In Fallout 3, you can roam the post apocalyptic ruins of Washington DC alone, if you prefer. However, there are companions available, to help you fight the many enemies that you will encounter. Examples include a hard-bitten mercenary, an old war robot or the leader of a gang your character knew from their childhood. There’s also the loyal and endearing dog called, erm, Dogmeat.

Another is Fawkes, and he will be one of the best friends you ever find out here (ok doggo, you too). He’s a super-mutant, a race of massive, imposing yellow humanoids. They were originally created in a horrific process where ordinary people were exposed to an artificially created virus. Their strength and resilience are enormously enhanced, radiation doesn’t touch them (useful in in a world where the effects of nuclear war still linger), and it appears they cam be extremely long lived. However, they possess only limited intellect and their capacity for speech is reduced to simple sentences.

Extremely violent and aggressive, they band together in small tribes ruled by whoever is biggest and strongest. They arm themselves with looted weaponry, with the upper echelons of their primitive society getting the better gear. A dire threat to the people of the Capital Wasteland, they take unfortunate human captives whom they will either eat, or turn into new mutants. Even the efforts of the Brotherhood of Steel – armed with their hi-tech weaponry and armour, struggle to hold the super-mutants in check.

The mutation process however worked a bit differently on Fawkes – he has all the bulk and strength of his kind, but his mind came out unscathed. In fact he’s a clever and articulate guy. This caused the other Supermutants to mistrust him, and so long ago they locked him up in one of the Vaults beneath the surface of the wasteland. While there he found a computer terminal, connected to the vault mainframe. As the vaults were originally intended to preserve human civilisation through the nuclear wars, their databases contained a huge amount of knowledge on topics like science, art and literature. By spending his time reading and learning, Fawkes kept himself sane during over a century of captivity.

In fact, his name is taken from that guy from 16th century England – he admires someone he saw as fighting and dying for what they believed in. Seems like he could be a force for good out there, one that’s sorely needed amidst the hardships and violence, if only someone would let him out of the vault.

That’s where you come in. In that same vault is a piece of equipment you need for the main quest but unfortunately it’s locked in a chamber bathes in lethal radiation. Looks like each of you is in a position to help the other. So you need to fight your way through whole bunch of super-mutants to find the key to his cell, so he can go fetch the item you’re after. Afterwards he’ll make a decision based on your “karma” rating, basically the sum total of good and evil things you’ve done so far in the game. If you’re a bad guy, he figure you only freed him out of necessity and leave you to your adventures. If you’re a heroic sort, though, he’ll offer to join you permanently.

So then, as you wander the wasteland he will amble along next to you, an ever present thud of massive boots. Occasionally he’ll offer comments such as gratitude that people don’t attack him in towns, knowing how they must fear him. Or he’ll dispense Zen-like bits of wisdom like “Be aware of the present moment”. All pretty chill so far.

When it comes to combat, though, he’s an absolute powerhouse. For a start he’s toting a huge Gatling laser, one of the most powerful guns in the game. Also though, he’s ridiculously durable. Most companions have around three, four hundred hitpoints at max level, he gets… fifteen thousand. (so does the doggo incidentally). I’ve no idea that was Bethesda’s intent or a bug but if the latter, it never got patched away. Anyway, for all intents and purposes he’s indestructible.

He’s also more than enthusiastic for a rumble. He may have self control and human reasoning, but he’ll gladly set those aside and unleash his rage when you’re threatened. In fact, he may be just a bit more keen than you might be ready for, especially if you’re a cautious stealth-based player like myself.

So let’s look at a typical encounter in the Wastelands, with Fawkes at your side. You spot movement in the distance – Enclave soldiers perhaps with advanced powerf armour and plasma weaponry. You go into sneak mode, and move into a position where you can easily retreat or take cover. Your draw a weapon that’s accurate at long range, carefully line up a shot, and-

YEEEEEAAARRRRRGGG

Fawkes barrels past you, unslings his laser obliterates every hostile in sight in about 20 seconds,

HAHAHA, I WIN AGAIN!!

Then you can sheepishly catch up and loot the smoking bodies he left behind.

Or how about the more potent enemies introduced in the expansions?  Like the highest tier of his super mutant brethren, the monstrous overlords. Or maybe the giant albino radscorpions. They can cause you a whole load of grief; not only do they inflict horrendous damage but they are incredibly durable, soaking up huge quantities of firepower. Fighting these deadly foes requires some preparation, tactical thinking and-

YEEEEEAAARRRRRGGG

They can sting him, throw radioactive sludge, hit him with oversized sledgehammers, shoot him with lasers. Fawkes could not give less of a shit. It’ll take him longer this time, but they still end up dead and he has 95% of his hitpoints left. You may as well join in and shoot the monster in the flanks a bit, just so you can say you contributed something.

Fawkes is so overpowered, you can basically spend every fight hiding behind a rock and letting him do all the work. Recruiting him feels almost like a cheat mode. Still, he’s always enormously entertaining and with his unique mix of mindfulness and raw brutality, he’s one of the game’s most memorable characters.