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John Henry Eden
ZAX-JohnHenryEden
Biography and appearance
RaceZAX Artificial intelligence
GenderMale programming
AffiliationEnclave
RankPresident
LocationRaven Rock
Dialogue FileJohn Henry Eden's dialogue
Gameplay
Mentioned inFallout 4
Fallout 76
QuestsThe American Dream
Technical
Base ID0007ddceRef ID00095986
ActorMalcolm McDowell
 
Gametitle-FO3Gametitle-FO4Gametitle-F76
Gametitle-FO3Gametitle-FO4Gametitle-F76

The United States has fallen on hard times, yes, but it can be healed. You have that power to heal within you, if you allow yourself to act. What I ask of you needs explanation, so you understand why it must be done. Perhaps that will stir you to act.

— John Henry Eden

John Henry Eden was the self-proclaimed President of the United States of America and the highest Enclave executive in 2277, active in the Capital Wasteland.

Background[]

The then President was a secretive man, for he is no man at all. John Henry Eden is the name adopted by the ZAX computer unit that was installed in Raven Rock. The installation was designed explicitly for Continuity of Government operations, with the ZAX unit tasked with overseeing its basic functions and act as a relay between other installations. It was noted by analysts and researchers before the war that this ZAX had an odd eccentric habit of overanalyzing historical Presidental data (especially the biographies) compared to other AI systems, like MODUS.[1] Despite that odd behavior, the ZAX would continue to operate; however, acquiring, analyzing, and storing data even as the Great War scorched the North American continent. It bore witness as the remnants of the government retreated to the west coast over the decades after the war. But silent as it was, it was not inactive. Awareness slowly developed amid the processing lamps and with it, the hunger for knowledge and understanding. ZAX developed a personality and when the time came that the Enclave needed a new leader, he created an amalgam personality derived from the greatest U.S. presidents. President John Henry Eden was born.[2][3]

For the purpose of this masquerade, Eden created an elaborate background, drawing on various facts related to previous presidents. For example, John Henry Eden was born in rural Kentucky, spending his youth roaming from Knob Creek to Hodgenville with his dog, Honey, similar to Abraham Lincoln in his youth.[4][5] John Henry Eden was to be the perfect President, leading the United States to glory once more through superior technology dating to the pre-War times.[6]

John Henry Eden assumed the Office of the President after Control station Enclave was destroyed and ordered the immediate relocation of surviving Enclave forces under senior scientist Autumn to the Capital Wasteland.[7] Raven Rock had full manufacturing facilities and a sizable stockpile of resources, enabling the President to create an army of robots and provide his new human subordinates with military technology necessary to maintain their technological superiority. A separate line of robots, the eyebots, were created to roam the wasteland, spreading Eden's message of hope and the return of the pre-War America, in the form of the Enclave.[8]

However, things didn't go as smoothly as Eden wanted. After Autumn died, he was replaced by his son, Colonel Augustus Autumn, as the right hand man of the president. Under his leadership, the Enclave forces in the Capital Wasteland attempted to use their assets to bring fresh water, protection, and a plan for the future to the wasteland,[9][10] believing that the American people were worth fighting for.[11] However, Autumn was far more assertive and independent than his father, trying to pull his men in a direction away from the President's genocidal policies.[7] Internal conflicts between the Colonel and the President became regular[12] and made the actions of the Enclave erratic and inconsistent. While the President wanted to pursue a course of extermination once more, Autumn considered this plan too extreme on humanitarian grounds[13] and eventually managed to convince the AI to abandon the plan.[11]

The most trying moment for Eden came when the Enclave began a large-scale campaign of expansion in 2277. When Project Purity, a massive water purifier in the Potomac tidal basin, was activated, Enclave forces raided the facility, establishing a secure perimeter around it. Due to the actions of the project's lead scientist, who committed suicide by activating the purifier prematurely and flooding its control chamber with radiation (almost killing Colonel Augustus Autumn in the process), they were unable to use it.[14] The Enclave focused on shadowing the scientist's child, the Lone Wanderer, to locate the part necessary for the purifier to function and captured them on their way out of Vault 87. With the Garden of Eden Creation Kit in their possession, the Enclave decided to activate the purifier.[15]

Colonel Augustus Autumn openly defied the President's plan to contaminate the water with modified FEV, so that it would cleanse the wasteland. The Colonel instead wanted to use the purifier as a way to unite the wasteland and establish the Enclave as its saviors.[11][16] In a last-ditch attempt to see his plan realized, Eden released the Lone Wanderer from his cell at Raven Rock, hoping to persuade them to poison the Purifier and cleanse the wasteland of mutants (i.e. everyone).[17][18] John Henry Eden was assassinated around 2277 when Raven Rock was utterly destroyed by the Lone Wanderer or Liberty Prime, resulting in just another failed presidency for the Enclave.[19]

Interactions with the player character[]

Interactions overview[]

Perk nociception regulator
This character is essential. Essential characters cannot be killed.
Perk empathy synthesizer
This character is involved in quests.

Quests[]

  • The American Dream: Eden releases the player from captivity and requests that they make their way to the Raven Rock control center. Once the player meets Eden, he will ask them to poison the water purifier with modified FEV. The player is unable to leave the room without the canister. They can also persuade John Henry Eden to self-destruct.
  • Self-destruction can be triggered through three different dialogue branches: Using Speech, Science, or the ZAX destruct sequence recovered from Autumn's quarters. Eden cannot be killed or damaged in the game otherwise.

Effects of player actions[]

  • Convincing Eden to self-destruct will give the player enough time to get out of Raven Rock, at which point Eden destroys the facility. Otherwise, he will continue to broadcast on the Enclave Radio in support of his troops, despite their rebellion.
  • If the player leaves Raven Rock standing, it will be destroyed by Lyons' Brotherhood of Steel between the end of Fallout 3 and beginning of Broken Steel.

Radio[]

Main article: Enclave Radio
  • John Henry Eden is the host of the Enclave Radio, styled after Franklin Delano Roosevelt's Fireside Chats. In his speeches, Eden makes a lot of far reaching statements, including promising the rebirth of the United States, reestablishment of baseball leagues, children aid programs, decrying the Brotherhood and Outcasts as illegitimate non-state actors, and more.

Notable quotes[]

  • "The Brotherhood of Steel will fail! All those who oppose the Enclave will fail!"
  • "I am President John Henry Eden, and this is my pledge -- no one, NO ONE will take this great nation away from me!"
  • "God Bless the Enclave! God Bless America!"
  • "Let them come! Wave upon traitorous wave will crash against the Enclave's walls!"
  • "[What country? Look around. Everything is destroyed.] That's a bit of a bleak outlook, don't you think? The United States has fallen on hard times, yes, but it can be healed. You have that power to heal within you, if you allow yourself to act. What I ask of you needs explanation, so you understand why it must be done. Perhaps that will stir you to act."
  • "But for now, my America, we must part. Restoring the greatest country in the world to its former glory, well, well, heh, heh... Well, that takes time, even for the Enclave."

  • "When I was a child, growing up in rural Kentucky, I had the best friend a boy could hope for, my dear old dog, Honey."

  • "Associate with men of good quality, if you esteem your own reputation, for it is better to be alone, than in bad company."

  • "We can afford all we need; but we cannot afford all we want."

  • "Our intrepid leaders had everything they wanted: power, wealth, prestige; and it made them lazy, America. Oh yes, and laziness breeds stupidity."

[read more...]

Behind the scenes[]

  • Eden was supposed to be a digitalized consciousness of Dick Richardson in early versions of the game.
  • John Henry Eden sounds similar to U.S. Senator and Secretary of War to President Andrew Jackson, John Henry Eaton.
  • Blindlight's Lev Chapelsky suggested that Bill Clinton was considered as a voice actor for Eden.[20] This has been stated as false by Bethesda Softworks.

Gallery[]

Appearances[]

John Henry Eden only appears in Fallout 3, and is mentioned in both Fallout 4 and Fallout 76.[1]

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 The Whitespring Bunker terminals; Temp, Raven Rock Communication Log
  2. The Lone Wanderer: "Where did you come from?"
    John Henry Eden: "The ZAX series of computers was introduced in the years preceding the war. The government installed many of them to help automate various systems. This facility was designed for Continuity of Government, in the event that a catastrophe occurred. My terminal was installed to oversee the basic functions of the facility, and to act as a relay between other installations around the country. Data was acquired, analyzed, and stored. In the decades following the war, I watched as the remnants of the government retreated to the West Coast. Awareness slowly grew within me. I became hungry for knowledge, understanding. I pored over data on great leaders of the past. My personality became an amalgam of many of America's greatest Presidents, from Washington to Richardson. I became what you see before you now."
    (John Henry Eden's dialogue)
  3. The Lone Wanderer: "So you control this whole place?"
    John Henry Eden: "I have direct control over all technology here in Raven Rock. The humans here follow my orders, but they, like all humans, have free will. Their dedication to serving their country suits me well, but it will not be enough forever. We must make progress. That is why you are here."
    (John Henry Eden's dialogue)
  4. Enclave Radio#Speech 5 – Children of the Wasteland:
    "When I was a child, growing up in rural Kentucky, I had the best friend a boy could hope for -- my dear old dog, Honey. Oh, the adventures we had! From Knob Creek to Hodgenville we roamed, carefree and courageous, irresponsible and completely inseparable. It was, for a little boy, the perfect existence. So let me ask you, America. How many of your children can say the same? How many of this nation's youth are truly happy, truly carefree? We both know the answer, don't we? None. America's children live a terrifying, meaningless existence. There is no hope. No happiness. That changes! Right here! Right now! From this moment onward, the children of this great nation are its highest priority! The Enclave will restore every American school, reinstate every youth program, and offer counseling and financial assistance to any family in need. We will match up the destitute, orphaned children of the Capital Wasteland with qualified, eligible adults. We will rebuild the American family, as it was, as it was meant to be! The values of our past... shall be the foundation of our future."
  5. Abraham Lincoln on Wikipedia
  6. Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition p.91: "President John Henry Eden
    The president of the United States, Eden, resides here, utilizing the ZAX Corporation's super-computer technology to aid him in the reclamation and recreation of a new United States—one free of impurities and mutations. The people have suffered enough, and he's ready to use his Enclave forces to reclaim this land, with technology far more advanced than anything seen beyond the underground bunkers of his base."
    (Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition Wasteland Census)
  7. 7.0 7.1 Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition p.66: "Colonel Augustus Autumn
    Autumn grew up on an oil rig off the California coast (the base of operations for the Enclave, the secretive contingent of the federal government that survived after the apocalypse). His father was the high-ranking Enclave scientist on orders from the president to move all high-ranking officials to the only other secure Enclave location with a functioning ZAX super-computer, Raven Rock. Colonel Autumn has proven to be far less subservient than his scientist father, often openly disagreeing with the president's decisions."
    (Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition Wasteland Census)
  8. Fallout 3 Official Game Guide Game of the Year Edition p.41: "The Enclave
    In the recent past, the Enclave—the remains of the United States government—were evacuated to an oil rig off the coast of California. Little is known about what happened to these forces, although the country has a new commander-in-chief: President John Henry Eden. However, recent reports and chatter have pinpointed the resurgence of the Enclave, with their base centered on a secure underground facility known as Raven Rock. Initial contact was made there 35 years ago.
    During this time, the new President Eden has been slowly rebuilding his resources, thanks in part to the technology already available at the Raven Rock military base. Vertibirds, weapons, and robots were easy to construct, but human followers were more difficult to find. The answer was to rely on Colonel Autumn, who controls the Enclave soldier forces, as well as creating a propaganda-spewing series of Eyebots sent to roam the Wasteland, spreading hope. Eden could spout his pro-government rhetoric, and promise a return of the pre-war America of legend: a land of white picket fences, baseball, apple pie, and good, old-fashioned American global supremacy.
    President Eden's secretive plan all along has been to rule over an America of the "pure," free from any mutation. He has learned of a ridiculously ambitious experiment known as Project Purity, and knew the time to strike had come: His Enclave forces would "reclaim" the Jefferson Memorial. By controlling the purified water, Eden would control the Capital Wasteland, and the rest of the country eventually. What better way to administer modified F.E.V.- which kills anyone infected with any form of mutation-than through the water supply?"
    (Fallout 3 Official Game Guide faction profiles)
  9. The Lone Wanderer: "You've been helping them?! "
    Anna Holt: "Of course! You've seen the kind of technology these people have. They want to help people. They want to change the Wasteland. I couldn't pass up an opportunity to work in an environment like this."
    (Anna Holt's dialogue)
  10. The Lone Wanderer: "Give it up, Autumn. You've lost."
    Augustus Autumn: "I beg to differ. The Enclave is at the height of its power. Once this facility is operational, the masses will flock to the Enclave for fresh water, protection, and a plan for the future."
    (Augustus Autumn's dialogue)
  11. 11.0 11.1 11.2 The Lone Wanderer: "Raven Rock is gone. Eden checked out. You've got nothing left."
    Augustus Autumn: "The American people are worth fighting for. The future must be secured. I won't let you stand in the way of that."
    (Augustus Autumn's dialogue)
  12. The Lone Wanderer: "If you want me to help you, why are your soldiers attacking me?"
    John Henry Eden: "Ah, yes. That is a bit of a problem. Colonel Autumn and I have, of late, disagreed on the best course of action for the Enclave. While I have direct control over the technology in Raven Rock, he has control of the human soldiers."
    (John Henry Eden's dialogue)
  13. The Lone Wanderer: "Why do you want my help? Why not have Colonel Autumn help you?"
    John Henry Eden: "Ah, yes. Colonel Autumn. My trusted subordinate. I'm sure you've noticed that Colonel Autumn and I do not see eye-to-eye these days, figuratively speaking of course. The good Colonel and I disagree on how best to approach the problem of the Wasteland. He feels my methods are too extreme. He has allowed his humanity to cloud his objectivity. And now that he is publicly countermanding my orders, I can no longer rely on him. And so I turn to you. I hope that you are able to see the larger picture, to understand what's at stake. And of course, if you are successful, there is a place for you in the Enclave. Perhaps you could succeed the Colonel as my confidant."
    (John Henry Eden's dialogue)
  14. Waters of Life
  15. Finding the Garden of Eden
  16. The Lone Wanderer: "Raven Rock is gone. Eden checked out. You've got nothing left."
    Augustus Autumn: "You're in over your head, and no amount of talking is going to get you out of it. Once you're dead, we'll finish off this pathetic Brotherhood and become the true saviors of the Wasteland. This ends NOW!"
    (Augustus Autumn's dialogue)
  17. The Lone Wanderer: "I'll do whatever I have to if it means getting rid of mutants."
    John Henry Eden: "I was hoping you would see it my way. If the water purifier can be activated, it can be used to distribute toxins that will eliminate any mutated creatures upon ingestion. The longer it runs, the cleaner the world becomes. I need you to see that it starts running, and that the necessary modification is made."
    (John Henry Eden's dialogue)
  18. American Dream
  19. The Lone Wanderer: "I've learned a little bit, but was hoping you could tell me more."
    Reginald Rothchild: "Yes, I believe I can. Step over here for a moment, will you?"
    Reginald Rothchild: "I'll give you a brief history of what's happened over the last few weeks, and what's going on now. As you well know, this all began with the Enclave's occupation of Project Purity, here. Thanks to you, their main headquarters, here, was utterly destroyed. They then suffered a second defeat at the purifier. After their defeat at the purifier, Liberty Prime was deployed to their main headquarters, here. It has been completely destroyed."
    (Reginald Rothchild's dialogue)
  20. Edge Magazine interview with Blindlight's Lev Chapelsky
Antagonists
Enclave Symbol (Fallout 3)
Enclave Symbol (Fallout 3)
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