Fallout 76 Pet Commands let World Pets Attack, Stay, Follow or Protect through the direct interaction and Command wheel, with the current PTS also supporting pings to move or attack and pings placed from inside VATS.
The control system is still being tested, so a command that works on one PTS build can be adjusted before launch. The useful core is that pets are no longer passive CAMP decoration: they can be directed during exploration and combat.
Fallout 76 Pet Commands: what each command does
Fallout 76 Pet Commands Image Bethesda Game Studios.
| Command | Purpose |
| Attack | Direct the pet toward combat |
| Stay | Hold the pet in place until another command changes behavior |
| Follow | Keep the pet moving with the player |
| Protect | Use the pet defensively around the player or chosen behavior |
| Ping | Current PTS can use pings to move or identify attack targets |
Bethesda also added a setting for the pet’s default command and a setting for whether the pet follows ahead of or behind the player. Those options are useful if you prefer the companion to stay out of your camera or want it closer to the front of a fight.
The broader Fallout 76 World Pets guide covers progression and passives, while this page is only about control behavior.
How pet ping commands work
On the current PTS, a pet can move to a ping location while out of combat, including from the Stay state. Attack pings also work when the player is not already in combat for the relevant Attack and Protect behavior.
Bethesda added VATS ping support as well. That lets a player mark from VATS without backing out just to tell the pet where attention is needed.
Pets no longer block VATS or players
Bethesda changed pets so shots pass through them without harming the pet or reducing VATS accuracy, and pets no longer collide with players. That is important for tight interiors where a large Deathclaw would otherwise become a moving doorway.
For Fallout 76 Pet Commands, this means positioning is about tactics rather than trying to stop the companion physically trapping you.
Default command and follow position
The current PTS settings include a default command choice and a follow-position option for ahead or behind. Set those before a long test session so you are not reopening the Command wheel after every transition.
If a pet is regularly running in front of your view, change the follow position before treating the behavior as pathfinding failure.
Known command issues on the PTS
Bethesda has listed a problem where ping-to-move can fail when the ping is too far from the player. If a distant ping is ignored, try a closer location before reporting the entire command system as broken.
If the command works but progression does not, that is a different problem. Use Fallout 76 Pet XP Not Working for XP issues instead of changing command settings.
Fallout 76 Pet Commands and the latest PTS fixes
The October 15 test update changes some related pet behaviour. Pets no longer trigger traps, and Bethesda fixed a Cat animation issue that could prevent attacks from occurring. The existing Fallout 76 Pet Commands options still revolve around Attack, Stay, Follow, Protect and contextual Ping orders. Select the command you want, then confirm that the pet moves or targets the intended enemy before entering a difficult fight.
For pet progression and passive selection, the separate Pets screen in the Pip-Boy now includes claim notifications and a Pet Buffs interface. Those are different from issuing an Attack command, so use the command wheel for behaviour and the progression menu to manage unlocked bonuses.
For first-party information behind Fallout 76 Pet Commands, see official Fallout 76 World Pets PTS notes.
