Bitter Springs Massacre

The Bitter Springs MassacreThe Courier: "Must've been one hell of a miscommunication."Craig Boone: "Yeah, well. That's how they wrote it up in the report."The Courier: "Sounded like more of a massacre."Craig Boone: "Yeah. I guess that'd be the word. We did what we were there to do. Lot of people got killed. That's war. Maybe looking back you'd do things differently, but that's not how it works. In the field, you hesitate, you or someone you care about will die. They teach that from day one."(Boone's dialogue) was a major event that took place in the Mojave Wasteland in 2278.
==Background==
The Great Khans were once one of the most feared raider tribes in the Mojave, having entered the wasteland in 2267, after relocating from NCR territories. For years they dominated the wasteland, until Robert House's tribes entered the picture in 2274. Supported by superior technology, funds, and equipment, they drove the Khans away from New Vegas, to Bitter Springs.The Courier: "How did the Three Families defeat you?"Papa Khan: "They allied with Mr. House, the self-proclaimed master of New Vegas. He supported them with the resources of New Vegas: weapons, technology, caps. They were better equipped, and we could not stand against them."(Papa Khan's dialogue)The Courier: "Maybe you could give me the short version."Papa Khan: "In a hurry, are you? Very well then: The Great Khans came east out of the NCR 14 years ago. We ruled the Wastes, then, and called no man master. But we underestimated the Families of the Strip, and they drove us back to Bitter Springs, where we remained until the NCR arrived and drove us here."(Papa Khan's dialogue) 
When the NCR deployed into the Mojave in 2274, the Khans initiated a campaign of raids against Republic holdings, considering them easy pickings. Caravans, towns, camps, all fell to the Khan onslaught.The Courier: "What happened at Bitter Springs?"Papa Khan: "When the NCR came to the Mojave, we thought they would be easy pickings. We raided their caravans, their towns, their camps - they couldn't stop us. At least, that's what we thought. They tracked us to Bitter Springs and surrounded us. When our children, our sick and old, fled through a nearby pass, the NCR gunned them down."The Courier: "That doesn't sound like something the NCR would order."Papa Khan: "Oh, they claimed it was a miscommunication, but tell that to those who saw our families butchered. Tell it to the survivors who were banished here."(Papa Khan's dialogue)
Things changed in 2278, when the Great Khans became the last significant problem in the Mojave, after the conclusion of Operation: Sunburst and victory in the First Battle of Hoover Dam. The tipping point came with the abduction and killing of four NCR soldiers. The NCR decided to cut off the head from the serpent and mounted an assault on Bitter Springs.Fallout: New Vegas Official Game Guide Collector's Edition p.458: "Important Dates"2278	 Following the abduction and killing of four soldiers, NCR troops assault the Great Khans' settlement at Red Rock Canyon and massacre several dozen men, women, and children. This event goes unreported in NCR press."(Behind the Bright Lights & Big City) 
==Events==
===Set up===
The military operation was one of the largest after the Battle of Hoover Dam, taking up nearly all of the available military resources at Camp Golf, including an elite team of sharpshooters from the 1st Reconnaissance Battalion.Craig Boone: "This is the place. We got sent from Camp Golf, looking for some Khans who'd been making trouble with one of our settlements. I guess one of the settlers was connected, because we sent everything we had. We figured this was a gang hideout, but... they'd led us to their home. There's a ridge called Coyote Tail on the south side. That's where we set up."(Craig Boone's dialogue) While the primary force was ordered to attack the suspected Khan stronghold through the main pass, the 1st Recon detachment was set up on Coyote Tail Ridge, overlooking Canyon 37. Their orders were to shoot anyone emerging from the canyon on sight, to prevent the Khans from flanking the main attack force.Craig Boone: "Canyon 37. That's what the NCR calls the pass down there. It was the Khans' only escape, so we set up here to guard it while the main force attacked from the front. Standing orders were to shoot on sight."(Craig Boone's dialogue) 
The operation was based on incomplete intel. However, the major in charge of the deployment ordered for the operation to proceed, convinced that they were assaulting a Khan stronghold.The Courier: "You were at Bitter Springs, I'm told."Dhatri: " The major in charge at the time made a bad call - he thought Bitter Springs was full of Great Khan raiders, so we surrounded the place. By the time any of us realized there were civilians down there - women and children - the shooting had already started. The major froze up at the news, and we couldn't get another word out of him. I took over and salvaged the situation as best I could. For my effort, I was promoted to major. Not quite the way I'd have wanted it."(Dhatri's dialogue)
===The attack===
The operation went sideways from the moment NCR troops deployed into Bitter Springs. The attack force was spotted too soon and made contact with Great Khan defenders prematurely. 1st Recon troops heard an intense firefight take place, before they spotted Khans coming down Canyon 37 - the Red Pass to the KhansThe Courier: "What happened to your people?"Oscar Velasco: " NCR's First Recon Battalion was waiting for them on Coyote Tail Ridge. No Khan left alive, that was the order. "(Oscar Velasco's dialogue) - in groups, composed of women, children, and the elderly, followed by wounded Khans. The sharpshooters hesitated and reported the situation up the command chain. They were then ordered to "shoot 'till [they] were out of ammo." The sharpshooters obeyed the order.The Courier: "What happened?"Craig Boone: "Main force got spotted too soon. We heard shooting. Then Khans started coming through Canyon 37 in bunches. It was all wrong, though. Women, kids, elderly. Wounded started coming through, too. We radioed to confirm our orders but command didn't get what we were seeing. They told us to shoot till we were out of ammo. So that's what we did."(Craig Boone's dialogue) The retreating civilians were gunned down.
When the major in charge of the operation realized his men were gunning down women and children, he suffered a psychological shock and become unresponsive. When his second in command, Captain Dhatri, realized that his superior was no longer able to lead, he took charge of the situation. He ordered 1st Recon to cease fire and and started to salvage the operation. However, at that point, the damage was already done.
===New California Republic===
The Khans were tracked to Bitter Springs. To ensure the raiders would not escape, a First Recon detachment, including Craig Boone, was deployed atop Coyote Tail Ridge to cover Canyon 37, the only escape route from Bitter Springs. To the Khans, it was known only as the Red Pass, figuratively until that point.
However, Bitter Springs was not merely a staging base for raider attacks, but the home of the Great Khans. Khan scouts spotted the approaching force and attacked NCR forces before they were in position. Civilians started to flee the camp together with the wounded, straight into the guns of the First Recon. The commander of the detachment radioed for orders, trying to inform command that their unit is facing unarmed civilians and wounded, disarmed raiders. The major in charge did not understand the situation and ordered First Recon to open fire and keep firing until they're out of ammo. The sharpshooters executed the orders, leading to mass casualties among Khan civilians, including women and children.
The whole situation was chalked up to bad intel. As soon as the commanding officer realized what happened, he froze up and couldn't speak. His subordinate, Captain Dhatri, took command in his place and salvaged the situation, ordering a ceasefire and tending to the wounded. For his efforts, he was promoted to the rank of Major, though it was not the way he preferred to advance in rank.
===Great Khans===
Great Khans offer a variety of differing accounts, most of them negative. Sergeant Bitter-Root, a survivor of the massacre later adopted by Major Dhatri and a First Recon service member, believes that the reprisal was warranted on account of the Great Khans' intentional raiding of NCR property. In his view, the Khans incited the resulting violence.The Courier: "Tell me about happened to them at Bitter Springs."Bitter-Root: "It was massacre. That's what a lot of NCR folk will tell you. Most of them feel plenty bad about what happened. My damn parents, too. They were just as bad as the rest."(Bitter-Root's dialogue) He also holds a low opinion of his former tribe, including his own parents, dismissing them as "scum" and "lazy, trumped-up raiders" who attacked innocent settlers for fun, going as far as teaching their own children how to shoot by taking practice shots at NCR soldiers, personnel, and civilians.The Courier: "You don't really mean that, do you?"Bitter-Root: "/ "(Bitter-Root's dialogue) In his view, the attack at Bitter Springs was a direct result of the Great Khans' carelessness, prolific drug use, and intentional provocation of the NCR.The Courier: "What happened to your parents?"Bitter-Root: ""(Bitter-Root's dialogue)
Other survivors, especially ones who remained with the raider tribe, do not share his view. Many struggle with post-traumatic stress disorder and other scars left by the Massacre. For example, Chance became mute and began abusing drugs to cope with his severe flashbacks. In his view, the massacre was the result of NCR's brutality in the pursuit of its political agenda, conquering the land from the Great Khans at all costs.All Roads He did not believe the claims of miscommunication, instead remembering the NCR soldiers converging on the town and opening fire without hesitation.
==Aftermath==
The Republic's medics provided immediate care to all the wounded, NCR and Khan alike. The dead were buried in the Canyon where their lives ended, while the surviving Great Khans were permitted by NCR military authorities to resettle at Red Rock Canyon without interference.The Courier: "Like what? It looks to me like the NCR ran the Khans out of Bitter Springs altogether."Gilles: "We provided medical aid to the wounded - the wounded - and permitted the Khans to resettle at Red Rock Canyon."(Gilles' dialogue) The Bitter Springs camp was cleaned up and adopted by the NCR as a camp for refugees from the east, fleeing from Caesar's Legion.The Courier: "What is this place?"Gilles: "This is the Bitter Springs refugee camp. We've been maintaining it for a few years now, ever since Caesar's Legion started seriously pushing west. Most of the people here were displaced by the Legion's advance. At first there weren't many, but lately it's been more than we can handle."(Gilles' dialogue)
The official cause of the massacre was miscommunication. Without good intelligence and with an incomplete picture of the situation, NCR command did not realize that they were attacking a town and ordering their troops to fire on civilians.The Courier: "You mean the massacre three years ago?"Gilles: ", yes. It was a tragic mistake, but the NCR has done everything it can to make amends since then."The Courier: "What incident?"Gilles: " There was a communication mix-up that resulted in some noncombatants being killed. It was a tragic mistake, but we've done all we can to make amends."(Gilles' dialogue)
However, despite the NCR making amends, the death of entire Khan families has cast a permanent shadow over the relations between the Republic and the tribe. Many swore vengeance and some, such as Oscar Velasco, made good on their threats, beginning a guerrilla campaign against the Republic.The Courier: "That's horrible!"Papa Khan: "It's because of that that we have sworn to take revenge on the NCR. With our new allies in Caesar's Legion, we will crush them!"(Papa Khan's dialogue) Although the incident went unreported in NCR press, rumors spread fast throughout the wasteland, damaging the reputation of the Republic and its Army. In some cases, NCR soldiers would be insulted as murderers when they entered towns to secure and fortify them.The Courier: "So why'd you leave?"Manny Vargas: " Plus I was up at Camp Golf when Bitter Springs went down. I faked like I was sick to get out of going, because I knew some of the people there. But when everybody came back nobody would tell me what happened. And people would call us murderers sometimes when we showed up to secure towns."(Manny Vargas' dialogue)
A separate issue was post-traumatic stress disorder. Members of the 1st Recon who fired on the non-combatants suffered major trauma, leaving military service and trying to find meaning in life again.The Courier: "Maybe you can make up for your mistakes."Craig Boone: "A murderer who does good deeds is still a murderer. And he'll still get his judgment. I left the NCR when my tour was up. Had enough of war. Decided I was gonna start over. None of it made a difference in the end."(Craig Boone's dialogue) Others, like Bitter Root, a Khan child, considered the massacre a chance to begin a new life. In Bitter Root's case, he convinced himself he truly hates his parents and the Khans. Eventually, he joined 1st Recon, the very formation that was the culprit of the massacre.The Courier: "What do you know about the Great Khans?"Bitter-Root: " Used to have a settlement up at Bitter Springs, 'til they pissed off NCR and got slaughtered for their trouble. "The Courier: "Losing your parents must have been hard for you. I'm sorry."Bitter-Root: ""(Bitter-Root's dialogue) In other Khans, the trauma of losing their family and friends took a particularly heavy toll. For example, untreated PTSD turned Chance into a mute death seeker, permanently addicted to heavy drugs to dull the pain and the memories. The impact of drugs twisted and warped his memories to the point that they no longer resembled reality at all.
==Appearances==
The Bitter Springs Massacre is mentioned only in Fallout: New Vegas and marginally shown in the graphic novel All Roads.
==Behind the scenes==
* The Official Game Guide erroneously states that the Bitter Springs Massacre took place at Red Rock Canyon instead.
==Gallery==
AllRoads05.jpg|Chance's shrine
FNVAR Horses.jpg|NCR as seen in Chance's flashback
HD Tower 2 mural.jpg|Graffiti mentioning Bitter Springs
==References==
Non-game
Category:Bitter Springs
Category:New California Republic conflicts
Category:Great Khan conflicts
es:Masacre de Bitter Springs
it:Massacro di Bitter Springs
pl:Masakra w Bitter Springs
pt:Massacre de Bitter Springs
ru:Резня в Биттер-Спрингс
uk:Різанина в Біттер-Спрінґс