Fallout 4: The Hub City Auto Wreckers Guide

Intro

If you are tired of fighting Raiders wearing rusty metal scraps and pipe pistols, and you want to test your build against a real paramilitary force, welcome to Hub City Auto Wreckers.

Located in the Northeast sector of the Commonwealth, this place isn’t just a junkyard. It’s a fortified forward operating base for the Gunners. If Saugus Ironworks is the “Fire Level,” Hub City is the “Military Checkpoint” right next door that will absolutely punish you if you don’t respect the sightlines.

Here is the world-class breakdown of how to siege this fortress, farm the best non-legendary armor in the game, and survive the nuke-happy campers on the highway.

Location & Threat

Location: Northeast Commonwealth, sandwiched between Finch Farm and Saugus Ironworks.

Enemy Type: The Gunners (High-level mercs with laser weapons and combat armor).

Boss: Captain Bridget.

Danger Level: Very High. Do not go here at Level 5. You will get vaporized.

The Welcome Committee

The defining feature of this location is the overpass. The Gunners have fortified the highway above the junkyard.

The Nuke Warning: There is almost always a Gunner Commander or a high-level enemy on the elevated highway wielding a Fat Man or a Missile Launcher.

The Gamer Strat: If you hear the “whistle” of a Mini Nuke, stop aiming and sprint. Do not engage the ground forces until you have sniped the guy on the bridge.

Captain Bridget

Deep inside the wreckers, usually near the portable trailer offices or on the walkways, you will find Captain Bridget.

The Gear: She spawns in a suit of T-45 or T-51 Power Armor (level dependent) painted in Gunner colors. She carries a heavy weapon (Assault Rifle or Laser Rifle).

The Core Strat: If you are a collector, do not kill her immediately. Sneak up behind her with a Stealth Boy and pickpocket the Fusion Core (or shoot the core in V.A.T.S. from behind). This forces her to exit the armor, allowing you to steal the Power Armor frame. If you kill her while she’s inside, the frame is dead weight.

How to Clear It

This isn’t a corridor shooter; it’s an arena with verticality.

1. The Finch Farm Flank

Do not approach from the road coming from Saugus Ironworks. You will get cross-fired by the Forged (flamethrower guys) and the Gunners at the same time.

The Play: Fast travel to Finch Farm. Snipe from the farm’s perimeter. You can draw the ground-level Gunners out into the open field where your settlers can help draw aggro.

2. The Assaultron Threat

There is usually a high-level Assaultron patrolling the ground level among the cars.

Priority Target: If this thing goes invisible and charges you while you are looking up at the sniper on the bridge, you are dead. Cripple the legs immediately.

3. The Crane Secret

Once the ground is clear, look for the yellow control switch near the crane. Activating it lowers a lift that allows you easier access to the upper highway level without needing a Jetpack.

The Loot

You aren’t here for a magazine (the Picket Fences mag is next door at Saugus, don’t get confused). You are here for the Gear Farm.

1. Heavy Combat Armor Farming

The Gunners here are the most reliable source of Heavy Combat Armor in the mid-game.

Why it matters: Before you get Marine Armor (Far Harbor DLC), Heavy Combat Armor is the meta for non-Power Armor builds. Loot every corpse. Even if the piece isn’t legendary, the base stats on Heavy variants are top-tier.

2. The Fat Man & Mini Nuke

If you make it to the top of the highway (where the sniper was), you can usually loot a Fat Man launcher and a Mini Nuke. It’s a guaranteed spawn for heavy weapons builds.

3. The Gainer Connection

Just slightly south/east of the Wreckers (across the water towards the pump house), you can find the unique .44 pistol “The Gainer.” It’s not in the Wreckers, but this is the closest fast-travel point to get it.

The Gunner/Forged War

If you hack the terminal in Captain Bridget’s trailer, you get some juicy context.

Environmental Storytelling: Occasionally, if you approach stealthily, you can actually watch a skirmish break out between a Gunner patrol and a Forged patrol on the road between the two locations. Grab some popcorn and let them kill each other, then loot the winners.

The Beef: The Gunners (Hub City) and The Forged (Saugus Ironworks) are practically neighbors, and they hate each other.

The Story: Bridget’s logs reveal that the Forged keep trying to raid the Gunners for scrap metal to fuel their fires, and the Gunners are getting annoyed by the pyro freaks.

Hidden Details & Secrets

The Whack-A-Mole Layout: The cars are stacked in a way that creates a maze. The AI pathing here is actually pretty smart; Gunners will flank you through the bus shells. Do not stay in one spot.

The Radiation Pit: There are pockets of high radiation near the crushed cars. If you are running a “Bloodied” build (low health, high rads), be careful you don’t accidentally overdose on rads while looting.

Finally

Hub City Auto Wreckers is a gear check. It stands as the gatekeeper to the Northeast. If you can clear this location without dying, you are ready for the DLC content.

Gamer Score: 9/10 for Loot Farming. It is the best place to outfit your settlers in full Combat Armor.