Can You Make Legendary Babies in Fallout Shelter? The Ultimate Breeding Guide
Yes, it is absolutely possible to breed legendary dwellers in Fallout Shelter, although it requires dedication, patience, and a dash of luck. While legendary dwellers can also be acquired through Lunchboxes and certain quests, breeding offers a more strategic, albeit longer-term, approach to building your vault’s population. This comprehensive guide will explain exactly how it works and what you need to do to increase your chances of getting those coveted legendary babies.
Understanding the Breeding Mechanics
Fallout Shelter’s breeding mechanic is based on the SPECIAL stats of the parent dwellers. Specifically, the SPECIAL stats (Strength, Perception, Endurance, Charisma, Intelligence, Agility, and Luck) of the parents play a crucial role in determining the rarity of the offspring.
The Key to Legendary Babies: Maxed-Out Stats
The article you mentioned is correct. To have a chance at producing a legendary child, you need to breed two maxed-out dwellers. “Maxed out” refers to two key attributes:
- Level 50: Both parents must be at the maximum level attainable in the game.
- Maxed SPECIAL: This is the critical factor. Each of the seven SPECIAL stats for both parents must be as high as possible. Typically, this means having a SPECIAL stat of 10 or higher in each category. Remember to take into account any stat-boosting apparel the dwellers are wearing.
How Stats Influence the Outcome
The game uses a calculation based on the total combined SPECIAL stats of the parents to determine the rarity of the child. Here’s a general breakdown based on the information:
- Legendary Chance: Parents with a combined SPECIAL stat total of 134 or higher have a chance to produce a legendary child.
- Rare Chance: Parents with a combined SPECIAL stat total of 122 or higher have a chance to produce a rare child.
Therefore, two dwellers with all SPECIAL stats maxed out at 10 (without the aid of any apparel), totaling 140, will have a better shot at producing a legendary or rare baby.
Understanding the Percentages
The percentage of getting a legendary baby with fully maxed-out parents (all SPECIAL at 10, totaling 140) is around 6.6%. The chance of getting a rare baby is approximately 13.3%. Keep in mind that these are probabilities, not guarantees. You might get lucky early on, or you might need to breed many times before you get a legendary baby.
Steps to Breeding Legendary Dwellers
1. Train Your Dwellers
Start by focusing on training your dwellers. Build and upgrade training rooms for each of the seven SPECIAL stats. Dedicate dwellers to these rooms to increase their stats over time. This is the most time-consuming part of the process, but it’s essential.
2. Optimize SPECIAL Stats
Equip your dwellers with outfits that boost their SPECIAL stats. This helps them reach the necessary stat thresholds for breeding. Remember that these apparel boosts count towards the calculations.
3. Maximize Happiness
Dweller happiness impacts the speed of pregnancies. Happy dwellers mean faster breeding cycles. Keep your dwellers happy by assigning them to appropriate jobs, successfully rushing rooms, and ensuring the vault has enough resources.
4. The Breeding Process
Place the two maxed-out dwellers in the Living Quarters. Ensure they aren’t related (siblings, parents, or grandparents cannot breed). After some socializing and awkward dancing, the female dweller will become pregnant.
5. Be Patient
Pregnancy lasts for 3 hours, after which the baby is born. After the baby is born, it will need time to grow into an adult (another 3 hours). This means each breeding cycle takes a significant amount of time.
6. Assess the Child’s Stats
Once the child grows up, check their initial SPECIAL stats. Legendary babies will start with a total of 40 SPECIAL points distributed among their stats. Rare babies will have a smaller, but still significant, boost compared to common dwellers.
7. Repeat the Process
Breeding legendary dwellers is a numbers game. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t get a legendary baby on your first few tries. Keep breeding your maxed-out dwellers, and eventually, your efforts will pay off.
Tips for Efficient Breeding
- Focus on One SPECIAL Stat at a Time: If you want dwellers with high Strength for your power plants, focus on breeding dwellers with high Strength stats. The game tends to pass down higher stats to the offspring.
- Use Vault-Tec Assisted Targeting System (V.A.T.S.): During attacks, use V.A.T.S. to maximize damage output and prevent dweller deaths, especially those involved in your breeding program.
- Manage Vault Population: An overcrowded vault can slow down resource production and increase the chance of incidents. Keep your vault population manageable.
- Keep pregnant dwellers working: Pregnant dwellers can continue working in their rooms as normal, and can be equipped with both outfits and weapons, but can’t fight or tend to disasters.
- Understanding game design: Games can be a powerful tool for learning and engagement, if you are interested in diving deep into understanding the design of games check out Games Learning Society or GamesLearningSociety.org and discover more.
Fallout Shelter Breeding: A Marathon, Not a Sprint
Breeding legendary dwellers is a long-term project. It requires consistent effort and a strategic approach. However, the rewards are well worth the effort, as these dwellers will significantly boost your vault’s capabilities and resilience.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. Can legendary dwellers breed?
No, legendary dwellers obtained through Lunchboxes or quests cannot breed. The breeding mechanic only applies to regular dwellers raised in your vault.
2. What is the ideal Charisma stat for breeding?
While a high Charisma stat (7 or higher) can help initiate the breeding process faster, it doesn’t influence the rarity of the offspring. Charisma primarily affects how quickly dwellers pair up in the Living Quarters.
3. Do siblings breed in Fallout Shelter?
No, full or half-siblings cannot breed. The game prevents any breeding between dwellers who share a common parent.
4. Can parents breed with their children?
No, the game also prevents parents from breeding with their children or grandchildren. A message will appear indicating that they are “Hanging out with the family”.
5. How do I increase dweller happiness quickly?
Assigning dwellers to their ideal jobs (matching their highest SPECIAL stat) is the most effective way to boost happiness. Successfully rushing rooms also provides a temporary happiness boost.
6. What is the maximum SPECIAL stat a dweller can have?
The maximum base SPECIAL stat is 10. Outfits and other bonuses can temporarily increase the displayed stat, but the breeding calculations use the base stat.
7. Is there a limit to vault population?
Yes, the maximum vault population is 200 dwellers.
8. What happens if my vault is overpopulated?
Overpopulation can lead to resource shortages, lower dweller happiness, and increased incidents.
9. Can dwellers die of old age in Fallout Shelter?
No, dwellers do not die of old age. They only die from attacks, fires, and other hazards.
10. Can I revive dead dwellers?
You can revive dwellers who died on quests after returning to the vault. However, there is a 24 hours time limit on reviving dead dwellers. The cost of reviving them increases with level.
11. Do pregnant dwellers contribute to resource production?
Yes, pregnant dwellers can continue working and contribute to resource production, but they cannot fight off incidents.
12. What happens if a pregnant dweller dies?
If a pregnant dweller dies, the baby is also lost.
13. How long does it take for a baby to grow into an adult?
It takes 3 hours for a baby to grow into an adult dweller.
14. What are the benefits of having legendary dwellers?
Legendary dwellers have higher initial stats, making them more effective in any role they are assigned.
15. Are there any Fallout Shelter cheats that make breeding easier?
While there are no direct “cheats” to guarantee legendary babies, some players use save editors or mods on PC to manipulate dweller stats. However, these methods are not officially supported and may affect your game experience. The most reliable method is to focus on legitimate breeding strategies.