I did all 4 faction endings on vanilla FO4.
I have a Merc type PC (Willy Jackson) I have been playing with in a heavily modded game. And man I have had fun playing as him in FO4. He did no settlements, after getting paid for helping Garvey and his crew he headed for Boston. Any paying jobs along the way he took. Once he found Diamond City he liked it and bought the Home Plate house. That is where he has lived the whole game.
I have come to a cross roads where the game story will want me to choose a side. He was interested in the Institute and the possibility of his son being there (albeit skeptical) but was disappointed to find his son's ideology had been heavily influenced from growing up underground in the Institute. I wish there was a choice where the winning faction was randomly decided by you doing nothing. Because after losing his wife and waking up in a [censored] up world Willy is on Willy's side.