Thaddeus Campbell

"To Every Man his choice; to Every Man his fate."

- Thaddeus Campbell

Thaddeus Campbell is the High Overseer of the Abbey of the Everyman in 1837 and is in league with the Lord Regent, Hiram Burrows, in his treacherous plot to usurp Empress Jessamine Kaldwin.

He is the main assassination target of the mission High Overseer Campbell.

Biography
Thaddeus Campbell was appointed High Overseer in the year 1818. Despite Campbell's high position within the restrictive Abbey of the Everyman, he is known to lead an extremely decadent and deviant lifestyle. The Heart reveals that "He breaks each of the Seven Strictures daily. It is his own private joke". He maintains a secret chamber beneath the Office of the High Overseer that is filled with mattresses and lingerie, plus notes discussing his dealings with the Golden Cat and an audiograph regarding Corvo Attano's escape from Coldridge Prison. He keeps a rune in the room as well, in a protective glass case beside a copy of Litany on the White Cliff. Rumors of Campbell's lifestyle are seemingly known to the population of Dunwall; Samuel Beechworth comments on it himself, saying, "Maybe it's not my place to say, but men of the faith shouldn't live like barons".

Campbell regularly resorts to blackmail to achieve his aims, keeping a journal where he records secrets about a great number of Overseers. Teague Martin claims that it is through blackmail that he was able to ascend to the position of High Overseer. When Corvo is sent to eliminate Campbell, he is also tasked with retrieving Campbell's journal, which Martin in turn uses to ascend through the ranks of the Abbey.

Campbell seems willing to kill to retain his position; a note in his secret room from Madame Prudence implies that he has murdered courtesans who have attempted to blackmail him.

Dishonored
Allying with the Royal Spymaster Hiram Burrows, Campbell organizes the assassination of Empress Jessamine Kaldwin, resulting in Burrows taking control of the Empire, backed with Campbell's religious power. The Empress' former Royal Protector, Corvo Attano, was to be made a scapegoat and executed for her murder, but the day before the scheduled execution he was delivered from custody by the political group calling themselves the Loyalist Conspiracy, keen on overthrowing the newly appointed Lord Regent Burrows' reign, with Corvo serving as their weapon. Being Lord Regent's closest ally, the High Overseer was condemned to death by the Loyalists. Corvo Attano was sent after him.

Before leaving, Corvo is approached by Callista Curnow, niece of City Watch Officer Geoff Curnow. She states that Campbell is plotting to murder her uncle due to tensions between the City Watch and the Overseers, and Curnow's aversion to corruption, and asks Corvo to stop him.

Upon arriving to the Abbey headquarters, Corvo witnesses the confrontation between Campbell and Curnow, and is able to decide its outcome. Ultimately the former Royal Protector engineers the hierarch's downfall, which he may do in two various ways:


 * The first option is killing the High Overseer, thus ending the religious support for the Lord Regent's reign. Aside from the trivial assassin's weaponry, the environment provides some creative ways to achieve the goal, such as using the poisoned wine meant for Captain Curnow, or having him meet the Officer in the face-to-face fight to death, among others.


 * The non-lethal option of eliminating the High Overseer requires Corvo to render the target unconscious and mark his face with the so-called Heretic's Brand, a device used on disgraced persons to make them outcasts for every member of society. Thus Campbell is banned from the Abbey, and Lord Regent loses his prominent ally.

Canon fate
Canon-wise, the non-lethal approach was taken and Campbell became an outlaw, ultimately catching the plague and slowly subduing to the disease, spending his last days locked at the abandoned refinery at the Flooded District. With his final thoughts, he cursed Corvo Attano.

Trivia

 * Campbell is voiced by Daniel Hagen.
 * If Corvo takes the decanter of cider next to Campbell as he poses for Anton Sokolov's painting during Returning Home, it will be missing in the final version.
 * Campbell uses his sword and pistol as his weapons, and is only as strong as a typical City Watch Guard, if not weaker.
 * Curnow can kill and occasionally will decapitate Campbell in a single stroke if notified right before Campbell attempts to assassinate him. This will not be counted as a kill in the mission stats or void the Clean hands achievement.
 * If neutralized with the Heretic's Brand, Campbell can later be found as a weeper in The Flooded District mission, in the room where Corvo's gear can be recovered. Also in the room is a letter, written by Campbell shortly before he loses his mental faculties.
 * In this letter, Campbell blames Corvo for the branding, regardless of Corvo's detection status.
 * This fate for Campbell is canon to Dishonored 2, according to co-creative director Harvey Smith.
 * An Overseer mentions Campbell's fate to civilians at the Canal Plaza in the Campo Seta Dockyards. He says his name must not be spoken and that all written records of him have been erased from records following his branding.
 * As with all other assassination targets, if Corvo decides to murder Campbell with his sword, a special animation plays. In it, Campbell will attack Corvo with his sword, only for Corvo to slice Campbell's right arm off at the elbow, grab him by the throat, and stab him in the neck. If Campbell is approached from behind, Corvo will swing him around, stab him in the stomach, grab his head, and then stab him in the neck.
 * If Corvo possess Campbell or Curnow after they have drunk the poison, a unique gameover screen appears, stating "You Have Been Poisoned".
 * Burrows seemed to hold Campbell in high regard. When being escorted to the Coldrigde prison, he complains about how the former High Overseer's wits could have been of use to him. On the other hand, Campbell seemed to secretly despise his ally. In his last letter he reveals his plan to get rid of the Lord Regent by using the Heretic's Brand on him.
 * Campbell's secret chamber can be accessed before Corvo ever enters the Office, as the left eye of a nearby statue of Holger grants access when pressed. This is most easily done when sneaking under the building using the sewers and the kennels, as the secret chamber is on the same level.

Gallery
