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Illustration of Feral ghoul
Original AI-made illustration based on the descriptions in the sources. Not an official design.
File No. 143 of 446

Feral ghoul

Also called: Ghoul
GamesInfected, still aliveVariesRadiation1968 to 1999

The zombie of the Fallout series, with the difference that it never died. Ghouls are humans kept alive and disfigured by radiation; most stay sane, but ferals have lost their minds and attack on sight. Inspirations included Richard Matheson's I Am Legend and accounts of radiation poisoning.1

Battle it
First appeared
1997
Fallout (1997)
Source work
Fallout (1997)
Interplay Entertainment
Made in
USA
What causes it
Radiation
Radiation, with other pollutants such as the Forced Evolutionary Virus, mutated survivors of the nuclear war into ghouls; in time the brain degrades and the ghoul goes feral.
How you become one
A ghoul whose mind has decayed over decades or centuries.
How it moves
Varies
Shambles around familiar places and attacks in packs.
Intelligence
Mindless

When did it first appear?

Ancient worldMiddle Ages1500 to 18991900 to 19671968 to 19992000 to 20092010 to today1997

Fallout (1997)

field notes

What the sources say

1

Alive, not undead: 'zombie' is an insult in the Fallout world1

2

Their bodies regenerate, so they can live for centuries1

3

Low-level radiation does not hurt them1

4

Haunt supermarkets and drive-ins out of something like muscle memory1

5

In Fallout 3 their skin texture was made from photographs of packaged chicken1

6

Ghouls were called 'Bloodmen' during development of the first game1

Could you outrun it?

Speed class from how the sources describe it (varies), not a measurement.

You, walking about 5 km/h (3.1 mph)
You, jogging about 10 km/h (6.2 mph)
Feral ghoul about 10 km/h (6.2 mph)
A fit adult sprinting about 24 km/h (15 mph)
A fast cyclist about 37 km/h (23 mph)

Sources

  1. Ghoul (Fallout) - Wikipedia

Every fact on this page comes from these sources, written in our own words. Spotted a mistake? Tell us at [email protected].

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