Traveling through the Commonwealth alone is no fun, and Fallout 4 provides the Sole Survivor with an array of companions to lighten the load. Each companion is unique with likes, dislikes, and clear goals that may or may not align depending on choices made throughout any playthrough. As each companion grows to trust the Sole Survivor, they will open up more, eventually leading to some great personal quests for a few, although some of these quests are definitely better than others.

Companion quests, while a staple of other series, are still somewhat new to the Fallout franchise, first appearing in Fallout: New Vegas before being adopted by Fallout 4 upon release. With 16 companions to recruit in Fallout 4, it is a little disappointing that not all of them get the same treatment with their personal stories expanded on in a quest. However, seven lucky companions do request the Sole Survivor’s help with personal missions, offering extra glimpses into their lives, backgrounds, and hopes for the future.

7 Old Longfellow - Shipbreaker

Take On A Deadly Far Harbor Foe

Old Longfellow's quest is oddly one that isn't gained from him directly. While exploring the Island during Fallout 4's Far Harbor DLC, the Sole Survivor can pick up a radio message with their Pip-Boy that sounds like strange garbled noises. After hearing the message, the Sole Survivor can use the radio signal to track Shipbreaker. Shipbreaker herself is a unique fog crawler and a tough Fallout 4 boss, and attacking from a distance will offer the best chances. The quest itself is fairly straightforward, finding and defeating Shipbreaker, after which Old Longfellow can be spoken to about Shipbreaker.

Old Longfellow will explain that he had been hunting Shipbreaker for decades as she was unusually vicious and had taken many friends from him over the years. He will call killing her a public service, and give Skipper's Last Stand as a reward. This personal quest is an odd one as it is hidden and in a random location, there are even instances of the quest not triggering at all. While the fight itself is hard but fun, the quest lacks any strong ties to Old Longfellow beyond his story at the conclusion and doesn’t add anything to the character.

6 Ada - Automatron DLC

Track Down The Mysterious Mechanist

Ada is another companion gained through a Fallout 4 DLC, this time Automatron, and unlike Old Longfellow, Ada’s personal quest is a little more substantial. In fact, the entire plot of Automatron is Ada’s personal quest, as she seeks answers about the murder of her friends and fellow caravan robots. The Automatron questline is, again, straightforward and more akin to an old-fashioned dungeon crawl after following the clues to get into the Mechanist’s Lair. Ada is a delightful and upbeat companion who is fully customizable thanks to Automatron’s robot workbench, making her very versatile.

The plot for Automatron is a mixed bag of fetch quests, as Ada needs a set amount of specific items to move the story forward, and a battle through the Mechanist’s Lair to find the person responsible for so many deaths. Automatron has an interesting and sympathetic villain, with the Sole Survivor able to choose whether to save or kill the Mechanist. However, for a personal quest, Ada is still strangely disconnected, with the Mechanist having no personal grudge against the robot or her companions, as the DLC serves simply to introduce the robot workbench into the game.

5 Cait - Benign Intervention

Help Cait Get Clean In Vault 95

For such a tough and brusque companion, Cait's personal quest is quite touching, if narratively lacking. As someone who has led a harsh and often brutal life, Cait is naturally wary of trusting others, with this reflected in the 750 affinity points needed to begin her personal quest. Cait will confide in the Sole Survivor about her past and her battles with addiction, noting that her current addiction to Psycho is affecting her health. She will explain that she's heard Vault 95 has a machine to help cure her and asks for help getting to it.

The rest of the quest is a fight through Vault 95, which is full of Gunners, plus their turrets and robots. Finally, Cait can be purged of all the chems in her system and her addiction to them. While the sentiment is a powerful one that many may feel a resonance with, having Cait's addiction magically cured robs her of what could have been an interesting struggle and character arc. Although Cait does mention that her addiction has ed the point of normal treatment, having her attempt other methods before Vault 95 would have packed more of a punch.

4 Robert MacCready - Long Road Ahead

Take Down Some Gunners & Then Save A Young Boy

MacCready is a returning character from Fallout 3, all grown up and working as a mercenary in the Commonwealth. His quest takes place in two parts, with the first task being to deal with some Gunners MacCready has run afoul of. In this part of the quest, MacCready will open up slightly about his time with the Gunners and his reasons for leaving. This serves as a good way to get to know him a little better beyond a smart-mouthed merc and, after helping him, MacCready will return the caps used to hire him as a show of gratitude.

The second part of MacCready’s quest comes after the Sole Survivor has gained more affinity with him. MacCready will share significantly more about his personal life as well as the circumstances that brought him to the Commonwealth; the health of his son, Duncan, who is gravely ill. MacCready wants help finding a cure for Duncan’s illness, and he believes something that can help his son is located in Med-Tek Research. MacCready’s quest is a touching look at how far a parent will go to protect their child and really shows the depth of his character.

3 Curie - Emergent Behavior

Help A Friend In The Next Stage Of Their Life

Curie is a fan-favorite Fallout 4 companion, and it's not hard to see why. From her optimistic outlook and cheerful demeanor to her delightful accent, traveling with Curie is always a pleasant experience. After exploring the Commonwealth for a while with the medical robot and reaching 250 affinity points, Curie will confide in the Sole Survivor that she wishes to become human to help further her research. Taking Curie to Goodneighbor to speak with Doctor Amari in the Memory Den, and after 24 hours, will find a body waiting in the form of a Gen 3 Synth named G5-19.

The main quest "Dangerous Minds" will need to be completed for the option to speak with Doctor Amari to appear.

G5-19’s memories have been wiped so many times by the Synth Retention Bureau that it has caused Amari's memory replacement operation to fail. Depending on where in the main questline the Sole Survivor is, the person accompanying will be either a nameless member of the Railroad or Glory, with the latter needing to be persuaded to give up their friend's body for Curie. The end of the quest can result in some mixed feelings, with a new human form for Curie and the option of a romance with her, but with all the implications of simply taking someone else's body neatly swept aside.

2 Paladin Danse - Blind Betrayal

Literally A Choice Between Life & Death

Despite being able to meet and have Paladin Danse as a companion relatively early in Fallout 4, his personal quest is locked behind the main Brotherhood of Steel questline. After gaining access to the Institute with the help of the Brotherhood, the Sole Survivor has the option to give them a holotape containing data gathered from the enemy faction. Doing so will set "Blind Betrayal" into motion and lead to a conversation with Elder Maxson, who will expose Danse as a Synth. The Sole Survivor will then be tasked with locating the runaway Paladin to kill him.

There are other options during the quest which can be boiled down to siding with either Danse or Maxson, as the Sole Survivor must decide whether they believe Danse is a person, regardless of him being a Synth. As Maxson arrives to ensure his orders are carried out, one of the best scenes in Fallout 4 plays out, with exceptional voice acting from the cast. If saved, there is some change in Danse’s attitude. However, given the limitations of Fallout 4, the opportunity for a complete character arc, such as having him then the Minutemen, is missed.

1 Nick Valentine - Long Time Coming

Help Solve A 200-Year-Old Cold Case

After completing "Dangerous Minds" and reaching over 750 affinity with Nick Valentine, he asks the Sole Survivor for help with an old cold case that links to the original Nick Valentine. Detective Valentine was investigating a mobster named Eddie Winter before the war, something that ended up getting Nick's fiancée, Jenny Lands, killed. Synth Nick wants help collecting 10 holotapes scattered across the Commonwealth so he can figure out where Eddie is hiding. After collecting them all, Nick can finally confront Eddie Winter, who is now a ghoul, and close the original Nick's last case.

Although Nick's quest is a collecting quest, it offers a fascinating insight into the mind of the Synth detective. He is still haunted by the memories of the original Nick Valentine to the point he'll speak about the identity crisis he's been living with since he woke up in the Commonwealth. Nick reveals that he hoped that with Winter gone he'd be free of Nick's ghost and be able to be his own person. Although brief, Nick's quest is fantastically written, making it not only the best companion quest in Fallout 4, but one of the best in the game.