Settler Settlers are wastelanders living in various settlements across the Commonwealth in 2287 . Background . Settlers are the common people of the Commonwealth . They can include wanderers , former residents of Diamond City or Goodneighbor , scavengers , former raiders or Gunners , synth s covertly working for the Institute , or rescued by the Railroad . Even wastelanders trying to scrape out a living , and other people , will sometimes give up their solitary life as a wanderer and move to a soon - to - be - thriving settlement , usually under the protection of the Commonwealth Minutemen . Some work on guard duty , or grow crops for a living . A few safety - concerned settlers might give up their set - back life as a farmer and join the Minutemen in favor of protecting their fellow citizens . Interactions with the player character . Settlers in allied settlements . Speaking to a settler from one of the Sole Survivor ' s settlements will allow them to access their inventory and select their equipment much like they would a companion . They can be armed with better weaponry than their default pipe pistols , but don ' t consume ammunition provided they have at least one unit of the correct ammunition for their weapon . The same holds true with grenades . The only exceptions are the missile launcher or Fat Man , as these are tagged with " NPCs Consume Ammo " . Settlers assigned as shopkeepers have additional dialogue options when spoken to , similar to other merchants . Select " trade " from the dialogue tree to access their inventory . Speaking to a shopkeeper settler outside of their operating hours will go straight to their personal inventory as normal . Doctors seem to be an exception : A settler assigned to a clinic will not have a trade dialogue option when spoken to during business hours . To access their inventory , either wait for the shop to close or unassign and reassign them from / to their shop . Settlers assigned to a guard post will man that post as well as up to two other unmanned guard posts . They will walk in a patrol circuit between such posts , making it pragmatic to place groups of three in relatively close proximity . They rarely leave these posts , to the extent that they do not sleep when the player character is visiting ( like any settlement resident , they still require a bed ) . Unassigned settlers default to gathering any unassigned crops should there be a deficit of food . Assuming the player character is present , during daylight hours these settlers , as well as those assigned to a Scavenging station , will patrol the settlement when not working , and if chairs are present will periodically stop to sit and eat . At night , settlers will gravitate towards the most well - lit parts of town , particularly around a food stall , if built , regardless if occupied or not . Thus , strategic placement of chairs and lights can allow these settlers to assist in monitoring a settlement ' s perimeter for intruders or , conversely , herd them towards a settlement ' s center . Encountered settlers . Sometimes , as the Sole Survivor wanders the wasteland , they may come across a small band of settlers , often in groups of three or four , fighting against a band of enemies , from raiders to super mutants . Should the Sole Survivor save these settlers , it would give them the option of going towards one of the allied settlements . Appearances . Settlers appear only in " Fallout 4 " .