Rapidan Camp is a location in the Skyline Valley region of Appalachia.
Background[]
This presidential retreat is located in the heart of Shenandoah National Park, built in 1929 during the presidency of Herbert Hoover.[1] When his term ended, he donated the retreat to the executive wing to allow future presidents to use the camp and enjoy the beauty of Shenandoah.[2]
Over the years, this rustic compound remained in use by presidents of the United States and other members of the Cabinet for vacationing and hosting foreign dignitaries, though other retreats such as Camp David also saw use. Heavily modernized and protected by a robust security detail including Secret Service agents and an army of robots, Rapidan Camp remained in use through 2077, with a bunker constructed beneath The Brown House to provide command and control capability at any point during their stay. All employees were vetted and reminded regularly about maintaining secrecy: Anyone found leaking would be summarily dismissed and "appropriately" dealt with.[3] On the other hand, loyalty was rewarded with additional leave.[4]
In 2077, Rapidan Camp was scheduled to host a foreign diplomat on November 16, who over the next three days would tour Shenandoah and Washington, D.C. and meet the last President of the United States, members of Congress, and Hugo and Cassidy Stolz, husband-and-wife business moguls who had privatized a significant part of Shenandoah National Park.[5] No expense was spared, including stocking the Prime Minister Cabin with their favorite tea.[6] As part of their regular quarterly visits, the Secretary of the Interior also planned to spend the Christmas holiday and the New Year's Eve party at Rapidan Camp[3] in order to make a special announcement about the future of the National Park and investments. The event was sponsored by Stolz Enterprises, suggesting that the privatization of public land would extend even further.[7] In October 2077, seemingly not long before the Great War, a high-value figure codenamed Zeus was also headed to Rapidan Camp with a military escort, although orders were given by U.S. government figure Bagman to assassinate them, seemingly planned months in advance.[8]
Since the Great War erupted on October 23, 2077, none of these plans came to pass, save for the assassination of Zeus and their entourage, done by a sniper embedded at a nearby gas well worksite months in advance. Only some Cabinet under secretaries, custodial staff, and the usual military detail were present on location.[9] At some point, remote access to the complex's bunker was disabled,[10] and the MP in charge committed suicide. The camp emptied over the years, falling into disrepair, although a dedicated cadre of robotic custodians, including Gumley, did their best to ensure the flowers bloomed and the site was cleaned up to the best of their ability.[11]
Layout[]
Rapidan Camp is situated in the southwestern part of Skyline Valley, around a large pond, with retro-styled buildings surrounding it. The Brown House, named to match the White House in Washington, D.C.,[12] is the largest building in the compound, flanked by the Vertibird pad (which includes portable offices and an Assaultron special agent standing guard), and the Prime Minister's Cabin, so named because it was used by British Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald when he visited to consult with President Hoover in 1929.[13] There is also an inaccessible Secret Service office.
Plaques[]
Five information plaques can be found around Rapidan Camp, displaying historical facts about the camp. However, only two of the plaques can be interacted with; the other three can be seen in-game, but are not interactable.
| Name | Transcript | Location |
|---|---|---|
| Brown House Information Plaque |
 Welcome to the Brown House; it was the home of President Hoover and his wife Lou while they stayed at Rapidan Camp. The house gets its name from the color, like how our Presidents live at the White House, it was only fitting to name their summer home after the house color. Editor ID: Storm_CampRapidanBrownHouseMessage01; Form ID: 006F6656 |
Outside the Brown House |
Prime Ministers Cabin Information Plaque
|
This cabin was named the Prime Minster's Editor ID: Storm_CampRapidanPMCabinMessage; Form ID: 006F6657 |
Near the Prime Minister's Cabin |
 Trout Pond Information Plaque (1)
|
President Hoover loved to fish, and this is one of the reasons he chose this as his fishing spot along the Rapidan River. This pond is known as the Trout Pond, and it was built by the Marines so President Hover Editor ID: Storm_CampRapidanTroutPondMessage01; Form ID: 006F6655 |
|
| Trout Pond Information Plaque (2)
|
This Trout Pond used to have a stable population of fish that resided here, which we know because Lou Hoover kept great records. She wrote that her and President Hover would stop at the meat market in Washington to buy beef hearts to feed the fish. In the evening, they would often come to the Trout Pond to feed the fish. Editor ID: Storm_CampRapidanTroutPondMessage02; Form ID: 006F6658 |
|
| Dedication Plaque
|
In loving memory of Tammy W. II, cherished companion of the First Family. |
|
Notable loot[]
 |
For notable loot in the Brown House, see the Brown House. |
|---|
- Secretary of Interior visit - Note, on a notice board on the grounds of the camp.
- Shenandoah Halloween Spooktacular - Note, on a notice board on the grounds of the camp.
- Shenandoah New Year's Eve party 2077 - Note, on a notice board on the grounds of the camp.
- Special visit itinerary - Note, in the master bedroom of the Prime Minister Cabin, on a nightstand.
- Welcome to the Rapidan Camp - Note, on a wooden table near the entrance of the Prime Minister Cabin.
- Note from Jim - Note, found next to a chem cooler at the raider camp on the road to the south.
- Ransom note - Note, found on the corpse of Jim at the raider camp on the road to the south.
- Three potential Vault-Tec bobbleheads:
- At the fenced-in Vertibird landing pad area, on a shelf in the trailer closest to the cabins.
- At the fenced-in Vertibird landing pad area, on the desk next to the active terminal, in the trailer opposite the previous one.
- On the mantelpiece in the Prime Minister Cabin.
Notes[]
- Two notes at this location, the special visit itinerary and Welcome to the Rapidan Camp, mention a visit from the president for a foreign "special guest." The itinerary gives a list of events from November 16-18, including a photo op and a lavish dinner with the president on November 16.[5][6]
- If the itinerary is assumed to be dated for November 2077, the president had already vanished from the public eye since at least April 2077 after his relocation to Control Station ENCLAVE, and it was being reported in the media that October.[14] With the president's absence in mind, this may indicate one of many things: either the president was going to briefly come out of hiding to make public appearances; the itinerary was for a private, clandestine visit and the photo op was not for outside press; or that the itinerary did not actually reflect the president's true plans at all. Whether or not the president had advance knowledge of the Great War would also be a factor, although this is not directly addressed outside of his relocation to the Enclave oil rig. The itinerary is not explicitly dated to 2077, and could plausibly be for 2076, but other notes at Rapidan Camp are dated to 2077, such as Shenandoah New Year's Eve party 2077.
- A skeleton at the bottom of Rapidan Camp's central lake bears a Vault jumpsuit from Vault 63.
Rapidan Camp will be featured as a central location in the upcoming 2025 reworking of Event: Mischief Night.
Appearances[]
Rapidan Camp appears only in Fallout 76, introduced in the Skyline Valley update.
Behind the scenes[]
- Rapidan Camp is based on the real-world Rapidan Camp in Shenandoah National Park, which likewise served as the presidential retreat of President Herbert Hoover and his wife Lou.
- Double Eleven developer Luna Dalton worked on the level design of Rapidan Camp, alongside an art pass by Kyle Thompson. Dalton also worked on the Brown House within this location.[Non-game 1]
 | The following is based on Fallout 76 cut content. |
|---|
- Rapidan Camp would have been involved in a cut quest that was part of the Skyline Valley quest line (prefix Storm_MQ10), following Double-Crossed Wires. It would have involved Marcs, whose appearance was also cut, and a cut interior known as the Presidential Bunker. The bunker at Rapidan Camp was briefly accessible during the first version of the Skyline Valley Public Test Server, but was made inaccessible in later patches. Most content relating to this unnamed tenth quest and its connection to Rapidan Camp has been given the zzz prefix for cut content.
| End of information based on Fallout 76 cut content |
|---|
Gallery[]
.jpg "FO76SV Rapidan Camp (area view).jpg (3.07 MB)")
.png "FO76SV Rapidan Camp (Special visit itinerary).png (1.93 MB)")
.jpg "FO76SV Rapidan Camp (dweller 63 skeleton).jpg (764 KB)")
References[]
- ↑ Fallout 76 loading screens: "Rapidan Camp, built in 1929, served as the presidential retreat during the presidency of Herbert Hoover."
- ↑ Gumley: "They used the grounds as their Presidential Retreat throughout his administration. When his term came to end, President Hoover donated Rapidan Camp to the executive wing of the government. So future Presidents could continue to use the camp and enjoy the natural beauty of Shenandoah National Park. Sometimes our Presidents still stay here, but one hasn't visited in quite some time."
(Gumley's dialogue) - ↑ 3.0 3.1 Secretary of Interior visit
- ↑ Shenandoah Halloween Spooktacular
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Special visit itinerary
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Welcome to the Rapidan Camp
- ↑ Shenandoah New Year's Eve party 2077
- ↑ Orders
- ↑ Gumley: "From what I can remember some under secretaries were stationed here on that eventful day, but I haven't... seen them for sometime now."
(Gumley's dialogue) - ↑ Rapidan Camp terminal entries; terminal, Access Door Control
- ↑ Vault 76 dweller: "Why do you care about the flowers so much?"
Gumley: "Well, maintaining the flora here at Rapidan Camp isn't about just the aesthetics. These FLOWERS provide me and any guests sense of normality in this chaotic world. Besides a well-tended garden does wonders for the guests mental health and wellbeing. That's something in short supply out here."
(Gumley's dialogue) - ↑ The Brown House information plaque: "Welcome to the Brown House; it was the home of President Hoover and his wife Lou while they stayed at Rapidan Camp. The house gets its name from the color, like how our Presidents live at the White House, it was only fitting to name their summer home after the house color."
- ↑ Prime Ministers Cabin information plaque: "This cabin was named the Prime Minster's Cabin, as a nod to the Prime Minister of Great Britain in 1929, Ramsy Mcdonald.
Prime Minister Ramsy was concerned about the naval build-up in Europe after the First World War, so he contacted President Hoover to discuss what could be done about it; as a result, President Hoover invited him to meet in this very cabin.
Another notable British Prime Minster who stayed here at Rapidan Camp was Winston Churchill. However, at the time of visiting, he was the Chancellor of the Exchequer." - ↑ Boston Bugle building terminal entries; Boston Bugle article terminal, Article 4
Non-game