Origin: Ben stumbled upon Richard while searching for his mother's ghost.
Since Then: Richard didn't let Ben into the Others at first, urging him to be patient. A few years later, Richard healed him in the Temple. Ben worked with the Others while living with the DHARMA Initiative, and Ben and Richard together carried out the Purge. Ben became the Others' leader, and Richard brought him instructions from Jacob, including several lists. Richard also occasionally left the island for such errands as recruiting Juliet. After the survivors kidnapped Ben and attackers arrived from the freighter, Richard brought a group of Others to rescue him. Ben then left the island for a few years, then returned and inadvertently helped the Man in Black kill Jacob. Richard and Ben worked together for some days to keep the Man in Black on the island.
Origin: A time traveling Locke approached Richard, claiming to be his leader
Since Then: Richard visited Locke three times off-island but failed to see anything special about him. When Locke crashed on the island though, Richard learned the paralyzed man could now Locke. Ben demanded Locke kill his father to join the Others, and Richard helped him get Sawyer to kill him instead. When Locke became the Others' leader, Richard welcomed him. The Man in Black later approached him in Locke's form, surprising Richard with his new-found purpose. At his instruction, Richard approached another time-traveling Locke with directions and a compass.
