Mod: Bringing back the Zeta

[mazakala]

So I'm working on a mod that would bring back Mothership Zeta and the Lone Wanderer from Fallout 3 as a major new faction. The mod would be a spiritual successor to Nylonathathep's Zeta Crew mod and would significantly alter the game's main quests and ending.

I'm currently working on models, as there is little else to do now and there's a lot of modeling to be done to recreate the Zeta and its interiors.

I'm currently looking for ideas and perspectives for the plot as well as potential collaborators if this mod takes off.

How would you feel about the Fallout 3 PC reappearing in Fallout 4? Would it be better to portray him/her in whatever way seems closest to canon (white male character) or let the player recreate the Lone Wanderer to their liking?

Any other ideas?

[BlandSauce]

 

Would it be better to portray him/her in whatever way seems closest to canon (white male character) or let the player recreate the Lone Wanderer to their liking?

One possibility could be to make them a twin of the FO4 protagonist, because one would assume players make similar characters across the games. It depends on the tone you want to go for. If it's more comedic, this could work; serious, not so much.

Or have a male and a female based on the default looks from FO3 could work, and give the player a choice somehow. A full face menu for another character could get a little weird, depending on how it's presented.

Or just have them silent with power armor they never remove.

 

One thought on plot in general, is having a "player character" as an NPC, you could easily make them an overpowered Mary Sue, in a humorous way. I haven't played 3 for quite a while, so I forget anything too crazy that was available. Controlled Deathclaws from Broken Steel? Obviously, spaceship you already have. Megaton nuke waiting somewhere, though you already have ship's big laser. Stealing Liberty Prime should be an option. I wonder how well Lone Wanderer canonically gets along with BoS' current leadership and attitude.

 

A potential plot, really only fits the over-the-top tone; LW shows up really late in main quest, sometime around Mass Fusion, maybe? His whole goal is just to rule (or have) everything, with some demented dense of goodness. Like an extreme BoS, but less genocidal. A "If you leave me alone, I'll leave you alone. If you help me, I'll help you. If you fight me, I will screw you up" regardless of race, type attitude. Anyway, LW shows up, maybe primarily to take Institute tech instead of blowing it up. You help out a bit (or don't). Either team up with them and rule by their side (with a romance option), defeat them and carry on what they're doing yourself, or have them as just another loose end to blow up if you go with one of the default factions. Or a potential peaceful solution of you give them a bunch of cool stuff and convince them there's more somewhere else. Essentially New Vegas, with LW standing in as House.

[mazakala]

 

Or just have them silent with power armor they never remove.

 

 

Thanks for the feedback! My initial idea was to have a male Lone Wanderer with a helmet he doesn't usually remove, a bit Darth Vader-esque. I also thought about a "folklorist" character contacting the player, asking questions about the legend of the Lone Wanderer, allowing the player to design him/her. I kinda like the first idea better though.

 

I would try to keep a serious tone rather than making it parody. The Zeta questline would start near the end of the main quest, depending on who the player sides with. The LW would want to preserve (and conquer) the Institute (for their tech) and destroy and/or humiliate the BOS (for plot reasons). The player could bargain with what they have and join the LW, or get blown up with the death ray.

 

The background story would be that the BOS, or Maxson specifically, lied about why they are in the Commonwealth. The real reason is not to

destroy the Institute

but rather to look for any battle to boost morale after the LW banished the BOS from Purity. Maxson would be the only one who actually knows about Zeta, which explains his frustration. he

hates synths

to repress his anxiety over the death ray looming over his head. The player resents Maxson for abandoning the Lyons doctrine in favor of old BOS ways, and suspects that conservative BOS figures were behind Sarah Lyons' death. The LW keeps Sarah's body on ice in hopes of being able to bring her back some day, spending time brooding over the cryopod.

If the player

sides with the Institute, they will have a poweful bargaining chip. The LW will show up when Airship Down starts, diverting the questline.

If the player

sides with the BOS, they will be confronted by the LW and his version of events as the player is tasked with blowing up the Institute. The LW will ask the player to betray Maxson instead.

If the player

sides with the Minutemen or the Railroad, they will have less to bargain with and will have to work their way up the ranks if they want to join LW's faction.

 

Edited January 5, 2016 by mazakala