Coach John Bragg is the athletics coach of Vault 18 and a candidate for the office of overseer in 2260. In truth, he is a high-ranking Enclave special agent.
Background[]
Overview[]
Coach John Bragg claims to come from an unknown vault located in the plains of Idaho, but his true history is much more of a mystery. He claims that as a child, his father raised him with a love of guns, and he was enamored by old pre-War western TV shows on holotape.[1][2]
The Enclave[]
Bragg is actually a clone of Annai Oran, who had been held captive on Control Station ENCLAVE, herself a clone of his "sister" Chevy Bragg. Upon being 'born', Bragg was locked up and studied by Enclave scientists who hoped to understand and control the abilities of the Project Brazil parasite. Over the next ten years, he became an unwitting test subject of countless experiments which distorted his genetic makeup and broke down his mind to rebuild him into the best and most ruthless soldier possible. Isolated and traumatized from years of torture, he eventually accepted an offer to join the Enclave hoping to escape his torment and was subsequently indoctrinated and trained by them. They used his psychological issues to manipulate him, turning him into a self-proclaimed crusader against mutants and enemies of the Enclave.
Throughout their captive years, John and Chevy advanced through the ranks. Their first deployment was to Enclave Bunker BRAGG, which he and Chevy chose to name themselves after. Later during 2242, they were part of the Vault 13 operation which committed the genocide of the intelligent deathclaws, with John eventually being promoted to colonel and commander of Enclave Squad Leonidas, a special ops unit specializing in vital and often highly unethical missions. Bragg survived the destruction of Control Station ENCLAVE and reunited with Enclave personnel at Navarro. Here, they launched a retaliatory barrage of nuclear missiles at San Francisco, mistakenly believing the Shi to be the culprits of Control Station ENCLAVE's destruction. When the New California Republic eventually captured Navarro, John was among those captured and sentenced to jail.
Around 2250, John escaped from prison and reunited with Enclave Squad Leonidas, whose still-loyal remnants remained operating along the eastern frontier of California. John and Chevy were assigned by Colonel Autumn Senior to secure Vault 18 to recruit new Prime Normal humans into the Enclave's ranks and secure valuable intelligence about an entity known as "Project Brazil" stored within its government and Vault-Tec archives. They negotiated with their longtime trading partner, the Raider Alliance, to hide Squad Leonidas within Athens-Tec Mine, then set off to infiltrate the vault.
Vault 18[]
The Bragg siblings posed as destitute wastelanders when encountered by the Wasteland Scouts, who were searching for a replacement water chip after their vault's coincidentally ceased working - secretly sabotaged by Squad Leonidas. The Braggs pointed them to Vault 16 and helped them scavenge its chip, saving the vault and giving them leverage to request refuge.
The Braggs were accepted despite initial suspicions by the Scouts. Chevy rose to second-in-command of Vault 18 Security due to her skills and a series of "accidents" befalling those in the way of her promotion, like then-lieutenant Dan Weathers. John became the Vault Ball and athletics coach, and used his position of trust and authority to slowly convince young vault residents of the Enclave's ideals and undermine the authority of Overseer Albert Christianson. He overinflated the threats of the outside world to drum up fears among the elderly residents, giving him leverage to start "defense drills," and the fearful vault authorities quickly agreed.
The Patriot Program, outwardly to train the adopted tribal residents into child soldiers and meat shields to defend Vault 18, was actually an effort to train them into a new generation of Enclave operatives. Bragg created a detailed list of which vault residents would be recruited, taken into custody, and left to die; his Patriots represented the ideal Enclave members - healthy, strong, and unquestionably loyal - while the elderly, sickly, children, and rebellious or free-thinking members of the vault were labeled as parasites to be enslaved or executed. John further sought to consolidate his power by running against Albert Christianson in the vault's upcoming overseer election, gaining much support among Vault 18 Security and residents for his promises to protect the vault from external threats. To undermine Christianson, Bragg went as far as having the Patriots sabotage crucial vault systems such as the J.A.N.E.
Patriots Uprising[]
However, John and Chevy's plans are forced into overdrive after Squad Leonidas was contacted by a mysterious individual in Washington D.C. known as "John Henry Eden," who claimed to be the rightful President of the United States and urged all Enclave survivors to regroup in the Capital Wasteland at the Raven Rock facility. With their timetable bumped up to only a day, John pushes the takeover of the vault to occur November 23, 2260, the night before the election, when Vault Security would be least prepared.
He orders his Patriots to round up all the "ingrates and parasites" in the gym, starting with the Vault Barbarians sports team and including the sick and elderly, and execute them, before regrouping to personally raid the overseer's office. After orchestrating a bombing campaign, he uses the resulting chaos to try to gain access to Christianson's office and seize control, although facing resistance from the security force, remaining Wasteland Scouts, and certain other vault residents.
However, he is ultimately unable to stop Christianson from setting off the vault's self-destruct, and is forced to flee the vault with Chevy and his surviving Patriots, barely escaping the detonation via Vertibird.
Fort Daggerpoint[]
At Fort Daggerpoint, John Bragg will be the one to contact the Star Player over the loudspeaker, either taunting them or directing them to his location. On both ends, he will ask the Star Player to kill The Father.
Endings[]
Any endings that STOPS the Enclave[]
John Bragg is the final obstacle between the Star Player and the Fort Daggerpoint missile, right after facing Chevy. He can be killed instantly during dialogue should the player have high S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats. Alternatively, if the Star Player has ALPHA as a companion, they can use ALPHA Strike perk to instantly melt John Bragg, much to his chagrin before his immediate demise.
However, if the player has certain dialogue perks, high S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stats, and 100 Speech, they can instead prey on John Bragg's deep-seated insecurities for being a clone of Annai Oran before convincing him he needs to kill himself to stop the Enclave's experiments.
Regardless, once both John and Chevy Bragg are incapacitated, they will both have to be thrown down the Daggerpoint missile silo before the Star Player can do anything to the missile. The Braggs and the Orans will all die in the ensuing fire once the missile is launched or a test fire of the missile is activated.
Working for the Enclave[]
Should the Star Player continue working for the Enclave without ever considering on betraying them, John and Chevy Bragg will assist the player in killing a mutated Annai Oran. Additionally, before John sets the missile to destroy the NCR, Jerri Oran will appear and attempt to kill the Star Player. After disposing of the Orans, John and Chevy alongside the Star Player and the rest of Enclave Squad Leonidas will depart for Raven Rock at the Capital Wasteland.
Events of Fallout: New Vegas[]
As outlined in the Star Player's Handwritten Letter during the quest We Are What We Leave Behind, both John and Chevy Bragg went MIA after the events of Adams AFB during Fallout 3, with the Enclave presence there destroyed by the Brotherhood of Steel and the Lone Wanderer's intervention. John and Chevy Bragg never reappears in the game after this, with their fates left ambiguous.
Interactions with the Player Character[]
Path of the Warrior[]
The Star Player will start in Bragg's office, who probes the player character's attitude to old-world America. This leads to the quest Report To Vault Security.
Afterward, the player character can encounter Bragg in his office or the atrium recreational area, where he may answer questions about himself and his future plans.
Path of the Scientist[]
Bragg will want no interaction with the player character for losing the football game and will blatantly dismiss the player character.
Notes[]
- John is the only character in the mod to name drop a real world brand, calling the player a Xerox of the vault dweller during their first interaction at the MIRV nuclear warhead[3].
Gallery[]
References[]
- ↑ The Star Player: "Hell yeah! I've always wanted to be part of Vault Security."
John Bragg: "You’re damn right. You remind me of myself growing up, back in the... vault under the Midwestern plains. I was gung-ho in love with the brass-and-holster look of the cowboys and soldiers that rode through town in old TV shows. My pop gave me my first gun at age 10, and I’ve loved it ever since. Of course, I’ve always been more fond of the higher-caliber automatics, myself. Here, take a few old gun magazines with you. My treat. It’ll whet your appetite for bigger and better things." - ↑ The Star Player: "Where do you come from, coach? You said you grew up out there?"
John Bragg: "Well, since you’re a good kid, and my star player, I’ll give you this one for free. I come from a settlement far north of here. Up where the pines still grow. My ancestors came from the great state of Idaho, whose plains and fields were blown to kingdom-come during the Great War. The US had hundreds of ICBMs set up there, and the reds retaliated by turning it into miles of glass craters. Bastards. I grew up with my ma and pop in a little ranch, protected by a group of truly benevolent soldiers, who I looked up to very much. I remember lookin’ out the window of my room at the golden fields, and imagining that I was one of them. But… That was a long time ago. I came here after I was told I could make a better life here for myself, and my sister. So we set up a caravan of supplies and made our way to Vault 18, where we’ve lived ever since. Maybe one day, you’ll get a chance to see my compound where I grew up, and meet the soldiers there. For now, you better go and git. It’s late, and almost time for me to catch a beer with Chevy and turn in." - ↑ Didn't your Pappy downstairs tell you? You're just some Xerox of some dead guy he scraped off the kitchen floor.