Brotherhood of Steel ( Mojave chapter ) The Mojave chapter is a chapter of the original Brotherhood of Steel active in the Mojave Wasteland . Background . The Brotherhood of Steel is a paramilitary organization , devoted to the recovery and preservation of pre - War technology and information . Officially , the Brotherhood seeks to salvage such knowledge so that it may be used for the benefit of mankind , but in practice , they are oddly selective as to what is important enough to be saved , often ignoring basic but potentially useful technologies ( such as agriculture and civil engineering , ) in favor of military hardware like energy weapons and power armor . They are notoriously secretive with their discoveries and distrustful of outsiders , even outright hostile in some cases . Even now , more than two centuries after the Great War , the Brotherhood zealously restricts the use and knowledge of their technological finds , even within their own ranks . Based out of the fortified bunker of Hidden Valley , the Mojave Chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel operated openly in the Vegas wastes for several years , carrying out several reclamation missions without encountering any serious opposition . Father Elijah , the reigning Elder at the time , eventually took a particularly strong interest in the dilapidated HELIOS One , a pre - War solar power plant . Despite the objections of the chapter ' s Paladins , who contested that the plant was too big a target for their relatively small forces to properly defend , Elijah decided that the vast promise of HELIOS One far outweighed the risks . Over the next several months , the Brotherhood commenced repairs on the power plant , hoping to restore it to working order . However , Father Elijah had his own hidden agenda for the plant : in his studies , the Elder had discovered that HELIOS One was secretly connected to ARCHIMEDES II , a still - functioning orbital weapons platform . Such devastating firepower was too tempting an opportunity to ignore . After years of unchallenged dominance , the balance of power in the Mojave Wasteland shifted in 2253 , when New California Republic forces entered the region and occupied Hoover Dam . Unnerved by the arrival of such a potential threat , Father Elijah declared that HELIOS One would now serve as the Mojave Brotherhood ' s home base . With little other choice , the chapter subsequently uprooted itself from Hidden Valley and moved into the plant . By the year 2275 , the New California Republic had established a firm presence in the Mojave Wasteland , having signed the New Vegas Treaty with the enigmatic Mr . House the year before and subsequently cementing a regional stronghold at McCarran International Airport . It was thus inevitable , then , that the NCR would soon set its sights upon HELIOS One . Elijah , still believing that he could unlock the facility ' s hidden capabilities , refused to abandon the power plant and forced his Paladins to continue defending it . Although the chapter had refrained from participating in the NCR - Brotherhood War like their brethren back in New California , hostilities quickly flared between the Mojave Brotherhood and the resident NCR forces ; attempts at communication and hope for possible cooperation proving futile , ultimately breaking down into violence . What followed over the following year was a series of guerrilla skirmishes , that culminated in 2276 with , a full - on assault on HELIOS One by the NCR . Despite their technological advantage , the Brotherhood forces were gradually chipped away by the relentless NCR reinforcements . The Paladins continually urged Elijah to signal a retreat before their losses became too great , but the Elder dismissed their pleas , too obsessed with his work on HELIOS One and unlocking its secrets . It was at the height of the conflict that Father Elijah abruptly vanished , leaving his chapter without any sort of explanation . Seemingly abandoned by their leader , the remaining Brotherhood forces were led by Head Paladin McNamara , who took on the title of Elder for the chapter . McNamara launched a desperate counterattack against the advancing NCR forces , buying himself and his people enough time to escape the facility and retreat back to the safety of the Hidden Valley complex . Sunburst was nothing less than disastrous for the Mojave Brotherhood , with more than half of the chapter ' s Knights and Paladins having fallen in combat . HELIOS One , the facility they fought so hard to defend , was left in shambles due to collateral damage . In the wake of such a catastrophic loss , now - Elder McNamara enacted , against the wishes of most of the chapter , an absolute lock - down on the Hidden Valley complex ; no members were allowed out of the bunker and those who were already outside at the start of the lock - down were not allowed back in . In the years since the chapter ' s defeat and subsequent lock - down , Elder McNamara has restricted activity outside the bunker to occasional reconnaissance missions and high - value raids . All operations take place at night , with engagement of NCR forces strictly forbidden . Though the Brotherhood ' s ascetic lifestyle has prepared its members for a sequestered existence better than most , the passivity of their current situation has proved highly stressful . Current status . The Mojave Brotherhood operates on a policy of strict isolationism : no outsiders are allowed anywhere near the chapter ' s bunker at Hidden Valley , any who stray too close are killed on sight . The idea of outsiders joining the organization is completely unheard of . The only individuals granted access are a precious handful of patrols , scouts , and procurement specialists sent out into the wastes to gather food and other supplies . Since their crushing defeat at the HELIOS One facility in 2276 , the chapter has watched from a distance as the New California Republic ' s presence and power in the Mojave Wasteland continued to grow ; the possibility of having to engage the NCR once again is a disquieting notion for members of the group , particularly the leadership . Unable to test their combat skills in real - life situations outside , the chapter ' s Paladins are only able to keep themselves sharp through the use of virtual reality simulators and hands - on practice on the bunker complex ' s firing range . Though deeply respected for his actions during Operation : Sunburst , which may have single - handedly saved the Mojave Brotherhood from extinction , Elder McNamara has been a target of some controversy within the organization , his enactment of the lock - down on Hidden Valley and its continuation years later has led some members to begin questioning the chapter ' s future . Head Paladin Edgar Hardin has recently begun gaining support from like - minded members who have begun to doubt McNamara ' s leadership , with rumors suggesting that Hardin plans to usurp the Elder . By , the Courier is the only known outsider to have visited the Brotherhood ' s bunker and survived , and thus can determine the fate of the ill - fortuned chapter . While the likes of Mr . House and Caesar want nothing more than to see the Brotherhood wiped out from the region , the New California Republic is more flexible . Should Elder McNamara remain in place as leader , the Courier may negotiate a truce between the two factions , thus ensuring the Brotherhood ' s survival in the Mojave Wasteland . Society . The Brotherhood ' s professed mission is to preserve pre - War technology and human knowledge for the benefit of future generations . In practice , its definition of technology is strangely selective , ignoring basic but potentially useful technologies ( genetic modification of crops and civil engineering , for example ) in favor of combat technology such as energy weapons and power armor ; and even now , nearly two centuries after the Great War , the Brotherhood zealously restricts the use and knowledge of such technologies to its own membership . The Mojave Brotherhood operated freely amid the Vegas wastes for several years , carrying out many reclamation missions without serious opposition . The balance of power shifted in 2274 , when a large contingent of NCR troops entered the region and occupied Hoover Dam . Conflict was inevitable . Nearly two years of guerrilla skirmishes culminated in a pitched battle at HELIOS One , a solar energy plant the Brotherhood had been refurbishing for several months with the goals of bringing it back online and activating its hidden offensive capabilities ( the ARCHIMEDES II death ray ) . The battle for HELIOS One ( Operation : Sunburst ) proved a disaster for the Mojave Brotherhood . More than half its paladins and knight s were killed . The chapter ' s leader , Elder Elijah , disappeared without a trace . The Brotherhood was driven from the facility , which suffered extensive damage . Survivors retreated to Hidden Valley . Since that defeat , the chapter ' s leader , Elder McNamara , has restricted activity outside the bunker to occasional reconnaissance missions and high - value raids . All operations take place at night , and engagement of NCR forces is strictly forbidden . Though the Brotherhood ' s ascetic lifestyle has prepared its members for a sequestered existence better than most , the passivity of their current situation has proved highly stressful . Relations with the outside . Since the NCR - Brotherhood of Steel War , the Mojave brotherhood has kept its contact with the outside world to a minimum , due to heavy casualties . Other than a few patrols that come in and go back out at night , no members leave the secure bunker and few people outside of the brotherhood ever enter or leave the Hidden Valley base . The exception being Veronica and others like herself . Depending on the Courier ' s choice they can set up a treaty between the NCR and Brotherhood . If this treaty is signed the Brotherhood will discontinue the lockdown and will openly operate in the wastes , such as assisting NCR patrols on the Long 15 and in select locations in the Mojave . If the character does not interact with the Brotherhood it will result in the Brotherhood ultimately launching an attack on HELIOS ONE and regaining control . Technology . This Brotherhood chapter uses a mixture of both the and models of power armor , with the T - 51b being much more widely used ( see bugs ) . Their weapons are all extremely advanced , with s being almost standard issue to the ordinary guard , while are also used in high volume . Like most of the Brotherhood they will never have . Patrols sometimes even include heavier weapons such as the . Their scouts continue to find weapons in the Mojave , resulting in many unused weapons being stored in the Brotherhood armory . It seems that the Brotherhood Scribes are researching night vision optics . One of them even wants to invent automatic doors . They rarely if ever use conventional weapons , which , as stated above , results in many rather high end weapons such as anti - materiel rifle s and being unused and collecting dust in their armory . However , they do give conventional weapons to their members that go out into the wasteland to collect supplies , as to not draw suspicion from factions that want them dead such as the NCR or Caesar ' s Legion . As per their , they can take no chances . Appearances . The Mojave Chapter of the Brotherhood of Steel appears only in " " , and is mentioned in the " Dead Money " and " Old World Blues " .