Gehenna (Van Buren)

Gehennae are horrible monsters found in Burham Springs in 2253.

Background
Originally human, these abominations were created after a battle between Powder Gangers and the NCR 5th Engineering Division in 2247, lead by Robert Briggs, in which the Powder gang retreated into the mine. Afterwards, Briggs ordered the detonation of explosives, accidentally causing a chain reaction that inadvertently lead to the creation of the abomination. At least a few dozen townsfolk and power gang members were horribly burned and exposed to the radiation leaking from the ruptured containment barrels in the lower caverns, placed by Agricola long ago. Through mysterious pseudo-sciences, the anthracite coal, fire, and radioactive elements combined to create a bizarre mutated monstrosity that the nearby New Canaanites called "Gehennas".

Biology
They are slightly larger than humans and appear to be made of black tar and shiny oil. They are vaguely human-shaped, but their features are hard to analyze through the flames that constantly sputter across their bodies. Their eyes are bulbous glowing orange spheres that seem stuck into their ovoid heads. The Gehennae are dangerous both for their fiery melee attacks and the toxic fumes they breathe onto enemies. When they die, they collapse into a disgusting pile of smoking black goo. Gehennae are fairly mindless monsters, usually attacking anyone they see who moves too quickly. They have very poor senses, and can sometimes overlook creatures that stand still. Despite this, they are unusually attracted to flammable items. Though their minds have mostly degraded, they still are able to form some semblance of group tactics, as they group together in packs of up to 6. They also seem to thrive on, if not rely on, fire or areas of extreme heat for survival, and die out if it were to be extinguished. Their mutations also range from normal, to badly mutated, eventually becoming what is only known as a Molech, a huge, hulking, heavily irradiated Gehenna.

Appearances in games
Gehennae have not appeared in any published game. They were to appear only in Van Buren, the canceled Fallout 3 by Black Isle.

Behind the scenes
Given both that the Gehennae are constantly on fire and that they used to be human beings, their name is likely a reference to a valley location outside of Jeruselum of the same nameGehenna, mentioned in the King James Version of the Hebrew Bible to be where apostate Israelites, as well as followers of various other gods, performed ritual human sacrifice by fire.

While Gehenna is only loosely analogous to Hell in Rabbanical Jewish and Early Christian texts, the King James version of the Bible formally translated the metaphysical Gehenna to "Hell", as the translated earlier texts suggested that Gehenna may be the after-life destination of those whom were wicked in life.