Where do the Minutemen fit in the synth debate?

[Soloquendi]

They're just trying to make the Commonwealth great again. ;)

[CiderMuffin]

The Minutemen are a volunteer army that is based around rebuilding and protecting settlements from raiders, their goal is to protect the people and build a better Commonwealth. The reason they become a main faction is because the Sole Survivor, their current leader, can make the Institute their enemy with the Institute being hostile. Their stance is don't mess with them and you're fine, they are the faction that doesn't care until a member of their faction is attacked by someone.

[coolphoton1234]

Preston is a follower with a strong sense of honer. You saved his life and those he was sworn to protect. The only thing he has left to give is loyalty, but he is obsessed with the idea of the minutemen. So instead of calling you 'master' he calls you 'general' and then expects you to live up to his personal ideal of what that should mean: protect the people and stabilize the Commonwealth. The thing you have to keep in mind about him is that he is suffering from PTSD and is obsessed with the minutemen to the point of mania. There nearly a religion to him. Honestly the MM are the only faction that your rise in rank makes much sense.

[DoctorKaizeld]

Preston is a follower with a strong sense of honer. You saved his life and those he was sworn to protect. The only thing he has left to give is loyalty, but he is obsessed with the idea of the minutemen. So instead of calling you 'master' he calls you 'general' and then expects you to live up to his personal ideal of what that should mean: protect the people and stabilize the Commonwealth. The thing you have to keep in mind about him is that he is suffering from PTSD and is obsessed with the minutemen to the point of mania. There nearly a religion to him. Honestly the MM are the only faction that your rise in rank makes much sense.

... not at all. nothing about your rise from random nobody to general makes any sense

[coolphoton1234]

 

 

Preston is a follower with a strong sense of honer. You saved his life and those he was sworn to protect. The only thing he has left to give is loyalty, but he is obsessed with the idea of the minutemen. So instead of calling you 'master' he calls you 'general' and then expects you to live up to his personal ideal of what that should mean: protect the people and stabilize the Commonwealth. The thing you have to keep in mind about him is that he is suffering from PTSD and is obsessed with the minutemen to the point of mania. There nearly a religion to him. Honestly the MM are the only faction that your rise in rank makes much sense.

... not at all. nothing about your rise from random nobody to general makes any sense

 

Yes it dose. Preston is the last active minuteman but can't face rebuilding on his own so he gives the person that just slaughtered 20 raiders and a deathclaw for people he only just met. Then went and slaughtered even more raiders for an entirely different group of people you just met. Thru his blue tinted shades you look like a messiah and in his warped view gave you the only title anyone could realistically use to rebuild the Minutemen. You are the only thing keeping a shell-shocked solder from killing himself and he treats you that way. As to why no one argues later with his disision, Your not only the general, you are essentially the founder of the restored Minutemen, and there are indications that it is at least partly a cult of personality.

[Ethreon]

 

 

Preston is a follower with a strong sense of honer. You saved his life and those he was sworn to protect. The only thing he has left to give is loyalty, but he is obsessed with the idea of the minutemen. So instead of calling you 'master' he calls you 'general' and then expects you to live up to his personal ideal of what that should mean: protect the people and stabilize the Commonwealth. The thing you have to keep in mind about him is that he is suffering from PTSD and is obsessed with the minutemen to the point of mania. There nearly a religion to him. Honestly the MM are the only faction that your rise in rank makes much sense.

... not at all. nothing about your rise from random nobody to general makes any sense

 

Yes it dose. Preston is the last active minuteman but can't face rebuilding on his own so he gives the person that just slaughtered 20 raiders and a deathclaw for people he only just met. Then went and slaughtered even more raiders for an entirely different group of people you just met. Thru his blue tinted shades you look like a messiah and in his warped view gave you the only title anyone could realistically use to rebuild the Minutemen. You are the only thing keeping a shell-shocked solder from killing himself and he treats you that way. As to why no one argues later with his disision, Your not only the general, you are essentially the founder of the restored Minutemen, and there are indications that it is at least partly a cult of personality.

Every faction in F4 is quick to accept you without much thought. As much as I hate that BoS guy in the police station, he's right to be suspicious and that's how the BoS normally are, and how everyone should be. Not willy nilly walk into someone's base and insta become supreme leader and also the maid on duty at the same time.

[RedRocketTM]

Oh yeah, I found it quite odd that Father just lets you leave with a courser chip built into your pip-boy, just because you claim that you'd work with them and won't harm them down there... O.o

They don't even seem to have proper security in the institute. (Well I'm not through with the game yet, but I haven't noticed anything special, apart from their Synths) They seem to be the most careless in the whole commonwealth.

 

As for Preston and his... uhm sorry, MY Minutemen: It has been mentioned a few times now, and in my oppinion it's okay how it is: They don't need a stance. They accept anyone, as long as they are friendly and / or help them.

I couldn't even come up with a reason on why they SHOULD mess with the institute, other than their General tells them to. It's just not their main business, and they literally have enough to do with all the Raiders and Gunners and whatever else out there.

 

In any case, for me, they are essential to the story - maybe not in the whole debate, unless I lead them into it, but for the mere reason of HOPE. I would miss something if they weren't there, and (yeah well... ^^") I'd miss having Preston around, too. In fact, they're my favored faction to end the game with, because of their meaning for humanity, and because they do not judge anyone for what they are, but rather for how they are.

 

So for me, they contribute a lot to the story - and you don't necessarily need a clear stance to gain the right to exist. The game would just feel empty and hopeless without them. (And no, I am no fan of the constant settlement stuff - not at all. Beth really overdid it at that part *sighs*)

 

Anyway, I'm a proud General of the Minutemen, and as such they make a lot sense to me. :wub:

[coolphoton1234]

 

 

 

Preston is a follower with a strong sense of honer. You saved his life and those he was sworn to protect. The only thing he has left to give is loyalty, but he is obsessed with the idea of the minutemen. So instead of calling you 'master' he calls you 'general' and then expects you to live up to his personal ideal of what that should mean: protect the people and stabilize the Commonwealth. The thing you have to keep in mind about him is that he is suffering from PTSD and is obsessed with the minutemen to the point of mania. There nearly a religion to him. Honestly the MM are the only faction that your rise in rank makes much sense.

... not at all. nothing about your rise from random nobody to general makes any sense

 

Yes it dose. Preston is the last active minuteman but can't face rebuilding on his own so he gives the person that just slaughtered 20 raiders and a deathclaw for people he only just met. Then went and slaughtered even more raiders for an entirely different group of people you just met. Thru his blue tinted shades you look like a messiah and in his warped view gave you the only title anyone could realistically use to rebuild the Minutemen. You are the only thing keeping a shell-shocked solder from killing himself and he treats you that way. As to why no one argues later with his disision, Your not only the general, you are essentially the founder of the restored Minutemen, and there are indications that it is at least partly a cult of personality.

Every faction in F4 is quick to accept you without much thought. As much as I hate that BoS guy in the police station, he's right to be suspicious and that's how the BoS normally are, and how everyone should be. Not willy nilly walk into someone's base and insta become supreme leader and also the maid on duty at the same time.

 

you mean the violent xenophobes, the violent fanatical xenophobes, and the we-would-be-terrorists-if-there-were-a-goverment wouldn't just except random outsiders into positions of trust and policy making?

[crawe1x]

 

I couldn't even come up with a reason on why they SHOULD mess with the institute, other than their General tells them to.

 

 

I agree with a lot of what you say, but this particular point isn't true. While the Raiders and the Gunners are indeed their main focal point, the Minutemen have every reason to go up against the Institute. After all, the Institute represents a clear danger to the people of the Commonwealth. Someone - I think it's Nick - describes how the Generation 1 synths wiped out entire settlements. Others echo this comment. University Point is an example of a major settlement that was destroyed shortly before the Sole Survivor arrives on the scene. Historically, there's the Broken Mask Incident in which a Generation 3 synth went on a killing spree in Diamond City. This was followed by the CPG Massacre, which destroyed any hope of cooperation between the human settlements. In addition, the Institute continues to murder and kidnap Commonwealth citizens.

 

Now, it's true the Institute has its own take on some of these events, particularly the CPG Massacre, and that it might not be the bogeyman many believe it to be. But that's not the point. Taking the evidence at face value, the Institute does pose a direct threat to the Commonwealth and its inhabitants. Once the Sole Survivor gets to know more about the Institute, he/she can interpret its actions differently - and thus influence the Minutemen's views. But that all comes later and is down to player choice.

Edited January 9, 2017 by crawe1x

[crawe1x]

Preston is a follower with a strong sense of honer. You saved his life and those he was sworn to protect. The only thing he has left to give is loyalty, but he is obsessed with the idea of the minutemen. So instead of calling you 'master' he calls you 'general' and then expects you to live up to his personal ideal of what that should mean: protect the people and stabilize the Commonwealth. The thing you have to keep in mind about him is that he is suffering from PTSD and is obsessed with the minutemen to the point of mania. There nearly a religion to him. Honestly the MM are the only faction that your rise in rank makes much sense.

 

This is an intriguing premise. Technically, he could be suffering from PTSD, though if this is the case, Beth has done a truly terrible job of portraying it. I've never known anyone who has suffered from PTSD, but I have known plenty of people with clinical depression, which is not so different. In this respect, Jun and Marcy Long are far better characterized - which is why they can be so damn annoying. :tongue:

 

That all said, I agree with qwertyzeldar: the Sole Survivor becoming the General so early in the game just doesn't work and feels very forced. What you've come up with here is a good reason for why Preston offers you the job, even though he knows virtually nothing about you. But it doesn't explain why the Sole Survivor accepts the job, nor does it explain why he/she seems to have an innate respect for Preston (who initially has done nothing to earn that respect). Basically, this whole part of the plot is badly conceived and contradictory, like it was just thrown together without any real thought.