During the mission "The Hammers Fall," you will encounter Ron Hope – a criminal responsible for poisoning farmlands. Ron's goal was to extract valuable resources from the destroyed farmlands and use them in his own production.

Ron is a major player, managing the Freestar Collective and owning the HopeTech corporation. You will decide Ron's fate – whether to spare his life or make him face the law. We'll go through all possible choices in this guide.

What You Can Do with Ron

There are actually four options, but some of them are similar. Here are the actions you can choose in your conversation with Ron:

• Kill him when attempting to arrest him.
• Take a bribe of 20,000 credits and release the criminal.
• Use the Negotiation skill to increase the bribe amount to 50,000 credits and release the criminal.
• Refuse the bribe and let him go.

You can't simply arrest Ron without a fight – he will resist and attack, so you'll have to kill him in any case. Keep in mind that three of his guards will also attack.

All the other options involve taking a bribe, and some of your companions may not approve of your choice. For instance, Sam Coe will support making the criminal pay for his actions, and he won't like any attempt to negotiate or let Ron go without consequences.

If You Kill Ron

To attack Ron, choose two options from the Attack section in your dialogue with him:

• "Bribes and threats aren't going to work on me."
• "If you refuse to come quietly, I'll have to use force."

Marshall Daniel Blake will be disappointed by the news of Ron's death, but you will have evidence of his wrongdoing, so there won't be any further questions. You can inform the marshal:

• "Paxton Hull took his secrets to the grave."
• "They covered their tracks well. I didn't learn anything useful."

In any case, the organization will be satisfied with the mission's completion and will promote you to the rank of a full-fledged ranger of the Freestar Collective. As a reward, you will receive the Ranger Spacesuit and the Justicier shotgun.

If You Spare Ron

Choose the following response options:

• "For your employees' sake, I'll keep your secret, but your scheme ends now."
• "You'd better keep your word, Hope."

Ron will take with him the only piece of evidence confirming his guilt and cover his tracks. The outcome will be the same, but with one difference – you will have to lie to the marshal and tell him that you couldn't track down Ron, and the criminal escaped. This news will disappoint the marshal.

In either case, the organization will be satisfied with the mission's completion and will promote you to the rank of a full-fledged ranger of the Freestar Collective. As a reward, you will receive the Ranger Spacesuit and the Justicier shotgun.

Conclusion: What to Choose?

The choice is always yours. Arresting Ron is the most neutral and fair option (from a legal perspective) that won't have negative consequences. However, if you do want to take the credits, remember that you need to accept the bribe immediately. There won't be a second chance, and after the first refusal, you'll lose the opportunity to get the money.