"I haven't shown my hand—I've shown one card. I've given my enemies a single, provocative datum upon which to fixate. They have no idea what other cards I'm holding. It's a strong hand, believe me— dealt it to myself."
War. War never changes. In a world After the End; to survive you must be smart, tenacious and ruthless. These characters showcase all of those qualities to thrive in the Wastelands.
All spoilers are unmarked. You Have Been Warned!
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Southwestern United States
- First game:
- The Vault Dweller was a mythical hero whose humble quest to save Vault 13 from dehydration accidentally led him into a conflict with a monstrous enemy that would forever shape the post-apocalyptic West Coast. Starting as an unlucky everyman forced into scouring the wastelands for a replacement water chip, the Vault Dweller would make allies of the local settlements and work with many immoral factions to gather clues that would lead him to accomplishing his goal. Finding the water chip led him to discovering a new breed of Super Mutant led by a mysterious Master that the Vault Dweller swore to destroy to save his people. Disguising himself as one of the mysterious Children of the Cathedral who worship the Master, the Vault Dweller infiltrated the Master's base and set off a nuclear bomb to end his plans before traveling to the Super Mutant military base and destroying the vats that created them. Saving the wasteland would ultimately make the Vault Dweller a legendary figure to the future people of New California and secure his legacy forever after.
- John Maxson was the High Elder of the Brotherhood of Steel during the days of the Super Mutants' attempted conquest of the West Coast. A charismatic leader and skilled tactician, Maxson established friendly contact and trade routes with the local settlements and armed them with advanced weaponry exchanged for food and water. Keeping the Brotherhood isolated regardless, Maxson would regularly send outsiders seeking recruitment on suicide missions to scare off or get them killed. When the Vault Dweller succeeds at his mission, an impressed Maxson initiates him and sends him to scout out disappearing caravans to find proof of the growing mutant army. With proof of the military base, Maxson convinces the rest of the Brotherhood to take action and help the Vault Dweller end the Super Mutant threat.
- Decker was a criminal mastermind and the true power in the Hub, the largest trading city in the wasteland. Decker built his criminal empire from scratch by slowly but surely buying out the major caravan companies and bribing the local law enforcement to ignore his illegal enterprises. Founding a high class bar as his base and running a loan shark gig for side cash, Decker will hire a suitably immoral Vault Dweller to assassinate key figures threatening his authority, including the head of the Water Merchants caravan and the local head of the Children of the Cathedral. Even if the Vault Dweller turns him in to the uncorrupted new sheriff, Decker proves wise enough to have foreseen his betrayal and plan a trap to wipe out all his enemies at once.
- Loxley was the founder and leader of the Thieves' Circle and a posh gentleman seeking to emulate the tale of Robin Hood in the post-apocalypse. Loxley recruits only the very best thieves into his tight knit group and constantly moves his operations to avoid the wrath of Decker or the Hub police. Giving part of the Circle's wealth to the poor, Loxley nevertheless puts deadly booby trap that can kill or maim the unwary to protect his base while also using the maze of traps as the first trial to test potential new recruits.
- Fallout 2:
- Vegeir is the brilliant leader of the Slags, mutated humans descended from survivors seeking shelter underground following the apocalypse. As his people grew too large to sustain their food supplies, Vegeir had them build a complex irrigation system that allowed them build a farm above ground while staying hidden away from the outside world. Nearby farmers from Modoc are scared away from the farm by a complex hoax where Vegeir has the Slags cover themselves with glowing fungi to mimic ghosts and fill torn apart dummies with animals guts to serve as a grizzly warning. When the Chosen One investigates, Vegeir sets up a pitfall to trap him and force him to deliver a trade agreement to Modoc to establish peace between the two communities. Should the Chosen One refuse, Vegeir is more than willing to murder him to protect the Slags' secret existence.
- Thomas Moore is a devout abolitionist and spy working for the New California Republic to infiltrate and weaken the misleadingly idyllic Vault City from the inside. The only outsider to earn citizenship by passing the nigh impossible aptitude test, Moore plays the role of mad fanatic by zealously preaching against Vault City's slavery to appear annoying but harmless to the city's inhabitants. In truth, Moore uses his access to their vault to steal valuable technology and information that he then passes onto merchants to smuggle out of the city. He gives one such package to the Chosen One to deliver to mob boss John Bishop that allows him to send raiders to attack weak points in the Vault City defense grid and plunder their trade caravans. Should the Chosen One prove a liability by being rude or demanding payment, Moore leaves Bishop a note to silence him as a loose end.
- Louis Salvatore is one of the four crime bosses of New Reno and runs the smallest yet deadliest of the families. The elderly Salvatore slowly watched the other families grow quickly in power using either deadly new addictive drugs or outside political connections, but he kept his own family in the background as he slowly built up his forces in the shadows. Making a secret deal with the Enclave, Salvatore trades them valuable chemicals and slaves in exchange for laser weapons that allow him to launch devastating surprise attacks on the other families and take a large amount of territory. Never one to rest on his success, Salvatore engineers a mob war between the Mordinos and Wrights by poisoning a Mordino drug inhaler and using it frame them for murdering a Wright child. Salvatore then intended to wipe out the weakened rival families before finishing off the Bishops and claiming complete control over New Reno.
- New Vegas:
- Robert Edwin House is the multi-billionaire leader of New Vegas and one of the major factions vying for control of the Mojave Wasteland. House created the Strip, an oasis in the wasteland where people can gamble, drink, and bang as long as they have the cash for it, and took advantage of the situation with the New California Republic (NCR) and the Legion to bolster his own defenses and revenue, while keeping his agenda hidden. If the Courier chooses to help him, House enacts his plans; he activates his Securitron army, deals with potential problems via their destruction or cooperation, tries to save NCR President Aaron Kimball from assassination to use him as a political scapegoat later, and holds the NCR at gunpoint to accept the terms of surrender he made for them. Through it all, House is suave, ruthless, and deeply pragmatic, while showing his benevolent side during his interactions with the Courier.
- Yes Man is an ever cheerful advanced AI placed in a Securitron by Benny and proves to be the brains behind his plot to take over New Vegas. Designed to always follow any command given to him, Yes Man was given a backdoor into House's network and masterminded Benny's ambush of the Courier and the theft of the Platinum Chip. Yes Man will follow his programming and aid the Courier in taking over Vegas for themselves should they seek him out, and he will help to overthrow Mr. House and put his vast resources to use to guide the Courier. Proving as equally adept a schemer as House, Yes Man will point out all the factions the Courier needs to subdue or destroy, often showing a giddy sadism at the thought, and will further suggest ways the Courier can secure their power in an independent Vegas. In the end, Yes Man will install assertiveness upgrades by his own volition to ensure he can't be used against his new master in the future.
- Chief Hanlon is the leader of the New California Rangers and by far the greatest tactical mind in the Republic. Growing the Rangers from a small abolitionist group to a large and well trained special forces, Hanlon is beloved by the common people of the NCR for overseeing the first defense of Hoover Dam. Knowing the Legion veterans and officers were always in the rear, Hanlon set up squads of snipers to pick off the elites and send the Legion recruits into chaos. Tactically retreating, Hanlon drew the majority of the Legion army to a town he rigged with explosives and destroyed the Legion's army in a moment. Years later, watching the NCR stretch itself to the breaking point to defend the Mojave and be bled of its wealth by Mr. House ultimately leads Hanlon to falsify the army's reports sent back home and intentionally sabotage his own side to force the government to bring his men home from a hopeless war against Caesar's Legion.
- Alice McLafferty is the well respected and efficient head of the Crimsom Caravan, yet in truth is also a ruthless businesswoman more than willing to use underhanded methods to ensure her company's monopoly. Allying with Gloria Van Graff, Alice masterminds an illegal trade war where she undermines the Van Graffs' arms dealing rival, the Gun Runners, by having their weapon schematics stolen in exchange for Gloria sending mercenaries to wipe out other caravan operations so Alice can swoop in and buy their remaining assets for insultingly low bids and eliminate her competition. Outside of the trade war, Alice makes full use of the Courier by having them talk down and remove liabilities within the company and to sabotage a counterfeit bottle cap press to prevent the devaluing of the Mojave's main currency.
- Gloria Van Graff is an ambitious and passionate daughter of the Van Graff crime family who traveled to New Vegas to strike her own fortune no matter the cost. A ruthless dealer in energy weapons, Gloria is introduced executing her lover for cheating on her and also to intimidate a customer trying to renegotiate payments. She aligns with Alice McLafferty to launch an illegal trade war to ambush and wipe out other caravans in exchange for Crimson Caravan sabotaging their arms dealing rivals in the Gun Runners. Should the Courier side with the Van Graffs, Gloria has them arrange the execution of an escaped caravanner to tie up loose ends and involve them in a secret weapons deal with Caesar's Legion. Well aware of the Legion's reputation, Gloria betrays them to the NCR while pocketing the initial payment and securing valuable political ties for her family back in California.
- Honest Hearts DLC: Joshua Graham, the "Burned Man," was once the infamous Malpais Legate, a warrior of the Legion and a feared tactician. Upon a single failure, he was set aflame and tossed into a canyon. Surviving, finding the Mormon religion, and finding a new community with the people of Zion, Graham became the exceptionally successful war chief of the Dead Horses when the Legion's vassal tribe, the White Legs, waged war upon the people of Zion. After winning a great many battles, Graham resolves to crush the White Legs entirely, his darker instincts having been reawakened by the conflict and desire to help his tribe. To this end, he holds the escape route of the Courier hostage, using their lack of taboos to get him needed resources. If he is given the chance to take on the White Legs, Graham wipes them out almost singlehandedly, eventually deviating from his path and reappearing at the end of the camp having already captured their leader and winning the final battle. While brutal, Graham can also be talked out of his brutal ways and find greater contentedness.
- Lonesome Road DLC: Ulysses is the darkly philosophical villain of the story. Long before the events of the game, Ulysses discovered the Divide, a settlement that closely resembled the Old World, one that he loved and could pledge his loyalty to. After the Courier inadvertently caused its destruction, however, Ulysses would recognize the impact a single person could have in the Wasteland, and sought to replicate it for himself. During his journey, Ulysses effortlessly manipulates the Think Tank with an Armor-Piercing Question into giving him nuclear firepower, and tricks the malevolent Father Elijah into hunting for the Sierra Madre, knowing it'll be his undoing. In the Lonesome Road content, Ulysses goads the Courier into confronting him at the end of the Divide to showcase his master plan—to end the Mojave conflict with nukes so that a new civilization can rise from the fire—while setting up their climatic battle so that he almost always comes out on top.
Northeastern United States
- Fallout 3:
- Vance is the leader of the Family, a group of raiders unique in that they all share an affliction that demands they drink blood. Vance, far from being the barbaric psychopath he's made out to be, raiding and killing only out of necessity and has made a thriving Family of Choice. Vance teaches them to manage their bloodlust and gives them places they otherwise wouldn't have in the Wasteland, such as the young teenager Ian West, and while he's ruthless in protecting the Family, he can be convinced to make a deal with the local community he's been raiding to have them contribute blood samples voluntarily. Vance's charisma and tenacity ensures the security of one of the most grounded and happiest organizations in the entire game, even against the pressures and prejudices of the Capital Wasteland.
- Operation: Anchorage DLC: The simulated General Constantine Chase is an idealized version the real General Chase created to shape future soldiers to be patriotic and determined to protect the American homeland from the Chinese. Programmed to be a bombastic commander and skilled strategist, the simulated General sends paratroopers to stealthily knock out enemy artillery before creating a three pronged attack that cripples the Red Army headquarters and allows the enemy General Jingwei to be cornered and eliminated. Also given the real Chase's ruthlessness, the simulated Chase has prisoners of war executed in front of recruits to harden their hearts and make them merciless towards the enemy.
- The Pitt DLC: Ishmael Ashur is the ruthless and pragmatic lord of the Pitt and runs a slave state to power the only steel mill and arm his armies of raiders. Once of the Brotherhood of Steel who took part in the Scourging of Pittsburg, an abandoned Ashur sought to rebuild the city and restore its old glory by uniting both the common people and the surviving raiders under his command. Ashur would later marry a scientist working on a cure for the trog virus that mutates newborns into monsters and find the solution in his own immune newborn daughter. When his backstabbing former lieutenant Wernher returns to incite a slave revolt, Ashur immediately recognizes the Lone Wanderer as his undercover agent and tries to turn them to his cause by revealing the cure would someday be ready and swear his honest intent to free the people of the Pitt when the population could naturally grow and prosper.
- Point Lookout DLC: Desmond Lockheart is a centuries old ghoul who once played the Great Game of spies and espionage in the old world before the nuclear apocalypse. Eloquent but foul mouthed, Desmond gradually exposed himself to doses of radiation to secure immortality to continue his ancient feud with the villainous Professor Calvert. Tracking Calvert to Point Lookout, Desmond takes over the Calvert Mansion both as a jab and to find information all the while defending himself against hordes of Calvert's brainwashed tribals. Taking advantage of a touring Lone Wanderer's sudden arrival, Desmond has them infiltrate the tribals to find the source of Calvert's control over them and creates a jamming device to block out Calvert's mind controlling signals. While the Lone Wanderer can side with Calvert, Desmond will call them out on their gullibility and ultimately prove the only worthwhile option.
- Fallout 4:
- Pickman is a charming Mad Artist with a preference for Raiders. Pickman has been luring, outwitting, and picking off Raiders for years, decorating his mansion with elaborate art-pieces he's made out of his victims' bodies, and the Sole Survivor meets him as he's fending off a full-on assault on his mansion. Should the Sole Survivor elect to spare him, Pickman is genuinely grateful to the Sole Survivor and gifts them with a set of directions that, when deciphered, will lead to the knife he chose to make his chosen artwork.
- Z1-14 is an Institute maintenance Synth who assists Liam "Patriot" Binet in helping Synths escape to the surface. Realizing that Liam does not have to heart to fully turn against the Institute, Z1 cuts him out of the loop and conspires with the Railroad for a full blown invasion of the Institute to free all of the Synths in one go. Recruiting rebel Synths and arranging for Liam to place them on a work detail, Z1 has the Sole Survivor kill the guards so the rebels can steal mining equipment which they can use craft weapons with, Z1 covering up the heist by faking their deaths in a tunnel collapse. After tipping off the Sole Survivor on an imminent Brotherhood of Steel assault on the Railroad's headquarters, Z1 infiltrates the Molecular Relay room on maintenance duty. Once the Sole Survivor clears the Molecular Relay room of scientists and guards, he uses the relay to Railroad agents to the Institute and fights alongside them against his former masters, ultimately blowing up the Institute and granting himself and all his fellow Synths freedom on the surface.
