Todd Howard promised in his E3 2018 presentation that Fallout 76 uses the folklore of West Virginia to color the landscape and from what we’ve seen so far, he doesn’t disappoint.
The trailer features, by name, two famous Appalachian cryptids, or creatures whose existence is regional lore. The Grafton Monster, featured heavily in the presentation, was first spotted in June 1964 by Robert Cockrell, a reporter for a local paper. He described it as nine-feet tall, four-feet wide and headless — and based on the combat footage we see, it’s a formidable opponent.
The snallygaster, seen in both regular and glowing forms in the trailer, originated with German immigrants as early as the 1730s. The half-bird, half-reptile monster was said to drink the blood of animals, and the Pennsylvanian Dutch believed having a seven-pointed star on their barns would keep the beast away. From the base-building we’ve seen so far, it looks like these quilt squares — also known as hex signs — are going to be available in-game, so be sure to incorporate that in your decorating.
But the real question: Will Mothman be in Fallout 76?
The Mothman is the most famous cryptid of West Virginia. This giant bird-like omen was originally spotted by five gravediggers in November 1966, and was seen hundreds of times over the course of the following year. The legend rose to national prominence after the collapse of Silver Bridge outside of Point Pleasant, which the Mothman was said to be predicting.
The E3 presentation didn’t show any monsters that fit its description — large black wings, glowing red eyes — but a brief shot shows a Mothman Museum map marker a short walk from Vault 76 itself, which means at least the legend, if not the creature itself, is canon.
To learn more about what cryptids you can expect to hunt in Fallout 76, watch the video above.
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