Lincoln Clay

"Family isn't who you're born with, it's who you die for."

- Lincoln in the trailer.

"You are who you are and there's no point in arguing with yourself about it."

- Lincoln to Tommy Marcano.

"My name is Lincoln Clay mother*****"

- Lincoln to Nino.

Lincoln Clay is the protagonist of Mafia III, the third game in the Mafia Series, as well as it's DLC. He is a Vietnam War veteran who plans to start a new life and set up his own criminal empire. He is portrayed by Alex Hernandez.

Early Life
Thus far, all that has been revealed of Lincoln's early years is that he grew up in Saint Michelle's orphanage in New Bordeaux. However, the orphanage closed down when he was still young, and he was taken in by the Robinson family. Lincoln began to see them like family and worked with the Black Mob, also being a bartender and mechanic. When he came of age, he joined the United States Army, seeing combat in the Vietnam War and befriending CIA agent John Donovan. Clay witnesses unthinkable things that continued to haunt him when he returned to New Bordeaux. In addition, Clay was trained by the CIA in psychological warfare, and was trained with military hardware in his service.

Upon being discharged from the Army, Lincoln returned to New Bordeaux and began to help his family on dealings with Marcano and killing Haitian Mob boss Baka. After aiding The Marcano's on robbing a bank, he is shot by his friend Giorgi and sees his family and friends murdered by Sal, Giorgi and Doucet in Sammy's Bar. Saved by Father James, Lincoln was left with a scar on his face and was treated for months as John Donavon was called in by the priest. Angered and wanting revenge, he decides to establish himself as a powerful gangster, both in pursuit of a better life and to exact revenge against the Marcanos for killing his family.

Lincoln gains the alliance of Italian boss Vito Scaletta, real Haitian boss Cassandra, and Irish boss Thomas Burke to destroy the Marcano Crime Family branch. Decisions on who gets what districts and gaining/killing Marcano's allies are based on the player.

Lincoln successfully kills all Marcano assets, associates, and the family all together by October of 1968.

Rule Together
After Sal Marcano's death, Lincoln and the group ran New Bordeaux, spreading to Florida. Despite being smart with his money, Lincoln gave into anything that made him money (e.g. drugs) and lost the only person who cared for him; Father James.

Rule Alone
If Lincoln kills the underbosses, he will be killed in a car explosion planed by Father James. James states he has no regrets for killing him, but feels that Lincoln's spirit is watching him, often stating he hears heavy boots go on the stairs and waiting to take what left of his life.

Leave New Bordeaux
If Lincoln decides to heed Father James' words, he leaves New Bordeaux and becomes a nomadic traveler. There were reports of sightings of him in California, but he ran away and disappeared without a trace. James states that he still gets postcards from Lincoln, whom he believes can't accept the world for what it is or his place in it.

Personality
Not much is yet known of Clay's personality other than that he is a fairly serious man who values those he refers to as family. Having grown up in Saint Michelle's orphanage, he has never had a conventional family, thus he looks to the black mob as a source of support and love. He is extremely protective of those he views as family due to having lost his "family" 2 times in his life, the first time when the orphanage he grew up in closed down and the second time when the Italian mafia murdered the black mob. He clearly despises the Marcanos for what they have done to his family, as evidenced by the way he speaks to a Mafioso he is about to execute; in particular, he feels their concept of a family based solely on blood ties and surnames is a mockery of what a family is supposed to be.

After being betrayed and losing his family, Lincoln showed the darker side of his personality. He became lethal, bloodthirsty, and vengeful, wanting Sal Marcano to watch as he takes everything from him. His bloodthirst for revenge lead him to often leave his victims in public to scare people who opposed him.

Despite his bloodthirsty behavior, Lincoln is calm and keeps his emotions in check despite being a time of prejudice. He is kind, caring, grateful, and open minded towards his friends and allies. An example is accepting Nikki Burke being attracted to the same sex despite her father's disapproval. He is outgoing and compassionate, willing to make friends with those of the opposite color. In addition, Lincoln has a moral code, refusing to kill woman as Donavon stated in trial. He didn't kill Oliva Marcano, knowing that she would be killed by an associate.

Lincoln truly suffered from not having an identity, feeling he didn't belong in the world, thus explaining why he joined the army. The only thing his experience in Vietnam gave him were nightmares and unspeakable carnage, giving him PTSD and making unable to sleep peacefully. This would cause him to try to find his purpose in life, as he notes in his journal that he wanted to move to California with a welding gig upon his return from Vietnam.

Mission Appearances
Mafia III' As the player character, Lincoln will more than likely appear in every mission in the game.

Murders committed by Lincoln

 * Baka
 * Ritchie Doucet
 * Frank Pagani
 * Tony Derazio
 * Chester Moreau
 * Remy Duvall
 * Tommy Marcano
 * Nino Santengelo
 * Cornelius Holden
 * Lou Marcano
 * Giorgi Marcano
 * High Priest

Family

 * Unnamed mother (Deceased)
 * Unnamed father (Deceased)
 * Sammy Robinson (Surrogate Father, Deceased)
 * Perla Robinson (Surrogate Mother, Deceased)
 * Ellis Robinson (Surrogate Brother, Deceased)

Trivia

 * He is the first mixed race, non-Italian protagonist in the series.
 * Like Vito Scaletta, Lincoln is a U.S. Army combat veteran.