Fallout 76's Next Update Introduces First Vault Raid

Bethesda's next patch for Fallout 76 is introducing players to the long-awaited Vault Raids, a feature where teams or confident individuals embark on a dungeon excursion into a rundown Vault. Patch 12 will arrive with the Vault Raids on August 20th where those on the PC platform will be able to try the raid first, and assuming everything goes well, those on the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One will be able to do the same not long afterwards.

The first Vault Raid was previewed by Bethesda in its latest Inside the Vault post where it foreshadowed the release of Patch 12. Vault 94 is the derelict point of interest players will visit as they explore its interior to uncover mysteries and emerge with loot.

"Vault 94 remains, though its inhabitants are long gone, and it has been completely overrun by nature," Bethesda said about the upcoming Vault Raid. "Yet, something within now threatens its destruction. Daring Appalachian explorers will need to brave many perils if they wish to save Vault 94, find out what became of its former residents, and recover the precious resources hidden within."

Inside the first Vault Raid waits "some of the most challenging experiences" Fallout 76 players have seen, according to Bethesda. Players are advised to create full teams of characters who have reached level 50 to take on the missions of Vault 94. Solo efforts are possible though, and they'll undoubtedly be attempted, possibly with some success.

This first Vault Raid will also introduce Fallout 76's first usage of instancing where other players outside of your team won't be able to mess with your mission. This means that the raid a team embarks on is only for them, so nobody else outside the team will be defeating your enemies or taking your loot.

It's because of this instancing that the raid will be released for PC players first. All platforms will get the same patch on August 20th, but the raid's release will be staggered to account for any problems which may arise.

"As this new Instancing technology is coming to the game for the first time in Patch 12, we are currently planning to open Vault 94 first on PC on August 20. If Vault Raids on PC run smoothly over the following days, we will open the Vault for consoles, as well. Patch 12 will still be released across all platforms on the same day. However, staggering the release of Vault 94 between platforms will allow us more flexibility to address issues that may not be apparent until larger playerbase gains access to Vault 94 than our internal playtests allow. If significant issues are discovered, we can disable the Raid on PC until we've implemented the necessary fixes, and then bring Vault 94 back online for all platforms."

Look for Fallout 76's new Vault Raid to release on August 20th as part of Patch 12.