Hubologist (Fallout 4)

The Hubologists are a religious sect headquartered in the former city of San Francisco. They originated as a cult founded before the Great War by a man known as Dick Hubbell (or "The Hub" by Hubologists).

Beliefs
Hubology as a religion promotes the idea that humans are plagued by the spirits, or 'neurodynes', of the dead. Through a 'cleansing' process offered at Hubology centers called 'alignment', members can remove these negative influences and gain greater powers. The degree to which a member has devoted his or her time and efforts to Hubology accords him or her a numerical rank; the Hubologist leader, AHS-9, holds the highest rank of any living Hubologist, with his second in command being AHS-7. Guards are typically AHS-4s. Hubology uses a metaphor of a "wheel in the sky" to explain their existence, with Dick Hubbell representing the center hub of the wheel, the Hubologists the extending spokes, and non-members the outer rim, "crushed" by the truth of their teachings. The existence of extraterrestrial life plays a role in Hubology, and as a part of this, the Hubologists in San Francisco are trying to repair a pre-War space shuttle to leave the planet.

In addition to their main base, they also have an outpost in the NCR. The Chosen One can visit either and receive alignment for a possible luck bonus (joining the Hubologists afterward is not a requirement). Despite the Hubologists' fervent beliefs, the player can find evidence that the cult was first started as a hoax to get money. In San Francisco, the player has the option of aiding the Hubologists in their mad schemes, or eliminating them as part of a Shi mission.

References to Scientology
While the game creators insist that any relation between Hubology and real-world persons and organizations is coincidental, Hubology is an obvious parody of Scientology. This may be partially due to the aggressive legal approach of the Church of Scientology towards those it considers threatening. Some similarities include:
 * Dick Hubbell, the founder of Hubology, bears several resemblances to L. Ron Hubbard, the founder of Scientology. In early game files, the Hubologists are called the Elron, a pun on the name of "L. Ron" Hubbard.
 * Juan Cruz and Vikki Goldman, the New Reno porn stars encountered by the Chosen One in San Francisco, are a reference to Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, who, at the time of the game's release, were both outspoken about Scientology (although Kidman was never a Scientologist).
 * The belief in neurodynes, alignment, and the AHS ranking system is similar to Scientology's beliefs in thetans, auditing, and the OT system.
 * The "Space Culture" doctrine of Hubology is similar to the advanced Scientology doctrine known as "Space Opera", which presents the belief that Earth (then known as "Teegeeack") was invaded thousands of years ago by an evil spacefaring alien named Lord Xenu who exterminated humanity's predecessors with nuclear bombs.
 * The Hubologist holodisc includes a glossary, as does every religious document in Scientology.
 * "Oppressives" in Hubology are similar to "Suppressives" in Scientology.
 * The aggressive tactics of Hubologists towards their enemies bear some resemblance to those of the actual Church of Scientology (such as the "Fair Game" policy).

Appearances
Hubologists appear only in Fallout 2.