Marked Men

Marked men are a variant of Ghouls only found in the Divide in 2281.

Background
Marked men are the remnants of the NCR and Caesar's Legion soldiers situated in the Divide when atomic warheads detonated at the same time as the First Battle of Hoover Dam in 2277, creating great earthquakes and storms. The violent storms skinned them alive while the intense radiation caused a unique variant of ghoulification. The ghoulification kept them alive and in incredible pain from their wounds. In dialogue between the Courier and Ulysses, the Courier can confirm that such injuries and radiation would have killed ordinary ghouls. The marked men are only kept alive by the radiation of the Divide, which now heals their particular forms.

Despite belonging to completely different factions with opposing ideologies when they were humans, the pain united them into a single group. Their hate for the NCR and the Legion was turned against the Divide and its intruders. Some former Caesar's legionaries crafted crude versions of Legate Lanius' helmet, constructed from Divide metal, not with care and strength, but with hate, keeping them anchored. Others shaped crude blades like distant mirrors of their new and unknown Legate, like a symbol they can hold on to, while the Divide tears them. The NCR, on the other hand, stuck to their guns; ranged death from afar being their own symbol. They wear old NCR and Legion armor damaged over time, patched together with road signs, license plates and other scrap metal.

Biology
Ghoulification and the storms have peeled their skin off, leaving behind only muscle. The radiation of the Divide may be the only thing keeping them alive.

Gameplay attributes
The Marked Men have a high level of HP for humanoid opponents and their tattered armor still offers them some protection (albeit far less then properly maintained regular versions of their armor). They carry variety of powerful high end weaponry both of the ranged and melee variety and they are unique in that Marked Men are the only faction that almost universally carry non standard ammunition for their weapons (slugs and armor piercing rounds in particular) which makes them all the more dangerous. When near sources of radiation they rapidly regenerate their health making hit and run tactics far less useful when fighting them in an irradiated area. However they tend to be few in number and it is rare to find more than a dozen in any particular location.

Appearances
Marked men appears only in the Fallout: New Vegas add-on Lonesome Road.

Behind the scenes

 * Marked man seems to have been inspired by the first ghoul concept for Fallout named "blood man".

Gallery
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