New California Republic

The New California Republic (NCR) is a federation of towns in California. The capital of NCR is the town of the same name (population: 3,000+), previously known as Shady Sands. It is west of the Rockies, in the middle-eastern portion of California (almost straight east inland from San Francisco). In 2241, the Republic consists of 5 states - Shady, Los Angeles, Maxson, the Hub, and Dayglow. The Republic is dedicated to restoring order and progress to the wasteland, as well as old world values such as democracy, liberty, and the rule of law. As of early 2240s, the population is about 700,000 people. In terms of political influence, economical power and population, the NCR is arguably the largest and most powerful known power group in the world of Fallout, and maintains the largest standing army.

Government


The government of the NCR is much like that of the pre-War United States, with a House of Congress staffed by elected representatives (Congressmen elected by their states). These representatives decide upon the President and Vice-President to head the council and govern the republic - under advice from the representatives, of course (NCR, at the time, has no existing term limits - Tandi was currently serving her tenth term at the beginning of Fallout 2). The titles for these representatives have ranged from "Councilor", "Counselor", "Councilman", "Representative", "Senator", and in particular, the Hub (in its own obstinate way) prefers to call their representatives "Governors" (there is a lot of friction between the Hub and Shady for a variety of reasons, usually related to trade rights and caravan routes). In any event, all titles are recognized and accepted outside of the council chambers, but within the chambers, the titles are occasionally used as insults and spark furious debates - nothing more than petty displays of each state trying to exert its independence.

Although nearly hitting a hundred years of age, Tandi has done more to unite the people of the wastes than any other leader born from the ashes of the Great War, and she is revered as a saint and even a "Great Mother" by some of the tribals outside of the Republic territories. Tandi's State of the Republic messages were famous for inspiring countless people to join the "service" and rebuild civilization. Under her rule, the republic has grown, and she has focused efforts on rebuilding the pre-War infrastructure to support the growing population, finding new forms of transportation and manufacturing, clearing roadways and rail lines, building forts, fostering caravans and trade in the Republic (and with other territories), and dealing with threats swiftly and efficiently. In all her years, she has never forgotten her roots in the small village of Fallout 1, and she has always strived to put the welfare of the common man above the wheels of progress.

There is little to no sexism in NCR (unlike most other territories in the wastes), most likely due to the community's origins in Vault 15 and Tandi's extended presidency. The republic also has shown little discrimination against ghouls and mutants, though many political analysts argue that this is because NCR has had limited contact with them (NCR had little contact with Necropolis or the Master's Army).

While Aradesh believed in the teachings of Dharma, Tandi always believed in the separation of church and state - and resisted any attempts to canonize the Vault Dweller within the city limits (the statue outside the Hall of Congress is fine, but that's it). Both Aradesh and Tandi found that politics and religion don't mix, especially when they got more exposure to the people of the Hub and visits from a few well-spoken members of the Followers of the Apocalypse. In any event, the NCR allows any non-psychotic religions within their capital (they are all for freedom of religion, as long as it doesn't involve human sacrifice or dipping people in vats of Forced Evolutionary Virus).

Military strength
The NCR's military is composed of several Divisions, including special cavalry and mechanized units. In addition, many of their major cities are protected and patrolled by heavily armed police officers. One of their "Special Forces" units consists of the New California Rangers, a select group that is pledged to protect the people of the Wastes much like the Texas Rangers of old. The Rangers are said to have numerous safehouses throughout the wastes, and they use these to strike at slavers outside of NCR territory (usually in the North). As expected, the two groups hate each other with a passion. NCR was also in the habit of establishing marshals in the major population centers in their territories, responsible for enforcing the laws of NCR throughout the Republic. Ghouls, super mutants, and humans were all known to serve in the NCR armed forces, even in the rangers.

Founding
The New California Republic was born out of the remnants of the survivors of Vault 15, a sister vault to Vault 13 that opened earlier and released its occupants out onto the wasteland. Abandoning their vault (after scavenging most of what they could from the surviving technology and collapsed lower levels), the former residents of Vault 15 founded the small walled farming community of Shady Sands, a town midway between Vault 13 and 15. In 2161, this community was led by Aradesh.

In 2186, the New California Republic was formed, and a central council was created as a governing body. In 2196, Tandi, the daughter of Aradesh, was unanimously elected president of the NCR. By 2241, NCR's main resource are its great brahmin herds, which provide most of the wasteland with as much meat and leather as they require. The brahmin barons and ranchers in NCR (along with the Stockmen's Association) hold a great deal of sway with the caravans and the government.

Expansion
The NCR's relationship with their old Vault has undergone some violent upheavals over the years. From nests of monsters, raiders, Vault 15 worshipers, ghoul scavengers, to more innocent (and not-so-innocent) Squatters and Salvage Teams and the Republic arguing over excavation rights, it seems to be difficult for the government or any other inhabitant of the wasteland to leave the area alone... because, well, it's a Vault.

The brahmin herders hatred of radscorpions is famous, and it dates all the way back to the founding of Shady Sands. Rumors of herds being attacked by talking deathclaws are unfounded.

NCR has a decent marketing and public relations department, and they are constantly sending couriers out into the wastes to nail up NCR posters or disseminate NCR propaganda. Famous among these is the frontiersman Thomas Moore, who bravely enough is out in the breach, currently passing out anti-Vault City and pro-NCR propaganda in the middle of Vault City. NCR propaganda can also be seen throughout many of the other independent settlements all over northern California, most notably the streets of New Reno.

War with Brotherhood of Steel
Even though the relationship between the NCR and the Brotherhood of Steel was never without some tensions, it got much worse when Jeremy Maxson became the leader of the Brotherhood. He favored a return to power by wresting all advanced tech from the hands of "lesser people" by any means necessary. Some time after 2242 the war with the New California Republic was announced.

For years the war waged on and was considered a victory for the Brotherhood of Steel. However, no matter how many troops fell to the Brotherhood's superior technology, the NCR always seemed to have more replacements available. The Brotherhood, however, was not so fortunate. Being an elitist group, replacements were short in arriving. It soon became obvious that the Brotherhood was doomed to lose the war to the NCR's greater numbers. Morale at the bunker began to falter as the war seemed more and more hopeless. Eventually the inevitable happened. Lower ranking members of the Brotherhood began to desert their posts.

At some point between 2241 and 2253, the town built on top of the Hoover Dam joined the NCR. During the war with the Brotherhood, the Dam lost contact with the rest of the NCR and considered itself the capital city of the Republic. Two days after a team of scientists led by Agnes arrived at Hoover, NCR's Congress Hall was destroyed in a bombing orchestrated by Victor Presper, which presumed to have been a Brotherhood attack. The final fate of the town on Hoover Dam is unknown.

New Vegas campaign
By 2281, the NCR continued to expand its borders. The Republic quickly sent a detachment of their military to take control of the New Vegas region in hopes of using the rich resources there to rebuild their strength after the long war against the Brotherhood of Steel. They are currently fighting Caesar's Legion over control of the Mojave region. One of their forward bases, Camp Nelson, was completely obliterated by a Legion task force in an eerie repeat of Fort Aradesh's loss, while another camp, Searchlight, was flash-incinerated by a nuclear device, transforming all the survivors of the base into Feral Ghouls. Morale among the soldiers is at an all-time low, and desertion rates are high. They're holding a defensive line across the Colorado River, and are rapidly trying to repair the Archimedes II superlaser to destroy Caesar and his Legion.

NCR's gold-backed money has lost value after the Brotherhood of Steel ambushed and destroyed their gold deposits, so NCR's dollar is now backed by water. They hold an iron fist over Hoover Dam's production capabilites, and lease electricity and drinking water to the Strip in exchange for military supplies and a firm foothold in the region.

Appearances
The New California Republic was first mentioned in the Fallout 1 end cutscenes for Shady Sands and it first appeared in Fallout 2, and was to appear again in the canceled Van Buren project. It appears again in Fallout: New Vegas as one of the major factions fighting over the control of the Mojave Wasteland.

Alternate versions
In one of the endings for the Brotherhood of Steel in Fallout 1, it is said that in the 2180s the Brotherhood, now called the Steel Plague, devastated the newly formed NCR and started a Dark Age that could last a thousand years. This ending is however, not part of the canon Fallout background.

Alternatively, in two of the possible endings for the town Shady Sands in Fallout 1, the republic could have never existed due to the town getting destroyed by either the Khan raiders or the Super Mutant army before it was founded. For obvious reasons, these endings are not canon.

Inconsistencies


In Chris Avellone's Fallout Bible 6, a version of the NCR flag with one-headed bear, based on the old flag of the California Republic is shown. It is inconsistent with Fallout 2, where a two-headed bear can be clearly seen. The flag seen in the Fallout: New Vegas teaser is a combination of both versions, as it shows a two-headed bear, but the rest of the flag looks like it does in the Fallout Bible.

Behind the Scenes
The two headed bear on the flag closely resembles the logo for MTV 2.