third time will be a charm, I hope (WARNING: i'm pissed after second attempt)

[ateaseyo]

So I've just recently started playing FO4 for the first time.

 

First play through I went in blind. Proceeded through as far as I could with every faction, trying to avoid becoming hostile towards any of them, and eventually finding that I had to pick a route no matter what. So I went with the brotherhood of steel because I played FO3 endlessly when it first came out so represent.

 

Second play-through i did more research, figured out taking the brotherhood route basically represents fear. It is the safest option. The brotherhood of steel are going to be in every fallout game most likely in some capacity. the institute will probably not, nor the minutemen, and certainly not the railroad unless in easter eggs. Anyway so I decided the second play-through I would take the most empathetic route. First I took the most fearful route, then I took the most empathetic. This is the railroad. Empathy is subconscious and requires no forethought, the railroad does not act with forethought they just want to do what is right right now, and free slaves. It's ridiculous that the railroad would resort to the nuclear option. It doesn't matter if they were going to be destroyed or whatever, if you really dive into all of the story, the railroad represents empathy. the basis of liberal ideology. liberals hate war they would not nuke a f***ing science facility.

 

anyway... if you take the brotherhood route and nuke the institute, you can later speak with Dr Li, which is a major character in FO3 for those who loved that game, and she f***ing berates you for using the nuclear option, telling you she thought you would use the robot as leverage, not as a way to destroy everything they built. half the reason i took the brotherhood route was because i loved FO3 so much, and so it sucked to get berated by Dr Li. Then if you take the railroad route and nuke the institute which is ridiculous, then you can go back and walk around the railroad base to find the synth who helped you free all the supposed synth slaves ends up killing himself because you nuked everyone, just like everyone should f***ing kill themselves because it's retarded that the railroad would do that. So one way you get berated by good ol' Dr Li, and the other way you are the reason the synth who helped you save the synths kills himself, as he berates you in his suicide letter.

 

I cannot find anything on avoiding the nuclear option without being the institute. sorry for the frustration, i was really pissed getting berated for the second time after choosing the most empathetic route possible. After doing more research, the minutemen act neutral the entire game, but then just result in another fear approach, wanting to destroy everyone that threatens them. The brotherhood represent the most fear and the most safety, it's no surprise they use force, but it is retarded that they destroy the facility when they love technology. god Bethesda really fell through with this game... the railroad represent freeing slaves and promoting freedom for all intelligent life, then they end up taking the fear approach which makes no sense but okay fine, instead of creating peace treaties and working with others using charisma and persuasion like the game offers they just use the nuke also.

 

I'm not going to do minutemen the third time because that would be a boring version of the brotherhood of steel approach. So what does the institute represent. similar to the railroad, their philosophy is acting for the greater good. but the railroad operates on empathy, which is subconscious, requires no forethought and is reactionary, so the railroad is fighting for what is the greater good right now, basically representing the dumb liberals. Whereas the institute represents hope which does require forethought, and they are fighting for what is the greater good as far down the road as possible. it's still empathy, is just not empathy towards those who live today, because those who live today should not be thinking of their disgusting selves and their disgusting desires, they should be selfless, and preserving the world as best as possible for those down the road. So the institute basically represents progressives, or the intelligent liberals, who don't actually live liberally, they just preach liberal values then act more conservatively than conservatives.

 

But the second play-through i did play through as if I was going to do the institute route until they told me to kill desmonda then i went with the railroad and destroyed everyone else besides the fake-neutral minutemen. and father presents it as if they leave us with no choice. tiny ass group leaves us no choice, yeah right, whatever they are idiots and they are not looking down the road so who cares the institute really does represent the greater good in terms of health and resources if you take their option. sooo.. then you kill the brotherhood. meh. i'm over the brotherhood at this point. they tried too hard to make them seem like the fearful option. bunch of pussies who hate everything they don't know.

on the other hand, it's not realistic that you would be able to unite everyone in real life. but this? either nuke your son and the future, nuke your son and the future, nuke your son and the future, or kill some small local faction of dumb liberals who operate on emotion and don't realize the institute is on the same side, then destroy the brotherhood who represent the same militant mindset that got humanity to the point of fallout in the first place. hmm seems like the institute is the way to go.

If I take brotherhood route, dr li berates me for destroying the facility with a nuke, as she should, If I take the railroad option, the synth who helped you save the apparently slaved synths kills himself because you destroyed the facility with a nuke, as he and everyone else should, and then he berates me in his suicide letter. Not going to take the minutemen route because their neutral background is fake because they just using the f***ing nuke too. The question I have is, if you take the institute route, no one technically gets nuked. so does no one berate you for using a nuclear option or something similar to the effect? in the railroad you destroy the institute and the brotherhood but you get berated for destroying the institute with the nuke. in the brotherhood you destroy the railroad and the institute but you get berated for destroying the institute. what if you're the institute...? you don't get berated for destroying anything with a f*#@ing nuke i bet. i'm beginning to see a message here.

Edited May 5, 2021 by ateaseyo

[HeyYou]

The institute is not your friend. (unless you join them.) They hold a pretty dim view of the inhabitants on the surface. They use them as guinea pigs in their experiments, kill them, replace them with synth copies, etc. Not the actions of a benevolent organization. In all reality, the minutemen actually have the best interests of the inhabitants in mind. They want to rebuild civilization, not use people for their own somewhat questionable end goals.

[Ondrea]

Most of the followers berate you for going the Institute route, as their approach is to completely destroy two factions and anyone on the surface whom they choose. If it's just a matter of going a route without being scolded at the end, with the Brotherhood, you don't have to use Dr. Li. If you refuse Father's offer to join and get immediately booted, there will be another person to help the Brotherhood with their robot. Granted, Elder Maxson won't be happy with you initially but he'll shower praises on you later.

 

The Minutemen approach is the most peaceful. They won't initiate any attacks on anyone, unless you've started something personally. Just avoid going further with the Institute quests to keep everyone alive, if that's your goal.

 

Or you can try the recent mod, Subversion, which is the most peaceful approach, running the Institute your way. I tried it and it was well done.

[monesq]

I just started a new play-through of the new mod Subversion and am looking for a different resolution for the Institute.

There is the other mod "Outcasts and Remnants" which also has peaceful endings, but once you get to changing parts of the Institute in a brothel and dance club, I lose interest.

 

I too am disappointed with my "son" as well as the majority of the scientists who view people on the surface as a meaningless scar on the face of the earth and Gen 3s which basically are a miracle of science and the closet man could get to being a God (if you believe in that sort of thing) as they created a likeness of man. Really, how can the abuse given to the Gen 3s not be considered slavery, they are not a toaster, they are sentient beings; and wanting what it left of human beings, who, for the most part are just trying to survive and grow (I wish there were more children in the Commonwealth) to simply disappear is also such a narrow-minded view. Not sure what Bethesda was thinking, though I doubt they we cognizant of the myriad of mods that would be created to "fix" their game.

 

Bottom-line, I want to save the Institute and I want to actually have a say as to what happens with the Institute in that I often assume the role of Director and basically transform the Commonwealth to a modern society under the premise of the Institute have a new leader and that we are making up for the sins of the past by making people's life better. Hopefully I will be able to do so with the mod Subversion. As for the BOS, sure, I can spare them, but for this play-through, I will wipe them off the face of the earth (or at least the Commonwealth) as they are one of the toughest factions to overcome in my opinion and it is a lot of fun. I have never died more times than when I helped destroy the BOS.

[ateaseyo]

it is a bummer that the institute forces you to become reclusive, but for the record the institute ending was by far the best ending. anyone who tries to berate you has nothing to say. you didn't use the nuclear reactor to blow everyone's family's up, including yours, and not to mention humanity's best future. there is no one in the main storyline directly who berates you, which is important. Dr Li was a key character in the brotherhood route, although she could have been replaced in her role, anyone who played fallout 3 took the brotherhood route out of nostalgia, and made sure to get Dr Li on their side. And she's the one who makes you feel terrible it's just a terrible ending. the railroad route is the most empathetic, and the guy you save kills himself because you destroy everything like a moron. even worse ending considering you were attempting to take the empathetic route and they berate you with a suicide letter. every single main character involved in the institute storyline thanks you, including the scientist who you persuade to join the institute and who you need to persuade the minutemen from protecting. that character, from the quest Pinned, his name is Wallace, is basically the Dr Li, or the Z1-14 of the Institute route; it's a character you meet who plays a vital role in the main storyline and who you don't actually have any major interaction with beyond the main quests. I looked for him after the storyline was finished, and the brotherhood was destroyed, and he thanks you again, and he says this place really is amazing. once again it's a bummer they become reclusive, but the institute is the best hope for healthy humans. it's the only ending where you don't kill your family, and it's the only ending where you don't use the nuclear reactor as a weapon.

 

PRO TIP: change the dialogue from what you say in the radio broadcast because you're going to hear it repeatedly, saying the institute is the future makes sense, but I wouldn't say daily lives like the script says, i would go personal freedoms. also if you get enough synth grenades, they are OP every grenade instantly spawns a new synth, if you using mods to spawn ammo you can spawn a synth army using the grenades XD until your game crashes at least.

 

END RESULT: the Institute is the most hopeful ending

Edited May 9, 2021 by ateaseyo