Once you complete A Refreshing Bit of News quest on Paradise Island in The Outer Worlds 2, Minister Milverstreet isn’t done with you yet. The eccentric minister’s next request, in side quest The Brain Benders of Auntie’s Choice, sends you north to Westport — a Protectorate settlement that’s refusing to fall in line with Auntie Choice’s brand of “benevolent progress.” Your mission is to convince them to relocate to Fairfield. How you do it, by persuasion or sabotage, is entirely up to you, but of course, one way is easier than the other, and we’ll tell you about it in a while.
This quest is one of many side activities you perform on the Paradise planet for your access to the Vox Relay to infiltrate it for The Saboteur of Paradise main quest, and it’s a tricky mission. Here’s how to complete The Brain Benders of Auntie’s Choice in The Outer Worlds 2 with a complete walkthrough of all objectives.
How to Start The Brain Benders of Auntie’s Choice in The Outer Worlds 2
The quest unlocks right after you finish A Refreshing Bit of News by delivering Mental Refreshment Data to Milverstreet in Fairfield. He’ll be happy since you completed the task for him and wants to task you with a new assignment, which is to persuade Vigilant Hogarth and the Westport inhabitants to relocate to Fairfield.
If you prod him for a better deal, you can talk him into handing over his actual Gentleman’s Oxonian hat instead of a replica. Either way, the hat and a route toward the Vox Relay are on the line. Before moving forward, stock up on ammo, a couple of Auntie’s Choice consumables, and anything that levels up Speech or Engineer skills.
- Related: The Outer Worlds 2 In Pursuit of Purloined Propaganda Walkthrough: All Science Magazine Locations
Go to Westport and Meet Vigilant Hogarth
Westport sits northeast of Fairfield, close to the coastline on the southern Paradise Island. You can fast travel if you’ve already unlocked the area, but walking there the first time gives you a chance to scavenge some decent loot from the Crabbles and Raptidons along the way.
When you arrive, head straight for the tall central building (Hogarth’s headquarters) and go upstairs on the second floor to find him standing on a balcony overlooking the ocean.
Hogarth doesn’t hide his skepticism about your visit. He’s proud, stubborn, and still loyal to the Protectorate, but he is tired as well. If you press him about his failing systems, he’ll give you a hint that persuading the people to move would take something drastic. Either make life in Westport unbearable by sabotaging the town system, or convince key figures to defect.
Before moving forward, talk to Hogarth again and ask about his mechanical units. This unlocks his side quest called The Saga of the Malfunctioning Mechanicals. It’s a missable quest, so you should complete it here first, as it not only nets you XP but also extra Bits from Milverstreet at the end.
How to Sabotage Westport’s Infrastructure
This is the fastest way to complete The Brain Benders of Auntie’s Choice because it won’t be easy to put some sense into the NPCs you need to convince to move to Fairfield, and one of these three guys is Charlton Weintraut, whom you also meet in the For Whom the Bridge Tolls quest. To fail the town Infrastructure, you’ll need to disable three core systems: the water purifier, the broadcast facility, and the power generator. Once all three are offline, Hogarth will have no choice but to take everyone to Fairfield.
1. Sabotage the Water Purifier
From Westport’s courtyard, head north toward the docks. The water station is fenced off and guarded by a Dragoon and some automechs. If you’d rather avoid combat, look for a ladder behind the medical clinic that leads to a maintenance walkway running along the cliffside. It’ll bring you out behind the purifier without raising alarms and making anyone hostile, who can become angry if they see you fighting.
Press Examine key to interact with Westport Potable Water Supply, and you’ll get two options:
- Add Luxe Flourish Skin Powder (from Milverstreet’s starter kit) to contaminate the water.
- Use the Engineer skill of level 2 to dismantle the purifier.
Before leaving, check the nearby toolbox for an Anthony Rodgers Tossball Card. Easy to miss, but worth snagging.
2. Sabotage the Westport Broadcast Facility
At Hogarth’s balcony, collect the Keycard – Westport Broadcast Facility on a table surrounded by chairs.
Take the keycard, then exit the building and look to the west of Westport little right in front when standing at the building exit (as pointed out in the above image), where you’ll see the small broadcast facility building with a satellite dish on top.
The entrance is locked, so use the keycard to unlock the door to enter the building and interact with the terminal on the right side of the inner room. Switch the broadcast from Protectorate propaganda to Auntie’s Choice Automated Propagandizer. The loudspeaker’s voice spreads all over the town and everyone hears it.
3. Sabotage the Power Generator
Now for the final piece: the town’s power supply. The generator building is on the southeastern edge of Westport and to the right of the main building. Move upstairs to the west to reach the generator building, but its doors are locked with no keycard to unlock them.
The front part of the roof is damaged. Climb to the rooftop using the boxes through the right side of the structure and drop inside through that broken gap.
In the room, hit Examine to interact with the main generator and choose one of the following:
- Use the Explosives skill level 2 to blow it outright.
- Use a Portable Galvanic Subverter (Milverstreet gives you one) to fry it.
Before you leave, collect the Keycard – Westpoint Generator Station off the crate there to open the front door and walk out like nothing happened.
Return to Vigilant Hogarth and Convince Him to Relocate
Once you have successfully sabotaged Westport’s system, you can now return to Hogarth in the building’s balcony and convince him to move to Fairfield along with everyone in the town. You can choose any dialogue options during your conversation to let him know that Westport is done and dusted, and he and the people can’t live there anymore. Though we went with these dialogues in our playthrough:
- “I… hate to rain on the mood, but Westport’s finished. You all need to move to Fairfield.”
- “This place is closer to death than you realize. You don’t have power anymore.”
- “You should leave with your people.”
- “Even though your dream of a reduced sentence will be impossible with your subjects gone?”
- “I’m sure they will as you die slowly, strung up as an example to all the other traitors.”
- “I wish safe travels to you and your people, Vigilant.”
That’ll do it. Hogarth will finally admit defeat and order the evacuation. Once he leaves, you can return to Minister Milverstreet to complete the The Brain Benders of Auntie’s Choice quest.
How to Convince Westport to Defect
If you’d rather not play corporate saboteur, you can take the diplomatic approach but expect more legwork and plenty of Speech checks (Speech 4 is required). You’ll need to convince three main townspeople: Curativist Rowe, Interim Chief Mechanist Pinckney, and Charlton Weintraut.
Curativist Rowe
You’ll find Rowe inside the clinic on the first floor of Hogarth’s building. Offer her the Case of Auntie’s Choice Ambidextrine Milverstreet gave you. Passing a Speech 2 check gets her attention, but she’s still hesitant.
From here, you have options:
- Speech 2 + Medicine 2, or Leadership 3: Convince her to leave immediately.
- If you fail those, she’ll ask for extra medicine, forcing you to visit the flooded north end of town for Waterlogged Protectorate Medicine. You only need four, though there’s more scattered around if you’re thorough. Be ready to fight Raptidons and Crabbles there.
Once she’s stocked up, she’ll agree to head for Fairfield.
Interim Chief Mechanist Pinckney
Pinckney is at the front gate of Westport, repairing a mech. He is jaded, loyal out of duty, and only needs a push. In the same way as you did in the previous choice, you need to sabotage the broadcast system by collecting a keycard from the balcony. He’ll hear the new “Auntie’s propaganda” and be far easier to sway with new dialogue options unlocked once you talk to him again. Without sabotage, you’ll need to pass Speech 3 and Speech 4 checks to convince him that life’s better (and better paid) in Fairfield.
Charlton Weintraut
Charlton is in the plaza, purple stains around his mouth hinting at his secret love of Purpleberry Krunch. Before confronting him, explore the small house cluster northwest of the ruins outside Westport. Inside his home, check the terminal for logs revealing his obsession with Auntie’s products. Don’t forget to pick up Shaina Grade Tossball Card on the desk left of the terminal.
With the evidence in hand, confront him in the courtyard. Call him out gently, then offer a case of Purpleberry Krunch to buy his loyalty, and he’ll then agree to relocate to Fairfield.
Convince Hogarth
With all three key citizens on board, go back to Hogarth. Choose dialogue that acknowledges his leadership but points out his people are already leaving. He’ll finally agree to follow them to Fairfield.
Return to Minister Milverstreet
Once you have convinced Hogarth and all Westport people to move to Fairfield, fast-travel back to Milverstreet and report on your task. He’ll shower you with corporate praise and rewards:
- 2382 Bits
- 1080 XP
- Limited Production Gentleman’s Oxonian Hat
- +3 Auntie’s Choice Reputation
If you also finished The Saga of the Malfunctioning Mechanicals, you can press him for extra payment with the line “Hogarth helped me on his own. You still owe me.” That nets an extra 350 Bits.
Should You Sabotage Westport Infrastructure or Do Westport Defections?
Both methods lead to the same outcome — the citizens of Westport relocate, and you get Milverstreet’s support for infiltrating the Vox Relay. Sabotaging the Westport system is the recommended choice because it’s easier than convincing people and also unlocks a crucial option in the main quest, The Saboteur of Paradise.
Final Tip: Before leaving Westport for good, double-check every workstation and container — a few Auntie’s consumables and rare Tossball Cards are scattered around, especially near the water purifier and Charlton’s house. Once everyone evacuates, the town becomes a ghost settlement, and you won’t be able to loot it later.
