The Divide Expanded

[devinpatterson]

Oh, almost forgot, cave fungus would be an interesting crop in the divide.

[greenknightfury]

Well, as to the Tunneler's origins, there are some terminal entries that suggest they were around before the war (strange noises and things seen while excavating for the facilities) but then they have a tendency to ignore in game info (especially from terminal entries) when they state the official lore in the wikis.

 

So we have some interesting possible origins to explore, are they:

 

1) Just some unknown monster from even before the war, revealed in all it's horror onto the world by the Divide 2nd bombardment?

 

Well some might say this would be very bad lore-wise, yet if you read the terminals (and believe them more than scientists that you learn have had their memories and minds altered somewhat haphazardly) in Big MT. nightstalkers are that way when they first discover them (shipped as new "dogs" to use for cyberdog experiments by their Mojave based supplier). Not to mention the Swamp Folk of Point Lookout (FO3) obviously being mutated by the virus that the medical team was there to examine for/treat, plus imbreeding, as it's symptoms match their strange peculiarities. It also fits into the world as a homage to the classic sci-fi monster movie tradition.

 

2) Vault style experiment.

 

I'd say more likely a Enclave backed military experiment in a hidden facility deeper than any of the official Divide installations, given some major power disruptions and panic as the War goes on above them, they lose containment of the experiment and either get changed themselves or killed by the specimens (ala Aliens Resurrection or most "bioweapon zombie" movies). In which case the "core nest" would most likely be the remains of that facility, perhaps constructed in a natural deep cavern.

 

3) Complete accident.

 

Perhaps some form of experimentation was taking place in deep "black" facilities (Vault tec or pure military, maybe Enclave military) in the area, destroyed/damaged in the War their experimental substances leaked into the now highly irradiated areas that now included both those facilities and the portions of the city above that fell into the caverns from the bombardment, mixing and changing as they are exposed to the cavern environment and rads, infecting and changing the survivors into the strange reptilian/insectoid humanoids now known as Tunnelers.