Factions Overview

Factions & Roles

The town of Wendover sits on the old WWII-era Wendover Airfield, straddling the Utah-Nevada salt flats. It is a natural crossroads — remote enough to avoid the worst of organized civilization's collapse, close enough to old roads that travelers, traders, and soldiers still find their way here. The flats stretch in every direction. Pre-war ruins dot the terrain. And something beneath the old airfield has drawn the attention of factions powerful enough to reshape the region if they choose to.

Every faction here has a reason to be in Wendover. Whether those reasons can coexist is the question every round answers differently.

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New California Republic

The largest post-war democracy, the NCR was built on the ruins of Shady Sands and has spent two centuries expanding outward — carrying its flags, laws, and bureaucracy into increasingly hostile and distant territory. The Republic believes in representative government, rule of law, and economic expansion. Critics say it has grown too fast to deliver on its promises. Supporters say it remains the best foundation for lasting civilization anyone has managed to build.

Why Wendover: NCR intelligence identified the old Wendover airfield as a pre-war military and logistics hub with intact infrastructure. The Republic wants a forward operating base between California and the eastern frontier — and they want it before anyone else moves in.

Roles:

Captain — Commands the NCR's local detachment. Handles all military and diplomatic operations on behalf of the Republic.
Lieutenant — Second-in-command. Supports the Captain and manages day-to-day operations.
Medical Doctor — Senior medical officer attached to the NCR detachment.
Sergeant First Class — The senior NCO. Bridges command intent to the enlisted ranks.
Staff Sergeant / Sergeant — Mid-level non-commissioned officers leading small units in the field.
Specialist — Trained enlisted soldier specializing in combat, engineering, or medicine. Loadout determines focus.
Private First Class / Private / Recruit — The rank-and-file soldiers and new enlistees of the NCR. Their boots are what hold the line.
Prisoner — Individuals held in NCR custody pending processing or release.

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Rangers

The Desert Rangers were an independent frontier lawmen organization that merged with the NCR after the Ranger Unification Treaty. They carry that tradition into the present: small units, wide operational latitude, and a reputation built in some of the harshest country in the Wasteland. Rangers operate ahead of regular NCR forces — gathering intelligence, neutralizing threats, and moving through terrain that conventional soldiers cannot reach effectively.

Why Wendover: The Rangers were deployed before the main NCR force arrived. Their mission is to chart the terrain, assess local power structures, and establish safe corridors. They know Wendover before most NCR command does — and that advantage matters.

Roles:

Veteran Ranger — Elite. Years of hard experience in the field. Operates with near-complete independence and is among the most feared individuals on the frontier.
Field Ranger — Experienced Ranger with full operating authority. Works alone or in small teams across wide areas.
Patrol Ranger — New Ranger on probationary status, proving their worth. Expected to scout, report, and survive.

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Brotherhood of Steel

Founded when U.S. Army Captain Roger Maxson refused his government's final orders and sealed his troops inside a California missile silo, the Brotherhood of Steel has spent two centuries hoarding, studying, and controlling pre-war technology. Their internal hierarchy is absolute and their methods are uncompromising. They do not negotiate from weakness. They do not share technology with those they deem unworthy. And they are very difficult to stop once they decide something belongs to them.

Why Wendover: Confirmed reports of an intact pre-war military cache beneath the Wendover airfield reached Brotherhood intelligence before they reached anyone else. A chapter detachment has been dispatched with orders to secure the site, assess its contents, and deny access to all competing parties — starting with the NCR.

Roles:

Elder — Supreme commander of the chapter. All significant operations, alliances, and acquisitions require the Elder's authorization.
Head Paladin — Senior field commander. Leads all Brotherhood combat operations in the region.
Head Knight — Oversees the tactical structure and operational readiness of the Knight order.
Head Scribe — Chief scholar. Manages technology documentation, recovery priorities, and Scribe operations.
Senior Paladin — Veteran warrior with leadership responsibility over Paladin field elements.
Senior Knight — Experienced Knight with supervisory authority over the Knight rank.
Senior Scribe — Advanced Scribe overseeing research programs and junior Scribes.
Paladin — Elite warrior in full power armor. The Brotherhood's enforcement arm in any engagement.
Knight — The Brotherhood's core combat and technical personnel. Backbone of any operation.
Scribe — Scholar and technician. Documents, repairs, and maintains recovered technology.
Squire — Junior member in training under Brotherhood Knights. Not yet fully trusted with the chapter's assets.
Initiate — Newest member of the Brotherhood. Assigned the most demanding, least glamorous duties while proving their worth.

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Tribes

Tribal communities have existed in and around the Bonneville Salt Flats and the high desert long before any organized faction arrived. Shaped by generations of survival in harsh, unforgiving terrain, they possess knowledge of the land — its resources, dangers, and seasonal rhythms — that no outsider map or Pip-Boy can replicate. Every tribe is distinct, defined by its Elder's philosophy, values, and judgment.

Why Wendover: They never left. This has been their territory for as long as anyone in the tribe remembers. The arrival of the NCR, the Brotherhood, and every other armed faction seeking dominion over the region is the latest in a long line of external pressures their people have endured — and outlasted. What they do next depends entirely on the Tribal Elder.

Roles:

Tribal Elder — Chieftain and sole decision-maker. Sets the tribe's stance toward every outside faction for the round.
Tribal Healer — Medicine person. Provides healing, herbal knowledge, and spiritual guidance to the community.
Tribal Farmer — Cultivates food and manages the tribe's agricultural resources.
Tribesperson — The backbone of tribal society. Hunters, gatherers, craftspeople — the labor that keeps the tribe alive.

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Vault Dwellers

Vault-Tec Corporation constructed its vaults not merely as shelters, but as controlled experiments on sealed human populations — run for generations without the knowledge or consent of the residents inside. The vault beneath the Wendover region has survived intact, its residents living in regulated isolation, educated in vault systems but wholly unprepared for what exists outside the door.

Why Wendover: They are here because they have always been here — beneath it. The vault's location was engineered to remain secret. But systems age, power cells fail, and some secrets eventually surface whether the Overseer intends them to or not.

Roles:

Overseer — Administrator of the vault. May hold knowledge of the vault's true purpose — and alone must decide what to do with it.
Vault Security — Internal enforcement. Maintains order inside the vault and protects it if the door opens.
Vault Scientist — Manages life support, medical systems, and technical research. May know more than they should.
Vault Engineer — Keeps the vault's aging infrastructure operational. When systems fail, it falls to them.
Vault Dweller — General resident. Educated, disciplined, and completely unprepared for the surface world.

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Townsfolk

The people of Wendover are there because they chose to stop moving and build something worth defending. Farmers, merchants, deputies, doctors, mechanics — ordinary survivors who put roots down and now have more to lose than anyone else in the region. No faction arriving with demands can change the fact that this is their home. Every negotiation, every faction deal, every compromise made on their behalf is felt first by them.

Why Wendover: Because they built it. The town exists because these people refused to abandon it. Every external faction wants something from Wendover — its location, its resources, its labor, or its loyalty. The Mayor and Sheriff are the only thing standing between the community and whatever any of those factions decide to take.

Roles:

Mayor — Elected leader of the community. Negotiates with outside factions on behalf of every person in town.
Sheriff — Chief law enforcement. Protects Wendover from threats internal and external.
Deputy — Supports the Sheriff. Enforces the law and steps up when the Sheriff cannot be everywhere.
Doctor — Provides medical care to townsfolk, travelers, and anyone else who needs it.
Shopkeeper — Runs the town store. Core of the local economy and usually the best-informed person in Wendover.
Mechanic — Repairs weapons, armor, vehicles, and critical equipment. When something breaks, everyone comes to them.
Bartender — Runs the local establishment. Hears everything. Says the right things to the right people.
Reporter — Chronicles Wasteland events. Information is a currency, and they trade in it.
Chaplain — Provides spiritual guidance and pastoral care to the community.
Farmer — Grows the food the town depends on. The most essential and least glamorous job in Wendover.
Townsperson — The backbone of daily life. Without them, nothing else functions.

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Wastelanders

Independent survivors who belong to no faction you can name and answer to no chain of command. They are the wanderers, scavengers, freelancers, and drifters of the open Wasteland — people who make their way through skill, instinct, and personal code. No two are the same. All of them have a story.

Why Wendover: Various reasons. A rumor about salvage. A lead on caps. Old business in the region. Passing through on the way to somewhere else. Or nowhere else left to go. Wastelanders do not always explain themselves — and on the open road, that is their right.

Roles:

Survivor — Hardened drifter who has seen the worst the Wasteland offers and kept going anyway.
Wastelander — The open road, a worn weapon, and no fixed address. You live by your own terms.
Scavenger — Hunter of ruins, recoverer of the discarded and forgotten. The regional economy depends on people like them.
Wasteland Musician — Keeper of old songs and new stories. In the Wasteland, culture is survival too.
Followers of the Apocalypse — Humanitarian aid workers crossing faction lines to provide education, healing, and care to anyone who needs it.

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Caravan Company

Trade caravans are the lifeline connecting isolated settlements — carrying goods, caps, information, and the occasional weapon across roads that regular travelers avoid. The Caravan Company has established supply routes throughout the region, and their continued operation is the difference between local economic activity and slow stagnation. They will sell to anyone who can pay. They stay out of wars that are bad for business. And they are harder to replace than most factions realize.

Why Wendover: A crossroads town between multiple major factions and a number of desperate settlements is exactly the kind of opportunity the Caravan Company looks for. They moved a crew into Wendover to establish a depot before someone else cornered the local market. The timing was intentional.

Roles:

Caravan Master — Senior CC representative. Manages logistics, relationships, and the operation's bottom line.
Merchant — Buys, sells, and trades across faction lines. The regional economy runs through their hands.
Caravan Guard — Professional protection for CC personnel and cargo. Not looking for a fight — but ready for one.

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Minor Factions

Other organizations operate in and around the Wendover region — some ancient, some recent, some still assembling their intentions. Most work from the shadows. All have their own agendas that may or may not align with anyone else's survival.

See the Minor Factions tab for details on the Children of Atom, the Enclave, the Followers of the Apocalypse, and others present in the region.

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Caesar's Legion

An autocratic, slaveholding military empire modeled on ancient Rome — built on conquest, rigid hierarchy, and the belief that weakness in any form must be purged. Caesar does not negotiate as an equal. His Legion does not share power, territory, or prisoners.

Why Wendover: The Legion assessed Wendover as a strategic asset worth securing. Scouts and advance agents have been operating in the region. By the time most factions realize the Legion is actively present, the groundwork has already been laid.

Roles:

Legate — Supreme military commander. Caesar's will made manifest in the field.
Centurion — Senior field commander. Leads combat operations and directs all Legion military action in the region.
Veteran Decanus / Prime Decanus / Decanus — The Legion's NCO ladder. Squad leaders of increasing experience who enforce discipline and lead contubernium-level forces.
Veteran Legionnaire / Legionnaire Warrior / Legionnaire Recruit — The Legion's military backbone. Inducted soldiers from proven veterans to newly forged recruits.
Explorer (Venator) — Scout and hunter. Ranges ahead of the main force to gather intelligence and track targets.
Frumentarii — Covert intelligence and infiltration specialist. Operates in the shadows; does not officially exist.
Vexillarius — Standard-bearer. The Legion's visible rallying point in any engagement.
Orator — Propagandist and spokesperson. Manages the Legion's diplomacy and ideological messaging.
Auxilia — Support personnel on the path to full induction. Not yet Legionnaires, but working toward it.
Houndmaster — Specialist handler of the Legion's trained combat dogs.
Recruit — Bottom of the military ladder. Follows every order and earns advancement through compliance and survival.
Slave — Conquered labor. The foundation of the Legion's economy, with no path to freedom except through demonstrated value.