Barney Rook is the last remaining resident of Salem and the commander, quartermaster, sergeant at arms and scribe of the Salem Volunteer Militia in 2287.[1]
Background[]
Barney Rook is a native resident of Salem, where members of his family have lived for generations in their family home.[Non-game 1][2] After the war, his ancestors worked hard to maintain the community's safety, initially succeeding in becoming one of the safest towns in the Commonwealth.[2] As a consequence, the townspeople became lax in their defenses.[2]
Seeing this shift occur, Barney begged the town council to let him train a militia, to teach the citizens how to shoot and fend for themselves.[3] These requests were denied, as the council thought he was just paranoid.[3] The town was therefore not prepared when a threat did occur in the form of mirelurks from the ocean.[3] Despite his best efforts sniping the creatures from the roost atop his home, for every person he saved, three were lost.[3] Over the next few years, he has done his due diligence in suppressing threats to the town, despite being its last human inhabitant.[3]
Even though he has not had a guest in months,[1] he cannot imagine himself living any other place.[4] As he was alone, and could not be everywhere at once, he set up the series of turrets around town at strategic locations, so he could stay at home most days.[5] He recently took the turrets offline to conserve ammunition since the mirelurks were quiet lately.[6] With the town seemingly empty the Sole Survivor tries to explore,[7] causing the mirelurks to stir. Rook, not wanting another person to die while he was protecting the town, sprung into action,[8] and leads the Sole Survivor to the safety of his bunker,[9] believing that they froze upon seeing the danger "like a deer in headlights."[10] He is also a talented gunsmith, and has made himself a personalized hunting rifle he calls "Reba," and a sister, "Reba II."[11][12][13][14]
Interactions with the player character[]
Interactions overview[]
Interactions | ||
---|---|---|
This character starts quests. |
Inventory[]
Apparel | Weapon | Other items |
---|---|---|
Flannel shirt and jeans Gray knit cap |
Reba | Potato Crisps Barney's key Bottle cap x48 .308 round x12 |
Notes[]
- Barney carries the key to the locked room containing Reba II on his person. He will also occasionally open the door himself while wandering about, granting access to the rifle without completing his quest.
- After completing the quest he has no further interactions with the player character. Since he has no permanent Ref ID he will despawn when the player character leaves the cell.
Notable quotes[]
- "Are you crazy? Get out of the street before any more of them catch wind of you! Look, I'll open the gate and you get in here quick! I'm gonna let you in the bunker. Don't make me regret this."
- "Son/Lady, did someone drop you on your head as a baby, or did you have to work to get this stupid?"
Appearances[]
Barney Rook appears only in Fallout 4.
Behind the scenes[]
Barney Rook shares similarities with Burt Gummer, a character from the Tremors movie series, played by Michael Gross. Barney and Burt are both paranoid survivalists and have a heavily defended home. Barney's rifle, Reba, shares the name of Gross' co-star, Reba McEntire, who played his wife in the first Tremors film. Although not referencing Barney by name, level designer Ryan Jenkins confirmed that he based a character in Fallout 4 off of Burt Gummer.[15]
Bugs[]
- console command recycleactor and then player.setstage 0001243d6 15 to solve the Talk To Barney line. [verified] Upon entering Salem, the player character may find Barney dead at the top of his house. Sometimes Barney's body falls down onto the overhang above the front door. This is noted by receiving the quest "kill the mirelurks" upon approaching Rook's house, even if they haven't spoken to him. The quest "kill the mirelurks" may not appear, however. Resurrect him before killing the three mirelurks and the quest can be completed normally. On PC, he can be revived by opening the console, clicking on his body and then using
- After talking to Barney and accepting the sidequest, he may immediately open the door to the room with Reba II, allowing the player character to take the weapon without having first activated the turrets. [verified]
- placeatme can be used to spawn him manually, on console, however, this is not an option.[verified]
- Opening the hatch to the bunker requires his key. Since it never spawns with him, unlocking the hatch is impossible without the unlock command.
Barney will simply not exist, with two dead mirelurks at his house, and the "Inaccessible" gate open. This makes interacting with the quest, and his basement, impossible. - One may go upstairs and flip the circuit breaker to the gate however this appears to do nothing as well. [verified]
- combat inhibitors of the turrets makes them hostile, however that reverts on the next visit. [verified] When he is missing, Barney's turrets are invincible. Shooting the
References[]
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Non-game
- ↑ Fallout 4 Vault Dweller's Survival Guide Collector's Edition p.332: "[4.08] ROOK FAMILY HOUSE
Barney Rook was a keen survivalist and has defended his property with impressive fortitude. He is currently under Mirelurk attack."
(Fallout 4 Vault Dweller's Survival Guide Map)