Joshua Graham

Joshua Graham, nicknamed the Burned Man or Hanged Man was a former Mormon missionary and, together with Caesar himself, founder of Caesar's Legion. After the defeat at Hoover Dam, Caesar ordered Graham's execution by being coated in pitch, lit on fire, and tossed into the Grand Canyon to set an example for others. There are rumors that he might have somehow survived this grisly fate.

"Fallout New Vegas" plot
Mormon missionary Joshua Graham encountered two Followers of the Apocalypse in the Grand Canyon. One of them later established the Legion and became its Caesar, with Graham as his Legate and right-hand man. Many NPCs state that he was a monster of a man and possibly unkillable. After the Legion was defeated at Hoover Dam by the NCR, Caesar declared that Graham was responsible and ordered his execution. The Legate was coated in pitch, set on fire, and thrown into the Grand Canyon as an example of the consequences of failure. Afterward, members of the Legion were forbidden to speak his true name.

It is possible that Graham has survived. Graffiti found on a movie screen at the Mojave Drive-In, just south of Nipton, claims that "Joshua Graham Lives" and "The Burned Man Walks!" The same messages appear on the side of a derelict truck next to a radioactive pool of water at the north end of the road near Brooks Tumbleweed Ranch. Chief Hanlon mentions that assassination attempts have always failed; Graham always appears to die, but miraculously survives. Legionaries and their slaves speak about the Burned Man as if he were a vengeful spirit, and rumors persist that Caesar's scouts still regularly scour Legion territory for any sign of him, showing even Caesar is worried that Joshua Graham may still be walking.

Van Buren plot

 * The Prisoner was to encounter somebody hanged by the neck from a pole at Fort Abandon, obviously still alive and enraged. If cut down, the Hanged Man would tag along with the Prisoner. He was wrapped from head to toe in bandages as he had been burned pretty much all over. Save for the fact that he had a connection to Caesar's Legion and was particularly ticked off at them, he would not provide many details about himself.
 * Rescuing the Hanged Man would cause all the tribals in the region to be angry with the Prisoner as the tribals would blame him for future crimes committed by the Hanged Man. In addition, the Hanged Man may anger any tribals he encounters and try to butcher any Twin Mothers tribals he could find. Having him in the party would make dealing with tribals and some towns extremely difficult.
 * The Hanged Man would not enter New Canaan. Upon arrival, he would initiate dialogue with the Prisoner and tell him/her that he had something to take care of, offering to meet at Burham Springs later on . Bishop Mordecai would be able to reveal some details about him.
 * Upon entering Burham Springs, the Hanged Man might quote 2 Chronicles 28, ... and he burned incense in the valley of the son of Hinnom, and burned his sons as an offering... . The Hanged Man would laughingly refuse to drop his weapons if commanded to by Phil, possibly even inciting Phil to open fire on the party. It would be very difficult for the Prisoner to defuse the situation.

Game mechanics

 * The Prisoner was supposed to be able to find all the CNPCs early on, but designers didn't want the Hanged Man to be too good then.
 * If Hanged Man was intended to be the first CNPC to join, there are few ways to arrange this: the Prisoner can’t join anybody in Tibbets and could escape only to Fort Abandon or the only other location known to him during escape was Fort Abandon.

Appearances
Joshua Graham was created for the cancelled Van Buren, where he would have been a companion NPC. In Fallout: New Vegas, he is frequently mentioned and is an important character in the background of Caesar's Legion, but does not actually appear despite many signs that he might still be alive. It is possible that he will appear in a future DLC as the antagonist.