Ahead ofFallout 76’s Season 20 and the playable Ghoul update, the community is already theorycrafting potential meta builds for players who transform their character into a Ghoul. While it’s important to consider all thenew Ghoul buildcrafting tools coming toFallout 76, it’s equally important to consider which buildcrafting tools will be off-limits for Ghouls.
Many players assumed that the existing Overeater legendary armor mod would remain the meta pick inFallout 76whether players continue playing as a human Vault dweller or transform their character into a Ghoul. However, this legendary mod has recently been changed to state that it no longer works for players who transform their characters into a Ghoul. Considering that this change to the Overeater legendary armor mod effectively makes it the first-ever human-exclusive legendary mod inFallout 76, introducing Ghoul-exclusive legendary mods arguably seems like a natural progression.
Fallout 76’s Overeater Legendary Armor Mod Effects
Overeater Legendary Armor Officially Doesn’t Work for Ghouls in Fallout 76
Among some of the unique new mechanics and traits of theplayable Ghoul character coming toFallout 76is that, unlike humans, Ghouls no longer have to maintain their hunger or thirst. More specifically, Ghouls can still utilize buffs from food and drink consumables, but they won’t receive buffs or debuffs from being well-fed, hydrated, or starving as the human playable character does. While Ghouls were able to utilize the Overeater legendary armor mod in previous versions ofFallout 76’s Public Test Server, Overeater has recently been changed to specify that it’s a human-exclusive legendary mod.
Fallout 76’s Season 20 and playable Ghoul update is set to release sometime in March 2025 as a free update for all players.
The Overeater legendary armor mod is generally considered the meta choice for endgame builds inFallout 76because it’s one of the most consistent sources of universal damage resistance. Although it’s justified that Ghouls can’t use Overeater because they don’t need to maintain their hunger or thirst, it’s still unfortunate that Ghoul builds will miss out on one of thebest legendary armor mods inFallout 76. However, while this recent change to Overeater is bad news for Ghoul builds, it doesn’t have to be, since it makes introducing Ghoul-exclusive alternative legendary mods a natural next step for Bethesda.
The Argument for Ghoul-Exclusive Legendary Mods in Fallout 76
Considering that Ghouls already have exclusive buildcrafting tools and combat mechanics such as new Perk Cards, Legendary Perk Cards, immunity to radiation, and thenew glow and Feral mechanics inFallout 76, exclusive legendary mods would be a natural progression for the upcoming playable character. Especially now that Overeater is the first human-exclusive legendary mod, it only seems fair to introduce Ghoul-exclusive legendary mods in response.
What New Ghoul-Exclusive Legendary Armor Mods Could Look Like in Fallout 76
Instead of dividing the existing legendary mods between humans and Ghouls, it might be best to create entirely new legendary mods for Ghouls. Hence, new Ghoul-exclusive legendary mods should offer effects that synergize with the Ghoul’s new Feral and Glow mechanics, or at least provide a Ghoul equivalent to Overeater.