all the beatings finally overcame the machine and it collapsed.

Flashman once agaun wondered how it had gotten into the corridor. Maybe the robots disassembled tank bots and then put them together in tight corridors? Maybe they did it as some sort of machine joke?



The tank wreckage blocked the door to a side room. The squad had to take the next one and hope that the rooms connected, or that the blocked room didn't have anything mission-critical.



Between Flashman and Peta, taking down solitary humanoid robots was no big deal.



And the rooms did indeed connect!



However, the lockers in the rooms were, indeed, locked. This was Ice's time to shine and to try out the new electronic lockpick.







The lockers held trace amounts of ammunition, some medicines and books. It was a baffling selection of items.

Ice felt like lockpicking was a skill with increasingly diminishing returns. She could not remember the last that she had found anything worthwhile behind a locked door.



Back in the corridor and round a corner, they found an ominously empty room.

As with everything else that looked like a trap, Flashman was the one to poke it and see what happens.



There was no ambush, but two robots were guarding great big doors. Calling Peta for backup, Flashman charged in.



The robots weren't much of a challenge – Flashman barely felt their shots bounce off his armor.



However, the doors were more of a challenge. Despite the best of Ice's efforts, they wouldn't budge. Even the smart electric picklock was powerless.



The real trouble waited behind the small doors on the other end of the room. The AI had funneled the warriors into a killzone. Humanoid robots had taken covered positions on all sides and anyone assaulting the room would have had to run the gauntlet straight through overlapping fields of fire.

Lifter bots were there, too, just to complicate the situation. Flashman charged in to keep them from harrasing his shooters.



It was a hellish fight. Flashman did all he could to destroy the lifters while Peta and even Ice were simply firing their guns at any movement. Empty stimpacks crunched under armored feet as Stitch ran around, working overtime keeping everyone fighting. Only Mandy was left in the other room; she would not have survived in a firefight where even power armor glowed red hot from plasma and lasers.



Little by little, the robot horde was whittled down. Flashman was able to roam free, taking down isolated robots that were still harassing his squad with fire.



It took some time. The robots had many nooks and crannies to hide in.



Area clear. I think we managed to get the last of them!



With no more robots in sight and the squad's wounded tended to, Stitch was free to apply his technical skills to a console they found. As usual, it only did one function: open a lock somewhere.

Weapon storage?

Hey guys, doors opened back here!



The room that was previously guarded by two robots had now opened. There were two turrets inside. Unlike all of the previous turrets, these two were inactive.



Then again, they didn't really have that much to guard. These weapons would have been hazardous to unarmed and unarmored Vault dwellers, but not to robots.

Nothing to see here, folks. Double back!



Another console was hidden in a room with an open toxic spill; it opened the door to cryo storage section.

Calculator's end was getting closer.

Next time: robots and poop flinging!

One notable thing about this romp is that the robot assault at the start was really really fun. Just a bunch of robots charging in and getting cut down. None of those protracted shootouts where the robots keep taking covers and standing out of sight.

Now, that gauntlet bit was a real, certified bitch. Mandy is straight out, her armor can't handle it, and even Ice is vulnerable. Send in Peta, then Stitch, and then hold the flank with Flashman because your guys won't be able to take down the lifters fast enough. Once you take down the robots closest to the squad, you can start clearing the rest with Flashman.

The loot continues to be disappointing in the extreme. It will change a little in the next update