Companions

1. Summary

The player commands three levels of activity but directly plays only Edmund. The roles differ in function, not because Lorraine is less competent than her brother.

2. Rules

…

2.1 Three Complementary Gameplay Roles

Edmund — Operational level. The player directly controls Edmund in first person. He explores, investigates, traverses, fights if necessary, searches documents, handles equipment, and completes objectives.

Lorraine — Tactical level. Lorraine is Edmund's twin sister and a combatant whose military training is comparable to his. She is feminine, refined, and affectionate without being weak or inexperienced. How Edmund treats her in the field: See: Characters › Lorraine.

Hamish — Strategic level. Hamish coordinates communications, intelligence, finances, contacts, logistical opportunities, and selected interventions that change the conditions in which Edmund operates. He is not a second ordinary follower with the same tactical commands as Lorraine.

2.2 Lorraine — Tactical Companion

Lorraine functions as the principal tactical companion.

Her military training, her combat competence and the strength behind her refined manner are described with her. See: Characters › Lorraine.

Edmund communicates with her as a trusted, equally trained partner.

2.2.1 Assignments and Equipment

Lorraine may accompany Edmund, guard a location, protect Hamish, or remain at an assigned position while Edmund investigates elsewhere. The player can hand suitable recovered weapons to her. Her military capability should be reflected in accurate handling, tactical movement, awareness, appropriate use of cover, and independent reactions to threats.

2.2.2 Tactical Commands

Representative player commands:

• Follow Me — accompany Edmund.
• Move to Position — travel to an indicated reachable position.
• Hold Position — wait at the assigned location.
• Guard This Area / Guard This Entrance — cover a doorway, corridor, or defined position.
• Return to Hamish — return to the strategic station and protect him.
• Regroup — return to Edmund when practicable.

The availability of specific commands depends on the circumstances and location.

2.2.3 Illustrative Exchange

Edmund: “Lorraine, guard that entrance. I'll have a look inside.”

Lorraine: “Understood. I'll cover the corridor.”

2.2.4 Autonomous Tactical Judgment

Lorraine uses her own tactical judgment. She should not behave like an invulnerable automated turret or require an explicit command for every defensive action. She may observe threats, seek cover, communicate warnings, or refuse a suicidal exchange. Her assigned position and equipment meaningfully affect risk.

Lorraine should demonstrate autonomous tactical behavior, including seeking cover, identifying immediate threats, and protecting herself.

2.2.5 Proximity and Mandatory Survival

Certain later main-quest objectives require Lorraine's direct cooperation, although most exploration remains optional in terms of her proximity. Edmund can return to collect her from the surface and travel with her to previously visited levels. Her survival is a mandatory narrative condition: Lorraine's death results in Game Over.

She is not required to accompany Edmund throughout every section of D2. The player may leave her on the surface and return to retrieve her when desired. Whether later mandatory objectives require her: See: Canon › Open Questions.

2.3 Hamish — Movable Strategic Support Station

Hamish operates as Edmund's strategic support coordinator. The strategic capabilities and institutional interventions available to him are described in Strategic Preparation. See: Systems › Strategic Preparation

2.3.1 The Support Station

Hamish establishes a physical support station somewhere suitable on the surface, using a notebook computer, communication equipment, and portable power storage supported by solar panels. Through the expedition's radio network and his external contacts, he can investigate opportunities, coordinate assistance, and provide intelligence.

He maintains a portable communications and computing station powered through equipment prepared for the expedition, including solar-supported electrical storage.

His role includes:

• Providing available historical and technical intelligence.
• Communicating through the expedition's encrypted radio system.
• Supporting logistical planning.
• Identifying resources and opportunities.
• Utilizing previously established contacts.
• Attempting institutional interventions when strategically available.

2.3.2 Relocation

The player can open the surface map and order Hamish to relocate to another suitable destination. He moves physically, carrying or re-establishing the support equipment as needed. He is not free to appear instantly anywhere. Some sites are too dangerous or unsuitable; Hamish may advise against relocating to them or the system may restrict them based on the conditions of the location.

Hamish may relocate among suitable surface positions through the player's map interface. He can advise against positions that he considers excessively dangerous.

2.3.3 Armament and Vulnerability

He begins without a firearm. The player can later give him a recovered suitable weapon, allowing limited personal defense without transforming him into an expert combat follower. An unprotected strategic station is vulnerable if soldiers discover it; assigning Lorraine to guard him can reduce that vulnerability at the cost of losing her immediate tactical support.

The player must account for his vulnerability, especially if Lorraine is not protecting him.

2.3.4 Hamish's Eventual Death

Hamish's eventual death later in the story is an important narrative and mechanical event, not an event that occurs in Chapter Four. His unique strategic abilities matter precisely because his presence is consequential.

Hamish's eventual scripted loss in the broader campaign should be handled separately from the companion capture risk model.

2.4 Companion Capture and Emergency Rescue

…

2.4.1 Surrender Before Shooting

Lorraine and Hamish can be surprised by military personnel. A confrontation does not necessarily begin with immediate gunfire.

When soldiers surprise an isolated companion, immediate shooting is not mandatory. They may order surrender, kneeling, or restraint before attempting to carry out standing orders against unauthorized intruders. This creates the possibility of a radio warning and an emergency rescue situation rather than an arbitrary instantaneous loss.

2.4.2 Distress Call and Rescue Window

Hamish or Lorraine may be caught by a patrol, especially when poorly equipped or unguarded. A captured companion can transmit a distress call, and an emergency rescue opportunity may begin. An established benchmark is approximately ten minutes before execution, subject to how the encounter and world state make the threat legible and reachable.

The rescue is an actual event in the persistent world: soldiers are present, the companion is in danger, and Edmund must act. The timer is not merely a decorative mission marker. A trapped companion temporarily cannot perform normal tactical or strategic duties.

Such situations may trigger a time-limited rescue opportunity. Failure to save Lorraine results in Game Over.

3. Player Feedback

…

3.1 Lorraine's Execution Over the Radio

If Lorraine is executed, Edmund hears a gunshot over the radio, reacts in disbelief — for example, “Oh God... no.” — and the image darkens into Game Over. The moment should be restrained, immediate, and devastating rather than melodramatic.

4. Interactions

• Hamish's strategic capabilities inherited from Chapter Two and his institutional interventions. See: Systems › Strategic Preparation
• The soldiers who surprise and capture companions. See: Systems › Military Threat Levels
• Lorraine and Hamish as characters. See: Characters › Lorraine and See: Characters › Hamish

5. Persistence

Companion survival requirements and emergency rescue behavior remain active throughout applicable sections of the campaign.

Companion armament and assigned locations are persistent records. See: Systems › Persistent Consequences

6. Design Principles

Companion danger must be readable and should arise from simulated exposure, positioning, and encounters rather than a hidden random instant-death roll.

7. Open Questions

…