“Patrol the whole length of the Colorado for hundreds of miles? Holding this dam. It'll be the death of us.”
Chief Hanlon is a member and the commanding officer of the New California Republic's Rangers, responsible for coordinating Ranger operations throughout the Mojave Wasteland from their headquarters at Camp Golf in Fallout: New Vegas. He is a veteran of the republic's war against Caesar's Legion, having commanded the Rangers during the First Battle of Hoover Dam.
Quick Answers
What are some memorable quotes from Chief Hanlon in Fallout: New Vegas?
Chief Hanlon from Fallout: New Vegas has several memorable quotes. He says about a general, 'He is a trooper, through and through. The man will not give up an inch for anything, least of all to the Legion.' He also expresses his concern about the dam, stating, 'Patrol the whole length of the Colorado for hundreds of miles? Holding this dam. It'll be the death of us.' Additionally, he humorously remarks about his own role, 'If the rangers haven't caught up to you yet, they will. Myself excluded, of course. The only thing I catch up on now is chair time.'
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What are the consequences of turning in Chief Hanlon?
If you turn in Chief Hanlon, he commits suicide following a speech over the intercom. A Ranger then guards his body. His Ranger Sequoia is left on the ground. This decision significantly impacts the game's ending. Alternatively, you can opt to kill Hanlon, but he advises against it due to the location being a ranger base.
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What role did Chief Hanlon play in the First Battle of Hoover Dam?
In the First Battle of Hoover Dam in 2277, Chief Hanlon led the NCR Rangers and First Recon sharpshooters. He executed a tactical retreat, setting explosives to ensnare the Legion's elite in Boulder City. This strategy led to a significant NCR victory, severely damaging the Legion's elite force. Hanlon's strategic acumen was key to this victory, despite disagreements with General Lee Oliver.
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How long has Chief Hanlon been a member of the New California Republic's Rangers?
Chief Hanlon has served the New California Republic's Rangers for more than four decades. His tenure began prior to Elise's appointment as Ranger Chief in 2241, witnessing the transformation of the Rangers from a modest abolitionist group to a substantial, professional military unit.
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Background[]
“Chief Hanlon is the head of the NCR Rangers and is one of its longest serving members. He coordinates the actions of the rangers from the headquarters at Camp Golf.”— Fallout: New Vegas loading screens
Hailing from the heartlands of New California, Hanlon is one of the Rangers' longest-serving members,[2] having joined over 40 years prior to 2281, sometime before Elise became Ranger chief around 2241. Over nearly half a century of service, he saw the Rangers grow from a small, rag-tag group of abolitionists with a clear moral sense into a large, professional military force that has become less scrupulous in performing their duties.[3]
Hanlon admits to feeling that many of the things he saw as a Ranger changed him and his relationship with the republic itself. One of these pivotal moments occurred sometime between 2256 and 2261, when he led a six-man team of Rangers to investigate reports of raider attacks on a small settlement called Rattletail in the Baja region. It took the Rangers a week to get to Rattletail, during which the group suffered complications, losing one to night stalkers and another nearly dying of dehydration. What they found upon reaching Rattletail was a slaughter, including 24 bodies shot dead among the dunes by the NCR settlers armed with .308 rifles who had claimed the only well within fifty miles and opened fire on anyone who tried to reach it. Contrary to the reports of vicious raiders, the dead were not heavily armed or raiders, simply desperate wastelanders looking for a drink. To prevent further loss of life, Hanlon sold them a story about an incoming raider army, one hundred strong, and his group losing ten Rangers already on the way in, and offered to escort the settlers back to the NCR, which they accepted and eventually resettled in Anza-Borrego as bighorner ranchers. Since then, Hanlon considers it his one good deed in over 40 years of service.[4]
Despite his doubts about their policies, Hanlon served the Rangers and the republic to the best of his ability. Once in the position of chief himself, Hanlon has developed a legendary reputation for his use of misdirection, traps, and ambushes, frequently executed with the use of explosives, especially mines. He solidified his skill as a strategist in the minds of Caesar's Legion in the wake of the First Battle of Hoover Dam,[5] when Hanlon's leadership and coordination of Ranger forces led to the breaking of the Legion's offensive during the battle by luring the bulk of their forces across the Hoover Dam and into a trap at Boulder City; filling multiple buildings with great amounts of explosives, the Rangers detonated them when the Legion came, killing countless legionnaires in the process, though it also cost the lives of Rangers and NCR troopers who could not escape in time.[6][7]
Highly influential among the Rangers due to his success and experience, Chief Hanlon has been honored many times for his contributions to the NCR. Although he no longer engages in combat operations, he nevertheless continues to coordinate Ranger operations. As a war hero and a veteran of countless campaigns, he is a powerful influence in military circles, and even has the ear of NCR President Aaron Kimball, though the republic's leader tends to favor the advice of his own coterie of war hawks. Hanlon learned this the hard way when his request to reassign the Rangers' veteran members to the Mojave was ignored in favor of deploying them to Baja, on a mission that the chief blithely regards as "chasing ghosts."[8] The situation has not been helped either by the actions of General Lee Oliver, bitter over Hanlon and the Rangers receiving the bulk of the credit for winning the First Battle of Hoover Dam. In his position as general of the republic's Army forces in the Mojave, Oliver and Hanlon don't always see eye to eye on tactical decisions, and this has caused the chief no small amount of stress in an uphill struggle with his own allies for the past several years.[9]
Fed up with the bickering and internal politics that have plagued him, Chief Hanlon eventually took a hard look at the Mojave Campaign and came to the conclusion that attempting to hold on to the dam and annex New Vegas would eventually kill the republic. The war with the Legion has left its toll on the Army's men and women, and along with his frustrations at Mr. House's casinos bleeding the NCR's soldiers dry while relying on their protection, Hanlon has been left fearing for the future of the NCR even in the case of victory against the Legion a second time. Hanlon believes the task of trying to hold both sides of the Colorado River is too much for the Army or even the Rangers to maintain long term. His fears have culminated in him undertaking a secret campaign to deliberately sabotage the war effort through manipulating intelligence reports sent in from Ranger stations across the Mojave, trying to convince the top brass that the situation was more hopeless than it was in reality. In the end, he wishes that the NCR would decide to cut its losses and abandon the frontier, putting a stop to the constant shedding of its own blood for territory.[10]
Interactions with the player character[]
Interactions overview[]
| Interactions | ||
|---|---|---|
 |
This character is involved in quests. | |
Quests[]
- Return to Sender: It is discovered that Hanlon is falsifying field reports. Once discovered, the Courier can either let Hanlon continue with his plan, turn him into the NCR authorities, or in the event of Caesar's death, inform him that falsifying the reports is pointless as Caesar is dead.
Other Interactions[]
- Passing a 50 Speech skill check allows one to ask Hanlon to tell the story of Rattletail and the Rangers' involvement.
Effects of player's actions[]
- If one completed Three-Card Bounty for Major Dhatri at Camp McCarran, Hanlon will thank the player character for helping out.
- If one completes Return to Sender by turning Hanlon in, he will give a brief speech over the intercom before proceeding to commit suicide. A Ranger will exclaim "That shot came from the chief's office," and will run in, guarding the body. The speech is as follows:
- “Rangers, this is the Chief. I know I can ramble on sometimes, but I need you to listen close for the next minute or so. I got some bad news. I messed up, made a mistake. I thought I could help us get out of here, but it didn't work out. Rangers get injured all the time, it's part of the job. But if you lose a few fingers, get a bad break, that's it. You step down. We rely on each other too much to let our infirmities become a liability. A ranger knows when it's time. Only I didn't. Somewhere along the way, something broke inside me. I couldn't find us a way out of this desert. I wrestled with it, and it took me down a dark road. I wish I could explain it to you. The old chief's finally at a loss for words. Send me all the Legion you can; I'll be waiting for them.”
- This method is the only way, other than pickpocketing a living Hanlon, to acquire his personal Ranger Sequoia revolver (it will still be marked as owned and will incur Karma loss).
Endings[]
This section is transcluded from Fallout: New Vegas endings. To change it, please edit the transcluded page.
|
# |
Slide | Voice-over narration | In-game condition |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  |
After the death of Chief Hanlon, the power of NCR's Rangers was broken for years. Their organization, so reliant on the wisdom and guidance of its elder members, became a shadow of what it once was to people across the wasteland. |
Chief Hanlon is killed. |
| 2 | |
Defying Chief Hanlon's worst fears, NCR's rangers persevered and distinguished themselves during the Second Battle of Hoover Dam. The rangers, along with NCR's many troopers, shared the glory of victory. Hanlon wisely stayed out of the spotlight, crediting General Oliver's leadership for NCR's success. After a brief fanfare, Hanlon stepped down as chief and returned to the peace and quiet of his ranch outside of Redding. |
Don't expose the Chief, complete the endgame quest Eureka! for the NCR. |
| 3 | |
During the attack on Hoover Dam, Chief Hanlon and his rangers threw themselves into the path of the Legion assault, dying to the last man and woman. In the aftermath that followed in the NCR, bitter citizens and opportunistic senators were quick to denounce President Kimball and General Oliver. Hanlon and his fallen rangers were revered for their bravery and sacrifice. |
Don't expose the Chief, complete the endgame Veni, Vidi, Vici for Caesar's Legion. |
| 4 | |
Despite distinguishing themselves during the Second Battle of Hoover Dam, the rangers' victory was short-lived due to the Courier's interference. Chief Hanlon personally directed the evacuation of the rangers to Mojave Outpost as they fell back into NCR territory. Bitter over the waste of life in the Mojave, Hanlon stepped down from his post. After a campaign in which he denounced Oliver's and Kimball's hawkish, imperialist ways, Hanlon was elected as the senator of Redding. |
Don't expose the Chief, complete No Gods, No Masters or All or Nothing. |
| 5 | |
Although they performed admirably during NCR's defense of Hoover Dam, the rangers fell into decline soon after. With Hanlon's plot against the occupation exposed and Oliver hailed as NCR's new war hero, many rangers were greeted coldly on their return home. Few openly blamed the rangers for Hanlon's treachery, but public and political support for the organization quickly dwindled. |
Hanlon commits suicide, complete the endgame quest Eureka! for the NCR. |
| 6 | |
With Caesar's victory came a small measure of vindication for the rangers' late Chief Hanlon. Upon the military's return, debate raged within NCR's senate about who was to blame for the loss of Hoover Dam. Though some in NCR regarded Hanlon as a traitor, many believed he was the only military commander who saw the futility in defending New Vegas. |
Hanlon commits suicide, complete the endgame Veni, Vidi, Vici for Caesar's Legion. |
| 7 | |
Although they performed admirably during NCR's defense of Hoover Dam, the rangers fell into decline soon after. With Hanlon's plot against the occupation exposed and Oliver denounced for losing Hoover Dam, many rangers were greeted coldly on their return home. Few openly blamed the rangers for Hanlon's treachery, but public and political support for the military as a whole quickly dwindled. |
Hanlon commits suicide, complete No Gods, No Masters or All or Nothing. |
| 8 | |
Due to the Courier's intervention, Chief Hanlon abandoned his plan to sabotage the defense of Hoover Dam. The rangers assisted the troopers admirably during the Legion's ill-fated attack. Though General Oliver and Chief Hanlon were both praised for their leadership, the chief quietly stepped out of the spotlight. After a brief fanfare for a life full of accomplishments, Chief Hanlon retired and returned to the peace and quiet of his ranch in Redding. |
Convince the chief to stop falsifying records, complete the endgame quest Eureka! for the NCR. |
| 9 |  |
Due to the Courier's intervention, Chief Hanlon abandoned his plan to sabotage the defense of Hoover Dam. The rangers heroically assisted NCR's troopers in their ill-fated defense against the overwhelming power of Caesar's Legion. Though many NCR military officers fled the territory soon after the dam was lost, Chief Hanlon remained at Camp Golf to surrender to the Legion. Out of respect for Hanlon's composure and worth as an adversary, Caesar had him beheaded. |
Convince the chief to stop falsifying records, complete Veni, Vidi, Vici, do not allow Caesar to die in Et Tumor, Brute?. |
| 10 | |
Due to the Courier's intervention, Chief Hanlon abandoned his plan to sabotage the defense of Hoover Dam. The rangers heroically assisted NCR's troopers in their ill-fated defense against the overwhelming power of Caesar's Legion. Though many NCR military officers fled the territory soon after the dam was lost, Chief Hanlon remained at Camp Golf to surrender to the Legion. Despite the late Caesar's respect for Chief Hanlon as an adversary, Legate Lanius had Hanlon crucified along with all of the other rangers. |
Convince the chief to stop falsifying records, complete Veni, Vidi, Vici and allow Caesar to die in Et Tumor, Brute?. |
| 11 | |
Due to the Courier's intervention, Chief Hanlon abandoned his plan to sabotage the defense of Hoover Dam. The rangers assisted the troopers admirably during the Legion's ill-fated attack. Though the Courier snatched victory from NCR, only General Oliver was blamed for the loss of Hoover Dam. Hanlon, exhausted after¹ a lifetime of service to the NCR, stepped down from his position in the rangers and retired to his ranch in Redding. |
Convince the chief to stop falsifying records, complete No Gods, No Masters or All or Nothing. |
- ¹The narrator for this scene says "exhausted from a lifetime" instead of "exhausted after a lifetime."
Inventory[]
| Apparel | Weapon | Other items | On death |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ranger vest outfit, 88% condition | Ranger Sequoia, 90% condition Combat knife, 35% to 65% condition |
1 to 9 .45-70 Gov't rounds OR 1 to 17 .45-70 Gov't rounds (w/ Scrounger) |
Notes[]
- Hanlon is typically found on the balcony of the House Resort within Camp Golf, and will not discuss quest matters except for when he is outside on the House Resort balcony. He mans the radio on the balcony from 8 AM to 7 PM.
- Hanlon may often be found sleeping next to other unnamed NCR rangers in bed. This is a result of emergent NPC behavior rather than any scripted narrative intent; Hanlon's double bed is not marked as owned, meaning that any non-player character with a Sandbox AI package, or the player character, is allowed to use it in place of or alongside Hanlon. The unnamed NCR rangers and veteran rangers in the House Resort all have a Sleep, Eat, and Sandbox AI package, and their Sleep packages are set so that they will only sleep in the barracks on the first floor of the resort. However, the rangers who are active at night are allowed to sleep during their Sandbox package (unlike the "day shift" rangers), and because their sandbox range allows them to wander the entire resort, they may end up sleeping in Hanlon's bed.
Notable quotes[]
- "[How long have you been in the rangers?] Oh, well. I guess it must be coming up on... forty years or so. Back before Elise was chief, anyway. It was a heck of a lot harder then. Weren't as many of us to go around. But I think it was a lot easier to tell the good guys from the bad."
- "[How does spreading false intel help anything?] People back home don't listen. They don't care. Senators, Brahmin barons, folks who are just trying to make it from day to day. It's been so many years that people forget about it. Conscription brings in fresh troops to die here every month. Like it's routine. And even if we hold this dam, what then? Are we going to send the NCR's men and women to die here for another five years? Ten? Patrol the whole length of the Colorado for hundreds of miles? Holding this dam. It'll be the death of us."
- "Rangers, this is the chief. I know I can ramble on sometimes, but I need you to listen close for the next minute or so. I've got some bad news. I messed up. Made a mistake. I thought I could help get us out of here, but... it didn't work out. Rangers get injured all the time. It's part of the job. But if you lose a few fingers, get a bad break, that's it. You step down. We rely on each other too much to let our infirmities become a liability. A ranger knows when it's time. Only I didn't. Somewhere along the way, something broke inside me. I couldn't find us a way out of this desert. I wrestled with it, and it took me down a dark road. I wish I could explain it to you. The old chief's finally at a loss for words. Send me all the Legion you can. I'll be waiting for them."
- "Back west, you don't see too many of these. Lakes, I mean. Natural or man-made. Any kind, really. We neglected the dams or pumped all the water out a long time ago. Owens, Isabella, the San Luis. Drained the aquifers of everything they had. Just a lot of mud and dust now. It's a different feeling, watching the sun come up over the water. Takes some getting used to. But if you're here long enough, it starts to seem normal. That's what a ranger's life is now. Looking east."
- "[Tell me about the heavy troopers.] They have the best equipment the NCR can get its hands on, power armor salvaged from our war with the Brotherhood. Techs strip out the joint servos so you don't need special training to wear it. It feels like you're carrying a Brahmin on your back, but it can take a heck of a lot of punishment."
- "[How is NCR doing?] Mojave Outpost sent word through the stations. The rangers coming up from Baja moved through Dayglow a week ago. Some of the patrol rangers have reported that Oliver's power armor heavy troopers are starting to reinforce the front lines. Wish they got here a bit earlier, but that's the senate for you."
- "You must be the courier folks have been talking about. Word on the radio is that someone wronged you back in Goodsprings. The Mojave has a way of burning decent people up, but it sounds like you've done right by the NCR. It's appreciated. Now what can I do for you?"
- "I know a bit about you, courier. Heard someone messed you up pretty bad over in Goodsprings. I heard a few other things too. Some good, but not all. If you're going to be associating with rangers, you'd best stay on their friendly side. With that out of the way, what can I do for you?"
- "I'm surprised to see you here. Folks with your kind of reputation, I expect to see them cooking in the sand with some .44 slugs to keep them company. If the rangers haven't caught up to you yet, they will. Myself excluded, of course. The only thing I catch up on now is chair time."
Appearances[]
Chief Hanlon appears in Fallout: New Vegas and is mentioned in its add-ons Honest Hearts and Lonesome Road. He also appears in Fallout: Wasteland Warfare.
Behind the scenes[]
Hanlon's voice actor, Kris Kristofferson, in the voiceover booth
- Joshua Sawyer wrote Hanlon's dialogue.[Non-game 1]
- Chief Hanlon of the NCR Rangers is voiced by Kris Kristofferson, who himself served in the United States Army as a helicopter pilot and also attended the U.S. Army's Ranger School.
- In localized versions of the game, Hanlon's voice is dubbed by Patrice Melennec (French) and Manuel Bellido (Spanish).
Bugs[]
Hanlon sometimes glitches and stops talking during his speech. The quest should go on as normal and he will shoot himself 20–30 seconds after he stops talking. This will happen even if you have your Pip-Boy up or if you've paused the game completely, and when you resume, the rangers will react accordingly. (You can still hear his speech in full by going to Data → Misc and playing the audio.)[verified]- Even if the player convinces the chief to stop falsifying the reports, they will still get ending 2 (siding with the NCR) or ending 4 (siding with Mr. House or Yes Man) instead of endings 8 or 11, respectively. [verified]
Gallery[]
Fallout: New Vegas Collector's Edition playing card
Chief Hanlon in Fallout: Wasteland Warfare
Unit card
References[]
- ↑ Fallout: New Vegas endings, NCR Rangers: "Despite distinguishing themselves during the Second Battle of Hoover Dam, the rangers' victory was short-lived due to the Courier's interference. Chief Hanlon personally directed the evacuation of the rangers to Mojave Outpost as they fell back into NCR territory. Bitter over the waste of life in the Mojave, Hanlon stepped down from his post. After a campaign in which he denounced Oliver's and Kimball's hawkish, imperialist ways, Hanlon was elected as the senator of Redding."
- ↑ Fallout New Vegas loading screens
- ↑ The Courier: "How long have you been in the rangers?"
Hanlon: "Oh, well. I guess it must be coming up on... forty years or so. Back before Elise was chief, anyway. It was a heck of a lot harder then. Weren't as many of us to go around. But I think it was a lot easier to tell the good guys from the bad."
(Hanlon's dialogue) - ↑ The Courier: "There must be something good the rangers have done that you're proud of."
Hanlon: "[SUCCEEDED] It's kind of a long one, but all right. About twenty, twenty-five years ago, a group of NCR settlers pushed way south into Baja. I guess it doesn't seem so far now if you look at a map, but back then, they were out a ways. They built this little shanty town around a well in the middle of nowhere. Called it Rattletail."
The Courier: "[Continue]"
Hanlon: "Word got back to one of our stations that raiders had been attacking the place. I went out with six rangers. We must have been on the trail for a week before we got to Rattletail. We lost one woman to Night Stalkers and another almost died of dehydration. When we reach the place, it's six shacks set up around an old well."
The Courier: "[Continue]"
Hanlon: "There's over two dozen bodies lying in the dunes way outside of town and five men with .308 rifles crouched behind sand bags. And these bodies, these people out in the sand, they aren't raiders. Aren't even heavily armed. They're just people who were trying to get to the only well in fifty miles. I didn't have to talk to the men to see that they did not care one bit."
The Courier: "[Continue]"
Hanlon: "They had planted an NCR flag over the well and they would not budge until every last one of them was laid out, dead and cold. So I walked up and told them there was a group of raiders coming, one hundred strong. I made up some cockamamie name for them and everything. The men looked at each other, looked at us, and asked me what we were going to do about it."
The Courier: "[Continue]"
Hanlon: "I told him we would take them back into NCR territory because we had already lost ten rangers on the way out. Ten rangers, five men with .308 rifles. Well, that was enough for them. They packed up what they could and we took them back north. Last I heard, they settled somewhere in Anza-Borrego. Raised Bighorners. Had some tough times, but it worked out okay for them. So there you go. That's my one bit of good."
(Hanlon's dialogue) - ↑ Ulysses: "A tactic of the Bear."
Ulysses: "Worthy of Hanlon."
(Ulysses' dialogue) - ↑ The Courier: "You said you made a promise not to kill me. Why?"
Ulysses: "Caesar's orders. Some time before I realized the why of it. Wasn't just you. All couriers. No telling how many were Legion. Maybe all of them. Wasn't sure about you. Until the Divide... all the NCR burning... that much death, it bears the mark of a Legion hand. But you killed like NCR. Like Hanlon, with mines, bombs... missiles. Killed Legion along with the Bear. Like a coward, kills from a distance. If you were Legion, then NCR beat you, the West changed you."
(Ulysses' dialogue) - ↑ The Courier: "[Legion] The dead? You mean your brothers in the Legion - our brothers."
Ulysses: "The Legion who died here... they didn't deserve to die, like those that died in the fires of Boulder City... bombs, Hanlon's gifts. Their deaths were mercy compared to those who still walk. Any who die beneath the flag of the Bull... their death should be in battle. But no... the dead number more than my brothers."
(Ulysses' dialogue) - ↑ The Courier: "What's going on in Baja?"
Hanlon: "It's complicated. Goes way back. I told President Kimball that we need more rangers here. He accepted that, but took the most experienced ones and sent them south. Patrol rangers are good men and women, but we're about to fight a war."
(Hanlon's dialogue) - ↑ Courier: "Tell me about General Oliver."
Hanlon: "Oh, well... now, you'll have to excuse me. The general and I don't always see eye to eye on things. Maybe it's best that I just say that he is a trooper, through and through. The man will not give up an inch for anything, least of all to the Legion."
(Hanlon's dialogue) - ↑ The Courier: "How does spreading false intel help anything?"
Hanlon: "People back home don't listen. They don't care. Senators, Brahmin barons, folks who are just trying to make it from day to day. It's been so many years that people forget about it. Conscription brings in fresh troops to die here every month. Like it's routine. And even if we hold this dam, what then? Are we going to send the NCR's men and women to die here for another five years? Ten? Patrol the whole length of the Colorado for hundreds of miles? Holding this dam. It'll be the death of us."
(Hanlon's dialogue)
Non-game
- ↑ Joshua Sawyer Formspring posts/2011:
Question: "I know you were the project director of F:NV, but what contributions did you make?"
Joshua Sawyer: "For F:NV, I designed (but did not write the dialogue for) all of the companions and companion arcs. I did all of the system design and balancing. I wrote all of the high level RDCs (Region Design Constraints) that area designers used to write their ADDs (Area Design Docs). I wrote the dialogues for Arcade Gannon, Chief Hanlon, and President Kimball. For Honest Hearts, I was also the project director. I wrote the story, designed and tuned most of the gear, designed all of the main characters (the Happy Trails caravan, Ricky, Joshua Graham, Daniel, Follows-Chalk, Waking Cloud, and the Survivalist) and wrote Joshua Graham and Daniel (Ricky, Stella, and the Survivalist were written by John Gonzalez; Jed Masterson, Follows-Chalk, and Waking Cloud were written by Travis Stout). For Gun Runners' Arsenal, I did all of the design except for scripting, which was done by Jorge Salgado and Jeff Husges. On the other DLCs, all I did was weapon tuning."
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