Summary
- Far Harbor DLC in Fallout 4 introduces a complex and morally challenging storyline on a fog-covered island with three factions.
- Choices in the DLC involve revealing or keeping a dark secret, leading to different consequences and multiple endings.
- Players can wipe out factions, work towards a peaceful resolution, or ultimately decide the fate of the island in a morally gray ending.
While the main questline and many side quests of Fallout 4 will keep any Sole Survivor busy, even more are added by the DLC Far Harbor. This complex and morally challenging DLC all takes place on a mysterious fog-covered island off the coast of Maine that has three factions vying for control. What starts out as a simple missing persons case in the Commonwealth soon becomes far more tricky, with ultimately the fate of everyone on the island in the Sole Survivor’s hands.
[Warning: The following article contains major spoilers for Fallout 4 and the Far Harbor DLC.]Upon arriving on the island, the Sole Survivor will be thrown into a dispute between the three factions who live there: the Harbormen, the synths of Arcadia, and a branch of the cult of the Children of Atom. Just as with the main Fallout 4 factions, each of these groups has its own goals and can be ed as well as aided through side quests. After traveling to Acadia and meeting with Kasumi Nakano, she will express her concerns about Acadia’s leader, DiMA, and send the Sole Survivor on a quest to find the synth’s missing memories.
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The First Choice For Far Harbor's Ending Involves DiMA
DiMA's Terrible Secret Is The Key
After completing Kasumi’s quest "Best Left Forgotten" and recovering DiMA's memories the first choice to decide the ending for Far Harbor presents itself. As part of the quest, the Sole Survivor will find themselves in the Vim! Pop Factory and discover the remains of the real Captain Avery. A holotape with the skeleton will reveal that DiMA had the original Far Harbor leader killed and replaced with a synth to maintain peaceful relations with the Harbormen and Far Harbor.
The choice is then to either keep DiMA's secret or reveal it. Here, the Sole Survivor can reveal DiMA's secret directly to Far Harbor and convince DiMA to turn themselves in or keep the secret. Each of the three choices has consequences for the final ending of the DLC, as well as any potential rewards.
The first choice is to reveal DiMA’s secret by telling grouchy Harborman Allen Lee, who runs Far Harbor’s gun store. Allen will take the locket and skull found, asking the settlement’s doctor to confirm it is the real Avery. With confirmation, Allen will immediately become aggressive and put together a mob with the intention of wiping out Acadia.
If Allen is told, he will lead the settlers of Far Harbor in a lynch mob, killing Avery and Brooks at the harbor before marching on Arcadia. This path not only results in the death of everyone in Arcadia, preventing any of their reward from being gained, but also ultimately dooms Far Harbor as well. The fog condensers that protect the settlement were maintained by Arcadia, and without the synths they will eventually break down, allowing the fog creatures to overrun the town.
It is also possible to go to Avery first and reveal her true nature. Here, the Sole Survivor can agree to keep the secret or extort caps from her in exchange for their silence.
The second choice is to convince DiMA to turn himself in and stand trial for his murder of Captain Avery. It will require ing a red speech check, but DiMA will go to Far Harbor to face the consequences. Allen will again speak up in favor of wiping out Arcadia but can be calmed with another Charisma check. If enough Far Harbor side quests have been completed, then even if the speech check with Allen failed, the townsfolk will speak up and side with the Sole Survivor that only DiMA should be punished.
DiMA’s trial results in Acadia surviving, but DiMA will die and will lock out the quest “Reformation.” This will leave the only solution to the mounting tension between the Harbormen and the Children of Atom being the destruction of one or both factions. The third choice is to agree to keep DiMA’s secret, which will unlock “Reformation.” offering a chance at a peaceful ‘good’ ending for Far Harbor.
Fallout 4's Ending Explained (In Detail)
Fallout 4’s multiple endings depend on which of its factions the player character sides with - primarily the Institute. Here’s what each one affects.
Total Destruction Is Possible
The Sole Survivor Can Leave No Faction Standing
It is also possible after completing “Best Left Forgotten” and recovering the nuclear launch key and the wind farm kill switch to wipe out either the Children of Atom, Far Harbor, or both. The quest “Cleansing the Land” will begin automatically once both have been retrieved and allows for an alternate ending to Far Harbor if DiMA is dead after standing trial. However, at any time after gaining both, they can be used to wipe out their respective factions.
Inputting the code for the wind farm will shut off the fog condensers protecting Far Harbor, resulting in the town being overrun by creatures. Whereas using the nuclear launch key will begin the countdown for the nuclear missiles stored on the Nucleus, giving the Sole Survivor 30 seconds to escape the now hostile area. Alternatively, High Confessor Tektus can be given the nuclear launch key, after which he will order the destruction of Far Harbor.
If Far Harbor is destroyed, Old Longfellow will turn hostile and no longer be available as a Fallout 4 companion.
There is also the option to convince Tektus that it is Atom’s will for the Children of Atom to launch the nukes themselves, triggering what they call Division. To do this, the key must not be given to Tektus and a difficult speech check will need to be ed to get him to reconsider his stance ing the nukes. If successful, Tektus will give a speech to his congregation, and the Sole Survivor can use the key and have 30 seconds to leave the area.
Reformation Is The Last Step
DiMA's New Plan Is The Same As Their Old Plan
Assuming that DiMA’s secret is kept and both Far Harbor and the Nucleus are intact, then the quest “Reformation” allows for a peaceful ending for the DLC. DiMA’s plan for long-term peace is to repeat the same trick he pulled with Avery and replace Tektus with a more friendly synth version. This will involve the Sole Survivor gathering holotapes from Tektus’ predecessor and luring him to a remote location inside the Children of Atom’s base.
At any point, the Sole Survivor can also tell the Brotherhood of Steel or Institute about Acadia if they are a member of either faction. This will result in the settlement being wiped out and the removal for the option of peace, leaving the only option of destroying one of the remaining factions.
Once Tektus is alone, he can either be spoken to or attacked immediately. However, if spoken to, there is a chance to persuade Tektus to leave peacefully, requiring a yellow speech check. Once Tektus has been dealt with, DiMA will give the Sole Survivor 1500 caps and the final quest of Far Harbor will begin.
This outcome is considered the "good" ending for the Fallout 4 Far Harbor DLC by many, as all three factions remain alive, although it is still firmly morally gray. Both Far Harbor’s and the Children of Atom’s true leaders are dead at the hands of DiMA and the Sole Survivor, and there would always be the chance of the secret being discovered. After completing “Reformation,” Kasumi can be spoken to for the final quest, “Close to Home,” where she can be persuaded to return home to the Commonwealth.
