Joshua Graham (Van Buren)

Joshua Graham (then referred to as the "Hanged Man") was to be a companion in Van Buren, the canceled Fallout 3 by Black Isle Studios. He was to be the first, and statistically best, companion NPC that the player encountered, but was also very evil and in some ways made the game extremely difficult for a character with poor negotiating skills. He was intended to be a "jinxed" non-player character, like the pariah dog.Fort Abandon design documentNew Canaan design documentBurham Springs design documentBlackfoot design document
The character of Joshua Graham was significantly rewritten and redesigned for Fallout: New Vegas. This page overviews his appearance as mentioned throughout Van Buren design documents.
==Background==
The Prisoner was to encounter somebody hanged by the neck from a pole at Fort Abandon, injured and wheezing, but still alive and enraged.Fort Abandon design document The player would have the choice to cut him down and save him, let him hang, or let him fall to his death (though he would possibly survive the latter, as his corpse would then not be found afterward).Fort Abandon design document
If cut down, the Hanged Man would tag along with the Prisoner.Fort Abandon design document However, rescuing the Hanged Man would cause many tribals in the region to be angry with the Prisoner, incurring a low reputation, due to the Hanged Man's history as a murderer and slaver. In addition, the Hanged Man may anger any tribals he encounters and try to kill any Twin Mothers tribals he could find.Blackfoot Tribe design document: NPC Companion Uses Having him in the party would make dealing with tribals and some towns extremely difficult.Fort Abandon design document
The Hanged Man would not enter New Canaan. Upon arrival, he would initiate dialogue with the Prisoner and tell them that they had something to take care of, offering to meet at Burham Springs later on. Bishop Mordecai would be able to reveal some details about him, including the fact that his real name is Joshua Graham, a former New Canaanite missionary who was the right hand man in Caesar's Legion.New Canaan design document: NPC Ally Drama: "Talking with Bishop Mordecai may reveal that one of the New Canaanite missionaries, Joshua Graham, was involved in the rise of Caesar. Joshua Graham eventually became Caesar's right hand man, shaming the Mormons. After a failed attack on Hoover Dam, Caesar had Joshua burned and thrown into the Grand Canyon by the tribals who feared and hated him. Joshua Graham is the Hanged Man."
Upon entering Burham Springs, the Hanged Man might quote 2 Chronicles: 28. The Hanged Man would laughingly refuse to drop his weapons if commanded to by Phil, possibly even inciting Phil to open fire on the party. It would be very difficult for the Prisoner to defuse the situation.Burham Springs design document: NPC Ally Drama
With the Hanged Man in their party, the player character would over time be able to try to bring him toward redemption and "save" him, though it would be very difficult. Alternatively, the Hanged Man could be "damned" beyond being saved, and it would make him even tougher.Fort Abandon design document
==Interactions with the player character==
The Hanged Man would have had a 10 in Endurance, being very difficult to kill with a high Damage Threshold, in addition to being proficient in Small Arms, Knives and Unarmed.
===Interactions overview===
==Appearances==
Joshua Graham was to appear . A redesigned version of the character was first mentioned and later appeared .
==Behind the scenes==
The reference images used for Joshua Graham, the Hanged Man, in the Fort Abandon design document are from the 1997 comic miniseries The Unknown Soldier by Garth Ennis, as well as the 2001 graphic novel El Diablo by Brian Azzarello.
==Gallery==
VB DD06 img 05 hanged man 2.png
VB DD06 img 05 hanged man 1.png
VB DD06 img 04 courtyard.png
==References==
Category:Van Buren human characters