Ghouls who live within the rebuilt civilizations of the known world are similar to normal humans in terms of intellect or personality, but often suffer from discrimination due to their disconcerting physical appearance. Besides their prolonged lifespans, ghouls are no longer harmed by low-level radiation and even receive physical benefits when exposed to it. Those who survive experience genetic mutations caused by elevated levels of radiation develop widespread necrosis or rot on their physical bodies, though their lifespans are greatly extended which allows them to live for at least hundreds of years if not effectively immortal. The term ' ghoul' in the Fallout series refers to human victims who were subject to prolonged exposure to radiation when they were caught outside during the Great War, a global conflict driven by the use of nuclear weapons which devastated much of the known world in the Fallout universe and provides the basis for the devastated world setting of the franchise.

Critics have lauded their use as either antagonistic figures or as supporting non-player characters throughout the series, with some even calling for ghouls to play a more central role in future sequels or adaptations of the franchise. Many ghouls live alongside humans in settlements across the post-apocalyptic wasteland, while others mentally degenerate into a wild and antisocial state.Ĭonsidered to be among the most recognizable and iconic elements of the Fallout intellectual property (IP), ghouls have appeared in every media of the franchise, and have been the subject of numerous fan mods of Fallout series games. Within series lore, ghouls are originally humans, many of them survivors of a global nuclear holocaust, who have been severely mutated by the residual irradiation, which greatly extends their lifespans but deforms their physical appearance into a zombie-like aesthetic.

Ghouls are a fictional race of posthuman beings from the post-apocalyptic Fallout video game franchise.

Render of a typical Feral Ghoul used in Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas

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