What happens if you go to Nuka-World before meeting Preston?
As an avid Fallout 4 explorer approaching level 30, you may be eager to jump into the Nuka-World DLC content and begin your climb to the top of the raider food chain by becoming Overboss. However, that path to vicious raider supremacy risks compromising your standing with Preston Garvey and the Minutemen faction later on. This guide will unpack exactly what happens when you complete Nuka-World before locking horns with Preston in Concord as well as how to tactfully navigate relations with both groups.
Preston‘s Initial Reaction to a Raider Overboss
When you first meet Preston after claiming the mantle of Nuka-World Overboss, he will still recognize your importance in the fight against the Institute and implore you to help rebuild the Minutemen. As Gamers Heroes notes, "Preston will still offer you the Minutemen quests after meeting him and everything will proceed normally regardless of your actions in Nuka-World."
However, upon returning to Sanctuary Hills, Preston‘s attitude shifts dramatically once he realizes your ties to the raider groups. Aghast dialogue pops up like:
"General, while I‘m happy you‘ve returned, I can‘t ignore the company you‘ve been keeping. If we‘re to bring the Minutemen back from the brink, we‘ll need to cut ties with those raiders. Please, tell me that you will end this."
He outright refuses to even travel with you again, stating:
"I can‘t support something I know is wrong. If you insist on siding with those raiders, consider this my resignation from the Minutemen."
This rift remains until you betray the raider gangs and complete the Open Season endgame quest.
Why Preston Takes Issue with Your Raider Leadership
The root of Preston‘s intense condemnation of your Nuka-World raider kingpin status ties back to his primary character motivation – protecting the vulnerable settlers and citizens of the Commonwealth from exploitation.
As the last Minuteman standing when you first encounter him, Preston is obsessively devoted to serving the greater good and rebuilding a force capable of staving off both ferocious creatures and unscrupulous groups seeking to prey on defenseless settlers.
Obsidian describes his core driving force as "Preston‘s dedication to the Minuteman cause and protecting the people of the Commonwealth from any and all threats."
From Preston‘s perspective, the raiders you ally with are cruel opportunists that endanger innocents. By becoming their Overboss, you directly oppose the Minuteman ethos regardless of any past camaraderie. There is no gray area or moral wiggle room for compromise.
The Cost of Siding with Raiders When Claiming Settlements
While Preston will tolerate you completing Nuka-World content and becoming Overboss up through defeating Colter in the arena, major blowback arises once you start claiming Commonwealth settlements for your gangs of raiders.
When Shank offers repeatable quests to capture settlements, you can choose up to three locations in the Commonwealth that will then have raiding parties deployed and be transformed into vassal bases for the Disciples, Operators, or Pack gangs.
However, this also means you are actively terrorizing, subjugating, and likely executing many Commonwealth settlers at each location. For staunch defender Preston, this is anathema to everything he and the Minutemen try to prevent.
According to VG247, Preston draws the line here for cooperation: "He hates you as soon as you have claimed ONE settlement as a raider outpost." No negotiations or excuses will dissuade him from the irreparable damage you‘ve already caused.
Number of Settlements That Can Be Claimed
You may be wondering – just how many Commonwealth settlements can be transformed into raider outposts through Shank‘s quests? The answer is up to 3 settlements.
Shank provides repeatable quests to capture specific allied settlements at intervals as you gain raider gang favor. There are only enough quests available to claim a maximum of 3 locations in the Commonwealth for the raider groups, which can be handed out across the 3 gangs at your discretion as Overboss.
| Raidable Settlements | 3 |
|---|---|
| Max Settlements Raided for Raiders | 3 |
So if you desire to retain Preston‘s alliance in the long run, capture no more than 2 raider outposts before resolving to cut ties with the gangs when confronting him again.
Regaining Preston‘s Support via Open Season
Once you‘ve reached a point where Preston condemns your raider affiliations and abandons the role of companion and Minuteman supporter, there is only one main avenue back into his good graces – triggering the endgame quest Open Season to dismantle the Nuka-World raider empire from within.
As FandomSpot states, completing Open Season is essential for non-hostile relations: "You need to complete the Open Season Quest to eliminate the Disciples, Operators, and Pack Raider gangs before Preston will trust you again."
The objectives for Open Season are straightforward:
- Kill bosses: Mags, William, Mason
- Wipe out all named raider lieutenants and soldiers back in Nuka-World
- Travel to any claimed raider outposts in the Commonwealth and eliminate the groups stationed there
Once no more raider outposts remain under gang management, report back to Preston to confirm you have purged their influence from the region and ended their brutal subjugation of settlers.
Doing so mends your relationship, with Preston grudgingly stating: "I‘m not going to say I agree with everything you‘ve done up to this point. But it‘s clear the raiders are no longer a threat, and that‘s good enough for me." He then resumes providing Minuteman radiant quests and combat support against threats.
Takeaways on the Sequence of Meetings and Maintaining Ally Status
When evaluating the outcomes of completing Nuka-World content both before and after encountering Preston Garvey in Concord, the key takeaways are:
✅ Meet Preston at any time with no initialissues
✅ Become Nuka-World Overboss at any time with no initial issues
❌ DO NOT claim more than 2 raider outposts in the Commonwealth before finishing his questline
❌ DO NOT remain allied with raider gangs when meeting an already-companion Preston
✅ Regain Ally status via Open Season quest after breaking ties with raiders
As long as you limit raider outpost claims early on and are willing to unravel your raider empire by eliminating all gangs when the time comes, you can navigate both storylines as the Overboss while keeping Preston as a close ally.
The intricate dance between these pivotal faction storylines highlights the greatest strength of Fallout 4 – forging your own path through morally gray choices across a landscape of complex character motivations. Understanding what Preston can tolerate and where he draws the line will guide any aspiring Overboss in balancing their conquering raider ride toward power.
