obsidianraven

[obsidianraven]

The Minutemen's strength is not in pure firepower but in support.

Something I see often is that people dislike how weak the Minutemen are as a fighting force. The point I'm here to make is that it doesn't have be their strength, and the Minutemen's true strength is the power of the people united.

I've played survival mode with the Minutemen and one thing stuck out to me is that the Minutemen are only ever helpful to you if you decide to put in the time and effort to raising them as a solid faction. Here you are assigning farmers, building shelters, scavengers and shops. What do you get out of it? Trade centres, free shelter, free food and free junk to help with construction. All the tools necessary for survival are within your reach because you put in the time and effort to build up your own place.

By the end game the ideal Commonwealth would have 30 heavily defended settlements all supplying one another with supply lines. By endgame you'll have flare and artillery support that ranges the whole Commonwealth. Now see the thing with this? None of that is accomplished alone. As the General of the Minutemen, you have a lot more power than people give it credit for. Assigning people to defence, to artillery, to shops and gathering are all part of what a leader does.

The Minutemen NPCs are relatively weak all things considered, but something I don't really see mentioned are the level 50 Minutemen that spawn in the lower ends of the Commonwealth. From experience, I've seen these guys tank multiple Hits from Mythic Deathclaws. They don't last that long without intervention, but it's a Mythic Deathclaw guys... C'mon. I've seen even Brotherhood Soldiers fold to high level Deathclaws.

And it's not even that Minutemen as an idea is weak. The point of the Minutemen is that they're the power of the people unified. What happens when you invade a country? You'll have to contend with their army. But with the Minutemen they're not just an army, they're EVERYONE. If an army attacked you could reasonably think of a solution to handle it. Now instead of an army try a whole country instead. Now that's a terrifying thought.

[obsidianraven]

The Railroad were justified in their war against the Brotherhood of Steel

Something I see brought up quite often as a point against the Railroad is that they destroyed the Brotherhood blimp, which had kids on it. This argument is also made against the Minutemen as well.

Let's start with the quest "Precipice of War" which begins with Desdemona being told of an impending Brotherhood attack. In the quest, you defend the Railroad HQ from Brotherhood forces and then move to steal a vertibird. After this the quest "Red Rocket's Glare" begins. And you take down the Brotherhood blimp. From the facts presented. The Railroad only ever acted against the Brotherhood in self defence. They were perfectly content with leaving them and focusing on the Institute.

Would they have attacked had the Brotherhood didn't act first? Unclear. As the game shows, the Railroad were leaving them aside as they dealt with the Institute. The Brotherhood sparked war, and the Railroad had to respond. And what better way than to infiltrate their only base of operations in the Commonwealth?

The Railroad were ultimately left with no choice. And in war you have to do what it takes to keep yourself and your family alive. The kids aboard the Prydwen were an unfortunate situation. Is what happened to them tragic? It absolutely is. But the Brotherhood knew the consequences of bringing children aboard their main base and declaring war against the Institute and the Railroad. They knew what they were getting into, and faced punishment by a group of people that were backed into a corner. The Railroad had no choice when it came to dealing with the Brotherhood.

One last thing is something I feel people are afraid to admit, is that these kids are ultimately going to grow up with pro-Brotherhood viewpoints. They're going to become Brotherhood soldiers, meaning they'll become enemies to the Railroad in due time, if they weren't already. While there may be outliers, the vast majority of squires will be threats to the Railroad. Even with their age taken into account.

While I don't feel the Railroad is the best of factions, this is a point that is brought up often against them, and something I don't agree with myself. This also extends to the Minutemen as well, though the reasoning for why the Minutemen would declare war can be changed depending on your character. The Railroad however, are fully justified for destroying the Prydwen in my opinion. And this is coming from a person who prefers the Brotherhood way more.

[obsidianraven]

Preston Garvey, a realistic character in the harsh world of Fallout.

Preston Garvey. The last survivor of the Minutemen. One of the few down to earth characters in the wacky world of Fallout. A character that battles through both mental and physical hardships. I believe what Garvey endures and how he reacts is realistic to the world that he lives in. He goes through a depression after facing failure after failure. Which is then reflected by his almost monotone type of voice. These character flaws are a core part of why I think his character is one of the best.

Preston was forced to watch his heroes (The Minutemen) crumble apart and betray the very ideals that they were meant to stand for. His whole life he idolised them and then they all abandoned him when he needed them most. One of Preston's biggest failures was his lack of success in defending the survivors of Quincy. As a result he believes he is not fit to lead the new Minutemen , and thus he thrusts the mantle of General on to the person who saved his life, The Sole Survivor.

Preston is a failure. He failed to protect the town of Quincy, he failed to see the corruption of the Minutemen and most of all he failed to protect the group that he was meant to lead to safety. He believed he didn't deserve to live. That's why he ends up in a suicidal depression.

Yet through all of his hardships, he still holds onto his morals and ideals. He still believes that there are good people worth protecting in this cruel world, and he saw that when the Sole Survior saved him. That's why he tries his best to help rebuild the Minutemen from the ground up. After a while you can hear his depression fade away as you progress through his personal story and rebuild the Minutemen. He goes from being this depressed shell of a man to being overjoyed when you retake the Castle or when you first build artillery. He comments that the Minutemen have been falling to pieces for so long and that now they've finally re-established the Minutemen as a force to be reckoned with.

Overall, I believe Preston Garvey is an accurate portrayal of how someone might be in an apocalypse. Not everybody would be cracking jokes 24/7. Not everybody has a legion of power armoured soldiers to support them. Through all of his depression and his constant failures he still fought for what he believed was right, and I believe that's an honourable trait to have in a character, and why he's cemented himself as one of my favourite characters of all time.

[obsidianraven]

Cloud and Tifa's dependency and need for eachother is not unhealthy.

It's something I see brought up a little bit. Mainly in regards to Tifa being codependent in a pro-cloti FF7 view.

Before continuing I've done a small bit of research into the definition of the term "Codependency" and how it defines relationships. In short. It means when one person is selfless and giving. Putting all their energy into a relationship, while the recieving party just happily accepts it and doesn't give back.

So if my reading on Codependency is accurate. How is this true for Cloud and Tifa?

The entire foundation for their relationship is built on their promise shared on the water tower. The one where Cloud promised to be Tifa's hero and save her whenever she needs. Taking events from the game, Cloud definitely lived up to the promise. One scene in particular is the one in the Nibelheim Reactor. When he came to her rescue after she took a hit from Sephiroth. And it's not just that as well, but there's plenty of other moments where Cloud came to her rescue:

Trying to help her when she ventured up to Mt Nibel.

Sacrificing his pride and dressing up as a girl for Tifa.

Saving her from falling after Sephiroth's final battle.

Various, small moments where he protects her throughout the Remake and OG.

And it's not just Cloud doing the saving, but also Tifa when she:

Saved him from atop Shinra building.

Took care of him while he was in a comatose state.

Repaired his mind within the Lifestream.

Helped him out during various combat sequences or story related mental breakdown moments.

Tifa and Cloud have a mutual foundation in which they will both do their best to be there for one another. And it doesn't always work. Such as when Cloud tried to protect his family by leaving them in Advent Children. His insecurities and guilt for past failures drove him away from his family. And what happened? Things got worse.

But... Just because there's failures doesn't mean that there isn't reciprocation. We all know that Cloud doesn't view Tifa as a person that does everything for him. He genuinely loves her. And that proof comes in the form of their promise. One in which he's done his best to hold, but not always succeeded in.

It describes a healthy relationship. You need to make mistakes to grow and mature as a person. So long as you learn from them and actively try to make things work. This mostly applies with Cloud. He's always trying to be someone worthy of Tifa. It's his entire motivation for leaving Nibelheim.

So for anyone out there thinking that CT is a codependent relationship, rest assured. It isn't. Tifa's dependency and need for Cloud is 100% reciprocated and given back.

[obsidianraven]

Welcome

Quite often I'll write a long and well thought out/written comment or post that ultimately gets drowned out by others. This blog has been made for the purpose of archiving my arguments and debates. Feel free to comment or send an ask. Though ultimately this page is to help me express my thoughts.

Final Fantasy VII

Cloud and Tifa's dependency and need for each other is not unhealthy

Fallout 4

Preston Garvey, a realistic character in the harsh world of Fallout

The Railroad were justified in their war against the Brotherhood of Steel

The Minutemen's strength is not in pure firepower but in support

To be written

Being the General of the Minutemen has a lot more weight than people give it credit for

The Brotherhood of Steel vs The Commonwealth Minutemen. Why I think a Minutemen victory would be most likely.

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