Whether you’re hoping to thrill your settlers or weed out the weaker members of the community, staging arena battles is a great way to enjoy the excitement of the wasteland in the comfort of your settlement. With the right materials and a supply of contestants, you can organize everything from simple duels to large-scale battles—all while a captivated crowd cheers from the sidelines.
Build contestant platforms to assign settlers to color-coded teams. Members of opposing teams are hostile toward each other and members of both teams are hostile toward tamed animals. An arena battle begins the moment two opponents spot each other; it ends only when one contestant (or team) remains. To cancel a battle, use the Workshop menu to reassign fighters to other tasks or move contestant platforms into storage.
Despite their cries for blood, your settlers don’t react well to losing one of their own; a settlement’s Happiness rating drops whenever a settler is killed in the arena. Although key figures like Marcy Long and Mama Murphy can survive a loss in the arena, a contest between two typical settlers is sure to end in a fatality. If maintaining productivity is a priority, it’s best to keep your settlers on the sidelines.