The Great War of 2077
Events & Timeline · Source: Fallout Wiki; CBR
The Great War of 2077 was the cataclysmic global thermonuclear exchange that fundamentally reshaped the world of Fallout, reducing it to a radioactive wasteland. The conflict, which lasted only two hours on October 23, 2077, was the culmination of decades of escalating global tensions known as the Resource Wars. These wars began around 2050 due to the depletion of fossil fuels, leading to widespread economic collapse, military interventions, and the dissolution of international bodies like the United Nations. Key events leading to the Great War included the United States' invasion of Mexico for oil, the European Commonwealth's devastating conflict in the Middle East, and the annexation of Canada by the U.S. to secure resources and supply lines.
The immediate precursor to the Great War was the Sino-American War, which ignited in 2066 when China invaded Alaska to seize its dwindling oil reserves. This decade-long conflict saw the deployment of advanced weaponry, including American Power Armor, and a costly U.S. invasion of mainland China. By October 2077, despite the liberation of Anchorage, a desperate stalemate had been reached, with both superpowers exhausted but unwilling to yield. Amidst this backdrop, the United States was also secretly conducting research into bio-weapons, specifically the Forced Evolutionary Virus (FEV), which China had demanded they cease.
On the morning of October 23, 2077, the world descended into nuclear fire. While the exact initiator remains a point of some debate within the lore, with in-game sources and Fallout co-creator Tim Cain indicating China launched first in response to the U.S.'s FEV research, the United States quickly retaliated. Within approximately two hours, nuclear warheads rained down across the globe, obliterating cities, disrupting the climate, and causing billions of casualties. The vast majority of the global population perished, and the planet was transformed into a radioactive wasteland, forever altering the course of human civilization.
In the immediate aftermath, remnants of the U.S. government and military, collectively known as the Enclave, retreated to secure bunkers and an offshore oil rig, planning for a post-war continuation of their authority. Meanwhile, millions of ordinary citizens who had sought refuge in Vault-Tec's underground shelters were sealed away, many unknowingly becoming subjects of social experiments. The Great War's legacy is the irradiated, dangerous world encountered in the Fallout games, characterized by mutated creatures, lingering radiation, and the struggle for survival amidst the ruins of a technologically advanced but ultimately self-destructive civilization.
Tags: Nuclear War, Apocalypse, Sino-American War, Resource Wars, 2077, Global Conflict, FEV