How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76

How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 now has a much clearer live-game route than it did before launch. Install the September 15 update, load into Adventure, open the Pip-Boy Radio tab and tune to Breaking News. That starts the Slasher storyline and leads into the opening quest, The Slasher: Masked Truth.

The first stage is about masked victims scattered around Appalachia. You are looking for corpses wearing Pint-Sized Slasher masks; taking a mask can award the notes that push the investigation forward. The opening quest requires 10 masks, and the wider Appalachia challenge continues beyond that total for extra seasonal rewards.

How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 step by step

For How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76, start with the radio rather than wandering the map hoping to stumble into a quest marker. Open the Pip-Boy, switch to Radio and select Breaking News. If you want the exact radio setup, our Breaking News Radio guide covers where it appears and the common reasons it may not show.

• Make sure Fallout 76 is fully updated to The Slasher build.
• Load into a normal Adventure world.
• Open the Pip-Boy and select the Radio tab.
• Tune into Breaking News and let the broadcast play.
• Follow The Slasher: Masked Truth when it appears.
• Search for masked corpses and take the Pint-Sized Slasher masks.
• Read the clue notes when the quest directs you to them.

The important part of How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 is understanding that the story is not one giant launch-day quest. Bethesda is adding layers over several weeks. The first investigation is live now, while graves, later Infestation content and the final Pint-Sized imposter confrontation are deliberately held for later stages.

How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76: how Masked Truth works

How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 quickly turns into a scavenger hunt. Masked victims can appear around Appalachia, and taking their masks is what matters. Community reports from the live build show that notes such as article clippings and a torn page from a children’s book can be awarded as you collect the required masks.

The quest does not require you to loot ordinary junk from each corpse. Focus on the mask and the quest items it triggers. If you want a route rather than pure exploration, use our Slasher Clue Locations guide alongside the quest so you can move between reliable search areas instead of burning caps on random fast travel.

Where the doghouse clue sends you

One live Masked Truth clue points players toward a doghouse near Charleston. Reports from players who completed the step place it near the road north-east of the Charleston Fire Department, behind a house with a satellite dish and flower-filled front yard. Search the meat pile inside the doghouse when the objective sends you there.

Treat that as a quest step, not a universal first destination. If your journal still tells you to collect masks or read a note, finish that instruction before trying to force the doghouse stage. The objective marker tends to become much more useful once the correct note has been read.

How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 when the next quest does not appear

A common confusion with How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 is finishing Masked Truth and expecting the entire seasonal story to open immediately. Bethesda has explicitly said The Slasher unfolds over the weeks after the update, with new information delivered through The Debunker Radio. Our Debunker Radio explainer shows what that means for the weekly rollout.

If you have completed the current quest and there is no new main objective, that can be normal. Check the Appalachia Challenges menu for mask-related rewards and keep an eye on the radio for the next story broadcast rather than repeatedly world-hopping for a mission that has not unlocked.

How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 if Masked Truth gets stuck

There are early live reports of a quest issue where clue notes can disappear after logging out. If How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 leaves you with an objective to read a note that is no longer in your inventory, do not keep collecting dozens of masks expecting the missing note to reappear automatically.

First try a fresh Adventure world and re-check the Notes section of the Pip-Boy. If the objective still points to a missing quest item, avoid deleting or abandoning anything else and submit a Bethesda support report. The safest approach is to read important Slasher notes and complete the immediate follow-up objective before logging off.

The best route after the opening quest

Once How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 is complete for the current week, move into the repeatable Slasher activities instead of waiting at the quest marker. Our Slasher Fanatic Locations guide covers efficient enemy hunting, while the existing Fallout 76 The Slasher Weekly Quests tracks how the time-gated chapters fit together.

Bethesda’s main Fallout website is the only external site linked here. The useful takeaway is simple: How to Start The Slasher in Fallout 76 begins with Breaking News, moves through 10 masked victims and clue notes, and then pauses when you reach the edge of the currently released story. That pause is part of the rollout, not a reason to grind the same opening step forever.