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Super Mutants are often accompanied by Centaurs, which serve as "watchdogs" and alert their masters to danger.Fallout 3 loading screen

Centaurs are mutated hybrid creatures created from experimentation with the Forced Evolutionary Virus,[Non-game 1] named for their malformed legs.

Background[]

West Coast[]

Centaurs encountered in New California and the Mojave Wasteland were created by the Master. The creation process involved tossing a varied mix of different animals, including humans, dogs, and cats, into a Forced Evolutionary Virus (FEV) vat to be infected by the virus,[Non-game 2][Non-game 3] and then seeing what mutant chimera emerged as the virus produced rapid and unpredictable mutations. The resulting centaurs can differ quite radically in physical appearance from one another. However, all known centaurs are somewhat humanoid in appearance. Despite this consuming them is not an uncommon practice; such as with Mom's Diner of the Den.[1]

Used by the Master as a sort of guard dog, these mutant chimeras weren't tamed in the traditional sense.[Non-game 4]

Capital Wasteland[]

Like their western counterparts, the Capital Wasteland centaurs were created by infection with the FEV along with the super mutants. Their birthplace, like the super mutants, is Vault 87. They often accompany the super mutants, serving as watchdogs and alert their masters to danger.

Biology[]

Two-headed centaur[]

FO2 Centaur bio diagram
Animcentaur

Centaurs are large, fleshy creatures consisting of human and canine components, named after its three pairs of leg-like arms.[Non-game 1] Centaurs walk along the ground on their massive gash-covered torsos, with movement similar to that of giant ants. The rear pair of arms serve as the creature's legs, connected to the pelvis and driving movement. The front pair of arms assist in walking, but are connected to the shoulder blades and considered arms when targeted with an Aimed Shot. The middle pair of arms may serve as legs, but are connected neither to the pelvis nor the shoulder blades. Each pair of arms has a bone structure similar to that of humanoids, although the hands only have three to four fingers.

Two-headed centaurs have two heads, one being canine and the other humanoid. Each head is mounted on a thick, lengthy neck, converging into the main body and spine at the base of the torso. The canine head struts when walking and is used in attacking, suggesting some level of control over the body. Likewise, it is the only head labeled as such during an Aimed Shot. The canine head can also be seen biting at the human head, at which point the human head evades, suggesting some level of individual thought.

A large number of red tentacles spill from the creature's swollen groin and writhe around on the ground. They extend under the centaur's torso and may lash out from under the base of the neck. Centaurs also have a large rib cage and drooping spine along the back of the torso.

One-headed centaur[]

One-headed centaurs encountered in the Capital and the Mojave Wastelands are somewhat different from the two-headed creatures seen along the West Coast. A muscular humanoid torso sits upright upon a sloped, insect-like abdomen. When walking, the front two pairs of arms drive the creature forward, with the rear pair dragging along the ground next to the abdomen. The centaur's torso sways when the body moves, with the limbs moving in slow yet abrupt motions.

Jagged bones sprout from the creature's spine and along the rear abdomen. Similarly, numerous teeth-like bones surround the torso's abdominal muscles. A single human head sits upon the torso, connected with a thick, brawny neck. A pained expression is worn on the face, with three tongue-like tentacles sprouting from the creature's mouth and reaching the length of the torso. The centaur is covered in thick purple veins and its shoulders end in bony stumps.

Larger versions of centaurs, ironically monikered as "evolved" centaurs,[Non-game 5] also exist in the Capital and Mojave Wastelands. While having generally the same body shape, evolved centaurs have tight, deeper toned skin and have grown a large number of tumors along the back. The creature's purple veins and protruding bone fragments are less prominent than the standard centaur. Evolved centaurs can also grow to be much larger and have darker-colored tongues.

Variants[]

Centaurs of all known varieties are not harmed by radiation but seem drawn to it, as they are often found in heavily irradiated environments.

Two-headed centaur[]

Gameplay articles: Fallout, Fallout 2
Animcentaur

Physically, these centaurs are around the size of a bear, with a large, misshapen torso and six humanoid arms that serve as legs. A cluster of wriggling fleshy tentacles bloom out from their underside, scrabbling at the ground around them. Branching from their front halves are a pair of long, thick necks, with a canine head on the right and a humanoid one on the left. The canine head has a thick metal collar around its neck, adorned with spikes, not unlike an ordinary dog collar. The two heads are seemingly aware that they are not separate creatures, as the dog head can be seen trying to gnaw on the humanoid head.

So far, the two-headed centaurs have only been encountered on the West Coast, in New California.

One-headed centaur[]

Gameplay articles: Fallout 3, Fallout: New Vegas
Centaur

This type of centaur retains the hands, arms, and only the human-like head of its two-headed "cousins." Unlike the two-headed version, however, it has three long, tentacle-like tongues coming out of its mouth instead of feelers on its back, and uses a ranged attack: a high-arcing, slow-moving saliva projectile that can carry lethal doses of radiation and is fairly accurate, even at long range. It is capable of igniting lingering gas vapors as well. In close quarters, it utilizes a long, three-pronged tongue to whip and slash at any intruders.

This kind of centaur can be encountered both in the West and the East of the former United States.

Evolved centaur[]

CentaurEvolved
Gameplay article: Fallout: New Vegas

These centaurs are a bigger and stronger variant of a centaur. Having been exposed to much more radiation than regular centaurs, they have significantly more muscle mass as well as thick clusters of tumors growing from their backs.

Giant evolved centaur[]

CentaurEvolved
Gameplay article: Fallout: New Vegas

An even bigger variety of the evolved centaur, the giant evolved centaur is the largest and most dangerous variation of a centaur to be discovered to date. One is located in The Devil's Throat.

Behind the scenes[]

  • In Greek mythology, centaurs were creatures that were typically half-human, half-horse. The human part would end at the waist, where the hindquarters of a horse would begin.
  • The floaters and centaurs within the PMV Valdez made their way into the vessel before the tanker vagrants arrived.[Non-game 6]
  • Centaurs would have appeared in the canceled Van Buren. Specifically, within the Hoover Dam sub level 1, where they would have had pre-War history on them and floaters.[Non-game 7] They would have survived on mutated leeches and fish from beneath the compromised and partially flooded floor.[Non-game 8]
  • The two-headed centaur with tentacles has an uncanny resemblance to one of the monstrous shapes taken by the alien creature in John Carpenter's 1982 sci-fi Horror cult classic; The Thing in which said alien entity consumes genetic material from various dogs and humans, eventually producing such a misshapen chimeric appearance. Whether the similarity was intended or is merely a coincidence, the two-headed centaur remains almost identical, right down to the writhing mass of tentacles and tendrils. The names of the sound files that are given to the creature confirm this.[Non-game 9]

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. The Chosen One: "{411}{}{What do you have to eat here?}"
    Mom: "{357}{}{Centaur chops, my specialty.}"
    (Mom's dialogue)
Non-game
  1. 1.0 1.1 Fallout 2 Official Strategies & Secrets p.26: "The Centaur, so named for its many malformed legs, is tough and strong, but quite stupid. Keep your distance from this creature while you shoot it to death."
  2. Fallout Bible 0 and Fallout Bible 1
  3. Fallout Bible 9; FEV and vegetation: Specifically, carrots
  4. Fallout Bible 8; ...and the horse you rode in on.
  5. Fallout: New Vegas Official Game Guide Collector's Edition p.361: "[3.10] The Devil's Throat
    A dangerous and radioactive maw inhabited by Centaurs an their ironically monikered "Evolved" cousins. It is better to drop them from a distance before inspecting a container truck and its dumped contents; barrels that offer nothing but sickness. However, inside the truck is a Prospector (who looks to have overdosed with Jet) and a considerable array of loot, including Reinforced Combat Armor, and a Party Hat! But the big prize is his weapon."
    (Fallout: New Vegas Official Game Guide Collector's Edition Tour of the Mojave Wasteland)
  6. Fallout Bible 6; Questions galore
  7. Hoover Dam design document/4
  8. Hoover Dam design document/1
  9. MATHNGBK, MATHNGAO and other files.
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