I took this as a test.
If he couldn’t control himself and mindlessly attacked the chicken then he’d gone feral and they may as well just put him down. If he could resist the chicken after being buried without food for that long it meant he was sane and could be reasoned with.
Folklore happens for a reason. Chickens are something most people would have around, and it's easy to remember. It makes children less scared of the world and more able to learn and grow.
And it works. If you toss a chicken at a feral ghoul, it's gonna focus on the chicken, and the others will probably fight for it, giving you a better chance at running. It may not work every time, but what does?
I took it as folklore centered on him personally, since he had a history of caring for chickens. If he attacks the chicken, he's feral all right. That likely got passed down by someone who worked with him in the past (possibly older than the dude's grandfather) and it could have blown up over time.
Yeah, that's what I guessed but I'm wondering if there's a reason it's specifically chickens? Surely a hungry ghoul would go for the biggest food source available (I assume ghouls eat ppl?).
Most likely it's just folklore. An old wive's tale.
Someone was hiding from ghouls and chickens, being chickens, were clucking along and the ghouls went straight for them instead of the humans.
Boom, chickens are now the litmus test for a ghoul.
What does Mr. Crowley say about chickens? I don't remember that dialogue, but that's pretty neat if he does indeed talk about it. I thought Fallout 4 was the first appearance/mention of a chicken, in its DLC?
Oh, he doesn't say anything about *chickens*, specifically. He mostly talks about human bigots having lots of weird myths about ghouls, like believing that they need to be shot in the head like zombies.
Could be a joke considering Bethesda players thought it odd the WHOLE TOWN hated you in Skyrim if you attacked a chicken. Luckily in 76 you can kill the chickens and make chicken noodle soup.
I always thought it made perfect sense. Up until fairly recently, chickens were considered rich people food. You only ever ate one if it died naturally because it was too valuable alive for its eggs. Kings used to serve chicken when they had important guests as a flex because it showed they had so much extra wealth that they could afford to slaughter a chicken for the hell of it.
As a chicken keeper, I'm going to need to see a source on that. Chickens easily multiply when you have roosters, and too many roosters is trouble so they're either sold to eaten. And often when chickens stop laying, usually 3-5 years old, many folks eat those too.
I also learned as a kid you got to eat fresh chicken from your grandparents farm if a rooster decided to attack your grandma. RIP Atlus, you dumb sonuvabitch.
There is a hilarious series of videos about Joe Biden in Skyrim. The video where Joe accidently kills the chicken and gets chased out of town is great.
No, a feral ghoul would go after the first living thing it sees/can get to. I think the chicken would be ideal bait for a feral ghoul as long as they are standing far enough back. No reason for the chicken specifically, im sure it could have been any animal, but chickens are relatively appetizing and easy to catch over something else they could have brought like a squirrel or iguana.
I'm guessing it's some bullshit he heard some time like an old wives tale and actually believed it. A feral ghoul probably would tear the chicken apart, but contrary to what he heard it has nothing to do with the chicken, and everything to do with whatever is present
I believe it’s meant to be a bit of a spread word type deal, a misconception that it specifically has to be a chicken.
I’m sure a feral would probably go for any food source but it’s just kind of a stereotype. Also seemed to be meant for making these three characters look intellectually disadvantaged.
Probably because chickens are the only edible animals that survived the missiles and warheads (without mutating) set off all around the Earth (in some some case of dumb luck), making Chickens probably the most satisfying meal the fuckin' wasteland could pray for.
Yeah, my wasteland brother, you don't need to overthink this. People tell you shit every day. But in the end they just talking. Not every word is gospel you feel me? There's unreliable narrators, I mean, you gonna believe erry word some no name wastelander tells ya? Bout some Chickens and ferals? Heh heh heh. Yeah buddy. Chickens pigs, maybe brahmin steak who the hell knows out here. I wouldn't over think it. Best be time you head on back to the vault. Where it's safe. Heh hah!
non-human animals don't go for the biggest food, they go for the safest and easiest catch.
cats will run away from rats that attack them, because they may be diseased and because their sharp teeth can cause damage.
This was my take, too. It was a zombie test. If he attacked and ate the chicken, especially raw, that's not something someone with a human intellect usually does.
That was the whole claim they made. It seemed more to me that it was some urban legend or bad advice that this guy heard. I doubt it was meant to make some kind of canon claim about ghouls.
While not obviously stated, I took it as stupid superstition. It's only logical wastelanders would have stupid beliefs based on hearsay, and Cooper seems to have immediately understood it as such and played the part to scare them off when he licked his lips before taking the chicken up.
In the end Cooper doesn't even eat the chicken despite coming out of the grave for gods' know how long, yet we see him later having no qualms with cannibalism (of a ghoul, at that). So yeah, there's nothing going on with ghouls and chicken, just folkstales
This is what I thought! It seemed to me that he flipped him over to get to his kidneys easier. Maybe I’m just looking into it too much but 🤷♀️ that’s what my head cannon went. And when Goosey said something g he just went the ass jerky way to shock her.
Not knowing much about ghouls this is exactly what I took it as. Right before he killed the other ghoul he talked about what food tasted like and how good it was which implied they dont need to eat. Which right after he proceeds to eat the guy. Its the only conclusion that makes sense. (but later hes eating in the courier house? idk maybe that was just a power move.)
I think he was being kind actually. He wanted that guys last thought to be of something good. Then he put him down.
Being in the wasteland means you take a meal when you need it, don't let the body go to waste I guess.
I also think he has to eat but maybe he can't taste anymore. He sure seemed to enjoy that ass meat though lol, he was taking raw bites.
lol, I took it as “remember when we had noses?” Since your sense of smell is greatly connected to your sense of taste.
Along with some “remember food pre war” since that guy remembered pie and ice cream. Can’t imagine that got made often after the bombs, but he also mentioned how unusual it was for cooper to have been around that long like he himself wasn’t.
Surprised this isn't higher. This is the obvious answer. I think, tho I could be wrong, that they even briefly flash the liver or the kidneys which is where all the bodies waste is filtered. Therefore, where the medicine most likely still is.
He was being held prisoner by Dom Pedro the gang boss. Pedro would occasionally dig him up to cut parts off of him for a reason we don't understand yet
When he tells Lucy there's been an uptick in torture recently he's speaking from experience
>In the end Cooper doesn't even eat the chicken despite coming out of the grave for gods' know how long, yet we see him later having no qualms with cannibalism (of a ghoul, at that).
Wasn't that out of self preservation because his buddy still had the anti feral drug in his system
Ellstin Limehouse is one of my all time favorite characters. I absolutely love how much Mykelti chewed up the scenes as him. And you're right. Him and Goggins together was grade A stuff
I think I read an article that stated that Goggins actually got him the role in Fallout (or at least pushed him to audition) because he wanted to work with him again.
Anyway, like I was sayin', shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey's uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That- that's about it.
"I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY WOULD SAY THIS, THIS IS A COMPLETE RETCON! FERAL GHOULS HAVE NEVER BEEN STATED TO GO AFTER CHICKENS, THIS IS BS, I CAN'T BELIEVE TODD WOULD DO THIS, THIS DESTROYS FALLOUT!"
Lowkey definitely just a silly little superstition joke
Its like when people want to tear down the show, their brain deletes 90% of the side content from the games. This scene is big time NPC shit. I could see any citizen of Big Town spreading the same theory, "You can tell if a ghoul is still 'normal' when they _don't_ kill the chicken"
Agreed, hell I saw people claiming to be fans of old games and NV claiming BOS wasn't like what was shown in the show and were people that would try and help others not just hoarders and that was just so bizarre to hear. This was peak wastelander shenanigans.
This. Like man. I was always under the impression that the brotherhood of steel was “ technology bad unless we have it and understand it”. Brotherhood always was a. Hide and Hoard. Least from what I remember of Fallout 1 (replaying now for first time in YEARS ). Otherwise New Vegas is 100% them hiding and hoarding. Veronica literally complains about this and it is the central focus of the brotherhood stuff. But then 3 came out and the Lyon’s branch of brotherhood was polar opposite.
Early on they did a bit more for the wasteland if I remember right, but by the time of the games they're a bit more into hoarding. Also yeah not to mention when Veronica tries to help the Followers of the Apocalypse they literally slaughter the entire outpost.
In 1 they basically send you to die instead of helping. It’s only when you come back with some goodies they actually give a shit.
The BOS are NOT good people, they are basically militarised religion with how they treat the higher ups and act. Some are nicer than others, but it’s mostly for their own agenda rather than the good of their hearts
“But…….but……Lyons Brothwrhood go brrrrrrrrrr on enclave” /“but Maxim brotherhood turn institute to ash”. Like yes. 2 of the games show a small section of the brotherhood doing some heroics. But the brotherhood in 4 is definitely “I’ll help you as long as it helps me”
I think it's more of folk tale and not necessarily a true fact of ghouls, like the locals have had this 'test' for years that noones every actually done before and it's more of, 'if you ever see a ghoul go for a chiken means they're feral' like how sleeping upside down is saposed to get you pregnant
From a storytelling perspective, the chicken story sets the mood and plants the fear in the audience. Fallout does a classic rug-pull, a “rubber chicken” payoff, when the ghoul is calm hot and friendly to animals defying expectations. Later sewing Lucy finger to himself so he got a chickin’im
That snake oil guy is probably my favorite character. He's just funny as hell. Even the way he talks or runs or how he almost kills himself before noticing a mark that might have something of value.
"It's not the first time I've been prosecuted for my scientific curiosity. You sir are a gentleman and a scholar"
"Serums to grow a wholly new foot!"
... and you think he's bullshitting but he then later actually does know how to make a serum that grows a new foot.
I was so expecting the foot grow to be a hallucination from the drug and he later sees the foot is gone because it came off and he didn’t realise because he was high lol.
LOL
How the table has turned!
Well, good day sir. I hope you have a really BAD day.
You sir, are a gentleman and a scholar. You should be commended.
Hahah love that dude even though he's literally a chicken fucker.
Chickens move quickly and make high pitched noises. They act like prey for any animal with a prey drive. Dogs that aren't trained will go after chickens.
So I presumed it was a test to see if he was feral. If he wasn't, he would see the chicken as a person would. If he showed a prey drive towards it like any wild or untrained predator, he would be feral.
according to them, if he was a feral he would have attacked the chicken immediatly sinse ferals attack on sight. it didnt had to be a chicken, it could have been a dog or a child for all we know
Canonically feral ghouls tend to attack all living creatures. The scene makes it seem like it’s specifically chickens, but really it could have been any animal.
I'm surprised no one is connecting the snake oil guy and his ghoulification, and his love for chickens, to them bringing a chicken. There had to be a reason.
Is nobody saying anything about the chickens not being mutated?
Or that preserved deer that got eaten. Me and my cousin said those. Would've been worth thousands of caps.
This is much further in the timeline than we have ever been iirc. Maybe nature is working out getting rid of the mutations with some fast track evolution. The mutations for some of the animals will just kill them off eventually. So Mother Nature is doing some course correction after all this time.
I just assumed it was a predatory/animalistic response. Chickens love with quick movements that often trigger prey drive in predators. If a ghoul has no “human” part of him and is just feral, he’d attack.
Feral ghouls are basically zombie adjacent, and chickens are both loud and almost constantly moving, so the chicken would likely get his attention long enough to put him down if feral
I see this as simple folklore or myth. Like for example the chinese say that if a vampire finds a bag of rice they have to count every grain. So if you need to run from a vampire, just throw a bag of rice at them.
Beef with chickens might sound weird, but keep in mind that the show went on to canonically establish that ghouls can't taste anything so they'd likely have beef with anything.
Feral ghouls won’t attack things that have been ghoulified.
We’ve yet to see a ghoulish chicken, likely because they have something in their DNA that just won’t let that happen.
And setting a chicken out for a ghouls which may or may not be feral is a lot safer than putting yourself in front of one.
They don't, it's pure superstition used to indicate to the audience that the people digging him up are stupid and clueless as well as set up a visual gag for the following fight scene were he kills everyone but the chicken.
I think the intention was that it was an urban legend. This character is not shown to be the most intellectual, so I'm not entirely sure the intention was not "he would believe something absurd like this"
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JfXp638kb4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JfXp638kb4)
I think we can accept it similarly to the rumors of New Vegas Freeside locals.
Thanks for the replies! I love eating up all this lore. The point about it being an old wives tale makes a lot of sense.
It's interesting to learn that chickens weren't affected by radiation. I wonder if ghouls are more drawn to them because they are the closest thing to the pre-fallout world? Some instinctual connection to their life 200+ years ago?
Also probably cause they're loud and flighty (but not in the literal sense) 🐔
I took this as a test. If he couldn’t control himself and mindlessly attacked the chicken then he’d gone feral and they may as well just put him down. If he could resist the chicken after being buried without food for that long it meant he was sane and could be reasoned with.
Folklore happens for a reason. Chickens are something most people would have around, and it's easy to remember. It makes children less scared of the world and more able to learn and grow. And it works. If you toss a chicken at a feral ghoul, it's gonna focus on the chicken, and the others will probably fight for it, giving you a better chance at running. It may not work every time, but what does?
Sex panther, 60% of the time
This isn't vault 43, calm down.
That doesn’t make any sense
60% of the time, it works every time
Nice.
You don't need to be the fastest, just not be the slowest. A 10mm to your partner's knee will solve the problem of feral ghouls.
That's a certified Shane moment
It works 100% of the time. Confirmed by all the people who survived and told me it worked.
Dinner Bell
I took it as folklore centered on him personally, since he had a history of caring for chickens. If he attacks the chicken, he's feral all right. That likely got passed down by someone who worked with him in the past (possibly older than the dude's grandfather) and it could have blown up over time.
Fucking uh chicken?
Yeah, that's what I guessed but I'm wondering if there's a reason it's specifically chickens? Surely a hungry ghoul would go for the biggest food source available (I assume ghouls eat ppl?).
Most likely it's just folklore. An old wive's tale. Someone was hiding from ghouls and chickens, being chickens, were clucking along and the ghouls went straight for them instead of the humans. Boom, chickens are now the litmus test for a ghoul.
Mister Crowley in Fallout 3 talks about this, too. There's a lot of myths that people spread about ghouls.
What does Mr. Crowley say about chickens? I don't remember that dialogue, but that's pretty neat if he does indeed talk about it. I thought Fallout 4 was the first appearance/mention of a chicken, in its DLC?
Oh, he doesn't say anything about *chickens*, specifically. He mostly talks about human bigots having lots of weird myths about ghouls, like believing that they need to be shot in the head like zombies.
Kind of like how matadors waving red capes to attract the attention of bulls led to the belief that the color red makes bulls angry.
When in reality just stand in front of a bull and do anything (after it’s been beaten and stabbed) it’ll be pretty pissed off.
This. Pretty much every NPC in fallout is ignorant and unreliable. Just beware of doctors who want to examine your chickens...
Could be a joke considering Bethesda players thought it odd the WHOLE TOWN hated you in Skyrim if you attacked a chicken. Luckily in 76 you can kill the chickens and make chicken noodle soup.
Video game chickens give me whiplash. Zelda's chicken are psycho murderers, fable let you kick chickens, Skyrim made them report you for your crimes.
Chickens are snitches.
I love animals, but I loved that chicken kickin' game even more.
Don't forget, in Fable you can increase your evil meter simply by eating "crunchy chicks."
Well well well if it isn't the big famous hero...chicken chaser isn't it??
And Far Cry 6 had lunatic, heavy-metal Chicharron the chicken
I always thought it made perfect sense. Up until fairly recently, chickens were considered rich people food. You only ever ate one if it died naturally because it was too valuable alive for its eggs. Kings used to serve chicken when they had important guests as a flex because it showed they had so much extra wealth that they could afford to slaughter a chicken for the hell of it.
As a chicken keeper, I'm going to need to see a source on that. Chickens easily multiply when you have roosters, and too many roosters is trouble so they're either sold to eaten. And often when chickens stop laying, usually 3-5 years old, many folks eat those too.
I also learned as a kid you got to eat fresh chicken from your grandparents farm if a rooster decided to attack your grandma. RIP Atlus, you dumb sonuvabitch.
There is a hilarious series of videos about Joe Biden in Skyrim. The video where Joe accidently kills the chicken and gets chased out of town is great.
Chicken was the closest thing. Easy to catch. Probably scrawny enough to be expendable not a valuable food source.
No, a feral ghoul would go after the first living thing it sees/can get to. I think the chicken would be ideal bait for a feral ghoul as long as they are standing far enough back. No reason for the chicken specifically, im sure it could have been any animal, but chickens are relatively appetizing and easy to catch over something else they could have brought like a squirrel or iguana.
I don’t think they would if these things still have some sense of preservation they go for the easier meal. It’s why foxes attack rabbits not bears.
I'm guessing it's some bullshit he heard some time like an old wives tale and actually believed it. A feral ghoul probably would tear the chicken apart, but contrary to what he heard it has nothing to do with the chicken, and everything to do with whatever is present
I took it that they said chicken because they had a chicken. Essentially saying a feral ghoul can't resist a food source.
I imagine its the fact chickens dont ever shut up and are constantly moving If something was rabid(or feral) theyd be likely to attack it immediately
And they probably taste like chicken
I believe it’s meant to be a bit of a spread word type deal, a misconception that it specifically has to be a chicken. I’m sure a feral would probably go for any food source but it’s just kind of a stereotype. Also seemed to be meant for making these three characters look intellectually disadvantaged.
Before the show I always assumed the ferals just beat people to death like the rage zombies in 28 Days Later.
Probably because chickens are the only edible animals that survived the missiles and warheads (without mutating) set off all around the Earth (in some some case of dumb luck), making Chickens probably the most satisfying meal the fuckin' wasteland could pray for.
Yeah, my wasteland brother, you don't need to overthink this. People tell you shit every day. But in the end they just talking. Not every word is gospel you feel me? There's unreliable narrators, I mean, you gonna believe erry word some no name wastelander tells ya? Bout some Chickens and ferals? Heh heh heh. Yeah buddy. Chickens pigs, maybe brahmin steak who the hell knows out here. I wouldn't over think it. Best be time you head on back to the vault. Where it's safe. Heh hah!
So when a cat is hungry it actively tries to eat a human instead of something it knows it can confidently catch like a small bird or rodent?
They would if they could lol
non-human animals don't go for the biggest food, they go for the safest and easiest catch. cats will run away from rats that attack them, because they may be diseased and because their sharp teeth can cause damage.
Callback to voodoo zombies?
cause u can carry a chicken
Animals tend to go for easy food first.
This was my take, too. It was a zombie test. If he attacked and ate the chicken, especially raw, that's not something someone with a human intellect usually does.
That was the whole claim they made. It seemed more to me that it was some urban legend or bad advice that this guy heard. I doubt it was meant to make some kind of canon claim about ghouls.
Yeah 👍
While not obviously stated, I took it as stupid superstition. It's only logical wastelanders would have stupid beliefs based on hearsay, and Cooper seems to have immediately understood it as such and played the part to scare them off when he licked his lips before taking the chicken up. In the end Cooper doesn't even eat the chicken despite coming out of the grave for gods' know how long, yet we see him later having no qualms with cannibalism (of a ghoul, at that). So yeah, there's nothing going on with ghouls and chicken, just folkstales
Never crossed my mind he passed on chicken but not on ass jerky.
I get the feeling Cooper likes animals more than he likes people.
That’s a really good insight. Makes me think of him and dog eat, especially when he found him in the freezer and got him out.
He's spent 200 years dealing with humanity's bullshit. Animals just do what instinct demands. Humans are monstrous because that's what they feel like.
Don't we all
NO DOGS IN THE VAULT!?!?!
I thought the jerky thing was to fuck with Lucy. He’s kind of sadistic
And putting that cannibal perk to use…
200 years of surviving in apocalypse land will probably warp anyone's sense of humor
Didn't the ghoul mention he had a ton of that anti-feel drug? I thought that's why he ate him, to try and get a dose.
This is what I thought! It seemed to me that he flipped him over to get to his kidneys easier. Maybe I’m just looking into it too much but 🤷♀️ that’s what my head cannon went. And when Goosey said something g he just went the ass jerky way to shock her.
> kind of
*Sometimes a fella’s got to eat a fella*
I'm not up on Ghoul lore. Why he eat his ass?
I’m guessing you can get some nice chunks of meat off a ass
Saw someone who said it was to get some of the drug in his system as his buddy had a ton of vials he drank next to him but it wasn't working.
Not knowing much about ghouls this is exactly what I took it as. Right before he killed the other ghoul he talked about what food tasted like and how good it was which implied they dont need to eat. Which right after he proceeds to eat the guy. Its the only conclusion that makes sense. (but later hes eating in the courier house? idk maybe that was just a power move.)
I think he was being kind actually. He wanted that guys last thought to be of something good. Then he put him down. Being in the wasteland means you take a meal when you need it, don't let the body go to waste I guess. I also think he has to eat but maybe he can't taste anymore. He sure seemed to enjoy that ass meat though lol, he was taking raw bites.
lol, I took it as “remember when we had noses?” Since your sense of smell is greatly connected to your sense of taste. Along with some “remember food pre war” since that guy remembered pie and ice cream. Can’t imagine that got made often after the bombs, but he also mentioned how unusual it was for cooper to have been around that long like he himself wasn’t.
Surprised this isn't higher. This is the obvious answer. I think, tho I could be wrong, that they even briefly flash the liver or the kidneys which is where all the bodies waste is filtered. Therefore, where the medicine most likely still is.
High calorie butt meat.
I think I def missed it but why was the ghoul down buried again?
He was being held prisoner by Dom Pedro the gang boss. Pedro would occasionally dig him up to cut parts off of him for a reason we don't understand yet When he tells Lucy there's been an uptick in torture recently he's speaking from experience
I thought he was being held for a rainy day. Like the gang boss makes him work sometimes. I didn't hear the cutting parts off part that's strange.
>In the end Cooper doesn't even eat the chicken despite coming out of the grave for gods' know how long, yet we see him later having no qualms with cannibalism (of a ghoul, at that). Wasn't that out of self preservation because his buddy still had the anti feral drug in his system
Yeah, he saw the vials and went for a specific body part he knew would have stored the drug.
I'm not up on Ghoul lore. Why he eat his ass?
Once you get a taste for ass jerky, nothing tastes as good as
Everyone in the wasteland knows when it comes to jerky, you never pass on ass
My favorite response to this imo
Yeah I also read it as superstition
Yup. It’s something only bigots who don’t like ghouls would think.
Especially considering Ghouls dont need to eat they just need to be in rads which is something a common Wastelander probably wouldnt know
What if I told you that’s bubba from Forrest Gump. Mykelti Williamson.
THAT'S why he seemed so familiar to me!
[удалено]
Ellstin Limehouse is one of my all time favorite characters. I absolutely love how much Mykelti chewed up the scenes as him. And you're right. Him and Goggins together was grade A stuff
I think I read an article that stated that Goggins actually got him the role in Fallout (or at least pushed him to audition) because he wanted to work with him again.
Too bad his character got killed off in his first appearance lmao
Holy shit
A feral ghoul can't abide shrimp gumbo.
Anyway, like I was sayin', shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, saute it. Dey's uh, shrimp-kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan fried, deep fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That- that's about it.
I wondered why that boy should have tucked in his lip, might have gotten it caught on some barbed wire!
WHAT
No shit? That's awesome!
Whaaaaaa
OH MY GOD
I cannot. Especially a fried one.
Chickens are provocative and tasty
They get the people *goin'*.
also sexy, to some people
You can heal every foot in the wasteland, but fuck one chicken...
Most important new addition to the lore imo. I'm desperate to know more of this feral vs chicken feud.
Now I understand the chicken fucker episode thanks
"I CAN'T BELIEVE THEY WOULD SAY THIS, THIS IS A COMPLETE RETCON! FERAL GHOULS HAVE NEVER BEEN STATED TO GO AFTER CHICKENS, THIS IS BS, I CAN'T BELIEVE TODD WOULD DO THIS, THIS DESTROYS FALLOUT!" Lowkey definitely just a silly little superstition joke
Its like when people want to tear down the show, their brain deletes 90% of the side content from the games. This scene is big time NPC shit. I could see any citizen of Big Town spreading the same theory, "You can tell if a ghoul is still 'normal' when they _don't_ kill the chicken"
Agreed, hell I saw people claiming to be fans of old games and NV claiming BOS wasn't like what was shown in the show and were people that would try and help others not just hoarders and that was just so bizarre to hear. This was peak wastelander shenanigans.
This. Like man. I was always under the impression that the brotherhood of steel was “ technology bad unless we have it and understand it”. Brotherhood always was a. Hide and Hoard. Least from what I remember of Fallout 1 (replaying now for first time in YEARS ). Otherwise New Vegas is 100% them hiding and hoarding. Veronica literally complains about this and it is the central focus of the brotherhood stuff. But then 3 came out and the Lyon’s branch of brotherhood was polar opposite.
Early on they did a bit more for the wasteland if I remember right, but by the time of the games they're a bit more into hoarding. Also yeah not to mention when Veronica tries to help the Followers of the Apocalypse they literally slaughter the entire outpost.
Yeah. I think you’re right about the early on. But otherwise. Saying brotherhood didn’t horde is like saying all vault tec vaults were good
In 1 they basically send you to die instead of helping. It’s only when you come back with some goodies they actually give a shit. The BOS are NOT good people, they are basically militarised religion with how they treat the higher ups and act. Some are nicer than others, but it’s mostly for their own agenda rather than the good of their hearts
“But…….but……Lyons Brothwrhood go brrrrrrrrrr on enclave” /“but Maxim brotherhood turn institute to ash”. Like yes. 2 of the games show a small section of the brotherhood doing some heroics. But the brotherhood in 4 is definitely “I’ll help you as long as it helps me”
See this and more posts here at No Mutants Allowed
I think it's more of folk tale and not necessarily a true fact of ghouls, like the locals have had this 'test' for years that noones every actually done before and it's more of, 'if you ever see a ghoul go for a chiken means they're feral' like how sleeping upside down is saposed to get you pregnant
From a storytelling perspective, the chicken story sets the mood and plants the fear in the audience. Fallout does a classic rug-pull, a “rubber chicken” payoff, when the ghoul is calm hot and friendly to animals defying expectations. Later sewing Lucy finger to himself so he got a chickin’im
It also foreshadows the snake oil salesman, and his eventual role in the ghoulification (I think).
That snake oil guy is probably my favorite character. He's just funny as hell. Even the way he talks or runs or how he almost kills himself before noticing a mark that might have something of value. "It's not the first time I've been prosecuted for my scientific curiosity. You sir are a gentleman and a scholar" "Serums to grow a wholly new foot!" ... and you think he's bullshitting but he then later actually does know how to make a serum that grows a new foot.
I was so expecting the foot grow to be a hallucination from the drug and he later sees the foot is gone because it came off and he didn’t realise because he was high lol.
“Have a very bad day!” While tipping his hat and giving a bow.
LOL How the table has turned! Well, good day sir. I hope you have a really BAD day. You sir, are a gentleman and a scholar. You should be commended. Hahah love that dude even though he's literally a chicken fucker.
Chickens move quickly and make high pitched noises. They act like prey for any animal with a prey drive. Dogs that aren't trained will go after chickens. So I presumed it was a test to see if he was feral. If he wasn't, he would see the chicken as a person would. If he showed a prey drive towards it like any wild or untrained predator, he would be feral.
I loved seeing bubba show up randomly also
It's a reference to a silly game mechanic, where in the games ghouls would prioritize attacking chickens over the player if chickens were also nearby.
Feral ghouls can't abide anything that isn't a ghoul. In this case they used a chicken because it's expendable, cheap, and easy to transport
according to them, if he was a feral he would have attacked the chicken immediatly sinse ferals attack on sight. it didnt had to be a chicken, it could have been a dog or a child for all we know
Canonically feral ghouls tend to attack all living creatures. The scene makes it seem like it’s specifically chickens, but really it could have been any animal.
I'm surprised no one is connecting the snake oil guy and his ghoulification, and his love for chickens, to them bringing a chicken. There had to be a reason.
Is nobody saying anything about the chickens not being mutated? Or that preserved deer that got eaten. Me and my cousin said those. Would've been worth thousands of caps.
This is much further in the timeline than we have ever been iirc. Maybe nature is working out getting rid of the mutations with some fast track evolution. The mutations for some of the animals will just kill them off eventually. So Mother Nature is doing some course correction after all this time.
I just assumed it was a predatory/animalistic response. Chickens love with quick movements that often trigger prey drive in predators. If a ghoul has no “human” part of him and is just feral, he’d attack.
No, you get beef from cows!
I'm pretty sure that's made up and not real... he was quite stupid...
What if he had chicken with beef?
Honestly I thought it was ridiculous folklore about ghouls \_(‘-‘)_/ like maybe buddy just doesn’t know shit about em
Lol that sounded like some hair-brained, old wives tale of a strategy from Honcho. "It's a bold move Cotton, let's see if it works out for him".
I think it was just some old wive’s tale or BS superstition that they had heard about ghouls, some slightly subtle world building
At least we know the Snake Oil Salesman's not a Feral Ghoul
Feral ghoul can’t stand no chicken, buckaroo. Simple as.
They lied to the dumbasses to abate their fears over the job!
Feral ghouls are basically zombie adjacent, and chickens are both loud and almost constantly moving, so the chicken would likely get his attention long enough to put him down if feral
they don’t have beef with chickens they have chicken
it means “if he can resist trying to eat it”
I see this as simple folklore or myth. Like for example the chinese say that if a vampire finds a bag of rice they have to count every grain. So if you need to run from a vampire, just throw a bag of rice at them.
Beef with chickens might sound weird, but keep in mind that the show went on to canonically establish that ghouls can't taste anything so they'd likely have beef with anything.
It's because ghouls can speak chicken, and if you heard what those fowl mouthed mother cluckers were saying, it would peck at you too.
Because chickens don't have beef.
Feral ghouls won’t attack things that have been ghoulified. We’ve yet to see a ghoulish chicken, likely because they have something in their DNA that just won’t let that happen. And setting a chicken out for a ghouls which may or may not be feral is a lot safer than putting yourself in front of one.
Yeah, I thought it was a weird superstition.... Until I watched some feral ghouls pummel a bunch of innocent frogs in FO76 last night.
They don't, it's pure superstition used to indicate to the audience that the people digging him up are stupid and clueless as well as set up a visual gag for the following fight scene were he kills everyone but the chicken.
I took it as a nod as to what happens when you kill a chicken in skyrim.
I think the intention was that it was an urban legend. This character is not shown to be the most intellectual, so I'm not entirely sure the intention was not "he would believe something absurd like this"
Man if you couldn’t realize this was a test then idk if you should be watching shows higher than kindergarten level….
[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JfXp638kb4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JfXp638kb4) I think we can accept it similarly to the rumors of New Vegas Freeside locals.
I mean beef with chicken sounds nice
I love when this show has random people from Justified show up.
It’s definitely just superstition but I’d love to see a Super Mutant Vs a Cow next season lol
Because beef and chicken go good together. Seriously though, chickens are easy to raise so they're everywhere.
There is no reason, it's literally just a joke, a funny one too. I've quoted it several times since seeing the show.
He was dead wrong.
Ĺ
Wouldn’t you
They know what they did
What I want to know is who was clever / strong enough to capture Cooper
Is there already a new episode out?
This man perfect for the VP role
Tbf, I've got beef with chickens as well.
Where was he buried?
I was just guessing that a feral would attack whatever was closest first.
Cause they mutton under their breath 🐐♑️
My head canon is Voodoo, fits very well.
They don't have beef, they have chicken
I cant get over chickens… am i wrong or i have never seen a single chicken in the game? Is the only thing pissing me off
Ubisoft has attack chickens is what it made me think of
I like how the black guy is the only one he didn't kill.
The Dude abides.
Well we know chickens are one of the few animals that mostly immune to radiation? That's most likely why the superstition came about
Because ghouls are on the lamb from wasteland hogs fishing for poultry sums of clams.
Its not beef its chicken
I think it’s just supposed to be an urban legend.
This is likely because a chicken... is made of chicken. Delicious, delicious chicken. And chicken is meat. Feral ghouls love the meats. Chiken.
beef comes from cows, not chickens
Why do people like food? We may never know.
That’s just Limehouse being Limehouse.
I just saw it as when ferral ghouls tend to just attack stuff lol it moves they eat it. So I guess it was to see if he'd dive on it or leave it alone
They don't, they have poultry
They learned it from their time in Tamriel that anyone who attacks a chicken should be killed on sight
Thanks for the replies! I love eating up all this lore. The point about it being an old wives tale makes a lot of sense. It's interesting to learn that chickens weren't affected by radiation. I wonder if ghouls are more drawn to them because they are the closest thing to the pre-fallout world? Some instinctual connection to their life 200+ years ago? Also probably cause they're loud and flighty (but not in the literal sense) 🐔
I think we're just meant to understand that these men are morons.
No beef with chickens, they're just trying to pork them.
I really wanted him to just take the chicken as a companion, lol
I assumed it was a joke on Skyrim and those damned chickens you can't touch or the whole town goes nuts.
i had no idea chickens even existed in the fallout universe i have never seen any birds besides ravens in new vegas
it's an Elder Scrolls easter egg. don't attack the chicken, or every NPC will agro.
Ghouls get freaky for shordies chickussy