Having become tired of all the "settlement is under attack" alerts...I have become a serial killer.

When I take over a new settlement, I will build just enough beds/defense/water/food to make the "up arrow" appear next to "happiness"...and then shoot all the settlers in the head.
I then store all the food/water/defenses/beds...just in case I later wish to build something there.
The only settlement that this doesn't seem to work for is that one with the child settler (damned poilitical corrrectness), and some "named" ones.

This really makes it easy to keep track of "working" settlements, but you can still do the MM quests where Preston asks you to open new ones.
Anybody else having homicidal actions due to the settlement system?

Love to build...hate the defense limitations. (Defenses should work even if we are too busy to came and watch the fireworks.)

When I killed the parents the kids just sort of vanished. But yes, Preston gives me a rescue this settlement for the minutemen, and I just go there and shoot them in the head and take the Settlement by force. The Enclave way. The American way.

Thanks Cutter.
I will have to try that.
I really hope it works....the kid is utterly useless.
I will just pretend he saw his parents murdered ans ran off to join the BoS to try to "Find the man that shot his Pa.". (lol)

But, are Cutter, and I, the only ones "turning Raider" just to cut down of "save the settlement" missions constantly interupting actual interesting gameplay?

I don't think you're alone with this one. I also love the settlement concept. But if players are resorting to this approach towards them, I think their implementation needed a little more work.

I just wish you could shoot Preston in the head and be done with his unsolicited radiant quests.

You got to like The Enclave , they need to bring them back . maybe dlc ?

LMFAO.... you monsters!! How could you. You're supposed to be protecting people at a minute's notice. Not shooting them in the face at a minute's notice.

But at least it's not raining, bro.

There's nothing more annoying, IMO, than being deep underground in a particular bunker (MQ, faction quest) when I get a notice that Red Rocket is under attack.

I just say, "That's too ... bad, can't you see I'm busy?"

As if I'm going to abandon my mission to FT back there, for nothing. My turrets and settlers always kill everything just as I get there, anyway.

I have more important things to do.

I just set them up with a couple turrets and leave 'em be if I don't care what happens to them. I don't even bother to hook them up to my supply chain. If they are under attack I might rescue them if I feel like it.

The settlements I do care about are a different story. But those other guys, they are on their own.

You can just ignore the quests, and stop talking to Preston. They'll go away.

So far on my second play through I'm not touching the settlement/Minutemen stuff. If I do change my mind, I will grab the mod that turns off settlement attacks.

Played 100 hours and then finally discovered if you lower settlement happiness to 20 ish they eventually leave your control. I'm hoping to do this for every settlement barring 2 or 3 I actually use

“Goooood.... Goooooood! Unleash your anger! Show the world the meaning of the Dark Side. Now...kill the Minutemen and take your place at my side!”


She's already gone on a rampage and murdered everyone in every settlement possible. With Preston by her side watching her with sheer horror.

I don't do that. But if I get the under attack message, I make my choices what villages are worthy of my attention. Usually the larger ones. The one horse towns only get one or two turrets and certainly no recruiting beacon. No big loss, if they perish. But I don't go out of my way to kill their inhabitants.

I sent him to the castle, I don't go there anymore. Haven't been there in ages.

I have three unfinished quests that are all completed up to the point where the quest is telling me to go see Preston. No thanks. He is at The Castle, and so I never have to "run into him" anymore.

I tried just avoiding him at Sanctuary, but he would sidle up to me while I was busy at an armor or weapons station and just give me more quests, without so much as a by your leave. That is irritating.

I remember when I was playing Skyrim thinking how great it would be if Nocturnal actually summoned me to defend the Twilight Sepulcher. So much for unwanted radiant quests. I guess I am glad she didn't bother me like Preston does (did!).

to OP... I am close.

I don't even bother going to Concord anymore to make it quicker to unlock settlements (and to never have to deal with Preston)

But are you telling me i can make it even quicker by just shooting the settlers instead of doing their "go here, shoot this" radiant quest?!