History Fanfic / FalloutEquestriaEmptyQuiver

** Loads from the films found at the drive-in theatre, many titles copied verbatim; ''WesternAnimation/TheIronGiant'', ''Film/RockyHorrorPictureShow'', ''Film/TheBigLebowski'', ''Film/WhenTheWindBlows'' and ''[[Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk Daring Do and the Raiders of the Lost Ark]]''.

** There was apparently a pre-war singer going by the name [[Music/VeraLynn Vera Lynn]].

* BigCreepyCrawlies: The ant colony in Seahoof[[spoiler: [[MadeOfExplodium which has been consuming the munitions stored there]].]] A nearby swamp is also home to some dangerous variants of what the characters believe are bloatsprites.

* BiggerIsBetter: Night Strike's overall approach to upgrading weaponry can be best summed up as "[[MoreDakka more]], [[{{BFG}} bigger]] and [[StuffBlowingUp louder]]". So far she's yet to carry anything smaller than a very meaty shotgun.

** Once again with the mercenaries, this time while the Five had hitched a ride aboard the heavily-armed Trout. [[DidNotThinkThisThrough Because attacking a target]] while they're [[TooDumbToLive onboard a gunboat]] [[SarcasmMode is a great idea.]]

* DrillSergeantNasty: Crash Dive suffers from this before eventually [[DefrostingTheIceQueen warming up to the others.]] This is also subverted entirely with Scouring Charge.

* HasTwoDaddies: Both Night Strike and Static Charge. The explanation behind this tends to yield [[INeedAFreakingDrink a few interesting reactions]].

* LadySwearsalot: Night Strike's slowly developing a rather sizable repertoire of phrases, most of them including her private areas and various types of large ordinance and ammunition.

** Though this is more of an obscure reference, the gryphon mercenaries encountered throughout the story all have this going for them. Merlin and Royce are named for engines that powered the Supermarine Spitfire, of which the later variants utilized an engine known as the Rolls-Royce Griffon. Hispano and her sister Suiza likewise are named for the company that produced the 20mm autocannon used extensively by [[UsefulNotes/BritsWithBattleships British forces]] in [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarTwo WWII]], one of which Hispano herself carries as a primary weapon.

* OnlySaneMan: While he has his moments, Static Charge is firmly on this track thanks largely to being the only member of the group not utterly explosive happy, not massively mutated and completely mute, and not bitter and still suffering from lifelong borderline fascist programming. He's also not [[ArsonMurderandJaywalking addicted to Sparkle Cola.]]

** Happens again as they finally reach the Vanhoover Air Base, their last chance for finding a generator. [[spoiler: They do manage to find one, bolted to the back of a truck at that, but first there's a small matter of an [[ThoseMagnificentFlyingMachines air race...]]]]

* CrowningMomentOfFunny: Most of Page 30, where Night Strike's hospital visit produces some unexpected results.

** [[spoiler: Contrail's own personal aircraft is seen on page 100, a jet known as the Icarus. While you might expect a standard turbine or two for propulsion, such isn't the case - the Icarus runs on a pair of Pulsejets, and if the story is to be believed they were ripped wholesale from a pair of the Equestrian equivalent of [[NazisWithGnarlyWeapons V-1 Cruise Missiles]].]]

** [[spoiler: Quick Fire, the gunner of the [=BT-42=], owns a pristinely-kept [[FinnsWithFearsomeForests Lahti L39 20mm Anti-Tank rifle]]. [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill He uses it for hunting]].]]

** [[spoiler: Quick Fire, the gunner of the [=BT-42=], owns a pristinely-kept [[FinnsWithFearsomeForests Lahti L39 20mm Anti-Tank rifle]]. [[ThereIsNoKillLikeOverkill He uses it for hunting]].]]

** Seen with the Tank Ghouls as well, if somewhat expected. Rangefinder's tank is outfitted with a pintle-mounted [=M2HB=] Browning fifty cal for the commander, while Rheinmetall's tank Porschia can equip an MG42 on a cupola mount. [[spoiler: Caution Tape's tank takes the cake, though, sporting no less than SEVEN M2 Brownings, two of them alone in a commander's mount on the main turret.]]

* ColdBloodedTorture: [[spoiler: Night Strike of all people resorts to this in a rather disturbing twist, and more alarmingly it's done almost entirely in the name of personal revenge.]]

* MadeOfIron: Not immediately obvious, but Static Charge proves to be capable of taking a surprising level of damage and still going. Enough that, upon arriving at a clinic after being shoryuken'd into a tree, the medic notes most ponies wouldn't have even been left standing. A more literal example are the characters outfitted with PowerArmour.
* MacrossMissileMassacre: Scouring Charge's main weapon, Sunburst, is a fully-automatic rapid-fire missile launcher, based off of the Red Glare from [[VideoGame/FalloutNewVegas Lonesome Road.

** [[spoiler: With the HMS Cadence up and running for the most part, it's sizable complement of anti-air batteries have been able to put to use as of page 94. A [[{{BFG}} 4-inch quick-firing gun]] loaded with a flak shell, and [[MoreDakka about eight 40mm autocannons]] tends to be prety effective against most flying stuff.]]

** [[spoiler: Quick Fire, the gunner of the [=BT-42=], owns a pristinely-kept [[FinnsWithFearsomeForests Lahti L39 20mm Anti-Tank rifle]]. [[NoKillLikeOverkill He uses it for hunting]].]]

** [[spoiler:More often than not this tends to backfire rather than be played straight. When Night Strike storms what appears to be a group of raiders torturing Minty Candy, she almost ends up killing a group simply subjecting him to bad films for their own humour.]]

* LeaningontheFourthWall: The writers aren't above highlighting the odd moments from the Fallout games in their stories, or even gameplay mechanics. Notably, when Night Strike is separated from the group, she performs a mental double-take as her Pipbuck is pointing towards somewhere she has never been and lists her main objective as finding Minty Candy.

** [[spoiler: A much more severe threat later rears its head when a mechanical sea serpent shows up to threaten the heroes.]]

** The tank ghouls play some part in this as well, as three of them carry roof-mounted machine guns originally meant for AA defense. [[spoiler: Not to mention Rheinmetall's tank mounting the 8.8cm [=KwK=] 36, which due to it being based off of the Flak 18/36 allows it to fire the air-burst Flak 88 shells used with the guns found at the sub pen... provided the dragons are flying low enough, anyways.]]

** [[spoiler: One of the tanks shipped in from Cordite to assist is named the Liberty Bell. Matching with the real tank, crews of the [=SOMUA=] S35 remarked that, due to the thick cast hull and turret armor, when struck with the anti-tank weaponry of the day, the tank had a tendency to ring like a bell would.]]

* MildlyMilitary: [[spoiler: Seen in the friendly Enclave Remnant forces that arrive to aid in operating the HMS Cadence. It's a stricter example than most given they're composed of the largest military organization found in Equestria for near on 200 years straight, but, well, they are still remnants.]]

* BreatherEpisode: Given the action heavy nature of many sequences, the story can be divided between slower paced and more character driven segments, and arcs which press ahead with the main plot. This can often lead into the story adding an
InnocuouslyImportantEpisode without the reader realising it until they're halfway through the story.

* BigBad: Page 38 has the gryphon mercs that were initially sent after them give the name of the person paying for their heads, an entity that calls itself Cerberus.

* NoKillLikeOverkill: Night Strike incarnate. Considering her favorite weapons are a 40mm shotgun/grenade rifle and a fully-automatic sniper rifle chambered for a round commonly used for destroying military materiel, it doesn't take too much to see this in action.
** [[spoiler: Oh, and that grenade rifle? The same chapter she gets her automatic .50 cal sniper rifle, she also gets some new ammunition for Thumper. Said ammunition has a blast yield equivalent to a Balefire Egg, Fallout Equestria's equivalent to the Fat Man's [[StuffBlowingUp small tactical nuclear warhead]].]]

** [[spoiler: And as of page 88, the HMS Cadence as a whole is going to be brought out in full force. It's less breaking out a piece from the museum as it is breaking out the ''[[UpToEleven entire museum]]'' itself.

** [[spoiler: The HMS Cadence herself is one of these, having been maintained in mostly working order for two and a half centuries by Fowler. Less of a ChekhovsGun and more of a [[UpToEleven Chekhov's Gun''ship'']].

** [[spoiler: The Tank Ghouls of Maple Station have given names to their tanks as well; Mad Jack's Churchill AVRE 'Avery'; Rangefinder's Sherman Firefly 'Fyre'; Rheinmetall's Porsche Tiger 'Porschia'; and Caution Tape's yet-unseen 'Deathtrap'.]]

--> Sharpwing, while discussing the fireproof fabric used for the Stork's flight surfaces: "That, and, uh, this was all they had left of it. Heavy Strike said that Fast Track set most of what wasn't used in the airship's balloon on fire... somehow."