Ulysses

Ulysses is a courier and former Frumentarii of Caesar's Legion $$

Background
Ulysses was once a member of the Twisted Hairs, a tribe in Arizona that forged an alliance with Caesar's Legion. He served as a scout for the Legion, during which time he used his knowledge of medicine to cure those he traveled with. His tribe's name came from the distinctive hairstyle members had, which was based on their medicinal knowledge and tied in knots to communicate messages to other tribe members. Caesar betrayed the Twisted Hairs and sent Vulpes Inculta to enslave and murder the group at Dry Wells.

Ulysses worked as a courier, living in the Hopeville area before it was destroyed. The cities were destroyed by the detonation of underground nuclear missiles, triggered by a package delivered by the Courier. Ulysses survived the detonations and angered by the loss of his home, he seeks revenge, blaming the Courier for the events that took place.

Old World Blues
Ulysses traveled to Big MT, caring for an injured member of the Brotherhood Circle, Knight Royce, who was hunting the rogue former elder, Father Elijah. He discovered the Think Tank, who recalled him as being a "melancholy fellow" who had questions about history. It was the Think Tank that explained to him what happened in the Divide, and how the nuclear missiles were activated.

Honest Hearts
Caesar ordered Ulysses to lead the White Legs to New Canaan in an attempt to kill Joshua Graham, the former legate, along with the rest of the New Canaanites. The effort was to gain entry into the Legion, and also included murdering caravans and cutting off NCR supply lines to and from the Mojave. Ulysses helped the White Legs dig out bunkers and supply caches, acquiring powerful weaponry and teaching the tribe how to use them. After these events, Ulysses still describes members of the Legion as his brothers, "even as misguided as they are."

Lonesome Road
He was one of seven couriers hired by Mr. House to carry packages to the New Vegas Strip, but he turned down the job, resulting in the Courier carrying the Platinum Chip. Courier: "What can you tell me about this job?" Johnson Nash: "Oh, so you're talking about one of them packages. That job had strange written all over it. But we couldn't turn down the caps." The Courier: "What was strange about it?" Johnson Nash: "That cowboy robot had us hire six couriers. Each was carrying something a little different. A pair of dice, a chess piece, that kind of stuff. Last word I had from the office, it looked like payment had been received for the other five jobs. Guess it was just your chip that didn't make it. First deadbeat we hired to do the job canceled. Hope a storm from the Divide skins him alive. Well, that's where you came in." The Courier: "He canceled?" Johnson Nash: "Yeah, got this look when he saw you next down on the Courier list. His expression turned right around, asked me if your name was for real. I said, sure as lack of rain, you were still kicking. Then he turned down the job, just like that. I asked if he was sure, it was good money. No, let "Courier Six" carry the package, that's what he said - like the Mojave'd sort you out or something. Then he just up and walked out." The Courier: "Do you know who he was? Where he went?" Johnson Nash: "No idea. Sounds like you two had a history for him to act like that. And turn down the money, too. Hope he didn't see any trouble in that package of yours. Maybe he thought your name was bad luck. Not for me to say." (Johnson Nash's dialogue)

Ulysses attempted to lure the Courier back to the Divide, leaving messages for them in the form of graffiti near the Canyon Wreckage and transmitting a radio signal. Ulysses watches the Courier's progress from various locations in the Divide, including the top floor of the still-standing base of The Crow's Nest and in the building south of the Sunstone Tower Roof. He leaves decals throughout the Divide and Big MT that appear as red, white, and blue flags. The red color indicates hostile areas, white marks the way forward, and blue denotes hidden caches.

Effects of player's actions

 * If Ulysses is killed, the Courier tears down his Old World flag and uses it as a shroud.
 * If Ulysses is convinced not to fight the Courier, he can be found sitting vigil above the Hopeville ruins, just at the entrance to the Divide.
 * Ulysses will also help the Courier make campfire recipes and teaches the recipe for bitter drink. He supplies the Courier with miscellaneous items he found in Hopeville including Rockets, Rad-X, RadAway, MREs, and pre-War books.

Appearances
Ulysses appears $$ He was mentioned in Old World Blues and Honest Hearts.

Behind the scenes

 * Chris Avellone stated that he has "a lot of love for Ulysses in Fallout" because he "likes the idea of someone hunting my player for reasons of his own, and then hearing the reasons why… and realizing how important even the smallest of my actions are for the people of the wasteland – living or dead."
 * Avellone explained that the writing for Ulysses changed as soon as he heard Roger Cross' voice, and he "kept his audition playing in the background while I was writing, and it helped me give direction for the character."
 * Ulysses was intended to be a companion and had to be unused in the base game due to lack of space.   Avellone described his goals and inspirations when writing Ulysses as a companion in part three of the Unmasking the Gamers interview.
 * Ulysses describes Ulysses S. Grant, as the inspiration for his name.