Thomas Hildern

Thomas Hildern is the director of the Office of Science and Industry (OSI) eastern division, living in the Camp McCarran in 2281. He can be found in his office located inside the terminal building in the southeastern area on the ground floor of the terminal.

Background
Hildern was educated by the Followers of the Apocalypse, but disagreed with their adherence to "old-world dogma" and instead branched out in an effort to focus on large scale results. After his training, he helped formed the Office of Science and Industry, an organization focusing on finding practical application for knowledge.

As the ambitious current director of the OSI eastern division, he will speak openly about his disapproval of the direction in which the current executives at OSI Central are headed. He states that he wishes to show the president how effective a branch can be by adhering to his level of discipline, imagining rising to a role in the central office in a few years time.

As director of the eastern division, Hildern's team oversees the optimization of Hoover Dam power output and research into advancing food production. His office also supervises Republic-funded projects such as the NCR sharecropper farms initiative, attesting to OSI's dedication to safety and dedication to their work force. Hildern as a supervisor of many operations is just that, as he does no actual research despite his position. However, he is accused by Angela Williams to take credit for the work of other researchers.

Hildern has recently turned his attention to the NCR's projected food shortage. Due to the NCR's expansion, over the next decade food production is estimated to fall short of what would be required to sustain the population. Hildern has identified a potential breakthrough in Vault 22, a facility dedicated to the same issue before the war. By hiring mercenaries to travel to Vault 22, he does not go through the extra step of gaining authorization from the NCR. Fellow scientist Angela Williams disapproves of this and warns potential employees. At each opportunity, Angela shares that Hildern is not concerned with the safety of those he hires for field work, many of which have never returned from their assignments. One of these individuals is a member of their laboratory, a scientist named Keely who Hildern believed had a personal interest in undermining him and thwarting his projects, because she sees him to be a "pompous little pedant".

Quests

 * There Stands the Grass: Hildern sends one to Vault 22 to retrieve some data that no one else has been able to.
 * You Can Depend on Me: Alice McLafferty sends the player character to deliver an invoice to Hildern.
 * ED-E My Love: Talking to Hildern will trigger ED-E's first audio log.
 * For Auld Lang Syne: Talking to Hildern by completing the quest in his favor is one of the triggers needed for Arcade Gannon to begin the quest.
 * If the Courier chose to destroy the data in There Stands the Grass, Hildern will not offer any dialogue thus making it impossible to use this as a trigger for For Auld Lang Syne.

Appearances
Thomas Hildern appears only in Fallout: New Vegas.