Mister Burke

Mister Burke is a mysterious man who can be met in Moriarty's Saloon in Megaton. He is the sinister right-hand man of Allistair Tenpenny, and wants the town destroyed via detonating its atomic bomb in 2277. However, it is not known whether he is truly under the control of Tenpenny, or if he is manipulating his employer toward his own ends.

Background
Little is known about the sinister Burke, except that he was born in 2221. At some point, he came into the employment of Allistair Tenpenny. As Tenpenny's right-hand man, Burke takes care of everything for Tenpenny to the point where the feeble-minded old man practically no longer thinks for himself.

In 2277, it is evident that Burke is using his position to make a living out of influencing Tenpenny into fulfilling his own destructive agenda (which Tenpenny misinterprets as Burke being an "agreeable" "go-getter"). Responding to an off-handed comment Tenpenny made about Megaton being an eyesore, Burke moved to Megaton where he scopes out Moriarty's Saloon in search of an outsider whom he could recruit to rig the atomic bomb in the center of the town to explode. In spite of Tenpenny's request for Burke to attempt to evacuate the town prior to its destruction, Burke makes no such effort, and should the Lone Wanderer choose to help them destroy Megaton, Burke expressly forbids him or her from warning anyone.

Daily schedule
He can be found sitting in a chair in Moriarty's Saloon before the start of the The Power of the Atom, and after the player accepts the Fusion Pulse Charge. Once the task of re-arming the bomb is done, he will then go back to Tenpenny Tower, where the player must rendezvous with him. Alternatively, if you disarm it, he will leave Moriarty's Saloon and go back to his house.

Effects of player actions
He can give the Lone Wanderer access to Tenpenny Tower in exchange for installing a Fusion Pulse Charge inside Megaton's bomb.

If the player does not follow Mr. Burke's method of completing this quest, Hitmen may show up at random encounters, and try to kill him/her. If the player loots their bodies, they will find contracts to hunt and kill them, signed by Burke. This is different, however, from Talon Company mercenaries, who will come after the player when they have good Karma, regardless of their actions in Megaton.

The player can choose to tell Megaton's sheriff, Lucas Simms, about Burke's plans, once Burke's made his offer. Lucas will immediately go to the Saloon and confront Burke; Burke will pretend he was misunderstood, and seemingly acquiesces to Simms' demand that he be placed under arrest. As soon as Simms' back is turned, Burke will pull a gun on him. If the player is quick enough, he can kill Burke before Simms is shot and killed. Simms' will later thank the player, saying he must be getting old. It is strange when Simms says "I'm placing you under arrest Burke", as there are no jails in Megaton.

Female players with the Black Widow perk get two special dialog options with Burke - they can claim they live in Megaton and Burke will change his plans, or they can persuade him to pay an extra 500 caps for rigging the bomb without the need to pass a speech check.

The Power of the Atom quest is still available from Burke even if Roy Phillips has killed Allistair Tenpenny and taken over Tenpenny Tower. After installing the Fusion Pulse Charge and traveling to Tenpenny Tower, the player will find Roy Phillips and Mr. Burke speaking on Tenpenny's balcony. Phillips is intimidated by Burke and his ability to infiltrate the Ghoul-controlled Tower, and allows Burke to detonate the bomb and destroy Megaton. This act impresses Phillips so much that he hires Burke as his new right-hand man.


 * He can be enslaved with the Mesmetron but will try to escape immediately, setting off his collar.

Notable quotes

 * "You should be proud of your accomplishment"
 * "Any moment now, you'll be dead! Are you excited to see what that's like?"
 * "Why do you knuckle-draggers insist on doing things the hard way... very well."
 * "You're a Masochist!"
 * "I just had this suit tailored!"

Mister Break
Mister Break is a character found in the Sacred Bog area of Point Lookout. He is a part of the hallucination that occurs after the Lone Wanderer consumes Punga Seeds and is seen leaning against an atom bomb, similar to the Megaton bomb but much larger. After interacting with him, the bomb explodes, and the Lone Wanderer wakes up outside of the Sacred Bog. Mister Break is a delusional image of Mister Burke. His clothes are the same except for his Tortiseshell Glasses. When spoken to, he will respond in Tobar the Ferryman's voice (it is later revealed that it was indeed Tobar talking to the hero), and he gives a warning to not get up, saying "you might hurt yourself." Mister Break cannot be killed, only rendered unconscious and will shoot you if provoked. You can steal 10mm rounds from the hallucination.

Bugs

 * If you kill Burke, after a long while he may respawn, and can be found standing beside the bomb if it is disarmed, though he cannot be engaged in conversation.
 * If you use the Black Widow perk to persuade Burke not to blow up Megaton, you may have to wait weeks for the letters due to the fact that Moriarty - who is meant to give you the letters - disappears as soon as you persuade Burke. Or you might not get them at all.

Behind the scenes
Burke is the name of a town in Virginia south of Fairfax and Annandale.

Appearances
Burke appears in Fallout 3 and gives The Power of the Atom quest. He also shows up as his alter ego, Mister Break, in Point Lookout addon quest Walking with Spirits.