The Outer Worlds
The Outer Worlds

Faction Questlines

Navigate faction questlines in The Outer Worlds. Understand key decision points and potential outcomes for The Board and other factions in the Halcyon colony.

·Multi-source verified (76/76)

Faction Questlines

The Outer Worlds offers a rich narrative experience, heavily influenced by your choices and allegiances. The primary factions in Halcyon each have extensive questlines that can lead to vastly different outcomes for the colony. This section details the major faction questlines, providing actionable steps, key decision points, and potential rewards or consequences.

The Board

The Board represents the corporate overlords of Halcyon, prioritizing profit and order above all else. Aligning with The Board generally involves maintaining the status quo and suppressing dissent. Their questline often puts you at odds with Phineas Welles and the various independent settlements.

Key Quests:

  • Long Live the Queen: This quest initiates your deeper involvement with The Board.
    1. Speak with Udom Bedford in the Groundbreaker's Rest-N-Go. He will task you with locating a specific individual.
    2. Travel to Monarch and seek out Minister Clarke in Stellar Bay.
    3. Follow Clarke's instructions to retrieve the Navkey for Byzantium from a hidden cache in the Cascadia area. Be prepared for encounters with marauders and hostile wildlife.
    4. Return the Navkey to Udom Bedford. This will grant you access to Byzantium and further Board assignments.
  • The Puppet Master: This quest involves undermining Phineas Welles's operations.
    1. Report to Sophia Akande in Byzantium's Executive Boardroom. She will outline a plan to expose Phineas.
    2. Acquire the Phineas's Data Cartridge from his lab on Tartarus. This requires navigating the heavily guarded facility. Stealth or high combat skills are recommended.
    3. Deliver the data to Akande. She will then instruct you to broadcast a propaganda message across Halcyon.
    4. Access the Communication Array on Monarch (located near Amber Heights) and upload the message. Be aware that this action will significantly decrease your reputation with Phineas Welles and his allies.
  • Foundation: The climactic quest for The Board, determining the fate of the colony.
    1. Akande will send you to retrieve the Hope's Master Control Unit from the derelict colony ship, The Hope.
    2. Navigate the ship, dealing with automated defenses and remnants of the original crew. The Master Control Unit is located in the Bridge Control Room.
    3. Return the unit to Akande. Your final decision will be presented: either activate the unit to put the colonists back into cryosleep or destroy it.

Consequences of siding with The Board:

The Board maintains its iron grip on Halcyon. Resources are tightly controlled, and dissent is crushed. While order is restored, individual freedoms are severely curtailed. Many independent settlements may suffer or be absorbed. Your companions may react negatively, with some potentially leaving your crew.

Phineas Welles

Dr. Phineas Welles is a rogue scientist dedicated to awakening the colonists from the Hope and saving Halcyon from The Board's oppressive rule. His questline focuses on gathering resources and allies to challenge corporate authority.

Key Quests:

  • Stranger in a Strange Land: Your initial encounter with Phineas and the start of his questline.
    1. After crash-landing on Terra-2, follow the distress signal to Phineas's lab.
    2. He will task you with acquiring Power Regulators from the Edgewater Power Plant.
    3. Return the regulators to Phineas. This will allow you to power up your ship, The Unreliable, and begin your journey across Halcyon.
  • Radio Free Monarch: This quest involves securing a vital communication array on Monarch.
    1. Phineas will direct you to Monarch to establish contact with the local factions.
    2. You'll need to negotiate with both the Iconoclasts in Stellar Bay and the MSI in Amber Heights to gain access to the Communication Array. This often involves completing quests for both factions, such as "Errors Unseen" for MSI and "The Commuter" for the Iconoclasts.
    3. Once access is granted, activate the array. This will allow Phineas to broadcast his message, gaining support for his cause.
  • The City and the Stars: A crucial mission to gather resources for Phineas's plan.
    1. Phineas requires a significant amount of Dimethyl Sulfoxide (DMSO) to revive the colonists. He believes Byzantium holds the largest supply.
    2. Infiltrate Byzantium and locate the SubLight Salvage & Shipping warehouse. The DMSO is stored within.
    3. You can either steal the DMSO (requiring high stealth or combat skills) or convince the warehouse manager, Percival, to give it to you (requiring high persuasion or intimidation).
    4. Deliver the DMSO to Phineas's lab.
  • Brave New World: The final confrontation with The Board.
    1. Phineas will instruct you to retrieve the Hope's Master Control Unit from the derelict colony ship, The Hope, before The Board can get their hands on it.
    2. Navigate the ship, dealing with Board security forces. The Master Control Unit is in the Bridge Control Room.
    3. Return the unit to Phineas. Your final decision will be to activate the unit to revive the colonists or destroy it.

Consequences of siding with Phineas Welles:

The colonists from The Hope are awakened, and Halcyon begins a new era of independence from corporate control. While this offers greater freedom, it also brings uncertainty and potential instability as the colony adapts. The Board's influence is significantly diminished. Your companions will generally approve of this outcome, especially Parvati and Ellie.

Independent Factions (Monarch)

While not a primary ending faction, your actions on Monarch significantly impact the balance of power and can influence your standing with both The Board and Phineas Welles. The two main factions on Monarch are the Iconoclasts and the Monarch Stellar Industries (MSI).

Iconoclasts (Stellar Bay)

Led by Graham Bryant, the Iconoclasts are a group of former corporate employees who have rebelled against The Board. They seek self-sufficiency and freedom, often clashing with MSI.

  • The Commuter: Graham will ask you to retrieve a delivery manifest from a crashed transport in the northern region of Monarch. This will help them secure supplies.
  • Slaughterhouse Clive: Help Graham deal with a troublesome marauder leader, Clive, who is disrupting their operations. Clive's camp is located east of Stellar Bay.

Monarch Stellar Industries (MSI) (Amber Heights)

Headed by Sanjar Nandi, MSI represents the remnants of a corporate entity trying to maintain order and production on Monarch, albeit with less direct Board oversight. They are more pragmatic than the Iconoclasts.

  • Errors Unseen: Sanjar needs you to recover critical data drives from a research facility overrun by raptidons in the southern plains.
  • The Doom That Came to Monarch: Assist Sanjar in dealing with a large, mutated creature, the Mantisaur Matriarch, that is threatening Amber Heights' power supply.

Monarch Resolution:

During the "Radio Free Monarch" quest, you will have the opportunity to broker a peace treaty between the Iconoclasts and MSI. This involves completing quests for both sides and then convincing Graham and Sanjar to work together. A successful alliance will significantly boost your reputation with both factions and can provide a more stable outcome for Monarch, which in turn can benefit either Phineas or The Board depending on your ultimate allegiance.

Strategy: To achieve peace, complete "The Commuter" and "Slaughterhouse Clive" for the Iconoclasts, and "Errors Unseen" and "The Doom That Came to Monarch" for MSI. Then, speak to both leaders and present their respective proposals for a joint effort. High Persuade or Inspiration skills can make these negotiations much easier.