Inspired by the Brotherhood of Steel and Minutemen threads (thanks guys!) and available for reading with pictures http://unitedfederationofcharles.blogspot.com/2015/11/the-moral-ambiguity-of-fallout-4.html

The Moral Ambiguity of Fallout 4's Factions

Note: This post will contain spoilers for the storyline of Fallout 4 and previous games.

War...war never changes.

These are the arc words of Fallout 4 and they have never been more appropriate to the setting. In simple terms, they are an acknowledgement that the conflicts between human beings will never end because we human nature remains immutable. People will kill for religion, resources, revenge, wealth, power, and glory until the end of time.

The original Fallout ended with the realization the Master and all of his atrocities were motivated by a warped but sincere desire to do good. The sequel, Fallout 2, ended with the discovery the Enclave were the embodiment of Western privilege and racism with the Wastelanders being on the other side of it. Fallout 3 was seemingly the odd duck out since it was a conflict between the wholly-evil Enclave and the seemingly wholly-good Brotherhood of Steel but this is something I've changed in the past (http://unitedfederationofcharles.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-morality-ambiguity-of-brotherhood.html).

The premise of Fallout 4 is the Sole Survivor is a Pre-War citizen of Massachusetts who manages to survive the Great War by being cryogenically frozen for 215 years. When he awakens to the brave new world of the Post-Apocalypse Wasteland, they are sent on a quixotic search for his missing son with only an old fortune-tellers' advice to guide him.

Along the way, he or she discovers the Commonwealth is being fought over by two technologically advanced power-houses and two much lower-tech local organizations. Despite all four organizations having a point, the best you'll be able to accomplish is two surviving. Because the same belligerence and refusal to compromise of the Pre-War world is still intact in the Fallout universe.

This conflict of factions is similar to Hoover Dam being fought over in Fallout: New Vegas. In fact, Fallout: New Vegas followed Fallout 3's example and made the conflict largely one of good versus evil. NCR, while corrupt and expansionist, was still a group out for the benefit while Caesar's Legion were a salad of everything a Western liberal non-misogynist technophile gamer would despise. The only neutral party in the story was Robert House and, if you chose the Independence ending, the Courier themselves.

Fallout 4 one-ups New Vegas, however, by making it clear all four factions have a point. Unfortunately, none of the parties involved are WILLING to compromise and the unwillingness to make peace spells the downfall of those the Survivor chooses not to aid. It's interesting the game subverts traditional storytelling models by making it clear the "right" choice may not be the most beneficial one while foregoing the idea being more beneficial is necessarily "better." To explain, I'll give a brief rundown of all four factions.

The Institute

The primary antagonists for the first half of the game are set up as the Institute, which murders the spouse of the Survivor as well as makes off with their child. They also callously murder the entirety of Vault 111's inhabitants, shutting off the life-support systems to everyone else in the Vault. We hear about the Institute's slavery of Synths from the Railroad, how they discarded sentient robot Nick Valentine like garbage, how they kidnap people to be replaced with dopplegangers, and learn they're experimenting with the Super Mutant-creating FEV. Perhaps the most damning act is the story about how they deliberately destroyed the Commonwealth of Allied Settlements (CAS) which would have created a new nation in the post-apocalypse world.

Then we actually get to meet them.

The Institute proves to a idealized vision of the future with grass, clean walls, science, and knowledge available to all. It's a Star Trek-esque utopia where humanity is at a level it should have been had not it destroyed itself 215 years ago. The people are friendly, likable, and idealistic. There is a dark side to the Institute in that it is built on the backs of Synthetic slavery but this is arguable on grounds of sentience. Many gamers have expressed agreement with the Institute they're just very well-programmed machines. The Institute argues they are not slavers because Synths are just, appropriately, video game characters designed to act like people.

But are they?

The question is debated back and forth throughout the game as we see quests involving Synths trying to prove their humanity, robots reprogrammed to act like humans (such as the hilarious Professor Goodfeels) but failing miserably, and individuals who blur the lines. There's even the fact the Institute might be potentially capable of changing as the Survivor is able to express he finds the organization monstrous in its actions but loves his family (his son turning out to be the director of the faction) too much to betray it.

The Institute is a source of immense knowledge and resources which could be turned to the benefit of humanity but doing so requires the destruction of its enemies. Enemies who stand against the Institute on moral grounds. If you side with these enemies, you destroy the Institute but you also condemn the Synths to extinction as they can no longer be produced. Likewise, you potentially kill or render homeless countless innocent people whose greatest crime was believing the lie Synths aren't people (or producing them in the first place if you believe the Brotherhood of Steel).

The Brotherhood of Steel

Fan-favorites of the franchise, the Brotherhood of Steel has gone through numerous changes from its original concept. The depiction of the one in Fallout 4 is a combination of the various incarnations of the group over the years (Western, Midwestern, and Eastern chapters). The Fallout 3 chapter of the Brotherhood believed in protecting the innocent from monsters as well as aiding humanity in its recovery by sharing technology. This is directly contradictory to the original Brotherhood's stated ethos of keeping dangerous technology from the hands of "savages."

The Commonwealth Brotherhood of Steel has combined these missions by adopting a policy of destroying or controlling dangerous technology with a less-xenophobic policy of recruiting Wastelanders as well as ruling over them directly. While all Brotherhood of Steel chapters have been prejudiced against nonhumans, their new leader Arthur Maxson believes all nonhumans should be destroyed. This is a defensible position when dealing with the near-universally hostile Super Mutants of the East Coast and Feral Ghouls but becomes less so with the intelligent ghouls and sympathetic Synths you meet during the game.

The Brotherhood of Steel rejects both freedom as well as espouses racist values which put in mind various fascist movements over the years as well as the darker excesses of feudalism. Despite this, the Brotherhood has a lot going for it. In the horrific chaos of the Commonwealth, the Brotherhood of Steel are strong and they are sincere in their desire to help--almost fanatically so. If you're a Wastelander rather than a ghoul or Synth, the Brotherhood's rule is an oasis of safety in a radioactive desert. The fact individuals can join the Brotherhood of Steel and rise on merit also removes the inherent nepotism of feudalism.

The Brotherhood of Steel is also dominionist as well as expansionist. They revere the concept of humanity and loathe the misuse of technology so there is no hope for any reconciliation with the Institute or Synths. The Institute and its survivors are marked for death and there is no hope for the Synths or their sympathizers in the Railroad. To side with the Brotherhood is to ask yourself whether the deaths of a minority of ghouls and Synths is worth the salvation of thousands. Also, whether freedom is a worthwhile sacrifice for survival.

The Railroad

The Railroad is my favorite faction in Fallout 4, which is surprising since I assumed they would be my least. In simple terms, they're just not as "sixy" as the Brotherhood of Steel or Institute. They're a bunch of Wastelanders from various walks of life united by nothing other than their belief Synths are people and their desire to free as many of them from the Institute's control as possible. They're named after the Underground Railroad, an organization of individuals who recognized the humanity of people living under some of the worst oppression in United States history.

But is the Railroad good?

They certainly think they're the good guys. One of the things the Railroad has going for it is certainty. That's a rare commodity in the Wasteland but they have every bit the fortitude and confidence in their cause as the Brotherhood of Steel. Desdemona, leader of the Railroad, makes it clear that a Synth is a person and you should be willing to risk your life for them the same way you would a human being. The fact many Synths have tried to kill the Survivor by the time they meet as well as the fact they've killed many humans is lost on the woman.

The Railroad's methods are somewhat questionable as well. Rather than simply helping Synths settle into new lives, they brainwash (less charitably, "reprogram") them into believing they're human beings and leave them in the Wasteland to fend for themselves. This leaves them vulnerable to recapture by individuals like Doctor Zimmer and sometimes horrific identity crises. Paladin Danse, a Brotherhood of Steel zealot, cannot reconcile the fact he's a Synth with the fact he believes they are abominations against humanity.

The Railroad's zealotry also makes them blind to events beyond their cause. The Brotherhood of Steel represents a danger to all Synths and their sympathizers but the Railroad remains unaware of their intended xenocide until the Brotherhood strikes. They intend to destroy the Institute in order to eliminate the oppressors of Synths but this means no more Synths will be created.

The Railroad ignores the many humans who will be killed and rendered homeless in the destruction of the Institute as well as the loss of knowledge. Destroying the Brotherhood of Steel may be necessary as an act of self-defense as well as one to protect innocent human beings but there are children on board The Prydwen and they get not a single word of acknowledgement. It is perhaps because of this that Synthetic Detective Nick Valentine doesn't express much sympathy for them.

This doesn't bring up the Railroad is divided as to what qualifies as human as well with 1st generation android Synths considered to be "merely" machines the same way Pre-War robots like Codsworth are. This despite the fact Codsworth expresses shock, grief, and a range of human emotions which seem to point to his being alive (if not human). 3rd generation Synths look and sound human so the Railroad believes they are--nothing more, nothing less.

Righteousness blinds the Railroad and anger even as they are the only people fighting for those who have no voice.

The Minutemen

The final faction is another "good" one like the Railroad which suffers for the fact it is also ineffective. The Minutemen are the remnants, reduced to one active member in fact, of Commonwealth militia known for protecting settlements against various threats. In-fighting, the loss of their headquarters, and catastrophic losses during the Battle of Quincy have broken them but they maintain a positive reputation with most Commonwealth citizens.

If the Survivor chooses to join the Minutemen, rising to their leadership almost immediately, we also discover they run a similar arrangement to 1988 video game Wasteland's Desert Rangers. The Minutemen receive food, water, and caps in exchange for providing settlements with protection. Given you physically begin several settlements and can give orders for what is constructed on the settlements which join you, this is less like an alliance and more like rulership. It is also, perhaps not coincidentally, a scaled-down version of what the Brotherhood of Steel promises its citizens.

The Minutemen's representative in the game, Preston Garvey, is unambiguously good and represents the best of a Wasteland hero. Unfortunately, Preston's naive touting of the Minutemen's graces tends to ignore its many flaws. The organization is well-armed, as militias go, but has nowhere near the power or knowledge as either the Institute or Brotherhood of Steel.

The organization's ability to project force is also far weaker than the former as they were effectively destroyed by an attack by a single Mirelurk Queen (impressive but something the Brotherhood of Steel or Institute Synths would have mopped the floor with). Laser muskets, crank-operated alternatives to Pre-War technology, are inferior to the real thing. When faced with threats like the Institute, Super Mutants, Brotherhood of Steel, and even the Gunners, the Minutemen are mostly outmatched. Indeed, it was the Gunner mercenary army which destroyed the Minutemen in the first place.

The addition of artillery and the return of the Castle means the Minutemen can gain the ability to project force better than they could in decades, perhaps enough to be able to defeat Super Mutants and enough to defeat the Brotherhood of Steel in a surprise assault on The Prydwen. They even get the Brotherhood's Vertibirds if they destroy them. Still, it's abundantly clear the Minutemen promise only the beginnings of a better life for the average Wastelander. It took NCR the better part of a century in order to become the power house it is in the West and there's no sign the Minutemen are the beginnings of anything more effective. Still, security and supply lines mean the Minutemen promise a better life.

The problem is that siding with any other faction AND the Minutemen seems like it would do better.

In Conclusion

Fallout 4 is excellent for providing real moral dilemmas to its protagonist's player. For me, I chose to side with the Railroad and the Minutemen. I did so, however, knowing I was condemning many innocent people to die and potentially costing the people of the Commonwealth a better future. I was willing to let Rome burn as long as Rome's slaves were freed and that's not a warm and fuzzy feeling.

Others chose to side with the Institute in order to make sure the world was a better place through technology and science, knowing they were going to have to kill a bunch of innocents to do so or thinking the synthetic question irrelevant. Others sided with the Brotherhood of Steel, believing the needs of the many outweighed the needs of the few. There's a right answer to which faction you pick but it will change depending on what kind of person you are or what you believe.

Just like in real-life.

This is an excellent summation - thank you.

I wonder, given the moral complexities of each faction, which one is the most redeemable? That is, which faction does the player have greatest ability to influence and overcome some of their mistakes?

It seems that the player has the greatest influence over the Institute and Minutemen as she/he may eventually become their leader, as opposed to the other factions where the player does not finish their questlines as the faction head (Railroad, BoS).

So, given each factions questionable past, who can you help overcome it in the future for the betterment of the Commonwealth?

The issues are pretty complicated and myriad with the Brotherhood of Steel serving as an interesting example of the fact that, in Fallout, you may start with really good intentions but this doesn't necessarily mean the results are what you want. Elder Lyons serve as a "non-player character player character" effectively to illustrate that while he was a Good Karma hero and made all the right decisions, he was ultimately unable to reform the Brotherhood of Steel into the kind of thing he wanted.

Elder Lyons made an incredibly powerful chapter of the Brotherhood in the Capital Wasteland, effectively recreating Lost Hills and overcoming what doomed the Brotherhood to extinction, but it's an organization more interested in rulership than protecting Wastelanders. Furthermore, it has returned to its original mission of confiscating technology. Paladin Danse, second in command of the Brotherhood's military as one of two Sentinels, speaks with great contempt of Elder Lyons when he compares the Brotherhood under him to the Minutemen.

If the Survivor becomes leader of the Institute, they may attempt to free the Synths and reform it so it is no longer a corrupt institution which kidnaps Wastelanders and performs unethical experiments. They may even try to share the Institute's technology with the rest of the Wasteland but this is no guarantee of success. Likewise, they may achieve all of their goals only to have the Institute then replace them with someone more like Doctor Zimmer than the young man codenamed Patriot.

Likewise, the Minutemen's situation is secured as long as the Survivor is the General. With their defeat of the Institute and/or Brotherhood of Steel, the respect of the organization will be unlimited. However, under the Brotherhood, the Minutemen are likely to become nothing more than an auxillary to the Brotherhood and the Institute is likely to use them as nothing more than catspaws. The infighting and politics of the Minutemen are very likely to resume once the Survivor dies, assuming they can't find a worthy successor to vote on.

The Railroad, in a very real way, doesn't need to change after the events of Fallout 4 because its ending results in its dissolution. The Railroad has liberated all the Synths but also condemned them to extinction. All future Synths will be either the human children of Synths (assuming they can have them) or those they adopt. The Railroad has achieved its purpose and while it will help Synths who escaped the Institute adjust to their new life on the surface and mop up remnants, the purpose of the Railroad has been fulfilled.

I would disagree with your conclusion. I don't think that dilemma the game is are very good. The game mechanics imply that the commonwealth can get along along without the BoS or the institute. The player can supply his settlements with water, food and protection without needing special equipment or highly skilled engineers. And the game implies that the BoS were unable to protect the commonwealth from Super mutants, raiders and feral ghouls, by making the members of this faction so weak that they are killed by raiders with primitive weapons.

And the the leader of the BoS is villainised for being an autocrat, while the Sole Survivor is basically an autocrat too.

1. The Minutemen can and will supply the people of the Commonwealth with a high standard of living by post-apocalypse standards. This is a pretty big caveat right there. The Minutemen basically can give the people of the Commonwealth the life of the people of Megaton who have a water purifer, food, and a reasonable amount of protection from raiders due to their gigantic metal walls.

That's what passes for "The sweet life" in the PA. However, are we really going to settle for living the life of Megaton and Rivet City? Lives as scavengers who are content as long as they have full bellies, shelter, and defense against monsters? If so, then the Minutemen are a good choice. However, the Institute and the BoS both offer the glimpse of something much more. They're the First World in the East Coast while the Minutemen offer a promise of stable Third World.

People complain about the fact all of the buildings you construct are leaky and creeky looking but that's the best you can with the Minutemen while the Institute looks like the Citadel and the BoS looks like a Battleship.

2. The BoS' fighting ability varies drastically from game to game, level to level, and fighting to fighting. In my game, for example, I rarely had to actually do any fighting when the BoS showed up as they mopped the floor with the Super Mutants, Raiders, and other creatures they ended up fighting. In other games, they lose badly. I think that has to do with the Level Scaling personally. For me, I think we're meant to see the BoS as inflicting heavy damage on the Commonwealth's enemies and actively work to bring the region under control. Will they suffer casaulties? Perhaps even heavy casaulties?
Yes, yes they will.

Because this is war and you can't make an omlette without sacrificing hundreds of BoS paladins.

3. Elder Maxson is a controversial figure in the game with some fans hating him and some liking him. He's a consistent character, however, and that qualifies as a good one, IMHO. I don't need to agree with a character to like him as long as he can present his position in a coherent manner and Elder Maxson does.

For me, it's a fairly clear choice:

BoS: Stability in the Commonwealth at the cost of freedom and minorities' lives.
Institute: Stability in the Commonwealth at the cost of Synth freedom and innocent lives
Railroad: Freedom for Synths and the Commonwealth at the cost of Stability
Minutemen: Limited Stability at the cost of wealth and prosperity

When you say "stability" I wonder what it is you mean? Stability could mean a myriad of different things but im assuming you mean it as peaceful? If you do then I disagree. All these factions are recipes for war and continuing war...the charismatic Maxson with his hitler like features goes to far and sees only his side of the story. The institute like Maxson will do anything for furthering their knowledge at the cost of lives. The railroad is willing to defend something they don't know is really right, I mean cmon they probably were those people who had pet rocks as a kid. The minutemen are the only ones who are questionable because of the fact that you are their leader yet you cant make any decisions outside of the decisions made for you. ALL of them are militaristic and will continue to be.

Neither Megaton nor Rivet City were build from scratch, like most of the settlements. Megaton made use of near by airplanes and Rivet City is inside a ship.

Megatons water processing plants is maintained by two people, but there is still a risk of a water shortages or contamination.

And Rivet City is the only supplier of radiation free food in the capital wastelands. Without Doctor Li they probably would not even have clean water.

The settlements don't have any these problems, just build a turret and stop by when they need your help. Build a water pump and generator and you have water forever.

Highly trained soldiers with power armor and laser weapons shouldn't suffer any casualties when they fight raiders or ghouls.

Do you hear anything about Minutemen suffering casualties while fighting against raiders or ghouls? And if the Minutemen don't do anything, why would settler rather be aligned with them than with the Minutemen?

No one really says that they are glad that the BoS is here, before I convince them.

And there is no real dilemma when you have a middle course.

1. I use the term stability because the current situation is a kind of Bronze Age anarchy which is difficult to really put a specific timeline on. There's radiation, gigantic hostile monsters, no societal structure, and very few trade routes. I point to Raol of New Vegas who, as a ghoul, has the long view of things that as BAD AS CAESAR'S LEGION WAS it was still preferrable to absolute horror of what had come before. The Institute doesn't offer stability in its present form because its actively abandoned the Commonwealth under Shaun's term as Director but with the Survivor as Director then they have the Institute's resources to bring order to the galaxy.

Darth Vader style or not.

Maxson and company are brutal warmongers, true, but the simple fact is the Brotherhood of Steel's brutality and warmongering gets results.
It's horrible but true.

2. I actually only give the Railroad a question mark to the sentience of robots because the Survivor grew up in a society where machines were treated as soulless. If I were to transport to the future, I would automatically assume anyone who doubted the sentience of not only Synths but robots like Codsworth were completely insane. Given the Railroad includes people married to, friends with, and composed of Synths--it's pretty hard to dismiss their understanding of the Synth issue unless you're someone like Virgi who grew up with the Institute's values.

Presumably regular maintainance is a regular part of the lore version of these settlements. Diamond City's water purifier has problems too and yet it's the same sort of Water purifier you have (same model).

Feral ghouls? No.

But the Raiders of the Commonwealth are unusually well-armed. There's Raiders with power armor and the Gunners have laser weapons plus Assaultrons which are horrifyingly effective. In the end, of course, it's the Super Mutants who are going to be the biggest pain in the ass for the BoS other than the Institute.

No point in stopping at the middle when you have something better at the end.

That's the allure of the Institute and the Brotherhood of Steel.

The Institute more so than the BoS since they have Star Trek-levels of wonderment.

What the BoS bring is amazing amounts of firepower which can guarantee security for Wastelanders even beyond the Synths.

No one comments that fact the the commonwealth might be overwhelmed by the army of Super mutants, that forced the BoS to retreat from the capital wastelands.

No, that's just your stubborn opinion.

One supported by the game.

The terminals state he's had unbridled success up until this point.

The BoS rule the Capital Wasteland and defeated the Super Mutants there.

Which was inevitable once the Lone Wanderer cleared out the Vault which was their home base.

If one side is clearly good then you also don't have a dilemma.

I'm completely at a loss how you arrived at that opinion.

Especially given the BoS commits mass murder against ghouls and Synths.

Something I find intolerable.

The BoS benefits Group A just fine. That doesn't mean Group B and C don't suffer.

But maybe the Survivor thinks benefitting Group A is worth it.

There's no contradiction.

And that makes him a brutal warmonger?

You don't think he is?

I meant this:

You seem to mistake your opinion for a fact.

There is a difference between having unbridled success and being a brutal warmonger.

You haven't explained the contradiction. It's definitely better for regular human beings to side with the BoS over the Minutemen, especially since the BoS can have the Minutemen's support anyway.

However, the price will be the loss of freedom and it will be awful for nonhumans.

There can be better and worse objectively for one group and not another.

In what respect are they contradictory?

But seriously, if you have a point I'd love to hear it. What's your opinion on the BoS and whether they'd be better or worse for the Commonwealth?

A dilemma with a middle way is called a https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_dilemma

The middle path as objectively better is a nonsensical statement outside of Buddhism.

The middle path between ice cream and being set on fire is not better than ice cream.

Why do you think the Minutemen are better?

Can we talk about the actual Factions? Plz?

They aren't contradictory at all. Just like "being a dog" and "having flees" aren't contradictory. But that doesn't mean all dogs have flees. Dogs can have flees just like Warmongers can have unbridled success.

Okay, so please explain to me what you think of the BoS, Minutemen, and Elder Maxson as well as the Factions.

I'd love to hear your opinion.

"Ice cream or fire" isn't a dilemma.

choosing between eating ice cream and eating fire is not a dilemma.

Bathing showering with water that is too hot or water that is too cold is a dilemma, but if you allow a middle way, the dilemma will be solved.

Okay.

So....Minutemen?

You said he were a warmonger, so you have the burden of proof. Or do you want to take it back?