Mariposa Military Base
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« This is Captain Pickard reporting at checkpoint 1. Contact with checkpoints 2 & 3 has been cut off. We can only assume the worst. The monsters are swarming up the mineshafts. All efforts to delay them have failed. We'll try to hold them at this position as long as we can. » Cap. Pickard's last report during the Enclave's escape from Mariposa. |
Contents
Mariposa in FOnline: Aftertimes
- The bottom level differs from Fallout 1 and 2. The Vats have been removed and replaced with a Professional Machinery
- Player-killers usually camp this area, so it is recommended to go there in groups.
Background
Mariposa Military Base was a top-secret United States military facility built to house Forced Evolutionary Virus research previously conducted at West Tek, located somewhere in the area of the Mariposa unincorporated community in California. The name Mariposa means "butterfly" in Spanish.
History
Pre-War History
The construction of Mariposa started in October 2076 when large progress was made in FEV research, and the government preferred to move the project to a location under military supervision. In January 2077, all the scientists involved in the project moved there with a military squad commanded by Colonel Spindal and Captain Roger Maxson. The FEV project was then moved to Mariposa and tested on human subjects. The vats were giant tanks filled with liquid FEV. As part of the research project, human subjects were dipped inside them and then examined to learn how to control and harness the process. The experiments on humans were kept secret even from Spindel and his soldiers.
Wartime Events
On October 10 2077, Maxson and his men were discovered that the scientists at Mariposa were using military prisoners as test subjects in their experiments with the Forced Evolutionary Virus. Spindel committed suicide five days later and Maxson's men turned to him for leadership. Investigating the base, Maxson and his squad killed all the scientists and declared they were deserting from the army via radio, on October 20. As the army was busy then fighting the Chinese threat, no troops were sent there, and three days later, the Great War began and the bombs were launched.
The Mariposa Military Base survived, the soldiers within protected from the radiation and FEV flooding the wasteland. After burying the scientists in the wastes outside of Mariposa, the soldiers sealed the military base, then headed out into the desert, taking supplies and weapon schematics with them. Captain Maxson led his men and families to the government bunker at Lost Hills, eventually forming the Brotherhood of Steel. The base was left sealed, but over the years, it slowly fell into disrepair, and eventually various creatures made their way inside, mutating due to FEV exposure and infesting the surrounding area, attacking fledgling human settlements and caravans. The problem was becoming increasingly severe, to the point when Harold, a caravan master from the Hub, mounted an expedition in 2102 to locate and destroy the source of mutants.
Master's Army
Dr. Richard Grey was one of the explorers who was part of the expedition, and was the only survivor with Harold. Both landed in vats, and as Harold managed to escape, Grey remained in the base, attracting wanderers around him to make the first Super Mutants. In 2155, they discovered the LA vault, and moved there to build the Cathedral. The base was entrusted to the Lieutenant, one of the greatest supermutant minds to exist. Mariposa was rebuilt and cleaned up, once again becoming the magnificent military base it was before the war. Supermutants roamed the halls, restocking the armories and medical base and soon it became the staging area for their assault on humanity, as well as the only supermutant production center. Then came the Vault Dweller in 2162. It is unknown whether or not he infiltrated the base or blasted his way in - suffice to say, once he was through, Mariposa was little more than a caved-in, smoldering ruin
Enclave's Excavations
In 2236, the Enclave discovered the remnants of the Mariposa Base. Soon, assault squads combed the desert for slaves they could use to mine the military base and get to the vats. One of the squads included soldier Frank Horrigan. Enclave construction crews, as well as human and super mutant slaves began excavations. In September they uncovered FEV, and mutations began to occur in the human workers. Frank Horrigan comes into contact with the virus and is sent to the Enclave labs for study.
In 2237, having obtained the FEV data, the Enclave abandoned the site after more mutations occurred, causing 2nd Generation super mutants to arise. The Enclave left a single squad behind to wipe out the super mutants, but the mutants, using armaments they had cached in the base during excavation, won the battle. The remaining 1st and 2nd Generation super mutant slaves decided to remain in the Base, and the group formed a new community under the leadership of Melchior, whose magic talents had allowed them to hide the weapons.
See also
Location
Mariposa is located at Grid 15:27 (center western area, directly west of Shady Sands).
