Brotherhood Outcasts



The Brotherhood Outcasts is a faction in the Capital Wasteland in 2277.

Background
The Brotherhood Outcasts are a splinter faction of the Brotherhood of Steel that broke ties with Elder Lyons’ group at the Citadel. The Outcasts attribute their departure to their belief that Elder Lyons had lost sight of the Brotherhood’s true mission and the original reason for their presence in the Capital Wasteland: the recovery and preservation of advanced pre-War technology. Dissatisfied with Lyons’ focus on aiding the local peoples of the Capital Wasteland, a contingent of Brotherhood members led by Henry Casdin absconded from the Citadel in the dead of night, taking weapons and advanced technologies with them. Led by Casdin, the dissidents traveled south and eventually took up residence at Fort Independence, where they pushed back the indigenous raider groups and secured the pre-War installation as their headquarters. However, they are still undertaking efforts to occupy the Fairfax region from the raider groups, with one reconnaissance team retreating from the town mid-operation. Labeled “Outcasts” by their former brothers and sisters, the renegades adopted the moniker as a badge of honor, painting their armor red and black to distinguish themselves from the organization that they no longer serve.

Although denounced as traitors by the East Coast Brotherhood, the Outcasts view themselves as the opposite; in the Outcasts’ eyes, they remain true to the Brotherhood of Steel, and it was Elder Lyons who betrayed what the Brotherhood stands for. The Outcasts believe that their actions will be vindicated when they reunite with the main Brotherhood forces on the West Coast. Until that day, the Outcasts continue to uphold the Brotherhood’s mission and scour the Wasteland, reclaiming pre-War sites in search of valuable technology, such as the Virtual Strategic Solutions facility in the Bailey's Crossroads district, which the Outcasts are currently struggling to defend the region from the super mutants.

Sometime between 2283 and 2284, Arthur Maxson, reunified the Brotherhood and the outcasts by convincing the latter to conclude a truce at the age of 16, becoming the new and youngest leader of the East Chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel.

Organization
The Brotherhood Outcasts outfit themselves in repainted T-45d power armor, having adopted a new color scheme following their exodus from the Citadel. To compensate for their limited numbers, the Outcasts have supplemented their forces with a number of reprogrammed robobrains, sentry bots, and protectrons, all adorned with the Outcasts’ colors.

In addition to stockpiling viable technology salvaged from the ruins of the Capital Wasteland, the Outcasts analyze and reverse-engineer their findings, leaving work logs throughout their headquarters.

Though based out of Fort Independence, the Outcasts maintain at least one other outpost in the Washington, D.C. area. While the Brotherhood of Steel patrols the central ruins of D.C., Outcast patrols are commonly encountered throughout the greater Capital Wasteland. Outcast patrols typically involve three Brotherhood Outcasts (often comprised of one armed with a ranged weapon, one armed with a melee weapon, and one armed with a heavy weapon) or, more commonly, 1-2 outcasts and an Outcast protectron or robobrain. There are three "ranks" of Brotherhood Outcast, which appear according to the player's level, with higher-level Outcasts possessing more hit points and better weapons. Outcast patrols are neutral if not quite friendly towards the Lone Wanderer, and will fight against hostile enemies such as raiders, Enclave, creatures, and rogue robots.

Relations with the Lone Wanderer
The Brotherhood of Steel Outcasts show great disdain towards wastelanders. While not hostile, they will constantly insult and berate the Lone Wanderer. Though the player character can make a deal with them at Fort Independence, it is not possible to join their faction. If the player character is caught trying to enter their base or killing Protector Henry Casdin, the Outcasts will become hostile, unless the player character has delivered enough technology to them to be considered a friend. Even if the Lone Wanderer begins to be considered as a friend, the Outcasts will still berate the player character for their assumed technological backwardness, unless the Wanderer is wearing Outcast power armor, in which case the Outcasts will treat them as one of their own.

Access to Fort Independence is never technically given, but after supplying Protector Casdin with enough scrap metal, energy weapons, and/or power armor, the dialog option "So are we good? Do you trust me enough now?" appears when speaking to Protector Casdin. This is usually when it becomes safe to pick the locked door to Fort Independence, providing the player character does not pick the lock with an Outcast watching.

Protector Casdin does engage in nearby firefights and can sometimes be found dead at Fort Independence, making the free form quest to deliver materials impossible. Searching his corpse reveals a door key, but using it will still turn the Outcasts hostile upon entering Fort Independence.

Outcast members are scripted as evil characters. Thus, fingers can be taken off their corpses if the player character takes the Lawbringer perk. Protector Casdin, Defender Rockfowl, and Defender Morgan drop ears but the player character's Karma is not affected.

Relations with other factions
The Brotherhood Outcasts are considered hostile by the Brotherhood of Steel, and vice versa. Outcast and Lyons Brotherhood members will engage each other on sight, even though Elder Lyons professes to understand the reason for the Outcasts' departure.

Although the Outcasts emphasize collecting technology as their primary mission, not the protection of the populace, Outcast patrols will still engage hostile enemies such as raider groups, super mutant bands and Enclave patrols, although this is probably in self-defense. Similarly, Outcast patrols will not fire upon neutral Wasteland inhabitants such as scavengers.

Technology
Brotherhood outcast soldiers are formidable opponents. They have superior protection, weaponry, and skills to virtually every indigenous faction encountered in the Capital Wasteland, including raiders, Talon Company mercenaries, and most indigenous fauna the Wasteland has to offer. Outcasts generally, though not always, operate in patrols of three units. A typical patrol consists of either two soldiers and one robot, or three men. One will be a melee attacker, one a mid-ranged, and one a heavy weapon user, making them a bit more dangerous, as all of them can open fire the second a hostile appears. Outcast patrols are generally weaker than Enclave kill-teams, however, and frequently lose to them in direct combat unless the Outcast squad is making use of heavy weapons. Fortunately for the Lone Wanderer, Outcasts are usually not hostile (but gruff and rude) when encountered, making their appearance often helpful.

Outcast patrols generally use the following weapons:

In addition to having human members, the Outcasts make extensive use of protectrons, sentry bots and robobrains. Some of the sentry bots are particularly powerful, equipped with gatling lasers. All of the above can be easily spotted by their red-and-black-flecked paint job, mimicking the armor of their Outcast masters. While the protectron is hardly a wonderful combatant, the robobrain can prove a challenge, and the sentry bot is outright deadly. Particularly strong squads have a higher concentration of better gear.

Interactions with the player character
The Lone Wanderer can talk with Protector Casdin at Fort Independence, who can arrange a deal between the Outcasts and the Lone Wanderer to trade various technological items for useful supplies, such as stimpaks, 5.56mm ammunition, frag grenades, and RadAway.

The Outcasts play a major role in Operation: Anchorage, in which a group of Outcasts in the Outcast Outpost, under the command of Protector McGraw, is trying to acquire advanced military tools, and the only way to enter the locked room containing these relics is by completing a military simulation only accessible by someone wearing a Neural-Interface Device (e.g. Pip-Boy).

Appearances
Brotherhood Outcasts appear in Fallout 3 and the add-on Operation: Anchorage, and are mentioned in Fallout: New Vegas.

Bugs

 * After delivering enough technology to Protector Casdin the player will be granted "trusted" status and added to the OutcastAllyFaction Faction. Although Casdin indicates this will put the player on friendly terms with most members of the Outcasts, the optional "friendly" dialogue is set to check if the player is a member of the OutcastFaction Faction, rather than the OutcastAllyFaction Faction. This results in most "friendly" Outcast greetings and dialogue not being heard.
 * Sometimes, when finding a patrol, the sound of a gatling gun being fired is heard, but is never actually being used.