The infamous mutations in Fallout 76 are essentially traits gained through rads rather than leveling, and they can be a fun way to change up your playstyle, intentionally via serums or otherwise.
There’s an important secondary reason to gain mutations besides the direct benefits they offer, though: when you have a mutation, any weapon with the Mutant’s legendary effect will deal more damage.
Gaining mutations by purposefully exposing yourself to high levels of radiation isn’t the smartest idea, but there is a way to earn them without walking into an irradiated area unprotected. If you’ve got plenty of caps to spare, which thankfully, the cap maximum was just raised in a recent patch to make this more palatable.
Where To Buy Fallout 76 Serums And Recipes
Finding the Whitespring Bunker
Any player can buy various randomized serums for 5,000 caps, although this price can be reduced with high charisma and perks that reduce trading prices).
To buy a serum and gain a mutation without radiation poisoning, head to the Whitespring Bunker underneath the Whitespring Resort in the Appalachia region. You want to access the MODUS science terminal vendor in the science wing.
That’s the one surefire place to find them at all times. But, of course, other players may also be selling them at whatever price they want to set.
While its pricey, buying two of the same serum is often worth the investment, as using a second instance of the same serum suppresses the mutation’s negative effect.
For instance, if you take a serum to gain the Egg Head mutation twice in a row, you get the bonus to Intelligence but don’t take the hit to Strength and Endurance like normal.
Obviously, buying serums at that price isn’t particularly cost effective, especially since they are completely randomized and you never know what you will get at the science vendor.
Instead, you can buy recipes for 20,000 caps at the same location after joining the Enclave.
Fallout 76 Serum Recipes
Unfortunately, the available stock of recipes for sale is also random (and sometimes won’t appear at all, so keep coming back), but once you’ve got a particular serum’s recipe, you can make that serum anytime you want.
Recipes could previously drop randomly from Scorchbeast Queens, but that has since been patched out, so at this point, you can only buy them.
After buying a recipe from the science terminal, all serum recipes are made at a Chemistry crafting station using the ingredients listed below.
| Serum Recipe | Ingredients | Effect 1 | Effect 2 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adrenal Reaction | Antiseptic(5) Plastic (5) Pure cobalt flux (1) Ultracite (1) | +Weapon DMG at low HP | Max HP -50 |
| Bird Bones | Acid (7) Crystal (5) Pure violet flux (1) Ultracite (1) | AG +4, Fall from heights more gradual | STR -4 |
| Carnivore | Bone (5) Fertilizer (5) Pure fluorescent flux (1) Ultracite (1) | No disease from Meat and 2x bonus to Food from eating meat products | Eating fruits and vegetables does not satisfy hunger |
| Chameleon | Fiber optics(5) Nuclear material (4) Pure violet flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Invisibility | Must be unarmored, stationary, and not attacking |
| Eagle Eyes | Antiseptic(5) Fiberglass(3) Pure crimson flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Critical Damage +25% PER +4 | STR -4 |
| Egg Head | Ceramic (9) Nuclear material (4) Pure crimson flux (1) Ultracite (1) | INT +6 | STR -3, END -3 |
| Electrically Charged | Copper (5) Oil (5) Pure yellowcake flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Chance to shock melee attackers | Small amount of damage done to player |
| Empath | Acid (7) Plastic (5) Pure cobalt flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Teammates take 25% less damage | Player takes 33% more damage |
| Grounded | Acid (7) Black titanium (4) Pure yellowcake flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Energy Resistance +100 | Energy Damage -50% |
| Healing Factor | Acid (7) Plastic (5) Pure cobalt flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Health Regeneration while not in combat +300% | Chem Effects -55% |
| Herbivore | Bone (5) Fertilizer (5) Pure fluorescent flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Vegetables provide x2 benefit and no disease | Eating meat doesn’t satisfy hunger |
| Herd Mentality | Bone (5) Oil (5) Pure cobalt flux (1) Ultracite (1) | All SPECIAL stats +2 when grouped | All SPECIAL stats -2 when solo |
| Marsupial | Fiberglass(3) Oil (5) Pure crimson flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Carry weight +20, +jump height | INT -4 |
| Plague Walker | Lead (9) Oil (5) Pure violet flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Poison aura scaling with your diseases | Gain diseases |
| Scaly Skin | Coal (3) Oil (4) Pure crimson flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Damage and Energy Resistance +50 | AP -50 |
| Speed Demon | Antiseptic(5) Gold (4) Pure yellowcake flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Movement speed +20%, faster reload +20% | +50% drain on hunger and thirst while moving |
| Talons | Acid (7) Bone (5) Pure fluorescent flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Punching attacks do 25% more damage + bleed damage | AGI -4 |
| Twisted Muscles | Antiseptic(5) Bone (5) Pure fluorescent flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Melee damage +25%, better chance to cripple limbs | Gun accuracy -50% |
| Unstable Isotope | Lead (9) Nuclear material (4) Pure violet flux (1) Ultracite (1) | Chance to release a radiation blast when struck in melee | Minor damage to player during the radiation blast |
Want to keep mutations without spending all those caps on serums and recipes? Take the second level of the Starched Genes perk, which makes your current mutations permanent by preventing them from being cured when you lose radiation by taking Rad-Away. It has the side effect of not letting you gain any new mutations while equipped, however.
Ready for more post-apocalyptic mayhem with your friends in Fallout 76? Check out our other guides below:
- Nuclear Winter: How to Invite Friends
- Where to Farm Screws in Fallout 76 (Best Locations)
- What is the Stimpak Diffuser, and Where do I Get One?
- Purveyor Location: Find the Legendary Vendor
- Where To Find Pemmican
- Order Of The Tadpole Quest Guide
- Scout World Challenge Badge Exam Answers
Published: Aug 28, 2019 03:12 pm