Escaping Vault 111, Rescuing the Minutemen, and Fixing the Pump in Episode 1
Watch Fallout 4 Gameplay Walkthrough Episode 1: From Vault 111 to The Commonwealth | 4K 60FPS PC Ultra Graphics
Our Fallout 4 walkthrough kicks off with one of the most iconic intros in RPG history, thrusting us from a peaceful pre-war morning right into the devastating reality of the Great War. After rushing to Vault 111 just as the nuclear bombs detonate, our protagonist is tricked into cryogenic sleep, only to wake up temporarily to witness a mysterious mercenary stealing their infant son, Shaun, and tragically murdering their spouse.
Waking up for real years later, we navigate the eerie, frozen halls of the vault, fighting off giant radroaches and grabbing the classic 10mm pistol before stepping onto the vault elevator. Emerging into the blinding, beautiful light of the Commonwealth wasteland sets the stage for our massive open-world adventure, completely driven by the overarching search intent of every new player: exploring the wasteland and finding Shaun.
Returning to Sanctuary Hills and Reuniting with Codsworth
Stepping back into our old neighborhood of Sanctuary Hills is a surreal experience, as the mid-century modern homes are now heavily irradiated, dilapidated ruins. Here, we reunite with Codsworth, our faithful Mister Handy robot who has spent the last two centuries trying to polish rust and keep the house tidy while waiting for our return. Searching the ruined houses yields some essential early-game scrap and crafting materials, which is a crucial habit to build early on in any Fallout 4 gameplay guide.
Lore Fact: While the public thought they were just surviving the apocalypse, Vault 111 was actually a sinister Vault-Tec experiment designed to observe the long-term physiological effects of cryogenic suspended animation on unaware subjects, with the security staff meant to monitor them indefinitely.
Discovering Red Rocket Truck Stop and Recruiting Dogmeat
After thoroughly picking Sanctuary clean, our journey pushes us down the road toward Concord, bringing us to the highly recognizable Red Rocket Truck Stop. This location serves as an excellent early-game player home and crafting hub, but more importantly, it is where we meet the absolute best companion in the game: Dogmeat.
This incredibly loyal German Shepherd immediately joins our side without judgment, ready to sniff out hidden loot, pin down enemies, and keep us company in the desolate Commonwealth wasteland. Securing Dogmeat early is highly recommended for survival, as his “Attack Dog” perk capabilities make early-game crowd control significantly easier when dealing with fast-moving feral ghouls or mole rats.
The Museum of Freedom, Preston Garvey, and the First Deathclaw
Our walkthrough episode heats up as we enter Concord and answer a distress call at the Museum of Freedom, where Preston Garvey and the last surviving remnants of the Commonwealth Minutemen are under siege by Raiders.
Slugging our way through the museum’s exhibits, we help the settlers and are directed to the roof, where we acquire our first set of T-45 Power Armor and a devastating Minigun. Leaping from the roof in the power armor to mow down the remaining raiders feels incredible, but it quickly escalates into a terrifying boss fight when a massive Deathclaw erupts from the sewers, forcing us to use cars as cover while whittling down its massive health pool.
Lore Fact: Deathclaws aren’t just random irradiated monsters; they were heavily genetically engineered before the Great War by the U.S. military utilizing Jackson’s Chameleon DNA and were intended to replace human troops in close-quarters combat.
Rebuilding Sanctuary and Joining the Commonwealth Minutemen
With the Concord threat neutralized, I took a brief detour to do some wasteland exploring, gathering valuable junk and leveling up before heading back to rendezvous with Preston’s group at Sanctuary. Back at our old home, the settlers begin establishing a base, and after speaking with Preston Garvey, I officially agreed to join the Minutemen cause, taking on the responsibility of rebuilding this fractured faction.
Preston immediately hands over the title of General, which is the stepping stone to Fallout 4’s robust settlement building system. This opens up a ton of gameplay potential, as we transition from a lone wanderer trying to survive to a leader intent on uniting the Commonwealth and establishing safe havens for its people.
Thicket Excavations and Surviving the Underwater Mirelurk Ambush
While helping the new Sanctuary settlers get situated, I set out to assist with some local mechanical issues, discovering a unique side quest found just east of Sanctuary at Thicket Excavations with an NPC named Sully Mathis. This quest requires braving irradiated waters to dive down and fix several leaky air bubbles on the submerged pipes so the quarry can be drained.
After successfully sealing the leaks and activating the main pump, the engine noise awakens a horde of hostile Mirelurks, which I had to strategically take down with Sully’s help. Clearing this area is a great way to earn early caps and experience, wrapping up an incredibly productive and action-packed first episode of our Fallout 4 playthrough!
Lore Fact: Mirelurks are heavily mutated descendants of the Chesapeake Bay horseshoe crab, whose aggressive evolutionary growth and natural armor plating were accelerated by the massive amounts of radiation dumped into the Commonwealth’s water systems.
