Barney Rook

Barney Rook is the last remaining resident of Salem and the commander, quartermaster, sergeant at arms and scribe of the Salem Volunteer Militia in 2287.

Background
Barney Rook is a native resident of Salem, where his family has been living for centuries. He inherited his family's house from his ancestors, who also owned the Rook Military Surplus store. His family worked hard to maintain the community of Salem for the next two centuries, the community was known as one of the safest towns in the Commonwealth. As a consequence, the townspeople went lax in their defenses. He begged the town council to let him train the militia, to teach the citizens how to shoot and fend for themselves. But they thought he was just paranoid. When the mirelurks started rising out of the ocean, no one was ready. He tried to save as many as he could from his roost atop his home, but for every person he saved, three were lost. After the devastation, he vowed to protect the town and has been doing so for the last couple of years alone. Even though he hasn't had a guest in months, he can't imagine himself living any other place.

Because he was alone, and couldn't be everywhere at once, he set up the series of turrets around town at strategic locations, so he could stay at home most days. He recently took the turrets offline to conserve ammunition since the mirelurks were quiet lately. The Sole Survivor: "Who's Reba? Are you talking about your gun?" Barney Rook: "She's not just a gun! She's top of the line, best gun in the Commonwealth. Made her with my own two hands. Oh, where are my manners? Introductions! Barney Rook, commander of the Salem Volunteer Militia, at your service. I'm also the quartermaster, sergeant at arms, and scribe for all official meetings. This here is Reba. But you two already met when she saved your life." The Sole Survivor: "Thank you, Reba. And thank you, Barney." Barney Rook: "No thanks needed, sir. The Salem Volunteer Militia is at the service of the people of the Commonwealth. Duty is its own reward. Reba says you're welcome. Now, I'd love to sit here gabbing all day like a couple of house wives, but we've got some work to do. And by we, I most definitely mean you. Before you showed up, the Mirelurks had been mostly quiet. And those that were a problem were quickly dispatched by my turret defense system. Since things had been quiet lately, I took the turrets offline to conserve ammunition. Obviously, they need to be reactivated. And that's your mission, soldier. I'm going to continue to hold down the home front while you go reactivate the turrets." The Sole Survivor: "Sounds good." Barney Rook: "Of course it sounds good, I'm a tactical genius. Smartest man in town, as a matter of fact. The turrets should be easy enough to find. They're up high in strategic locations around town. Just be careful. All your noise probably woke up more crabbies and other mirelurks. The town could be crawling with them by now." (DN083 BarneyRook.txt)

With the town seemingly empty the Sole Survivor would try to explore, causing the mirelurks to stir. Rook, not wanting another person to die while he was protecting the town, sprung into action, and leads the Sole Survivor to the safety of his bunker, believing that they froze upon seeing the danger "like a deer in headlights."

He is also a talented gunsmith, and has made himself a personalized hunting rifle he calls "Reba," and its sequel "Reba II." Due to his isolation, and loneliness, he began to treat the pair like people.

Behind the scenes

 * Barney Rook may be a reference to Burt Gummer, a character from the Tremors movie series played by Michael Gross. Barney and Burt both suffer from paranoia and have a heavily defended home. Barney's rifle, Reba, may be a reference to actress Reba McEntire, the actress playing Burt's wife in Tremors 1.
 * Barney may also be a reference to Sergent Shadwell from Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman. Both are part of a single purpose militia composed of primarily one person filling all the roles. Sergeant Shadwell is the leader of the Witchfinder Army, and Barney can be found in Salem, a place associated with witches. Both characters seem relatively hostile to the world at first appearance but are trying to help people the best they can.
 * Barney might also be a reference to Barney Fife from the Andy Griffith show, played by Don Knotts. This is evidenced by his somewhat over-confident but bumbling personality displayed to the Sole Survivor when you encounter him.