The Courier and the Divide

[gmg2dave]

The whole "package" thing makes no sense to me at all. I mean, think about it, what kind of idiotic people would create a device that would detonate their nuclear arsenal, in it's silos, just by getting close to those missiles? What exactly would be the purpose of such a device?

 

It would have made so much more sense if, say, someone found the "football" carried around with the President, and sent it to a science team in the Divide.

[peadar1987]

The whole "package" thing makes no sense to me at all. I mean, think about it, what kind of idiotic people would create a device that would detonate their nuclear arsenal, in it's silos, just by getting close to those missiles? What exactly would be the purpose of such a device?

 

It would have made so much more sense if, say, someone found the "football" carried around with the President, and sent it to a science team in the Divide.

 

I always thought that was what happened, the "football" was found, brought to the divide, because it had the same markings as the bunkers and silos, and activated, possibly in the hope that it would unlock the doors and the NCR could find valuable military salvage inside. Instead, it set the missiles to fire. They were programmed for targets in China and the USSR, but years of neglect meant that the boosters didn't fire, or the silo doors didn't open, (and by either an unfortunate failure, or a massive engineering oversight, the arming mechanisms on the warheads were set to a timer.) With the timer running, it was just a matter of time before the pressure switches were tripped. The warheads thought they were reentering the earth's atmosphere over China, instead of still sitting in their silos, and detonated.

 

That's how I reconcile it with canon anyway, I totally agree with you, making a device whose sole purpose is to blow up your own missiles in their silos is just daft!

 

 

 

 

Edit (just to make more sense of my previous post): The operation of modern nuclear warheads is classified, but it's reasonable to assume that they aren't actually armed in their silos. They'll be designed to explode a set height above the target, and this will almost certainly be automatic, and not require a signal from the operators (Mutually Assured Destruction requires the missiles to function even if the people who fired them are already dead).

 

The way I'd do it would be to have multiple failsafes, so a flight timer, a radar altimeter, and a barometric altimeter. The warhead is armed when the two altimeters show the missile has reached a certain height, and also when the timer shows a certain time has elapsed since launch. With the bomb armed, it is then given the signal to detonate when both altimeters agree that it is below a certain altitude.

 

However, it's not beyond belief that the US of the Fallout universe would have cut corners safety-wise in order to build more nukes more quickly, and just relied on the timer to tell the bomb when to arm.

Edited January 10, 2014 by peadar1987

[charwo]

I always took it that the Courier is blamed by Ulysses irrationally. The Courier handed the package over to NCR scientist/salvage crews, and the Courier survived because they were either far west or far east when the thing went off. Big U couldn't blame the team because they were dead, but he could blame the Courier because the Courier was correlated with both the beginning and ending of the Divide settlement. I don't think the Courier really had anything to do with the community at all, except possibly as a freelance scout or deathclaw exterminator.

 

Is that your thought too Peadar?

[peadar1987]

I always took it that the Courier is blamed by Ulysses irrationally. The Courier handed the package over to NCR scientist/salvage crews, and the Courier survived because they were either far west or far east when the thing went off. Big U couldn't blame the team because they were dead, but he could blame the Courier because the Courier was correlated with both the beginning and ending of the Divide settlement. I don't think the Courier really had anything to do with the community at all, except possibly as a freelance scout or deathclaw exterminator.

 

Is that your thought too Peadar?

 

Yeah, pretty much. I always just thought Ulysses was a crazy person, and the courier was just a delivery person who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. All of his rationalisations and pseudo-philosophy are, for me, just posturing.

[theDemonJackal]

Ulysses always struck me as a fella that was just looking for an outlet. His past mistakes kept catching up to him(former legion) and he needed some way to express that. In comes a courier that blows up a settlement because, like Ulysses himself, was following orders. However, unlike Ulysses' the courier isnt traumatized by it. Its more that he accepts that he didnt know what it was or that it was not his fault as he didnt pull the trigger. Ulysses wants to prove to the courier that no action goes without consequences and decides to hand the chip delivery to that of the Courier. The Courier than proves Ulysses right by showing that Benny's actions caught up with him, as did the couriers. He was now on a side of a war he wasnt involved with in the first place, all because of his delivery of a platinum chip. I have never wanted to Kill Ulysses as I never saw much of a point to ending the man who created you's life. Plus by doing this I prove that I am better than he is.

[Uragan907]

 

The whole "package" thing makes no sense to me at all. I mean, think about it, what kind of idiotic people would create a device that would detonate their nuclear arsenal, in it's silos, just by getting close to those missiles? What exactly would be the purpose of such a device?

 

It would have made so much more sense if, say, someone found the "football" carried around with the President, and sent it to a science team in the Divide.

 

I always thought that was what happened, the "football" was found, brought to the divide, because it had the same markings as the bunkers and silos, and activated, possibly in the hope that it would unlock the doors and the NCR could find valuable military salvage inside. Instead, it set the missiles to fire. They were programmed for targets in China and the USSR, but years of neglect meant that the boosters didn't fire, or the silo doors didn't open, (and by either an unfortunate failure, or a massive engineering oversight, the arming mechanisms on the warheads were set to a timer.) With the timer running, it was just a matter of time before the pressure switches were tripped. The warheads thought they were reentering the earth's atmosphere over China, instead of still sitting in their silos, and detonated.

 

That's how I reconcile it with canon anyway, I totally agree with you, making a device whose sole purpose is to blow up your own missiles in their silos is just daft!

 

 

 

 

Edit (just to make more sense of my previous post): The operation of modern nuclear warheads is classified, but it's reasonable to assume that they aren't actually armed in their silos. They'll be designed to explode a set height above the target, and this will almost certainly be automatic, and not require a signal from the operators (Mutually Assured Destruction requires the missiles to function even if the people who fired them are already dead).

 

The way I'd do it would be to have multiple failsafes, so a flight timer, a radar altimeter, and a barometric altimeter. The warhead is armed when the two altimeters show the missile has reached a certain height, and also when the timer shows a certain time has elapsed since launch. With the bomb armed, it is then given the signal to detonate when both altimeters agree that it is below a certain altitude.

 

However, it's not beyond belief that the US of the Fallout universe would have cut corners safety-wise in order to build more nukes more quickly, and just relied on the timer to tell the bomb when to arm.

 

 

Both Russia and US has those.It's called:the dead man's hand.It means computer controls the launch.

Even if entire military high command is dead the missle will launch automaticly.No winners,only survivors.

What did you think?

[MarchUntoTorment]

Really? I was under the impression that only Russia had an operational Dead Hand system. The US, to my understanding, rely on a network of nuclear submarines and the Cheyenne Mountain facility for commanding retaliatory strikes.

 

Besides, the designer of the Dead Hand system explained a little while ago that it was never designed purely for the purposes of second-strike - rather, it was designed to keep the politicians calm in the event of a suspected nuclear launch. The logic being that even if Moscow was wiped out, they could still retaliate - therefore, the politicians wouldn't freak out. It was put in place after a series of near-apocalyptic false launch positives.

 

On-topic - the above Nuclear Football theory is my preferred one. I also find Ulysses to be a surprisingly sympathetic figure, actually - I can definitely sympathise with his goals, although he's tragic and misguided in that goal; quite possibly driven insane with grief. The closest analogy I've ever found for him is Walker (the protagonist) from Spec Ops: The Line.

[charwo]

I think it was deliberately calibrated by the ENCLAVE at Navarro as a means of striking back at NCR. Effectively, a booby trap. A BIG booby trap. Unfortunately for them, and good for us and America, they didn't count on the silo doors still being closed or otherwise mismanaged the trap.

[MarchUntoTorment]

I think it was deliberately calibrated by the ENCLAVE at Navarro as a means of striking back at NCR. Effectively, a booby trap. A BIG booby trap. Unfortunately for them, and good for us and America, they didn't count on the silo doors still being closed or otherwise mismanaged the trap.

 

Conspiracy theories FTW!

 

However, Navarro fell long before the Divide was destroyed, I'm afraid.

[kkk122]

So the Enclave made it in Navarro before it fell, so that the NCR would find it and when they eventually discover the Divide they would bomb themselves. That way the Enclave that escaped could come back and retake California. The plan wouldn't have to work quickly - they have waited since the Great War, they can wait some more. And who knows how many other deathtraps the Republic avoided in Navarro? As far as conspiracy theories go, I'd say it's pretty good.