Fallout 4

It occurred to me just now. Hear me out.

If we do Blind Betrayal - which we all do - and ask Maxson to spare Danse - which we all do - Maxson acts strangely out of character by letting Danse go, going back to the ship... and then telling the Sole Survivor to just keep it hush and play it cool... and then promote them?

Let's break this down.

1. Maxson lets Danse go, in a clear violation of his own beliefs. One can understand the rationale of letting it go. Maxson simply made the tactical choice of losing one of his best soldiers to keep another, instead of just losing both and also making an enemy of one of them - a powerful, well connected local.

2. Maxson decides to not pursue the issue. He spares someone who has dirt on him. Not only that. He keeps them around. Theoretically, he could just pretend to accept the Sole Survivor's demands and say "I'll see you at the Prydwen" - and then have a squad of mean fuckers in T-60s take him down under charges of high treason. It's in his best interest, even, in some ways. The logic is a bit more forced, here, but still makes sense. As the one mole in the Institute, it's worth keeping the SS around, even if they already have everything they need to put Liberty Prime together at this point.

3. Maxson promotes the Sole Survivor. This is where the logic seems to completely fall apart, at first glance. There is no practical reason to promote the Sole Survivor. It is counter-productive to promote the Sole Survivor. "Oh but it was a cover-up to make people think Danse got shot" - so what they need a cover story? It would make more sense to simply give the SS a medal or something, and leave the topic alone. "Oh he needs a new Paladin to replace the old Paladin" - the obvious right move is to promote Knight Rhys. He has the "Maxson is Steel Jesus" loyalty vibe. He is a member of the squad. He's been in the 'Wealth as long as Danse had been and is the only Knight left from that squad. He is a better candidate, period.

So, why?

Because Maxson knew what the Sole Survivor is.

A protagonist.

He doesn't phrase it in his head like that, but he knows the Sole Survivor is the "unknown variable", the big factor of change, the one that makes the events move forward. Even if the SS is just one person, he knows, instinctively, that becoming their enemy will spell their doom.

Why?

Because he's seen it before.

Picture a young Maxson. He's raised by the Lyons, Elder and Sentinel. Shy, nervous, bookish kid, the last Maxson, sole heir to the most prestigious name in the world, with all the crushing weight that comes with it. And then, one fine day, some baby-faced Lucy-MacLean-ass, vault dwelling motherfucker comes out of Vault 101, and in like a week and a half proceeds to kill half of the Wasteland raiders, countless Super Mutants and monsters and what have you, then a Behemoth, then an entire Enclave battallion, then the Enclave President, and then die of radiation poisoning to fix the water in the Capital wasteland - AND THEN get better from their case of the deads, and lead the charge against THE ENTIRE FUCKING ENCLAVE REMNANT.

As we know from lore, Maxson went from shy kid to Wasteland Superman almost immediately. Killed a Deathclaw at 13, killed the Super Mutant boss Shepherd at 15, brokered the Outcast return at 16, and was crowned King of Steel or whatever.

One might even imagine that young Maxson realized that people who can do impossible things exist. That he might have something to prove, that he could be overshadowed. But that's beside the point.

Maxson then takes the Prydwen to the 'Wealth. His recon patrol identified the next great glorious crusade, and it's time to bring the airship to where the action is. And guess what he finds? Apparently, some baby-faced, Lucy-MacLean-ass, vault dwelling motherfucker recently came out of Vault 111, and his trusted Paladin Danse says that they're formidable and should be promoted right away, and that his whole squad owes their lives and their mission success to them, et cetera et cetera. And then, that person finds by themselves how to break into the Institute, which is universally considered to be impossible.

Huh.

Maybe there's something in the food, down in them Vaults.

My theory is, Maxson knows the Sole Survivor is The Person Destined To Win This. He realizes that every task the last Vault Person From Hell took upon themselves got done, no matter how impossible, and that every person that defied them died in a matter of days, and that this miracle-weaver must be the new Vault Person From Hell. He knows that becoming their enemy is A Bad Fucking Idea (TM). And he knows, at a subconscious level, that somehow, against all odds, being the enemy of this person is going to end with him dead. After all, killing an Elder is a less impossible feat than breaking into the Institute and coming back to tell the tale.

Elder Maxson has seen what The Protagonist can do, and he knows what they look like. He grew up under the shadow of one. And there ain't no fucking way he's gonna make them an enemy.

The promotion to Knight is an olive branch. It's him saying, "hey, I know you forced me to betray my honor and let loose a machine who knows way too much about the Prydwen and now may be within reach of the Institute, thus risking a massive security breach. But no hard feelings. I am not mad. I promise. Please don't think I am mad. I really want us to be friends. My name is gonna stay green if it's up to me, okay?" It's his reaction to subconsciously understanding what it means when The Protagonist has A Mission To Kill You in their fucking Pip-Boy. (Hint: it means they kill you.)

And the promotion to Sentinel? The ultimate insurance. It means the SS stays Brotherhood. It means that all BoS personnel in the 'Wealth is his subordinate, meaning that no local can create a situation with Maxson - like, say, a jealous Rhys - without having to go through the SS first. (Hint: they would not make it through the SS.) And finally, it means that they don't have to follow when Maxson goes on his next great glorious crusade. No risk of the SS getting that Mission to Kill Him, because the SS will stay in the 'Wealth, taking care of it in whatever way.

TL;DR - Maxson saw, as a kid, what the Lone Wanderer was capable of in Fallout 3. He takes one look at the Sole Survivor, and understands that this is THEIR story, not his, because he's seen it before. So, when Blind Betrayal takes the "Danse lives" path, Maxson knows better than to follow his heart (and his beliefs, and protocol, and logic) and try to get rid of the SS. He remembers when Autumn tried that with the LW. Everything thereafter makes wicked sense, if we believe that Maxson knows that he is dealing with the hero of this story and trying to not become its villain.

My vote would be investigating the museum of witchcraft. Starts with ominous whispers, spooky location, builds fantastic tension. Great scene, genuinely slightly stressful first time creeping through... Then... Death claw...

Wait I'm not scared of death claws in this game. I killed one in the first half hour...

Was exploring near Old North Church and found a small unmarked cottage. Inside was a raider so I immediately shot his head off when he noticed me. And then... meowing. Repeated meowing. My cat irl wakes up and starts looking around and that's when I notice the raider had a pet cat living with him. I walked into a man's house, murdered him for getting mad, and his cat watched the whole thing. I've never felt more guilty about anything in this game, wtf lol