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Fallout Wiki

The Chinese radio beacon is a radio station found in a random encounter in Fallout 3.

Characteristics[]

The radio beacon is tied to the Downed Chinese Pilot random encounter, and its signal will grow stronger as the player character gets closer to the source of the beacon, a dead Chinese commando.

Transcript[]

Mayday. Mayday. Mayday.

The transcript's subtitles do not match its audio. The audio consists of the words bǎishèng (百胜), Chinese for "to win every battle," spoken twice and then repeated in a loop.

Behind the scenes[]

Chineseradiobeacon

The hidden ham radio

  • The radio message has a script note that reads:
This should actually be in Chinese. Not sure how we're handling Chinese subtitles.
  • The Chinese audio originates from the idiom bǎizhànbǎishèng (百战百胜), which literally means "to fight a hundred battles and win a hundred victories" and is found in Sun Tzu's The Art of War chapter III, verse 2: To win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill.
  • The station is voiced by Ashley Cheng, who also voices the Chinese remnant soldiers and commandos.
  • If the player character uses the tcl console command or use the console command player.moveto 000a0a4d, they can go underground where they will find a ham radio labeled "Chinese Radio Beacon" underneath the dead commando; this is the actual source of the radio beacon. The radio can be spoken to like any non-player character, using the default HELLO and GOODBYE responses. Unlike other radios, this radio cannot be turned off.

Bugs[]

  • PCPC Playstation 3Playstation 3Playstation 3 If the player character already has a given Chinese object in their inventory, the commando may spawn without that particular object in his inventory. [verified]
  • PCPC Playstation 3Playstation 3Playstation 3 Xbox 360Xbox 360 Sometimes the dead Chinese commando doesn't spawn. The player character can still noclip underground and find the ham radio, but there will be no corpse above it. [verified]
    • PCPC A workaround on the PC is to use the console command player.placeleveledactoratme a0a4c. [verified]
  • Playstation 3Playstation 3Playstation 3 Xbox 360Xbox 360 Sometimes the beacon will become available only at a far edge of the world map, indicating the commando's body is somewhere far off-map. [verified]