The Family

The Family is a gang of self-proclaimed vampires that live in Meresti Station, east of the settlement of Arefu.

Background
The Family is a group of cannibals who have banded together thanks to the efforts of Vance, their leader. Living under the ruins of Meresti Trainyard, the group keeps out of public view, staying away from larger towns and settlements and only surfacing to feed. Realizing that the cannibal is both feared and hated even in the lawless wasteland, Vance has decided to teach his people the way of the vampire as he interprets it from classic literature. He's convinced most of the Family that they are indeed true vampires, teaching them to drink the blood of their prey and not to feed upon their flesh. Vance believes this gives them a sense of belonging and purpose in a world that doesn't understand their unusual trait. Although the Family may truly believe they are like the vampires in traditional works of fiction, they retain no abilities or "powers" that distinguish them from any other cannibal in the Capital Wasteland.

Family members

 * Vance: the leader and guide. He is trying to make his cannibal charges to leave that urge and feed only from blood, adopting the ways of the vampires of the legend; he is very patient and understanding. After completing the quest Blood Ties, speak to him and ask him if he can teach you the ways of the vampire. This will give you the Hematophage perk; This perk allows you to regain +20 HP by consuming blood packs.


 * Holly: Vance's wife. She has reservations about Vance's beliefs, but supports him completely. You will be able to acquire the access code to Ian's room via a speech check, high Charisma or if you have the Scoundrel perk.
 * Alan: a new recruit who sees Vance as a savior. Depending on how Blood Ties is completed he is sent to protect Arefu.
 * Brianna: She offers prostitution services to the male members of the Family, in exchange for moderate caps. With the Lady Killer perk, the player is able to persuade her to divulge the entrance code to Ian's room.
 * Karl: the Storekeeper. He does not believe in Vance's teachings, but pretends to in order to maintain a store. He can be seduced with the Black Widow perk into giving the password of the security computer terminal. You can also threaten him into giving you the password with strength.
 * Justin: Ian's confidante within the Family. Justin guides Ian in the various teachings of Vance, and serves as a surrogate elder brother. The player can convince him to divulge the entrance code to Ian's room either by passing a speech check or with the Impartial Mediation perk.
 * Robert: the sentry and first member of the Family the player will meet. Robert is the only member of Meresti that doesn't act like a member of the family, this is discovered through the Cannibal perk or an out of conversation dialogue.

Laws
Vance's laws for the families can be read on two terminals. Reading them provides background information that unlocks further conversation options with Vance.

We do not eat the flesh of those we kill for food. We will only drink of their blood and leave the body intact. The consumption of flesh is filthy and unclean. This action is what causes the humans to treat us like animals. We are not animals, we are The Family.
 * The First Law: "Feast not on the flesh; consume only the blood. This is our strength."

Because we carry the stain of our past in our bodies, we can never let it pass to our offspring who would in turn carry out those foul actions beginning the cycle anew. The Family must seek the Wasteland for others of its kind in order to maintain itself. That is our fate.
 * The Second Law: "Bear not the child; welcome only the exile. This is our fate."

We only kill the humans when we are hungry or when we must defend ourselves, we never hunt for sport or pleasure. We do not prey on children for they are not yet tainted by society's view of us. The Family will not tolerate murder.
 * The Third Law: "Feed not for pleasure; partake only to nourish. This is our dignity."

Because we are creatures of the night, we must not set foot in daylight. We move silently across the ground only under the watchful eye of the moon above. At the rising of the sun, we must seek the embrace of the shadows and never again gaze at its brilliance. The Family seeks the dark as its refuge.
 * The Fourth Law:"Seek not the sun's light; embrace only the shadows. This is our refuge."

Above all, no member of The Family will ever take the life of another member without the consent of the current leader. Anyone disobeying this action, the most heinous of all our crimes, will be exiled from this place forever. We must not let our own inner demons cause us to fight amongst ourselves. We number only in the few, and we cannot risk extinction.
 * The Fifth Law: "Kill not our kindred; slay only the enemy. This is our justice."

Related quests

 * Blood Ties

Appearances
The Family only appears in Fallout 3.

Behind the scenes

 * The password to open Ian's room is "Vespertilio," which is a genus of the bat family.
 * In the movie The Omega Man, there is a cult of mutated vampire like humans who call themselves, "The Family" and seek to form a new society in the post-apocalyptic world.
 * In the 1960s the convicted serial killer, Charles Manson, was the leader of a cult of people whom he manipulated into murdering people called The Family.

Bugs

 * Hacking into the Family's terminals will turn the Family hostile, even though the terminal itself is not red. This happens only if Vance or any other member of The Family did not give you the password.