So the news about the settlement building got me thinking... Can we build housing for our companions? As the game play showed, we can build a doghouse for Dogmeat. So I wonder if we can build houses for all of our (potential) companions? They would make for a interesting feature. To be able to set up bases with specialized pieces of furniture or decor (computers for a tech man, gun rack for a killa'). The only issue I see, is that some companions of course may have a 'home base' already. Like how Charon would return to the Underworld same as Fawkes and Star Paladin to the Citadel. There was no reason for them to go back there besides just having somewhere to go, but of course with every iteration the game is going to change and companions may have a more solid reason to return or something they 'do' at their home base.

Then I thought of a way to improve this idea. Lets say you have a settlement in an area that's less dangerous. A companion that has less skill in combat but more in something else could be used in a specialized format to maybe improve trade or 'teach' your settlers? Then you could put a crazy freakin' lunatic in a different settlement that has issues with raiders/mutants/etc. and you come home and heads are on pikes and hes smoking a cigar on a pile of corpses. My favorite idea though is lets say you find a companion that's good with robots. You leave them at a settlement, bring them parts, and they build robots or upgrade them to protect the settlement (perhaps until you reach the point in which you could do it yourself).

I think the possibilities are out there to flesh out companions more than ever before. To have the emotional capacity of New Vegas and the selection of Fallout 3 (Fawkes, Dogmeat, Star Paladin, Charon, et cetera).

Well Fawkes would need a special bed, door, and toilet for him to fit in...

However I would be disappointed if my companions didn't get their own housing. Theres nothing worse than having companions follow you to your bed and watch you while you sleep. It also breaks immersion, why would your companions follow you to the edge of the world because you gave them a couple hundred caps or you're a fun guy. They need to have some sort of housing they can go back to when you don't need them anymore.

What I mean is, not a home base like Fawkes going to the Underworld. I mean if we can customize a house in one of our settlements for them to personally stay at instead of them going to a generic place like an android going to MiT (if it happens, actually thats not a bad idea... Hmmm). Like can I build a mansion for one of our companion, or atleast give them a room in my house that I can designate as there. Kinda like Dwarf Fortress for those who've played it.

I will likely just be building a dog house since likely my only companion will be Dogmeat. Dogmeat will be spoiled with all the Teddy Bears and kibbles n bits (Just have to get Fallout Version of it). Maybe I will create a mod of it.

Oh god, I just got this mental picture of forcing my companions to live in the dog house. Or a unique dog house vault. The dog opens the mini vault door in order take a nap.

well companions arent the only people who are going to be able to live in our settlement.. various npcs (without names) will as well as certain named NPCs we can recruit to our settlement by talking/doing something for them. so obviously we need to make homes/rooms for everybody.

Being able to mark places as a companion home and sending companions to different areas is an extremely common feature for the mods they seem to be emulating. Alternatively, I'd much rather they use the radiant AI system to have them do their own thing while dismissed, as long as it can't just get them killed.

Personally I just think your companions will be able to take up residence at your settlement once it gets big enough.

That sounds amazing, but only in theory in my opinion. If your AI were doing there own thing, it would be incredibly hard to track them. Sorry if I misunderstand, but from the context you put it in, do you mean they will travel around Boston freely? Or they will just do there own thing in the area they were supposed to be? If its the former, then that would be cool if we could track them. If the latter, then I agree entirely. It would be awesome to see them perhaps telling a story of what he/she and you did in your travels.

I understand this. I meant to say in addition to the settlement features already announced (like NPCs moving in). On a sidenote, I wish/hope that all NPCs that can move in have a name, but I know that's wishful thinking considering they will have to "fill in the gaps" and its easier to give them a generic title or just have the towns small (which I imagine will be the route they go).

  

They already explained how it will work.. the people who join on their own will be unnamed people so their deaths ect wont matter all that much as more could be generated.. but there will also be named NPCs you can recruit on your travels (probably like doctors or scientists ect) to further add to your settlement. while the unnamed NPCs will be there to add life to your settlement and to make it feel more like a real settlement (which they couldnt do if every npc had to be named.. unless everybody had random names generated thru a randomiser)

I knew that. But I just would have hoped for a very much in-dept settlement system. Like your the 'mayor' or 'ruler' of these settlements and you know your town and its people kinda thing. Not just clicking on someone and they just say 'hey' and then go ham working some crops. I'm not complaining, thats absolutely fine with me. It just means I won't feel as bad if one of these nameless men die, but it would have been neat.

  

to be fair how many mayors/rulers know everybodies names in their towns? unless they are one of those crazy rulers who decides to name everyone so they dont have to remember names.. (i should totally name everybody Gary)

and with lots of people coming and going to your settlement ect its probably not likely you character would care what their names are unless they are important people like scientists/doctors.. your character would have no reason to talk to some average joe farmer.

Well, you are in a post-war era where there is certainly not as many people as there used to be. A small time mayor, if you will. And of course he won't know wanderers, but the people who will actually live in his/her cities (small cities, from what we have seen)? Its more reasonable to say he/she could remember their names.

But like I said, its fine with me how their doing it.