McDonough

McDonough is the mayor of Diamond City in the Commonwealth .
==Background==
A larger-than-life figure in both the figurative and the literal sense of the word, McDonough has been running the Green Jewel of the Commonwealth for years, maintaining it as a prosperous center of commerce for the Commonwealth.
===Past===
McDonough was the brother of John Hancock, the leader of Goodneighbor, when he was still John McDonough and the son of Patrick and Martha McDonough. He was described by Hancock as "the standard big brother - entitled, punchy, liked to shove rotten tatoes down my shirt and slap my back." After the brothers moved to Diamond City, the elder McDonough's decision to pursue a political career came as a surprise to Hancock, but he did not stand in his brother's way, at least not until McDonough started campaigning for the 2282 mayoral election.The Sole Survivor: "Thanks. You're not so bad yourself."John Hancock: " "(John Hancock's dialogue)
Running on the "Mankind for McDonough" ticket, the mayoral candidate promised to remove all ghouls from Diamond City if elected.McDonough: ""The Sole Survivor: "He's fine."Mayor McDonough: " The full details are in my report, along with some other points of interest. "(McDonough's dialogue) His program was supported by the "elite" Upper Stands residents and eventually earned him the mayoral position. McDonough's anti-ghoul decree was enacted immediately, with his inaugural speech triggering an exodus of ghoul families. Hancock soon after confronted him and tried to protest, but the mayor simply replied that, while he has no ill will towards ghouls, he could not defy the will of the people and smiled, something so unusual for him that Hancock no longer recognized the brother he grew up with and estranged himself from McDonough since then.The Sole Survivor: "How could they do something like that?"John Hancock: " "(John Hancock's dialogue)
No longer wanting anything to do with the newly-minted Mayor McDonough, John left Diamond City and his bigoted brother behind. He tried to help the victims of the ghoul exodus, who had been forced to survive in the desolate city and resettle them elsewhere in Goodneighbor. However, most of them could not get used to its rough lifestyle and eventually disappeared while John lamented how the DC residents "signed [the] death warrants" of ghoul families they once lived beside.The Sole Survivor: "He murdered those Ghouls."John Hancock: " "(John Hancock's dialogue)
===The truth===
In reality, the Great Green Jewel's incumbent mayor is an Institute plant, a synth infiltrator, designated M7-62,Institute SRB terminal entries; SRB terminal, Infiltrator Unit: McDonough who monitors developments in the Commonwealth and compiles reports on matters of possible interest to the organization.Justin Ayo: "If you're going to be in Diamond City anytime soon, I have a favor to ask of you. He monitors developments in the Commonwealth and compiles reports on matters of possible interest to us. Since you visit the surface more than anyone else down here, I figured you could pick up the latest report."The Sole Survivor: "How do we do this without raising suspicion?"Justin Ayo: "You'll meet with the mayor privately, away from prying eyes. Remember, discretion is vital to our operations in Diamond City, so try to keep a low profile."(Justin Ayo's dialogue); Hancock's brother had been kidnapped by the Institute and replaced with a synth duplicate sometime before 2282.The Sole Survivor: "What do you mean you didn't recognize him?"John Hancock: " "The Sole Survivor: "What do you mean you didn't recognize him?"John Hancock: " "(John Hancock's dialogue) 
After the mass exodus of its ghoul residents, in his position as mayor of Diamond City, the synth has been carrying out a secretive mission to infiltrate the city and its inhabitants from the Lower Fields to the Upper Stands, all while keeping everyone oblivious to his true nature as an Institute agent. His only point of contact was Conrad Kellogg, who lived nearby, as the Institute lacked another way to receive the messages from him without causing an uproar in the city.The Sole Survivor: "I'm not a mailman. Send one of your robots."Justin Ayo: " Remember, discretion is vital to our operations in Diamond City, so try to keep a low profile."(Justin Ayo's dialogue) McDonough took efforts to conceal his secret allegiance to the scientific community from the city's residents, even after local journalist Piper Wright caught a whiff of his plans and published a sensationalist piece smearing him as a synth and Institute lackey via her Publick Occurrences newspaper. Piper has gotten on the bad side of the mayor as a result of her spotlighting the rumors of his false humanity, which has led to her receiving a temporary ban from city limits.Political Leanings
The other issue facing the synth's mission is that his anti-ghoul rhetoric is running out of steam, especially with the foundation of the Slog by Wiseman outside of the Boston area. Evidence of peaceful, prosperous ghoul settlements will inevitably lead to people realizing that not all ghouls are monsters and eventually would allow someone to challenge McDonough's bigoted policies and remove him from power, as far as he sees it. McDonough determines that the Institute should consider engineering a situation where the ghouls are "less friendly."
McDonough's personal long-term goal is to eventually transfer within the SRB and become a courser. Not only is he unaware that his synth body would be incompatible with the lifestyle of a courser, but also that his handlers view his level of independence as too much of a liability. Furthermore, the Institute actually considers him expendable: if he is ever outed as a synth, he would be cut loose with an estimated survival time of two weeks.
===Relationships===
McDonough has been a popular mayor among merchants and the wealthy Upper Stands residents, due to his emphasis on keeping Diamond City prosperous and safe, but something of a conflicted figure among the Lower Field population due to the circumstances of his election and his refusal to investigate the recent spate of kidnappings allegedly orchestrated by the Institute, which has sparked mass paranoia within the community.
==Interactions with the player character==
===Interactions overview===
===Quests===
* Jewel of the Commonwealth: The Sole Survivor can first meet Mayor McDonough after Piper helps them get past the city's front gate. If an orange Charisma option succeeds, McDonough will point out where to find the Valentine Detective Agency to help them find Shaun.
* Getting a Clue: One of the options to opening the door to Kellogg's house involves talking to McDonough in his office and passing an orange Charisma option.
* Political Leanings: One must obtain McDonough's intelligence report and deliver it to Justin Ayo.
* In Sheep's Clothing: Following The Nuclear Option and the destruction of the Institute, returning to Diamond City reveals that McDonough was finally outed as a synth but took Geneva hostage. An orange Charisma option can get him to let his hostage go and then McDonough is either killed or allowed to leave freely.
==Inventory==
==Notes==
* His true identity as a synth can be learned at any time before or after completing the story with a non-Institute faction by triggering Political Leanings by talking to Justin Ayo, or by reading a terminal entry within the Institute SRB.
* If the player character enters his room, they can see two mannequins in a corner. One is dressed in a sweater vest and one is dressed in a red coat.
==Notable quotes==
==Appearances==
Mayor McDonough appears only and .
==Behind the scenes==
* The character of McDonough was inspired by real-life Boston mayor James Michael Curley, who served four terms as mayor in the 20th century. He was known as a colorfully corrupt figure in Boston politics, yet still incredibly popular among the working class.Emil Pagliarulo on Twitter: "Trivia! Mayor McDonough was actually inspired by real Boston mayor James Michael Curley. #Fallout4 #Boston"
* Piper's interactions with Mayor McDonough have parallels to Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein's reporting of the Watergate scandal which eventually led to the resignation of President Richard Nixon, who was known for proclaiming "I am not a crook!" This is further alluded to in Mayor McDonough's "I am not a synth" speech.
* McDonough was the maiden name of lead designer Emil Pagliarulo's mother.Emil Pagliarulo on Twitter: "Behold, my new family sword! Custom-made, Irish design. My mother's maiden name was McDonough, and growing up in South Boston, the Irish side of you tends to take over. The inscription reads, "Garg'n Uair Dhuisgear" - the McDonough battlecry, meaning, "Fierce when roused." ♥️☘️🗡"
* A loading screen in Fallout Shelter Online, set before Fallout 4, claims that there are no other non-humans in the city besides Nick, suggesting the mayor was replaced by a synth instead of always being one. However, Fallout Shelter Online was developed by an outside studio for non-Western markets and is considered outside of the series' main canonicity, so it should not be considered factual.
==Gallery==
FO4 Mayor McDonough hatless.png|McDonough without his hat
FO4 In Sheeps Clothing.jpg|McDonough holding Geneva hostage
==References==
Non-game
Category:Fallout 4 synth characters
Category:Diamond City characters
Category:Institute characters
Category:Fallout Shelter Online characters
Category:Post-War politicians
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