A robot is a machine capable of autonomously completing tasks. Depending upon the robot, these tasks may be simple or complex and may require little human intervention or complete oversight.
In the Fallout series, robots had been constructed by pre-War society to fill all niches and occupations. From general-purpose utility droids to full-fledged war machines, many of these robots still function long after the Great War, and can be found in almost any environment. Some robots will attack immediately, while others will aid in battle or remain ambivalent. Roboticists are still active in the wasteland, sometimes developing new variants based on the technology available.
Background
At the time of the Great War, robots were just making their appearance in the average suburban household, with most being used for military or industrial purposes. Still-functioning robots can be found in isolated former military bases, or have been restored by settlements with the sophisticated technology needed to keep them running.[Non-game 1]
Characteristics
Typically, robots are equipped with a basic programming structure that dictates behavior and priorities. In most cases, these rules are predetermined, and there is little the player can do to influence them. Some robots also have distinct personalities. Some robots, such as the Nuka-Cola shipping foreman have harsh personalities while others, such as the Protectron series, have little personality at all.
At times, this personality may operate at odds with the fundamental core programming of the robot. Examples of this discontent include Cerberus, the Mister Gutsy guard who patrols Underworld. Despite programming to protect the ghouls of the city, Cerberus nevertheless admits quite freely that he detests ghouls and, were it not for his combat inhibitor, would likely kill them all. Sawbones, the resident medic at the Citadel, has an unhealthy interest in pain driven by his personality, while his programming states he is a medic. Many Robobrains, when fighting will say things like "They could have programmed me to love, to forgive; but noooooo," or "Please believe me when I say I'm not enjoying this." Robots can even exhibit finicky personalities. One such Mister Gutsy Sergeant RL-3 will dislike anyone without neutral Karma.
Even robotic butlers show contrary streaks, although these aberrations are less likely to cause grievous bodily injury. The butler present in the player's home in Fallout 3 is often overheard saying with a cheery voice "How can I serve you master?" while muttering, "Not that I really want to..." a little while after.
Robots are often pressed into emergency duty outside their normal menu of skills, although this meets with varying degrees of success. A general-maintenance Mister Handy may make for a poor medic.
Without proper supervision, robots may handle situations rather extremely. Metro Protectron will kill anyone who does not have a ticket. On top of this, they do not accept red pass or blue passcards, meaning someone traveling on these lines may be attacked even with proper authorization. The factory Protectron mentioned on a computer terminal in the Pitt killed all the workers when they refused to leave the mill and their jobs. Also, Milo the shipping foreman, a type II Mister Handy robot, had trapped a group of employees in a locked closet to die, and for very minor infractions (taking a longer lunch break, for example). Many robots also feature a combat "inhibitor", which if destroyed, will send the robot into a violent frenzy.
Interactions with the player character
While some robots in the wasteland are peaceful, most follow centuries-old programming or, newer programming that classifies the player as a threat.
Most robots are highly resistant to damage from conventional weapons. Like all electronics however, robots are vulnerable to the effects of an EMP.
A high enough Repair skill and certain perks can also disable inattentive robots, while a sufficient Science skill can be used to shut down or reconfigure patrolling mechanical robots, usually via a nearby terminal.
List of robots
| Name | Details | Game(s) |
|---|---|---|
| Alien turret | An alien turret equipped with an electric cannon. | 
|
| Assaultron | Constructed by RobCo Industries and sold to the US military as a frontline combatant. It is fast and deadly at close range and employs a devastating laser at a distance. Some units can even employ Stealth technology. |  
|
| Assistant robot | A small box-shaped robot, able to move objects with its two hands. | 
|
| Automated turret | An automated, machine gun which is capable of detecting and attacking targets that are hostile to the faction or organization to which it belongs. |  
|
| Automatron | Specially crafted companions designed by the Sole Survivor to suit their own personal needs. |
|
| Auto-cannon | An autonomous defense turret equipped with twin minigun cannons and relatively heavy armor. |  
|
| Behemoth | The undisputed heavyweight king of the Calculator's army, the Behemoth lived up to its name by being able to easily obliterate its foes and survive massive amounts of damage. |
|
| Cargobot | An automated, airborne cargo-delivery drone that transports government aid drops directed by holotape-provided radio signals. Also ideal for providing reconnaissance and delivering supplies even the most hostile conditions. |
|
| Cyberdog | Half dog, half robot, cyberdogs made for loyal companions, if not terribly adaptable. They were products of the Enclave. |
|
| Experimental weapons drone | A more advanced variant of the guardian drone equipped with a drone cannon Ex-B. |
|
| Eyebot | Relatively benign, the eyebot is designed mainly to spread radio broadcasts. Although armed with an electric stunner, these robots have very negligible combat strength. |
|
| Festus | A unique model of robot installed in the lobby of the Sunset Sarsaparilla Company's HQ in the Mojave Wasteland. |
|
| Floating eye bot | This weak security robot uses an electric cattle prod to coerce disobedient individuals back into submission. Sturdy but unsuited for real combat. | 
|
| Guardian drone | An alien combat robot, utilizing a powerful cannon. |
|
| Gun emplacement | A bulkier version of standard machine gun turrets, taking a form similar to the turrets found atop the armored personnel carriers. |
|
| Gun robot | Security robots, three-legged orb-like walker and uses chainguns to attack possible threats to the wellbeing of the Secret Vault. |
|
| Gun turret | A turret equipped with twin plasma cannon and is heavily armored. |
|
| Hover robot | Useful only as scouts, hover robots performed reconnaissance missions for the Calculator. Very weak, but considered disposable. |
|
| Humanoid robot | A robotic foot soldier used by the Calculator, androids were neither durable nor powerful, but they were plentiful. |
|
| Indexer | In a virtual space, paths need to be built for the indexers by moving blocks for their protection against sentry intrusion countermeasures. | 
|
| Kamikaze robot | Security robots, three-legged orb-like walker, and are "suicide" attackers which create an electrical explosion on contact with the enemy. |
|
| Laser robot | Security robots, three-legged orb-like walker and uses fast-shooting laser cannons to destroy its enemies. |
|
| Laser turret | A turret with a single-barrel laser cannon and has the ability to lower down for additional cover. It cannot fire while in cover. |
|
| Liberator | Small, spider-like robots found in Appalachia. |
|
| Liberty Prime | A large, heavily armed humanoid robot, designed for the United States military to be used during the liberation of Alaska. It was never fully completed and remained inoperative until being activated by the Brotherhood of Steel in the Capital Wasteland. |
|
| Loadlifter robot | A robotic forklift, the loadlifter's strength lay in its size and weight. |
|
| Maintenance robot | A small robot that can run generators with its limbs. |
|
| Miss Nanny | A female version of Mister Handy, this general-purpose robot was built mainly for housekeeping and maintenance. Although not a combat robot, a Miss Nanny can still pose a threat as a combatant. |
|
| Mister Gutsy | A militarized version of Mister Handy, designed for use by the United States Army. A capable combatant. |
|
| Mister Handy | This general-purpose robot was built mainly for housekeeping and maintenance. Although not a combat robot, they can still pose a threat as a combatant. |
|
| The Motherlode | An autonomous mining platform designed to boost the efficiency of the company's mining projects by drilling and retrieving underground resources without human assistance |
|
| Pacification robot | Second-heaviest military robot in the Calculator's ranks, devastating ranged attack. |
|
| Protectron | Protectrons were common robots before the war. While many were tasked with building or security, some military versions can be found roaming the wasteland. |
|
| Robobrain | A cyborg robot that makes use of an organic brain as its main CPU. |
|
| Scurry robot | Among the smallest of the Calculator's forces, the diminutive Scurry Bot patrolled tight confines and occasionally laid in an ambush in difficult terrain. |
|
| Securitron | The police of Mr. House's army, traverse on one wheel with a monitor as a face and two arm like limbs. |
|
| Security robot | Second-heaviest military robot in the Calculator's ranks, devastating ranged attack. |
|
| Sentry bot | Sentry bots are bruisers, no matter what form they take. Capable of both dishing out and taking tremendous punishment, sentry bots represent the pinnacle of military robotics. |
|
| Sentry intrusion countermeasures | Sentries with the goal of destroying indexers in a virtual space, preventing their progress and the access to DiMa's memories. |
|
| Service robot | A small robot, box, or vacuum cleaner-like robots, that wash the floor in the Vault and perform small repairing tasks. |
|
| Spider drone | Mobile landmines utilized by the Chinese army. | 
|
| Support drone | Support drones are basic robots not equipped with weapons, instead relying on melee attacks. |
|
| Synth | Built in a human's likeness, with the latest generation being indistinguishable from people. |
|
| Tank track robot | Though armed with a massive flail that made this robot a killing machine in close combat, these machines are nevertheless large and ungainly. Coupled with the inability to launch a ranged attack, they were easily countered by a prepared force. |
|
| Tesla robot | Security robots, three-legged orb-like walker and uses powerful electric blasts generated by special Tesla device mounted on it, to attack possible threats to the well-being of the Secret Vault. |
|
| Think tank | A robot similar to the Robobrain, which hovers in the air. Bio med gel preserves the original brain while three-screen monitors display emotion - one acts as the mouth and the other two as eyes. |
|
| Turret robot | Hidden turrets underground and quickly pop up if they detect an enemy, utilizing two powerful submachine guns. |
|
| Vertibot | An autonomous version of a Vertibird. |
|
References
Non-game
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
