Whenever I play New Vegas I almost always side with the NCR because it's the right thing to do, but, I think Caesar's Legion is the most interesting faction to be introduced to a Fallout game. I think because of how well the faction and the way in which they operate & conduct themselves (slavery, crucifixion etc.) fits so well into the setting of the game. Whilst you've got the Enclave which utilise all of this future militaristic tech to defeat there enemies, the legion have taken over so much using brutal tactics and playing on fear.

Also love the Life of Brian reference at Cottonwood Cove

They are the most interesting faction for me to shoot hollow-points into so I can watch their heads come apart.

Sirdanest wrote:

Visible Earth wrote:

But here's what I like about the original Fallout BOS. They're bad guys.

It's where Fallout 3 really went wrong.

I don't actually mind the idea of a renegade Brotherhood of Steel chapter doing a Veronica and helping Wastelanders. Having a conscience isn't necessarily bland or boring, and one Elder was bound to develop one eventually (F*ck the Codex amirite!?) I like that the Brotherhood Outcasts describe Elder Lyons as a Captain Ahab searching for his own White Whale (that being the location producing the Super Mutants). It lends a bit of credence to the idea that Lyons is a mentally unsound old man wasting resources on a fool's errand.

The main issue with the Brotherhood in Fallout 3 is how they are framed. Consider my point about how the Brotherhood are set up as a threat right at the getgo of Fallout. We see men in power armour execute a man in the street, then laugh and look directly at the camera in the opening intro. In the Fallout 3 opening intro, the execution is removed but the man in power armour remains. He looks at the destroyed Capitol Wasteland, then turns to *you* the player (the soldiers in Fallout turn to a camera, not *you* specifically) with a pose as if to say, "join me in sweet sweet badassery in this patriotic sandbox! Time to blow up some mindless monsters!" Honestly, it feels like a military advert. The point is, the game never really posits the point about Lyons being kind but foolish to any great extent. He's just the kind old man leading the badass Brotherhood and you get to help them because why not? It's a shame when you consider that this would have been a timely moment to critique another certain older world leader set on a "liberating" crusade in the East.

I wish they'd developed the Brotherhood "Outcasts" more (they shouldn't be the "Outcasts" as they're actually following the Codex but whatever). Honestly Fallout 3 should've been framed around the Brotherhood Civil War as opposed to it being an Enclave/BOS grunt match. It's frustrating that the Outcasts are just painted as these moustache-twirling a**eholes. It can be argued, as it is in Fallout New Vegas, that the Codex-following BOS are altruistic in their aims. They're trying to keep dangerous weapons technology out of the hands of potentially dangerous peoples. It's a condescending position but a not necessarily negative one. Lyons' group, like Veronica Santangelo, wants to use the resources of the BOS to help the wasteland. But it could be argued, again as it is by Elder McNamara in New Vegas, that it isn't really a cryptofascist military organisation's place to assist in a new culture's development.

The point is, Fallout 3 was more interested in painting the BOS as badass "good guys" than anything beyond that. Which is a shame, because there was a lot of room for characterisation and development. I guess we can blame Fallout Tactics and Fallout Brotherhood of Steel for developing the whole "badass All-American Brotherhood" stuff, because in the original Fallout they were very much a criticism of that American militarism. It's very telling that Fallout 3, released a year after Call of Duty Modern Warfare, ends with the badass Brotherhood of Steel fighting alongside a badass patriotic robot called Liberty Prime to help defeat a tyrannical government that had taken control of the Jefferson Memorial.

Modern-day American patriotism oozes from the Brotherhood of Steel in Fallout 3, which feels very bizarre when you consider the fact that they're living in a post-apocalyptic world brought about by the fascistic, imperialistic egos of global super powers that eventually destroyed each other.

In conclusion to this garbled mess of an analysis, the Brotherhood of Steel in Fallout are a continuation of the pre-war government of Fallout, while the Brotherhood of Steel in Fallout 3 are a continuation of the modern day American government.

Visible Earth wrote:

In conclusion to this garbled mess of an analysis, the Brotherhood of Steel in Fallout are a continuation of the pre-war government of Fallout, while the Brotherhood of Steel in Fallout 3 are a continuation of the modern day American government.

I wound't say that the West Coast BOS is a continuation of the pre-war American Government, more like the some of the numerous monastic societies that has existed through out time(eg. Crusaders, Inquisition, Christian monks in Rome).

They were acting like the pre-war American Army during their first days but they turned into a technology worshiping cult that hordes it(mostly weapons tech) so that it could not be used by other people to hurt themselves as stated in their codex.

The West Coast BOS doesn't really do this in the kindness of their hearts but rather because they are following their codex just like how a religious person would follow whatever is in their holy book/writing they have.

The East Coast BOS is more akin to the Kingdom of Arthur. They still have that reverence for technology but they have the best interest of their people(serfs) at heart, well at least during Lyons time.

The Brotherhood Of Steel, specifically Maxson’s chapter. Lyons’ BoS were too goody-two-shoes and one-dimensional, and the classic BoS are too stuck in their tech-hoarding ways. Maxson seems like a great leader with a lot of charisma and intelligence. He may be genocidal, but he believes he is doing it for the greater good.

They’re just a very believable human faction. They’re not goody-two-shoes like the Minutemen but they’re not as evil as the Legion or the Institute.

sorry for revive , but nice topic a lot of new people . definitly the Brotherhood Of Steel

I like the NCR for being the closest thing that the American wasteland has to a functioning country. They mostly have their shit together, but still have the corruption and inefficiency of the Old World.

Mr. House has his technology and Pre-War knowledge going for him, but he still kicked the residents of Vault 21 out of their home and favored a select few instead of rebuilding the entirety of Vegas and its surroundings. Among his chosen tribes is a group of backstabbers and cheats who dress like mobsters. What the blue hell makes House think the Omertas won't turn on HIM? Considering the Courier waltzed right into the Lucky 38 as if someone left them a key, why wouldn't a clever Omerta enter the building and kill House?

The Legion? Fuck them. I don't work for factions that keep slaves or treat women as brood mares for the state. Nor do I side with Luddites who piss all over Pre-War tech. The closest I came in my last complete run of New Vegas was doing Render Unto Caesar up to part 2 (kill House and report back to Caesar) and The Finger of Suspicion. After that point, I then went to sabotage Caesar by doing the Gomorrah quests Bye Bye Love and How Little We Know (stopping the Omertas from gassing the Strip). Then I did Oh My Papa and broke the Great Khans' alliance with Caesar. After I planted the seeds, I went to Novac, recruited Boone, and then went all sickhouse on Cottonwood Cove and the Fort. Even freed the slaves thanks to a mod. This was all part of a bet-hedging run, one of my proudest playthroughs to date.

In my game, I prefer to throw the major players in the Mojave under the bus and take charge with Yes Man by my side. My Courier deals with the Omertas and Khans as above while joining the Brotherhood of Steel (their power armor and energy weapons will be useful in keeping Vegas independent), and of course, having the Boomers bomb the Legion. As for the White Glove Society, I started both Pheeble Will and Beyond the Beef around the same time. I played for a bit as if I were doing the latter quest. After I "rescued" Ted Gunderson, I killed him, popped a Turbo, then rushed the bar and killed Heck and his bodyguard. That's what they get for being rich tyrants and stealing the means of production from the workers. My Courier is a tribal socialist and she won't have any of that capitalistic shit in her Vegas. No, we're going to eat the rich and their kids. In their eyes, we'll make the Legion look like choir boys but we'll also have Securitrons! Securitrons, Brahmin steaks, corn, carrots, Rushing Water, chems, blackjack, hookers, and titty skittles for all in an Independent Vegas!

this is actually a really tough tie for me between the legion and the enclave. the IDEA of return to the world we knew was something i couldve gotten behind with the new changes they wanted to make, but instead they tried to wipe out the whole wasteland instead of uniting it. the legion wants it united under the old world ways, but both are heavily flawed because in the fallout and real universe we live in, both slowly deteriorate.

I like all of the factions due to how each one has vary amount of flaws. I like NCR the most because of their history and how they could rise/fall they older it gets. They also do mean well, even though they fuck up a lot. Playing on their side is the most serious/heartbreaking roleplay ive ever done (especially on full NCR loyalty)

Legion has one of the interesting NPCs you can talk to - Caesar, As well as a legion that takes on brotherhood of steel paladins and large amounts of NCR recruits with nothing but primitive weapponry (most of the time). Theyre badass (pieces of shits)

Yknow i still havent done a FULL Mr Houses playthrough after all these years (i love NCR and Legion too much) but he is very CHARMING. Very confident in his vision for the Strip, I feel inspired when he talks about the Old World - im going to when Brave New World comes out.

I love the way the writers give so much depth to the smaller factions too (even in FO3). The only one I dont like is Minutemen - because i feel like theyre all White in a Morally gray world.

@"blahblahblah" ive never heard a statement i agree with more.

I wouldn't say that I had a set favourite faction, but rather various factions as well as sub factions.

For example, I find the Brotherhood Outcasts far more interesting than the East and West Coast BOS mainly because they defected to pursue the original goal of the Brotherhood, and were therefore surrounded by far larger enemies and alone, but still persisted. They're far more bad ass than other BOS Chapters (except maybe the Midwest??) because they utilise robots to fill their ranks, and have an amazing colour scheme, which just emphasises how disconnected they are from the rest of the world.

Actual faction-wise, it would be the NCR and Enclave, just because they're some of the most developed factions lore-wise and have understandable motives. Furthermore, they represent the Old World and are both trying to restore America, which is admirable considering how much of a clutter the wasteland is.

For sure the legion, Mainly due to their interesting design. Talking to Caesar for the first time and learning that he is not the lame villains that other games today seem to feature is a breath of fresh air. Their history is interesting and I wonder if we will ever see anything like this again.

Midwest BoS - Fallout Tactics.
Now - NCR - corrupt, unefficient. They cannot even secure roads inside their territory.
Legion. U ppl like Legion because of Caesar. But, that's the problem. Legion IS Caesar. Without him Legion will collapsed. His second - Lanius - ppl fear of him and do not like him.They will not follow.
Followers - they cannot rule. They do nice job helping ppl, but that's all they can do.
House.... he cares only about profit and New Vegas. Outside this - he do not care.
Only person, that can actually rule is Courier himself, but we do not have such option. I mean - he/she has support from all towns, all major factions, casinos and most of the ppl. Has access to advance tech too - if not destroy brains.
I really hope, that some1 make a mod like combination of RTS and option to conquer Mojave.

Caesars Legion. Not because I like them but because I hate them.

The Great Khans - I like how they are a warrier type clan. Reminds me of the Vikings in a way. I like their back story and how sad it is. They are tough and fight to the end.
They are even cooler with Drag Bodies Khan Mod. The Biker look is great on them. Wish the Khans played a bigger role in the game.

I have several favorites, and I'm actually perceiving these people according to their value that they bring.
1. Brotherhood of Steel - I am always fascinated with technology. I love how they are one of the people who decided to meddle with technologies. Their laser weapons, power armor and tools, everything is so amazing.

2. New California Republic - I love the value that they bring. Freedom is nice,

Caesar legion. They seem so alien and apart from the other factions.
Most of the people will think they are just glorified raiders in football armor that charges machine guns with sticks and stones
But for me they were the promise of a faction capable of dealing with the chaos and disorder of the wasteland. That in time will transmute from a nomadic tribe in to a real society.
Once of corse Caesar has his new rome

Vizsla wrote:

Caesar legion. They seem so alien and apart from the other factions.
Most of the people will think they are just glorified raiders in football armor that charges machine guns with sticks and stones
But for me they were the promise of a faction capable of dealing with the chaos and disorder of the wasteland. That in time will transmute from a nomadic tribe in to a real society.
Once of corse Caesar has his new rome

The Legion still loses the wider war against the NCR. NCR still wins between them both with or without the Courier. The Legion is a bunch of misogynists and slavers, thus denying half their potential fighting force. They insist on bringing knives to gunfights, and when the Legionaries DO use guns, they don't maintain them. They piss all over Pre-War technology and medicine yet Caesar himself has no problem keeping an Auto-Doc in his tent.

Let's also remember that the Legion doesn't represent Rome at its height but the Western Roman Empire at its COLLAPSE. The WRE fell because they overexpanded, relied so much on recruiting outside mercenaries (who were less willing to fight for Rome than they seemed), and a little public health crisis known as LEAD POISONING. The Romans used lead as a sweetener, never mind the brain damage it causes by mimicking other metals that the body actually needs to work right. The Legion also doesn't have the longevity of the IRL Roman Empire. The Roman Empire lasted from 27 BCE to 1453. Not the old Etruscan kingdom, not the Roman kingdom, not even the Roman Republic, but the IMPERIAL government. Caesar's Legion has only been around for a few decades as of FNV's story, and Caesar himself is already in his late fifties. Speaking of Caesar, he's not going to be around forever. He'll eventually DIE. And while the NCR has contingencies in case anything happens to President Kimball, the Legion doesn't. Their whole "country" is based around the lizard at the top. And that longevity factor? The adults and teens of the Legion still remember the tribes, towns, and vaults they originally came from. It's only a matter of time before they revolt and recover their old identities. Even if Lanius can hold most of the Legion together through fear, he's still too incompetent of a politician to run a country. Even if the Legion does somehow manage to take Hoover Dam, they'll find fewer and fewer tribes to assimilate, with or without Caesar. The Legion will just devour itself and fall apart while the NCR comes out on top.

Also, THEY OWN SLAVES! How the hell does that make the Legion capable of surviving the wasteland and turning into a real society? Of all the people who could learn from the errors of the past, Caesar wants to throw it all off a cliff! He acts like this is some pre-ordained cycle that people are destined to return to 200+ years after the bombs fell.

Gotta go with the king's. I know they aren't a "major faction" or anything, but I love their questline and how they try to put themselves in the place of freesides protectors. Got a few interesting characters and fun ways to do their quests, plus you get a super dope robo-doge outta it!

NCR as an overall faction has the best story, and most positive impact, even at it's worst.

My favourite faction of all has to be Arroyo though. Here's hoping somewhere up there in the north, the wasteland utopia of New Arroyo is flourishing...