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The glowing one mumbles something and is then silent. He is drooling uncontrollably.

Glowing ones or luminous necrotic post-humans are ghouls who have absorbed so much radiation that they emit a strong green glow. Glowing ones have become living conduits of radioactivity and emit radiation involuntarily, so they can still be dangerous to normal humans, even after dying.

Feral glowing ones are generally stronger than normal feral ghouls. They are radioactive to the point of being able to voluntarily release it from their bodies in a brilliant burst. This burst of light harms their enemies, and may heal and even revive feral ghouls in their vicinity. Non-feral glowing ones are not known to be capable of radiation bursts.

Background[]

A glowing one is a unique feral ghoul that has become a living conduit of radiation.Fallout 3 loading screens

In New California[]

Although most glowing ones encountered across the wastes have become feral, those encountered in New California are generally civil (if not sane).

Until Necropolis was overrun by the super mutants in 2162, glowing ones lived quietly in the remains of Vault 12, separate from the normal ghouls on the surface. Just above ground, several were kept in evenly-spaced cages lining the Hall of the Dead, apparently as a source of lighting.[1] All glowing ones at Necropolis were kept within the church or the Vault. Those who dwelt within Vault 12 were all capable of articulate speech, and expressed themselves in strange, poetic declarations.[2] Those imprisoned at the church seemed to mumble and drool.[3]

Nearby, a separate population of peaceful ghouls were forced to take refuge in a sewer by the ghoul warlord Set.[4] Despite his brutal ways, he neglected to kill these peaceful ghouls, so they could help defend Necropolis should the need arise.[5] The placid glowing ones of Necropolis may have been kept for similar purposes. They also guarded and maintained the Vault's water processing system, which was still operational.[2]

As they are not feral creatures,[2] the glowing ones of Vault 12 are mentally ill elderly people. They require water, and without the Vault's water processing functionality, they will die.[2] They will not attack the Vault Dweller unless the player assaults them or removes Vault 12's water chip. In both scenarios, the glowing ones act in self-defense against someone who has entered their home and attempted to murder them. There are no other encounters with glowing ones in the original Fallout.

The destruction of Necropolis resulted in the Bakersfield ghoul population scattering to the surrounding areas, such as Los to the east, where they founded the Church of the Lost, a ghoul cult dedicated to the protection of the Corporate Vault. Glowing ones are seen among their ranks.

To the north, several glowing ones would go on to find work in the nuclear plant at the metropolitan settlement of Gecko, performing complex labor in the reactor area. The named character Hank is one of these glowing technicians. If the Chosen One fixes the reactor's radiation leak, ghouls will remark that the plant feels "chilly." Additionally, two glowing ones live at Broken Hills, a settlement where all humans and mutants are invited to live in cooperation.

Elsewhere[]

Outside of New California, the term "glowing one" carries different connotations. Almost universally feral, the glowing ones seen in the Capital and elsewhere can discharge a wave of radiation at will from their bodies, which they use to heal themselves and any surrounding feral ghouls while damaging their enemies.[6][7] Other ghouls seem to follow them, attracted to the radiation they emit.[8]

In Underworld, Doctor Barrows holds two of his former patients, "Meat" and Ethyl, in a locked isolation room to study their condition.[Non-game 1][Non-game 2] They cannot be visited without the use of console commands.

Feral glowing ones are often encountered in subway tunnels, mines, and other industrial spaces. Non-feral glowing ghouls, while common in New California, are very rare elsewhere. A few sentient glowing ones, like Jason Bright and Oswald the Outrageous, have managed to maintain their faculties. Others, such as Ethyl and the Sun of Atom, are non-hostile to humans, but have lost their ability to communicate, and share the appearance of their feral counterparts. One person who ultimately went feral, Freddie Lang, was capable of typing for some time after her skin began to glow.[9]

not givn up
gettin hardr to thikn straigt
skin glwing
so sick
i tried
feelss good to be dwn in th mine
warmer
near the radiation
just gonna sleep ther

wait 4 whtevr
Blackwater Mine terminal entries; Blackwater Bandits terminal, Help

Biology[]

A glowing one uses its special ability to deliver radiation to its enemies and heal any nearby feral ghouls.Fallout 3/Fallout: New Vegas loading screens

The distinctive luminescence that is the trademark of the glowing one can be best attributed to an unusually high amount of radioactive material that builds up in the bloodstream and muscle tissue of a typical ghoul. Sometimes, upon the transformation into a feral ghoul, the neurological systems of the body cease filtering these particles from the blood and tissue, instead of causing them to build a distinctive bio-luminescence that is a characteristic of the glowing ones. In daylight, they simply appear to be incredibly pale feral ghouls, but in the darkness, they glow with a vivid yellow-green hue, their opaque skeletons clearly visible as in an x-ray. Approaching a deceased glowing one can cause minor radiation exposure.[10]

Notable glowing ones[]

Notes[]

Gallery[]

Fallout 2[]

Fallout 3[]

Fallout: New Vegas[]

Fallout 4[]

Fallout 76[]

Fallout Shelter[]

Fallout: Wasteland Warfare[]

Magic: The Gathering[]

References[]

  1. Hall of the Dead interior
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 Glowing one: "{102}{}{The liquid clear no longer flows. Without the flow we all take final rest.}"
    (VALTGLO.MSG)
  3. Glowing one: "{103}{}{The glowing one mumbles something and is then silent. He is drooling uncontrollably}"
    (GLOWONE.MSG)
  4. The Vault Dweller: "{1000}{}{Set}"
    Ghoul leader: "{1100}{}{He tries to control Necropolis, and has forced us underground.}"
    (Ghoul leader's dialogue)
  5. Ghoul leader: "{101}{}{Thank you for not shooting first. Can I help you with anything?}"
    The Vault Dweller: "{102}{}{Yes, I'm looking for water.}"
    Ghoul leader: "{111}{}{The surface of Necropolis and the water is controlled by Set and his Ghouls. We are a much more peaceful group - which disgusts Set.}"
    The Vault Dweller: "{171}{}{How do you survive down here without water?}"
    Ghoul leader: "{119}{}{He does not speak of it, however Set is afraid of not having enough people to defend Necropolis if it ever needed it. So, he gives us what water we need.}"
    (Ghoul leader's dialogue)
  6. The radiation attack emanated from feral glowing ones since Fallout 3.
  7. Fallout 3 loading screens: "A Glowing One is a unique Feral Ghoul that has become a living conduit of radiation."
    "A Glowing One uses its special ability to deliver radiation to its enemies, and heal any nearby Feral Ghouls."
    Fallout: New Vegas loading screens: "A Glowing One is a unique Feral Ghoul that has become a living conduit of radiation."
    "A glowing one uses its special ability to deliver radiation to its enemies and heal any nearby feral ghouls."
  8. Isabella Proud's camp terminal entries; Isabella Proud's terminal, Day 68
  9. Blackwater Mine terminal entries; Blackwater Bandits terminal, Help
  10. Bugged Underworld terminal entries; research terminal, Neurology of Luminous Necrotic Post-Humans

Non-game

  1. Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition p.72: "Ethyl
    When he's not operating on Ghouls with a variety of odd ailments, Doctor Barrows is closely studying a small collection of patients who have succumbed to massive amount of radiation, turned feral, and become Glowing One subjects, such as Ethyl (whose picture was taken before she 'turned'). Ethyl is housed in an inaccessible containment chamber adjacent to his Chop Shop surgery."
    (Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition Wasteland Census)
  2. >Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition p.84: "Meat
    When he's not operating on Ghouls with a variety of odd ailments, Doctor Barrows spends his time learning the exact medical reasoning for Feral Ghouls 'turning' into Glowing Ones. For this, ex-patients who succumbed to massive amounts of radiation are placed inside an inaccessible containment chamber adjacent to Barrows's Chop Shop surgery. 'Meat' (shown here prior to transformation) is one of these subjects."
    (Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition Wasteland Census)
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