Brotherhood of Iron

Overview	Episode 1

“	These guys are just using whole-body replacements. And low-quality ones from a shoddy workshop at that…	”
–Roland, The Brotherhood of Iron Episode I, Pre-Battle

The Brotherhood of Iron is a Syndicate composed of members using full prosthetic body replacements, wanting to focus on gaining money without the worry of biological conditions like hunger or disease. However, despite the combat advantage this gives them, their new bodies have only created a new set of problems for the Syndicate's members, from lack of bodily senses to mechanical maintenance issues, as they are quickly discovering. They are the first Syndicate group contacted by the Invitation and are the third group of Guests to enter the Library, comprising Canard Chapter 3.

Composition

Character	Description
Mo	The most focused member of the group, and possibly their leader. Mo is single-minded in pursuing money and notoriety for their Syndicate, and constantly reminds the others to keep up their own maintenance and focus on earnings. Mo believes that in the end, life is all about money. Mo is seen wielding a rifle in the story scenes, but in combat, Mo uses a large chainsaw sword.
Consta	Consta is the most absent-minded of the trio, often drifting off into thoughts of food - a desire Consta can no longer fulfill. With their machine body, Consta's sense of taste and hunger have been removed, but their mental craving for food remains rampant. Consta carries a long chainsaw sword for combat.
Arnold	Arnold is a quiet but cautious member of the Brotherhood, trying to stay level-headed about their tasks. Arnold seems to be highly observant regarding what they can fight and the technology of their body replacements. Arnold's right arm has been fitted with a chainsaw, used for combat.

Story

Episode 1

The Brotherhood of Iron finding their Invitation

Pre-Battle

The Brotherhood of Iron is seen in their hideout in the Backstreets, with Mo reminding the others about regularly refilling their heads with 'brain fluid' so their minds stay sharp. Consta and Arnold discuss where the group plans to rob next; Arnold suggests a workshop for components. Consta suggests raiding an Office to gain infamy but Arnold believes that they are not strong enough to take on an Office with anything of worth to them.

Consta then suggests a restaurant for food but is scolded by Mo, who reminds them that they replaced their own bodies to focus on the work of gaining money. It is all about money after all. Once they have earned enough, they intend to upgrade to better body replacements. Despite how expensive their current bodies were, they are of such low quality that they can still remember experiences and sensations like taste or touch which distract them from their work. With higher quality bodies, they can suppress these phantom thoughts. The costs of these high-quality bodies are extremely high, comparable to that of a Nest household, but Mo urges them to keep on earning and leave the consideration of cost for later.

Suddenly, Arnold notices an Invitation embedded in Mo's shoulder, which Mo doesn't notice at first since their bodies do not feel touch. After investigating and accepting it, they choose to seize the opportunity and enter the Library.

Back in the Library, Angela comments on the Syndicate's disorderly nature, expecting more "refined" individuals. Roland indicates that Syndicates are extremely common and are on all levels of professionalism. He tells Angela that the Brothers are not machines, simply humans with machine bodies, and that intelligent machines no longer exist in the City.

In the Library's entrance, the Syndicate members discuss the task before them. After being greeted by Angela, Consta and Arnold fear that they've been tricked into a ploy of the rich set up for their own entertainment. Mo pushes them to keep going now that they have no way back, and with that, the Brotherhood's members enter Reception.

Post-Battle

After the Brotherhood of Iron is defeated, Roland tells Angela that full-body replacements are generally a poor choice, especially because the transition is a "one-way ticket" and machines, even replacements, are forbidden from be made to look human. He explains that alternative body enhancements like tattoos, drugs, and prosthetic limbs can avoid the trouble of full replacement with similar effectiveness. Still, Roland notes that replacement can be useful in two situations: to quickly gain large amounts of money by selling one's body parts, or for convenience when doing repetitive tasks over long periods, as mechanical parts are easy to replace and/or repair. The mention of repetitive tasks reminds Angela of her past life.

Background

Survival in the City can be harsh for those who do not enhance their bodies. Prosthetics of all types exist in the City, offering various advantages, from greater strength or speed to even eliminating needs like sleep or hunger, though their effectiveness is based on their price. This is what influenced the Brotherhood of Iron, who are a group of old friends with close bonds, to choose full-body prosthetic replacements, believing they would be able to earn money faster with prosthetics. However, their reality is somewhat different. They are experiencing various new inconveniences, such as distracting thoughts of human desires that can no longer be fulfilled with their machine bodies. Furthermore, despite their low quality, their replacement bodies already cost a large sum, and the price of better-quality prosthetics is higher still.

Now, the Brotherhood's goal of earning money is dedicated solely to upgrading their bodies so that they can suppress their desires and overcome their current inconveniences.

Key Page stories

Mo’s Page

I frankly don’t recommend replacing your entire body with a machine. Especially with a cheap one. Aside from basic issues such as vulnerability to damage and creaky noises, cheap prosthetic bodies compromise too much. You’re basically giving up all the joys of life. Can you imagine? You can’t taste anything when you eat delicious food, and you can’t feel the softness and coziness of a good bed. You can’t feel anything get stuck in your body, be it a piece of paper or a knife. The head remembers those feelings, but you can’t experience them again. There are ways to overcome it, though. You can buy a desire stimulation chip and plug it in your brain, inject medications, or use other methods. They’re just absurdly expensive. You’re better off saving up for a more expensive prosthetic body if you really want your senses back. High quality, pricey bodies come with sensory organs. As I always say, it’s all about money in this world.

Consta’s Page

What’s your favorite food? That’s the question I used to ask the most when I still had a human body. I love… looooove eating. Talking about food was a huge delight for me. We would share each other’s tastes and preferences, and sometimes head to a restaurant for a meal just like that. But now… My body’s a machine as you can see. I can’t taste anything anymore. Thanks for pointing that out. Mo told me to stop dreaming about it. I still wanna try more delicious foods, though. Hot and flavorful… Spicy and sweet… Stuff like that. I guess this body is too cheap to restrain delusional thoughts like this. If we get more money and change our bodies to new ones… then maybe I’ll be able to stop these thoughts from getting in the way of my work?

Arnold’s Page

The City consists of 25 Nests, and 25 Districts of the Backstreets that surround those Nests. And countless Offices and Syndicates reside in the Backstreets. You know what’s a surefire way for a Syndicate to make a name for itself among all the competitors? The simplest method is Office raiding. You literally storm into an Office and wreak havoc on it. You never know who will be the winner until you fight. It could stop at a good beating and one side surrendering, but some Syndicates raid Offices out of pure boredom and kill everyone. Each Syndicate has its own way of operation. It goes without saying that the Syndicate has more fame to gain out of raiding a high-grade Office filled with seasoned Fixers. So the Offices have to stay sharp at all times. But you’ll also have to watch it. If you misjudge your opponents, you’ll end up dead before you could try anything…

Battle Symbols

There is one Battle Symbol related to this group; see their reception page for more details.

Gallery

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  Mo
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  Consta
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  Arnold

Trivia

• Mo possesses a ranged weapon, a rifle, in their story sprite but does not use it in battle. Instead, Mo uses a chainsaw sword like the other two during the reception.
• The members of the Brotherhood of Iron appear twice during the String Theocracy opening video. Arnold first appears as one of the three guests playing poker. In the following scene, Arnold and one other silhouette are seen cut into thirds by Roland.
• All named characters and their Key Pages from this chapter possessed idle animations during Early Access; idle animations were removed shortly before the game's full release.