High Elder Maxson II (2064/2065 - 2155) was a leader of the Brotherhood of Steel and the second high elder in its history after inheriting the position from his late father, Brotherhood founder Roger Maxson. He is mentioned in Fallout 3 and Fallout 76.
Background
Born to US Army Captain Roger Maxson and his wife around the middle of the 2060s,[Non-game 1] Maxson II's developmental years occurred under the most extreme conditions, living in the times immediately before and after the Great War, followed by the subsequent Exodus from Mariposa through the harsh conditions of the newly-formed wasteland, a journey made even harder by the loss of his mother. By 2095, after the surviving members reached the safety of the Lost Hills bunker and Roger went through with his plan to reorganize under the new flag of the Brotherhood of Steel, his son expressed his sentiment, shared with other founding members but in stark contrast to his father, over the need to seal themselves off from the world and focus only on their own immediate survival.[1]
While the extent of his active service, including previous ranks held or missions carried out, is unknown, Maxson II lived through the developing years of the Brotherhood and eventually ascended through the ranks, culminating in his succession to the position of high elder following Roger's death from terminal cancer in 2135.[2]
In 2155, at the age of roughly 90, Maxson II personally led a scouting unit to track down a war band of Vipers. Trusting in the protection of the Brotherhood's power armor, he failed to comprehend that the Vipers' religious zeal and use of poisoned arrows could counter their apparent technological advantage in the right conditions. He unwittingly provided them the perfect opportunity for said conditions when he decided to remove his helmet in the combat zone. A lucky shot from a Viper archer nicked the high elder's exposed head and poisoned him, leading to Maxson's death within hours.[2][Non-game 2]
In response, Rhombus turned the full fury of the Brotherhood onto the Vipers. Maxson II's posthumous legacy would be the near extermination of the Vipers and the subsequent establishment of full trade relations with the Hub as a result of Brotherhood search parties reaching the trading center while looking for Viper members. His son, then-Paladin John Maxson, inherited his place on the elder council, eventually becoming the high elder himself in 2159.[Non-game 3]
Appearances
Maxson II is mentioned in a terminal entry at the Citadel in Fallout 3, a holotape in Fallout 76, and in the Fallout Bible.
Behind the scenes
- The history of this figure's title is considered contentious, as it was ostensibly created by fans and later adopted officially by Bethesda.
- Maxson II is referenced in the Fallout Bible, though a full name is not given.
- The name "Maxson II" was assigned to this figure by fans on the pre-2008 version of the Fallout Wiki.
- This became the canonical moniker for the figure when Maxson II was mentioned in Fallout 3.
References
Non-game
- ↑ Fallout Bible 0 Timeline repair: Second strike: "2077 Nov Captain Maxson, his men, and their families, arrive at the Lost Hills bunker a few weeks later, suffering many casualties along the way, including Maxson's wife (but not his teenage son). The Lost Hills bunker becomes the HQ of the Brotherhood of Steel the Vault Dweller finds in Fallout 1."
Note: Teenage years are generally assumed to be between 13 and 19 years - given that he died in 2155, he is likely at the younger end of the spectrum. - ↑ |Fallout Bible 0 Timeline repair: Second strike: "2135 Elder Roger Maxson dies of cancer, and his son, already an accomplished soldier, takes up the role of "General" (Elder) within the Brotherhood of Steel. John Maxson becomes a member of the Paladins, showing tremendous promise as a soldier."
"2155 John Maxson's father dies in a raid by the Vipers. Expecting the raiders to break and run, Maxson doesn't take into account the religious ferocity of the Vipers (or their poisoned weapons), and when a single arrow nicks him with his helmet off, he dies within hours. John Maxson takes up the role of Elder, and Rhombus becomes the new head of the Paladins." - ↑ Fallout Bible 6: ".2 Near Extermination by the Brotherhood of Steel in 2155: One Brotherhood squad found the Vipers, and during the firefight, John Maxson's father (who was leading the squad) was killed with a poisoned arrow. The response from the Brotherhood was immediate. The Paladins, now led by Rhombus, began a full scale campaign against the Vipers, tracking them down and wiping out almost all of their members within the span of a month. A handful of Vipers were able to flee north and east into the mountain range, but they were never heard from again.
During the campaign, the Brotherhood sent a few scouts and emissaries to the Hub to track down Vipers members, and from these beginnings, the Hub and the Brotherhood began full trade relations (caravans had delivered to the Brotherhood before, but not long after the destruction of the Vipers, caravan trains ran directly from the Hub to the Brotherhood on a regular basis). So some good did come out of the Vipers' presence in the wastes, for what it's worth."
| Brotherhood of Steel | Lost Hills bunker · Den outpost · San Francisco outpost · Shady Sands outpost · Montana bunker | |
| Mojave chapter | Brotherhood of Steel safehouse · Bunker 13 (formerly) · Hidden Valley bunker · HELIOS One (formerly) | |
| Appalachian chapter | Big Bend Tunnel East (formerly) · Camp Venture (formerly) · Firebase LT (formerly) · Firebase Major (formerly) · Fort Defiance (formerly) · Forward Station Alpha (formerly) · Forward Station Delta (formerly) · Grafton Dam (formerly) · Survey camp Alpha (formerly) · The Thorn (formerly) · Thunder Mountain Power Plant (formerly) · Watoga (formerly) | |
| Lyons' Brotherhood of Steel | Adams Air Force Base · Arlington Library · The Citadel · Falls Church · GNR building plaza · Jefferson Memorial · MDPL mass relay station (formerly) · Washington Monument · White House Plaza | |
| Brotherhood Outcasts | Brotherhood Outcast shack · Fort Independence · Outcast outpost | |
| Maxson's Eastern division | Adams Air Force Base · Boston Airport · Cambridge Police Station · The Citadel · The Prydwen · Waypoint Echo (potentially) | |
| Uniforms | Brotherhood of Steel holotags · BOS uniform · Recon armor · Scribe robe · Fatigues | |
| Power armor | T-45 power armor · T-51 power armor · T-60 power armor | |
| Robots | Automated turrets · Liberty Prime · Mister Gutsies (Sawbones) · Robobrains | |
| Vehicles | Airships (Prydwen) · Vertibirds · Zepplins | |
| Texts | Captain Maxson's diary · Chain That Binds · Codex · Maxson log | |
| Wars and Battles | Appalachian super mutant conflict (Battle of Huntersville) · Battle of Fort Bannister · Brotherhood-Enclave War on the West Coast · Brotherhood-Enclave War on the East Coast (Destruction of Raven Rock, Battle of Project Purity, Battle of Rockland, Battle of Adams Air Force Base) · Capital Wasteland super mutant conflict (Battle of GNR Plaza, Battle of the Mall, Battle of White House Plaza) Mojave Wasteland super mutant conflict · NCR-Brotherhood War (Operation: Sunburst, Battle of Griffith Observatory) · War of the Commonwealth (Battle for Boston Airport) · Unity crisis · Brotherhood-Gammorin War · Brotherhood-Calculator War · Brotherhood-Attis War | |
| Events | Schism · The Scourge | |
| Related articles | Hierarchy · Maxson (state) · Steel Plague · The Glow · United States Armed Forces | |