Headboys

The Headboys logo

The Headboys are Wastrels that have banded together and formed a large criminal outlaw gang in the Garden District.

Headboys patrol the streets of the Garden District. While passive during the day, they will attack the player if they're spotted during the night.

Overview

Headboys can be found concentrated in several places throughout the Garden District; in the absence of the government and the bobbies, they have free reign to steal from and kill people as they desire. Often times, they can be seen attempting to steal from fellow survivors, such as Ralph Chunder and Ollie Starkey, and they regularly kidnap people that are of use to them, like Nigel Lawson and Private Burton.

The largest contingent of Headboys is located in the Hooligan Camp, where they bet on and watch fights between the Wastrels that they have captured. They can also be found guarding areas that contain loot, such as cellars or hatches. When night falls, the Headboys take to the street, patrolling in a similar manner to the bobbies in Hamlyn Village. Unlike the bobbies, however, they will not care if the player has the skill that allows them to ignore the curfew; they will still attempt to kill the player if they spot them outside at night.

History

The origins of the Headboy gang are largely unknown. Judging by a note, they appear to be led by someone named Pinky Cox. In the years leading up to the events of We Happy Few, the food production of Wellington Wells collapsed and the city began suffering from an ever-worsening shortages. The Garden District, in particular, was neglected by the Executive Committee, and any Wastrels or Downers that lived there were forced to fend for themselves and make ends meet however they could. Several of these people banded together and formed the Headboys.

Appearance

Headboys wear dark-grey leather jackets and trousers. The fronts of their jackets are adorned with black pins with white symbols on, and the backs have two folding knives and a crown crudely drawn on them - the symbol for their gang. They also wear the same custodian helmets that the bobbies wear, acting as a flashlight to help them see at night.

Behaviour

Headboys are typically armed with shovels and cricket bats, though they may also carry head knockers and double knockers. Unlike regular Wastrels who usually throw rocks or bricks, Headboys will either throw bricks or spiky bricks at the player, the latter of which can cause bleeding. When not provoked, they act similarly to any other Wastrel.

Loot

When killed/knocked out, the play can loot the following items from them:

• Bobby Pin
• Foodstuffs
• Jimmy Bar
• Lockpick
• Metal Bits

Locations

Through some lethal convincing, the Headboys have managed to take over various locations in the Garden District which hold various useful and coveted supplies. The player can, if they're handy, manage to take down the Headboys and steal the loot for themselves. Do note that if the player enters or gets too close to their premises, they'll be seen as trespassing.

Headboy buildings and assets include:

Hooligan Camp

Located on Barrow Holm, the Hooligan Camp is a military base-turned-hideout for the Headboys. The Headboys have set up an arena within the camp where they force Wastrels to fight each other and bet on the outcome. The camp is entered during the quest "Rorke's Drift Bridge".

Nigel Lawson's Restaurant

A tower-like structure with a large courtyard, a locked front door, and a staircase leading up to the top floor. The courtyard is guarded by four Headboys, and there are two more Headboys within the tower itself. The interior of the tower is furnished like a restaurant, with Nigel taken as their personal chef. The front door is locked from the inside and the player will have to clear out the Headboys in order to open the door. Once the player has cleared out the Headboys, they can talk to the Wastrel cook, who will then offer them free Chunky Stew once per day, every day. The "Haute Cuisine" quest is centred around the structure.

Cellars

Cellars can be found throughout the Garden District, and some are occupied by Headboys. Certain types of sellers will be guarded by two Headboys, with four more inside behind a locked door. These root cellars contain chests and crates filled with various kinds of loot.

Hatches

Some hatches, found within small cobblestone huts surrounded by a wall, are guarded by two Headboys. The Headboys can be seen standing over the bodies of two Wastrels, possibly the previous inhabitants.

Water Pumps

Water pumps found within the Garden District are usually secured with a padlock and is guarded by a number of Headboys; sometimes, they will even booby-trap the area around them with tin can alarms and tripwire bombs.

Watchtowers

An extremely tall tower-like structure built on top of a hill, with a pathway leading up to a small guard house located at the foot of the tower. The structure is decorated with black Headboy banners, with a large Headboy flag hoisted from a flagpole at the very top. Next to the guard house is a gate which leads to a series of platforms and ladders through which the player can access the crow's nest at the very top of the tower. The crow's nest itself contains a door which leads to a second set of platforms which grant access to a lookout platform at the very top of the tower, which houses the flagpole. Given the extreme height of the structure, a fall from the crow's nest or lookout platform is lethal. The pathway, guard house, crow's nest and lookout platform are all guarded by a total of six Headboys. The guard house and the crow's nest both contain chests and crates with loot. These structures are exclusive to Survival Mode.

Events of We Happy Few

Act I

Arthur encounters the Headboys after entering their camp, in search of David Livingstone's war medals and a power cell. After entering an elevator, Arthur is captured by some Headboys and forced to fight in the arena. After dealing with his former co-worker, Danny Defoe, as well as Celestia Worrall and Sandy Fothergill, he is left for dead at the bottom of the base. Arthur makes his escape through a vent, grabbing the medals and power cell along the way.

Later, when Arthur approaches the Train Station, he sees some Headboys attempting to infiltrate Ollie Starkey's home. They manage to blow up the front entrance to the station, letting themselves inside. When Arthur discovers that the tracks underneath the station have caved in, he's ambushed by three Headboys who decide to beat him for some more loot.

Act II

While having little to no direct impact on Sally's campaign, she must navigate through a house that the Headboys have taken over to find some Knockout Syringes.

Sally later searches through the collapsed Train Station for some butterflies, at which time she overhears a Headboy getting brutally murdered by a group of Plague Wastrels.

Act III

At the beginning of Ollie's act, the Headboys begin to bomb the Train Station shortly after he and Arthur bid each other farewell. They have acquired a large amount of explosives after having captured and interrogated a soldier from the Home Army. Ollie then goes to free the soldier, facing even more Headboys.

We All Fall Down

A note found in a Plough Boys hideout reveals that on 12 October 1964, the leader of the Headboys, Pinkie Cox, reached out to the leader of the Plough Boys, Ronny, in pursuit of a truce between the two gangs.

Trivia

• Before being properly implemented, Headboys were just Wastrels wearing the Bobby Helmet.
• It was planned that the Headboys would wear white turtle-necks, similarly to the Plough Boys. However, this ended up not happening.
• One of the pins on the jackets of the Headboys says 'Carylitz'. This is a subtle credit to Carylitz Tamez, the 3D/Environment Artist at Compulsion Games, who modelled their clothes.
• There is evidence from graffiti in the Garden District that they are rivals with the Plough Boys, a gang of Wellies who reside in Hamlyn Village. Some might even be former members.
  • By the events of We All Fall Down, this feud had been squashed, with the two gangs now being allied.

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