Recruiting: Down in the Gutter - Second Phase, Life in Redmond's Newest Street Gang Options

[Eyeless Blond]

First comment: take it to the rules discussion. This is the recruitment thread.

That's why we made the rules thread; we were getting too many different conversations going in this thread, and we kinda lost one of the people who wanted to join.

[lkim]

Uh.. quick question... where is rules thread?

[Slipshade]

Ikim - Go back one page and you will find it. Your search-fu is weak. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[WinterRat1]

Whipstitch, Dantic, Spike - Congratulations, you three are approved for DITG! I will include your PCs' intros in my Event 3 post, which I'm working on now. Welcome aboard and I'm looking forward to GMing for you guys! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Dantic - You didn't answer question 20, but Vegas and Slipshade let you through, so I'm assuming you already talked to them about this. I'll expect this to be answered after you actually join the October Ravens.

[Whipstitch]

Glee.

Oh, I didn't put in any info for starting cash other than it's coming off the low lifestyle table. How do you guys prefer handling rolls? Should I roll it myself from a particular online roller, do you guys do it or do we work via the honor system?

[WinterRat1]

Either one is fine.

[Whipstitch]

Figures. I remembered where I'd found rolling guidelines (under combat) about a minute after I posted. Darn DS and the no deleting posts. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

[Eyeless Blond]

Arrgh, so much for mechanics being complete. I just found a fundamental flaw in my character's design that I need to correct, but it rather cuts to the core so it's going to take a little while. Um, will have things wrapped up in 24 hrs, probably.

Sorry for being so anal about Drip; I'm still getting used to the SR4 matrix/rigging rules, and I want to keep the landmines to a minimum, both to keep me from having headaches and to ensure that everything goes smoothly for the game, and thus the GMs.

[Bearclaw]

Bearclaw –

I took a glance at Rico’s CS, and just off a quick glance, at the minimum you have to address the following issues:

1. Your Intimidation (Physical) skill and specialty exceeds our limit of 4. You will need to reduce this to max out at 4 somehow.

Fixed to 2/4 physical

2. You still have contacts that are official NPCs on our NPC list. Vegas has explicitly stated multiple times this is not allowed. Please change your contacts accordingly. While you are there, Smokey Joe’s information is not going to be enough and will require more detail, because there is nothing there, for all functional purposes.

sorry about that, I thought I was doing a good thing by using local contacts. I even erased a couple I had in favor of local guys. I'll fix that ASAP.
Smokey Joe is an NPC, proprietor of the "U Lock U Store".

3. As we have said over and over again you have to do takes for everyone. It doesn’t matter who he knows yet and who he doesn’t.
This is for what Rico’s initial impressions of all the other gang members are likely to be, based upon what you know of them from their character sheets on the wiki, what you’ve heard on the streets, what you know Rico is likely to respond with given how they’ve acted so far in the IC thread, etc. As you meet them in game and your opinions change, your takes section will be updated accordingly.

I should be done with this by the end of the day.

[Dantic]

Whipstitch, Dantic, Spike - Congratulations, you three are approved for DITG! I will include your PCs' intros in my Event 3 post, which I'm working on now. Welcome aboard and I'm looking forward to GMing for you guys! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Dantic - You didn't answer question 20, but Vegas and Slipshade let you through, so I'm assuming you already talked to them about this. I'll expect this to be answered after you actually join the October Ravens.

Wheeeee! Yeah, will answer 20, ASAP after actually joining up boss. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/grinbig.gif)

[Spike]

Woot, finally got some takes on Maus to read. Fun fun fun! Got a chuckle at Rico's takes when I got down to Thumper....

Anyway, I'll go and change the Maus starting money to reflect the roll. Hopefully he'll survive long enough to make the long process of getting on board cost effective (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif)

[Spike]

Just wanted to point out that I've just put up 'My History' of teh Brickhouse Boys in the Community Projects thread. Anyone want to take a gander and give me/us some feedback that'd be awesome. Of course, while doing it I half felt like I should have statted up and tried to play Crowbar....

...


Or not. Dead guys is no fun...

[HeySparky]

Nice work, Crowba-- er... Spike.

----

Related: What are the prevailing road conditions in the Barrens regarding vehicle movement?

[Spike]

Okay:

I've added to the existing timeline for the Brickhouse Boys to cover their entire existance as the 'Brickhouse Boys', that is this newest, and most recently destroyed, incarnation. Ok, so by my reckonning the only 'destroyed' incarnation...

I've expanded the rivalry between the AK's and the BB's a bit. Some of it is in the rough draft history still being polished in the other thread (waiting for more input before its retyped and approved), some of it occured to me during the 'timeline' phase.

Essentially the Boys went down for a couple of reasons:

Arrogance, believing they were more capable than they were, enhanced by membership bloat (lots of 'part time' boys who dropped out the moment things turned nasty) and the fact that the Asphalt Kings were not able to really focus on them until the truce that lead to the Kingsgate War.

Moving out of the Yard: The tenements that make up the Brickyard neighborhood are massively populated and the building themselves are a virtual fortress by urban standards. Had the Boys restricted themselves to petty landlords in the Yard they might have thrived, but Crowbar was a booster by nature, and his Boys needed cars to steal and garages to run, that meant taking turf outside 'Fortress Yard'. By itself, not a fatal weakness, but to help direct his gang's moneymaking prospects, Crowbar moved his entire operation out to the chopshops. Without a strong defensive bent (being used to the relative safety of hte Yard) they were extemely vulnerable to a decapitation strike, which is exactly what happened.

Decapitation: Crowbar was the entire driving force behind the Boys expansion. While a capable leader, he wasn't much of an organizer or planner. Ambition coupled with a throughly average intellect. Since no other Boy had yet developed his ambition internally, when he went down with his lieutentants on 19 October, all that was left were the hard core Peacoats with no real idea what to do next, and the 'rest of them' who hadn't really been that excited by the entire 'move out of the yard' idea anyway.

Schism: this was the real killer. Trojan and Johnny Soho (and Maus and the rest of us new guys) were basically cut off from their support structure when the old guard Yardies closed ranks and ditched the Peacoats. Some may still have ties and access to the tenements while others (Maus in particular) are utterly out in the cold. While the 'peacoats' were out getting revenge, the rest of the 'gang' fled, leaving the second Chop Shop unguarded, along with any other assets they couldn't haul back to the tenements with them. The survivors of the revenge mission found themselves with no where to hole up, and a lot of working girls and other street assets found themselves with no one at all protecting them.


In an alternative world, Crowbar might have survived the hit on the chop shop. This wouldn't have stopped the schism, but it would have possibly reduced its impact. The BB's might have holed up in their second shop, or been able to retreat back to the Yard (having more old Yardies in the Peacoats, and Crowbar being a Yardie as well) despite the loss of most of their numbers. It is debatable if such a move would have stopped the war, or if the BBs could have simply ridden out the storm from 'Fortress Brickyard' until they'd learned a few more survival skills as a gang.

In short, they got too big too fast and a combination of too much good luck (early on) compounded the effects of too little good luck later (when Crowbar went down...)

not that anything is set in stone until WR1 gives us the nod.... (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sleepy.gif)

[Eyeless Blond]

Related: What are the prevailing road conditions in the Barrens regarding vehicle movement?

Well, no one's done any maintenance on them in ~40-50 years...

Ever drive around LA? (IMG:style_emoticons/default/nyahnyah.gif)

[lkim]

LA's not that bad. Although road are narrow, parked car on each side, and all the drivers in LA's not a very good driver (Asians, Uh!), it's still drivable.

PS. I'm not offending any Asians out there right? If it helps, I am Asian too (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Spike]

Dear God! Even the Asian drivers are bitching about Asian Drivers?!?

I'm one to talk, I drive like I'm in a race... and yet I rarely speed... its a mystery

[Havok]

Are you still looking for players?

[Eyeless Blond]

I suggest you put up a teaser and see if one of the GMs bite. Some of us are still working on builds, so I think there's still plenty of time to sign up.

[Slipshade]

Are you still looking for players?

Officially this Recruitment phase is over, but If you really look over the links at the beginning of this thread (That means read all of the character creation rules on the wiki and abide by them) and come up with a concept that we really like, you can still get in.

Though if I hear one "I know this goes against the rules, but can I...." Or one "Can I just tweak...." or anything to that effect you can forget it. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

Oh and NO adepts or mages!

Of course if WinterRat1 comes by and says no then you are out of luck. He has final say on all recruitment.

[Vegas]

Havok

Just to echo Slipshade's comments, I left this in response to your previous request back on the 28th. We hadn't forgotten you, I think the reply just got lost in the shuffle.

We'd be willing to consider another player. However the "hand holding" that has been going on in this thread to this date is drawing to a close. Really almost any answer to chargen questions can be found in this thread or the original recruiting thread. Specific questions of course will be answered, usually best done by PM'ing the GM or Me or Slipshade.

What we'll need from you is: a couple of paragraphs on the concept the more detail the better. Once we get a better feel for your character concept and idea of their background we'll be able to offer you provisional approval and allow you on the wiki to build your character and complete the various pages before review (Stats, Gear, Background, Takes).

Be advised you are going to have to impress us with the concept and backstory because there are a couple of red flags to the character
1) the age. It really is going to have to go up to at least 13 (late middle school to high school aged characters)
2) the whole Tir Nobility thing has got to be seriously explained as to how he ends up in the Barrens. Plus ALL ties are going to have to be severed to the Tir before and during his run in the Barrens if you REALLY are married to the concept.
3) we're not recruiting for ANY magical characters right now, just a heads up since I know you didn't mention it, but just wanted to be sure that we're all clear (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[Havok]

I have a couple of different concepts that I'll post later for you guys to look over. I don't have time to post them tonight but I'll work on it first thing tomorrow.

[Havok]

Here's some rough ideas, I'm not married to any of the concepts. Give me a holler if you're interested, if not I've got plenty more. Only one of the concepts is underage, and that is Feeler (IMG:style_emoticons/default/rotfl.gif)

Dante, former combat biker
Dante was living the good life up until fairly recently as the rising star of combat biking. He was good. Really good. And in that statement was his problem, because Dante was also cocky as hell and not afraid to show it. And being cocky in the world of combat biking gets you killed, real quick. His real ability was his speed and maneuverability, having had the money to pay for Wired Reflexes 3 was a real asset. Unfortunately, he wasn't quick enough one night, as Ludo's trollish bouncers started to work on him. Dante survived, but barely, and his Wired Reflexes were damaged in the fight. At the same time, there was a new prodigy on the field by the name of Flash McGee, an adept with lightning-fast reflexes and a penchant for berserker rages. Dante was finished... Destitute, nowhere to turn for help, Dante turned to the only people who were ecstatic to see him... the gangers. Those who could afford a TV knew who he was, even if they didn't know what had happened. He had just "worked his way up" to the Brickhouse Boys before that fateful night happened, and his reflexes were the only thing that saved him from the carnage that night. Notes: Dante has a malfunctioning Wired Reflexes (3) unit with a funky side effect. It functions just as a Wired Reflexes (2) except that sometimes his unit will spasm and basically send him into a seizure (up to the DM when this happens). To counter that, he needs to spend every round he has the Wired Reflexes active performing at least two actions per round. This leads to him constantly twitching and pacing. Has skills in Monowhips, Bikes, Intimidation, and Dodge.

Todd Mcclain, the guy to go to
Everyone has a dealer, a guy to buy stuff from. Everyone has a fence. Todd used to be that guy. The guy that knows everyone worth knowing, the guy that can get you the stuff you need without asking questions. Then he made the wrong sell to the wrong people and started a gang war, or at least people are happy to blame him for it. Now, cut off from his former contacts in the big gangs, Todd is trying to work his way back up from the damned streets once again. The promising gang he'd had his eyes on, the Brickhouse Boys, well now they'd just gone and gotten themselves shot up. What the hell was the world coming to anyways? Notes: Has a lot of contacts in gangs like the Ancients, the Spikes, even shadowrunner contacts, but has the Hung out to Dry flaw and can't buy it back with Karma. He has to roleplay re-initiating those contacts and oh yeah they've all changed their numbers. Has a lot of social skills and a lot of contacts. Still has a fair amount of money left over from his dealing days, and a lot of the former Brickhouse Boys know Todd and/or bought from/sold to him when he was a "big boy".

Doc Havok, street doc
Everyone needs love sometimes, even gangers. And love is about all Doc Havok is good at. Sure, maybe he used to be a great doctor. Maybe he used to be one of the pioneers of cybertech. That was all before the alcohol set in. Now, the gangers are the only ones willing to trust their lives with someone as shady as Doc Havok has become. Notes: Being one of the former forerunners in cybertechnology, Doc has a 3 in cybertechnology with a specialization in bodyware giving him a 5 total, with a 4 in first aid. To balance that out, he has Addiction: Burnout (Alcohol) and is often wasted when operating on a patient. If the gang can get him back on his feet, he could prove a powerful asset (Any and all karma earned MUST go towards buying off his alcohol addiction before Doc can advance any of his skills, and the gang has to take steps to help him get over his addiction.) Has medical skills, knowledge skills, and a high intelligence tempered by alcohol poisoning.

Axe, ganger soldier
Ever heard about the guy you don't fuck with? "Yeah, that's Axe over there. Dont fuck with him" is right. Axe is one of the most brutal and violent of all the gangers in town. Not only did he survive the bloodshed on that fateful night, Axe thrived on it, hunting rival gang members down in the streets howling for blood. If only he had been a troll, the Spikes might have taken him, but nobody cares about a lone orc wreaking havoc in the streets. Axe barely manages to keep himself contained at the moment, but the first person to piss him off better watch the fuck out. Note: Due to the nature of this character, he may be inappropriate for this game. Axe is by far the most likely character to incite war among the gangs again, and if theres not a powerful leader figure to keep him in check he might very well bring doom down upon the ganger family. He's a very powerful, very durable soldier and a great asset if used properly, but I won't bring him out unless theres a PC leader figure who's willing to step up and put him in his place. On the other hand, if there is a strong leader figure, Axe will follow him to hell and back.

Feeler, techiebopper
Feeler is that kid that just wants somebody to love him. Since the tender age of 2 years old, Feeler has been taking toys apart and putting them back together. The kid is a technical genius, and can not only drive your car to him remotely, he can have it kick you out and then start taking itself apart. Feeler can tear down and rebuild almost anything the gangers are likely to encounter, and is unfailingly loyal to one of the PCs, but beware. If his loyalty is even once damaged in the slightest, it will be shattered forever. Needs a strong father figure to play under. Note: Feeler was a 13 yr old technojunkie manning a chop shop who was just kicking back and having a good time until the war. Now, the war changed something in him and his ideology has been shattered. Has mechanical build/repair skills, and not much else. Slightly obsessed with one of the PCs, Feeler even goes to the point of idolizing him and has a shrine somewhere in his shop.

[Spike]

I was definitely getting a 'reoccuring theme' vibe off those guys...


Did you feel it?


I felt it.

[Havok]

Lol if you're going to be in a small-time gang trying to claw its way up from the abyss, its good to have psychoses