Summary
- Fallout Shelter is a unique entry in the Fallout franchise, focusing on colony development and free-to-play mechanics.
- Legendary vault dwellers like Chet, Lucy, and Harkness bring exciting stats and backstories, enhancing gameplay diversity.
- Embrace iconic characters like Eulogy Jones and Butch for quests and exploration, each with their own strengths and weaknesses.
Fallout Shelter was released in 2015, and while it follows Fallout canon, it is very different from other games in the Fallout franchise. This is a casual mobile and desktop game that focuses on colony development gameplay. It is a live-service game with a cash shop, but it is free-to-play.
Fallout Shelter: Best Layouts
Fallout Shelter players should try out the following fantastic layouts that have superb efficiency.
There are a number of legendary vault dwellers available to players of Fallout Shelter, and there are only two ways to get them. Firstly, they can be found as loot in lunchboxes. Secondly, they can be encountered and recruited during quests. All legendary vault dwellers are excellent, but some stand out as clearly better for various reasons.
Updated on August 12th, 2024, by Mac Wheeler: Following the first season of the popular Fallout TV series, several characters from the show were added to Fallout Shelter that were not available when this list was initially published. This includes the show’s main character, Lucy MacLean. Therefore, this list has been updated to add some of the better legendary dwellers that have been introduced to Fallout Shelter that are based on characters from the hit Amazon Prime TV show.
10 Chet
Vault 33 Gatekeeper
Stats:
- Strength: 7
- Perception: 4
- Endurance: 5
- Charisma: 7
- Intelligence: 5
- Agility: 5
- Luck: 7
Equipment:
- Baseball Bat
- Vault 33 Suit
Chet is Lucy’s cousin, and was originally a Vault 33 dweller. In the Fallout TV show, he was the gatekeeper of the vault, responsible for guarding and opening the vault doors. Later, he moved to vault 32 as part of the mass exodus from vault 33. Chet is often comical in the TV show.
In Fallout Shelter, Chet is a pretty cool legendary vault dweller. He has a nice combination of stats, and really suits a melee weapon, which is no surprise considering his standard equipment is a baseball bat. Originally, he was available as a quest reward or a login reward. However, these days, the only way to get Chet as a vault dweller is by opening lunchboxes. With his excellent Charisma, he is also very useful as a vault breeder, which is likely an Easter Ebased on his physically close relationship with Lucy, which was inferred in the show.
9 Lucy
The Star Of The Show
Stats:
- Strength: 4
- Perception: 7
- Endurance: 6
- Charisma: 5
- Intelligence: 6
- Agility: 5
- Luck: 7
Equipment:
- Tranq Gun
- Lucy’s Vault Suit
Lucy MacLean is the main protagonist of the Fallout TV show, and likely needs no introduction here. As with Chet, she is now only available as a legendary vault dweller in Fallout Shelter by pulling her out of a lunchbox.
As one would expect from Lucy, her stats are really aimed at wasteland exploration. Her high Perception and Luck stats mean she is likely to find a lot of loot, and has a much greater chance of it being of high quality. Overall, she is an excellent addition to any player’s vault. Her standard equipment is pretty good too, as she starts out with her iconic tranq gun and a slightly upgraded version of the standard Vault 33 suit.
8 Ma June
Sassy Store Owner
Stats:
- Strength: 5
- Perception: 7
- Endurance: 5
- Charisma: 7
- Intelligence: 6
- Agility: 4
- Luck: 6
Equipment:
- Enhanced Hunting Rifle
- Ma June Jacket
In the Fallout TV show, Ma June is the operator of a general store in Filly. She is known for being hard-nosed and tough with her customers. Ma June has a fairly negative view of all vault dwellers, so it is amusing to see her becoming an inhabitant of a vault in Fallout Shelter.
Her stats are also very amusing, as she has very high Charisma, which is anathema to her character in the TV show, when she was often dismissive or downright rude to people. Stats-wise, she makes a good wasteland exploration dweller. Once again, as with all the legendary dwellers from the TV show, Ma June is now only available from a lunchbox.
7 Colonel Autumn
Charismatic Leader
Stats:
- Strength: 4
- Perception: 6
- Endurance: 5
- Charisma: 9
- Intelligence: 5
- Agility: 5
- Luck: 6
Equipment:
- Smuggler's End
- Autumn's Uniform
Augustus Autumn was the leader of the Capital Wasteland Enclave Contingent in Fallout 3. He comes to Fallout Shelter as a charismatic leader. His equipment is good, but despite his title of Colonel, he is not ideally suited to combat.
Fallout Shelter: 10 Tactics To Help The Vault Colony Survive
Fallout Shelter can really put your skills to the test. Here's a look at some tips and tactics to help your vault colony survive.
Where he really shines is in manning the Radio Station. With his 9 Charisma points, he will decrease the duration between broadcasts considerably. He is also exceptionally well suited as a breeder, due to the same high Charisma bonus. As part of a quest team, he brings a decent level of Luck to the table as well. Switching out his outfit to something with more Strength would plug the only hole in his stats.
6 Ed The Ghoul
A Friendly Ghoul For A Change
Stats:
- Strength: 6
- Perception: 5
- Endurance: 7
- Charisma: 3
- Intelligence: 9
- Agility: 3
- Luck: 7
Equipment:
- Ed's Custom Power Fist
- RobCo R&D Suit
Fallout Shelter players will undoubtedly start encountering ghouls out in the wasteland, or when undertaking quests. These are always enemies, generally in groups of 2 or 3, that the player will need to overcome as part of a quest combat encounter. Ed The Ghoul is different; he’s a friendly ghoul.
Ed is a great vault dweller for quests, as his stats are quite flat, with only Charisma being low, which is really not much of a loss at all. He will do well in combat, and also has pretty high Luck for looting. With a massive 9 Intelligence, he is going to level up very fast.
5 Eulogy Jones
Visiting From Fallout 3
Stats:
- Strength: 5
- Perception: 6
- Endurance: 5
- Charisma: 8
- Intelligence: 5
- Agility: 4
- Luck: 7
Equipment:
- Blackhawk
- Eulogy Jones Suit
Eulogy Jones is the head slaver of Paradise Falls in Fallout 3, and he makes a visit to Fallout Shelter as a legendary vault dweller. This is one of the more common legendary vault dwellers that players pull from the new player crates that can be purchased at the start of the game.
With nicely balanced stats and good equipment coming standard, he fits into many roles. However, his high Charisma bonus makes him excellent for breeding with female dwellers, as it takes only minutes for them to become attracted while in the Living Quarters.
4 Harkness
The Mechanical Man
Stats:
- Strength: 8
- Perception: 5
- Endurance: 8
- Charisma: 5
- Intelligence: 5
- Agility: 6
- Luck: 3
Equipment:
- Infiltrator
- Heavy Battle Armor
Harkness was an android NPC in Fallout 3. He was the security chief of Rivet City. Staying with his already established role in Fallout canon, he specializes in combat in Fallout Shelter. His default equipment is excellent for either wasteland exploration or combat quests, especially his weapon.
With high bonuses to Strength and Endurance, he hits hard and has plenty of health. His Agility is good too, helping mitigate radiation damage. The only downside with Harkness is his low Luck stat, but this can be trained up a little.
3 Jericho
Once A Raider, Now A Dweller
Stats:
- Strength: 8
- Perception: 6
- Endurance: 8
- Charisma: 2
- Intelligence: 3
- Agility: 7
- Luck: 6
Equipment:
- Infiltrator
- Heavy Leather Armor
In Fallout 3, Jericho resides in Megaton City, and was once an infamous Raider. Fallout Shelter does a great job of converting him into a vault dweller. He is a full-on combat dweller with extremely high combat-related stats, while his low Luck stat pays homage to his abrupt manner in Fallout 3.
Fallout Shelter: 24 Mistakes All Players Make That Ruin Their Experience
Fallout Shelter can be a punishing game. Here's a look at some mistakes that players make which can ruin their experience.
Jericho has pretty good Perception and Luck, so this makes him a very good choice for a questing team. Players might like to train his Intelligence a little before leveling him up too much, as it is very low and will make him slow to level otherwise.
2 Star Paladin Cross
A Hero In A Metal Suit
Stats:
- Strength: 7
- Perception: 8
- Endurance: 4
- Charisma: 8
- Intelligence: 4
- Agility: 6
- Luck: 3
Equipment:
- Smuggler's End
- T-51f Power Armor
Cross was a member of the Brotherhood of Steel in Fallout 3, and the Fallout Shelter iteration of Cross stays true to the original. This is a very versatile vault dweller, suitable for quests, combat, and wasteland exploration due to their excellent balance of stats.
The downside of Star Paladin Cross is their low Luck stat, and players might want to send this dweller to the Game Room to train their Luck up a bit before they start sending them out in the wasteland.
1 Butch
Leader Of The Tunnel Snakes
Stats:
- Strength: 5
- Perception: 7
- Endurance: 6
- Charisma: 9
- Intelligence: 5
- Agility: 6
- Luck: 2
Equipment:
- Lone Wanderer
- Tunnel Snakes' Outfit
Butch DeLoria was originally a denizen of Vault 101, before going on to become the leader of the Tunnel Snakes gang. In Fallout Shelter, he is one of the most versatile legendary vault dwellers available. He works well for questing and general wasteland exploration. He has decent combat stats and other useful stats as well, such as high Charisma.
Fallout Shelter: Best Armor, Ranked
Armor has always been important in the Fallout franchise, and Fallout Shelter is no different in that regard. Here are the best ones available.
The only negative about Butch is that he doesn’t have much Luck, literally. However, this can be fixed by sending him off to the Game Room for a couple of days to gain a few points of Luck, at which point he becomes one of the most versatile dwellers possible.
Fallout Shelter
- Released
- June 14, 2015
