Centaur

Creatures & Mutants · Source: Fallout, Fallout 2, Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas

Centaurs are among the most horrific products of the Forced Evolutionary Virus (FEV) — grotesque chimeras created when The Master's army, and later other FEV-wielding factions, exposed multiple subjects (often humans combined with animals) to FEV simultaneously, resulting in a fused, multi-limbed abomination. The name derives from a superficial resemblance to the mythical half-human, half-horse creatures, though the comparison becomes deeply ironic upon viewing an actual centaur's anatomy.

A typical centaur's body is a study in biological wrongness: multiple human heads with varying degrees of consciousness, asymmetrical limbs that may include both human and animal appendages, and a torso that appears to have been assembled from mismatched parts. They move with a shambling, multi-limbed gait — some using human arms as forelegs, others possessing actual animal limbs — and the sounds they produce are a chorus of overlapping, discordant vocalizations. Their tongues are elongated, prehensile, and used as a ranged weapon to strike at prey.

Centaurs serve primarily as terror weapons and guard creatures for Super Mutant encampments. They are universally hostile to non-mutants and will attack on sight. Despite their horrific appearance, individual centaurs are not particularly durable — their fused anatomy leaves them with numerous structural weaknesses — and concentrated fire will bring them down. The Evo-Centaur variant, seen in the Capital Wasteland, represents a later 'refinement' of the centaur concept with more unified anatomy and increased combat effectiveness. The psychological impact of encountering centaurs should not be underestimated: many otherwise-seasoned wastelanders report lasting psychological trauma from centaur encounters.

Tags: FEV, Mutant, Chimera, Abomination, Super Mutant, Horror, The Master