Agricultural center (Wasteland 2)

Agricultural center is a location in Wasteland 2, located south of the Citadel. It comes under attack from mutant fauna and flora early in the game and the Rangers have to choose between saving it and Highpool.

Entering the center automatically destroys Highpool. Note that if the Rangers enter ag center to save it, they cannot withdraw from the location. Leaving it and entering the world map will cause it to be destroyed automatically.

Background
The Agricultural Center is a large experimental farm where next to growing crops and holding livestock the scientists and other personnel also perform research and work on breeding stronger and sturdier plants and animals that can better survive in the conditions of the Arizona wasteland and thrive. Since 2087, the Agricultural Center has increased its mission and goals of providing food for the wasteland and has attracted a number of scientists and other trained or skilled personnel from across the Arizona wasteland as far as Darwin village.

The Center enjoys the protection of the Desert Rangers whose base, the Ranger Citadel is not located far from it. At least one retired ranger has joined the scientist community and has been helping in the work that is performed here. In 2102 the Agricultural Center suffered a disaster when a mutating disease was released through the Center's waterworks, drastically altering plants, animals, and even the people. Plants grew to enormous sizes or mutated into blast pods that spread parasitic seeds that could turn humans into pod people, insect species such as fruit flies and their larvae grew also to enormous sizes and became hostile towards other life, and mammals such as rabbits also changed into deadly killers after being exposed to the disease.

The leader of the community, Kathy Lawson sent a distress signal to the Ranger Citadel, asking for assistance. General Vargas ordered the nearest Ranger Team, Team Echo to decide to either respond to the distress signal of the Agricultural Center, or Highpool.

Helping Ag Center
If the player decides to assist the Agricultural Center they will find the facility under siege by massive mutant plants and various mutant animals as well as humans who have been mutated into pod people and now attack anyone who is not affected by the disease.

Team Echo assists the besieged scientists by undertaking a number of missions during which they rescue survivors and shut down the waterworks to stop the spread of the disease. They also collect a number of blast pod pieces which the scientists use to create an antidote that can cure people who are infected by blast pod seeds and which can halt the mutation of the plants and the animals. The Rangers release the antidote in the Center's water reservoir to put a halt to the crisis.

During their investigation of the Agricultural Center the Rangers discover that the disease was not accidentally made but deliberately created by Dr. Patrick Larsen who is revealed to be a spy working for the Children of the Citadel. He was instructed by them to create the disease from the mutant fungus that is being grown at the Center and use it to sabotage the facility with the intention of drawing the Desert Ranger's attention, possibly with the goal of infecting them and spreading the disease to the Ranger Citadel.

After revealing the details of this plan to Team Echo, the Desert Rangers are forced to terminate Larsen when he turns hostile and seeks to take them down.

Helping Highpool
If the player choose to assist Highpool first and then afterwards go the Agricultural Center they will find the research facility overtaken by the mutant plants and animals, with the human population either dead or turned to pod people.

Near the entrance Katherine Lawson is slowly consumed by a mutant plant that is tearing her apart. When the player addresses her she will scold the player for coming too late to assist the scientists and people of the Center. She will however also tell the player that the scientists managed to create the cure for the mutating disease right before they were overwhelmed by the plants and urges the player to search and retrieve it as pigeons have been spreading seeds with the disease to other nearby communities. Afterwards the mutant plant kills her.


 * Most of the Agricultural Center is sealed off now, the doors either overgrown or access halls filled with rubble.
 * Only the main control room and the left wing of the main building are still accessible.
 * When the player tries to locate the radio dish that is located within the main building they will find it destroyed by the mutant plants.

Dr Patrick Larsen has survived the disaster and can be found in the control room, he will feign ignorance at first when the player starts a conversation with him but then will openly reveal his role in causing the disaster and how he was instructed by iron monks to lure the Desert Rangers to the Agricultural Center. Soon after he turns hostile and the player is forced to terminate him.

Recruits

 * Rose

Merchant

 * Matt Forrestal

Quests

 * Work with Kathy Lawson to find a cure for the Ag Center outbreak → Add the antifungal serum to the reservoir in East Greenhouse
 * Shut down the irrigation to halt the spread of infection

Side quests

 * Fix Sue's mistake and save three other communities from the Ag Center plague ↔ Monitor radio for calls about spreading infection
 * Rescue Ag Center employees
 * Escort Skinner out of the mushroom caves
 * Free Ryan from the animal pen in the east field
 * Rescue Julio from his rabbits
 * Save the workers from the infected creatures