There is a tale of two Commander Ellen Fords. There is the Ellen Ford that stayed at home, graduated from college, went into accounting, got married, had three kids, and started checking off her bucket list. Gamers will never know that Ellen Ford.
Because of the Root, there is only the Remnant: From the Ashes Commander Ford. This list will highlight the details of that person that players only meet for a few brief minutes.
10 Cissy Jones
When players ask questions about a character that gets single-digit minutes of screen time, it can be certain that some of the magic is due to a stellar vocal performance. Cissy Jones, the voice behind Commander Ellen Ford, provides exactly that.
Gamers should know this is not the first time hearing Cissy Jones dazzle in a video game or an RPG like Remnant: From the Ashes. They'll have heard her as Delilah in Firewatch, Olga in Half-Life: Alyx, Sloane in Destiny 2, and Nora Fries in Batman: Arkham Knight, among many other appearances, both in video games and television alike.
9 Lifesaver
Without Ford, there is no Remnant: From the Ashes video game at all. Sure, she points the direction and offers some resources to help the character survive more easily, but this is hardly the first time she helped the protagonist.
The whole reason the player lives to see Ward 13 is that she and Rigs saved the main character's life prior to the very first quest. Think of her what you will, but without her, there is no video game, just a gigantic game over screen.
8 This For That
She might have saved the player character's life by pulling them out of the wreckage, but compassion was only half of the equation. Quid Pro Quo is the name of the game when operating as a commanding officer with dwindling resources.
Before helping the character, she asks them to check in the Reactor room. The terminal needs to be initialized and there are plenty of dangers around, even inside the base. It's not quite sending them into one of the game's deadly boss fights, but it is a risk she's willing to take with someone else's life.
7 Promise Keeper
Commander Ford did not earn her position by burning bridges. She might have to take a few calculated gambles and make a few bargains, but she always comes through. It's appreciated when face-to-face with some of the hardest enemies in the game.
Her tasks, while potentially life-threatening, are well-rewarded. Ford hooks the player up with Ace, who gives them an entire loadout, then she shows them where to upgrade equipment, and she connects them with McCabe, who has access to some helpful weapons mods.
6 In Charge
Her generosity is a treat, not an expectation. "Commander" might seem like an illustrious title, given the post-apocalyptic state of the world and the lack of a governing body to run a legal military, but the position is treated as a real title by all of the citizens of Ward 13.
The player will meet other characters, ones they will get to know much better than the commander, but each of them, from Ace Cotterill to Les, reports directly to her, and most are following the orders that she gives. Put her on the leader wish-list for the next Civilization game.
5 Earned Her Position
It might be considered that she inherited her position through heritage (more on that later), but this is far from the case. When progressing through the game, other non-player characters will comment on how Ellen Ford was a soldier of the highest caliber.
And do not conveniently forget the beginning where she saved the main character's life personally. She might be a respected leader, but she gets her hands dirty and isn't afraid to do dirty work. And unlike Commander Shepard from the Mass Effect series, she's never done anything unforgivable.
4 Well-Connected
Social currency is not a fictional concept. Yes, governments around the world have tried to implement some sort of official credit system based on social behavior with mostly negligible results, but this does not mean that the notion is to be ignored.
By knowing people, helping them, and having positive interactions, Commander Ellen Ford commands even more than her title already suggests. Her connections extend well past the borders and citizens of Ward 13, to people like Mud Tooth and travelers that give her a friendly heads up on how far the Root has progressed.
3 Shorthanded
All the connections in the world don't make up for an uphill battle against a plague unlike anything the world has ever seen. The Root is not a foe that can be fought with purely conventional means. Trying to do so will always equate to a deficit in personnel.
Commander Ford is shorthanded and she knows it. When strolling around Ward 13, gamers will notice that the "refugees" don't behave like huddled masses like in other games from the genre; they're equipped and kept healthy. This might be a pandemic-themed video game, but Ford isn't interested in slowly dying out.
2 Grandfather - Founder Ford
Founder Andrew Ford is the grandfather of Ellen Ford and is not present until a little way into the game. Held in the aptly named Yaesha - Founder's Prison, he gives the player a key to access Ward 17 and helps the survivors indirectly through the player character.
Fans of the game might be familiar with his exploits, his final stand at Yaesha, and his founding of Ward 13. He's had a brief stint with immortality so if players are wondering why he and Ford don't look far enough apart in age, there it is.
1 Grandmother - Root Mother
Mud Tooth comments that Commander Ford is a good person with a "sad family." Ford's parents aren't in the picture and her grandfather is locked away, which is sad enough, but it's probable that the tragedy Mud Tooth references is this one.
In an effort to try and understand the Root, Evelyn Ceder, Commander Ellen Ford's grandmother, made the sacrifice to give herself over to the Root so that she could interface with it. She does indeed learn information that saves the people of Ward 13 and beyond, but at the cost of her own humanity.