History VideoGame / FalloutDust

* TheFamine: The fall of the Mojave means that there is almost no food sources left forcing people to either scavenge for whatever scraps that still remain or resort to [[ImAHumanitarian cannibalism]].

* ObligatoryWarCrimeScene: It's revealed that the NCR were conducting dubious experiments underneath the Strip. [[spoiler: Which also explains why the Cloud envelops New Vegas.]]

Has a spiritual successor in the form of ''VideoGame/FalloutFrost''; a similar Survival Horror inspired ''Fallout'' mod made by the same author, this time taking place only a couple of years afer the bombs dropped.

* BoringButPractical: Scarcity of ammuntion makes sticks, spears and GoodOldFisticuffs much more of a go-to option. [[GlassCannon Within reason]].

* GameMod: While most ''New Vegas'' mods will conflict with ''DUST'' due to the gameplay[=/=]setting[=/=]characters overhaul, [[https://fnvdust.fandom.com/wiki/Mods_for_DUST a few mods]] specifically made to modify ''DUST'' mechanics are available, like bugfixes, removal of owned label on items, reenabling fast travel, slowing down the hunger[=/=]thirst meters' decrease, turning [[spoiler:the Courier]] into a follower, fixing an oversight making stealth useless against Tunnelers...

** Whatever cohesion that held the NCR together is steadily declining by the time of DUST. Not only have the remnants adopted a paranoid shoot-on-sight policy for any wastelander letters left behind by disgruntled soldiers imply barbary has become the norm inside the army too. [[DisproportionateRetribution One unit was shot at by their own superiors simply because they didn't have their uniforms on]].

** Whatever cohesion that held the NCR together is steadily declining by the time of DUST. Not only has the NCR adopted a paranoid shoot-on-sight policy for any wastelander, letters left behind by disgruntled soldiers imply barbary has become the norm inside the army too. [[DisproportionateRetribution One soldier's unit was shot at simply because they didn't have their uniforms on]].

* MilitariesAreUseless: PlayedWith. The NCR's authority in the Mojave is non-existent by the time of DUST. You'd expect [[TheRemnant the units left behind]] to organize. They do - [[ArmiesAreEvil against everyone else]]. The NCR will shoot anyone else on-sight just like any paranoid survivor and have no interest in peacekeeping Vegas.

** Happened to the current residents of Novac, which has become [[spoiler: The Land of Mo-Tel]] in the intervening years. A Legion Centurion occupied the town during the Second Battle of Hoover Dam, only for food to become an issue. [[NoPartyLikeADonnerParty The obvious solution]] led to the tribe [[spoiler: devolving into a mad cult that worships the town dinosaur]] by the time of DUST. Most of the Legion identity has leaked into the current cult-gospel, though the Centurion has a shrine dedicated to him in a shack at the edge of town; the only proper remnant of what the tribe used to be.

* SequelLogoInRuins: DUST's title screen is an eerie shell of the base game's - a gloomy, washed-out variant of the vanilla image whose edges are corrupted with blood red; all while an ominous BrownNote plays in the background.

* ArtificialStupidity: DUST greatly ramps up enemies' Perception and field of view. While this makes stealth more important, it also has the effect of invalidating it at times. Enemies have a tendency to loop in-and-out of alert status unless you're well enough away from the immediate area. It isn't uncommon for you to have hid from an enemy only for them to suddenly re-investigate and flush you out of an otherwise-perfect hiding spot.

* NoFEMAResponse: Zig-zagged. The NCR have essentially disowned the Mojave, leaving all units and camps stationed there to its mercy. A Survivor that escapes however [[spoilers: will be rescued by NCR (or Followers allied to them) willing to help]].

* {{Nerf}}: The December 2020 Update to Manan's Tweaks removes the ability to auto-repair the Makeshift Scythe/Axe on-the-spot. Breaking these down now gives you a Dull Blade you need to re-sharpen with a Whet Stone first before you can re-craft them.

** An interesting case is Cottonwood Cove, which has become [[spoiler: a cannibal camp renamed to "Aurelia", still lead by Aurelius of Phoenix who has gone mad and become a cannibal himself. Despite this, he still wears his Legion armor, and governs as if he's still giving Legion-style orders, although said orders are completely insane and arbitrary.]]

** Zion isn't much better, having become a battlefield between tribals descended from survivors of Caesar's Legion and a NCR expedition hanging by a thread.

* {{Leitmotif}}: Vera Keyes' "Begin Again" from the ''Dead Money'' add-on (the distorded version played inside the Sierra Madre Casino) serves as the unofficial theme song for Dust; heard during initial character-creation as well as [[spoiler: from a jukebox in Vault 74]] and for [[spoiler: when an insane Survivor's hallucination takes them to the Nightmare]].

** Speaking of the NCR, the Brotherhood remained suspicious of them during the entirety of ''New Vegas''. The Elder's bunker lockdown inspired the NCR to [[spoiler: suffocate everyone inside with toxic waste during The Fall]]. Only a few stragglers of the Valley chapter remain and [[GoingNative it's implied they've become just as paranoid as the rest of the wasteland]].

* TheComputerIsACheatingBastard: Tunnelers retain all of the stats they had from ''Lonesome Road,'' an end-game campaign even Level 50 characters in the vanilla game would have issues with. This means they can detect you from immensely long distances, even easier if you're sneaking due to a bug, and ambush you at any moment. Thankfully, [[https://www.nexusmods.com/newvegas/mods/60519/ there's a mod]] that makes this more manageable and accounts for the sneaking bug.

* GameMod: While most ''New Vegas'' mods will conflict with ''DUST'' due to the gameplay[=/=]setting[=/=]characters overhaul, [[https://fnvdust.fandom.com/wiki/Mods_for_DUST a few mods]] specifically made to modify ''DUST'' mechanics are available, like bugfixes, removal of owned label on items, reenabling fast travel, slowing down the hunger[=/=]thirst meters' decrease, turning [[spoiler:the Courier]] into a follower...

** There's also the note from a Legionaire in Nipton who fell into a tribe after the Battle of Hoover Dam. He greeted an old friend with the Legion's signature 'Ave,' only to get a strange look.

** [[spoiler: Father Elijah helped the NCR get their hands on the Cloud during their expedition to the Sierra Madre, helping set the events of the entire mod in motion. Unlike Royst and Bernard, he is long since dead.]]
* GunshipRescue: [[spoiler: One way out involves a Vertibird inside Camp [=McCarran=].]]

* MultipleEndings: Subverted. Your only real goal is to get to safety but there are multiple ways of going about that, each of which get more complex.

* PreviousPlayerCharacterCameo: [[spoiler: The Courier (who looks like a bald, ghoulified version of Vanilla's Ulysses) can be encountered in a cave named "The Tomb" (formerly Lake Mead Cave). Unless you've installed the appropriate Companion mod, he's hostile.]]

* SafeZoneHopeSpot: The Strip is one for Survivors. The prevailing rumor is that The Strip is the last holdout of humanity, ruled by the NCR. [[ForbiddenZone The truth is]] [[UrbanRuins way more depressing]].

* TookALevelInKindness: The NCR in California is run by good guy faction Followers of the Apocalypse. Resources are spent on bringing the people responsible for what happened in the Mojave to justice, as well as dispersing the cloud from other places and taking care of refugees from such places. [[spoiler:On the other hand, it's mentioned that Kimball is still President of the NCR, implying that he managed to cash in on his war hero credentials while also swaying the Followers to support his rule. One ending nonetheless has you end up in a friendly, NCR-run refugee camp.]]

** The ''Understone Enhanced'' mod has none other than Goodsprings' own Chet as one of its shopkeepers.

* TruceZone: For a definition of "truce" in the paranoid Mojave, granted. The Emergency Services Train Yard contains the only place in the game where the local authorities (IE: The [=BoS=] soldiers there) won't attack you on sight.

* TruceZone: For a definition of "truce" in the paranoid Mojave, granted. The Emergency Services Train Yard contains the only place in the game where the local authorities (IE: The BoS soldiers there) won't attack you on sight.