Fallout New Vegas Endings Explained

• About
• Latest Posts

Callum Marshall

Callum is the gaming managing editor and a very keen Fallout fan. While overseeing the day-to-day running of the site, you'll commonly see Callum carve out some time to produce some content on his favorite RPG series and lead from the front. Callum has been around the block within the gaming industry, working as an Editor-in-chief for a number of well-respected gaming outlets, he has worked as a games tester, he has gaming podcast experience, has worked in gaming PR. Basically, you name it, and Callum was probably there or somewhere on the periphery.

Latest posts by Callum Marshall (see all)

• Fallout 4 Settlement Build Ideas – A Whole New Sanctuary  - May 18, 2023
• Fallout New Vegas Come Fly With Me Guide - April 15, 2023
• Fallout 3 The Power of Atom Guide - April 2, 2023

If you have been around the block within the world of gaming, much like myself, you will probably remember or at least have looked back retrospectively at the original Fallout games in the series. These are isometric RPGs that are very different from the modern Fallout offerings of today.

In terms of combat and core gameplay, these games are primitive by today’s standards, to say the least.

However, one thing that cannot be argued against is the fact that these games were incredibly well written and were able to create a rich Fallout universe filled with incredible characters, interesting locations, and a bunch of enemies that serve as some high hurdles for the player to clear.

Sadly, Interplay and Black Isle Studios would not be able to continue the series, and for a while, the Fallout series went dormant. So when Fallout 3 burst onto the scene, it goes without saying that the gaming community at large was beyond excited, and rightly so.

The video game was an action-packed title that modernized the series, offered some very memorable moments, and also invited FPS fans to jump into the RPG sphere.

However, while Bethesda Game Studios added a lot to the series in this video game and in the following title, Fallout 4, it has to be said that their offerings were found lacking in both the RPG and the writing department. However, the same cannot be said about Fallout New Vegas.

Fallout New Vegas, created by the wonderful Obsidian Entertainment, is one of the most cohesively written and designed video games in the series, offering lots of incredible storylines and quests, a brand new faction system, interesting companions, and as a result of all of this, a wide variety of alternative endings.

However, you may be wondering how many endings there are, how they differ, how you achieve each, and how your decisions alter the fate of the Mojave Wasteland.

Well, you have come to the right place, as we are going to give you an extensive rundown of all the Fallout game endings on offer in Fallout NV. So without further ado, here is our Fallout New Vegas Endings Explained guide!

The Main Factions

These endings will be altered depending on who you how you handle the main quest and who you end up siding with for the battle of Hoover Dam. Here is how each plays out:

The NCR Ending

If the player decides to side with the NCR and fights alongside them to protect Hoover Dam, this will ensure that the New California Republic push back the tide and make sure that The Legion retreat, leaving them to their own devices within the Mojave.

This means that the entire Mojave falls under the banner of the NCR, including those that wished to be free from their rulings like Freeside and the like.

They annex the strip, they give order and decorum to a wild and unruly wasteland, but the cost is that it ushers in a new era that reeks of the old world, democracy, capitalism, and all the issues that led to the bombs falling in the first place.

A short-term step in the right direction, but who knows what long-term effects this will bring on the Mojave Wasteland and beyond.

As for The Courier, they would receive the highest military honor for their efforts in leading the charge at Hoover Dam. They were awarded the Golden Branch and would forever serve as a hero within the NCR ranks. However, we must note that your relationship with the faction may see you awarded this Golden Branch rather reluctantly.

The Legion Ending

If the player decides to take the side of Caesar’s Legion, the outcome will be that The Legion takes control of Hoover Dam, push back the NCR, and take control of all major areas and settlements in the area. This process is much like what the Legion would do with small villages and tribes.

They would enslave and colonize the area, assessing who would be valuable assets, who could join their ranks, and who would be bound to a cross to serve as a lesson to all those who watched on. We need only remind you of the scenes the player encounters at Nipton.

This is an ending that largely represents dictatorships, communism, and those who practice this ideology. While those under the banner of The Legion live harsh and unrelenting lives with constant struggles, trials, and tribulations, you can’t say that this setup is without order and structure.

They honor those who battle with strength and courage but equally make short work of those who dishonor the bull. So, this ending is a bitter-sweet one. The Mojave will be subjected to turmoil, slavery, and the lifestyle of The Legion, but ultimately, it will get the structure it desperately needs.

In the end, The Courier, whether merciless or endearing, would be honored by The Legion with a golden coin that would be circulated bearing The Courier’s likeness, forever preserving the historical landmark achieved at Hoover Dam and immortalizing The Courier.

Mr House Ending

Arguably, this is the ending that works out best for the people of the Mojave. If the player decides to side with Mr. House and leads his Securitron army to victory in the battle of Hoover Dam, this will drive both The Legion and the NCR out of New Vegas. Leaving in their wake one Mr.

House who would continue to grow his New Vegas empire from his crypt below the Lucky 38. The Mojave being rid of the bear and the bull would be ultimately considered a good thing as new entities and factions with stronger ideologies would be able to form. However, it would also be a step backward as tribalism and anarchy would be commonplace for the interim.

As for those outside of New Vegas, it would be a devastating blow for many. As with no one to support the smaller entities like Freeside, for example, they would continue to have to fend for themselves.

Meanwhile, Mr. House would hold a monopoly on vast amounts of industries within the Mojave. In short, the rich get richer, and the house always wins. The Courier would be honored by Mr. House for their efforts, granting them all of the finest luxuries and amenities available at the Lucky 38, which would serve as a home to The Courier post-Hoover Dam.

Yes Man Ending (Independent Vegas)

Then lastly, for the main factions, if the player decides to go it alone and serve as a one-man army for an independent New Vegas, the courier will push back the NCR, The Legion, and also take Mr. House out of the picture.

Provided the player upgrades the Securitrons to handle the inevitable anarchy after the battle, this ending is a positive one, where all of the battling entities have been dealt with, with minimal casualties, and New Vegas remains the social and financial hub that it once was, only now it is without the nefarious rulers like Mr. House, Caesar or General Oliver at the helm. Thus serving as an independent vegas for the people.

The Sub Factions

These sub-plot endings will depend on what quests you have completed, what decisions you made within each questline, and if you have indeed interacted with each at all. Here they are below:

The Boomers

If the player chooses to get rid of The Boomers by killing Pearl and Loyal, then the group gradually disbands due to a lack of clear leadership to tie them together.

The Nellis Air Force Base is abandoned, and thanks to the unmanned mortar cannons no longer acting as a barrier between the base and the rest of the wasteland, scavengers would head to Nellis and pick apart all of the knowledge and intel that the group had gathered. Then the group known as the Boomers would fade from memory.

If the player chooses to ignore the Boomers, this can have multiple effects. If you side with the NCR, they will develop a relationship with them and the Gun Runners and will even wander outside Nellis from time to time. If you side with The Legion, they will be enslaved, and all records of The Boomers will be forgotten, then if you side with Mr.

House or Yes Man, they will continue to behave as they had done before the events of Hoover Dam. However, the one core similarity is that if the player ignores them, they keep their backward ideals and remain fortified in Nellis to the bitter end.

Then lastly, if the player helped The Boomers and completed Volare, the group ultimately proved that they are a force to be reckoned with, and no other faction tries to get one over The Boomers ever again. They also use their new plane to fly over the Mojave, serving as their connection to the outside world.

Brotherhood of Steel

The BoS can be dealt with in three ways, and this means three types of endings. If the player blows up the Hidden Valley bunker, then the Mojave chapter is no one, and those on patrols or outside the bunker try to make new lives for themselves or move west in search of the California chapter.

If the player doesn’t interact with the BoS or sides with Yes Man, the BoS will take Helios One during the battle of Hoover Dam. They will then use that to expand their territory between the two bases, and they also begin to conduct patrols where they confiscate technology that they would deem useful.

Then lastly, if the player sides with the NCR, they retain Helios One, but ultimately the Hidden Valley Chapter benefit as they form a truce despite other chapters of each entity warring with each other and strike a deal. The NCR returns all salvaged Power Armor, and the BoS agree to carry out patrols to maintain decorum in their area of the Mojave.

Then there is also a fourth possible ending if the player sides with The Legion. In this case, the BoS still take Helios One, but ultimately this victory is short-lived as The Legion later takes this facility and kills all remaining Brotherhood members.

Goodsprings

Goodspring’s fate largely depends on how the player decides to handle the battle of Hoover Dam and also if they participate in the quest, Ghost Town Gun Fight. If the player kills all the residents in this quest, this town becomes a ghost town, only remembered and occasionally visited by those that want to visit the graveyard where the Courier rose from the dead.

If the player sides with the NCR in the battle, Goodsprings also suffers as the increased taxes on those in this area force a huge portion of the long-time residents to leave. The same happens if you side with The Legion. However, residents move on out of fear rather than financial necessity.

If the player sides with Mr. House, he will send the town Victor the Securitron as a token of gratitude. However, this gift, while providing safety, also acts as Mr. House’s watchful servant and therefore isn’t as much of a blessing as one might think.

The only true positive outcome for Goodsprings is if the player decides to go his own way with Yes Man. If they do this, the freedom of New Vegas allows Goodsprings to thrive, acting as a welcome pit-stop for weary travelers on the way to the New Vegas Strip.

The Powder Gangers

The true good ending here occurs if the player kills Eddie, the leader of the Powder Gangers. If you do this, the Powder Gangers cease to exist and no longer pose a threat to caravans and local establishments like Goodsprings.

However, if the player chooses to do nothing and doesn’t side with either the NCR or The Legion, the Powder Gangers continue as they were and become an accepted nuisance in the Wasteland.

If you side with the NCR, the Powder Gangers stay to try and hold the Correctional Facility, but ultimately they are killed by a swarm of NCR troops who regain the facility.

Then if you side with the Legion, the majority of the Powder Gangers leave the Mojave out of fear of what comes next. Those that stayed found out firsthand that what was planned for them by the Legion was not pleasant at all. They were all mercilessly killed as the bull tightened its hold on the Mojave.

Great Khans

If the player chooses to take out the Great Khans, then they will be left broken and disheveled, forcing them to move out of the Mojave to Idaho, where they attempt to rebuild once again.

Things also work out poorly for the Khans if you decide to go with the NCR. For their services at the Battle of Hoover Dam, they would be promised amnesty. However, as the NCR grew after the battle, they would go back on their promise and force the Great Khans to move on.

They would be relocated somewhere north along an NCR trading route where the NCR could keep a watchful eye over all their dealings. Then if the Great Khans remained in support of Caesar in this instance, they would be hunted down by the NCR after the battle. However, remnants of the group would escape and seek to reform in Idaho.

If the player sides with the Legion, it can go one of two ways. If they decided to form a deal with the NCR, the Legion swiftly made sure that the Great Khans were killed and wiped from existence after the battle.

However, if they remained true to Caesar, they would be indoctrinated into the Legion. Either way, though, the Great Khans would be wiped from the history books.

Then lastly, there is a final option that will occur if they stay true to Caesar, but Papa remains in charge. After the battle, they head out to Wyoming and form a mighty empire with the help of the Followers of the Apocalypse.

Followers of the Apocalypse

If the player does not interact or help the followers of the Apocalypse, then they will ultimately crumble under the pressures and demands of the people or through necessity under a new regime.

In this case, The Legion will turn their base to rubble, the NCR will take the Mormon Fort as another base of operations, or if you choose Yes Man, they will struggle to survive due to the anarchy that a Free Vegas provides.

Freeside (The Kings)

If the player sides with the NCR and king’s gambit sees them make peace with them, the kings manage to strike up a deal with them, extending their relief efforts with the resources of the NCR and helping all of Freeside.

All the while maintaining their independence and not allowing Freeside to be annexed by the NCR. However, if they don’t make peace during King’s Gambit, the NCR sweep through Freeside, killing and driving out The Kings in the process.

If the player sides with the Legion, they will be offered a place in the Legion ranks for their continued resistance against the NCR. However, they ultimately refuse, get put into slavery, and eventually are put to death. If they side with the NCR, however, the Legion wipe out the Kings in a swift and efficient manner after the battle.

If the player opted for Yes Man, The Kings would either be a welcoming entity even allowing NCR soldiers to live amongst them. However, if they didn’t find peace with the NCR in Kings Gambit, then Freeside becomes a hostile and unpredictable area where many opt to avoid, where the Kings remain in control.

Then as for Mr. House, if you side with him, he will send added security into Freeside, asserting his control over the area, much to The King’s dismay. This leads to a mass shootout, but the Kings are quickly wiped out by superior killing machines.

Jacobstown

If the player manages to complete Lily’s questline and find the cure for the Nightkin’s Schizophrenia, the town thrives and becomes a safe haven for all super mutants that want to live in peace, without judgment and the unprovoked violence of humankind.

Outside of this ending, there are a number of other variations. One sees the Nightkin lose their leader and disband as they slowly grow more and more insane.

Another sees them led by their leader, that rejects the cure and terrorizes the Mojave. Another sees the Nightkin cured of their affliction all be it much later, and Keene speaks fondly of the town, making it a mutant haven and a viable trade route for humans.

The Fiends

This can go one of two ways. If the player kills the three Fiend leaders, then the Fiends lose structure and eventually are picked off and disbanded, freeing Outer Vegas.

However, if you leave them to their own devices, they will stage an attack on Camp McCarran. If you side with the NCR, they will be pushed back and eradicated; if you side with the Legion, they will be killed by Caesar due to their reliance on chems and their chaotic nature. Otherwise, they will take over the Mccarran base and then gain a foothold on Outer Vegas.

Best of the Rest

Ideally, we would love to go on and speak of all the aspects of this game that can affect the ending slideshow, but honestly, this is such a rich and varied gaming experience that you would be scrolling forever. So instead, here is a list of all the smaller groups and entities that can alter the ending slightly:

• Primm
• The Casinos
• The NCR Rangers
• The Companions (Raul, Rex, E-DE, Cass, Veronica, Boone, Arcade Gannon, Lily)
• DLC Content (Dead Money, Honest Hearts, Old World Blues, Lonesome Road)
• The NCR Misfits
• Black Mountain
• The Van Graff Company
• Novac
• The Remnants

FAQs Section

All Good Things Must Come to An End!

As you can see from the information above, there are so many intricately woven story arcs and sub-plots that can affect the fate of the Mojave Wasteland.

The Courier is a very interesting character that can save or lay waste to the hopes and dreams of the Mojave Wasteland residents throughout the course of this game, and even the most trivial of decisions can have a catastrophic effect.

However, with the help of this guide, we hope you can make the right (or wrong) decisions and get the outcome that you desire. As always, thanks for reading Wasteland Gamers!